Radiosurgery planning supported by the GEMSS grid.

PubMed

Fenner, J W; Mehrem, R A; Ganesan, V; Riley, S; Middleton, S E; Potter, K; Walton, L

2005-01-01

GEMSS (Grid Enabled Medical Simulation Services IST-2001-37153) is an EU project funded to provide a test bed for Grid-enabled health applications. Its purpose is evaluation of Grid computing in the health sector. The health context imposes particular constraints on Grid infrastructure design, and it is this that has driven the feature set of the middleware. In addition to security, the time critical nature of health applications is accommodated by a Quality of Service component, and support for a well defined business model is also included. This paper documents experience of a GEMSS compliant radiosurgery application running within the Medical Physics department at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in the UK. An outline of the Grid-enabled RAPT radiosurgery application is presented and preliminary experience of its use in the hospital environment is reported. The performance of the software is compared against GammaPlan (an industry standard) and advantages/disadvantages are highlighted. The RAPT software relies on features of the GEMSS middleware that are integral to the success of this application, and together they provide a glimpse of an enabling technology that can impact upon patient management in the 21st century.

A Security Architecture for Grid-enabling OGC Web Services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Angelini, Valerio; Petronzio, Luca

2010-05-01

In the proposed presentation we describe an architectural solution for enabling a secure access to Grids and possibly other large scale on-demand processing infrastructures through OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) Web Services (OWS). This work has been carried out in the context of the security thread of the G-OWS Working Group. G-OWS (gLite enablement of OGC Web Services) is an international open initiative started in 2008 by the European CYCLOPS , GENESI-DR, and DORII Project Consortia in order to collect/coordinate experiences in the enablement of OWS's on top of the gLite Grid middleware. G-OWS investigates the problem of the development of Spatial Data and Information Infrastructures (SDI and SII) based on the Grid/Cloud capacity in order to enable Earth Science applications and tools. Concerning security issues, the integration of OWS compliant infrastructures and gLite Grids needs to address relevant challenges, due to their respective design principles. In fact OWS's are part of a Web based architecture that demands security aspects to other specifications, whereas the gLite middleware implements the Grid paradigm with a strong security model (the gLite Grid Security Infrastructure: GSI). In our work we propose a Security Architectural Framework allowing the seamless use of Grid-enabled OGC Web Services through the federation of existing security systems (mostly web based) with the gLite GSI. This is made possible mediating between different security realms, whose mutual trust is established in advance during the deployment of the system itself. Our architecture is composed of three different security tiers: the user's security system, a specific G-OWS security system, and the gLite Grid Security Infrastructure. Applying the separation-of-concerns principle, each of these tiers is responsible for controlling the access to a well-defined resource set, respectively: the user's organization resources, the geospatial resources and services, and the Grid resources. While the gLite middleware is tied to a consolidated security approach based on X.509 certificates, our system is able to support different kinds of user's security infrastructures. Our central component, the G-OWS Security Framework, is based on the OASIS WS-Trust specifications and on the OGC GeoRM architectural framework. This allows to satisfy advanced requirements such as the enforcement of specific geospatial policies and complex secure web service chained requests. The typical use case is represented by a scientist belonging to a given organization who issues a request to a G-OWS Grid-enabled Web Service. The system initially asks the user to authenticate to his/her organization's security system and, after verification of the user's security credentials, it translates the user's digital identity into a G-OWS identity. This identity is linked to a set of attributes describing the user's access rights to the G-OWS services and resources. Inside the G-OWS Security system, access restrictions are applied making use of the enhanced Geospatial capabilities specified by the OGC GeoXACML. If the required action needs to make use of the Grid environment the system checks if the user is entitled to access a Grid infrastructure. In that case his/her identity is translated to a temporary Grid security token using the Short Lived Credential Services (IGTF Standard). In our case, for the specific gLite Grid infrastructure, some information (VOMS Attributes) is plugged into the Grid Security Token to grant the access to the user's Virtual Organization Grid resources. The resulting token is used to submit the request to the Grid and also by the various gLite middleware elements to verify the user's grants. Basing on the presented framework, the G-OWS Security Working Group developed a prototype, enabling the execution of OGC Web Services on the EGEE Production Grid through the federation with a Shibboleth based security infrastructure. Future plans aim to integrate other Web authentication services such as OpenID, Kerberos and WS-Federation.

Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database (eGRID), eGRID2002 (with years 1996 - 2000 data)

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database (eGRID) is a comprehensive source of data on the environmental characteristics of almost all electric power generated in the United States. These environmental characteristics include air emissions for nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and mercury; emissions rates; net generation; resource mix; and many other attributes. eGRID2002 (years 1996 through 2000 data) contains 16 Excel spreadsheets and the Technical Support Document, as well as the eGRID Data Browser, User's Manual, and Readme file. Archived eGRID data can be viewed as spreadsheets or by using the eGRID Data Browser. The eGRID spreadsheets can be manipulated by data users and enables users to view all the data underlying eGRID. The eGRID Data Browser enables users to view key data using powerful search features. Note that the eGRID Data Browser will not run on a Mac-based machine without Windows emulation.

Seven Measures of the Ways That Deciders Frame Their Career Decisions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cochran, Larry

1983-01-01

Illustrates seven different measures of the ways people structure a career decision. Given sets of occupational alternatives and considerations, the career grid is a decisional balance sheet that indicates the way each occupation is judged on each consideration. It can be used to correct faulty decision schemes. (JAC)

Systems and methods that generate height map models for efficient three dimensional reconstruction from depth information

DOEpatents

Frahm, Jan-Michael; Pollefeys, Marc Andre Leon; Gallup, David Robert

2015-12-08

Methods of generating a three dimensional representation of an object in a reference plane from a depth map including distances from a reference point to pixels in an image of the object taken from a reference point. Weights are assigned to respective voxels in a three dimensional grid along rays extending from the reference point through the pixels in the image based on the distances in the depth map from the reference point to the respective pixels, and a height map including an array of height values in the reference plane is formed based on the assigned weights. An n-layer height map may be constructed by generating a probabilistic occupancy grid for the voxels and forming an n-dimensional height map comprising an array of layer height values in the reference plane based on the probabilistic occupancy grid.

Tablet based distributed intelligent load management

DOEpatents

Lu, Yan; Zhou, Siyuan

2018-01-09

A facility is connected to an electricity utility and is responsive to Demand Response Events. A plurality of devices is each individually connected to the electricity grid via an addressable switch connected to a secure network that is enabled to be individually switched off by a server. An occupant of a room in control of the plurality of devices provides via a Human Machine Interface on a tablet a preferred order of switching off the plurality of devices in case of a Demand Response Event. A configuration file based at least partially on the preferred order and on a severity of the Demand Response Events determines which devices which of the plurality devices will be switched off. The server accesses the configuration file and switches off the devices included in the configuration file.

Information Power Grid (IPG) Tutorial 2003

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyers, George

2003-01-01

For NASA and the general community today Grid middleware: a) provides tools to access/use data sources (databases, instruments, ...); b) provides tools to access computing (unique and generic); c) Is an enabler of large scale collaboration. Dynamically responding to needs is a key selling point of a grid. Independent resources can be joined as appropriate to solve a problem. Provide tools to enable the building of a frameworks for application. Provide value added service to the NASA user base for utilizing resources on the grid in new and more efficient ways. Provides tools for development of Frameworks.

Experimental Evaluation of Grid Support Enabled PV Inverter Response to Abnormal Grid Conditions

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

Nelson, Austin A; Martin, Gregory D; Hurtt, James

As revised interconnection standards for grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) inverters address new advanced grid support functions (GSFs), there is increasing interest in inverter performance in the case of abnormal grid conditions. The growth of GSF-enabled inverters has outpaced the industry standards that define their operation, although recently published updates to UL1741 Supplement SA define test conditions for GSFs such as volt-var control, frequency-watt control, and voltage/frequency ride-through, among others. This paper describes the results of a comparative experimental evaluation on four commercially available, three-phase PV inverters in the 24.0-39.8 kVA power range on their GSF capability and its effect on abnormalmore » grid condition response. The evaluation examined the impact particular GSF implementations have on run-on times during islanding conditions, peak voltages in load rejection overvoltage scenarios, and peak currents during single-phase and three-phase fault events for individual inverters. Testing results indicated a wide variance in the performance of GSF enabled inverters to various test cases.« less

University of Delaware Demonstrated at NREL Vehicle-to-Grid Characteristics

Science.gov Websites

University of Delaware Demonstrated at NREL Vehicle-to-Grid Characteristics of Electric Vehicles At the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF), the University of Delaware demonstrated the vehicle-to-grid , featuring vehilce-to-grid integration capabilities enabling it to feed power back to the grid and

Passion in the performing arts: clarifying active occupational participation.

PubMed

Mullen, Rachel; Davis, Jane A; Polatajko, Helene J

2012-01-01

Active participation in daily occupations is a vital part of everyday life, social participation and healthy life long human development; however, enablers of active participation are not well understood. Passion, a strong tendency towards an activity that a person finds meaningful and spends a lot of time doing, is a potential enabler. Accordingly, it is important to understand how an individual's passion for a specific occupation plays out across the occupational life course. To explore the experience of passion across the life course of older adults involved in the performing arts. Seven older adults involved in, or retired from, the performing arts, who consider themselves passionate about their occupation. A constructivist grounded theory approach was used to explore, through interviews with older adults, passion for performing arts across the life course. Emerging themes supported development of an initial theoretical framework explicating active participation and passion. It centers on passion as an enabler of occupational participation through different modes, and suggests barriers to that enablement process. Findings suggest that passion has an important role in continued active participation in an occupation; however, barriers, such as social and financial, can derail the pursuit of a passionate occupation.

Generic Dynamic Environment Perception Using Smart Mobile Devices.

PubMed

Danescu, Radu; Itu, Razvan; Petrovai, Andra

2016-10-17

The driving environment is complex and dynamic, and the attention of the driver is continuously challenged, therefore computer based assistance achieved by processing image and sensor data may increase traffic safety. While active sensors and stereovision have the advantage of obtaining 3D data directly, monocular vision is easy to set up, and can benefit from the increasing computational power of smart mobile devices, and from the fact that almost all of them come with an embedded camera. Several driving assistance application are available for mobile devices, but they are mostly targeted for simple scenarios and a limited range of obstacle shapes and poses. This paper presents a technique for generic, shape independent real-time obstacle detection for mobile devices, based on a dynamic, free form 3D representation of the environment: the particle based occupancy grid. Images acquired in real time from the smart mobile device's camera are processed by removing the perspective effect and segmenting the resulted bird-eye view image to identify candidate obstacle areas, which are then used to update the occupancy grid. The occupancy grid tracked cells are grouped into obstacles depicted as cuboids having position, size, orientation and speed. The easy to set up system is able to reliably detect most obstacles in urban traffic, and its measurement accuracy is comparable to a stereovision system.

The Adoption of Grid Computing Technology by Organizations: A Quantitative Study Using Technology Acceptance Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Udoh, Emmanuel E.

2010-01-01

Advances in grid technology have enabled some organizations to harness enormous computational power on demand. However, the prediction of widespread adoption of the grid technology has not materialized despite the obvious grid advantages. This situation has encouraged intense efforts to close the research gap in the grid adoption process. In this…

A framework for WRF to WRF-IBM grid nesting to enable multiscale simulations

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

Wiersema, David John; Lundquist, Katherine A.; Chow, Fotini Katapodes

With advances in computational power, mesoscale models, such as the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, are often pushed to higher resolutions. As the model’s horizontal resolution is refined, the maximum resolved terrain slope will increase. Because WRF uses a terrain-following coordinate, this increase in resolved terrain slopes introduces additional grid skewness. At high resolutions and over complex terrain, this grid skewness can introduce large numerical errors that require methods, such as the immersed boundary method, to keep the model accurate and stable. Our implementation of the immersed boundary method in the WRF model, WRF-IBM, has proven effective at microscalemore » simulations over complex terrain. WRF-IBM uses a non-conforming grid that extends beneath the model’s terrain. Boundary conditions at the immersed boundary, the terrain, are enforced by introducing a body force term to the governing equations at points directly beneath the immersed boundary. Nesting between a WRF parent grid and a WRF-IBM child grid requires a new framework for initialization and forcing of the child WRF-IBM grid. This framework will enable concurrent multi-scale simulations within the WRF model, improving the accuracy of high-resolution simulations and enabling simulations across a wide range of scales.« less

Enabling occupational participation and social inclusion for people recovering from mental ill-health through community gardening.

PubMed

Whatley, Elise; Fortune, Tracy; Williams, Anne E

2015-12-01

There is a need for mental health practitioners to understand how inclusive environments that enable participation can be developed. This paper presents the findings from an ethnographic exploration of Mind 'Sprout', a supported community garden situated in inner-city Melbourne. The study explored how this community development project created a socially inclusive environment, and enabled occupational participation among people recovering from mental ill-health. Consistent with the ethos of ethnography, data were collected through participant observation and asking questions of people as they participated at 'Sprout'. Six individual interviews and review of organisational documents were also conducted. Qualitative analysis was used to identify the understandings of how the Sprout community was created and experienced by its members. Three interrelated themes were revealed: Sprout community garden enabled social inclusion and occupational participation by creating community, creating a flexible environment that supports participation and creating a learning environment. The way Sprout operated enabled its members to participate together in occupation and to interact socially within the garden community and beyond as part of the local community. Sprout has developed a philosophy of active participation. The findings point to the opportunities that community development projects offer for creating environments that enable participation and social inclusion. They also suggest that an opportunity exists for occupational therapists to broaden their practise by leading or collaborating in these projects. © 2015 Occupational Therapy Australia.

A cross-domain communication resource scheduling method for grid-enabled communication networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xiangquan; Wen, Xiang; Zhang, Yongding

2011-10-01

To support a wide range of different grid applications in environments where various heterogeneous communication networks coexist, it is important to enable advanced capabilities in on-demand and dynamical integration and efficient co-share with cross-domain heterogeneous communication resource, thus providing communication services which are impossible for single communication resource to afford. Based on plug-and-play co-share and soft integration with communication resource, Grid-enabled communication network is flexibly built up to provide on-demand communication services for gird applications with various requirements on quality of service. Based on the analysis of joint job and communication resource scheduling in grid-enabled communication networks (GECN), this paper presents a cross multi-domain communication resource cooperatively scheduling method and describes the main processes such as traffic requirement resolution for communication services, cross multi-domain negotiation on communication resource, on-demand communication resource scheduling, and so on. The presented method is to afford communication service capability to cross-domain traffic delivery in GECNs. Further research work towards validation and implement of the presented method is pointed out at last.

Schnek: A C++ library for the development of parallel simulation codes on regular grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitz, Holger

2018-05-01

A large number of algorithms across the field of computational physics are formulated on grids with a regular topology. We present Schnek, a library that enables fast development of parallel simulations on regular grids. Schnek contains a number of easy-to-use modules that greatly reduce the amount of administrative code for large-scale simulation codes. The library provides an interface for reading simulation setup files with a hierarchical structure. The structure of the setup file is translated into a hierarchy of simulation modules that the developer can specify. The reader parses and evaluates mathematical expressions and initialises variables or grid data. This enables developers to write modular and flexible simulation codes with minimal effort. Regular grids of arbitrary dimension are defined as well as mechanisms for defining physical domain sizes, grid staggering, and ghost cells on these grids. Ghost cells can be exchanged between neighbouring processes using MPI with a simple interface. The grid data can easily be written into HDF5 files using serial or parallel I/O.

An Open Framework for Low-Latency Communications across the Smart Grid Network

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sturm, John Andrew

2011-01-01

The recent White House (2011) policy paper for the Smart Grid that was released on June 13, 2011, "A Policy Framework for the 21st Century Grid: Enabling Our Secure Energy Future," defines four major problems to be solved and the one that is addressed in this dissertation is Securing the Grid. Securing the Grid is referred to as one of…

Using interviews and biological sign surveys to infer seasonal use of forested and agricultural portions of a human-dominated landscape by Asian elephants in Nepal

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lamichhane, Babu Ram; Subedi, Naresh; Pokheral, Chiranjibi Prasad; Dhakal, Maheshwar; Acharya, Krishna Prasad; Pradhan, Narendra Man Babu; Smith, James L. David; Malla, Sabita; Thakuri, Bishnu Singh; Yackulic, Charles B.

2018-01-01

Understanding how wide-ranging animals use landscapes in which human use is highly heterogeneous is important for determining patterns of human–wildlife conflict and designing mitigation strategies. Here, we show how biological sign surveys in forested components of a human-dominated landscape can be combined with human interviews in agricultural portions of a landscape to provide a full picture of seasonal use of different landscape components by wide-ranging animals and resulting human–wildlife conflict. We selected Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Nepal to illustrate this approach. Asian elephants are threatened throughout their geographic range, and there are large gaps in our understanding of their landscape-scale habitat use. We identified all potential elephant habitat in Nepal and divided the potential habitat into sampling units based on a 10 km by 10 km grid. Forested areas within grids were surveyed for signs of elephant use, and local villagers were interviewed regarding elephant use of agricultural areas and instances of conflict. Data were analyzed using single-season and multi-season (dynamic) occupancy models. A single-season occupancy model applied to data from 139 partially or wholly forested grid cells estimated that 0.57 of grid cells were used by elephants. Dynamic occupancy models fit to data from interviews across 158 grid cells estimated that monthly use of non-forested, human-dominated areas over the preceding year varied between 0.43 and 0.82 with a minimum in February and maximum in October. Seasonal patterns of crop raiding by elephants coincided with monthly elephant use of human-dominated areas, and serious instances of human–wildlife conflict were common. Efforts to mitigate human–elephant conflict in Nepal are likely to be most effective if they are concentrated during August through December when elephant use of human-dominated landscapes and human–elephant conflict are most common.

Spaceflight Operations Services Grid (SOSG) Prototype Implementation and Feasibility Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert N.; Thigpen, William W.; Lisotta, Anthony J.; Redman, Sandra

2004-01-01

Science Operations Services Grid is focusing on building a prototype grid-based environment that incorporates existing and new spaceflight services to enable current and future NASA programs with cost savings and new and evolvable methods to conduct science in a distributed environment. The Science Operations Services Grid (SOSG) will provide a distributed environment for widely disparate organizations to conduct their systems and processes in a more efficient and cost effective manner. These organizations include those that: 1) engage in space-based science and operations, 2) develop space-based systems and processes, and 3) conduct scientific research, bringing together disparate scientific disciplines like geology and oceanography to create new information. In addition educational outreach will be significantly enhanced by providing to schools the same tools used by NASA with the ability of the schools to actively participate on many levels in the science generated by NASA from space and on the ground. The services range from voice, video and telemetry processing and display to data mining, high level processing and visualization tools all accessible from a single portal. In this environment, users would not require high end systems or processes at their home locations to use these services. Also, the user would need to know minimal details about the applications in order to utilize the services. In addition, security at all levels is an underlying goal of the project. The Science Operations Services Grid will focus on four tools that are currently used by the ISS Payload community along with nine more that are new to the community. Under the prototype four Grid virtual organizations PO) will be developed to represent four types of users. They are a Payload (experimenters) VO, a Flight Controllers VO, an Engineering and Science Collaborators VO and an Education and Public Outreach VO. The User-based services will be implemented to replicate the operational voice, video, telemetry and commanding systems. Once the User-based services are in place, they will be analyzed to establish feasibility for Grid enabling. If feasible then each User-based service will be Grid enabled. The remaining non-Grid services if not already Web enabled will be so enabled. In the end, four portals will be developed one for each VO. Each portal will contain the appropriate User-based services required for that VO to operate.

FermiGrid

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

Yocum, D.R.; Berman, E.; Canal, P.

2007-05-01

As one of the founding members of the Open Science Grid Consortium (OSG), Fermilab enables coherent access to its production resources through the Grid infrastructure system called FermiGrid. This system successfully provides for centrally managed grid services, opportunistic resource access, development of OSG Interfaces for Fermilab, and an interface to the Fermilab dCache system. FermiGrid supports virtual organizations (VOs) including high energy physics experiments (USCMS, MINOS, D0, CDF, ILC), astrophysics experiments (SDSS, Auger, DES), biology experiments (GADU, Nanohub) and educational activities.

Generic Dynamic Environment Perception Using Smart Mobile Devices

PubMed Central

Danescu, Radu; Itu, Razvan; Petrovai, Andra

2016-01-01

The driving environment is complex and dynamic, and the attention of the driver is continuously challenged, therefore computer based assistance achieved by processing image and sensor data may increase traffic safety. While active sensors and stereovision have the advantage of obtaining 3D data directly, monocular vision is easy to set up, and can benefit from the increasing computational power of smart mobile devices, and from the fact that almost all of them come with an embedded camera. Several driving assistance application are available for mobile devices, but they are mostly targeted for simple scenarios and a limited range of obstacle shapes and poses. This paper presents a technique for generic, shape independent real-time obstacle detection for mobile devices, based on a dynamic, free form 3D representation of the environment: the particle based occupancy grid. Images acquired in real time from the smart mobile device’s camera are processed by removing the perspective effect and segmenting the resulted bird-eye view image to identify candidate obstacle areas, which are then used to update the occupancy grid. The occupancy grid tracked cells are grouped into obstacles depicted as cuboids having position, size, orientation and speed. The easy to set up system is able to reliably detect most obstacles in urban traffic, and its measurement accuracy is comparable to a stereovision system. PMID:27763501

PNNL Data-Intensive Computing for a Smarter Energy Grid

ScienceCinema

Carol Imhoff; Zhenyu (Henry) Huang; Daniel Chavarria

2017-12-09

The Middleware for Data-Intensive Computing (MeDICi) Integration Framework, an integrated platform to solve data analysis and processing needs, supports PNNL research on the U.S. electric power grid. MeDICi is enabling development of visualizations of grid operations and vulnerabilities, with goal of near real-time analysis to aid operators in preventing and mitigating grid failures.

