Review of Potential Characterization Techniques in Approaching Energy and Sustainability

DOE PAGES

LePoire, David

2014-03-20

Societal prosperity is linked to sustainable energy and a healthy environment. But, tough global challenges include increased demand for fossil fuels, while approaching peak oil production and uncertainty in the environmental impacts of energy generation. Recently, energy use was identified as a major component of economic productivity, along with capital and labor. Furthermore, other environmental resources and impacts may be nearing environmental thresholds as indicated by nine planetary environmental boundaries, many of which are linked to energy production and use. Foresight techniques could be applied to guide future actions which include emphasis on (1) energy efficiency to bridge the transitionmore » to a renewable energy economy, (2) continued research, development, and assessment of new technologies, (3) improved understanding of environment impacts including natural capital use and degradation, (4) exploration of GDP alternative measures that include both economic production and environmental impacts, and (5) international cooperation and awareness of longer-term opportunities and their associated potential scenarios. Examples from the U.S. and the international community illustrate challenges and potential.« less

The Audit Opinion of the DISA FY 2011 Working Capital Fund Financial Statements Was Not Adequately Supported

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-26

President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency MD&A Management Discussion and Analysis MFR Memorandum for Record NoF Notification of...memorandums for record ( MFRs ) would have a material impact on the financial statements and ultimately Acuity’s opinion, • perform adequate completeness...the deficiencies identified by DISA in its FBWT MFRs would impact the reliability of the financial statements and ultimately Acuity’s opinion

75 FR 14227 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Order Approving Proposed Rule Change...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-24

... Commission has considered the proposed rule's impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See... security.''). See also Newton v. Merrill, Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., 135 F.3d 266, at 271, 274 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 811 (1998); Payment for Order Flow, Securities Exchange Act Release...

PFI redux? Assessing a new model for financing hospitals.

PubMed

Hellowell, Mark

2013-11-01

There is a growing need for investments in hospital facilities to improve the efficiency and quality of health services. In recent years, publicly financed hospital organisations in many countries have utilised private finance arrangements, variously called private finance initiatives (PFIs), public-private partnerships (PPPs) or P3s, to address their capital requirements. However, such projects have become more difficult to implement since the onset of the global financial crisis, which has led to a reduction in the supply of debt capital and an increase in its price. In December 2012, the government of the United Kingdom outlined a comprehensive set of reforms to the private finance model in order to revive this important source of capital for hospital investments. This article provides a critical assessment of the 'Private Finance 2' reforms, focusing on their likely impact on the supply and cost of capital. It concludes that constraints in supply are likely to continue, in part due to regulatory constraints facing both commercial banks and institutional investors, while the cost of capital is likely to increase, at least in the short term. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

76 FR 16650 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc.; Order Approving Proposed Rule Change To Amend...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-24

... investors and the public interest; and are not designed to permit unfair discrimination among customers... proposed rule's impact on efficiency, competition, and capital formation. 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). \\9\\ 15 U.S.C... between customers based on the nature and profitability of their business. Currently under BOX's rules, an...

Good, Fast, Cheap: How Centers of Teaching and Learning Can Capitalize in Today's Resource-Constrained Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Truong, Michael H.; Juillerat, Stephanie; Gin, Deborah H. C.

2016-01-01

This article provides leaders and educational developers of Centers for Teaching and Learning (CTL) with innovative and practical strategies on how to increase their centers' capacity and impact by focusing on quality, efficiency, and cost. This "good, fast, cheap" model represents a promising way that CTL can continue to grow, scale,…

Does capitation matter? Impacts on access, use, and quality.

PubMed

Zuvekas, Samuel H; Hill, Steven C

2004-01-01

Provider capitation may constrain costs, but it also may reduce access and quality of care. We examine the impacts of capitating the usual source of care of enrollees in health maintenance organizations (HMOs). We account for the endogeneity of capitation and other characteristics using generalized methods of moments (GMM) estimation on a sample from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey for 1996 and 1997. Being organized as a group/staff HMO generally has stronger impact on access and quality than capitation. Capitation by itself may increase access to consumers' usual sources of care, improve primary preventive care, and reduce coordination, but estimates with GMM were not statistically significant.

Research on Evaluation of resource allocation efficiency of transportation system based on DEA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zhehui; Du, Linan

2017-06-01

In this paper, we select the time series data onto 1985-2015 years, construct the land (shoreline) resources, capital and labor as inputs. The index system of the output is freight volume and passenger volume, we use Quantitative analysis based on DEA method evaluated the resource allocation efficiency of railway, highway, water transport and civil aviation in China. Research shows that the resource allocation efficiency of various modes of transport has obvious difference, and the impact on scale efficiency is more significant. The most important two ways to optimize the allocation of resources to improve the efficiency of the combination of various modes of transport is promoting the co-ordination of various modes of transport and constructing integrated transportation system.

Efficiency in mental health practice and research.

PubMed

Lagomasino, Isabel T; Zatzick, Douglas F; Chambers, David A

2010-01-01

Limited financial resources, escalating mental health-related costs and opportunities for capitalizing on advances in health information technologies have brought the theme of efficiency to the forefront of mental health services research and clinical practice. In this introductory article to the journal series stemming from the 20th NIMH Mental Health Services Research Conference, we first delineate the need for a new focus on efficiency in both research and clinical practice. Second, we provide preliminary definitions of efficiency for the field and discuss issues related to measurement. Finally, we explore the interface between efficiency in mental health services research and practice and the NIMH strategic objectives of developing improved interventions for diverse populations and enhancing the public health impact of research. Case examples illustrate how perspectives from dissemination and implementation research may be used to maximize efficiencies in the development and implementation of new service delivery models. Allowing findings from the dissemination and implementation field to permeate and inform clinical practice and research may facilitate more efficient development of interventions and enhance the public health impact of research. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Impact of Social Capital on the Employment of College Graduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fengqiao, Yan; Dan, Mao

2015-01-01

This article addresses the impact of social capital on college graduate employment. After reviewing the literature, the authors analyze data collected by Peking University from 34 universities in 2005 and use statistical analysis to clarify the impact of social capital on students' choice of employment or further study, job placement rate,…

Has the 2008 financial crisis affected stock market efficiency? The case of Eurozone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anagnostidis, P.; Varsakelis, C.; Emmanouilides, C. J.

2016-04-01

In this paper, the impact of the 2008 financial crisis on the weak-form efficiency of twelve Eurozone stock markets is investigated empirically. Efficiency is tested via the Generalized Hurst Exponent method, while dynamic Hurst exponents are estimated by means of the rolling window technique. To account for biases associated with the finite sample size and the leptokurtosis of the financial data, the statistical significance of the Hurst exponent estimates is assessed through a series of Monte-Carlo simulations drawn from the class of α-stable distributions. According to our results, the 2008 crisis has adversely affected stock price efficiency in most of the Eurozone capital markets, leading to the emergence of significant mean-reverting patterns in stock price movements.

The creation of a global electricity market

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

DePinto, D.; Anderson, A.

1998-07-01

The global embrace of market-based economics has led to significant growth and prosperity resulting in increased needs for electricity. The burgeoning demand for energy has created requirements for capital investment at time when the state-owned energy companies cannot provide it. Governments, busy trying to find ways to manage already inflated debt burdens, have little capacity for funding the capital needed to expand energy production. In these strategic industries, governments are beginning to embrace the principles of free market capitalism and private ownership, recognizing the significant benefits to be realized: reduced national deficits, a more efficient energy sector, access to foreignmore » capital, greater internal capital generation, and more energy to fuel economic growth. This is driving the governments to embrace privatization and is creating a market for the sale of electric utilities. On the other side of this equation are the fast developing global electric companies that are prepared to expand in both developing and developed countries through significant acquisitions of either companies or strategic assets. This scenario is further enhanced as the Independent Power Developers chase projects from Brazil to China and bring competition to the development of new generation. Never before has there been such a movement to the complete transformation of the energy industry. Countries on every continent are exploring how they can reform and restructure the energy sector. The analysis will address: Global transformation sweeping the various regions of the world; Impact on developers and the strategy required for success; Global electric companies and their impact on the transformation process; and Future of the electric power industry: Will it bring the world closer together?« less

An empirical investigation of the efficiency effects of integrated care models in Switzerland

PubMed Central

Reich, Oliver; Rapold, Roland; Flatscher-Thöni, Magdalena

2012-01-01

Introduction This study investigates the efficiency gains of integrated care models in Switzerland, since these models are regarded as cost containment options in national social health insurance. These plans generate much lower average health care expenditure than the basic insurance plan. The question is, however, to what extent these total savings are due to the effects of selection and efficiency. Methods The empirical analysis is based on data from 399,274 Swiss residents that constantly had compulsory health insurance with the Helsana Group, the largest health insurer in Switzerland, covering the years 2006–2009. In order to evaluate the efficiency of the different integrated care models, we apply an econometric approach with a mixed-effects model. Results Our estimations indicate that the efficiency effects of integrated care models on health care expenditure are significant. However, the different insurance plans vary, revealing the following efficiency gains per model: contracted capitated model 21.2%, contracted non-capitated model 15.5% and telemedicine model 3.7%. The remaining 8.5%, 5.6% and 22.5%, respectively, of the variation in total health care expenditure can be attributed to the effects of selection. Conclusions Integrated care models have the potential to improve care for patients with chronic diseases and concurrently have a positive impact on health care expenditure. We suggest policy-makers improve the incentives for patients with chronic diseases within the existing regulations providing further potential for cost-efficiency of medical care. PMID:22371691

Advanced Hydrogen Liquefaction Process

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

Schwartz, Joseph; Kromer, Brian; Neu, Ben

2011-09-28

The project identified and quantified ways to reduce the cost of hydrogen liquefaction, and reduce the cost of hydrogen distribution. The goal was to reduce the power consumption by 20% and then to reduce the capital cost. Optimizing the process, improving process equipment, and improving ortho-para conversion significantly reduced the power consumption of liquefaction, but by less than 20%. Because the efficiency improvement was less than the target, the program was stopped before the capital cost was addressed. These efficiency improvements could provide a benefit to the public to improve the design of future hydrogen liquefiers. The project increased themore » understanding of hydrogen liquefaction by modeling different processes and thoroughly examining ortho-para separation and conversion. The process modeling provided a benefit to the public because the project incorporated para hydrogen into the process modeling software, so liquefaction processes can be modeled more accurately than using only normal hydrogen. Adding catalyst to the first heat exchanger, a simple method to reduce liquefaction power, was identified, analyzed, and quantified. The demonstrated performance of ortho-para separation is sufficient for at least one identified process concept to show reduced power cost when compared to hydrogen liquefaction processes using conventional ortho-para conversion. The impact of improved ortho-para conversion can be significant because ortho para conversion uses about 20-25% of the total liquefaction power, but performance improvement is necessary to realize a substantial benefit. Most of the energy used in liquefaction is for gas compression. Improvements in hydrogen compression will have a significant impact on overall liquefier efficiency. Improvements to turbines, heat exchangers, and other process equipment will have less impact.« less

Exploring the impacts of a national U.S. CO 2 tax and revenue recycling options with a coupled electricity-economy model

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

Caron, Justin; Cohen, Stuart M; Brown, Maxwell

This paper provides a comprehensive exploration of the impacts of economy-wide CO 2 taxes in the U.S. simulated using a detailed electric sector model [the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Regional Energy Deployment System (ReEDS)] linked with a computable general equilibrium model of the U.S. economy [the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's U.S. Regional Energy Policy (USREP) model]. We implement various tax trajectories and options for using the revenue collected by the tax and describe their impact on household welfare and its distribution across income levels. Overall, we find that our top-down/bottom-up models affects estimates of the distribution and cost of emissionmore » reductions as well as the amount of revenue collected, but that these are mostly insensitive to the way the revenue is recycled. We find that substantial abatement opportunities through fuel switching and renewable penetration in the electricity sector allow the economy to accommodate extensive emissions reductions at relatively low cost. While welfare impacts are largely determined by the choice of revenue recycling scheme, all tax levels and schemes provide net benefits when accounting for the avoided global climate change benefits of emission reductions. Recycling revenue through capital income tax rebates is more efficient than labor income tax rebates or uniform transfers to households. While capital tax rebates substantially reduce the overall costs of emission abatement, they profit high income households the most and are regressive. We more generally identify a clear trade-off between equity and efficiency across the various recycling options. However, we show through a set of hybrid recycling schemes that it is possible to limit inequalities in impacts, particularly those on the lowest income households, at relatively little incremental cost.« less

Exploring the impacts of a national U.S. CO 2 tax and revenue recycling options with a coupled electricity-economy model

DOE PAGES

Caron, Justin; Cohen, Stuart M; Brown, Maxwell; ...

2018-02-01

This paper provides a comprehensive exploration of the impacts of economy-wide CO 2 taxes in the U.S. simulated using a detailed electric sector model [the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Regional Energy Deployment System (ReEDS)] linked with a computable general equilibrium model of the U.S. economy [the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's U.S. Regional Energy Policy (USREP) model]. We implement various tax trajectories and options for using the revenue collected by the tax and describe their impact on household welfare and its distribution across income levels. Overall, we find that our top-down/bottom-up models affects estimates of the distribution and cost of emissionmore » reductions as well as the amount of revenue collected, but that these are mostly insensitive to the way the revenue is recycled. We find that substantial abatement opportunities through fuel switching and renewable penetration in the electricity sector allow the economy to accommodate extensive emissions reductions at relatively low cost. While welfare impacts are largely determined by the choice of revenue recycling scheme, all tax levels and schemes provide net benefits when accounting for the avoided global climate change benefits of emission reductions. Recycling revenue through capital income tax rebates is more efficient than labor income tax rebates or uniform transfers to households. While capital tax rebates substantially reduce the overall costs of emission abatement, they profit high income households the most and are regressive. We more generally identify a clear trade-off between equity and efficiency across the various recycling options. However, we show through a set of hybrid recycling schemes that it is possible to limit inequalities in impacts, particularly those on the lowest income households, at relatively little incremental cost.« less

Quantifying capital goods for collection and transport of waste.

PubMed

Brogaard, Line K; Christensen, Thomas H

2012-12-01

The capital goods for collection and transport of waste were quantified for different types of containers (plastic containers, cubes and steel containers) and an 18-tonnes compacting collection truck. The data were collected from producers and vendors of the bins and the truck. The service lifetime and the capacity of the goods were also assessed. Environmental impact assessment of the production of the capital goods revealed that, per tonne of waste handled, the truck had the largest contribution followed by the steel container. Large high density polyethylene (HDPE) containers had the lowest impact per tonne of waste handled. The impact of producing the capital goods for waste collection and transport cannot be neglected as the capital goods dominate (>85%) the categories human-toxicity (non-cancer and cancer), ecotoxicity, resource depletion and aquatic eutrophication, but also play a role (>13%) within the other impact categories when compared with the impacts from combustion of fuels for the collection and transport of the waste, when a transport distance of 25 km was assumed.

[Differential impact of social capital on mental health in the native-born and immigrant populations living in Catalonia (Spain)].

PubMed

Stoyanova, Alexandrina; Díaz-Serrano, Luis

2009-12-01

This study attempts to create a bridge between the literature on immigration and on social capital and health. The objectives were two-fold: firstly, to provide new empirical evidence on the association between social capital and health, using data from Catalonia for the first time and, secondly, to explore the possible existence of a differential impact of social capital on health between native-born residents and immigrants. We also distinguished between individual and community-level social capital. We used the 2006 Catalan Health Survey (ESCA 2006). To assess the relationship between social capital and mental health, we used multilevel models, estimated separately for native-born and immigrant residents. The results revealed a positive link between social capital and good mental health in Catalonia. However, this effect was stronger for individual than for community-level social capital. The results did not support the hypothesis of a differential impact between immigrants and native-born Catalans, but did indicate differences with respect to Spaniards born outside Catalonia. Geographic heterogeneity in the effect of individual social capital on mental health in both immigrants and native-born residents was also detected. We believe that enhancing social capital could potentially be an effective policy tool to achieve objectives related to health status improvement.

Hospital free cash flow.

PubMed

Kauer, R T; Silvers, J B

1991-01-01

Hospital managers may find it difficult to admit their investments have been suboptimal, but such investments often lead to poor returns and less future cash. Inappropriate use of free cash flow produces large transaction costs of exit. The relative efficiency of investor-owned and tax-exempt hospitals in the product market for hospital services is examined as the free cash flow theory is used to explore capital-market conditions of hospitals. Hypotheses concerning the current competitive conditions in the industry are set forth, and the implications of free cash flow for risk, capital-market efficiency, and the cost of capital to tax-exempt institution is compared to capital-market norms.

Priority directions of the improvement of energy management at the enterprise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dyakova, Galina; Izmaylova, Svetlana; Mottaeva, Angela; Karanina, Elena

2017-10-01

The relevance of article is caused by the fact that at the industrial enterprises pay little attention to the matters of energy saving or to the management of energy efficiency. The authors of the article defined that the potential of the increase in energy efficiency as well as the improvement of quality of strategic management at the enterprise, is connected with investment into the human capital. For the improvement of system of energy management, the key indicators of energy efficiency at the individual level are defined, the algorithm of the development of key indicators by means of which the energy efficiency of the human capital will be measured is developed, actions for support to the developed transitional strategy of power management are offered, positive results of formation of the human capital directed to increase in energy efficiency are designated.

Ground source heat pumps (GSHP) for heating and cooling in Greece

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dimera, Nikoletta

This report presents the results of a theoretical study about the feasibility of closed loop Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHP) for heating and cooling in Greece in terms of their impact on the capital and running costs of the building services systems of the buildings. The main aim of carrying out this study was to investigate if the heating and cooling potential of the ground could be utilized cost efficiently to serve the buildings energy demand in the Greek region. At first, an existing implementation of a closed loop GSHP system in Greece is presented and its efficiency is discussed. The aim of doing so was to understand the way of sizing such systems and the efficiency of this technology in Greek climatic and ground conditions. In a separate part of this report, the impact of different user behaviour and of various ways of sizing a GSHP system is investigated in terms of the cost impact of the examined different options as well as of their effect on the internal health and comfort conditions. After the building simulation under different scenarios, it was concluded that the user behavior - the operation of windows mostly - can result in great savings on the annual energy bills. The conclusions of this first part of the report about the user behaviour and the way of sizing GSHP systems were utilized in the next part of it, where a GSHP system is proposed for a building currently under construction in central Greece. A simple 30-year cost analysis was used in order to estimate the performance of the proposed GSHP system in economic terms and to compare it with the conventional HVAC system commonly used in Greece. According to the results of the analysis, the capital cost of installing a GSHP system for heating and cooling in buildings in Greece appears higher than the cost of conventional HVAC systems. More specifically, the capital cost of an installation for heating including gas boilers and a cooling system based on air conditioning split units is about the half of installing a GSHP system for heating and cooling designed to serve the same loads. On the other hand, if the conventional HVAC system included cooling towers instead of A/C split units, the capital cost of such the installation raises up to double the price of the GSHP system for the same needs. However, after a 30-years period of continuous use of the systems, the money spent for installing and running the GSHP system are about the half of those that should be paid once a conventional HVAC system was preferred for the same energy demand.

50 CFR 600.330 - National Standard 5-Efficiency.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... as labor, capital, interest, and fuel. Efficiency in terms of aggregate costs then becomes a... techniques or the creation of redundant fishing capacity contributes to the attainment of other social or... investment in private sector fishing capital and labor. (c) Limited access. A “system for limiting access...

Comparing technical efficiency of farms with an automatic milking system and a conventional milking system.

PubMed

Steeneveld, W; Tauer, L W; Hogeveen, H; Oude Lansink, A G J M

2012-12-01

Changing from a conventional milking system (CMS) to an automatic milking system (AMS) necessitates a new management approach and a corresponding change in labor tasks. Together with labor savings, AMS farms have been found to have higher capital costs, primarily because of higher maintenance costs and depreciation. Therefore, it is hypothesized that AMS farms differ from CMS farms in capital:labor ratio and possibly their technical efficiency, at least during a transition learning period. The current study used actual farm accounting data from dairy farms in the Netherlands with an AMS and a CMS to investigate the empirical substitution of capital for labor in the AMS farms and to determine if the technical efficiency of the AMS farms differed from the CMS farms. The technical efficiency estimates were obtained with data envelopment analysis. The 63 AMS farms and the 337 CMS farms in the data set did not differ in general farm characteristics such as the number of cows, number of hectares, and the amount of milk quota. Farms with AMS have significantly higher capital costs (€12.71 per 100 kg of milk) than CMS farms (€10.10 per 100 kg of milk). Total labor costs and net outputs were not significantly different between AMS and CMS farms. A clear substitution of capital for labor with the adoption of an AMS could not be observed. Although the AMS farms have a slightly lower technical efficiency (0.76) than the CMS farms (0.78), a significant difference in these estimates was not observed. This indicates that the farms were not different in their ability to use inputs (capital, labor, cows, and land) to produce outputs (total farm revenues). The technical efficiency of farms invested in an AMS in 2008 or earlier was not different from the farms invested in 2009 or 2010, indicating that a learning effect during the transition period was not observed. The results indicate that the economic performance of AMS and CMS farms are similar. What these results show is that other than higher capital costs, the use of AMS rather than a CMS does not affect farm efficiency and that the learning costs to use an AMS are not present as measured by any fall in technical efficiency. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Does Human Capital Investment Impact the Earning Mobility of the Near Poor?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karasik, Bradley

2012-01-01

This secondary analysis of the earning mobility of the near poor examined the impact of human capital investment on the earning mobility of the near poor between 2005 and 2009. The theory framing this study is Human Capital Theory (Shultz, 1961). Other demographic and socioeconomic variables were included in this study to further explore factors…

Globalisation and Its Educational Discontents: Neoliberalisation and Its Impacts on Education Workers' Rights, Pay and Conditions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Dave

2005-01-01

This article examines some impacts of neoliberal education policies during the current period of the intensification of neoliberal capital. Section 1 examines the relationship between education and capital, identifying three plans capital has in relation to education. It sets out some of the major aspects of neoliberal policy developments in…

The impact of a prevention delivery system on perceived social capital: the PROSPER project.

PubMed

Chilenski, Sarah M; Ang, Patricia M; Greenberg, Mark T; Feinberg, Mark E; Spoth, Richard

2014-04-01

The current study examined the impact of the PROSPER delivery system for evidence-based prevention programs on multiple indicators of social capital in a rural and semi-rural community sample. Utilizing a randomized blocked design, 317 individuals in 28 communities across two states were interviewed at three time points over the course of 2.5 years. Bridging, linking, and the public life skills forms of social capital were assessed via community members' and leaders' reports on the perceptions of school functioning and the Cooperative Extension System, collaboration among organizations, communication and collaboration around youth problems, and other measures. Longitudinal mixed model results indicate significant improvements in some aspects of bridging and linking social capital in PROSPER intervention communities. Given the strength of the longitudinal and randomized research design, results advance prevention science by suggesting that community collaborative prevention initiatives can significantly impact community social capital in a rural and semi-rural sample. Future research should further investigate changes in social capital in different contexts and how changes in social capital relate to other intervention effects.

Biobanking 3.0: evidence based and customer focused biobanking.

PubMed

Simeon-Dubach, Daniel; Watson, Peter

2014-03-01

Biobanking is a new and very dynamic field. To achieve long term financial sustainability of biobank infrastructures we propose that a new focus is needed on activities, products and services provided by the biobank that relate to the external stakeholder: biobanking 3.0. Earlier stages of biobanking are biobanking 1.0 (primary focus on the number of biospecimens and data) and biobanking 2.0 (primary focus on the quality of biospecimens and data). Both stages 1.0 and 2.0 are predominantly product oriented areas and have required a mostly internal focus on operational development within the biobank itself. In this paper we will introduce our concept of biobanking 3.0 which capitalizes on the earlier stages but dictates a shift in focus to enhancing the value and impact for the three major sets of external stakeholders (people/patients, funders, and research customers) and creating a path to balanced and planned investment in biobank infrastructure and the sustainability of biobanking. Biobanking 3.0 will improve real understanding as well as perceptions of value across different stakeholders. Patients and donors will appreciate seeing how their biospecimens and data are effectively used for research. Funders will value the ability to plan efficient targeting of funding and to monitor the impact of their support. Researchers will capitalize on the ability to translate their ideas into effective knowledge. Ultimately adoption of biobanking 3.0 will impact on the sustainability in the three main dimensions relevant to biobanking: social sustainability (acceptability), operational sustainability (efficiency), and financial sustainability (accomplishment). Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social capital, ideology, and health in the United States.

PubMed

Herian, Mitchel N; Tay, Louis; Hamm, Joseph A; Diener, Ed

2014-03-01

Research from across disciplines has demonstrated that social and political contextual factors at the national and subnational levels can impact the health and health behavior risks of individuals. This paper examines the impact of state-level social capital and ideology on individual-level health outcomes in the U.S. Leveraging the variation that exists across states in the U.S., the results reveal that individuals report better health in states with higher levels of governmental liberalism and in states with higher levels of social capital. Critically, however, the effect of social capital was moderated by liberalism such that social capital was a stronger predictor of health in states with low levels of liberalism. We interpret this finding to mean that social capital within a political unit-as indicated by measures of interpersonal trust-can serve as a substitute for the beneficial impacts that might result from an active governmental structure. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social Capital and the Educational Achievement of Young People in Sweden

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Behtoui, Alireza; Neergaard, Anders

2016-01-01

Based on Bourdieu's conceptualization of social capital (the social stratification perspective), this study examines the impact of social capital on the educational outcomes of young people in Sweden, with a focus on the extra-familial aspect of social capital -- that is, social capital generated by parental networks and active membership in…

The Impact of Community Bonding and Bridging Social Capital on Educational Performance in Israel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Menahem, Gila

2011-01-01

The study examines two issues of the relationship between social capital and educational performance: the different effects of bridging and bonding social capital on urban educational performance and the contextual effects of social capital. The main argument states that bonding and bridging social capital are differently related to educational…

The Utility of Vulnerability and Social Capital Theories in Studying the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Elderly

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durant, Thomas J., Jr.

2011-01-01

The definition of a disaster is followed by an explanation of vulnerability and social capital theories. The importance of using a sound theoretical framework and the utility and efficacy of vulnerability and social capital theories in studying the impact of natural disasters on the elderly population are emphasized and discussed. The conclusion…

Value-based investing for government infrastructure : financing Virginia's roads, final research report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-01-01

One of the reasons that market economies create high standards of living is the efficiency of their capital markets. The main task of capital markets is to channel scarce capital resources into their most highly valued uses. This is a difficult and c...

Association between reduction in copayment and gastric cancer patient concentration to the capital area in South Korea: NHI cohort 2003-2013.

PubMed

Han, Kyu-Tae; Kim, Jeeyun; Nam, Chung Mo; Moon, Ki Tae; Lee, Sang Gyu; Kim, Seung Ju; Ju, Yeong Jun; Kwon, Jeoung A; Kim, Sun Jung; Kim, Woorim; Park, Eun-Cheol

2016-06-01

Since 2004, the South Korean government has introduced a policy that decreases copayment for cancer patients by strengthening public coverage in the National Health Insurance (NHI) system (first phase=copayment for outpatient care from 30% to 20%; second phase=copayment for total medical expenditures from 20% to 10%; third phase=copayment for total medical expenditures from 10% to 5%). We aimed to investigate the relationship between the policy introduction and patient visits to hospitals in the capital area. We used data from the NHI Cohort 2003-2013, which included all medical claims (7193 cases) filed for 2124 patients who visited the hospital due to stomach cancer, and performed a segmented Poisson regression analysis. Of all hospital visits, 40.6% of patients were from the capital area. After the introduction of the second phase of the policy, there was an increase in patient concentration in the capital area, although there were no significant effects on patient concentration during the first and third phases of the policy. In conclusion, our findings suggest that the introduction of a policy that reduces copayment for cancer patients had a substantial impact on patient concentration in the capital area. Therefore, health policymakers should consider effective alternatives including efficient allocation of medical resources or support for the more vulnerable population as flexible benefit plans to aid healthcare utilization by cancer patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social capital and child nutrition in India: The moderating role of development.

PubMed

Vikram, Kriti

2018-03-01

Empirical studies of social capital rarely take into account the socioeconomic context of the region in which it operates, indeed as most of this research has been located in high income countries. It is imperative to investigate how development may influence the impact of social capital, especially in developing countries. This paper examines the relationship between social capital and child nutrition using the India Human Development Survey, 2005-2006. Using a multilevel framework and a sample of 6770 rural children under the age of five, it finds that household based bridging social capital, expressed as connections with development based organizations, is positively associated with child nutrition. Bonding social capital, expressed as ties with caste and religious based organizations, has the opposite impact. At the village level, contextual measures of social capital are associated with nutritional status of children, but their influence is conditional on local development. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A multiple indicator, multiple cause method for representing social capital with an application to psychological distress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Congdon, Peter

2010-03-01

This paper describes a structural equation methodology for obtaining social capital scores for survey subjects from multiple indicators of social support, neighbourhood and trust perceptions, and memberships of organizations. It adjusts for variation that is likely to occur in levels of social capital according to geographic context (e.g. level of area deprivation, geographic region, level of urbanity) and demographic group. Social capital is used as an explanatory factor for psychological distress using data from the 2006 Health Survey for England. A highly significant effect of social capital in reducing the chance of psychiatric caseness is obtained after controlling for other individual and geographic risk factors. Allowing for social capital has considerable effects on the impacts on psychiatric health of other risk factors. In particular, the impact of area deprivation category is much reduced. There is also evidence of significant differentiation in social capital between population categories and geographic contexts.

The impact of psychological capital on job burnout of Chinese nurses: the mediator role of organizational commitment.

PubMed

Peng, Jiaxi; Jiang, Xihua; Zhang, Jiaxi; Xiao, Runxuan; Song, Yunyun; Feng, Xi; Zhang, Yan; Miao, Danmin

2013-01-01

Nursing has a high risk of job burnout, but only a few studies have explored its influencing factors from an organizational perspective. The present study explores the impact of psychological capital on job burnout by investigating the mediating effect of organizational commitment on this relationship. A total of 473 female nurses from four large general hospitals in Xi'an City of China were selected as participants. Data were collected via the Psychological Capital Questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey, and the Organizational Commitment Scale. Both psychological capital and organizational commitment were significantly correlated to job burnout. Structural equation modelling indicated that organizational commitment partially mediated the relationship between psychological capital and job burnout. The final model revealed a significant path from psychological capital to job burnout through organizational commitment. These findings extended prior reports and shed some light on the influence of psychological capital on job burnout.

Measuring energy efficiency in economics: Shadow value approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khademvatani, Asgar

For decades, academic scholars and policy makers have commonly applied a simple average measure, energy intensity, for studying energy efficiency. In contrast, we introduce a distinctive marginal measure called energy shadow value (SV) for modeling energy efficiency drawn on economic theory. This thesis demonstrates energy SV advantages, conceptually and empirically, over the average measure recognizing marginal technical energy efficiency and unveiling allocative energy efficiency (energy SV to energy price). Using a dual profit function, the study illustrates how treating energy as quasi-fixed factor called quasi-fixed approach offers modeling advantages and is appropriate in developing an explicit model for energy efficiency. We address fallacies and misleading results using average measure and demonstrate energy SV advantage in inter- and intra-country energy efficiency comparison. Energy efficiency dynamics and determination of efficient allocation of energy use are shown through factors impacting energy SV: capital, technology, and environmental obligations. To validate the energy SV, we applied a dual restricted cost model using KLEM dataset for the 35 US sectors stretching from 1958 to 2000 and selected a sample of the four sectors. Following the empirical results, predicted wedges between energy price and the SV growth indicate a misallocation of energy use in stone, clay and glass (SCG) and communications (Com) sectors with more evidence in the SCG compared to the Com sector, showing overshoot in energy use relative to optimal paths and cost increases from sub-optimal energy use. The results show that energy productivity is a measure of technical efficiency and is void of information on the economic efficiency of energy use. Decomposing energy SV reveals that energy, capital and technology played key roles in energy SV increases helping to consider and analyze policy implications of energy efficiency improvement. Applying the marginal measure, we also contributed to energy efficiency convergence analysis employing the delta-convergence and unconditional & conditional beta-convergence concepts, investigating economic energy efficiency differences across the four US sectors using panel data models. The results show that, in terms of technical and allocative energy efficiency, the energy-intensive sectors, SCG and textile mill products, tend to catch the energy extensive sectors, the Com and furniture & fixtures, being conditional on sector-specific characteristics. Conditional convergence results indicate that technology, capital and energy are crucial factors in determining energy efficiency differences across the US sectors, implying that environmental or energy policies, and technological changes should be industry specific across the US sectors. The main finding is that the marginal value measure conveys information on both technical and allocative energy efficiency and accounts for all costs and benefits of energy consumption including environmental and externality costs.

In search of links between social capital, mental health and sociotherapy: a longitudinal study in Rwanda.

PubMed

Verduin, Femke; Smid, Geert E; Wind, Tim R; Scholte, Willem F

2014-11-01

To date, reviews show inconclusive results on the association between social capital and mental health. Evidence that social capital can intentionally be promoted is also scarce. Promotion of social capital may impact post-conflict recovery through both increased social cohesion and better mental health. However, studies on community interventions and social capital have mostly relied on cross-sectional study designs. We present a longitudinal study in Rwanda on the effect on social capital and mental health of sociotherapy, a community-based psychosocial group intervention consisting of fifteen weekly group sessions. We hypothesized that the intervention would impact social capital and, as a result of that, mental health. We used a quasi-experimental study design with measurement points pre- and post-intervention and at eight months follow-up (2007-2008). Considering sex and living situation, we selected 100 adults for our experimental group. We formed a control group of 100 respondents with similar symptom score distribution, age, and sex from a random community sample in the same region. Mental health was assessed by use of the Self Reporting Questionnaire, and social capital through a locally adapted version of the short Adapted Social Capital Assessment Tool. It measures three elements of social capital: cognitive social capital, support, and civic participation. Latent growth models were used to examine whether effects of sociotherapy on mental health and social capital were related. Civic participation increased with 7% in the intervention group versus 2% in controls; mental health improved with 10% versus 5% (both: p < 0.001). Linear changes over time were not significantly correlated. Support and cognitive social capital did not show consistent changes. These findings hint at the possibility to foster social capital and simultaneously impact mental health. Further identification of pathways of influence may contribute to the designing of psychosocial interventions that effectively promote recovery in war-affected populations. Nederlands Trial Register 1120. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmental management and labour productivity: The moderating role of capital intensity.

PubMed

Lannelongue, Gustavo; Gonzalez-Benito, Javier; Quiroz, Idaisa

2017-04-01

Recent years have seen firms improve their environmental practices, although the question still remains as to whether or not investing in such practices is or is not beneficial or simply a matter of image. This study focuses on labour productivity as a measure of performance, and we argue that the impact of greater environmental performance on that productivity is moderated by capital intensity. A sample of 2823 plants provides empirical evidence to support our approach. Specifically, the analyses, making use of estimates based on multiple regression models, reveal that environmental management has a positive impact on labour productivity in organisations with low capital intensity, although that impact becomes negative in cases of high capital intensity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Impact of Latino Immigrants in Grand Rapids' Urban Development: A Social Capital Approach. JSRI Research Report No. 37

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siles, Marcelo; Robison, Lindon J.; Cuellar, Israel; Garcia, Carlos; LaHousse, Sheila F.

2006-01-01

Social capital is a person or group's sympathy for others. The social capital paradigm includes social capital, networks, socio-emotional goods, attachment values, institutions, and power. This paper describes how social capital is used within Latino communities in the Grand Rapids Metropolitan Area of Michigan. It describes migration, housing,…

Human capital, social capital and social exclusion: impacts on the opportunity of households with youth to leave poverty.

PubMed

Wong, Hung

2006-01-01

Based on a sample survey, this paper, analyzes the impact of human capital, social capital and social exclusion on the opportunity of Hong Kong families with youth members to leave poverty. Educational attainment of the youth members and adult family members, as well as the quantity and quality of social networks were found to have significant positive impacts, while social exclusion from the labor market of the adult members was found to have significant negative impact on their opportunity to leave poverty. Among all factors, quality of social network is the most influential. The author suggests that in order to help families out of poverty and enable positive development of youth members, poverty alleviation policies or programs should be targeted to help the youth in poor families to build up a quality social network.

Methodology for the optimal design of an integrated first and second generation ethanol production plant combined with power cogeneration.

PubMed

Bechara, Rami; Gomez, Adrien; Saint-Antonin, Valérie; Schweitzer, Jean-Marc; Maréchal, François

2016-08-01

The application of methodologies for the optimal design of integrated processes has seen increased interest in literature. This article builds on previous works and applies a systematic methodology to an integrated first and second generation ethanol production plant with power cogeneration. The methodology breaks into process simulation, heat integration, thermo-economic evaluation, exergy efficiency vs. capital costs, multi-variable, evolutionary optimization, and process selection via profitability maximization. Optimization generated Pareto solutions with exergy efficiency ranging between 39.2% and 44.4% and capital costs from 210M$ to 390M$. The Net Present Value was positive for only two scenarios and for low efficiency, low hydrolysis points. The minimum cellulosic ethanol selling price was sought to obtain a maximum NPV of zero for high efficiency, high hydrolysis alternatives. The obtained optimal configuration presented maximum exergy efficiency, hydrolyzed bagasse fraction, capital costs and ethanol production rate, and minimum cooling water consumption and power production rate. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measuring Social Capital among Youth: Applications in Environmental Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krasny, Marianne E.; Kalbacker, Leigh; Stedman, Richard C.; Russ, Alex

2015-01-01

Although critiqued for circular reasoning and lack of definitional and analytic clarity, social capital has garnered widespread interest in two areas relevant to environmental education (EE): the impact of family and community-level social capital on positive youth development and of community-level social capital in fostering collective action to…

The differential impact of low-carbon technologies on climate change mitigation cost under a range of socioeconomic and climate policy scenarios.

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

Barron, Robert W.; McJeon, Haewon C.

2015-05-01

This paper considers the effect of several key parameters of low carbon energy technologies on the cost of abatement. A methodology for determining the minimum level of performance required for a parameter to have a statistically significant impact on CO2 abatement cost is developed and used to evaluate the impact of eight key parameters of low carbon energy supply technologies on the cost of CO2 abatement. The capital cost of nuclear technology is found to have the greatest impact of the parameters studied. The cost of biomass and CCS technologies also have impacts, while their efficiencies have little, if any.more » Sensitivity analysis of the results with respect to population, GDP, and CO2 emission constraint show that the minimum performance level and impact of nuclear technologies is consistent across the socioeconomic scenarios studied, while the other technology parameters show different performance under higher population, lower GDP scenarios. Solar technology was found to have a small impact, and then only at very low costs. These results indicate that the cost of nuclear is the single most important driver of abatement cost, and that trading efficiency for cost may make biomass and CCS technologies more competitive.« less

Cultural capital as a measurand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taymanov, R.; Sapozhnikova, K.

2016-11-01

The necessity for developing metrology due to extension of its application sphere is noted. The efficiency of the metrological approach to measurement of multidimensional quantities in the field of humanities is shown using the development of cultural capital interpreted by L. Harrison. The cultural capital is defined as a measure of the society structure complexity and adaptive capacity.

Climate change policies: The role of democracy and social cognitive capital.

PubMed

Obydenkova, Anastassia V; Salahodjaev, Raufhon

2017-08-01

The impact of democracy on governments' choice of environmental policies has attracted significant academic attention in recent years. However, less attention has been devoted to the role of the social cognitive capital of the national population. Does society's cognitive capital matter in governmental choice regarding environmental policies, if at all? This study addresses this question through a large-N analysis of 94 countries accounting for the role of both political regimes and social capital in governmental choice of climate change policies. We find that higher social cognitive capital within a democratic state radically increases that state's commitment to adopt environmental policies. More specifically, a 1-point increase in the democracy index is associated with nearly 5 points increase in the adoption of the Climate Laws, Institutions and Measures Index (CLIMI). In a similar vein, a 10 points increase in social cognitive capital is associated with a nearly 16 points increase in CLIMI. The findings presented in this study aim to contribute to the ongoing debate on the impact of democracy and the cognitive capital of society on international environmentalism. The findings will also be interesting for scholars working on the impact of political institutional factors and the role of society in environmental policy choices made at the international level. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Increasing Returns to Education and the Impact on Social Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leeves, Gareth D.

2014-01-01

The returns to education have been increasing. It is suggested that high-skilled workers' social capital investment has been adversely affected by the increasing incentives to devote human capital to career development. Lower social capital is linked to reduced economic growth and innovation and higher transaction costs and is detrimental to…

Bringing human, social, and natural capital to life: practical consequences and opportunities.

PubMed

Fisher, William P

2011-01-01

Capital is defined mathematically as the abstract meaning brought to life in the two phases of the development of "transferable representations," which are the legal, financial, and scientific instruments we take for granted in almost every aspect of our daily routines. The first, conceptual and gestational, and the second, parturitional and maturational, phases in the creation and development of capital are contrasted. Human, social, and natural forms of capital should be brought to life with at least the same amounts of energy and efficiency as have been invested in manufactured and liquid capital, and property. A mathematical law of living capital is stated. Two examples of well-measured human capital are offered. The paper concludes with suggestions for the ways that future research might best capitalize on the mathematical definition of capital.

Ocean sequestration of crop residue carbon: recycling fossil fuel carbon back to deep sediments.

PubMed

Strand, Stuart E; Benford, Gregory

2009-02-15

For significant impact any method to remove CO2 from the atmosphere must process large amounts of carbon efficiently, be repeatable, sequester carbon for thousands of years, be practical, economical and be implemented soon. The only method that meets these criteria is removal of crop residues and burial in the deep ocean. We show here that this method is 92% efficient in sequestration of crop residue carbon while cellulosic ethanol production is only 32% and soil sequestration is about 14% efficient. Deep ocean sequestration can potentially capture 15% of the current global CO2 annual increase, returning that carbon backto deep sediments, confining the carbon for millennia, while using existing capital infrastructure and technology. Because of these clear advantages, we recommend enhanced research into permanent sequestration of crop residues in the deep ocean.

Social Capital and Entrepreneurial Behaviour Advancing Innovativeness in Interaction between Small Rural Entrepreneurs and Researchers: A Phenomenographic Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iivonen, Sari; Kyro, Paula; Mynttinen, Sinikka; Sarkka-Tirkkonen, Marjo; Kahiluoto, Helena

2011-01-01

Innovation processes between entrepreneurs and researchers are activated by interaction. Social capital increases the efficiency of action, for example, information dissemination by minimising redundancy. To learn more about how to build and develop social capital assumes that we understand how entrepreneurs behave and what their expectations of…

Accessing Secondary Markets as a Capital Source for Energy Efficiency Finance Programs: Program Design Considerations for Policymakers and Administrators

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

Kramer, C.; Martin, E. Fadrhonc; Thompson, P.

Estimates of the total opportunity for investment in cost-effective energy efficiency in the United States are typically in the range of several hundred billion dollars (Choi Granade, et al., 2009 and Fulton & Brandenburg, 2012).1,2 To access this potential, many state policymakers and utility regulators have established aggressive energy efficiency savings targets. Current levels of taxpayer and utility bill-payer funding for energy efficiency is only a small fraction of the total investment needed to meet these targets (SEE Action Financing Solutions Working Group, 2013). Given this challenge, some energy efficiency program administrators are working to access private capital sources withmore » the aim of amplifying the funds available for investment. In this context, efficient access to secondary market capital has been advanced as one important enabler of the energy efficiency industry “at scale.”3 The question of what role secondary markets can play in bringing energy efficiency to scale is largely untested despite extensive attention from media, technical publications, advocates, and others. Only a handful of transactions of energy efficiency loan products have been executed to date, and it is too soon to draw robust conclusions from these deals. At the same time, energy efficiency program administrators and policymakers face very real decisions regarding whether and how to access secondary markets as part of their energy efficiency deployment strategy.« less

Identifying Automotive Changes in Facilities and Capital Equipment and Assessing Community and Employment Impacts

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1981-05-01

The paper presents a brief overview of the many forces impacting the automotive and related industries, and the resultant implications of these forces on facilities, employment and communities. It focuses on the facility planning and capital investme...

The impact of transit-oriented development on social capital : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-10-01

This paper focuses on the ability of Transit Oriented Development (TOD) to improve social capital and interactions within a community. The expectation is that TOD has a positive impact on the lifestyle and activities of individuals who reside, work, ...

Alcohol use and the wage returns to education and work experience.

PubMed

Bray, Jeremy W; Hinde, Jesse M; Aldridge, Arnie P

2018-02-01

Despite a widely held belief that alcohol use should negatively impact wages, much of the literature on the topic suggests a positive relationship between nonproblematic alcohol use and wages. Studies on the effect of alcohol use on educational attainment have also failed to find a consistent, negative effect of alcohol use on years of education. Thus, the connections between alcohol use, human capital, and wages remain a topic of debate in the literature. In this study, we use the 1997 cohort of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to estimate a theoretical model of wage determination that links alcohol use to wages via human capital. We find that nonbinge drinking is associated with lower wage returns to education whereas binge drinking is associated with increased wage returns to both education and work experience. We interpret these counterintuitive results as evidence that alcohol use affects wages through both the allocative and productive efficiency of human capital formation and that these effects operate in offsetting directions. We suggest that alcohol control policies should be more nuanced to target alcohol consumption in the contexts within which it causes harm. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Life cycle assessment of capital goods in waste management systems.

PubMed

Brogaard, Line K; Christensen, Thomas H

2016-10-01

The environmental importance of capital goods (trucks, buildings, equipment, etc.) was quantified by LCA modelling 1 tonne of waste treated in five different waste management scenarios. The scenarios involved a 240L collection bin, a 16m(3) collection truck, a composting plant, an anaerobic digestion plant, an incinerator and a landfill site. The contribution of capital goods to the overall environmental aspects of managing the waste was significant but varied greatly depending on the technology and the impact category: Global Warming: 1-17%, Stratospheric Ozone Depletion: 2-90%, Ionising Radiation, Human Health: 2-91%, Photochemical Ozone Formation: 2-56%, Freshwater Eutrophication: 0.05-99%, Marine Eutrophication: 0.03-8%, Terrestrial Acidification: 2-13%, Terrestrial Eutrophication: 1-8%, Particulate Matter: 11-26%, Human Toxicity, Cancer Effect: 10-92%, Human Toxicity, non-Cancer Effect: 1-71%, Freshwater Ecotoxicity: 3-58%. Depletion of Abiotic Resources - Fossil: 1-31% and Depletion of Abiotic Resources - Elements (Reserve base): 74-99%. The single most important contribution by capital goods was made by the high use of steel. Environmental impacts from capital goods are more significant for treatment facilities than for the collection and transportation of waste and for the landfilling of waste. It is concluded that the environmental impacts of capital goods should always be included in the LCA modelling of waste management, unless the only impact category considered is Global Warming. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Does Human Capital Matter? A Meta-Analysis of the Relationship between Human Capital and Firm Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crook, T. Russell; Todd, Samuel Y.; Combs, James G.; Woehr, David J.; Ketchen, David J., Jr.

2011-01-01

Theory at both the micro and macro level predicts that investments in superior human capital generate better firm-level performance. However, human capital takes time and money to develop or acquire, which potentially offsets its positive benefits. Indeed, extant tests appear equivocal regarding its impact. To clarify what is known, we…

Elementary Teachers' Perception of Professional Capital within Their Community of Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Allison Edwards

2017-01-01

Many teachers, after having worked in isolation for so long and a business capital model of education reform, do not understand the concept of professional capital and its impact for transforming education. The purpose of this study was to examine elementary teachers' perception of professional capital within their community of practice. The data…

The impact of corruption on the sustainable development of human capital

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Absalyamova, Svetlana; Absalyamov, Timur; Khusnullova, Asiya; Mukhametgalieva, Chulpan

2016-08-01

The article explains the use of the human capital sustainable development index (HCSDI) to assess the quality of the reproduction of human capital. The paper provides the algorithm for calculating HCSDI and its components. Authors estimated cross-country differences of HCSDI and developed econometric model of the impact of corruption on HCSDI. The use of this model has allowed to reveal the mechanism and assess the impact of corruption on HCSDI and its components. The results of econometric analysis revealed a negative multiplier effect: an increase in the corruption of the socio-economic system of the state by 1% caused HCSDI reduce by more than 1%. The results and conclusions may be proxy-assessments of the socio-economic consequences of violations of the stability of reproduction of human capital in the conditions of the growth of corruption in the country

Neuromorphic sensory systems.

PubMed

Liu, Shih-Chii; Delbruck, Tobi

2010-06-01

Biology provides examples of efficient machines which greatly outperform conventional technology. Designers in neuromorphic engineering aim to construct electronic systems with the same efficient style of computation. This task requires a melding of novel engineering principles with knowledge gleaned from neuroscience. We discuss recent progress in realizing neuromorphic sensory systems which mimic the biological retina and cochlea, and subsequent sensor processing. The main trends are the increasing number of sensors and sensory systems that communicate through asynchronous digital signals analogous to neural spikes; the improved performance and usability of these sensors; and novel sensory processing methods which capitalize on the timing of spikes from these sensors. Experiments using these sensors can impact how we think the brain processes sensory information. 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Impact of News Use and Social Capital on Youth Wellbeing: An Aggregate-Level Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaudoin, Christopher E.

2007-01-01

The current study explores the socioenvironmental determinants of youth development, with a focus on the mass media and social capital; it tests a model in which news use and social capital influence youth wellbeing. Social capital is operationally defined in terms of youth involvement and perceptions of place, and youth wellbeing is measured with…

Capital requirements and fuel-cycle energy and emissions impacts of potential PNGV fuels.

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

Johnson, L.; Mintz, M.; Singh, M.

