Smart grid topology designs

This paper addresses supports for evolving design demands of electricity low voltage networks in urban areas. Innovations in how electricity is generated and supplied are required to support transformation of energy systems in response to climate change. We describe a MIP model to support grid upgrade decisions in the context of an energy community in an existing urban setting. We evaluate the MIP model on an adaption of an IEEE radial network benchmark instance augmented with geographic data. We present interesting computational results which suggest additional arcs to be added. Our results highlight potential research opportunities for the network optimisation community to facilitate the desired energy systems transformation challenge.publishe

Reflections on Sustainability Issues in Learning Object Development

[EN] Data science is a relatively new requirement in business curricula. Historically many business students have shied away from business statistics. We describe a project to create learning objects to enhance business students confidence and capabilities in performing statistical and analytics business tasks. In this paper we focus on the content development process, rather than the impact of the learning objects on student learning outcomes.We reflect on the steps in the learning object design and implementation project and conclude that the Plan, Act, Observe and Reflect iterative cycle worked well for the project team. We include recommendations on how this framework could be augmented to improve the sustainability of learning objects.Carroll, P.; Flaherty, N.; Ovenden, B. (2019). Reflections on Sustainability Issues in Learning Object Development. En HEAD'19. 5th International Conference on Higher Education Advances. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 169-176. https://doi.org/10.4995/HEAD19.2019.9170OCS16917

Men on the Move: Health Information Booklet

This booklet has been developed as a guide to support you to do the Men on the Move physical activity programme. You may also find it a useful source ofhealth information. Safety First! Check with your GP before attempting any of the exercises featured in this booklet if you: • Have a health problem, or • Are worried about any aspect of your health, or • Are not used to physical activity. All exercises featured in this booklet are done entirely at your own risk. This booklet is based upon the Mayo, Men on the Move booklet that wasdesigned in association with the Erris Men on the Move Group. We wouldlike to acknowledge the work of Michelle Healy [leader] and Padraig Brogan[Belmullet, Men on the Move Group]. This booklet also draws from literature produced by the Carlow Men’s Health Project, the Irish Heart Foundation, the Irish Cancer Society and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland.This booklet was prepared by Dr Paula Carroll, Centre for Health Behaviour Research, Waterford IT with support from the Men on the Move partners

Multinational and Indigenous IT Companies in Ireland: Exploring the Spatial Relationships between the Two Tiers

Information Technology (IT) multinational enterprises (MNEs) have garnered a significant amount of attention in relation to the growth of indigenous IT sectors (Brannigan and McManus, 2014; Siedschlag, Zhang and Smith, 2013; van Oort and Atzema, 2004). Compared to some sectors, the IT industry - which trades in immaterial goods - may be less dependent on spatial constraints since it does not rely on large scale labor force or massive movement of raw materials. This alleged ‘death of distance’ promises great changes in international business and poses questions about how indigenous economies and spatial policy are being affected (Maeng and Nedovic-Budic 2008 and 2010). Even though in principle international business is open to organizations of any size, in practice it tends to be dominated by MNEs. MNEs can sustain the cost and capacity of operating across countries and to address the volatility of functioning across diverse jurisdictions. Still, MNEs do not exist in a solely stateless space. They need to ‘touch the ground’ in specific places to hire people and get work done, to set headquarters and formalize legal bounds. They also play an important role in the formation of industrial clusters and networks (Nadvi, 1995) From the perspective of local host economies, attracting an MNE is perceived as a means of stimulating the growth of indigenous companies through knowledge spillovers (Motohashi and Yuan, 2010; Breznitz, 2010). Often, a question for governments is if the presence of MNEs within their territory benefits the indigenous economy and if there is a satisfactory number of new firms emerging from the purported knowledge and capital spill-overs. This is especially the case for IT as there are lower barriers to accessing means of production for entry into the market (Benkler: 2006), resulting in a higher potential for small businesses to start and grow. The objective of policy makers in attracting MNEs is not only job creation via MNEs, but job and wealth creation via the emergence of new indigenous IT companies and the strengthening of existing indigenous companies, through transfer of knowledge and other forms of capital from MNEs. The policy process is also focused on encouraging regional innovation systems which comprise of both international and indigenous companies, and ultimately helps build a national innovation system (Chung, 2002). Against this broad background, the presented research focuses on networks of inter-organizational relations (rather than the classic dichotomy hierarchy vs. market), which are approached through a spatial analysis of clusters. More precisely, it focuses on the spatial dimension of their interactions and the nature of their communications. While we recognize the complexity of these phenomena, with this research we aim at a concrete contribution to the debate on clustering and proximity as locational factors (among others: Mole et al.: 2011)