Laser-Based Slam with Efficient Occupancy Likelihood Map Learning for Dynamic Indoor Scenes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Li; Yao, Jian; Xie, Renping; Tu, Jinge; Feng, Chen

2016-06-01

Location-Based Services (LBS) have attracted growing attention in recent years, especially in indoor environments. The fundamental technique of LBS is the map building for unknown environments, this technique also named as simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) in robotic society. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for SLAMin dynamic indoor scenes based on a 2D laser scanner mounted on a mobile Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) with the help of the grid-based occupancy likelihood map. Instead of applying scan matching in two adjacent scans, we propose to match current scan with the occupancy likelihood map learned from all previous scans in multiple scales to avoid the accumulation of matching errors. Due to that the acquisition of the points in a scan is sequential but not simultaneous, there unavoidably exists the scan distortion at different extents. To compensate the scan distortion caused by the motion of the UGV, we propose to integrate a velocity of a laser range finder (LRF) into the scan matching optimization framework. Besides, to reduce the effect of dynamic objects such as walking pedestrians often existed in indoor scenes as much as possible, we propose a new occupancy likelihood map learning strategy by increasing or decreasing the probability of each occupancy grid after each scan matching. Experimental results in several challenged indoor scenes demonstrate that our proposed approach is capable of providing high-precision SLAM results.

The effects of urbanization on population density, occupancy, and detection probability of wild felids.

PubMed

Lewis, Jesse S; Logan, Kenneth A; Alldredge, Mat W; Bailey, Larissa L; VandeWoude, Sue; Crooks, Kevin R

2015-10-01

Urbanization is a primary driver of landscape conversion, with far-reaching effects on landscape pattern and process, particularly related to the population characteristics of animals. Urbanization can alter animal movement and habitat quality, both of which can influence population abundance and persistence. We evaluated three important population characteristics (population density, site occupancy, and species detection probability) of a medium-sized and a large carnivore across varying levels of urbanization. Specifically, we studied bobcat and puma populations across wildland, exurban development, and wildland-urban interface (WUI) sampling grids to test hypotheses evaluating how urbanization affects wild felid populations and their prey. Exurban development appeared to have a greater impact on felid populations than did habitat adjacent to a major urban area (i.e., WUI); estimates of population density for both bobcats and pumas were lower in areas of exurban development compared to wildland areas, whereas population density was similar between WUI and wildland habitat. Bobcats and pumas were less likely to be detected in habitat as the amount of human disturbance associated with residential development increased at a site, which was potentially related to reduced habitat quality resulting from urbanization. However, occupancy of both felids was similar between grids in both study areas, indicating that this population metric was less sensitive than density. At the scale of the sampling grid, detection probability for bobcats in urbanized habitat was greater than in wildland areas, potentially due to restrictive movement corridors and funneling of animal movements in landscapes influenced by urbanization. Occupancy of important felid prey (cottontail rabbits and mule deer) was similar across levels of urbanization, although elk occupancy was lower in urbanized areas. Our study indicates that the conservation of medium- and large-sized felids associated with urbanization likely will be most successful if large areas of wildland habitat are maintained, even in close proximity to urban areas, and wildland habitat is not converted to low-density residential development.

Grid enablement of OpenGeospatial Web Services: the G-OWS Working Group

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mazzetti, Paolo

2010-05-01

In last decades two main paradigms for resource sharing emerged and reached maturity: the Web and the Grid. They both demonstrate suitable for building Distributed Computing Infrastructures (DCIs) supporting the coordinated sharing of resources (i.e. data, information, services, etc) on the Internet. Grid and Web DCIs have much in common as a result of their underlying Internet technology (protocols, models and specifications). However, being based on different requirements and architectural approaches, they show some differences as well. The Web's "major goal was to be a shared information space through which people and machines could communicate" [Berners-Lee 1996]. The success of the Web, and its consequent pervasiveness, made it appealing for building specialized systems like the Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs). In this systems the introduction of Web-based geo-information technologies enables specialized services for geospatial data sharing and processing. The Grid was born to achieve "flexible, secure, coordinated resource sharing among dynamic collections of individuals, institutions, and resources" [Foster 2001]. It specifically focuses on large-scale resource sharing, innovative applications, and, in some cases, high-performance orientation. In the Earth and Space Sciences (ESS) the most part of handled information is geo-referred (geo-information) since spatial and temporal meta-information is of primary importance in many application domains: Earth Sciences, Disasters Management, Environmental Sciences, etc. On the other hand, in several application areas there is the need of running complex models which require the large processing and storage capabilities that the Grids are able to provide. Therefore the integration of geo-information and Grid technologies might be a valuable approach in order to enable advanced ESS applications. Currently both geo-information and Grid technologies have reached a high level of maturity, allowing to build such an integration on existing solutions. More specifically, the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Services (OWS) specifications play a fundamental role in geospatial information sharing (e.g. in INSPIRE Implementing Rules, GEOSS architecture, GMES Services, etc.). On the Grid side, the gLite middleware, developed in the European EGEE (Enabling Grids for E-sciencE) Projects, is widely spread in Europe and beyond, proving its high scalability and it is one of the middleware chosen for the future European Grid Infrastructure (EGI) initiative. Therefore the convergence between OWS and gLite technologies would be desirable for a seamless access to the Grid capabilities through OWS-compliant systems. Anyway, to achieve this harmonization there are some obstacles to overcome. Firstly, a semantics mismatch must be addressed: gLite handle low-level (e.g. close to the machine) concepts like "file", "data", "instruments", "job", etc., while geo-information services handle higher-level (closer to the human) concepts like "coverage", "observation", "measurement", "model", etc. Secondly, an architectural mismatch must be addressed: OWS implements a Web Service-Oriented-Architecture which is stateless, synchronous and with no embedded security (which is demanded to other specs), while gLite implements the Grid paradigm in an architecture which is stateful, asynchronous (even not fully event-based) and with strong embedded security (based on the VO paradigm). In recent years many initiatives and projects have worked out possible approaches for implementing Grid-enabled OWSs. Just to mention some: (i) in 2007 the OGC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Open Grid Forum, "a community of users, developers, and vendors leading the global standardization effort for grid computing."; (ii) the OGC identified "WPS Profiles - Conflation; and Grid processing" as one of the tasks in the Geo Processing Workflow theme of the OWS Phase 6 (OWS-6); (iii) several national, European and international projects investigated different aspects of this integration, developing demonstrators and Proof-of-Concepts; In this context, "gLite enablement of OpenGeospatial Web Services" (G-OWS) is an initiative started in 2008 by the European CYCLOPS, GENESI-DR, and DORII Projects Consortia in order to collect/coordinate experiences on the enablement of OWS on top of the gLite middleware [GOWS]. Currently G-OWS counts ten member organizations from Europe and beyond, and four European Projects involved. It broadened its scope to the development of Spatial Data and Information Infrastructures (SDI and SII) based on the Grid/Cloud capacity in order to enable Earth Science applications and tools. Its operational objectives are the following: i) to contribute to the OGC-OGF initiative; ii) to release a reference implementation as standard gLite APIs (under the gLite software license); iii) to release a reference model (including procedures and guidelines) for OWS Grid-ification, as far as gLite is concerned; iv) to foster and promote the formation of consortiums for participation to projects/initiatives aimed at building Grid-enabled SDIs To achieve this objectives G-OWS bases its activities on two main guiding principles: a) the adoption of a service-oriented architecture based on the information modelling approach, and b) standardization as a means of achieving interoperability (i.e. adoption of standards from ISO TC211, OGC OWS, OGF). In the first year of activity G-OWS has designed a general architectural framework stemming from the FP6 CYCLOPS studies and enriched by the outcomes of other projects and initiatives involved (i.e. FP7 GENESI-DR, FP7 DORII, AIST GeoGrid, etc.). Some proof-of-concepts have been developed to demonstrate the flexibility and scalability of such architectural framework. The G-OWS WG developed implementations of gLite-enabled Web Coverage Service (WCS) and Web Processing Service (WPS), and an implementation of a Shibboleth authentication for gLite-enabled OWS in order to evaluate the possible integration of Web and Grid security models. The presentation will aim to communicate the G-OWS organization, activities, future plans and means to involve the ESSI community. References [Berners-Lee 1996] T. Berners-Lee, "WWW: Past, present, and future". IEEE Computer, 29(10), Oct. 1996, pp. 69-77. [Foster 2001] I. Foster, C. Kesselman and S. Tuecke, "The Anatomy of the Grid. The International Journal ofHigh Performance Computing Applications", 15(3):200-222, Fall 2001 [GOWS] G-OWS WG, https://www.g-ows.org/, accessed: 15 January 2010

Grid Enabled Geospatial Catalogue Web Service

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Ai-Jun; Di, Li-Ping; Wei, Ya-Xing; Liu, Yang; Bui, Yu-Qi; Hu, Chau-Min; Mehrotra, Piyush

2004-01-01

Geospatial Catalogue Web Service is a vital service for sharing and interoperating volumes of distributed heterogeneous geospatial resources, such as data, services, applications, and their replicas over the web. Based on the Grid technology and the Open Geospatial Consortium (0GC) s Catalogue Service - Web Information Model, this paper proposes a new information model for Geospatial Catalogue Web Service, named as GCWS which can securely provides Grid-based publishing, managing and querying geospatial data and services, and the transparent access to the replica data and related services under the Grid environment. This information model integrates the information model of the Grid Replica Location Service (RLS)/Monitoring & Discovery Service (MDS) with the information model of OGC Catalogue Service (CSW), and refers to the geospatial data metadata standards from IS0 19115, FGDC and NASA EOS Core System and service metadata standards from IS0 191 19 to extend itself for expressing geospatial resources. Using GCWS, any valid geospatial user, who belongs to an authorized Virtual Organization (VO), can securely publish and manage geospatial resources, especially query on-demand data in the virtual community and get back it through the data-related services which provide functions such as subsetting, reformatting, reprojection etc. This work facilitates the geospatial resources sharing and interoperating under the Grid environment, and implements geospatial resources Grid enabled and Grid technologies geospatial enabled. It 2!so makes researcher to focus on science, 2nd not cn issues with computing ability, data locztic, processir,g and management. GCWS also is a key component for workflow-based virtual geospatial data producing.

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

von Laszewski, G.; Foster, I.; Gawor, J.

In this paper we report on the features of the Java Commodity Grid Kit. The Java CoG Kit provides middleware for accessing Grid functionality from the Java framework. Java CoG Kit middleware is general enough to design a variety of advanced Grid applications with quite different user requirements. Access to the Grid is established via Globus protocols, allowing the Java CoG Kit to communicate also with the C Globus reference implementation. Thus, the Java CoG Kit provides Grid developers with the ability to utilize the Grid, as well as numerous additional libraries and frameworks developed by the Java community tomore » enable network, Internet, enterprise, and peer-to peer computing. A variety of projects have successfully used the client libraries of the Java CoG Kit to access Grids driven by the C Globus software. In this paper we also report on the efforts to develop server side Java CoG Kit components. As part of this research we have implemented a prototype pure Java resource management system that enables one to run Globus jobs on platforms on which a Java virtual machine is supported, including Windows NT machines.« less

Robust Control of Wide Bandgap Power Electronics Device Enabled Smart Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Tong

In recent years, wide bandgap (WBG) devices enable power converters with higher power density and higher efficiency. On the other hand, smart grid technologies are getting mature due to new battery technology and computer technology. In the near future, the two technologies will form the next generation of smart grid enabled by WBG devices. This dissertation deals with two applications: silicon carbide (SiC) device used for medium voltage level interface (7.2 kV to 240 V) and gallium nitride (GaN) device used for low voltage level interface (240 V/120 V). A 20 kW solid state transformer (SST) is designed with 6 kHz switching frequency SiC rectifier. Then three robust control design methods are proposed for each of its smart grid operation modes. In grid connected mode, a new LCL filter design method is proposed considering grid voltage THD, grid current THD and current regulation loop robust stability with respect to the grid impedance change. In grid islanded mode, micro synthesis method combined with variable structure control is used to design a robust controller for grid voltage regulation. For grid emergency mode, multivariable controller designed using Hinfinity synthesis method is proposed for accurate power sharing. Controller-hardware-in-the-loop (CHIL) testbed considering 7-SST system is setup with Real Time Digital Simulator (RTDS). The real TMS320F28335 DSP and Spartan 6 FPGA control board is used to interface a switching model SST in RTDS. And the proposed control methods are tested. For low voltage level application, a 3.3 kW smart grid hardware is built with 3 GaN inverters. The inverters are designed with the GaN device characterized using the proposed multi-function double pulse tester. The inverter is controlled by onboard TMS320F28379D dual core DSP with 200 kHz sampling frequency. Each inverter is tested to process 2.2 kW power with overall efficiency of 96.5 % at room temperature. The smart grid monitor system and fault interrupt devices (FID) based on Arduino Mega2560 are built and tested. The smart grid cooperates with GaN inverters through CAN bus communication. At last, the three GaN inverters smart grid achieved the function of grid connected to islanded mode smooth transition.

Data Grid Management Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, Reagan W.; Jagatheesan, Arun; Rajasekar, Arcot; Wan, Michael; Schroeder, Wayne

2004-01-01

The "Grid" is an emerging infrastructure for coordinating access across autonomous organizations to distributed, heterogeneous computation and data resources. Data grids are being built around the world as the next generation data handling systems for sharing, publishing, and preserving data residing on storage systems located in multiple administrative domains. A data grid provides logical namespaces for users, digital entities and storage resources to create persistent identifiers for controlling access, enabling discovery, and managing wide area latencies. This paper introduces data grids and describes data grid use cases. The relevance of data grids to digital libraries and persistent archives is demonstrated, and research issues in data grids and grid dataflow management systems are discussed.

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

von Laszewski, G.; Gawor, J.; Lane, P.

In this paper we report on the features of the Java Commodity Grid Kit (Java CoG Kit). The Java CoG Kit provides middleware for accessing Grid functionality from the Java framework. Java CoG Kit middleware is general enough to design a variety of advanced Grid applications with quite different user requirements. Access to the Grid is established via Globus Toolkit protocols, allowing the Java CoG Kit to also communicate with the services distributed as part of the C Globus Toolkit reference implementation. Thus, the Java CoG Kit provides Grid developers with the ability to utilize the Grid, as well asmore » numerous additional libraries and frameworks developed by the Java community to enable network, Internet, enterprise and peer-to-peer computing. A variety of projects have successfully used the client libraries of the Java CoG Kit to access Grids driven by the C Globus Toolkit software. In this paper we also report on the efforts to develop serverside Java CoG Kit components. As part of this research we have implemented a prototype pure Java resource management system that enables one to run Grid jobs on platforms on which a Java virtual machine is supported, including Windows NT machines.« less

Refining area of occupancy to address the modifiable areal unit problem in ecology and conservation.

PubMed

Moat, Justin; Bachman, Steven P; Field, Richard; Boyd, Doreen S

2018-05-23

The 'modifiable areal unit problem' is prevalent across many aspects of spatial analysis within ecology and conservation. The problem is particularly manifest when calculating metrics for extinction risk estimation, for example, area of occupancy (AOO). Although embedded into the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List criteria, AOO is often not used or is poorly applied. Here we evaluate new and existing methods for calculating AOO from occurrence records and present a method for determining the minimum AOO using a uniform grid. We evaluate the grid cell shape, grid origin and grid rotation with both real-world and simulated data, reviewing the effects on AOO values, and possible impacts for species already assessed on the IUCN Red List. We show that AOO can vary by up to 80% and a ratio of cells to points of 1:1.21 gives the maximum variation in the number of occupied cells. These findings potentially impact 3% of existing species on the IUCN Red List, as well as species not yet assessed. We show that a new method that combines both grid rotation and moving grid origin gives fast, robust and reproducible results and, in the majority of cases, achieves the minimum AOO. As well as reporting minimum AOO, we outline a confidence interval which should be incorporated into existing tools that support species risk assessment. We also make further recommendations for reporting AOO and other areal measurements within ecology, leading to more robust methods for future species risk assessment. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Grid Architecture 2

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

Taft, Jeffrey D.

The report describes work done on Grid Architecture under the auspices of the Department of Electricity Office of Electricity Delivery and Reliability in 2015. As described in the first Grid Architecture report, the primary purpose of this work is to provide stakeholder insight about grid issues so as to enable superior decision making on their part. Doing this requires the creation of various work products, including oft-times complex diagrams, analyses, and explanations. This report provides architectural insights into several important grid topics and also describes work done to advance the science of Grid Architecture as well.

78 FR 21977 - Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (MACOSH)

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-12

... DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Occupational Safety and Health Administration Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (MACOSH) AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor... Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health. The Committee will better enable OSHA to...

Occupational Component. 36-Level Courses. Program of Studies/Curriculum Guide. Integrated Occupational Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alberta Dept. of Education, Edmonton. Curriculum Branch.

The Integrated Occupational Program (IOP) enables students in Alberta (Canada) who have experienced difficulty in learning to develop essential concepts, skills, and attitudes in the context of one or more occupational clusters. The IOP has four levels: occupational awareness (grades 8-9), career exploration (level 16), occupational orientation…

HappyFace as a generic monitoring tool for HEP experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawamura, Gen; Magradze, Erekle; Musheghyan, Haykuhi; Quadt, Arnulf; Rzehorz, Gerhard

2015-12-01

The importance of monitoring on HEP grid computing systems is growing due to a significant increase in their complexity. Computer scientists and administrators have been studying and building effective ways to gather information on and clarify a status of each local grid infrastructure. The HappyFace project aims at making the above-mentioned workflow possible. It aggregates, processes and stores the information and the status of different HEP monitoring resources into the common database of HappyFace. The system displays the information and the status through a single interface. However, this model of HappyFace relied on the monitoring resources which are always under development in the HEP experiments. Consequently, HappyFace needed to have direct access methods to the grid application and grid service layers in the different HEP grid systems. To cope with this issue, we use a reliable HEP software repository, the CernVM File System. We propose a new implementation and an architecture of HappyFace, the so-called grid-enabled HappyFace. It allows its basic framework to connect directly to the grid user applications and the grid collective services, without involving the monitoring resources in the HEP grid systems. This approach gives HappyFace several advantages: Portability, to provide an independent and generic monitoring system among the HEP grid systems. Eunctionality, to allow users to perform various diagnostic tools in the individual HEP grid systems and grid sites. Elexibility, to make HappyFace beneficial and open for the various distributed grid computing environments. Different grid-enabled modules, to connect to the Ganga job monitoring system and to check the performance of grid transfers among the grid sites, have been implemented. The new HappyFace system has been successfully integrated and now it displays the information and the status of both the monitoring resources and the direct access to the grid user applications and the grid collective services.

Grid Computing Education Support

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

Steven Crumb

2008-01-15

The GGF Student Scholar program enabled GGF the opportunity to bring over sixty qualified graduate and under-graduate students with interests in grid technologies to its three annual events over the three-year program.

THE VIRTUAL INSTRUMENT: SUPPORT FOR GRID-ENABLED MCELL SIMULATIONS

PubMed Central

Casanova, Henri; Berman, Francine; Bartol, Thomas; Gokcay, Erhan; Sejnowski, Terry; Birnbaum, Adam; Dongarra, Jack; Miller, Michelle; Ellisman, Mark; Faerman, Marcio; Obertelli, Graziano; Wolski, Rich; Pomerantz, Stuart; Stiles, Joel

2010-01-01

Ensembles of widely distributed, heterogeneous resources, or Grids, have emerged as popular platforms for large-scale scientific applications. In this paper we present the Virtual Instrument project, which provides an integrated application execution environment that enables end-users to run and interact with running scientific simulations on Grids. This work is performed in the specific context of MCell, a computational biology application. While MCell provides the basis for running simulations, its capabilities are currently limited in terms of scale, ease-of-use, and interactivity. These limitations preclude usage scenarios that are critical for scientific advances. Our goal is to create a scientific “Virtual Instrument” from MCell by allowing its users to transparently access Grid resources while being able to steer running simulations. In this paper, we motivate the Virtual Instrument project and discuss a number of relevant issues and accomplishments in the area of Grid software development and application scheduling. We then describe our software design and report on the current implementation. We verify and evaluate our design via experiments with MCell on a real-world Grid testbed. PMID:20689618

Experimental Evaluation of Grid Support Enabled PV Inverter Response to Abnormal Grid Conditions: Preprint

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

Nelson, Austin; Martin, Gregory; Hurtt, James

As revised interconnection standards for grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) inverters address new advanced grid support functions (GSFs), there is increasing interest in inverter performance in the case of abnormal grid conditions. The growth of GSF-enabled inverters has outpaced the industry standards that define their operation, although recently published updates to UL1741 with Supplement SA define test conditions for GSFs such as volt-var control, frequency-watt control, and volt-age/frequency ride-through, among others. A comparative experimental evaluation has been completed on four commercially available, three-phase PV inverters in the 24.0-39.8 kVA power range on their GSF capability and the effect on abnormal grid conditionmore » response. This study examines the impact particular GSF implementations have on run-on times during islanding conditions, peak voltages in load rejection overvoltage scenarios, and peak currents during single-phase and three-phase fault events for individual inverters. This report reviews comparative test data, which shows that GSFs have little impact on the metrics of interest in most tests cases.« less

Smart Grid Enabled L2 EVSE for the Commercial Market

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

Weeks, John; Pugh, Jerry

In 2011, the DOE issued Funding Opportunity DE-FOA-0000554 as a means of addressing two major task areas identified by the Grid Integration Tech Team (GITT) that would help transition Electric vehicles from a market driven by early adopters and environmental supporters to a market with mainstream volumes. Per DE-FOA-0000554, these tasks were: To reduce the cost of Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE), thereby increasing the likelihood of the build out of EV charging infrastructure. The goal of increasing the number of EVSE available was to ease concerns over range anxiety, and promote the adoption of electric vehicles: To allow EVmore » loads to be managed via the smart grid, thereby maintaining power quality, reliability and affordability, while protecting installed distribution equipment. In December of that year, the DOE awarded one of the two contracts targeted toward commercial EVSE to Eaton, and in early 2012, we began in earnest the process of developing a Smart Grid Enable L2 EVSE for the Commercial Market (hereafter known as the DOE Charger). The design of the Smart Grid Enabled L2 EVSE was based primarily on the FOA requirements along with input from the Electric Transportation Infrastructure product line (hereafter ETI) marketing team who aided in development of the customer requirements.« less

Grid-Enabled High Energy Physics Research using a Beowulf Cluster

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmood, Akhtar

2005-04-01

At Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, we have built a 8-node 25 Gflops Beowulf Cluster with 2.5 TB of disk storage space to carry out grid-enabled, data-intensive high energy physics research for the ATLAS experiment via Grid3. We will describe how we built and configured our Cluster, which we have named the Sphinx Beowulf Cluster. We will describe the results of our cluster benchmark studies and the run-time plots of several parallel application codes. Once fully functional, the Cluster will be part of Grid3[www.ivdgl.org/grid3]. The current ATLAS simulation grid application, models the entire physical processes from the proton anti-proton collisions and detector's response to the collision debri through the complete reconstruction of the event from analyses of these responses. The end result is a detailed set of data that simulates the real physical collision event inside a particle detector. Grid is the new IT infrastructure for the 21^st century science -- a new computing paradigm that is poised to transform the practice of large-scale data-intensive research in science and engineering. The Grid will allow scientist worldwide to view and analyze huge amounts of data flowing from the large-scale experiments in High Energy Physics. The Grid is expected to bring together geographically and organizationally dispersed computational resources, such as CPUs, storage systems, communication systems, and data sources.

