12 CFR 1013.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the residual and realized values...) Depreciation and any amortized amounts. The depreciation and any amortized amounts, which is the difference... the depreciation and any amortized amounts.” This amount is the difference between the total of the...

12 CFR 1013.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the residual and realized values...) Depreciation and any amortized amounts. The depreciation and any amortized amounts, which is the difference... the depreciation and any amortized amounts.” This amount is the difference between the total of the...

12 CFR 1013.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the residual and realized values...) Depreciation and any amortized amounts. The depreciation and any amortized amounts, which is the difference... the depreciation and any amortized amounts.” This amount is the difference between the total of the...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization of premium... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

7 CFR 1810.1 - Information concerning interest rates, amortization, guarantee fee, annual charge, and fixed period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 12 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Information concerning interest rates, amortization... UTILITIES SERVICE, AND FARM SERVICE AGENCY, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE GENERAL REGULATIONS INTEREST RATES, TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND APPROVAL AUTHORITY Interest Rates, Amortization, Guarantee Fee, Annual Charge...

26 CFR 1.412(c)(1)-3 - Applying the minimum funding requirements to restored plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... balance in the funding standard account is set equal to zero when the initial restoration amortization... that are sufficient to prevent the outstanding balance of the initial restoration amortization base..., the maximum permitted outstanding balance of the initial restoration amortization base at the end of...

26 CFR 1.1016-3 - Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion for periods since February...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 true Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence... Rules of General Application § 1.1016-3 Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and... be decreased for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion by the greater...

26 CFR 1.187-1 - Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Amortization of certain coal mine safety... Corporations (continued) § 1.187-1 Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment. (a) Allowance of... coal mine safety equipment (as defined in § 1.187-2), based on a period of 60 months. Such 60-month...

26 CFR 1.187-1 - Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Amortization of certain coal mine safety... Corporations (continued) § 1.187-1 Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment. (a) Allowance of... coal mine safety equipment (as defined in § 1.187-2), based on a period of 60 months. Such 60-month...

26 CFR 1.187-1 - Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Amortization of certain coal mine safety... Corporations (continued) § 1.187-1 Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment. (a) Allowance of... coal mine safety equipment (as defined in § 1.187-2), based on a period of 60 months. Such 60-month...

26 CFR 1.187-1 - Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Amortization of certain coal mine safety... Corporations (continued) § 1.187-1 Amortization of certain coal mine safety equipment. (a) Allowance of... coal mine safety equipment (as defined in § 1.187-2), based on a period of 60 months. Such 60-month...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart B of... - Risk-Based Capital Test Methodology and Specifications

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

....3.2, Mortgage Amortization Schedule Inputs 3-32, Loan Group Inputs for Mortgage Amortization... Prepayment Explanatory Variables F 3.6.3.5.2, Multifamily Default and Prepayment Inputs 3-38, Loan Group... Group inputs for Gross Loss Severity F 3.3.4, Interest Rates Outputs3.6.3.3.4, Mortgage Amortization...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart B of... - Risk-Based Capital Test Methodology and Specifications

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

....3.2, Mortgage Amortization Schedule Inputs 3-32, Loan Group Inputs for Mortgage Amortization... Prepayment Explanatory Variables F 3.6.3.5.2, Multifamily Default and Prepayment Inputs 3-38, Loan Group... Group inputs for Gross Loss Severity F 3.3.4, Interest Rates Outputs3.6.3.3.4, Mortgage Amortization...

26 CFR 1.178-1 - Depreciation or amortization of improvements on leased property and cost of acquiring a lease.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Depreciation or amortization of improvements on... for Individuals and Corporations (continued) § 1.178-1 Depreciation or amortization of improvements on... the amount of the deduction allowable for any taxable year to a lessee for depreciation or...

26 CFR 1.381(c)(9)-1 - Amortization of bond discount or premium.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Amortization of bond discount or premium. 1.381(c)(9)-1 Section 1.381(c)(9)-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Insolvency Reorganizations § 1.381(c)(9)-1 Amortization of...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart B of... - Risk-Based Capital Test Methodology and Specifications

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

....3.2, Mortgage Amortization Schedule Inputs 3-32, Loan Group Inputs for Mortgage Amortization... Prepayment Explanatory Variables F 3.6.3.5.2, Multifamily Default and Prepayment Inputs 3-38, Loan Group... Group inputs for Gross Loss Severity F 3.3.4, Interest Rates Outputs3.6.3.3.4, Mortgage Amortization...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart B of... - Risk-Based Capital Test Methodology and Specifications

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

....3.2, Mortgage Amortization Schedule Inputs 3-32, Loan Group Inputs for Mortgage Amortization... Prepayment Explanatory Variables F 3.6.3.5.2, Multifamily Default and Prepayment Inputs 3-38, Loan Group... Group inputs for Gross Loss Severity F 3.3.4, Interest Rates Outputs3.6.3.3.4, Mortgage Amortization...

26 CFR 1.412(b)-2 - Amortization of experience gains in connection with certain group deferred annuity contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Amortization of experience gains in connection..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.412(b)-2 Amortization of experience gains in connection with certain group deferred annuity contracts. (a) Experience gain treatment. Dividends, rate credits, and...

48 CFR 9904.412-60 - Illustrations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... is being amortized over 30 years. The absolute value of the resultant net amortization credit is... limitation had been greater than zero, the assignable cost credit of $200,000 would have carried-forward and...

24 CFR 241.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Energy Conserving Improvements, Solar Energy Systems.... No energy saving loan shall have an amortization period in excess of 15 years unless the amount of...

24 CFR 241.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Energy Conserving Improvements, Solar Energy Systems.... No energy saving loan shall have an amortization period in excess of 15 years unless the amount of...

24 CFR 241.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

...-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Energy Conserving Improvements, Solar Energy Systems.... No energy saving loan shall have an amortization period in excess of 15 years unless the amount of...

24 CFR 241.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Energy Conserving Improvements, Solar Energy Systems.... No energy saving loan shall have an amortization period in excess of 15 years unless the amount of...

24 CFR 241.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Energy Conserving Improvements, Solar Energy Systems.... No energy saving loan shall have an amortization period in excess of 15 years unless the amount of...

7 CFR 4290.845 - Maximum rate of amortization on Loans and Debt Securities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... INVESTMENT COMPANY (âRBICâ) PROGRAM Financing of Enterprises by RBICs Structuring Rbic Financing of Eligible Enterprises-Types of Financings § 4290.845 Maximum rate of amortization on Loans and Debt Securities. The...

Remembrance of inferences past: Amortization in human hypothesis generation.

PubMed

Dasgupta, Ishita; Schulz, Eric; Goodman, Noah D; Gershman, Samuel J

2018-05-21

Bayesian models of cognition assume that people compute probability distributions over hypotheses. However, the required computations are frequently intractable or prohibitively expensive. Since people often encounter many closely related distributions, selective reuse of computations (amortized inference) is a computationally efficient use of the brain's limited resources. We present three experiments that provide evidence for amortization in human probabilistic reasoning. When sequentially answering two related queries about natural scenes, participants' responses to the second query systematically depend on the structure of the first query. This influence is sensitive to the content of the queries, only appearing when the queries are related. Using a cognitive load manipulation, we find evidence that people amortize summary statistics of previous inferences, rather than storing the entire distribution. These findings support the view that the brain trades off accuracy and computational cost, to make efficient use of its limited cognitive resources to approximate probabilistic inference. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

47 CFR 32.3400 - Accumulated amortization-tangible.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Accumulated amortization-tangible. 32.3400 Section 32.3400 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES Instructions for Balance Sheet Accounts § 32...

47 CFR 32.3410 - Accumulated amortization-capitalized leases.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Accumulated amortization-capitalized leases. 32.3410 Section 32.3410 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES Instructions for Balance Sheet...

76 FR 77054 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Regulation Project

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-09

... information collection requirements related to amortization of intangible property. DATES: Written comments....gov . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: Amortization of Intangible Property. OMB Number: 1545-1671. Regulation Project Number: (TD 8865). Abstract: These regulations apply to property acquired after January 25...

24 CFR 5.609 - Annual income.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... amortization of capital indebtedness shall not be used as deductions in determining net income. An allowance... income of any kind from real or personal property. Expenditures for amortization of capital indebtedness... of periodic amounts received from Social Security, annuities, insurance policies, retirement funds...

78 FR 57219 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Form 4562

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-17

... 4562, Depreciation and Amortization (Including Information on Listed Property). DATES: Written comments... and Amortization (Including Information on Listed Property). OMB Number: 1545-0172. Form Number: Form... election to expense certain tangible property under Internal Revenue Code section 179; and to provide...

Relationships Between Countermovement Jump Ground Reaction Forces and Jump Height, Reactive Strength Index, and Jump Time.

PubMed

Barker, Leland A; Harry, John R; Mercer, John A

2018-01-01

Barker, LA, Harry, JR, and Mercer, JA. Relationships between countermovement jump ground reaction forces and jump height, reactive strength index, and jump time. J Strength Cond Res 32(1): 248-254, 2018-The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between ground reaction force (GRF) variables to jump height, jump time, and the reactive strength index (RSI). Twenty-six, Division-I, male, soccer players performed 3 maximum effort countermovement jumps (CMJs) on a dual-force platform system that measured 3-dimensional kinetic data. The trial producing peak jump height was used for analysis. Vertical GRF (Fz) variables were divided into unloading, eccentric, amortization, and concentric phases and correlated with jump height, RSI (RSI = jump height/jump time), and jump time (from start to takeoff). Significant correlations were observed between jump height and RSI, concentric kinetic energy, peak power, concentric work, and concentric displacement. Significant correlations were observed between RSI and jump time, peak power, unload Fz, eccentric work, eccentric rate of force development (RFD), amortization Fz, amortization time, second Fz peak, average concentric Fz, and concentric displacement. Significant correlations were observed between jump time and unload Fz, eccentric work, eccentric RFD, amortization Fz, amortization time, average concentric Fz, and concentric work. In conclusion, jump height correlated with variables derived from the concentric phase only (work, power, and displacement), whereas Fz variables from the unloading, eccentric, amortization, and concentric phases correlated highly with RSI and jump time. These observations demonstrate the importance of countermovement Fz characteristics for time-sensitive CMJ performance measures. Researchers and practitioners should include RSI and jump time with jump height to improve their assessment of jump performance.

47 CFR 32.3000 - Instructions for balance sheet accounts-Depreciation and amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Instructions for balance sheet accounts-Depreciation and amortization. 32.3000 Section 32.3000 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION... for Balance Sheet Accounts § 32.3000 Instructions for balance sheet accounts—Depreciation and...

47 CFR 32.3000 - Instructions for balance sheet accounts-Depreciation and amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Instructions for balance sheet accounts-Depreciation and amortization. 32.3000 Section 32.3000 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION... for Balance Sheet Accounts § 32.3000 Instructions for balance sheet accounts—Depreciation and...

26 CFR 1.822-7 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-7 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-7 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis of... held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization and...

26 CFR 1.822-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-7 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-7 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

26 CFR 1.822-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis of... held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization and...

26 CFR 1.822-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821. Such amortization...

17 CFR 256.108 - Accumulated provision for depreciation and amortization of service company property.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., unless the company maintains costs and related reserves for specific units or types of property. (c... depreciation and amortization of service company property. 256.108 Section 256.108 Commodity and Securities... COMPANIES AND SUBSIDIARY SERVICE COMPANIES, PUBLIC UTILITY HOLDING COMPANY ACT OF 1935 Balance Sheet...

47 CFR 32.6560 - Depreciation and amortization expenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES Instructions for Expense Accounts § 32.6560 Depreciation and amortization expenses. Class B telephone companies shall use this account for expenses of the type and character required of Class A companies in Accounts 6561 through 6565. [69 FR 53652, Sept. 2...

12 CFR 208.23 - Agricultural loan loss amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... principal shareholders, a participating bank may amortize in its Reports of Condition and Income: (i) Any loss on a qualified agricultural loan that the bank would be required to reflect in its financial... required to reflect in its financial statements for any period between and including 1983 and 1991...

13 CFR 107.845 - Maximum rate of amortization on Loans and Debt Securities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... ADMINISTRATION SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT COMPANIES Financing of Small Businesses by Licensees Structuring Licensee's Financing of An Eligible Small Business: Terms and Conditions of Financing § 107.845 Maximum... 13 Business Credit and Assistance 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Maximum rate of amortization on...

24 CFR 232.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Method of loan payment and amortization period. 232.540 Section 232.540 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued) OFFICE OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HOUSING-FEDERAL HOUSING COMMISSIONER...

A Didactic Analysis of Functional Queues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rinderknecht, Christian

2011-01-01

When first introduced to the analysis of algorithms, students are taught how to assess the best and worst cases, whereas the mean and amortized costs are considered advanced topics, usually saved for graduates. When presenting the latter, aggregate analysis is explained first because it is the most intuitive kind of amortized analysis, often…

29 CFR 4211.36 - Modifications to the determination of initial liabilities, the amortization of initial...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., the amortization of initial liabilities, and the allocation fraction. 4211.36 Section 4211.36 Labor... initial liabilities, and the allocation fraction. (a) General rule. A plan using any of the allocation... participation under their prior plans. An amendment under this paragraph must include an allocation fraction...

26 CFR 1.1016-4 - Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion; periods during which income...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 true Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence...) INCOME TAXES Basis Rules of General Application § 1.1016-4 Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence... be made for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion to the extent...

18 CFR 367.1110 - Account 111, Accumulated provision for amortization of service company property.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... THE PUBLIC UTILITY HOLDING COMPANY ACT OF 2005, FEDERAL POWER ACT AND NATURAL GAS ACT UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS FOR CENTRALIZED SERVICE COMPANIES SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE PUBLIC UTILITY HOLDING... (§ 367.4040), for the current amortization of limited-term service company property investments. (2...

38 CFR 36.4211 - Amortization-prepayment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... security instrument shall contain any provision giving the holder a right to declare the loan due or... (CONTINUED) LOAN GUARANTY Guaranty of Loans to Veterans to Purchase Manufactured Homes and Lots, Including... under 38 U.S.C. 3712 a loan shall be amortized fully within the term of the loan in accordance with any...

26 CFR 1.168A-3 - Election to discontinue amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... amount of $6,000 is deducted and allowed for the taxable year 1954. On March 25, 1956, the corporation... amortization deductions for the taxable year 1955 and the months of January, February, and March 1956, amount.... 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec. 21, 1960. Redesignated by T.D. 8116, 51 FR 46619, Dec. 24, 1986] ...

26 CFR 1.177-1 - Election to amortize trademark and trade name expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 3 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Election to amortize trademark and trade name expenditures. 1.177-1 Section 1.177-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Itemized Deductions for Individuals and Corporations (continued) § 1.177-1 Election...

26 CFR 1.1016-3 - Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion for periods since February...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

..., amortization, and depletion for periods since February 28, 1913. 1.1016-3 Section 1.1016-3 Internal Revenue... (CONTINUED) Basis Rules of General Application § 1.1016-3 Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence... cost of $10,000. The useful life of the asset is 10 years. It has no salvage value. Depreciation was...

Accounting for time-dependent effects in biofuel life cycle greenhouse gas emissions calculations.

PubMed

Kendall, Alissa; Chang, Brenda; Sharpe, Benjamin

2009-09-15

This paper proposes a time correction factor (TCF) to properly account for the timing of land use change-derived greenhouse gas emissions in the biofuels life cycle. Land use change emissions occur at the outset of biofuel feedstock production, and are typically amortized over an assumed time horizon to assign the burdens of land use change to multiple generations of feedstock crops. Greenhouse gas intensity calculations amortize emissions by dividing them equally over a time horizon, overlooking the fact that the effect of a greenhouse gas increases with the time it remains in the atmosphere. The TCF is calculated based on the relative climate change effect of an emission occurring at the outset of biofuel feedstock cultivation versus one amortized over a time horizon. For time horizons between 10 and 50 years, the TCF varies between 1.7 and 1.8 for carbon dioxide emissions, indicating that the actual climate change effect of an emission is 70-80% higher than the effect of its amortized values. The TCF has broad relevance for correcting the treatment of emissions timing in other life cycle assessment applications, such as emissions from capital investments for production systems or manufacturing emissions for renewable energy technologies.

24 CFR 203.284 - Calculation of up-front and annual MIP on or after July 1, 1991.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... mortgage executed after December 27, 2005, which is insured under sections 203(k) or 234(c) of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1709(k) and 12 U.S.C. 1715y(c)) shall be subject to the following requirements: (1... amortization, or for a 12-month period preceding a subsequent anniversary date of the beginning of amortization...

24 CFR 203.284 - Calculation of up-front and annual MIP on or after July 1, 1991.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... mortgage executed after December 27, 2005, which is insured under sections 203(k) or 234(c) of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1709(k) and 12 U.S.C. 1715y(c)) shall be subject to the following requirements: (1... amortization, or for a 12-month period preceding a subsequent anniversary date of the beginning of amortization...

24 CFR 203.284 - Calculation of up-front and annual MIP on or after July 1, 1991.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... mortgage executed after December 27, 2005, which is insured under sections 203(k) or 234(c) of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1709(k) and 12 U.S.C. 1715y(c)) shall be subject to the following requirements: (1... amortization, or for a 12-month period preceding a subsequent anniversary date of the beginning of amortization...

Depreciation Requirements in the Department of Defense

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-06-01

Horngren , C. J., Cost Accounting : A Managerial Emphasis, Prentice-Hall, •IP7. 34. Anthony, R. N. and Herzlinger, R. E., Management Control in Nonprofit...consisted of both accrual and cost accounting , as well as property accounting i [Ref. 1: p. 171] The Commission also made the recommenda- i tion, with respect...Amortization of Cost Current accounting for depreciation is based upon the cost amortization concept. As defined in the Report of the Committee on

Efficient Merge and Insert Operations for Binary Heaps and Trees

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuszmaul, Christopher Lee; Woo, Alex C. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

Binary heaps and binary search trees merge efficiently. We introduce a new amortized analysis that allows us to prove the cost of merging either binary heaps or balanced binary trees is O(l), in the amortized sense. The standard set of other operations (create, insert, delete, extract minimum, in the case of binary heaps, and balanced binary trees, as well as a search operation for balanced binary trees) remain with a cost of O(log n). For binary heaps implemented as arrays, we show a new merge algorithm that has a single operation cost for merging two heaps, a and b, of O(absolute value of a + min(log absolute value of b log log absolute value of b. log absolute value of a log absolute value of b). This is an improvement over O(absolute value of a + log absolute value of a log absolute value of b). The cost of the new merge is so low that it can be used in a new structure which we call shadow heaps. to implement the insert operation to a tunable efficiency. Shadow heaps support the insert operation for simple priority queues in an amortized time of O(f(n)) and other operations in time O((log n log log n)/f (n)), where 1 less than or equal to f (n) less than or equal to log log n. More generally, the results here show that any data structure with operations that change its size by at most one, with the exception of a merge (aka meld) operation, can efficiently amortize the cost of the merge under conditions that are true for most implementations of binary heaps and search trees.

The Effect of Shoulder Plyometric Training on Amortization Time and Upper-Extremity Kinematics.

PubMed

Swanik, Kathleen A; Thomas, Stephen J; Struminger, Aaron H; Bliven, Kellie C Huxel; Kelly, John D; Swanik, Charles B

2016-12-01

Plyometric training is credited with providing benefits in performance and dynamic restraint. However, limited prospective data exist quantifying kinematic adaptations such as amortization time, glenohumeral rotation, and scapulothoracic position, which may underlie the efficacy of plyometric training for upper-extremity rehabilitation or performance enhancement. To measure upper-extremity kinematics and plyometric phase times before and after an 8-wk upper-extremity strength- and plyometric-training program. Randomized pretest-posttest design. Research laboratory. 40 recreationally active men (plyometric group, age 20.43 ± 1.40 y, height 180.00 ± 8.80 cm, weight 73.07 ± 7.21 kg; strength group, age 21.95 ± 3.40 y, height 173.98 ± 11.91 cm, weight 74.79 ± 13.55 kg). Participants were randomly assigned to either a strength-training group or a strength- and plyometric-training group. Each participant performed the assigned training for 8 wk. Dynamic and static glenohumeral and scapular-rotation measurements were taken before and after the training programs. Dynamic measurement of scapular rotation and time spent in each plyometric phase (concentric, eccentric, and amortization) during a ball-toss exercise were recorded while the subjects were fitted with an electromagnetic tracking system. Static measures included scapular upward rotation at 3 different glenohumeral-abduction angles, glenohumeral internal rotation, and glenohumeral external rotation. Posttesting showed that both groups significantly decreased the time spent in the amortization, concentric, and eccentric phases of a ball-toss exercise (P < .01). Both groups also exhibited significantly decreased static external rotation and increased dynamic scapular upward rotation after the training period (P < .01). The only difference between the training protocols was that the plyometric-training group exhibited an increase in internal rotation that was not present in the strength-training group (P < .01). These findings support the use of both upper-extremity plyometrics and strength training for reducing commonly identified upper-extremity-injury risk factors and improving upper-extremity performance.

26 CFR 1.818-2 - Accounting provisions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (section 167), research and experimental expenditures (section 174), soil and water conservation..., obsolescence, amortization, and depletion sustained, the amount actually sustained as determined under section...

42 CFR 57.1513 - Repayment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... FACILITIES, EDUCATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS, SCHOLARSHIPS AND STUDENT LOANS Loan Guarantees and Interest Subsidies... of principal and interest, sufficient to amortize the loan through the final year of the life of the...

43 CFR 21.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... or related purposes, and costing or worth $1,000 or more. It does not include trailers or similar... investment. (g) Amortization is the process whereby the investor in a substantial improvement derives...

47 CFR 32.7300 - Nonoperating income and expense.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... requirements; (7) Amortization of goodwill; (8) Company's share of the earnings or losses of affiliated... ordinances) or approval, modification, or revocation of franchises, or for the purpose of influencing the...

34 CFR 682.505 - Insurance premium.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... PLUS or SLS loan is calculated by— (1) Using the projected repayment period as a base; (2) Amortizing... circumstances where the borrower has entered the repayment period without the lender's knowledge. (f) Collection...

26 CFR 1.248-1 - Election to amortize organizational expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... original stock certificates, and the like; necessary accounting services; expenses of temporary directors... securities, such as commissions, professional fees, and printing costs. This is so even where the particular...

75 FR 52747 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-08-27

... amortized, purchase-money, non-farm loans that they close during the last five business days of the month. The MIRS excludes FHA-insured and VA-guaranteed loans, multifamily loans, mobile home loans, and loans...

26 CFR 1.248-1 - Election to amortize organizational expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... stock certificates, and the like; necessary accounting services; expenses of temporary directors and of... commissions, professional fees, and printing costs. This is so even where the particular issue of stock to...

47 CFR 32.24 - Compensated absences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... corresponding entry to Account 1438, Deferred maintenance, retirements and other deferred charges. This deferred... maintained so as to show that no more than ten percent of the deferred charge is being amortized each year...

47 CFR 32.24 - Compensated absences.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... corresponding entry to Account 1438, Deferred maintenance, retirements and other deferred charges. This deferred... maintained so as to show that no more than ten percent of the deferred charge is being amortized each year...

Amortization does not enhance the max-Rains information of a quantum channel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berta, Mario; Wilde, Mark M.

2018-05-01

Given an entanglement measure E, the entanglement of a quantum channel is defined as the largest amount of entanglement E that can be generated from the channel, if the sender and receiver are not allowed to share a quantum state before using the channel. The amortized entanglement of a quantum channel is defined as the largest net amount of entanglement E that can be generated from the channel, if the sender and receiver are allowed to share an arbitrary state before using the channel. Our main technical result is that amortization does not enhance the entanglement of an arbitrary quantum channel, when entanglement is quantified by the max-Rains relative entropy. We prove this statement by employing semi-definite programming (SDP) duality and SDP formulations for the max-Rains relative entropy and a channel’s max-Rains information, found recently in Wang et al (arXiv:1709.00200). The main application of our result is a single-letter, strong converse, and efficiently computable upper bound on the capacity of a quantum channel for transmitting qubits when assisted by positive-partial-transpose preserving (PPT-P) channels between every use of the channel. As the class of local operations and classical communication (LOCC) is contained in PPT-P, our result establishes a benchmark for the LOCC-assisted quantum capacity of an arbitrary quantum channel, which is relevant in the context of distributed quantum computation and quantum key distribution.

18 CFR 367.4040 - Account 404, Amortization of limited-term property.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... COMPANY ACT OF 2005, FEDERAL POWER ACT AND NATURAL GAS ACT UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS FOR CENTRALIZED... applicable to amounts included in the service company property accounts for limited-term franchises, licenses...

A Question of Interest

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holley, Ann D.

1978-01-01

Formulas are developed which answer installment-buying questions without the use of amortization, sinking funds, or annuity tables. Applications for geometric progressions, proof by induction, solution of exponential equations, and the notion of recursive functions are displayed. (MN)

7 CFR 3575.88 - Transfers and assumptions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

.... Installments will be at least equal to the amount amortized over a period not greater than the remaining life..., used due diligence to maintain the collateral against loss, and has otherwise fulfilled all of the...

7 CFR 1779.88 - Transfers and assumptions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... amount amortized over a period not greater than the remaining life of the debt being transferred, and the... lender must certify that the transferor has cooperated in good faith, used due diligence to maintain the...

29 CFR 4231.6 - Plan solvency tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

.... The actuary may select as the amortization period either— (i) The first 25 plan years beginning on or... determined under the funding method and assumptions expected to be used by the plan actuary for purposes of...

29 CFR 4231.6 - Plan solvency tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

.... The actuary may select as the amortization period either— (i) The first 25 plan years beginning on or... determined under the funding method and assumptions expected to be used by the plan actuary for purposes of...

29 CFR 4231.6 - Plan solvency tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

.... The actuary may select as the amortization period either— (i) The first 25 plan years beginning on or... determined under the funding method and assumptions expected to be used by the plan actuary for purposes of...

26 CFR 1.248-1T - Election to amortize organizational expenditures (temporary).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... of fact which must be determined in each case in light of all the circumstances of the particular... corporation comes into existence on the date of its incorporation. Mere organizational activities, such as the...

41 CFR 102-85.100 - How does a customer agency pay for tenant improvements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Management Federal Property Management Regulations System (Continued) FEDERAL MANAGEMENT REGULATION REAL... agency for TIs is amortized over a period of time specified in the OA, not to exceed the useful life of...

78 FR 57927 - Credit Risk Retention

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-20

..., Division of Research & Statistics, (202) 452-2342; or Nikita Pastor, Counsel, (202) 452-3667, Division of... include provisions that strengthen the regulation and supervision of national recognized statistical... delinquencies and foreclosures since 2007. These included features permitting negative amortization, interest...

26 CFR 1.522-2 - Manner of taxation of cooperative associations subject to section 522.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... amortization with respect to such premium from the date of acquisition of the bond. (For principles governing... related to the marketing, purchasing, or service activities of the cooperative association. For example...

26 CFR 1.453-6 - Deferred payment sale of real property not on installment method.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... therewith and an amount representing what would have been a proper adjustment for exhaustion, wear and tear... adjustment for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion of the property during...

26 CFR 1.818-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... required under section 818(b) on account of accruable discounts. (f) Denial of double inclusion. Any amount... section shall not be includible in gross income under section 1232(a) (relating to the taxation of bonds...

47 CFR 69.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... the Separations Manual from which depreciation, amortization and other reserves attributable to such... Commission's rules relating to the Creation of Access Charge Subelements for Open Network Architecture... tandem, (1) Between the serving wire center and the end office, or (2) Between two customer-designated...

47 CFR 32.5999 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

..., network operations expenses, and depreciation and amortization expenses. Accounts in this group (except... group summary account, and subsidiary record category (if required). (2) The expense section of this system of accounts shall be comprised of four major expense groups—Plant Specific Operations, Plant...

47 CFR 32.6565 - Amortization expense-other.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

....6565 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM... 2005, Telecommunications plant adjustment. (b) This account shall also include lump-sum write offs of amounts of plant acquisition adjustment as provided for in § 32.2005(b)(3) of subpart C. (c) Subsidiary...

47 CFR 36.361 - Depreciation and amortization expenses-Account 6560.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 6560. 36.361 Section 36.361 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON... expenses—Account 6560. (a) This account includes the depreciation expenses for telecommunications plant in... basis of the separation of the associated primary Plant Accounts or related categories. Customer...

26 CFR 1.1382-7 - Special rules applicable to cooperative associations exempt from tax before January 1, 1952.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., obsolescence, amortization, and depletion for all taxable years beginning prior to January 1, 1952, although... law for such years. However, no adjustment for percentage or discovery depletion is to be made for any...

24 CFR 232.805 - Insurance premiums.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... insurance premium equal to one percent of the original face amount of the note. (b) Second premium. The... the first principal payment. (c) Annual insurance premium. Until the note is paid in full, or until... amortization provisions without taking into account delinquent payments or prepayments. ...

24 CFR 232.805 - Insurance premiums.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... insurance premium equal to one percent of the original face amount of the note. (b) Second premium. The... the first principal payment. (c) Annual insurance premium. Until the note is paid in full, or until... amortization provisions without taking into account delinquent payments or prepayments. ...

24 CFR 232.805 - Insurance premiums.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... insurance premium equal to one percent of the original face amount of the note. (b) Second premium. The... the first principal payment. (c) Annual insurance premium. Until the note is paid in full, or until... amortization provisions without taking into account delinquent payments or prepayments. ...

26 CFR 1.188-1 - Amortization of certain expenditures for qualified on-the-job training and child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... of the training, placement is to be based primarily upon the skills learned through the training... training facility for purposes of section 188 simply because new employees receive training on the machines...

26 CFR 1.188-1 - Amortization of certain expenditures for qualified on-the-job training and child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... of the training, placement is to be based primarily upon the skills learned through the training... training facility for purposes of section 188 simply because new employees receive training on the machines...

47 CFR 32.6565 - Amortization expense-other.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

....6565 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM... 2005, Telecommunications plant adjustment. (b) This account shall also include lump-sum write offs of amounts of plant acquisition adjustment as provided for in § 32.2005(b)(3) of subpart C. (c) Subsidiary...

47 CFR 36.361 - Depreciation and amortization expenses-Account 6560.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 6560. 36.361 Section 36.361 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON... expenses—Account 6560. (a) This account includes the depreciation expenses for telecommunications plant in... basis of the separation of the associated primary Plant Accounts or related categories. Customer...

47 CFR 54.301 - Local switching support.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Deferred Maintenance and Retirements Included in Account 1438 Deferred Charges Included in Account 1438... 4300); and Deferred Maintenance and Retirements (Included in Account 1438) shall be allocated according... Amortization Included in Accounts 2005, 2680, 2690, 3410 Net Deferred Operating Income Taxes Accounts 4100...

The Language Laboratory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hocking, Elton

This condensed article on the language laboratory describes educational and financial possibilities and limitations, often citing the foreign language program at Purdue University as an example. The author discusses: (1) costs and amortization, (2) preventive maintenance, (3) laboratory design, (4) the multichannel recorder, and (5) visuals. Other…

26 CFR 1.188-1 - Amortization of certain expenditures for qualified on-the-job training and child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... of the training, placement is to be based primarily upon the skills learned through the training... training facility for purposes of section 188 simply because new employees receive training on the machines...

26 CFR 1.188-1 - Amortization of certain expenditures for qualified on-the-job training and child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... of the training, placement is to be based primarily upon the skills learned through the training... training facility for purposes of section 188 simply because new employees receive training on the machines...

26 CFR 1.188-1 - Amortization of certain expenditures for qualified on-the-job training and child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... of the training, placement is to be based primarily upon the skills learned through the training... training facility for purposes of section 188 simply because new employees receive training on the machines...

The Mathematics of the Return from Home Ownership.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vest, Floyd; Griffith, Reynolds

1991-01-01

A mathematical model or project analysis that calculates the financial return from home ownership is described. This analysis illustrates topics such as compound interest, annuities, amortization schedules, internal rate of return, and other elements of school and college mathematics up through numerical analysis. (KR)

24 CFR 232.540 - Method of loan payment and amortization period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... AND OTHER AUTHORITIES MORTGAGE INSURANCE FOR NURSING HOMES, INTERMEDIATE CARE FACILITIES, BOARD AND CARE HOMES, AND ASSISTED LIVING FACILITIES Eligibility Requirements-Supplemental Loans To Finance Purchase and Installation of Fire Safety Equipment Eligible Security Instruments § 232.540 Method of loan...

7 CFR 1767.23 - Interest charges.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

.... Interest Charges 427Interest on Long-Term Debt 427.3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit 428Amortization... Companies 431Other Interest Expense 432Allowance for Borrowed Funds Used During Construction—Credit Interest....3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit This account shall include concurrent credits for interest charged...

7 CFR 1767.23 - Interest charges.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

.... Interest Charges 427Interest on Long-Term Debt 427.3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit 428Amortization... Companies 431Other Interest Expense 432Allowance for Borrowed Funds Used During Construction—Credit Interest....3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit This account shall include concurrent credits for interest charged...

7 CFR 1767.23 - Interest charges.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

.... Interest Charges 427Interest on Long-Term Debt 427.3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit 428Amortization... Companies 431Other Interest Expense 432Allowance for Borrowed Funds Used During Construction—Credit Interest....3Interest Charged to Construction—Credit This account shall include concurrent credits for interest charged...

43 CFR 2932.5 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... profit, receive money, amortize equipment, or obtain goods or services, as compensation from participants... by the permit is not profit-making or the business as a whole is not profitable. (3) Use of the... Areas § 2932.5 Definitions. Actual expenses means money spent directly on the permitted activity. These...

43 CFR 2932.5 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... profit, receive money, amortize equipment, or obtain goods or services, as compensation from participants... by the permit is not profit-making or the business as a whole is not profitable. (3) Use of the... Areas § 2932.5 Definitions. Actual expenses means money spent directly on the permitted activity. These...

43 CFR 2932.5 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... profit, receive money, amortize equipment, or obtain goods or services, as compensation from participants... by the permit is not profit-making or the business as a whole is not profitable. (3) Use of the... Areas § 2932.5 Definitions. Actual expenses means money spent directly on the permitted activity. These...

43 CFR 2932.5 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... profit, receive money, amortize equipment, or obtain goods or services, as compensation from participants... by the permit is not profit-making or the business as a whole is not profitable. (3) Use of the... Areas § 2932.5 Definitions. Actual expenses means money spent directly on the permitted activity. These...

47 CFR 32.2682 - Leasehold improvements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS... telecommunications plant held under a capital or operating lease, which are subject to amortization treatment. This... telecommunications plant which are of a relatively minor cost or short life or for which the period of the lease is...

40 CFR 20.1 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... air or water pollution control facilities as to which the amortization period began before January 1... Applicability. The regulations of this part apply to certifications by the Administrator of water or air pollution control facilities for purposes of section 169 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended...

40 CFR 20.1 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... air or water pollution control facilities as to which the amortization period began before January 1... Applicability. The regulations of this part apply to certifications by the Administrator of water or air pollution control facilities for purposes of section 169 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended...

7 CFR 3550.10 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... with an RHS loan. Affordable leveraged loans are characterized by long term (not less than 30 years... amortized mortgage loan that provides for the scheduled payment of interest and principal over the term of... deficiency in the applicant's repayment ability. The cosigner becomes jointly liable to comply with the terms...

47 CFR 32.2682 - Leasehold improvements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES UNIFORM SYSTEM OF ACCOUNTS... telecommunications plant held under a capital or operating lease, which are subject to amortization treatment. This... telecommunications plant which are of a relatively minor cost or short life or for which the period of the lease is...

