Neglecting a Wind Energy Portfolio Leaves Nebraska Behind Its Neighbors

Nebraska is a state that prides itself on the productivity of our land. We dutifully don our foam corn hats at Memorial Stadium and boast that Nebraska beef is what’s for dinner. But Nebraska’s land holds an untapped resource that our neighboring states are taking advantage of: wind. Nebraska must adopt a renewable portfolio to double production of wind energy in our state over the next five years. A renewable portfolio is a regulation that sets a minimum amount of power that can be produced by renewable sources, such as solar, wind, and hydroelectric. Currently, Nebraska does not have any such regulations, and 34% of energy from the Nebraska Public Power District comes from coal sourced from Wyoming. Nebraska’s wind energy potential is staggering. AWS Truepower and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory put the potential wind energy capacity of Nebraska at 465,000 megawatts, ranking the state seventh in the nation [1] . But, looking at installed capacity, you wouldn’t know it. Iowa’s installed capacity is nearly 7,000 MW [2] , compared to Nebraska’s 1,434 MW [3] . Nebraska’s installed wind capacity generates a little over 8% of our energy demands. The difference isn’t because Iowa has greater wind potential, in fact, they have less than half of that of Nebraska. Iowa instead incentivized investment in their state using a wind energy production tax credit of 1.5¢ per kWh produced. This pushed companies to look to Iowa as the electricity generation hub of the Midwest, leaving Iowa’s renewable energy production to blow past Nebraska’s. Nebraska is different than Iowa, however. We benefit from a series of robust public power utilities that have an obligation to provide power to every single Nebraskan at low cost. But by not adopting a renewables portfolio, the utilities are not living up to this obligation. An important number in weighing the cost of electricity across different sources is the levelized cost of energy. This takes into account the total cost of an energy source, such as operation and maintenance costs, equipment costs, and fuel costs, and divides it by its useful life. The US Energy Information Administration’s February 2019 report indicates that onshore wind’s levelized cost of energy is close to becoming competitive with coal energy, and new advances in wind turbine technology can push the cost even lower. By not adopting a renewable portfolio for wind energy, public power is overlooking a source of energy that can provide Nebraskans with cheaper energy. However, cheaper energy is not the only reason why wind energy should be used in the state. Nebraska is unique in our energy usage. The state ranks third in the nation for the number of industrial energy consumers, and in the top ten per capita in total energy usage, largely driven by our agricultural sector. Pushing wind energy into rural areas will bring power closer to the largest consumers of energy, reducing electricity transmission losses and decreasing costs to the public utility. Farmers will also benefit from increased land worth. Turning to Iowa as a comparison, annual land lease payments in 2017 totalled $25 million, compared to$7 million in Nebraska. Annual land leases are estimated to be between $4000 and$6000 per MW of nameplate capacity. A modest 100 MW wind farm could net a farmer an extra 600,000 each year. One of the largest criticisms of wind turbines is that they can harm wildlife species, especially birds. However, this is not a particular concern in the Great Plains. The US Fish & Wildlife Services estimates that nearly 8 birds die per year for each installed turbine in the West Coast. In the Great Plains, this number is far less, a little under 3 bird deaths per turbine per year. At any rate, the number of birds killed by automobiles is far greater than those killed by wind turbines. With increased wind energy also comes increased economic opportunities for Nebraskans. Over 16 billion was invested in 2017 in Iowa with wind energy-related employment between nine to ten thousand workers. Nebraska during the same time period only garnered $3.5 billion investment with between three to four thousand wind workers. The Nebraska Legislature should pass a renewable portfolio to double the amount of wind energy in our state in the next five years. Nebraska is a leader in the nation for food production. We feed the country by using our land. We can power the nation by using our wind. But, this will not be possible without the proper portfolio our state

Design and implementation of camera module

Cílem diplomové práce je navrhnout levný, avšak dostatečně výkonný a univerzální systém, schopný snímání a zpracování obrazu z digitální kamery. Další částí je návrh a implementace funkcí pro zpracování obrazu a komunikace s nadřazeným systémem.Master thesis is aimed on the design of cheap and universal system, but also powerful enough to be able to obtain and process images from the digital camera sensor. Further part of the work is design and implementation of functions for image processing applications and communication with superior system.