A Structured-Grid Quality Measure for Simulated Hypersonic Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen J.

2004-01-01

A structured-grid quality measure is proposed, combining three traditional measurements: intersection angles, stretching, and curvature. Quality assesses whether the grid generated provides the best possible tradeoffs in grid stretching and skewness that enable accurate flow predictions, whereas the grid density is assumed to be a constraint imposed by the available computational resources and the desired resolution of the flow field. The usefulness of this quality measure is assessed by comparing heat transfer predictions from grid convergence studies for grids of varying quality in the range of [0.6-0.8] on an 8'half-angle sphere-cone, at laminar, perfect gas, Mach 10 wind tunnel conditions.

Grid Generation Techniques Utilizing the Volume Grid Manipulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen J.

1998-01-01

This paper presents grid generation techniques available in the Volume Grid Manipulation (VGM) code. The VGM code is designed to manipulate existing line, surface and volume grids to improve the quality of the data. It embodies an easy to read rich language of commands that enables such alterations as topology changes, grid adaption and smoothing. Additionally, the VGM code can be used to construct simplified straight lines, splines, and conic sections which are common curves used in the generation and manipulation of points, lines, surfaces and volumes (i.e., grid data). These simple geometric curves are essential in the construction of domain discretizations for computational fluid dynamic simulations. By comparison to previously established methods of generating these curves interactively, the VGM code provides control of slope continuity and grid point-to-point stretchings as well as quick changes in the controlling parameters. The VGM code offers the capability to couple the generation of these geometries with an extensive manipulation methodology in a scripting language. The scripting language allows parametric studies of a vehicle geometry to be efficiently performed to evaluate favorable trends in the design process. As examples of the powerful capabilities of the VGM code, a wake flow field domain will be appended to an existing X33 Venturestar volume grid; negative volumes resulting from grid expansions to enable flow field capture on a simple geometry, will be corrected; and geometrical changes to a vehicle component of the X33 Venturestar will be shown.

A Solution Framework for Environmental Characterization Problems

EPA Science Inventory

This paper describes experiences developing a grid-enabled framework for solving environmental inverse problems. The solution approach taken here couples environmental simulation models with global search methods and requires readily available computational resources of the grid ...

Surface Modeling and Grid Generation of Orbital Sciences X34 Vehicle. Phase 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen J.

1997-01-01

The surface modeling and grid generation requirements, motivations, and methods used to develop Computational Fluid Dynamic volume grids for the X34-Phase 1 are presented. The requirements set forth by the Aerothermodynamics Branch at the NASA Langley Research Center serve as the basis for the final techniques used in the construction of all volume grids, including grids for parametric studies of the X34. The Integrated Computer Engineering and Manufacturing code for Computational Fluid Dynamics (ICEM/CFD), the Grid Generation code (GRIDGEN), the Three-Dimensional Multi-block Advanced Grid Generation System (3DMAGGS) code, and Volume Grid Manipulator (VGM) code are used to enable the necessary surface modeling, surface grid generation, volume grid generation, and grid alterations, respectively. All volume grids generated for the X34, as outlined in this paper, were used for CFD simulations within the Aerothermodynamics Branch.

Safe Grid

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chow, Edward T.; Stewart, Helen; Korsmeyer, David (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

The biggest users of GRID technologies came from the science and technology communities. These consist of government, industry and academia (national and international). The NASA GRID is moving into a higher technology readiness level (TRL) today; and as a joint effort among these leaders within government, academia, and industry, the NASA GRID plans to extend availability to enable scientists and engineers across these geographical boundaries collaborate to solve important problems facing the world in the 21 st century. In order to enable NASA programs and missions to use IPG resources for program and mission design, the IPG capabilities needs to be accessible from inside the NASA center networks. However, because different NASA centers maintain different security domains, the GRID penetration across different firewalls is a concern for center security people. This is the reason why some IPG resources are been separated from the NASA center network. Also, because of the center network security and ITAR concerns, the NASA IPG resource owner may not have full control over who can access remotely from outside the NASA center. In order to obtain organizational approval for secured remote access, the IPG infrastructure needs to be adapted to work with the NASA business process. Improvements need to be made before the IPG can be used for NASA program and mission development. The Secured Advanced Federated Environment (SAFE) technology is designed to provide federated security across NASA center and NASA partner's security domains. Instead of one giant center firewall which can be difficult to modify for different GRID applications, the SAFE "micro security domain" provide large number of professionally managed "micro firewalls" that can allow NASA centers to accept remote IPG access without the worry of damaging other center resources. The SAFE policy-driven capability-based federated security mechanism can enable joint organizational and resource owner approved remote access from outside of NASA centers. A SAFE enabled IPG can enable IPG capabilities to be available to NASA mission design teams across different NASA center and partner company firewalls. This paper will first discuss some of the potential security issues for IPG to work across NASA center firewalls. We will then present the SAFE federated security model. Finally we will present the concept of the architecture of a SAFE enabled IPG and how it can benefit NASA mission development.

Survey of cyber security issues in smart grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Thomas M.

2010-04-01

The future smart grid will enable cost savings and lower energy use by means of smart appliances and smart meters which support dynamic load management and real-time monitoring of energy use and distribution. The introduction of two-way communications and control into power grid introduces security and privacy concerns. This talk will survey the security and privacy issues in smart grids using the NIST reference model, and relate these issues to cyber security in the Internet.

Automated Measurement and Verification and Innovative Occupancy Detection Technologies

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

Price, Phillip; Bruce, Nordman; Piette, Mary Ann

In support of DOE’s sensors and controls research, the goal of this project is to move toward integrated building to grid systems by building on previous work to develop and demonstrate a set of load characterization measurement and evaluation tools that are envisioned to be part of a suite of applications for transactive efficient buildings, built upon data-driven load characterization and prediction models. This will include the ability to include occupancy data in the models, plus data collection and archival methods to include different types of occupancy data with existing networks and a taxonomy for naming these data within amore » Volttron agent platform.« less

The BioGRID Interaction Database: 2011 update

PubMed Central

Stark, Chris; Breitkreutz, Bobby-Joe; Chatr-aryamontri, Andrew; Boucher, Lorrie; Oughtred, Rose; Livstone, Michael S.; Nixon, Julie; Van Auken, Kimberly; Wang, Xiaodong; Shi, Xiaoqi; Reguly, Teresa; Rust, Jennifer M.; Winter, Andrew; Dolinski, Kara; Tyers, Mike

2011-01-01

The Biological General Repository for Interaction Datasets (BioGRID) is a public database that archives and disseminates genetic and protein interaction data from model organisms and humans (http://www.thebiogrid.org). BioGRID currently holds 347 966 interactions (170 162 genetic, 177 804 protein) curated from both high-throughput data sets and individual focused studies, as derived from over 23 000 publications in the primary literature. Complete coverage of the entire literature is maintained for budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe) and thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), and efforts to expand curation across multiple metazoan species are underway. The BioGRID houses 48 831 human protein interactions that have been curated from 10 247 publications. Current curation drives are focused on particular areas of biology to enable insights into conserved networks and pathways that are relevant to human health. The BioGRID 3.0 web interface contains new search and display features that enable rapid queries across multiple data types and sources. An automated Interaction Management System (IMS) is used to prioritize, coordinate and track curation across international sites and projects. BioGRID provides interaction data to several model organism databases, resources such as Entrez-Gene and other interaction meta-databases. The entire BioGRID 3.0 data collection may be downloaded in multiple file formats, including PSI MI XML. Source code for BioGRID 3.0 is freely available without any restrictions. PMID:21071413

Electrolyzers Enhancing Flexibility in Electric Grids

DOE PAGES

Mohanpurkar, Manish; Luo, Yusheng; Terlip, Danny; ...

2017-11-10

This paper presents a real-time simulation with a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL)-based approach for verifying the performance of electrolyzer systems in providing grid support. Hydrogen refueling stations may use electrolyzer systems to generate hydrogen and are proposed to have the potential of becoming smarter loads that can proactively provide grid services. On the basis of experimental findings, electrolyzer systems with balance of plant are observed to have a high level of controllability and hence can add flexibility to the grid from the demand side. A generic front end controller (FEC) is proposed, which enables an optimal operation of the load on themore » basis of market and grid conditions. This controller has been simulated and tested in a real-time environment with electrolyzer hardware for a performance assessment. It can optimize the operation of electrolyzer systems on the basis of the information collected by a communication module. Real-time simulation tests are performed to verify the performance of the FEC-driven electrolyzers to provide grid support that enables flexibility, greater economic revenue, and grid support for hydrogen producers under dynamic conditions. In conclusion, the FEC proposed in this paper is tested with electrolyzers, however, it is proposed as a generic control topology that is applicable to any load.« less

Modeling and Simulation With Operational Databases to Enable Dynamic Situation Assessment & Prediction

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

subsections discuss the design of the simulations. 3.12.1 Lanchester5D Simulation A Lanchester simulation was developed to conduct performance...benchmarks using the WarpIV Kernel and HyperWarpSpeed. The Lanchester simulation contains a user-definable number of grid cells in which blue and red...forces engage in battle using Lanchester equations. Having a user-definable number of grid cells enables the simulation to be stressed with high entity

Solar on the Rise: How Cost Declines and Grid Integration Shape Solar's Growth Potential in the United States

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

Cole, Wesley J; Denholm, Paul L; Feldman, David J

During the past decade, solar power has experienced transformative price declines, enabling it to become a viable electricity source that is supplying 1% of U.S. and world electricity. Further cost reductions are expected to enable substantially greater solar deployment, and new Department of Energy cost targets for utility-scale photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating solar thermal power are $0.03/kW h and $0.05/kW h by 2030, respectively. However, cost reductions are no longer the only significant challenge for PV - addressing grid integration challenges and increasing grid flexibility are critical as the penetration of PV electricity on the grid increases. The development ofmore » low cost energy storage is particularly synergistic with low cost PV, as cost declines in each technology are expected to support greater market opportunities for the other.« less

Structured grid technology to enable flow simulation in an integrated system environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Remotigue, Michael Gerard

An application-driven Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) environment needs flexible and general tools to effectively solve complex problems in a timely manner. In addition, reusable, portable, and maintainable specialized libraries will aid in rapidly developing integrated systems or procedures. The presented structured grid technology enables the flow simulation for complex geometries by addressing grid generation, grid decomposition/solver setup, solution, and interpretation. Grid generation is accomplished with the graphical, arbitrarily-connected, multi-block structured grid generation software system (GUM-B) developed and presented here. GUM-B is an integrated system comprised of specialized libraries for the graphical user interface and graphical display coupled with a solid-modeling data structure that utilizes a structured grid generation library and a geometric library based on Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS). A presented modification of the solid-modeling data structure provides the capability for arbitrarily-connected regions between the grid blocks. The presented grid generation library provides algorithms that are reliable and accurate. GUM-B has been utilized to generate numerous structured grids for complex geometries in hydrodynamics, propulsors, and aerodynamics. The versatility of the libraries that compose GUM-B is also displayed in a prototype to automatically regenerate a grid for a free-surface solution. Grid decomposition and solver setup is accomplished with the graphical grid manipulation and repartition software system (GUMBO) developed and presented here. GUMBO is an integrated system comprised of specialized libraries for the graphical user interface and graphical display coupled with a structured grid-tools library. The described functions within the grid-tools library reduce the possibility of human error during decomposition and setup for the numerical solver by accounting for boundary conditions and connectivity. GUMBO is linked with a flow solver interface, to the parallel UNCLE code, to provide load balancing tools and solver setup. Weeks of boundary condition and connectivity specification and validation has been reduced to hours. The UNCLE flow solver is utilized for the solution of the flow field. To accelerate convergence toward a quick engineering answer, a full multigrid (FMG) approach coupled with UNCLE, which is a full approximation scheme (FAS), is presented. The prolongation operators used in the FMG-FAS method are compared. The procedure is demonstrated on a marine propeller in incompressible flow. Interpretation of the solution is accomplished by vortex feature detection. Regions of "Intrinsic Swirl" are located by interrogating the velocity gradient tensor for complex eigenvalues. The "Intrinsic Swirl" parameter is visualized on a solution of a marine propeller to determine if any vortical features are captured. The libraries and the structured grid technology presented herein are flexible and general enough to tackle a variety of complex applications. This technology has significantly enabled the capability of the ERC personnel to effectively calculate solutions for complex geometries.

Integrated geometry and grid generation system for complex configurations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Akdag, Vedat; Wulf, Armin

1992-01-01

A grid generation system was developed that enables grid generation for complex configurations. The system called ICEM/CFD is described and its role in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applications is presented. The capabilities of the system include full computer aided design (CAD), grid generation on the actual CAD geometry definition using robust surface projection algorithms, interfacing easily with known CAD packages through common file formats for geometry transfer, grid quality evaluation of the volume grid, coupling boundary condition set-up for block faces with grid topology generation, multi-block grid generation with or without point continuity and block to block interface requirement, and generating grid files directly compatible with known flow solvers. The interactive and integrated approach to the problem of computational grid generation not only substantially reduces manpower time but also increases the flexibility of later grid modifications and enhancements which is required in an environment where CFD is integrated into a product design cycle.

Numerical Nuclear Second Derivatives on a Computing Grid: Enabling and Accelerating Frequency Calculations on Complex Molecular Systems.

PubMed

Yang, Tzuhsiung; Berry, John F

2018-06-04

The computation of nuclear second derivatives of energy, or the nuclear Hessian, is an essential routine in quantum chemical investigations of ground and transition states, thermodynamic calculations, and molecular vibrations. Analytic nuclear Hessian computations require the resolution of costly coupled-perturbed self-consistent field (CP-SCF) equations, while numerical differentiation of analytic first derivatives has an unfavorable 6 N ( N = number of atoms) prefactor. Herein, we present a new method in which grid computing is used to accelerate and/or enable the evaluation of the nuclear Hessian via numerical differentiation: NUMFREQ@Grid. Nuclear Hessians were successfully evaluated by NUMFREQ@Grid at the DFT level as well as using RIJCOSX-ZORA-MP2 or RIJCOSX-ZORA-B2PLYP for a set of linear polyacenes with systematically increasing size. For the larger members of this group, NUMFREQ@Grid was found to outperform the wall clock time of analytic Hessian evaluation; at the MP2 or B2LYP levels, these Hessians cannot even be evaluated analytically. We also evaluated a 156-atom catalytically relevant open-shell transition metal complex and found that NUMFREQ@Grid is faster (7.7 times shorter wall clock time) and less demanding (4.4 times less memory requirement) than an analytic Hessian. Capitalizing on the capabilities of parallel grid computing, NUMFREQ@Grid can outperform analytic methods in terms of wall time, memory requirements, and treatable system size. The NUMFREQ@Grid method presented herein demonstrates how grid computing can be used to facilitate embarrassingly parallel computational procedures and is a pioneer for future implementations.

Military Cyberspace: From Evolution to Revolution

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-02-08

support the GCCs and enable USCYBERCOM to accomplish its mission? 15. SUBJECT TERMS Network Operations, Global Information Grid ( GIG ), Network...DATE: 08 February 2012 WORD COUNT: 5,405 PAGES: 30 KEY TERMS: Network Operations, Global Information Grid ( GIG ), Network Architecture...defense of the DOD global information grid ( GIG ). The DOD must pursue an enterprise approach to network management in the cyberspace domain to

Integration of Grid and Sensor Web for Flood Monitoring and Risk Assessment from Heterogeneous Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kussul, Nataliia; Skakun, Sergii; Shelestov, Andrii

2013-04-01

Over last decades we have witnessed the upward global trend in natural disaster occurrence. Hydrological and meteorological disasters such as floods are the main contributors to this pattern. In recent years flood management has shifted from protection against floods to managing the risks of floods (the European Flood risk directive). In order to enable operational flood monitoring and assessment of flood risk, it is required to provide an infrastructure with standardized interfaces and services. Grid and Sensor Web can meet these requirements. In this paper we present a general approach to flood monitoring and risk assessment based on heterogeneous geospatial data acquired from multiple sources. To enable operational flood risk assessment integration of Grid and Sensor Web approaches is proposed [1]. Grid represents a distributed environment that integrates heterogeneous computing and storage resources administrated by multiple organizations. SensorWeb is an emerging paradigm for integrating heterogeneous satellite and in situ sensors and data systems into a common informational infrastructure that produces products on demand. The basic Sensor Web functionality includes sensor discovery, triggering events by observed or predicted conditions, remote data access and processing capabilities to generate and deliver data products. Sensor Web is governed by the set of standards, called Sensor Web Enablement (SWE), developed by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC). Different practical issues regarding integration of Sensor Web with Grids are discussed in the study. We show how the Sensor Web can benefit from using Grids and vice versa. For example, Sensor Web services such as SOS, SPS and SAS can benefit from the integration with the Grid platform like Globus Toolkit. The proposed approach is implemented within the Sensor Web framework for flood monitoring and risk assessment, and a case-study of exploiting this framework, namely the Namibia SensorWeb Pilot Project, is described. The project was created as a testbed for evaluating and prototyping key technologies for rapid acquisition and distribution of data products for decision support systems to monitor floods and enable flood risk assessment. The system provides access to real-time products on rainfall estimates and flood potential forecast derived from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) mission with lag time of 6 h, alerts from the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) with lag time of 4 h, and the Coupled Routing and Excess STorage (CREST) model to generate alerts. These are alerts are used to trigger satellite observations. With deployed SPS service for NASA's EO-1 satellite it is possible to automatically task sensor with re-image capability of less 8 h. Therefore, with enabled computational and storage services provided by Grid and cloud infrastructure it was possible to generate flood maps within 24-48 h after trigger was alerted. To enable interoperability between system components and services OGC-compliant standards are utilized. [1] Hluchy L., Kussul N., Shelestov A., Skakun S., Kravchenko O., Gripich Y., Kopp P., Lupian E., "The Data Fusion Grid Infrastructure: Project Objectives and Achievements," Computing and Informatics, 2010, vol. 29, no. 2, pp. 319-334.

Enabling occupation at the end of life: A literature review.

PubMed

Mills, Katherine; Payne, Angela

2015-12-01

Occupation, or meaningful activity, can contribute to the well-being and quality of life of all individuals. It is thus a logical tautology that occupation should be enabled for those at the end of life. Our present review examines current provision of these processes by Occupational Therapist, who can be much-valued members of multidisciplinary palliative care teams. Following a literature search and critical selection, 10 global papers were identified examining occupation and occupational therapy at the end of life in the acute, hospice, and community environments. Universally, there appeared to be a dearth of therapists working in end-of-life care. Provision of palliative care in hospitals was found to be compensatory or rehabilitative. Hospice therapy emerged as pleasingly occupational, though the number of hospice places was disappointingly few. Community literature was sparse, so it proved challenging to draw definitive conclusions. Promising research refracted light on occupation at home; however, it also revealed stretched domiciliary services, where clients are not well informed about the potential scope of occupational therapy. A "good death" involving a quality end-of-life experience is the foundational goal overarching all therapy and medicine in the provision of palliative care. Arguably, an occupation-focused approach provided by therapists meets client needs to enable meaningful experiences in the limited time left to them. Current occupational therapy practice environments are not necessarily achieving these goals in commensurate fashion. There is a need to promote the role of occupational therapy and circumscribe what therapists can offer. Further research is necessitated across all environments and future funding for therapist positions in palliative teams. End-of-life care can be complex and challenging; however, therapists can facilitate fulfillment of client-centered occupational goals. In engaging with personally constructed nuances of meaning, quality of life can be improved in those deserving of a significant and emotionally rich daily existence during their final days.

Occupations that people with late effects of polio perceive difficult to perform.