42 CFR 56.108 - Use of grant funds.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... this part, the terms and conditions of the award, and the applicable cost principles prescribed in... limited to, the following: (1) The costs of acquiring and modernizing existing buildings (including the costs of amortizing the principal of, and paying interest on, loans), but only in accordance with...

7 CFR 1767.21 - Operating income.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... amortization charges applicable to amounts included in the electric plant accounts for limited-term franchises..., franchise taxes, Federal excise taxes, social security taxes, and all other taxes assessed by Federal, state... include, as approved by RUS, amounts relating to gains from the disposition of future use utility plant...

18 CFR 157.16 - Exhibits relating to acquisitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Exhibits relating to acquisitions. 157.16 Section 157.16 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY... derive the related depreciation, depletion and amortization reserves. (2) The original cost of the...

18 CFR 157.16 - Exhibits relating to acquisitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Exhibits relating to acquisitions. 157.16 Section 157.16 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY... derive the related depreciation, depletion and amortization reserves. (2) The original cost of the...

18 CFR 157.16 - Exhibits relating to acquisitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Exhibits relating to acquisitions. 157.16 Section 157.16 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY... derive the related depreciation, depletion and amortization reserves. (2) The original cost of the...

18 CFR 157.16 - Exhibits relating to acquisitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Exhibits relating to acquisitions. 157.16 Section 157.16 Conservation of Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY... derive the related depreciation, depletion and amortization reserves. (2) The original cost of the...

Fiscal Year 2014: Military Retirement Fund Audited Financial Report

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-11-07

Reserve Retirement ................................................................................................................. 7 Survivor...benefits for military members’ retirement from active duty and the reserves , disability retirement benefits, and survivor benefits. The MRF accumulates... premium /discount amortization and accrued inflation compensation. In comparison, in FY 2013 the MRF received approximately $20.5 billion in normal cost

75 FR 1403 - Notice of Proposed Information Collection for 1004-0102

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-11

... to pay private landowners for the use and/or maintenance of their roads. These fees represent the BLM's share of road construction and maintenance costs under reciprocal right-of-way agreements between... contract, and to amortize road construction and maintenance costs among several road users. Frequency of...

12 CFR 213.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... the lease imposes upon the lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the... amortized amounts, which is the difference between the adjusted capitalized cost and the residual value... amount is the difference between the total of the base periodic payments over the lease term minus the...

12 CFR 213.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... the lease imposes upon the lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the... amortized amounts, which is the difference between the adjusted capitalized cost and the residual value... amount is the difference between the total of the base periodic payments over the lease term minus the...

12 CFR 213.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... the lease imposes upon the lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the... amortized amounts, which is the difference between the adjusted capitalized cost and the residual value... amount is the difference between the total of the base periodic payments over the lease term minus the...

12 CFR 213.4 - Content of disclosures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... the lease imposes upon the lessee at the end of the lease term; the potential difference between the... amortized amounts, which is the difference between the adjusted capitalized cost and the residual value... amount is the difference between the total of the base periodic payments over the lease term minus the...

26 CFR 1.197-2 - Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., etc. Section 197 intangibles include any patent, copyright, formula, process, design, pattern, know-how, format, package design, computer software (as defined in paragraph (c)(4)(iv) of this section... agreement that provides one of the parties to the agreement with the right to distribute, sell, or provide...

38 CFR 36.4310 - Amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... loan shall be repayable within the estimated economic life of the property securing the loan. (d... percent of the lesser of the reasonable value of the property as of the time the loan is made or the... assure that the principal amount of the loan, including all interest scheduled to be deferred and added...

38 CFR 36.4310 - Amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... loan shall be repayable within the estimated economic life of the property securing the loan. (d... percent of the lesser of the reasonable value of the property as of the time the loan is made or the... assure that the principal amount of the loan, including all interest scheduled to be deferred and added...

38 CFR 36.4310 - Amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... loan shall be repayable within the estimated economic life of the property securing the loan. (d... percent of the lesser of the reasonable value of the property as of the time the loan is made or the... assure that the principal amount of the loan, including all interest scheduled to be deferred and added...

38 CFR 36.4310 - Amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... loan shall be repayable within the estimated economic life of the property securing the loan. (d... percent of the lesser of the reasonable value of the property as of the time the loan is made or the... assure that the principal amount of the loan, including all interest scheduled to be deferred and added...

38 CFR 36.4310 - Amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... loan shall be repayable within the estimated economic life of the property securing the loan. (d... percent of the lesser of the reasonable value of the property as of the time the loan is made or the... assure that the principal amount of the loan, including all interest scheduled to be deferred and added...

14 CFR Section 14 - Objective Classification-Nonoperating Income and Expense

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

.... [ER-1401, 50 FR 245, Jan. 3, 1985] 81Interest on Long-term Debt and Capital Leases. (a) Record here... sheet classification purposes. 81.2Interest expense—capital leases. Record here for all capitalized... reasonably identifiable. (c) Amortization expense attributable to capital leases recorded in balance sheet...

75 FR 14253 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-24

...), Election to Amortize Start- Up Expenditures for Active Trade or Business. Abstract: The information is.... Respondents: Private sector: Businesses or other for-profits. Estimated Total Burden Hours: 40,750 hours. OMB.... Respondents: Private sector: Businesses or other for-profits. Estimated Total Burden Hours: 1 hour. OMB Number...

7 CFR 3560.67 - Rates and terms for section 515 loans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... housing, loans will be amortized over a period not to exceed the lesser of the economic life of the... Section 3560.67 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) RURAL HOUSING SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DIRECT MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING LOANS AND GRANTS Direct Loan and Grant Origination...

48 CFR 9904.414-63 - Effective date.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... during the cost accounting period. This applies both to items that are subject to periodic depreciation or amortization and also to such items as land that are not subject to periodic write-offs. Unless... requirements specified in the Cost Accounting Standard No. 403. Tables I through VI deal with home office...

48 CFR 9904.414-63 - Effective date.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... during the cost accounting period. This applies both to items that are subject to periodic depreciation or amortization and also to such items as land that are not subject to periodic write-offs. Unless... requirements specified in the Cost Accounting Standard No. 403. Tables I through VI deal with home office...

48 CFR 9904.414-63 - Effective date.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... during the cost accounting period. This applies both to items that are subject to periodic depreciation or amortization and also to such items as land that are not subject to periodic write-offs. Unless... requirements specified in the Cost Accounting Standard No. 403. Tables I through VI deal with home office...

26 CFR 1.248-1 - Election to amortize organizational expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... meetings, terms of original stock certificates, and the like; necessary accounting services; expenses of... stock or other securities, such as commissions, professional fees, and printing costs. This is so even... organizational expenditure is a change in method of accounting to which sections 446 and 481(a) apply if the...

26 CFR 1.248-1 - Election to amortize organizational expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... meetings, terms of original stock certificates, and the like; necessary accounting services; expenses of... stock or other securities, such as commissions, professional fees, and printing costs. This is so even... organizational expenditure is a change in method of accounting to which sections 446 and 481(a) apply if the...

26 CFR 1.248-1 - Election to amortize organizational expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... meetings, terms of original stock certificates, and the like; necessary accounting services; expenses of... stock or other securities, such as commissions, professional fees, and printing costs. This is so even... organizational expenditure is a change in method of accounting to which sections 446 and 481(a) apply if the...

26 CFR 1.248-1T - Election to amortize organizational expenditures (temporary).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., a corporation begins business when it starts the business operations for which it was organized; a... taxable year in which a corporation begins business, an electing corporation may deduct an amount equal to... the month in which the corporation begins business. All organizational expenditures of the corporation...

24 CFR 203.45 - Eligibility of graduated payment mortgages.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... shall bear interest at the rate agreed upon by the mortgagee and the mortgagor. (c) The mortgage amount... rates of amortization corresponding to anticipated variations in family income shall be eligible for... mortgage may provide that any interest which accrues and which is unpaid pursuant to a financing plan...

41 CFR 109-50.402 - Submission of proposals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... for any proposed charge to DOE for amortizing the cost of plant and equipment items; (3) Recapture of... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Submission of proposals. 109-50.402 Section 109-50.402 Public Contracts and Property Management Federal Property Management...

48 CFR 9904.406-61 - Interpretation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... ACCOUNTING STANDARDS COST ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 9904.406-61 Interpretation. (a) Questions have arisen as to... categories of costs that have been included in the past and may be considered in the future as restructuring... restructuring costs shall not exceed five years. The straight-line method of amortization should normally be...

Medicare-Eligible Retiree Health Care Fund Audited Financial Statements. Fiscal Year 2011

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-11-07

amortization of premium/discount plus interest receivable) of investment holdings as of September 30, 2011. The Fund receives investment income...intent is to hold investments to maturity unless they are needed to finance claims or otherwise sustain operations. Consequently, there is no...5 Investments

7 CFR 3555.10 - Definitions and abbreviations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... perpetuity, primarily for conveyance under long-term ground leases. See section 502(a)(3)(B) of the Housing... fully repay the unpaid principal balance over the mortgage term. Amortized payment. Equal monthly... principal over the term of the loan. Annual fee. A periodic amount that is based on the average annual...

42 CFR 51c.501 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... applicable to grants under section 330 of the Act for project costs which include the cost of acquisition and/or modernization of existing buildings (including the cost of amortizing the principal of, and paying the interest on, loans), except that, these regulations are not applicable to grants for project costs...

42 CFR 51c.501 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... applicable to grants under section 330 of the Act for project costs which include the cost of acquisition and/or modernization of existing buildings (including the cost of amortizing the principal of, and paying the interest on, loans), except that, these regulations are not applicable to grants for project costs...

24 CFR 401.461 - HUD-held second mortgage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... net cash flow, trending assumptions, amortization provisions, and expected residual value of the...)(i) Principal and interest on the second mortgage is payable only out of net cash flow during its term. “Net cash flow” means that portion of project income that remains after the payment of all...

24 CFR 401.461 - HUD-held second mortgage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... net cash flow, trending assumptions, amortization provisions, and expected residual value of the...)(i) Principal and interest on the second mortgage is payable only out of net cash flow during its term. “Net cash flow” means that portion of project income that remains after the payment of all...

24 CFR 401.461 - HUD-held second mortgage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... net cash flow, trending assumptions, amortization provisions, and expected residual value of the...)(i) Principal and interest on the second mortgage is payable only out of net cash flow during its term. “Net cash flow” means that portion of project income that remains after the payment of all...

24 CFR 401.461 - HUD-held second mortgage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... net cash flow, trending assumptions, amortization provisions, and expected residual value of the...)(i) Principal and interest on the second mortgage is payable only out of net cash flow during its term. “Net cash flow” means that portion of project income that remains after the payment of all...

24 CFR 401.461 - HUD-held second mortgage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... net cash flow, trending assumptions, amortization provisions, and expected residual value of the...)(i) Principal and interest on the second mortgage is payable only out of net cash flow during its term. “Net cash flow” means that portion of project income that remains after the payment of all...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-5 - Apportionment of basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... depreciation cannot exceed an amount which bears the same proportion to the lump sum as the value of the... case of property which is subject to both the allowance for depreciation and amortization, depreciation... will be subject to depreciation. For adjustments to basis, see section 1016 and other applicable...

17 CFR 229.1111 - (Item 1111) Pool assets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... pool assets. (7) If a loan or similar receivable: (i) Amortization period. (ii) Loan purpose (e.g... for commercial mortgages). (8) If a receivable or other financial asset that arises under a revolving account, such as a credit card receivable: (i) Monthly payment rate. (ii) Maximum credit lines. (iii...

17 CFR 229.1111 - (Item 1111) Pool assets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... pool assets. (7) If a loan or similar receivable: (i) Amortization period. (ii) Loan purpose (e.g... for commercial mortgages). (8) If a receivable or other financial asset that arises under a revolving account, such as a credit card receivable: (i) Monthly payment rate. (ii) Maximum credit lines. (iii...

17 CFR 229.1111 - (Item 1111) Pool assets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... pool assets. (7) If a loan or similar receivable: (i) Amortization period. (ii) Loan purpose (e.g... for commercial mortgages). (8) If a receivable or other financial asset that arises under a revolving account, such as a credit card receivable: (i) Monthly payment rate. (ii) Maximum credit lines. (iii...

17 CFR 229.1111 - (Item 1111) Pool assets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... pool assets. (7) If a loan or similar receivable: (i) Amortization period. (ii) Loan purpose (e.g... for commercial mortgages). (8) If a receivable or other financial asset that arises under a revolving account, such as a credit card receivable: (i) Monthly payment rate. (ii) Maximum credit lines. (iii...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart D of... - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must ensure that the institution... employment trends. • Zoning requirements. • Current and projected vacancy, construction, and absorption rates... property. • Maximum loan maturities by type of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart D of... - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must ensure that the institution... employment trends. • Zoning requirements. • Current and projected vacancy, construction, and absorption rates... property. • Maximum loan maturities by type of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart D of... - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must ensure that the institution... employment trends. • Zoning requirements. • Current and projected vacancy, construction, and absorption rates... property. • Maximum loan maturities by type of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for...

12 CFR Appendix C to Part 208 - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending Policies

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... institution's policies must be comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must..., construction, and absorption rates. • Current and projected lease terms, rental rates, and sales prices... of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for different types of real estate loans...

45 CFR 98.84 - Construction and renovation of child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT FUND Indian Tribes § 98.84 Construction and renovation of child care... 45 Public Welfare 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Construction and renovation of child care... child care facilities (including paying the cost of amortizing the principal and paying interest on...

45 CFR 98.84 - Construction and renovation of child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT FUND Indian Tribes § 98.84 Construction and renovation of child care... 45 Public Welfare 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Construction and renovation of child care... child care facilities (including paying the cost of amortizing the principal and paying interest on...

45 CFR 98.84 - Construction and renovation of child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT FUND Indian Tribes § 98.84 Construction and renovation of child care... 45 Public Welfare 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Construction and renovation of child care... child care facilities (including paying the cost of amortizing the principal and paying interest on...

45 CFR 98.84 - Construction and renovation of child care facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT FUND Indian Tribes § 98.84 Construction and renovation of child care... 45 Public Welfare 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Construction and renovation of child care... child care facilities (including paying the cost of amortizing the principal and paying interest on...

41 CFR 102-85.115 - How is the Rent determined?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... owned space provided by GSA is based on market appraisals of fully serviced rental values for the..., and security charges are calculated separately and added to the appraised shell Rent to establish the... addition to the shell Rent, the Rent includes amortization of TI allowances used, real estate taxes...

41 CFR 102-85.115 - How is the Rent determined?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... owned space provided by GSA is based on market appraisals of fully serviced rental values for the..., and security charges are calculated separately and added to the appraised shell Rent to establish the... addition to the shell Rent, the Rent includes amortization of TI allowances used, real estate taxes...

41 CFR 102-85.115 - How is the Rent determined?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... owned space provided by GSA is based on market appraisals of fully serviced rental values for the..., and security charges are calculated separately and added to the appraised shell Rent to establish the... addition to the shell Rent, the Rent includes amortization of TI allowances used, real estate taxes...

14 CFR Section 14 - Objective Classification-Nonoperating Income and Expense

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

.... [ER-1401, 50 FR 245, Jan. 3, 1985] 81Interest on Long-term Debt and Capital Leases. (a) Record here... sheet classification purposes. 81.2Interest expense—capital leases. Record here for all capitalized... reasonably identifiable. (c) Amortization expense attributable to capital leases recorded in balance sheet...

47 CFR 32.7220 - Operating Federal income taxes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... each month on an estimated basis and adjustments made as later data becomes available. (c) Tax credits, other than investment tax credits, if normalized, shall be recorded consistent with the accounting for investment tax credits and shall be amortized to income as directed by this Commission. (d) No entries shall...

47 CFR 32.1410 - Other noncurrent assets.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... the cost method, shall be charged to Account 4540, Other capital, if temporary and as a current period... outstanding long-term debt. Amounts included in this account shall be amortized monthly and charged to account... be charged to this account. A subsidiary record shall be kept for each sinking fund which shall...

26 CFR 1.809-6 - Modifications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... addition to reserves for bad debts under section 166(c). However, a deduction for specific bad debts shall...) Amortizable bond premium. No deduction shall be allowed under section 171 for the amortization of bond premiums since a special deduction for such premiums is specifically taken into account under section 818(b...

26 CFR 1.169-3 - Amortizable basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... determining gain (see part II (section 1011 and following), subchapter O, chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue... purposes of determining gain (computed without regard to paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section) of a... amortization deduction allowable under section 169, the adjusted basis for purposes of determining gain for a...

26 CFR 1.169-3 - Amortizable basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... determining gain (see part II (section 1011 and following), subchapter O, chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue... purposes of determining gain (computed without regard to paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section) of a... amortization deduction allowable under section 169, the adjusted basis for purposes of determining gain for a...

26 CFR 1.169-3 - Amortizable basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... determining gain (see part II (section 1011 and following), subchapter O, chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue... purposes of determining gain (computed without regard to paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section) of a... amortization deduction allowable under section 169, the adjusted basis for purposes of determining gain for a...

26 CFR 1.169-3 - Amortizable basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... determining gain (see part II (section 1011 and following), subchapter O, chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue... purposes of determining gain (computed without regard to paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section) of a... amortization deduction allowable under section 169, the adjusted basis for purposes of determining gain for a...

26 CFR 1.169-3 - Amortizable basis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... determining gain (see part II (section 1011 and following), subchapter O, chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue... purposes of determining gain (computed without regard to paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section) of a... amortization deduction allowable under section 169, the adjusted basis for purposes of determining gain for a...

A Comparison of the Polish and Soviet Armaments Decisionmaking Systems.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-01-01

translated and published under the auspices of the U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C., 1977, p. 51; Antoni Rogucki, " Teoria potencjalu wojenno-ekonomicznego a...proizvodstvennogo oborudovaniia i sistema amortisatsii" (Managing the Renovation of the Production Equip- ment and Amortization System), Planovoe khoziaistvo, 1979

Amortization Schedules in Human Growth and Developments Investments: The Case for Social Mutation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weber, Robert E.

Decision makers, policy makers, and influential special interest groups typically view many appropriations for programs that will help the poor, the handicapped, social deviants, etc. as mere expenditures and not as investment which produce substantial results. This paper sets forth several cases which illustrate that people can be an attractive…

26 CFR 1.822-10 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821 (a) or (c). However...

26 CFR 1.822-10 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821 (a) or (c). However...

26 CFR 1.822-10 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis of... mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821 (a) or (c). However, only the accrual...

26 CFR 1.822-10 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821 (a) or (c). However...

26 CFR 1.822-10 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Mutual Insurance Companies (other Than Life and Certain Marine Insurance Companies and Other Than Fire Or Flood Insurance Companies Which Operate on Basis... indebtedness held by a mutual insurance company subject to the tax imposed by section 821 (a) or (c). However...

76 FR 56973 - Elections Regarding Start-Up Expenditures, Corporation Organizational Expenditures, and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-15

.... 7805 * * *. 0 Par. 2. Section 1.709-1 is amended by revising the last sentences of paragraphs (b)(4) Example 2, Example 5, and Example 6 to read as follows: Sec. 1.709-1 Treatment of organization and syndication costs. * * * * * (b) * * * (4) * * * * * * * * Example 2. * * * Partnership X may amortize the...

26 CFR 1.197-2 - Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

..., process, design, pattern, know-how, format, package design, computer software (as defined in paragraph (c... agreement that provides one of the parties to the agreement with the right to distribute, sell, or provide... any program or routine (that is, any sequence of machine-readable code) that is designed to cause a...

Aging, Precarity, and the Struggle for Indigenous Elsewheres

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grande, Sandy

2018-01-01

Through the structures and logics of the settler/capitalist state, the aging body can only be viewed as a crisis of decreased labor power and increased social expenditure; an amortization that has only worsened under neoliberalism. As such, this article calls attention to the conspicuous absence of a counter discourse and politics of aging within…

26 CFR 1.171-2 - Amortization of bond premium.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... annual accrual periods. Example 3. Holder uses accrual method of accounting—(i) Facts. The facts are the same as in Example 1 of this paragraph (c) except that A uses an accrual method of accounting. Thus... disbursements method of accounting, and C decides to use annual accrual periods ending on January 15 of each...

48 CFR 9904.414-63 - Effective date.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... period. This applies both to items that are subject to periodic depreciation or amortization and also to such items as land that are not subject to periodic write-offs. Unless there is a major fluctuation, it.... 403. Tables I through VI deal with home office expense allocations to business units. The A Division...

26 CFR 1.1471-1 - Recovery of excessive profits on government contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... determining the true total contract price of such contract or subcontract. § 16.8 Cost of performing a... subcontract, as for instance, payments of royalties and amortization of the cost of designs purchased and patent rights over their useful life; and “deferred” or “unliquidated” experimental and development...

26 CFR 1.1471-1 - Recovery of excessive profits on government contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... determining the true total contract price of such contract or subcontract. § 16.8 Cost of performing a... subcontract, as for instance, payments of royalties and amortization of the cost of designs purchased and patent rights over their useful life; and “deferred” or “unliquidated” experimental and development...

26 CFR 1.1471-1 - Recovery of excessive profits on government contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... determining the true total contract price of such contract or subcontract. § 16.8 Cost of performing a... subcontract, as for instance, payments of royalties and amortization of the cost of designs purchased and patent rights over their useful life; and “deferred” or “unliquidated” experimental and development...

78 FR 32383 - Combined Notice of Filings #2

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-30

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Combined Notice of Filings 2 Take notice that the Commission received the following electric rate filings: Docket Numbers: ER09-548-002; EC11-108-001. Applicants: ITC Great Plains, LLC. Description: ITC Great Plains, LLC submits compliance filing to Begin Amortization of Regulatory Assets...

78 FR 73753 - Partnerships; Start-Up Expenditures; Organization and Syndication Fees

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-12-09

... deduct start-up expenditures in the taxable year in which the active trade or business begins. The amount... begins. All start-up expenditures that relate to the active trade or business are considered in...(b) to amortize start-up expenditures for the taxable year in which the active trade or business to...

26 CFR 1.865-1 - Loss with respect to personal property other than stock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Regulations Applicable to Taxable... marked-to-market (such as under section 475) and subject to the rules of this section. Thus, for example... not amortize bond premium to the full extent permitted by section 171 and the regulations thereunder...

26 CFR 1.865-1 - Loss with respect to personal property other than stock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Regulations Applicable to Taxable... marked-to-market (such as under section 475) and subject to the rules of this section. Thus, for example... not amortize bond premium to the full extent permitted by section 171 and the regulations thereunder...

26 CFR 1.865-1 - Loss with respect to personal property other than stock.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Regulations Applicable to Taxable... marked-to-market (such as under section 475) and subject to the rules of this section. Thus, for example... not amortize bond premium to the full extent permitted by section 171 and the regulations thereunder...

48 CFR 52.227-9 - Refund of Royalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Royalties (APR 1984) (a) The contract price includes certain amounts for royalties payable by the Contractor..., patent or license amortization costs, or the like, for the use of or for rights in patents and patent...) above, only to the extent that such royalties were included in the contract price and are determined by...

12 CFR 925.1 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... not fully amortizing, or an interest in such a loan, which is secured by a mortgage, deed of trust, or other security agreement that creates a first lien on one of the following interests in property: (i) One-to-four family property or multifamily property, in fee simple; (ii) A leasehold on one-to-four...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart A of... - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending Policies

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... institution's policies must be comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must..., construction, and absorption rates. • Current and projected lease terms, rental rates, and sales prices... of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for different types of real estate loans...

12 CFR Appendix A to Subpart A of... - Interagency Guidelines for Real Estate Lending Policies

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... institution's policies must be comprehensive, and consistent with safe and sound lending practices, and must..., construction, and absorption rates. • Current and projected lease terms, rental rates, and sales prices... of property. • Amortization schedules. • Pricing structure for different types of real estate loans...

48 CFR 9904.412-50 - Techniques for application.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... shall be separately amortized over no more than 30 years nor less than 10 years. (v) Actuarial gains and... pursuant to the provisions of this Standard. The accounting treatment to be afforded to such gains and... cost accounting periods shall be measured by an immediate-gain actuarial cost method. (2) Where the...

78 FR 79450 - Information Collection Being Reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission Under Delegated...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-12-30

... categories for interconnection revenue does not require massive changes to the ILECs' accounting systems and.... Title: Part 32, Uniform System of Accounts for Telecommunications Companies. Form Number: N/A. Type of...; and Account 6565, Amortization expense-other. These accounting changes are mandatory only for Class A...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-4 - Leased property.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... amortization. If the useful life of such improvements in the hands of the taxpayer is equal to or shorter than... such depreciation allowances. If, on the other hand, the estimated useful life of such property in the... section 162 and the regulations thereunder. See section 178 and the regulations thereunder for rules...

75 FR 1800 - Notice of Proposed Information Collection for 1004-0102

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-13

... use and/or maintenance of their roads. These fees represent the BLM's share of road construction and... uses the report to ensure compliance with the timber sale contract, and to amortize road construction... reinstatement of an approval to collect information that documents the payment of road use fees for the use of...

12 CFR Appendix C to Subpart A to... - Concentration Measures

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

.../publications/handbook/LeveragedLending.pdf, but do not include all of the criteria in the handbook. • Loans or...; or 6 Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. • Loans or securities that are... residential loan products that allow the borrower to defer repayment of principal or interest and includes all...

Resource Utilization Associated with Procurement of Transplantable Organs from Donors that do not meet OPTN Eligible Death Criteria

PubMed Central

DuBay, Derek A.; Redden, David T.; Bryant, Mary K.; Dorn, David P; Fouad, Mona N.; Gray, Stephen H.; White, Jared A.; Locke, Jayme E.; Meeks, Christopher B.; Taylor, Garry C.; Kilgore, Meredith L.; Eckhoff, Devin E.

2014-01-01

Background The strategy of evaluating every donation opportunity warrants an investigation into the financial feasibility of this practice. The purpose of this investigation is to measure resource utilization required for procurement of transplantable organs in an organ procurement organization (OPO). Methods Donors were stratified into those that met OPTN-defined eligible death criteria (ED Donors, n=589) and those that did not (NED Donors, n=703). Variable direct costs and time utilization by OPO staff for organ procurement were measured and amortized per organ transplanted using permutation methods and statistical bootstrapping/resampling approaches. Results More organs per donor were procured (3.66 ± 1.2 vs. 2.34 ± 0.8, p<0.0001) and transplanted (3.51 ± 1.2 vs. 2.08 ± 0.8, p<0.0001) in ED donors compared to NED donors. The variable direct costs were significantly lower in NED donors ($29,879.4 ± 11590.1 vs. $19,019.6 ± 7599.60, p<0.0001). In contrast, the amortized variable direct costs per organ transplanted were significantly higher in the NED donors ($8,414.5 ± 138.29 vs. $9,272.04 ± 344.56, p<0.0001). ED donors where thoracic organ procurement occurred were 67% more expensive than in abdominal-only organ procurement. The total time allocated per donor was significantly shorter in NED donors (91.2 ± 44.9 hours vs. 86.8 ± 78.6, p=0.01). In contrast, the amortized time per organ transplanted was significantly longer in the NED donors (23.1 ± 0.8 hours vs. 36.9 ± 3.2, p<0.001). Discussion The variable direct costs and time allocated per organ transplanted is significantly higher in donors that do not meet the eligible death criteria. PMID:24503760

Resource utilization associated with procurement of transplantable organs from donors that do not meet OPTN eligible death criteria.

PubMed

DuBay, Derek A; Redden, David T; Bryant, Mary K; Dorn, David P; Fouad, Mona N; Gray, Stephen H; White, Jared A; Locke, Jayme E; Meeks, Christopher B; Taylor, Garry C; Kilgore, Meredith L; Eckhoff, Devin E

2014-05-27

The strategy of evaluating every donation opportunity warrants an investigation into the financial feasibility of this practice. The purpose of this investigation is to measure resource utilization required for procurement of transplantable organs in an organ procurement organization (OPO). Donors were stratified into those that met OPTN-defined eligible death criteria (ED donors, n=589) and those that did not (NED donors, n=703). Variable direct costs and time utilization by OPO staff for organ procurement were measured and amortized per organ transplanted using permutation methods and statistical bootstrapping/resampling approaches. More organs per donor were procured (3.66±1.2 vs. 2.34±0.8, P<0.0001) and transplanted (3.51±1.2 vs. 2.08±0.8, P<0.0001) in ED donors compared with NED donors. The variable direct costs were significantly lower in the NED donors ($29,879.4±11590.1 vs. $19,019.6±7599.60, P<0.0001). In contrast, the amortized variable direct costs per organ transplanted were significantly higher in the NED donors ($8,414.5±138.29 vs. $9,272.04±344.56, P<0.0001). The ED donors where thoracic organ procurement occurred were 67% more expensive than in abdominal-only organ procurement. The total time allocated per donor was significantly shorter in the NED donors (91.2±44.9 hr vs. 86.8±78.6 hr, P=0.01). In contrast, the amortized time per organ transplanted was significantly longer in the NED donors (23.1±0.8 hr vs. 36.9±3.2 hr, P<0.001). The variable direct costs and time allocated per organ transplanted is significantly higher in donors that do not meet the eligible death criteria.

41 CFR 102-85.105 - How does an agency pay for customer alterations that exceed the TI allowance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... and Property Management Federal Property Management Regulations System (Continued) FEDERAL MANAGEMENT REGULATION REAL PROPERTY 85-PRICING POLICY FOR OCCUPANCY IN GSA SPACE Tenant Improvement Allowance § 102-85... the TI allowance are paid in a one-time lump sum and are not amortized over the term of the occupancy...

26 CFR 1.197-2 - Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

..., process, design, pattern, know-how, format, package design, computer software (as defined in paragraph (c... section 1253(b)(1) and includes any agreement that provides one of the parties to the agreement with the... any program or routine (that is, any sequence of machine-readable code) that is designed to cause a...

26 CFR 1.197-2 - Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

..., process, design, pattern, know-how, format, package design, computer software (as defined in paragraph (c... has the meaning given in section 1253(b)(1) and includes any agreement that provides one of the...-readable code) that is designed to cause a computer to perform a desired function or set of functions, and...

26 CFR 1.197-2 - Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

..., process, design, pattern, know-how, format, package design, computer software (as defined in paragraph (c... has the meaning given in section 1253(b)(1) and includes any agreement that provides one of the...-readable code) that is designed to cause a computer to perform a desired function or set of functions, and...

26 CFR 1.169-4 - Time and manner of making elections.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...-4 Time and manner of making elections. (a) Election of amortization—(1) In general. Under section 169(b), an election by the taxpayer to take an amortization deduction with respect to a certified... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Time and manner of making elections. 1.169-4...

7 CFR 1810.2 - Adjustment of interest rates for certain loans involving use of or construction on prime or...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 12 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Adjustment of interest rates for certain loans... INTEREST RATES, TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND APPROVAL AUTHORITY Interest Rates, Amortization, Guarantee Fee, Annual Charge, and Fixed Period § 1810.2 Adjustment of interest rates for certain loans involving use of...

26 CFR 1.195-1T - Election to amortize start-up expenditures (temporary).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... business, or $5,000 (reduced (but not below zero) by the amount by which the start-up expenditures exceed... beginning with the month in which the active trade or business begins. All start-up expenditures that relate to the active trade or business are considered in determining whether the start-up expenditures...

76 FR 50887 - Elections Regarding Start-Up Expenditures, Corporation Organizational Expenditures, and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-08-17

... begins an active trade or business, an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the amount of the start-up... begins. All start-up expenditures that relate to the active trade or business are considered in... active trade or business to which the expenditures relate begins. The election either to amortize start...

Tax Tips for Forest Landowners for the 1999 Tax Year

Treesearch

Larry M. Bishop

1999-01-01

Larry Bishop of the USDA Forest Service Southern Region comes through again with conciseinformation to help forest landowners prepare their taxes. Tax Tips for Forest Landowners for the 1999 Tax Year covers basis and tax records; passive loss rules; reforestation tax credit and amortization; capital gains and self-employment taxes; cost-share payments; conservation...

26 CFR 1.197-1T - Certain elections for intangible property (temporary).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...) to apply prior law to property acquired pursuant to a written binding contract in effect on August 10... section 13261 of OBRA '93 (e.g., the amendment of section 1253 in the case of a franchise, trademark, or... section 197 intangible with an unadjusted basis of $180. Under prior law, no amortization or depreciation...

48 CFR 9904.412-60 - Illustrations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 9904.412-50(c)(2)(ii)(B). The following year, 2018, Contractor K computes an unfunded actuarial... loss to be amortized over a ten-year period beginning in 2018 in accordance with 9904.412-50(c)(2)(ii... year, 2018, Contractor K must eliminate $233,280 ($216,000 × 1.08) from the $4 million so that only $3...

26 CFR 1.168A-6 - Depreciation of portion of emergency facility not subject to amortization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Depreciation of portion of emergency facility... for Individuals and Corporations § 1.168A-6 Depreciation of portion of emergency facility not subject... in lieu of any deduction for depreciation which would otherwise be allowable under section 167 is...

26 CFR 1.177-1 - Election to amortize trademark and trade name expenditures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (3) of this paragraph. See also paragraph (c) of this section for time and manner of making election... chargeable to capital account; and (iii) Is not part of the consideration or purchase price paid for a... expand a previously owned trademark or trade name through purchase of a competitive trademark. Similarly...

17 CFR 210.12-23 - Mortgage loans on real estate and interest earned on mortgages. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... each of the above classes of mortgage loans the average gross rate of interest on mortgage loans held... mortgages sold Amortization of premium Other (describe) Balance at close of period $ If additions represent... item of mortgage loans on real estate investments has been written down or reserved against pursuant to...

Waste heat recovery with ultra high-speed turbomachinery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vakkilainen, E.; Larjola, J.; Lindgren, O.

1984-08-01

A new ORC heat recovery system which converts waste heat to electricity has been developed in Lappeenranta University of Technology with support from Department of Energy in Finnish Ministry of Trade and Industry. Use of ultra high-speed turbomachinery (10 000 rpm - 200 000 rpm) promises lower unit costs, higher efficiencies and fast amortization rate, 2,4 - 3,0 years.

Department of Defense Agency Financial Report. Fiscal Year 2007

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-11-15

fair market value . The discount rate for the present value calculation is either the lessor’s implicit interest rate or the Government’s...630.0 The Department reports Problem Disbursements as an absolute value , which is the sum of the debit and credit transactions without regard to the...2007 2006 (amounts in millions) Depreciation / Amortization Method Service Life Acquisition Value (Accumulated

A Paradox within the Time Value of Money: A Critical Thinking Exercise for Finance Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Delaney, Charles J.; Rich, Steven P.; Rose, John T.

2016-01-01

This study presents a paradox within the time value of money (TVM), namely, that the interest-principal sequence embedded in the payment stream of an amortized loan is exactly the opposite of the interest-principal sequence implicit in the present value of a matching annuity. We examine this inverse sequence, both mathematically and intuitively,…

77 FR 74896 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.; Notice of Filing of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-18

... as ``remaining principal balance'' or ``RPB'') to (2) the original face value of the ABS. Such... to report the original face value of the security; in (B)(ii), for a transaction in an amortizing ABS, other than a TBA transaction, a member would be required to report the original face value of the...

17 CFR 270.30b1-6T - Weekly portfolio report for certain money market funds.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... amortized cost value; and (J) In the case of a tax-exempt security, whether there is a demand feature, as... any business day (“report date”) is less than 99.75 percent of the fund's stable net asset value per... market fund's net asset value per share calculated using available market quotations or an appropriate...

