Selection of alternative central-station technologies for the Satellite Power System (SPS) comparative assessment

An important effort is the Satellite Power System (SPS) comparative Assessment is the selection and characterization of alternative technologies to be compared with the SPS concept. The ground rules, criteria, and screening procedure applied in the selection of those alternative technologies are summarized. The final set of central station alternatives selected for comparison with the SPS concept includes: (1) light water reactor with improved fuel utilization, (2) conventional coal combustion with improved environmental controls, (3) open cycle gas turbine with integral low Btu gasifier, (4) terrestrial photovoltaic, (5) liquid metal fast breeder reactor, and (6) magnetic confinement fusion

SPS and alternative technologies cost and performance evaluations

Cost estimates for production of the electrical energy needed in the early twenty-first century are provided. Costs and performance of the Satellite Power System are compared with alternative methods of producing electrical energy

Assessment of a satellite power system and six alternative technologies

The satellite power system is assessed in comparison to six alternative technologies. The alternatives are: central-station terrestrial photovoltaic systems, conventional coal-fired power plants, coal-gasification/combined-cycle power plants, light water reactor power plants, liquid-metal fast-breeder reactors, and fusion. The comparison is made regarding issues of cost and performance, health and safety, environmental effects, resources, socio-economic factors, and institutional issues. The criteria for selecting the issues and the alternative technologies are given, and the methodology of the comparison is discussed. Brief descriptions of each of the technologies considered are included

Methodology for the comparative assessment of the Satellite Power System (SPS) and alternative technologies

The energy systems concerned are the satellite power system, several coal technologies, geothermal energy, fission, fusion, terrestrial solar systems, and ocean thermal energy conversion. Guidelines are suggested for the characterization of these systems, side-by-side analysis, alternative futures analysis, and integration and aggregation of data. A description of the methods for assessing the technical, economic, environmental, societal, and institutional issues surrounding the development of the selected energy technologies is presented

Chronic Systemic Immune Dysfunction in African-Americans with Small Vessel-Type Ischemic Stroke

The incidence of small vessel-type (lacunar) ischemic strokes is greater in African-Americans compared to whites. The chronic inflammatory changes that result from lacunar stroke are poorly understood. To elucidate these changes, we measured serum inflammatory and thrombotic biomarkers in African-Americans at least 6 weeks post-stroke compared to control individuals. Cases were African-Americans with lacunar stroke (n = 30), and controls were age-matched African-Americans with no history of stroke or other major neurologic disease (n = 37). Blood was obtained \u3e 6 weeks post-stroke and was analyzed for inflammatory biomarkers. Freshly isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to assess immune responsiveness in a subset of cases (n = 5) and controls (n = 4). After adjustment for covariates, the pro-inflammatory biomarkers, soluble vascular cadherin adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) and thrombin anti-thrombin (TAT), were independently associated with lacunar stroke. Immune responsiveness to LPS challenge was abnormal in cases compared to controls. African-Americans with lacunar stroke had elevated blood levels of VCAM-1 and TAT and an abnormal response to acute immune challenge \u3e 6 weeks post-stroke, suggesting a chronically compromised systemic inflammatory response

Usability of PCforMe in Patients With Advanced Cancer Referred to Outpatient Palliative Care: Results of a Randomized, Active-Controlled Pilot Trial

Context. Low utilization of palliative care services warrant testing of new solutions to educate and engage patients around the benefits of palliative care. Objectives. We sought out to develop and test a novel, mobile health solution to prepare patients for an upcoming outpatient palliative care appointment. Methods. After developing a web-based tool called PCforMe (Palliative Care for Me), we conducted a randomized, active controlled, trial of PCforMe. The primary outcome was the score on the System Usability Scale (SUS). Secondary outcomes were patient self-efficacy and change in knowledge. We compared PCforMe to three common online resources for patients seeking information about palliative care. Results. A total of 80 patients were randomized. There were no significant demographic differences. Mean SUS score for PCforMe was 78.2, significantly above the normative average SUS score of 68 (P-value < 0.0001). Mean change in Perceived Efficacy in Patient-Physician Interactions score was -2.2 for PCforMe and -1.7 for control group (P-value ¼ 0.72). Preparedness for an upcoming palliative care visit increased 50% in the intervention group and 13.3% in the control group. Difference in the number of patients with improved knowledge regarding palliative care approached significance (P = 0.06). Lastly, we found that the no-show rate was lower during Q1 2017 (during trial) and Q1 2016 (before trial), at 11.7% and 21%, respectively (P < 0.05). Comparing the full calendar year (CY) 2016 with 2017, we did not find a statistical difference (CY 2016 of 18.8% and 15% in CY 2017; P = 0.22). Conclusion. PCforMe is a usable mobile health tool to prepare patients for an upcoming palliative care appointment. Further research is needed to test effectiveness

Dietary carbohydrate intake and high sensitivity C reactive protein in at-risk women and men