PubMed

Appelin, Katja; Lexell, Jan; Månsson Lexell, Eva

2014-09-01

The aims of this study were to describe which occupations that people with late effects of polio perceive difficult to perform, which occupational area the occupations were related to and their level of complexity. The aims were also to describe their own perception of the importance, performance and satisfaction with these occupations. Sixty-two participants (mean age 61 years) were assessed with the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure. A total of 431 occupations were reported (43% self-care, 32% productivity and 25% leisure). Two subcategories, household management (27 %) and functional mobility (23 %), represented half of all the reported occupations. Ratings for prioritized occupations (N = 300) were high for importance and generally low for performance and satisfaction. A wide variety of occupations were reported, related to both occupational areas and different levels of complexity within an occupational area. The results underscore the importance of using assessment tools that can capture both the variety and complexity of occupations. By obtaining more detailed information about occupations that people with late effects of polio perceive difficult to perform, this will enable occupational therapists to offer targeted interventions that can facilitate engagement in meaningful and purposeful occupations. A larger and more heterogeneous sample may enable the results to be generalized to more people with late effects of polio. Future studies should focus on methods that can facilitate engagement in meaningful and purposeful occupations for people with late effects of polio. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Chasing the negawatt: visualization for sustainable living.

PubMed

Bartram, Lyn; Rodgers, Johnny; Muise, Kevin

2010-01-01

Energy and resource management is an important and growing research area at the intersection of conservation, sustainable design, alternative energy production, and social behavior. Energy consumption can be significantly reduced by simply changing how occupants inhabit and use buildings, with little or no additional costs. Reflecting this fact, an emerging measure of grid energy capacity is the negawatt: a unit of power saved by increasing efficiency or reducing consumption.Visualization clearly has an important role in enabling residents to understand and manage their energy use. This role is tied to providing real-time feedback of energy use, which encourages people to conserve energy.The challenge is to understand not only what kinds of visualizations are most effective but also where and how they fit into a larger information system to help residents make informed decisions. In this article, we also examine the effective display of home energy-use data using a net-zero solar-powered home (North House) and the Adaptive Living Interface System (ALIS), North House's information backbone.

Packet spacing : an enabling mechanism for delivering multimedia content in computational grids /

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

Feng, A. C.; Feng, W. C.; Belford, Geneva G.

2001-01-01

Streaming multimedia with UDP has become increasingly popular over distributed systems like the Internet. Scientific applications that stream multimedia include remote computational steering of visualization data and video-on-demand teleconferencing over the Access Grid. However, UDP does not possess a self-regulating, congestion-control mechanism; and most best-efort traflc is served by congestion-controlled TCF! Consequently, UDP steals bandwidth from TCP such that TCP$ows starve for network resources. With the volume of Internet traffic continuing to increase, the perpetuation of UDP-based streaming will cause the Internet to collapse as it did in the mid-1980's due to the use of non-congestion-controlled TCP. To address thismore » problem, we introduce the counterintuitive notion of inter-packet spacing with control feedback to enable UDP-based applications to perform well in the next-generation Internet and computational grids. When compared with traditional UDP-based streaming, we illustrate that our approach can reduce packet loss over SO% without adversely afecting delivered throughput. Keywords: network protocol, multimedia, packet spacing, streaming, TCI: UDlq rate-adjusting congestion control, computational grid, Access Grid.« less

Data distribution service-based interoperability framework for smart grid testbed infrastructure

DOE PAGES

Youssef, Tarek A.; Elsayed, Ahmed T.; Mohammed, Osama A.

2016-03-02

This study presents the design and implementation of a communication and control infrastructure for smart grid operation. The proposed infrastructure enhances the reliability of the measurements and control network. The advantages of utilizing the data-centric over message-centric communication approach are discussed in the context of smart grid applications. The data distribution service (DDS) is used to implement a data-centric common data bus for the smart grid. This common data bus improves the communication reliability, enabling distributed control and smart load management. These enhancements are achieved by avoiding a single point of failure while enabling peer-to-peer communication and an automatic discoverymore » feature for dynamic participating nodes. The infrastructure and ideas presented in this paper were implemented and tested on the smart grid testbed. A toolbox and application programing interface for the testbed infrastructure are developed in order to facilitate interoperability and remote access to the testbed. This interface allows control, monitoring, and performing of experiments remotely. Furthermore, it could be used to integrate multidisciplinary testbeds to study complex cyber-physical systems (CPS).« less

Grid-Enabled Quantitative Analysis of Breast Cancer

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-10-01

large-scale, multi-modality computerized image analysis . The central hypothesis of this research is that large-scale image analysis for breast cancer...research, we designed a pilot study utilizing large scale parallel Grid computing harnessing nationwide infrastructure for medical image analysis . Also

Smart Grid Enabled EVSE

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

None, None

2015-01-12

The combined team of GE Global Research, Federal Express, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Consolidated Edison has successfully achieved the established goals contained within the Department of Energy’s Smart Grid Capable Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment funding opportunity. The final program product, shown charging two vehicles in Figure 1, reduces by nearly 50% the total installed system cost of the electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) as well as enabling a host of new Smart Grid enabled features. These include bi-directional communications, load control, utility message exchange and transaction management information. Using the new charging system, Utilities or energy service providers willmore » now be able to monitor transportation related electrical loads on their distribution networks, send load control commands or preferences to individual systems, and then see measured responses. Installation owners will be able to authorize usage of the stations, monitor operations, and optimally control their electricity consumption. These features and cost reductions have been developed through a total system design solution.« less

An Extensible Information Grid for Risk Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maluf, David A.; Bell, David G.

2003-01-01

This paper describes recent work on developing an extensible information grid for risk management at NASA - a RISK INFORMATION GRID. This grid is being developed by integrating information grid technology with risk management processes for a variety of risk related applications. To date, RISK GRID applications are being developed for three main NASA processes: risk management - a closed-loop iterative process for explicit risk management, program/project management - a proactive process that includes risk management, and mishap management - a feedback loop for learning from historical risks that escaped other processes. This is enabled through an architecture involving an extensible database, structuring information with XML, schemaless mapping of XML, and secure server-mediated communication using standard protocols.

Coalition FORCEnet Implementation Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-09-01

C2 grid, and Engagement grid. As a result, enabled Network- Centric warfare for Coalition Forces shows a significant increase in capabilities. Joint...209 14. SUBJECT TERMS FORCEnet, Coalition Forces, AUSCANNZUKUS, Network- Centric Warfare (NCW), Data Mining, EXTEND Modeling, Expeditionary...NETWORK- CENTRIC WARFARE AND FORCENET .....................................................................................................1 B

75 FR 26203 - Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Empowering Consumers and the Smart Grid: Data Access...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-05-11

... good example of an enabling Smart Grid technology that can empower both utilities and consumers to... Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector by integrating broadband into the developing Smart...'s years [[Page 26204

Large temporal scale and capacity subsurface bulk energy storage with CO2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saar, M. O.; Fleming, M. R.; Adams, B. M.; Ogland-Hand, J.; Nelson, E. S.; Randolph, J.; Sioshansi, R.; Kuehn, T. H.; Buscheck, T. A.; Bielicki, J. M.

2017-12-01

Decarbonizing energy systems by increasing the penetration of variable renewable energy (VRE) technologies requires efficient and short- to long-term energy storage. Very large amounts of energy can be stored in the subsurface as heat and/or pressure energy in order to provide both short- and long-term (seasonal) storage, depending on the implementation. This energy storage approach can be quite efficient, especially where geothermal energy is naturally added to the system. Here, we present subsurface heat and/or pressure energy storage with supercritical carbon dioxide (CO2) and discuss the system's efficiency, deployment options, as well as its advantages and disadvantages, compared to several other energy storage options. CO2-based subsurface bulk energy storage has the potential to be particularly efficient and large-scale, both temporally (i.e., seasonal) and spatially. The latter refers to the amount of energy that can be stored underground, using CO2, at a geologically conducive location, potentially enabling storing excess power from a substantial portion of the power grid. The implication is that it would be possible to employ centralized energy storage for (a substantial part of) the power grid, where the geology enables CO2-based bulk subsurface energy storage, whereas the VRE technologies (solar, wind) are located on that same power grid, where (solar, wind) conditions are ideal. However, this may require reinforcing the power grid's transmission lines in certain parts of the grid to enable high-load power transmission from/to a few locations.

Cloud Bursting with GlideinWMS: Means to satisfy ever increasing computing needs for Scientific Workflows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mhashilkar, Parag; Tiradani, Anthony; Holzman, Burt; Larson, Krista; Sfiligoi, Igor; Rynge, Mats

2014-06-01

Scientific communities have been in the forefront of adopting new technologies and methodologies in the computing. Scientific computing has influenced how science is done today, achieving breakthroughs that were impossible to achieve several decades ago. For the past decade several such communities in the Open Science Grid (OSG) and the European Grid Infrastructure (EGI) have been using GlideinWMS to run complex application workflows to effectively share computational resources over the grid. GlideinWMS is a pilot-based workload management system (WMS) that creates on demand, a dynamically sized overlay HTCondor batch system on grid resources. At present, the computational resources shared over the grid are just adequate to sustain the computing needs. We envision that the complexity of the science driven by "Big Data" will further push the need for computational resources. To fulfill their increasing demands and/or to run specialized workflows, some of the big communities like CMS are investigating the use of cloud computing as Infrastructure-As-A-Service (IAAS) with GlideinWMS as a potential alternative to fill the void. Similarly, communities with no previous access to computing resources can use GlideinWMS to setup up a batch system on the cloud infrastructure. To enable this, the architecture of GlideinWMS has been extended to enable support for interfacing GlideinWMS with different Scientific and commercial cloud providers like HLT, FutureGrid, FermiCloud and Amazon EC2. In this paper, we describe a solution for cloud bursting with GlideinWMS. The paper describes the approach, architectural changes and lessons learned while enabling support for cloud infrastructures in GlideinWMS.

Cloud Bursting with GlideinWMS: Means to satisfy ever increasing computing needs for Scientific Workflows

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

Mhashilkar, Parag; Tiradani, Anthony; Holzman, Burt

Scientific communities have been in the forefront of adopting new technologies and methodologies in the computing. Scientific computing has influenced how science is done today, achieving breakthroughs that were impossible to achieve several decades ago. For the past decade several such communities in the Open Science Grid (OSG) and the European Grid Infrastructure (EGI) have been using GlideinWMS to run complex application workflows to effectively share computational resources over the grid. GlideinWMS is a pilot-based workload management system (WMS) that creates on demand, a dynamically sized overlay HTCondor batch system on grid resources. At present, the computational resources shared overmore » the grid are just adequate to sustain the computing needs. We envision that the complexity of the science driven by 'Big Data' will further push the need for computational resources. To fulfill their increasing demands and/or to run specialized workflows, some of the big communities like CMS are investigating the use of cloud computing as Infrastructure-As-A-Service (IAAS) with GlideinWMS as a potential alternative to fill the void. Similarly, communities with no previous access to computing resources can use GlideinWMS to setup up a batch system on the cloud infrastructure. To enable this, the architecture of GlideinWMS has been extended to enable support for interfacing GlideinWMS with different Scientific and commercial cloud providers like HLT, FutureGrid, FermiCloud and Amazon EC2. In this paper, we describe a solution for cloud bursting with GlideinWMS. The paper describes the approach, architectural changes and lessons learned while enabling support for cloud infrastructures in GlideinWMS.« less

Parallel Cartesian grid refinement for 3D complex flow simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Angelidis, Dionysios; Sotiropoulos, Fotis

2013-11-01

A second order accurate method for discretizing the Navier-Stokes equations on 3D unstructured Cartesian grids is presented. Although the grid generator is based on the oct-tree hierarchical method, fully unstructured data-structure is adopted enabling robust calculations for incompressible flows, avoiding both the need of synchronization of the solution between different levels of refinement and usage of prolongation/restriction operators. The current solver implements a hybrid staggered/non-staggered grid layout, employing the implicit fractional step method to satisfy the continuity equation. The pressure-Poisson equation is discretized by using a novel second order fully implicit scheme for unstructured Cartesian grids and solved using an efficient Krylov subspace solver. The momentum equation is also discretized with second order accuracy and the high performance Newton-Krylov method is used for integrating them in time. Neumann and Dirichlet conditions are used to validate the Poisson solver against analytical functions and grid refinement results to a significant reduction of the solution error. The effectiveness of the fractional step method results in the stability of the overall algorithm and enables the performance of accurate multi-resolution real life simulations. This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy under Award Number DE-EE0005482.

Infrastructure for Integration of Legacy Electrical Equipment into a Smart-Grid Using Wireless Sensor Networks.

PubMed

de Araújo, Paulo Régis C; Filho, Raimir Holanda; Rodrigues, Joel J P C; Oliveira, João P C M; Braga, Stephanie A

2018-04-24

At present, the standardisation of electrical equipment communications is on the rise. In particular, manufacturers are releasing equipment for the smart grid endowed with communication protocols such as DNP3, IEC 61850, and MODBUS. However, there are legacy equipment operating in the electricity distribution network that cannot communicate using any of these protocols. Thus, we propose an infrastructure to allow the integration of legacy electrical equipment to smart grids by using wireless sensor networks (WSNs). In this infrastructure, each legacy electrical device is connected to a sensor node, and the sink node runs a middleware that enables the integration of this device into a smart grid based on suitable communication protocols. This middleware performs tasks such as the translation of messages between the power substation control centre (PSCC) and electrical equipment in the smart grid. Moreover, the infrastructure satisfies certain requirements for communication between the electrical equipment and the PSCC, such as enhanced security, short response time, and automatic configuration. The paper’s contributions include a solution that enables electrical companies to integrate their legacy equipment into smart-grid networks relying on any of the above mentioned communication protocols. This integration will reduce the costs related to the modernisation of power substations.

Infrastructure for Integration of Legacy Electrical Equipment into a Smart-Grid Using Wireless Sensor Networks

PubMed Central

de Araújo, Paulo Régis C.; Filho, Raimir Holanda; Oliveira, João P. C. M.; Braga, Stephanie A.

2018-01-01

At present, the standardisation of electrical equipment communications is on the rise. In particular, manufacturers are releasing equipment for the smart grid endowed with communication protocols such as DNP3, IEC 61850, and MODBUS. However, there are legacy equipment operating in the electricity distribution network that cannot communicate using any of these protocols. Thus, we propose an infrastructure to allow the integration of legacy electrical equipment to smart grids by using wireless sensor networks (WSNs). In this infrastructure, each legacy electrical device is connected to a sensor node, and the sink node runs a middleware that enables the integration of this device into a smart grid based on suitable communication protocols. This middleware performs tasks such as the translation of messages between the power substation control centre (PSCC) and electrical equipment in the smart grid. Moreover, the infrastructure satisfies certain requirements for communication between the electrical equipment and the PSCC, such as enhanced security, short response time, and automatic configuration. The paper’s contributions include a solution that enables electrical companies to integrate their legacy equipment into smart-grid networks relying on any of the above mentioned communication protocols. This integration will reduce the costs related to the modernisation of power substations. PMID:29695099

Wide-area, real-time monitoring and visualization system

DOEpatents

Budhraja, Vikram S.; Dyer, James D.; Martinez Morales, Carlos A.

2013-03-19

A real-time performance monitoring system for monitoring an electric power grid. The electric power grid has a plurality of grid portions, each grid portion corresponding to one of a plurality of control areas. The real-time performance monitoring system includes a monitor computer for monitoring at least one of reliability metrics, generation metrics, transmission metrics, suppliers metrics, grid infrastructure security metrics, and markets metrics for the electric power grid. The data for metrics being monitored by the monitor computer are stored in a data base, and a visualization of the metrics is displayed on at least one display computer having a monitor. The at least one display computer in one said control area enables an operator to monitor the grid portion corresponding to a different said control area.

Wide-area, real-time monitoring and visualization system

DOEpatents

Budhraja, Vikram S [Los Angeles, CA; Dyer, James D [La Mirada, CA; Martinez Morales, Carlos A [Upland, CA

2011-11-15

A real-time performance monitoring system for monitoring an electric power grid. The electric power grid has a plurality of grid portions, each grid portion corresponding to one of a plurality of control areas. The real-time performance monitoring system includes a monitor computer for monitoring at least one of reliability metrics, generation metrics, transmission metrics, suppliers metrics, grid infrastructure security metrics, and markets metrics for the electric power grid. The data for metrics being monitored by the monitor computer are stored in a data base, and a visualization of the metrics is displayed on at least one display computer having a monitor. The at least one display computer in one said control area enables an operator to monitor the grid portion corresponding to a different said control area.

Real-time performance monitoring and management system

DOEpatents

Budhraja, Vikram S [Los Angeles, CA; Dyer, James D [La Mirada, CA; Martinez Morales, Carlos A [Upland, CA

2007-06-19

A real-time performance monitoring system for monitoring an electric power grid. The electric power grid has a plurality of grid portions, each grid portion corresponding to one of a plurality of control areas. The real-time performance monitoring system includes a monitor computer for monitoring at least one of reliability metrics, generation metrics, transmission metrics, suppliers metrics, grid infrastructure security metrics, and markets metrics for the electric power grid. The data for metrics being monitored by the monitor computer are stored in a data base, and a visualization of the metrics is displayed on at least one display computer having a monitor. The at least one display computer in one said control area enables an operator to monitor the grid portion corresponding to a different said control area.

Distributed hierarchical control architecture for integrating smart grid assets during normal and disrupted operations

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

Kalsi, Karan; Fuller, Jason C.; Somani, Abhishek

Disclosed herein are representative embodiments of methods, apparatus, and systems for facilitating operation and control of a resource distribution system (such as a power grid). Among the disclosed embodiments is a distributed hierarchical control architecture (DHCA) that enables smart grid assets to effectively contribute to grid operations in a controllable manner, while helping to ensure system stability and equitably rewarding their contribution. Embodiments of the disclosed architecture can help unify the dispatch of these resources to provide both market-based and balancing services.

High energy collimating fine grids for HESP program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eberhard, Carol D.; Frazier, Edward

1993-01-01

There is a need to develop fine pitch x-ray collimator grids as an enabling technology for planned future missions. The grids consist of an array of thin parallel strips of x-ray absorbing material, such as tungsten, with pitches ranging from 34 microns to 2.036 millimeters. The grids are the key components of a new class of spaceborne instruments known as 'x-ray modulation collimators.' These instruments are the first to produce images of celestial sources in the hard x-ray and gamma-ray spectral regions.

Spaceflight Operations Services Grid (SOSG) Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert; Lisotta, Anthony

2004-01-01

The motivation, goals, and objectives of the Space Operations Services Grid Project (SOSG) are covered in this viewgraph presentation. The goals and objectives of SOSG include: 1) Developing a grid-enabled prototype providing Space-based ground operations end user services through a collaborative effort between NASA, academia, and industry to assess the technical and cost feasibility of implementation of Grid technologies in the Space Operations arena; 2) Provide to space operations organizations and processes, through a single secure portal(s), access to all the information technology (Grid and Web based) services necessary for program/project development, operations and the ultimate creation of new processes, information and knowledge.

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

Youssef, Tarek A.; Elsayed, Ahmed T.; Mohammed, Osama A.

This study presents the design and implementation of a communication and control infrastructure for smart grid operation. The proposed infrastructure enhances the reliability of the measurements and control network. The advantages of utilizing the data-centric over message-centric communication approach are discussed in the context of smart grid applications. The data distribution service (DDS) is used to implement a data-centric common data bus for the smart grid. This common data bus improves the communication reliability, enabling distributed control and smart load management. These enhancements are achieved by avoiding a single point of failure while enabling peer-to-peer communication and an automatic discoverymore » feature for dynamic participating nodes. The infrastructure and ideas presented in this paper were implemented and tested on the smart grid testbed. A toolbox and application programing interface for the testbed infrastructure are developed in order to facilitate interoperability and remote access to the testbed. This interface allows control, monitoring, and performing of experiments remotely. Furthermore, it could be used to integrate multidisciplinary testbeds to study complex cyber-physical systems (CPS).« less

Solving Navigational Uncertainty Using Grid Cells on Robots

PubMed Central

Milford, Michael J.; Wiles, Janet; Wyeth, Gordon F.

2010-01-01

To successfully navigate their habitats, many mammals use a combination of two mechanisms, path integration and calibration using landmarks, which together enable them to estimate their location and orientation, or pose. In large natural environments, both these mechanisms are characterized by uncertainty: the path integration process is subject to the accumulation of error, while landmark calibration is limited by perceptual ambiguity. It remains unclear how animals form coherent spatial representations in the presence of such uncertainty. Navigation research using robots has determined that uncertainty can be effectively addressed by maintaining multiple probabilistic estimates of a robot's pose. Here we show how conjunctive grid cells in dorsocaudal medial entorhinal cortex (dMEC) may maintain multiple estimates of pose using a brain-based robot navigation system known as RatSLAM. Based both on rodent spatially-responsive cells and functional engineering principles, the cells at the core of the RatSLAM computational model have similar characteristics to rodent grid cells, which we demonstrate by replicating the seminal Moser experiments. We apply the RatSLAM model to a new experimental paradigm designed to examine the responses of a robot or animal in the presence of perceptual ambiguity. Our computational approach enables us to observe short-term population coding of multiple location hypotheses, a phenomenon which would not be easily observable in rodent recordings. We present behavioral and neural evidence demonstrating that the conjunctive grid cells maintain and propagate multiple estimates of pose, enabling the correct pose estimate to be resolved over time even without uniquely identifying cues. While recent research has focused on the grid-like firing characteristics, accuracy and representational capacity of grid cells, our results identify a possible critical and unique role for conjunctive grid cells in filtering sensory uncertainty. We anticipate our study to be a starting point for animal experiments that test navigation in perceptually ambiguous environments. PMID:21085643

Risks to health care workers from nano-enabled medical products.

