Top Notch Support for eBooks

Come learn tips and tricks for delivering top notch technical support for eBooks. Library staff are the front line technical support for a growing number of patrons with diverse technical abilities wanting to access eBooks. We’ll share VPL’s unique team approach and innovative techniques for delivering technical support for your eBook collection. In this session, participants will learn: How to apply reference interview skills to technical support. How to create effective tools to use with patrons, including templates and on-the-spot screencasts. How to build an effective ebook-support team in your reference departmen

Do plant species of different resource qualities form dissimilar energy channels below-ground?

Peer reviewe

Market Integration of Farmed Trout in Germany

Price formation and integration of markets supplied by both farmed and captured fish is studied. Markets for trout and potential substitutes imported to Germany are analysed, and market delineation and market leaders identified. It is found that markets for small portion-sized farmed trout with white meat are related to, rather than completely separate from, other fish markets, and that markets for these trout are more closely linked to markets for captured fish than to farmed salmon. The implications are that although the part of the trout business operating with small freshwater ponds remains relatively unaffected by developments in other fish markets, careful attention should be paid to markets for and management of capture fisheries like cod, halibut, redfish, and mackerel, than to markets for farmed salmon.Price formation, market integration, captured-farmed fish, Production Economics, F15, Q21, Q22,

Intensity and spin anisotropy of three-dimensional polarization states

Anisotropy is a natural feature of polarization states, and only fully random three-dimensional (3D) states exhibit complete isotropy. In general, differences between the strengths of the electric field components along the three orthogonal directions give rise to intensity anisotropy. Moreover, polarization states involve an average spin whose inherent vectorial nature constitutes a source of spin anisotropy. In this work, appropriate descriptors are identified to characterize quantitatively the levels of intensity anisotropy and spin anisotropy of a general 3D polarization state, leading to a novel interpretation for the degree of polarimetric purity as a measure describing the overall polarimetric anisotropy of a 3D optical field. The mathematical representation, as well as the physical features of completely intensity-isotropic 3D polarization states with a maximum spin anisotropy, are also examined. The results provide new insights into the polarimetric field structure of random 3D electromagnetic light states. (C) 2019 Optical Society of Americ

The ability of selected filter materials in removing nutrients, metals, and microplastics from stormwater in biofilter structures

Creative solutions to manage stormwater include ecologically based designs, such as biofilter structures. A laboratory experiment was established to study the ability of biofilters to remove nutrients, metals, total suspended solids (TSS), and total organic C originating from roadside stormwater as melted snow. Special attention was paid to the removal of P. In addition, the fate of microplastics (MPs) in the biofilters was followed. The materials selected for biofilters were (a) crushed light-expanded clay aggregates without biochar or amended with biochar, (b) Filtralite P clay aggregates, (c) crushed concrete, or (d) filter sand. A layer to support grass growth was placed above these materials. Stormwater was rich in TSS with associated P and metals, which were substantially retained by all biofilters. Filtralite and concrete had almost 100% P removal, but the high pH had adverse effects on plants. Light-expanded clay aggregates had lower retention of P, and, when mixed with biochar (30% v/v), the leaching of P increased and N retention was improved. None of the materials was ideal for treating both nutrients and metals, but sand was generally best. Vegetation improved N retention and stormwater infiltration. Plant roots formed preferential pathways for water and associated substances, evidenced by the accumulation of MPs along root channels. No MPs were found in discharge. Given the high loading of suspended solids and associated contaminants in snowmelt from traffic areas and their efficient retention in biofiltration, results of this study suggest the implementation of such stormwater management solutions along road verges.Peer reviewe

Theories of referendum and the analysis of agenda-setting.

