In search of a robust inflation forecast

It is difficult to consistently improve upon forecasts of inflation based solely on the most recent data on inflation. In this article, we show how to do so. Our main finding is that the most robust forecasts combine information from several different forecasting models, each of which incorporates the information in the available inflation indicators in different ways.Inflation (Finance)

One lumbar extension training session per week is sufficient for strength gains and reduction in pain in patients with chronic low back pain ergonomics

Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is the leading cause of absenteeism from the workplace and research into exercise interventions to address this problem is required. This study investigated training frequency for participants with CLBP. Participants either trained once a week (1 × week, n = 31), or twice a week (2 × week, n = 20) or did not (control group, n = 21). Participants were isometric strength tested in weeks 1 and 12 and trained dynamically either 1×week (80% of maximum) or 2×week (80% and 50%). The results (pre vs. post) showed significant increases in maximal strength, range of motion and reductions in pain for both training groups. Pain scores for the 1 × week and 2 × week both reached minimal clinical improvement change unlike the control group. Thus, one lumbar extension training session per week is sufficient for strength gains and reductions in pain in low back pain in CLBP patients

Pressure Fluctuations in Natural Gas Networks caused by Gas-Electric Coupling

The development of hydraulic fracturing technology has dramatically increased the supply and lowered the cost of natural gas in the United States, driving an expansion of natural gas-fired generation capacity in several electrical inter-connections. Gas-fired generators have the capability to ramp quickly and are often utilized by grid operators to balance intermittency caused by wind generation. The time-varying output of these generators results in time-varying natural gas consumption rates that impact the pressure and line-pack of the gas network. As gas system operators assume nearly constant gas consumption when estimating pipeline transfer capacity and for planning operations, such fluctuations are a source of risk to their system. Here, we develop a new method to assess this risk. We consider a model of gas networks with consumption modeled through two components: forecasted consumption and small spatio-temporarily varying consumption due to the gas-fired generators being used to balance wind. While the forecasted consumption is globally balanced over longer time scales, the fluctuating consumption causes pressure fluctuations in the gas system to grow diffusively in time with a diffusion rate sensitive to the steady but spatially-inhomogeneous forecasted distribution of mass flow. To motivate our approach, we analyze the effect of fluctuating gas consumption on a model of the Transco gas pipeline that extends from the Gulf of Mexico to the Northeast of the United States.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Virtual acoustics displays

The real time acoustic display capabilities are described which were developed for the Virtual Environment Workstation (VIEW) Project at NASA-Ames. The acoustic display is capable of generating localized acoustic cues in real time over headphones. An auditory symbology, a related collection of representational auditory 'objects' or 'icons', can be designed using ACE (Auditory Cue Editor), which links both discrete and continuously varying acoustic parameters with information or events in the display. During a given display scenario, the symbology can be dynamically coordinated in real time with 3-D visual objects, speech, and gestural displays. The types of displays feasible with the system range from simple warnings and alarms to the acoustic representation of multidimensional data or events

Pennsylvania Residents Are without Standing to Challenge Both the Gaming Board\u27s Grant of Casino Licenses and the Constitutionality of Section 1204 of the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act: \u3cem\u3eSociety Hill Civic Association v. Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board\u3c/em\u3e

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania denied residents\u27 petition for review of the grant of casino licenses for lack of standing because petitioners failed to pursue intervention to achieve party status and were not aggrieved. Soc\u27y Hill Civic Ass\u27n v. Pa. Gaming Control Bd., 928 A.2d 175 (Pa. 2007)