PubMed

Murashov, Vladimir; Howard, John

2015-01-01

Nanotechnology is rapidly expanding into the health care industry. However, occupational safety and health risks of nano-enabled medical products have not been thoroughly assessed. This manuscript highlights occupational risk mitigation practices for nano-enabled medical products throughout their life cycle for all major workplace settings including (1) medical research laboratories, (2) pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities, (3) clinical dispensing pharmacies, (4) health care delivery facilities, (5) home health care, (6) health care support, and (7) medical waste management. It further identifies critical research needs for ensuring worker protection in the health care industry.

Grid workflow validation using ontology-based tacit knowledge: A case study for quantitative remote sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Jia; Liu, Longli; Xue, Yong; Dong, Jing; Hu, Yingcui; Hill, Richard; Guang, Jie; Li, Chi

2017-01-01

Workflow for remote sensing quantitative retrieval is the ;bridge; between Grid services and Grid-enabled application of remote sensing quantitative retrieval. Workflow averts low-level implementation details of the Grid and hence enables users to focus on higher levels of application. The workflow for remote sensing quantitative retrieval plays an important role in remote sensing Grid and Cloud computing services, which can support the modelling, construction and implementation of large-scale complicated applications of remote sensing science. The validation of workflow is important in order to support the large-scale sophisticated scientific computation processes with enhanced performance and to minimize potential waste of time and resources. To research the semantic correctness of user-defined workflows, in this paper, we propose a workflow validation method based on tacit knowledge research in the remote sensing domain. We first discuss the remote sensing model and metadata. Through detailed analysis, we then discuss the method of extracting the domain tacit knowledge and expressing the knowledge with ontology. Additionally, we construct the domain ontology with Protégé. Through our experimental study, we verify the validity of this method in two ways, namely data source consistency error validation and parameters matching error validation.

e-Science and its implications.

PubMed

Hey, Tony; Trefethen, Anne

2003-08-15

After a definition of e-science and the Grid, the paper begins with an overview of the technological context of Grid developments. NASA's Information Power Grid is described as an early example of a 'prototype production Grid'. The discussion of e-science and the Grid is then set in the context of the UK e-Science Programme and is illustrated with reference to some UK e-science projects in science, engineering and medicine. The Open Standards approach to Grid middleware adopted by the community in the Global Grid Forum is described and compared with community-based standardization processes used for the Internet, MPI, Linux and the Web. Some implications of the imminent data deluge that will arise from the new generation of e-science experiments in terms of archiving and curation are then considered. The paper concludes with remarks about social and technological issues posed by Grid-enabled 'collaboratories' in both scientific and commercial contexts.

The Smart Power Lab at the Energy Systems Integration Facility

ScienceCinema

Christensen, Dane; Sparn, Bethany; Hannegan, Brian

2018-05-11

Watch how NREL researchers are using the Smart Power Laboratory at the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) to develop technologies that will help the "smart homes" of the future perform efficiently and communicate effectively with the electricity grid while enhancing occupants' comfort and convenience.

The Smart Power Lab at the Energy Systems Integration Facility

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

Christensen, Dane; Sparn, Bethany; Hannegan, Brian

Watch how NREL researchers are using the Smart Power Laboratory at the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) to develop technologies that will help the "smart homes" of the future perform efficiently and communicate effectively with the electricity grid while enhancing occupants' comfort and convenience.

An optimized top contact design for solar cell concentrators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Desalvo, Gregory C.; Barnett, Allen M.

1985-01-01

A new grid optimization scheme is developed for point focus solar cell concentrators which employs a separated grid and busbar concept. Ideally, grid lines act as the primary current collectors and receive all of the current from the semiconductor region. Busbars are the secondary collectors which pick up current from the grids and carry it out of the active region of the solar cell. This separation of functions leads to a multithickness metallization design, where the busbars are made larger in cross section than the grids. This enables the busbars to carry more current per unit area of shading, which is advantageous under high solar concentration where large current densities are generated. Optimized grid patterns using this multilayer concept can provide a 1.6 to 20 percent increase in output power efficiency over optimized single thickness grids.

Occupational dermal exposure to nanoparticles and nano-enabled products: Part 2, exploration of exposure processes and methods of assessment.

PubMed

Brouwer, Derk H; Spaan, Suzanne; Roff, Martin; Sleeuwenhoek, Anne; Tuinman, Ilse; Goede, Henk; van Duuren-Stuurman, Birgit; Filon, Francesca Larese; Bello, Dhimiter; Cherrie, John W

2016-08-01

Over the past decade, the primary focus of nanotoxicology and nanoenvironmental health and safety efforts has been largely on inhalation exposure to engineered nanomaterials, at the production stage, and much less on considering risks along the life cycle of nano-enabled products. Dermal exposure to nanomaterials and its health impact has been studied to a much lesser extent, and mostly in the context of intentional exposure to nano-enabled products such as in nanomedicine, cosmetics and personal care products. How concerning is dermal exposure to such nanoparticles in the context of occupational exposures? When and how should we measure it? In the first of a series of two papers (Larese Filon et al., 2016), we focused our attention on identifying conditions or situations, i.e. a combination of nanoparticle physico-chemical properties, skin barrier integrity, and occupations with high prevalence of skin disease, which deserve further investigation. This second paper focuses on the broad question of dermal exposure assessment to nanoparticles and attempts to give an overview of the mechanisms of occupational dermal exposure to nanoparticles and nano-enabled products and explores feasibility and adequacy of various methods of quantifying dermal exposure to NOAA. We provide here a conceptual framework for screening, prioritization, and assessment of dermal exposure to NOAA in occupational settings, and integrate it into a proposed framework for risk assessment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Advanced Power Electronics and Smart Inverters | Grid Modernization | NREL

Science.gov Websites

provide grid services such as voltage and frequency regulation, ride-through, dynamic current injection impacts of smart inverters on distribution systems. These activities are focused on enabling high combines high-voltage silicon carbide with revolutionary concepts such as additive manufacturing and multi

Stability Test for Transient-Temperature Calculations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, W.

1984-01-01

Graphical test helps assure numerical stability of calculations of transient temperature or diffusion in composite medium. Rectangular grid forms basis of two-dimensional finite-difference model for heat conduction or other diffusion like phenomena. Model enables calculation of transient heat transfer among up to four different materials that meet at grid point.

Open Science in the Cloud: Towards a Universal Platform for Scientific and Statistical Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chine, Karim

The UK, through the e-Science program, the US through the NSF-funded cyber infrastructure and the European Union through the ICT Calls aimed to provide "the technological solution to the problem of efficiently connecting data, computers, and people with the goal of enabling derivation of novel scientific theories and knowledge".1 The Grid (Foster, 2002; Foster; Kesselman, Nick, & Tuecke, 2002), foreseen as a major accelerator of discovery, didn't meet the expectations it had excited at its beginnings and was not adopted by the broad population of research professionals. The Grid is a good tool for particle physicists and it has allowed them to tackle the tremendous computational challenges inherent to their field. However, as a technology and paradigm for delivering computing on demand, it doesn't work and it can't be fixed. On one hand, "the abstractions that Grids expose - to the end-user, to the deployers and to application developers - are inappropriate and they need to be higher level" (Jha, Merzky, & Fox), and on the other hand, academic Grids are inherently economically unsustainable. They can't compete with a service outsourced to the Industry whose quality and price would be driven by market forces. The virtualization technologies and their corollary, the Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) style cloud, hold the promise to enable what the Grid failed to deliver: a sustainable environment for computational sciences that would lower the barriers for accessing federated computational resources, software tools and data; enable collaboration and resources sharing and provide the building blocks of a ubiquitous platform for traceable and reproducible computational research.

The Annual Pennsylvania Conference on Post-Secondary Occupational Education (2nd).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillie, Angelo C., Ed.

This conference on the evaluation and effectiveness of postsecondary occupational education was for the purposes of: (1) providing presentations on evaluation of postsecondary occupational education in terms of programs, faculty, and institutions, (2) providing information that would better enable participants to identify some elements for…

Grid Connected Functionality

DOE Data Explorer

Baker, Kyri; Jin, Xin; Vaidynathan, Deepthi; Jones, Wesley; Christensen, Dane; Sparn, Bethany; Woods, Jason; Sorensen, Harry; Lunacek, Monte

2016-08-04

Dataset demonstrating the potential benefits that residential buildings can provide for frequency regulation services in the electric power grid. In a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) implementation, simulated homes along with a physical laboratory home are coordinated via a grid aggregator, and it is shown that their aggregate response has the potential to follow the regulation signal on a timescale of seconds. Connected (communication-enabled), devices in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) received demand response (DR) requests from a grid aggregator, and the devices responded accordingly to meet the signal while satisfying user comfort bounds and physical hardware limitations.

Orchestrating Bulk Data Movement in Grid Environments

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

Vazhkudai, SS

2005-01-25

Data Grids provide a convenient environment for researchers to manage and access massively distributed bulk data by addressing several system and transfer challenges inherent to these environments. This work addresses issues involved in the efficient selection and access of replicated data in Grid environments in the context of the Globus Toolkit{trademark}, building middleware that (1) selects datasets in highly replicated environments, enabling efficient scheduling of data transfer requests; (2) predicts transfer times of bulk wide-area data transfers using extensive statistical analysis; and (3) co-allocates bulk data transfer requests, enabling parallel downloads from mirrored sites. These efforts have demonstrated a decentralizedmore » data scheduling architecture, a set of forecasting tools that predict bandwidth availability within 15% error and co-allocation architecture, and heuristics that expedites data downloads by up to 2 times.« less

Intelligent automated surface grid generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yao, Ke-Thia; Gelsey, Andrew

1995-01-01

The goal of our research is to produce a flexible, general grid generator for automated use by other programs, such as numerical optimizers. The current trend in the gridding field is toward interactive gridding. Interactive gridding more readily taps into the spatial reasoning abilities of the human user through the use of a graphical interface with a mouse. However, a sometimes fruitful approach to generating new designs is to apply an optimizer with shape modification operators to improve an initial design. In order for this approach to be useful, the optimizer must be able to automatically grid and evaluate the candidate designs. This paper describes and intelligent gridder that is capable of analyzing the topology of the spatial domain and predicting approximate physical behaviors based on the geometry of the spatial domain to automatically generate grids for computational fluid dynamics simulators. Typically gridding programs are given a partitioning of the spatial domain to assist the gridder. Our gridder is capable of performing this partitioning. This enables the gridder to automatically grid spatial domains of wide range of configurations.

Wide-area situation awareness in electric power grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greitzer, Frank L.

2010-04-01

Two primary elements of the US energy policy are demand management and efficiency and renewable sources. Major objectives are clean energy transmission and integration, reliable energy transmission, and grid cyber security. Development of the Smart Grid seeks to achieve these goals by lowering energy costs for consumers, achieving energy independence and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Smart Grid is expected to enable real time wide-area situation awareness (SA) for operators. Requirements for wide-area SA have been identified among interoperability standards proposed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to ensure smart-grid functionality. Wide-area SA and enhanced decision support and visualization tools are key elements in the transformation to the Smart Grid. This paper discusses human factors research to promote SA in the electric power grid and the Smart Grid. Topics that will be discussed include the role of human factors in meeting US energy policy goals, the impact and challenges for Smart Grid development, and cyber security challenges.

Large-eddy simulation of wind turbine wake interactions on locally refined Cartesian grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Angelidis, Dionysios; Sotiropoulos, Fotis

2014-11-01

Performing high-fidelity numerical simulations of turbulent flow in wind farms remains a challenging issue mainly because of the large computational resources required to accurately simulate the turbine wakes and turbine/turbine interactions. The discretization of the governing equations on structured grids for mesoscale calculations may not be the most efficient approach for resolving the large disparity of spatial scales. A 3D Cartesian grid refinement method enabling the efficient coupling of the Actuator Line Model (ALM) with locally refined unstructured Cartesian grids adapted to accurately resolve tip vortices and multi-turbine interactions, is presented. Second order schemes are employed for the discretization of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in a hybrid staggered/non-staggered formulation coupled with a fractional step method that ensures the satisfaction of local mass conservation to machine zero. The current approach enables multi-resolution LES of turbulent flow in multi-turbine wind farms. The numerical simulations are in good agreement with experimental measurements and are able to resolve the rich dynamics of turbine wakes on grids containing only a small fraction of the grid nodes that would be required in simulations without local mesh refinement. This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy under Award Number DE-EE0005482 and the National Science Foundation under Award number NSF PFI:BIC 1318201.

Current Grid Generation Strategies and Future Requirements in Hypersonic Vehicle Design, Analysis and Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Papadopoulos, Periklis; Venkatapathy, Ethiraj; Prabhu, Dinesh; Loomis, Mark P.; Olynick, Dave; Arnold, James O. (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

Recent advances in computational power enable computational fluid dynamic modeling of increasingly complex configurations. A review of grid generation methodologies implemented in support of the computational work performed for the X-38 and X-33 are presented. In strategizing topological constructs and blocking structures factors considered are the geometric configuration, optimal grid size, numerical algorithms, accuracy requirements, physics of the problem at hand, computational expense, and the available computer hardware. Also addressed are grid refinement strategies, the effects of wall spacing, and convergence. The significance of grid is demonstrated through a comparison of computational and experimental results of the aeroheating environment experienced by the X-38 vehicle. Special topics on grid generation strategies are also addressed to model control surface deflections, and material mapping.

Smart Homes and Buildings Research at the Energy Systems Integration Facility

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

Christensen, Dane; Sparn, Bethany; Hannegan, Bryan

Watch how NREL researchers are using the unique capabilities of the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) to develop technologies that will help the “smart” homes and buildings of the future perform efficiently and communicate effectively with the electricity grid while enhancing occupants' comfort and convenience.

Towards Dynamic Authentication in the Grid — Secure and Mobile Business Workflows Using GSet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mangler, Jürgen; Schikuta, Erich; Witzany, Christoph; Jorns, Oliver; Ul Haq, Irfan; Wanek, Helmut

Until now, the research community mainly focused on the technical aspects of Grid computing and neglected commercial issues. However, recently the community tends to accept that the success of the Grid is crucially based on commercial exploitation. In our vision Foster's and Kesselman's statement "The Grid is all about sharing." has to be extended by "... and making money out of it!". To allow for the realization of this vision the trust-worthyness of the underlying technology needs to be ensured. This can be achieved by the use of gSET (Gridified Secure Electronic Transaction) as a basic technology for trust management and secure accounting in the presented Grid based workflow. We present a framework, conceptually and technically, from the area of the Mobile-Grid, which justifies the Grid infrastructure as a viable platform to enable commercially successful business workflows.

Non-Gaussian power grid frequency fluctuations characterized by Lévy-stable laws and superstatistics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schäfer, Benjamin; Beck, Christian; Aihara, Kazuyuki; Witthaut, Dirk; Timme, Marc

2018-02-01

Multiple types of fluctuations impact the collective dynamics of power grids and thus challenge their robust operation. Fluctuations result from processes as different as dynamically changing demands, energy trading and an increasing share of renewable power feed-in. Here we analyse principles underlying the dynamics and statistics of power grid frequency fluctuations. Considering frequency time series for a range of power grids, including grids in North America, Japan and Europe, we find a strong deviation from Gaussianity best described as Lévy-stable and q-Gaussian distributions. We present a coarse framework to analytically characterize the impact of arbitrary noise distributions, as well as a superstatistical approach that systematically interprets heavy tails and skewed distributions. We identify energy trading as a substantial contribution to today's frequency fluctuations and effective damping of the grid as a controlling factor enabling reduction of fluctuation risks, with enhanced effects for small power grids.

Alternative Fuels Data Center

Science.gov Websites

Sonoma Clean Power (SCP) customers are eligible to receive a free JuiceNet-enabled EVSE from eMotorWerks eligible to receive a free JuicePlug (smart grid adapter) to convert to a JuiceNet-enabled EVSE. Customers

[Concomitant influence of occupational and social risk factors on health of workers engaged into powder metallurgy].

PubMed

Shur, P Z; Zaĭtseva, N V; Kostarev, V G; Lebedeva-Nesevria, N A; Shliapnikov, D M

2012-01-01

Results of health risk evaluation in workers engaged into powder metallurgy, using complex of hygienic, medical, epidemiologic and sociologic studies, enable to define priority occupational and social risk factors, to assess degree of their influence on the workers' health and to identify occupationally induced diseases.

Optimising LAN access to grid enabled storage elements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, G. A.; Cowan, G. A.; Dunne, B.; Elwell, A.; Millar, A. P.

2008-07-01

When operational, the Large Hadron Collider experiments at CERN will collect tens of petabytes of physics data per year. The worldwide LHC computing grid (WLCG) will distribute this data to over two hundred Tier-1 and Tier-2 computing centres, enabling particle physicists around the globe to access the data for analysis. Although different middleware solutions exist for effective management of storage systems at collaborating institutes, the patterns of access envisaged for Tier-2s fall into two distinct categories. The first involves bulk transfer of data between different Grid storage elements using protocols such as GridFTP. This data movement will principally involve writing ESD and AOD files into Tier-2 storage. Secondly, once datasets are stored at a Tier-2, physics analysis jobs will read the data from the local SE. Such jobs require a POSIX-like interface to the storage so that individual physics events can be extracted. In this paper we consider the performance of POSIX-like access to files held in Disk Pool Manager (DPM) storage elements, a popular lightweight SRM storage manager from EGEE.

A Roadmap for caGrid, an Enterprise Grid Architecture for Biomedical Research

PubMed Central

Saltz, Joel; Hastings, Shannon; Langella, Stephen; Oster, Scott; Kurc, Tahsin; Payne, Philip; Ferreira, Renato; Plale, Beth; Goble, Carole; Ervin, David; Sharma, Ashish; Pan, Tony; Permar, Justin; Brezany, Peter; Siebenlist, Frank; Madduri, Ravi; Foster, Ian; Shanbhag, Krishnakant; Mead, Charlie; Hong, Neil Chue

2012-01-01

caGrid is a middleware system which combines the Grid computing, the service oriented architecture, and the model driven architecture paradigms to support development of interoperable data and analytical resources and federation of such resources in a Grid environment. The functionality provided by caGrid is an essential and integral component of the cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid (caBIG™) program. This program is established by the National Cancer Institute as a nationwide effort to develop enabling informatics technologies for collaborative, multi-institutional biomedical research with the overarching goal of accelerating translational cancer research. Although the main application domain for caGrid is cancer research, the infrastructure provides a generic framework that can be employed in other biomedical research and healthcare domains. The development of caGrid is an ongoing effort, adding new functionality and improvements based on feedback and use cases from the community. This paper provides an overview of potential future architecture and tooling directions and areas of improvement for caGrid and caGrid-like systems. This summary is based on discussions at a roadmap workshop held in February with participants from biomedical research, Grid computing, and high performance computing communities. PMID:18560123

A roadmap for caGrid, an enterprise Grid architecture for biomedical research.

PubMed

Saltz, Joel; Hastings, Shannon; Langella, Stephen; Oster, Scott; Kurc, Tahsin; Payne, Philip; Ferreira, Renato; Plale, Beth; Goble, Carole; Ervin, David; Sharma, Ashish; Pan, Tony; Permar, Justin; Brezany, Peter; Siebenlist, Frank; Madduri, Ravi; Foster, Ian; Shanbhag, Krishnakant; Mead, Charlie; Chue Hong, Neil

2008-01-01

caGrid is a middleware system which combines the Grid computing, the service oriented architecture, and the model driven architecture paradigms to support development of interoperable data and analytical resources and federation of such resources in a Grid environment. The functionality provided by caGrid is an essential and integral component of the cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid (caBIG) program. This program is established by the National Cancer Institute as a nationwide effort to develop enabling informatics technologies for collaborative, multi-institutional biomedical research with the overarching goal of accelerating translational cancer research. Although the main application domain for caGrid is cancer research, the infrastructure provides a generic framework that can be employed in other biomedical research and healthcare domains. The development of caGrid is an ongoing effort, adding new functionality and improvements based on feedback and use cases from the community. This paper provides an overview of potential future architecture and tooling directions and areas of improvement for caGrid and caGrid-like systems. This summary is based on discussions at a roadmap workshop held in February with participants from biomedical research, Grid computing, and high performance computing communities.

Performance evaluation of a 2-mode PV grid connected system in Thailand -- Case study

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

Jivacate, C.; Mongconvorawan, S.; Sinratanapukdee, E.

A PV grid connected system with small battery bank has been set up in a rural district, North Thailand in order to demonstrate a 2-mode operation concept. The objective is to gain experience on the PV grid connected concept without battery storage. However, due to the evening peak demand and a rather weak distribution grid which is typical in rural areas, small battery bank is still required to enable the maximum energy transfer to grid for the time being before moving fully to the no battery mode. The analyzed data seems to indicate possible performance improvement by re-arranging the numbermore » of PV modules and battery in the string.« less

Network gateway security method for enterprise Grid: a literature review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sujarwo, A.; Tan, J.

2017-03-01

The computational Grid has brought big computational resources closer to scientists. It enables people to do a large computational job anytime and anywhere without any physical border anymore. However, the massive and spread of computer participants either as user or computational provider arise problems in security. The challenge is on how the security system, especially the one which filters data in the gateway could works in flexibility depends on the registered Grid participants. This paper surveys what people have done to approach this challenge, in order to find the better and new method for enterprise Grid. The findings of this paper is the dynamically controlled enterprise firewall to secure the Grid resources from unwanted connections with a new firewall controlling method and components.

RXIO: Design and implementation of high performance RDMA-capable GridFTP

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

Tian, Yuan; Yu, Weikuan; Vetter, Jeffrey S.