Systematic reviews of and integrated report on the quantitative, qualitative and economic evidence base for the management of obesity in men

<b>Background</b><p></p> Obesity increases the risk of many serious illnesses such as coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and osteoarthritis. More men than women are overweight or obese in the UK but men are less likely to perceive their weight as a problem and less likely to engage with weight-loss services.<p></p> <b>Objective</b><p></p> The aim of this study was to systematically review evidence-based management strategies for treating obesity in men and investigate how to engage men in obesity services by integrating the quantitative, qualitative and health economic evidence base.<p></p> <b>Data sources</b><p></p> Electronic databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and the NHS Economic Evaluation Database were searched from inception to January 2012, with a limited update search in July 2012. Subject-specific websites, reference lists and professional health-care and commercial organisations were also consulted.<p></p> <b>Review methods</b><p></p> Six systematic reviews were conducted to consider the clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and qualitative evidence on interventions for treating obesity in men, and men in contrast to women, and the effectiveness of interventions to engage men in their weight reduction. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with follow-up data of at least 1 year, or any study design and length of follow-up for UK studies, were included. Qualitative and mixed-method studies linked to RCTs and non-randomised intervention studies, and UK-based, men-only qualitative studies not linked to interventions were included. One reviewer extracted data from the included studies and a second reviewer checked data for omissions or inaccuracies. Two reviewers carried out quality assessment. We undertook meta-analysis of quantitative data and a realist approach to integrating the qualitative and quantitative evidence synthesis.<p></p> <b>Results</b><p></p> From a total of 12,764 titles reviewed, 33 RCTs with 12 linked reports, 24 non-randomised reports, five economic evaluations with two linked reports, and 22 qualitative studies were included. Men were more likely than women to benefit if physical activity was part of a weight-loss programme. Reducing diets tended to produce more favourable weight loss than physical activity alone (mean weight change after 1 year from a reducing diet compared with an exercise programme -3.2 kg, 95% CI -4.8 kg to -1.6 kg). The type of reducing diet did not affect long-term weight loss. A reducing diet plus physical activity and behaviour change gave the most effective results. Low-fat reducing diets, some with meal replacements, combined with physical activity and behaviour change training gave the most effective long-term weight change in men [-5.2 kg (standard error 0.2 kg) after 4 years]. Such trials may prevent type 2 diabetes in men and improve erectile dysfunction. Although fewer men joined weight-loss programmes, once recruited they were less likely to drop out than women (difference 11%, 95% CI 8% to 14%). The perception of having a health problem (e.g. being defined as obese by a health professional), the impact of weight loss on health problems and desire to improve personal appearance without looking too thin were motivators for weight loss amongst men. The key components differ from those found for women, with men preferring more factual information on how to lose weight and more emphasis on physical activity programmes. Interventions delivered in social settings were preferred to those delivered in health-care settings. Group-based programmes showed benefits by facilitating support for men with similar health problems, and some individual tailoring of advice assisted weight loss in some studies. Generally, men preferred interventions that were individualised, fact-based and flexible, which used business-like language and which included simple to understand information. Preferences for men-only versus mixed-sex weight-loss group programmes were divided. In terms of context, programmes which were cited in a sporting context where participants have a strong sense of affiliation showed low drop out rates and high satisfaction. Although some men preferred weight-loss programmes delivered in an NHS context, the evidence comparing NHS and commercial programmes for men was unclear. The effect of family and friends on participants in weight-loss programmes was inconsistent in the evidence reviewed - benefits were shown in some cases, but the social role of food in maintaining relationships may also act as a barrier to weight loss. Evidence on the economics of managing obesity in men was limited and heterogeneous.<p></p> <b>Limitations</b><p></p> The main limitations were the limited quantity and quality of the evidence base and narrow outcome reporting, particularly for men from disadvantaged and minority groups. Few of the studies were undertaken in the UK.<p></p> <b>Conclusions</b><p></p> Weight reduction for men is best achieved and maintained with the combination of a reducing diet, physical activity advice or a physical activity programme, and behaviour change techniques. Tailoring interventions and settings for men may enhance effectiveness, though further research is needed to better understand the influence of context and content. Future studies should include cost-effectiveness analyses in the UK setting