1999-03-11

Our study reveals that supplying gasoline-equivalent demand for the low-market-share scenario requires a capital investment of less thanmore » $$40 billion for all fuels except H{sub 2}, which will require a total cumulative investment of $$150 billion. By contrast, cumulative capital investments under the high-market-share scenario are $50 billion for LNG, $90 billion for ethanol, $100 billion for methanol, $160 billion for CNG and DME, and $560 billion for H{sub 2}. Although these substantial capital requirements are spread over many years, their magnitude could pose a challenge to the widespread introduction of 3X vehicles. Fossil fuel use by US light-duty vehicles declines significantly with introduction of 3X vehicles because of fuel-efficiency improvements for 3X vehicles and because of fuel substitution (which applies to the nonpetroleum-fueled alternatives). Petroleum use for light-duty vehicles in 2030 is reduced by as much as 45% relative to the reference scenario. GHG emissions follow a similar pattern. Total GHG emissions decline by 25-30% with most of the propulsion system/fuel alternatives. For those using renewable fuels (i.e., ethanol and H{sub 2} from solar energy), GHG emissions drop by 33% (H{sub 2}) and 45% (ethanol). Among urban air pollutants, urban NOX emissions decline slightly for 3X vehicles using CIDI and SIDI engines and drop substantially for fuel-cell vehicles. Urban CO emissions decline for CIDI and FCV alternatives, while VOC emissions drop significantly for all alternatives except RFG-, methanol-, and ethanol-fueled SIDI engines. With the exception of CIDI engines fueled by RFD, FT50, or B20 (which increase urban PM{sub 10} emissions by over 30%), all propulsion system/fuel alternatives reduce urban PM{sub 10} emissions. Reductions are approximately 15-20% for fuel cells and for methanol-, ethanol-, CNG-, or LPG-fueled SIDI engines. Table 3 qualitatively summarizes impacts of the 13 alternatives on capital requirements and on energy use and emissions relative to the reference scenario. The table clearly shows the trade-off between costs and benefits. For example, while H{sub 2} FCVs have the greatest incremental capital needs, they offer the largest energy and emissions benefits. On the basis of the cost and benefit changes shown, methanol and gasoline FCVs appear to have particularly promising benefits-to-costs ratios.« less

Making Tax-Exempt Capital Financing Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kavanagh, Richard E.

1985-01-01

Large and small businesses have long financed capital projects through tax-exempt financing. Colleges that need large sums of money to retrofit campuses with energy-efficient equipment can achieve the lowest borrowing cost available through bond insurance. (Author/MSE)

The effects of social capital and social pressure on the intention to have a second or third child in France, Germany, and Bulgaria, 2004-05.

PubMed

Balbo, Nicoletta; Mills, Melinda

2011-11-01

This study investigates the importance of the effect of an individual's web of informal relationships with family and peers on the intention to have a second or third child. Drawing on sociological theories of social capital (help with childcare, emotional support) and social pressure, the study extends existing research by evaluating cross-national differences (between France, Germany, and Bulgaria) in the impact of personal network and institutional circumstances. It tests a non-linear relationship between social capital and fertility intentions. Social pressure and social capital are highly institutionally filtered, with the impact of personal network stronger where institutions are less family-supportive.

Impact of Psychological Capital on Occupational Burnout and Performance of Faculty Members

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rehman, Saif ur; Qingren, Cao; Latif, Yasir; Iqbal, Pervaiz

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact and interrelation between positive psychological capital and occupational burnout among faculty associates of technical and professional training institutions. Design/methodology/approach: In total, 282 faculty members from 17 technical institutions were selected from the province of…

Operational and financial impact of physician screening in the ED.

PubMed

Soremekun, Olanrewaju A; Biddinger, Paul D; White, Benjamin A; Sinclair, Julia R; Chang, Yuchiao; Carignan, Sarah B; Brown, David F M

2012-05-01

Physician screening is one of many front-end interventions being implemented to improve emergency department (ED) efficiency. We aimed to quantify the operational and financial impact of this intervention at an urban tertiary academic center. We conducted a 2-year before-after analysis of a physician screening system at an urban tertiary academic center with 90 000 annual visits. Financial impact consisted of the ED and inpatient revenue generated from the incremental capacity and the reduction in left without being seen (LWBS) rates. The ED and inpatient margin contribution as well as capital expenditure were based on available published data. We summarized the financial impact using net present value of future cash flows performing sensitivity analysis on the assumptions. Operational outcome measures were ED length of stay and percentage of LWBS. During the first year, we estimate the contribution margin of the screening system to be $2.71 million and the incremental operational cost to be $1.86 million. Estimated capital expenditure for the system was $1 200 000. The NPV of this investment was $2.82 million, and time to break even from the initial investment was 13 months. Operationally, despite a 16.7% increase in patient volume and no decrease in boarding hours, there was a 7.4% decrease in ED length of stay and a reduction in LWBS from 3.3% to 1.8%. In addition to improving operational measures, the implementation of a physician screening program in the ED allowed for an incremental increase in patient care capacity leading to an overall positive financial impact. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social capital interventions targeting older people and their impact on health: a systematic review.

PubMed

Coll-Planas, Laura; Nyqvist, Fredrica; Puig, Teresa; Urrútia, Gerard; Solà, Ivan; Monteserín, Rosa

2017-07-01

Observational studies show that social capital is a protective health factor. Therefore, we aim to assess the currently unclear health impact of social capital interventions targeting older adults. We conducted a systematic review based on a logic model. Studies published between January 1980 and July 2015 were retrieved from MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Web of Science. We included randomised controlled trials targeting participants over 60 years old and focused on social capital or its components (eg, social support and social participation). The comparison group should not promote social capital. We assessed risk of bias and impact on health outcomes and use of health-related resources applying a procedure from the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) based on vote-counting and standardised decision rules. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (reference number CRD42014015362). We examined 17 341 abstracts and included 73 papers reporting 36 trials. Trials were clinically and methodologically diverse and reported positive effects in different contexts, populations and interventions across multiple subjective and objective measures. According to sufficiently reported outcomes, social capital interventions showed mixed effects on quality of life, well-being and self-perceived health and were generally ineffective on loneliness, mood and mortality. Eight trials with high quality showed favourable impacts on overall, mental and physical health, mortality and use of health-related resources. Our review highlights the lack of evidence and the diversity among trials, while supporting the potential of social capital interventions to reach comprehensive health effects in older adults. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Methodical approaches to value assessment and determination of the capitalization level of high-rise construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smirnov, Vitaly; Dashkov, Leonid; Gorshkov, Roman; Burova, Olga; Romanova, Alina

2018-03-01

The article presents the analysis of the methodological approaches to cost estimation and determination of the capitalization level of high-rise construction objects. Factors determining the value of real estate were considered, three main approaches for estimating the value of real estate objects are given. The main methods of capitalization estimation were analyzed, the most reasonable method for determining the level of capitalization of high-rise buildings was proposed. In order to increase the value of real estate objects, the author proposes measures that enable to increase significantly the capitalization of the enterprise through more efficient use of intangible assets and goodwill.

Implications of the method of capital cost payment on the weighted average cost of capital.

PubMed Central

Boles, K E

1986-01-01

The author develops a theoretical and mathematical model, based on published financial management literature, to describe the cost of capital structure for health care delivery entities. This model is then used to generate the implications of changing the capital cost reimbursement mechanism from a cost basis to a prospective basis. The implications are that the cost of capital is increased substantially, the use of debt must be restricted, interest rates for borrowed funds will increase, and, initially, firms utilizing debt efficiently under cost-basis reimbursement will be restricted to the generation of funds from equity only under a prospective system. PMID:3525468

Capitation and risk adjustment in health care financing: an international progress report.

PubMed

Rice, N; Smith, P C

2001-01-01

In every system of health care, capitation payments have become the accepted tool used by health care purchasers in much of the developed world to determine prospective budgets. The policy prescription of capitation is perceived to address both equity objectives (of great importance in publicly funded systems of health care) and efficiency objectives (the dominant concern in competitive insurance markets). An examination of the current state of the art in 20 countries outside the United States in which health care capitation has been implemented confirms that capitation has assumed central importance within diverse systems of health care. In practice, however, the setting of capitation payments has been heavily constrained to date by poor data availability and unsatisfactory analytic methodology.

Study on the ownership balance and the efficiency of mixed ownership enterprises from the perspective of heterogeneous shareholders

PubMed Central

Yin, Zhujia; Liu, Lijuan; Wang, Haidong

2018-01-01

Based on the database data of Chinese industrial enterprises from 2000 to 2007 and the LP method, this paper measures the total factor productivity of enterprises and investigates the effect of different mixed ownership forms on enterprises’ efficiency and the effect of heterogeneous ownership balance on the mixed ownership enterprises’ efficiency. The state-owned enterprise and mixed ownership enterprise are identified by the enterprise’s paid-up capital. The results show that, on the whole, for the mixed ownership enterprise, the higher the diversification degree of the shareholders is, the higher the efficiency becomes, and in different types of industries, the mixed forms of shareholders have different effects on the efficiency of enterprises. The heterogeneous ownership balance and the enterprise efficiency show nonlinear U-type relationships. Both the higher and lower heterogeneous ownership balance degrees will promote the enterprise’s efficiency. However, when the ownership balance degree is in the range of [0.2 0.5], the increase in ownership balance will lead to the decline of enterprise efficiency. Therefore, when introducing non-state-owned capital, state-owned enterprises should take full account of their own characteristics by rationally controlling the shareholding ratio of non-state-owned capital and play the positive role of a mixed ownership structure in corporate governance with appropriate ownership balances. PMID:29614126

Nature as capital: Advancing and incorporating ecosystem services in United States federal policies and programs.

PubMed

Schaefer, Mark; Goldman, Erica; Bartuska, Ann M; Sutton-Grier, Ariana; Lubchenco, Jane

2015-06-16

The concept of nature as capital is gaining visibility in policies and practices in both the public and private sectors. This change is due to an improved ability to assess and value ecosystem services, as well as to a growing recognition of the potential of an ecosystem services approach to make tradeoffs in decision making more transparent, inform efficient use of resources, enhance resilience and sustainability, and avoid unintended negative consequences of policy actions. Globally, governments, financial institutions, and corporations have begun to incorporate natural capital accounting in their policies and practices. In the United States, universities, nongovernmental organizations, and federal agencies are actively collaborating to develop and apply ecosystem services concepts to further national environmental and economic objectives. Numerous federal agencies have begun incorporating these concepts into land use planning, water resources management, and preparations for, and responses to, climate change. Going forward, well-defined policy direction will be necessary to institutionalize ecosystem services approaches in federal agencies, as well as to guide intersector and interdisciplinary collaborative research and development efforts. In addition, a new generation of decision support tools are needed to further the practical application of ecosystem services principles in policymaking and commercial activities. Improved performance metrics are needed, as are mechanisms to monitor the status of ecosystem services and assess the environmental and economic impacts of policies and programs. A greater national and international financial commitment to advancing ecosystem services and natural capital accounting would likely have broad, long-term economic and environmental benefits.

Energy efficiency opportunities in the brewery industry

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

Worrell, Ernst; Galitsky, Christina; Martin, Nathan

2002-06-28

Breweries in the United States spend annually over $200 Million on energy. Energy consumption is equal to 3-8% of the production costs of beer, making energy efficiency improvement an important way to reduce costs, especially in times of high energy price volatility. After a summary of the beer making process and energy use, we examine energy efficiency opportunities available for breweries. We provide specific primary energy savings for each energy efficiency measure based on case studies that have implemented the measures, as well as references to technical literature. If available, we have also listed typical payback periods. Our findings suggestmore » that there may still be opportunities to reduce energy consumption cost-effectively for breweries. Major brewing companies have and will continue to spend capital on cost effective measures that do not impact the quality of the beer. Further research on the economics of the measures, as well as their applicability to different brewing practices, is needed to assess implementation of selected technologies at individual breweries.« less

Variation in outpatient mental health service utilization under capitation.

PubMed

Chou, Ann F; Wallace, Neal; Bloom, Joan R; Hu, Teh-Wei

2005-03-01

To improve the financing of Colorado's public mental health system, the state designed, implemented, and evaluated a pilot program that consisted of three reimbursement models for the provision of outpatient services. Community mental health centers (CMHCs), the primary providers of comprehensive mental health services to Medicaid recipients in Colorado, had to search for innovative ways to provide cost-effective services. This study assessed outpatient service delivery to Medicaid-eligible consumers under this program. This paper is among the first to study variations in the delivery of specific types of outpatient mental health services under capitated financing systems. This study uses claims data (1994-1997) from Colorado's Medicaid and Mental Health Services Agency. The fee-for-service (FFS) model served as the comparison model. Two capitated models under evaluation are: (i) direct capitation (DC), where the state contracts with a non-profit entity to provide both the services and administers the capitated financing, and (ii) managed behavioral health organization (MBHO), which is a joint venture between a for-profit company who manages the capitated financing and a number of non-profit entities who deliver the services. A sample of severely mentally ill patients who reported at least one inpatient visit was included in the analysis. Types of outpatient services of interest are: day-treatment visits, group therapy, individual therapy, medication monitoring, case management, testing, and all other services. Comparisons were set up to examine differences in service utilization and cost between FFS and each of the two capitated models, using a two-part model across three time periods. Results showed differences in service delivery among reimbursement models over time. Capitated providers had higher initial utilization in most outpatient service categories than their FFS counterparts and as a result of capitation, outpatient services delivered under these providers decreased to converge to the FFS pattern. Findings also suggest substitution between group therapy and individual psychotherapy. Overall, more service integration was observed and less complex service packages were provided post capitation. IMPLICATION FOR HEALTH CARE PROVISION AND POLICIES: Financing models and organizational arrangements have an impact on mental health service delivery. Changes in utilization and costs of specific types of outpatient services reflect the effects of capitation. Understanding the mechanism for these changes may lead to more streamlined service delivery allowing extra funding for expanding the range of cost-effective treatment alternatives. These changes pose implications for improving the financing of public mental health systems, coordination of mental health services with other healthcare and human services, and provision of services through a more efficient financing system.

The Impact of Business School Students' Psychological Capital on Academic Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luthans, Brett Carl; Luthans, Kyle William; Jensen, Susan M.

2012-01-01

Psychological capital (PsyCap) consisting of the psychological resources of hope, efficacy, resiliency, and optimism has been empirically demonstrated in the published literature to be related to manager and employee positive organizational outcomes and to be open to development. However, to date, little attention has been devoted to the impact of…

76 FR 40407 - Sterling Capital Funds and Sterling Capital Management LLC; Notice of Application

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-08

... with information showing the expected impact on the profitability of the Adviser. 9. The Adviser will provide the Board, no less frequently than quarterly, with information about the profitability of the Adviser on a per Subadvised Series basis. The information will reflect the impact on profitability of the...

Social Capital and Casino Gambling in U.S. Communities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tabor Griswold, Mary; Nichols, Mark W.

2006-01-01

This paper empirically analyzes the impact that the spread of casino gambling has on social capital in communities throughout the United States. Social capital is a networking process that translates into an individual's effectiveness in the community and workplace, and binds communities together. Several recent studies have also demonstrated a…

Social Capital and Health Inequality: Evidence from Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Song, Lijun; Lin, Nan

2009-01-01

Does social capital, resources embedded in social relationships, influence health? This research examines whether social capital impacts depressive symptoms and overall perceived health status over and above the effects of social support. Our analyses use unique data from the Taiwan Social Change Survey collected in 1997, and measures social…

Promoting and Disseminating Good Practice in the Planning and Management of Educational Facilities: Capital Investment Strategic Planning - A Case Study, Gold Coast Institute of TAFE, Queensland, Australia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crump, Kelvin

This paper presents a case study of the process of capital investment strategic planning at the Gold Coast Institute of Technical and Further Education (TAFE), Queensland, Australia. Capital investment strategic planning is a means of contributing to success by providing strategies to ensure that assets are managed efficiently, effectively, and…

Social barriers to Type 2 diabetes self-management: the role of capital.

PubMed

Henderson, Julie; Wilson, Christine; Roberts, Louise; Munt, Rebecca; Crotty, Mikaila

2014-12-01

Approaches to self-management traditionally focus upon individual capacity to make behavioural change. In this paper, we use Bourdieu's concepts of habitus and capital to demonstrate the impact of structural inequalities upon chronic illness self-management through exploring findings from 28 semi-structured interviews conducted with people from a lower socioeconomic region of Adelaide, South Australia who have type 2 diabetes. The data suggests that access to capital is a significant barrier to type 2 diabetes self-management. While many participants described having sufficient cultural capital to access and assess health information, they often lacked economic capital and social capital in the form of support networks who promote health. Participants were often involved in social networks in which activities which are contrary to self-management have symbolic value. As a consequence, they entered relationships with health professionals at a disadvantage. We conclude that structural barriers to self-management arising from habitus resulting in the performance of health behaviours rooted in cultural and class background and limited access to capital in the form of economic resources, social networks, health knowledge and prestige may have a negative impact on capacity for type 2 diabetes self-management. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Determinants of the process and outcomes of household participation in collaborative forest management in Ghana: a quantitative test of a community resilience model.

PubMed

Akamani, Kofi; Hall, Troy Elizabeth

2015-01-01

This study tested a proposed community resilience model by investigating the role of institutions, capital assets, community and socio-demographic variables as determinants of households' participation in Ghana's collaborative forest management (CFM) program and outcomes of the program. Quantitative survey data were gathered from 209 randomly selected households from two forest-dependent communities. Regression analysis shows that households' participation in the CFM program was predicted by community location, past connections with institutions, and past bonding social capital. Community location and past capitals were the strongest predictors of the outcomes of the CFM program as judged by current levels of capitals. Participation in the CFM program also had a positive effect on human capital but had minimal impact on the other capitals influencing household well-being and resilience, suggesting that the impact of co-management on household resilience may be modest. In all, the findings highlight the need for co-management policies to pay attention to the historical context of community interaction processes influencing access to capital assets and local institutions to successfully promote equitable resilience. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Carbon dioxide utilization in a microalga-based biorefinery: Efficiency of carbon removal and economic performance under carbon taxation.

PubMed

Wiesberg, Igor Lapenda; Brigagão, George Victor; de Medeiros, José Luiz; de Queiroz Fernandes Araújo, Ofélia

2017-12-01

Coal-fired power plants are major stationary sources of carbon dioxide and environmental constraints demand technologies for abatement. Although Carbon Capture and Storage is the most mature route, it poses severe economic penalty to power generation. Alternatively, this penalty is potentially reduced by Carbon Capture and Utilization, which converts carbon dioxide to valuable products, monetizing it. This work evaluates a route consisting of carbon dioxide bio-capture by Chlorella pyrenoidosa and use of the resulting biomass as feedstock to a microalgae-based biorefinery; Carbon Capture and Storage route is evaluated as a reference technology. The integrated arrangement comprises: (a) carbon dioxide biocapture in a photobioreactor, (b) oil extraction from part of the produced biomass, (b) gasification of remaining biomass to obtain bio-syngas, and (c) conversion of bio-syngas to methanol. Calculation of capital and operational expenditures are estimated based on mass and energy balances obtained by process simulation for both routes (Carbon Capture and Storage and the biorefinery). Capital expenditure for the biorefinery is higher by a factor of 6.7, while operational expenditure is lower by a factor of 0.45 and revenues occur only for this route, with a ratio revenue/operational expenditure of 1.6. The photobioreactor is responsible for one fifth of the biorefinery capital expenditure, with footprint of about 1000 ha, posing the most significant barrier for technical and economic feasibility of the proposed biorefinery. The Biorefinery and Carbon Capture and Storage routes show carbon dioxide capture efficiency of 73% and 48%, respectively, with capture cost of 139$/t and 304$/t. Additionally, the biorefinery has superior performance in all evaluated metrics of environmental impacts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Wellesley College Case Study for the Sloan Commission on Government and Higher Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wellesley Coll., MA.

The impact of government legislation and regulation on Wellesley College in Massachusetts is analyzed. The impact of federal aid on the economics of the college is considered in terms of capital resources and operating resources. The analysis also considers the effects of government legislation and regulation on capital costs, first-time…

76 FR 24911 - Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB; Public Housing Physical Needs...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-03

... portfolio and evaluation of the impact of the Capital Fund in meeting the physical needs based upon review... impact of the Capital Fund in meeting the physical needs based upon review of the annual updates... Proposed Information Collection to OMB; Public Housing Physical Needs Assessment AGENCY: Office of the...

The Evolution of Capitalism: A Comparison of British and American Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanwick, Peter A.

2016-01-01

This paper discusses the evolution of capitalism in British and American literature. The impact of capitalism on the lives of individuals has been well represented in both American and British literature throughout the centuries. The paper will discuss how seminal British authors such as Thomas More, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and George…

Impact of social capital on depression trajectories of older women in Korea.

PubMed

Park, Mi-Jin

2017-04-01

This study examines the impact of social capital on depressive symptoms trajectories among Korean women aged 65 years or older. It also examines the difference in depressive symptoms and social capital by economic status (poverty group, non-poverty group) among community-dwelling older women in Korea. This study used 2435 older women of the Korean Welfare Panel Study from 2006 (wave 1) to 2013 (wave 8) data using latent growth modeling. Social capital variables were cognitive (interpersonal trust, reciprocity) and structural (the size of family, the number of friends or neighbors, participation in leisure and volunteer activities). The results showed both intra- and inter-individual variability in depressive symptoms over time. Interpersonal trust and reciprocity as cognitive social capital had an effect on the change of depressive symptoms in intercept and slope. The size of family, participation in leisure activities among structural social capital were associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms in intercept and slope. The results of this study suggest some practical implications for depression intervention and prevention and further research on late-life depression.

The impact of psychological capital on mental health among Iranian nurses: considering the mediating role of job burnout.

PubMed

Estiri, Mehrdad; Nargesian, Abbas; Dastpish, Farinaz; Sharifi, Seyed Mahdi

2016-01-01

The role of nurses in providing high quality healthcare to patients is so important that creating a desirable working environment to enhance their overall performance is unavoidable. This paper aimed to explore the impact of psychological capital on mental health by investigating the mediating effects of job burnout on this relationship. The data used in this research was obtained via a survey conducted among selected Iranian nurses in public hospitals. In total, 450 questionnaires were distributed and 384 were completed and returned. Collected data was analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). Findings showed that there is a significant relationship between psychological capital, job burnout and mental health; also, there is a significant negative relationship between psychological capital and job burnout, and a significant positive relationship between psychological capital and mental health. The results have several important practical implications for human resource management in Iranian public hospitals. According to the results of this study, reducing job burnout is an important factor in enhancing psychological capital and can positively enhance nurses' mental health.

Comparison and Association of Intellectual Capital: An Investigation and Measurement of the Value of Intellectual Capital Assets and Their Contribution to Stakeholder Perception within the Framework of Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Helm Stevens, Roxanne

2011-01-01

PROBLEM: Many of the preliminary approaches to strategic management of intellectual capital or knowledge assets have not been attempted in the not-for-profit arena. Additionally, because there is no marketplace value for not-for-profit firms or a valuation system for intangible assets, the identification and measurement necessary for efficient and…

Impact of technology in health care and health administration: hospitals and alternative care delivery systems.

PubMed

Kerr, J K; Jelinek, R

1990-01-01

Applications as outlined above and many more that have not yet even been identified--but that will be invented and developed--will have an enormous impact on the health care industry. Clearly, capital requirements to purchase this technology will go up and thus exert further pressure for the reduction of personnel. Computers and robots will replace a significant percentage of health care personnel; overall health care costs as a percent of gross national product will nevertheless probably continue to rise in spite of improvements in productivity. Added costs will be offset in part by the use of technology in areas that will impact efficiency. Because of these accelerating uses of sophisticated technology, future administrators will have a greater appreciation for what technology can offer. Practical uses of robotics, expert systems, and artificial intelligence will require administrators to be technologically proficient.

Measuring human capital cost through benchmarking in health care environment.

PubMed

Kocakülâh, Mehmet C; Harris, Donna

2002-01-01

Each organization should seek to maximize its human capital investments, which ultimately lead to increased profits and asset efficiency. Service companies utilize less capital equipment and more human productivity, customer service, and/or delivery of service as the product. With the measurement of human capital, one can understand what is happening, exercise some degree of control, and make positive changes. Senior management lives or dies by the numbers and if Human Resources (HR) really wants to be a strategic business partner, HR must be judged by the same standards as everyone else in the health care organization.

Potassium topping cycles for stationary power. [conceptual analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rossbach, R. J.

1975-01-01

A design study was made of the potassium topping cycle powerplant for central station use. Initially, powerplant performance and economics were studied parametrically by using an existing steam plant as the bottom part of the cycle. Two distinct powerplants were identified which had good thermodynamic and economic performance. Conceptual designs were made of these two powerplants in the 1200 MWe size, and capital and operating costs were estimated for these powerplants. A technical evaluation of these plants was made including conservation of fuel resources, environmental impact, technology status, and degree of development risk. It is concluded that the potassium topping cycle could have a significant impact on national goals such as air and water pollution control and conservation of natural resources because of its higher energy conversion efficiency.

78 FR 57447 - Environmental Impact Statement for the ACEforward

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-18

... intercity passenger rail capital investments and may provide financial assistance for the program, including...) has responsibility for providing Federal funding for intra-city commuter rail capital investments and...

Does social capital reduce child behavior problems? Results from the Great East Japan Earthquake follow-up for Children Study.

PubMed

Yagi, Junko; Fujiwara, Takeo; Yambe, Takehito; Okuyama, Makiko; Kawachi, Ichiro; Sakai, Akio

2016-08-01

We sought to investigate the association between social capital and child behavior problems in Iwate prefecture, Japan, in the aftermath of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Children and their caregivers were recruited from four nursery schools in coastal areas affected by the tsunami, as well as one in an unaffected inland area (N = 94). We assessed the following via caregiver questionnaire: perceptions of social capital in the community, child behavior problems (Child Behavior Checklist, Strength and Difficulty Questionnaire), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, child's exposure to trauma (e.g. loss of family members), and caregiver's mental health (Impact of Event Scale-R for PTSD symptoms; K6 for general mental health). We collected details on trauma exposure by interviewing child participants. Structural equation modeling was used to assess whether the association between social capital and child behavior problems was mediated by caregiver's mental health status. Children of caregivers who perceived higher community social capital (trust and mutual aid) showed fewer PTSD symptoms. Furthermore, caregiver's mental health mediated the association between social trust and child PTSD symptoms. Social capital had no direct impact on child behavior problems. Community social capital was indirectly associated (via caregiver mental health status) with child behavior problems following exposure to disaster. Community development to boost social capital among caregivers may help to prevent child behavior problems.

Hospital Capital Investment During the Great Recession.

PubMed

Choi, Sung

2017-01-01

Hospital capital investment is important for acquiring and maintaining technology and equipment needed to provide health care. Reduction in capital investment by a hospital has negative implications for patient outcomes. Most hospitals rely on debt and internal cash flow to fund capital investment. The great recession may have made it difficult for hospitals to borrow, thus reducing their capital investment. I investigated the impact of the great recession on capital investment made by California hospitals. Modeling how hospital capital investment may have been liquidity constrained during the recession is a novel contribution to the literature. I estimated the model with California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development data and system generalized method of moments. Findings suggest that not-for-profit and public hospitals were liquidity constrained during the recession. Comparing the changes in hospital capital investment between 2006 and 2009 showed that hospitals used cash flow to increase capital investment by $2.45 million, other things equal.

Hospital Capital Investment During the Great Recession

PubMed Central

Choi, Sung

2017-01-01

Hospital capital investment is important for acquiring and maintaining technology and equipment needed to provide health care. Reduction in capital investment by a hospital has negative implications for patient outcomes. Most hospitals rely on debt and internal cash flow to fund capital investment. The great recession may have made it difficult for hospitals to borrow, thus reducing their capital investment. I investigated the impact of the great recession on capital investment made by California hospitals. Modeling how hospital capital investment may have been liquidity constrained during the recession is a novel contribution to the literature. I estimated the model with California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development data and system generalized method of moments. Findings suggest that not-for-profit and public hospitals were liquidity constrained during the recession. Comparing the changes in hospital capital investment between 2006 and 2009 showed that hospitals used cash flow to increase capital investment by $2.45 million, other things equal. PMID:28617202

A Capital Assets Preservation Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heiman, Ralph

1989-01-01

New York State officials have created an efficient capital planning system that is a prescribed set of procedures and actions within a program planning manual and two software modules. The program is a series of logical steps that school districts must take to successfully implement their preservation plans. (MLF)

The Impact of Degree Programme Educational Capital on the Transition of Graduates to the Labour Market

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piróg, Danuta

2016-01-01

The article aims to empirically verify the impact of educational capital on the success or failure of higher education graduates' transitions. The paper uses the example of geography graduates in Poland who took part in a nationwide survey in 2012, six months after their graduation. This allowed the author to collect detailed data on the…

Beyond Professionalism: Classed and Gendered Capital in Childcare Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andrew, Yarrow

2015-01-01

This article examines the value of work in childcare, and the ways this is impacted by historical schemes of value in relation to social class and gender. It critically examines the push for professionalism within the field, showing that this favours particular classed forms of cultural capital, while rendering other forms of capital invisible.…

Human Capital and the Internal Rate of Return.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosen, Sherwin

The theory of human capital has made a significant impact on the practice of modern labor economics. At a broad and general level, the concept of human capital has obvious appeal for its simplicity, analytical power, and relationship to economic theory. The fundamental problem in labor economics is the determination of wage rates and earnings;…

Does the Russian Economy Need Human Capital? Ten Doubts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gimpelson, V. E.

2016-01-01

It is generally accepted that human capital is an important factor in economic growth, but its impact on growth depends on the demand for education and skills on the labor market. Demand for human capital is largely determined by the institutional environment that governs the basic conditions for economic activity. The author expresses ten doubts…

Does human capital matter? A meta-analysis of the relationship between human capital and firm performance.

PubMed

Crook, T Russell; Todd, Samuel Y; Combs, James G; Woehr, David J; Ketchen, David J

2011-05-01

Theory at both the micro and macro level predicts that investments in superior human capital generate better firm-level performance. However, human capital takes time and money to develop or acquire, which potentially offsets its positive benefits. Indeed, extant tests appear equivocal regarding its impact. To clarify what is known, we meta-analyzed effects drawn from 66 studies of the human capital-firm performance relationship and investigated 3 moderators suggested by resource-based theory. We found that human capital relates strongly to performance, especially when the human capital in question is not readily tradable in labor markets and when researchers use operational performance measures that are not subject to profit appropriation. Our results suggest that managers should invest in programs that increase and retain firm-specific human capital.

Pharmaceutical interventions for mitigating an influenza pandemic: modeling the risks and health-economic impacts.

PubMed

Postma, Maarten J; Milne, George; Nelson, E Anthony S; Pyenson, Bruce; Basili, Marcello; Coker, Richard; Oxford, John; Garrison, Louis P

2010-12-01

Model-based analyses built on burden-of-disease and cost-effectiveness theory predict that pharmaceutical interventions may efficiently mitigate both the epidemiologic and economic impact of an influenza pandemic. Pharmaceutical interventions typically encompass the application of (pre)pandemic influenza vaccines, other vaccines (notably pneumococcal), antiviral treatments and other drug treatment (e.g., antibiotics to target potential complications of influenza). However, these models may be too limited to capture the full macro-economic impact of pandemic influenza. The aim of this article is to summarize current health-economic modeling approaches to recognize the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches, and to compare these with more recently proposed alternative methods. We conclude that it is useful, particularly for policy and planning purposes, to extend modeling concepts through the application of alternative approaches, including insurers' risk theories, human capital approaches and sectoral and full macro-economic modeling. This article builds on a roundtable meeting of the Pandemic Influenza Economic Impact Group that was held in Boston, MA, USA, in December 2008.

Analysis of capital spending and capital financing among large US nonprofit health systems.

PubMed

Stewart, Louis J

2012-01-01

This article examines the recent trends (2006 to 2009) in capital spending among 25 of the largest nonprofit health systems in the United States and analyzes the financing sources that these large nonprofit health care systems used to fund their capital spending. Total capital spending for these 25 nonprofit health entities exceeded $41 billion for the four-year period of this study. Less than 3 percent of total capital spending resulted in mergers and acquisition activities. Total annual capital spending grew at an average annual rate of 17.6 percent during the first three year of this study's period of analysis. Annual capital spending for 2009 fell by more than 22 percent over prior year's level due to the impact of widespread disruption in US tax-exempt variable rate debt markets. While cash inflow from long-term debt issues was a significant source of capital financing, this study's primary finding was that operating cash flow was the predominant source of capital spending funding. Key words: nonprofit, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), capital spending, capital financing.

Essays in energy, environment and technological change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Yichen Christy

This dissertation studies technological change in the context of energy and environmental economics. Technology plays a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. Chapter 1 estimates a structural model of the car industry that allows for endogenous product characteristics to investigate how gasoline taxes, R&D subsidies and competition affect fuel efficiency and vehicle prices in the medium-run, both through car-makers' decisions to adopt technologies and through their investments in knowledge capital. I use technology adoption and automotive patents data for 1986-2006 to estimate this model. I show that 92% of fuel efficiency improvements between 1986 and 2006 were driven by technology adoption, while the role of knowledge capital is largely to reduce the marginal production costs of fuel-efficient cars. A counterfactual predicts that an additional 1/gallon gasoline tax in 2006 would have increased the technology adoption rate, and raised average fuel efficiency by 0.47 miles/gallon, twice the annual fuel efficiency improvement in 2003-2006. An R&D subsidy that would reduce the marginal cost of knowledge capital by 25% in 2006 would have raised investment in knowledge capital. This subsidy would have raised fuel efficiency only by 0.06 miles/gallon in 2006, but would have increased variable profits by 2.3 billion over all firms that year. Passenger vehicle fuel economy standards in the United States will require substantial improvements in new vehicle fuel economy over the next decade. Economic theory suggests that vehicle manufacturers adopt greater fuel-saving technologies for vehicles with larger market size. Chapter 2 documents a strong connection between market size, measured by sales, and technology adoption. Using variation consumer demographics and purchasing pattern to account for the endogeneity of market size, we find that a 10 percent increase in market size raises vehicle fuel efficiency by 0.3 percent, as compared to a mean improvement of 1.4 percent per year over 1997-2013. Historically, fuel price and demographic-driven market size changes have had large effects on technology adoption. Furthermore, fuel taxes would induce firms to adopt fuel-saving technologies on their most efficient cars, thereby polarizing the fuel efficiency distribution of the new vehicle fleet.

Nature as capital: Advancing and incorporating ecosystem services in United States federal policies and programs

PubMed Central

Schaefer, Mark; Goldman, Erica; Bartuska, Ann M.; Sutton-Grier, Ariana; Lubchenco, Jane

2015-01-01

The concept of nature as capital is gaining visibility in policies and practices in both the public and private sectors. This change is due to an improved ability to assess and value ecosystem services, as well as to a growing recognition of the potential of an ecosystem services approach to make tradeoffs in decision making more transparent, inform efficient use of resources, enhance resilience and sustainability, and avoid unintended negative consequences of policy actions. Globally, governments, financial institutions, and corporations have begun to incorporate natural capital accounting in their policies and practices. In the United States, universities, nongovernmental organizations, and federal agencies are actively collaborating to develop and apply ecosystem services concepts to further national environmental and economic objectives. Numerous federal agencies have begun incorporating these concepts into land use planning, water resources management, and preparations for, and responses to, climate change. Going forward, well-defined policy direction will be necessary to institutionalize ecosystem services approaches in federal agencies, as well as to guide intersector and interdisciplinary collaborative research and development efforts. In addition, a new generation of decision support tools are needed to further the practical application of ecosystem services principles in policymaking and commercial activities. Improved performance metrics are needed, as are mechanisms to monitor the status of ecosystem services and assess the environmental and economic impacts of policies and programs. A greater national and international financial commitment to advancing ecosystem services and natural capital accounting would likely have broad, long-term economic and environmental benefits. PMID:26082544

Private management and public finance in the Italian water industry: A marriage of convenience?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Massarutto, Antonio; Paccagnan, Vania; Linares, Elisabetta

2008-12-01

In many countries, reforms of water and sanitation utilities have favored private sector participation. The drivers of this trend are the need to improve efficiency, professional capabilities of service operations, and willingness to relieve public budgets of the heavy burden of investment. Scant attention has been devoted to the great impact this strategy can have on water bills because of the higher cost of capital that is implicit, given the economic risk that the private sector is required to accept. Since it is a capital-intensive industry with a long economic life of its assets, the water industry is particularly vulnerable to the cost of capital. This creates the case for publicly-supported financial schemes in order to keep this cost as low as possible and guarantee long-run viability as well as affordability. The Italian water industry is an excellent case study to investigate the importance of this situation: in the last 15 years, a far-reaching reform has been introduced with the aim of substituting a financing model, based entirely on public spending, with one delegating financial responsibilities to operators through full-cost recovery. Our simulations show that delegating all responsibilities and risks to the private sector can lead to unsustainable price increases once replacement of existing assets are required. The solution is not to give up full-cost recovery, but rather to search for risk allocation patterns that are more coherent with the risk profile of the water industry and help keeping the cost of capital low.

Toward a social capital theory of competitive advantage in medical groups.

PubMed

Hoelscher, Mark L; Hoffman, James J; Dawley, David

2005-01-01

Social capital can have a positive impact on medical group performance. We forward our theory based on the integration of theories in social capital, resource advantage, and the resource-based view of the firm. Further, we suggest specific ways in which medical groups can increase their levels of social capital. First, medical groups should design or redesign the workplace so that there is ample interaction among employees. Second, employee participation within the community should be encouraged. Third, medical groups should recognize that social capital becomes ingrained in organizational culture. Therefore, medical groups should take steps to ensure a culture that supports its social capital. Fourth, hiring procedures should be designed (or redesigned) to ensure that new employees add social capital to the organization. Finally, trust must be fostered at the employee level.

Impact of Intellectual Capital on Organisational Performance: An Empirical Study of Companies in the Hang Seng Index (Part 2)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chan, Kin Hang

2009-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper, which is written in two parts, is to investigate empirically if intellectual capital (IC) has an impact on the financial aspects of organisational performance as well as attempting to identify the IC components that may be the drivers for the leading financial indicators of listed companies. The study sought…

Impact of Intellectual Capital on Organisational Performance: An Empirical Study of Companies in the Hang Seng Index (Part 1)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chan, Kin Hang

2009-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper, which is written in two parts, is to investigate empirically if intellectual capital (IC) has an impact on the financial aspects of organisational performance as well as attempting to identify the IC components that may be the drivers for the leading financial indicators of listed companies. The study sought…

Study Habit and Its Impact on Secondary School Students' Academic Performance in Biology in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ebele, Uju F.; Olofu, Paul A.

2017-01-01

Study habits is how one studies. That is, the habits which students form during their school years. Without good study habits, a student cannot succeed. Thus, this study investigated the impact of study habits on secondary school students' academic performance in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The study was guided by one null hypothesis.…

Exploration of Social Capital and Knowledge Sharing: An Empirical Study on Student Virtual Teams

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Ying Chieh; Li, FengChia

2012-01-01

Although research on virtual teams is becoming more popular, there is a gap in the understanding of how social capital affects knowledge sharing and creating, and their impacts on virtual team performance. To fill in this gap, this study establishes a framework by incorporating social capital with the SECI model and further examines it with an…

How Social and Human Capital Predict Participation in Lifelong Learning: A Longitudinal Data Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knipprath, Heidi; De Rick, Katleen

2015-01-01

Policy makers and researchers are increasingly showing interest in lifelong learning due to a rising unemployment rate in recent years. Much attention has been paid to determinants and benefits of lifelong learning but not to the impact of social capital on lifelong learning so far. In this article, we study how social and human capital can…

Impact of Health-Related Family Factors on School Enrollment in Bolivia: Implications for Health Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madanat, Hala; Dearden, Kirk; Heaton, Tim; Forste, Renata

2005-01-01

This study identified the extent to which family factors increase school enrollment in Bolivia, after adjusting for human and financial capital. The sample was drawn from the 1998 Demographic and Health Survey. Logistic regression models were used to determine the effect of human capital, financial capital and family factors on school enrollment.…

The Consequences of Internet Cafe use on Turkish College Students' Social Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koc, Mustafa; Ferneding, Karen Ann

2007-01-01

This paper draws on a part of the doctoral research study that investigates the potential impacts of Internet cafe use on Turkish college students' social capital. In this study, Internet cafe usage was portrayed by the amount of time spent and the frequency of online activities engaged at the cafes. Social capital, on the other hand, was…

Neoliberal and Neoconservative Immiseration Capitalism in England: Policies and Impacts on Society and on Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Dave; Lewis, Christine; Maisuria, Alpesh; Yarker, Patrick; Carr, Julia

2015-01-01

In this article we firstly set out the facts about the current stage of capitalism, the Immiseration stage of neoliberal capitalism in England. We note its relationship with conservatism and neo-conservatism. We identify increased societal inequalities, the assault by the capitalist state on its opponents, and proceed to describe and analyse what…

Capitated Medicaid Managed Care in a Rural Area: The Impact of Minnesota's PMAP Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Long, Sharon K.; Coughlin, Teresa A.; King, Jennifer

2005-01-01

Although states have had difficulty extending Medicaid managed care (MMC) to rural areas, rural models of capitated MMC are expected to grow in response to new federal regulations and the serious budget problems facing nearly all states. As such, understanding the effects of capitated MMC in rural settings is important for policy considerations.…

The impact of psychological capital on job embeddedness and job performance among nurses: a structural equation approach.

PubMed

Sun, Tao; Zhao, Xiao Wen; Yang, Li Bin; Fan, Li Hua

2012-01-01

The objective of this study was to provide empirical evidence on the relationships between psychological capital, job embeddedness and performance. This paper also seeks to present the theoretical development of psychological capital and job embeddedness in nursing research and their application to nursing practices. Psychological capital was recently identified as a core construct in the literature of positive psychology. However, there is considerably less evidence on its positive effects on job embeddedness and performance among nursing personnel. Questionnaires were distributed to approximately 1000 nurses employed in five university hospitals in Heilongjiang province in China. Data were collected in november 2009. the response rate was 73·3%. structural equation modelling was employed to test the proposed relationships. The results support the hypothesized model. This research outlined a strong relationship between the self-reported psychological capital, job embeddedness and performance of the nurses. The study findings suggest that improving the individual-accumulated psychological state of nurses will have a positive impact on their retention intention and job performance. These findings suggest that higher psychological capital increases the self-reported job embeddedness and performance of these nurses. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Neighborhood settings, types of social capital and depression among immigrants in Toronto.

PubMed

Daoud, Nihaya; Haque, Nasim; Gao, Meiyin; Nisenbaum, Rosane; Muntaner, Carles; O'Campo, Patricia

2016-04-01

Few studies consider the associations between neighborhood social capital and immigrant's mental health. We examined associations between bonding, bridging and linking social capital and depression among immigrants in Toronto neighborhoods. We used data on immigrants from the neighborhood effects on health and well-being (NEHW) study, conducted in 47 randomly selected greater Toronto area neighborhoods (sample = 916), and a study of one low-income, immigrant receiving neighborhood (IRN) (sample = 600). We conducted logistic regression models for depression (Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) and social capital types: bonding (social cohesion and informal social control), bridging (group membership) and linking (engagement in political activities), while adjusting for different covariates. The prevalence of depression was 22.9 % in IRN and 21.4 % in NEHW. The associations between social capital types and depression differed in each sample. Lower social cohesion (bonding) was associated with higher depression in NEHW only. Lower linking social capital (never participated in political activities) was associated with lower depression in IRN only. These associations were consistent after adjustment for different covariates. Results suggest that social cohesion might have a protective effect from depression among immigrants in NEHW. In IRN, lower linking social capital associated with lower depression might reflect opposite direction association. Bridging social capital was not associated with depression in either sample, indicating that current community building might be insufficient to impact depression. Different pathways might explain how depression among immigrants is impacted by social capital types operating in different neighborhood settings; this could be examined in future longitudinal studies.

Hospital financing: calculating inpatient capital costs in Germany with a comparative view on operating costs and the English costing scheme.

PubMed

Vogl, Matthias

2014-04-01

The paper analyzes the German inpatient capital costing scheme by assessing its cost module calculation. The costing scheme represents the first separated national calculation of performance-oriented capital cost lump sums per DRG. The three steps in the costing scheme are reviewed and assessed: (1) accrual of capital costs; (2) cost-center and cost category accounting; (3) data processing for capital cost modules. The assessment of each step is based on its level of transparency and efficiency. A comparative view on operating costing and the English costing scheme is given. Advantages of the scheme are low participation hurdles, low calculation effort for G-DRG calculation participants, highly differentiated cost-center/cost category separation, and advanced patient-based resource allocation. The exclusion of relevant capital costs, nontransparent resource allocation, and unclear capital cost modules, limit the managerial relevance and transparency of the capital costing scheme. The scheme generates the technical premises for a change from dual financing by insurances (operating costs) and state (capital costs) to a single financing source. The new capital costing scheme will intensify the discussion on how to solve the current investment backlog in Germany and can assist regulators in other countries with the introduction of accurate capital costing. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The impacts of community social capital on the life satisfaction of older adults in Hong Kong: the moderator role of intergenerational family capital.

PubMed

Lu, Nan; Lum, Terry Y S; Lou, Vivian W Q

2016-11-01

This study examined the moderator role of intergenerational family capital on the relationship between community social capital and life satisfaction of older Chinese adults. The data were derived from a quota sampling of 372 older adults aged 60 and above, who were interviewed at four districts in Hong Kong in 2011. Multiple group analysis was employed to examine the proposed model. For the low family capital group, community social capital was found to be a significant predictor of life satisfaction, even when the well-known covariates were controlled. However, the association between community social capital and life satisfaction was statistically non-significant among the high family capital group. The findings highlighted the interplay between community social capital and intergenerational family capital, which supported community social capital replacement theory in understanding the mechanism linking social capital to life satisfaction in older age in a Chinese context. Community social capital can play a compensatory role in maintaining the mental health of older people. It is particularly important for older adults who lack family support and/or suffer from social isolation and loneliness in local communities.

Perceived impact of an interprofessional education program on community resilience: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Slack, Marion Kimball; McEwen, Marylyn Morris

2013-09-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived impact of an interprofessional education (IPE) program for health sciences students on two culturally diverse, underserved communities. A community resilience/capacity framework, consisting of catalysts (primarily the creation of awareness) and capital components: human (workforce development), social (networking and empowerment) and economic (volunteer labor and money spent by the program), provided the conceptual underpinnings for the study. Focus groups with stakeholders in two communities, one rural and one metropolitan, were audio-recorded, transcribed and analyzed by categorizing data according to each capital component. In addition to the concepts contained in the capacity framework a new category, informational capital (data specific to the community) emerged during the analysis. We suggest that by acting as a catalyst a community based interprofessional program can affect components of community resilience/capacity, primarily human, social, and informational capital. Using the community resilience/capacity framework facilitated exploration of the perceived impact of an educational program on one rural and one urban underserved community beyond assessing student outcomes or number of clients served.

Capital gains treatment of timber income: An economic assessment

Treesearch

Donald F. Dennis; Donald F. Dennis

1985-01-01

Treating timber income as capital gains meets the criteria used to evaluate tax systems better than treating it as ordinary income. Social welfare implications and impact on timber supply also favor such treatment.

Human capital strategy: talent management.

PubMed

Nagra, Michael

2011-01-01

Large organizations, including the US Army Medical Department and the Army Nurse Corps, are people-based organizations. Consequently, effective and efficient management of the human capital within these organizations is a strategic goal for the leadership. Over time, the Department of Defense has used many different systems and strategies to manage people throughout their service life-cycle. The current system in use is called Human Capital Management. In the near future, the Army's human capital will be managed based on skills, knowledge, and behaviors through various measurement tools. This article elaborates the human capital management strategy within the Army Nurse Corps, which identifies, develops, and implements key talent management strategies under the umbrella of the Corps' human capital goals. The talent management strategy solutions are aligned under the Nurse Corps business strategy captured by the 2008 Army Nurse Corps Campaign Plan, and are implemented within the context of the culture and core values of the organization.

Health-Based Capitation Risk Adjustment in Minnesota Public Health Care Programs

PubMed Central

Gifford, Gregory A.; Edwards, Kevan R.; Knutson, David J.

2004-01-01

This article documents the history and implementation of health-based capitation risk adjustment in Minnesota public health care programs, and identifies key implementation issues. Capitation payments in these programs are risk adjusted using an historical, health plan risk score, based on concurrent risk assessment. Phased implementation of capitation risk adjustment for these programs began January 1, 2000. Minnesota's experience with capitation risk adjustment suggests that: (1) implementation can accelerate encounter data submission, (2) administrative decisions made during implementation can create issues that impact payment model performance, and (3) changes in diagnosis data management during implementation may require changes to the payment model. PMID:25372356

Escalator design features evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, W. F.; Deshpande, G. K.

1982-01-01

Escalators are available with design features such as dual speed (90 and 120 fpm), mat operation and flat steps. These design features were evaluated based on the impact of each on capital and operating costs, traffic flow, and safety. A human factors engineering model was developed to analyze the need for flat steps at various speeds. Mat operation of escalators was found to be cost effective in terms of energy savings. Dual speed operation of escalators with the higher speed used during peak hours allows for efficient operation. A minimum number of flat steps required as a function of escalator speed was developed to ensure safety for the elderly.

Catching the Celtic Tiger by Its Tail

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferreira, M. Luisa; VanHoudt, Patrick

2004-01-01

The article attempts to assess the major sources behind the exceptional Irish growth performance in the 1990s. Unlike other Tigers, Ireland's growth is due to efficiency gains, rather than capital deepening, but the causes for the swift growth in total factor productivity cannot be pinned down to a single factor. Human capital, foreign direct…

The Hollow University: Disaster Capitalism Befalls American Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Letizia, Angelo J.