2011-12-21

For its low-latency, high bandwidth, and low CPU utilization, Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) has established itself as an effective data movement technology in many networking environments. However, the transport protocols of grid run-time systems, such as GridFTP in Globus, are not yet capable of utilizing RDMA. In this study, we examine the architecture of GridFTP for the feasibility of enabling RDMA. An RDMA-capable XIO (RXIO) framework is designed and implemented to extend its XIO system and match the characteristics of RDMA. Our experimental results demonstrate that RDMA can significantly improve the performance of GridFTP, reducing the latency by 32%more » and increasing the bandwidth by more than three times. In achieving such performance improvements, RDMA dramatically cuts down CPU utilization of GridFTP clients and servers. In conclusion, these results demonstrate that RXIO can effectively exploit the benefits of RDMA for GridFTP. It offers a good prototype to further leverage GridFTP on wide-area RDMA networks.« less

The functional micro-organization of grid cells revealed by cellular-resolution imaging

PubMed Central

Heys, James G.; Rangarajan, Krsna V.; Dombeck, Daniel A.

2015-01-01

Summary Establishing how grid cells are anatomically arranged, on a microscopic scale, in relation to their firing patterns in the environment would facilitate a greater micro-circuit level understanding of the brain’s representation of space. However, all previous grid cell recordings used electrode techniques that provide limited descriptions of fine-scale organization. We therefore developed a technique for cellular-resolution functional imaging of medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) neurons in mice navigating a virtual linear track, enabling a new experimental approach to study MEC. Using these methods, we show that grid cells are physically clustered in MEC compared to non-grid cells. Additionally, we demonstrate that grid cells are functionally micro-organized: The similarity between the environment firing locations of grid cell pairs varies as a function of the distance between them according to a “Mexican Hat” shaped profile. This suggests that, on average, nearby grid cells have more similar spatial firing phases than those further apart. PMID:25467986

A smart grid simulation testbed using Matlab/Simulink

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mallapuram, Sriharsha; Moulema, Paul; Yu, Wei

2014-06-01

The smart grid is the integration of computing and communication technologies into a power grid with a goal of enabling real time control, and a reliable, secure, and efficient energy system [1]. With the increased interest of the research community and stakeholders towards the smart grid, a number of solutions and algorithms have been developed and proposed to address issues related to smart grid operations and functions. Those technologies and solutions need to be tested and validated before implementation using software simulators. In this paper, we developed a general smart grid simulation model in the MATLAB/Simulink environment, which integrates renewable energy resources, energy storage technology, load monitoring and control capability. To demonstrate and validate the effectiveness of our simulation model, we created simulation scenarios and performed simulations using a real-world data set provided by the Pecan Street Research Institute.

Web-HLA and Service-Enabled RTI in the Simulation Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jijie; Li, Bo Hu; Chai, Xudong; Zhang, Lin

HLA-based simulations in a grid environment have now become a main research hotspot in the M&S community, but there are many shortcomings of the current HLA running in a grid environment. This paper analyzes the analogies between HLA and OGSA from the software architecture point of view, and points out the service-oriented method should be introduced into the three components of HLA to overcome its shortcomings. This paper proposes an expanded running architecture that can integrate the HLA with OGSA and realizes a service-enabled RTI (SE-RTI). In addition, in order to handle the bottleneck problem that is how to efficiently realize the HLA time management mechanism, this paper proposes a centralized way by which the CRC of the SE-RTI takes charge of the time management and the dispatching of TSO events of each federate. Benchmark experiments indicate that the running velocity of simulations in Internet or WAN is properly improved.

Performance Evaluation of a SLA Negotiation Control Protocol for Grid Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cergol, Igor; Mirchandani, Vinod; Verchere, Dominique

A framework for an autonomous negotiation control protocol for service delivery is crucial to enable the support of heterogeneous service level agreements (SLAs) that will exist in distributed environments. We have first given a gist of our augmented service negotiation protocol to support distinct service elements. The augmentations also encompass related composition of the services and negotiation with several service providers simultaneously. All the incorporated augmentations will enable to consolidate the service negotiation operations for telecom networks, which are evolving towards Grid networks. Furthermore, our autonomous negotiation protocol is based on a distributed multi-agent framework to create an open market for Grid services. Second, we have concisely presented key simulation results of our work in progress. The results exhibit the usefulness of our negotiation protocol for realistic scenarios that involves different background traffic loading, message sizes and traffic flow asymmetry between background and negotiation traffics.

Data management and analysis for the Earth System Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, D. N.; Ananthakrishnan, R.; Bernholdt, D. E.; Bharathi, S.; Brown, D.; Chen, M.; Chervenak, A. L.; Cinquini, L.; Drach, R.; Foster, I. T.; Fox, P.; Hankin, S.; Henson, V. E.; Jones, P.; Middleton, D. E.; Schwidder, J.; Schweitzer, R.; Schuler, R.; Shoshani, A.; Siebenlist, F.; Sim, A.; Strand, W. G.; Wilhelmi, N.; Su, M.

2008-07-01

The international climate community is expected to generate hundreds of petabytes of simulation data within the next five to seven years. This data must be accessed and analyzed by thousands of analysts worldwide in order to provide accurate and timely estimates of the likely impact of climate change on physical, biological, and human systems. Climate change is thus not only a scientific challenge of the first order but also a major technological challenge. In order to address this technological challenge, the Earth System Grid Center for Enabling Technologies (ESG-CET) has been established within the U.S. Department of Energy's Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing (SciDAC)-2 program, with support from the offices of Advanced Scientific Computing Research and Biological and Environmental Research. ESG-CET's mission is to provide climate researchers worldwide with access to the data, information, models, analysis tools, and computational capabilities required to make sense of enormous climate simulation datasets. Its specific goals are to (1) make data more useful to climate researchers by developing Grid technology that enhances data usability; (2) meet specific distributed database, data access, and data movement needs of national and international climate projects; (3) provide a universal and secure web-based data access portal for broad multi-model data collections; and (4) provide a wide-range of Grid-enabled climate data analysis tools and diagnostic methods to international climate centers and U.S. government agencies. Building on the successes of the previous Earth System Grid (ESG) project, which has enabled thousands of researchers to access tens of terabytes of data from a small number of ESG sites, ESG-CET is working to integrate a far larger number of distributed data providers, high-bandwidth wide-area networks, and remote computers in a highly collaborative problem-solving environment.

Smart Homes and Buildings Research at the Energy Systems Integration Facility

ScienceCinema

Christensen, Dane; Sparn, Bethany; Hannegan, Bryan

2018-01-16

Watch how NREL researchers are using the unique capabilities of the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) to develop technologies that will help the “smart” homes and buildings of the future perform efficiently and communicate effectively with the electricity grid while enhancing occupants' comfort and convenience.

Grid-based implementation of XDS-I as part of image-enabled EHR for regional healthcare in Shanghai.

PubMed

Zhang, Jianguo; Zhang, Kai; Yang, Yuanyuan; Sun, Jianyong; Ling, Tonghui; Wang, Guangrong; Ling, Yun; Peng, Derong

2011-03-01

Due to the rapid growth of Shanghai city to 20 million residents, the balance between healthcare supply and demand has become an important issue. The local government hopes to ameliorate this problem by developing an image-enabled electronic healthcare record (EHR) sharing mechanism between certain hospitals. This system is designed to enable healthcare collaboration and reduce healthcare costs by allowing review of prior examination data obtained at other hospitals. Here, we present a design method and implementation solution of image-enabled EHRs (i-EHRs) and describe the implementation of i-EHRs in four hospitals and one regional healthcare information center, as well as their preliminary operating results. We designed the i-EHRs with service-oriented architecture (SOA) and combined the grid-based image management and distribution capability, which are compliant with IHE XDS-I integration profile. There are seven major components and common services included in the i-EHRs. In order to achieve quick response for image retrieving in low-bandwidth network environments, we use a JPEG2000 interactive protocol and progressive display technique to transmit images from a Grid Agent as Imaging Source Actor to the PACS workstation as Imaging Consumer Actor. The first phase of pilot testing of our image-enabled EHR was implemented in the Zhabei district of Shanghai for imaging document sharing and collaborative diagnostic purposes. The pilot testing began in October 2009; there have been more than 50 examinations daily transferred between the City North Hospital and the three community hospitals for collaborative diagnosis. The feedback from users at all hospitals is very positive, with respondents stating the system to be easy to use and reporting no interference with their normal radiology diagnostic operation. The i-EHR system can provide event-driven automatic image delivery for collaborative imaging diagnosis across multiple hospitals based on work flow requirements. This project demonstrated that the grid-based implementation of IHE XDS-I for image-enabled EHR could scale effectively to serve a regional healthcare solution with collaborative imaging services. The feedback from users of community hospitals and large hospital is very positive.

Examining the occupancy–density relationship for a low-density carnivore

USGS Publications Warehouse

Linden, Daniel W.; Fuller, Angela K.; Royle, J. Andrew; Hare, Matthew P.

2017-01-01

The challenges associated with monitoring low-density carnivores across large landscapes have limited the ability to implement and evaluate conservation and management strategies for such species. Non-invasive sampling techniques and advanced statistical approaches have alleviated some of these challenges and can even allow for spatially explicit estimates of density, one of the most valuable wildlife monitoring tools.For some species, individual identification comes at no cost when unique attributes (e.g. pelage patterns) can be discerned with remote cameras, while other species require viable genetic material and expensive laboratory processing for individual assignment. Prohibitive costs may still force monitoring efforts to use species distribution or occupancy as a surrogate for density, which may not be appropriate under many conditions.Here, we used a large-scale monitoring study of fisher Pekania pennanti to evaluate the effectiveness of occupancy as an approximation to density, particularly for informing harvest management decisions. We combined remote cameras with baited hair snares during 2013–2015 to sample across a 70 096-km2 region of western New York, USA. We fit occupancy and Royle–Nichols models to species detection–non-detection data collected by cameras, and spatial capture–recapture (SCR) models to individual encounter data obtained by genotyped hair samples. Variation in the state variables within 15-km2 grid cells was modelled as a function of landscape attributes known to influence fisher distribution.We found a close relationship between grid cell estimates of fisher state variables from the models using detection–non-detection data and those from the SCR model, likely due to informative spatial covariates across a large landscape extent and a grid cell resolution that worked well with the movement ecology of the species. Fisher occupancy and density were both positively associated with the proportion of coniferous-mixed forest and negatively associated with road density. As a result, spatially explicit management recommendations for fisher were similar across models, though relative variation was dampened for the detection–non-detection data.Synthesis and applications. Our work provides empirical evidence that models using detection–non-detection data can make similar inferences regarding relative spatial variation of the focal population to models using more expensive individual encounters when the selected spatial grain approximates or is marginally smaller than home range size. When occupancy alone is chosen as a cost-effective state variable for monitoring, simulation and sensitivity analyses should be used to understand how inferences from detection–non-detection data will be affected by aspects of study design and species ecology.

A comparative analysis of dynamic grids vs. virtual grids using the A3pviGrid framework.

PubMed

Shankaranarayanan, Avinas; Amaldas, Christine

2010-11-01

With the proliferation of Quad/Multi-core micro-processors in mainstream platforms such as desktops and workstations; a large number of unused CPU cycles can be utilized for running virtual machines (VMs) as dynamic nodes in distributed environments. Grid services and its service oriented business broker now termed cloud computing could deploy image based virtualization platforms enabling agent based resource management and dynamic fault management. In this paper we present an efficient way of utilizing heterogeneous virtual machines on idle desktops as an environment for consumption of high performance grid services. Spurious and exponential increases in the size of the datasets are constant concerns in medical and pharmaceutical industries due to the constant discovery and publication of large sequence databases. Traditional algorithms are not modeled at handing large data sizes under sudden and dynamic changes in the execution environment as previously discussed. This research was undertaken to compare our previous results with running the same test dataset with that of a virtual Grid platform using virtual machines (Virtualization). The implemented architecture, A3pviGrid utilizes game theoretic optimization and agent based team formation (Coalition) algorithms to improve upon scalability with respect to team formation. Due to the dynamic nature of distributed systems (as discussed in our previous work) all interactions were made local within a team transparently. This paper is a proof of concept of an experimental mini-Grid test-bed compared to running the platform on local virtual machines on a local test cluster. This was done to give every agent its own execution platform enabling anonymity and better control of the dynamic environmental parameters. We also analyze performance and scalability of Blast in a multiple virtual node setup and present our findings. This paper is an extension of our previous research on improving the BLAST application framework using dynamic Grids on virtualization platforms such as the virtual box.

Full Wave Analysis of Passive Microwave Monolithic Integrated Circuit Devices Using a Generalized Finite Difference Time Domain (GFDTD) Algorithm

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lansing, Faiza S.; Rascoe, Daniel L.

1993-01-01

This paper presents a modified Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) technique using a generalized conformed orthogonal grid. The use of the Conformed Orthogonal Grid, Finite Difference Time Domain (GFDTD) enables the designer to match all the circuit dimensions, hence eliminating a major source o error in the analysis.

FermiGrid - experience and future plans

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

Chadwick, K.; Berman, E.; Canal, P.

2007-09-01

Fermilab supports a scientific program that includes experiments and scientists located across the globe. In order to better serve this community, Fermilab has placed its production computer resources in a Campus Grid infrastructure called 'FermiGrid'. The FermiGrid infrastructure allows the large experiments at Fermilab to have priority access to their own resources, enables sharing of these resources in an opportunistic fashion, and movement of work (jobs, data) between the Campus Grid and National Grids such as Open Science Grid and the WLCG. FermiGrid resources support multiple Virtual Organizations (VOs), including VOs from the Open Science Grid (OSG), EGEE and themore » Worldwide LHC Computing Grid Collaboration (WLCG). Fermilab also makes leading contributions to the Open Science Grid in the areas of accounting, batch computing, grid security, job management, resource selection, site infrastructure, storage management, and VO services. Through the FermiGrid interfaces, authenticated and authorized VOs and individuals may access our core grid services, the 10,000+ Fermilab resident CPUs, near-petabyte (including CMS) online disk pools and the multi-petabyte Fermilab Mass Storage System. These core grid services include a site wide Globus gatekeeper, VO management services for several VOs, Fermilab site authorization services, grid user mapping services, as well as job accounting and monitoring, resource selection and data movement services. Access to these services is via standard and well-supported grid interfaces. We will report on the user experience of using the FermiGrid campus infrastructure interfaced to a national cyberinfrastructure--the successes and the problems.« less

Domed, 40-cm-Diameter Ion Optics for an Ion Thruster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soulas, George C.; Haag, Thomas W.; Patterson, Michael J.

2006-01-01

Improved accelerator and screen grids for an ion accelerator have been designed and tested in a continuing effort to increase the sustainable power and thrust at the high end of the accelerator throttling range. The accelerator and screen grids are undergoing development for intended use as NASA s Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) a spacecraft thruster that would have an input-power throttling range of 1.2 to 6.9 kW. The improved accelerator and screen grids could also be incorporated into ion accelerators used in such industrial processes as ion implantation and ion milling. NEXT is a successor to the NASA Solar Electric Propulsion Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) thruster - a state-of-the-art ion thruster characterized by, among other things, a beam-extraction diameter of 28 cm, a span-to-gap ratio (defined as this diameter divided by the distance between the grids) of about 430, and a rated peak input power of 2.3 kW. To enable the NEXT thruster to operate at the required higher peak power, the beam-extraction diameter was increased to 40 cm almost doubling the beam-extraction area over that of NSTAR (see figure). The span-to-gap ratio was increased to 600 to enable throttling to the low end of the required input-power range. The geometry of the apertures in the grids was selected on the basis of experience in the use of grids of similar geometry in the NSTAR thruster. Characteristics of the aperture geometry include a high open-area fraction in the screen grid to reduce discharge losses and a low open-area fraction in the accelerator grid to reduce losses of electrically neutral gas atoms or molecules. The NEXT accelerator grid was made thicker than that of the NSTAR to make more material available for erosion, thereby increasing the service life and, hence, the total impulse. The NEXT grids are made of molybdenum, which was chosen because its combination of high strength and low thermal expansion helps to minimize thermally and inertially induced deflections of the grids. A secondary reason for choosing molybdenum is the availability of a large database for this material. To keep development costs low, the NEXT grids have been fabricated by the same techniques used to fabricate the NSTAR grids. In tests, the NEXT ion optics have been found to outperform the NSTAR ion optics, as expected.

Web-based interactive visualization in a Grid-enabled neuroimaging application using HTML5.

PubMed

Siewert, René; Specovius, Svenja; Wu, Jie; Krefting, Dagmar

2012-01-01

Interactive visualization and correction of intermediate results are required in many medical image analysis pipelines. To allow certain interaction in the remote execution of compute- and data-intensive applications, new features of HTML5 are used. They allow for transparent integration of user interaction into Grid- or Cloud-enabled scientific workflows. Both 2D and 3D visualization and data manipulation can be performed through a scientific gateway without the need to install specific software or web browser plugins. The possibilities of web-based visualization are presented along the FreeSurfer-pipeline, a popular compute- and data-intensive software tool for quantitative neuroimaging.

Integrating Nuclear and Renewable Electricity in a Low-Carbon World: MIT-Japan Future of Nuclear Power Studies

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

Haratyk, Geoffrey; Komiyama, Ryoichi; Forsberg, Charles

Affordable reliable energy made possible a large middle class in the industrial world. Concerns about climate change require a transition to nuclear, wind, and solar—but these energy sources in current forms do not have the capability to meet the requirements for variable affordable energy. Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Tokyo, the Tokyo Institute of Technology and the Institute for Energy Economics are undertaking a series of studies to address how to make this transition to a low carbon world. Three areas are being investigated. The first area is the development of electricity grid models tomore » understand the impacts of different choices of technologies and different limits on greenhouse gas emissions. The second area is the development of technologies to enable variable electricity to the grid while capital-intensive nuclear, wind and solar generating plants operate at full capacity to minimize costs. Technologies to enable meeting variable electricity demand while operating plants at high-capacity factors include use of heat and hydrogen storage. The third area is the development of electricity market rules to enable transition to a low-carbon grid.« less

Occupation-based practices and homelessness: A scoping review.

PubMed

Roy, Laurence; Vallée, Catherine; Kirsh, Bonnie H; Marshall, Carrie Anne; Marval, Rebecca; Low, Alissa

2017-04-01

Persons experiencing or at risk of homelessness have occupational needs that are seldom addressed in the Canadian system of care. The lack of documented evidence on occupational therapy practices in this field hinders the development of the profession. This article identifies current and potential practices that aim to enable or support the occupations of persons experiencing or at risk of homelessness. A scoping review was conducted, including evidence from both occupational therapy and non-occupational therapy sources. One hundred and seventy-eight papers were selected in the areas of occupational performance skills training, enrichment of occupational repertoire, employment/education, physical rehabilitation services, child/family services, community building, occupational transition from homeless to housed, literacy, and disaster relief. Occupational therapists can build environments and create opportunities that facilitate occupational engagement of individuals experiencing homelessness. Gaps in knowledge include the evaluation of occupational therapy practices, the Canadian context of family homelessness, and the cultural safety of occupational therapy interventions.

Foresee: A user-centric home energy management system for energy efficiency and demand response

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

Jin, Xin; Baker, Kyri A.; Christensen, Dane T.

This paper presents foresee, a user-centric home energy management system that can help optimize how a home operates to concurrently meet users' needs, achieve energy efficiency and commensurate utility cost savings, and reliably deliver grid services based on utility signals. Foresee is built on a multiobjective model predictive control framework, wherein the objectives consist of energy cost, thermal comfort, user convenience, and carbon emission. Foresee learns user preferences on different objectives and acts on their behalf to operate building equipment, such as home appliances, photovoltaic systems, and battery storage. In this work, machine-learning algorithms were used to derive data-driven appliancemore » models and usage patterns to predict the home's future energy consumption. This approach enables highly accurate predictions of comfort needs, energy costs, environmental impacts, and grid service availability. Simulation studies were performed on field data from a residential building stock data set collected in the Pacific Northwest. Results indicated that foresee generated up to 7.6% whole-home energy savings without requiring substantial behavioral changes. When responding to demand response events, foresee was able to provide load forecasts upon receipt of event notifications and delivered the committed demand response services with 10% or fewer errors. Foresee fully utilized the potential of the battery storage and controllable building loads and delivered up to 7.0-kW load reduction and 13.5-kW load increase. As a result, these benefits are provided while maintaining the occupants' thermal comfort or convenience in using their appliances.« less

Foresee: A user-centric home energy management system for energy efficiency and demand response

DOE PAGES

Jin, Xin; Baker, Kyri A.; Christensen, Dane T.; ...

2017-08-23

This paper presents foresee, a user-centric home energy management system that can help optimize how a home operates to concurrently meet users' needs, achieve energy efficiency and commensurate utility cost savings, and reliably deliver grid services based on utility signals. Foresee is built on a multiobjective model predictive control framework, wherein the objectives consist of energy cost, thermal comfort, user convenience, and carbon emission. Foresee learns user preferences on different objectives and acts on their behalf to operate building equipment, such as home appliances, photovoltaic systems, and battery storage. In this work, machine-learning algorithms were used to derive data-driven appliancemore » models and usage patterns to predict the home's future energy consumption. This approach enables highly accurate predictions of comfort needs, energy costs, environmental impacts, and grid service availability. Simulation studies were performed on field data from a residential building stock data set collected in the Pacific Northwest. Results indicated that foresee generated up to 7.6% whole-home energy savings without requiring substantial behavioral changes. When responding to demand response events, foresee was able to provide load forecasts upon receipt of event notifications and delivered the committed demand response services with 10% or fewer errors. Foresee fully utilized the potential of the battery storage and controllable building loads and delivered up to 7.0-kW load reduction and 13.5-kW load increase. As a result, these benefits are provided while maintaining the occupants' thermal comfort or convenience in using their appliances.« less

Advanced Methodology for Simulation of Complex Flows Using Structured Grid Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steinthorsson, Erlendur; Modiano, David

1995-01-01

Detailed simulations of viscous flows in complicated geometries pose a significant challenge to current capabilities of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). To enable routine application of CFD to this class of problems, advanced methodologies are required that employ (a) automated grid generation, (b) adaptivity, (c) accurate discretizations and efficient solvers, and (d) advanced software techniques. Each of these ingredients contributes to increased accuracy, efficiency (in terms of human effort and computer time), and/or reliability of CFD software. In the long run, methodologies employing structured grid systems will remain a viable choice for routine simulation of flows in complex geometries only if genuinely automatic grid generation techniques for structured grids can be developed and if adaptivity is employed more routinely. More research in both these areas is urgently needed.

