Some remarks concerning soaring flight

The publication of the following details is due to the desire of the editor to have the problems of soaring flight treated on the occasion of the Rhone Soaring Flight Contest

Contemporary soaring nomenclature

Considerable technical progress took place during the past two decades in the field of soaring. In contrast, basic terminology in many languages is lagging seriously. English, one of the leading languages, is no exception. Because of this situation, misunderstandings occur which under some circumstances may result in undesirable consequences, hindering further technical developments as well as soaring activities. Definitions were established and compiled by mid-1973, followed by minor additions (1974 and 1977)

How high is too high? Soaring Interest Rates and the Elasticity of Demand for Microcredit

How high is too high? Soaring Interest Rates and the Elasticity of Demand for MicrocreditFinancial Economics,

Mapping the global potential exposure of soaring birds to terrestrial wind energy expansion

The wind energy sector is steadily growing, and the number of wind turbines is expected to expand across large areas of the globe in the near future. While the development of wind energy can contribute to mitigating climate change, it also poses challenges to wildlife, particularly birds, due to increased collision risk with wind turbines. Here we quantify and map potential conflicts between the potential for wind energy development and the distribution of terrestrial soaring birds. We explore the relationship between species traits (including body mass, migration ecology and extinction risk) and exposure to potential wind energy development, and identified areas of potential conflict between wind power production and soaring bird conservation. We considered the full range of each species, as well as separately analyzing the breeding, non-breeding and passage ranges for migratory species. We show that exposure to potential wind energy development is similar for soaring and non-soaring bird species. Within different parts of the range of soaring bird species, passage distributions have significantly higher potential for wind energy development than the full, breeding or non-breeding ranges. Moreover, exposure to potential wind energy development was higher within the ranges of heavier soaring bird species and those that are migratory. We show that areas of conflict between soaring bird conservation and potential wind energy development could be very large, particularly when the passage ranges of soaring bird species are considered. Such areas of potential conflict are largely unprotected. This highlights a risk for soaring birds from potential wind energy development wherever it is not carefully sited in order to minimise environmental impacts.Peer reviewe

Kicking the oil addiction

Few people were left unaffected by the soaring oil prices of summer 2008. Motorists were the hardest hit as the price at the pumps reached an all time high, but nobody could avoid paying more for their food as higher transport costs were passed on from the retailer to the consumer

Membrane reactor technology for ultrapure hydrogen production

The suitability of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) for stationary and vehicular applications because of its low operating temperatures, compactness, higher power density, cleaner exhausts and higher efficiencies compared to conventional internal\ud combustion engines and gas turbines adds to the already soaring demand for hydrogen production for refinery and petrochemical applications

Soaring upwards

金沢大学理工研究域機械工学系本研究では，高い強度，優れた耐応力緩和特性，適切な導電性を持つ時効硬化型Cu-Ni-Sn合金の作製を目的とした．市販合金と組成がほぼ同じCu-9%Ni-6%Sn，Cu-15%Ni-8%Sn，Cu-21%Ni-5.5%Sn合金，並びに今回提案するCu-9%Ni-9%Sn合金に400℃でピーク時効後圧延し，応力緩和率を向上のため400℃で焼鈍を行った．この加工熱処理は筆者独自のものである．いずれの合金も，市販合金に比べ引張強さは100～200MPaも高く，導電性は同程度であるが，耐応力緩和特性は劣る．Cu-9%Ni-9%Sn合金が強度，耐応力緩和特性，導電性の面で最もバランスが取れている．In this study, we aimed to fabricate an age-hardened Cu-Ni-Sn alloy with a high strength, an excellent stress relaxation resistance and a suitable conductivity. A Cu-9wt%Ni-9wt%Sn alloy with proposed compositions of Ni and Sn, and Cu-9wt%Ni-6wt%Sn, Cu-15wt%Ni-8wt%Sn, and Cu-21wt%Ni-5.5wt%Sn alloys with almost the same compositions of Ni and Sn as commercial Cu-Ni-Sn alloys were first peak-aged at 400°C, then cold-rolled, and finally annealed at 400°C to improve the stress relaxation resistance of the four cold-rolled alloys. This thermomechanical heat treatment is the author\u27s unique method. The four alloys have tensile strengths higher than those of commercially available alloys by about 100 to 200 MPa, and their conductivities are comparable, but their resistances to stress relaxation are smaller. Among the four alloys, the balance of strength, stress relaxation resistance, and conductivity of the Cu-9%Ni-9%Sn alloy is the most excellent.研究課題/領域番号:15K06480, 研究期間(年度):2015-04-01 - 2018-03-3

Medicaid's Soaring Cost: Time to Step on the Brakes

Current trends and policies imply unsustainable growth in federal Medicaid outlays. In the year 2006, federal Medicaid spending was 11.9 percent of federal general revenues and 1.5 percent of GDP. Making conservative assumptions about future growth in Medicaid enrollment and spending per beneficiary, this paper estimates that the present value of federal Medicaid outlays over the next 100 years will take up 24 percent of the present value of federal general revenues and 3.7 percent of the present value of GDP calculated over the same period. By the end of the next 100 years, that is, in the year 2106, Medicaid's share of federal general revenues will be 48 percent -- four times larger than its 11.9 percent share in 2006. In the year 2106, federal Medicaid spending as a share of GDP is estimated to be 7.4 percent -- a fivefold increase from its current share of 1.5 percent. If the federal government continues to match state Medicaid outlays at the current rate, Medicaid's share of GDP in the year 2106 will become 13 percent -- or one-eighth of GDP in 2106. If current policies and trends are maintained, federal Medicaid outlays will take up 36 percent of lifetime federal general revenue taxes for males born in 2025 and 69 percent for females born in that year. For females born after 2050, almost all of their lifetime federal nonpayroll taxes will be consumed by their lifetime Medicaid benefits. Higher tax rates cannot plausibly cover this growing spending commitment. On average, today's 35-year-old males are projected to have 15 percent of their lifetime federal general revenues returned in the form of Medicaid benefits. Maintaining that ratio for today's newborn males would require a 78 percent increase in their lifetime nonpayroll taxes. Limiting Medicaid spending growth is, thus, an essential component of putting the federal budget on a sustainable course without imposing crushing tax burdens on younger and future generations, thereby harming the prospects for future economic growth