2016-01-01

Over the last 40 years, American institutions of higher education have been encouraged to align with the private sector by policymakers, think tank experts and businessmen in order to become more efficient and more accountable. In a wider sense, this new partnership may be evidence of what has been termed "disaster capitalism." In…

The Consequences of Internet Café Use on Turkish College Students' Social Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koç, Mustafa; Ferneding, Karen Ann

2007-01-01

This paper draws on a part of the doctoral research study that investigates the potential impacts of Internet café use on Turkish college students' social capital. In this study, Internet café usage was portrayed by the amount of time spent and the frequency of online activities engaged at the cafés. Social capital, on the other hand, was…

The Well-Being of Nations: The Role of Human and Social Capital. Education and Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Healy, Tom; Cote, Sylvain

In a rapidly changing world, the success of nations, communities, and individuals may be linked, more than ever before, to how they adapt to change, learn, and share knowledge. This report helps clarify the concepts of human and social capital and evaluates their impact on economic growth and well being. Although the evidence on social capital is…

Entrepreneurial Human Capital Accumulation and the Growth of Rural Businesses: A Four-Country Survey in Mountainous and Lagging Areas of the European Union

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skuras, Dimitris; Meccheri, Nicolas; Moreira, Manuel Belo; Rosell, Jordi; Stathopoulou, Sophia

2005-01-01

The paper presents the processes of entrepreneurial human capital accumulation and its impact on rural business growth. Data are derived from four surveys on rural businesses in mountainous and less favoured areas in Southern Europe. Formal pathways of entrepreneurial human capital accumulation refer to education and training, while informal…

The Effect of Maternal Depression and Substance Abuse on Child Human Capital Development. NBER Working Paper No. 15314

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frank, Richard G.; Meara, Ellen

2009-01-01

Recent models of human capital formation represent a synthesis of the human capital approach and a life cycle view of human development that is grounded in neuroscience (Heckman 2007). This model of human development, the stability of the home and parental mental health can have notable impacts on skill development in children that may affect the…

The Distinct Character of a Capital? From Formality to Regularity of Our Ancient Capitals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelly, T.

2018-04-01

Many cities were shaped by dynamics political and commercial factors and man-made layers whereas other capitals have been modeled spontaneously by natural influence, London is great sample of this approach and was described as a natural city planned over decades by many hands with great appreciation to natural terrain. Contrary mode is obvious in China where several factors behind the distinct identity of Chinese architecture and urban planning. Among those influences are the Metaphysics Philosophies or Emperor guidance who encouraged uniformity in many aspects in China including city planning. The aim of this paper is to highlight the impact of various forces and mankind dogmas in shaping up a unique character of famous capitals. Hence London and Beijing are the two contradictory case studies subject to deep analysis in parallel with other theories such as Yin - Yan and Fengs Shui principles, to examine their impacts on urban planning in China.

Rural Poor Economies and Foreign Investors: An Opportunity or a Risk?

PubMed Central

Antoci, Angelo; Russu, Paolo; Ticci, Elisa

2014-01-01

In the current age of commercial and financial openness, remote and poor local economies are becoming increasingly exposed to inflows of external capital. The new investors - enjoying lower credit constraints than local dwellers - might play a propulsive role in local development. At the same time, inflows of external capital can have negative impacts on local natural resource-dependent activities. We analyze a two-sector model where both sectors damage the environment, but only that of domestic producers relies on natural resources. We assess under which conditions the coexistence of the two sectors is compatible with sustainability, defined as convergence to a stationary state characterized by a positive stock of the natural resource. Moreover, we find that capital inflows can be stimulated by an increase in the pollution intensity of incoming activities, but also in the pollution intensity of the domestic sector; in both cases, capital inflows generate environmental degradation and a decrease in welfare for the local population. Finally, we show that a reduction in the cost of capital for external investors and the consequent capital inflows have the effect to increase wages, local investments and welfare of the local populations only if the environmental impact of the external sector is relatively low with respect to that of local activities. Otherwise, an unexpected scenario characterized by a reduction in domestic capital accumulation and the impoverishment of local agents can occur. PMID:25506694

Rural poor economies and foreign investors: an opportunity or a risk?

PubMed

Antoci, Angelo; Russu, Paolo; Ticci, Elisa

2014-01-01

In the current age of commercial and financial openness, remote and poor local economies are becoming increasingly exposed to inflows of external capital. The new investors - enjoying lower credit constraints than local dwellers - might play a propulsive role in local development. At the same time, inflows of external capital can have negative impacts on local natural resource-dependent activities. We analyze a two-sector model where both sectors damage the environment, but only that of domestic producers relies on natural resources. We assess under which conditions the coexistence of the two sectors is compatible with sustainability, defined as convergence to a stationary state characterized by a positive stock of the natural resource. Moreover, we find that capital inflows can be stimulated by an increase in the pollution intensity of incoming activities, but also in the pollution intensity of the domestic sector; in both cases, capital inflows generate environmental degradation and a decrease in welfare for the local population. Finally, we show that a reduction in the cost of capital for external investors and the consequent capital inflows have the effect to increase wages, local investments and welfare of the local populations only if the environmental impact of the external sector is relatively low with respect to that of local activities. Otherwise, an unexpected scenario characterized by a reduction in domestic capital accumulation and the impoverishment of local agents can occur.

Econometric analysis of the impact of the relationship of GDP and the pension capital

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nepp, A. N.; Amiryan, A. A.

2016-12-01

The article demonstrates the impact of institutional risks on indicators of compulsory pension insurance and describes the results of a comparative analysis of investment risks faced by the pension systems of the Russian Federation and OECD countries. Efficiency of private companies managing pension funds in Russia and OECD countries is compared and analyzed to show the necessity to liberalize requirements placed on investments of pension savings funds. On the basis of the available statistical data, the article puts forward and discusses the hypothesis that increasing of the basic indicators of the pension system is possible by reducing its institutional risks. It is concluded that if the institutional risks are reduced and the level of trust increases, there will be enhance growth in the pension system key indicators, such as pension payments and the replacement rate.

Efficiency, new equity capital enable systems to compete.

PubMed

Brown, M; McCool, B P

1985-01-01

Because of limited cash, sponsors of some community and religious hospitals have sought to sell or lease their institutions to a not-for-profit (NFP) system or to a for-profit system. A number of national alliances address the capital formation problem of NFP institutions. Until now they have been almost exclusively concerned with acquiring less costly debt. Without new equity capital, market influence is difficult to obtain. Even well-managed voluntary systems face a serious threat from well-capitalized investor-owned systems. Increased competition among hospitals and physicians will force future advantages to those who have capital. It will also restrict funding of certain programs and services by voluntary enterprises. In anticipation of this, various forms of partnerships have developed with investor-owned systems. To regain the initiative as the premier sponsors of health care, religious and other voluntary systems must go beyond merely competing in their markets to acquiring weaker institutions. They also must revitalize private giving and excel in efficiency to offset threats from ambulatory, day-care operations and from high-technology hospitals. Structural changes in the industry can be predicted, including the following: The trend toward integration for production, financing, and marketing will continue. Public market equity capital will be increasingly used to finance medical practice. Hospitals that sell their equity values will establish service foundations. National alliances will continue, but strictly local systems will maintain operation. Investor-owned systems will move increasingly into high-technology tertiary care.

Managerial perceptions of the incentives inherent in National Health Service capital charging.

PubMed

Heald, D; Scott, D A

1997-08-01

Capital charging was introduced into the National Health Service (NHS) in 1991 in order to stop capital being treated as a 'free' good and to encourage managers to use their assets more efficiently. This article seeks to examine the extent to which managerial thinking has been influenced. It uses as evidence interviews with NHS managers conducted in Scotland in 1994. The following uses of capital charges data are explored: capital programme; disposal programme; maintenance programme; contract pricing; and budgetary devolution. New capital programmes required more justification and capital charges were seen as relevant to estate rationalization. Less effect was found with regard to the maintenance programme, though this may have been due to a downgrading of the estates function in most Trusts. Although the capital charge costs included in contract prices affect the competitive position of providers, there was criticism of the lack of development of the purchasing function. Budgetary devolution was proceeding relatively slowly but, among those Trusts which had devolved capital charges, evidence was found that some clinicians were becoming aware of the full costs of equipment use. This article concludes, with cautious optimism, that capital charges are beginning to influence decisions and that, despite some incentives being dysfunctional, they will lead to a better managed NHS.

Impact of State hospital rate setting on capital formation

PubMed Central

Cromwell, Jerry

1987-01-01

For this article, a new national data base of Medicare cost reports on more than 2,000 hospitals is used to measure the impact of State prospective rate setting on capital formation. Several investment measures are analyzed, both in nominal and real terms, using a combination of descriptive and multivariate techniques. Results indicate that, over the last decade, State hospital rate-setting programs have had little demonstrable effect on capital formation and they have not caused any significant aging of plant assets. Programs in both New York and Massachusetts were found to be associated with a slowing in the rate of bed growth, however, resulting in significant long-term cost savings. PMID:10312117

Macroeconomic impact of HIV: the need for better modelling.

PubMed

Lamontagne, Erik; Haacker, Markus; Ventelou, Bruno; Greener, Robert

2010-05-01

To critically evaluate the recent literature on macroeconomic repercussions of the HIV pandemic and the response to it. The review focuses on the impacts of HIV through both its health consequences and its impact on the accumulation of human capital. So far, most studies have found a moderate impact of the HIV epidemic on macroeconomic growth. However, recent studies tend to emphasize the fact that HIV undermines human capital and implies a long-term detriment for economic development. Availability of data from Demographic and Health Surveys offers opportunities for better understanding the relationship between the HIV epidemic and economic growth through pathways linking its microeconomic and macroeconomic impacts. The macroeconomic impact of HIV observed so far appears moderate. Our analysis of recent literature, however, points out three important issues that may have been previously underestimated. First, the most important effects may occur in the longer run, through changes in the accumulation of human capital. Second, aggregate impact often masks an unequal impact among different economic groups. Third, the empirical evidence on which current macroeconomic models are based remains weak, in particular in the way it takes into account responses to HIV at the households' level. Microsimulation models and the recently increasing availability of robust datasets at households' level offer promising opportunities to address these issues.

Creative potential: mental well-being impact assessment of the Liverpool 2008 European capital of culture programme.

PubMed

West, H M; Scott-Samuel, A

2010-04-01

Culture has a number of potential impacts upon health and well-being. This project was undertaken to assess the potential impacts of the Liverpool 2008 European Capital of Culture programme upon mental well-being, so that positive effects can be maximized and negative impacts reduced, in order that health and well-being are promoted and inequalities are reduced. A mental well-being impact assessment (MWIA) toolkit has been developed, and was piloted in this study. MWIA uses a sequence of procedures designed to systematically assess the effect of projects, programmes and policies upon people's mental well-being and health. The MWIA toolkit was used to explore the potential positive and negative impacts on mental well-being of a sample of projects and policies from the European Capital of Culture programme. This was achieved by asking stakeholders to answer a series of questions, holding participative workshops, constructing a community profile and reviewing the research literature. Recommendations were developed which aim to enhance the impact of the programme on people's mental well-being. As expected, both positive and negative impacts of the European Capital of Culture programme on mental well-being were identified. Fourteen themes were identified as emerging from the workshops, screening and reviewing the research evidence. Based on these data, 33 recommendations were developed by the project steering group and have been presented to the Liverpool Culture Company. The process of conducting the assessment, particularly its participatory nature and its awareness-raising role, had impacts upon mental well-being. The findings demonstrate the potential for the Culture Company programme to have a profound impact upon mental well-being, and highlight areas which could be addressed to optimize the impact of the programme. 2010 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Technology innovations and experience curves for nitrogen oxides control technologies.

PubMed

Yeh, Sonia; Rubin, Edward S; Taylor, Margaret R; Hounshell, David A

2005-12-01

This paper reviews the regulatory history for nitrogen oxides (NOx) pollutant emissions from stationary sources, primarily in coal-fired power plants. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is one of the six criteria pollutants regulated by the 1970 Clean Air Act where National Ambient Air Quality Standards were established to protect public health and welfare. We use patent data to show that in the cases of Japan, Germany, and the United States, innovations in NOx control technologies did not occur until stringent government regulations were in place, thus "forcing" innovation. We also demonstrate that reductions in the capital and operation and maintenance (O&M) costs of new generations of high-efficiency NOx control technologies, selective catalytic reduction (SCR), are consistently associated with the increasing adoption of the control technology: the so-called learning-by-doing phenomena. The results show that as cumulative world coal-fired SCR capacity doubles, capital costs decline to approximately 86% and O&M costs to 58% of their original values. The observed changes in SCR technology reflect the impact of technological advance as well as other factors, such as market competition and economies of scale.

Cost estimation and analysis using the Sherpa Automated Mine Cost Engineering System

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

Stebbins, P.E.

1993-09-01

The Sherpa Automated Mine Cost Engineering System is a menu-driven software package designed to estimate capital and operating costs for proposed surface mining operations. The program is engineering (as opposed to statistically) based, meaning that all equipment, manpower, and supply requirements are determined from deposit geology, project design and mine production information using standard engineering techniques. These requirements are used in conjunction with equipment, supply, and labor cost databases internal to the program to estimate all associated costs. Because virtually all on-site cost parameters are interrelated within the program, Sherpa provides an efficient means of examining the impact of changesmore » in the equipment mix on total capital and operating costs. If any aspect of the operation is changed, Sherpa immediately adjusts all related aspects as necessary. For instance, if the user wishes to examine the cost ramifications of selecting larger trucks, the program not only considers truck purchase and operation costs, it also automatically and immediately adjusts excavator requirements, operator and mechanic needs, repair facility size, haul road construction and maintenance costs, and ancillary equipment specifications.« less

Disaster Impacts on Human Capital Accumulation Shown in the Typhoon Haiyan Case

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Özceylan Aubrecht, Dilek; Aubrecht, Christoph

2014-05-01

School children and their school environment are increasingly exposed to all kinds of hazards. Many disaster events have shown the extent of disaster impacts on the education sector which this study also highlights in the Typhoon Haiyan Case. Disasters do not only cause loss of lives or damage to educational facilities, they also entail significant economic and social consequences on human capital development in the short and long-run. While the trend of short term disaster impact can easily be analyzed in rapid post disaster assessments taking destroyed assets as proxy, usually analyses of medium and long-term effects of disasters include large inherent uncertainties and are of less tangible nature, require more time and complex methods and can often not give comprehensive results. The consequences of disasters especially in developing countries are therefore to a certain extent often left unknown. Generally, economic and social effects of disasters on human capital seem to be ambiguous and to some degree these effects are related to economic, social and institutional well-being. Thus, clear understanding is crucial to interpret its complex effects on human capital accumulation. This essential nature of medium and long-term effects has not been reflected in many analyses. Focus has mostly been given on the extent of physical damage, displacements, lives and assets lost instead of targeting resilience of social and economic characteristics of communities in terms of preventing human capital accumulation disruption. Main objective of this study is to provide a conceptual framework illustrating the impacts of disasters on schooling which might help in assessing such effects, as one of the fundamental components of human capital accumulation (Ozceylan Aubrecht, 2013). The dimensions of human capital building and its relationship to disasters under the light of past disaster events are discussed with a special focus on the recent Typhoon Haiyan that struck the Philippines in November 2013. Natural disasters adversely affect human capital accumulation in several ways including loss of life, damage to the educational system, decreased educational quality, increased child labor, and associated high dropout rates. Another dimension closely related to the human capital is the reduced economic strength of families that can limit the expenditures on well-being, including education, health and food (child malnutrition) (Baez et al., 2010; Cuaresma, 2010). According to information provided by UN and international media approximately 6 million children were affected by Typhoon Haiyan with 1.4 million homes of children and their families destroyed and 1.8 million children displaced. About 90% of the school buildings in the affected region were damaged and schools therefore stayed closed for up to 2 months causing disruption for more than a million pupils and 34,000 teachers. In some areas, when school returned to operation, only half of the school kids reported back. Also for the other pupils the situation was still challenging with many of the prior basic educational resources affected (destroyed textbooks and learning material, damaged classrooms) and no own equipment available (books, pens, etc.). Those reported impacts have already interrupted the educational continuity and it is expected to further continue by adversely affecting human capital accumulation in the longer term. Part of this work has been done under the Global Program for Safer Schools (GPSS) carried out at the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR). References: Baez, J., A. de la Fuente, and I. Carlos, 2010. Do Natural Disasters Affect Human Capital? An Assessment Based on Existing Empirical Evidence. IZA Discussion Paper Series: 5164. Cuaresma, J., 2010. Natural Disasters and Human Capital Accumulation. World Bank Economic Review 24(2): 280-302. Ozceylan Aubrecht, D., 2013. Economic Impact of Disasters on the Education Sector. Global Program for Safer Schools (GPSS), GFDRR & The World Bank, Working Paper, Washington DC, August 2013, 30 pp.

Performance, cost and environmental assessment of gasification-based electricity in India: A preliminary analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rani, Abha; Singh, Udayan; Jayant; Singh, Ajay K.; Sankar Mahapatra, Siba

2017-07-01

Coal gasification processes are crucial to decarbonisation in the power sector. While underground coal gasification (UCG) and integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) are different in terms of the site of gasification, they have considerable similarities in terms of the types of gasifiers used. Of course, UCG offers some additional advantages such as reduction of the fugitive methane emissions accompanying the coal mining process. Nevertheless, simulation of IGCC plants involving surface coal gasification is likely to give reasonable indication of the 3E (efficiency, economics and emissions) prospects of the gasification pathway towards electricity. This paper will aim at Estimating 3E impacts (efficiency, environment, economics) of gasification processes using simulation carried out in the Integrated Environmental Control Model (IECM) software framework. Key plant level controls which will be studied in this paper will be based on Indian financial regulations and operating costs which are specific to the country. Also, impacts of CO2 capture and storage (CCS) in these plants will be studied. The various parameters that can be studied are plant load factor, impact of coal quality and price, type of CO2 capture process, capital costs etc. It is hoped that relevant insights into electricity generation from gasification may be obtained with this paper.

A new perspective on hospital financial ratio analysis.

PubMed

Zeller, T L; Stanko, B B; Cleverley, W O

1997-11-01

Using audit financial data in a study of 2,189 not-for-profit hospitals for the period 1989-1992, six financial characteristics of performance were defined. These characteristics are profitability factor, fixed-asset efficiency, capital structure, fixed-asset age, working capital efficiency, and liquidity. The statistical output also shows the specific sets of financial ratios that can be used to measure the six characteristics of hospital performance. The results of this study can be beneficial to healthcare financial managers, hospital boards, policy groups, and other relevant entities because it affords them a clear understanding of an institution's financial performance.

Some comments on Hurst exponent and the long memory processes on capital markets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sánchez Granero, M. A.; Trinidad Segovia, J. E.; García Pérez, J.

2008-09-01

The analysis of long memory processes in capital markets has been one of the topics in finance, since the existence of the market memory could implicate the rejection of an efficient market hypothesis. The study of these processes in finance is realized through Hurst exponent and the most classical method applied is R/S analysis. In this paper we will discuss the efficiency of this methodology as well as some of its more important modifications to detect the long memory. We also propose the application of a classical geometrical method with short modifications and we compare both approaches.

Renewing Spiritual Capital: The National Retreat for Catholic Headteachers and The National School of Formation: The Impact on Catholic Headteachers in The UK

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friel, Raymond

2018-01-01

This paper draws on the findings of a small-scale research study based on interviews with twenty serving Catholic headteachers from the primary and secondary phases and from the maintained and independent sectors. The focus of the study was to explore the concept of 'spiritual capital' among the headteachers and to evaluate the impact of two major…

Factor investing based on Musharakah principle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, Shahril; Omar, Mohd; Lazam, Norazliani Md; Amin, Mohd Nazrul Mohd

2015-10-01

Shariah stock investing has become a widely discussed topic in financial industry as part of today's investment strategy. The strategy primarily applies market capitalization allocations. However, some researchers have argued that market capitalization weighting is inherently flawed and have advocated replacing market capitalization allocations with factor allocations. In this paper, we discuss the rationale for factor investing based on Musharakah principle. The essential elements or factors of Musharakah principle such as business sector, management capability, profitability growth and capital efficiency are embedded in the Shariah-compliant stock. We then transform these factors into indexation for better analysis and performance measurement. Investment universe for this research covers Malaysian stocks for the period of January 2009 to December 2013. We found out that these factor indexes have historically earned excess returns over market capitalization weighted indexes and experienced higher Sharpe Ratios.

Apprenticeship Training in Pakistan: A Comparative Study of Apprenticeship Practices in Punjab and European Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asghar, Waheed; Siddi, Sulaman Hafeez

2008-01-01

In this era of global competition, human resources will play a decisive role in the battle for efficiency and competitive advantage, where nations and organisations with superior and quality-oriented human capital will soon outperform those with inefficient and quantity-oriented labour force. Rate of human capital formation will be more important…

Cocurrent scrubber evaluation TVA's Colbert Lime--Limestone Wet-Scrubbing Pilot Plant. Final report

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

Robards, R.F.; Moore, N.D.; Kelso, T.M.

1979-01-01

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is actively engaged in a pilot plant program to develop and/or evaluate wet-scrubbing processes for removing sulfur dioxide (SO/sub 2/) from boiler flue gas. The physical size and general arrangement of flue gas scrubbing systems have a major impact on capital investment and operating cost, as do potential operating and maintenance advantages inherent to some systems. The equipment configuration for a cocurrent scrubber reflects some of these advantages. EPRI funded TVA to perform preliminary screening tests of TVA's 1 MW pilot plant (Colbert Steam Plant) to develop operating data on the cocurrent design for usemore » in designing and operating a 10 MW prototype cocurrent scrubber at TVA's Shawnee Scrubber Test Facility. Results of the Colbert tests showed excellent sulfur dioxide removal efficiencies, generally greater than 85%, low pressure drop, and high particulate removal efficiencies. This report covers these screening tests.« less

An Attack-Resilient Middleware Architecture for Grid Integration of Distributed Energy Resources

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

Wu, Yifu; Mendis, Gihan J.; He, Youbiao

In recent years, the increasing penetration of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) has made an impact on the operation of the electric power systems. In the grid integration of DERs, data acquisition systems and communications infrastructure are crucial technologies to maintain system economic efficiency and reliability. Since most of these generators are relatively small, dedicated communications investments for every generator are capital cost prohibitive. Combining real-time attack-resilient communications middleware with Internet of Things (IoTs) technologies allows for the use of existing infrastructure. In our paper, we propose an intelligent communication middleware that utilizes the Quality of Experience (QoE) metrics to complementmore » the conventional Quality of Service (QoS) evaluation. Furthermore, our middleware employs deep learning techniques to detect and defend against congestion attacks. The simulation results illustrate the efficiency of our proposed communications middleware architecture.« less

Capitalizing on Happenstance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krumboltz, John D.

2011-01-01

Unplanned events occur every day and have a deep impact on individuals' lives. The happenstance learning theory (Krumboltz, 2009; Krumboltz & Levin, 2010), briefly summarized in this article, provides guidance for employment counselors assisting clients to clarify goals and brainstorm actions to capitalize on chance events.

Alcoa Lafayette Operations Energy Efficiency Assessment

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

None, None

2001-01-01

The energy efficiency assessment performed at Alcoa's Lafayette Operations aluminum extrusion plant identified potential annual savings of $1,974,300 in eight high-energy-use areas with an estimated initial capital requirement of $2,308,500.

Alternative solutions for public and private catastrophe funding in Austria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gruber, M.

2008-07-01

The impacts of natural hazards as well as their frequency of occurrence during the last decades have increased decisively. Therefore, the public as well as the private sector are expected to react to this development by providing sufficient funds, in particular for the improvement of protection measures and an enhanced funding of damage compensation for affected private individuals, corporate and public entities. From the public stance, the establishment of an appropriate regulatory environment seems to be indispensable. Structural and legal changes should, on the one hand, renew and improve the current distribution system of public catastrophe funds as well as the profitable investment of these financial resources, and on the other hand, facilitate the application of alternative mechanisms provided by the capital and insurance markets. In particular, capital markets have developed alternative risk transfer and financing mechanisms, such as captive insurance companies, risk pooling, contingent capital solutions, multi-trigger products and insurance securitisation for hard insurance market phases. These instruments have already been applied to catastrophic (re-)insurance in other countries (mainly the US and off-shore domiciles), and may contribute positively to the insurability of extreme weather events in Austria by enhancing financial capacities. Not only private individuals and corporate entities may use alternative mechanisms in order to retain, thus, to finance certain risks, but also public institutions. This contribution aims at analysing potential solutions for an improved risk management of natural hazards in the private and the public sector by considering alternative mechanisms of the capital and insurance markets. Also the establishment of public-private-partnerships, which may contribute to a more efficient cat funding system in Austria, is considered.

Oral diseases associated with condition-specific oral health-related quality of life and school performance of Thai primary school children: A hierarchical approach.

PubMed

Kaewkamnerdpong, Issarapong; Krisdapong, Sudaduang

2018-06-01

To assess the hierarchical associations between children's school performance and condition-specific (CS) oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), school absence, oral status, sociodemographic and economic status (SDES) and social capital; and to investigate the associations between CS OHRQoL and related oral status, adjusting for SDES and social capital. Data on 925 sixth grade children in Sakaeo province, Thailand, were collected through oral examinations for dental caries and oral hygiene, social capital questionnaires, OHRQoL interviews using the Child-Oral Impacts on Daily Performances index, parental self-administered questionnaires and school documents. A hierarchical conceptual framework was developed, and independent variables were hierarchically entered into multiple logistic models for CS OHRQoL and linear regression models for school performance. After adjusting for SDES and social capital, children with high DMFT or DT scores were significantly threefold more likely to have CS impacts attributed to dental caries. However, poor oral hygiene was not significantly associated with CS impacts attributed to gingival disease. High DMFT scores were significantly associated with lower school performance, whereas high Simplified Oral Hygiene Index scores were not. The final model showed that CS impacts attributed to dental caries and school absence accounted for the association between DMFT score and school performance. Dental caries was associated with CS impacts on OHRQoL, and exerted its effect on school performance through the CS impacts and school absence. There was no association between oral hygiene and CS impacts on OHRQoL or school performance. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Assessment of Recovery Capital: properties and psychometrics of a measure of addiction recovery strengths.

PubMed

Groshkova, Teodora; Best, David; White, William

2013-03-01

Sociological work on social capital and its impact on health behaviours have been translated into the addiction field in the form of 'recovery capital' as the construct for assessing individual progress on a recovery journey. Yet there has been little attempt to quantify recovery capital. The aim of the project was to create a scale that assessed addiction recovery capital. Initial focus group work identified and tested candidate items and domains followed by data collection from multiple sources to enable psychometric assessment of a scale measuring recovery capital. The scale shows moderate test-retest reliability at 1 week and acceptable concurrent validity. Principal component analysis determined single factor structure. The Assessment of Recovery Capital (ARC) is a brief and easy to administer measurement of recovery capital that has acceptable psychometric properties and may be a useful complement to deficit-based assessment and outcome monitoring instruments for substance dependent individuals in and out of treatment. © 2012 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

The association between team-level social capital and individual-level work engagement: Differences between subtypes of social capital and the impact of intra-team agreement.

PubMed

Meng, Annette; Clausen, Thomas; Borg, Vilhelm

2018-04-01

The study explored the association between team-level social capital and individual-level work engagement. Questionnaire data were collected from six companies in the dairy industry. Seven hundred seventy-two participants divided into 65 teams were included. In confirmatory factor analyses, we found a superior model fit to a four dimensional model of social capital: bonding social capital, bridging social capital and two types of linking social capital. The results showed a positive association between all subtypes of social capital at the team level and work engagement at the individual level. However, this association only remained significant for linking social capital in relation the workplace as a whole when we adjusted for psychosocial working conditions. The level of intra-team agreement in social capital score did not moderate the association between social capital and work engagement. In conclusion, the results provide further support for previous findings suggesting a positive association between social capital and work engagement. They add to the existing knowledge by suggesting that linking social capital in relation to the workplace is the most important explanatory variable for work engagement, thus emphasizing the need to distinguish between subtypes of social capital in research and practice. © 2018 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology published by Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Economic development, mobility and traffic accidents in Algeria.

PubMed

Bougueroua, M; Carnis, L

2016-07-01

The aim of this contribution is to estimate the impact of road economic conditions and mobility on traffic accidents for the case of Algeria. Using the cointegration approach and vector error correction model (VECM), we will examine simultaneously short term and long-term impacts between the number of traffic accidents, fuel consumption and gross domestic product (GDP) per capital, over the period 1970-2013. The main results of the estimation show that the number of traffic accidents in Algeria is positively influenced by the GDP per capita in the short and long term. It implies that a higher economic development worsens the road safety situation. However, the new traffic rules adopted in 2009 have an impact on the forecast trend of traffic accidents, meaning efficient public policy could improve the situation. This result calls for a strong political commitment with effective countermeasures for avoiding the further deterioration of road safety record in Algeria. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effects of competition on efficiency of electricity generation: A post-PURPA analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jordan, Paula Faye

1998-10-01

The central issue of this research is the effects increased market competition has on production efficiency. Specifically, the research focuses upon measuring the relative level of efficiency in the generation of electricity in 1978 and 1993. It is hypothesized that the Public Utilities Regulatory Policy Act (PURPA), passed by Congress in 1978, made progress toward achieving its legislative intent of increasing competition, and therefore increased efficiency, in the generation of electricity. The methodology used to measure levels of efficiency in this research is the stochastic statistical estimator with the functional form of the translog production function. The models are then estimated using the maximum likelihood estimating technique using plant level data of coal generating units in the U.S. for 1978 and 1993. Results from the estimation of these models indicate that: (a) For the technical efficiency measures, the 1978 data set out performed the 1993 data set for the OTE and OTE of Fuel measures; (b) the 1993 data set was relatively more efficient in the OTE of Capital and the OTE of Labor when compared to the 1978 data set; (c) The 1993 observations indicated a relatively greater level of efficiency over 1978 in the OAE, OAE of Fuel, and OAE of Capital measures; (d) The OAE of Labor measure findings supported the 1978 observations as more efficient when compared to the 1993 set of observations; (e) When looking at the top and bottom ranked sites within each data set, the results indicated that sites which were top or poor performers for the technical and allocative efficiency measures tended to be a top or poor performer for the overall, fuel, and capital measures. The sites that appeared as a top or poor performer of labor measures within the technical and allocative groups were often unique and didn't necessarily appear as a top or poor performer in the other efficiency measures.

How can a social capital framework guide managers to develop positive nurse relationships and patient outcomes?

PubMed

Hofmeyer, Anne T

2013-07-01

To examine how social capital could be a mediating factor through which managers' leadership positively influences relationships with nurses and quality patient outcomes. The relationship between leadership, what managers do and optimal outcomes for patients are well established. What is not yet clear is an understanding about specific mechanisms by which managers' leadership builds social capital to foster cohesive team relationships and quality patient outcomes. Conceptual links are drawn between human capital and leadership styles of managers. Social capital is introduced and contextualized through exemplars from a Canadian study. Exemplars illustrate how the presence or absence of social capital influenced nurses' productivity to deliver quality patient care. Nurse researchers could use the Social Capital Framework (SCF) to examine the mediating role of social capital in relationships between managers and nurses. These findings could inform managers' strategies to foster positive networks and norms between nurses to deliver quality patient care. Leadership that uses a framework of social capital will enhance team relationships between nurses. Enhanced cohesion will have a positive impact on patient outcomes. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Aboriginal Australians' experience of social capital and its relevance to health and wellbeing in urban settings.

PubMed

Browne-Yung, Kathryn; Ziersch, Anna; Baum, Fran; Gallaher, Gilbert

2013-11-01

Social capital has been linked to physical and mental health. While definitions of social capital vary, all include networks of social relationships and refer to the subsequent benefits and disadvantages accrued to members. Research on social capital for Aboriginal Australians has mainly focused on discrete rural and remote Aboriginal contexts with less known about the features and health and other benefits of social capital in urban settings. This paper presents findings from in-depth interviews with 153 Aboriginal people living in urban areas on their experiences of social capital. Of particular interest was how engagement in bonding and bridging networks influenced health and wellbeing. Employing Bourdieu's relational theory of capital where resources are unequally distributed and reproduced in society we found that patterns of social capital are strongly associated with economic, social and cultural position which in turn reflects the historical experiences of dispossession and disadvantage experienced by Aboriginal Australians. Social capital was also found to both reinforce and influence Aboriginal cultural identity, and had both positive and negative impacts on health and wellbeing. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmental policy and technological change: The effects of economic incentives and direct regulation on energy-saving innovation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newell, Richard G., Jr.

Over the long run, the impacts of environmental policies will be greatly affected by the influence these policies have on the rate and direction of technological change. In particular, the roles played by energy prices and product regulation in energy-saving technology innovation are exceptionally important considerations in modeling climate change and evaluating alternative policy options. We analyze the effects of energy prices and energy-efficiency regulations on the menu of air conditioner and water heater models available on the market over a period of more than three decades, measuring their innovation in terms of improvements in the products' underlying characteristics. Through estimation of a series of "characteristics transformation surfaces," we find that during less than four decades, substantial innovation in these products reduced the total capital and operating costs of air conditioning by one-half and water heating by more than one-fifth. Although the overall rate of innovation in these products appears to be independent of energy prices and regulations, the evidence suggests that the direction of innovation may be responsive to energy price changes. This would imply that energy price increases induced innovation in a direction that lowered the capital cost tradeoffs inherent in producing more energy-efficient products. The evidence supporting "regulation-induced" changes in these tradeoffs is much weaker. Our estimates indicate that about one- to two-fifths of the energy-efficiency improvements in these products from 1973 to 1993 were associated with historical changes in energy prices. We also find that this responsiveness to price changes increased substantially after product labeling requirements came into effect, and that minimum efficiency standards had a significant positive effect on average efficiency levels. Nonetheless, a sizeable portion of historical efficiency improvements in these technologies is associated with the products' overall rate of innovation. Looking forward, we estimate that energy taxes of 10 to 30 percent of retail prices could significantly increase the energy efficiency of the product menu. We predict that such taxes would lead to additional efficiency increases in air conditioners of 6 to 26 percent. We conclude that the price-induced component of energy-efficiency innovation should not be ignored when assessing alternative climate change policies.

Color, Capital, and the Climb to the Headship: The Impact of Social Capital on People of Color when Applying to Become a Head of an Independent School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Ara Carlos

2012-01-01

The literature on social networks, homophily, and educational backgrounds indicates that people of color have less access to the social capital that would be necessary to be considered for the position of head of an independent school in the United States. Furthermore, research indicates that people of color receive decreased returns on their…

Focus On Impact for a Profit-Driven Medical Practice. Part II: Six Processes You Can Use to Maximize and Capitalize on the Uniqueness of Your Practice.

PubMed

Lipton-Dibner, Wendy

2015-01-01

This article presents the second part of the proven Focus on Impact strategic model for practice growth. It spotlights six specific processes you can use to maximize and capitalize on the uniqueness of your practice to increase revenues, enhance patient care and service, improve executive team alignment and intra- and interdepartmental teamwork, and dramatically reduce conflict and stress among practice personnel.

Hurst exponent and prediction based on weak-form efficient market hypothesis of stock markets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eom, Cheoljun; Choi, Sunghoon; Oh, Gabjin; Jung, Woo-Sung

2008-07-01

We empirically investigated the relationships between the degree of efficiency and the predictability in financial time-series data. The Hurst exponent was used as the measurement of the degree of efficiency, and the hit rate calculated from the nearest-neighbor prediction method was used for the prediction of the directions of future price changes. We used 60 market indexes of various countries. We empirically discovered that the relationship between the degree of efficiency (the Hurst exponent) and the predictability (the hit rate) is strongly positive. That is, a market index with a higher Hurst exponent tends to have a higher hit rate. These results suggested that the Hurst exponent is useful for predicting future price changes. Furthermore, we also discovered that the Hurst exponent and the hit rate are useful as standards that can distinguish emerging capital markets from mature capital markets.

Ranking of European Capitals According to the Impact of Future Heat Waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smid, M.; Costa, A. C.; Russo, S.; Pebesma, E. J.; Canut, C. G.

2017-12-01

In warming Europe, we are witnessing a growth in urban population with aging trend, which will make the society more vulnerable to extreme heat waves. In the period 1950-2015 the occurrence of extreme heat waves increased across European capitals. As an example, Moscow was hit by the strongest heat wave of the present era, killing more than ten thousand people. Here we focus on larger metropolitan areas of European capitals. By using observations and an ensemble of eight EURO-CORDEX models under the RCP8.5 scenario, we calculate a suite of temperature based climate indices. We introduce a simple ranking procedure based on ensemble predictions using the mean of metropolitan grid cells for each capital, and population density as a proxy to quantify the future impact. Results show that the selected ensemble provides solid simulation of climate characteristics over most of the targeted metropolitan areas. All the investigated European metropolitan areas will be more vulnerable to extreme heat in the coming decades. Based on the impact ranking, the results reveal that in near, but mainly in distant future, the extreme heat events in European capitals will be not exclusive to traditionally exposed areas such as the Mediterranean and the Iberian Peninsula. The ranking of European capitals based on their vulnerability to the extreme heat could be of paramount importance to the decision makers in order to mitigate the heat related mortality, especially with the foreseen increase of global mean temperature. Acknowledgments: The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of Geoinformatics: Enabling Open Cities (GEO-C), the project funded by the European Commission within the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, International Training Networks (ITN), European Joint Doctorates (EJD). Grant Agreement number 642332 — GEO-C — H2020-MSCA-ITN-2014.

Trends in Immigration of Selected High-Skilled Immigrants to the U.S. from 1997 to 2006

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhou, Fan

2009-01-01

One result of accelerating globalization is the competition for human capital. On one hand, nations are investing more and more in their educational systems to create their own human resources; on the other hand, these nations are struggling to effectively and efficiently utilize their existing human capital. Additionally, there is a massive wave…

Does neighborhood social capital buffer the effects of maternal depression on adolescent behavior problems?

PubMed

Delany-Brumsey, Ayesha; Mays, Vickie M; Cochran, Susan D

2014-06-01

Neighborhood characteristics have been shown to impact child well-being. However, it remains unclear how these factors combine with family characteristics to influence child development. The current study helps develop that understanding by investigating how neighborhoods directly impact child and adolescent behavior problems as well as moderate the influence of family characteristics on behavior. Using multilevel linear models, we examined the relationship among neighborhood conditions (poverty and social capital) and maternal depression on child and adolescent behavior problems. The sample included 741 children, age 5–11, and 564 adolescents, age 12–17. Outcomes were internalizing (e.g. anxious/depressed) and externalizing (e.g. aggressive/hyperactive) behavior problems. Neighborhood poverty and maternal depression were both positively associated with behavior problems for children and adolescents. However, while neighborhood social capital was not directly associated with behavior problems, the interaction of social capital and maternal depression was significantly related to behavior problems for adolescents. This interaction showed that living in neighborhoods with higher levels of social capital attenuated the relationship between maternal depression and adolescent behavior problems and confirmed the expectation that raising healthy well-adjusted children depends not only on the family, but also the context in which the family lives.

Developing human capital: what is the impact on nurse turnover?

PubMed

Rondeau, Kent V; Williams, Eric S; Wagar, Terry H

2009-09-01

To investigate the impact that increasing human capital through staff training makes on the voluntary turnover of registered nurses. Healthcare organizations in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia are experiencing turbulent nursing labour markets characterized by extreme staff shortages and high levels of turnover. Organizations that invest in the development of their nursing human resources may be able to mitigate high turnover through the creation of conditions that more effectively develop and utilize their existing human capital. A questionnaire was sent to the chief nursing officers of 2208 hospitals and long-term care facilities in every province and territory of Canada yielding a response rate of 32.3%. The analysis featured a three-step hierarchical regression with two sets of control variables. After controlling for establishment demographics and local labour market conditions, perceptions of nursing human capital and the level of staff training provided were modestly associated with lower levels of establishment turnover. and implications for Nursing Management The results suggest that healthcare organizations that have made greater investments in their nursing human capital are more likely to demonstrate lower levels of turnover of their registered nursing personnel.

23 CFR 710.703 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... amount of the toll rates, economic development impacts and considerations, or social and environmental..., construction, maintenance, operation, level of service, and/or capital improvements to a facility over the term... assistance participated in either the purchase of any real property, or in any capital expenditures in any...

Investigating the relationship between self-rated health and social capital in South Africa: a multilevel panel data analysis.

PubMed

Lau, Yan Kwan; Ataguba, John E

2015-03-19

The relationship between social capital and self-rated health has been documented in many developed compared to developing countries. Because social capital and health play important roles in development, it may be valuable to study their relationship in the context of a developing country with poorer health status. Further, the role of social capital research for health policy has not received much attention. This paper therefore examines the relationship between social capital and health in South Africa, a country with the history of colonialism and apartheid that has contributed to the social disintegration and destruction of social capital. This study uses data from the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS), the first nationally representative panel study in South Africa. Two waves of the NIDS were used in this paper--Wave 1 (2008) and Wave 2 (2010). Self-rated health, social capital (individual- and contextual-level), and other covariates related to the social determinants of health (SDH) were obtained from the NIDS. Individual-level social capital included group participation, personalised trust and generalised trust while contextual-level or neighbourhood-level social capital was obtained by aggregating from the individual-level and household-level social capital variables to the neighbourhood. Mixed effects models were fitted to predict self-rated health in Wave 2, using lagged covariates (from Wave 1). Individual personalised trust, individual community service group membership and neighbourhood personalised trust were beneficial to self-rated health. Reciprocity, associational activity and other types of group memberships were not found to be significantly associated with self-rated health in South Africa. Results indicate that both individual- and contextual-level social capital are associated with self-rated health. Policy makers may want to consider policies that impact socioeconomic conditions as well as social capital. Some of these policies are linked to the SDH. We contend that the significant social capital including community service membership can be encouraged through policy in a way that is in line with the values of the people. This is likely to impact on health and quality of life generally and lead to a reduction in the burden of disease in South Africa considering the historic context of the country.

Age structure and capital dilution effects in neo-classical growth models.

PubMed

Blanchet, D

1988-01-01

Economists often over estimate capital dilution effects when applying neoclassical growth models which use age structured population and depreciation of capital stock. This occurs because capital stock is improperly characterized. A standard model which assumes a constant depreciation of capital intimates that a population growth rate equal to a negative constant savings ratio is preferable to any higher growth rate. Growth rates which are lower than a negative constant savings ratio suggest an ever growing capital/labor ratio and an ever growing standard of living, even if people do not save. This is suggested because the natural reduction of the capital stock through depreciation is slower than the population decrease which is simply unrealistic. This model overlooks the fact that low or negative growth rates result in an ageing of the capital stock, and this ageing subsequently results in an increase of the overall rate of capital depreciation. In that overly simplistic model, depreciation was assumed independent of the age of the captial stock. Incorporating depreciation as a variable into a model allows a more symmetric treatment of capital. Using models with heterogenous capital, this article explores what occurs when more than 1 kind of capital good is involved in production and when these various captial goods have different lengths of life. Applying economic models, it also examines what occurs when the length of life of capital may vary. These variations correct the negative impact that population growth can have on per capital production and consumption.

Access, engagement, networks, and norms: Dimensions of social capital at work in a first grade classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wexler-Robock, Stephanie

Social capital refers to access and use of resources available through one's networks to solve problems, and the norms that reflect inclusive or exclusive access to those networks and resources. Research has found positive relationships between social capital, academic achievement, and attainment. Studies, however, have generally examined social capital through factors that occur outside the classroom; students who have social capital, acquired through their family and community relationships, seem to be more successful academically. Limited research has explored what if any factors within the classroom might impact the production, and nature of social capital, or its workings in a classroom. The purpose of this study was to explore the workings and nature of classroom social capital, including its possible relationships to engagement and cognition among 5 student participants. Using methods of qualitative data collection, mixed methods were used to analyze information resources, participants' networking, student work, and classroom discourse. Eight interdependent networking factors and 3 overarching patterns of norms were discovered. The networking factors reflected the structure, content, processes, purposes, and acceptability of participants' networking. The norms, also working interdependently, appeared to promote or inhibit among other things, engagement in networking, help seeking, access, sharing, and intertextual use of diverse, often complex sources of information. Through interaction of the 8 factors and 3 overarching norms, ongoing outcomes of networking appeared to include the creation of bridging (inclusive) and bonding (exclusive) forms of social capital, and depth of scientific conceptual understanding, in this case, about birds. Bridging social capital appeared related to willingness to engage in strong and weak tie networking, help seeking, intertextuality, and possibly to mastery goal orientation for all participants, regardless of reading level. Expository sources more so than narrative texts generated intertextually dense, social and cognitive networks, often between members with weak ties. Together the networking factors and norms shed light on the way discourse, resources, and practice might impact social capital, suggesting that forms of social capital may be produced, accumulated, and depleted by factors and norms that are open to variation and occur within the classroom.

Oil fuel delivery optimization for multi product and multi depot: the case of petrol station replenishment problem (PSRP)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Surjandari, Isti; Rachman, Amar; Dianawati, Fauzia; Wibowo, R. Pramono

2011-10-01

With the Oil and Gas Law No. 22 of 2001, national and foreign private enterprises can invest in all sectors of Oil and Gas in Indonesia. In anticipation of this free competition, Pertamina, as a state-owned enterprises, which previously had monopolized the oil and gas business activities in Indonesia, should be able to improve services as well as the efficiency in order to compete in the free market, especially in terms of cost efficiency of fuel distribution to gas station (SPBU). To optimize the distribution activity, it is necessary to design a scheduling system and its fuel delivery routes daily to every SPBU. The determination of routes and scheduling delivery of fuel to the SPBU can be modeled as a Petrol Station Replenishment Problem (PSRP) with the multi-depot, multi-product, time windows and split deliveries, which in this study will be completed by the Tabu Search algorithm (TS). This study was conducted in the area of Bandung, the capital of West Java province, which is a big city and the neighboring city of Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. By using the fuel delivery data for one day, the results showed a decrease of 16.38% of the distance of the route compared to the current conditions, which impacted on the reduction of distribution costs and decrease the number of total trips by 5.22% and 3.83%.

The Technical Efficiency of Specialised Milk Farms: A Regional View

PubMed Central

Špička, Jindřich; Smutka, Luboš

2014-01-01

The aim of the article is to evaluate production efficiency and its determinants of specialised dairy farming among the EU regions. In the most of European regions, there is a relatively high significance of small specialised farms including dairy farms. The DEAVRS method (data envelopment analysis with variable returns to scale) reveals efficient and inefficient regions including the scale efficiency. In the next step, the two-sample t-test determines differences of economic and structural indicators between efficient and inefficient regions. The research reveals that substitution of labour by capital/contract work explains the variability of the farm net value added per AWU (annual work unit) income indicator by more than 30%. The significant economic determinants of production efficiency in specialised dairy farming are farm size, herd size, crop output per hectare, productivity of energy, and capital (at α = 0.01). Specialised dairy farms in efficient regions have significantly higher farm net value added per AWU than inefficient regions. Agricultural enterprises in inefficient regions have a more extensive structure and produce more noncommodity output (public goods). Specialised dairy farms in efficient regions have a slightly higher milk yield, specific livestock costs of feed, bedding, and veterinary services per livestock unit. PMID:25050408

On the role of tip curvature on flapping plates.

PubMed

Martin, Nathan; Gharib, Morteza

2018-01-09

During the flapping motion of a fish's tail, the caudal fin exhibits antero-posterior bending and dorso-ventral bending, the latter of which is referred to as chord-wise bending herein. The impact of chord-wise tip curvature on the hydrodynamic forces for flapping plates is investigated to explore potential mechanisms to improve the maneuverability or the performance of autonomous underwater vehicles. First, actuated chord-wise tip curvature is explored. Comparison of rigid curved geometries to a rigid flat plate as a baseline suggests that an increased curvature decreases the generated forces. An actuated plate with a dynamic tip curvature is created to illustrate a modulation of this decrease in forces. Second, the impact of curvature is isolated using curved plates with an identical planform area. Comparison of rigid curved geometries as a baseline corroborates the result that an increased curvature decreases the generated forces, with the exception that presenting a concave geometry into the flow increases the thrust and the efficiency. A passively-actuated plate is designed to capitalize on this effect by presenting a concave geometry into the flow throughout the cycle. The dynamically and passively actuated plates show potential to improve the maneuverability and the efficiency of autonomous underwater vehicles, respectively.

12 CFR 325.205 - Methodologies and practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... procedures, that are designed to ensure that its stress test processes satisfy the requirements in this... POLICY CAPITAL MAINTENANCE Annual Stress Test § 325.205 Methodologies and practices. (a) Potential impact on capital. In conducting a stress test under this subpart, during each quarter of the planning...

12 CFR 325.205 - Methodologies and practices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... procedures, that are designed to ensure that its stress test processes satisfy the requirements in this... POLICY CAPITAL MAINTENANCE Annual Stress Test § 325.205 Methodologies and practices. (a) Potential impact on capital. In conducting a stress test under this subpart, during each quarter of the planning...

Shared Savings Financing for College and University Energy Efficiency Investments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Business Officer, 1984

1984-01-01

Shared savings arrangements for campus energy efficient investments are discussed. Shared savings is a term for an agreement in which a private company offers to implement an energy efficiency program, including capital improvements, in exchange for a portion of the energy cost savings. Attention is directed to: types of shared savings…

Optimal design and operation of solid oxide fuel cell systems for small-scale stationary applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braun, Robert Joseph

The advent of maturing fuel cell technologies presents an opportunity to achieve significant improvements in energy conversion efficiencies at many scales; thereby, simultaneously extending our finite resources and reducing "harmful" energy-related emissions to levels well below that of near-future regulatory standards. However, before realization of the advantages of fuel cells can take place, systems-level design issues regarding their application must be addressed. Using modeling and simulation, the present work offers optimal system design and operation strategies for stationary solid oxide fuel cell systems applied to single-family detached dwellings. A one-dimensional, steady-state finite-difference model of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is generated and verified against other mathematical SOFC models in the literature. Fuel cell system balance-of-plant components and costs are also modeled and used to provide an estimate of system capital and life cycle costs. The models are used to evaluate optimal cell-stack power output, the impact of cell operating and design parameters, fuel type, thermal energy recovery, system process design, and operating strategy on overall system energetic and economic performance. Optimal cell design voltage, fuel utilization, and operating temperature parameters are found using minimization of the life cycle costs. System design evaluations reveal that hydrogen-fueled SOFC systems demonstrate lower system efficiencies than methane-fueled systems. The use of recycled cell exhaust gases in process design in the stack periphery are found to produce the highest system electric and cogeneration efficiencies while achieving the lowest capital costs. Annual simulations reveal that efficiencies of 45% electric (LHV basis), 85% cogenerative, and simple economic paybacks of 5--8 years are feasible for 1--2 kW SOFC systems in residential-scale applications. Design guidelines that offer additional suggestions related to fuel cell-stack sizing and operating strategy (base-load or load-following and cogeneration or electric-only) are also presented.