Turbulent Output-Based Anisotropic Adaptation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Park, Michael A.; Carlson, Jan-Renee

2010-01-01

Controlling discretization error is a remaining challenge for computational fluid dynamics simulation. Grid adaptation is applied to reduce estimated discretization error in drag or pressure integral output functions. To enable application to high O(10(exp 7)) Reynolds number turbulent flows, a hybrid approach is utilized that freezes the near-wall boundary layer grids and adapts the grid away from the no slip boundaries. The hybrid approach is not applicable to problems with under resolved initial boundary layer grids, but is a powerful technique for problems with important off-body anisotropic features. Supersonic nozzle plume, turbulent flat plate, and shock-boundary layer interaction examples are presented with comparisons to experimental measurements of pressure and velocity. Adapted grids are produced that resolve off-body features in locations that are not known a priori.

An Analysis of Security and Privacy Issues in Smart Grid Software Architectures on Clouds

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

Simmhan, Yogesh; Kumbhare, Alok; Cao, Baohua

2011-07-09

Power utilities globally are increasingly upgrading to Smart Grids that use bi-directional communication with the consumer to enable an information-driven approach to distributed energy management. Clouds offer features well suited for Smart Grid software platforms and applications, such as elastic resources and shared services. However, the security and privacy concerns inherent in an information rich Smart Grid environment are further exacerbated by their deployment on Clouds. Here, we present an analysis of security and privacy issues in a Smart Grids software architecture operating on different Cloud environments, in the form of a taxonomy. We use the Los Angeles Smart Gridmore » Project that is underway in the largest U.S. municipal utility to drive this analysis that will benefit both Cloud practitioners targeting Smart Grid applications, and Cloud researchers investigating security and privacy.« less

The HEPiX Virtualisation Working Group: Towards a Grid of Clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cass, Tony

2012-12-01

The use of virtual machine images, as for example with Cloud services such as Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud, is attractive for users as they have a guaranteed execution environment, something that cannot today be provided across sites participating in computing grids such as the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid. However, Grid sites often operate within computer security frameworks which preclude the use of remotely generated images. The HEPiX Virtualisation Working Group was setup with the objective to enable use of remotely generated virtual machine images at Grid sites and, to this end, has introduced the idea of trusted virtual machine images which are guaranteed to be secure and configurable by sites such that security policy commitments can be met. This paper describes the requirements and details of these trusted virtual machine images and presents a model for their use to facilitate the integration of Grid- and Cloud-based computing environments for High Energy Physics.

Developing an occupational skills profile for the emerging profession of "big-data-enabled professional"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kastens, K. A.; Malyn-Smith, J.; Ippolito, J.; Krumhansl, R.

2014-12-01

In August of 2014, the Oceans of Data Institute at Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) is convening an expert panel to begin the process of developing an occupational skills profile for the "big-data-enabled professional." We define such a professional as an "individual who works with large complex data sets on a regular basis, asking and answering questions, analyzing trends, and finding meaningful patterns, in order to increase the efficiency of processes, make decisions and predictions, solve problems, generate hypotheses, and/or develop new understandings." The expert panel includes several geophysicists, as well as data professionals from engineering, higher education, analytical journalism, forensics, bioinformatics, and telecommunications. Working with experienced facilitators, the expert panel will create a detailed synopsis of the tasks and responsibilities characteristic of their profession, as well as the skills, knowledge and behaviors that enable them to succeed in the workplace. After the panel finishes their work, the task matrix and associated narrative will be vetted and validated by a larger group of additional professionals, and then disseminated for use by educators and employers. The process we are using is called DACUM (Developing a Curriculum), adapted by EDC and optimized for emergent professions, such as the "big-data-enabled professional." DACUM is a well-established method for analyzing jobs and occupations, commonly used in technical fields to develop curriculum and training programs that reflect authentic work tasks found in scientific and technical workplaces. The premises behind the DACUM approach are that: expert workers are better able to describe their own occupation than anyone else; any job can be described in terms of the tasks that successful workers in the occupation perform; all tasks have direct implications for the knowledge, skills, understandings and attitudes that must be taught and learned in preparation for the targeted career. At AGU, we will describe the process and present the finalized occupational profile.

Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control for Multiple Distributed Generators Microgrids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Babqi, Abdulrahman Jamal

This dissertation proposes two control strategies for AC microgrids that consist of multiple distributed generators (DGs). The control strategies are valid for both grid-connected and islanded modes of operation. In general, microgrid can operate as a stand-alone system (i.e., islanded mode) or while it is connected to the utility grid (i.e., grid connected mode). To enhance the performance of a micrgorid, a sophisticated control scheme should be employed. The control strategies of microgrids can be divided into primary and secondary controls. The primary control regulates the output active and reactive powers of each DG in grid-connected mode as well as the output voltage and frequency of each DG in islanded mode. The secondary control is responsible for regulating the microgrid voltage and frequency in the islanded mode. Moreover, it provides power sharing schemes among the DGs. In other words, the secondary control specifies the set points (i.e. reference values) for the primary controllers. In this dissertation, Finite Control Set Model Predictive Control (FCS-MPC) was proposed for controlling microgrids. FCS-MPC was used as the primary controller to regulate the output power of each DG (in the grid-connected mode) or the voltage of the point of DG coupling (in the islanded mode of operation). In the grid-connected mode, Direct Power Model Predictive Control (DPMPC) was implemented to manage the power flow between each DG and the utility grid. In the islanded mode, Voltage Model Predictive Control (VMPC), as the primary control, and droop control, as the secondary control, were employed to control the output voltage of each DG and system frequency. The controller was equipped with a supplementary current limiting technique in order to limit the output current of each DG in abnormal incidents. The control approach also enabled smooth transition between the two modes. The performance of the control strategy was investigated and verified using PSCAD/EMTDC software platform. This dissertation also proposes a control and power sharing strategy for small-scale microgrids in both grid-connected and islanded modes based on centralized FCS-MPC. In grid-connected mode, the controller was capable of managing the output power of each DG and enabling flexible power regulation between the microgrid and the utility grid. In islanded mode, the controller regulated the microgrid voltage and frequency, and provided a precise power sharing scheme among the DGs. In addition, the power sharing can be adjusted flexibly by changing the sharing ratio. The proposed control also enabled plug-and-play operation. Moreover, a smooth transition between the two modes of operation was achieved without any disturbance in the system. Case studies were carried out in order to validate the proposed control strategy with the PSCAD/EMTDA software package.

Expanding access to off-grid rural electrification in Africa: An analysis of community-based micro-grids in Kenya

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirubi, Charles Gathu

Community micro-grids have played a central role in increasing access to off-grid rural electrification (RE) in many regions of the developing world, notably South Asia. However, the promise of community micro-grids in sub-Sahara Africa remains largely unexplored. My study explores the potential and limits of community micro-grids as options for increasing access to off-grid RE in sub-Sahara Africa. Contextualized in five community micro-grids in rural Kenya, my study is framed through theories of collective action and combines qualitative and quantitative methods, including household surveys, electronic data logging and regression analysis. The main contribution of my research is demonstrating the circumstances under which community micro-grids can contribute to rural development and the conditions under which individuals are likely to initiate and participate in such projects collectively. With regard to rural development, I demonstrate that access to electricity enables the use of electric equipment and tools by small and micro-enterprises, resulting in significant improvement in productivity per worker (100--200% depending on the task at hand) and a corresponding growth in income levels in the order of 20--70%, depending on the product made. Access to electricity simultaneously enables and improves delivery of social and business services from a wide range of village-level infrastructure (e.g. schools, markets, water pumps) while improving the productivity of agricultural activities. Moreover, when local electricity users have an ability to charge and enforce cost-reflective tariffs and electricity consumption is closely linked to productive uses that generate incomes, cost recovery is feasible. By their nature---a new technology delivering highly valued services by the elites and other members, limited local experience and expertise, high capital costs---community micro-grids are good candidates for elite-domination. Even so, elite control does not necessarily lead to elite capture. Experiences from different micro-grid settings illustrate the manner in which a coincidence of interest between the elites and the rest of members and access to external support can create incentives and mechanisms to enable community-wide access to scarce services, hence mitigating elite capture. Moreover, access to external support was found to increase the likelihood of participation for the relatively poor households. The policy-relevant message from this research is two-fold. In rural areas with suitable sites for micro-hydro power, the potential for community micro-grids appear considerable to the extent that this option would seem to represent "the road not taken" as far as policies and initiatives aimed at expanding RE are concerned in Kenya and other African countries with comparable settings. However, local participatory initiatives not complimented by external technical assistance run a considerable risk of locking rural households into relatively more costly and poor-quality services. By taking advantage of existing and/or building a dense network of local organizations, including micro-finance agencies, the government and development partners can make available to local communities the necessary support---financial, technical or regulatory---essential for efficient design of micro-grids in addition to facilitating equitable distribution of electricity benefits.

Pervasive access to images and data--the use of computing grids and mobile/wireless devices across healthcare enterprises.

PubMed

Pohjonen, Hanna; Ross, Peeter; Blickman, Johan G; Kamman, Richard

2007-01-01

Emerging technologies are transforming the workflows in healthcare enterprises. Computing grids and handheld mobile/wireless devices are providing clinicians with enterprise-wide access to all patient data and analysis tools on a pervasive basis. In this paper, emerging technologies are presented that provide computing grids and streaming-based access to image and data management functions, and system architectures that enable pervasive computing on a cost-effective basis. Finally, the implications of such technologies are investigated regarding the positive impacts on clinical workflows.

Extending Beyond Qualitative Interviewing to Illuminate the Tacit Nature of Everyday Occupation: Occupational Mapping and Participatory Occupation Methods.

PubMed

Huot, Suzanne; Rudman, Debbie Laliberte

2015-07-01

The study of human occupation requires a variety of methods to fully elucidate its complex, multifaceted nature. Although qualitative approaches have commonly been used within occupational therapy and occupational science, we contend that such qualitative research must extend beyond the sole use of interviews. Drawing on qualitative methodological literature, we discuss the limits of interview methods and outline other methods, particularly visual methods, as productive means to enhance qualitative research. We then provide an overview of our critical ethnographic study that used narrative, visual, and observational methods to explore the occupational transitions experienced by immigrants to Canada. We describe our use of occupational mapping and participatory occupation methods and the contributions of these combined methods. We conclude that adopting a variety of methods can enable a deeper understanding of the tacit nature of everyday occupation, and is key to advancing knowledge regarding occupation and to informing occupational therapy practice.

The functional micro-organization of grid cells revealed by cellular-resolution imaging.

PubMed

Heys, James G; Rangarajan, Krsna V; Dombeck, Daniel A

2014-12-03

Establishing how grid cells are anatomically arranged, on a microscopic scale, in relation to their firing patterns in the environment would facilitate a greater microcircuit-level understanding of the brain's representation of space. However, all previous grid cell recordings used electrode techniques that provide limited descriptions of fine-scale organization. We therefore developed a technique for cellular-resolution functional imaging of medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) neurons in mice navigating a virtual linear track, enabling a new experimental approach to study MEC. Using these methods, we show that grid cells are physically clustered in MEC compared to nongrid cells. Additionally, we demonstrate that grid cells are functionally micro-organized: the similarity between the environment firing locations of grid cell pairs varies as a function of the distance between them according to a "Mexican hat"-shaped profile. This suggests that, on average, nearby grid cells have more similar spatial firing phases than those further apart. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A search for sources of drug resistance by the 4D-QSAR analysis of a set of antimalarial dihydrofolate reductase inhibitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Santos-Filho, Osvaldo Andrade; Hopfinger, Anton J.

2001-01-01

A set of 18 structurally diverse antifolates including pyrimethamine, cycloguanil, methotrexate, aminopterin and trimethoprim, and 13 pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidines were studied using four-dimensional quantitative structure-activity relationship (4D-QSAR) analysis. The corresponding biological activities of these compounds include IC50 inhibition constants for both the wild type, and a specific mutant type of Plasmodium falciparum dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). Two thousand conformations of each analog were sampled to generate a conformational ensemble profile (CEP) from a molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) of 100,000 conformer trajectory states. Each sampled conformation was placed in a 1 Å cubic grid cell lattice for each of five trial alignments. The frequency of occupation of each grid cell was computed for each of six types of pharmacophore groups of atoms of each compound. These grid cell occupancy descriptors (GCODs) were then used as a descriptor pool to construct 4D-QSAR models. Models for inhibition of both the `wild' type and the mutant enzyme were generated which provide detailed spatial pharmacophore requirements for inhibition in terms of atom types and their corresponding relative locations in space. The 4D-QSAR models indicate some structural features perhaps relevant to the mechanism of resistance of the Plasmodium falciparum DHFR to current antimalarials. One feature identified is a slightly different binding alignment of the ligands to the mutant form of the enzyme as compared to the wild type.

Occupant Volume Integrity Evaluation in Passenger Rail Cars

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-02-01

This research, which is intended to enable the growth of high-speed and intercity passenger rail transportation, was sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Office of Research and Development, as part of the train Occupant Protection r...

Occupant volume integrity evaluation in passenger rail cars.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-02-01

This research, which is intended to enable the growth of high-speed and intercity passenger rail transportation, was sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Office of Research and Development, as part of the train Occupant Protection r...

The Makings of a Technician.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baird, Collette

1996-01-01

Describes the development of occupational standards for technicians in education and highlights the main aspects of the work. Explains the importance of learning as much as possible about technicians' work so that emerging occupational standards are both accurate and enabling. (DDR)

FermiGrid—experience and future plans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chadwick, K.; Berman, E.; Canal, P.; Hesselroth, T.; Garzoglio, G.; Levshina, T.; Sergeev, V.; Sfiligoi, I.; Sharma, N.; Timm, S.; Yocum, D. R.

2008-07-01

Fermilab supports a scientific program that includes experiments and scientists located across the globe. In order to better serve this community, Fermilab has placed its production computer resources in a Campus Grid infrastructure called 'FermiGrid'. The FermiGrid infrastructure allows the large experiments at Fermilab to have priority access to their own resources, enables sharing of these resources in an opportunistic fashion, and movement of work (jobs, data) between the Campus Grid and National Grids such as Open Science Grid (OSG) and the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid Collaboration (WLCG). FermiGrid resources support multiple Virtual Organizations (VOs), including VOs from the OSG, EGEE, and the WLCG. Fermilab also makes leading contributions to the Open Science Grid in the areas of accounting, batch computing, grid security, job management, resource selection, site infrastructure, storage management, and VO services. Through the FermiGrid interfaces, authenticated and authorized VOs and individuals may access our core grid services, the 10,000+ Fermilab resident CPUs, near-petabyte (including CMS) online disk pools and the multi-petabyte Fermilab Mass Storage System. These core grid services include a site wide Globus gatekeeper, VO management services for several VOs, Fermilab site authorization services, grid user mapping services, as well as job accounting and monitoring, resource selection and data movement services. Access to these services is via standard and well-supported grid interfaces. We will report on the user experience of using the FermiGrid campus infrastructure interfaced to a national cyberinfrastructure - the successes and the problems.

A VO-Driven Astronomical Data Grid in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cui, C.; He, B.; Yang, Y.; Zhao, Y.

2010-12-01

With the implementation of many ambitious observation projects, including LAMOST, FAST, and Antarctic observatory at Doom A, observational astronomy in China is stepping into a brand new era with emerging data avalanche. In the era of e-Science, both these cutting-edge projects and traditional astronomy research need much more powerful data management, sharing and interoperability. Based on data-grid concept, taking advantages of the IVOA interoperability technologies, China-VO is developing a VO-driven astronomical data grid environment to enable multi-wavelength science and large database science. In the paper, latest progress and data flow of the LAMOST, architecture of the data grid, and its supports to the VO are discussed.

A Grid Infrastructure for Supporting Space-based Science Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert N.; Redman, Sandra H.; McNair, Ann R. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Emerging technologies for computational grid infrastructures have the potential for revolutionizing the way computers are used in all aspects of our lives. Computational grids are currently being implemented to provide a large-scale, dynamic, and secure research and engineering environments based on standards and next-generation reusable software, enabling greater science and engineering productivity through shared resources and distributed computing for less cost than traditional architectures. Combined with the emerging technologies of high-performance networks, grids provide researchers, scientists and engineers the first real opportunity for an effective distributed collaborative environment with access to resources such as computational and storage systems, instruments, and software tools and services for the most computationally challenging applications.

Grid-Enabled Quantitative Analysis of Breast Cancer

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-10-01

large-scale, multi-modality computerized image analysis . The central hypothesis of this research is that large-scale image analysis for breast cancer...pilot study to utilize large scale parallel Grid computing to harness the nationwide cluster infrastructure for optimization of medical image ... analysis parameters. Additionally, we investigated the use of cutting edge dataanalysis/ mining techniques as applied to Ultrasound, FFDM, and DCE-MRI Breast

Enabling Efficient Intelligence Analysis in Degraded Environments

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-06-01

Magnets Grid widget for multidimensional information exploration ; and a record browser of Visual Summary Cards widget for fast visual identification of...evolution analysis; a Magnets Grid widget for multi- dimensional information exploration ; and a record browser of Visual Summary Cards widget for fast...attention and inattentional blindness. It also explores and develops various techniques to represent information in a salient way and provide efficient

Upgrades of Two Computer Codes for Analysis of Turbomachinery

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chima, Rodrick V.; Liou, Meng-Sing

2005-01-01

Major upgrades have been made in two of the programs reported in "ive Computer Codes for Analysis of Turbomachinery". The affected programs are: Swift -- a code for three-dimensional (3D) multiblock analysis; and TCGRID, which generates a 3D grid used with Swift. Originally utilizing only a central-differencing scheme for numerical solution, Swift was augmented by addition of two upwind schemes that give greater accuracy but take more computing time. Other improvements in Swift include addition of a shear-stress-transport turbulence model for better prediction of adverse pressure gradients, addition of an H-grid capability for flexibility in modeling flows in pumps and ducts, and modification to enable simultaneous modeling of hub and tip clearances. Improvements in TCGRID include modifications to enable generation of grids for more complicated flow paths and addition of an option to generate grids compatible with the ADPAC code used at NASA and in industry. For both codes, new test cases were developed and documentation was updated. Both codes were converted to Fortran 90, with dynamic memory allocation. Both codes were also modified for ease of use in both UNIX and Windows operating systems.

Delineating generalized species boundaries from species distribution data and a species distribution model

Treesearch

Matthew P. Peters; Stephen N. Matthews; Louis R. Iverson; Anantha M. Prasad

2013-01-01

Species distribution models (SDM) are commonly used to provide information about species ranges or extents, and often are intended to represent the entire area of potential occupancy or suitable habitat in which individuals occur. While SDMs can provide results over various geographic extents, they normally operate within a grid and cannot delimit distinct, smooth...

DEM Based Modeling: Grid or TIN? The Answer Depends

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogden, F. L.; Moreno, H. A.

2015-12-01

The availability of petascale supercomputing power has enabled process-based hydrological simulations on large watersheds and two-way coupling with mesoscale atmospheric models. Of course with increasing watershed scale come corresponding increases in watershed complexity, including wide ranging water management infrastructure and objectives, and ever increasing demands for forcing data. Simulations of large watersheds using grid-based models apply a fixed resolution over the entire watershed. In large watersheds, this means an enormous number of grids, or coarsening of the grid resolution to reduce memory requirements. One alternative to grid-based methods is the triangular irregular network (TIN) approach. TINs provide the flexibility of variable resolution, which allows optimization of computational resources by providing high resolution where necessary and low resolution elsewhere. TINs also increase required effort in model setup, parameter estimation, and coupling with forcing data which are often gridded. This presentation discusses the costs and benefits of the use of TINs compared to grid-based methods, in the context of large watershed simulations within the traditional gridded WRF-HYDRO framework and the new TIN-based ADHydro high performance computing watershed simulator.

Twelve Principles for Green Energy Storage in Grid Applications.

PubMed

Arbabzadeh, Maryam; Johnson, Jeremiah X; Keoleian, Gregory A; Rasmussen, Paul G; Thompson, Levi T

2016-01-19

The introduction of energy storage technologies to the grid could enable greater integration of renewables, improve system resilience and reliability, and offer cost effective alternatives to transmission and distribution upgrades. The integration of energy storage systems into the electrical grid can lead to different environmental outcomes based on the grid application, the existing generation mix, and the demand. Given this complexity, a framework is needed to systematically inform design and technology selection about the environmental impacts that emerge when considering energy storage options to improve sustainability performance of the grid. To achieve this, 12 fundamental principles specific to the design and grid application of energy storage systems are developed to inform policy makers, designers, and operators. The principles are grouped into three categories: (1) system integration for grid applications, (2) the maintenance and operation of energy storage, and (3) the design of energy storage systems. We illustrate the application of each principle through examples published in the academic literature, illustrative calculations, and a case study with an off-grid application of vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs). In addition, trade-offs that can emerge between principles are highlighted.