26 CFR 1.1016-3T - Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion for periods since February...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Basis Rules of General Application § 1.1016-3T Exhaustion, wear and tear...)-8T, as applicable. The application of this paragraph is illustrated by the following example: Example...” computer software at a cost of $36,000. This computer software is not an amortizable section 197 intangible...

26 CFR 1.1016-3T - Exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, amortization, and depletion for periods since February...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Basis Rules of General Application § 1.1016-3T Exhaustion, wear and tear...)-8T, as applicable. The application of this paragraph is illustrated by the following example: Example...” computer software at a cost of $36,000. This computer software is not an amortizable section 197 intangible...

26 CFR 1.48-4 - Election of lessor of new section 38 property to treat lessee as purchaser.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... OF THE TREASURY INCOME TAX INCOME TAXES Rules for Computing Credit for Investment in Certain... depreciation (or amortization in lieu of depreciation) is allowable to the lessor, it must have a useful life... property must commence with the lessor. See paragraph (b) of this section for the application of the rules...

Reforestation tax incentives under the American jobs creation act of 2004

Treesearch

Thomas J. Straka; John L. Greene

2007-01-01

The American jobs creation act of 2004 made significant changes in the reforestation tax incentives available to private forest owners. Owners can now deduct outright reforestation costs up to $10,000 per year for each qualifying timber property and amortize any additional amount over 8 tax years. to assess the financial benefit the new incentives provide to forest...

26 CFR 1.404(a)-14 - Special rules in connection with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... liability of the plan. (k) Effect of full funding limit on 10-year-amortization bases. The amount deductible... 404(a)” means section 404(a) as in effect on September 1, 1974. Any reference to section 404 without... in funding method, and experience gains and losses of previous years. (3) Limit adjustment. The term...

12 CFR Appendix H to Part 226 - Closed-End Model Forms and Clauses

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2018-01-01

... Payment Summary Model Clause (§ 226.18(s)) H-4(F)—Adjustable-Rate Mortgage or Step-Rate Mortgage Interest Rate and Payment Summary Model Clause (§ 226.18(s)) H-4(G)—Mortgage with Negative Amortization Interest Rate and Payment Summary Model Clause (§ 226.18(s)) H-4(H)—Fixed-Rate Mortgage with Interest-Only...

17 CFR 270.30b1-6T - Weekly portfolio report for certain money market funds.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...; (I) The amortized cost value; and (J) In the case of a tax-exempt security, whether there is a demand... the fund's stable net asset value per share or stable price per share pursuant to § 270.2a-7(c)(1...) Market-based NAV means a money market fund's net asset value per share calculated using available market...

From War to Peace: A History of Past Conversions

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-01-01

the VeamWar. and uetiles- Federal Garerament polaes to asists those tranit-cs- It places the ctzrrmt Rtapn-Bush Cold Wa. drjudown in historcal ...all veterans who served for at least 90 days after September 16, 1940. Educational benefits included tuition costs , laboratorv and other fees (not to...policies were also significant. The Government adopted liberal amortization provisions that allowed industry for tax purposes to charge off the cost of

Unintended Consequences: Effect of the American Jobs Creation Act Reforestation Incentives on Family Forest Owners in the South

Treesearch

John L. Greene; Thomas J. Straka

2008-01-01

Abstract: The American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 rewrote the reforestation tax incentives available to private forest owners. Owners can now deduct outright reforestation costs up to $10,000 per year for each qualified timber property and amortize any additional amount over 8 tax years. To assess the economic effect of the new incentives on forest owners, the authors...

Economic evaluation of a combined photo-Fenton/MBR process using pesticides as model pollutant. Factors affecting costs.

PubMed

Sánchez Pérez, José Antonio; Román Sánchez, Isabel María; Carra, Irene; Cabrera Reina, Alejandro; Casas López, José Luis; Malato, Sixto

2013-01-15

The aim of this paper is to carry out an economic assessment on a solar photo-Fenton/MBR combined process to treat industrial ecotoxic wastewater. This study focuses on the impact of the contamination present in wastewater, the photochemical oxidation, the use of an MBR as biological process and the plant size on operating and amortization costs. As example of ecotoxic pollutant, a mixture of five commercial pesticides commonly used in the Mediterranean area has been used, ranging from 500 mg/L to 50mg/L, expressed as dissolved organic carbon concentration. The economic evaluation shows that (i) the increase in pollution load does not always involve an increase in photo-Fenton costs because they also depend on organic matter mineralization; (ii) the use of an MBR process permits lower photochemical oxidation requirements than other biological treatments, resulting in approximately 20% photo-Fenton cost reduction for highly polluted wastewater; (iii) when pollution load decreases, the contribution of reactant consumption to the photo-Fenton process costs increase with regard to amortization costs; (iv) 30% total cost reduction can be gained treating higher daily volumes, obtaining competitive costs that vary from 1.1-1.9 €/m(3), depending on the pollution load. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

HIPAA costs and patient perceptions privacy safeguards Mayo Clinic.

PubMed

Williams, Arthur R; Herman, David C; Moriarty, James P; Beebe, Timothy J; Bruggeman, Sandra K; Klavetter, Eric W; Steger, Paul H; Bartz, Janet K

2008-01-01

A study was conducted to assess the costs of implementation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and to report patient awareness of Notices of Privacy Practices (NPP) content and HIPAA privacy protections. All HIPAA start-up and implementation costs were collected prospectively. A random sample of 2,000 patients receiving services at the Mayo Clinic after HIPAA implementation (April 14, 2003) was surveyed about HIPAA knowledge, HIPAA content, and privacy concerns. Comprehensive measures of total HIPAA costs and costs related only to privacy practices were amortized over 7, 15, and 20 years. Patient knowledge of privacy protections and attitudes toward HIPAA were obtained from 1,309 (65.5%) respondents. The total HIPAA startup costs were $4,663,672. Fully amortized costs (annual plus start-up costs) were $1 per patient visit or $5 per patient per year. Costs for the privacy portion were $2,734,855. These costs were about $.90 per patient visit or about $4 per patient per year. Patients indicated high levels of awareness of HIPAA (71%), reading the NPP (79%), knowledge about HIPAA (80% with 6+ correct answers on a 10-item quiz), and improved feelings of privacy (44% versus 55% the same). Patients reported high levels of knowledge about HIPAA and confidence in privacy protections. HIPAA costs were modest per patient or per visit.

An Investigation of the Quality of Earnings Concept as Applied to Defense Contractors

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-12-01

conservative a company’s reporting methods are within generally accepted accounting principles ( GAAP )-- that is, the more likely the company is to minimize...during periods of inflation. (2) Accelerated depreciation methods as compared to methods that depreciate assets less rapidly. (3) Amortization of...impact on earnings quality. When a company uses accelerated depreciation for tax purposes and straight- line depreciation for reporting, the "flow through

Department of Defense Manpower Requirements Report FY 1995

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-05-01

lm& INYI 94 III aIII$• ~ BY 9 SUBMI Sam 1 mm I Em 1 am m I am- ITv too a" mT amsITTm aSM . cm 10 ARMA 31 a 21 137 M1 st 1 33 157 179 to I to Ha3 201 am...determined by the DoD Retirement Board of Actuaries . This Board of Actuaries also determines an amortization schedule for the transfer of funds from the

Allocation Methods for Use in the Accrual of Manpower Costs.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-06-01

planners more frugal in their use of military manpower (OB1, 1973). Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ( GAAP ) recognize accrual basis accounting...time. Examples of this type of allocation are depreciation or amortization of long term assets (Fremgen and Liao, 1981). It is this second concept of...financing is that the relatively "soft dollars" of the future will make it easier to contribute. A "soft dollar" is the depreciated value of the dollar

Financial Audit: Congressional Award Foundation’s Fiscal Years 2007 and 2006 Financial Statements

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-05-01

accounts and the resulting gain or loss is included in revenue or expense, as appropriate. Donated equipment is recorded at fair value . The...capital lease liability represents the lesser of the net present value of future lease payments or the fair value of the asset acquired. Amortization of...securities and money market funds, which are stated at fair value . F. Classification of Net Assets The net assets of the Foundation are reported as

Calculating Amortized Capital Costs

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This document may be of assistance in applying the New Source Review (NSR) air permitting regulations including the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) requirements. This document is part of the NSR Policy and Guidance Database. Some documents in the database are a scanned or retyped version of a paper photocopy of the original. Although we have taken considerable effort to quality assure the documents, some may contain typographical errors. Contact the office that issued the document if you need a copy of the original.

Effect of drop jump technique on the reactive strength index.

PubMed

Struzik, Artur; Juras, Grzegorz; Pietraszewski, Bogdan; Rokita, Andrzej

2016-09-01

The basic drill of plyometric training aimed at improving lower limb power and jump height is a drop jump. This exercise can be performed using different techniques, which substantially affects jump variables. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the values of the reactive strength index (RSI) for countermovement drop jumps (CDJs) and bounce drop jumps (BDJs). The study was carried out in a group of 8 male youth basketball players. The tests were conducted using the AMTI BP600900 force plate to measure ground reaction forces and the Noraxon MyoMotion system to record kinematic data. Each player performed two CDJs and two BDJs from the height of 15, 30, 45 and 60 cm. The RSI was calculated as a ratio of jump height and contact time. Moreover, the RSI was determined for the amortization and take-off phases separately. Significant differences (p < 0.05) between RSI values for CDJs and BDJs were recorded for jumps from 30, 45 and 60 cm. Differences in RSI values for jumps from 15 cm were not significant. Furthermore, CDJ height values were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than the values recorded for BDJs. Times of contact, amortization and take-off during BDJs were significantly shorter (p < 0.05) than the respective values obtained for CDJs. Therefore, the use of the RSI to monitor plyometric training should be based on the drop jump technique that is commonly performed by basketball players.

Effect of drop jump technique on the reactive strength index

PubMed Central

Juras, Grzegorz; Pietraszewski, Bogdan; Rokita, Andrzej

2016-01-01

Abstract The basic drill of plyometric training aimed at improving lower limb power and jump height is a drop jump. This exercise can be performed using different techniques, which substantially affects jump variables. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the values of the reactive strength index (RSI) for countermovement drop jumps (CDJs) and bounce drop jumps (BDJs). The study was carried out in a group of 8 male youth basketball players. The tests were conducted using the AMTI BP600900 force plate to measure ground reaction forces and the Noraxon MyoMotion system to record kinematic data. Each player performed two CDJs and two BDJs from the height of 15, 30, 45 and 60 cm. The RSI was calculated as a ratio of jump height and contact time. Moreover, the RSI was determined for the amortization and take-off phases separately. Significant differences (p < 0.05) between RSI values for CDJs and BDJs were recorded for jumps from 30, 45 and 60 cm. Differences in RSI values for jumps from 15 cm were not significant. Furthermore, CDJ height values were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than the values recorded for BDJs. Times of contact, amortization and take-off during BDJs were significantly shorter (p < 0.05) than the respective values obtained for CDJs. Therefore, the use of the RSI to monitor plyometric training should be based on the drop jump technique that is commonly performed by basketball players. PMID:28149403

Acquisition Research: Creating Synergy for Informed Change. Proceedings of the Annual Acquisition Research Symposium (5th) Held in Monterey, California on 14-15 May 2008. Volume 1

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-04-23

example, the $1 purchase of a pen must be increased to $5 to include $0.50 of gasoline, plus amortized cost of maintenance, plus insurance , plus...e^kdb====- 30 - = = Naturalization Service in Frankfurt, Germany and served as an evaluator with the US General Accounting Office in Los Angeles...management and public budgeting at NATO meetings in: Budapest, Hungary; Kyiv, Ukraine; Berlin, Germany ; Garmisch, Germany ; Yerevan, Armenia, and will be

Martian resource utilization. 1: Plant design and transportation selection criteria

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaloupis, Peter; Nolan, Peter E.; Cutler, Andrew H.

1992-01-01

Indigenous Space Materials Utilization (ISMU) provides an opportunity to make Mars exploration mission scenarios more affordable by reducing the initial mass necessary in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). Martian propellant production is discussed in terms of simple design and economic tradeoffs. Fuel and oxidizer combinations included are H2/O2, CH4/O2, and CO/O2. Process flow diagrams with power and mass flow requirements are presented for a variety of processes, and some design requirements are derived. Maximum allowable plant masses for single use amortization are included.

Martian resource utilization. 1: Plant design and transportation selection criteria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaloupis, Peter; Nolan, Peter E.; Cutler, Andrew H.

Indigenous Space Materials Utilization (ISMU) provides an opportunity to make Mars exploration mission scenarios more affordable by reducing the initial mass necessary in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). Martian propellant production is discussed in terms of simple design and economic tradeoffs. Fuel and oxidizer combinations included are H2/O2, CH4/O2, and CO/O2. Process flow diagrams with power and mass flow requirements are presented for a variety of processes, and some design requirements are derived. Maximum allowable plant masses for single use amortization are included.

Geothermal energy development in the Eastern United States. Technical assistance report no. 6, geothermal space heating and conditioning: McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hill, F. K.; Vonbriesen, R.

1980-12-01

The feasibility of space heating and cooling 200 multifamily on-base housing units using nonreversible heat pumps and ground water from 1000 ft. depth was studied. The 200 housing units are a part of the 1452 main base multifamily housing complex which is heated from a high temperature and pressure water line. The main system will be converted from natural gas to coal in 1984. Relative cost, amortization periods, and fossil fuel projections are compared.

The modification of existing Bai Bithaman Ajil (BBA) instrument by using the concept of qardhul hassan and flexible sharing ratio

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rajak, Abd Aziz Arrashid Abd; Halim, Nurfadhlina Abdul; Jaaman @ Sharman, Saiful Hafizah

2017-08-01

Bai Bithaman Ajil (BBA) instrument as the main mode of financing has become the biggest leap in the revolution of real estate purchase. Through many years of developing and refining its usage in financial institutions, BBA has confronted several argumentation and debate among scholars on its conformity towards Shariah. Although there are cases of inconsistency findings when it comes to conformity towards Shariah, BBA is still one of the predominant, accepted mode of financing especially in Malaysia. Therefore, this paper will prove that BBA instrument using the approach of Constant Rate of Return (CRR) is mathematically identical to the conventional approach which is annuity. Besides, this paper will also provide the amortization of CRR. It is proven that CRR formula is likely based on the amortization of conventional approach. Besides, this paper discusses mainly on the incompliance of BBA towards Shariah and hence will introduce the proxy for BBA instruments by implementing profit-loss sharing (PLS). The modified BBA instrument is develop by deliberating the concept of qardhul hassan as its principal payment and as for its rental payment will introduce the sharing ratio to represent the ownership of bank and customers in every periodic payments by using flexible sharing ratio. This modification does not include any increment in the repayment of principal and the profit gained is based solely on the payment of rent to purchase the ownership of the bank. Hence, this modified BBA is much more compliance towards Shariah law because it does not comprise any riba, gharar, or masyir.

Case studies of energy efficiency financing in the original five pilot states, 1993-1996

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Farhar, B C; Collins, N E; Walsh, R W

1997-05-01

The purpose of this report is to document progress in state-level programs in energy efficiency financing programs that are linked with home energy rating systems. Case studies are presented of programs in five states using a federal pilot program to amortize the costs of home energy improvements. The case studies present background information, describe the states` program, list preliminary evaluation data and findings, and discuss problems and solution encountered in the programs. A comparison of experiences in pilot states will be used to provide guidelines for program implementers, federal agencies, and Congress. 5 refs.

A Case for Application Oblivious Energy-Efficient MPI Runtime

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Venkatesh, Akshay; Vishnu, Abhinav; Hamidouche, Khaled

Power has become the major impediment in designing large scale high-end systems. Message Passing Interface (MPI) is the {\\em de facto} communication interface used as the back-end for designing applications, programming models and runtime for these systems. Slack --- the time spent by an MPI process in a single MPI call --- provides a potential for energy and power savings, if an appropriate power reduction technique such as core-idling/Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) can be applied without perturbing application's execution time. Existing techniques that exploit slack for power savings assume that application behavior repeats across iterations/executions. However, an increasingmore » use of adaptive, data-dependent workloads combined with system factors (OS noise, congestion) makes this assumption invalid. This paper proposes and implements Energy Aware MPI (EAM) --- an application-oblivious energy-efficient MPI runtime. EAM uses a combination of communication models of common MPI primitives (point-to-point, collective, progress, blocking/non-blocking) and an online observation of slack for maximizing energy efficiency. Each power lever incurs time overhead, which must be amortized over slack to minimize degradation. When predicted communication time exceeds a lever overhead, the lever is used {\\em as soon as possible} --- to maximize energy efficiency. When mis-prediction occurs, the lever(s) are used automatically at specific intervals for amortization. We implement EAM using MVAPICH2 and evaluate it on ten applications using up to 4096 processes. Our performance evaluation on an InfiniBand cluster indicates that EAM can reduce energy consumption by 5--41\\% in comparison to the default approach, with negligible (less than 4\\% in all cases) performance loss.« less

Performance optimization of internet firewalls

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiueh, Tzi-cker; Ballman, Allen

1997-01-01

Internet firewalls control the data traffic in and out of an enterprise network by checking network packets against a set of rules that embodies an organization's security policy. Because rule checking is computationally more expensive than routing-table look-up, it could become a potential bottleneck for scaling up the performance of IP routers, which typically implement firewall functions in software. in this paper, we analyzed the performance problems associated with firewalls, particularly packet filters, propose a good connection cache to amortize the costly security check over the packets in a connection, and report the preliminary performance results of a trace-driven simulation that show the average packet check time can be reduced by a factor of 2.5 at the least.

Economic Geology of the Moon: Some Considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gillett, Stephen L.

1992-01-01

Supporting any but the smallest lunar facility will require indigenous resources due to the extremely high cost of bringing material from Earth. The Moon has also attracted interest as a resource base to help support near-Earth space activities, because of the potential lower cost once the necessary infrastructure has been amortized. Obviously, initial lunar products will be high-volume, bulk commodities, as they are the only ones for which the economics of lunar production are conceivably attractive. Certain rarer elements, such as the halogens, C, and H, would also be extremely useful (for propellant, life support, and/or reagents), and indeed local sources of such elements would vastly improve the economics of lunar resource extraction. The economic geology of the Moon is discussed.

Federal incentives for industrial modernization: Historical review and future opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coleman, Sandra C.; Batson, Robert G.

1987-01-01

Concerns over the aging of the U.S. aerospace industrial base led DOD to introduce first its Technology Modernization (Tech Mod) Program, and more recently the Industrial Modernization Incentive Program (IMIP). These incentives include productivity shared savings rewards, contractor investment protection to allow for amortization of plant and equipment, and subcontractor/vendor participation. The purpose here is to review DOD IMIP and to evaluate whether a similar program is feasible for NASA and other non-DOD agencies. The IMIP methodology is of interest to industrial engineers because it provides a structured, disciplined approach to identifying productivity improvement opportunities and documenting their expected benefit. However, it is shown that more research on predicting and validating cost avoidance is needed.

Benefits of sustainable waste management in the vegetable greenhouse industry.

PubMed

Cheuk, William; Lo, Kwang Victor; Branion, Richard M R; Fraser, Bud

2003-11-01

This study investigated the benefits of an on-site sustainable solid waste treatment and utilization system for the greenhouse industry. The composts made from greenhouse wastes were tested and found to contain high nutrient values and good physical properties, and could be used as high quality growing media. The finished composts were tested in a greenhouse against the conventional growth media (sawdust) and resulted in a 10% yield increase by using the compost. An economic analysis was conducted to show the economic benefits of on-site composting for a greenhouse operation. Based on a four-hectare tomato or pepper greenhouse, and amortizing the capital equipment over five years, the net annual cost of composting represents a savings of dollars 8,000 annually.

Compiler analysis for irregular problems in FORTRAN D

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vonhanxleden, Reinhard; Kennedy, Ken; Koelbel, Charles; Das, Raja; Saltz, Joel

1992-01-01

We developed a dataflow framework which provides a basis for rigorously defining strategies to make use of runtime preprocessing methods for distributed memory multiprocessors. In many programs, several loops access the same off-processor memory locations. Our runtime support gives us a mechanism for tracking and reusing copies of off-processor data. A key aspect of our compiler analysis strategy is to determine when it is safe to reuse copies of off-processor data. Another crucial function of the compiler analysis is to identify situations which allow runtime preprocessing overheads to be amortized. This dataflow analysis will make it possible to effectively use the results of interprocedural analysis in our efforts to reduce interprocessor communication and the need for runtime preprocessing.

Integrated operations/payloads/fleet analysis. Volume 3: System costs. Appendix A: Program direct costs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

Individualized program direct costs for each satellite program are presented. This breakdown provides the activity level dependent costs for each satellite program. The activity level dependent costs, or, more simply, program direct costs, are comprised of the total payload costs (as these costs are strictly program dependent) and the direct launch vehicle costs. Only those incremental launch vehicle costs associated directly with the satellite program are considered. For expendable launch vehicles the direct costs include the vehicle investment hardware costs and the launch operations costs. For the reusable STS vehicles the direct costs include only the launch operations, recovery operations, command and control, vehicle maintenance, and propellant support. The costs associated with amortization of reusable vehicle investment, RDT&E range support, etc., are not included.

Analog to digital converter system for temperature monitoring -- B, C, D, DR, F, and H reactors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ballowe, J.W.

1961-03-23

This document discusses a proposal that certain presently installed reactor process water outlet temperature data logging equipment in subject reactors to be replaced with new functionally simplified equipment of a more adequate design. The primary purpose of the proposed installation is to replace existing equipment which is obsolete and in three reactors is worn out to the point where the equipment is out of service frequently for periods of time up to 8 hours or more. The new equipment will provide reliable process tube temperature information for use in the functions of reactor control and product accountability. Based upon anticipatedmore » incremental production gains resulting from use of the new equipment, the amortization period for the project is calculated at 2.7 years.« less

Machine learning research 1989-90

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Porter, Bruce W.; Souther, Arthur

1990-01-01

Multifunctional knowledge bases offer a significant advance in artificial intelligence because they can support numerous expert tasks within a domain. As a result they amortize the costs of building a knowledge base over multiple expert systems and they reduce the brittleness of each system. Due to the inevitable size and complexity of multifunctional knowledge bases, their construction and maintenance require knowledge engineering and acquisition tools that can automatically identify interactions between new and existing knowledge. Furthermore, their use requires software for accessing those portions of the knowledge base that coherently answer questions. Considerable progress was made in developing software for building and accessing multifunctional knowledge bases. A language was developed for representing knowledge, along with software tools for editing and displaying knowledge, a machine learning program for integrating new information into existing knowledge, and a question answering system for accessing the knowledge base.

H. R. 2594: This Act may be cited as the Wetlands Stewardship Trusts Act of 1991, introduced in the US House of Representatives, One Hundred Second Congress, First Session, June 7, 1991

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1991-01-01

This bill was introduced into the US House of Representatives on June 7, 1991 to provide for the designation of Wetlands Stewardship Trusts. This legislation amended the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish special rules for contributions of wetlands and riparian lands to Wetlands Stewardship Trusts. Key features of the bill address the following: tax treatment of donations of wetlands and riparian lands to Wetlands Stewardship Trusts; amortization of expenditures to restore wetlands and riparian lands; expenditures for restoring wetlands and riparian lands; exclusion from gross income for amounts received from compatible uses of wetlands or riparian lands; andmore » income from compatible uses of wetlands or riparian lands.« less

Modeling and Analysis of Wholesale Electricity Market Design. Understanding the Missing Money Problem. December 2013 - January 2015

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Papalexopoulos, A.; Hansen, C.; Perrino, D.

This project examined the impact of renewable energy sources, which have zero incremental energy costs, on the sustainability of conventional generation. This “missing money” problem refers to market outcomes in which infra-marginal energy revenues in excess of operations and maintenance (O&M) costs are systematically lower than the amortized costs of new entry for a marginal generator. The problem is caused by two related factors: (1) conventional generation is dispatched less, and (2) the price that conventional generation receives for its energy is lower. This lower revenue stream may not be sufficient to cover both the variable and fixed costs ofmore » conventional generation. In fact, this study showed that higher wind penetrations in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) system could cause many conventional generators to become uneconomic.« less

Using a Cray Y-MP as an array processor for a RISC Workstation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lamaster, Hugh; Rogallo, Sarah J.

1992-01-01

As microprocessors increase in power, the economics of centralized computing has changed dramatically. At the beginning of the 1980's, mainframes and super computers were often considered to be cost-effective machines for scalar computing. Today, microprocessor-based RISC (reduced-instruction-set computer) systems have displaced many uses of mainframes and supercomputers. Supercomputers are still cost competitive when processing jobs that require both large memory size and high memory bandwidth. One such application is array processing. Certain numerical operations are appropriate to use in a Remote Procedure Call (RPC)-based environment. Matrix multiplication is an example of an operation that can have a sufficient number of arithmetic operations to amortize the cost of an RPC call. An experiment which demonstrates that matrix multiplication can be executed remotely on a large system to speed the execution over that experienced on a workstation is described.

Mass driver retrievals of earth-approaching asteroids. [earth orbit capture for mining purposes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oleary, B.

1977-01-01

Mass driver tugs can be designed to move Apollo and Amor asteroids at opportunities of low velocity increment to the vicinity of the earth. The cost of transferring asteroids through a velocity interval of 3 km/sec by mass driver is about 16 cents per kilogram amortized over 10 years, about ten times less than that required to retrieve lunar resources during the early phases of a program of space manufacturing. About 22 per cent of a 200-meter diameter asteroid could be transferred to high earth orbit by an automated 100 megawatt solar-powered mass driver in a period of five years for a cost of approximately $1 billion. Estimates of the total investment of a space manufacturing program could be reduced twofold by using asteroidal instead of lunar resources; such a program could begin several years sooner with minimal concurrent development if asteroidal search programs and mass driver development are immediately accelerated.

Run-time parallelization and scheduling of loops

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Saltz, Joel H.; Mirchandaney, Ravi; Crowley, Kay

1990-01-01

Run time methods are studied to automatically parallelize and schedule iterations of a do loop in certain cases, where compile-time information is inadequate. The methods presented involve execution time preprocessing of the loop. At compile-time, these methods set up the framework for performing a loop dependency analysis. At run time, wave fronts of concurrently executable loop iterations are identified. Using this wavefront information, loop iterations are reordered for increased parallelism. Symbolic transformation rules are used to produce: inspector procedures that perform execution time preprocessing and executors or transformed versions of source code loop structures. These transformed loop structures carry out the calculations planned in the inspector procedures. Performance results are presented from experiments conducted on the Encore Multimax. These results illustrate that run time reordering of loop indices can have a significant impact on performance. Furthermore, the overheads associated with this type of reordering are amortized when the loop is executed several times with the same dependency structure.

Micro-Grids for Colonias (TX)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dean Schneider; Michael Martin; Renee Berry

2012-07-31

This report describes the results of the final implementation and testing of a hybrid micro-grid system designed for off-grid applications in underserved Colonias along the Texas/Mexico border. The project is a federally funded follow-on to a project funded by the Texas State Energy Conservation Office in 2007 that developed and demonstrated initial prototype hybrid generation systems consisting of a proprietary energy storage technology, high efficiency charging and inverting systems, photovoltaic cells, a wind turbine, and bio-diesel generators. This combination of technologies provided continuous power to dwellings that are not grid connected, with a significant savings in fuel by allowing powermore » generation at highly efficient operating conditions. The objective of this project was to complete development of the prototype systems and to finalize and engineering design; to install and operate the systems in the intended environment, and to evaluate the technical and economic effectiveness of the systems. The objectives of this project were met. This report documents the final design that was achieved and includes the engineering design documents for the system. The system operated as designed, with the system availability limited by maintenance requirements of the diesel gensets. Overall, the system achieved a 96% availability over the operation of the three deployed systems. Capital costs of the systems were dependent upon both the size of the generation system and the scope of the distribution grid, but, in this instance, the systems averaged $0.72/kWh delivered. This cost would decrease significantly as utilization of the system increased. The system with the highest utilization achieved a capitol cost amortized value of $0.34/kWh produced. The average amortized fuel and maintenance cost was $0.48/kWh which was dependent upon the amount of maintenance required by the diesel generator. Economically, the system is difficult to justify as an alternative to grid power. However, the operational costs are reasonable if grid power is unavailable, e.g. in a remote area or in a disaster recovery situation. In fact, avoided fuel costs for the smaller of the systems in use during this project would have a payback of the capital costs of that system in 2.3 years, far short of the effective system life.« less

New Technology for Microfabrication and Testing of a Thermoelectric Device for Generating Mobile Electrical Power

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prasad, Narasimha S.; Taylor, Patrick J.; Trivedi, Sudhir B.; Kutcher, Susan

2012-01-01

Thermoelectric (TE) power generation is an increasingly important power generation technology. Major advantages include: no moving parts, low-weight, modularity, covertness/silence, high power density, low amortized cost, and long service life with minimum or no required maintenance. Despite low efficiency of power generation, there are many specialized needs for electrical power that TE technologies can uniquely and successfully address. Recent advances in thermoelectric materials technology have rekindled acute interest in thermoelectric power generation. We have developed single crystalline n- and p- type PbTe crystals and are also, developing PbTe bulk nanocomposites using PbTe nano powders and emerging filed assisted sintering technology (FAST). We will discuss the materials requirements for efficient thermoelectric power generation using waste heat at intermediate temperature range (6500 to 8500 K). We will present our recent results on production of n- and p- type PbTe crystals and their thermoelectric characterization. Relative characteristics and performance of PbTe bulk single crystals and nano composites for thermoelectric power generation will be discussed.

Successful prediction and performance in waterflooding Wesson Hogg Sand Unit, Ouachita County, Arkansas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Clanton, H.W.

1966-01-01

By unitization and waterflooding, the Hogg Sand reservoir will increase ultimate recovery by 21,500,000 bbl. The predicted ultimate recovery of 1,103 bbl per acre-ft is considered well above average for waterflood projects. Predicted reservoir performance has closely paralleled actual performance in many areas of investigation, viz., recovery in bbl per acre-ft, flood pattern, water percent at depletion, and attaining a reservoir pressure which would sustain production by natural flow. A departure from the generally accepted practices utilized in waterflooding has not been a detriment in successfully flooding the Hogg Sand reservoir. The major factors contributing to the high degree ofmore » success can be found in the excellent reservoir characteristics. Operating costs of $0.2429 per bbl, including amortization, is approximately 1/4 of that normally expected in waterfloods. Remaining oil after flooding is indicated to be 49% of the oil in place and clearly indicates a need for concentrated efforts in the field of tertiary recovery.« less

Innovation management in renewable energy sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ignat, V.

2017-08-01

As a result of the globalization of knowledge, shortening of the innovation cycle and the aggravation of the price situation, the diffusion of innovation has accelerated. The protection of innovation has become even more important for companies in technologyintensive industries. Legal and actual patent right strategies complement one another, in order to amortize the investment in product development. Climate change is one of today’s truly global challenges, affecting all aspects of socio-economic development in every region of the world. Technology development and its rapid diffusion are considered crucial for tackling the climate change challenge. At the global level, the last decades have seen a continuous expansion of inventive activity in renewable energy technologies. The growth in Renewable Energy (RE) inventions has been much faster than in other technologies, and RE today represents nearly 6% of global invention activity, up from 1.5% in 1990. This paper discusses about global innovation activity in the last five years in the renewable energy sector and describes the Innovation and Technology Management process for supporting managerial decision making.

[Study cost/effectiveness of portable fridges in the mobile unit of emergencies of Alcañiz (Teruel)].

PubMed

Mir Ramos, Eduardo; Martínez Tofé, Jesús; Castro Salanova, Rafael; Azón López, Esther; Corcuera Cantabrana, Ana; Sancho Pellicer, Antonio

2012-09-01

The maintenance of cold chain can result difficult in Emergency Mobil Units that's why the aim of this study is to value the effectiveness of portable fridges with/without compressor and its cost-effectiveness by a computer simulation. This descriptive, transversal and cost effectiveness analysis was developed in two Emergency Mobil Units of 061 Aragón of Alcañiz (Teruel) along a year. The results showed that in the fridge with compressor, the 93'8% of the temperatures was between 2 and 8 degrees C, where as in the fridge without compressor was of the 35,7%.The global and specific cost effectiveness ratio of the fridge with and without compressor were of 0,063 and 7,411 and of 0,080 and 147,55 respectively. Fridge with compressor was more cost-effective, amortizing quickly its initial cost. This fridge had a better and more efficient thermoregulation what supposed a better conservation of drugs and lower costs, according to the model of simulation.

SOP 98-5 brings uniformity to reporting start-up costs.

PubMed

Luecke, R W; Meeting, D T

1999-08-01

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) issued Statement of Position (SOP) No. 98-5, Reporting on the Costs of Start-Up Activities, in April 1998 to provide organizations with guidance on how to report start-up and organization costs. Because some companies were expensing start-up costs while other companies were capitalizing start-up costs with a variety of periods over which to amortize costs, it was difficult to compare companies' financial statements. SOP No. 98-5 will bring uniformity to the treatment of start-up and organization costs by dictating that these costs be expensed as incurred. AICPA's Accounting Standards Executive Committee adopted an intentionally broad definition of start-up costs to capture the vast majority of costs associated with starting up an organization. SOP No. 98-5 takes effect for financial statements for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 1998, but can be applied earlier for fiscal years for which financial statements have not been issued.

Residential Water Conservation in a Noncrisis Setting: Results of a New Jersey Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palmini, Dennis J.; Shelton, Theodore B.

1982-08-01

East Brunswick Township, New Jersey, conducted a water conservation program in 1980 by distributing to 564 households free packets of water-saving devices purchased with municipal funds. The program was not a response to a current water supply crisis, and appeals for cooperation were based on the private economic benefits of water conservation. Statistical procedures were developed to measure the proportions of households installing each of the devices distributed, water savings and program costs. Two-thirds of the households receiving the packets installed at least one device. Average annual water savings per home receiving a packet were estimated at 5010 gallons (18.96 kl). Amortized over ten years at a 10% discount rate, the program cost was approximately 35 cents per 1000 gallons of water saved (9.2 cents per kl). The East Brunswick results compare well to the results obtained from similar conservation programs in a pair of California communities during the 1976-1977 drought.

Intelligent Agents for Design and Synthesis Environments: My Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norvig, Peter

1999-01-01

This presentation gives a summary of intelligent agents for design synthesis environments. We'll start with the conclusions, and work backwards to justify them. First, an important assumption is that agents (whatever they are) are good for software engineering. This is especially true for software that operates in an uncertain, changing environment. The "real world" of physical artifacts is like that: uncertain in what we can measure, changing in that things are always breaking down, and we must interact with non-software entities. The second point is that software engineering techniques can contribute to good design. There may have been a time when we wanted to build simple artifacts containing little or no software. But modern aircraft and spacecraft are complex, and rely on a great deal of software. So better software engineering leads to better designed artifacts, especially when we are designing a series of related artifacts and can amortize the costs of software development. The third point is that agents are especially useful for design tasks, above and beyond their general usefulness for software engineering, and the usefulness of software engineering to design.

Synthesis of Trigeneration Systems: Sensitivity Analyses and Resilience

PubMed Central

Carvalho, Monica; Lozano, Miguel A.; Ramos, José; Serra, Luis M.