Perceptions of community, social capital, and how they affect self-reported health: a multilevel analysis.

PubMed

Dziadkowiec, O; Meissen, G J; Merkle, E C

2017-11-01

The link between social capital and self-reported health has been widely explored. On the other hand, we know less about the relationship between social capital, community socioeconomic characteristics, and non-social capital-related individual differences, and about their impact on self-reported health in community settings. Cross-sectional study design with a proportional sample of 7965 individuals from 20 US communities were analyzed using multilevel linear regression models, where individuals were nested within communities. The response rates ranged from 13.5% to 25.4%. Findings suggest that perceptions of the community and individual level socioeconomic characteristics were stronger predictors of self-reported health than were social capital or community socioeconomic characteristics. Policy initiatives aimed at increasing social capital should first assess community member's perceptions of their communities to uncover potential assets to help increase social capital. Copyright © 2017 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Negative Bystander Behavior in Bullying Dynamics: Assessing the Impact of Social Capital Deprivation and Anti-social Capital.

PubMed

Evans, Caroline B R; Smokowski, Paul R

2017-02-01

Bystanders witness bullying, but are not directly involved as a bully or victim; however, they often engage in negative bystander behavior. This study examines how social capital deprivation and anti-social capital are associated with the likelihood of engaging in negative bystander behavior in a sample (N = 5752) of racially/ethnically diverse rural youth. Data were collected using an online, youth self-report; the current study uses cross sectional data. Following multiple imputation, a binary logistic regression with robust standard errors was run. Results partially supported the hypothesis and indicated that social capital deprivation in the form of peer pressure and verbal victimization and anti-social capital in the form of delinquent friends, bullying perpetration, verbal perpetration, and physical perpetration were significantly associated with an increased likelihood of engaging in negative bystander behavior. Findings highlight the importance of establishing sources of positive social support for disenfranchised youth.

Environmental efficiency of energy, materials, and emissions.

PubMed

Yagi, Michiyuki; Fujii, Hidemichi; Hoang, Vincent; Managi, Shunsuke

2015-09-15

This study estimates the environmental efficiency of international listed firms in 10 worldwide sectors from 2007 to 2013 by applying an order-m method, a non-parametric approach based on free disposal hull with subsampling bootstrapping. Using a conventional output of gross profit and two conventional inputs of labor and capital, this study examines the order-m environmental efficiency accounting for the presence of each of 10 undesirable inputs/outputs and measures the shadow prices of each undesirable input and output. The results show that there is greater potential for the reduction of undesirable inputs rather than bad outputs. On average, total energy, electricity, or water usage has the potential to be reduced by 50%. The median shadow prices of undesirable inputs, however, are much higher than the surveyed representative market prices. Approximately 10% of the firms in the sample appear to be potential sellers or production reducers in terms of undesirable inputs/outputs, which implies that the price of each item at the current level has little impact on most of the firms. Moreover, this study shows that the environmental, social, and governance activities of a firm do not considerably affect environmental efficiency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Online referrals one way capitated groups gain efficiencies, reduce errors.

PubMed

2002-08-01

An online referral system is just the latest money and time-saving tool in the e-commerce arsenal at Hill Physicians Medical Group. Using a modified version of Healinx Corp.'s secure e-mail messaging platform, Hill is testing a custom-made online referral system at two primary care practices that appear to be helping the practice boost its bottom line under capitation.

Toward a neighborhood resource-based theory of social capital for health: can Bourdieu and sociology help?

PubMed

Carpiano, Richard M

2006-01-01

Within the past several years, a considerable body of research on social capital has emerged in public health. Although offering the potential for new insights into how community factors impact health and well being, this research has received criticism for being undertheorized and methodologically flawed. In an effort to address some of these limitations, this paper applies Pierre Bourdieu's (1986) [Bourdieu, P. (1986). Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241-258). New York: Greenwood] social capital theory to create a conceptual model of neighborhood socioeconomic processes, social capital (resources inhered within social networks), and health. After briefly reviewing the social capital conceptualizations of Bourdieu and Putnam, I attempt to integrate these authors' theories to better understand how social capital might operate within neighborhoods or local areas. Next, I describe a conceptual model that incorporates this theoretical integration of social capital into a framework of neighborhood social processes as health determinants. Discussion focuses on the utility of this Bourdieu-based neighborhood social capital theory and model for examining several under-addressed issues of social capital in the neighborhood effects literature and generating specific, empirically testable hypotheses for future research.

Relational approach in managing construction project safety: a social capital perspective.

PubMed

Koh, Tas Yong; Rowlinson, Steve

2012-09-01

Existing initiatives in the management of construction project safety are largely based on normative compliance and error prevention, a risk management approach. Although advantageous, these approaches are not wholly successful in further lowering accident rates. A major limitation lies with the approaches' lack of emphasis on the social and team processes inherent in construction project settings. We advance the enquiry by invoking the concept of social capital and project organisational processes, and their impacts on project safety performance. Because social capital is a primordial concept and affects project participants' interactions, its impact on project safety performance is hypothesised to be indirect, i.e. the impact of social capital on safety performance is mediated by organisational processes in adaptation and cooperation. A questionnaire survey was conducted within Hong Kong construction industry to test the hypotheses. 376 usable responses were received and used for analyses. The results reveal that, while the structural dimension is not significant, the mediational thesis is generally supported with the cognitive and relational dimensions affecting project participants' adaptation and cooperation, and the latter two processes affect safety performance. However, the cognitive dimension also directly affects safety performance. The implications of these results for project safety management are discussed. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Econophysics: Master curve for price-impact function

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lillo, Fabrizio; Farmer, J. Doyne; Mantegna, Rosario N.

2003-01-01

The price reaction to a single transaction depends on transaction volume, the identity of the stock, and possibly many other factors. Here we show that, by taking into account the differences in liquidity for stocks of different size classes of market capitalization, we can rescale both the average price shift and the transaction volume to obtain a uniform price-impact curve for all size classes of firm for four different years (1995-98). This single-curve collapse of the price-impact function suggests that fluctuations from the supply-and-demand equilibrium for many financial assets, differing in economic sectors of activity and market capitalization, are governed by the same statistical rule.

Educational Mismatches and Earnings: Extensions of Occupational Mobility Theory and Evidence of Human Capital Depreciation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rubb, Stephen

2006-01-01

Using a human capital theory framework, this study examines the impact of educational mismatches on earnings and occupational mobility. Occupational mobility theory suggests that overeducated workers observe greater upward occupational mobility and undereducated workers observe lower upward occupational mobility. By extension, this leads to…

Human Capital Response to Globalization: Education and Information Technology in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shastry, Gauri Kartini

2012-01-01

Recent studies suggest that globalization increases inequality, by increasing skilled wage premiums in developing countries. This effect may be mitigated, however, if human capital responds to global opportunities. I study how the impact of globalization varies across Indian districts with different costs of learning English. Linguistic diversity…

Impact of Comprehensive School Reform on Social Capital and Pedagogical Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uekawa, Kazuaki; Aladjem, Daniel K.; Zhang, Yu

2006-01-01

We evaluated the role that social capital among teachers plays in affecting teacher pedagogy in the context of comprehensive school reform (CSR). CSR implementation was designed to change school- and classroom-level processes, including organization and governance, curriculum and instruction, professional development (PD), and parental…

Spousal Capital as a Resource for Couples Starting a Business

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matzek, Amanda E.; Gudmunson, Clinton G.; Danes, Sharon M.

2010-01-01

This longitudinal study finds that spousal capital is an important resource for entrepreneurs starting a business because it has implications for business sustainability and couple relationship quality. Structural equation modeling supported a process whereby gender had an impact on spousal involvement in the business, which was positively…

Human Capital Theory: A Holistic Criticism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Emrullah

2014-01-01

Human capital theory has had a profound impact on a range of disciplines from economics to education and sociology. The theory has always been the subject of bitter criticisms from the very beginning, but it has comfortably survived and expanded its influence over other research disciplines. Not surprisingly, a considerable number of criticisms…

78 FR 43829 - Risk-Based Capital Guidelines; Market Risk

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-07-22

... have no practical impact on the rules that apply to the provision of official export credits.'' \\8\\ \\7... treatment of certain securitization positions under the SSFA with regard to determining the delinquency of... increase the capital requirements for a securitization exposure when delinquencies in the underlying assets...

78 FR 76521 - Risk-Based Capital Guidelines; Market Risk

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-12-18

... ``[t]his means that the change has no practical impact on the rules that apply to the provision of... delinquency of the underlying exposures as discussed below. Among the inputs to the SSFA is the ``W'' parameter, which increases the capital requirements for a securitization exposure when delinquencies in the...

78 FR 65583 - Capital Planning and Stress Testing

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-01

... comment. SUMMARY: NCUA proposes to conduct annual stress tests of federally insured credit unions (FICUs... Protection Act (the Dodd-Frank Act), requiring their supervised institutions to conduct annual stress tests... the credit union in its capital plans. Credit unions must also test the impact of interest rate shocks...

10 CFR 503.35 - Inability to obtain adequate capital.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... management's ability to raise debt or equity capital; (ii) Without a substantial dilution of shareholder... of non-investor-owned public utilities, without jeopardizing the utility's ability to recover its... impact analysis, as required under § 503.13 of these regulations; and (4) Fuels search, as required under...

10 CFR 503.35 - Inability to obtain adequate capital.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... management's ability to raise debt or equity capital; (ii) Without a substantial dilution of shareholder... of non-investor-owned public utilities, without jeopardizing the utility's ability to recover its... impact analysis, as required under § 503.13 of these regulations; and (4) Fuels search, as required under...

10 CFR 503.35 - Inability to obtain adequate capital.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... management's ability to raise debt or equity capital; (ii) Without a substantial dilution of shareholder... of non-investor-owned public utilities, without jeopardizing the utility's ability to recover its... impact analysis, as required under § 503.13 of these regulations; and (4) Fuels search, as required under...

10 CFR 503.35 - Inability to obtain adequate capital.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... management's ability to raise debt or equity capital; (ii) Without a substantial dilution of shareholder... of non-investor-owned public utilities, without jeopardizing the utility's ability to recover its... impact analysis, as required under § 503.13 of these regulations; and (4) Fuels search, as required under...

The Impact of Conditional Cash Transfer Programs on Human Capital Accumulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Latham, James David Michael

2013-01-01

Conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs are increasingly being used through the developing world to reduce inequality, break the intergenerational poverty cycle, and build human capital. These programs vary by country but typically make cash transfers conditional upon children meeting certain healthcare and educational standards. While previous…

Academic Capitalism and Academic Culture: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mendoza, Pilar; Berger, Joseph B.

2008-01-01

This case study investigated the impact of academic capitalism on academic culture by examining the perspectives of faculty members in an American academic department with significant industrial funding. The results of this study indicate that faculty members believe that the broad integrity of the academic culture remains unaffected in this…

Valuing Residential Energy Efficiency in Two Alaska Real Estate Markets: A Hedonic Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pride, Dominique J.

Alaska households have high home energy consumption and expenditures. Improving the energy efficiency of the housing stock can reduce home energy consumption, thereby reducing home energy expenditures and CO2 emissions. Improving the energy efficiency of a home may also increase its transaction price if the energy efficiency improvements are capitalized into the value of the home. The relationship between energy efficiency and transaction prices in the Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska residential real estate markets is examined. Using a hedonic pricing framework and difference-in-differences analysis, the impact of the Alaska Home Energy Rebate program on the transaction prices of single-family homes in the Fairbanks and Anchorage housing markets from 2008 through 2015 is examined. The results indicate that compared to homes that did not complete the program, homes that completed the program sell for a statistically significant price premium between 15.1% and 15.5% in the Fairbanks market and between 5% and 11% in the Anchorage market. A hedonic pricing framework is used to relate energy efficiency ratings and transaction prices of homes in the Fairbanks and Anchorage residential real estate markets from 2008 through 2015. The results indicate that homes with above-average energy efficiency ratings sell for a statistically significant price premium between 6.9% and 17.5% in the Fairbanks market and between 1.8% and 6.0% in the Anchorage market.

Serial multiple mediation of organizational commitment and job burnout in the relationship between psychological capital and anxiety in Chinese female nurses: A cross-sectional questionnaire survey.

PubMed

Zhou, Jiawei; Yang, Yanjie; Qiu, Xiaohui; Yang, Xiuxian; Pan, Hui; Ban, Bo; Qiao, Zhengxue; Wang, Lin; Wang, Wenbo

2018-07-01

Nurses play an important role in medical and health services but anxiety among those in this profession is widespread. Anxiety not only damages the physical and mental health of the individual, but also reduces the efficiency of their work and the quality of care, ultimately impacting on patient care. Therefore, it is necessary to elucidate the factors that lead to anxiety and explore measures to reduce the impact these factors have on nurses. The purpose of this study was to investigate the serial-multiple mediation of psychological capital (PsyCap), organizational commitment, job burnout, and anxiety among Chinese female nurses. A cross-sectional stratified cluster sampling study. The study consisted of 1354 Chinese female nurses from two tertiary grade A hospitals in Heilongjiang Province, China. The Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, the Chinese psychological capital questionnaire, the Chinese Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the Chinese Employee Organizational Commitment Questionnaire were used to gather data. Descriptive analysis, independent-samples T-test, one-way analysis of variance, Spearman correlation analyses, ordinary least-squares regression and the bootstrap method were used to analyze data. The prevalence rate of anxiety among nurses was found to be 41.1%, and there were significant differences in anxiety symptoms in age (F = 15.54, p < 0.001) and marital status (F = 5.41, p < 0.001), but not education (F = 1.50, p = 0.224) among nurses. Overall, the serial-multiple mediation of organizational commitment and job burnout in the relationship between PsyCap and anxiety was found to be statistically significant. The results of the present study showed that positive PsyCap was sequentially associated with increased organizational commitment first, and then decreased job burnout, which was in turn related to reduced symptoms of anxiety among female nurses. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Capital cost reimbursement to community hospitals under Federal health insurance programs.

PubMed

Kinney, E D; Lefkowitz, B

1982-01-01

Issues in current capital cost reimbursement to community hospitals by Medicare and Medicaid are described, and options for change analyzed. Major reforms in the way the federal government pays for capital costs--in particular substitution of other methods of payment for existing depreciation reimbursement--could have significant impact on the structure of the health care system and on government expenditures. While such reforms are likely to engender substantial political opposition, they may be facilitated by broader changes in the reimbursement system.

A comparison of the capital structures of nonprofit and proprietary health care organizations.

PubMed

Trussel, John

2012-01-01

The relative amount of debt used by an organization is an important determination of the organization's likelihood of financial problems and its cost of capital. This study addresses whether or not there are any differences between proprietary and nonprofit health care organizations in terms of capital structure. Controlling for profitability, risk, growth, and size, analysis of covariance is used to determine whether or not proprietary and nonprofit health care organizations use the same amount of leverage in their capital structures. The results indicate that there is no difference in the amount of leverage between the two institutional types. Although nonprofit and proprietary organizations have unique financing mechanisms, these differences do not impact the relative amount of debt and equity in their capital structures.

Focus On Impact® for a Profit-Driven Medical Practice, Part I: Capitalize on the New Economy with the First Four Steps of the Focus On Impact® Strategic Model.

PubMed

Lipton-Dibner, Wendy

2015-01-01

How do you raise revenues in a practice that is defined by insurance regulations, operating expenses, and an ever-shifting economy? The most effective strategy is completely counterintuitive: to grow your revenues, take your focus off of money and focus every aspect of your practice on making a measurable impact in people's lives. This article presents a proven, step-by-step model to thrive in the new economy by maximizing and capitalizing on your impact so you can reap the rewards of your efforts and recapture the passion that first drove you to serve as a healthcare professional.

Economics of Agroforestry

Treesearch

D. Evan Mercer; Frederick W. Cubbage; Gregory E. Frey

2014-01-01

This chapter provides principles, literature and a case study about the economics of agroforestry. We examine necessary conditions for achieving efficiency in agroforestry system design and economic analysis tools for assessing efficiency and adoptability of agroforestry. The tools presented here (capital budgeting, linear progranuning, production frontier analysis...

Social capital, economics, and health: new evidence.

PubMed

Scheffler, Richard M; Brown, Timothy T

2008-10-01

In introducing this Special Issue on Social Capital and Health, this article tracks the popularization of the term and sheds light on the controversy surrounding the term and its definitions. It sets out four mechanisms that link social capital with health: making information available to community members, impacting social norms, enhancing the health care services and their accessibility in a community, and offering psychosocial support networks. Approaches to the measurement of social capital include the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey (SCCBS) developed by Robert Putnam, and the Petris Social Capital Index (PSCI), which looks at community voluntary organizations using public data available for the entire United States. The article defines community social capital (CSC) as the extent and density of trust, cooperation, and associational links and activity within a given population. Four articles on CSC are introduced in two categories: those that address behaviors -- particularly utilization of health services and use of tobacco, alcohol, and drugs; and those that look at links between social capital and physical or mental health. Policy implications include: funding and/or tax subsidies that would support the creation of social capital; laws and regulations; and generation of enthusiasm among communities and leaders to develop social capital. The next steps in the research programme are to continue testing the mechanisms; to look for natural experiments; and to find better public policies to foster social capital.

Linear and non-linear impact of Internet usage and financial deepening on electricity consumption for Turkey: empirical evidence from asymmetric causality.

PubMed

Faisal, Faisal; Tursoy, Turgut; Berk, Niyazi

2018-04-01

This study investigates the relationship between Internet usage, financial development, economic growth, capital and electricity consumption using quarterly data from 1993Q1 to 2014Q4. The integration order of the series is analysed using the structural break unit root test. The ARDL bounds test for cointegration in addition to the Bayer-Hanck (2013) combined cointegration test is applied to analyse the existence of cointegration among the variables. The study found strong evidence of a long-run relationship between the variables. The long-run results under the ARDL framework confirm the existence of an inverted U-shaped relationship between financial development and electricity consumption, not only in the long-run, but also in the short-run. The study also confirms the existence of a U-shaped relationship between Internet usage and electricity consumption; however, the effect is insignificant. Additionally, the influence of trade, capital and economic growth is examined in both the long run and short run (ARDL-ECM). Finally, the results of asymmetric causality suggest a positive shock in electricity consumption that has a positive causal impact on Internet usage. The authors recommend that the Turkish Government should direct financial institutions to moderate the investment in the ICT sector by advancing credits at lower cost for purchasing energy-efficient technologies. In doing so, the Turkish Government can increase productivity in order to achieve sustainable growth, while simultaneously reducing emissions to improve environmental quality.

Does Neighborhood Social Capital Buffer the Effects of Maternal Depression on Adolescent Behavior Problems?

PubMed Central

Mays, Vickie M.; Cochran, Susan D.

2014-01-01

Neighborhood characteristics have been shown to impact child well-being. However, it remains unclear how these factors combine with family characteristics to influence child development. The current study helps develop that understanding by investigating how neighborhoods directly impact child and adolescent behavior problems as well as moderate the influence of family characteristics on behavior. Using multilevel linear models, we examined the relationship among neighborhood conditions (poverty and social capital) and maternal depression on child and adolescent behavior problems. The sample included 741 children, age 5–11, and 564 adolescents, age 12–17. Outcomes were internalizing (e.g. anxious/depressed) and externalizing (e.g. aggressive/hyperactive) behavior problems. Neighborhood poverty and maternal depression were both positively associated with behavior problems for children and adolescents. However, while neighborhood social capital was not directly associated with behavior problems, the interaction of social capital and maternal depression was significantly related to behavior problems for adolescents. This interaction showed that living in neighborhoods with higher levels of social capital attenuated the relationship between maternal depression and adolescent behavior problems and confirmed the expectation that raising healthy well-adjusted children depends not only on the family, but also the context in which the family lives. PMID:24659390

Vertical integration models to prepare health systems for capitation.

PubMed

Cave, D G

1995-01-01

Health systems will profit most under capitation if their vertical integration strategy provides operational stability, a strong primary care physician base, efficient delivery of medical services, and geographic access to physicians. Staff- and equity-based systems best meet these characteristics for success because they have one governance structure and a defined mission statement. Moreover, physician bonds are strong because these systems maximize physicians' income potential and control the revenue stream.

The economics of for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals.

PubMed

Reinhardt, U E

2000-01-01

This paper examines the economics of for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals through the prism of capital acquisitions. The exercise suggests that of two hospitals that are equally efficient in producing health care, the for-profit hospital would have to charge higher prices than the not-for-profit hospital would, to break even on capital acquisitions. The reasons for this divergence are (1) the typically higher cost of equity capital that for-profit hospitals face; and (2) the income taxes they must pay. The paper recommends holding tax-exempt hospitals more formally accountable for the social obligation they shoulder, in return for their tax preference.

Fractality Evidence and Long-Range Dependence on Capital Markets: a Hurst Exponent Evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oprean, Camelia; Tănăsescu, Cristina

2014-07-01

Since the existence of market memory could implicate the rejection of the efficient market hypothesis, the aim of this paper is to find any evidence that selected emergent capital markets (eight European and BRIC markets, namely Hungary, Romania, Estonia, Czech Republic, Brazil, Russia, India and China) evince long-range dependence or the random walk hypothesis. In this paper, the Hurst exponent as calculated by R/S fractal analysis and Detrended Fluctuation Analysis is our measure of long-range dependence in the series. The results reinforce our previous findings and suggest that if stock returns present long-range dependence, the random walk hypothesis is not valid anymore and neither is the market efficiency hypothesis.

Social capital, income inequality and the social gradient in self-rated health in Latin America: A fixed effects analysis.

PubMed

Vincens, Natalia; Emmelin, Maria; Stafström, Martin

2018-01-01

Latin America is the most unequal region in the world. The current sustainable development agenda increased attention to health inequity and its determinants in the region. Our aim is to investigate the social gradient in health in Latin America and assess the effects of social capital and income inequality on it. We used cross-sectional data from the World Values Survey and the World Bank. Our sample included 10,426 respondents in eight Latin American countries. Self-rated health was used as the outcome. Education level was the socioeconomic position indicator. We measured social capital by associational membership, civic participation, generalized trust, and neighborhood trust indicators at both individual and country levels. Income inequality was operationalized using the Gini index at country-level. We employed fixed effects logistic regressions and cross-level interactions to assess the impact of social capital and income inequality on the heath gradient, controlling for country heterogeneity. Education level was independently associated with self-rated health, representing a clear social gradient in health, favoring individuals in higher socioeconomic positions. Generalized and neighborhood trust at country-level moderated the effect on the association between socioeconomic position and health, yet favoring individuals in lower socioeconomic positions, especially in lower inequality countries, despite their lower individual social capital. Our findings suggest that collective rather than individual social capital can impact the social gradient in health in Latin America, explaining health inequalities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

7 CFR 4280.128 - Application and documentation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.128... capital improvements to an existing renewable energy system) or to make energy efficiency improvements. The response to § 4280.113(a) must include a brief description of the system or improvement. This...

7 CFR 4280.128 - Application and documentation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.128... capital improvements to an existing renewable energy system) or to make energy efficiency improvements. The response to § 4280.113(a) must include a brief description of the system or improvement. This...

7 CFR 4280.128 - Application and documentation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.128... capital improvements to an existing renewable energy system) or to make energy efficiency improvements. The response to § 4280.113(a) must include a brief description of the system or improvement. This...

7 CFR 4280.128 - Application and documentation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program Section B. Guaranteed Loans § 4280.128 Application and... the purchase of a renewable energy system (including making necessary capital improvements to an existing renewable energy system) or to make energy efficiency improvements. The response to § 4280.108(a...

Contributions of Youth Engagement to the Development of Social Capital through Community Mapping

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nathaniel, Keith C.; Kinsey, Sharon B.

2013-01-01

The Multi-State North Central Extension Research Activity (NCERA), Contributions of 4-H Participation to the Development of Social Capital, identified a strategy to pilot a research method that incorporates an inquiry-based approach to understanding community level impact of youth programs. This article focuses on how youth engagement educators…

The Impacts of Corruption on Economic Development in Afghanistan: A Study of the Effects of Nepotism and Bribery

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-12-16

appropriation from other players. These capital games involve the elusive actions of corruption amongst the social and governmental elites . These...actions are either legal or not identified as illegal. They help country elites maintain a financial advantage over foreign competitors. This capital

Using Discussion Methods to Inspire Diversity: Harnessing Social & Cultural Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raison, Brian; Gordon, Beverly

2012-01-01

How can you better harness the powerful social capital that exists within diverse individuals, families, businesses, and schools to make positive impacts in your community? What could you add to your next meeting--a Chamber strategic planning session, an employee wellness program, a non-profit board development--to better connect participants with…

The Development and Resulting Performance Impact of Positive Psychological Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luthans, Fred; Avey, James B.; Avolio, Bruce J.; Peterson, Suzanne J.

2010-01-01

Recently, theory and research have supported psychological capital (PsyCap) as an emerging core construct linked to positive outcomes at the individual and organizational level. However, to date, little attention has been given to PsyCap development through training interventions; nor have there been attempts to determine empirically if such…

Community Economic Development Strategies in Rural Washington: Toward a Synthesis of Natural and Social Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crowe, Jessica A.

2006-01-01

Routes to economic development attract considerable attention in community and rural sociology. Social scientists draw increasingly on studies of social capital and environmental surroundings as they examine the factors that facilitate and inhibit economic development. However, few empirical analyses exist that analyze the impact of the…

A Conceptual and Measurement Model of Student-Teacher Classroom Social Capital: An Exploration of Relationships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trahan, MayBelle N.

2013-01-01

Classroom social capital utilizing constructs of student-teacher relationships were examined while focusing on their impact on student self-efficacy. The lack of positive student-teacher relationships may cause students to experience a disconnection within in the middle school classroom. Once this disconnection occurs, students may become…

After Access: Underrepresented Students' Postmatriculation Perceptions of College Access Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Means, Darris R.; Pyne, Kimberly B.

2016-01-01

This qualitative study explores the perceived impact of college-going capital gained during participation in a college access program. In three, semistructured interviews spanning the first-year college experience, 10 first-year college students who participated in a college access program articulate the value of access programming and also raise…

Quantifying the conservation gains from shared access to linear infrastructure.

PubMed

Runge, Claire A; Tulloch, Ayesha I T; Gordon, Ascelin; Rhodes, Jonathan R

2017-12-01

The proliferation of linear infrastructure such as roads and railways is a major global driver of cumulative biodiversity loss. One strategy for reducing habitat loss associated with development is to encourage linear infrastructure providers and users to share infrastructure networks. We quantified the reductions in biodiversity impact and capital costs under linear infrastructure sharing of a range of potential mine to port transportation links for 47 mine locations operated by 28 separate companies in the Upper Spencer Gulf Region of South Australia. We mapped transport links based on least-cost pathways for different levels of linear-infrastructure sharing and used expert-elicited impacts of linear infrastructure to estimate the consequences for biodiversity. Capital costs were calculated based on estimates of construction costs, compensation payments, and transaction costs. We evaluated proposed mine-port links by comparing biodiversity impacts and capital costs across 3 scenarios: an independent scenario, where no infrastructure is shared; a restricted-access scenario, where the largest mining companies share infrastructure but exclude smaller mining companies from sharing; and a shared scenario where all mining companies share linear infrastructure. Fully shared development of linear infrastructure reduced overall biodiversity impacts by 76% and reduced capital costs by 64% compared with the independent scenario. However, there was considerable variation among companies. Our restricted-access scenario showed only modest biodiversity benefits relative to the independent scenario, indicating that reductions are likely to be limited if the dominant mining companies restrict access to infrastructure, which often occurs without policies that promote sharing of infrastructure. Our research helps illuminate the circumstances under which infrastructure sharing can minimize the biodiversity impacts of development. © 2017 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Productivity and technical efficiency of suckler beef production systems: trends for the period 1990 to 2012.

PubMed

Veysset, P; Lherm, M; Roulenc, M; Troquier, C; Bébin, D

2015-12-01

Over the past 23 years (1990 to 2012), French beef cattle farms have expanded in size and increased labour productivity by over 60%, chiefly, though not exclusively, through capital intensification (labour-capital substitution) and simplifying herd feeding practices (more concentrates used). The technical efficiency of beef sector production systems, as measured by the ratio of the volume value (in constant euros) of farm output excluding aids to volume of intermediate consumption, has fallen by nearly 20% while income per worker has held stable thanks to subsidies and the labour productivity gains made. This aggregate technical efficiency of beef cattle systems is positively correlated to feed self-sufficiency, which is in turn negatively correlated to farm and herd size. While volume of farm output per hectare of agricultural area has not changed, forage feed self-sufficiency decreased by 6 percentage points. The continual increase in farm size and labour productivity has come at a cost of lower production-system efficiency - a loss of technical efficiency that 20 years of genetic, technical, technological and knowledge-driven progress has barely managed to offset.

The hidden risks and subtleties of capitation or, what you were never told when you agreed to accept capitated risk.

PubMed

Prescott, F M

1998-01-01

For your physician practice to be successful under a capitated contract, you must understand the subtleties of the arrangement that can impact the practice's level of risk exposure. This means you must know the key questions to ask when negotiating the contract and capitation amount, as well as what should be monitored to ensure the contract is implemented correctly. How the capitated rate is calculated and whether or not it appropriately covers the risk of each benefit plan the practice will be servicing will determine the financial viability of the contractual agreement. In addition, after the contract becomes effective, you should make sure that the practice is providing and billing for services consistent with its contractual obligations, and that the reimbursement received is correct based on the practice's membership mix.

Do Multiple Forms of Social Capital Mediate the Relationship Between Parental Violence and Children's Maladaptive Behaviors?

PubMed

Kim, Sangwon; Lee, Yanghee

2018-03-01

Many things can harm children's well-being. Among them, exposure to parental violence makes children vulnerable and often leads to aggression and/or depression. However, not all children who have suffered parental violence show aggressive behavior or depressive mood. Social capital, defined as resources accruing from interpersonal relationships, was proposed to significantly mediate the relationships among adverse experiences and their negative impacts. In previous studies, social capital accrued from parents played a positive role for children in violent situations, but children exposed to parental violence need alternative sources of social capital. This study targeted fourth-grade Korean children and aimed to identify and test the role of various forms of social capital to help children overcome negative consequences from parental violence. Siblings, friends, teachers, neighbors, and online acquaintances were sources of social capital, and the results showed that social capital from siblings, teachers, neighbors, or online acquaintances mediated in the relationships between parental violence and aggressive behavior. In addition, social capital from siblings and online acquaintances mediated in the relationships between parental violence and depressive mood. The findings have implications in terms of intervention. It is suggested that multiple forms of social capital from children's immediate environments are helpful in their adaptation from exposure to parental violence, and thus, relationship-based interventions are recommended.

Social capital and health: Does egalitarianism matter? A literature review

PubMed Central

Islam, M Kamrul; Merlo, Juan; Kawachi, Ichiro; Lindström, Martin; Gerdtham, Ulf-G

2006-01-01

The aim of the paper is to critically review the notion of social capital and review empirical literature on the association between social capital and health across countries. The methodology used for the review includes a systematic search on electronic databases for peer-reviewed published literature. We categorize studies according to level of analysis (single and multilevel) and examine whether studies reveal a significant health impact of individual and area level social capital. We compare the study conclusions according to the country's degrees of economic egalitarianism. Regardless of study design, our findings indicate that a positive association (fixed effect) exists between social capital and better health irrespective of countries degree of egalitarianism. However, we find that the between-area variance (random effect) in health tends to be lower in more egalitarian countries than in less egalitarian countries. Our tentative conclusion is that an association between social capital and health at the individual level is robust with respect to the degree of egalitarianism within a country. Area level or contextual social capital may be less salient in egalitarian countries in explaining health differences across places. PMID:16597324

The 2005 London terror attacks: An investigation of changes in psychological wellbeing and social capital pre- and post-attacks (2003-07)-A UK panel study.

PubMed

Giordano, Giuseppe N; Lindström, Martin

2016-12-01

The London public transport suicide bombings, which occurred on 7th July 2005, were described as the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil to date. Past acts of terrorism have been associated with deterioration in population mental health. They may also negatively impact levels of social capital, which is considered a buffer against poor mental health outcomes. By employing panel data from the British Household Panel Survey and following the same individuals (N T =9287) three times over a five-year period (2003, 2005 and 2007), the aim of this longitudinal multilevel study was to investigate: (i) the impact of terrorism on individual-level social capital (generalised trust and social participation) across the UK; and (ii) the buffering effects of social capital on psychological wellbeing (GHQ-12). By comparing 2005 and 2007 covariate values (including the two social capital proxies) against their pre-terror baseline (2003) measurements in two separate multilevel logistic regression models, we examined the immediate and longer-term effects of the 2005 attacks on our GHQ-12 outcome. Compared to baseline, generalised trust dropped from 44% to 36% immediately post-terror attacks in 2005, while local participation increased from 45.8% to 47.5%. Social capital levels started to return to baseline levels by 2007, yet both proxies maintained independent buffering effects against poor GHQ-12 scores in years 2005 and 2007. From this empirical evidence, it seems that though generalised trust levels are negatively affected by acts of terrorism, the accompanying increase in local active participation may aid in the re-establishment of societal norms and beliefs in later years. Decision makers should be aware that such atrocities may negatively impact on populations' generalised trust in the shorter-term. To safeguard against losing this buffer against poor mental health outcomes, local active participation should be encouraged.

Reducing the cost of health care capital.

PubMed

Silberman, R

1984-08-01

Although one may ask four financial experts their opinion on the future of the hospital capital market and receive five answers, the blatant need for financial strategic planning is evident. Clearly, the hospital or system with sound financial management will be better positioned to gain and/or maintain an edge in the competitive environment of the health care sector. The trends of the future include hospitals attempting to: Maximize the efficiency of invested capital. Use the expertise of Board members. Use alternative capital sources. Maximize rate of return on investments. Increase productivity. Adjust to changes in reimbursements. Restructure to use optimal financing for capital needs, i.e., using short-term to build up debt capacity if long-term financing is needed in the future. Take advantage of arbitrage (obtain capital and reinvest it until the funds are needed). Delay actual underwriting until funds are to be used. Better management of accounts receivable and accounts payable to avoid short-term financing for cash flow shortfalls. Use for-profit subsidiaries to obtain venture capital by issuing stock. Use product line management. Use leasing to obtain balance sheet advantages. These trends indicate a need for hospital executives to possess a thorough understanding of the capital formation process. In essence, the bottom line is that the short-term viability and long-term survival of a health care organization will greatly depend on the financial expertise of its decision-makers.

Noise Costs from Road Transport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Margorínová, Martina; Trojanová, Mária; Decký, Martin; Remišová, Eva

2018-06-01

Building and improving road infrastructure in Slovakia is currently influenced by the amount of state funding. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the effectiveness of each proposed solution of road project, which is based on life-cycle costs. Besides capital costs, social costs are also important, which valued the negative impacts due to road construction and operation on road users, the environment, and the population living in the affected area. Some components of social costs have shortcomings in quantifying and valuating, which need to be resolved. The one of important components which affects human health and the value of an area, and have some shortcomings are noise costs. Improvement of this component will lead to more accurate valuation of economic efficiency of roads.

How Do Social Capital and HIV/AIDS Outcomes Geographically Cluster and Which Sociocontextual Mechanisms Predict Differences Across Clusters?

PubMed

Ransome, Yusuf; Dean, Lorraine T; Crawford, Natalie D; Metzger, David S; Blank, Michael B; Nunn, Amy S

2017-09-01

Place of residence has been associated with HIV transmission risks. Social capital, defined as features of social organization that improve efficiency of society by facilitating coordinated actions, often varies by neighborhood, and hypothesized to have protective effects on HIV care continuum outcomes. We examined whether the association between social capital and 2 HIV care continuum outcomes clustered geographically and whether sociocontextual mechanisms predict differences across clusters. Bivariate Local Moran's I evaluated geographical clustering in the association between social capital (participation in civic and social organizations, 2006, 2008, 2010) and [5-year (2007-2011) prevalence of late HIV diagnosis and linkage to HIV care] across Philadelphia, PA, census tracts (N = 378). Maps documented the clusters and multinomial regression assessed which sociocontextual mechanisms (eg, racial composition) predict differences across clusters. We identified 4 significant clusters (high social capital-high HIV/AIDS, low social capital-low HIV/AIDS, low social capital-high HIV/AIDS, and high social capital-low HIV/AIDS). Moran's I between social capital and late HIV diagnosis was (I = 0.19, z = 9.54, P < 0.001) and linkage to HIV care (I = 0.06, z = 3.274, P = 0.002). In multivariable analysis, median household income predicted differences across clusters, particularly where social capital was lowest and HIV burden the highest, compared with clusters with high social capital and lowest HIV burden. The association between social participation and HIV care continuum outcomes cluster geographically in Philadelphia, PA. HIV prevention interventions should account for this phenomenon. Reducing geographic disparities will require interventions tailored to each continuum step and that address socioeconomic factors such as neighborhood median income.

The importance of economic, social and cultural capital in understanding health inequalities: using a Bourdieu-based approach in research on physical and mental health perceptions.

PubMed

Pinxten, Wouter; Lievens, John

2014-09-01

In this article we adopt a Bourdieu-based approach to study social inequalities in perceptions of mental and physical health. Most research takes into account the impact of economic or social capital on health inequalities. Bourdieu, however, distinguishes between three forms of capital that can determine peoples' social position: economic, social and cultural capital. Health research examining the effects of cultural capital is scarce. By simultaneously considering and modelling indicators of each of Bourdieu's forms of capital, we further the understanding of the dynamics of health inequalities. Using data from a large-scale representative survey (N = 1825) in Flanders, Belgium, we find that each of the forms of capital has a net effect on perceptions of physical and mental health, which persists after controlling for the other forms of capital and for the effects of other correlates of perceived health. The only exception is that the cultural capital indicators are not related to mental health. These results confirm the value of a Bourdieu-based approach and indicate the need to consider economic, social and cultural capital to obtain a better understanding of social inequality in health. © 2014 The Authors. Sociology of Health & Illness © 2014 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness/John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Predicting future staffing needs at teaching hospitals: use of an analytical program with multiple variables.

PubMed

Mitchell, Christine C; Ashley, Stanley W; Zinner, Michael J; Moore, Francis D

2007-04-01

To develop a model to predict future staffing for the surgery service at a teaching hospital. Tertiary hospital. A computer model with potential future variables was constructed. Some of the variables were distribution of resident staff, fellows, and physician extenders; salary/wages; work hours; educational value of rotations; work units, inpatient wards, and clinics; future volume growth; and efficiency savings. Outcomes Number of staff to be hired, staffing expense, and educational impact. On a busy general surgery service, we estimated the impact of changes in resident work hours, service growth, and workflow efficiency in the next 5 years. Projecting a reduction in resident duty hours to 60 hours per week will require the hiring of 10 physician assistants at a cost of $1 134 000, a cost that is increased by $441 000 when hiring hospitalists instead. Implementing a day of didactic and simulator time (10 hours) will further increase the costs by $568 000. A 10% improvement in the efficiency of floor care, as might be gained by advanced information technology capability or by regionalization of patients, can mitigate these expenses by as much as 21%. On the other hand, a modest annual growth of 2% will increase the costs by $715 000 to $2 417 000. To simply replace residents with alternative providers requires large amounts of human and fiscal capital. The potential for simple efficiencies to mitigate some of this expense suggests that traditional patterns of care in teaching hospitals will have to change in response to educational mandates.

Influences of Social Capital on Health and Well-Being from Qualitative Approach

PubMed Central

Yamaguchi, Ayano

2013-01-01

The social capital surrounding health including health and well-being, the way in which they function as multi-dimensional constructs, and the potential stability of relationships among the social capital were examined across universities in Hawaii and Japan. Maintaining or strengthening social factors of collective and individual health and well-being is a core factor of social capital and is instrumental in reducing worry and increasing trust. Qualitative in-depth interviews with 64 male and female college students (32 college students at the University of Hawaii at Manoa; 32 college students at Reitaku University in Japan) were used to collect information on social capital of health and well-being and associated concepts; students’ perceptions were grouped under 11 themes. The data indicates that social capital has an impact on college students’ health and well-being. They also suggest that differences in health status and well-being can be plausibly attributed to processes associated with socio-environmental circumstances and situations. PMID:23985117

Neighbourhood human capital and the development of children׳s emotional and behavioural problems: the mediating role of parenting and schools.

PubMed

Midouhas, Emily; Kuang, Ye; Flouri, Eirini

2014-05-01

This study examined how low neighbourhood human capital (measured by percentage of residents with no qualifications) may be related to trajectories of children׳s emotional and behavioural problems from early-to-middle childhood. It also assessed whether effects of neighbourhood human capital or its pathways were moderated by child nonverbal cognitive ability. Using data on 9850 children in England participating in the Millennium Cohort Study, we found that, after adjusting for key child and family background characteristics, the adverse effects of low neighbourhood human capital on hyperactivity and peer problems remained, and were fully attenuated by the achievement level of children׳s schools. The effect of low neighbourhood human capital on the change in conduct problems over time was robust. Moreover, higher nonverbal ability did not dampen the adverse impact of low neighbourhood human capital on the trajectory of conduct problems or that of low performing schools on hyperactivity and peer problems. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Capital Expert System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dowell, Laurie; Gary, Jack; Illingworth, Bill; Sargent, Tom

1987-05-01

Gathering information, necessary forms, and financial calculations needed to generate a "capital investment proposal" is an extremely complex and difficult process. The intent of the capital investment proposal is to ensure management that the proposed investment has been thoroughly investigated and will have a positive impact on corporate goals. Meeting this requirement typically takes four or five experts a total of 12 hours to generate a "Capital Package." A Capital Expert System was therefore developed using "Personal Consultant." The completed system is hybrid and as such does not depend solely on rules but incorporates several different software packages that communicate through variables and functions passed from one to another. This paper describes the use of expert system techniques, methodology in building the knowledge base, contexts, LISP functions, data base, and special challenges that had to be overcome to create this system. The Capital Expert System is the successful result of a unique integration of artificial intelligence with business accounting, financial forms generation, and investment proposal expertise.

Differentiated strategy, business performance, and intellectual capital: Evidence small medium enterprise from Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hariyati; Venusita, L.; Dyani, Z. F.

2018-01-01

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have a very important position in Indonesian economics. Implementation of the differentiated strategy has been impacted on improving the business performance of SMEs where the role of intellectual capital strongly supports the success of the implementation of the differentiated strategy. This study applied quantitative research which used survey method. This research examines the relationship between differentiated strategy to the performance of SMEs with mediated by intellectual capital. The results of this study show that intellectual capital mediates the relationship between differentiation strategies and business performance of SMEs. This study theoretically proves the importance of contextual variables in contingency theory. The practical results of this study contribute to raising awareness of business unit managers or other equivalent positions, especially managers in East Java to understand the importance of the role of intellectual capital, this is because intellectual capital meets the criteria as a unique source of the company that is able to create competitive advantage and increase the firm’s value.

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Personal Capital During Pregnancy: Findings from the 2007 Los Angeles Mommy and Baby (LAMB) Study

PubMed Central

Wakeel, Fathima; Witt, Whitney P.; Wisk, Lauren E.; Lu, Michael C.; Chao, Shin M.

2013-01-01

Objectives To determine if racial and ethnic differences in personal capital during pregnancy exist and to estimate the extent to which any identified racial and ethnic differences in personal capital are related to differences in maternal sociodemographic and acculturation characteristics. Methods Data are from the 2007 Los Angeles Mommy and Baby (LAMB) study (n=3,716). Personal capital comprised internal resources (self-esteem and mastery) and social resources (partner, social network, and neighborhood support) during pregnancy. The relationships between race/ethnicity and personal capital were assessed using multivariable generalized linear models, examining the impact of sociodemographic and acculturation factors on these relationships. Results Significant racial and ethnic disparities in personal capital during pregnancy exist. However, socioeconomic status (i.e., income and education) and marital status completely explained Black-White disparities and Hispanic-White disparities in personal capital, whereas acculturation factors, especially nativity and language spoken at home, partially mediated the disparities in personal capital between Asian/Pacific Islander women and White women. Conclusions Findings suggest that the risks associated with low socioeconomic status, single motherhood, and low acculturation, rather than race or ethnicity, contribute to low personal capital for many pregnant women. As personal capital during pregnancy may influence subsequent maternal and child health outcomes, the development of interventions should consider addressing sociodemographic and acculturation factors in order to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in personal capital and ultimately in poor maternal and child health outcomes. PMID:23504131

75 FR 9488 - Basel Comprehensive Quantitative Impact Study

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-02

... DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Office of Thrift Supervision Basel Comprehensive Quantitative Impact... Quantitative Impact Study. OMB Number: 1550-0NEW. Form Numbers: N/A. Regulation requirement: 12 CFR Part 567... Basel II Capital Accord, the Basel Committee will conduct a quantitative impact study (QIS) to assess...

Social Identity, Social Ties and Social Capital: A Study in Gaming Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jiang, Hao

2012-01-01

This work will focus on how different social relationships, namely shared identity and personal tie, will impact cooperative behavior, a form of social capital. I designed and conducted an economic game study to show that shared identity and personal ties work differently on cooperation among people and resource flow in social groups. Many factors…

Multi-Stakeholder Process Strengthens Agricultural Innovations and Sustainable Livelihoods of Farmers in Southern Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bisseleua, D. H. B.; Idrissou, L.; Olurotimi, P.; Ogunniyi, A.; Mignouna, D.; Bamire, S. A.

2018-01-01

Purpose: In this paper, we explore the strategic role of Multi-stakeholder processes (MSP) in agricultural innovations and how it has impacted livelihood assets' (LAs) capital dynamics of stakeholders in platforms in West Africa. Design/Methodology/Approach: We demonstrate how LA capitals and socio-economic dynamics induced by MSP can enhance…

Impacts of Intersection between Social Capital and Finances on Community College Students' Pursuit of STEM Degrees

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kruse, Tracy; Starobin, Soko S.; Chen, Yu; Baul, Tushi; Santos Laanan, Frankie

2015-01-01

This quantitative study examined how social capital and finances influenced community college students' intent to transfer to a four-year institution within STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields. Focusing on the community college students enrolled in a rural midwestern state, the authors employed a structural equation modeling…

Social Capital and Young People. Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth. Briefing Paper 26

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Semo, Ronnie

2011-01-01

Social capital refers to the attributes and qualities of family, social and community networks that facilitate cooperation between individuals and communities. The quality of these networks and the extent to which individuals are engaged with them are believed to have an impact on the educational and social development of children and young…

Spin as Symbolic Capital: The Fields of Journalism and Education Policy-Making

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stack, Michelle L.

2010-01-01

How do policy-makers and journalists accumulate symbolic capital in terms of their strategic positioning in relation to policy making? How do they negotiate their impact on policy making across fields? How do they gain access to information, and how is this information constructed in terms of education and schooling? This paper focuses on…

The Effects of the Capital Accumulation Ratio on Wealth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harness, Nathaniel J.; Finke, Michael S.; Chatterjee, Swarn

2009-01-01

The capital accumulation ratio (CAR) is commonly used in academic research as a measure of household portfolio quality. This study tested whether a higher initial CAR impacts change in wealth over a decade among households in the accumulation life cycle stage. Meeting the 25% CAR guideline resulted in a 28.1% increase in net worth between 1994 and…

Invited Reaction: Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Psychological Capital on Employee Attitudes, Behaviors, and Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ardichvili, Alexandre

2011-01-01

The meta-analysis authored by Avey, Reichard, Luthans, and Mhatre addresses a particular construct, psychological capital (PsyCap), that is unlikely to be known among most Human Resource Development (HRD) scholars. Nevertheless, upon closer scrutiny, it is possible that their work provides HRD scholars with numerous ideas for future research and…

The Impact of Vocational Schooling on Human Capital Development in Developing Countries: Evidence from China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loyalka, Prashant; Huang, Xiaoting; Zhang, Linxiu; Wei, Jianguo; Yi, Hongmei; Song, Yingquan; Ren, Baoping; Shi, Yaojiang; Chu, James; Maani, May; Rozelle, Scott

2014-01-01

A number of developing countries currently identify vocational education and training (VET) as a key approach to building human capital. For example, the promotion of VET at the high school level ("vocational high school", which is used here interchangeably with VET throughout the paper) has become a policy priority among emerging…

The Bias in Favor of Venture Capital Finance in U.S. Entrepreneurial Education: At the Expense of Trade Credit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clement, Thomas; LeMire, Steven; Silvernagel, Craig

2015-01-01

The authors examine whether U.S. college-level entrepreneurship education demonstrates a bias favoring venture capital (VC) financing while marginalizing trade credit financing, and the resulting impact on entrepreneurship students. A sample of U.S. business textbooks and survey data from entrepreneurship students reveals a significant bias toward…

Work Expectations, Human Capital Accumulation, and the Wages of Young Women.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sandell, Steven H.; Shapiro, David

Based on the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women aged fourteen to twenty-four in 1968, a study was made to determine the impact that women's ex ante labor market expectations have on their salary and development and to examine the effect of women's postschool training and maturation (human capital accumulation) on wages. Six findings…

Familias de Corazon: Fictive Kin and the Development of Social Capital among Latina Professionals in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cardena, Maria-Elena

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which Latina faculty leaders and administrators in higher education develop social capital by forming fictive kin relationships with women coworkers. Secondly, it identified and described how these relationships impact a Latina's leadership journey in academia. Methodology: This…

Human Capital Background and the Educational Attainment of Second-Generation Immigrants in France

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dos Santos, Manon Domingues; Wolff, Francois-Charles

2011-01-01

In this paper, we study the impact of parental human capital background on ethnic educational gaps between second-generation immigrants using a large data set conducted in France in 2003. Estimates from censored random effect ordered Probit regressions show that the skills of immigrants explain in the most part, the ethnic educational gap between…

Selling Knowledge? R&D Soothsayers and High Priests of Venture Capital Are in the Temple of the Academy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Earls, Alan Robert

2001-01-01

Discusses the commercialization of academic research at New England's colleges and universities. Describes the origins of the trend, the region's leadership in research funding, the role of venture capital and business incubators in academic research, and the long-term impacts. Includes tables of research and development spending and patents…

The Nature of Credit Constraints and Human Capital. NBER Working Paper No. 13912

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lochner, Lance J.; Monge-Naranjo, Alexander

2008-01-01

This paper studies the nature and impact of credit constraints in the market for human capital. We derive endogenous constraints from the design of government student loan programs and from the limited repayment incentives in private lending markets. These constraints imply cross-sectional patterns for schooling, ability, and family income that…

Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Positive Psychological Capital on Employee Attitudes, Behaviors, and Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avey, James B.; Reichard, Rebecca J.; Luthans, Fred; Mhatre, Ketan H.

