Climate cost uncertainty, retrofit cost uncertainty, and infrastructure closedown : a framework for analysis

Large and energy-intensive infrastructure investments with long life times have substantial implications for climate policy. This study focuses on options to scale down energy consumption and carbon emissions now and in the future, and on the costs of doing so. Two ways carbon emissions can be reduced post-investment include retrofitting the infrastructure, or closing it down. Generally, the presence of bulky infrastructure investments makes it more costly to reduce emissions later. Moreover, when expected energy and environmental costs are continually rising, inherent biases in the selection processes for infrastructure investments lead to excessive energy intensity in such investments. Thus great care must be taken when choosing the energy intensity of the infrastructure at the time of investment. Simulations indicate that optimally exercising the retrofit option, when it is available, reduces ex ante expected energy consumption relative to the no-option case. Total energy plus retrofit costs can also be substantially reduced, the more so the larger is ex ante cost uncertainty. However, the availability of the retrofit option also leads to a more energy intensive initial infrastructure choice; this offsets some, but usually not all, of the gains from options for subsequent retrofitting.Energy Production and Transportation,Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases,Climate Change Economics,Environment and Energy Efficiency

A Hybrid Quantum Search Engine: A Fast Quantum Algorithm for Multiple Matches

In this paper we will present a quantum algorithm which works very efficiently in case of multiple matches within the search space and in the case of few matches, the algorithm performs classically. This allows us to propose a hybrid quantum search engine that integrates Grover's algorithm and the proposed algorithm here to have general performance better that any pure classical or quantum search algorithm.Comment: 26 pages, 8 Figure

Broad iron lines in neutrons stars: dynamical broadening or wind scattering?

Broad iron emission lines are observed in many accreting systems from black holes in AGN and X-ray binaries to neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries. The origin of the line broadening is often interpreted as due to dynamical broadening and relativistic effects. However, alternative interpretations have been proposed, included broadening due to Compton scattering in a wind or accretion disk atmosphere. Here we explore the observational signatures expected from broadening in a wind, in particular that the iron line width should increase with an increase in the column density of the absorber (due to an increase in the number of scatterings). We study the data from three neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries where both a broad iron emission line and absorption lines are seen simultaneously, and show that there is no significant correlation between line width and column density. This favors an inner disk origin for the line broadening rather than scattering in a wind.Comment: 5 pages, 1 table, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Quantum Search Algorithm with more Reliable Behaviour using Partial Diffusion

In this paper, we will use a quantum operator which performs the inversion about the mean operation only on a subspace of the system ({\it Partial Diffusion Operator}) to propose a quantum search algorithm runs in O(\sqrt N/M}) for searching unstructured list of size $N$ with $M$ matches such that, $1\le M \le N$. We will show that the performance of the algorithm is more reliable than known quantum search algorithms especially for multiple matches within the search space. A performance comparison with Grover's algorithm will be provided.Comment: 27 pages, 9 figure

Essays in Visual History: Making Use of the International Mission Photography Archive

An extraordinary resource for comparative research in the humanities can be found in the historical images that comprise the International Mission Photography Archive (IMPA). The 62,000 photographs presently in the database represent cultures across Africa, India, China, Korea, Japan, Oceania, the Caribbean, and Papua New Guinea. The requested NEH Level 1 start-up grant will support a workshop devoted to the design of a series of visual essays authored by accomplished scholars who will use images from IMPA to explore topics in their areas of expertise. Called Essays in Visual History, the series will be hosted by the USC Digital Library and featured on the website of the Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CRCC). The workshop will explore relationships with other publication initiatives at USC, specifically those under development by the Center for Transformative Scholarship and The Alliance for Networking Visual Culture, which offer opportunities to maximize the visibility of the of the proposed series

Infrastructure investments under uncertainty with the possibility of retrofit : theory and simulations

Investments in large, long-lived, energy-intensive infrastructure investments using fossil fuels increase longer-term energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, unless the plant is shut down early or undergoes costly retrofit later. These investments will depend on expectations of retrofit costs and future energy costs, including energy cost increases from tighter controls on carbon emissions. Simulation analysis shows that the retrofit option can significantly reduce anticipated future energy consumption as of the time of initial investment, and total future energy plus retrofit costs. The more uncertain are the costs, the greater the value of this option. However, the future retrofit option also induces more energy-intensive infrastructure choices, partly offsetting the direct effect of having the option on anticipated energy use. Efficient, forward-looking infrastructure investments have high potential for reducing long-term energy consumption. Particularly if energy prices are expected to rise, however, the potential for reduced energy consumption will be eroded if expectations of energy prices do not include environmental costs or future retrofit possibilities and technologies are not adequately developed.Energy Production and Transportation,Climate Change Economics,Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases,Environment and Energy Efficiency,Energy and Environment

Whose outcomes are they anyway? Report of the pilot evaluation of a joint service\ud

Health and social care partnership working is often predicated on the notion that it improves outcomes for service users. Yet there is a lack of evidence linking partnerships to changes in outcomes. Against this background, the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham designed the Partnership Outcomes Evaluation Toolkit (POET) specifically to evaluate health and social care partnerships in terms of service user outcomes. This paper reports on the field testing of POET with Sandwell Integrated Support Service. This research provided a number of interesting insights into this service, and indicated some dissonance between staff and service user and carer expectations