2013-01-01

This paper presents sensitivity and resilience analyses for a trigeneration system designed for a hospital. The following information is utilized to formulate an integer linear programming model: (1) energy service demands of the hospital, (2) technical and economical characteristics of the potential technologies for installation, (3) prices of the available utilities interchanged, and (4) financial parameters of the project. The solution of the model, minimizing the annual total cost, provides the optimal configuration of the system (technologies installed and number of pieces of equipment) and the optimal operation mode (operational load of equipment, interchange of utilities with the environment, convenience of wasting cogenerated heat, etc.) at each temporal interval defining the demand. The broad range of technical, economic, and institutional uncertainties throughout the life cycle of energy supply systems for buildings makes it necessary to delve more deeply into the fundamental properties of resilient systems: feasibility, flexibility and robustness. The resilience of the obtained solution is tested by varying, within reasonable limits, selected parameters: energy demand, amortization and maintenance factor, natural gas price, self-consumption of electricity, and time-of-delivery feed-in tariffs. PMID:24453881

Reinventing the Solar Power Satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landis, Geoffrey A.

2002-01-01

Economy of scale is inherent in the microwave power transmission aperture/spot-size trade-off, resulting in a requirement for large space systems in the existing design concepts. Unfortunately, this large size means that the initial investment required before the first return, and the price of amortization of this initial investment, is a daunting (and perhaps insurmountable) barrier to economic viability. As the growth of ground-based solar power applications will fund the development of the PV technology required for space solar power and will also create the demand for space solar power by manufacturing a ready-made market, space power systems must be designed with an understanding that ground-based solar technologies will be implemented as a precursor to space-based solar. for low initial cost, (3) operation in synergy with ground solar systems, and (4) power production profile tailored to peak rates. A key to simplicity of design is to maximize the integration of the system components. Microwave, millimeter-wave, and laser systems are analyzed. A new solar power satellite design concept with no sun-tracking and no moving parts is proposed to reduce the required cost to initial operational capability.

Lattice Boltzmann Simulation Optimization on Leading Multicore Platforms

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Williams, Samuel; Carter, Jonathan; Oliker, Leonid

2008-02-01

We present an auto-tuning approach to optimize application performance on emerging multicore architectures. The methodology extends the idea of search-based performance optimizations, popular in linear algebra and FFT libraries, to application-specific computational kernels. Our work applies this strategy to a lattice Boltzmann application (LBMHD) that historically has made poor use of scalar microprocessors due to its complex data structures and memory access patterns. We explore one of the broadest sets of multicore architectures in the HPC literature, including the Intel Clovertown, AMD Opteron X2, Sun Niagara2, STI Cell, as well as the single core Intel Itanium2. Rather than hand-tuning LBMHDmore » for each system, we develop a code generator that allows us identify a highly optimized version for each platform, while amortizing the human programming effort. Results show that our auto-tuned LBMHD application achieves up to a 14x improvement compared with the original code. Additionally, we present detailed analysis of each optimization, which reveal surprising hardware bottlenecks and software challenges for future multicore systems and applications.« less

Lattice Boltzmann simulation optimization on leading multicore platforms

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Williams, S.; Carter, J.; Oliker, L.

2008-01-01

We present an auto-tuning approach to optimize application performance on emerging multicore architectures. The methodology extends the idea of searchbased performance optimizations, popular in linear algebra and FFT libraries, to application-specific computational kernels. Our work applies this strategy to a lattice Boltzmann application (LBMHD) that historically has made poor use of scalar microprocessors due to its complex data structures and memory access patterns. We explore one of the broadest sets of multicore architectures in the HPC literature, including the Intel Clovertown, AMD Opteron X2, Sun Niagara2, STI Cell, as well as the single core Intel Itanium2. Rather than hand-tuning LBMHDmore » for each system, we develop a code generator that allows us identify a highly optimized version for each platform, while amortizing the human programming effort. Results show that our autotuned LBMHD application achieves up to a 14 improvement compared with the original code. Additionally, we present detailed analysis of each optimization, which reveal surprising hardware bottlenecks and software challenges for future multicore systems and applications.« less

PERI - Auto-tuning Memory Intensive Kernels for Multicore

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bailey, David H; Williams, Samuel; Datta, Kaushik

2008-06-24

We present an auto-tuning approach to optimize application performance on emerging multicore architectures. The methodology extends the idea of search-based performance optimizations, popular in linear algebra and FFT libraries, to application-specific computational kernels. Our work applies this strategy to Sparse Matrix Vector Multiplication (SpMV), the explicit heat equation PDE on a regular grid (Stencil), and a lattice Boltzmann application (LBMHD). We explore one of the broadest sets of multicore architectures in the HPC literature, including the Intel Xeon Clovertown, AMD Opteron Barcelona, Sun Victoria Falls, and the Sony-Toshiba-IBM (STI) Cell. Rather than hand-tuning each kernel for each system, we developmore » a code generator for each kernel that allows us to identify a highly optimized version for each platform, while amortizing the human programming effort. Results show that our auto-tuned kernel applications often achieve a better than 4X improvement compared with the original code. Additionally, we analyze a Roofline performance model for each platform to reveal hardware bottlenecks and software challenges for future multicore systems and applications.« less

Preliminary conceptual design for geothermal space heating conversion of school district 50 joint facilities at Pagosa Springs, Colorado. GTA report no. 6

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engen, I. A.

1981-11-01

This feasibility study and preliminary conceptual design effect assesses the conversion of a high school and gym, and a middle school building to geothermal space heating is assessed. A preliminary cost benefit assessment made on the basis of estimated costs for conversion, system maintenance, debt service, resource development, electricity to power pumps, and savings from from reduced natural gas consumption concluded that an economic conversion depended on development of an adequate geothermal resource (approximately 1500F, 400 gpm). Material selection assumed that the geothermal water to the main supply system was isolated to minimize effects of corrosion and deposition, and that system compatible components are used for the building modifications. Asbestos cement distribution pipe, a stainless steel heat exchanger, and stainless steel lined valves were recommended for the supply, heat transfer, and disposal mechanisms, respectively. A comparison of the calculated average gas consumption cost, escalated at 10% per year, with conversion project cost, both in 1977 dollars, showed that the project could be amortized over less than 20 years at current interest rates.

Synthesis of trigeneration systems: sensitivity analyses and resilience.

PubMed

Carvalho, Monica; Lozano, Miguel A; Ramos, José; Serra, Luis M

2013-01-01

This paper presents sensitivity and resilience analyses for a trigeneration system designed for a hospital. The following information is utilized to formulate an integer linear programming model: (1) energy service demands of the hospital, (2) technical and economical characteristics of the potential technologies for installation, (3) prices of the available utilities interchanged, and (4) financial parameters of the project. The solution of the model, minimizing the annual total cost, provides the optimal configuration of the system (technologies installed and number of pieces of equipment) and the optimal operation mode (operational load of equipment, interchange of utilities with the environment, convenience of wasting cogenerated heat, etc.) at each temporal interval defining the demand. The broad range of technical, economic, and institutional uncertainties throughout the life cycle of energy supply systems for buildings makes it necessary to delve more deeply into the fundamental properties of resilient systems: feasibility, flexibility and robustness. The resilience of the obtained solution is tested by varying, within reasonable limits, selected parameters: energy demand, amortization and maintenance factor, natural gas price, self-consumption of electricity, and time-of-delivery feed-in tariffs.

Low Cost Injection Mold Creation via Hybrid Additive and Conventional Manufacturing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dehoff, Ryan R.; Watkins, Thomas R.; List, III, Frederick Alyious

2015-12-01

The purpose of the proposed project between Cummins and ORNL is to significantly reduce the cost of the tooling (machining and materials) required to create injection molds to make plastic components. Presently, the high cost of this tooling forces the design decision to make cast aluminum parts because Cummins typical production volumes are too low to allow injection molded plastic parts to be cost effective with the amortized cost of the injection molding tooling. In addition to reducing the weight of components, polymer injection molding allows the opportunity for the alternative cooling methods, via nitrogen gas. Nitrogen gas cooling offersmore » an environmentally and economically attractive cooling option, if the mold can be manufactured economically. In this project, a current injection molding design was optimized for cooling using nitrogen gas. The various components of the injection mold tooling were fabricated using the Renishaw powder bed laser additive manufacturing technology. Subsequent machining was performed on the as deposited components to form a working assembly. The injection mold is scheduled to be tested in a projection setting at a commercial vendor selected by Cummins.« less

Energy balance, greenhouse gas emissions, and profitability of thermobarical pretreatment of cattle waste in anaerobic digestion.

PubMed

Budde, Jörn; Prochnow, Annette; Plöchl, Matthias; Suárez Quiñones, Teresa; Heiermann, Monika

2016-03-01

In this study modeled full scale application of thermobarical hydrolysis of less degradable feedstock for biomethanation was assessed in terms of energy balance, greenhouse gas emissions, and economy. Data were provided whether the substitution of maize silage as feedstock for biogas production by pretreated cattle wastes is beneficial in full-scale application or not. A model device for thermobarical treatment has been suggested for and theoretically integrated in a biogas plant. The assessment considered the replacement of maize silage as feedstock with liquid and/or solid cattle waste (feces, litter, and feed residues from animal husbandry of high-performance dairy cattle, dry cows, and heifers). The integration of thermobarical pretreatment is beneficial for raw material with high contents of organic dry matter and ligno-cellulose: Solid cattle waste revealed very short payback times, e.g. 9 months for energy, 3 months for greenhouse gases, and 3 years 3 months for economic amortization, whereas, in contrast, liquid cattle waste did not perform positive replacement effects in this analysis. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

A structure-exploiting numbering algorithm for finite elements on extruded meshes, and its performance evaluation in Firedrake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bercea, Gheorghe-Teodor; McRae, Andrew T. T.; Ham, David A.; Mitchell, Lawrence; Rathgeber, Florian; Nardi, Luigi; Luporini, Fabio; Kelly, Paul H. J.

2016-10-01

We present a generic algorithm for numbering and then efficiently iterating over the data values attached to an extruded mesh. An extruded mesh is formed by replicating an existing mesh, assumed to be unstructured, to form layers of prismatic cells. Applications of extruded meshes include, but are not limited to, the representation of three-dimensional high aspect ratio domains employed by geophysical finite element simulations. These meshes are structured in the extruded direction. The algorithm presented here exploits this structure to avoid the performance penalty traditionally associated with unstructured meshes. We evaluate the implementation of this algorithm in the Firedrake finite element system on a range of low compute intensity operations which constitute worst cases for data layout performance exploration. The experiments show that having structure along the extruded direction enables the cost of the indirect data accesses to be amortized after 10-20 layers as long as the underlying mesh is well ordered. We characterize the resulting spatial and temporal reuse in a representative set of both continuous-Galerkin and discontinuous-Galerkin discretizations. On meshes with realistic numbers of layers the performance achieved is between 70 and 90 % of a theoretical hardware-specific limit.

Domotics Project Housing Block.

PubMed

Morón, Carlos; Payán, Alejandro; García, Alfonso; Bosquet, Francisco

2016-05-23

This document develops the study of an implementation project of a home automation system in a housing placed in the town of Galapagar, Madrid. This house, which is going to be occupied by a four-member family, consists of 67 constructed square meters distributed in lounge, kitchen, three bedrooms, bath, bathroom and terrace, this being a common arrangement in Spain. Thus, this study will allow extracting conclusions about the adequacy of the home automation in a wide percentage of housing in Spain. In this document, three house automation proposals are developed based on the requirements of the client and the different home automation levels that the Spanish House and Building Automation Association has established, besides two parallel proposals relating to the safety and the technical alarms. The mentioned proposed systems are described by means of product datasheets and descriptions, distribution plans, measurements, budgets and flow charts that describe the functioning of the system in every case. An evaluation of each system is included, based on other studies conclusions on this matter, where expected energy savings from each design, depending on the current cost of lighting, water and gas, as well as the expected economic amortization period is evaluated.

Geothermal-retrofit study for the National Orange Show Facilities in San Bernardino, California

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1981-11-17

The cost and feasibility of retrofitting the National Orange Show Facilities to use geothermal heat instead of natural gas for heating are determined. Because of the limited usage of the smaller facilities the study was limited to the conversion of the six major buildings: Domed, Hobby, Citrus, Auditorium, Restaurant and Commercial. A major problem is that most of the buildings are used on a very limited basis. This drastically reduced the amount of savings that could be used to amortize the retrofit cost. Another problem is that the buildings are spread over a large area and so the below grademore » piping costs were high. Finally, all of the buildings except for the Auditorium have direct gas fired heaters that would require all new terminal heating systems. In order to limit the retrofit cost, the retrofit system was designed to handle less than the peak load. This seemed appropriate because the facility might not even be in operation when a peak load condition occurred. Also, the existing systems could be used to supplement the geothermal system if necessary. The calculated and design peak loads are summarized.« less

Optimization of a Lattice Boltzmann Computation on State-of-the-Art Multicore Platforms

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Williams, Samuel; Carter, Jonathan; Oliker, Leonid

2009-04-10

We present an auto-tuning approach to optimize application performance on emerging multicore architectures. The methodology extends the idea of search-based performance optimizations, popular in linear algebra and FFT libraries, to application-specific computational kernels. Our work applies this strategy to a lattice Boltzmann application (LBMHD) that historically has made poor use of scalar microprocessors due to its complex data structures and memory access patterns. We explore one of the broadest sets of multicore architectures in the HPC literature, including the Intel Xeon E5345 (Clovertown), AMD Opteron 2214 (Santa Rosa), AMD Opteron 2356 (Barcelona), Sun T5140 T2+ (Victoria Falls), as well asmore » a QS20 IBM Cell Blade. Rather than hand-tuning LBMHD for each system, we develop a code generator that allows us to identify a highly optimized version for each platform, while amortizing the human programming effort. Results show that our auto-tuned LBMHD application achieves up to a 15x improvement compared with the original code at a given concurrency. Additionally, we present detailed analysis of each optimization, which reveal surprising hardware bottlenecks and software challenges for future multicore systems and applications.« less

Using 340B drug discounts to provide a financially sustainable medication discharge service.

PubMed

Wu, Timothy; Williams, Carla; Vranek, Kathryn; Mattingly, T Joseph

2018-03-27

The 340B Drug Pricing Program was intended to stretch federal resources by providing significant discounts to covered entities providing care to underserved populations. Program implementation and evidence of expanding services to higher income patients has brought more scrutiny and calls for elimination of the program. While additional review and reform may be warranted, profitability from 340B discounts enables covered entities to provide additional services that may not be feasible in absence of the program. This case report demonstrates one institution's use of 340B discounts to financially justify providing bedside medication delivery services for patients at the time of discharge from an inpatient admission. A simple financial model was developed using hospital data and inputs from available literature to estimate gross profit and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) with and without 340B discounts. Without the 340B drug price discounts, the service would operate at a financial loss, and further investigation must be done to determine whether other clinical or economic benefits would warrant discharge medication delivery at the institution. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Domotics Project Housing Block

PubMed Central

Morón, Carlos; Payán, Alejandro; García, Alfonso; Bosquet, Francisco

2016-01-01

This document develops the study of an implementation project of a home automation system in a housing placed in the town of Galapagar, Madrid. This house, which is going to be occupied by a four-member family, consists of 67 constructed square meters distributed in lounge, kitchen, three bedrooms, bath, bathroom and terrace, this being a common arrangement in Spain. Thus, this study will allow extracting conclusions about the adequacy of the home automation in a wide percentage of housing in Spain. In this document, three house automation proposals are developed based on the requirements of the client and the different home automation levels that the Spanish House and Building Automation Association has established, besides two parallel proposals relating to the safety and the technical alarms. The mentioned proposed systems are described by means of product datasheets and descriptions, distribution plans, measurements, budgets and flow charts that describe the functioning of the system in every case. An evaluation of each system is included, based on other studies conclusions on this matter, where expected energy savings from each design, depending on the current cost of lighting, water and gas, as well as the expected economic amortization period is evaluated. PMID:27223285

The cost of integrating a physical activity counselor in the primary health care team.

PubMed

Hogg, William E; Zhao, Xue; Angus, Douglas; Fortier, Michelle; Zhong, Jianwei; O'Sullivan, Tracey; Sigal, Ronald J; Blanchard, Chris

2012-01-01

This article assesses direct costs of integrating a physical activity counselor (PAC) into primary health care teams to improve physical activity levels of inactive patients. A monthly cost analysis was conducted using data from 120 inactive patients, aged 18 to 69 years, who were recruited from a community-based family medicine practice. Relevant cost items for the intensive counseling group included (1) office expenses; (2) equipment purchases; (3) operating costs; (4) costs of training the PAC; and (5) labor costs. Physical and human capital were amortized over a 5-year horizon at a discount rate of 5%. Integrating a PAC into the primary health care team incurred an estimated one-time cost of CA$91.43 per participant per month. Results were very sensitive to the number of patients counseled. The costs associated with the intervention are lower than many other intervention studies attempting to improve population physical activity levels. Demonstrating this competitive cost base should encourage additional research to assess the effectiveness of integrating a PAC into primary health care teams to promote active living among patients who do not meet recommended physical activity levels.

Grouper: A Compact, Streamable Triangle Mesh Data Structure.

PubMed

Luffel, Mark; Gurung, Topraj; Lindstrom, Peter; Rossignac, Jarek

2013-05-08

We present Grouper: an all-in-one compact file format, random-access data structure, and streamable representation for large triangle meshes. Similarly to the recently published SQuad representation, Grouper represents the geometry and connectivity of a mesh by grouping vertices and triangles into fixed-size records, most of which store two adjacent triangles and a shared vertex. Unlike SQuad, however, Grouper interleaves geometry with connectivity and uses a new connectivity representation to ensure that vertices and triangles can be stored in a coherent order that enables memory-efficient sequential stream processing. We present a linear-time construction algorithm that allows streaming out Grouper meshes using a small memory footprint while preserving the initial ordering of vertices. As part of this construction, we show how the problem of assigning vertices and triangles to groups reduces to a well-known NP-hard optimization problem, and present a simple yet effective heuristic solution that performs well in practice. Our array-based Grouper representation also doubles as a triangle mesh data structure that allows direct access to vertices and triangles. Storing only about two integer references per triangle, Grouper answers both incidence and adjacency queries in amortized constant time. Our compact representation enables data-parallel processing on multicore computers, instant partitioning and fast transmission for distributed processing, as well as efficient out-of-core access.

Solar power satellite life-cycle energy recovery consideration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weingartner, S.; Blumenberg, J.

The construction, in-orbit installation and maintenance of a solar power satellite (SPS) will demand large amounts of energy. As a minimum requirement for an energy effective power satellite it is asked that this amount of energy be recovered. The energy effectiveness in this sense resulting in a positive net energy balance is a prerequisite for cost-effective power satellite. This paper concentrates on life-cycle energy recovery instead on monetary aspects. The trade-offs between various power generation systems (different types of solar cells, solar dynamic), various construction and installation strategies (using terrestrial or extra-terrestrial resources) and the expected/required lifetime of the SPS are reviewed. The presented work is based on a 2-year study performed at the Technical University of Munich. The study showed that the main energy which is needed to make a solar power satellite a reality is required for the production of the solar power components (up to 65%), especially for the solar cell production. Whereas transport into orbit accounts in the order of 20% and the receiving station on earth (rectenna) requires about 15% of the total energy investment. The energetic amortization time, i.e. the time the SPS has to be operational to give back the amount of energy which was needed for its production installation and operation, is about two years.

DOE/NETL's phase II mercury control technology field testing program: preliminary economic analysis of activated carbon injection.

PubMed

Jones, Andrew P; Hoffmann, Jeffrey W; Smith, Dennis N; Feeley, Thomas J; Murphy, James T

2007-02-15

Based on results of field testing conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory (DOE/NETL), this article provides preliminary costs for mercury control via conventional activated carbon injection (ACI), brominated ACI, and conventional ACI coupled with the application of a sorbent enhancement additive (SEA) to coal prior to combustion. The economic analyses are reported on a plant-specific basis in terms of the cost required to achieve low (50%), mid (70%), and high (90%) levels of mercury removal "above and beyond" the baseline mercury removal achieved by existing emission control equipment. In other words, the levels of mercury control are directly attributable to ACI. Mercury control costs via ACI have been amortized on a current dollar basis. Using a 20-year book life, levelized costs for the incremental increase in cost of electricity (COE), expressed in mills per kilowatt-hour (mills/kWh), and the incremental cost of mercury control, expressed in dollars per pound of mercury removed ($/lb Hg removed), have been calculated for each level of ACI mercury control. For this analysis, the increase in COE varied from 0.14 mills/kWh to 3.92 mills/kWh. Meanwhile, the incremental cost of mercury control ranged from $3810/lb Hg removed to $166000/lb Hg removed.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Allada, Veerendra, Benjegerdes, Troy; Bode, Brett

Commodity clusters augmented with application accelerators are evolving as competitive high performance computing systems. The Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) with a very high arithmetic density and performance per price ratio is a good platform for the scientific application acceleration. In addition to the interconnect bottlenecks among the cluster compute nodes, the cost of memory copies between the host and the GPU device have to be carefully amortized to improve the overall efficiency of the application. Scientific applications also rely on efficient implementation of the BAsic Linear Algebra Subroutines (BLAS), among which the General Matrix Multiply (GEMM) is considered as themore » workhorse subroutine. In this paper, they study the performance of the memory copies and GEMM subroutines that are critical to port the computational chemistry algorithms to the GPU clusters. To that end, a benchmark based on the NetPIPE framework is developed to evaluate the latency and bandwidth of the memory copies between the host and the GPU device. The performance of the single and double precision GEMM subroutines from the NVIDIA CUBLAS 2.0 library are studied. The results have been compared with that of the BLAS routines from the Intel Math Kernel Library (MKL) to understand the computational trade-offs. The test bed is a Intel Xeon cluster equipped with NVIDIA Tesla GPUs.« less

Electro-chemical arsenic remediation: field trials in West Bengal.

PubMed

Amrose, Susan E; Bandaru, Siva R S; Delaire, Caroline; van Genuchten, Case M; Dutta, Amit; DebSarkar, Anupam; Orr, Christopher; Roy, Joyashree; Das, Abhijit; Gadgil, Ashok J

2014-08-01

Millions of people in rural South Asia are exposed to high levels of arsenic through groundwater used for drinking. Many deployed arsenic remediation technologies quickly fail because they are not maintained, repaired, accepted, or affordable. It is therefore imperative that arsenic remediation technologies be evaluated for their ability to perform within a sustainable and scalable business model that addresses these challenges. We present field trial results of a 600 L Electro-Chemical Arsenic Remediation (ECAR) reactor operating over 3.5 months in West Bengal. These results are evaluated through the lens of a community scale micro-utility business model as a potential sustainable and scalable safe water solution for rural communities in South Asia. We demonstrate ECAR's ability to consistently reduce arsenic concentrations of ~266 μg/L to <5 μg/L in real groundwater, simultaneously meeting the international standards for iron and aluminum in drinking water. ECAR operating costs (amortized capital plus consumables) are estimated as $0.83-$1.04/m(3) under realistic conditions. We discuss the implications of these results against the constraints of a sustainable and scalable business model to argue that ECAR is a promising technology to help provide a clean water solution in arsenic-affected areas of South Asia. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical Petascale Simulation Framework For Stress Corrosion Cracking

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Grama, Ananth

2013-12-18

A number of major accomplishments resulted from the project. These include: • Data Structures, Algorithms, and Numerical Methods for Reactive Molecular Dynamics. We have developed a range of novel data structures, algorithms, and solvers (amortized ILU, Spike) for use with ReaxFF and charge equilibration. • Parallel Formulations of ReactiveMD (Purdue ReactiveMolecular Dynamics Package, PuReMD, PuReMD-GPU, and PG-PuReMD) for Messaging, GPU, and GPU Cluster Platforms. We have developed efficient serial, parallel (MPI), GPU (Cuda), and GPU Cluster (MPI/Cuda) implementations. Our implementations have been demonstrated to be significantly better than the state of the art, both in terms of performance and scalability.more » • Comprehensive Validation in the Context of Diverse Applications. We have demonstrated the use of our software in diverse systems, including silica-water, silicon-germanium nanorods, and as part of other projects, extended it to applications ranging from explosives (RDX) to lipid bilayers (biomembranes under oxidative stress). • Open Source Software Packages for Reactive Molecular Dynamics. All versions of our soft- ware have been released over the public domain. There are over 100 major research groups worldwide using our software. • Implementation into the Department of Energy LAMMPS Software Package. We have also integrated our software into the Department of Energy LAMMPS software package.« less

Solar power satellite—Life-cycle energy recovery considerations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weingartner, S.; Blumenberg, J.

1995-05-01

The construction, in-orbit installation and maintenance of a solar power satellite (SPS) will demand large amounts of energy. As a minimum requirement for an energy effective power satellite it is asked that this amount of energy be recovered. The energy effectiveness in this sense resulting in a positive net energy balance is a prerequisite for a cost-effective power satellite. This paper concentrates on life-cycle energy recovery instead of monetary aspects. The trade-offs between various power generation systems (different types of solar cells, solar dynamic), various construction and installation strategies (using terrestrial or extra-terrestrial resources) and the expected/required lifetime of the SPS are reviewed. The presented work is based on a 2-year study performed at the Technical University of Munich. The study showed that the main energy which is needed to make a solar power satellite a reality is required for the production of the solar power plant components (up to 65%), especially for the solar cell production. Whereas transport into orbit accounts in the order of 20% and the receiving station on Earth (rectenna) requires in the order of 15% of the total energy investment. The energetic amortization time, i.e. the time the SPS has to be operational to give back the amount of energy which was needed for its production, installation and operation, is in the order of two years.

The cost of developing a computerized tailored interactive multimedia intervention vs. a print based Photonovella intervention for HPV vaccine education.

PubMed

Karanth, Siddharth S; Lairson, David R; Savas, Lara S; Vernon, Sally W; Fernández, María E

2017-08-01

Mobile technology is opening new avenues for healthcare providers to create and implement tailored and personalized health education programs. We estimate and compare the cost of developing an i-Pad based tailored interactive multimedia intervention (TIMI) and a print based (Photonovella) intervention to increase human papillomavirus (HPV) immunization. The development costs of the interventions were calculated using a societal perspective. Direct cost included the cost of planning the study, conducting focus groups, and developing the intervention materials by the research staff. Costs also included the amount paid to the vendors who produced the TIMI and Photonovella. Micro cost data on the staff time and materials were recorded in logs for tracking personnel time, meeting time, supplies and software purchases. The costs were adjusted for inflation and reported in 2015 USD. The total cost of developing the Photonovella was $66,468 and the cost of developing the TIMI was $135,978. The amortized annual cost for the interventions calculated at a 3% discount rate and over a 7-year period was $10,669 per year for the Photonovella and $21,825 per year for the TIMI intervention. The results would inform decision makers when planning and investing in the development of interactive multimedia health interventions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated Reuse of Scientific Subroutine Libraries through Deductive Synthesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lowry, Michael R.; Pressburger, Thomas; VanBaalen, Jeffrey; Roach, Steven

1997-01-01

Systematic software construction offers the potential of elevating software engineering from an art-form to an engineering discipline. The desired result is more predictable software development leading to better quality and more maintainable software. However, the overhead costs associated with the formalisms, mathematics, and methods of systematic software construction have largely precluded their adoption in real-world software development. In fact, many mainstream software development organizations, such as Microsoft, still maintain a predominantly oral culture for software development projects; which is far removed from a formalism-based culture for software development. An exception is the limited domain of safety-critical software, where the high-assuiance inherent in systematic software construction justifies the additional cost. We believe that systematic software construction will only be adopted by mainstream software development organization when the overhead costs have been greatly reduced. Two approaches to cost mitigation are reuse (amortizing costs over many applications) and automation. For the last four years, NASA Ames has funded the Amphion project, whose objective is to automate software reuse through techniques from systematic software construction. In particular, deductive program synthesis (i.e., program extraction from proofs) is used to derive a composition of software components (e.g., subroutines) that correctly implements a specification. The construction of reuse libraries of software components is the standard software engineering solution for improving software development productivity and quality.

Costs of Robotic-Assisted Versus Traditional Laparoscopy in Endometrial Cancer.

PubMed

Vuorinen, Riikka-Liisa K; Mäenpää, Minna M; Nieminen, Kari; Tomás, Eija I; Luukkaala, Tiina H; Auvinen, Anssi; Mäenpää, Johanna U

2017-10-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the costs of traditional laparoscopy and robotic-assisted laparoscopy in the treatment of endometrial cancer. A total of 101 patients with endometrial cancer were randomized to the study and operated on starting from 2010 until 2013, at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland. Costs were calculated based on internal accounting, hospital database, and purchase prices and were compared using intention-to-treat analysis. Main outcome measures were item costs and total costs related to the operation, including a 6-month postoperative follow-up. The total costs including late complications were 2160 &OV0556; higher in the robotic group (median for traditional 5823 &OV0556;, vs robot median 7983 &OV0556;, P < 0.001). The difference was due to higher costs for instruments and equipment as well as to more expensive operating room and postanesthesia care unit time. Traditional laparoscopy involved higher costs for operation personnel, general costs, medication used in the operation, and surgeon, although these costs were not substantial. There was no significant difference in in-patient stay, laboratory, radiology, blood products, or costs related to complications. According to this study, robotic-assisted laparoscopy is 37% more expensive than traditional laparoscopy in the treatment of endometrial cancer. The cost difference is mainly explained by amortization of the robot and its instrumentation.

Profitability analysis of a femtosecond laser system for cataract surgery using a fuzzy logic approach.

PubMed

Trigueros, José Antonio; Piñero, David P; Ismail, Mahmoud M

2016-01-01

To define the financial and management conditions required to introduce a femtosecond laser system for cataract surgery in a clinic using a fuzzy logic approach. In the simulation performed in the current study, the costs associated to the acquisition and use of a commercially available femtosecond laser platform for cataract surgery (VICTUS, TECHNOLAS Perfect Vision GmbH, Bausch & Lomb, Munich, Germany) during a period of 5y were considered. A sensitivity analysis was performed considering such costs and the countable amortization of the system during this 5y period. Furthermore, a fuzzy logic analysis was used to obtain an estimation of the money income associated to each femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (G). According to the sensitivity analysis, the femtosecond laser system under evaluation can be profitable if 1400 cataract surgeries are performed per year and if each surgery can be invoiced more than $500. In contrast, the fuzzy logic analysis confirmed that the patient had to pay more per surgery, between $661.8 and $667.4 per surgery, without considering the cost of the intraocular lens (IOL). A profitability of femtosecond laser systems for cataract surgery can be obtained after a detailed financial analysis, especially in those centers with large volumes of patients. The cost of the surgery for patients should be adapted to the real flow of patients with the ability of paying a reasonable range of cost.

[Implementation of a new electronic patient record in surgery].

PubMed

Eggli, S; Holm, J

2001-12-01

The increasing amount of clinical data, intensified interest of patients in medical information, medical quality management and the recent cost explosion in health care systems have forced medical institutions to improve their strategy in handling medical data. In the orthopedic department (3,600 surgeries, 75 beds, 14,000 consultations) software application for comprehensive patient data management has been developed. When implementing the electronic patient history following criteria were evaluated: 1. software evaluation, 2. implementation, 3. work flow, 4. data security/system stability. In the first phase the functional character was defined. Implementation required 3 months after parametrization. The expense amounted to 130,000 DM (30 clients). The training requirements were one afternoon for the secretaries and a 2-h session for the residents. The access speed on medically relevant data averaged under 3 s. The average saving in working hours was approximately 5 h/week for the secretaries and 4 h/week for the residents. The saving in paper amounted to 36,000 sheets/year. In 3 operational years there were 3 server breakdowns. Evaluation of the saving on working hours showed that such a system can amortize within a year. The latest improvements in hardware and software technology made the electronic medical record with integrated quality-control practicable without massive expenditure. The system supplies an extensive platform of information for patient treatment and an instrument to evaluate the efficiency of therapy strategies independent of the clinical field.

Costs of polio immunization days in China: implications for mass immunization campaign strategies.

PubMed

Zhang, J; Yu, J J; Zhang, R Z; Zhang, X L; Zhou, J; Wing, J S; Schnur, A; Wang, K A

1998-01-01

Ten provinces of China were selected to estimate the cost per immunization of the 1994-95 national immunization days (NIDs) at five levels (e.g. province, prefecture, county, township and village). Personnel costs accounted for the largest overall share of costs (39 per cent), followed by publicity and promotion costs (27 per cent), and logistic costs (15 per cent). Without consideration of vaccine costs, the major part of NID expenses were shouldered at the township level, which paid for 47 per cent of all incremental costs, while county and village level covered 28 per cent and 18 per cent respectively. Estimation of average costs per immunization was 2.86 RMB yuan, or $0.34, including vaccine costs, buildings and equipment amortization and salaries at all levels. The factors affecting average cost of NID included the output volume, socio-economic development and geographic features. Various approaches were recommended: to intensify the productivity of time and staff, to employ alternative inexpensive manpower resources, to make the best use of publicity and social promotion, the expansion of the age groups and utilization of multi-intervention strategies. Good planning at township level was a decisive factor to ensure an effective NID conducted in an efficient manner. The average cost of China's NID was the lowest among all mass immunization campaigns ever documented. Much of the reduced average cost was attributable to economies of scale.

Advanced Space Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frisbee, Robert H.

1996-01-01

This presentation describes a number of advanced space propulsion technologies with the potential for meeting the need for dramatic reductions in the cost of access to space, and the need for new propulsion capabilities to enable bold new space exploration (and, ultimately, space exploitation) missions of the 21st century. For example, current Earth-to-orbit (e.g., low Earth orbit, LEO) launch costs are extremely high (ca. $10,000/kg); a factor 25 reduction (to ca. $400/kg) will be needed to produce the dramatic increases in space activities in both the civilian and government sectors identified in the Commercial Space Transportation Study (CSTS). Similarly, in the area of space exploration, all of the relatively 'easy' missions (e.g., robotic flybys, inner solar system orbiters and landers; and piloted short-duration Lunar missions) have been done. Ambitious missions of the next century (e.g., robotic outer-planet orbiters/probes, landers, rovers, sample returns; and piloted long-duration Lunar and Mars missions) will require major improvements in propulsion capability. In some cases, advanced propulsion can enable a mission by making it faster or more affordable, and in some cases, by directly enabling the mission (e.g., interstellar missions). As a general rule, advanced propulsion systems are attractive because of their low operating costs (e.g., higher specific impulse, ISD) and typically show the most benefit for relatively 'big' missions (i.e., missions with large payloads or AV, or a large overall mission model). In part, this is due to the intrinsic size of the advanced systems as compared to state-of-the-art (SOTA) chemical propulsion systems. Also, advanced systems often have a large 'infrastructure' cost, either in the form of initial R&D costs or in facilities hardware costs (e.g., laser or microwave transmission ground stations for beamed energy propulsion). These costs must then be amortized over a large mission to be cost-competitive with a SOTA system with a low initial development and infrastructure cost and a high operating cost. Note however that this has resulted in a 'Catch 22' standoff between the need for large initial investment that is amortized over many launches to reduce costs, and the limited number of launches possible at today's launch costs. Some examples of missions enabled (either in cost or capability) by advanced propulsion include long-life station-keeping or micro-spacecraft applications using electric propulsion or BMDO-derived micro-thrusters, low-cost orbit raising (LEO to GEO or Lunar orbit) using electric propulsion, robotic planetary missions using aerobraking or electric propulsion, piloted Mars missions using aerobraking and/or propellant production from Martian resources, very fast (100-day round-trip) piloted Mars missions using fission or fusion propulsion, and, finally, interstellar missions using fusion, antimatter, or beamed energy. The NASA Advanced Propulsion Technology program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is aimed at assessing the feasibility of a range of near-term to far term advanced propulsion technologies that have the potential to reduce costs and/or enable future space activities. The program includes cooperative modeling and research activities between JPL and various universities and industry; and directly supported independent research at universities and industry. The cooperative program consists of mission studies, research and development of ion engine technology using C60 (Buckminsterfullerene) propellant, and research and development of lithium-propellant Lorentz-force accelerator (LFA) engine technology. The university/industry-supported research includes modeling and proof-of-concept experiments in advanced, high-lsp, long-life electric propulsion, and in fusion propulsion.