2011-01-01

The positive core construct of psychological capital (or simply PsyCap), consisting of the psychological resources of hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism, has recently been demonstrated to be open to human resource development (HRD) and performance management. The research stream on PsyCap has now grown to the point that a quantitative…

Cocurrent scrubber evaluation: TVA's Colbert lime-limestone wet-scrubbing pilot plant

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

Hollinden, G.A.; Robards, R.F.; Moore, N.D.

1979-01-01

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is actively engaged in a pilot plant program to develop and/or evaluate wet-scrubbing processes for removing sulfur dioxide (SO/sub 2/) from boiler flue gas. The physical size and general arrangement of flue gas scrubbing systems have a major impact on capital investment and operating cost, as do potential operating and maintenance advantages inherent to some systems. The equipment configuration for a cocurrent scrubber reflects some of these advantages. EPRI funded TVA to perform preliminary screening tests at TVA's 1 MW pilot plant (Colbert Steam Plant) to develop operating data on the cocurrent design for usemore » in designing and operating a 10 MW prototype cocurrent scrubber at TVA's Shawnee Scrubber Test Facility. Results of Colbert tests showed excellent sulfur dioxide removal efficiencies, generally greater than 85%, low pressure drop, and high particulate removal efficiencies. This report covers these screening tests. The results indicate that commercial application of the cocurrent scrubber concept may save substantial capital investment by reducing the number of scrubber modules and auxiliary equipment. These evaluation tests provided the basis for the design and construction of the 10 MW cocurrent scrubber at the Shawnee Facility. Operation of this scrubber began in August 1978 to develop the scale-up similarities and differences between the Colbert test program (1 MW) and the Shawnee test program (10 MW). It also demonstrated the practicality and reliability of the 10 MW prototype. Detailed results of the prototype test series will be available in late 1979.« less

[Effects of nurses' social capital on turnover intention: focused on the mediating effects organizational commitment and organizational cynicism].

PubMed

Han, Jeongwon; Woo, Heeyoung; Ju, Eunsil; Lim, Sohee; Han, Sangsook

2013-08-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the casual relationship between nurses' social capital and turnover intention and to verify the goodness of fit between a hypothetical model and actual data in order to suggest the best model. This survey was conducted with 315 nurses working in general hospitals in Seoul. Data were collected from December 1 to December 30, 2011, and analyzed using SPSS Windows 18.0 and AMOS 16.0. Nurses' social capital was found to have a direct effect on reducting organization cynicism and increasing organizational commitment. Nurses' organizational cynicism and organizational commitment were found to have a direct effect on turnover intention, but social capital did not have a direct effect on turnover intention. However, social capital had a partial and indirect effect on turnover intention through mediating organizational cynicism and organizational commitment. Results of this study indicate that nurse managers should put increased effort in reducing nurses' organizational cynicism and improving their organizational commitment, two contrary parameters. At the same time managers need to develop plans to establish social capital more efficiently so that nurses have lower turnover intention.

Environmental and economic evaluation of natural capital appropriation through building construction: practical case study in the Italian context.

PubMed

Bastianoni, Simone; Galli, Alessandro; Pulselli, Riccardo Maria; Niccolucci, Valentina

2007-11-01

This paper focuses on appropriation of natural capital through construction of buildings. The ecological footprint and the Costanza natural capital concepts are applied. The environmental consequences of human settlement are currently of great concern, and a need is felt to reduce the impact of building on the environment. The embodied energy of building materials and the "land area" required to sustain their production are considered to evaluate the demand on nature of this activity. The ecological footprints of 2 typical Italian buildings are compared. The paper also focuses on how to reduce the natural capital appropriation of building construction by means of environmentally inexpensive materials, renewable energy resources, and optimization of the use of bioproductive land by construction of multistoried buildings. Finally, to allocate an environmental load of buildings, an economic evaluation of natural capital appropriation through building construction is proposed.

Social capital and youth development: toward a typology of program practices.

PubMed

Emery, Mary

2013-06-01

As part of our inquiry into how youth development and 4-H programming can affect the development of social capital for youth and for the community, we engaged youth in ripple mapping. Based on this information, we provide a typology of participation structures in youth development activities and the expected bridging and bonding social capital outcomes for each type. This article outlines the key factors underlying the typology and discusses strategies for using the typology to expand the impact of youth development and 4-H programming on young people and communities. It also outlines potential implications for increasing opportunities for fostering social capital leading to a spiraling-up effect for youth, volunteers, and the community. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company.

Expert Game experiment predicts emergence of trust in professional communication networks.

PubMed

Bendtsen, Kristian Moss; Uekermann, Florian; Haerter, Jan O

2016-10-25

Strong social capital is increasingly recognized as an organizational advantage. Better knowledge sharing and reduced transaction costs increase work efficiency. To mimic the formation of the associated communication network, we propose the Expert Game, where each individual must find a specific expert and receive her help. Participants act in an impersonal environment and under time constraints that provide short-term incentives for noncooperative behavior. Despite these constraints, we observe cooperation between individuals and the self-organization of a sustained trust network, which facilitates efficient communication channels with increased information flow. We build a behavioral model that explains the experimental dynamics. Analysis of the model reveals an exploitation protection mechanism and measurable social capital, which quantitatively describe the economic utility of trust.

Two Mechanisms: The Role of Social Capital and Industrial Pollution Exposure in Explaining Racial Disparities in Self-Rated Health

PubMed Central

Ard, Kerry; Colen, Cynthia; Becerra, Marisol; Velez, Thelma

2016-01-01

This study provides an empirical test of two mechanisms (social capital and exposure to air pollution) that are theorized to mediate the effect of neighborhood on health and contribute to racial disparities in health outcomes. To this end, we utilize the Social Capital Benchmark Study, a national survey of individuals nested within communities in the United States, to estimate how multiple dimensions of social capital and exposure to air pollution, explain racial disparities in self-rated health. Our main findings show that when controlling for individual-confounders, and nesting within communities, our indicator of cognitive bridging, generalized trust, decreases the gap in self-rated health between African Americans and Whites by 84%, and the gap between Hispanics and Whites by 54%. Our other indicator of cognitive social capital, cognitive linking as represented by engagement in politics, decreases the gap in health between Hispanics and Whites by 32%, but has little impact on African Americans. We also assessed whether the gap in health was explained by respondents’ estimated exposure to toxicity-weighted air pollutants from large industrial facilities over the previous year. Our results show that accounting for exposure to these toxins has no effect on the racial gap in self-rated health in these data. This paper contributes to the neighborhood effects literature by examining the impact that estimated annual industrial air pollution, and multiple measures of social capital, have on explaining the racial gap in health in a sample of individuals nested within communities across the United States. PMID:27775582

Two Mechanisms: The Role of Social Capital and Industrial Pollution Exposure in Explaining Racial Disparities in Self-Rated Health.

PubMed

Ard, Kerry; Colen, Cynthia; Becerra, Marisol; Velez, Thelma

2016-10-19

This study provides an empirical test of two mechanisms (social capital and exposure to air pollution) that are theorized to mediate the effect of neighborhood on health and contribute to racial disparities in health outcomes. To this end, we utilize the Social Capital Benchmark Study, a national survey of individuals nested within communities in the United States, to estimate how multiple dimensions of social capital and exposure to air pollution, explain racial disparities in self-rated health. Our main findings show that when controlling for individual-confounders, and nesting within communities, our indicator of cognitive bridging, generalized trust, decreases the gap in self-rated health between African Americans and Whites by 84%, and the gap between Hispanics and Whites by 54%. Our other indicator of cognitive social capital, cognitive linking as represented by engagement in politics, decreases the gap in health between Hispanics and Whites by 32%, but has little impact on African Americans. We also assessed whether the gap in health was explained by respondents' estimated exposure to toxicity-weighted air pollutants from large industrial facilities over the previous year. Our results show that accounting for exposure to these toxins has no effect on the racial gap in self-rated health in these data. This paper contributes to the neighborhood effects literature by examining the impact that estimated annual industrial air pollution, and multiple measures of social capital, have on explaining the racial gap in health in a sample of individuals nested within communities across the United States.

Caring for the Unseen: Using Linking Social Capital to Improve Healthcare Access to Irregular Migrants in Spain

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Abstract Purpose To describe a novel strategy using linking social capital to provide healthcare access to irregular migrants with low literacy, low numeracy, and limited cultural assimilation in a European metropolitan area. Organizing Construct Public data show numerous shortcomings in meeting the healthcare needs of refugees and irregular migrants surging into Europe. Many irregular migrants living in European communities are unable to access information, care, or services due to lack of social capital. An overview of the problem and traditional charity strategies, including their barriers, are briefly described. A novel strategy using linking social capital to improve healthcare access of irregular migrants is explored and described. Information regarding the impact of this approach on the target population is provided. The discussion of nursing's role in employing linking social capital to care for the vulnerable is presented. Conclusions Immigration and refugee data show that issues related to migration will continue. The novel strategy presented can be implemented by nurses with limited financial and physical resources in small community settings frequented by irregular migrants to improve health care. Clinical Relevance The health and well‐being of irregular migrants has an impact on community health. Nurses must be aware of and consider implementing novel strategies to ensure that all community members’ healthcare needs, which are a basic human right, are addressed. PMID:27355488

77 FR 61471 - Environmental Impact Statement: Travis County, TX

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-09

... Drive. The project is listed in the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) 2035... space, historic preservation, reduced carbon emissions, increased social equity, economic development... equipment and operation of the roadway; social and economic impacts, including impacts to minority and low...

Challenges to Scaling CIGS Photovoltaics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanbery, B. J.

2011-03-01

The challenges of scaling any photovoltaic technology to terawatts of global capacity are arguably more economic than technological or resource constraints. All commercial thin-film PV technologies are based on direct bandgap semiconductors whose absorption coefficient and bandgap alignment with the solar spectrum enable micron-thick coatings in lieu to hundreds of microns required using indirect-bandgap c-Si. Although thin-film PV reduces semiconductor materials cost, its manufacture is more capital intensive than c-Si production, and proportional to deposition rate. Only when combined with sufficient efficiency and cost of capital does this tradeoff yield lower manufacturing cost. CIGS has the potential to become the first thin film technology to achieve the terawatt benchmark because of its superior conversion efficiency, making it the only commercial thin film technology which demonstrably delivers performance comparable to the dominant incumbent, c-Si. Since module performance leverages total systems cost, this competitive advantage bears directly on CIGS' potential to displace c-Si and attract the requisite capital to finance the tens of gigawatts of annual production capacity needed to manufacture terawatts of PV modules apace with global demand growth.

Capital intensity of photovoltaics manufacturing: Barrier to scale and opportunity for innovation

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

Powell, Douglas M.; Fu, Ran; Horowitz, Kelsey

In this study, using a bottom-up cost model, we assess the impact of initial factory capital expenditure (capex) on photovoltaic (PV) module minimum sustainable price (MSP) and industry-wide trends. We find capex to have two important impacts on PV manufacturing. First, capex strongly influences the per-unit MSP of a c-Si module: we calculate that the capex-related elements sum to 22% of MSP for an integrated wafer, cell, and module manufacturer. This fraction provides a significant opportunity to reduce MSP toward the U.S. DOE SunShot module price target through capex innovation.

Capital intensity of photovoltaics manufacturing: Barrier to scale and opportunity for innovation

DOE PAGES

Powell, Douglas M.; Fu, Ran; Horowitz, Kelsey; ...

2015-09-07

In this study, using a bottom-up cost model, we assess the impact of initial factory capital expenditure (capex) on photovoltaic (PV) module minimum sustainable price (MSP) and industry-wide trends. We find capex to have two important impacts on PV manufacturing. First, capex strongly influences the per-unit MSP of a c-Si module: we calculate that the capex-related elements sum to 22% of MSP for an integrated wafer, cell, and module manufacturer. This fraction provides a significant opportunity to reduce MSP toward the U.S. DOE SunShot module price target through capex innovation.

Motivation and Social Capital among prospective blood donors in three large blood centers in Brazil

PubMed Central

Gonçalez, Thelma T.; Di Lorenzo Oliveira, Claudia; Carneiro-Proietti, Anna Barbara F.; Moreno, Elizabeth C.; Miranda, Carolina; Larsen, Nina; Wright, David; Leão, Silvana; Loureiro, Paula; de Almeida-Neto, Cesar; Lopes, Maria-Inês; Proietti, Fernando A.; Custer, Brian; Sabino, Ester

2012-01-01

Background Studies analyzing motivation factors that lead to blood donation have found altruism to be the primary motivation factor; however social capital has not been analyzed in this context. Our study examines the association between motivation factors (altruism, self-interest and response to direct appeal) and social capital (cognitive and structural) across three large blood centers in Brazil. Study Design and Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 7,635 donor candidates from October 15 through November 20, 2009. Participants completed self-administered questionnaires on demographics, previous blood donation, HIV testing and knowledge, social capital and donor motivations. Enrollment was determined prior to the donor screening process. Results Among participants, 43.5% and 41.7% expressed high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal respectively, while only 26.9% expressed high levels of self-interest. More high self-interest was observed at Hemope-Recife (41.7%). Of participants, 37.4% expressed high levels of cognitive social capital while 19.2% expressed high levels of structural social capital. More high cognitive and structural social capital was observed at Hemope-Recife (47.3% and 21.3%, respectively). High cognitive social capital was associated with high levels of altruism, self-interest and response to direct appeal. Philanthropic and high social altruism was associated with high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal. Conclusion Cognitive and structural social capital and social altruism are associated with altruism and response to direct appeal, while only cognitive social capital is associated with self-interest. Designing marketing campaigns with these aspects in mind may help blood banks attract potential blood donors more efficiently. PMID:22998740

Motivation and social capital among prospective blood donors in three large blood centers in Brazil.

PubMed

Gonçalez, Thelma T; Di Lorenzo Oliveira, Claudia; Carneiro-Proietti, Anna Barbara F; Moreno, Elizabeth C; Miranda, Carolina; Larsen, Nina; Wright, David; Leão, Silvana; Loureiro, Paula; de Almeida-Neto, Cesar; Lopes, Maria-Inês; Proietti, Fernando A; Custer, Brian; Sabino, Ester

2013-06-01

Studies analyzing motivation factors that lead to blood donation have found altruism to be the primary motivation factor; however, social capital has not been analyzed in this context. Our study examines the association between motivation factors (altruism, self-interest, and response to direct appeal) and social capital (cognitive and structural) across three large blood centers in Brazil. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 7635 donor candidates from October 15 through November 20, 2009. Participants completed self-administered questionnaires on demographics, previous blood donation, human immunodeficiency virus testing and knowledge, social capital, and donor motivations. Enrollment was determined before the donor screening process. Among participants, 43.5 and 41.7% expressed high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal, respectively, while only 26.9% expressed high levels of self-interest. More high self-interest was observed at Hemope-Recife (41.7%). Of participants, 37.4% expressed high levels of cognitive social capital while 19.2% expressed high levels of structural social capital. More high cognitive and structural social capital was observed at Hemope-Recife (47.3 and 21.3%, respectively). High cognitive social capital was associated with high levels of altruism, self-interest, and response to direct appeal. Philanthropic and high social altruism were associated with high levels of altruism and response to direct appeal. Cognitive and structural social capital and social altruism are associated with altruism and response to direct appeal, while only cognitive social capital is associated with self-interest. Designing marketing campaigns with these aspects in mind may help blood banks attract potential blood donors more efficiently. © 2012 American Association of Blood Banks.

Resilience-based optimal design of water distribution network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suribabu, C. R.

2017-11-01

Optimal design of water distribution network is generally aimed to minimize the capital cost of the investments on tanks, pipes, pumps, and other appurtenances. Minimizing the cost of pipes is usually considered as a prime objective as its proportion in capital cost of the water distribution system project is very high. However, minimizing the capital cost of the pipeline alone may result in economical network configuration, but it may not be a promising solution in terms of resilience point of view. Resilience of the water distribution network has been considered as one of the popular surrogate measures to address ability of network to withstand failure scenarios. To improve the resiliency of the network, the pipe network optimization can be performed with two objectives, namely minimizing the capital cost as first objective and maximizing resilience measure of the configuration as secondary objective. In the present work, these two objectives are combined as single objective and optimization problem is solved by differential evolution technique. The paper illustrates the procedure for normalizing the objective functions having distinct metrics. Two of the existing resilience indices and power efficiency are considered for optimal design of water distribution network. The proposed normalized objective function is found to be efficient under weighted method of handling multi-objective water distribution design problem. The numerical results of the design indicate the importance of sizing pipe telescopically along shortest path of flow to have enhanced resiliency indices.

The role of capital costs in decarbonizing the electricity sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hirth, Lion; Steckel, Jan Christoph

2016-11-01

Low-carbon electricity generation, i.e. renewable energy, nuclear power and carbon capture and storage, is more capital intensive than electricity generation through carbon emitting fossil fuel power stations. High capital costs, expressed as high weighted average cost of capital (WACC), thus tend to encourage the use of fossil fuels. To achieve the same degree of decarbonization, countries with high capital costs therefore need to impose a higher price on carbon emissions than countries with low capital costs. This is particularly relevant for developing and emerging economies, where capital costs tend to be higher than in rich countries. In this paper we quantitatively evaluate how high capital costs impact the transformation of the energy system under climate policy, applying a numerical techno-economic model of the power system. We find that high capital costs can significantly reduce the effectiveness of carbon prices: if carbon emissions are priced at USD 50 per ton and the WACC is 3%, the cost-optimal electricity mix comprises 40% renewable energy. At the same carbon price and a WACC of 15%, the cost-optimal mix comprises almost no renewable energy. At 15% WACC, there is no significant emission mitigation with carbon pricing up to USD 50 per ton, but at 3% WACC and the same carbon price, emissions are reduced by almost half. These results have implications for climate policy; carbon pricing might need to be combined with policies to reduce capital costs of low-carbon options in order to decarbonize power systems.

Building workplace social capital: A longitudinal study of student nurses' clinical placement experiences.

PubMed

Materne, Michelle; Henderson, Amanda; Eaton, Emma

2017-09-01

Quality clinical placement experiences have been associated with nurses' workplace social capital. Social capital is broadly understood as the social organisation of trust, norms and networks that benefit society. Building social capital in the workplace may benefit experiences of staff and students. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of building workplace social capital on student nurse perceptions of clinical learning experiences. A quality improvement process was measured through repeated student surveys. First, second, third year students (n = 1176) from three universities completed a validated Student Clinical Learning Culture Survey (SCLCS) following their placement, at the commencement of quality improvement initiatives and five years later. The SCLCS measured students' perceptions of social affiliation, their motivation, satisfaction and dissatisfaction with clinical contexts. The first year of systematic changes focused on increasing student numbers along with improving communication, trust and knowledge sharing, antecedents to workplace social capital. No change was evident after the first year. Six years after commencement of building workplace social capital differences across all subscales, except dissatisfaction, were significant (p < 0.001). Leadership that promotes open communication and connections across staff and students to achieve common goals can build workplace social capital that enhances student placement experiences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Making big communities small: using network science to understand the ecological and behavioral requirements for community social capital.

PubMed

Neal, Zachary

2015-06-01

The concept of social capital is becoming increasingly common in community psychology and elsewhere. However, the multiple conceptual and operational definitions of social capital challenge its utility as a theoretical tool. The goals of this paper are to clarify two forms of social capital (bridging and bonding), explicitly link them to the structural characteristics of small world networks, and explore the behavioral and ecological prerequisites of its formation. First, I use the tools of network science and specifically the concept of small-world networks to clarify what patterns of social relationships are likely to facilitate social capital formation. Second, I use an agent-based model to explore how different ecological characteristics (diversity and segregation) and behavioral tendencies (homophily and proximity) impact communities' potential for developing social capital. The results suggest diverse communities have the greatest potential to develop community social capital, and that segregation moderates the effects that the behavioral tendencies of homophily and proximity have on community social capital. The discussion highlights how these findings provide community-based researchers with both a deeper understanding of the contextual constraints with which they must contend, and a useful tool for targeting their efforts in communities with the greatest need or greatest potential.

Toward a social capital based framework for understanding the water-health nexus.

PubMed

Bisung, Elijah; Elliott, Susan J

2014-05-01

In recent years, there has been considerable interest in social capital theory in both research and policy arenas. Social capital has been associated with many aspects of improvements in health, environment and development. This paper assesses the theoretical support for a social capital based analysis of environment and health issues with a focus on the water-health nexus in low and middle income countries. We review conceptualisation of social capital by Pierre Bourdieu in relation to his concepts of "fields" and "habitus" as well as other conceptualisations of social capital by James Coleman and Robert Putnam. We integrate these authors' ideas with ecosocial analysis of social and geographical patterns of access to safe water, adequate sanitation and hygiene and the resulting health impacts. Further, we develop a conceptual framework for linking social capital and health through the water-health nexus. The framework focuses on the role of social capital in improving water-related knowledge, attitudes and practices as well as facilitating collective action towards improving access to water and sanitation. The proposed framework will facilitate critical engagement with the pathways through which social processes and interactions influence health within the context of access to water, sanitation and hygiene in low and middle income countries. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investment Avenues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jain, Priyanka

2012-11-01

Investors are a heterogeneous group, they may be large or small, rich or poor, expert or lay man and not all investors need equal degree of protection (Mayya, 1996). An investor has three objectives while investing his money, namely safety of invested money, liquidity position of invested money and return on investment. The return on investment may further be divided into capital gain and the rate of return on investment as interest or dividend. Among all investment options available, securities are considered the most challenging as well as rewarding. Securities include shares, debentures, derivatives, units of mutual funds, Government securities etc. An investor may be an individual or corporate legal entity investing funds with a view to derive maximum economic advantage from investment such as rate of return, capital appreciation, marketability, tax advantage and convenience of investment.The Capital market facilitates mobilization of savings of individuals and pools them into reservoir of capital which can be used for the economic development of a country. An efficient capital market is essential for raising capital by the corporate sector of the economy and for the protection of the interest of investors in corporate securities. There arises a need to strike a balance between raising of capital for economic development on one side and protection of investors on the other. Unless the interests of investors are protected, raising of capital, by corporates is not possible. Like, the primary objective of a senior citizenís asset allocation is the generation of regular income.

Social capital among healthcare professionals: A prospective study of its importance for job satisfaction, work engagement and engagement in clinical improvements.

PubMed

Strömgren, Marcus; Eriksson, Andrea; Bergman, David; Dellve, Lotta

2016-01-01

Social capital can be an important resource to facilitate the needed improvements in quality of care and efficiency in hospitals. To assess the importance of social capital (recognition, vertical trust, horizontal trust and reciprocity) for job satisfaction, work engagement and engagement in clinical improvements. A prospective cohort design was used. Intensive care units and emergency, surgical and medical units at five Swedish hospitals with ongoing development of their processes of care. Healthcare professionals (physicians, registered nurses, assistant nurses) at five Swedish midsize hospitals. The participants answered a questionnaire at two occasions, NN=1602 at baseline and NN=1548 at one-year follow-up. Mean hospital response rate was 53% at baseline and 59% at follow-up. Univariate, multivariate and logistic regression analyses were performed, and the prospective analysis was based on 477 respondents. Social capital was associated with healthcare professionals' general work engagement and job satisfaction. Analysis showed positive associations between all measured aspects of social capital and engagement in clinical improvements of patient safety and quality of care. The prospective analysis showed that increased social capital predicted increased job satisfaction, work engagement and engagement in clinical improvements of patient safety. Social capital is strongly related to job satisfaction and active engagement with clinical improvements. The findings contribute to a deeper knowledge of social capital as a predictive factor that influences patient safety and health among healthcare staff. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Impact of Social Capital in Socio-Emotional Competencies of Spanish and Immigrant Adolescents from the Southeast of Spain

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soriano-Ayala, Encarnación; Cala, Verónica C.

2017-01-01

How important is the role that the different social institutions play in adolescents' emotional development? This study alludes to the social capital framework to explain the influence that the family, school and peer relations have on the social-emotional competencies (SEC) of adolescents, immigrants and locals living in Southeastern Spain. Three…

Human Capital or Humane Talent? Rethinking the Nature of Education in China from a Comparative Historical Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bai, Limin

2010-01-01

In order to analyze the impact of human capital theory on contemporary Chinese education, this paper first draws a conceptual outline of how this theory was introduced and interpreted to suit the Chinese quest for modernization. The study then adopts a comparative historical approach to the points of similarity between Neo-Confucian educational…

Financial Crisis, Capital Outflows, and Policy Responses: Examples from East Asia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rajan, Ramkishen S.

2007-01-01

Financial crises seem to have become the norm rather than the exception since 1992. The author examines the impact of a crisis of confidence and resultant capital outflows from a small and open economy and the possible policy options in response to such outflows, using simple tools and definitions that will be familiar to any money and banking or…

Improving Opportunities for Bridging Social Capital: The Story of a Full-Service Community School Initiative at an Alternative High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newton, Xiaoxia A.; Thompson, Shanna Rose; Oh, Bangsil; Ferullo, Leah

2017-01-01

This article describes the collective efforts educators and multiple community partners are taking to transform one alternative urban high school into a full-service community school. The article presents preliminary findings on the opportunities for bridging social capital that the full-service initiative has created and the impacts such…

Government regulation's impact on health care technology companies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McGlynn, J. C.

1994-12-01

Startups in the medical device industry have made major advances to medical technology. Today the ability to fund these companies is being adversely effected by the difficulty in accessing capital. The capital markets had been disrupted by uncertainty about healthcare reform and by changes in the FDA regulatory process. Both of these have adversely effected market valuations for medical device components.

Managing for Results: Using Strategic Human Capital Management To Drive Transformational Change. Testimony before the National Commission on the Public Service.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, David M.

The General Accounting Office (GAO) examined the effectiveness of using strategic human capital (HC) management to drive transformational change in federal agencies and reported on its own implementation of a new competency-based performance management system. First, the potential impacts of the following three broad HC reform opportunities to…

The Impact of Cultural Capital on Secondary Student's Performance in Brazil

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caprara, Bernardo

2016-01-01

The main goal of this study is to verify the effects of cultural capital on students' performance in an official test applied by the Brazilian government, as part of the National Assessment of Basic Education (Saeb). The data set used is from 2003 and involves 52,434 students. The standard test is applied every two years in the fields of…

Widening the Educational Capabilities of Socio-Economically Disadvantaged Students through a Model of Social and Cultural Capital Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hannon, Cliona; Faas, Daniel; O'Sullivan, Katriona

2017-01-01

Widening participation programmes aim to increase the progression of students from low socio-economic status (SES) groups to higher education. This research proposes that the human capabilities approach is a good justice-based framework within which to consider the social and cultural capital processes that impact upon the educational capabilities…

How Father's Education and Economic Capital Impact Academic Performance--An Analysis Based on the Mediating Effect and Moderating Effect

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baoyan, Yang; Minggang, Wan

2015-01-01

This paper uses survey data from educational tracking upon graduation from middle schools in Q County, Gansu Province, and explores the mechanism in which the level of father's education and economic capital affect academic performance. The study finds that the academic performance of male students is significantly higher than that of female…

The Unexpected Long-Run Impact of the Minimum Wage: An Educational Cascade. NBER Working Paper No. 16355

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sutch, Richard

2010-01-01

Neglected, but significant, the long-run consequence of the minimum wage--which was made national policy in the United States in 1938--is its stimulation of capital deepening. This took two forms. First, the engineered shortage of low-skill, low-paying jobs induced teenagers to invest in additional human capital--primarily by extending their…

Rising Inequality and Intergenerational Mobility: The Role of Public Investments in Human Capital

PubMed Central

Aizer, Anna

2014-01-01

One consequence of the rise in inequality witnessed over the past 40 years is its potentially negative impact on intergenerational mobility if parents at the bottom of the income distribution invest significantly less in their children's human capital. I consider whether public investments in children can potentially offset the inequality of private investments. Specifically, examining changes in public spending in 25 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries over the period 2000–2009, I find that increases in spending on health are most strongly associated with reductions in the importance of family background and declines in inequality in the production of child human capital as measured by the Program for International Student Assessment test scores among 15-year-olds. Public spending on family support, housing, and education are also moderately related. In contrast, increased spending on the elderly is associated with increases in the importance of parental background and inequality of child test scores. These results suggest that public investments in child human capital have the potential to offset the potentially negative impact of increasing income inequality on intergenerational mobility and inequality of the next generation. Further research firmly establishing a causal relationship is needed. PMID:25419203

Evaluating post-disaster ecosystem resilience using MODIS GPP data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frazier, Amy E.; Renschler, Chris S.; Miles, Scott B.

2013-04-01

An integrated community resilience index (CRI) quantifies the status, exposure, and recovery of the physical, economic, and socio-cultural capital for a specific target community. However, most CRIs do not account for the recovery of ecosystem functioning after extreme events, even though many aspects of a community depend on the services provided by the natural environment. The primary goal of this study was to monitor the recovery of ecosystem functionality (ecological capital) using remote sensing-derived gross primary production (GPP) as an indicator of 'ecosystem-wellness' and assess the effect of resilience of ecological capital on the recovery of a community via an integrated CRI. We developed a measure of ecosystem resilience using remotely sensed GPP data and applied the modeling prototype ResilUS in a pilot study for a four-parish coastal community in southwestern Louisiana, USA that was impacted by Hurricane Rita in 2005. The results illustrate that after such an extreme event, the recovery of ecological capital varies according to land use type and may take many months to return to full functionality. This variable recovery can potentially impact the recovery of certain businesses that rely heavily on ecosystem services such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and tourism.

Raising venture capital in the biopharma industry.

PubMed

Leytes, Lev J

2002-11-15

Raising venture capital (VC) is both an art and a science. Future entrepreneurs should carefully consider the various issues of VC financing that have a strong impact on the success of their business. In addition to attracting the best venture capital firms, these issues include such subtle but important points as the timing of financing (especially of the first round), external support sources, desirable qualities of a VC firm, amount to be raised, establishing a productive interface between the founders and the venture capitalists, and most importantly the effects of well-executed VC funding on hiring senior executives and scientific leaders.

A techno-economic comparison of fuel processors utilizing diesel for solid oxide fuel cell auxiliary power units

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nehter, Pedro; Hansen, John Bøgild; Larsen, Peter Koch

Ultra-low sulphur diesel (ULSD) is the preferred fuel for mobile auxiliary power units (APU). The commercial available technologies in the kW-range are combustion engine based gensets, achieving system efficiencies about 20%. Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) promise improvements with respect to efficiency and emission, particularly for the low power range. Fuel processing methods i.e., catalytic partial oxidation, autothermal reforming and steam reforming have been demonstrated to operate on diesel with various sulphur contents. The choice of fuel processing method strongly affects the SOFC's system efficiency and power density. This paper investigates the impact of fuel processing methods on the economical potential in SOFC APUs, taking variable and capital cost into account. Autonomous concepts without any external water supply are compared with anode recycle configurations. The cost of electricity is very sensitive on the choice of the O/C ratio and the temperature conditions of the fuel processor. A sensitivity analysis is applied to identify the most cost effective concept for different economic boundary conditions. The favourite concepts are discussed with respect to technical challenges and requirements operating in the presence of sulphur.

Institutional Strategies for Capturing Socio-Economic Impact of Academic Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scoble, Rosa; Dickson, Keith; Hanney, Steve; Rodgers, G. J.

2010-01-01

Evaluation of socio-economic impact is an emerging theme for publicly-funded academic research. Within this context, the paper suggests that the concept of institutional research capital be expanded to include the capture and evaluation of socio-economic impact. Furthermore, it argues that understanding the typology of impacts and the tracking…

Experiential Learning of the Efficient Market Hypothesis: Two Trading Games

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Andreas

2010-01-01

In goods markets, an equilibrium price balances demand and supply. In a financial market, an equilibrium price also aggregates people's information to reveal the true value of a financial security. Although the underlying idea of informationally efficient markets is one of the centerpieces of capital market theory, students often have difficulties…

Michigan and Ohio K-12 Educational Financing Systems: Equality and Efficiency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conlin, Michael; Thompson, Paul N.

2014-01-01

We consider issues of equality and efficiency in two different school funding systems--a state-level system in Michigan and a foundation system in Ohio. Unlike Ohio, the Michigan system restricts districts from generating property or income tax revenue to fund operating expenditures. In both states, districts fund capital expenditures with local…

Economic and Educational Correlates of TIMSS Results

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mikk, Jaan

2005-01-01

The good knowledge of the correlates of educational achievement highlights the ways to the efficient use of economic and human capital in raising the efficiency of education. The present paper investigates the correlates and compares the values of the correlates for the Republic of Lithuania with the average international values. The data for the…

Barriers to Energy Efficiency and the Uptake of Green Revolving Funds in Canadian Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maiorano, John; Savan, Beth

2015-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the barriers to the implementation of energy efficiency projects in Canadian universities, including access to capital, bounded rationality, hidden costs, imperfect information, risk and split incentives. Methods to address these barriers are investigated, including evaluating the efficacy of…

Impact of nurses' cross-cultural competence on nursing intellectual capital from a social cognitive theory perspective.

PubMed

Lin, Hsien-Cheng

2016-05-01

To understand the relationships among certain key factors such as organizational climate, self-efficacy and outcome expectation on registered nurses, with regard to the development of registered nurses' cross-cultural competence. The focus is specifically on the use of a social cognitive framework for nurses for providing intercultural nursing care to international patients. This study also aims to examine the relationship between nurses' cross-cultural competence and nursing intellectual capital. Given the influence of globalization on healthcare services, healthcare providers need to have enough cross-cultural competence to effectively care for patients from different cultures. Thus, the development of cross-cultural competence in nursing care has become an important issue. A quantitative method and a cross-sectional design were employed in this study. Data were collected from 309 RN working in 16 healthcare institutions in Taiwan from May to August 2013. Structural equation modelling, in combination with the smart partial least squares method, was used to measure the relationships in the research model. The results show that outcome expectation has a stronger impact on nurses' cross-cultural competence than self-efficacy. In addition, it was found that the cross-cultural competence of nurses has a positive impact on nursing intellectual capital. Nursing supervisors should promote a higher level of outcome expectation on nurses to enhance the improvement of their cross-cultural competence. Raising the cross-cultural competence of nurses will aid in the accumulation of nursing intellectual capital. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Consolidation of medical groups into physician practice management organizations.

PubMed

Robinson, J C

1998-01-14

Medical groups are growing and merging to improve efficiency and bargaining leverage in the competitive managed care environment. An increasing number are affiliating with physician practice management (PPM) firms that offer capital financing, expertise in utilization management, and global capitation contracts with health insurance entities. These physician organizations provide an alternative to affiliation with a hospital system and to individual physician contracting with health plans. To describe the growth, structure, and strategy of PPM organizations that coordinate medical groups in multiple markets and contract with health maintenance organizations (HMOs). Case studies, including interviews with administrative and clinical leaders, review of company documents, and analysis of documents from investment bankers, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and industry observers. Medical groups and independent practice associations (IPAs) in California and New Jersey affiliated with MedPartners, FPA Medical Management, and UniMed. Growth in number of primary care and specialty care physicians employed by and contracting with affiliated medical groups; growth in patient enrollment from commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid HMOs; growth in capitation and noncapitation revenues; structure and governance of affiliated management service organizations and professional corporations; and contracting strategies with HMOs. Between 1994 and 1996, medical groups and IPAs affiliated with 3 PPMs grew from 3787 to 25763 physicians; 65% of employed physicians provide primary care, while the majority of contracting physicians provide specialty care. Patient enrollment in HMOs grew from 285503 to 3028881. Annual capitation revenues grew from $190 million to $2.1 billion. Medical groups affiliated with PPMs are capitated for most professional, hospital, and ancillary clinical services and are increasingly delegated responsibility by HMOs for utilization management and quality assurance. Physician practice management organizations and their affiliated medical groups face the challenge of continuing rapid growth, sustaining stock values, and improving practice efficiencies while maintaining the loyalty of physicians and patients.

The demand for health: an empirical test of the Grossman model using panel data.

PubMed

Nocera, S; Zweifel, P

1998-01-01

Grossman derives the demand for health from an optimal control model in which health capital is both a consumption and an investment good. In his approach, the individual chooses his level of health and therefore his life span. Initially an individual is endowed with a certain amount of health capital, which depreciates over time but can be replenished by investments like medical care, diet, exercise, etc. Therefore, the level of health is not treated as exogenous but depends on the amount of resources the individual allocates to the production of health. The production of health capital also depends on variables which modify the efficiency of the production process, therefore changing the shadow price of health capital. For example, more highly educated people are expected to be more efficient producers of health who thus face a lower price of health capital, an effect that should increase their quantity of health demanded. While the Grossman model provides a suitable theoretical framework for explaining the demand for health and the demand for medical services, it has not been too successful empirically. However, empirical tests up to this date have been exclusively based on cross section data, thus failing to take the dynamic nature of the Grossman model into account. By way of contrast, the present paper contains individual time series information not only on the utilization of medical services but also on income, wealth, work, and life style. The data come from two surveys carried out in 1981 and 1993 among members of a Swiss sick fund, with the linkage between the two waves provided by insurance records. In all, this comparatively rich data set holds the promise of permitting the Grossman model to be adequately tested for the first time.

O&M Best Practices - A Guide to Achieving Operational Efficiency (Release 2.0)

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

Sullivan, Gregory P.; Pugh, Ray; Melendez, Aldo P.

2004-07-31

This guide, sponsored by DOE's Federal Energy Management Program, highlights operations and maintenance (O&M) programs targeting energy efficiency that are estimated to save 5% to 20% on energy bills without a significant capital investment. The purpose of this guide is to provide the federal O&M energy manager and practitioner with useful information about O&M management, technologies, energy efficiency and cost-reduction approaches.

Alternatives: the right medicine for your portfolio?

PubMed

Doody, Dennis

2006-01-01

Because they often play an active role in developing their portfolio companies' strategies, private capital investment managers can add significant value to companies in their portfolio. The relative inefficiency of private capital markets can give savvy investors an edge that they can not so easily gain in the more efficient public markets. Originally created as a means to reduce volatility, hedge funds should not be seen as the high-risk bets that they are widely perceived to be. Most hedge funds actually are concerned with protecting downside risk.

Self-consistency in Capital Markets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benbrahim, Hamid

2013-03-01

Capital Markets are considered, at least in theory, information engines whereby traders contribute to price formation with their diverse perspectives. Regardless whether one believes in efficient market theory on not, actions by individual traders influence prices of securities, which in turn influence actions by other traders. This influence is exerted through a number of mechanisms including portfolio balancing, margin maintenance, trend following, and sentiment. As a result market behaviors emerge from a number of mechanisms ranging from self-consistency due to wisdom of the crowds and self-fulfilling prophecies, to more chaotic behavior resulting from dynamics similar to the three body system, namely the interplay between equities, options, and futures. This talk will address questions and findings regarding the search for self-consistency in capital markets.

Planning factors for developing an enterprise-wide picture archiving and communication system maintenance program.

PubMed

Staley, S; Romlein, J; Chacko, A K; Wider, R

2000-05-01

Picture archiving and communication system (PACS) maintenance on an individual site basis has historically been a complex and costly challenge. With the advent of enterprise-wide PACS projects such as the Virtual Radiology Environment (VRE) project, the challenge of a maintenance program with even more complexities has presented itself. The approach of the project management team for the VRE project is not one of reactive maintenance, but one of highly proactive planning and negotiations, in hopes of capitalizing on the economies of scale of an enterprise-wide PACS maintenance program. A proactive maintenance program is one aspect of life-cycle management. As with any capital acquisition, life-cycle management may be used to manage the specific project aspects related to PACS. The purpose of an enterprise-wide warranty and maintenance life-cycle management approach is to maintain PACS at its maximum operational efficiency and utilization levels through a flexible, shared, yet symbiotic relationship between local, regional, and vendor resources. These goals include providing maximum operational performance levels on a local, regional, and enterprise basis, while maintaining acceptable costs and resource utilization levels. This goal must be achieved without negatively impacting point of care activities, regardless of changes to the clinical business environment.

Review of the University of Alaska FY 1986 Operating and Capital Budgets. Submitted to the Governor and the Fourteenth Alaska State Legislature. Document No. 85-3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alaska State Commission on Postsecondary Education, Juneau.

A review of the University of Alaska's operating and capital budget submission for fiscal year 1986 is presented, directed at the educational and programmatic impact of the budget request. Five recommendations endorsed by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education are analyzed. Additional contents include: summary information for the…

Review of the University of Alaska FY 1985 Operating and Capital Budgets. Submitted to the Governor and the Thirteenth Alaska State Legislature.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alaska State Commission on Postsecondary Education, Juneau.

A review of the University of Alaska's operating and capital budget submission for fiscal year 1985 is presented. The review is directed at the educational and programmatic impact of the budget request. In addition, 11 recommendations endorsed by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education are analyzed. Additional contents include: the…

Building Learning Communities: Partnerships, Social Capital and VET Performance. A National Vocational Education and Training Research and Evaluation Program Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allison, Janelle; Gorringe, Scott; Lacey, Justine

2006-01-01

This study examines the nature of the impact of vocational education and training (VET), and its project-based activities and partnerships, on the development of sustainable communities in regional Australia. It finds that VET plays a critical role as the entry point to learning and builds considerable social and other forms of capital in regional…

12 strategies for managing capital projects.

PubMed

Stoudt, Richard L

2013-05-01

To reduce the amount of time and cost associated with capital projects, healthcare leaders should: Begin the project with a clear objective and a concise master facilities plan. Select qualified team members who share the vision of the owner. Base the size of the project on a conservative business plan. Minimize incremental program requirements. Evaluate the cost impact of the building footprint. Consider alternative delivery methods.

Social Capital and Adolescents Mathematics Achievement: A Comparative Analysis of Eight European Cities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gisladottir, Berglind

2013-01-01

This study examines the impact of social capital on mathematics achievement in eight European cities. The study draws on data from the 2008 Youth in Europe survey, carried out by the Icelandic Center for Social Research and Analysis. The sample contains responses from 17,312 students in 9th and 10th grade of local secondary schools in the…

How Cultural Capital, Habitus, and Social Capital Impacts Pell-Eligible Vermont Students in Navigating the Financial Systems of Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Freitas, Xavier

2017-01-01

With the US recovering from a recession, a college diploma has become more valuable to avoid unemployment. Despite a college degree's importance, the access to higher education is a challenge for lower income Pell-Eligible Vermont students. For the past three decades, higher education continues to rise in cost faster than family income. Cost is…

Promoting Parents' Social Capital to Increase Children's Attendance in Head Start: Evidence from an Experimental Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sommer, Teresa Eckrich; Sabol, Terri J.; Chase-Lansdale, P. Lindsay; Small, Mario; Wilde, Henry; Brown, Sean; Huang, Zong Yang

2017-01-01

Improving children's attendance is a high priority for Head Start and other early childhood education programs serving low-income children. We conducted a randomized control trial in a major northern city to evaluate the impact of a low-cost intervention designed to promote parents' social capital as a potential influence on children's attendance…

The General School System as a Universal or a Particular Institution and Its Role in the Formation of Social Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Englund, Tomas

2009-01-01

In recent decades, the concept of social capital has had an enormous impact on the social scientific debate. Despite its vagueness, the concept expresses a distinction that is of significance for the maintenance and depth of democracy. At the same time, the overarching thesis put forward concerning the fundamental role of associations and social…

A narrative synthesis of illustrative evidence on effects of capitation payment for primary care: lessons for Ghana and other low/middle-income countries.

PubMed

Andoh-Adjei, Francis-Xavier; Spaan, Ernst; Asante, Felix A; Mensah, Sylvester A; van der Velden, Koos

2016-12-01

To analyse and synthesize available international experiences and information on the motivation for, and effects of using capitation as provider payment method in country health systems and lessons and implications for low/middle-income countries. We did narrative review and synthesis of the literature on the effects of capitation payment on primary care. Eleven articles were reviewed. Capitation payment encourages efficiency: drives down cost, serves as critical source of income for providers, promotes adherence to guidelines and policies, encourages providers to work better and give health education to patients. It, however, induces reduction in the quantity and quality of care provided and encourages skimming on inputs, underserving of patients in bad state of health, "dumping" of high risk patients and negatively affect patient-provider relationship. The illustrative evidence adduced from the review demonstrates that capitation payment in primary care can create positive incentives but could also elicit un-intended effects. However, due to differences in country context, policy makers in Ghana and other low/middle-income countries may only be guided by the illustrative evidence in their design of a context-specific capitation payment for primary care. Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP), Fellowship number: NFP-PhD.12/352.

Bridging and bonding interactions in higher education: social capital and students’ academic and professional identity formation

PubMed Central

Jensen, Dorthe H.; Jetten, Jolanda

2015-01-01

It is increasingly recognized that graduates’ achievements depend in important ways on their opportunities to develop an academic and a professional identity during their studies. Previous research has shown that students’ socio-economic status (SES) and social capital prior to entering university affects their ability to obtain these identities in higher education. However, what is less well understood is whether social capital that is built during university studies shapes identity development, and if so, whether the social capital gained during university years impacts on academic and professional identity differently. In a qualitative study, we interviewed 26 Danish and 11 Australian university students about their social interaction experiences, their opportunities to develop bonding capital as well as bridging capital, and their academic and professional identity. Findings show that while bonding social capital with co-students facilitated academic identity formation, such social capital does not lead to professional identity development. We also found that the development of bridging social capital with educators facilitated students’ professional identity formation. However, bonding social capital among students stood in the way of participating in bridging interaction with educators, thereby further hindering professional identity formation. Finally, while students’ parental background did not affect the perceived difficulty of forming professional identity, there was a tendency for students from lower SES backgrounds to be more likely to make internal attributions while those from higher SES backgrounds were more likely to make external attributions for the failure to develop professional identity. Results point to the importance of creating opportunities for social interaction with educators at university because this facilitates the generation of bridging social capital, which, in turn, is essential for students’ professional identity development. PMID:25762954

Bridging and bonding interactions in higher education: social capital and students' academic and professional identity formation.

PubMed

Jensen, Dorthe H; Jetten, Jolanda

2015-01-01

It is increasingly recognized that graduates' achievements depend in important ways on their opportunities to develop an academic and a professional identity during their studies. Previous research has shown that students' socio-economic status (SES) and social capital prior to entering university affects their ability to obtain these identities in higher education. However, what is less well understood is whether social capital that is built during university studies shapes identity development, and if so, whether the social capital gained during university years impacts on academic and professional identity differently. In a qualitative study, we interviewed 26 Danish and 11 Australian university students about their social interaction experiences, their opportunities to develop bonding capital as well as bridging capital, and their academic and professional identity. Findings show that while bonding social capital with co-students facilitated academic identity formation, such social capital does not lead to professional identity development. We also found that the development of bridging social capital with educators facilitated students' professional identity formation. However, bonding social capital among students stood in the way of participating in bridging interaction with educators, thereby further hindering professional identity formation. Finally, while students' parental background did not affect the perceived difficulty of forming professional identity, there was a tendency for students from lower SES backgrounds to be more likely to make internal attributions while those from higher SES backgrounds were more likely to make external attributions for the failure to develop professional identity. Results point to the importance of creating opportunities for social interaction with educators at university because this facilitates the generation of bridging social capital, which, in turn, is essential for students' professional identity development.

Grandparent-grandchild family capital and self-rated health of older rural Chinese adults: the role of the grandparent-parent relationship.

PubMed

Lou, Vivian W Q; Lu, Nan; Xu, Ling; Chi, Iris

2013-07-01

This study tested the relationship between grandparent-grandchild family capital and self-rated health of older rural Chinese adults and the mediating role of the grandparent-parent relationship in terms of grandparent-grandchild family capital and self-rated health. Data were derived from a random sample of 1,027 adults aged 60 and older who were interviewed in the rural Chaohu region in 2009. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the direct effect of grandparent-grandchild family capital in terms of relations with the first child's family on self-rated health among respondents, as well as the mediating effect of the grandparent-parent relationship. The results showed the direct effect of grandparent-grandchild family capital on self-rated health of older rural Chinese adults. The grandparent-parent relationship had a partial mediation effect on the relationship between grandparent-grandchild family capital and self-rated health of respondents. Grandparent-grandchild family capital had a unique direct effect on the self-rated health of older rural Chinese adults, enriching our theoretical understanding of sources of family capital and their impacts in a collectivist cultural context that emphasizes intergenerational interaction and exchange. The findings also highlighted the mediation effects of grandparent-parent relationships on the relationship between grandparent-grandchild family capital and self-rated health of older rural Chinese adults, supporting the "grandchild-as-linkage" hypothesis in understanding the social determination of self-rated health in China.