Background— The quality and quantity of dietary carbohydrate intake, measured as dietary glycemic load (GL), is associated with a number of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and, in healthy young women, is related to increased high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) concentrations. Our objective was to determine if GL is related to hsCRP and other measures of CVD risk in a population of sedentary, overweight, dyslipidemic middle-aged women and men enrolled in an exercise intervention trial (STRRIDE). Methods— This was a cross-sectional evaluation of the relationships between measures of dietary carbohydrate intake, calculated from food frequency questionnaire data, and CVD risk factors, including plasma hsCRP, measured in 171 subjects. Results— After adjusting for energy intake, GL and other measures of carbohydrate intake were not independently related to hsCRP (P>0.05 for all). In analyses performed separately for each gender, only the quantity of carbohydrate intake was independently related to hsCRP (R2=0.28; P<0.04), and this relationship was present for women but not for men. The strongest relationship identified between GL and any CVD risk factor was for cardiorespiratory fitness (R2=0.12; P<0.02); an elevated GL was associated with a lower level of fitness in all subjects, and this relationship persisted even when the findings were adjusted for energy intake and gender (R2=0.48; P<0.03). Conclusions— In middle-aged, sedentary, overweight to mildly obese, dyslipidemic individuals, consuming a diet with a low GL is associated with better cardiorespiratory fitness. Our findings suggest that the current literature relating carbohydrate intake and hsCRP should be viewed with skepticism, especially in the extension to at-risk populations that include men. Originally published American Heart Journal, Vol. 154, No. 5, Nov 200

Prime osservazioni italiane di attivit\ue0 predatoria da parte dello sciacallo dorato (Canis aureus) su ovini domestici nel Carso goriziano

La presenza della specie sciacallo dorato Canis aureus moreoticus (I. Geoffrey, 1835) documentata per il Friuli Venezia-Giulia a partire dagli anni 80 \ue8 in continua espansione ed incremento con un particolare riferimento all\u2019area carsica. Nel territorio preso in esame, una porzione di landa e boscaglia carsica in cui \ue8 ubicato un parco rurale di circa 100 ha con annesso allevamento ovino, la presenza di sciacallo dorato, documentata anche con l\u2019uso di foto trappole, \ue8 passata da casi sporadici ad un numero certo di 7 esemplari che frequentano l\u2019area. Congiuntamente all\u2019aumento di presenza si sono avuti casi di predazione su ovini adulti mantenuti allo stato semibrado senza ricovero notturno. Sono state esaminate tre carcasse di ovini trovati morti in giornate successive. Le pecore appartenevano tutte alla classe adulta ed in particolare superavano gli 8 anni di et\ue0. Le valutazioni anatomopatologiche delle carcasse, a diversi stadi di decomposizione, hanno messo in evidenza lesioni di carattere lacero contuso dei diversi piani tissutali nella regione del collo e nei garretti causate da morsi, con un consumo, costituito prevalentemente dai tessuti molli delle cavit\ue0 toraciche ed addominali, variabile in base al tempo intercorso tra il ritrovamento ed il decesso. Dall\u2019esame dei morsi ed in particolare dalla misurazione della distanza tra i canini, unite alle caratteristiche della predazione hanno permesso di riferirla a sciacallo dorato. Tale ipotesi \ue8 stata successivamente confermata con il fototrappolaggio. Dopo tali episodi, gli ovini sono stati ricoverati ogni notte in ovile chiuso e protetto. Tale metodologia gestionale \ue8 stata sufficiente a ridurre notevolmente l\u2019impatto della predazione da sciacallo dorato sugli animali allevati

Impact of post-event avoidance behavior on commercial facilities sector venues-literature review.

The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11), focused a great deal of interest and concern on how individual and social perceptions of risk change behavior and subsequently affect commercial sector venues. Argonne conducted a review of the literature to identify studies that quantify the direct and indirect economic consequences of avoidance behaviors that result from terrorist attacks. Despite a growing amount of literature addressing terrorism impacts, relatively little is known about the causal relationships between risk perception, human avoidance behaviors, and the economic effects on commercial venues. Nevertheless, the technical and academic literature does provide some evidence, both directly and by inference, of the level and duration of post-event avoidance behaviors on commercial venues. Key findings are summarized in this Executive Summary. Also included as an appendix is a more detailed summary table of literature findings reproduced from the full report

Modelling the impact of the AN-ACC in Australia.The Resource Utilisation and Classification Study: Report 4

A national study to develop a new methodology for determining appropriate funding for places in residential aged care homes, the ‘Resource Utilisation and Classification Study’ (RUCS), was commissioned by the Commonwealth Department of Health (the Department) in August 2017 and undertaken by the Australian Health Services Research Institute (AHSRI) at the University of Wollongong. This report is the fourth in a series, written to present the results of this important national study. Each report deals with a different aspect of the project, as described in Appendix 1. In this report, Report 4, the findings from Study Three of the RUCS are presented. The purpose of the casemix profiling study covered in this report was to develop a national casemix profile of residents in residential aged care facilities in Australia, to identify any differences in resident casemix by facility type (i.e. by location, ownership type and size), and to model and test the likely financial impact of implementing the blended payment model nationally. To do so, a nationally representative sample was used to model patterns of resident need and to investigate the funding implications of a new payment model based on resident casemix