Campus-Based Agriculture: The Future of Food at Gettysburg College

This research investigates various methods for producing food on the campus of Gettysburg College in order to improve food sustainability. The transportation of food contributes to the increased use of fossil fuels, which in turn leads to global warming and climate change. By producing a larger portion of its food on-campus, Gettysburg College could reduce the amount of food transported to the school, thereby lessening the College’s environmental impact. Urban farming techniques, hydroponics, aquaponics, and greenhouse-based agriculture are explored as viable methods for achieving this goal. Examples of the use of these techniques on college campuses are drawn from Allegheny College, Acadia University, and Cornell University, among others. Possible strategies for Gettysburg College’s implementation of the farming techniques proposed in this research are also included throughout

Stochastic Model for Power Grid Dynamics

We introduce a stochastic model that describes the quasi-static dynamics of an electric transmission network under perturbations introduced by random load fluctuations, random removing of system components from service, random repair times for the failed components, and random response times to implement optimal system corrections for removing line overloads in a damaged or stressed transmission network. We use a linear approximation to the network flow equations and apply linear programming techniques that optimize the dispatching of generators and loads in order to eliminate the network overloads associated with a damaged system. We also provide a simple model for the operator's response to various contingency events that is not always optimal due to either failure of the state estimation system or due to the incorrect subjective assessment of the severity associated with these events. This further allows us to use a game theoretic framework for casting the optimization of the operator's response into the choice of the optimal strategy which minimizes the operating cost. We use a simple strategy space which is the degree of tolerance to line overloads and which is an automatic control (optimization) parameter that can be adjusted to trade off automatic load shed without propagating cascades versus reduced load shed and an increased risk of propagating cascades. The tolerance parameter is chosen to describes a smooth transition from a risk averse to a risk taken strategy...Comment: framework for a system-level analysis of the power grid from the viewpoint of complex network

Modification of the Functional Reach Test: Validity & Reliability

The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of a modified version of the Functional Reach (PR) to more accurately predict falls in elderly women. This modified version, the Lateral Functional Reach (LFR) incorporates dynamic balance testing in the scapular plane. Fifty female volunteers were recruited from a Senior Center in Holland, Michigan. Each subject completed the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), the FR, and the LFR tests. Prior to testing, each subject was screened for depression, cognition and gross medical history. Validity and reliability of the LFR was determined through correlational and test-retest analysis. The correlation coefficient of the LFR with the BBS was, rs=0.5243 (p\u3c .05). The correlation coefficient of the FR with the BBS was rs=0.5299 (p\u3c .05). The correlation coefficient of the LFR with the FR was rp=0.7106 (p\u3c .05) and rs=0.6826 (p\u3c .05). Test-retest reliability for the LFR using the right hand was rp=0.4584 (p\u3c .05)

Prevenção ao uso de drogas para adolescentes no município de Pedra Azul/MG: proposta de ação

TCC(especialização) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Centro de Ciências da Saúde. Programa de Pós-graduação em Enfermagem. Linhas de Cuidado em Atenção PsicossocialEm relação ao uso de drogas no município de Pedra A zul/MG percebeu-se no ano de 2013 um aumento da demanda no serviço do Centro de Apoio Ps icossocial – CAPS I e CAPS ad, haja vista a procura e encaminhamento de pacientes usuár ios dependentes ou com algum transtorno devido ao uso de drogas. O CAPS ad desenvolve um tr abalho por meio do acolhimento aos seus usuários com uma equipe multiprofissional e, poster iormente, pelo encaminhamento para consulta com médico psiquiatra. No contexto desta i nstituição emergiu a necessidade de desenvolver ações específicas para a prevenção ao u so de drogas voltadas para o público adolescente. Desta forma, este trabalho definiu-se como objetivo a elaboração de um plano de ação capaz de atender a esta lacuna. Trata-se de um estudo cujo produto corresponde a uma Tecnologia de Concepção, ou seja, segundo a referen cia da Tecnologia Convergente Assistencial é representada pela elaboração de um plano de ação para o cuidado. O plano prevê que os casos encaminhados conforme demanda municipal pelo poder judiciário e pelo planejamento da equipe multiprofissional passarão por processo de educação , onde se aborde dentre outros os temas: conceito de drogas, causas do vicio, tratamento, as pecto legal, bem como prevê atividades de motivação para prática de atividades físicas. A opo rtunidade de implementar as ações propostas por este plano visa contribuir para a redução dos casos no uso abusivo das drogas no município de Pedra Azul-MG/, bem como para a diminuição das i nternações por estas causas ou por suas complicações, o uso compulsivo e frequente desta su bstância, que o usuário tem dificuldade em manter sob controle, pode acarretar abandono de out ros interesses e danos para sua vida afetiva, social e profissional