Combining lipophilic dye, in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and histology.

PubMed

Duncan, Jeremy; Kersigo, Jennifer; Gray, Brian; Fritzsch, Bernd

2011-03-17

Going beyond single gene function to cut deeper into gene regulatory networks requires multiple mutations combined in a single animal. Such analysis of two or more genes needs to be complemented with in situ hybridization of other genes, or immunohistochemistry of their proteins, both in whole mounted developing organs or sections for detailed resolution of the cellular and tissue expression alterations. Combining multiple gene alterations requires the use of cre or flipase to conditionally delete genes and avoid embryonic lethality. Required breeding schemes dramatically enhance effort and cost proportional to the number of genes mutated, with an outcome of very few animals with the full repertoire of genetic modifications desired. Amortizing the vast amount of effort and time to obtain these few precious specimens that are carrying multiple mutations necessitates tissue optimization. Moreover, investigating a single animal with multiple techniques makes it easier to correlate gene deletion defects with expression profiles. We have developed a technique to obtain a more thorough analysis of a given animal; with the ability to analyze several different histologically recognizable structures as well as gene and protein expression all from the same specimen in both whole mounted organs and sections. Although mice have been utilized to demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique it can be applied to a wide array of animals. To do this we combine lipophilic dye tracing, whole mount in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and histology to extract the maximal possible amount of data.

Reduction of water losses by rehabilitation of water distribution network.

PubMed

Güngör, Mahmud; Yarar, Ufuk; Firat, Mahmut

2017-09-11

Physical or real losses may be indicated as the most important component of the water losses occurring in a water distribution network (WDN). The objective of this study is to examine the effects of piping material management and network rehabilitation on the physical water losses and water losses management in a WDN. For this aim, the Denizli WDN consisting of very old pipes that have exhausted their economic life is selected as the study area. The fact that the current network is old results in the decrease of pressure strength, increase of failure intensity, and inefficient use of water resources thus leading to the application of the rehabilitation program. In Denizli, network renewal works have been carried out since the year 2009 under the rehabilitation program. It was determined that the failure rate at regions where network renewal constructions have been completed decreased down to zero level. Renewal of piping material enables the minimization of leakage losses as well as the failure rate. On the other hand, the system rehabilitation has the potential to amortize itself in a very short amount of time if the initial investment cost of network renewal is considered along with the operating costs of the old and new systems, as well as water loss costs. As a result, it can be stated that renewal of piping material in water distribution systems, enhancement of the physical properties of the system, provide significant contributions such as increase of water and energy efficiency and more effective use of resources.

Large-scale terrestrial solar cell power generation cost: A preliminary assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spakowski, A. E.; Shure, L. I.

1972-01-01

A cost study was made to assess the potential of the large-scale use of solar cell power for terrestrial applications. The incentive is the attraction of a zero-pollution source of power for wide-scale use. Unlike many other concepts for low-pollution power generation, even thermal pollution is avoided since only the incident solar flux is utilized. To provide a basis for comparison and a perspective for evaluation, the pertinent technology was treated in two categories: current and optimistic. Factors considered were solar cells, array assembly, power conditioning, site preparation, buildings, maintenance, and operation. The capital investment was assumed to be amortized over 30 years. The useful life of the solar cell array was assumed to be 10 years, and the cases of zero and 50-percent performance deg-radation were considered. Land costs, taxes, and profits were not included in this study because it was found too difficult to provide good generalized estimates of these items. On the basis of the factors considered, it is shown that even for optimistic projections of technology, electric power from large-sclae terrestrial use of solar cells is approximately two to three orders of magnitude more costly than current electric power generation from either fossil or nuclear fuel powerplants. For solar cell power generation to be a viable competitor on a cost basis, technological breakthroughs would be required in both solar cell and array fabrication and in site preparation.

Endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair is more profitable than open repair based on contribution margin per day.

PubMed

Rosenberg, Barry L; Comstock, Matthew C; Butz, David A; Taheri, Paul A; Williams, David M; Upchurch, Gilbert R

2005-03-01

Earlier studies have reported that endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm (EAAA) repair yields lower total profit margins than open AAA (OAAA) repair. This study compared EAAA versus OAAA based on contribution margin per day, which may better measure profitability of new clinical technologies. Contribution margin equals revenue less variable direct costs (VDCs). VDCs capture incremental resources tied directly to individual patients' activity (eg, invoice price of endograft device, nursing labor). Overhead costs factor into total margin, but not contribution margin. The University of Michigan Health System's cost accounting system was used to extract fiscal year 2002-2003 information on revenue, total margin, contribution margin, and duration of stay for Medicare patients with principal diagnosis of AAA (ICD-9 code 441.4). OAAA had revenues of $37,137 per case versus $28,960 for EAAA, similar VDCs per case, and thus higher contribution margin per case ($24,404 for OAAA vs $13,911 for EAAA, P < .001). However, OAAA had significantly longer mean duration of stay per case (10.2 days vs 2.2 days, P < .001). Therefore, mean contribution margin per day was $2948 for OAAA, but $8569 for EAAA ( P < .001). On the basis of contribution margin per day, EAAA repair dominates OAAA repair. The shorter duration of stay with EAAA allows higher throughput, fuller overhead amortization, better use of scarce inpatient beds, and higher health system profits. Surgeons must understand overhead allocation to devices, especially when new technologies cut duration of stay markedly.

Combining Lipophilic dye, in situ Hybridization, Immunohistochemistry, and Histology

PubMed Central

Duncan, Jeremy; Kersigo, Jennifer; Gray, Brian; Fritzsch, Bernd

2011-01-01

Going beyond single gene function to cut deeper into gene regulatory networks requires multiple mutations combined in a single animal. Such analysis of two or more genes needs to be complemented with in situ hybridization of other genes, or immunohistochemistry of their proteins, both in whole mounted developing organs or sections for detailed resolution of the cellular and tissue expression alterations. Combining multiple gene alterations requires the use of cre or flipase to conditionally delete genes and avoid embryonic lethality. Required breeding schemes dramatically enhance effort and cost proportional to the number of genes mutated, with an outcome of very few animals with the full repertoire of genetic modifications desired. Amortizing the vast amount of effort and time to obtain these few precious specimens that are carrying multiple mutations necessitates tissue optimization. Moreover, investigating a single animal with multiple techniques makes it easier to correlate gene deletion defects with expression profiles. We have developed a technique to obtain a more thorough analysis of a given animal; with the ability to analyze several different histologically recognizable structures as well as gene and protein expression all from the same specimen in both whole mounted organs and sections. Although mice have been utilized to demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique it can be applied to a wide array of animals. To do this we combine lipophilic dye tracing, whole mount in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and histology to extract the maximal possible amount of data. PMID:21445047

Profitability analysis of a femtosecond laser system for cataract surgery using a fuzzy logic approach

PubMed Central

Trigueros, José Antonio; Piñero, David P; Ismail, Mahmoud M

2016-01-01

AIM To define the financial and management conditions required to introduce a femtosecond laser system for cataract surgery in a clinic using a fuzzy logic approach. METHODS In the simulation performed in the current study, the costs associated to the acquisition and use of a commercially available femtosecond laser platform for cataract surgery (VICTUS, TECHNOLAS Perfect Vision GmbH, Bausch & Lomb, Munich, Germany) during a period of 5y were considered. A sensitivity analysis was performed considering such costs and the countable amortization of the system during this 5y period. Furthermore, a fuzzy logic analysis was used to obtain an estimation of the money income associated to each femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (G). RESULTS According to the sensitivity analysis, the femtosecond laser system under evaluation can be profitable if 1400 cataract surgeries are performed per year and if each surgery can be invoiced more than $500. In contrast, the fuzzy logic analysis confirmed that the patient had to pay more per surgery, between $661.8 and $667.4 per surgery, without considering the cost of the intraocular lens (IOL). CONCLUSION A profitability of femtosecond laser systems for cataract surgery can be obtained after a detailed financial analysis, especially in those centers with large volumes of patients. The cost of the surgery for patients should be adapted to the real flow of patients with the ability of paying a reasonable range of cost. PMID:27500115

Cost-effectiveness of open versus laparoscopic versus robotic-assisted laparoscopic cystectomy and urinary diversion.

PubMed

Zehnder, Pascal; Gill, Inderbir S

2011-09-01

To provide insight into the recently published cost comparisons in the context of open, laparoscopic, and robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical cystectomy and to demonstrate the complexity of such economic analyses. Most economic evaluations are from a hospital perspective and summarize short-term perioperative therapeutic costs. However, the contributing factors (e.g. study design, included variables, robotic amortization plan, supply contract, surgical volume, surgeons' experience, etc.) vary substantially between the institutions. In addition, a real cost-effective analysis considering cost per quality-adjusted life-year gained is not feasible because of the lack of long-term oncologic and functional outcome data with the robotic procedure. On the basis of a modeled cost analysis using results from published series, robotic-assisted cystectomy was - with few exceptions - found to be more expensive when compared with the open approach. Immediate costs are affected most by operative time, followed by length of hospital stay, robotic supply, case volume, robotic cost, and transfusion rate. Any complication substantially impacts overall costs. Economic cost evaluations are complex analyses influenced by numerous factors that hardly allow an interinstitutional comparison. Robotic-assisted cystectomy is constantly refined with many institutions being somewhere on their learning curve. Transparent reports of oncologic and functional outcome data from centers of expertise applying standardized methods will help to properly analyze the real long-term benefits of robotic surgery and successor technologies and prevent us from becoming slaves of successful marketing strategies.

LMSS SERVICES FINANCIAL REPORT PROGRAM

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chamberlain, R. G.

1994-01-01

The objective of this Services Finance Report program is to provide a means for comparing alternative designs of LMSS systems or other services systems. This program is actually a Multiplan worksheet. The labels used in the worksheet were chosen for a satellite-based cellular communication service (LMSS - Land Mobile Satellite System) but the analysis is not restricted to such cases. A comprehensive financial model is used to calculate a 'figure of merit' which can be used to compare effects of equipment and operating costs, pricing strategy, and customer demand for different systems. The program also calculates the price that a company would have to charge customers to meet all its expenses and make a specified profit. A price estimate can be obtained for almost any service which is heavily dependent on capital investment and which has operating costs that depend on the amount of service sold. The economic analysis has two main components: supplier finances and customer finances. Supplier finances include amortization, interest, insurance, taxes, and operating and maintenance expenses. Customer finances include usage rate, subscription fees, equipment costs, and estimated traffic. Prices can defined as real or nominal to account for effects of escalation and inflation, and the profits can be regulated or unrestricted This program is written for interactive execution with Multiplan (version 1.2) and has been implemented on an IBM PC series computer operating under DOS (version 2.11). The LMSS worksheet has a space requirement of approximately 38K of 8 bit bytes. This worksheet was developed in 1984.

Outcomes of infants undergoing robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty compared to open repair.

PubMed

Dangle, Pankaj P; Kearns, James; Anderson, Blake; Gundeti, Mohan S

2013-12-01

Robotic surgery has evolved from simple extirpative surgery to complex reconstructions even in infants. Data are lacking comparing surgical and direct costs to open approaches. We describe the feasibility, salient tips and outcomes of robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty compared to an open approach. We evaluated patients undergoing open pyeloplasty or robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty. Ten patients in each group met inclusion criteria. Mean patient age was 3.31 months in the open group and 7.3 months in the robotic group (p=0.02). Postoperative outcomes including length of stay (2.2 vs 2.1 days), estimated blood loss (6.5 vs 7.6 ml), days to regular diet (1 vs 1.1) and days to Foley catheter removal (1.3 vs 1.3) were similar between the open and robotic groups. Total operating time (199 vs 242 minutes) was significantly longer in the robotic group. Postoperative improvement in hydronephrosis was identical in both groups. Direct costs, excluding amortization, robotic cost, maintenance and depreciation, were $4,410 in the open group and $4,979 in the robotic group (p=0.10). In our preliminary experience robotic pyeloplasty in infants is feasible and safe. The immediate outcomes are similar to those of an open approach. The robotic technique in infants currently has the benefits of improved esthetic appearance, improved pain control and similar direct costs compared to the traditional open approach. Copyright © 2013 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Optimal deployment of thermal energy storage under diverse economic and climate conditions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DeForest, Nicholas; Mendes, Gonçalo; Stadler, Michael

2014-04-01

This paper presents an investigation of the economic benefit of thermal energy storage (TES) for cooling, across a range of economic and climate conditions. Chilled water TES systems are simulated for a large office building in four distinct locations, Miami in the U.S.; Lisbon, Portugal; Shanghai, China; and Mumbai, India. Optimal system size and operating schedules are determined using the optimization model DER-CAM, such that total cost, including electricity and amortized capital costs are minimized. The economic impacts of each optimized TES system is then compared to systems sized using a simple heuristic method, which bases system size as fractionmore » (50percent and 100percent) of total on-peak summer cooling loads. Results indicate that TES systems of all sizes can be effective in reducing annual electricity costs (5percent-15percent) and peak electricity consumption (13percent-33percent). The investigation also indentifies a number of criteria which drive TES investment, including low capital costs, electricity tariffs with high power demand charges and prolonged cooling seasons. In locations where these drivers clearly exist, the heuristically sized systems capture much of the value of optimally sized systems; between 60percent and 100percent in terms of net present value. However, in instances where these drivers are less pronounced, the heuristic tends to oversize systems, and optimization becomes crucial to ensure economically beneficial deployment of TES, increasing the net present value of heuristically sized systems by as much as 10 times in some instances.« less

Reconfigurable HIL Testing of Earth Satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

In recent years, hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing has carved a strong niche in several industries, such as automotive, aerospace, telecomm, and consumer electronics. As desktop computers have realized gains in speed, memory size, and data storage capacity, hardware/software platforms have evolved into high performance, deterministic HIL platforms, capable of hosting the most demanding applications for testing components and subsystems. Using simulation software to emulate the digital and analog I/O signals of system components, engineers of all disciplines can now test new systems in realistic environments to evaluate their function and performance prior to field deployment. Within the Aerospace industry, space-borne satellite systems are arguably some of the most demanding in terms of their requirement for custom engineering and testing. Typically, spacecraft are built one or few at a time to fulfill a space science or defense mission. In contrast to other industries that can amortize the cost of HIL systems over thousands, even millions of units, spacecraft HIL systems have been built as one-of-a-kind solutions, expensive in terms of schedule, cost, and risk, to assure satellite and spacecraft systems reliability. The focus of this paper is to present a new approach to HIL testing for spacecraft systems that takes advantage of a highly flexible hardware/software architecture based on National Instruments PXI reconfigurable hardware and virtual instruments developed using LabVIEW. This new approach to HIL is based on a multistage/multimode spacecraft bus emulation development model called Reconfigurable Hardware In-the-Loop or RHIL.

A comparative cost analysis of robot-assisted versus traditional laparoscopic partial nephrectomy.

PubMed

Hyams, Elias; Pierorazio, Philip; Mullins, Jeffrey K; Ward, Maryann; Allaf, Mohamad

2012-07-01

Robot-assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (RALPN) is supplanting traditional laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) as the technique of choice for minimally invasive nephron-sparing surgery. This evolution has resulted from potential clinical benefits, as well as proliferation of robotic systems and patient demand for robot-assisted surgery. We sought to quantify the costs associated with the use of robotics for minimally invasive partial nephrectomy. A cost analysis was performed for 20 consecutive robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RPN) and LPN patients at our institution from 2009 to 2010. Data included actual perioperative and hospitalization costs as well as professional fees. Capital costs were estimated using purchase costs and amortization of two robotic systems from 2001 to 2009, as well as maintenance contract costs. The estimated cost/case was obtained using total robotic surgical volume during this period. Total estimated costs were compared between groups. A separate analysis was performed assuming "ideal" robotic utilization during a comparable period. RALPN had a cost premium of +$1066/case compared with LPN, assuming actual robot utilization from 2001 to 2009. Assuming "ideal" utilization during a comparable period, this premium decreased to +$334; capital costs per case decreased from $1907 to $1175. Tumor size, operative time, and length of stay were comparable between groups. RALPN is associated with a small to moderate cost premium depending on assumptions regarding robotic surgical volume. Saturated utilization of robotic systems decreases attributable capital costs and makes comparison with laparoscopy more favorable. Purported clinical benefits of RPN (eg, decreased warm ischemia time, increased utilization of nephron-sparing surgery) need further study, because these may have cost implications.

Grouper: a compact, streamable triangle mesh data structure.

PubMed

Luffel, Mark; Gurung, Topraj; Lindstrom, Peter; Rossignac, Jarek

2014-01-01

We present Grouper: an all-in-one compact file format, random-access data structure, and streamable representation for large triangle meshes. Similarly to the recently published SQuad representation, Grouper represents the geometry and connectivity of a mesh by grouping vertices and triangles into fixed-size records, most of which store two adjacent triangles and a shared vertex. Unlike SQuad, however, Grouper interleaves geometry with connectivity and uses a new connectivity representation to ensure that vertices and triangles can be stored in a coherent order that enables memory-efficient sequential stream processing. We present a linear-time construction algorithm that allows streaming out Grouper meshes using a small memory footprint while preserving the initial ordering of vertices. As a part of this construction, we show how the problem of assigning vertices and triangles to groups reduces to a well-known NP-hard optimization problem, and present a simple yet effective heuristic solution that performs well in practice. Our array-based Grouper representation also doubles as a triangle mesh data structure that allows direct access to vertices and triangles. Storing only about two integer references per triangle--i.e., less than the three vertex references stored with each triangle in a conventional indexed mesh format--Grouper answers both incidence and adjacency queries in amortized constant time. Our compact representation enables data-parallel processing on multicore computers, instant partitioning and fast transmission for distributed processing, as well as efficient out-of-core access. We demonstrate the versatility and performance benefits of Grouper using a suite of example meshes and processing kernels.

Telemedicine in the management of chronic pain: a cost analysis study.

PubMed

Pronovost, Antoine; Peng, Philip; Kern, Ralph

2009-08-01

Telemedicine provides patients with easy and remote access to consultant expertise irrespective of geographic location. In a randomized controlled trial, this study has applied a rigorous costing methodology to the use of telemedicine in chronic pain management. We performed a randomized two-period crossover trial comparing in-person (IP) consultation with telemedicine (TM) consultation in the management of chronic pain. Over an 18-month period, 26 patients each completed two diaries capturing their direct and indirect travel costs, daily pain scores, and satisfaction with physician consultation. Costing models were developed to account for direct, indirect, fixed, and variable costs in order to perform break-even analyses. Sensitivity analysis was performed over a broad range of assumptions. Direct patient costs were significantly lower in the TM group than in the IP group, with median cost and interquartile range 133 dollars (28-377) vs 443 dollars (292-1075), respectively (P = 0.001). More patients were highly satisfied with the TM consultation than with the IP consultation (56 and 24%, respectively; P < 0.05). Break-even annual patient volume was estimated at 57 patients. A two-way sensitivity analysis controlling for annual patient volume and round-trip distance indicated that TM remains cost-effective at volumes >50 patients/year or at round-trip distances >200 km. Telemedicine is cost-effective over a broad range of assumptions, including annual patient volumes, travel distance, fuel costs, amortization, and discount rates. This study provides data from a real-world setting to determine relevant thresholds and targets for establishing a TM program for patients who are undergoing chronic pain therapy.

Efficacy and Efficiency of Webcast Orientations Versus Live Resident Orientations: Results of a 2-Year Survey

PubMed Central

Andolsek, Kathryn M.; Murphy, Gwen; Pinheiro, Sandro; Petrusa, Emil; Tuck, Tammy; Weinerth, John

2010-01-01

Background Beginning a graduate medical education training program is associated with a steep learning curve for incoming residents. Objective To compare the efficacy and efficiency of live versus webcast formats for Institutional Orientation. Methods This 2-year non-blinded study, with a nonrandomized cohort, compares outcomes for trainees oriented Summer 2005 in a ‘‘live-lecture’’ format with trainees oriented Summer 2006 using a webcast format. Outcomes include posttest success, the time required, presentation quality and utility, and cost. Results In 2005, 249 trainees attended the live orientation. Of the 211 who completed the posttest; 132 (63%) passed it within 3 attempts. Of the 241 trainees in 2006, 236 completed the posttest. Of these, 215 (91%) passed it within 3 attempts. Compared to the live-lecture cohort, the webcast cohort rated the posttest as more difficult. Despite performing better, significantly fewer trainees in the webcast cohort rated the posttest as “appropriate” (χ2 =  5 28.57, df 5 1, P , .001). There were no significant differences between the 2 groups on their perceptions of quality and utility of the presentations. While the first year cost of the webcast exceeded that of live lectures, the amortized cost was nearly identical to the live-lecture costs. Discussion As corroborated by resident comments, the web-based approach was more effective because it provided trainees flexibility regarding when to study, options on how to view the material, and opportunities to review it if needed for mastery. We plan to continue using the webcast strategy, revising the content as needed. PMID:21975900

Cost-effectiveness analysis of implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in critical care units.

PubMed

Ruiz-Ramos, Jesus; Frasquet, Juan; Romá, Eva; Poveda-Andres, Jose Luis; Salavert-Leti, Miguel; Castellanos, Alvaro; Ramirez, Paula

2017-06-01

To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of antimicrobial stewardship (AS) program implementation focused on critical care units based on assumptions for the Spanish setting. A decision model comparing costs and outcomes of sepsis, community-acquired pneumonia, and nosocomial infections (including catheter-related bacteremia, urinary tract infection, and ventilator-associated pneumonia) in critical care units with or without an AS was designed. Model variables and costs, along with their distributions, were obtained from the literature. The study was performed from the Spanish National Health System (NHS) perspective, including only direct costs. The Incremental Cost-Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) was analysed regarding the ability of the program to reduce multi-drug resistant bacteria. Uncertainty in ICERs was evaluated with probabilistic sensitivity analyses. In the short-term, implementing an AS reduces the consumption of antimicrobials with a net benefit of €71,738. In the long-term, the maintenance of the program involves an additional cost to the system of €107,569. Cost per avoided resistance was €7,342, and cost-per-life-years gained (LYG) was €9,788. Results from the probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that there was a more than 90% likelihood that an AS would be cost-effective at a level of €8,000 per LYG. Wide variability of economic results obtained from the implementation of this type of AS program and short information on their impact on patient evolution and any resistance avoided. Implementing an AS focusing on critical care patients is a long-term cost-effective tool. Implementation costs are amortized by reducing antimicrobial consumption to prevent infection by multidrug-resistant pathogens.

Wood properties and trunk allometry of co-occurring rainforest canopy trees in a cyclone-prone environment.

PubMed

Read, Jennifer; Evans, Robert; Sanson, Gordon D; Kerr, Stuart; Jaffré, Tanguy

2011-11-01

New Caledonia commonly experiences cyclones, so trees there are expected to have enhanced wood traits and trunk allometry that confer resistance to wind damage. We ask whether there is evidence of a trade-off between these traits and growth rate among species. Wood traits, including density, microfibril angle (MFA), and modulus of elasticity (MOE), ratio of tree height to stem diameter, and growth rate were investigated in mature trees of 15 co-occurring canopy species in a New Caledonian rainforest. In contrast to some studies, wood density did not correlate negatively with growth increment. Among angiosperms, wood density and MOE correlated positively with diameter-adjusted tree height, and MOE correlated positively with stem-diameter growth increment. Tall slender trees achieved high stiffness with high efficiency with respect to wood density, in part by low MFA, and with a higher diameter growth increment but a lower buckling safety factor. However, some tree species of a similar niche differed in whole-tree resistance to wind damage and achieved wood stiffness in different ways. There was no evidence of a growth-safety trade-off in these trees. In forests that regularly experience cyclones, there may be stronger selection for high wood density and/or stiffness in fast-growing trees of the upper canopy, with the potential growth trade-off amortized by access to the upper canopy and by other plant traits. Furthermore, decreasing wood density does not necessarily decrease resistance to wind damage, resistance being influenced by other characteristics including cell-level traits (e.g., MFA) and whole-plant architecture.

Automated GMA welding of austenitic stainless steel pipe

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tahash, G.J.

1996-12-31

The study focused on reducing weld cycle times of rotatable subassemblies (spools) using automated welding equipment. A unique automatic Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) system was used to produce a series of pipe to pipe welds on 141 mm (5 in.) schedule 80 seamless stainless steel pipe. After manual tack welding, the adaptive control system welded the root pass of the argon gas backed open vee groove circumferential butt joints in the IG rotated position with short circuiting transfer GMAW. The fill and cover passes were welded automatically with spray transfer GMAW. Automatic welding cycle times were found to bemore » 50--80 percent shorter than the current techniques of roll welding with Shielded Metal Arc Welding and manual Gas Tungsten Arc Welding. Weld costs ({Brit_pounds}/m), including amortization, for the various systems were compared. The cost of automated GMA welds was virtually equivalent to the most competitive methods while depositing 75% more filler metal per year. Also investigated were metallurgical effects generated by weld thermal cycling, and the associated effects on mechanical properties of the weld joint. Mechanical properties of the welds met or exceeded those of the base metal. Sensitization of the pipe did not occur in the heat affected zone (HAZ), based on the absence of evidence of intergranular attack in modified Strauss corrosion tests and despite the fact of interpass temperatures well above recommended maximums. Cooling rates of 3--5 C/s in the heat affected zone of the four pass welds were measured by thermocouple technique and found to be within the non-sensitizing range for this alloy.« less

Grouper: A Compact, Streamable Triangle Mesh Data Structure

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Luffel, Mark; Gurung, Topraj; Lindstrom, Peter

2014-01-01

Here, we present Grouper: an all-in-one compact file format, random-access data structure, and streamable representation for large triangle meshes. Similarly to the recently published SQuad representation, Grouper represents the geometry and connectivity of a mesh by grouping vertices and triangles into fixed-size records, most of which store two adjacent triangles and a shared vertex. Unlike SQuad, however, Grouper interleaves geometry with connectivity and uses a new connectivity representation to ensure that vertices and triangles can be stored in a coherent order that enables memory-efficient sequential stream processing. We also present a linear-time construction algorithm that allows streaming out Grouper meshesmore » using a small memory footprint while preserving the initial ordering of vertices. In this construction, we show how the problem of assigning vertices and triangles to groups reduces to a well-known NP-hard optimization problem, and present a simple yet effective heuristic solution that performs well in practice. Our array-based Grouper representation also doubles as a triangle mesh data structure that allows direct access to vertices and triangles. Storing only about two integer references per triangle-i.e., less than the three vertex references stored with each triangle in a conventional indexed mesh format-Grouper answers both incidence and adjacency queries in amortized constant time. Our compact representation enables data-parallel processing on multicore computers, instant partitioning and fast transmission for distributed processing, as well as efficient out-of-core access. We demonstrate the versatility and performance benefits of Grouper using a suite of example meshes and processing kernels.« less

An initial assessment of the cost and utilization of the Integrated Academic Information System (IAIMS) at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center.

PubMed Central

Clayton, P. D.; Anderson, R. K.; Hill, C.; McCormack, M.

1991-01-01

The concept of "one stop information shopping" is becoming a reality at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center (CPMC). The goal of our effort is to provide access to university and hospital administrative systems as well as clinical and library applications from a single workstation, which also provides utility functions such as word processing and mail. Since June 1987, CPMC has invested the equivalent of $23 million dollars to install a digital communications network that encompasses 18 buildings at seven geographically separate sites and to develop clinical and library applications that are integrated with the existing hospital and university administrative and research computing facilities. During June 1991, 2425 different individuals used the clinical information system, 425 different individuals used the library applications, and 900 different individuals used the hospital administrative applications via network access. If we were to freeze the system in its current state, amortize the development and network installation costs, and add projected maintenance costs for the clinical and library applications, our integrated information system would cost $2.8 million on an annual basis. This cost is 0.3% of the medical center's annual budget. These expenditures could be justified by very small improvements in time savings for personnel and/or decreased length of hospital stay and/or more efficient use of resources. In addition to the direct benefits which we detail, a major benefit is the ease with which additional computer-based applications can be added incrementally at an extremely modest cost. PMID:1666966

Illuminating a plant’s tissue-specific metabolic diversity using computational metabolomics and information theory

PubMed Central

Li, Dapeng; Heiling, Sven; Baldwin, Ian T.

2016-01-01

Secondary metabolite diversity is considered an important fitness determinant for plants’ biotic and abiotic interactions in nature. This diversity can be examined in two dimensions. The first one considers metabolite diversity across plant species. A second way of looking at this diversity is by considering the tissue-specific localization of pathways underlying secondary metabolism within a plant. Although these cross-tissue metabolite variations are increasingly regarded as important readouts of tissue-level gene function and regulatory processes, they have rarely been comprehensively explored by nontargeted metabolomics. As such, important questions have remained superficially addressed. For instance, which tissues exhibit prevalent signatures of metabolic specialization? Reciprocally, which metabolites contribute most to this tissue specialization in contrast to those metabolites exhibiting housekeeping characteristics? Here, we explore tissue-level metabolic specialization in Nicotiana attenuata, an ecological model with rich secondary metabolism, by combining tissue-wide nontargeted mass spectral data acquisition, information theory analysis, and tandem MS (MS/MS) molecular networks. This analysis was conducted for two different methanolic extracts of 14 tissues and deconvoluted 895 nonredundant MS/MS spectra. Using information theory analysis, anthers were found to harbor the most specialized metabolome, and most unique metabolites of anthers and other tissues were annotated through MS/MS molecular networks. Tissue–metabolite association maps were used to predict tissue-specific gene functions. Predictions for the function of two UDP-glycosyltransferases in flavonoid metabolism were confirmed by virus-induced gene silencing. The present workflow allows biologists to amortize the vast amount of data produced by modern MS instrumentation in their quest to understand gene function. PMID:27821729

Potential minability and economic viability of the Antaramut-Kurtan-Dzoragukh coal field, north-central Armenia; a prefeasibility study

USGS Publications Warehouse

Huber, Douglas W.; Pierce, Brenda S.

2000-01-01

The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a coal resource assessment of several areas in Armenia from 1997 to 1999. This report, which presents a prefeasibility study of the economic and mining potential of one coal deposit found and studied by the USGS team, was prepared using all data available at the time of the study and the results of the USGS exploratory work, including core drilling, trenching, coal quality analyses, and other ongoing field work. On the basis of information currently available, it is the authors? opinion that a small surface coal mine having about a 20-year life span could be developed in the Antaramut-Kurtan-Dzoragukh coal field, specifically at the Dzoragukh site. The mining organization selected or created to establish the mine will need to conduct necessary development drilling and other work to establish the final feasibility study for the mine. The company will need to be entrepreneurial, profit oriented, and sensitive to the coal consumer; have an analytical management staff; and focus on employee training, safety, and protection of the environment. It is anticipated that any interested parties will be required to submit detailed mining plans to the appropriate Armenian Government agencies. Further development work will be required to reach a final decision regarding the economic feasibility of the mine. However, available information indicates that a small, economic surface mine can be developed at this locality. The small mine suggested is a typical surface-outcropstripping, contour mining operation. In addition, auger mining is strongly suggested, because the recovery of these low-cost mining reserves will help to ensure that the operation will be a viable, economic enterprise. (Auger mining is a system in which large-diameter boreholes are placed horizontally into the coal seam at the final highwall set as the economic limit for the surface mining operation). A special horizontal boring machine, which can be imported from Russia, is required for auger mining. Although auger-mining coal reserves do exist, the necessary development work will further verify the extent of these reserves and all of the other indicated reserves. The following items are based on the detailed study reported in this publication. Initial investment.?Following an investment of US $85,000 over a 12-month period in mine development drilling and other activities, a decision must be taken regarding further investment in an ongoing mining operation. If the new data support the opening of the surface mine, __________________________ 1Consultant, 6024 Morning Dew Drive, Austin, TX 78749. 2 U.S. Geological Survey, 956 National Center, Reston, VA 20192 1 2 MINABILITY AND ECONOMIC VIABILITY, ANTARAMUT-KURTAN-DZORAGUKH COAL FIELD the $85,000 development cost is amortized over the first 10 years of mine production. If the new data do not support the opening of the mine, the $85,000 is considered a business development expense that may be written off against profits from other operations for income or other tax purposes or simply as a business loss. Total capital required.?The equipment costs will reach a total of $900,500 which will be amortized over a 7-year period to establish estimated coal mining costs. Estimated working capital costs are $300,000, which will be borrowed. Surface mining reserves.?Approximately 840,200 metric tonnes of surface minable coal reserves at 9.3 m3 of overburden per metric tonne of minable coal is indicated. Recovery of the minable coal at 85 percent will yield 714,000 recoverable metric tonnes of marketable as-mined coal. Auger mining reserves.?Auger-mining reserves of 576,000 metric tonnes are indicated. Recoverable auger-mining reserves of 202,000 metric tonnes (at 35-percent recovery) can be expected. Auger-mining production will vary according to the hole size being used, but, in either case, augering is a very profitable addition to the mining oper

Cost implications of implementation of pathogen-inactivated platelets

PubMed Central

McCullough, Jeffrey; Goldfinger, Dennis; Gorlin, Jed; Riley, William J; Sandhu, Harpreet; Stowell, Christopher; Ward, Dawn; Clay, Mary; Pulkrabek, Shelley; Chrebtow, Vera; Stassinopoulos, Adonis

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND Pathogen inactivation (PI) is a new approach to blood safety that may introduce additional costs. This study identifies costs that could be eliminated, thereby mitigating the financial impact. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS Cost information was obtained from five institutions on tests and procedures (e.g., irradiation) currently performed, that could be eliminated. The impact of increased platelet (PLT) availability due to fewer testing losses, earlier entry into inventory, and fewer outdates with a 7-day shelf life were also estimated. Additional estimates include costs associated with managing 1) special requests and 2) test results, 3) quality control and proficiency testing, 4) equipment acquisition and maintenance, 5) replacement of units lost to positive tests, 6) seasonal or geographic testing, and 7) health department interactions. RESULTS All costs are mean values per apheresis PLT unit in USD ($/unit). The estimated test costs that could be eliminated are $71.76/unit and a decrease in transfusion reactions corresponds to $2.70/unit. Avoiding new tests (e.g., Babesia and dengue) amounts to $41.80/unit. Elimination of irradiation saves $8.50/unit, while decreased outdating with 7-day storage can be amortized to $16.89/unit. Total potential costs saved with PI is $141.65/unit. Costs are influenced by a variety of factors specific to institutions such as testing practices and the location in which such costs are incurred and careful analysis should be performed. Additional benefits, not quantified, include retention of some currently deferred donors and scheduling flexibility due to 7-day storage. CONCLUSIONS While PI implementation will result in additional costs, there are also potential offsetting cost reductions, especially after 7-day storage licensing. PMID:25989465

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Marquez, Andres; Manzano Franco, Joseph B.; Song, Shuaiwen

With Exascale performance and its challenges in mind, one ubiquitous concern among architects is energy efficiency. Petascale systems projected to Exascale systems are unsustainable at current power consumption rates. One major contributor to system-wide power consumption is the number of memory operations leading to data movement and management techniques applied by the runtime system. To address this problem, we present the concept of the Architected Composite Data Types (ACDT) framework. The framework is made aware of data composites, assigning them a specific layout, transformations and operators. Data manipulation overhead is amortized over a larger number of elements and program performancemore » and power efficiency can be significantly improved. We developed the fundamentals of an ACDT framework on a massively multithreaded adaptive runtime system geared towards Exascale clusters. Showcasing the capability of ACDT, we exercised the framework with two representative processing kernels - Matrix Vector Multiply and the Cholesky Decomposition – applied to sparse matrices. As transformation modules, we applied optimized compress/decompress engines and configured invariant operators for maximum energy/performance efficiency. Additionally, we explored two different approaches based on transformation opaqueness in relation to the application. Under the first approach, the application is agnostic to compression and decompression activity. Such approach entails minimal changes to the original application code, but leaves out potential applicationspecific optimizations. The second approach exposes the decompression process to the application, hereby exposing optimization opportunities that can only be exploited with application knowledge. The experimental results show that the two approaches have their strengths in HW and SW respectively, where the SW approach can yield performance and power improvements that are an order of magnitude better than ACDT-oblivious, hand-optimized implementations.We consider the ACDT runtime framework an important component of compute nodes that will lead towards power efficient Exascale clusters.« less

Hand hygiene noncompliance and the cost of hospital-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection.

