Scotland’s international competitiveness within Western Europe

The paper measures regional competitiveness of Scotland in comparison to ten EU regions and small countries using the International Benchmarking Index Family (‘IB Index Family’) developed by BAK Basel Economics.1 The IB Index Family contains an index with three dimensions of competitiveness: Performance, Attractiveness and Structural Potential. The Performance Index measures recent economic success; the Attractiveness Index measures how well a region is an attractive location to companies and highly-qualified individuals; and the Structural Potential Index estimates future potential economic growth based on current economic structure. The application of the IB Index Family provides a first-step into a more in-depth benchmarking of the competitiveness of a region, which is necessary when working towards detailed policy conclusions. The paper explains these measurement tools and applies them in a short benchmarking analysis of Scotland and ten EU regions and small nations (e.g. Ireland, Norway, Western Sweden etc.)

ON THE EFFICIENCY OF ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS – THE INFLUENCE OF THE EXCHANGED POWER AND THE PENALTY OF THE AUXILIARIES

Storage is an important domain of the energy sector, with its traditional, classical solutions for smaller and larger amounts of energy. Energy storage has become of higher importance in relation with the development of alternative energy sources, leading to the development of new technologies. The energy efficiency of the storage means is an important parameter, being often not considered in the conception and design of the applications. For the evaluation of the energetic performance of a storage device, a well-adapted tool has been proposed, namely “The Theory of Ragone Plots”. This tool sets in evidence in what way the effectively recoverable energy amount of a device is depending on the power level of the charge/discharge process. Further, the taking into account of the power needed for the auxiliary equipment of a storage system like the circulation pumps of a flow battery, the vacuum pumps of a flywheel or the forced cooling of a battery can lead to a globally negative value of the efficiency

A HIGH EFFICIENCY PNEUMATIC DRIVE SYSTEM USING VANE-TYPE SEMI-ROTARY ACTUATORS

A compressed air driven generator is proposed, where the pneumatic energy is converted into mechanical energy using two vane-type rotational actuators. The use of a second actuator with a higher displacement in order to produce a thermodynamic expansion allows to reach a better energetic efficiency in comparison to the classical operation of such actuators. The alternating movement of the angular actuators is transformed into a unidirectional rotational motion with the help of a mechanical motion rectifier. The paper analyses the enhancement of the energetic performance of the system. An experimental set-up is also described. The performance of the new system is described, and the limits of its realization is commented on the base of experimental recordings of the evolution of the pressure in the chambers

Unibody Composite Pressurized Structure (UCPS) for In-Space Propulsion

Microcosm, Inc., in conjunction with the Scorpius Space Launch Company, is developing a UCPS (Unibody Composite Pressurized Structure )for in-space propulsion. This innovative approach constitutes a clean break from traditional spacecraft design by combining what were traditionally separate primary and secondary support structures and metal propellant tanks into a single unit

Loyalty Program Effectiveness: An Examination of Mainstream and Niche Sport Fan-Team Relationships

The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of using loyalty programs on sport fans’ relationship quality and fan engagement toward sport organizations. This study also sought to explore which relationship quality and fan engagement factors potentially differed as a result of using loyalty programs. Since there are two major defined sport levels, differences were explored across niche and mainstream sport organizations. Using relationship marketing as the theoretical framework, participants (n = 678) were administered a 55-item instrument that included revised relationship quality and fan engagement scales. Quantitative data were used to run confirmatory factor analyses, analyses of covariance, and multivariate analyses of covariance. Results first showed that significant differences existed between mainstream sport fans that have access to a loyalty program and mainstream sport fans that do not have access to a loyalty program. Mainstream sport fans that have access to a loyalty program had higher identification and reciprocity. Mainstream sport fans that do not have access to a loyalty program were found to have higher overall fan engagement, commitment, intimacy, and performance tolerance. Results also showed differences between niche sport fans that have access to a loyalty program and mainstream sport fans that have access to a loyalty program. Mainstream sport fans that have access to a loyalty program were divided into two groups (simple or complex) based on the design of the loyalty programs. Niche sport fans that have access to a loyalty program were found to have higher overall relationship quality, trust, intimacy, management cooperation, and performance tolerance. The findings provide an introduction in to the possibility that loyalty programs could be effective for increasing relationship quality for both niche and mainstream sport organizations. Moreover, for niche sport organizations that have access to fewer resources, it is encouraging that the use of a loyalty program appears to have the capabilities to build stronger relationships and engagement. These results provide several implications for sport organizations and sport marketers and serve as a foundation for which future research on loyalty programs can build