Information and Communication Technology Capabilities and Business Performance: The Case of Differences in the Czech Financial Sector and Lessons from Robotic Process Automation between 2015 and 2020

This paper analyzes the rapid onset of Robotic process automation (RPA) technologies in the Czech financial sector between 2015-2020. The development and experience from the “hype-and-fear” phase contributed to business process integration and technological spillovers are expected in the future. If ICT capabilities are the source of performance differences, then most likely candidates are inventory and finances business process integration and implemented Enterprise Resource Planning and Customer Relationship Management systems. The RPA should not be seen only as simple automation but as a complex instrument offering a lot of advantages with a focus on benefits for internal and external stakeholders. PURPOSE. The goal is to qualitatively analyze the experience with RPA implementation and quantitatively assess ICT capabilities via analysis of differences between various organizational ICT activities and types of companies in the Czech financial sector. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH. The qualitative case study was performed in the bank ČSOB, a.s. in 2019, respondents, owners of processes in the final part of automation, were chosen randomly from different departments of the bank. Data for the quantitative part comes from the ICT survey (Czech Statistical Office), business performance dataset (EMIS) and a case study about ICT capability implementation. Differences are assessed and indirectly interpreted using goodness-of-fit approach. FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS. The results from the RPA case study revealed that the Czech financial sector is past the “hype and fear” phase and many companies focused on their return on investment and are beginning to focus more on other stakeholders. According to this development, the requirements and outputs are suggested in the phases of RPA implementation. The possible source of rofitability performance differences are integrated business processes. LIMITATIONS. Financial sector data are anonymized in ICT surveys and the measurement of the competitive advantage of ICT capabilities is only indirect. Qualitative approach is suggested with focus on technological efficiency measurement using data envelopment approach. ORIGINALITY. This paper provides an understanding of the strong experience in RPA in Czech financial sector. Certain initial setbacks in RPA are expected and this paper suggest to focus on knowledge management (lessons learned) and other requirements influencing the successful RPA prototyping and implementation process

Supplemental materials for Largemouth Bass respirometry research: data archived in support of open-access publication

Fisheries induced evolution (FIE) is hypothesized to cause changes in the life history, physiology and behavior of exploited fish stocks. Most studies evaluating FIE have occurred in exploited marine stocks which offer little opportunity for replication and few unexploited stocks exist for comparison. Inland recreational fisheries, however, offer the opportunity to replicate experiments in multiple systems, and while rare, unexploited populations exist for comparison. We measured the resting metabolic rate of four populations of largemouth bass, two exploited and two unexploited, to evaluate whether patterns of resting metabolic rates conformed to expectations for fisheries induced evolution. This document contains the resting metabolic rate data collected in the field from September 16th 2013 through October 22nd 2013. These data form the basis for an open access publication and are archived here as supplemental information

Analysis of natural frequencies and mode shapes of car cabin

V analýze tvarů a frekvencí módu vzduchu uzavřeného v kabině automobilu budeme sledovat podstatu měřených veličin, u jednoduchém vnitřního prostoru popíšeme rozdílnost analytického a MKP řešení. Dále vypočteme frekvence a vlastní tvary kmitání vzduchu v kabině automobilu čtyř odlišných karoserií a možnosti ovlivnění frekvencí u jedné z nich.In analysis of natural frequencies and mode shapes of car cabin we shall investigate principle of measured values, we shall describe diferencies between analytic and FEM solution of simplified inside space. In next case we shall compute frequencies and mode shapes of sound inside car cabin of four different body and option of interference by one of them.