PubMed

Cummings, Keith L; Anderson, Deverick J; Kaye, Keith S

2010-04-01

Hand hygiene noncompliance is a major cause of nosocomial infection. Nosocomial infection cost data exist, but the effect of hand hygiene noncompliance is unknown. To estimate methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-related cost of an incident of hand hygiene noncompliance by a healthcare worker during patient care. Two models were created to simulate sequential patient contacts by a hand hygiene-noncompliant healthcare worker. Model 1 involved encounters with patients of unknown MRSA status. Model 2 involved an encounter with an MRSA-colonized patient followed by an encounter with a patient of unknown MRSA status. The probability of new MRSA infection for the second patient was calculated using published data. A simulation of 1 million noncompliant events was performed. Total costs of resulting infections were aggregated and amortized over all events. Duke University Medical Center, a 750-bed tertiary medical center in Durham, North Carolina. Model 1 was associated with 42 MRSA infections (infection rate, 0.0042%). Mean infection cost was $47,092 (95% confidence interval [CI], $26,040-$68,146); mean cost per noncompliant event was $1.98 (95% CI, $0.91-$3.04). Model 2 was associated with 980 MRSA infections (0.098%). Mean infection cost was $53,598 (95% CI, $50,098-$57,097); mean cost per noncompliant event was $52.53 (95% CI, $47.73-$57.32). A 200-bed hospital incurs $1,779,283 in annual MRSA infection-related expenses attributable to hand hygiene noncompliance. A 1.0% increase in hand hygiene compliance resulted in annual savings of $39,650 to a 200-bed hospital. Hand hygiene noncompliance is associated with significant attributable hospital costs. Minimal improvements in compliance lead to substantial savings.

Costs of cloud computing for a biometry department. A case study.

PubMed

Knaus, J; Hieke, S; Binder, H; Schwarzer, G

2013-01-01

"Cloud" computing providers, such as the Amazon Web Services (AWS), offer stable and scalable computational resources based on hardware virtualization, with short, usually hourly, billing periods. The idea of pay-as-you-use seems appealing for biometry research units which have only limited access to university or corporate data center resources or grids. This case study compares the costs of an existing heterogeneous on-site hardware pool in a Medical Biometry and Statistics department to a comparable AWS offer. The "total cost of ownership", including all direct costs, is determined for the on-site hardware, and hourly prices are derived, based on actual system utilization during the year 2011. Indirect costs, which are difficult to quantify are not included in this comparison, but nevertheless some rough guidance from our experience is given. To indicate the scale of costs for a methodological research project, a simulation study of a permutation-based statistical approach is performed using AWS and on-site hardware. In the presented case, with a system utilization of 25-30 percent and 3-5-year amortization, on-site hardware can result in smaller costs, compared to hourly rental in the cloud dependent on the instance chosen. Renting cloud instances with sufficient main memory is a deciding factor in this comparison. Costs for on-site hardware may vary, depending on the specific infrastructure at a research unit, but have only moderate impact on the overall comparison and subsequent decision for obtaining affordable scientific computing resources. Overall utilization has a much stronger impact as it determines the actual computing hours needed per year. Taking this into ac count, cloud computing might still be a viable option for projects with limited maturity, or as a supplement for short peaks in demand.

Out-of-pocket medical costs and third-party healthcare costs for children with Down syndrome.

PubMed

Kageleiry, Andrew; Samuelson, David; Duh, Mei Sheng; Lefebvre, Patrick; Campbell, John; Skotko, Brian G

2017-03-01

Prior analyses have estimated the lifetime total societal costs of a person with Down syndrome (DS); however, no studies capture the expected medical costs that patients with DS can expect to incur during childhood. The study utilized the OptumHealth Reporting and Insights administrative claims database from 1999 to 2013. Children with a diagnosis of DS were identified, and their time was divided into clinically relevant age categories. Patients with DS in each age category were matched to controls without chromosomal conditions. Out-of-pocket medical costs and third-party expenditures were compared between the patient-age cohorts with DS and matched controls. Patients with DS had significantly higher mean annual out-of-pocket costs than their matched controls within each age and cost category. Total annual incremental out-of-pocket costs associated with DS were highest among individuals from birth to age 1 ($1,907, P < 0.001). The main drivers of the incremental out-of-pocket costs associated with DS were inpatient costs in the 1st year of life ($925, P < 0.001) and outpatient costs in later years (ranging $183-$623, all P < 0.001). Overall, patients with DS incurred incremental out-of-pocket medical costs of $18,248 between birth and age 18 years; third-party payers incurred incremental costs of $230,043 during the same period. Across all age categories, mean total out-of-pocket annual costs were greater for individuals with DS than those of matched controls. On average, parents of children with DS pay an additional $84 per month for out-of-pocket medical expenses when costs are amortized over 18 years. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

StarTram: An Ultra Low Cost Launch System to Enable Large Scale Exploration of the Solar System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Powell, James; Maise, George; Paniagua, John

2006-01-01

StarTram is a new approach for low launch to space using Maglev technology. Spacecraft are magnetically levitated and accelerated without propellants to orbital speeds in an evacuated tunnel at ground level using only electrical energy. The cost of the electric energy for acceleration to 8 kilometers per second is only 60 cents per kilogram of payload. After reaching orbital speed, the StarTram spacecraft coast upwards inside an evacuated levitated launch tube to an altitude, of 10 kilometers or more, where they enter the low-pressure ambient atmosphere. The launch tube is magnetically levitated by the repulsive force between a set of high current superconducting cables on it and oppositely directed currents in a set of superconducting cables on the ground beneath. High strength Kevlar tethers anchor the launch tube against crosswinds and prevent it from moving laterally or vertically. A Magneto Hydro Dynamic (MHD) pump at the exit of the evacuated launch tube prevents air from entering the tube. Two StarTram systems are described, a high G (30G) system for cargo only launch and a moderate G (2.5 G) system for passenger/cargo spacecraft. StarTram's projected unit cost is $30 per kilogram of payload launched, including operating and amortization costs. A single StarTram facility could launch more than 100,000 tons of cargo per year and many thousands of passengers. StarTram would use existing superconductors and materials, together with Maglev technology similar to that now operating. The StarTram cargo launch system could be implemented by 2020 AD and the passenger system by 2030 AD.

Parabolic Trough Collector Cost Update for the System Advisor Model (SAM)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kurup, Parthiv; Turchi, Craig S.

2015-11-01

This report updates the baseline cost for parabolic trough solar fields in the United States within NREL's System Advisor Model (SAM). SAM, available at no cost at https://sam.nrel.gov/, is a performance and financial model designed to facilitate decision making for people involved in the renewable energy industry. SAM is the primary tool used by NREL and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for estimating the performance and cost of concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies and projects. The study performed a bottom-up build and cost estimate for two state-of-the-art parabolic trough designs -- the SkyTrough and the Ultimate Trough. The SkyTroughmore » analysis estimated the potential installed cost for a solar field of 1500 SCAs as $170/m 2 +/- $6/m 2. The investigation found that SkyTrough installed costs were sensitive to factors such as raw aluminum alloy cost and production volume. For example, in the case of the SkyTrough, the installed cost would rise to nearly $210/m 2 if the aluminum alloy cost was $1.70/lb instead of $1.03/lb. Accordingly, one must be aware of fluctuations in the relevant commodities markets to track system cost over time. The estimated installed cost for the Ultimate Trough was only slightly higher at $178/m 2, which includes an assembly facility of $11.6 million amortized over the required production volume. Considering the size and overall cost of a 700 SCA Ultimate Trough solar field, two parallel production lines in a fully covered assembly facility, each with the specific torque box, module and mirror jigs, would be justified for a full CSP plant.« less

Attributing land-use change carbon emissions to exported biomass

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Saikku, Laura, E-mail: laura.saikku@helsinki.fi; Soimakallio, Sampo, E-mail: sampo.soimakallio@vtt.fi; Pingoud, Kim, E-mail: kim.pingoud@vtt.fi

2012-11-15

In this study, a simple, transparent and robust method is developed in which land-use change (LUC) emissions are retrospectively attributed to exported biomass products based on the agricultural area occupied for the production. LUC emissions account for approximately one-fifth of current greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing agricultural exports are becoming an important driver of deforestation. Brazil and Indonesia are used as case studies due to their significant deforestation in recent years. According to our study, in 2007, approximately 32% and 15% of the total agricultural land harvested and LUC emissions in Brazil and Indonesia respectively were due to exports. The mostmore » important exported single items with regard to deforestation were palm oil for Indonesia and bovine meat for Brazil. To reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions effectively worldwide, leakage of emissions should be avoided. This can be done, for example, by attributing embodied LUC emissions to exported biomass products. With the approach developed in this study, controversial attribution between direct and indirect LUC and amortization of emissions over the product life cycle can be overcome, as the method operates on an average basis and annual level. The approach could be considered in the context of the UNFCCC climate policy instead of, or alongside with, other instruments aimed at reducing deforestation. However, the quality of the data should be improved and some methodological issues, such as the allocation procedure in multiproduct systems and the possible dilution effect through third parties not committed to emission reduction targets, should be considered. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer CO{sub 2} emissions from land use changes are highly important. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Attribution of land use changes for products is difficult. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Simple and robust method is developed to attribute land use change emissions.« less

Future European health care: cost containment, health care reform and scientific progress in drug research.

PubMed

Emilien, G

1997-01-01

The cost of the development of a new pharmaceutical product from its conception and synthesis through to the regulatory approval process has more than quadrupled in the last 20 years. Both clinical and total development times have increased substantially. To amortize the costs incurred, the pharmaceutical industry has taken an international dimension. The incentives for pharmaceutical firms to discover and develop new drugs depend on the length of the development and regulatory review process plus the potential market size. Recent regulatory, economic and political changes may have significant implications for the future of new drug developments in Europe. The European Union industrial policy felt that there is a need for convergence in the area of pricing. It is recommended that the policy should aim to contain growth in pharmaceutical expenses by means specific to reimbursement rather than direct price controls. By encouraging doctors to prescribe and customers to use generics, competition is enhanced to bring down drug prices. More emphasis is being laid by government in educating customers to cost-awareness and cost-benefit ratios with regard to pharmaceuticals. Concerning clinical trials, European harmonization has been achieved by significant developments: the rights and integrity of the trial subjects are protected; the credibility of the data is established; and the ethical, scientific and technical quality of the trials has improved. Future European health care forecasts a whole change in the pharmaceutical business. Important issues in cost and outcome measurement should be carefully planned and considered in drug development. Due to important mergers and acquisitions, the pharmaceutical sector will consist mainly of important multinational corporations. In this way, valuable new products may be brought to the market.

Comparative technoeconomic analysis of a softwood ethanol process featuring posthydrolysis sugars concentration operations and continuous fermentation with cell recycle.

PubMed

Schneiderman, Steven J; Gurram, Raghu N; Menkhaus, Todd J; Gilcrease, Patrick C

2015-01-01

Economical production of second generation ethanol from Ponderosa pine is of interest due to widespread mountain pine beetle infestation in the western United States and Canada. The conversion process is limited by low glucose and high inhibitor concentrations resulting from conventional low-solids dilute acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis. Inhibited fermentations require larger fermentors (due to reduced volumetric productivity) and low sugars lead to low ethanol titers, increasing distillation costs. In this work, multiple effect evaporation (MEE) and nanofiltration (NF) were evaluated to concentrate the hydrolysate from 30 g/l to 100, 150, or 200 g/l glucose. To ferment this high gravity, inhibitor containing stream, traditional batch fermentation was compared with continuous stirred tank fermentation (CSTF) and continuous fermentation with cell recycle (CSTF-CR). Equivalent annual operating cost (EAOC = amortized capital + yearly operating expenses) was used to compare these potential improvements for a local-scale 5 MGY ethanol production facility. Hydrolysate concentration via evaporation increased EAOC over the base process due to the capital and energy intensive nature of evaporating a very dilute sugar stream; however, concentration via NF decreased EAOC for several of the cases (by 2 to 15%). NF concentration to 100 g/l glucose with a CSTF-CR was the most economical option, reducing EAOC by $0.15 per gallon ethanol produced. Sensitivity analyses on NF options showed that EAOC improvement over the base case could still be realized for even higher solids removal requirements (up to two times higher centrifuge requirement for the best case) or decreased NF performance. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Computer-Aided Surgical Simulation in Head and Neck Reconstruction: A Cost Comparison among Traditional, In-House, and Commercial Options.

PubMed

Li, Sean S; Copeland-Halperin, Libby R; Kaminsky, Alexander J; Li, Jihui; Lodhi, Fahad K; Miraliakbari, Reza

2018-06-01

 Computer-aided surgical simulation (CASS) has redefined surgery, improved precision and reduced the reliance on intraoperative trial-and-error manipulations. CASS is provided by third-party services; however, it may be cost-effective for some hospitals to develop in-house programs. This study provides the first cost analysis comparison among traditional (no CASS), commercial CASS, and in-house CASS for head and neck reconstruction.  The costs of three-dimensional (3D) pre-operative planning for mandibular and maxillary reconstructions were obtained from an in-house CASS program at our large tertiary care hospital in Northern Virginia, as well as a commercial provider (Synthes, Paoli, PA). A cost comparison was performed among these modalities and extrapolated in-house CASS costs were derived. The calculations were based on estimated CASS use with cost structures similar to our institution and sunk costs were amortized over 10 years.  Average operating room time was estimated at 10 hours, with an average of 2 hours saved with CASS. The hourly cost to the hospital for the operating room (including anesthesia and other ancillary costs) was estimated at $4,614/hour. Per case, traditional cases were $46,140, commercial CASS cases were $40,951, and in-house CASS cases were $38,212. Annual in-house CASS costs were $39,590.  CASS reduced operating room time, likely due to improved efficiency and accuracy. Our data demonstrate that hospitals with similar cost structure as ours, performing greater than 27 cases of 3D head and neck reconstructions per year can see a financial benefit from developing an in-house CASS program. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Results of Evaluation of Solar Thermal Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woodcock, Gordon; Byers, Dave

2003-01-01

The solar thermal propulsion evaluation reported here relied on prior research for all information on solar thermal propulsion technology and performance. Sources included personal contacts with experts in the field in addition to published reports and papers. Mission performance models were created based on this information in order to estimate performance and mass characteristics of solar thermal propulsion systems. Mission analysis was performed for a set of reference missions to assess the capabilities and benefits of solar thermal propulsion in comparison with alternative in-space propulsion systems such as chemical and electric propulsion. Mission analysis included estimation of delta V requirements as well as payload capabilities for a range of missions. Launch requirements and costs, and integration into launch vehicles, were also considered. The mission set included representative robotic scientific missions, and potential future NASA human missions beyond low Earth orbit. Commercial communications satellite delivery missions were also included, because if STP technology were selected for that application, frequent use is implied and this would help amortize costs for technology advancement and systems development. A C3 Topper mission was defined, calling for a relatively small STP. The application is to augment the launch energy (C3) available from launch vehicles with their built-in upper stages. Payload masses were obtained from references where available. The communications satellite masses represent the range of payload capabilities for the Delta IV Medium and/or Atlas launch vehicle family. Results indicated that STP could improve payload capability over current systems, but that this advantage cannot be realized except in a few cases because of payload fairing volume limitations on current launch vehicles. It was also found that acquiring a more capable (existing) launch vehicle, rather than adding an STP stage, is the most economical in most cases.

[Cost comparison of open and robot-assisted partial nephrectomy in treatment of renal tumor].

PubMed

Abd El Fattah, V; Chevrot, A; Meusy, A; Mercier, G; Wagner, L; Soustelle, L; Boukaram, M; Thuret, R; Costa, P; Droupy, S

2016-04-01

Robot-assisted partial nephrectomy rapidly took on among urologists, even though studies showing its superiority over other techniques are still scarce and its costs hard to evaluate, especially in the French medical system. To evaluate the cost overrun of robot-assisted partial nephrectomy compared to that of open partial nephrectomy. From January 2010 to December 2013, 77 patients underwent a partial nephrectomy, 46 of which by robot-assisted laparoscopy and the remaining 31 by lombotomy. The two groups were similar in composition. Economic data regarding the staff, the consumables and the premises involved have been analyzed. Costs are significantly higher in the NPR group (9253.21 euros vs. 7448.42 euros) due to higher consumable expenses as well as the costs pertaining to the amortization and maintenance of the robot. Yet, that difference tends to diminish as the duration of the experiment increases. No significant difference was found in warm ischemia times, operation duration and renal function a month after the operation. On the other hand, patients from the NPR group spent a significantly smaller amount of time in recovery room (159 minutes vs. 205 minutes, P=0.004), presented fewer complications and were discharged faster (6.1 days vs. 8.1 days, P=0.04). To be profitable for the hospital in the French GHS system, robot-assisted partial nephrectomy must take place in a complex where at least 300 robot-assisted interventions are performed annually, in the framework of a hospitalization lasting four days or less, the use of a single needle holder and no systematic use of a haemostatic agent. 4. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

A Multidimensional Analysis of Prostate Surgery Costs in the United States: Robotic-Assisted versus Retropubic Radical Prostatectomy.

PubMed

Bijlani, Akash; Hebert, April E; Davitian, Mike; May, Holly; Speers, Mark; Leung, Robert; Mohamed, Nihal E; Sacks, Henry S; Tewari, Ashutosh

2016-06-01

The economic value of robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) in the United States is still not well understood because of limited view analyses. The objective of this study was to examine the costs and benefits of RALP versus retropubic radical prostatectomy from an expanded view, including hospital, payer, and societal perspectives. We performed a model-based cost comparison using clinical outcomes obtained from a systematic review of the published literature. Equipment costs were obtained from the manufacturer of the robotic system; other economic model parameters were obtained from government agencies, online resources, commercially available databases, an advisory expert panel, and the literature. Clinical point estimates and care pathways based on National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines were used to model costs out to 3 years. Hospital costs and costs incurred for the patients' postdischarge complications, adjuvant and salvage radiation treatment, incontinence and potency treatment, and lost wages during recovery were considered. Robotic system costs were modeled in two ways: as hospital overhead (hospital overhead calculation: RALP-H) and as a function of robotic case volume (robotic amortization calculation: RALP-R). All costs were adjusted to year 2014 US dollars. Because of more favorable clinical outcomes over 3 years, RALP provided hospital ($1094 savings with RALP-H, $341 deficit with RALP-R), payer ($1451), and societal ($1202) economic benefits relative to retropubic radical prostatectomy. Monte-Carlo probabilistic sensitivity analysis demonstrated a 38% to 99% probability that RALP provides cost savings (depending on the perspective). Higher surgical consumable costs are offset by a decreased hospital stay, lower complication rate, and faster return to work. Copyright © 2016 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cost implications of implementation of pathogen-inactivated platelets.

PubMed

McCullough, Jeffrey; Goldfinger, Dennis; Gorlin, Jed; Riley, William J; Sandhu, Harpreet; Stowell, Christopher; Ward, Dawn; Clay, Mary; Pulkrabek, Shelley; Chrebtow, Vera; Stassinopoulos, Adonis

2015-10-01

Pathogen inactivation (PI) is a new approach to blood safety that may introduce additional costs. This study identifies costs that could be eliminated, thereby mitigating the financial impact. Cost information was obtained from five institutions on tests and procedures (e.g., irradiation) currently performed, that could be eliminated. The impact of increased platelet (PLT) availability due to fewer testing losses, earlier entry into inventory, and fewer outdates with a 7-day shelf life were also estimated. Additional estimates include costs associated with managing (1) special requests and (2) test results, (3) quality control and proficiency testing, (4) equipment acquisition and maintenance, (5) replacement of units lost to positive tests, (6) seasonal or geographic testing, and (7) health department interactions. All costs are mean values per apheresis PLT unit in USD ($/unit). The estimated test costs that could be eliminated are $71.76/unit and a decrease in transfusion reactions corresponds to $2.70/unit. Avoiding new tests (e.g., Babesia and dengue) amounts to $41.80/unit. Elimination of irradiation saves $8.50/unit, while decreased outdating with 7-day storage can be amortized to $16.89/unit. Total potential costs saved with PI is $141.65/unit. Costs are influenced by a variety of factors specific to institutions such as testing practices and the location in which such costs are incurred and careful analysis should be performed. Additional benefits, not quantified, include retention of some currently deferred donors and scheduling flexibility due to 7-day storage. While PI implementation will result in additional costs, there are also potential offsetting cost reductions, especially after 7-day storage licensing. © 2015 The Authors Transfusion published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of AABB.

Determining the cost of implementing and operating a remote patient monitoring programme for the elderly with chronic conditions: A systematic review of economic evaluations.

PubMed

Peretz, Daniel; Arnaert, Antonia; Ponzoni, Norma N

2018-01-01

Introduction Remote patient monitoring (RPM) in conjunction with home nursing visits is becoming increasingly popular for the follow-up of patients with chronic conditions and evidence exists that it improves patients' health outcomes. Current cost data is reported inconsistently and often gathered from studies of poor methodological quality, making it difficult for decision-makers who consider implementing this service in their organizations. This study reviewed the cost of RPM programmes targeting elderly patients with chronic conditions. Methods After evaluation against the inclusion and exclusion criteria and appraisal against two criteria which are important for economic evaluations, data from selected studies were extracted and grouped into meaningful cost categories, then adjusted to reflect November 2015 US dollars. Results In the 13 selected studies, the newly-created cost category 'Combined intervention cost' (reflecting equipment purchasing, servicing and monitoring cost) for the various RPM programmes ranged from US$275-US$7963 per patient per year. The three main findings are: (a) RPM programme costs have decreased since 2004 due to cheaper technology; (b) monitoring a single vital sign is likely to be less costly than monitoring multiple vital signs; and (c) programmes targeting hypertension or congestive heart failure are less costly than those targeting respiratory diseases or multiple conditions. Conclusions This review recommends that future studies present their cost data with more granularity, that grouping of costs should be minimized and that any assumptions, such as amortization, should be made explicit. In addition, studies should compare programmes with similar characteristics in terms of type of conditions, number of vital signs monitored, etc. for more generalizable results.

Critical periods of vulnerability for the developing nervous system: evidence from humans and animal models.

PubMed Central

Rice, D; Barone, S

2000-01-01

Vulnerable periods during the development of the nervous system are sensitive to environmental insults because they are dependent on the temporal and regional emergence of critical developmental processes (i.e., proliferation, migration, differentiation, synaptogenesis, myelination, and apoptosis). Evidence from numerous sources demonstrates that neural development extends from the embryonic period through adolescence. In general, the sequence of events is comparable among species, although the time scales are considerably different. Developmental exposure of animals or humans to numerous agents (e.g., X-ray irradiation, methylazoxymethanol, ethanol, lead, methyl mercury, or chlorpyrifos) demonstrates that interference with one or more of these developmental processes can lead to developmental neurotoxicity. Different behavioral domains (e.g., sensory, motor, and various cognitive functions) are subserved by different brain areas. Although there are important differences between the rodent and human brain, analogous structures can be identified. Moreover, the ontogeny of specific behaviors can be used to draw inferences regarding the maturation of specific brain structures or neural circuits in rodents and primates, including humans. Furthermore, various clinical disorders in humans (e.g., schizophrenia, dyslexia, epilepsy, and autism) may also be the result of interference with normal ontogeny of developmental processes in the nervous system. Of critical concern is the possibility that developmental exposure to neurotoxicants may result in an acceleration of age-related decline in function. This concern is compounded by the fact that developmental neurotoxicity that results in small effects can have a profound societal impact when amortized across the entire population and across the life span of humans. Images Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 8 Figure 9 Figure 12 Figure 14 Figure 16 Figure 17 PMID:10852851

Does introduction of a Patient Data Management System (PDMS) improve the financial situation of an intensive care unit?

PubMed

Castellanos, Ixchel; Schüttler, Jürgen; Prokosch, Hans-Ulrich; Bürkle, Thomas

2013-09-16

Patient Data Management Systems (PDMS) support clinical documentation at the bedside and have demonstrated effects on completeness of patient charting and the time spent on documentation. These systems are costly and raise the question if such a major investment pays off. We tried to answer the following questions: How do costs and revenues of an intensive care unit develop before and after introduction of a PDMS? Can higher revenues be obtained with improved PDMS documentation? Can we present cost savings attributable to the PDMS? Retrospective analysis of cost and reimbursement data of a 25 bed Intensive Care Unit at a German University Hospital, three years before (2004-2006) and three years after (2007-2009) PDMS implementation. Costs and revenues increased continuously over the years. The profit of the investigated ICU was fluctuating over the years and seemingly depending on other factors as well. We found a small increase in profit in the year after the introduction of the PDMS, but not in the following years. Profit per case peaked at 1039 € in 2007, but dropped subsequently to 639 € per case. We found no clear evidence for cost savings after the PDMS introduction. Our cautious calculation did not consider additional labour costs for IT staff needed for system maintenance. The introduction of a PDMS has probably minimal or no effect on reimbursement. In our case the observed increase in profit was too small to amortize the total investment for PDMS implementation.This may add some counterweight to the literature, where expectations for tools such as the PDMS can be quite unreasonable.

Expensing stock options: a fair-value approach.

PubMed

Kaplan, Robert S; Palepu, Krishna G

2003-12-01

Now that companies such as General Electric and Citigroup have accepted the premise that employee stock options are an expense, the debate is shifting from whether to report options on income statements to how to report them. The authors present a new accounting mechanism that maintains the rationale underlying stock option expensing while addressing critics' concerns about measurement error and the lack of reconciliation to actual experience. A procedure they call fair-value expensing adjusts and eventually reconciles cost estimates made at grant date with subsequent changes in the value of the options, and it does so in a way that eliminates forecasting and measurement errors over time. The method captures the chief characteristic of stock option compensation--that employees receive part of their compensation in the form of a contingent claim on the value they are helping to produce. The mechanism involves creating entries on both the asset and equity sides of the balance sheet. On the asset side, companies create a prepaid-compensation account equal to the estimated cost of the options granted; on the owners'-equity side, they create a paid-in capital stock-option account for the same amount. The prepaid-compensation account is then expensed through the income statement, and the stock option account is adjusted on the balance sheet to reflect changes in the estimated fair value of the granted options. The amortization of prepaid compensation is added to the change in the option grant's value to provide the total reported expense of the options grant for the year. At the end of the vesting period, the company uses the fair value of the vested option to make a final adjustment on the income statement to reconcile any difference between that fair value and the total of the amounts already reported.

A method for calculating a land-use change carbon footprint (LUC-CFP) for agricultural commodities - applications to Brazilian beef and soy, Indonesian palm oil.

PubMed

Persson, U Martin; Henders, Sabine; Cederberg, Christel

2014-11-01

The world's agricultural system has come under increasing scrutiny recently as an important driver of global climate change, creating a demand for indicators that estimate the climatic impacts of agricultural commodities. Such carbon footprints, however, have in most cases excluded emissions from land-use change and the proposed methodologies for including this significant emissions source suffer from different shortcomings. Here, we propose a new methodology for calculating land-use change carbon footprints for agricultural commodities and illustrate this methodology by applying it to three of the most prominent agricultural commodities driving tropical deforestation: Brazilian beef and soybeans, and Indonesian palm oil. We estimate land-use change carbon footprints in 2010 to be 66 tCO2 /t meat (carcass weight) for Brazilian beef, 0.89 tCO2 /t for Brazilian soybeans, and 7.5 tCO2 /t for Indonesian palm oil, using a 10 year amortization period. The main advantage of the proposed methodology is its flexibility: it can be applied in a tiered approach, using detailed data where it is available while still allowing for estimation of footprints for a broad set of countries and agricultural commodities; it can be applied at different scales, estimating both national and subnational footprints; it can be adopted to account both for direct (proximate) and indirect drivers of land-use change. It is argued that with an increasing commercialization and globalization of the drivers of land-use change, the proposed carbon footprint methodology could help leverage the power needed to alter environmentally destructive land-use practices within the global agricultural system by providing a tool for assessing the environmental impacts of production, thereby informing consumers about the impacts of consumption and incentivizing producers to become more environmentally responsible. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Comparative life history and physiology of two understory Neotropical herbs.

PubMed

Mulkey, Stephen S; Smith, Alan P; Wright, S Joseph

1991-10-01

Demography and physiology of two broad-leaved understory tropical herbs (Marantaceae) were studied in gaps and shaded understory in large-scale irrigated and control treatments during the dry season at Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama. Because photosynthetic acclimation potential may not predict light environments where tropical species are found, we studied a suite of physiological features to determine if they uniquely reflect the distribution of each species. Calathea inocephala and Pleiostachya pruinosa grow and reproduce in gaps, persist in shade, and have equivalent rates of leaf production. Calathea leaves survived 2 to 3 times as long as leaves of Pleiostachya and plants of Pleiostachya were 6 to 8 times more likely to die as plants of Calathea during 3.5 years of study. Pleiostachya had lowest survival in shade and when not irrigated during the dry season, while Calathea survived well in both habitats and both treatments. Pleiostachya had higher photosynthetic capacity and stomatal conductance than Calathea and acclimated to gaps by producing leaves with higher photosynthetic capacity. Calathea had lower mesophyll CO 2 concentrations than Pleiostachya. Both species had similar dark respiration rates and light compensation points, and water-use and nitrogen-use efficiencies were inversely related between species. Species showed no differences in leaf osmotic potentials at full turgor. Calathea roots were deeper and had tuberous swellings.Leaf-level assimilation and potential water loss are consistent with where these species are found, but photosynthetic acclimation to high light does not reflect both species' abilities to grow and reproduce in gaps. Pleiostachya's gap-dependent, rapid growth and reproduction require high rates of carbon gain in short-lived leaves, which can amortize their cost quickly. High rates of water loss are associated with reduced longevity during drought. Calathea's roots may confer greater capacitance, while its leaves are durable, long-lived and have lower water loss, permitting persistence long after gap closure.

Analysis of the environmental issues concerning the deployment of an OTEC power plant in Martinique.

PubMed

Devault, Damien A; Péné-Annette, Anne

2017-11-01

Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) is a form of power generation, which exploits the temperature difference between warm surface seawater and cold deep seawater. Suitable conditions for OTEC occur in deep warm seas, especially the Caribbean, the Red Sea and parts of the Indo-Pacific Ocean. The continuous power provided by this renewable power source makes a useful contribution to a renewable energy mix because of the intermittence of the other major renewable power sources, i.e. solar or wind power. Industrial-scale OTEC power plants have simply not been built. However, recent innovations and greater political awareness of power transition to renewable energy sources have strengthened the support for such power plants and, after preliminary studies in the Reunion Island (Indian Ocean), the Martinique Island (West Indies) has been selected for the development of the first full-size OTEC power plant in the world, to be a showcase for testing and demonstration. An OTEC plant, even if the energy produced is cheap, calls for high initial capital investment. However, this technology is of interest mainly in tropical areas where funding is limited. The cost of innovations to create an operational OTEC plant has to be amortized, and this technology remains expensive. This paper will discuss the heuristic, technical and socio-economic limits and consequences of deploying an OTEC plant in Martinique to highlight respectively the impact of the OTEC plant on the environment the impact of the environment on the OTEC plant. After defining OTEC, we will describe the different constraints relating to the setting up of the first operational-scale plant worldwide. This includes the investigations performed (reporting declassified data), the political context and the local acceptance of the project. We will then provide an overview of the processes involved in the OTEC plant and discuss the feasibility of future OTEC installations. We will also list the extensive marine investigations required prior to installation and the dangers of setting up OTEC plants in inappropriate locations.

Attribution of CO2 emissions from Brazilian deforestation to domestic and international drivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karstensen, J.; Peters, G.

2011-12-01

Efforts to address extensive deforestation to reduce climate change and save primary forests are taking place on a global scale. Whilst several studies have estimated the emissions occurring from deforestation in large rainforests, few studies have investigated the domestic and international drivers sustaining and increasing the deforestation rates. Brazil, having the largest rainforest in the world and one of the highest deforestation rates, is also currently one of the world's largest exporters of soybeans and beef. In this case study we establish the link between Brazilian deforestation and cattle and soybean production, and further attribute emissions to countries and economic sectors through export and import of Brazilian commodities. The emissions from deforestation can therefore be allocated to the countries and sectors consuming goods and services produced on deforested land in Brazil. A land-use change model and deforestation data is coupled with a carbon cycle model to create yearly emission estimates and different emission allocation schemes, depending on emission amortizations and discounting functions for past deforestation. We use an economic multi-regional input-output model (with 112 regions and 57 sectors) to distribute these emissions along agricultural trade routes, through domestic and international consumption in 2004. With our implementation we find that around 80 % of emissions from deforested land is due to cattle grazing, while agricultural transition effects suggests soy beans are responsible for about 20 % of the emissions occurring in 2004. Nearly tree quarters of the soy beans are consumed outside Brazil, of which China, Germany and France are the biggest consumers. Soy beans are consumed by a variety of sectors in the food industry. Brazil exports about 30 % of the cattle it produces, where Russia, USA and Germany are among the largest consumers. Cattle consumption mainly occurs in the meat sectors. In this study we estimate the CO2 emissions allocated to the consuming countries and economic sectors, to ultimately distribute responsibility and find the main drivers of Brazilian deforestation.

Affordable Development and Qualification Strategy for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gerrish, Harold P., Jr.; Doughty, Glen E.; Bhattacharyya, Samit K.

2013-01-01

A number of recent assessments have confirmed the results of several earlier studies that Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) is a leading technology for human exploration of Mars. It is generally acknowledged that NTP provides the best prospects for the transportation of humans to Mars in the 2030's. Its high Isp coupled with the high thrusts achievable, allow reasonable trip times, thereby alleviating concerns about space radiation and "claustrophobia" effects. NASA has embarked on the latest phase of the development of NTP systems, and is adopting an affordable approach in response to the pressure of the times. The affordable strategy is built on maximizing the use of the large NTP technology base developed in the 1950's and 60's. The fact that the NTP engines were actually demonstrated to work as planned, is a great risk reduction feature in its development. The strategy utilizes non-nuclear testing to the fullest extent possible, and uses focused nuclear tests for the essential qualification and certification tests. The perceived cost risk of conducting the ground tests is being addressed by considering novel testing approaches. This includes the use of boreholes to contain radioactive effluents, and use of fuel with very high retention capability for fission products. The use of prototype flight tests is being considered as final steps in the development prior to undertaking human flight missions. In addition to the technical issues, plans are being prepared to address the institutional and political issues that need to be considered in this major venture. While the development and deployment of NTP system is not expected to be cheap, the value of the system will be very high, and amortized over the many missions that it enables and enhances, the imputed costs will be very reasonable. Using the approach outlined, NASA and its partners, currently the DOE, and subsequently industry, have a good chance of creating a sustained development program leading to human missions to Mars within the next few decades.