The referendum is often considered to be a form of direct democracy, and is often justified in terms of results representing the will of the majority. This view is disputable for three reasons: i) based on the results of social choice theory, it may be argued that the outcomes of referendums may be arbitrary and open to various interpretations; ii) it is debatable what the role of popular majorities should be in decision-making; many theorists of democracy think that unchecked majority rule should not prevail; iii) because of the differences in agenda-setting, there is considerable functional variation between referendums. Different forms of referendums have also been justified by different theoretical arguments: popular initiatives have been promoted by radical democrats, whereas referendums used as a check on legislature have been supported by 'Madisonian' democrats. In the analysis of agenda-setting it is important to distinguish i) how and by whom the referendum is initiated and ii) on what kind of issues they may be held. The influence of the referendum on the political agenda depends on whether the referendum is initiated by representatives (ad hoc or optional referendum); or by a certain number of citizens (popular initiative); or whether it is a check on laws passed by the parliament (mandatory, suspensive and abrogative referendums). Furthermore, these distinctions are important for understanding the strategic character of referendums, i.e. the strategic use of optional referendums by the representatives (parliamentary parties, president etc.), or the representatives' anticipation and reaction to the possibility of the other forms of referendums. Referendum in 22 democracies are classified, and their 'functional properties' (Smith 1976) are analysed. In order to get a more precise picture on how referendums function as a part of political systems and how political actors use the referendum, three cases, Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland, are analysed. Although the idea of giving the people a say is the common element of all forms of referendums, the differences between agenda-setting institutions explain why, how and under whose control 'the people's voice' is heard

For the Sake of the Future : Can Democratic Deliberation Help Thinking and Caring about Future Generations?

This article examines whether democratic deliberation can enhance participants' capacity to consider future generations' perspectives and willingness to make sacrifices to ensure their well-being. In addition to normal deliberation, we are interested in the effects of a mental time travel exercise where deliberators imagine themselves in the future (without ageing). The study is based on an experiment conducted as a part of Citizens' Assembly that contributed to the long-term planning of the Satakunta region in Finland. Our findings suggest that deliberation as such increases participants' willingness to consider future generations' perspectives in long-term planning; yet the mental time travel exercise had only a modest impact on perspective-taking. The results also show some support for the assumption that deliberation can enhance willingness to make sacrifices for future generations, although we do not see such an impact in case of an intergenerational conflict in flood protection.Peer reviewe

NOVEL PREPARATION AND MAGNETO CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF NANO-PARTICLE MIXED ALCOHOL CATALYSTS

We have produced Co, Cu, and Fe nano-particles by Laser-induced solution deposition (LISD) as evidenced by TEM investigations. Sizes of the nano-particles created are in the order of 5 nm. The LISD system could generate nano-particles in quantities only in the order of a milligram. This may be mainly due to the limited photo induced reactions taking place on the surface of the solutions. We have designed experiments to use drop flow technique with LISD for nano-particle deposition on microreactors. Preliminary work has been done on Co and Fe thin film deposited microreactors. We are also investigating the catalytic properties of nano-particles of FeO and CoO prepared by ball milling and dispersed into sol-gel prepared alumina granules. We have continued our investigation of catalytic reactions of Cu, Co, Fe, Cu/Co, Cu/Fe and Co/Fe on alumina support. The metal oxides were first reduced with hydrogen and used for the conversion of CO/H{sub 2}. The surface area of the catalysts has been determined by nitrogen disorption. They are in the range of 200-300 m{sup 2}/g. Cu, Co, Fe, Co/Fe, Cu/Co and Cu/Fe showed increasing order of catalytic activity for CO/H{sub 2} conversion. We are also studying catalytic conversion rates for CO{sub 2}/H{sub 2} and CO/CO{sub 2}/H{sub 2} mixtures using these catalysts. Our investigations of Co and Fe thin film deposited microreactors showed higher CO/H{sub 2} conversion for Fe compared to Co. We have used vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) to study the magnetic characteristics of as prepared, reduced, post-reaction catalysts. Comparative study of the ferromagnetic component of these samples gives the reduction efficiency and the changes in metal centers during catalytic reactions. Magnetic studies of post-reaction Co and Fe micro-reactors show that more carbide formation occurs for iron compared to cobalt

Geometry of the Central Limit Theorem in the Nonextensive Case

We uncover geometric aspects that underlie the sum of two independent stochastic variables when both are governed by q-Gaussian probability distributions. The pertinent discussion is given in terms of random vectors uniformly distributed on a p-sphere.Comment: 3 figure