Relationships between community social capital and injury in Canadian adolescents: a multilevel analysis

PubMed Central

Vafaei, Afshin; Pickett, William; Alvarado, Beatriz E

2015-01-01

Background Characteristics of social environments are potential risk factors for adolescent injury. Impacts of social capital on the occurrence of such injuries have rarely been explored. Methods General health questionnaires were completed by 8910 youth aged 14 years and older as part of the 2010 Canadian Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children study. These were supplemented with community-level data from the 2006 Canada Census of Population. Multilevel logistic regression models with random intercepts were fit to examine associations of interest. The reliability and validity of variables used in this analysis had been established in past studies, or in new analyses that employed factor analysis. Results Between school differences explained 2% of the variance in the occurrence of injuries. After adjustment for all confounders, community social capital did not have any impact on the occurrence of injuries in boys: OR: 1.01, 95% CI 0.80 to 1.29. However, living in areas with low social capital was associated with lower occurrence of injuries in girls (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.96). Other factors that were significantly related to injuries in both genders were younger age, engagement in more risky behaviours, and negative behavioural influences from peers. Conclusions After simultaneously taking into account the influence of community-level and individual-level factors, community levels of social capital remained a relatively strong predictor of injury among girls but not boys. Such gender effects provide important clues into the social aetiology of youth injury. PMID:26294708

Examining the prevalence, role and impact of evidence regarding Antisocial Personality, sociopathy and psychopathy in capital cases: a survey of defense team members.

PubMed

Edens, John F; Cox, Jennifer

2012-01-01

Although anecdotal case accounts suggest that evidence concerning Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD), sociopathy and psychopathy is frequently introduced by the prosecution in capital murder trials, to date there has been no systematic research to determine the actual prevalence, role, or perceived impact of such evidence in these cases. Survey data collected from attendees at a national capital mitigation conference (n=41) indicated that prosecution evidence concerning APD was quite prevalent, with "sociopath" and "psychopath" labels being introduced less frequently. Evidence concerning these disorders, which were assessed primarily via DSM criteria and self-report personality inventories, was most often introduced by the prosecution in the sentencing phase to address a defendant's ostensible risk of future dangerousness and/or to rebut mitigating evidence-although it was also introduced frequently in the guilt/innocence phase of these trials to rebut mental health evidence offered by the defense. Survey respondents believed that evidence concerning APD, sociopathy, and psychopathy had a considerable impact on trial outcomes. Also, although defense objections were common, such evidence was rarely ruled to be inadmissible in these cases. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Productive Ward Program™: A Two-Year Implementation Impact Review Using a Longitudinal Multilevel Study.

PubMed

Van Bogaert, Peter; Van Heusden, Danny; Verspuy, Martijn; Wouters, Kristien; Slootmans, Stijn; Van der Straeten, Johnny; Van Aken, Paul; White, Mark

2017-03-01

Aim To investigate the impact of the quality improvement program "Productive Ward - Releasing Time to Care™" using nurses' and midwives' reports of practice environment, burnout, quality of care, job outcomes, as well as workload, decision latitude, social capital, and engagement. Background Despite the requirement for health systems to improve quality and the proliferation of quality improvement programs designed for healthcare, the empirical evidence supporting large-scale quality improvement programs impacting patient satisfaction, staff engagement, and quality care remains sparse. Method A longitudinal study was performed in a large 600-bed acute care university hospital at two measurement intervals for nurse practice environment, burnout, and quality of care and job outcomes and three measurement intervals for workload, decision latitude, social capital, and engagement between June 2011 and November 2014. Results Positive results were identified in practice environment, decision latitude, and social capital. Less favorable results were identified in relation to perceived workload, emotional exhaustion. and vigor. Moreover, measures of quality of care and job satisfaction were reported less favorably. Conclusion This study highlights the need to further understand how to implement large-scale quality improvement programs so that they integrate with daily practices and promote "quality improvement" as "business as usual."

Economic impact of stimulated technological activity. Part 2: Case study, technological progress and commercialization of communications satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

The economic impact of technological progress in communications satellites is considered, as well as how these impacts affect the firms involved. Influences, if any, on the three major inputs of a nation's economic output (capital, labor, and technology) is discussed.

Europe sees mixed results from public-private partnerships for building and managing health care facilities and services.

PubMed

Barlow, James; Roehrich, Jens; Wright, Steve

2013-01-01

Prompted in part by constrained national budgets, European governments are increasingly partnering with the private sector to underwrite the costs of constructing and operating public hospitals and other health care facilities and delivering services. Through such public-private partnerships, governments hope to avoid up-front capital expenditure and to harness private-sector efficiencies, while private-sector partners aim for a return on investment. Our research indicates that to date, experience with these partnerships has been mixed. Early models of these partnerships-for example, in which a private firm builds a hospital and carries out building maintenance, which we term an "accommodation-only" model-arguably have not met expectations for achieving greater efficiencies at lower costs. Newer models described in this article offer greater opportunities for efficiency gains but are administratively harder to set up and manage. Given the shortages in public capital for new infrastructure, it seems likely that the attractiveness of these partnerships to European governments will grow.

A low-cost iron-cadmium redox flow battery for large-scale energy storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, Y. K.; Zhao, T. S.; Zhou, X. L.; Wei, L.; Jiang, H. R.

2016-10-01

The redox flow battery (RFB) is one of the most promising large-scale energy storage technologies that offer a potential solution to the intermittency of renewable sources such as wind and solar. The prerequisite for widespread utilization of RFBs is low capital cost. In this work, an iron-cadmium redox flow battery (Fe/Cd RFB) with a premixed iron and cadmium solution is developed and tested. It is demonstrated that the coulombic efficiency and energy efficiency of the Fe/Cd RFB reach 98.7% and 80.2% at 120 mA cm-2, respectively. The Fe/Cd RFB exhibits stable efficiencies with capacity retention of 99.87% per cycle during the cycle test. Moreover, the Fe/Cd RFB is estimated to have a low capital cost of 108 kWh-1 for 8-h energy storage. Intrinsically low-cost active materials, high cell performance and excellent capacity retention equip the Fe/Cd RFB to be a promising solution for large-scale energy storage systems.

Potentialities of TEC topping: A simplified view of parametric effects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, J. F.

1980-01-01

An examination of the benefits of thermionic-energy-conversion (TEC)-topped power plants and methods of increasing conversion efficiency are discussed. Reductions in the cost of TEC modules yield direct decreases in the cost of electricity (COE) from TEC-topped central station power plants. Simplified COE, overall-efficiency charts presented illustrate this trend. Additional capital-cost diminution results from designing more compact furnaces with considerably increased heat transfer rates allowable and desirable for high temperature TEC and heat pipes. Such improvements can evolve of the protection from hot corrosion and slag as well as the thermal expansion compatibilities offered by silicon-carbide clads on TEC-heating surfaces. Greater efficiencies and far fewer modules are possible with high-temperature, high-power-density TEC: This decreases capital and fuel costs much more and substantially increases electric power outputs for fixed fuel inputs. In addition to more electricity, less pollution, and lower costs, TEC topping used directly in coal-combustion products contributes balance-of-payment gains.

What happens when capitated behavioral health comes to town? The transition from the Fort Bragg demonstration to a capitated managed behavioral health contract.

PubMed

Heflinger, C A; Northrup, D A

2000-11-01

Capitated managed care contracts for behavioral health services are becoming more prevalent across the country in both public and private sectors. This study followed the transition from a demonstration project for child mental health services to a capitated managed behavioral health care contract with a for-profit managed care company. The focus of the study was on the impact--at both the service system and the individual consumer level--pertaining to the start-up and maintenance of a capitated managed behavioral health program. A case study using multiple methods and multiple sources of information incorporated a program fidelity framework that examined micro to macro levels of program implementation. The findings of this study include the following: access to services decreased, the lengths of stay and average daily census in the more intensive levels of treatment declined, difficult-to-treat children were shifted to the public sector, and ratings of service system performance and coordination fell.

The impact of a health campaign on health social capital.

PubMed

Thorson, Esther; Beaudoin, Christopher E

2004-01-01

Referring to literature in sociology, mass communication, and public health, we conceptualize and operationally define "health social capital" and "individual health social capital" and then posit and test a model for its development in response to a public health media campaign. The campaign evaluated here was designed to stimulate behaviors that would provide a more supportive social environment for children and youth, an environment which we consider to be richer in aggregate health social capital. The association model of advertising was employed to explain the development of individual health social capital measures of awareness, attitude, and behavior. With cross-sectional data (1998, n = 614; 1999, n = 1087; 2000, n = 1388), we examine the results for changes in awareness, attitude, and behavior over time and the significant links between these dependent variables and media campaign exposure. The results show significant increases in awareness and attitude, but not in behavior. Structural equation modeling revealed different patterns of influence for newspaper and TV campaign exposure.

Social Capital and Public Participation on Planning in Coastal Area Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prayitno, Gunawan; Syaifurridzal, M.

2017-07-01

Indonesia is one country to the world that rich with natural resources, especially on marine and coastal resources. But, the condition of rural inhabitants in coastal area still low in economic condition and public facilities and others not suitable for good living environment. The goal of this paper is to integrate the concept of social capital and public participation in the community activities. Social capital, which is interpreted with the term of the trust, networks and norm as governing human behavior is significant to motivate and coordinate collective action towards collaboration. Collective action or collaboration among people in the communities could solve the problem together. In the Grootaert research, with the title “Social Capital, Household Welfare and Poverty in Indonesia” (1999) found that active participation in decision making and memberships in heterogeneous organizations further reduce the likelihood to be poor. In this research, we found the same from Grootaert finding, that social capital (trust) has positive impact to community activities (path point 0.56) in this research location.

Contribution of suppression difficulty and lessons learned in forecasting fire suppression operations productivity: A methodological approach

Treesearch

Francisco Rodríguez y Silva; Armando González-Cabán

2016-01-01

We propose an economic analysis using utility and productivity, and efficiency theories to provide fire managers a decision support tool to determine the most efficient fire management programs levels. By incorporating managers’ accumulated fire suppression experiences (capitalized experience) in the analysis we help fire managers...

Computer-Based Resource Accounting Model for Automobile Technology Impact Assessment

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1976-10-01

A computer-implemented resource accounting model has been developed for assessing resource impacts of future automobile technology options. The resources tracked are materials, energy, capital, and labor. The model has been used in support of the Int...

HUMAN CAPITAL GROWTH AND POVERTY: EVIDENCE FROM ETHIOPIA AND PERU

PubMed Central

ATTANASIO, ORAZIO; MEGHIR, COSTAS; NIX, EMILY; SALVATI, FRANCESCA

2017-01-01

In this paper we use high quality data from two developing countries, Ethiopia and Peru, to estimate the production functions of human capital from age 1 to age 15. We characterize the nature of persistence and dynamic complementarities between two components of human capital: health and cognition. We also explore the implications of different functional form assumptions for the production functions. We find that more able and higher income parents invest more, particularly at younger ages when investments have the greatest impacts. These differences in investments by parental income lead to large gaps in inequality by age 8 that persist through age 15. PMID:28579736

The role of community social capital in the relationship between socioeconomic status and adolescent life satisfaction: mediating or moderating? Evidence from Czech data.

PubMed

Buijs, Thomas; Maes, Lea; Salonna, Ferdinand; Van Damme, Joris; Hublet, Anne; Kebza, Vladimir; Costongs, Caroline; Currie, Candace; De Clercq, Bart

2016-12-12

The concept of social capital has been extensively used to explain the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and adolescent health and well-being. Much less is known about the specific mechanism through which social capital impacts the relationship. This paper investigates whether an individual's perception of community social capital moderates or mediates the association between SES and life satisfaction. This study employs cross-sectional data from the 2009-2010 Czech Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children survey: a WHO Collaborative Cross-National Study (HBSC). A sample of 4425 adolescents from the 5 th , 7 th and 9 th grade (94.5% school response rate, 87% student response) was used to perform multilevel analysis. We found that pupils' life satisfaction was positively related to both family affluence and perceived wealth. Moreover, we found the cognitive component of social capital to be positively associated with life satisfaction. Additionally, a significant interaction was found, such that the social gradient in life satisfaction was flattened when pupils reported high levels of perceived community social capital. The present findings suggest that community social capital acts as an unequal health resource for adolescents, but could potentially represent opportunities for public health policy to close the gap in socioeconomic disparities.

Social influences on adolescents' dietary behavior in Catalonia, Spain: A qualitative multiple-cases study from the perspective of social capital.

PubMed

Carrillo-Álvarez, Elena; Riera-Romaní, Jordi; Canet-Vélez, Olga

2018-04-01

Adolescence has been referred to as the last best chance to prevent adult non-communicable diseases. Gaining further evidence on the psychosocial determinants of health behaviors, particularly the impact of peers, social networks and media on diet, is necessary to develop appropriate preventive strategies. Based on a multiple-cases study, our aim was to discuss the social influences on adolescents' dietary behavior from a social capital perspective. Participants were reached through four high-schools in different Catalan rural-urban and socioeconomic contexts. Our results confirm the different layout of social capital in the community, school, peers and family. In our sample, family and peers are the most influent sources of social capital in relation to dietary behaviors, inducing both protective and damaging effects. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Physician Payment Contracts in the Presence of Moral Hazard and Adverse Selection: The Theory and Its Application in Ontario.

PubMed

Kantarevic, Jasmin; Kralj, Boris

2016-10-01

We develop a stylized principal-agent model with moral hazard and adverse selection to provide a unified framework for understanding some of the most salient features of the recent physician payment reform in Ontario and its impact on physician behavior. These features include the following: (i) physicians can choose a payment contract from a menu that includes an enhanced fee-for-service contract and a blended capitation contract; (ii) the capitation rate is higher, and the cost-reimbursement rate is lower in the blended capitation contract; (iii) physicians sort selectively into the contracts based on their preferences; and (iv) physicians in the blended capitation model provide fewer services than physicians in the enhanced fee-for-service model. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Theory and Practice in the Design of Physician Payment Incentives

PubMed Central

Robinson, James C.

2001-01-01

Combining the economic literature on principal-agent relationships with examples of marketplace innovations allows analysis of the evolution of methods for paying physicians. Agency theory and the economic principles of performance-based compensation are applied in the context of imperfect information, risk aversion, multiple interrelated tasks, and team production efficiencies. Fee-for-service and capitation are flawed methods of motivating physicians to achieve specific goals. Payment innovations that blend elements of fee-for-service, capitation, and case rates can preserve the advantages and attenuate the disadvantages of each. These innovations include capitation with fee-for-service carve-outs, department budgets with individual fee-for-service or “contact” capitation, and case rates for defined episodes of illness. The context within which payment incentives are embedded, includes such nonprice mechanisms as screening and monitoring and such organizational relationships as employment and ownership. The analysis has implications for health services research and public policy with respect to physician payment incentives. PMID:11439463

Dynamic Estimation on Output Elasticity of Highway Capital Stock in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, W. J.; Zuo, Q. L.; Bai, Y. F.

2017-12-01

By using the Perpetual Inventory Method to calculate the capital stock of highway in China from 1988 to 2016, the paper builds the State Space Model based on Translog Production Function, according to the Ridge Regression and Kalman Filter Method, the dynamic estimation results of output elasticity are measured continuously and analyzed. The conclusions show that: Firstly, China’s growth speed on highway industry capital stock are divided into three stages which are respectively from 1988 to 2000, from 2001 to 2009 and from 2010 to 2016, during which shows steady growth, between which reflect rapid growth; Secondly, the output elasticity of highway capital stock, being between 0.154 and 0.248, is slightly larger than the output elasticity of human input factor, lower than the output elasticity of the technical level, shows positive effect on transport economy and rises steadily, but the output efficiency is low on the whole; Thirdly, around the year of 2010, the scale pay on highway industry begins to highlight the characteristic of increase.

Exergetic life cycle assessment of hydrogen production from renewables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Granovskii, Mikhail; Dincer, Ibrahim; Rosen, Marc A.

Life cycle assessment is extended to exergetic life cycle assessment and used to evaluate the exergy efficiency, economic effectiveness and environmental impact of producing hydrogen using wind and solar energy in place of fossil fuels. The product hydrogen is considered a fuel for fuel cell vehicles and a substitute for gasoline. Fossil fuel technologies for producing hydrogen from natural gas and gasoline from crude oil are contrasted with options using renewable energy. Exergy efficiencies and greenhouse gas and air pollution emissions are evaluated for all process steps, including crude oil and natural gas pipeline transportation, crude oil distillation and natural gas reforming, wind and solar electricity generation, hydrogen production through water electrolysis, and gasoline and hydrogen distribution and utilization. The use of wind power to produce hydrogen via electrolysis, and its application in a fuel cell vehicle, exhibits the lowest fossil and mineral resource consumption rate. However, the economic attractiveness, as measured by a "capital investment effectiveness factor," of renewable technologies depends significantly on the ratio of costs for hydrogen and natural gas. At the present cost ratio of about 2 (per unit of lower heating value or exergy), capital investments are about five times lower to produce hydrogen via natural gas rather than wind energy. As a consequence, the cost of wind- and solar-based electricity and hydrogen is substantially higher than that of natural gas. The implementation of a hydrogen fuel cell instead of an internal combustion engine permits, theoretically, an increase in a vehicle's engine efficiency of about of two times. Depending on the ratio in engine efficiencies, the substitution of gasoline with "renewable" hydrogen leads to (a) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions of 12-23 times for hydrogen from wind and 5-8 times for hydrogen from solar energy, and (b) air pollution (AP) emissions reductions of 38-76 times for hydrogen from wind and 16-32 times for hydrogen from solar energy. By comparison, substitution of gasoline with hydrogen from natural gas allows reductions in GHG emissions only as a result of the increased efficiency of a fuel cell engine, and a reduction of AP emissions of 2.5-5 times. These data suggest that "renewable" hydrogen represents a potential long-term solution to many environmental problems.

Review of the University of Alaska FY 1987 Operating and Capital Budgets. Submitted to the Governor and the Fourteenth Alaska State Legislature. Document No. 86-3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alaska State Commission on Postsecondary Education, Juneau.

A review of the University of Alaska's operating and capital budget submission for fiscal year 1987 is presented, with attention to the educational and programmatic impact of the budget request. Information is provided on project components for which funding increments are requested. Included are data to assist decision-makers in reviewing the…

Market value: an underused financial planning tool.

PubMed

Harris, J P; Schimmel, V E

1987-04-01

Two issues facing CFOs are capital formation and the long-range financial impact of strategic planning decisions. For not-for-profit organizations, debt capacity is the main determining factor of capital formation while investment analysis is the key to the financial evaluation of strategic planning options. And, the market, or sale, value of the organization can serve as an effective tool to manage current debt capacity and future investment decisions.

The Economic Impact of the President’s 2013 Budget

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-04-01

and capital . According to the Solow-type model , people base their decisions about working and saving pri- marily on current economic... model developed by Robert Solow. CBO’s life-cycle growth model is an overlapping - generations general -equilibrium model that is based on a standard...services produced in a given period by the labor and capital supplied by the country’s residents , regardless of where the labor

Impact of GDP Information Technology in Developing of Regional Central Business (Case 50 Airports IT City Development in Indonesia)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suyono, Joko; Sukoco, Agus; Ikhsan Setiawan, M.; Suhermin; Rahim, Robbi

2017-12-01

Indonesia a great number of populations and demand of air transportation services keep increasing by the year in line with the increasing of population and welfare its people. Need for telematics solutions to support goods transport and distribution in cities is mainly due to the complexity of the processes taking place in urban transport systems and the importance of the optimisation of transport operations via ensuring adequate availability of linear and point infrastructure, while reducing the adverse impacts of the transport system on the environment. Efficient infrastructure supports economic growth, improves quality of life, and it is important for national security. Impact of GDP Information Technology in developing of Regional Central Business especially SME Business, are very large correlations and very significant supported by Passenger Arrival and Departure, Baggage Loaded and Unloaded, Cargo Loaded and Unloaded, Separated regional asset, Grant, Capital Expenditure, Investment of Regional Gov., GDP Agriculture-Forestry-Fishing, GDP Manufacturing, GDP Electricity-Gas, GDP Water supply- Sewerage-Waste Management-Remediation Activities, GDP Financial-Insurance Activities, GDP Business Activities, GDP Public Administration and Defense-Compulsory Social Security, GDP Education and GDP Other Services Activities

Agricultural land use intensity and its determinants: A case study in Taibus Banner, Inner Mongolia, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hao, Haiguang; Li, Xiubin; Tan, Minghong; Zhang, Jiping; Zhang, Huiyuan

2015-06-01

Based on rural household survey data from Taibus Banner, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, this study separately categorizes agricultural land use intensity into labor intensity, capital intensity, the intensity of labor-saving inputs, and the intensity of yield-increasing inputs, and then analyzes their determinants at the household level. The findings reveal that within the study area: (1) labor intensity is higher and capital intensity is lower than in the major grain-producing and economically developed areas of eastern and central China; (2) the most widely planted crops are those with the lowest labor intensity (oats) and capital intensity (benne); (3) there are marked differences in agricultural land use intensity among households; a major factor affecting land use decision-making is the reduced need for labor intensity for those households with high opportunity costs, such as those with income earned from non-farming activities which alleviates financial constraints and allows for increased capital intensity. As a result, these households invest more in labor-saving inputs; (4) households with a larger number of workers will allocate adequate time to manage their land and thus they will not necessarily invest more in labor-saving inputs. Those households with more land to manage tend to adopt an extensive cultivation strategy. Total income has a positive impact on capital intensity and a negative impact on labor intensity. Households that derive a higher proportion of their total income through farming are more reliant upon agriculture, which necessitates significant labor and yield-increasing inputs. Finally, the authors contend that policy makers should clearly recognize the impacts of non-farming employment on agricultural land use intensity. In order to ensure long-term food security and sustainable agricultural development in China, income streams from both farming and non-farming employment should be balanced.

Three Essays on National Oil Company Efficiency, Energy Demand and Transportation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eller, Stacy L.

This dissertation is composed of three separate essays in the field of energy economics. In the first paper, both data envelopment analysis and stochastic production frontier estimation are employed to provide empirical evidence on the revenue efficiency of national oil companies (NOCs) and private international oil companies (IOCs). Using a panel of 80 oil producing firms, the analysis suggests that NOCs are generally less efficient at generating revenue from a given resource base than IOCs, with some exceptions. Due to differing firm objectives, however, structural and institutional features may help explain much of the inefficiency. The second paper analyzes the relationship between economic development and the demand for energy. Energy consumption is modeled using panel data from 1990 to 2004 for 50 countries spanning all levels of development. We find the relationship between energy consumption and economic development corresponds to the structure of aggregate output and the nature of derived demand for electricity and direct-use fuels in each sector. Notably, the evidence of non-constant income elasticity of demand is much greater for electricity demand than for direct-use fuel consumption. In addition, we show that during periods of rapid economic development, one in which the short-term growth rate exceeds the long-run average, an increase in aggregate output is met by less energy-efficient capital. This is a result of capital being fixed in the short-term. As additional, more efficient capital stock is added to the production process, the short-term increase in energy intensity will diminish. In the third essay, we develop a system of equations to estimate a model of motor vehicle fuel consumption, vehicle miles traveled and implied fuel efficiency for the 67 counties of the State of Florida from 2001 to 2008. This procedure allows us to decompose the factors of fuel demand into elasticities of vehicle driving demand and fuel efficiency. Particular attention is paid to the influence of the price of fuel, the sale of goods and services, vehicle ownership and population density on each component of our model.

The Role of Demand Response in Reducing Water-Related Power Plant Vulnerabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Macknick, J.; Brinkman, G.; Zhou, E.; O'Connell, M.; Newmark, R. L.; Miara, A.; Cohen, S. M.

2015-12-01

The electric sector depends on readily available water supplies for reliable and efficient operation. Elevated water temperatures or low water levels can trigger regulatory or plant-level decisions to curtail power generation, which can affect system cost and reliability. In the past decade, dozens of power plants in the U.S. have curtailed generation due to water temperatures and water shortages. Curtailments occur during the summer, when temperatures are highest and there is greatest demand for electricity. Climate change could alter the availability and temperature of water resources, exacerbating these issues. Constructing alternative cooling systems to address vulnerabilities can be capital intensive and can also affect power plant efficiencies. Demand response programs are being implemented by electric system planners and operators to reduce and shift electricity demands from peak usage periods to other times of the day. Demand response programs can also play a role in reducing water-related power sector vulnerabilities during summer months. Traditionally, production cost modeling and demand response analyses do not include water resources. In this effort, we integrate an electricity production cost modeling framework with water-related impacts on power plants in a test system to evaluate the impacts of demand response measures on power system costs and reliability. Specifically, we i) quantify the cost and reliability implications of incorporating water resources into production cost modeling, ii) evaluate the impacts of demand response measures on reducing system costs and vulnerabilities, and iii) consider sensitivity analyses with cooling systems to highlight a range of potential benefits of demand response measures. Impacts from climate change on power plant performance and water resources are discussed. Results provide key insights to policymakers and practitioners for reducing water-related power plant vulnerabilities via lower cost methods.

Those conversion blues.

PubMed

Forgione, D A

1999-01-01

With the ever-increasing market penetration of capitated payment systems throughout health care markets, average payment rates for health services have dropped correspondingly. At the same time, the added competitive pressures from managed care organizations have served to increase the demand for new capital investment in information systems, lower cost facilities, and innovative modes for delivering all types of health care services. As a result, many nonprofit health care organizations have converted, or have attempted to convert, to for-profit status in an effort to gain access to the public equity capital markets. As hospitals, Blue Cross and Blue Shield organizations, and other nonprofit health care organizations across the U.S. seek to convert to for-profit status, they are finding the path is not easy. Access to capital, operating efficiencies, and the need to accelerate movement into new markets are offset by public benefit obligations, potential private inurement, and significant political cost issues. The bottom line is whether the conversion will be structured to both protect the public interest and allow the health care organization the flexibility and access to capital it needs in order to continue as a viable, competitive organization into the next millennium.

The shadow price of substitutable sulfur in the US electric power plant: a distance function approach.

PubMed

Lee, Myunghun

2005-10-01

Given restrictions on sulfur dioxide emissions, a feasible long-run response could involve either an investment in improving boiler fuel-efficiency or a shift to a production process that is effective in removing sulfur dioxide. To allow for the possibility of substitution between sulfur and productive capital, we measure the shadow price of sulfur dioxide as the opportunity cost of lowering sulfur emissions in terms of forgone capital. The input distance function is estimated with data from 51 coal-fired US power units operating between 1977 and 1986. The indirect Morishima elasticities of substitution indicate that the substitutability of capital for sulfur is relatively high. The overall weighted average estimate of the shadow price of sulfur is -0.076 dollars per pound in constant 1976 dollars.

75 FR 59323 - Early Scoping for the Alternatives Analysis of the North Corridor Transit Project in Metropolitan...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-27

... impacts and benefits to be considered, the capital and operating costs, the financial plans and other... evaluating the costs, benefits, and impacts of a range of transportation alternatives designed to address... maintenance costing, and environmental and land use analyses. Finally, costs, benefits, and impacts of each...

75 FR 18571 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-12

... Comprehensive Quantitative Impact Study.'' The OCC has also given notice that it has sent this collection to OMB... following new information collection: Title: Basel Comprehensive Quantitative Impact Study. OMB Control No... the Basel II Capital Accord, the Basel Committee will conduct a quantitative impact study (QIS) to...

Do Head Start Impacts Vary by Neighborhood Context?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morris, Pamela A.; Connors, Maia C.; McCoy, Dana Charles; Gomez, Celia J.; Yoshikawa, Hiro; Aber, J. Lawrence

2014-01-01

This paper capitalizes on the addition of geocodes for Head Start centers in which children were randomly assigned to address questions about the role of neighborhood characteristics in moderating impacts of assignment to the Head Start program. Researchers explore the extent to which impacts of assignment to Head Start on outcomes for children…

Association of Neighbourhood and Individual Social Capital, Neighbourhood Economic Deprivation and Self-Rated Health in South Africa – a Multi-Level Analysis

PubMed Central

Chola, Lumbwe; Alaba, Olufunke

2013-01-01

Introduction Social capital is said to influence health, mostly in research undertaken in high income countries' settings. Because social capital may differ from one setting to another, it is suggested that its measurement be context specific. We examine the association of individual and neighbourhood level social capital, and neighbourhood deprivation to self-rated health using a multi-level analysis. Methods Data are taken from the 2008 South Africa National Income Dynamic Survey. Health was self-reported on a scale from 1 (excellent) to 5 (poor). Two measures of social capital were used: individual, measured by two variables denoting trust and civic participation; and neighbourhood social capital, denoting support, association, behaviour and safety in a community. Results Compared to males, females were less likely to report good health (Odds Ratio 0.82: Confidence Interval 0.73, 0.91). There were variations in association of individual social capital and self-rated health among the provinces. In Western Cape (1.37: 0.98, 1.91) and North West (1.39: 1.13, 1.71), trust was positively associated with reporting good health, while the reverse was true in Limpopo (0.56: 0.38, 0.84) and Free State (0.70: 0.48, 1.02). In Western Cape (0.60: 0.44, 0.82) and Mpumalanga (0.72: 0.55, 0.94), neighbourhood social capital was negatively associated with reporting good health. In North West (1.59: 1.27, 1.99) and Gauteng (1.90: 1.21, 2.97), increased neighbourhood social capital was positively associated with reporting good health. Conclusion Our study demonstrated the importance of considering contextual factors when analysing the relationship between social capital and health. Analysis by province showed variations in the way in which social capital affected health in different contexts. Further studies should be undertaken to understand the mechanisms through which social capital impacts on health in South Africa. PMID:23976923

Understanding Older Adults' Resilience During the Brisbane Floods: Social Capital, Life Experience, and Optimism.

PubMed

Brockie, Lauren; Miller, Evonne

2017-02-01

The purpose of this study was to explore how social capital or the impact of life and previous disaster experience facilitated resilience in older adults who experienced the 2011 and 2013 floods in Brisbane, Australia. Data were drawn from in-depth interviews of 10 older adults from Brisbane who were evacuated in both the 2011 and 2013 floods. A combined qualitative approach drawing from the methods of constructivist grounded theory and narrative inquiry was applied and the data were analyzed by using (inductive) line-by-line and axial coding. The narratives of the older adults revealed a strong theme of resilience linked to social capital (bonding, bridging, and linking) and previous disaster experience. The results reflected the changing face of disaster management strategies and sources of social capital. Changes in disaster management polices (toward self-reliance) and more formalized sources of social capital highlight the need to build strong and healthy resilient communities that are capable of positively recovering from natural disasters. The results from this research emphasize the importance of initiatives that enhance social cohesion, trust, and social capital within local communities. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2017;11:72-79).

Differential effects of public and private funding in the medical device industry.

PubMed

Kang, Hyunsung D; Ku, David N

2018-02-01

Funding for scientific advancement comes from two dominant sources: public funds used to generate knowledge, and private sector funds in the pursuit of commercial products. It is unclear how to compare the outputs of these two financial mechanisms because both sectors are motivated by common goods but are also governed by divergent forces. Employment within a geographic region may be a metric of mutual value that can be applied equally to assess the societal impacts of two financing sources. Areas covered: The authors focused on the medical device industry, which is a robust sector of growth for the U.S. economy. The U.S. NIH and venture capital community are representatives of public and private capital, respectively. Using a longitudinal employment dataset of 247 distinct locations, the authors found that NIH funding tends to create more jobs directly compared to venture capital funding. Moreover, the indirect effect of governmental funding is initially smaller than that of venture capital funding for the first two years, but eventually surpasses that of venture capital funding. Expert commentary: These findings imply that policy decisions regarding financial allocations in the medical device industry should consider the appropriate typology of financial capital and its consequences.

Silicon web process development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duncan, C. S.; Seidensticker, R. G.; Mchugh, J. P.; Hill, F. E.; Skutch, M. E.; Driggers, J. M.; Hopkins, R. H.

1980-01-01

A barrier crucible design which consistently maintains melt stability over long periods of time was successfully tested and used in long growth runs. The pellet feeder for melt replenishment was operated continuously for growth runs of up to 17 hours. The liquid level sensor comprising a laser/sensor system was operated, performed well, and meets the requirements for maintaining liquid level height during growth and melt replenishment. An automated feedback loop connecting the feed mechanism and the liquid level sensing system was designed and constructed and operated successfully for 3.5 hours demonstrating the feasibility of semi-automated dendritic web growth. The sensitivity of the cost of sheet, to variations in capital equipment cost and recycling dendrites was calculated and it was shown that these factors have relatively little impact on sheet cost. Dendrites from web which had gone all the way through the solar cell fabrication process, when melted and grown into web, produce crystals which show no degradation in cell efficiency. Material quality remains high and cells made from web grown at the start, during, and the end of a run from a replenished melt show comparable efficiencies.

Carbon emissions from U.S. ethylene production under climate change policies.

PubMed

Ruth, Matthias; Amato, Anthony D; Davidsdottir, Brynhildur

2002-01-15

This paper presents the results from a dynamic computer model of U.S. ethylene production, designed to explore implications of alternative climate change policies for the industry's energy use and carbon emissions profiles. The model applies to the aggregate ethylene industry but distinguishes its main cracker types, fuels used as feedstocks and for process energy, as well as the industry's capital vintage structure and vintage-specific efficiencies. Results indicate that policies which increase the cost of carbon of process energy-such as carbon taxes or carbon permit systems-are relatively blunt instruments for cutting carbon emissions from ethylene production. In contrast, policies directly affecting the relative efficiencies of new to old capital-such as R&D stimuli or accelerated depreciation schedules-may be more effective in leveraging the industry's potential for carbon emissions reductions.

Understanding the interactions between Social Capital, climate change, and community resilience in Gulf of Mexico coastal counties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, C.; Blomberg, B.; Kolker, A.; Nguyen, U.; Page, C. M.; Sherchan, S. P.; Tobias, V. D.; Wu, H.

2017-12-01

Coastal communities in the Gulf of Mexico are facing new and complex challenges as their physical environment is altered by climate warming and sea level rise. To effectively prepare for environmental changes, coastal communities must build resilience in both physical structures and social structures. One measure of social structure resilience is how much social capital a community possesses. Social capital is defined as the connections among individuals which result in networks with shared norms, values and understandings that facilitate cooperation within or among groups. Social capital exists in three levels; bonding, bridging and linking. Bonding social capital is a measure of the strength of relationships amongst members of a network who are similar in some form. Bridging social capital is a measure of relationships amongst people who are dissimilar in some way, such as age, education, or race/ethnicity. Finally Linking social capital measures the extent to which individuals build relationships with institutions and individuals who have relative power over them (e.g local government, educational institutions). Using census and American Community Survey data, we calculated a Social Capital index value for bonding, bridging and linking for 60 Gulf of Mexico coastal counties for the years 2000, and 2010 to 2015. To investigate the impact of social capital on community resilience we coupled social capital index values with physical datasets of land-use/land cover, sea level change, climate, elevation and surface water quality for each coastal county in each year. Preliminary results indicate that in Gulf of Mexico coastal counties, increased bonding social capital results in decreased population change. In addition, we observed a multi-year time lag in the effect of increased bridging social capital on population stability, potentially suggesting key linkages between the physical and social environment in this complex coupled-natural human system. This transdisciplinary study integrated physical and social open science data and provides a better understanding on how increased social capital improves resilience to changes in the physical environment. Thus, by investing in social capital, local governments may have a low cost and non-structural way of increasing community resilience.

Exploring the role of social capital in supporting a regional medical education campus.

PubMed

Toomey, Patricia; Hanlon, Neil; Bates, Joanna; Poole, Gary; Lovato, Chris Y

2011-01-01

To help address physician shortages in the underserved community of Prince George, Canada, the University of British Columbia (UBC) and various partners created the Northern Medical Program (NMP), a regional distributed site of UBC's medical doctor undergraduate program. Early research on the impacts of the NMP revealed a high degree of social connectedness. The objective of the present study was to explore the role of social capital in supporting the regional training site and the benefits accrued to a broad range of stakeholders and network partners. In this qualitative study, 23 semi-structured interviews were conducted with community leaders in 2007. A descriptive content analysis based on analytic induction technique was employed. Carpiano's Bourdieu-based framework of 'neighbourhood' social capital was adapted to empirically describe how social capital was produced and mobilized within and among networks during the planning and implementation of the NMP. Results from this study reveal that the operation of social capital and the related concept of social cohesion are multifaceted, and that benefits extend in many directions, resulting in somewhat unanticipated benefits for other key stakeholders and network partners of this medical education program. Participants described four aspects of social capital: (i) social cohesion; (ii) social capital resources; (iii) access to social capital; and (iv) outcomes of social capital. The findings of this study suggest that the partnerships and networks formed in the NMP planning and implementation phases were the foundation for social capital mobilization. The use of Carpiano's spatially-bounded model of social capital was useful in this context because it permitted the characterization of relations and networks of a tight-knit community body. The students, faculty and administrators of the NMP have benefitted greatly from access to the social capital mobilized to make the NMP operational. Taking account of the dynamic and multifaceted operation of social capital helps one move beyond a view of geographic communities as simply containers or sinks of capital investment, and to appreciate the degree to which they may act as a platform for productive network formation and expansion.

Modeling for waste management associated with environmental-impact abatement under uncertainty.

PubMed

Li, P; Li, Y P; Huang, G H; Zhang, J L

2015-04-01

Municipal solid waste (MSW) treatment can generate significant amounts of pollutants, and thus pose a risk on human health. Besides, in MSW management, various uncertainties exist in the related costs, impact factors, and objectives, which can affect the optimization processes and the decision schemes generated. In this study, a life cycle assessment-based interval-parameter programming (LCA-IPP) method is developed for MSW management associated with environmental-impact abatement under uncertainty. The LCA-IPP can effectively examine the environmental consequences based on a number of environmental impact categories (i.e., greenhouse gas equivalent, acid gas emissions, and respiratory inorganics), through analyzing each life cycle stage and/or major contributing process related to various MSW management activities. It can also tackle uncertainties existed in the related costs, impact factors, and objectives and expressed as interval numbers. Then, the LCA-IPP method is applied to MSW management for the City of Beijing, the capital of China, where energy consumptions and six environmental parameters [i.e., CO2, CO, CH4, NOX, SO2, inhalable particle (PM10)] are used as systematic tool to quantify environmental releases in entire life cycle stage of waste collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal of. Results associated with system cost, environmental impact, and the related policy implication are generated and analyzed. Results can help identify desired alternatives for managing MSW flows, which has advantages in providing compromised schemes under an integrated consideration of economic efficiency and environmental impact under uncertainty.

Evidence of long range dependence in Asian equity markets: the role of liquidity and market restrictions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cajueiro, Daniel O.; Tabak, Benjamin M.

2004-11-01

In this paper, the efficient market hypothesis is tested for China, Hong Kong and Singapore by means of the long memory dependence approach. We find evidence suggesting that Hong Kong is the most efficient market followed by Chinese A type shares and Singapore and finally by Chinese B type shares, which suggests that liquidity and capital restrictions may play a role in explaining results of market efficiency tests.

What We Can Learn from the Use of Student Data in Efficiency Analysis within the Context of Higher Education?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barra, Cristian; Zotti, Roberto

2017-01-01

The main purpose of the paper is to estimate the efficiency of a big public university in Italy using individual student-level data, modeling exogenous variables in human capital formation through a heteroscedastic stochastic frontier approach. Specifically, a production function for tertiary education has been estimated with emphasis on…

Modeling stochastic frontier based on vine copulas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Constantino, Michel; Candido, Osvaldo; Tabak, Benjamin M.; da Costa, Reginaldo Brito

2017-11-01

This article models a production function and analyzes the technical efficiency of listed companies in the United States, Germany and England between 2005 and 2012 based on the vine copula approach. Traditional estimates of the stochastic frontier assume that data is multivariate normally distributed and there is no source of asymmetry. The proposed method based on vine copulas allow us to explore different types of asymmetry and multivariate distribution. Using data on product, capital and labor, we measure the relative efficiency of the vine production function and estimate the coefficient used in the stochastic frontier literature for comparison purposes. This production vine copula predicts the value added by firms with given capital and labor in a probabilistic way. It thereby stands in sharp contrast to the production function, where the output of firms is completely deterministic. The results show that, on average, S&P500 companies are more efficient than companies listed in England and Germany, which presented similar average efficiency coefficients. For comparative purposes, the traditional stochastic frontier was estimated and the results showed discrepancies between the coefficients obtained by the application of the two methods, traditional and frontier-vine, opening new paths of non-linear research.

Energy performance of areas for urban development (Arkhangelsk is given as example)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Popova, Olga; Glebova, Yulia

2017-01-01

The present research provides an overview and analysis of the legal framework and the technology to increase energy save and energy efficiency. The challenges of the mentioned activities implementation in urban areas are revealed in the paper. A comparison was made of the principal methods of increasing energy efficiency that is based on payback period. The basic shortcomings of the methods used are found. The way of capital reproducing assets acquisition is proposed with consideration of the rate of wear and tear and upgrading of urban residential development. The present research aims at characterizing energy sustainability of urban areas for forming the information basis that identifies capital construction projects together within the urban area. A new concept - area energy sustainability is introduced in the study to use system-structural approach to energy saving and energy efficiency. Energy sustainability of the area as an integral indicator of the static characteristics of the territory is considered as a complex involving the following terms: energy security, energy intensity and energy efficiency dynamic indicators of all the components of the power system of the area. Dimensions and parameters of energy sustainability of the area are determined. Arkhangelsk is given as example.

Economic and public policy implications of energy pricing in Costa Rica

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

Bourgoin, L.

The methods used in examining the role of pricing in energy policy development may apply to many oil-importing countries with foreign exchange constraints. Data are developed by economic sectors on output plus on real factor inputs and factor wages for capital (by a perpetual inventory method), labor and useful energy (adjusted for efficiencies). A constant elasticity of substitution production model using 1965-1982 aggregate energy and nonenergy inputs is used to demonstrate the energy-economy linkages in Costa Rica. Estimates are from the best linear unbiased estimator and from the nonlinear system (structural form) of simultaneous equations jointly estimated by GLS multivariatemore » methods. The elasticity of substitution is 0.98 using only energy source costs and about 0.87-0.89 using energy system costs. The macroeconomic impacts of energy taxation or subsidization in Costa Rica for the range of likely values of the elasticity of substitution suggest that a small energy tax would result in a net national economic gain. Eight energy policy proposals demand management interventions and supply-side enhancements) are formulated for Costa Rica and qualified for five broad criteria according to their likelihood of success. These are chosen since they are believed to promote socioeconomic efficiency, to be politically feasible, and to be administratively implementable; the anticipated degree of popular acceptance and the size of the impact vary.« less

The impact of healthcare reform in the Netherlands.

PubMed

Rutten, Frans

2004-01-01

In 1987, the Dekker committee proposed managed competition as the dominant principle for reforming healthcare in The Netherlands. Considerable progress has been made in implementing the Dekker proposal, such as risk-adjusted capitation of Sick Funds, yearly open enrollment and selective contracting with providers. The centre-right government, which came to power in 2003, plans to implement the final steps in the coming years, which will drastically change pharmaceutical policies and shift power from central government to regional actors in healthcare. The current price reference system, which was initiated in 1991, has failed in containing expenditure or providing incentives towards efficiency. For new drugs, which can not be clustered in the price reference system or for which the producer wants a premium price, a pharmacoeconomic study and budget impact analysis is formally required from 2005 onwards. This fourth hurdle may limit access to new drugs, which contribute considerably to expenditure or for which relative efficiency is above a certain cost-effectiveness threshold. In line with the Dekker principle, insurance companies are expected to step into the market and initiate policies to reduce costs. However, the government seems somewhat reluctant to abandon instruments belonging to old supply-side regulation. Given the current healthcare cost explosion, which coincides with an economic recession, it remains to be seen whether politicians will really shift the power to the insurers and not return to traditional cost-containment policies.

Enhance hospital performance from intellectual capital to business intelligence.

PubMed

Karami, Mahtab; Fatehi, Mansoor; Torabi, Mashallah; Langarizadeh, Mostafa; Rahimi, Azin; Safdari, Reza

2013-01-01

Business intelligence (BI) refers to technologies, tools, and practices for collecting, integrating, analyzing, and presenting large volumes of information to enable better decision making. The aim of this study is to provide a general overview of BI and its impacts on improving hospital performance. In this paper, literature is reviewed on the concept, classification, and structure of intellectual capital and BI. Research on the building of BI and its impact on the performance of hospitals are briefly summarized. Some areas in healthcare which can utilize BI benefits, including radiology, are also discussed. Used properly, BI is an effective communication tool that can enable hospitals to reach strategic goals and objectives and can also help eliminate information asymmetry.

Comparison of physical, public and human assets as determinants of socioeconomic inequalities in contraceptive use in Colombia - moving beyond the household wealth index

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Colombia is a lower-middle income country that faces the challenge of addressing health inequalities. This effort includes the task of developing measures of socioeconomic position (SEP) to describe and analyse disparities in health and health related outcomes. This study explores the use of a multidimensional approach to SEP, in which socioeconomic inequalities in contraceptive use are investigated along multiple dimensions of SEP. We tested the hypothesis that provision of Public capital compensated for low levels of Human capital. Methods This study used the 2005 Colombian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) dataset. The outcome measures were 'current non-use' and 'never use' of contraception. Inequalities in contraceptive behaviour along four measures of SEP were compared: the Household wealth index (HWI), Physical capital (housing, consumer durables), Public capital (publicly provided services) and Human capital (level of education). Principal component analysis was applied to construct the HWI, Physical capital and Public capital measures. Logistic regression models were used to estimate relative indices of inequality (RII) for each measure of SEP with both outcomes. Results Socio-economic inequalities among rural women tended to be larger than those among urban women, for all measures of SEP and for both outcomes. In models mutually adjusted for Physical, Public and Human capital and age, Physical capital identified stronger gradients in contraceptive behaviour in urban and rural areas (Current use of contraception by Physical capital in urban areas RII 2.37 95% CI (1.99-2.83) and rural areas RII 3.70 (2.57-5.33)). The impact of women's level of education on contraceptive behaviour was relatively weak in households with high Public capital compared to households with low Public capital (Current use of contraception in rural areas, interaction p = < 0.001). Reduced educational inequalities attributable to Public capital were partly explained by differences in household wealth but not at all by health insurance cover. Conclusions A multidimensional approach provides a framework for disentangling socioeconomic inequalities in contraceptive behaviour. We provide evidence that material circumstances indexed by Physical capital are important socioeconomic determinants while higher provision of Public capital may compensate for low levels of Human capital with respect to modern contraceptive behaviour. PMID:20380713

Understanding negative impacts of perceived cognitive load on job learning effectiveness: a social capital solution.

PubMed

Lin, Chieh-Peng

2010-12-01

This study proposes a model explaining how social capital helps ease excessively required mental effort. Although organizational researchers have studied both social capital and cognitive load, no prior research has critically examined the role of social capital in improving individuals' mental load and effort and consequently enhancing job learning effectiveness. This study surveys participants made up of professionals in Taiwan's information technology industry. It measures the constructs with the use of 5-point Likert-type scale items modified from existing literature. The survey data were analyzed with the use of structural equation modeling. Job learning effectiveness is negatively influenced by role ambiguity and role conflict. Time pressure has a positive influence on role ambiguity and role conflict Although the relationship between task complexity and role ambiguity is insignificant, task complexity has a positive influence on role conflict. Because the relationship between network ties and role conflict is insignificant, trust has a negative influence on role conflict. Last, shared vision has a negative influence on role ambiguity. This study provides an example of how social capital can be applied as a useful remedy to ease the negative impact of perceived cognitive load on job learning effectiveness. The negative relationship between shared vision and role ambiguity suggests that a shared vision helps in disseminating organizationally common goals and directions among employees to alleviate individuals' mental efforts in dealing with the ambiguity of their job roles. A firm's management team should take actions to decrease role conflict by strengthening trust among employees.

Economic mechanisms of influence on the development of human capital trained in research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garbuz, V.; Topala, P.

2017-08-01

In the XXI century were launched processes that significantly have changed the vector of world economic development and the economy of new type (innovation economy) in which the fundamental role is played by knowledge and “production of knowledge” has turned into a source of new business model and economic growth. The paper explores the premises of creating entrepreneurial universities as part of the triple spiral of knowledge (university-business-state). A special role is given to analysing the impact of research and innovation on the development of human capital because on the long term, education and innovation systems represent the most powerful engines of economic development. Carrying out the applicative analysis allow us to make a contribution to increasing the visibility and international recognition of the research potential of Republic of Moldova, to strengthening the material for the elaboration of comparative studies, to improve the perception on the effectiveness of investment in research and development. The problem of equity-effectiveness ratio and cost-benefit ratio emerges when analysing poignancy forms of research funding (state/private, national/international) because the consequences are profound and longterm with impact on resources and the quality of the human factor. Efficiency refers to the optimal allocation of resources which generates the greatest national income. Equity aims to reduce social and economic differences between individuals. The paper presents the major scientific research projects carried out within “Alecu Russo” Balti State University, being analysed their influence on the quality of training for academics involved in research. A qualitative and relevant higher education enables students to acquire the skills, knowledge and transferable competences they need in order to succeed after graduation to integrate on the labour market.

Could Trends in Time Children Spend with Parents Help Explain the Black-White Gap in Human Capital? Evidence from the American Time Use Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Patterson, Richard W.

2017-01-01

It is widely believed that the time children spend with parents significantly impacts human capital formation. If time varies significantly between black and white children, this may help explain the large racial gap in test scores and wages. In this study, I use data from the American Time Use Survey to examine the patterns in the time black and…

Microeconomic analysis of military aircraft bearing restoration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hein, G. F.

1976-01-01

The risk and cost of a bearing restoration by grinding program was analyzed. A microeconomic impact analysis was performed. The annual cost savings to U.S. Army aviation is approximately $950,000.00 for three engines and three transmissions. The capital value over an indefinite life is approximately ten million dollars. The annual cost savings for U.S. Air Force engines are approximately $313,000.00 with a capital value of approximately 3.1 million dollars.

Nursing intellectual capital theory: implications for research and practice.

PubMed

Covell, Christine L; Sidani, Souraya

2013-05-31

Due to rising costs of healthcare, determining how registered nurses and knowledge resources influence the quality of patient care is critical. Studies that have investigated the relationship between nursing knowledge and outcomes have been plagued with conceptual and methodological issues. This has resulted in limited empirical evidence of the impact of nursing knowledge on patient or organizational outcomes. The nursing intellectual capital theory was developed to assist with this area of inquiry. Nursing intellectual capital theory conceptualizes the sources of nursing knowledge available within an organization and delineates its relationship to patient and organizational outcomes. In this article, we review the nursing intellectual capital theory and discuss its implications for research and practice. We explain why the theory shows promise for guiding research on quality work environments and how it may assist with administrative decision-making related to nursing human resource management and continuing professional development.