Single-Use Energy Sources and Operating Room Time for Laparoscopic Hysterectomy: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Holloran-Schwartz, M Brigid; Gavard, Jeffrey A; Martin, Jared C; Blaskiewicz, Robert J; Yeung, Patrick P

2016-01-01

To compare the intraoperative direct costs of a single-use energy device with reusable energy devices during laparoscopic hysterectomy. A randomized controlled trial (Canadian Task Force Classification I). An academic hospital. Forty-six women who underwent laparoscopic hysterectomy from March 2013 to September 2013. Each patient served as her own control. One side of the uterine attachments was desiccated and transected with the single-use device (Ligasure 5-mm Blunt Tip LF1537 with the Force Triad generator). The other side was desiccated and transected with reusable bipolar forceps (RoBi 5 mm), and transected with monopolar scissors using the same Covidien Force Triad generator. The instrument approach used was randomized to the attending physician who was always on the patient's left side. Resident physicians always operated on the patient's right side and used the converse instruments of the attending physician. Start time was recorded at the utero-ovarian pedicle and end time was recorded after transection of the uterine artery on the same side. Costs included the single-use device; amortized costs of the generator, reusable instruments, and cords; cleaning and packaging of reusable instruments; and disposal of the single-use device. Operating room time was $94.14/min. We estimated that our single use-device cost $630.14 and had a total time savings of 6.7 min per case, or 3.35 min per side, which could justify the expense of the device. The single-use energy device had significant median time savings (-4.7 min per side, p < .001) and total intraoperative direct cost savings ($254.16 per case). A single-use energy device that both desiccates and cuts significantly reduced operating room time to justify its own cost, and it also reduced total intraoperative direct costs during laparoscopic hysterectomy in our institution. Operating room cost per minute varies between institutions and must be considered before generalizing our results. Copyright © 2016 AAGL. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enabling the First Interstellar Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lubin, P.

2017-12-01

All propulsion systems that leave the Earth are based on chemical reactions. Chemical reactions, at best, have an efficiency compared to rest mass of 10-10 (or about 1eV per bond). All the mass in the universe converted to chemical reactions would not propel even a single proton to relativistic speeds. While chemistry will get us to Mars it will not allow interstellar capability in any reasonable mission time. Barring new physics we are left with few realistic solutions. None of our current propulsion systems, including nuclear, are capable of the relativistic speeds needed for exploring the many nearby stellar systems and exo-planets. However recent advances in photonics and directed energy systems now allow us to realize what was only a decade ago, simply science fiction, namely the ability to seriously conceive of and plan for relativistic flight. From fully-functional gram-level wafer-scale spacecraft capable of speeds greater than c/4 that could reach the nearest star in 20 years to spacecraft for large missions capable of supporting human life with masses more than 105 kg (100 tons) for rapid interplanetary transit that could reach speeds of greater than 1000 km/s can be realized. With this technology spacecraft can be propelled to speeds currently unimaginable. Photonics, like electronics, and unlike chemical propulsion is an exponential technology with a current double time of about 20 months. This is the key. The cost of such a system is amortized over the essentially unlimited number of launches. In addition, the same photon driver can be used for many other purposes including beamed energy to power high Isp ion engines, remote asteroid composition analysis and planetary defense. This would be a profound change in human capability with enormous implications. Known as Starlight we are now in a NASA Phase II study. The FY 2017 congressional appropriations request directs NASA to study the feasibility of an interstellar mission to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the moon landing quoting our NASA program as one option. We will discuss the many technical challenges ahead, our current laboratory prototypes and recent data as well as the transformative implications of this program.

The Use of Biofuel for Sustainable Growth in Developing Countries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsang, J.

2014-12-01

The biofuel industry is divided into four categories comprising of feedstocks used in 1st and 2nd generation bioethanol and biodiesel. In order to identify and quantify each biofuel feedstock's potential for sustainable growth, each were evaluated according to self-developed social, financial, and environmental criteria. From the investigation and analysis carried out, 1st generation biodiesel and bioethanol were determined to be feedstocks not capable of facilitating sustainable growth. Results showed low earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of -0.5 to 1 USD per gallon for biodiesel and 0.25 to 0.5 USD per gallon for bioethanol. Results also showed a poor return on asset (ROA). The energy required to produce one MJ of 1st generation biofuel fuel was at least 0.4 MJ, showing poor energy balance. Furthermore, high land, water, pesticide, and fertilizer requirements strained surrounding ecosystems by affecting the food web, thus reducing biodiversity. Over 55% of land used by the biodiesel industry in Indonesia and Malaysia involved the deforestation of local rainforests. This not only displaced indigenous organisms from their habitat and decreased their scope of nutrition, but also contributed to soil erosion and increased the probability of flooding. If left unregulated, imbalances in the ecosystem due to unsustainable growth will result in a permanent reshaping of tropical rainforest ecosystems in Southeast Asia. Algae, an example of 2nd generation biodiesel feedstock, was concluded to be the biofuel feedstock most capable of supporting sustainable growth. This is due to its low production costs of $1-1.5/gal, high biological productivity of 5000 gallons of biodiesel per acre per year, and high ROA of 25-35%. Additionally, algae's adaptability to varying environmental conditions also makes it an appealing candidate for businesses in developing countries, where access to resource supplies is unstable. Additionally, its reduced net greenhouse gas emissions and low impact on biodiversity makes it a feedstock highly capable of stimulating economic growth yet simultaneously resolving environmental issues and infrastructural restraints in developing countries.

Value-based assessment of robotic pancreas and liver surgery

PubMed Central

Patti, James C.; Ore, Ana Sofia; Barrows, Courtney; Velanovich, Vic

2017-01-01

Current healthcare economic evaluations are based only on the perspective of a single stakeholder to the healthcare delivery process. A true value-based decision incorporates all of the outcomes that could be impacted by a single episode of surgical care. We define the value proposition for robotic surgery using a stakeholder model incorporating the interests of all groups participating in the provision of healthcare services: patients, surgeons, hospitals and payers. One of the developing and expanding fields that could benefit the most from a complete value-based analysis is robotic hepatopancreaticobiliary (HPB) surgery. While initial robot purchasing costs are high, the benefits over laparoscopic surgery are considerable. Performing a literature search we found a total of 18 economic evaluations for robotic HPB surgery. We found a lack of evaluations that were carried out from a perspective that incorporates all of the impacts of a single episode of surgical care and that included a comprehensive hospital cost assessment. For distal pancreatectomies, the two most thorough examinations came to conflicting results regarding total cost savings compared to laparoscopic approaches. The most thorough pancreaticoduodenectomy evaluation found non-significant savings for total hospital costs. Robotic hepatectomies showed no cost savings over laparoscopic and only modest savings over open techniques. Lastly, robotic cholecystectomies were found to be more expensive than the gold-standard laparoscopic approach. Existing cost accounting data associated with robotic HPB surgery is incomplete and unlikely to reflect the state of this field in the future. Current data combines the learning curves for new surgical procedures being undertaken by HPB surgeons with costs derived from a market dominated by a single supplier of robotic instruments. As a result, the value proposition for stakeholders in this process cannot be defined. In order to solve this problem, future studies must incorporate (I) quality of life, survival, and return to independent function alongside data such as (II) intent-to-treat analysis of minimally-invasive surgery accounting for conversions to open, (III) surgeon and institution experience and operative time as surrogates for the learning curve; and (IV) amortization and maintenance costs as well as direct costs of disposables and instruments. PMID:28848747

Qualitative and quantitative evaluation of EHR-integrated mobile patient questionnaires regarding usability and cost-efficiency.

PubMed

Fritz, Fleur; Balhorn, Sebastian; Riek, Markus; Breil, Bernhard; Dugas, Martin

2012-05-01

The objective of this evaluation study is to assess a web-based application, currently available on iPad, to document questionnaires regarding patient reported outcomes such as quality of life. Based on the single source approach, the results of these questionnaires are available in the electronic health record to be used for treatment and research purposes. The assessment focuses on the usability and efficiency of the system. The system usability scale questionnaire with seven additional items was used to rate the usability by the patients. It was formally validated by a Cronbach Alpha test. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients and medical staff. Time and cost measures, based on official tables of costs, were taken through workflow observations. This study was conducted in the department of dermatology at the University Hospital of Münster, Germany from April to June 2011. Using the web-based application questionnaire, results about patient reported outcomes like quality of life are immediately available in the electronic health record and can be used for treatment or research purposes. 118 patients and four staff members participated in the study. The usability score reached 80 from 100 points and patients as well as medical staff stated in the interviews that the usability of the web-based system was high, and they preferred it to the previously used paper-based questionnaires. In the setting of our pilot department the mobile devices amortized their costs after 6.7 months. In general, depending on the professional group who are going to post process the paper-based forms, the earliest break-even point to use mobile questionnaires is at 1737 paper sheets per year. The mobile patient questionnaires, integrated into the electronic health record, were well accepted in our pilot setting with high usability scores from patients and medical staff alike. The system has also proved to be cost-efficient compared to the paper-based workflow, given that a certain number of questionnaires is used per year. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Value-based assessment of robotic pancreas and liver surgery.

PubMed

Patti, James C; Ore, Ana Sofia; Barrows, Courtney; Velanovich, Vic; Moser, A James

2017-08-01

Current healthcare economic evaluations are based only on the perspective of a single stakeholder to the healthcare delivery process. A true value-based decision incorporates all of the outcomes that could be impacted by a single episode of surgical care. We define the value proposition for robotic surgery using a stakeholder model incorporating the interests of all groups participating in the provision of healthcare services: patients, surgeons, hospitals and payers. One of the developing and expanding fields that could benefit the most from a complete value-based analysis is robotic hepatopancreaticobiliary (HPB) surgery. While initial robot purchasing costs are high, the benefits over laparoscopic surgery are considerable. Performing a literature search we found a total of 18 economic evaluations for robotic HPB surgery. We found a lack of evaluations that were carried out from a perspective that incorporates all of the impacts of a single episode of surgical care and that included a comprehensive hospital cost assessment. For distal pancreatectomies, the two most thorough examinations came to conflicting results regarding total cost savings compared to laparoscopic approaches. The most thorough pancreaticoduodenectomy evaluation found non-significant savings for total hospital costs. Robotic hepatectomies showed no cost savings over laparoscopic and only modest savings over open techniques. Lastly, robotic cholecystectomies were found to be more expensive than the gold-standard laparoscopic approach. Existing cost accounting data associated with robotic HPB surgery is incomplete and unlikely to reflect the state of this field in the future. Current data combines the learning curves for new surgical procedures being undertaken by HPB surgeons with costs derived from a market dominated by a single supplier of robotic instruments. As a result, the value proposition for stakeholders in this process cannot be defined. In order to solve this problem, future studies must incorporate (I) quality of life, survival, and return to independent function alongside data such as (II) intent-to-treat analysis of minimally-invasive surgery accounting for conversions to open, (III) surgeon and institution experience and operative time as surrogates for the learning curve; and (IV) amortization and maintenance costs as well as direct costs of disposables and instruments.

Indoor Residual Spraying Delivery Models to Prevent Malaria: Comparison of Community- and District-Based Approaches in Ethiopia

PubMed Central

Johns, Benjamin; Yihdego, Yemane Yeebiyo; Kolyada, Lena; Dengela, Dereje; Chibsa, Sheleme; Dissanayake, Gunawardena; George, Kristen; Taffese, Hiwot Solomon; Lucas, Bradford

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Background: Indoor residual spraying (IRS) for malaria prevention has traditionally been implemented in Ethiopia by the district health office with technical and operational inputs from regional, zonal, and central health offices. The United States President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) in collaboration with the Government of Ethiopia tested the effectiveness and efficiency of integrating IRS into the government-funded community-based rural health services program. Methods: Between 2012 and 2014, PMI conducted a mixed-methods study in 11 districts of Oromia region to compare district-based IRS (DB IRS) and community-based IRS (CB IRS) models. In the DB IRS model, each district included 2 centrally located operational sites where spray teams camped during the IRS campaign and from which they traveled to the villages to conduct spraying. In the CB IRS model, spray team members were hired from the communities in which they operated, thus eliminating the need for transport and camping facilities. The study team evaluated spray coverage, the quality of spraying, compliance with environmental and safety standards, and cost and performance efficiency. Results: The average number of eligible structures found and sprayed in the CB IRS districts increased by 19.6% and 20.3%, respectively, between 2012 (before CB IRS) and 2013 (during CB IRS). Between 2013 and 2014, the numbers increased by about 14%. In contrast, in the DB IRS districts the number of eligible structures found increased by only 8.1% between 2012 and 2013 and by 0.4% between 2013 and 2014. The quality of CB IRS operations was good and comparable to that in the DB IRS model, according to wall bioassay tests. Some compliance issues in the first year of CB IRS implementation were corrected in the second year, bringing compliance up to the level of the DB IRS model. The CB IRS model had, on average, higher amortized costs per district than the DB IRS model but lower unit costs per structure sprayed and per person protected because the community-based model found and sprayed more structures. Conclusion: Established community-based service delivery systems can be adapted to include a seasonal IRS campaign alongside the community-based health workers' routine activities to improve performance efficiency. Further modifications of the community-based IRS model may reduce the total cost of the intervention and increase its financial sustainability. PMID:27965266

Cost/CYP: a bottom line that helps keep CSM projects cost-efficient.

PubMed

1985-01-01

In contraceptive social marketing (CSM), the objective is social good, but project managers also need to run a tight ship, trimming costs, allocating scarce funds, and monitoring their program's progress. 1 way CSM managers remain cost-conscious is through the concept of couple-years-of-protection (CYP). Devised 2 decades ago as an administrative tool to compare the effects of different contraceptive methods, CYP's uses have multiplied to include assessing program output and cost effectiveness. Some of the factors affecting cost/CYP are a project's age, sales volume, management efficiency, and product prices and line. These factors are interconnected. The cost/CYP figures given here do not include outlays for commodities. While the Agency for International Development's commodity costs alter slightly with each new purchase contrast, the agency reports that a condom costs about 4 cents (US), an oral contraceptive (OC) cycle about 12 cents, and a spermicidal tablet about 7 cents. CSM projects have relatively high start-up costs. Within a project's first 2 years, expenses must cover such marketing activities as research, packaging, warehousing, and heavy promotion. As a project ages, sales should grow, producing revenues that gradually amortize these initial costs. The Nepal CSM project provides an example of how cost/CYP can improve as a program ages. In 1978, the year sales began, the project's cost/CYP was about $84. For some time the project struggled to get its products to its target market and gradually overcome several major hurdles. The acquisition of jeeps eased distribution and, by adding another condom brand, sales were increased still more, bringing the cost/CYP down to $8.30 in 1981. With further sales increases and resulting revenues, the cost/CYP dropped to just over $7 in 1983. When the sales volume becomes large enough, CSM projects can achieve economies of scale, which greatly improves cost-efficiency. Fixed costs shrink as a proportion of total expenditures. Good project management goes hand-in-hand with increasing sales. Cost/CYP is a powerful tool, but some project strategies alter its meaning. Some projects have lowered net costs by selling products at high prices. This dilutes the social marketing credo of getting low-cost projects to those in need. When this occurs, cost/CYP undergoes an identity crisis, for it no longer measures a purely social objective.

Direct costs of emergency medical care: a diagnosis-based case-mix classification system.

PubMed

Baraff, L J; Cameron, J M; Sekhon, R

1991-01-01

To develop a diagnosis-based case mix classification system for emergency department patient visits based on direct costs of care designed for an outpatient setting. Prospective provider time study with collection of financial data from each hospital's accounts receivable system and medical information, including discharge diagnosis, from hospital medical records. Three community hospital EDs in Los Angeles County during selected times in 1984. Only direct costs of care were included: health care provider time, ED management and clerical personnel excluding registration, nonlabor ED expense including supplies, and ancillary hospital services. Indirect costs for hospitals and physicians, including depreciation and amortization, debt service, utilities, malpractice insurance, administration, billing, registration, and medical records were not included. Costs were derived by valuing provider time based on a formula using annual income or salary and fringe benefits, productivity and direct care factors, and using hospital direct cost to charge ratios. Physician costs were based on a national study of emergency physician income and excluded practice costs. Patients were classified into one of 216 emergency department groups (EDGs) on the basis of the discharge diagnosis, patient disposition, age, and the presence of a limited number of physician procedures. Total mean direct costs ranged from $23 for follow-up visit to $936 for trauma, admitted, with critical care procedure. The mean total direct costs for the 16,771 nonadmitted patients was $69. Of this, 34% was for ED costs, 45% was for ancillary service costs, and 21% was for physician costs. The mean total direct costs for the 1,955 admitted patients was $259. Of this, 23% was for ED costs, 63% was for ancillary service costs, and 14% was for physician costs. Laboratory and radiographic services accounted for approximately 85% of all ancillary service costs and 38% of total direct costs for nonadmitted patients versus 80% of ancillary service costs and 51% of total direct costs for admitted patients. We have developed a diagnosis-based case mix classification system for ED patient visits based on direct costs of care designed for an outpatient setting which, unlike diagnosis-related groups, includes the measurement of time-based cost for physician and nonphysician services. This classification system helps to define direct costs of hospital and physician emergency services by type of patient.

Directed energy interstellar propulsion of wafersats

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brashears, Travis; Lubin, Philip; Hughes, Gary B.; McDonough, Kyle; Arias, Sebastian; Lang, Alex; Motta, Caio; Meinhold, Peter; Batliner, Payton; Griswold, Janelle; Zhang, Qicheng; Alnawakhtha, Yusuf; Prater, Kenyon; Madajian, Jonathan; Sturman, Olivia; Gergieva, Jana; Gilkes, Aidan; Silverstein, Bret

2015-09-01

In the nearly 60 years of spaceflight we have accomplished wonderful feats of exploration and shown the incredible spirit of the human drive to explore and understand our universe. Yet in those 60 years we have barely left our solar system with the Voyager 1 spacecraft launched in 1977 finally leaving the solar system after 37 years of flight at a speed of 17 km/s or less than 0.006% the speed of light. As remarkable as this is, we will never reach even the nearest stars with our current propulsion technology in even 10 millennium. We have to radically rethink our strategy or give up our dreams of reaching the stars, or wait for technology that does not exist. While we all dream of human spaceflight to the stars in a way romanticized in books and movies, it is not within our power to do so, nor it is clear that this is the path we should choose. We posit a technological path forward, that while not simple; it is within our technological reach. We propose a roadmap to a program that will lead to sending relativistic probes to the nearest stars and will open up a vast array of possibilities of flight both within our solar system and far beyond. Spacecraft from gram level complete spacecraft on a wafer ("wafer sats") that reach more than ¼ c and reach the nearest star in 15 years to spacecraft with masses more than 105 kg (100 tons) that can reach speeds of near 1000 km/s such systems can be propelled to speeds currently unimaginable with our existing propulsion technologies. To do so requires a fundamental change in our thinking of both propulsion and in many cases what a spacecraft is. In addition to larger spacecraft, some capable of transporting humans, we consider functional spacecraft on a wafer, including integrated optical communications, optical systems and sensors combined with directed energy propulsion. Since "at home" the costs can be amortized over a very large number of missions. The human factor of exploring the nearest stars and exo-planets would be a profound voyage for humanity, one whose non-scientific implications would be enormous. It is time to begin this inevitable journey beyond our home.

Phytoremediation of spoil coal dumps in Western Donbass (Ukraine)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klimkina, Iryna; Kharytonov, Mykola; Wiche, Oliver; Heilmeier, Hermann

2017-04-01

At the moment, in Ukraine about 150 thousand hectares of fertile land are occupied by spoil dumps. Moreover, this figure increases every year. According to the technology used about 1500 m3 of adjacent stratum is dumped at the surface per every 1000 tons of coal mined. Apart from land amortization, waste dumps drastically change the natural landscape and pollute air, soil and water sources as the result of water and wind erosion, as well as self-ignition processes. A serious concern exists with respect to the Western Donbass coal mining region in Ukraine, where the coal extraction is made by the subsurface way and solid wastes are represented by both spoil dumps and wastes after coal processing. Sulphides, mostly pyrite (up to 4% of waste material), are widely distributed in the waste heaps freshly removed due to coal mining in Western Donbass.The oxidation of pyrite with the presence of oxygen and water is accompanied by a sharp drop in the pH from the surface layer to the spoil dumps(from 5.2-6.2 to 3.9-4.2 in soil substrates with chernozen and from 8.3-8.4 to 6.7-7.2 in soil substrates with red-brown clay, stabilizing in dump material in both cases at 2.9-3.2). Low pH generates the transformation of a number of toxic metals and other elementspresent in waste rock (e.g. Fe, Al, Mn, Zn, Mo, Co, As, Cd, Bi, Pb, U) into mobile forms. To stabilize and reduce metal mobility the most resistant plants that occur naturally in specified ecosystems can be used. On coal spoil dumpsin Western Donbas the dominant species are Bromopsis inermis, subdominant Artemisia austriaca; widespread are also Festucas pp., Lathyrus tuberosus, Inula sp., Calamagrostis epigeios, Lotus ucrainicus, and Vicias pp. Identification of plants tolerant to target metals is a key issue in phytotechnology for soil restoration. It is hypothesized that naturally occurring plants growing on coal spoil dumps can be candidates for phytostabilization, phytoextraction (phytoaccumulation) and phytomining techniques. Results on accumulation of target elements in the above- and below ground biomass of abundant plant species will be used to discuss their phytoremediation potential for spoil coal dumps in Western Donbas. Research is being carried out in the framework of DAAD project "Biotechnology in Mining - Integration of New Technologies into Educational Practice" and cooperation between TechnischeUniversität Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany, and National Mining University, Dnipro, Ukraine.

Cardiac-CT and Cardiac-MR examinations cost analysis, based on data of four Italian Centers.

PubMed

Centonze, Maurizio; Lorenzin, Giuseppe; Francesconi, Andrea; Cademartiri, Filippo; Casagranda, Giulia; Fusaro, Michele; Ligabue, Guido; Zanetti, Giovanna; Spanti, Demetrio; De Cobelli, Francesco

2016-01-01

To establish the appropriate number of Cardiac-CT and Cardio-MR examinations, to determine an economically justified and sustainable investment in these two technologies, for an exclusive cardiologic use. From July 2013 to July 2014, through a survey in four different Italian Departments of Radiology, data on the costs of Cardiac-CT and Cardiac-MR examinations were collected. For the evaluation of the costs of examinations, it was used an analytical accounting system, considering only the direct costs (consumables, health personnel work time, equipment amortization/maintenance) and other costs (utilities, services, etc.). Indirect costs (general costs) were not assessed. It was made a simulation, assuming an exclusive use of the CT and MR equipments for Cardiac-CT and Cardiac-MR examinations, calculating the annual number necessary to arrive at the Break Even Point (BEP: the point at which cost or expenses and revenue are equal). On the basis of the CT costs, in order to reach the BEP, performing only Cardiac-CT examinations, an average of 2641-2752 examinations/year is needed. The annual time commitment of the Medical Professional to ensure the number of examinations to reach the BEP is 2625-2750 h/year, equivalent to two Medical Doctors in a Cardiology Department. The recent Cardiac-CT Italian Registry, in the period January-June 2011, reports a number of examinations of 3455 patients in 47 different Centers, distributed throughout the whole national territory. With regard to MR, in order to reach the BEP, performing only Cardiac-MR examinations, an average of 2435-3123 examinations/year is needed. The annual time commitment of the Medical Professional to ensure the number of examinations to reach the BEP is 2437-3125 h/year, equivalent to two Medical Doctors in a Cardiology Department. The recent Cardiac-MR Italian Registry reports a number of examinations of 3776 patients in 40 Centers, distributed throughout the whole national territory. This research has shown that, only on the basis of costs, currently in Italy is anti-economic an exclusive use of CT or MR equipment for cardiac exams, unless it's not decided, regardless of the recent guidelines and clinical indications, to submit all patients with cardiac diseases (diseases of the coronary arteries and cardiomyopathies) to Cardiac-CT and Cardiac-MR examinations. This might likely to increase both the inappropriate examinations and either health spending and in the case of CT with important repercussions, in terms of radio-exposure, subject to forensic procedures.

Culling from the actors' perspectives-Decision-making criteria for culling in Québec dairy herds enrolled in a veterinary preventive medicine program.

PubMed

Haine, Denis; Cue, Roger; Sewalem, Asheber; Wade, Kevin; Lacroix, René; Lefebvre, Daniel; Rushton, Jonathan; Arsenault, Julie; Bouchard, Émile; Dubuc, Jocelyn

2017-12-01

The series of events leading to the decision to cull a cow is complex, involving both individual-level and herd-level factors. While the decision is guided by financial returns, it is also influenced by social and psychological factors. Research studies on the motivational and behavioural aspects of farmers' decision utility are sparse, and nonexistent regarding culling expectations and its decision process. Our goal was to identify shared criteria on culling decisions held by dairy producers and farm advisers, with the help of the Q-methodology. Forty-one dairy producers and 42 advisers (17 veterinarians, 13 feed mill advisers, and 12 dairy herd improvement (DHI) advisers) undertook a Q-sort with 40 statements that represented a range of views about cow and herd health, production performance, management issues, and material factors that might impact their culling decision-making process. The sorts were analysed by-person using factor analysis and oblimin rotation. A single view on culling could be identified among dairy producers that can be extended to dairy farm advisers, who showed two variations of the same well-structured, uni-dimensional decision-making process. Udder health, milk production performance, and milk quota management were the key criteria for the culling decision. Farm management parameters (debts, amortization, employees, milking parlour capacity, herd size) did not play any role in the decision process. Three key differences were, however, identified between producers and the two types of advisers. One group of advisers followed the recommendations from mathematical models, where pregnancy is a major determinant of a cow's value. They assessed the cow in a more abstract way than did the other participants, still taking into account udder health and milk production, but adding economic considerations, like the availability of financial incentives and an evaluation of the post-partum health of the cow. Dairy producers were also more concerned about producing healthy and safe milk, which might reflect a different value given to dairy farming than by advisers. Very different degrees of importance were given to animal welfare by the three groups, which could represent different views on the attributed relationships between dairy farmers and their animals. Our findings suggest that dairy producers and their advisers hold a general common view regarding culling decision-making. However there are significant differences between producers and advisers, and among advisers. Understanding and managing these differences is important for assisting the change management processes required to increase farm profitability, and call for further investigation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cost analysis of ground-water supplies in the North Atlantic region, 1970

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cederstrom, Dagfin John

1973-01-01

The cost of municipal and industrial ground water (or, more specifically, large supplies of ground water) at the wellhead in the North Atlantic Region in 1970 generally ranged from 1.5 to 5 cents per thousand gallons. Water from crystalline rocks and shale is relatively expensive. Water from sandstone is less so. Costs of water from sands and gravels in glaciated areas and from Coastal Plain sediments range from moderate to very low. In carbonate rocks costs range from low to fairly high. The cost of ground water at the wellhead is low in areas of productive aquifers, but owing to the cost of connecting pipe, costs increase significantly in multiple-well fields. In the North Atlantic Region, development of small to moderate supplies of ground water may offer favorable cost alternatives to planners, but large supplies of ground water for delivery to one point cannot generally be developed inexpensively. Well fields in the less productive aquifers may be limited by costs to 1 or 2 million gallons a day, but in the more favorable aquifers development of several tens of millions of gallons a day may be practicable and inexpensive. Cost evaluations presented cannot be applied to any one specific well or specific site because yields of wells in any one place will depend on the local geologic and hydrologic conditions; however, with such cost adjustments as may be necessary, the methodology presented should have wide applicability. Data given show the cost of water at the wellhead based on the average yield of several wells. The cost of water delivered by a well field includes costs of connecting pipe and of wells that have the yields and spacings specified. Cost of transport of water from the well field to point of consumption and possible cost of treatment are not evaluated. In the methodology employed, costs of drilling and testing, pumping equipment, engineering for the well field, amortization at 5% percent interest, maintenance, and cost of power are considered. The report includes an analysis of test drilling costs leading to a production well field. The discussion shows that test drilling is a relatively low cost item and that more than a minimum of test holes in a previously unexplored area is, above all, simple insurance in keeping down costs and may easily result in final lower costs for the system. Use of the jet drill for testing is considered short sighted and may result in higher total costs and possibly failure to discover good aquifers. Economic development of ground water supplies will depend on obtaining qualified hydrologic and engineering advice, on carrying out adequate test drilling, and on utilizing high-quality (at times, more costly) material.

The impact of socioeconomic factors on outcome and hospital costs associated with femoropopliteal revascularization.

PubMed

Durham, Christopher A; Mohr, Margaret C; Parker, Frank M; Bogey, William M; Powell, Charles S; Stoner, Michael C

2010-09-01

Within the context of healthcare system reform, the cost efficacy of lower extremity revascularization remains a timely topic. The impact of an individual patient's socioeconomic status represents an under-studied aspect of vascular care, especially with respect to longitudinal costs and outcomes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between socioeconomic status and clinical outcomes as well as inpatient hospital costs. A retrospective femoropopliteal revascularization database, which included socioeconomic factors (household income, education level, and payor status), in addition to standard demographic, clinical, anatomical, and procedural variables were analyzed over a 3-year period. Patients were stratified by income level (low income [LI] <200% federal poverty level [$42,400 for a household of 4], and higher income [HI] >200% federal poverty level) and revascularization technique (open vs endovascular) and analyzed for the endpoints of primary assisted patency, amortized cost-per-day of patency, and limb salvage. Data were analyzed with univariate and multivariate techniques. A total of 187 cases were identified with complete data for analysis, 146 in the LI and 41 in the HI cohorts. LI patients differed from HI patients by mean age (66.2 +/- 1.0 vs 61.8 +/- 1.5 years, P = .04), high school graduate rate (51.4% vs 85.4%, P < .001), presence of tissue loss (30.1% vs 14.6%, P = .05), female gender (43.7% vs 22.0%, P = .01) and preoperative statin use (45.8% vs 75.6%, P < .001). There were no differences with respect to other comorbidities including smoking status, presence of diabetes, renal insufficiency, anatomic factors or treatment modality (open vs endovascular). Ninety-seven patients underwent endovascular revascularization. The following outcomes were noted in the endovascular subset of LI and HI patients respectively: primary assisted patency (66% vs 71%, P = NS) and 12-month cost-per-day of patency ($166.30 +/- 77.40 vs $22.45 +/- 12.45, P = .05). Ninety-eight patients underwent open revascularization, with the following outcomes in LI and HI patients respectively: primary assisted patency (78% vs 86%, P = NS) and 12-month cost-per-day of patency ($319.43 +/- 225.44 vs $40.47 +/- 4.63, P = .07). Of the 77 patients with critical limb ischemia, 19 underwent eventual amputation. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that income above 100% of the federal poverty line was protective against limb loss (odds ratio 0.06, 95% confidence interval 0.01-0.51, P < .001). Income level correlates with advanced presentation, advanced age, and lack of statin use. Although primary assisted patency rate is not affected by income status, an increased cost-per-day of patency and inferior limb salvage is found in lower income patients.

Maglev Launch: Ultra-low Cost, Ultra-high Volume Access to Space for Cargo and Humans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Powell, James; Maise, George; Rather, John

2010-01-01

Despite decades of efforts to reduce rocket launch costs, improvements are marginal. Launch cost to LEO for cargo is ~$10,000 per kg of payload, and to higher orbit and beyond much greater. Human access to the ISS costs $20 million for a single passenger. Unless launch costs are greatly reduced, large scale commercial use and human exploration of the solar system will not occur. A new approach for ultra low cost access to space-Maglev Launch-magnetically accelerates levitated spacecraft to orbital speeds, 8 km/sec or more, in evacuated tunnels on the surface, using Maglev technology like that operating in Japan for high speed passenger transport. The cost of electric energy to reach orbital speed is less than $1 per kilogram of payload. Two Maglev launch systems are described, the Gen-1System for unmanned cargo craft to orbit and Gen-2, for large-scale access of human to space. Magnetically levitated and propelled Gen-1 cargo craft accelerate in a 100 kilometer long evacuated tunnel, entering the atmosphere at the tunnel exit, which is located in high altitude terrain (~5000 meters) through an electrically powered ``MHD Window'' that prevents outside air from flowing into the tunnel. The Gen-1 cargo craft then coasts upwards to space where a small rocket burn, ~0.5 km/sec establishes, the final orbit. The Gen-1 reference design launches a 40 ton, 2 meter diameter spacecraft with 35 tons of payload. At 12 launches per day, a single Gen-1 facility could launch 150,000 tons annually. Using present costs for tunneling, superconductors, cryogenic equipment, materials, etc., the projected construction cost for the Gen-1 facility is 20 billion dollars. Amortization cost, plus Spacecraft and O&M costs, total $43 per kg of payload. For polar orbit launches, sites exist in Alaska, Russia, and China. For equatorial orbit launches, sites exist in the Andes and Africa. With funding, the Gen-1 system could operate by 2020 AD. The Gen-2 system requires more advanced technology. Passenger spacecraft enter the atmosphere at 70,000 feet, where deceleration is acceptable. A levitated evacuated launch tube is used, with the levitation force generated by magnetic interaction between superconducting cables on the levitated launch tube and superconducting cables on the ground beneath. The Gen-2 system could launch 100's of thousands of passengers per year, and operate by 2030 AD. Maglev launch will enable large human scale exploration of space, thousands of gigawatts of space solar power satellites for beamed power to Earth, a robust defense against asteroids and comets, and many other applications not possible now.

Economic impact of corrosion and scaling problems in geothermal energy systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shannon, D.W.

Corrosion and scaling problems have a significant impact on geothermal plant economics. A power plant must amortize the capital investment over a 20-year period and achieve satisfactory operating efficiency to achieve financial success. Corrosion and scale incrustations have been encountered in all geothermal plants, and to various degrees, adversely affected plant life times and power output. Using published data this report analyzes known geothermal corrosion and scaling phenomena for significant cost impacts on plant design and operation. It has been necessary to speculate about causes and mechanisms in order to estimate impacts on conceptual geothermal plants. Silica is highly solublemore » in hot geothermal water and solubility decreases as water is cooled in a geothermal power plant. Calculations indicate as much as 30,000 tons/year could pass through a 100 MWe water cycle plant. The major cost impact will be on the reinjection well system where costs of 1 to 10 mills/kwhr of power produced could accrue to waste handling alone. On the other hand, steam cycle geothermal plants have a definite advantage in that significant silica problems will probably only occur in hot dry rock concepts, where steam above 250 C is produced. Calculation methods are given for estimating the required size and cost impact of a silica filtration plant and for sizing scrubbers. The choice of materials is significantly affected by the pH of the geothermal water, temperature, chloride, and H{sub s} contents. Plant concepts which attempt to handle acid waters above 180 C will be forced to use expensive corrosion resistant alloys or develop specialized materials. On the other hand, handling steam up to 500 C, and pH 9 water up to 180 C appears feasible using nominal cost steels, typical of today's geothermal plants. A number of factors affecting plant or component availability have been identified. The most significant is a corrosion fatigue problem in geothermal turbines at the Geyser's geothermal plant which is presently reducing plant output by about 10%. This is equivalent to over $3 million per year in increased oil consumption to replace the power. In the course of assessing the cost implications of corrosion and scaling problems, a number of areas of technological uncertainty were identified which should be considered in R and D planning in support of geothermal energy. Materials development with both laboratory and field testing will be necessary. The economic analysis on which this report is based was done in support of an AEC Division of Applied Technology program to assess the factors affecting geothermal plant economics. The results of this report are to be used to develop computer models of overall plant economics, of which corrosion and scaling problems are only a part. The translation of the economic analysis to the report which appears here, was done on AEC Special Studies Funds.« less

Facilitating NASA Earth Science Data Processing Using Nebula Cloud Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, A.; Pham, L.; Kempler, S.; Theobald, M.; Esfandiari, A.; Campino, J.; Vollmer, B.; Lynnes, C.