Smart Grid Standardisation: Contributions and Opportunities of EU Horizon 2020 Projects

Standards are critically important for smartening the grid because they affect the interoper-ability, compatibility, efficiency, and realisation of new technologies and services. In this paper we assess the contribution of EU funded Horizon 2020 projects to adapting or initiating new Smart Grid standards. We provide a comprehensive overview of the Smart Grid standardisation ecosystem and identify opportunities for researchers and innovators to participate in stan-dardisation activities. We identify 225 Horizon 2020 Smart Grid projects and explore which have contributed to the creation or revision of Smart Grid standards. We identify the type of standardisation activities undertaken and explore the factors that influence engagement. We have found that 21 % of EU Horizon 2020 Smart Grid projects engage in some level of standardisation activities. Of these projects the majority (60 %) are involved in understanding standards, 31 % actively engage in influencing standards, while 8 % successfully participate in elaborating new standards. Our study demonstrates that despite the complexity of the Smart Grid Standardisation ecosystem, EU funded researchers and innovators play an important role in the standardisation process.Smart Grid Standardisation: Contributions and Opportunities of EU Horizon 2020 ProjectspublishedVersio

Learning to Sparsify Travelling Salesman Problem Instances

CPAIOR 2021: 18th International Conference on Integration of Constraint Programming, Artificial Intelligence, and Operations Research, Vienna, Austria, 5 - 8 July 2021In order to deal with the high development time of exact and approximation algorithms for NP-hard combinatorial optimisation problems and the high running time of exact solvers, deep learning techniques have been used in recent years as an end-to-end approach to find solutions. However, there are issues of representation, generalisation, complex architectures, interpretability of models for mathematical analysis etc. using deep learning techniques. As a compromise, machine learning can be used to improve the run time performance of exact algorithms in a matheuristics framework. In this paper, we use a pruning heuristic leveraging machine learning as a pre-processing step followed by an exact Integer Programming approach. We apply this approach to sparsify instances of the classical travelling salesman problem. Our approach learns which edges in the underlying graph are unlikely to belong to an optimal solution and removes them, thus sparsifying the graph and significantly reducing the number of decision variables. We use carefully selected features derived from linear programming relaxation, cutting planes exploration, minimum-weight spanning tree heuristics and various other local and statistical analysis of the graph. Our learning approach requires very little training data and is amenable to mathematical analysis. We demonstrate that our approach can reliably prune a large fraction of the variables in TSP instances from TSPLIB/MATILDA (>85%) while preserving most of the optimal tour edges. Our approach can successfully prune problem instances even if they lie outside the training distribution, resulting in small optimality gaps between the pruned and original problems in most cases. Using our learning technique, we discover novel heuristics for sparsifying TSP instances, that may be of independent interest for variants of the vehicle routing problem.Science Foundation IrelandOpen access funding provided by SF