From disorganized capitalism to transnational fine tuning? Recent trends in wage development, industrial relations, and 'work' as a sociological category.

PubMed

Hasse, Raimund; Leiulfsrud, Håkon

2002-03-01

The disorganization thesis concentrates upon globalization and market dynamics, which are believed to trigger the breakdown of any kind of institutional structures. The diversity of capitalism approach, by contrast, places much emphasis on the persistence of distinct paths of national economies. Referring to comparative data from the OECD and other sources it is shown that some variables indicate a robustness of national styles of capitalism. Others hint at resemblance: e.g. there is a striking synchronization of the overall and sectoral wage development, there is a significant decrease in industrial disputes, and the class composition tends to become more similar. A move beyond the disorganization thesis and diversity of capitalism approach is suggested. Special attention should be paid to the profound impacts of transnational institutions and knowledge carriers in the form of experts and guidelines.

The spirits of capitalism and christianity and their impact on the formation of healthcare leaders.

PubMed

LaMothe, Ryan

2013-03-01

In this article, I portray how the ethos of Christianity, broadly speaking, and the mores of capitalism intersect in the formation of healthcare leaders and the difficult decisions they make in insuring the viability of healthcare institutions. More particularly, I argue that healthcare leaders in Christian healthcare institutions are largely formed by and dependent on a capitalistic ethos in making decisions and less so by a Christian ethos. There are key differences in these two meaning systems, and these differences, in part, reveal an incompatibility between them. This incompatibility does not imply a rejection of capitalism, if that is even possible, but rather a recognition of its effects and limits vis-à-vis the formation of healthcare leaders and their decision-making process. Finally, I offer an approach that deals with the spirits of capitalism and Christianity in forming healthcare leaders and their decision-making.

Balancing Fairness and Efficiency: The Impact of Identity-Blind and Identity-Conscious Accountability on Applicant Screening

PubMed Central

Self, William T.; Mitchell, Gregory; Mellers, Barbara A.; Tetlock, Philip E.; Hildreth, J. Angus D.

2015-01-01

This study compared two forms of accountability that can be used to promote diversity and fairness in personnel selections: identity-conscious accountability (holding decision makers accountable for which groups are selected) versus identity-blind accountability (holding decision makers accountable for making fair selections). In a simulated application screening process, undergraduate participants (majority female) sorted applicants under conditions of identity-conscious accountability, identity-blind accountability, or no accountability for an applicant pool in which white males either did or did not have a human capital advantage. Under identity-conscious accountability, participants exhibited pro-female and pro-minority bias, particularly in the white-male-advantage applicant pool. Under identity-blind accountability, participants exhibited no biases and candidate qualifications dominated interview recommendations. Participants exhibited greater resentment toward management under identity-conscious accountability. PMID:26660723

The role of Medicare reimbursement in contemporary hospital finance.

PubMed

Golub, S

1986-01-01

A hospital, while performing its major function of providing health care, is also viewed as a business. It needs capital from a wide variety of sources, many of which are government regulated. Over the past few years, federal expenditures for Medicare have increased dramatically, as has regulation of hospital revenue sources. Congress enacted the Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS) to curb hospital cost inflation. This Note examines historical trends in health care financing and analyzes the Medicare reimbursement system, with emphasis on PPS and its impact on hospital revenues. The Note suggests that hospitals, due to the effects of PPS, will be forced to reduce their levels of financial leverage and will have to look for corporate financial alternatives. PPS may signal a new era in hospital finance. Survival mandates an increased focus on efficient corporate, financial and managerial policies.

Evaluating the impact of LED bulb development on the economic viability of ultraviolet technology for disinfection.

PubMed

Ibrahim, Mohamed A S; MacAdam, Jitka; Autin, Olivier; Jefferson, Bruce

2014-01-01

Ultraviolet (UV) technologies have been very successful in disinfection applications due to their ability to inactivate microorganisms without producing harmful disinfection by-products. However, there have been a number of concerns associated with the use of conventional UV systems such as hazardous mercury content, high capital investment and reduced electrical efficiency. These concerns have set limitations for the use of UV processes. The study evaluates the development of light emitting diode (LED) technology as an alternative UV source over the last 5 years, analyses the projections provided by the researchers and UV LED manufacturers and presents the information in a cost model with the aim to predict the timeline at which UV LED will compete with traditional UV low pressure high output technology in the commercial market at full-scale residential and industrial disinfection applications.

The health maintenance organization strategy: a corporate takeover of health services delivery.

PubMed

Salmon, J W

1975-01-01

This paper presents a political economic framework for viewing the social organization of the delivery of health care servies and predicting a qualitatively different institutional configuration involving the health maintenance organization. The principal forces impacting American capitalism today are leading to a fundamental restructuring for increased social efficiency of the entire social welfare sector, including the health services industry. The method to achieve this restructuring involves health policy directed at raising the contribution to the social surplus from the delivery of health care services and eventual corporate domination. The health maintenance organization conceptualization is examined with suggestions as to how the HMO strategy promoted by the state leads to this corporate takeover. The mechanism and extent of the present corporate involvement are examined and implications of health services as a social control mechanism are presented.

Evaluating human, social and cultural capital in nurse education.

PubMed

Royal, Jan

2012-07-01

Using the concepts of human, social and cultural capital this paper will review the literature on these theories and evaluate their application to nurse education in the United Kingdom (UK). Each concept will be explored before considering the impact and application within nurse education. Issues of sponsorship via mentoring and increased skills and contribution to the knowledge economy alongside the delivery of quality care by nursing students will be discussed with reference to theory and current policy drivers. As nursing education moves to a graduate profession in the UK this paper evaluates the drivers of human, social and cultural capital that affect this development. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Emerging clean energy technology investment trends

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bumpus, A.; Comello, S.

2017-06-01

Early-stage capital providers and clean energy technology incubators are supporting a new wave of innovations focused on end-use efficiency and demand control. This wave complements expanding investments in supply technologies required for electricity sector decarbonization.

Quantifying capital goods for biological treatment of organic waste.

PubMed

Brogaard, Line K; Petersen, Per H; Nielsen, Peter D; Christensen, Thomas H

2015-02-01

Materials and energy used for construction of anaerobic digestion (AD) and windrow composting plants were quantified in detail. The two technologies were quantified in collaboration with consultants and producers of the parts used to construct the plants. The composting plants were quantified based on the different sizes for the three different types of waste (garden and park waste, food waste and sludge from wastewater treatment) in amounts of 10,000 or 50,000 tonnes per year. The AD plant was quantified for a capacity of 80,000 tonnes per year. Concrete and steel for the tanks were the main materials for the AD plant. For the composting plants, gravel and concrete slabs for the pavement were used in large amounts. To frame the quantification, environmental impact assessments (EIAs) showed that the steel used for tanks at the AD plant and the concrete slabs at the composting plants made the highest contribution to Global Warming. The total impact on Global Warming from the capital goods compared to the operation reported in the literature on the AD plant showed an insignificant contribution of 1-2%. For the composting plants, the capital goods accounted for 10-22% of the total impact on Global Warming from composting. © The Author(s) 2015.

Social capital and fisheries management: the case of Chilika Lake in India.

PubMed

Sekhar, Nagothu Udaya

2007-04-01

This article shows how social capital impacts fisheries management at the local level in Chilika Lake, located in the state of Orissa in India. In Chilika, the different fishing groups established norms and "rules of the game" including, but not limited to, spatial limits that determine who can fish and in what areas, temporal restrictions about when and for how long people may fish, gear constraints about what harvesting gear may be used by each group, and physical controls on size and other characteristics of fish that may be harvested. A survey of the members of fishing groups has shown that the bonding social capital is strong within the Chilika fishing groups. Bonding and bridging social capital keeps the fishers together in times of resource scarcity, checks violations of community rules and sanctions, and strengthens the community fisheries management. In contrast, linking social capital in Chilika appears to be weak, as is evident from the lack of trust in external agencies, seeking the help of formal institutions for legal support, and increasing conflicts. Trust and cooperation among fishers is crucial in helping to build the social capital. A social capital perspective on fisheries governance suggests that there should be a rethinking of priorities and funding mechanisms, from "top-down" fisheries management towards "co-management" with a focus on engendering rights and responsibilities for fishers and their communities.

Livelihoods, power, and food insecurity: adaptation of social capital portfolios in protracted crises--case study Burundi.

PubMed

Vervisch, Thomas G A; Vlassenroot, Koen; Braeckman, Johan

2013-04-01

The failure of food security and livelihood interventions to adapt to conflict settings remains a key challenge in humanitarian responses to protracted crises. This paper proposes a social capital analysis to address this policy gap, adding a political economy dimension on food security and conflict to the actor-based livelihood framework. A case study of three hillsides in north Burundi provides an ethnographic basis for this hypothesis. While relying on a theoretical framework in which different combinations of social capital (bonding, bridging, and linking) account for a diverse range of outcomes, the findings offer empirical insights into how social capital portfolios adapt to a protracted crisis. It is argued that these social capital adaptations have the effect of changing livelihood policies, institutions, and processes (PIPs), and clarify the impact of the distribution of power and powerlessness on food security issues. In addition, they represent a solid way of integrating political economy concerns into the livelihood framework. © 2013 The Author(s). Journal compilation © Overseas Development Institute, 2013.

Family support in the transition to adulthood in Portugal--its effects on identity capital development, uncertainty management and psychological well-being.

PubMed

Oliveira, José Egídio; Mendonça, Marina; Coimbra, Susana; Fontaine, Anne Marie

2014-12-01

In a familistic southern European society such as the Portuguese, the family has historically played a prominent role in supporting the negotiation of transition pathways into adulthood. The present study aimed at capturing (1) the relative weight of parental financial support and autonomy support in contributing to the youngsters' psychological well-being (PWB), and (2) the mediating role of identity capital and uncertainty management in this relationship. A total of 620 participants completed measures of parental support, identity capital, uncertainty management and PWB. Autonomy support was found to be the strongest predictor of PWB, both directly and indirectly through its effects on identity capital and the use of target focused uncertainty management strategies. Conversely, financial support evidenced only a minor indirect impact through the mediation of tangible identity capital. Autonomy stimulation may constitute one of the most developmentally determinant family challenges in assisting the process of coming of age in Portugal. Copyright © 2014 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Arbitrariness and the death penalty: how the defendant's appearance during trial influences capital jurors' punishment decision.

PubMed

Antonio, Michael E

2006-01-01

This paper examines the impact of the defendant's appearance during the trial on capital jurors' punishment decision. The data used in this analysis were gathered by the Capital Jury Project (CJP), a national program of research on the decision-making of capital jurors. A series of multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted using four aggravating circumstances related to the killing and eight defendant appearance variables as predictors of jurors' punishment decision at three points during the capital trial: (1) after the punishment phase ended, but before formal deliberation began; (2) when the first vote was taken on punishment at jury deliberations; and (3) at the final vote on punishment. Results indicated that when the defendant appeared emotionally involved during the trial (i.e. sorry and sincere) jurors either favored a life sentence or were undecided about punishment; however, when the defendant appeared emotionally uninvolved during the trial (i.e. bored) jurors either sought a death sentence or remained undecided. Policy implications will be discussed. Copyright (c) 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Modeling regulated water utility investment incentives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padula, S.; Harou, J. J.

2014-12-01

This work attempts to model the infrastructure investment choices of privatized water utilities subject to rate of return and price cap regulation. The goal is to understand how regulation influences water companies' investment decisions such as their desire to engage in transfers with neighbouring companies. We formulate a profit maximization capacity expansion model that finds the schedule of new supply, demand management and transfer schemes that maintain the annual supply-demand balance and maximize a companies' profit under the 2010-15 price control process in England. Regulatory incentives for costs savings are also represented in the model. These include: the CIS scheme for the capital expenditure (capex) and incentive allowance schemes for the operating expenditure (opex) . The profit-maximizing investment program (what to build, when and what size) is compared with the least cost program (social optimum). We apply this formulation to several water companies in South East England to model performance and sensitivity to water network particulars. Results show that if companies' are able to outperform the regulatory assumption on the cost of capital, a capital bias can be generated, due to the fact that the capital expenditure, contrarily to opex, can be remunerated through the companies' regulatory capital value (RCV). The occurrence of the 'capital bias' or its entity depends on the extent to which a company can finance its investments at a rate below the allowed cost of capital. The bias can be reduced by the regulatory penalties for underperformances on the capital expenditure (CIS scheme); Sensitivity analysis can be applied by varying the CIS penalty to see how and to which extent this impacts the capital bias effect. We show how regulatory changes could potentially be devised to partially remove the 'capital bias' effect. Solutions potentially include allowing for incentives on total expenditure rather than separately for capex and opex and allowing both opex and capex to be remunerated through a return on the company's regulatory capital value.

78 FR 3923 - Sunshine Act Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-17

... impact of tick sizes on small and middle capitalization companies, the economic consequences (including the costs and benefits) of increasing or decreasing minimum tick sizes, and whether other policy... the second panel will address the impact of tick sizes on the securities market in general, including...

Credit Constraints in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lochner, Lance; Monge-Naranjo, Alexander

2012-01-01

We review studies of the impact of credit constraints on the accumulation of human capital. Evidence suggests that credit constraints have recently become important for schooling and other aspects of households' behavior. We highlight the importance of early childhood investments, as their response largely determines the impact of credit…

Delivery of primary health care to persons who are socio-economically disadvantaged: does the organizational delivery model matter?

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background As health systems evolve, it is essential to evaluate their impact on the delivery of health services to socially disadvantaged populations. We evaluated the delivery of primary health services for different socio-economic groups and assessed the performance of different organizational models in terms of equality of health care delivery in Ontario, Canada. Methods Cross sectional study of 5,361 patients receiving care from primary care practices using Capitation, Salaried or Fee-For-Service remuneration models. We assessed self-reported health status of patients, visit duration, number of visits per year, quality of health service delivery, and quality of health promotion. We used multi-level regressions to study service delivery across socio-economic groups and within each delivery model. Identified disparities were further analysed using a t-test to determine the impact of service delivery model on equity. Results Low income individuals were more likely to be women, unemployed, recent immigrants, and in poorer health. These individuals were overrepresented in the Salaried model, reported more visits/year across all models, and tended to report longer visits in the Salaried model. Measures of primary care services generally did not differ significantly between low and higher income/education individuals; when they did, the difference favoured better service delivery for at-risk groups. At-risk patients in the Salaried model were somewhat more likely to report health promotion activities than patients from Capitation and Fee-For-Service models. At-risk patients from Capitation models reported a smaller increase in the number of additional clinic visits/year than Fee-For-Service and Salaried models. At-risk patients reported better first contact accessibility than their non-at-risk counterparts in the Fee-For-Service model only. Conclusions Primary care service measures did not differ significantly across socio-economic status or primary care delivery models. In Ontario, capitation-based remuneration is age and sex adjusted only. Patients of low socio-economic status had fewer additional visits compared to those with high socio-economic status under the Capitation model. This raises the concern that Capitation may not support the provision of additional care for more vulnerable groups. Regions undertaking primary care model reforms need to consider the potential impact of the changes on the more vulnerable populations. PMID:24341530

Delivery of primary health care to persons who are socio-economically disadvantaged: does the organizational delivery model matter?

PubMed

Dahrouge, Simone; Hogg, William; Ward, Natalie; Tuna, Meltem; Devlin, Rose Anne; Kristjansson, Elizabeth; Tugwell, Peter; Pottie, Kevin

2013-12-17

As health systems evolve, it is essential to evaluate their impact on the delivery of health services to socially disadvantaged populations. We evaluated the delivery of primary health services for different socio-economic groups and assessed the performance of different organizational models in terms of equality of health care delivery in Ontario, Canada. Cross sectional study of 5,361 patients receiving care from primary care practices using Capitation, Salaried or Fee-For-Service remuneration models. We assessed self-reported health status of patients, visit duration, number of visits per year, quality of health service delivery, and quality of health promotion. We used multi-level regressions to study service delivery across socio-economic groups and within each delivery model. Identified disparities were further analysed using a t-test to determine the impact of service delivery model on equity. Low income individuals were more likely to be women, unemployed, recent immigrants, and in poorer health. These individuals were overrepresented in the Salaried model, reported more visits/year across all models, and tended to report longer visits in the Salaried model. Measures of primary care services generally did not differ significantly between low and higher income/education individuals; when they did, the difference favoured better service delivery for at-risk groups. At-risk patients in the Salaried model were somewhat more likely to report health promotion activities than patients from Capitation and Fee-For-Service models. At-risk patients from Capitation models reported a smaller increase in the number of additional clinic visits/year than Fee-For-Service and Salaried models. At-risk patients reported better first contact accessibility than their non-at-risk counterparts in the Fee-For-Service model only. Primary care service measures did not differ significantly across socio-economic status or primary care delivery models. In Ontario, capitation-based remuneration is age and sex adjusted only. Patients of low socio-economic status had fewer additional visits compared to those with high socio-economic status under the Capitation model. This raises the concern that Capitation may not support the provision of additional care for more vulnerable groups. Regions undertaking primary care model reforms need to consider the potential impact of the changes on the more vulnerable populations.

Regional hospital improves efficiency with co-generation retrofit.

PubMed

Knutson, D; Anderson, L

1999-11-01

Feasibility analysis of the co-generation retrofit of the Red Deer Regional Hospital pointed to a reasonable payback of capital cost and increased efficiency in operation of the facility. Budget restrictions nearly stopped the project from proceeding. Innovative construction procedures proposed by the Facility Management Group, in particular, Mr Keith Metcalfe, Director of Maintenance, allowed a worthwhile project to reach successful completion. We feel that this model can perhaps be used by similar facilities in the future to achieve their energy efficiency goals.

Institutional Venture Capital for the Space Industry: Providing Risk Capital for Space Companies that Provide Investor Returns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, Roscoe M., III

2002-01-01

provided by an institution. Those institutions tend to be Banks, Pension Funds, Insurance Funds, Corporations, and other incorporated entities that are obligated to earn a return on their invested capital. These institutions invest in a venture capital firm for the sole purpose of getting their money back with a healthy profit - within a set period of time. The venture capital firm is responsible for investing in and managing companies whose risk and return are higher than other less risky classes of investment. The venture capital firm's primary skill is its ability to manage the high risk of its venture investments while maintaining the high return potential of its venture investments. to businesses for the purpose of providing the above-mentioned Institutions a substantial return on their invested capital. Institutional Venture Capital for the Space Industry cannot be provided to projects or companies whose philosophy or intention is not to increase shareholder equity value within a set time period. efficiently when tied up in companies that intend to spend billions of dollars before the first dollar of revenue is generated. If 2 billion dollars of venture capital is invested in the equity of a Space Company for a minority equity position, then that Space Company must build that minority shareholder's equity value to a minimum investment return of 4 to 8 billion dollars. There are not many start-up companies that are able to reach public market equity valuations in the tens of billions of dollars within reasonable time horizons. Foundations, Manufacturers, and Strategic Investors can invest in projects that cannot realistically provide a substantial return on their equity to their investors within a reasonable period (5-7 years) of time. Venture Capitalists have to make money. Venture capitalists have made money on Satellite Television, Satellite Radio, Fixed Satellite Services, and other businesses. Venture capitalists have not made money on stand-alone aerospace projects that must create new markets to generate revenue.

Transnational corporations and health: a research agenda.

PubMed

Baum, Frances Elaine; Margaret Anaf, Julia

2015-01-01

Transnational corporations (TNCs) are part of an economic system of global capitalism that operates under a neoliberal regime underpinned by strong support from international organisations such as the World Trade Organization, World Bank, and most nation states. Although TNCs have grown in power and influence and have had a significant impact on population health over the past three decades, public health has not developed an integrated research agenda to study them. This article outlines the shape of such an agenda and argues that it is vital that research into the public health impact of TNCs be pursued and funded as a matter of priority. The four areas of the agenda are: assessing the health and equity impacts of TNCs; evaluating the effectiveness of government regulation to mitigate health and equity impacts of TNCs; studying the work of activist groups and networks that highlight adverse impacts of TNCs; and considering how regulation of capitalism could better promote a healthier and more equitable corporate sector. © The Author(s) 2015 Reprints and permissions:]br]sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Evaluating distributed medical education: what are the community's expectations?

PubMed

Lovato, Chris; Bates, Joanna; Hanlon, Neil; Snadden, David

2009-05-01

This study aimed to explore community members' perceptions of present and future impacts of the implementation of an undergraduate medical education programme in an underserved community. We conducted semi-structured interviews with eight key informants representing the health, education, business, economy, media and political sectors. A two-stage approach was used. In the first stage, the interviews were analysed to identify sector-specific impacts informants perceived as already occurring or which they hoped to see in the future. The transcripts were then re-analysed to determine any underlying themes that crossed sectors. Community leaders described impacts that were already occurring in all sectors and also described changes in the community itself. Four underlying themes emerged: an increase in pride and status; partnership development; community self-efficacy, and community development. These underlying themes appear to characterise the development of social capital in the community. The implementation of distributed undergraduate medical education programmes in rural and underserved communities may impact their host communities in ways other than the production of a rural doctor workforce. Further studies to quantify impacts in diverse sectors and to explore possible links with social capital are needed.

The impact on social capital of mobility disability and weight status: the Stockholm Public Health Cohort.

PubMed

Norrbäck, Mattias; de Munter, Jeroen; Tynelius, Per; Ahlström, Gerd; Rasmussen, Finn

2015-04-01

People with mobility disability are more often overweight or obese and have lower social capital than people without mobility disability. It is unclear whether having a combination of mobility disability and overweight or obesity furthers negative development of social capital over time. To explore whether there were differences in social capital between normal-weight, overweight and obese people with or without mobility disability over a period of 8 years. We included 14,481 individuals (18-64 at baseline) from the Stockholm Public Health Cohort that started in 2002. Mobility disability, weight status, and social capital (structural: social activities, voting; cognitive: trust in authorities, and trust in people) were identified from self-reports. Risk ratios with 95% confidence intervals were estimated in multivariate longitudinal regression analyses. We found no significant differences in social activities and voting between the groups over time. However, when compared with the reference group, the groups with mobility disability had less trust in authorities and public institutions over time. Notably, obese people with mobility disability showed the largest decrease in trust in the police (RR = 2.29; 1.50-3.50), the parliament (RR = 2.00; 1.31-3.05), and local politicians (RR = 2.52; 1.61-3.94). People with mobility disability experience lower cognitive social capital over time than people without mobility disability. Being burdened by both mobility disability and obesity may be worse in terms of social capital than having just one of the conditions, especially regarding cognitive social capital. This finding is of public health importance, since social capital is related to health. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of social capital on psychological distress and interaction with house destruction and displacement after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011.

PubMed

Tsuchiya, Naho; Nakaya, Naoki; Nakamura, Tomohiro; Narita, Akira; Kogure, Mana; Aida, Jun; Tsuji, Ichiro; Hozawa, Atsushi; Tomita, Hiroaki

2017-01-01

Social capital has been considered an important factor affecting mental-health outcomes, such as psychological distress in post-disaster settings. Although disaster-related house condition and displacement could affect both social capital and psychological distress, limited studies have investigated interactions. This study aimed to examine the association between social capital and psychological distress, taking into consideration the interaction of disaster-related house condition after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011. Using data from 3793 adults living in Shichigahama, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, we examined the association between social capital measured by generalized trust and psychological distress measured by the Kessler 6 scale. We conducted stratified analysis to investigate an interaction of house destruction and displacement. Multivariate analyses taking into consideration the interaction were performed. In the crude analysis, low social capital (odds ratio [OR] 4.46; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.27-6.07) and large-scale house destruction (OR 1.96; 95%CI, 1.47-2.62) were significantly associated with psychological distress. Stratified analyses detected an interaction with house destruction and displacement (P for interaction = 0.04). Multivariate analysis with interaction term revealed that individuals with low social capital, large-scale house damage, and displacement were at greater risk of psychological distress, corresponding to adjusted OR of 5.78 (95%CI, 3.48-9.60). In the post-disaster setting, low social capital increased the risk of psychological distress, especially among individuals who had large-scale house destruction. Among the participants with severe disaster damage, high social capital would play an important role in protecting mental health. © 2016 The Authors. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology.

The different roles of neighbourhood and individual social capital on oral health-related quality of life during pregnancy and postpartum: a multilevel analysis.

PubMed

Lamarca, Gabriela A; Leal, Maria do C; Leao, Anna T T; Sheiham, Aubrey; Vettore, Mario V

2014-04-01

Social capital incorporates neighbourhood and individual levels of interactions and influences health. The objective of this was to assess the association of neighbourhood and individual social capital with oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in pregnant and postpartum women. This was a follow-up prevalence multilevel study on a representative sample of 1248 women grouped into 55 neighbourhoods. OHRQoL was assessed in the postpartum period using the Oral Health Impact Profile questionnaire (OHIP-14). Exploratory variables were gathered during the first trimester of pregnancy and included neighbourhood social capital (neighbourhood-level measure), individual social capital (social support and social networks), demographic and socio-economic variables, oral health measures, and health-related behaviours. The multilevel ordered multinomial logistic regression showed that neighbourhood social capital did not significantly affect women's OHRQoL during pregnancy and postpartum period. Individual social capital measures were independently associated with high OHRQoL. Lack of family social network increased the odds for high OHRQoL (OR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.08-1.92). Individuals with high levels of positive social interaction were less likely to report high scores of OHRQoL (OR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.82-0.98). Individual social capital was of greater relevance to women's OHRQoL in and after pregnancy than neighbourhood social capital. These findings suggest that quality of personal and social resources of pregnant women are more important for OHRQoL than the neighbourhoods where the women live. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

New Jersey 4-H Goat Extravaganza: Efficiently Meeting the Educational Needs of 4-H Goat Project Members, Volunteers, and Parents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ripberger, Chad

2014-01-01

The 4-H Goat Extravaganza maximizes limited resources to help youth and adults develop knowledge and skills in goat care and management. It capitalizes on the talents and interests of volunteers to efficiently combine a goat-themed art show, team presentation contest, quiz bowl, skillathon, and adult workshop into 1 day. This article outlines the…

Canadian hydrocarbon transportation system : transportation assessment

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2006-06-01

In this report, the Board provides an assessment of the ability of pipeline companies to access capital : on reasonable terms and conditions. The Board does not, however, provide an assessment of the : efficiency and effectiveness of its regulatory p...

Analysis of Young Men: Chapter Two. Determinants of Adult Socioeconomic Attainment in Young Men: An Analysis of the Role of Risk and Social Capital Factors, and the Pathways through Which They Have Their Impacts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Brett V.

In this chapter, a series of nested regression models are estimated to analyze three measures of adult socioeconomic attainment measured at age 29: (1) educational attainment; (2) occupational attainment; and (3) earnings. The models seek to relate risk, social capital, social-psychological factors, and life course events in early adulthood, both…

Ripple effects of reform on capital financing.

PubMed

Arduino, Kelly

2014-05-01

Healthcare leaders should inventory and quantify the capital initiatives deemed critical for success under changing business models. Key considerations in planning such initiatives are opportunity costs and potential impact on productivity. Senior leaders also should create rolling five-year estimates of expenditures in addition to a one-year budget. Approaches to paying for such initiatives include borrowing from cash reserves, partnering to share cash and other resources, and developing new revenue sources derived from the initiatives themselves.

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) - Better Buildings Neighborhood Program at Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance: Home Performance with Energy Star® and Better Buildings Performance

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

Holzhauser, Andy; Jones, Chris; Faust, Jeremy

2013-12-30

The Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance (Energy Alliance) is a nonprofit economic development agency dedicated to helping Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky communities reduce energy consumption. The Energy Alliance has launched programs to educate homeowners, commercial property owners, and nonprofit organizations about energy efficiency opportunities they can use to drive energy use reductions and financial savings, while extending significant focus to creating/retaining jobs through these programs. The mission of the Energy Alliance is based on the premise that investment in energy efficiency can lead to transformative economic development in a region. With support from seven municipalities, the Energy Alliance began operationmore » in early 2010 and has been among the fastest growing nonprofit organizations in the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area. The Energy Alliance offers two programs endorsed by the Department of Energy: the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® Program for homeowners and the Better Buildings Performance Program for commercial entities. Both programs couple expert guidance, project management, and education in energy efficiency best practices with incentives and innovative energy efficiency financing to help building owners effectively invest in the energy efficiency, comfort, health, longevity, and environmental impact of their residential or commercial buildings. The Energy Alliance has raised over $23 million of public and private capital to build a robust market for energy efficiency investment. Of the $23 million, $17 million was a direct grant from the Department of Energy Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (BBNP). The organization’s investments in energy efficiency projects in the residential and commercial sector have led to well over $50 million in direct economic activity and created over 375,000 hours of labor created or retained. In addition, over 250 workers have been trained through the Building Performance Training Center, a program that was developed and funded by the Energy Alliance and housed at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. Nearly 100 residential and commercial contractors currently participate in the Energy Alliance’s two major programs, which have together served over 2,800 residential and 100 commercial customers. Additionally, the Energy Alliance established loan programs for homeowners, nonprofits and commercial businesses. The GC-HELP program was established to provide up to ten year low interest, unsecured loans to homeowners to cover the energy efficiency products they purchased through the Energy Alliance approved contractor base. To date the Energy Alliance has financed over $1 million in energy efficiency loans for homeowners, without any loans written off. The nonprofit business community is offered five year, fixed-interest rate loans through the Building Communities Loan Fund of $250,000. Additionally, the Energy Alliance has developed GC-PACE, a commercial financing tool that enables buildings owners to finance their energy upgrades through voluntary property assessments deploying low-interest extended-term capital from the bond market. The Energy Alliance and its partners are actively evaluating additional market-based financing solutions.« less

"I'm Having a Little Struggle With This, Can You Help Me Out?": Examining Impacts and Processes of a Social Capital Intervention for First-Generation College Students.

PubMed

Schwartz, Sarah E O; Kanchewa, Stella S; Rhodes, Jean E; Gowdy, Grace; Stark, Abigail M; Horn, John Paul; Parnes, McKenna; Spencer, Renée

2018-03-01

Social capital plays a key role in college and career success, and research indicates that a dearth of on-campus connections contributes to challenges first-generation college students face in effectively navigating the college environment. This study investigates a novel intervention that focuses on the development of skills and attitudes to empower first-generation college students to cultivate social capital and on-campus connections during the transition to college. A mixed methods, explanatory design was used to evaluate impacts and processes of the intervention among first-generation college students (n = 164) in the context of an ethnically diverse, urban, public university in the Northeast. Results indicated that students who participated in the intervention demonstrated improved attitudes and behaviors around seeking support in college, closer relationships with instructors, and higher GPAs at the end of their first year in college. These results suggest the potential benefits of a relatively scalable approach to supporting the needs of first-generation college students. © Society for Community Research and Action 2017.

E-Commerce New Venture Performance: How Funding Impacts Culture.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, R. H.

2001-01-01

Explores the three primary methods of funding for e-commerce startups and the impact that funding criteria have had on the resulting organizational cultures. Highlights include self-funded firms; venture capital funding; corporate funding; and a table that compares the three types, including examples. (LRW)

Flow of natural versus economic capital in industrial supply networks and its implications to sustainability.

PubMed

Ukidwe, Nandan U; Bakshi, Bhavik R

2005-12-15

Appreciating the reliance of industrial networks on natural capital is a necessary step toward their sustainable design and operation. However, most contemporary accounting techniques, including engineering economics, life cycle assessment, and full cost accounting, fail in this regard, as they take natural capital for granted and concentrate mainly on the economic aspects and emissions. The recently developed "thermodynamic input-output analysis" (TIOA) includes the contribution of ecological goods, ecosystem services, human resources, and impact of emissions in an economic input-output model. This paper uses TIOA to determine the throughputs of natural and economic capitals along industrial supply networks. The ratios of natural to economic capitals of economic sectors reveals a hierarchical organization of the U.S. economy wherein basic infrastructure industries are at the bottom and specialized value-added industries constitute the top. These results provide novel insight into the reliance of specific industrial sectors and supply chains on natural capital and the corresponding economic throughput. Such insight is useful for understanding the implications of corporate restructuring on industrial sustainability metrics and of outsourcing of business activities on outsourcer, outsourcee, and global sustainability. These implications are discussed from the standpoints of weak and strong sustainability paradigms. The calculated ratios can also be used for hybrid thermodynamic life cycle assessment.

Adaptive governance, ecosystem management, and natural capital.

PubMed

Schultz, Lisen; Folke, Carl; Österblom, Henrik; Olsson, Per

2015-06-16

To gain insights into the effects of adaptive governance on natural capital, we compare three well-studied initiatives; a landscape in Southern Sweden, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, and fisheries in the Southern Ocean. We assess changes in natural capital and ecosystem services related to these social-ecological governance approaches to ecosystem management and investigate their capacity to respond to change and new challenges. The adaptive governance initiatives are compared with other efforts aimed at conservation and sustainable use of natural capital: Natura 2000 in Europe, lobster fisheries in the Gulf of Maine, North America, and fisheries in Europe. In contrast to these efforts, we found that the adaptive governance cases developed capacity to perform ecosystem management, manage multiple ecosystem services, and monitor, communicate, and respond to ecosystem-wide changes at landscape and seascape levels with visible effects on natural capital. They enabled actors to collaborate across diverse interests, sectors, and institutional arrangements and detect opportunities and problems as they developed while nurturing adaptive capacity to deal with them. They all spanned local to international levels of decision making, thus representing multilevel governance systems for managing natural capital. As with any governance system, internal changes and external drivers of global impacts and demands will continue to challenge the long-term success of such initiatives.

Adaptive governance, ecosystem management, and natural capital

PubMed Central

Schultz, Lisen; Folke, Carl; Österblom, Henrik; Olsson, Per

2015-01-01

To gain insights into the effects of adaptive governance on natural capital, we compare three well-studied initiatives; a landscape in Southern Sweden, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, and fisheries in the Southern Ocean. We assess changes in natural capital and ecosystem services related to these social–ecological governance approaches to ecosystem management and investigate their capacity to respond to change and new challenges. The adaptive governance initiatives are compared with other efforts aimed at conservation and sustainable use of natural capital: Natura 2000 in Europe, lobster fisheries in the Gulf of Maine, North America, and fisheries in Europe. In contrast to these efforts, we found that the adaptive governance cases developed capacity to perform ecosystem management, manage multiple ecosystem services, and monitor, communicate, and respond to ecosystem-wide changes at landscape and seascape levels with visible effects on natural capital. They enabled actors to collaborate across diverse interests, sectors, and institutional arrangements and detect opportunities and problems as they developed while nurturing adaptive capacity to deal with them. They all spanned local to international levels of decision making, thus representing multilevel governance systems for managing natural capital. As with any governance system, internal changes and external drivers of global impacts and demands will continue to challenge the long-term success of such initiatives. PMID:26082542

Occupational and socioeconomic differences in actigraphically measured sleep.

PubMed

Takahashi, Masaya; Tsutsumi, Akizumi; Kurioka, Sumiko; Inoue, Akiomi; Shimazu, Akihito; Kosugi, Yuki; Kawakami, Norito

2014-08-01

Occupational conditions, together with socioeconomic status, may modulate sleep. This study examined the association of occupational conditions and socioeconomic status with actigraphic measures of sleep in workers. Fifty-five employees (40 ± 12 years) wore a wrist actigraph during sleep for seven consecutive nights. Sleep variables addressed included total sleep time, sleep efficiency, mean activity during sleep, sleep-onset latency, and wake after sleep onset. We also measured household income, occupational class, work schedule, weekly work hours, job demand, job control, worksite social support, effort-reward imbalance, organizational justice, and workplace social capital. Multiple linear regression models were used to determine the association of occupational indicators, socioeconomic status, as well as age and gender with each sleep variable. Higher workplace social capital was associated consistently with longer total sleep time (P < 0.001), higher sleep efficiency (P < 0.05) and lower mean activity during sleep (P < 0.07). Low occupational class (P < 0.01), higher job demand (P < 0.05) and lower job control (P < 0.05) were associated with longer total sleep time. No associations were significant for sleep-onset latency or wake after sleep onset. These preliminary results suggest that enhanced workplace social capital is closely associated with better quality and quantity of sleep. © 2014 European Sleep Research Society.

Latent variable model for suicide risk in relation to social capital and socio-economic status.

PubMed

Congdon, Peter

2012-08-01

There is little evidence on the association between suicide outcomes (ideation, attempts, self-harm) and social capital. This paper investigates such associations using a structural equation model based on health survey data, and allowing for both individual and contextual risk factors. Social capital and other major risk factors for suicide, namely socioeconomic status and social isolation, are modelled as latent variables that are proxied (or measured) by observed indicators or question responses for survey subjects. These latent scales predict suicide risk in the structural component of the model. Also relevant to explaining suicide risk are contextual variables, such as area deprivation and region of residence, as well as the subject's demographic status. The analysis is based on the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey and includes 7,403 English subjects. A Bayesian modelling strategy is used. Models with and without social capital as a predictor of suicide risk are applied. A benefit to statistical fit is demonstrated when social capital is added as a predictor. Social capital varies significantly by geographic context variables (neighbourhood deprivation, region), and this impacts on the direct effects of these contextual variables on suicide risk. In particular, area deprivation is not confirmed as a distinct significant influence. The model develops a suicidality risk score incorporating social capital, and the success of this risk score in predicting actual suicide events is demonstrated. Social capital as reflected in neighbourhood perceptions is a significant factor affecting risks of different types of self-harm and may mediate the effects of other contextual variables such as area deprivation.

Comparative dynamic analysis of the full Grossman model.

PubMed

Ried, W

1998-08-01

The paper applies the method of comparative dynamic analysis to the full Grossman model. For a particular class of solutions, it derives the equations implicitly defining the complete trajectories of the endogenous variables. Relying on the concept of Frisch decision functions, the impact of any parametric change on an endogenous variable can be decomposed into a direct and an indirect effect. The focus of the paper is on marginal changes in the rate of health capital depreciation. It also analyses the impact of either initial financial wealth or the initial stock of health capital. While the direction of most effects remains ambiguous in the full model, the assumption of a zero consumption benefit of health is sufficient to obtain a definite for any direct or indirect effect.

ECASTAR: Energy conservation. An assessment of systems, technologies and requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

A methodology was presented for a systems approach to energy conservation actions and their potentials and impacts in the United States. Constraints affecting the approach were ranked, and the most important ones are the present economic and technical conditions. The following unresolved issues were identified: consumptive lifestyles vs. conservation ethic, environmental standards vs. energy conservation, capital availability, decentralization and vertical integration vs. centralization, fuel rich regions vs. fuel poor regions, supply vs. end use conservation, life cycle costing vs. initial cost, mandatory savings vs. voluntary savings, labor intensive vs. capital intensive, price control vs. free market. The following recommendations were made: provide action/impact assessment, establish regional energy centers, improve technology articulation with government, design total energy systems, utilize existing systems approach expertise.

The impact of social capital and social support on the health of female-headed households: a systematic review

PubMed Central

Khazaeian, Somayyeh; Ebadi, Abbas; Nasiri, Malihe

2017-01-01

Background and aim Social capital and social support as determinants of health play an important role in the health of female heads of households. Considering the increasing number of female-headed families in Iran and the world, this study was conducted to systematically review the impact of social capital and social support on the health of female heads of households. Methods This study was conducted as a systematic review in September 2016. Its data were collected from available papers in different databases including Iranmedex, Magiran, Scientific Information Database (SID), Irandoc, Scopus, Science Direct, PubMed and Google Scholar. Using advanced search, all published papers from 2000 to 2015 with full text were selected using related keywords. After reviewing by browsers and adapting to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 15 papers were entered into the study. The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in epidemiology (STROBE) checklist was used to evaluate the quality of papers. Results Based on the findings of these studies, there was a significant relationship between social capital and its components (trust, sense of belonging and social participation) as well as all aspects of health. Additionally, social support and its dimensions (emotional, instrumental and informational) affected health; however, among these dimensions, instrumental support of a stronger predictor was concerned with health, especially mental health. Conclusion Social factors such as social capital and social support are effective on human health, particularly health of female-headed households, since they affect proactive identity and increase information resources, collaboration as well as collective decisions and actions. Furthermore, they provide emotional and instrumental support to group members and prevent further health problems. PMID:29560156

A road map for natural capitalism.

PubMed

Lovins, A B; Lovins, L H; Hawken, P

1999-01-01

No one would run a business without accounting for its capital outlays. Yet most companies overlook one major capital component--the value of the earth's ecosystem services. It is a staggering omission; recent calculations place the value of the earth's total ecosystem services--water storage, atmosphere regulation, climate control, and so on--at $33 trillion a year. Not accounting for those costs has led to waste on a grand scale. But now a few farsighted companies are finding powerful business opportunities in conserving resources on a similarly grand scale. They are embarking on a journey toward "natural capitalism," a journey that comprises four major shifts in business practices. The first stage involves dramatically increasing the productivity of natural resources, stretching them as much as 100 times further than they do today. In the second stage, companies adopt closed-loop production systems that yield no waste or toxicity. The third stage requires a fundamental change of business model--from one of selling products to one of delivering services. For example, a manufacturer would sell lighting services rather than lightbulbs, thus benefitting the seller and customer for developing extremely efficient, durable lightbulbs. The last stage involves reinvesting in natural capital to restore, sustain, and expand the planet's ecosystem. Because natural capitalism is both necessary and profitable, it will sub-sume traditional industrialism, the authors argue, just as industrialism sub-sumed agrarianism. And the companies that are furthest down the road will have the competitive edge.

Cyclone performance by velocity

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cyclones are used almost exclusively in the US cotton ginning industry for emission abatement on pneumatic conveying system exhausts because of their high efficiency, and low capital and operating cost.. Cyclone performance is improved by increasing collection effectiveness or decreasing energy cons...

Public transportation : New Starts program challenges and preliminary observations on expediting project development.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-06-01

The New Starts program is an : important source of new capital : investment in mass transportation. : As required by the Safe, : Accountable, Flexible, Efficient : Transportation Equity Act: A : Legacy for Users, the Federal : Transit Administration ...

Social Capital on Facebook: The Impact of Personality and Online Communication Behaviors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiqin, Eliza Leong; Campbell, Marilyn; Kimpton, Melanie; Wozencroft, Kelly; Orel, Alexandra

2016-01-01

Online relationship formation through social networking sites helps to meet the developmental need for intimacy in emerging adults. Through the use of the "rich get richer" and the "social compensation" hypotheses, it is evident that personality characteristics such as extraversion and introversion impact online relationship…

The Impact of Globalization on Teacher Education: The Philippine Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Guzman, Allan B.; dela Rosa, Praxedes S. M.; Arcangel, Clotilde N.

2005-01-01

This qualitative study is an attempt to describe how administrators, teachers and researchers in a select group of teacher education institutions (TEIs) in the capital of the Philippines collectively view globalization. Specifically, concepts of a globalized teacher education, impact of globalization in teacher education, and problems of teacher…

For a Political Economy of Massive Open Online Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Richard

2015-01-01

In understanding the changes that are impacting the global higher education sector, developing a critique of the relationships between technology and technological innovation, new managerialism and financialisation, and the impact of the secular crisis of global capitalism is critical. Moreover, it is important to critique these changes…

Antecedents to Team Performance on Student IT Projects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Havelka, Douglas

2016-01-01

A study was performed to test the impact of factors suggested by social capital and social cognitive theories as important antecedents to team performance on information technology (IT) course projects. Specifically, the impact of personal outcome expectations and social interaction ties on the quality and quantity of knowledge sharing is…

Credit Constraints in Education. NBER Working Paper No. 17435

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lochner, Lance; Monge-Naranjo, Alexander

2011-01-01

We review studies of the impact of credit constraints on the accumulation of human capital. Evidence suggests that credit constraints are increasingly important for schooling and other aspects of households' behavior. We highlight the importance of early childhood investments, since their response largely determines the impact of credit…

MODELING THE IMPACTS OF FIRE FLOWS ON DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM WATER QUALITY, DESIGN AND OPERATION

EPA Science Inventory

In most water distribution systems, a significant amount of the piping and storage capacity is used to provide adequate quantities of water during fire conditions. This increased capacity results in higher capital costs and potential negative impacts on water quality due to longe...

Crispin: capital requirements and reinsurance protect against insolvency.

PubMed

Crispin, C

2001-12-01

Charles Crispin is president of Evergreen Re, a managed care consulting firm with expertise in the reinsurance industry. Before Joining Evergreen Re, Crispin served as a consultant to the managed care industry. He is a member of the American Association of Integrated Delivery Systems, Glen Allen, Virginia, and the Provider Excess Loss Association, Princeton, New Jersey. Crispin recently talked with HFM about risk-based capital requirements for health plans and the Impact these solvency guidelines could have on healthcare providers.

Sludge digestion instead of aerobic stabilisation - a cost benefit analysis based on experiences in Germany.

PubMed

Gretzschel, Oliver; Schmitt, Theo G; Hansen, Joachim; Siekmann, Klaus; Jakob, Jürgen

2014-01-01

As a consequence of a worldwide increase of energy costs, the efficient use of sewage sludge as a renewable energy resource must be considered, even for smaller wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) with design capacities between 10,000 and 50,000 population equivalent (PE). To find the lower limit for an economical conversion of an aerobic stabilisation plant into an anaerobic stabilisation plant, we derived cost functions for specific capital costs and operating cost savings. With these tools, it is possible to evaluate if it would be promising to further investigate refitting aerobic plants into plants that produce biogas. By comparing capital costs with operation cost savings, a break-even point for process conversion could be determined. The break-even point varies depending on project specific constraints and assumptions related to future energy and operation costs and variable interest rates. A 5% increase of energy and operation costs leads to a cost efficient conversion for plants above 7,500 PE. A conversion of WWTPs results in different positive effects on energy generation and plant operations: increased efficiency, energy savings, and on-site renewable power generation by digester gas which can be used in the plant. Also, the optimisation of energy efficiency results in a reduction of primary energy consumption.

Health resource allocation and productive efficiency of Chinese county hospitals: data from 1993 to 2005.

PubMed

Gai, Ruoyan Y; Zhou, Chengchao C; Xu, Lingzhong Z; Zhu, Min; Wang, Xingzhou Z; Li, Shixue X; Zheng, Wengui G; Song, Peipei P; Yang, Xuelai L; Fang, Liyi Y; Zhen, Yancheng C; Tang, Wei

2010-10-01

This study aims to assess trends in the productive efficiency of China's county hospitals during the economic transition using data from 1993 to 2005. A data envelopment analysis (DEA) framework was used to calculate the efficiency score of county hospitals in all 31 provinces. A C²R model and a BC² model were devised to respectively calculate overall and scale efficiency and pure technical efficiency at the hospital's current scale. Models included four inputs (number of medical staff; number of beds; value of fixed capital; and hospital expenditures) and three outputs (outpatient and emergency visits, number of inpatients, and hospital revenue) in total. As the results, geographical disparities in health resource allocation and county hospital productivity were noted. From 1993 to 2005, the number of county hospitals increased and their inputs, e.g. fixed capital in particular, grew rapidly. However, the amount of both outpatient and inpatient services declined somewhat especially in the middle and the western regions. The overall efficiency at the national level decreased slightly. County hospitals in the eastern region tended to have better overall, scale, and technical efficiency in comparison to the middle and the western regions. In conclusion, county hospitals are inefficient due to their enlarged scale and the reduced amount of health care services they provide. This issue should be addressed especially in the middle and the western regions, where health resources are far more limited and yet wasted. The effects of ongoing health sector reform on the productivity of county hospitals must be monitored and evaluated.

Techno-economic assessment of the need for bulk energy storage in low-carbon electricity systems with a focus on compressed air storage (CAES)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Safaei Mohamadabadi, Hossein

Increasing electrification of the economy while decarbonizing the electricity supply is among the most effective strategies for cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in order to abate climate change. This thesis offers insights into the role of bulk energy storage (BES) systems to cut GHG emissions from the electricity sector. Wind and solar energies can supply large volumes of low-carbon electricity. Nevertheless, large penetration of these resources poses serious reliability concerns to the grid, mainly because of their intermittency. This thesis evaluates the performance of BES systems - especially compressed air energy storage (CAES) technology - for integration of wind energy from engineering and economic aspects. Analytical thermodynamic analysis of Distributed CAES (D-CAES) and Adiabatic CAES (A-CAES) suggest high roundtrip storage efficiencies ( 80% and 70%) compared to conventional CAES ( 50%). Using hydrogen to fuel CAES plants - instead of natural gas - yields a low overall efficiency ( 35%), despite its negligible GHG emissions. The techno-economic study of D-CAES shows that exporting compression heat to low-temperature loads (e.g. space heating) can enhance both the economic and emissions performance of compressed air storage plants. A case study for Alberta, Canada reveals that the abatement cost of replacing a conventional CAES with D-CAES plant practicing electricity arbitrage can be negative (-$40 per tCO2e, when the heat load is 50 km away from the air storage site). A green-field simulation finds that reducing the capital cost of BES - even drastically below current levels - does not substantially impact the cost of low-carbon electricity. At a 70% reduction in the GHG emissions intensity of the grid, gas turbines remain three times more cost-efficient in managing the wind variability compared to BES (in the best case and with a 15-minute resolution). Wind and solar thus, do not need to wait for availability of cheap BES systems to cost-effectively decarbonize the grid. The prospects of A-CAES seem to be stronger compared to other BES systems due to its low energy-specific capital cost.

Capital financing options for group practices.

PubMed

Galtney, B

2000-05-01

Group practices that are looking for capital partners need to demonstrate that they have the necessary management capability to operate a successful business capable of repaying the debt. Two basic types of debt financing are available to group practices: fixed-rate financing and variable-rate financing. Fixed-rate financing, the more common method, involves borrowing a specific amount of money and then paying off the debt in principal-and-interest payments, much like a fixed-rate mortgage. Variable-rate financing, on the other hand, involves obtaining a letter of credit from the lender itself or independent guarantor to secure a loan. The variable-rate method is more efficient and flexible, because the notes secured by the letter of credit can be rated independently and sold into public capital markets like short-term, variable-rate paper. Both types of financing can require the personal guarantee of all physicians in the group practice.