2011-12-01

Cloud Computing technology has been used to offer high-performance and low-cost computing and storage resources for both scientific problems and business services. Several cloud computing services have been implemented in the commercial arena, e.g. Amazon's EC2 & S3, Microsoft's Azure, and Google App Engine. There are also some research and application programs being launched in academia and governments to utilize Cloud Computing. NASA launched the Nebula Cloud Computing platform in 2008, which is an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) to deliver on-demand distributed virtual computers. Nebula users can receive required computing resources as a fully outsourced service. NASA Goddard Earth Science Data and Information Service Center (GES DISC) migrated several GES DISC's applications to the Nebula as a proof of concept, including: a) The Simple, Scalable, Script-based Science Processor for Measurements (S4PM) for processing scientific data; b) the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) data process workflow for processing AIRS raw data; and c) the GES-DISC Interactive Online Visualization ANd aNalysis Infrastructure (GIOVANNI) for online access to, analysis, and visualization of Earth science data. This work aims to evaluate the practicability and adaptability of the Nebula. The initial work focused on the AIRS data process workflow to evaluate the Nebula. The AIRS data process workflow consists of a series of algorithms being used to process raw AIRS level 0 data and output AIRS level 2 geophysical retrievals. Migrating the entire workflow to the Nebula platform is challenging, but practicable. After installing several supporting libraries and the processing code itself, the workflow is able to process AIRS data in a similar fashion to its current (non-cloud) configuration. We compared the performance of processing 2 days of AIRS level 0 data through level 2 using a Nebula virtual computer and a local Linux computer. The result shows that Nebula has significantly better performance than the local machine. Much of the difference was due to newer equipment in the Nebula than the legacy computer, which is suggestive of a potential economic advantage beyond elastic power, i.e., access to up-to-date hardware vs. legacy hardware that must be maintained past its prime to amortize the cost. In addition to a trade study of advantages and challenges of porting complex processing to the cloud, a tutorial was developed to enable further progress in utilizing the Nebula for Earth Science applications and understanding better the potential for Cloud Computing in further data- and computing-intensive Earth Science research. In particular, highly bursty computing such as that experienced in the user-demand-driven Giovanni system may become more tractable in a Cloud environment. Our future work will continue to focus on migrating more GES DISC's applications/instances, e.g. Giovanni instances, to the Nebula platform and making matured migrated applications to be in operation on the Nebula.

Availability of and access to orphan drugs: an international comparison of pharmaceutical treatments for pulmonary arterial hypertension, Fabry disease, hereditary angioedema and chronic myeloid leukaemia.

PubMed

Blankart, Carl Rudolf; Stargardt, Tom; Schreyögg, Jonas

2011-01-01

Market authorization does not guarantee patient access to any given drug. This is particularly true for costly orphan drugs because access depends primarily on co-payments, reimbursement policies and prices. The objective of this article is to identify differences in the availability of orphan drugs and in patient access to them in 11 pharmaceutical markets: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland and the US. Four rare diseases were selected for analysis: pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), Fabry disease (FD), hereditary angioedema (HAE) and chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML). Indicators for availability were defined as (i) the indications for which orphan drugs had been authorized in the treatment of these diseases; (ii) the application date; and (iii) the date upon which these drugs received market authorization in each country. Indicators of patient access were defined as (i) the outcomes of technology appraisals; (ii) the extent of coverage provided by healthcare payers; and (iii) the price of the drugs in each country. For PAH we analysed bosentan, iloprost, sildenafil, treprostinil (intravenous and inhaled) as well as sitaxentan and ambrisentan; for FD we analysed agalsidase alfa and agalsidase beta; for HAE we analysed icatibant, ecallantide and two complement C1s inhibitors; for CML we analysed imatinib, dasatinib and nilotinib. Most drugs included in this study had received market authorization in all countries, but the range of indications for which they had been authorized differed by country. The broadest range of indications was found in Australia, and the largest variations in indications were found for PAH drugs. Authorization process speed (the time between application and market authorization) was fastest in the US, with an average of 362 days, followed by the EU (394 days). The highest prices for the included drugs were found in Germany and the US, and the lowest in Canada, Australia and England. Although the prices of all of the included drugs were high compared with those of most non-orphan drugs, most of the insurance plans in our country sample provided coverage for authorized drugs after a certain threshold. Availability of and access to orphan drugs play a key role in determining whether patients will receive adequate and efficient treatment. Although the present study showed some variations between countries in selected indicators of availability and access to orphan drugs, virtually all of the drugs in question were available and accessible in our sample. However, substantial co-payments in the US and Canada represent important barriers to patient access, especially in the case of expensive treatments such as those analysed in this study. Market exclusivity is a strong instrument for fostering orphan drug development and drug availability. However, despite the positive effect of this instrument, the conditions under which market exclusivity is granted should be reconsidered in cases where the costs of developing an orphan drug have already been amortized through the use of the drug's active ingredient for the treatment of a common indication.

Academic Health Systems Management: The Rationale Behind Capitated Contracts

PubMed Central

Taheri, Paul A.; Butz, David A.; Greenfield, Lazar J.

2000-01-01

Objective To determine why hospitals enter into “capitated” contracts, which often generate accounting losses. The authors’ hypothesis is that hospitals coordinate contracts to keep beds full and that in principal, capitated contracts reflect sound capacity management. Summary Background Data In high-overhead industries, different consumers pay different prices for similar services (e.g., full-fare vs. advanced-purchase plane tickets, full tuition vs. financial aid). Some consumers gain access by paying less than total cost. Hospitals, like other high-overhead business enterprises, must optimize the use of their capacity, amortizing overhead over as many patients as possible. This necessity for enhanced throughput forces hospitals and health systems to discount empty beds, sometimes to the point where they incur accounting losses serving some payors. Methods The authors analyzed the cost accounting system at their university teaching hospital to compare hospital and intensive care unit (ICU) lengths of stay (LOS), variable direct costs (VDC), overhead of capitated patients, and reimbursement versus other payors for all hospital discharges (n = 29,036) in fiscal year 1998. The data were analyzed by diagnosis-related groups (DRGs), length of stay (LOS), insurance carrier, proximity to hospital, and discharge disposition. Patients were then distinguished across payor categories based on their resource utilization, proximity to the hospital, DRG, LOS, and discharge status. Results The mean cost for capitated patients was $4,887, less than half of the mean cost of $10,394 for the entire hospitalized population. The mean capitated reimbursement was $928/day, exceeding the mean daily VDC of $616 but not the total cost of $1,445/day. Moreover, the mean total cost per patient day of treating a capitated patient was $400 less than the mean total cost per day for noncapitated patients. The hospital’s capitated health maintenance organization (HMO) patients made up 16.0% of the total admissions but only 9.4% of the total patient days. Both the mean LOS of 3.4 days and the mean ICU LOS of 0.3 days were significantly different from the overall values of 5.8 days and 1 day, respectively, for the noncapitated population. For patients classified with a DRG with complication who traveled from more than 60 miles away, the mean LOS was 10.7 days and the mean total cost was $21,658. This is in contrast to all patients who traveled greater than 60 miles, who had an LOS of 7.2 days and a mean total cost of $12,569. Conclusion The capitated payor directed the bulk of its subscribers to one hospital (other payors transferred their sicker patients). This was reflected in the capitated group’s lower costs and LOS. This stable stream of relatively low-acuity patients enhanced capacity utilization. For capitated patients, the hospital still benefits by recovering the incremental cost (VDC) of treating these patients, and only a portion of the assigned overhead. Thus, in the short run, capitated patients provide a positive economic benefit. Other payors’ higher-acuity patients arrive more randomly, place greater strains on capacity, and generate higher overhead costs. This results in differential reimbursement to cover this incremental overhead. Having a portfolio of contracts allows the hospital to optimize capacity both in terms of patient flows and acuity. One risk of operating near capacity is that capitated patients could displace other higher-paying patients. PMID:10816628

Multi-Resolution Indexing for Hierarchical Out-of-Core Traversal of Rectilinear Grids

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pascucci, V.

2000-07-10

The real time processing of very large volumetric meshes introduces specific algorithmic challenges due to the impossibility of fitting the input data in the main memory of a computer. The basic assumption (RAM computational model) of uniform-constant-time access to each memory location is not valid because part of the data is stored out-of-core or in external memory. The performance of most algorithms does not scale well in the transition from the in-core to the out-of-core processing conditions. The performance degradation is due to the high frequency of I/O operations that may start dominating the overall running time. Out-of-core computing [28]more » addresses specifically the issues of algorithm redesign and data layout restructuring to enable data access patterns with minimal performance degradation in out-of-core processing. Results in this area are also valuable in parallel and distributed computing where one has to deal with the similar issue of balancing processing time with data migration time. The solution of the out-of-core processing problem is typically divided into two parts: (i) analysis of a specific algorithm to understand its data access patterns and, when possible, redesign the algorithm to maximize their locality; and (ii) storage of the data in secondary memory with a layout consistent with the access patterns of the algorithm to amortize the cost of each I/O operation over several memory access operations. In the case of a hierarchical visualization algorithms for volumetric data the 3D input hierarchy is traversed to build derived geometric models with adaptive levels of detail. The shape of the output models is then modified dynamically with incremental updates of their level of detail. The parameters that govern this continuous modification of the output geometry are dependent on the runtime user interaction making it impossible to determine a priori what levels of detail are going to be constructed. For example they can be dependent from external parameters like the viewpoint of the current display window or from internal parameters like the isovalue of an isocontour or the position of an orthogonal slice. The structure of the access pattern can be summarized into two main points: (i) the input hierarchy is traversed level by level so that the data in the same level of resolution or in adjacent levels is traversed at the same time and (ii) within each level of resolution the data is mostly traversed at the same time in regions that are geometrically close. In this paper I introduce a new static indexing scheme that induces a data layout satisfying both requirements (i) and (ii) for the hierarchical traversal of n-dimensional regular grids. In one particular implementation the scheme exploits in a new way the recursive construction of the Z-order space filling curve. The standard indexing that maps the input nD data onto a 1D sequence for the Z-order curve is based on a simple bit interleaving operation that merges the n input indices into one index n times longer. This helps in grouping the data for geometric proximity but only for a specific level of detail. In this paper I show how this indexing can be transformed into an alternative index that allows to group the data per level of resolution first and then the data within each level per geometric proximity. This yields a data layout that is appropriate for hierarchical out-of-core processing of large grids.« less

Academic health systems management: the rationale behind capitated contracts.

PubMed

Taheri, P A; Butz, D A; Greenfield, L J

2000-06-01

To determine why hospitals enter into "capitated" contracts, which often generate accounting losses. The authors' hypothesis is that hospitals coordinate contracts to keep beds full and that in principal, capitated contracts reflect sound capacity management. In high-overhead industries, different consumers pay different prices for similar services (e.g., full-fare vs. advanced-purchase plane tickets, full tuition vs. financial aid). Some consumers gain access by paying less than total cost. Hospitals, like other high-overhead business enterprises, must optimize the use of their capacity, amortizing overhead over as many patients as possible. This necessity for enhanced throughput forces hospitals and health systems to discount empty beds, sometimes to the point where they incur accounting losses serving some payors. The authors analyzed the cost accounting system at their university teaching hospital to compare hospital and intensive care unit (ICU) lengths of stay (LOS), variable direct costs (VDC), overhead of capitated patients, and reimbursement versus other payors for all hospital discharges (n = 29,036) in fiscal year 1998. The data were analyzed by diagnosis-related groups (DRGs), length of stay (LOS), insurance carrier, proximity to hospital, and discharge disposition. Patients were then distinguished across payor categories based on their resource utilization, proximity to the hospital, DRG, LOS, and discharge status. The mean cost for capitated patients was $4,887, less than half of the mean cost of $10,394 for the entire hospitalized population. The mean capitated reimbursement was $928/day, exceeding the mean daily VDC of $616 but not the total cost of $1,445/day. Moreover, the mean total cost per patient day of treating a capitated patient was $400 less than the mean total cost per day for noncapitated patients. The hospital's capitated health maintenance organization (HMO) patients made up 16. 0% of the total admissions but only 9.4% of the total patient days. Both the mean LOS of 3.4 days and the mean ICU LOS of 0.3 days were significantly different from the overall values of 5.8 days and 1 day, respectively, for the noncapitated population. For patients classified with a DRG with complication who traveled from more than 60 miles away, the mean LOS was 10.7 days and the mean total cost was $21,658. This is in contrast to all patients who traveled greater than 60 miles, who had an LOS of 7.2 days and a mean total cost of $12,569. The capitated payor directed the bulk of its subscribers to one hospital (other payors transferred their sicker patients). This was reflected in the capitated group's lower costs and LOS. This stable stream of relatively low-acuity patients enhanced capacity utilization. For capitated patients, the hospital still benefits by recovering the incremental cost (VDC) of treating these patients, and only a portion of the assigned overhead. Thus, in the short run, capitated patients provide a positive economic benefit. Other payors' higher-acuity patients arrive more randomly, place greater strains on capacity, and generate higher overhead costs. This results in differential reimbursement to cover this incremental overhead. Having a portfolio of contracts allows the hospital to optimize capacity both in terms of patient flows and acuity. One risk of operating near capacity is that capitated patients could displace other higher-paying patients.

Natural hazards in the Alps triggered by ski slope engineering and artificial snow production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Jong, C.

2012-04-01

In the Alps there is increasing concern of man-made triggering of natural hazards in association with ski slope engineering and pressures from climate change. However literature on the topic is rare. Ski run development has been intensified in the past decade to accommodate a higher density of skiers. In order to absorb the increased flux of skiers promoted by continually increasing lift capacity, ski runs are subject to more and more enlargement, straightening and leveling. This has required large-scale re-leveling of slopes with the removal of soil and protective vegetation using heavy machinery during the summer season. Slope-ward incision on steep slopes, creation of artificial embankments by leeward deposition and development of straight ski runs perpendicular to steep slopes have resulted in both shallow and deep erosion, gullying, triggering of small landslides and even bedload transport in marginal channels. Other natural hazards have been triggered directly or indirectly due to intensification of artificial snow production. This has increased exponentially in the last decade in order to secure the skiing season under increasingly warm temperatures and erratic snowfall and decreasing snow depth and snow duration in association with climate change. The consequences are multiple. Firstly, in order to economize both costs and quantity of artificial snow production, ski runs are leveled as far as possible in order to avoid topographical irregularities, protruding vegetation or rocks. The combination of topsoil removal and prolonged duration of artificial snow cover results in a decreased vegetation cover and period as well as species alteration. Together with greatly decreased permeability of the underground, snowmelt and intensive summer precipitation trigger surface runoff, erosion and even small landslides. After more than a decade of intensive cover by artificial snow, most such steep ski runs at altitudes above 1400 m are reduced into highly erosive, vegetation-poor scree slopes in summertime. Secondly, the production of artificial snow requires increasingly large quantities of water during low flow periods and causes an exponential increase in the construction of water reservoirs and pipelines. Such reservoirs are often constructed in depressions occupied by wetlands but also on slopes, hilltops and in proglacial locations at high altitudes up to 3000m. Reservoir construction removes vegetation, soil and regolith over surface areas of up to 150 000 m2 and depths of more than 20 m. During their construction, the temporary or permanent storage of large quantities of sediment on steep slopes has lead in several cases to the production of debris flows. Each reservoir requires road construction and vehicle parking areas for heavy weight vehicle access. These are frequently subject to erosion, gullying, and small landslides. Some reservoirs are vulnerable to catastrophic drainage triggered by earthquakes, avalanches and other natural hazards typical for mountain environments since they are only sealed with plastic membranes. Thirdly, the melt of artificial snow introduced by water transfers from other catchments can cause a relatively large local surplus of water which in turn increases spring and summer flood peaks as well as sediment transport. Most steep ski runs have introduced artificial drainage canals across the ski runs to avoid concentration of surface flow and to prevent erosion. Slopes are also covered with organic soils and re-vegetated where possible. However, given the present trends of intensification of use and precipitation extremes, it is unlikely that erosion and mass movements can be prevented in the next few decades for the duration of the amortization of investments.

Economic evaluation comparing intraoperative cone beam CT-based navigation and conventional fluoroscopy for the placement of spinal pedicle screws: a patient-level data cost-effectiveness analysis.

PubMed

Dea, Nicolas; Fisher, Charles G; Batke, Juliet; Strelzow, Jason; Mendelsohn, Daniel; Paquette, Scott J; Kwon, Brian K; Boyd, Michael D; Dvorak, Marcel F S; Street, John T

2016-01-01

Pedicle screws are routinely used in contemporary spinal surgery. Screw misplacement may be asymptomatic but is also correlated with potential adverse events. Computer-assisted surgery (CAS) has been associated with improved screw placement accuracy rates. However, this technology has substantial acquisition and maintenance costs. Despite its increasing usage, no rigorous full economic evaluation comparing this technology to current standard of care has been reported. Medical costs are exploding in an unsustainable way. Health economic theory requires that medical equipment costs be compared with expected benefits. To answer this question for computer-assisted spinal surgery, we present an economic evaluation looking specifically at symptomatic misplaced screws leading to reoperation secondary to neurologic deficits or biomechanical concerns. The study design was an observational case-control study from prospectively collected data of consecutive patients treated with the aid of CAS (treatment group) compared with a matched historical cohort of patients treated with conventional fluoroscopy (control group). The patient sample consisted of consecutive patients treated surgically at a quaternary academic center. The primary effectiveness measure studied was the number of reoperations for misplaced screws within 1 year of the index surgery. Secondary outcome measures included were total adverse event rate and postoperative computed tomography usage for pedicle screw examination. A patient-level data cost-effectiveness analysis from the hospital perspective was conducted to determine the value of a navigation system coupled with intraoperative 3-D imaging (O-arm Imaging and the StealthStation S7 Navigation Systems, Medtronic, Louisville, CO, USA) in adult spinal surgery. The capital costs for both alternatives were reported as equivalent annual costs based on the annuitization of capital expenditures method using a 3% discount rate and a 7-year amortization period. Annual maintenance costs were also added. Finally, reoperation costs using a micro-costing approach were calculated for both groups. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated and reported as cost per reoperation avoided. Based on reoperation costs in Canada and in the United States, a minimal caseload was calculated for the more expensive alternative to be cost saving. Sensitivity analyses were also conducted. A total of 5,132 pedicle screws were inserted in 502 patients during the study period: 2,682 screws in 253 patients in the treatment group and 2,450 screws in 249 patients in the control group. Overall accuracy rates were 95.2% for the treatment group and 86.9% for the control group. Within 1 year post treatment, two patients (0.8%) required a revision surgery in the treatment group compared with 15 patients (6%) in the control group. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $15,961 per reoperation avoided was calculated for the CAS group. Based on a reoperation cost of $12,618, this new technology becomes cost saving for centers performing more than 254 instrumented spinal procedures per year. Computer-assisted spinal surgery has the potential to reduce reoperation rates and thus to have serious cost-effectiveness and policy implications. High acquisition and maintenance costs of this technology can be offset by equally high reoperation costs. Our cost-effectiveness analysis showed that for high-volume centers with a similar case complexity to the studied population, this technology is economically justified. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Using the D-Wave 2X Quantum Computer to Explore the Formation of Global Terrorist Networks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ambrosiano, John Joseph; Roberts, Randy Mark; Sims, Benjamin Hayden

Social networks with signed edges (+/-) play an important role in an area of social network theory called structural balance. In these networks, edges represent relationships that are labeled as either friendly (+) or hostile (-). A signed social network is balanced only if all cycles of three or more nodes in the graph have an odd number of hostile edges. A fundamental property of a balanced network is that it can be cleanly divided into 2 factions, where all relationships within each faction are friendly, and all relationships between members of different factions are hostile. The more unbalanced amore » network is, the more edges will fail to adhere to this rule, making factions more ambiguous. Social theory suggests unbalanced networks should be unstable, a finding that has been supported by research on gangs, which shows that unbalanced relationships are associated with greater violence, possibly due to this increased ambiguity about factional allegiances (Nakamura et al). One way to estimate the imbalance in a network, if only edge relationships are known, is to assign nodes to factions that minimize the number of violations of the edge rule described above. This problem is known to be computationally NP-hard. However, Facchetti et al. have pointed out that it is equivalent to an Ising model with a Hamiltonian that effectively counts the number of edge rule violations. Therefore, finding the assignment of factions that minimizes energy of the equivalent Ising system yields an estimate of the imbalance in the network. Based on the Ising model equivalence of the signed-social network balance problem, we have used the D-Wave 2X quantum annealing computer to explore some aspects of signed social networks. Because connectivity in the D-Wave computer is limited to its particular native topology, arbitrary networks cannot be represented directly. Rather, they must be “embedded” using a technique in which multiple qubits are chained together with special weights to simulate a collection of nodes with the required connectivity. This limits the size of a fully connected network in the D-Wave to about 50 simulated nodes, using all of the approximately 1150 qubits in the machine. In order to keep within this limitation, while exploring a problem of potential social relevance, we constructed time series of historical network snapshots from Stanford’s Mapping Militants Project, where nodes represent militant organizations, and edges represent either alliances or rivalries between organizations. We constructed two series from different theaters – Iraq and Syria – spanning timelines from about 2000 to 2016, each with networks whose maximum size was in the 20-30 node range. Computationally, our experience suggests D-Wave technology is promising, providing fast, nearly constant scaling of computational effort in the main part of the calculation that relies on the quantum annealing cycle. However, the cost of embedding an arbitrary network of interest in the D-Wave native topology scales poorly. If the embedding cost can be amortized relative to the annealing cycle, it may be possible to gain a substantial advantage over classical computing methods, provided a large enough network can be accommodated by partitioning into subnetworks or some similar strategy. In terms of our application to networks of militant organizations, we found a rise in network imbalance in the Syrian theater that appears to correspond roughly with the entrance of the Islamic State into a milieu already populated with other groups, a phenomenon we plan to explore in more detail. In these very preliminary results, we also noticed that during at least one period where both the size and imbalance of the network increased substantially, the imbalance per edge seemed to remain fairly steady. This may suggest some adaptive behavior among the participating factions, which may also warrant further exploration.« less

Ultraviolet Phototherapy Management of Moderate-to-Severe Plaque Psoriasis

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Executive Summary Objective The purpose of this evidence based analysis was to determine the effectiveness and safety of ultraviolet phototherapy for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Research Questions The specific research questions for the evidence review were as follows: What is the safety of ultraviolet phototherapy for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis? What is the effectiveness of ultraviolet phototherapy for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis? Clinical Need: Target Population and Condition Psoriasis is a common chronic, systemic inflammatory disease affecting the skin, nails and occasionally the joints and has a lifelong waning and waxing course. It has a worldwide occurrence with a prevalence of at least 2% of the general population, making it one of the most common systemic inflammatory diseases. The immune-mediated disease has several clinical presentations with the most common (85% - 90%) being plaque psoriasis. Characteristic features of psoriasis include scaling, redness, and elevation of the skin. Patients with psoriasis may also present with a range of disabling symptoms such as pruritus (itching), pain, bleeding, or burning associated with plaque lesions and up to 30% are classified as having moderate-to-severe disease. Further, some psoriasis patients can be complex medical cases in which diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, and hypertension are more likely to be present than in control populations and 10% also suffer from arthritis (psoriatic arthritis). The etiology of psoriasis is unknown but is thought to result from complex interactions between the environment and predisposing genes. Management of psoriasis is related to the extent of the skin involvement, although its presence on the hands, feet, face or genitalia can present challenges. Moderate-to-severe psoriasis is managed by phototherapy and a range of systemic agents including traditional immunosuppressants such as methotrexate and cyclospsorin. Treatment with modern immunosuppressant agents known as biologicals, which more specifically target the immune defects of the disease, is usually reserved for patients with contraindications and those failing or unresponsive to treatments with traditional immunosuppressants or phototherapy. Treatment plans are based on a long-term approach to managing the disease, patient’s expectations, individual responses and risk of complications. The treatment goals are several fold but primarily to: 1) improve physical signs and secondary psychological effects, 2) reduce inflammation and control skin shedding, 3) control physical signs as long as possible, and to 4) avoid factors that can aggravate the condition. Approaches are generally individualized because of the variable presentation, quality of life implications, co-existent medical conditions, and triggering factors (e.g. stress, infections and medications). Individual responses and commitments to therapy also present possible limitations. Phototherapy Ultraviolet phototherapy units have been licensed since February 1993 as a class 2 device in Canada. Units are available as hand held devices, hand and foot devices, full-body panel, and booth styles for institutional and home use. Units are also available with a range of ultraviolet A, broad and narrow band ultraviolet B (BB-UVB and NB-UVB) lamps. After establishing appropriate ultraviolet doses, three-times weekly treatment schedules for 20 to 25 treatments are generally needed to control symptoms. Evidence-Based Analysis Methods The literature search strategy employed keywords and subject headings to capture the concepts of 1) phototherapy and 2) psoriasis. The search involved runs in the following databases: Ovid MEDLINE (1996 to March Week 3 2009), OVID MEDLINE In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations, EMBASE (1980 to 2009 Week 13), the Wiley Cochrane Library, and the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination/International Agency for Health Technology Assessment. Parallel search strategies were developed for the remaining databases. Search results were limited to human and English-language published between January 1999 and March 31, 2009. Search alerts were generated and reviewed for relevant literature up until May 31, 2009. Inclusion Criteria Exclusion Criteria English language reports and human studies Ultraviolet phototherapy interventions for plaque-type psoriasis Reports involving efficacy and/or safety outcome studies Original reports with defined study methodology Standardized measurements on outcome events such as technical success, safety, effectiveness, durability, quality of life or patient satisfaction Non-systematic reviews, letters, comments and editorials Randomized trials involving side-to-side or half body comparisons Randomized trials not involving ultraviolet phototherapy intervention for plaque-type psoriasis Trials involving dosing studies, pilot feasibility studies or lacking control groups Summary of Findings A 2000 health technology evidence report on the overall management of psoriasis by The National Institute Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment Program of the UK was identified in the MAS evidence-based review. The report included 109 RCT studies published between 1966 and June 1999 involving four major treatment approaches – 51 on phototherapy, 32 on oral retinoids, 18 on cyclosporin and five on fumarates.. The absence of RCTs on methotrexate was noted as original studies with this agent had been performed prior to 1966. Of the 51 RCT studies involving phototherapy, 22 involved UVA, 21 involved UVB, five involved both UVA and UVB and three involved natural light as a source of UV. The RCT studies included comparisons of treatment schedules, ultraviolet source, addition of adjuvant therapies, and comparisons between phototherapy and topical treatment schedules. Because of heterogeneity, no synthesis or meta-analysis could be performed. Overall, the reviewers concluded that the efficacy of only five therapies could be supported from the RCT-based evidence review: photochemotherapy or phototherapy, cyclosporin, systemic retinoids, combination topical vitamin D3 analogues (calcipotriol) and corticosteroids in combination with phototherapy and fumarates. Although there was no RCT evidence supporting methotrexate, it’s efficacy for psoriasis is well known and it continues to be a treatment mainstay. The conclusion of the NIHR evidence review was that both photochemotherapy and phototherapy were effective treatments for clearing psoriasis, although their comparative effectiveness was unknown. Despite the conclusions on efficacy, a number of issues were identified in the evidence review and several areas for future research were discussed to address these limitations. Trials focusing on comparative effectiveness, either between ultraviolet sources or between classes of treatment such as methotrexate versus phototherapy, were recommended to refine treatment algorithms. The need for better assessment of cost-effectiveness of therapies to consider systemic drug costs and costs of surveillance, as well as drug efficacy, were also noted. Overall, the authors concluded that phototherapy and photochemotherapy had important roles in psoriasis management and were standard therapeutic options for psoriasis offered in dermatology practices. The MAS evidence-based review focusing on the RCT trial evidence for ultraviolet phototherapy management of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis was performed as an update to the NIHR 2000 systemic review on treatments for severe psoriasis. In this review, an additional 26 RCT reports examining phototherapy or photochemotherapy for psoriasis were identified. Among the studies were two RCTs comparing ultraviolet wavelength sources, five RCTs comparing different forms of phototherapy, four RCTs combining phototherapy with prior spa saline bathing, nine RCTs combining phototherapy with topical agents, two RCTs combining phototherapy with the systemic immunosuppressive agents methotrexate or alefacept, one RCT comparing phototherapy with an additional light source (the excimer laser), and one comparing a combination therapy with phototherapy and psychological intervention involving simultaneous audiotape sessions on mindfulness and stress reduction. Two trials also examined the effect of treatment setting on effectiveness of phototherapy, one on inpatient versus outpatient therapy and one on outpatient clinic versus home-based phototherapy. Conclusions The conclusions of the MAS evidence-based review are outlined in Table ES1. In summary, phototherapy provides good control of clinical symptoms in the short term for patients with moderate-to-severe plaque-type psoriasis that have failed or are unresponsive to management with topical agents. However, many of the evidence gaps identified in the NIHR 2000 evidence review on psoriasis management persisted. In particular, the lack of evidence on the comparative effectiveness and/or cost-effectiveness between the major treatment options for moderate-to-severe psoriasis remained. The evidence on effectiveness and safety of longer term strategies for disease management has also not been addressed. Evidence for the safety, effectiveness, or cost-effectiveness of phototherapy delivered in various settings is emerging but is limited. In addition, because all available treatments for psoriasis – a disease with a high prevalence, chronicity, and cost – are palliative rather than curative, strategies for disease control and improvements in self-efficacy employed in other chronic disease management strategies should be investigated. Table ES1: RCT Evidence for Ultraviolet Phototherapy Treatment of Moderate-To-Severe Plaque Psoriasis Conclusion Evidence Level Phototherapy is an effective treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis Moderate quality and adequate study evidence Narrow band PT is more effective than broad band PT for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis High quality but limited study evidence Oral-PUVA has a greater clinical response, requires less treatments and has a greater cumulative UV irradiation dose than UVB to achieve treatment effects for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis High quality and adequate study evidence Spa salt water baths prior to phototherapy did increase short term clinical response of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis but did not decrease cumulative UV irradiation dose High quality and adequate study evidence Addition of topical agents (vitamin D3 calcipotriol) to NB-UVB did not increase mean clinical response or decrease treatments or cumulative UV irradiation dose High quality and adequate study evidence Methotrexate prior to NB-UVB in high need psoriasis patients did significantly increase clinical response, decrease number of treatment sessions and decrease cumulative UV irradiation dose High quality study but limited study evidence Phototherapy following alefacept did increase early clinical response in moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis Inadequate study evidence Effectiveness and safety of home NB-UVB phototherapy was not inferior to NB-UVB phototherapy provided in a clinic to patients with psoriasis referred for phototherapy. Treatment burden was lower and patient satisfaction was higher with home therapy and patients in both groups preferred future phototherapy treatments at home High quality study but limited study evidence Ontario Health System Considerations A 2006 survey of ultraviolet phototherapy services in Canada identified 26 phototherapy clinics in Ontario for a population of over 12 million. At that time, there were 177 dermatologists and 50 geographic regions in which 28% (14/50) provided phototherapy services. The majority of the phototherapy services were reported to be located in densely populated areas; relatively few patients living in rural communities had access to these services. The inconvenience of multiple weekly visits for optimal phototherapy treatment effects poses additional burdens to those with travel difficulties related to health, job, or family-related responsibilities. Physician OHIP billing for phototherapy services totaled 117,216 billings in 2007, representing approximately 1,800 patients in the province treated in private clinics. The number of patients treated in hospitals is difficult to estimate as physician costs are not billed directly to OHIP in this setting. Instead, phototherapy units and services provided in hospitals are funded by hospitals’ global budgets. Some hospitals in the province, however, have divested their phototherapy services, so the number of phototherapy clinics and their total capacity is currently unknown. Technological advances have enabled changes in phototherapy treatment regimens from lengthy hospital inpatient stays to outpatient clinic visits and, more recently, to an at-home basis. When combined with a telemedicine follow-up, home phototherapy may provide an alternative strategy for improved access to service and follow-up care, particularly for those with geographic or mobility barriers. Safety and effectiveness have, however, so far been evaluated for only one phototherapy home-based delivery model. Alternate care models and settings could potentially increase service options and access, but the broader consequences of the varying cost structures and incentives that either increase or decrease phototherapy services are unknown. Economic Analyses The focus of the current economic analysis was to characterize the costs associated with the provision of NB-UVB phototherapy for plaque-type, moderate-to-severe psoriasis in different clinical settings, including home therapy. A literature review was conducted and no cost-effectiveness (cost-utility) economic analyses were published in this area. Hospital, Clinic, and Home Costs of Phototherapy Costs for NB-UVB phototherapy were based on consultations with equipment manufacturers and dermatologists. Device costs applicable to the provision of NB-UVB phototherapy in hospitals, private clinics and at a patient’s home were estimated. These costs included capital costs of purchasing NB-UVB devices (amortized over 15-20 years), maintenance costs of replacing equipment bulbs, physician costs of phototherapy treatment in private clinics ($7.85 per phototherapy treatment), and medication and laboratory costs associated with treatment of moderate-to-severe psoriasis. NB-UVB phototherapy services provided in a hospital setting were paid for by hospitals directly. Phototherapy services in private clinic and home settings were paid for by the clinic and patient, respectively, except for physician services covered by OHIP. Indirect funding was provided to hospitals as part of global budgeting and resource allocation. Home therapy services for NB-UVB phototherapy were not covered by the MOHLTC. Coverage for home-based phototherapy however, was in some cases provided by third party insurers. Device costs for NB-UVB phototherapy were estimated for two types of phototherapy units: a “booth unit” consisting of 48 bulbs used in hospitals and clinics, and a “panel unit” consisting of 10 bulbs for home use. The device costs of the booth and panel units were estimated at approximately $18,600 and $2,900, respectively; simple amortization over 15 and 20 years implied yearly costs of approximately $2,500 and $150, respectively. Replacement cost for individual bulbs was about $120 resulting in total annual cost of maintenance of about $8,640 and $120 for booth and panel units, respectively. Estimated Total Costs for Ontario Average annual cost per patient for NB-UVB phototherapy provided in the hospital, private clinic or at home was estimated to be $292, $810 and $365 respectively. For comparison purposes, treatment of moderate-to-severe psoriasis with methotrexate and cyclosporin amounted to $712 and $3,407 annually per patient respectively; yearly costs for biological drugs were estimated to be $18,700 for alefacept and $20,300 for etanercept-based treatments. Total annual costs of NB-UVB phototherapy were estimated by applying average costs to an estimated proportion of the population (age 18 or older) eligible for phototherapy treatment. The prevalence of psoriasis was estimated to be approximately 2% of the population, of which about 85% was of plaque-type psoriasis and approximately 20% to 30% was considered moderate-to-severe in disease severity. An estimate of 25% for moderate-to-severe psoriasis cases was used in the current economic analysis resulting in a range of 29,400 to 44,200 cases. Approximately 21% of these patients were estimated to be using NB-UVB phototherapy for treatment resulting in a number of cases in the range between 6,200 and 9,300 cases. The average (7,700) number of cases was used to calculate associated costs for Ontario by treatment setting. Total annual costs were as follows: $2.3 million in a hospital setting, $6.3 million in a private clinic setting, and $2.8 million for home phototherapy. Costs for phototherapy services provided in private clinics were greater ($810 per patient annually; total of $6.3 million annually) and differed from the same services provided in the hospital setting only in terms of additional physician costs associated with phototherapy OHIP fees. Keywords Psoriasis, ultraviolet radiation, phototherapy, photochemotherapy, NB-UVB, BB-UVB PUVA PMID:23074532