Making the best use of consultants in the GCC

Falling oil prices have forced the GCC countries to revise or, in the case of Saudi Arabia, launch their economic visions, creating a potentially important role for consultants. According to Global Research Saudi Arabia’s consulting market expanded by 14.8 percent to $1.25 billion in 2015, accounting for almost half of the robust GCC consulting market, which itself grew by 9.4 percent. How can the GCC countries get the best out of the expert advice on offer

Investigating the impact of reservoir properties and injection parameters on carbon dioxide dissolution in saline aquifers

CO2 injection into geological formations is considered one way of mitigating the increasing levels of carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere and its effect on and global warming. In regard to sequestering carbon underground, different countries have conducted projects at commercial scale or pilot scale and some have plans to develop potential storage geological formations for carbon dioxide storage. In this study, pure CO2 injection is examined on a model with the properties of bunter sandstone and then sensitivity analyses were conducted for some of the fluid, rock and injection parameters. The results of this study show that the extent to which CO2 has been convected in the porous media in the reservoir plays a vital role in improving the CO2 dissolution in brine and safety of its long term storage. We conclude that heterogeneous permeability plays a crucial role on the saturation distribution and can increase or decrease the amount of dissolved CO2 in water around ± 7% after the injection stops and up to 13% after 120 years. Furthermore, the value of absolute permeability controls the effect of the Kv/Kh ratio on the CO2 dissolution in brine. In other words, as the value of vertical and horizontal permeability decreases (i.e., tight reservoirs) the impact of Kv/Kh ratio on the dissolved CO2 in brine becomes more prominent. Additionally, reservoir engineering parameters, such as well location, injection rate and scenarios, also have a high impact on the amount of dissolved CO2 and can change the dissolution up to 26%, 100% and 5.5%, respectively

Choroid plexus-targeted NKCC1 overexpression to treat post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus

Post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (PHH) refers to a life-threatening accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) that occurs following intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). An incomplete understanding of this variably progressive condition has hampered the development of new therapies beyond serial neurosurgical interventions. Here, we show a key role for the bidirectional Na-K-Cl cotransporter, NKCC1, in the choroid plexus (ChP) to mitigate PHH. Mimicking IVH with intraventricular blood led to increased CSF [

Mammy\u27s Lullaby / music by Pete Bontsema and Jacobi, Marty Petro, Julius; words by Al Cameron and Julius Seidor

Cover: photo of Al Cameron and Pete Bontsema; Publisher: Milton Weil Music Co. (Chicago)https://egrove.olemiss.edu/sharris_d/1106/thumbnail.jp

The economic costs of natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and other calamities: An analysis of economic models that quantify the losses caused by disruptions

Over the past decade, numerous studies have estimated the economic impacts of a variety of disruptions. Most of these studies are based on macroeconomic models that quantify the direct and indirect economic losses from a disruption. Direct economic losses occur due to damaged facilities or when consumers change their purchasing behavior because of the disruption. Indirect economic losses occur when directly impacted businesses consequently reduce their orders to their suppliers. Indirect economic losses are often larger than direct economic losses. This paper compiles the results from these economic models in order to compare the costs of different disruptions and help decision makers prioritize among disruptions. We compare the direct and indirect economic losses from a variety of disruptions, including earthquakes, hurricanes, terrorist attacks, pandemic diseases, and port closures. Some studies model hypothetical scenarios, but other studies quantify the economic losses from historical events such as the September 11 attacks and the 2011 Japanese tsunami. This paper provides a useful benchmark to understand the consequences from disruptions and highlight areas that public officials could address in planning for future disruptions

Stability of a biomembrane tube covered with proteins

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