Does the private sector receive an excessive return from investments in health care infrastructure projects? Evidence from the UK.

PubMed

Vecchi, Veronica; Hellowell, Mark; Gatti, Stefano

2013-05-01

This paper is concerned with the cost-efficiency of Private Finance Initiatives (PFIs) in the delivery of hospital facilities in the UK. We outline a methodology for identifying the "fair" return on equity, based on the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) of each investor. We apply this method to assess the expected returns on a sample of 77 contracts signed between 1997 and 2011 by health care provider organisations in the UK. We show that expected returns are in general in excess of the WACC benchmarks. The findings highlight significant problems in current procurement practices and the methodologies by which bids are assessed. To minimise the financial impact of hospital investments on health care systems, a regulatory regime must ensure that expected returns are set at the "fair" rate. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multiobjective assessment of distributed energy storage location in electricity networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ribeiro Gonçalves, José António; Neves, Luís Pires; Martins, António Gomes

2017-07-01

This paper presents a methodology to provide information to a decision maker on the associated impacts, both of economic and technical nature, of possible management schemes of storage units for choosing the best location of distributed storage devices, with a multiobjective optimisation approach based on genetic algorithms. The methodology was applied to a case study, a known distribution network model in which the installation of distributed storage units was tested, using lithium-ion batteries. The obtained results show a significant influence of the charging/discharging profile of batteries on the choice of their best location, as well as the relevance that these choices may have for the different network management objectives, for example, for reducing network energy losses or minimising voltage deviations. Results also show a difficult cost-effectiveness of an energy-only service, with the tested systems, both due to capital cost and due to the efficiency of conversion.

Inefficiencies in water project design and operation in the third world: An economic perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Howe, Charles W.; Dixon, John A.

1993-07-01

Water projects in less developed countries (LDCs) frequently are poorly operated and maintained. As a result, project benefits and development impacts fall short of plans. The problems begin in the project identification, design, and construction stages: donor and host country biases lead to inappropriate projects, unsustainable technologies, and shoddy construction. Later operation and maintenance are then difficult or impossible. Causal factors include donor desire to build monuments and sell technology, provision of excessive capital to favored sectors or institutions, and an unwillingness to require a reasonable quid pro quo from the host country. Host country factors include excessive administrative centralization, lack of rewards for good operation and maintenance, and widespread corruption in forms that seriously distort allocative efficiency. Until individual actors on both sides can be motivated to pursue the long-run good of the LDC, Third World water projects will continue to have low or negative net payoffs.

The Impact Of Occupational Hazards In Workplaces - Maintenance, A Main Target For Ensuring The Safety Of Working Equipment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antonov, Anca Elena; Buica, Georgeta; Darabont, Doru Costin; Beiu, Constantin

2015-07-01

For use of work equipment having the economic performance and the highest level of safety, it must be ensured that it complies with the conditions set by the manufacturer in terms of putting into service, use and maintenance operations, ensuring appropriate technical and environmental requirements, including appropriate measures and means of protection. The research aimed to identify and analyze the occupational hazards associated to maintenance operations, in terms of the history of the adjustments, maintenance, cleaning and repair, including the case that occur after the incidents, capital repairs and upgrades. The results of the research consisted in the development of recommendations on the effective management of maintenance activities of work equipment and a software model to enable an efficient management of maintenance, as a tool for occupational hazards in companies - premise for increasing the competitiveness of employers in the market economy.

5 CFR 250.201 - Coverage and purpose.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

....201 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT IN AGENCIES Strategic Human Capital Management § 250.201 Coverage and purpose. The Chief Human... effective and efficient operation of Government. As a part of OPM's overall leadership responsibilities in...

7 CFR 4280.147 - Issuance of the guarantee.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LOANS AND GRANTS Rural Energy for America Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.147 Issuance of...) Disbursement plan, if working capital is a purpose of the project. ...

7 CFR 4280.147 - Issuance of the guarantee.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LOANS AND GRANTS Rural Energy for America Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.147 Issuance of...) Disbursement plan, if working capital is a purpose of the project. ...

7 CFR 4280.147 - Issuance of the guarantee.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LOANS AND GRANTS Rural Energy for America Program General Renewable Energy System and Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans § 4280.147 Issuance of...) Disbursement plan, if working capital is a purpose of the project. ...

Restoration islands: A tool for efficently restoring dryland ecosystems

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Restoration islands are concentrated plantings in strategic locations, created to efficiently use resources and capitalize on landscape-scale processes to achieve restoration goals. These methods have been used effectively in mesic ecosystems, particularly tropical forests, where the goal of island ...

Defense transportation : more reliable information key to managing airlift services more efficiently

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-02-01

The Department of Defense's (DOD) guidance provides that the Air Mobility Command's airlift costs associated with its peacetime mission (operations and maintenance) are to be funded through a transportation working capital fund. Under the working cap...

Climate and water resource change impacts and adaptation potential for US power supply

DOE PAGES

Miara, Ariel; Macknick, Jordan E.; Vorosmarty, Charles J.; ...

2017-10-30

Power plants that require cooling currently (2015) provide 85% of electricity generation in the United States. These facilities need large volumes of water and sufficiently cool temperatures for optimal operations, and projected climate conditions may lower their potential power output and affect reliability. We evaluate the performance of 1,080 thermoelectric plants across the contiguous US under future climates (2035-2064) and their collective performance at 19 North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) sub-regions. Joint consideration of engineering interactions with climate, hydrology and environmental regulations reveals the region-specific performance of energy systems and the need for regional energy security and climate-water adaptationmore » strategies. Despite climate-water constraints on individual plants, the current power supply infrastructure shows potential for adaptation to future climates by capitalizing on the size of regional power systems, grid configuration and improvements in thermal efficiencies. Without placing climate-water impacts on individual plants in a broader power systems context, vulnerability assessments that aim to support adaptation and resilience strategies misgauge the extent to which regional energy systems are vulnerable. As a result, climate-water impacts can lower thermoelectric reserve margins, a measure of systems-level reliability, highlighting the need to integrate climate-water constraints on thermoelectric power supply into energy planning, risk assessments, and system reliability management.« less

Climate and water resource change impacts and adaptation potential for US power supply

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miara, Ariel; Macknick, Jordan E.; Vörösmarty, Charles J.; Tidwell, Vincent C.; Newmark, Robin; Fekete, Balazs

2017-11-01

Power plants that require cooling currently (2015) provide 85% of electricity generation in the United States. These facilities need large volumes of water and sufficiently cool temperatures for optimal operations, and projected climate conditions may lower their potential power output and affect reliability. We evaluate the performance of 1,080 thermoelectric plants across the contiguous US under future climates (2035-2064) and their collective performance at 19 North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) sub-regions. Joint consideration of engineering interactions with climate, hydrology and environmental regulations reveals the region-specific performance of energy systems and the need for regional energy security and climate-water adaptation strategies. Despite climate-water constraints on individual plants, the current power supply infrastructure shows potential for adaptation to future climates by capitalizing on the size of regional power systems, grid configuration and improvements in thermal efficiencies. Without placing climate-water impacts on individual plants in a broader power systems context, vulnerability assessments that aim to support adaptation and resilience strategies misgauge the extent to which regional energy systems are vulnerable. Climate-water impacts can lower thermoelectric reserve margins, a measure of systems-level reliability, highlighting the need to integrate climate-water constraints on thermoelectric power supply into energy planning, risk assessments, and system reliability management.

Climate and water resource change impacts and adaptation potential for US power supply

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

Miara, Ariel; Macknick, Jordan E.; Vorosmarty, Charles J.

Power plants that require cooling currently (2015) provide 85% of electricity generation in the United States. These facilities need large volumes of water and sufficiently cool temperatures for optimal operations, and projected climate conditions may lower their potential power output and affect reliability. We evaluate the performance of 1,080 thermoelectric plants across the contiguous US under future climates (2035-2064) and their collective performance at 19 North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) sub-regions. Joint consideration of engineering interactions with climate, hydrology and environmental regulations reveals the region-specific performance of energy systems and the need for regional energy security and climate-water adaptationmore » strategies. Despite climate-water constraints on individual plants, the current power supply infrastructure shows potential for adaptation to future climates by capitalizing on the size of regional power systems, grid configuration and improvements in thermal efficiencies. Without placing climate-water impacts on individual plants in a broader power systems context, vulnerability assessments that aim to support adaptation and resilience strategies misgauge the extent to which regional energy systems are vulnerable. As a result, climate-water impacts can lower thermoelectric reserve margins, a measure of systems-level reliability, highlighting the need to integrate climate-water constraints on thermoelectric power supply into energy planning, risk assessments, and system reliability management.« less

Social Capital and Human Mortality: Explaining the Rural Paradox with County-Level Mortality Data

PubMed Central

Jensen, Leif; Haran, Murali

2014-01-01

The “rural paradox” refers to standardized mortality rates in rural areas that are unexpectedly low in view of well-known economic and infrastructural disadvantages there. We explore this paradox by incorporating social capital, a promising explanatory factor that has seldom been incorporated into residential mortality research. We do so while being attentive to spatial dependence, a statistical problem often ignored in mortality research. Analyzing data for counties in the contiguous United States, we find that: (1) the rural paradox is confirmed with both metro/non-metro and rural-urban continuum codes, (2) social capital significantly reduces the impacts of residence on mortality after controlling for race/ethnicity and socioeconomic covariates, (3) this attenuation is greater when a spatial perspective is imposed on the analysis, (4) social capital is negatively associated with mortality at the county level, and (5) spatial dependence is strongly in evidence. A spatial approach is necessary in county-level analyses such as ours to yield unbiased estimates and optimal model fit. PMID:25392565

Natural hazard events and social capital: the social impact of natural disasters.

PubMed

Albrecht, Frederike

2018-04-01

This study investigates if and to what extent natural disasters affect social capital. Twelve different events in Europe are examined in a quantitative analysis, using data derived from the European Social Survey and the EM-DAT International Disaster Database. The study uses social trust as an indicator of social capital and offers evidence that a change in social trust is a possible occurrence during or after a disaster, but that it is not an inevitable consequence of it. The results reveal that social trust decreases after a disaster with a death toll of at least nine. Changes in social capital, therefore, are found to be more probable as the severity of the event increases. National, rather than regional, disasters lead more frequently to significant shifts in social trust. This evaluation of 12 separate cases pinpoints several disasters that have had an effect on social trust, but it does not identify any general patterns, underlining the significance of contextual dependency. © 2018 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2018.

Social capital and transaction costs in millet markets.

PubMed

Jacques, Damien Christophe; Marinho, Eduardo; d'Andrimont, Raphaël; Waldner, François; Radoux, Julien; Gaspart, Frédéric; Defourny, Pierre

2018-01-01

In sub-Saharan Africa, transaction costs are believed to be the most significant barrier that prevents smallholders and farmers from gaining access to markets and productive assets. In this study, we explore the impact of social capital on millet prices for three contrasted years in Senegal. Social capital is approximated using a unique data set on mobile phone communications between 9 million people allowing to simulate the business network between economic agents. Our approach is a spatial equilibrium model that integrates a diversified set of data. Local supply and demand were respectively derived from remotely sensed imagery and population density maps. The road network was used to establish market catchment areas, and transportation costs were derived from distances between markets. Results demonstrate that accounting for the social capital in the transaction costs explained 1-9% of the price variance depending on the year. The year-specific effect remains challenging to assess but could be related to a strengthening of risk aversion following a poor harvest.

Skills development and structural change: Possibilities for and limitations of redressing structural racial inequalities in South Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Groener, Zelda

2013-12-01

Improving structural racial equality for historically-disadvantaged Black South Africans, including low-skilled and unemployed adults and youths, is a pertinent challenge for the South African government during the ongoing transition from apartheid capitalism to post-apartheid capitalism. Within the framework of the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS), the introduction of "learnerships" and "learning programmes", which include structured learning programmes, learnerships, apprenticeships and skills programmes, has had some impact. But emerging theoretical perspectives assert that apartheid structural racial inequalities persist and that structural reform is imperative. Opposing positions translate into two perspectives on social transition: either capitalism can be de-racialised, or capitalism in South Africa should be dismantled in order to de-racialise it. After a review of relevant literature and governmental documents, the author identifies five structural and pedagogical barriers as likely causes for low completion rates of skills development courses and concludes that structural reform needs more favourable political and economic conditions in order to be successful.

34 CFR 682.210 - Deferment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... provide information, including an example, on the impact of capitalization of accrued, unpaid interest on... applicable, the post-deferment grace period expire, a borrower resumes any delinquency status that existed...

Social capital and temporal migrant characteristic in rural Indonesia - A case of Malang Regency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prayitno, G.

2017-06-01

Public participation in the planning system is often implemented in order to encourage participatory planning. The result is the planning will be implemented softly and the society can managed and maintained continuity the project by themselves. Social capital as the concept of collective action, could increase the possibility the people solve their problem together. In this research we tried to implement the concept of social capital from the migration respondent in rural community activities. In rural area, migration is commonly used by rural inhabitants to ensure the survival of their families or to pursue economic mobility to supplement dwindling household resources. Households are generally selected and invest in a family member who is viewed to have the greatest potential for generating migrant earnings and sending remittances. The increase in the number of migrants has an impact on not only household members but also activities in communities. The labor movement might affect social capital in communities. In this paper, the relation between characteristics of migrants and the level of social capital is analyzed. Characteristics of migrants and households who send them are investigated thorough questioner survey data, which were conducted in Malang Regency, Indonesia.

Social capital and lack of belief in the possibility to influence one's own health: a population-based study.

PubMed

Lindström, Martin

2006-01-01

To study the impact of social capital (social participation and trust) on lack of belief in possibility to influence health. The Scania 2000 public-health survey is a cross-sectional, postal questionnaire study including 13,604 persons aged 18-80 years which was conducted in 2000 by the regional healthcare authorities in Region Skåne, southern Sweden, to investigate health-related risk factors in the population. A logistic regression model was used to investigate the association between social capital and lack of belief in possibility to influence health. The multivariate analyses analysed the importance of confounders on the differences in lack of belief in possibility to influence health according to the social capital variables. In total, 31.0% of all men and 33.5% of all women lack belief in the possibility to influence their own health. Lack of belief in possibility to influence health was positively associated with both low social participation and low trust, although stronger for social participation than for trust. Low levels of social capital, particularly low social participation, is positively associated with lack of belief in the possibility to influence one's own health.

Social Capital, Narratives of Fragmentation, and Schizophrenia: An Ethnographic Exploration of Factors Shaping African-Caribbeans’ Social Capital and Mental Health in a North London Community

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Recent research studies have proposed the concept of social capital—broadly defined as social networks, community cohesion, and participation—as a social risk factor for health disparities and the high rates of schizophrenia among individuals of Caribbean heritage in England. However, many of the existing studies lack sociohistorical contexts and do not capture the experiential dimensions of individuals’ social capital. This paper adds to the debate by examining the mechanisms and sociocultural processes that shape the understandings and experiences of social capital in a sample of British African-Caribbeans. Drawing on ethnographic and survey data collected over 2 years in a North London community, the paper focuses on participants’ every day experiences and the stories they tell about their community and social fragmentation. These stories suggest that social changes and historical forces interact to affect the social capital and emotional well-being of local African-Caribbean residents. I argue that my participants’ collective narratives about their social environment contribute to the emotional tone of the community, and create added stressors that may impact their mental health. PMID:23832434

Economic analysis of greenhouse lighting: light emitting diodes vs. high intensity discharge fixtures.

PubMed

Nelson, Jacob A; Bugbee, Bruce

2014-01-01

Lighting technologies for plant growth are improving rapidly, providing numerous options for supplemental lighting in greenhouses. Here we report the photosynthetic (400-700 nm) photon efficiency and photon distribution pattern of two double-ended HPS fixtures, five mogul-base HPS fixtures, ten LED fixtures, three ceramic metal halide fixtures, and two fluorescent fixtures. The two most efficient LED and the two most efficient double-ended HPS fixtures had nearly identical efficiencies at 1.66 to 1.70 micromoles per joule. These four fixtures represent a dramatic improvement over the 1.02 micromoles per joule efficiency of the mogul-base HPS fixtures that are in common use. The best ceramic metal halide and fluorescent fixtures had efficiencies of 1.46 and 0.95 micromoles per joule, respectively. We also calculated the initial capital cost of fixtures per photon delivered and determined that LED fixtures cost five to ten times more than HPS fixtures. The five-year electric plus fixture cost per mole of photons is thus 2.3 times higher for LED fixtures, due to high capital costs. Compared to electric costs, our analysis indicates that the long-term maintenance costs are small for both technologies. If widely spaced benches are a necessary part of a production system, the unique ability of LED fixtures to efficiently focus photons on specific areas can be used to improve the photon capture by plant canopies. Our analysis demonstrates, however, that the cost per photon delivered is higher in these systems, regardless of fixture category. The lowest lighting system costs are realized when an efficient fixture is coupled with effective canopy photon capture.

Biothreat Reduction and Economic Development: The Case of Animal Husbandry in Central Asia.

PubMed

Walker, Robert; Blackburn, Jason

2015-01-01

Improving human welfare is a critical global concern, but not always easy to achieve. Complications in this regard have been faced by the states of the Former Soviet Union, where socialist-style economic institutions have disappeared, and the transition to a market economy has been slow in coming. Lack of capital, ethnic conflict, and political instability have at times undermined the institutional reform that would be necessary to enable economic efficiency and development. Nowhere are such challenges more pronounced than in the new nation states of central Asia, including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Here, a severe climate limits agriculture, and industrialization has been inhibited by lack of infrastructure, low levels of human capital, and a scarcity of financial resources. These conditions are aggravated by the fact that the central Asian states are landlocked, far from centers of market demand and capital availability. Despite these daunting barriers, development potential does exist, and the goal of the paper is to consider central Asia's pastoral economy, with a focus on Kazakhstan, which stands poised to become a regional growth pole. The article pursues its goal as follows. It first addresses the biothreat situation to central Asian livestock herds, the most significant existing impediment to realizing the full market potential of the region's animal products. Next, it provides an outline of interventions that can reduce risk levels for key biothreats impacting central Asia, namely foot and mouth disease (FMD), which greatly impacts livestock and prohibits export, and Brucellosis, a bacterial zoonosis with high incidence in both humans and livestock in the region. Included is an important success story involving the FMD eradication programs in Brazil, which enabled an export boom in beef. After this comes a description of the epidemiological situation in Kazakhstan; here, the article considers the role of wildlife in acting as a possible disease reservoir, which presents a conservation issue for the Kazakhstani case. This is followed by a discussion of the role of science in threat reduction, particularly with respect to the potential offered by geospatial technologies to improve our epidemiological knowledge base. The article concludes with an assessment of the research that would be necessary to identify feasible pathways to develop the economic potential of central Asian livestock production as changes in policy are implemented and livestock health improves.

Examination of the influence of social capital on depression in fragile families.

PubMed

Wilmot, Neil A; Dauner, Kim Nichols

2017-03-01

While it appears that social capital has a positive effect on mental health, most studies have been cross-sectional in nature and/or employ weak measures of social capital or mental health. Even less attention has been paid to vulnerable populations, such as low-income women with children. Thus, our objective was to explore how different dimensions of social capital impact depression in this population. We used data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, which has followed a cohort of children born in large US cities to mostly minority, unmarried parents for over 9 years. These families tend to be at greater risk for falling into poverty. Four separate measures of social capital were constructed, using measures that are reliable and that offer evidence of validity including social support and trust, social participation, perceptions of neighbourhood social cohesion and perceptions of neighbourhood social control. The temporal effect of social capital on mental health, as measured by a standardised screening for depression was investigated using logistic regression. After controlling for relevant socioeconomic and demographic factors, prior depression, and prior self-rated health, the social capital dimensions of social support and trust and perceived neighbourhood social cohesion are significant predictors of depression. These results suggest that social and neighbourhood environments play an important role in mental health status. Intervention and policy initiatives that increase social capital may be viable for improving mental health among low-income urban, minority women. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Untangling the Disaster-Depression Knot: The Role of Social Ties After Deepwater Horizon

PubMed Central

Rung, Ariane L.; Gaston, Symielle; Robinson, William T.; Trapido, Edward J.; Peters, Edward S.

2017-01-01

The mental health consequences of disasters, including oil spills, are well known. The goal of this study is to examine whether social capital and social support mediate the effects of exposure to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on depression among women. Data for the analysis come from the first wave of data collection for the Women and Their Children's Health Study, a longitudinal study of the health effects of women exposed to the oil spill in southern Louisiana, USA. Women were interviewed about their exposure to the oil spill, depression symptoms, structural social capital (neighborhood organization participation), cognitive social capital (sense of community and informal social control), and social support. Structural equation models indicated that structural social capital was associated with increased levels of cognitive social capital, which were associated with higher levels of social support, which in turn were associated with lower levels of depression. Physical exposure to the oil spill was associated with greater economic exposure, which in turn was associated with higher levels of depression. When all variables were taken into account, economic exposure was no longer associated with depression, and social support and cognitive social capital mediated the effect of economic exposure on depression, explaining 67% of the effect. Findings support an extension of the deterioration model of social support to include the additional coping resource of social capital. Social capital and social support were found to be beneficial for depression post-oil spill; however, they were themselves negatively impacted by the oil spill, explaining the overall negative effect of the oil spill on depression. A better understanding of the pathways between the social context and depression could lead to interventions for improved mental health in the aftermath of a disaster. PMID:28152421

Evaluation of resource impact factors versus social cost estimates in determining building energy performance standard levels

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

Nieves, L.A.; Nesse, R.J.; Adams, R.C.

1979-12-01

In order to increase the welfare of society through the implementation of a building energy-performance standard, a method is required by which the least-cost means of obtaining the desired space conditioning of a building can be estimated. In other words, a life-cycle cost model must be developed to simulate the energy-related building-design decisions that would take place if resources were being allocated efficiently. The cost-minimizing model must incorporate technically efficient conservation strategies and fuel-conversion equipment, and the prices used must reflect the social value of the fuels and capital equipment used. This report explores the feasibility of developing a factormore » that could be used to adjust a design energy budget to account for the external costs associated with that energy consumption. One such factor, RIF (resource impact factor) has been proposed by ASHRAE. Though ASHRAE suggested the RIF x RUF (resource utilization factor) multiplier concept, RIF's were not explicitly defined. Weber (1978) suggested that RIF be defined as a ratio of social costs to effective market price. The basis for a RIF used in conjunction with a RUF is evaluated here and is found lacking. To fill the gap, a social-cost approach is developed that addresses the goals of both RIF's and RUF's. The rationale for using such an approach stems from the existence of differences between retail prices and the actual social costs of fuels.« less

Impact of positive psychological capital on employee well-being over time.

PubMed

Avey, James B; Luthans, Fred; Smith, Ronda M; Palmer, Noel F

2010-01-01

The recently recognized core construct of psychological capital or PsyCap (consisting of the positive psychological resources of efficacy, hope, optimism, and resilience) has been demonstrated to be related to various employee attitudinal, behavioral, and performance outcomes. However, to date, the impact of this positive core construct over time and on important employee well-being outcomes has not been tested. This study meets this need by analyzing the relationship between a broad cross-section of employees' (N = 280) level of PsyCap and two measures of psychological well-being over time. The results indicated that employees' PsyCap was related to both measures of well-being and, importantly, that PsyCap explained additional variance in these well-being measures over time. The limitations, needed future research, and practical implications conclude the article.

Integrating Social Epidemiology Into Public Health Research and Practice for Maternal Depression

PubMed Central

Lincoln, Alisa K.

2011-01-01

The impact of maternal depression on women and their families has been well documented. Given the prevalence and impact of this problem, one important strategy is to strengthen and expand our public health approaches. Although principles of social epidemiology are increasingly used in the field of maternal and child health, few public health efforts to address maternal mental health have incorporated ecosocial frameworks such as community connectedness, quality of social relationships, and social capital. One method to augment current public health approaches to maternal depression is through the incorporation of a perspective focusing on community, cohesion, group membership, and connectedness—a concept often described as social capital. We describe the relevance of this ecosocial perspective for mental health promotion programs for mothers. PMID:21493925

Low-Cost High-Pressure Hydrogen Generator

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

Cropley, Cecelia C.; Norman, Timothy J.

Electrolysis of water, particularly in conjunction with renewable energy sources, is potentially a cost-effective and environmentally friendly method of producing hydrogen at dispersed forecourt sites, such as automotive fueling stations. The primary feedstock for an electrolyzer is electricity, which could be produced by renewable sources such as wind or solar that do not produce carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gas emissions. However, state-of-the-art electrolyzer systems are not economically competitive for forecourt hydrogen production due to their high capital and operating costs, particularly the cost of the electricity used by the electrolyzer stack. In this project, Giner Electrochemical Systems, LLC (GES)more » developed a low cost, high efficiency proton-exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis system for hydrogen production at moderate pressure (300 to 400 psig). The electrolyzer stack operates at differential pressure, with hydrogen produced at moderate pressure while oxygen is evolved at near-atmospheric pressure, reducing the cost of the water feed and oxygen handling subsystems. The project included basic research on catalysts and membranes to improve the efficiency of the electrolysis reaction as well as development of advanced materials and component fabrication methods to reduce the capital cost of the electrolyzer stack and system. The project culminated in delivery of a prototype electrolyzer module to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory for testing at the National Wind Technology Center. Electrolysis cell efficiency of 72% (based on the lower heating value of hydrogen) was demonstrated using an advanced high-strength membrane developed in this project. This membrane would enable the electrolyzer system to exceed the DOE 2012 efficiency target of 69%. GES significantly reduced the capital cost of a PEM electrolyzer stack through development of low cost components and fabrication methods, including a 60% reduction in stack parts count. Economic analysis indicates that hydrogen could be produced for $3.79 per gge at an electricity cost of $0.05/kWh by the lower-cost PEM electrolyzer developed in this project, assuming high-volume production of large-scale electrolyzer systems.« less

Human well-being differs by community type: Towards reference points in a human well-being indicator useful for decision support

EPA Science Inventory

Human activity has growing impacts on the natural capital humans depend on for existence. While many of these impacts are regional, national, or international in scope, it is increasingly evident that decisions made at the local community level are also important. Yet, understand...

The Perceived Impact of Holding a College Leadership Position on First-Generation Latina Alumnae

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kempf, Rosalyn Alma

2011-01-01

This study investigated the leadership experiences of first-generation Latina college alumnae in order to gain insight into the intersection of leadership, gender, and social capital. Using a qualitative approach, it examined the ways in which their leadership positions impacted their collegiate experience and their later lives. This descriptive…

The Impact of Repealing Sunday Closing Laws on Educational Attainment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Dara N.

2013-01-01

Adolescents face daily tradeoffs between human capital investment, labor, and leisure. This paper exploits state variation in the repeal of Sunday closing laws to examine the impact of a distinct and plausibly exogenous rise in the quantity of competing diversions available to youth on their educational attainment. The results suggest that the…

Economic Impacts of Maryland Community Colleges: A Closer Look.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linthicum, Dorothy S.

The short-term impacts of public community colleges upon the business and government sectors of Maryland's economy were measured through a series of linear cash-flow formulas. In 1976-77, total direct and indirect expenditures attributable to the 17 colleges in areas of salaries, purchase of materials, and capital building improvements were almost…

The Impact of Education Investment on Sri Lankan Economic Growth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ganegodage, K. Renuka; Rambaldi, Alicia N.

2011-01-01

We evaluate the contribution of investment on education to Sri Lanka's economic growth during the period 1959-2008. Physical capital, economic policy changes and the ethnic war are also evaluated due to their substantial importance. This study uses a framework encompassing both the neoclassical and endogenous growth model. The impact of education…

Capitalization of Charter Schools into Residential Property Values

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brehm, Margaret; Imberman, Scott A.; Naretta, Michael

2017-01-01

Although prior research has found clear impacts of schools and school quality on property values, little is known about whether charter schools have similar effects. Using sale price data for residential properties in Los Angeles County from 2008 to 2011 we estimate the neighborhood level impact of charter schools on housing prices. Using an…

Does Collective Bargaining Influence the Pay Satisfaction of Elementary School Teachers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buckman, David G.; Tran, Henry; Young, I. Phillip

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of collective bargaining on teacher pay satisfaction and offer knowledge of the factors contributing to the pay satisfaction of public elementary school teachers. The study focuses on how human capital, occupational characteristics, and job related characteristics impact the pay satisfaction of…

Environmental Assessment for Capital Improvement Projects, Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado. Volume 1 of 2

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-03-01

impact on the ambient soundscape . The attenuation of noise over the distance and topography between the two sites would minimize this potential...cumulative increase in impacts to the regional soundscape in conjunction with other plans and projects. However, the attenuation of sound over distance and

Toward Perovskite Solar Cell Commercialization: A Perspective and Research Roadmap Based on Interfacial Engineering.

PubMed

Rajagopal, Adharsh; Yao, Kai; Jen, Alex K-Y

2018-06-08

High-efficiency and low-cost perovskite solar cells (PVKSCs) are an ideal candidate for addressing the scalability challenge of solar-based renewable energy. The dynamically evolving research field of PVKSCs has made immense progress in solving inherent challenges and capitalizing on their unique structure-property-processing-performance traits. This review offers a unique outlook on the paths toward commercialization of PVKSCs from the interfacial engineering perspective, relevant to both specialists and nonspecialists in the field through a brief introduction of the background of the field, current state-of-the-art evolution, and future research prospects. The multifaceted role of interfaces in facilitating PVKSC development is explained. Beneficial impacts of diverse charge-transporting materials and interfacial modifications are summarized. In addition, the role of interfaces in improving efficiency and stability for all emerging areas of PVKSC design are also evaluated. The authors' integral contributions in this area are highlighted on all fronts. Finally, future research opportunities for interfacial material development and applications along with scalability-durability-sustainability considerations pivotal for facilitating laboratory to industry translation are presented. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Integrating utilization-focused evaluation with business process modeling for clinical research improvement.

PubMed

Kagan, Jonathan M; Rosas, Scott; Trochim, William M K

2010-10-01

New discoveries in basic science are creating extraordinary opportunities to design novel biomedical preventions and therapeutics for human disease. But the clinical evaluation of these new interventions is, in many instances, being hindered by a variety of legal, regulatory, policy and operational factors, few of which enhance research quality, the safety of study participants or research ethics. With the goal of helping increase the efficiency and effectiveness of clinical research, we have examined how the integration of utilization-focused evaluation with elements of business process modeling can reveal opportunities for systematic improvements in clinical research. Using data from the NIH global HIV/AIDS clinical trials networks, we analyzed the absolute and relative times required to traverse defined phases associated with specific activities within the clinical protocol lifecycle. Using simple median duration and Kaplan-Meyer survival analysis, we show how such time-based analyses can provide a rationale for the prioritization of research process analysis and re-engineering, as well as a means for statistically assessing the impact of policy modifications, resource utilization, re-engineered processes and best practices. Successfully applied, this approach can help researchers be more efficient in capitalizing on new science to speed the development of improved interventions for human disease.

Intergenerational aspects of government policy under changing demographic and economic conditions.

PubMed

Boskin, M J

1987-07-01

Changing demographic and economic conditions in the US require that attention be given to some of the intergenerational equity features of government policy. In particular, social insurance programs and public debt leave public liabilities to future generations. Taken in the aggregate, the effects of rapidly rising public debt and especially social insurance programs are transferring substantial amounts of resources from younger working generations to the expanding generation of retirees. The most crucial element in evaluating the desirability of intergenerational wealth distribution in the long run is the rate of economic growth. A society's monetary, fiscal, tax, and regulatory policies can be more or less conducive to the generation of capital formation, technical change, and economic growth. Policies that influence growth and interest rates will combine with the national deficit to determine how rapidly the debt grows or shrinks. Present accounting procedures are insufficient to provide quantitative answers to the question of what is the impact of a given program on the age-specific distributions of resources. It is important to reconsider the desirability and efficiency of intergenerational redistributions of wealth in the US. It is likely that current policies are not in line with the principles of efficiency, equity, target effectiveness, and cost effectiveness.

Multi-locus genotyping of bottom fermenting yeasts by single nucleotide polymorphisms indicative of brewing characteristics.

PubMed

Ikushima, Shigehito; Tateishi, Yoshiyuki; Kanai, Keiko; Shimada, Emiko; Tanaka, Misa; Ishiguro, Tatsuji; Mizutani, Satoru; Kobayashi, Osamu

2012-04-01

Yeast plays a capital role in brewing fermentation and has a direct impact on flavor and aroma. For the evaluation of competent brewing strains during quality control or development of novel strains it is standard practice to perform fermentation tests, which are costly and time-consuming. Here, we have categorized DNA markers which enable to distinguish and to screen brewing strains more efficiently than ever before. Sequence analysis at 289 loci in the genomes of six bottom fermenting Saccharomyces pastorianus strains revealed that 30 loci contained single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). By determining the nucleotide sequences at the SNP-loci in 26 other S. pastorianus strains and 20 strains of the top fermenting yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, almost all these strains could be discriminated solely on the basis of the SNPs. By comparing the fermentative phenotypes of these strains we found that some DNA markers showed a strong association with brewing characteristics, such as the production of ethyl acetate and hydrogen sulphide (H2S). Therefore, the DNA markers we identified will facilitate quality control and the efficient development of brewing yeast strains. Copyright © 2011 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Capacitated vehicle-routing problem model for scheduled solid waste collection and route optimization using PSO algorithm.

PubMed

Hannan, M A; Akhtar, Mahmuda; Begum, R A; Basri, H; Hussain, A; Scavino, Edgar

2018-01-01

Waste collection widely depends on the route optimization problem that involves a large amount of expenditure in terms of capital, labor, and variable operational costs. Thus, the more waste collection route is optimized, the more reduction in different costs and environmental effect will be. This study proposes a modified particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm in a capacitated vehicle-routing problem (CVRP) model to determine the best waste collection and route optimization solutions. In this study, threshold waste level (TWL) and scheduling concepts are applied in the PSO-based CVRP model under different datasets. The obtained results from different datasets show that the proposed algorithmic CVRP model provides the best waste collection and route optimization in terms of travel distance, total waste, waste collection efficiency, and tightness at 70-75% of TWL. The obtained results for 1 week scheduling show that 70% of TWL performs better than all node consideration in terms of collected waste, distance, tightness, efficiency, fuel consumption, and cost. The proposed optimized model can serve as a valuable tool for waste collection and route optimization toward reducing socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Key financial ratios can foretell hospital closures.

PubMed

Lynn, M L; Wertheim, P

1993-11-01

An analysis of various financial ratios sampled from open and closed hospitals shows that certain leverage, liquidity, capital efficiency, and resource availability ratios can predict hospital closure up to two years in advance of the closure with an accuracy of nearly 75 percent.

Real world programs, real world strategies, real world successes

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

Hogan, K.

1997-12-31

This paper presents a very brief overview of market opportunities for using energy efficient technology. A brief summary of greenhouse gas emissions and global climate change concludes that the threat of global warming must be taken seriously. It is stated that there are numerous technologies available which can reduce energy use by up to 50%, while offering attractive rates of return. Market analysis has identified a trillion dollar market for high efficiency products and services over the next decade. Three main areas of business opportunity for capitalizing on the growing market for energy efficiency are identified: (1) using efficient energymore » technology in-house, (2) marketing energy efficient products, and (3) international markets.« less

How venture capital works.

PubMed

Zider, B

1998-01-01

The popular mythology surrounding the U.S. venture-capital industry derives from a previous era. Venture capitalists who nurtured the computer industry in its infancy were legendary both for their risk taking and for their hands-on operating experience. But today things are different, and separating the myths from the realities is crucial to understanding this important piece of the U.S. economy. Today's venture capitalists are more like conservative bankers than the risk takers of days past. They have carved out a specialized niche in the capital markets, filling a void that other institutions cannot serve. They are the linch-pins in an efficient system for meeting the needs of institutional investors looking for high returns, of entrepreneurs seeking funding, and of investment bankers looking for companies to sell. Venture capitalists must earn a consistently superior return on investments in inherently risky businesses. The myth is that they do so by investing in good ideas and good plans. In reality, they invest in good industries--that is, industries that are more competitively forgiving than the market as a whole. And they structure their deals in a way that minimizes their risk and maximizes their returns. Although many entrepreneurs expect venture capitalists to provide them with sage guidance as well as capital, that expectation is unrealistic. Given a typical portfolio of ten companies and a 2,000-hour work year, a venture capital partner spends on average less than two hours per week on any given company. In addition to analyzing the current venture-capital system, the author offers practical advice to entrepreneurs thinking about venture funding.

Leasing as a Source of Finance by the Major US Airlines: Hidden Debt and its Changes Over Time

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gritta, Richard D.; Lippman, Ellen J.

2003-01-01

This paper updates prior research on aircraft leasing and contrasts the findings of current data with prior results. Usage of leases by air carriers is a means to lessen the impact of financial obligations from fleet purchases. The study revisits two previous studies, one in 1969 and one in 1991, which is analyzed the incidence of leases by major air carriers. The current study updates these past studies to consider air carriers current usage of leases. Additionally, since operating leases are not reflected in the balance sheets of airlines, operating lease information was capitalized using a present value of future operating lease payments. Then, financial debt burden ratios were computed to determine the impact from the capitalization of lease information. The usage of operating leases increased, significantly from the first study to the 1991 study, and this trend continues. The incidence of leasing, the classification of leases as operating, and the percentage of operating leases to total fleet have all increased for the majority of the airlines reviewed. When operating lease data were capitalized, debt ratios weakened, providing further evidence of deterioration in the financial health of air carriers.

The nutrition intervention improved adult human capital and economic productivity.

PubMed

Martorell, Reynaldo; Melgar, Paul; Maluccio, John A; Stein, Aryeh D; Rivera, Juan A

2010-02-01

This article reviews key findings about the long-term impact of a nutrition intervention carried out by the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama from 1969 to 1977. Results from follow-up studies in 1988-89 and 2002-04 show substantial impact on adult human capital and economic productivity. The 1988-89 study showed that adult body size and work capacity increased for those provided improved nutrition through age 3 y, whereas the 2002-04 follow-up showed that schooling was increased for women and reading comprehension and intelligence increased in both men and women. Participants were 26-42 y of age at the time of the 2002-04 follow-up, facilitating the assessment of economic productivity. Wages of men increased by 46% in those provided with improved nutrition through age 2 y. Findings for cardiovascular disease risk factors were heterogeneous; however, they suggest that improved nutrition in early life is unlikely to increase cardiovascular disease risk later in life and may indeed lower risk. In conclusion, the substantial improvement in adult human capital and economic productivity resulting from the nutrition intervention provides a powerful argument for promoting improvements in nutrition in pregnant women and young children.

[The influence of intellectual capital in performance evaluation: a case-study in the hospital sector].

PubMed

Bonacim, Carlos Alberto Grespan; Araújo, Adriana Maria Procópio de

2010-06-01

This paper contributes to public institutions with the adaptation of a performance evaluation tool based on private companies. The objective is to demonstrate how the impact of an educational activity might be measured in the economic value added for the society of a public university hospital. The paper was divided in four parts, despite the introductory and methodological aspects and the final remarks. First, the hospital sector is explained, specifically in the context of the public university hospitals. Then, the definitions, the nature and measure of the intellectual capital are presented, followed by the disclosure of the main economic performance evaluation models. Finally, an adapted model is presented, under the approach of the value based management, considering adjustments of the return and the respective investment measures, showing the impacts of the intellectual capital management and the education activity on the economic result of those institutions. The study was developed based on a methodology supported by a bibliographical research, using a comparative method procedure in the descriptive modality. At last, it is highlighted the importance of accountability for the society regarding the use of public resources and how this study can help in this way.

No sympathy for the devil: attributing psychopathic traits to capital murderers also predicts support for executing them.

PubMed

Edens, John F; Davis, Karen M; Fernandez Smith, Krissie; Guy, Laura S

2013-04-01

Mental health evidence concerning antisocial and psychopathic traits appears to be introduced frequently in capital murder trials in the United States to argue that defendants are a "continuing threat" to society and thus worthy of execution. Using a simulation design, the present research examined how layperson perceptions of the psychopathic traits exhibited by a capital defendant would impact their attitudes about whether he should receive a death sentence. Across three studies (total N = 362), ratings of a defendant's perceived level of psychopathy strongly predicted support for executing him. The vast majority of the predictive utility was attributable to interpersonal and affective traits historically associated with psychopathy rather than traits associated with a criminal and socially deviant lifestyle. A defendant's perceived lack of remorse in particular was influential, although perceptions of grandiose self-worth and a manipulative interpersonal style also contributed incrementally to support for a death sentence. These results highlight how attributions regarding socially undesirable personality traits can have a pronounced negative impact on layperson attitudes toward persons who are perceived to exhibit these characteristics. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

Biomarkers in Parkinson's disease: a venture capitalist's perspective.

PubMed

Eckstein, Jens W

2010-10-01

The emergence of biomarkers linking disease and treatment effects in a clear manner presents an opportunity to change the current drug development paradigm, which could lead to more cost-efficient and higher-quality clinical trials. This has raised the hopes of venture capital investors, who may be able to better navigate the stormy and risky sea of early-stage life science investments, to find a way out of the current funding crisis for novel, nonvalidated drugs and their clinical development. The following survey paints a snapshot of the current perception of biomarkers as a paradigm changer in the eyes of the venture capital community.

Value-based formulas for purchasing. PEHP's designated service provider program: value-based purchasing through global fees.

PubMed

Emery, D W

1997-01-01

In many circles, managed care and capitation have become synonymous; unfortunately, the assumptions informing capitation are based on a flawed unidimensional model of risk. PEHP of Utah has rejected the unidimensional model and has therefore embraced a multidimensional model of risk that suggests that global fees are the optimal purchasing modality. A globally priced episode of care forms a natural unit of analysis that enhances purchasing clarity, allows providers to more efficiently focus on the Marginal Rate of Technical Substitution, and conforms to the multidimensional reality of risk. Most importantly, global fees simultaneously maximize patient choice and provider cost consciousness.

What constitutes a health-enabling neighborhood? A grounded theory situational analysis addressing the significance of social capital and gender.

PubMed

Eriksson, Malin; Emmelin, Maria

2013-11-01

Variations in health between neighborhoods are well known and the conceptualization of social capital has contributed to an understanding of how contextual factors influence these differences. Studies show positive health-effects from living in high social capital areas, at least for some population sub-groups. The aim of this qualitative study was to understand what constitutes a 'health-enabling' neighborhood. It follows up results from a social capital survey in northern Sweden indicating that the health effects of living in a high social capital neighborhood is gendered in favor of women. A grounded theory situational analysis of eight focus group discussions--four with men and four with women--illustrated similar and different positions on how neighborhood characteristics influence health. A neighborhood, where people say hi to each other ("hi-factor") and where support between neighbors exist, were factors perceived as positive for health by all, as was a good location, neighborhood greenness and proximity to essential arenas. Women perceived freedom from demands, feeling safe and city life as additional health enabling factors. For men freedom to do what you want, a sense of belonging, and countryside life were important. To have burdensome neighbors, physical disturbances and a densely living environment were perceived as negative for health in both groups while demands for a well styled home and feeling unsafe were perceived as negative for health among women. Neighborhood social capital, together with other elements in the living environment, has fundamental influence on people's perceived health. Our findings do not confirm that social capital is more important for women than for men but that distinctive form of social capital differ in impact. Investing in physical interventions, such as planning for meeting places, constructing attractive green areas, and making neighborhoods walking-friendly, may increase human interactions that is instrumental for social capital and is likely to have health promoting effects for all. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Turnover of Non-medical Staff in Outpatient Oncology Practices: Is Building Social Capital a Solution?].

PubMed

Gloede, T D; Ernstmann, N; Baumann, W; Groß, S E; Ansmann, L; Nitzsche, A; Neumann, M; Wirtz, M; Schmitz, S; Schulz-Nieswandt, F; Pfaff, H

2015-11-01

While a lot is known about potential and actual turnover of non-medical hospital staff, only few data exist for the outpatient setting. In addition, little is known about actual instruments which leaders can use to influence staff turnover in physician practices. In the literature, the social capital of an organisation, which means the amount of trust, common values and reciprocal behaviour in the organisation, has been discussed as a possible field of action. In the present study, staff turnover as perceived by outpatient haematologists and oncologists is presented and analysed as to whether social capital is associated with that staff turnover. In conclusion, measures to increase the social capital of a practice are presented. The present study is based on data gathered in a questionnaire-based survey with members of the Professional Organisation of -Office-Based Haematologists and Oncologists (N=551). The social capital of the practice was captured from the haematologists and oncologists using an existing and validated scale. To analyse the impact of the practice's social capital on staff turnover, as perceived by the physicians, bivariate correlations and linear regression analyses were calculated. In total, 152 haematologists and oncologists participated in the study which represents a response rate of 28%. In the regression analyses, social capital appears as a significant and strong predictor of staff turnover (beta=-0.34; p<0.001). Building social capital within the practice may be an important contribution to reducing staff turnover although the underlying study design does not allow for drawing causal conclusions regarding this relationship. To create social capital in their practice, outpatient physicians may apply measures that facilitate social interaction among staff, foster trust and facilitate cooperation. Such measures may already be applied when hiring and training new staff, but also continuously when leading employees and when organising work tasks, e.g., by establishing regular team meetings. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

[Development of the chemical industry in the Kingdom of Poland till 1914].

PubMed

Kowalczyk, Rafał

2010-01-01

The chemical industry in the Kingdom of Poland developed on the turn of the 19th century. Earlier, in the field of industry in the Kingdom one could observe only two lines of the chemical industry: aliphatic and soap, and gas-producing and coal gas. The beginnings of the first mentioned line appeared on the turn of the 18th century, and the second branch--in the half of the 19th century. The development of chemical industry was stimulated by foreign capital expenditure, mainly by German capital. A significant impact on foreign capital expenditures within chemical industry on territories of Russian Empire, and also in the Kingdom as the most industrialized part of Empire, had tariffs. Thanks to the direct capital expenditures in the Kingdom foreign investors got an access to the receptive Russian market using the potential and technological thought of their establishments--'mother' firms. In 1913 a share of foreign capital in chemical industry in the Kingdom was 20, 30%. By dint of foreign capital expenditures in the years 1900-1913 production's value in chemical industry rose from 12 to 40 millions and 900 thousands roubles. The foreign capital, however, used to invest only in the most industrialized provinces of the Kingdom--Warsaw and Piotrków. And the greatest concentration of chemical industry could be observed just in the above-mentioned provinces. In the years 1904-1913 a number of establishments fluctuated there from 88.09 to 81.18%, and the employment--from 91.83 to 91.09%. This tendency could be observed till the outbreak of World War I. The Polish and Jewish capital that invested in chemical industry, did not have such financial resources. The investors' establishments were not large and technologically under-developed. However, the Polish and Jewish capital invested in the local market, particularly in agricultural provinces of the Kingdom.

Impact of Federal Tax Policy on Utility-Scale Solar Deployment Given Financing Interactions

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

Mai, Trieu; Cole, Wesley; Krishnan, Venkat

In this study, the authors conducted a literature review of approaches and assumptions used by other modeling teams and consultants with respect to solar project financing; developed and incorporated an ability to model the likely financing shift away from more expensive sources of capital and toward cheaper sources as the investment tax credit declines in the ReEDS model; and used the 'before and after' versions of the ReEDS model to isolate and analyze the deployment impact of the financing shift under a range of conditions. Using ReEDS scenarios with this improved capability, we find that this 'financing' shift would softenmore » the blow of the ITC reversion; however, the overall impacts of such a shift in capital structure are estimated to be small and near-term utility-scale PV deployment is found to be much more sensitive to other factors that might drive down utility-scale PV prices.« less

Evaluation of target efficiencies for solid-liquid separation steps in biofuels production.

PubMed

Kochergin, Vadim; Miller, Keith

2011-01-01

Development of liquid biofuels has entered a new phase of large scale pilot demonstration. A number of plants that are in operation or under construction face the task of addressing the engineering challenges of creating a viable plant design, scaling up and optimizing various unit operations. It is well-known that separation technologies account for 50-70% of both capital and operating cost. Additionally, reduction of environmental impact creates technological challenges that increase project cost without adding to the bottom line. Different technologies vary in terms of selection of unit operations; however, solid-liquid separations are likely to be a major contributor to the overall project cost. Despite the differences in pretreatment approaches, similar challenges arise for solid-liquid separation unit operations. A typical process for ethanol production from biomass includes several solid-liquid separation steps, depending on which particular stream is targeted for downstream processing. The nature of biomass-derived materials makes it either difficult or uneconomical to accomplish complete separation in a single step. Therefore, setting realistic efficiency targets for solid-liquid separations is an important task that influences overall process recovery and economics. Experimental data will be presented showing typical characteristics for pretreated cane bagasse at various stages of processing into cellulosic ethanol. Results of generic material balance calculations will be presented to illustrate the influence of separation target efficiencies on overall process recoveries and characteristics of waste streams.

76 FR 11554 - Fiscal Year 2010 Public Transportation on Indian Reservations Program Project Selections

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-02

... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Transit Administration Fiscal Year 2010 Public Transportation... Interior for public transportation capital projects, operating costs and planning activities that are... authorized by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users...

The High Cost of Saving Energy Dollars.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rose, Patricia

1985-01-01

In alternative financing a private company provides the capital and expertise for improving school energy efficiency. Savings are split between the school system and the company. Options for municipal leasing, cost sharing, and shared savings are explained along with financial, procedural, and legal considerations. (MLF)

Bursting at the Seams: Financing and Planning for Rising Enrollments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCord, Michael

1997-01-01

Using existing and new facilities more efficiently could accommodate increased student enrollment while producing significant savings in capital and operating costs. Ontario's Ministry of Education has identified 10 ways to increase facilities utilization, including innovative scheduling, year- round schooling, varied attendance plans, offsite…