Insulin receptor, AMPK and CPT-2: Crystallization experiments and structural characterization of three proteins relevant to diabetes mellitus

Impaired insulin signaling due to peripheral insulin resistance and failure of pancreatic insulin secretion is a key factor for the onset and manifestation of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). Insulin receptor (IR) agonists are being developed to restore insulin signaling via direct activation of the cytoplasmic insulin receptor tyrosine kinase activity. Two classes of such compounds have been developed by the pharmaceutical companies Merck & Co., Inc., and Telik, Inc., but in patents and literature there is no data as to how these compounds activate the IR kinase activity. Attempts to solve the crystal structures of dimeric human IR kinase domains and complexes of these with IR agonists within this thesis failed. However, biophysical characterization of the full-length intracellular part of the IR containing the kinase domain demonstrated an intrinsic ability to dimerize independently of the enzyme-substrate type of interaction seen in IR autophosphorylation. This dimer formation was found to be enhanced in the presence of a distinct IR agonist. Crystals of various constructs and isoforms of the key antidiabetic target AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) were obtained. Despite substantial optimization trials these crystals were not sufficient for solving the structure of AMPK. However, the crystal structure of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 2 (CPT-2), a protein downstream of the metabolite signaling initiated by AMPK, was solved. CPT-1 and -2 facilitate the import of long-chain fatty acids into mitochondria. Modulation of the catalytic activity of the CPT system is currently under investigation for the development of novel drugs against diabetes mellitus. The crystal structure of the full-length mitochondrial membrane protein CPT-2 was solved at a resolution of 1.6 Å. The structure of CPT-2 in complex with the generic CPT-inhibitor ST1326 [(R)-N-tetradecylcarbamoyl-aminocarnitine], a substrate analog mimicking palmitoylcarnitine and currently in clinical trials for T2D treatment, was solved at 2.5 Å resolution. These structures of CPT-2 provide insight into the function of residues involved in substrate binding and determination of substrate specificity, thereby facilitating the rational design of novel antidiabetic drugs. A sequence insertion uniquely found in CPT-2 was identified that mediates membrane localization. Mapping of mutations described for CPT-2 deficiency, a hereditary disorder of lipid metabolism, implies effects on substrate recognition and structural integrity of CPT-2

Magic at the Movies: Positive Psychology for Children, Adolescents and Families

Children learn in part from what they see and hear, whether modeling parents’ or peers’ behavior, reading books, or viewing movies. Parents and their children share the same and often unspoken goal—to live “the good life”—in a state of well-being. Character strengths are foundational to well-being, and movies are a rich source with which to build character strengths and hence flourishing. However, even though movies are considered efficacious (and more rigorous studies are needed), there are minimal resources for parents on how to use this powerful tool with their children and teenagers. Movies are presented here as an educational force, with the ability to promote altruism and self-improvement. The power of the narrative stimulates emotions, and these emotional responses influence learning and behavior. Immersion into a character in a movie increases empathy, and allows the viewer to live the experiences of the character without having to experience the real-life consequences. The following paper will discuss: movies as positive media, the rationale for how movies build character strengths, the benefits of building character strengths from movies in particular, and curriculum/criteria for “Positive Psychology at the Movies for Families, Children, and Teenagers.” The 24 character strengths will be reviewed, and an exemplar movie presented for each, followed by discussion points and potential positive interventions. A literature review of positive psychology and character strengths can be found in the Appendix

Understanding the Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries

Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRB) are large stationary electricity storage systems with many potential applications in a deregulated and decentralized network. Flow batteries (FB) store chemical energy and generate electricity by a redox reaction between vanadium ions dissolved in the electrolytes. The most significant feature of the FB is maybe the modularity of their power (kW) and energy (kWh) ratings which are independent of each other. In fact, the power is defined by the size and number of cells whereas the energetic capacity is set by the amount of electrolyte stored in the reservoirs. Hence, FB can be optimized for either energy and/or power delivery. Over the past 30 years, several redox couples have been investigated (Bartolozzi, 1989): zinc bromine, polysulfide bromide, cerium zinc, all vanadium, etc. Among them, VRB has the best chance to be widely adopted, thanks to its very competitive cost, its simplicity and because it contains no toxic materials. In order to enhance the VRB performance, the system behaviour along with its interactions with the different subsystems, typically between the stack and its auxiliaries (i.e. electrolyte circulation and electrolyte state of charge), and the electrical system it is being connected to, have to be understood and appropriately modeled. Obviously, modeling a VRB is a strongly multidisciplinary task based on electrochemistry and fluid mechanics. New control strategies, based on the knowledge of the VRB operating principles provided by the model, are proposed to enhance the overall performance of the battery