Painel de indicadores para os municípios do Tocantins - Abordagem a partir dos índices Firjan de Desenvolvimento Municipal e Firjan de Gestão Fiscal

Indicators are important instruments for evaluating and monitoring public policies. In addition to obtaining your assessment, it is important to understand how that indicator is formed and what information it uses to assess a particular economic or social condition. However, this information is dispersed in different platforms and databases, requiring time and knowledge about what you want to look for. This study aims to develop an Indicator Panel for the Municipalities of the State of Tocantins from the Firjan Municipal Development Index (IFDM) and Firjan Fiscal Management (IFGF). The research, with a qualitative and quantitative approach, sought to understand the indicators, variables and databases that are used to formulate each index, and then develop the data presentation tool. The Panel was developed using open technologies and for multiplatforms. With the tool, data from different government bases are presented in a single repository, with the possibility of viewing data on the website, through maps and also exporting in an electronic spreadsheet. Data import is performed through a process defined in the tool itself, without the need for IT professionals to periodically feed information. The Panel encourages local research, strengthens municipal public management, becomes an instrument of public transparency and contributes to the regional development of the State's municipalities.Os indicadores são importantes instrumentos de avaliação e acompanhamento de políticas públicas. Além de obter sua avaliação, é importante compreender como aquele indicador é formado e quais informações ele utiliza para avaliar determinada condição econômica ou social. Porém, essas informações encontram-se dispersas em diferentes plataformas e bases de dados, sendo necessários tempo e conhecimento acerca daquilo que deseja buscar. Este estudo tem como objetivo geral desenvolver um Painel de Indicadores para os Municípios do Estado do Tocantins a partir dos Índices Firjan de Desenvolvimento Municipal (IFDM) e Firjan Gestão Fiscal (IFGF). A pesquisa, de abordagem qualitativa e quantitativa buscou compreender os indicadores, as variáveis e as bases de dados que são utilizadas para formular cada um dos índices, para então desenvolver a ferramenta de apresentação de dados. O Painel foi desenvolvido utilizando tecnologias livres e para multiplataformas. Com a ferramenta, os dados de diferentes bases do governo são apresentados em um único repositório, com possibilidade de visualização de dados no site, através de mapas e também exportação em planilha eletrônica. A importação dos dados é realizada através de um processo definido na própria ferramenta, sem necessidades de profissionais de TI para alimentação periódica de informações. O Painel fomenta a pesquisa local, fortalece a gestão pública municipal, torna-se um instrumento de transparência pública e contribui para o desenvolvimento regional dos municípios do Estado

Laurentide ice sheet meltwater influences and millennial-scale climate oscillations on the northwestern slope of the Gulf of Mexico during Marine Isotope Stage 6 and Termination II

Sub-Milankovitch climate oscillations are well documented phenomena in the Gulf of Mexico during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 and Termination I, however very little is known about equivalent events during older time intervals. Basin 4 is located on the northwest slope of the Gulf of Mexico and has provided a detailed record of late MIS 6 and Termination II. The results of this study show that the delta18O record of planktonic foraminifer G. ruber contains millennial-scale climate oscillations during MIS 6, a series of meltwater spikes, and a climate reversal during Termination II. Paired delta18O -- Mg/Ca data across these events reveal that the unusually large amplitudes in the delta 18O record cannot be explained by sea surface temperature (SST) or ice volume, but rather are a response to isotopically light glacial meltwater from the paleo-Mississippi river. This conclusion supports the studies of similar oscillations during Termination I and MIS 3

Hourly Economic Dispatch of Generation Sources Considering the Minimization of Active losses and Generation Costs

The increase of renewable sources in the electricity sector, especially wind and solar photovoltaic, has drawn attention to the need to develop new models for planning and operating the electrical system. In this sense, this paper presents a model for the hourly economic dispatch of electric energy produced by wind, hydraulic, solar, and thermal sources. For the proposed mathematical modeling, the AMPL software was used, and for solution, the Interior Point Method was used, with the Knitro solver. The simulations were carried out in an IEEE 30-bus test system, considering two objective functions, namely: (1) hourly minimization of active power losses and (2) hourly minimization of generation costs. The simulations were carried out for 24 hours a day and for each hour the amount of energy generated, energy losses and generation costs were determined. Constraints related to the power balance, bus voltage levels, transformer tap limits, power factor limits and generation limitations were considered. Regarding the generation data of the wind and solar plants, large plants connected to the Brazilian electrical system were considered. The model presented proved to be efficient in solving the problem presented