Crimes Against Wildlife

Crimes Against Wildlife The subject matter of this diploma thesis is the protection of wildlife species by means of criminal law. It maps the current legal regulation in this area at the international level, on the EU level, as well as in the Czech national law, especially in terms of possible criminal sanctions that can be imposed under the law for illegal handling of these animals. On the global scale, it covers in particular the CITES Convention, but also other international conventions such as the Bonn Convention, the ICRW or the Bern Convention. As for the law of the European Union, it works with the CITES Regulation and other related regulations, as well as the Directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law. As far as the Czech law is concerned, the thesis provides a detailed analysis of the crimes most closely related to the issue, i.e. the crime of unauthorized handling of protected wildlife species under s. 299 of the Criminal Code and s. 300 of the Criminal Code (in the negligent variant) and the crime of poaching under s. 304 of the Criminal Code. Here, it analyses the individual elements of these crimes, including the circumstances conditioning the application of higher penal rates, and also addresses the justification and difficulties with the application of...Trestné činy proti volně žijícím živočichům Předmětem této diplomové práce je trestněprávní ochrana volně žijících druhů živočichů. Mapuje současnou právní úpravu této oblasti na mezinárodní úrovni, na půdě Evropské unie, jakož i v českém vnitrostátním právu, a to vše zejména z hlediska možných trestních sankcí, které lze dle práva ukládat za neoprávněné nakládání s těmito živočichy. V globálním měřítku se zabývá zejména Úmluvou CITES, ale i dalšími mezinárodními úmluvami jako je Bonnská úmluva, ICRW či Bernská úmluva. V rámci Evropské unie se pak zabývá nařízením CITES a dalšími nařízeními s ním souvisejícími, jakož i Směrnicí o trestněprávní ochraně životního prostředí. Co se českého práva týče, tak práce poskytuje detailní rozbor skutkových podstat nejúžeji souvisejících s problematikou, tj. trestného činu neoprávněného nakládání s chráněnými volně žijícími živočichy a rostlinami dle § 299 TZ a § 300 TZ (v nedbalostní variantě) a trestného činu pytláctví dle § 304 TZ. Zde rozebírá jednotlivé znaky skutkových podstat těchto trestných činů, a to včetně okolností podmiňujících použití vyšších trestních sazeb, a řeší i zdůvodnění a obtíže s aplikací některých formulací, které byly v textu trestního zákoníku použity. Krom analýzy současného znění zákona se krátce zabývá i historickým vývojem...Katedra trestního právaDepartment of Criminal LawFaculty of LawPrávnická fakult

Camera trap arrays improve detection probability of wildlife: Investigating study design considerations using an empirical dataset.

Camera trapping is a standard tool in ecological research and wildlife conservation. Study designs, particularly for small-bodied or cryptic wildlife species often attempt to boost low detection probabilities by using non-random camera placement or baited cameras, which may bias data, or incorrectly estimate detection and occupancy. We investigated the ability of non-baited, multi-camera arrays to increase detection probabilities of wildlife. Study design components were evaluated for their influence on wildlife detectability by iteratively parsing an empirical dataset (1) by different sizes of camera arrays deployed (1-10 cameras), and (2) by total season length (1-365 days). Four species from our dataset that represented a range of body sizes and differing degrees of presumed detectability based on life history traits were investigated: white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), bobcat (Lynx rufus), raccoon (Procyon lotor), and Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana). For all species, increasing from a single camera to a multi-camera array significantly improved detection probability across the range of season lengths and number of study sites evaluated. The use of a two camera array increased survey detection an average of 80% (range 40-128%) from the detection probability of a single camera across the four species. Species that were detected infrequently benefited most from a multiple-camera array, where the addition of up to eight cameras produced significant increases in detectability. However, for species detected at high frequencies, single cameras produced a season-long (i.e, the length of time over which cameras are deployed and actively monitored) detectability greater than 0.75. These results highlight the need for researchers to be critical about camera trap study designs based on their intended target species, as detectability for each focal species responded differently to array size and season length. We suggest that researchers a priori identify target species for which inference will be made, and then design camera trapping studies around the most difficult to detect of those species

COMPRESSION OF ECAPED TITANIUM MICRO-PILLARS FOR TWO PRINCIPAL ORIENTATIONS

The thermomechanical processing by equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) is used for certain metals and alloys in order to make their structure fine and to increase material strength. In the previous study done at our institute, grade 2 titanium was successfully processed using four consecutive route A passes via a 90 ° ECAP die with high backpressure at room temperature. Orientation dependence of compressive and tensile loading of ECAPed titanium samples was demonstrated at macro-scale. However, scarce attention has been paid so far to the mechanical behavior of ECAPed titanium samples at micro-scale. In the present study, compression experiments on titanium micropillars, fabricated using focused ion beam, are carried out for two main directions in respect to preceding ECAP pressing (insert and extrusion directions). The purpose of this study is to discuss the orientation dependence of mechanical response during compression of the as-ECAPed titanium micro-pillars