INFN, IT the GENIUS grid portal and the robot certificates to perform phylogenetic analysis on large scale: a success story from the International LIBI project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbera, Roberto; Donvit, Giacinto; Falzone, Alberto; Rocca, Giuseppe La; Maggi, Giorgio Pietro; Milanesi, Luciano; Vicarioicario, Saverio

This paper depicts the solution proposed by INFN to allow users, not owning a personal digital certificate and therefore not belonging to any specific Virtual Organization (VO), to access Grid infrastructures via the GENIUS Grid portal enabled with robot certificates. Robot certificates, also known as portal certificates, are associated with a specific application that the user wants to share with the whole Grid community and have recently been introduced by the EUGridPMA (European Policy Management Authority for Grid Authentication) to perform automated tasks on Grids on behalf of users. They are proven to be extremely useful to automate grid service monitoring, data processing production, distributed data collection systems, etc. In this paper, robot certificates have been used to allow bioinformaticians involved in the Italian LIBI project to perform large scale phylogenetic analyses. The distributed environment set up in this work strongly simplify the grid access of occasional users and represents a valuable step forward to wide the communities of users.

The role of the occupational therapist in the care of people living with lung cancer.

PubMed

White, Kahren M

2016-06-01

This paper aims to explore the vital role occupational therapists play in enabling people living with lung cancer to continue to actively live. Core assessments and interventions employed by occupational therapists are described in a case study. It will demonstrate how people living with lung cancer can continue to participate in meaningful and chosen life roles, even in the face of functional decline. Skilled management by the occupational therapist of the refractory symptoms of advanced lung cancer supports this participation.

Balancing the boat: enabling an ocean of possibilities.

PubMed

Majnemer, Annette

2010-10-01

Working in partnership, occupational therapists help clients to "balance their boat" and engage in meaningful occupations as clients journey through life. Life balance requires prioritization between time spent at work and other life experiences. Leisure time provides opportunities to rest, re-energize and enjoy activities of one's choosing, and is vitally important to an individual's physical and mental health. As occupational therapists, we need to appreciate how valuable and meaningful these activities are. In particular, it is essential that we optimize balance between the "must do" activities that are often prioritized in our interventions, with the "would like to do" leisure activities that promote well-being and social engagement. Asking our clients about the leisure activities in which they would most like to participate promotes choice and a sense of control. Focusing on modifiable personal and environmental factors enables occupational therapists to address barriers to participation in leisure activities. Occupational therapists have the knowledge and skills to work with individuals, organizations and communities to advocate for policy and practice changes that will optimize participation for individuals with functional challenges.

Opportunity to Plug Your Car Into the Electric Grid is Arriving

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

Griego, G.

2010-06-01

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles are hitting the U.S. market for the first time this year. Similar to hybrid electric vehicles, they feature a larger battery and plug-in charger that allows consumers to replace a portion of their fossil fuel by simply plugging their cars into standard 110-volt outlets at home or wherever outlets are available. If these vehicles become widely accepted, consumers and the environment will benefit, according to a computer modeling study by Xcel Energy and the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Researchers found that each PHEV would cut carbon dioxide emissions in half and save ownersmore » up to $450 in annual fuel costs and up to 240 gallons of gasoline. The study also looked at the impact of PHEVs on the electric grid in Colorado if used on a large scale. Integrating large numbers of these vehicles will depend on the adoption of smart-grid technology - adding digital elements to the electric power system to improve efficiency and enable more dynamic communication between consumers and producers of electricity. Using an intelligent monitoring system that keeps track of all electricity flowing in the system, a smart grid could enable optimal PHEV battery-charging much the same way it would enable users to manage their energy use in household appliances and factory processes to reduce energy costs. When a smart grid is implemented, consumers will have many low-cost opportunities to charge PHEVs at different times of the day. Plug-in vehicles could contribute electricity at peak times, such as summer evenings, while taking electricity from the grid at low-use times such as the middle of the night. Electricity rates could offer incentives for drivers to 'give back' electricity when it is most needed and to 'take' it when it is plentiful. The integration of PHEVs, solar arrays and wind turbines into the grid at larger scales will require a more modern electricity system. Technology already exists to allow customers to feed excess power from their own renewable energy systems back to the grid. As more homes and businesses find opportunities to plan power flows to and from the grid for economic gain using their renewable energy systems and PHEVs, more sophisticated systems will be needed. A smart grid will improve the efficiency of energy consumption, manage real-time power flows and provide two-way metering needed to compensate small power producers. Many states are working toward the smart-grid concept, particularly to incorporate renewable sources into their utility grids. According to the Department of Energy, 30 states have developed and adopted renewable portfolio standards, which require up to 20 percent of a state's energy portfolio to come exclusively from renewable sources by this year, and up to 30 percent in the future. NREL has been laying the foundation for both PHEVs and the smart grid for many years with work including modifying hybrid electric cars with plug-in technology; studying fuel economy, batteries and power electronics; exploring options for recharging batteries with solar and wind technologies; and measuring reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. The laboratory participated in development of smart-grid implementation standards with industry, utilities, government and others to guide the integration of renewable and other small electricity generation and storage sources. Dick DeBlasio, principal program manager for electricity programs, is now leading the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standards efforts to connect the dots regarding power generation, communication and information technologies.« less

Thermoplastic Composites Reinforced with Textile Grids: Development of a Manufacturing Chain and Experimental Characterisation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Böhm, R.; Hufnagl, E.; Kupfer, R.; Engler, T.; Hausding, J.; Cherif, C.; Hufenbach, W.

2013-12-01

A significant improvement in the properties of plastic components can be achieved by introducing flexible multiaxial textile grids as reinforcement. This reinforcing concept is based on the layerwise bonding of biaxially or multiaxially oriented, completely stretched filaments of high-performance fibers, e.g. glass or carbon, and thermoplastic components, using modified warp knitting techniques. Such pre-consolidated grid-like textiles are particularly suitable for use in injection moulding, since the grid geometry is very robust with respect to flow pressure and temperature on the one hand and possesses an adjustable spacing to enable a complete filling of the mould cavity on the other hand. The development of pre-consolidated textile grids and their further processing into composites form the basis for providing tailored parts with a large number of additional integrated functions like fibrous sensors or electroconductive fibres. Composites reinforced in that way allow new product groups for promising lightweight structures to be opened up in future. The article describes the manufacturing process of this new composite class and their variability regarding reinforcement and function integration. An experimentally based study of the mechanical properties is performed. For this purpose, quasi-static and highly dynamic tensile tests have been carried out as well as impact penetration experiments. The reinforcing potential of the multiaxial grids is demonstrated by means of evaluating drop tower experiments on automotive components. It has been shown that the load-adapted reinforcement enables a significant local or global improvement of the properties of plastic components depending on industrial requirements.

Occupational therapy intervention with radiation-induced brachial plexopathy.

PubMed

Cooper, J

1998-06-01

Occupational therapy intervention minimizes disability and facilitates optimum functional independence. The range of dysfunction experienced by patients with radiation-induced brachial plexopathy includes physical, psychological, emotional and social difficulties. The occupational therapist works as part of the multiprofessional team to use a client-centred, problem-solving approach to address the problems and enable the patient to adapt to the altered body image and disabilities.

The Implications of Winnicott's Theory of Play for the Work of Occupational Therapy's Observation with Children with Physical Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Takatori, Marisa; Bomtempo, Edda

2007-01-01

This paper describes how the occupational therapist's looking at the child and his/her play could build a basic history of the subjects, providing the occupational therapist with clues to guide his/her proposed assistance. The authors understand the activity of play as a dimension that enables the subject to creatively establish contact with…

The National Grid Project: A system overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaither, Adam; Gaither, Kelly; Jean, Brian; Remotigue, Michael; Whitmire, John; Soni, Bharat; Thompson, Joe; Dannenhoffer,, John; Weatherill, Nigel

1995-01-01

The National Grid Project (NGP) is a comprehensive numerical grid generation software system that is being developed at the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Computational Field Simulation (CFS) at Mississippi State University (MSU). NGP is supported by a coalition of U.S. industries and federal laboratories. The objective of the NGP is to significantly decrease the amount of time it takes to generate a numerical grid for complex geometries and to increase the quality of these grids to enable computational field simulations for applications in industry. A geometric configuration can be discretized into grids (or meshes) that have two fundamental forms: structured and unstructured. Structured grids are formed by intersecting curvilinear coordinate lines and are composed of quadrilateral (2D) and hexahedral (3D) logically rectangular cells. The connectivity of a structured grid provides for trivial identification of neighboring points by incrementing coordinate indices. Unstructured grids are composed of cells of any shape (commonly triangles, quadrilaterals, tetrahedra and hexahedra), but do not have trivial identification of neighbors by incrementing an index. For unstructured grids, a set of points and an associated connectivity table is generated to define unstructured cell shapes and neighboring points. Hybrid grids are a combination of structured grids and unstructured grids. Chimera (overset) grids are intersecting or overlapping structured grids. The NGP system currently provides a user interface that integrates both 2D and 3D structured and unstructured grid generation, a solid modeling topology data management system, an internal Computer Aided Design (CAD) system based on Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS), a journaling language, and a grid/solution visualization system.

Grist : grid-based data mining for astronomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacob, Joseph C.; Katz, Daniel S.; Miller, Craig D.; Walia, Harshpreet; Williams, Roy; Djorgovski, S. George; Graham, Matthew J.; Mahabal, Ashish; Babu, Jogesh; Berk, Daniel E. Vanden;

Grist: Grid-based Data Mining for Astronomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacob, J. C.; Katz, D. S.; Miller, C. D.; Walia, H.; Williams, R. D.; Djorgovski, S. G.; Graham, M. J.; Mahabal, A. A.; Babu, G. J.; vanden Berk, D. E.; Nichol, R.

2005-12-01

The Grist project is developing a grid-technology based system as a research environment for astronomy with massive and complex datasets. This knowledge extraction system will consist of a library of distributed grid services controlled by a workflow system, compliant with standards emerging from the grid computing, web services, and virtual observatory communities. This new technology is being used to find high redshift quasars, study peculiar variable objects, search for transients in real time, and fit SDSS QSO spectra to measure black hole masses. Grist services are also a component of the ``hyperatlas'' project to serve high-resolution multi-wavelength imagery over the Internet. In support of these science and outreach objectives, the Grist framework will provide the enabling fabric to tie together distributed grid services in the areas of data access, federation, mining, subsetting, source extraction, image mosaicking, statistics, and visualization.

Collaboration in a Wireless Grid Innovation Testbed by Virtual Consortium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Treglia, Joseph; Ramnarine-Rieks, Angela; McKnight, Lee

This paper describes the formation of the Wireless Grid Innovation Testbed (WGiT) coordinated by a virtual consortium involving academic and non-academic entities. Syracuse University and Virginia Tech are primary university partners with several other academic, government, and corporate partners. Objectives include: 1) coordinating knowledge sharing, 2) defining key parameters for wireless grids network applications, 3) dynamically connecting wired and wireless devices, content and users, 4) linking to VT-CORNET, Virginia Tech Cognitive Radio Network Testbed, 5) forming ad hoc networks or grids of mobile and fixed devices without a dedicated server, 6) deepening understanding of wireless grid application, device, network, user and market behavior through academic, trade and popular publications including online media, 7) identifying policy that may enable evaluated innovations to enter US and international markets and 8) implementation and evaluation of the international virtual collaborative process.

Ornamental Horticulture Production Occupations. Curriculum Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reneau, Fred; And Others

This curriculum guide contains guidesheets for the ornamental horticulture production occupations. Each guidesheet provides a job-relevant task; performance objective, with task, performance standard, source of standard, and conditions for performance of task; enabling objectives; a list of resources; teaching activities; a criterion-referenced…

Hypersonic code efficiency and validation studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bennett, Bradford C.

1992-01-01

Renewed interest in hypersonic and supersonic flows spurred the development of the Compressible Navier-Stokes (CNS) code. Originally developed for external flows, CNS was modified to enable it to also be applied to internal high speed flows. In the initial phase of this study CNS was applied to both internal flow applications and fellow researchers were taught to run CNS. The second phase of this research was the development of surface grids over various aircraft configurations for the High Speed Research Program (HSRP). The complex nature of these configurations required the development of improved surface grid generation techniques. A significant portion of the grid generation effort was devoted to testing and recommending modifications to early versions of the S3D surface grid generation code.

Research on Resilience of Power Systems Under Natural Disasters—A Review

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

Wang, Yezhou; Chen, Chen; Wang, Jianhui

2016-03-01

Natural disasters can cause large blackouts. Research into natural disaster impacts on electric power systems is emerging to understand the causes of the blackouts, explore ways to prepare and harden the grid, and increase the resilience of the power grid under such events. At the same time, new technologies such as smart grid, micro grid, and wide area monitoring applications could increase situational awareness as well as enable faster restoration of the system. This paper aims to consolidate and review the progress of the research field towards methods and tools of forecasting natural disaster related power system disturbances, hardening andmore » pre-storm operations, and restoration models. Challenges and future research opportunities are also presented in the paper.« less

How to engage end-users in smart energy behaviour?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valkering, Pieter; Laes, Erik; Kessels, Kris; Uyterlinde, Matthijs; Straver, Koen

2014-12-01

End users will play a crucial role in up-coming smart grids that aim to link end-users and energy providers in a better balanced and more efficient electricity system. Within this context, this paper aims to deliver a coherent view on current good practice in end-user engagement in smart grid projects. It draws from a recent review of theoretical insights from sustainable consumption behaviour, social marketing and innovation systems and empirical insights from recent smart grid projects to create an inventory of common motivators, enablers and barriers of behavioural change, and the end-user engagement principles that can be derived from that. We conclude with identifying current research challenges as input for a research agenda on end-user engagement in smart grids.

FUN3D Manual: 12.9

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

FUN3D Manual: 13.2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, William L.; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

FUN3D Manual: 12.6

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, William L.; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.; Rumsey, Christopher L.;

FUN3D Manual: 12.7

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

FUN3D Manual: 12.5

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, William L.; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.; Rumsey, Christopher L.;

FUN3D Manual: 12.8

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

FUN3D Manual: 12.4

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.; Rumsey, Christopher L.;

FUN3D Manual: 13.1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

FUN3D Manual: 13.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bill; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

A Study of ATLAS Grid Performance for Distributed Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panitkin, Sergey; Fine, Valery; Wenaus, Torre

2012-12-01

In the past two years the ATLAS Collaboration at the LHC has collected a large volume of data and published a number of ground breaking papers. The Grid-based ATLAS distributed computing infrastructure played a crucial role in enabling timely analysis of the data. We will present a study of the performance and usage of the ATLAS Grid as platform for physics analysis in 2011. This includes studies of general properties as well as timing properties of user jobs (wait time, run time, etc). These studies are based on mining of data archived by the PanDA workload management system.

FUN3D Manual: 13.3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Carlson, Jan-Renee; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Gnoffo, Peter A.; Hammond, Dana P.; Jones, William T.; Kleb, Bil; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Park, Michael A.;

Generic Skills. Trade Families. Based on Data on the Use of 588 Tool Skills from 1600 Workers and Supervisors in 131 Occupations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Arthur De W.

The Generic Skills studies were designed to provide training specifications that will enable graduates of trades training programs to compete for job placement in a range of occupations rather than in a single occupation. The studies identified a number of trade families, classified on the basis of skills used in work performance, and also…

Using Micro-Synchrophasor Data for Advanced Distribution Grid Planning and Operations Analysis

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

Stewart, Emma; Kiliccote, Sila; McParland, Charles

2014-07-01

This report reviews the potential for distribution-grid phase-angle data that will be available from new micro-synchrophasors (µPMUs) to be utilized in existing distribution-grid planning and operations analysis. This data could augment the current diagnostic capabilities of grid analysis software, used in both planning and operations for applications such as fault location, and provide data for more accurate modeling of the distribution system. µPMUs are new distribution-grid sensors that will advance measurement and diagnostic capabilities and provide improved visibility of the distribution grid, enabling analysis of the grid’s increasingly complex loads that include features such as large volumes of distributed generation.more » Large volumes of DG leads to concerns on continued reliable operation of the grid, due to changing power flow characteristics and active generation, with its own protection and control capabilities. Using µPMU data on change in voltage phase angle between two points in conjunction with new and existing distribution-grid planning and operational tools is expected to enable model validation, state estimation, fault location, and renewable resource/load characterization. Our findings include: data measurement is outstripping the processing capabilities of planning and operational tools; not every tool can visualize a voltage phase-angle measurement to the degree of accuracy measured by advanced sensors, and the degree of accuracy in measurement required for the distribution grid is not defined; solving methods cannot handle the high volumes of data generated by modern sensors, so new models and solving methods (such as graph trace analysis) are needed; standardization of sensor-data communications platforms in planning and applications tools would allow integration of different vendors’ sensors and advanced measurement devices. In addition, data from advanced sources such as µPMUs could be used to validate models to improve/ensure accuracy, providing information on normally estimated values such as underground conductor impedance, and characterization of complex loads. Although the input of high-fidelity data to existing tools will be challenging, µPMU data on phase angle (as well as other data from advanced sensors) will be useful for basic operational decisions that are based on a trend of changing data.« less

Development of a Web Based Simulating System for Earthquake Modeling on the Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seber, D.; Youn, C.; Kaiser, T.

2007-12-01

Existing cyberinfrastructure-based information, data and computational networks now allow development of state- of-the-art, user-friendly simulation environments that democratize access to high-end computational environments and provide new research opportunities for many research and educational communities. Within the Geosciences cyberinfrastructure network, GEON, we have developed the SYNSEIS (SYNthetic SEISmogram) toolkit to enable efficient computations of 2D and 3D seismic waveforms for a variety of research purposes especially for helping to analyze the EarthScope's USArray seismic data in a speedy and efficient environment. The underlying simulation software in SYNSEIS is a finite difference code, E3D, developed by LLNL (S. Larsen). The code is embedded within the SYNSEIS portlet environment and it is used by our toolkit to simulate seismic waveforms of earthquakes at regional distances (<1000km). Architecturally, SYNSEIS uses both Web Service and Grid computing resources in a portal-based work environment and has a built in access mechanism to connect to national supercomputer centers as well as to a dedicated, small-scale compute cluster for its runs. Even though Grid computing is well-established in many computing communities, its use among domain scientists still is not trivial because of multiple levels of complexities encountered. We grid-enabled E3D using our own dialect XML inputs that include geological models that are accessible through standard Web services within the GEON network. The XML inputs for this application contain structural geometries, source parameters, seismic velocity, density, attenuation values, number of time steps to compute, and number of stations. By enabling a portal based access to a such computational environment coupled with its dynamic user interface we enable a large user community to take advantage of such high end calculations in their research and educational activities. Our system can be used to promote an efficient and effective modeling environment to help scientists as well as educators in their daily activities and speed up the scientific discovery process.

Geometry definition and grid generation for a complete fighter aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, T. A.

1986-01-01

Recent advances in computing power and numerical solution procedures have enabled computational fluid dynamicists to attempt increasingly difficult problems. In particular, efforts are focusing on computations of complex three-dimensional flow fields about realistic aerodynamic bodies. To perform such computations, a very accurate and detailed description of the surface geometry must be provided, and a three-dimensional grid must be generated in the space around the body. The geometry must be supplied in a format compatible with the grid generation requirements, and must be verified to be free of inconsistencies. This paper presents a procedure for performing the geometry definition of a fighter aircraft that makes use of a commercial computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing system. Furthermore, visual representations of the geometry are generated using a computer graphics system for verification of the body definition. Finally, the three-dimensional grids for fighter-like aircraft are generated by means of an efficient new parabolic grid generation method. This method exhibits good control of grid quality.

Grid Stiffened Structure Analysis Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1999-01-01

The Grid Stiffened Analysis Tool contract is contract performed by Boeing under NASA purchase order H30249D. The contract calls for a "best effort" study comprised of two tasks: (1) Create documentation for a composite grid-stiffened structure analysis tool, in the form of a Microsoft EXCEL spread sheet, that was developed by originally at Stanford University and later further developed by the Air Force, and (2) Write a program that functions as a NASTRAN pre-processor to generate an FEM code for grid-stiffened structure. In performing this contract, Task 1 was given higher priority because it enables NASA to make efficient use of a unique tool they already have; Task 2 was proposed by Boeing because it also would be beneficial to the analysis of composite grid-stiffened structures, specifically in generating models for preliminary design studies. The contract is now complete, this package includes copies of the user's documentation for Task 1 and a CD ROM & diskette with an electronic copy of the user's documentation and an updated version of the "GRID 99" spreadsheet.

Geometry definition and grid generation for a complete fighter aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, Thomas A.

1986-01-01

Recent advances in computing power and numerical solution procedures have enabled computational fluid dynamicists to attempt increasingly difficult problems. In particular, efforts are focusing on computations of complex three-dimensional flow fields about realistic aerodynamic bodies. To perform such computations, a very accurate and detailed description of the surface geometry must be provided, and a three-dimensional grid must be generated in the space around the body. The geometry must be supplied in a format compatible with the grid generation requirements, and must be verified to be free of inconsistencies. A procedure for performing the geometry definition of a fighter aircraft that makes use of a commercial computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing system is presented. Furthermore, visual representations of the geometry are generated using a computer graphics system for verification of the body definition. Finally, the three-dimensional grids for fighter-like aircraft are generated by means of an efficient new parabolic grid generation method. This method exhibits good control of grid quality.

GridPix detectors: Production and beam test results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koppert, W. J. C.; van Bakel, N.; Bilevych, Y.; Colas, P.; Desch, K.; Fransen, M.; van der Graaf, H.; Hartjes, F.; Hessey, N. P.; Kaminski, J.; Schmitz, J.; Schön, R.; Zappon, F.

2013-12-01

The innovative GridPix detector is a Time Projection Chamber (TPC) that is read out with a Timepix-1 pixel chip. By using wafer post-processing techniques an aluminium grid is placed on top of the chip. When operated, the electric field between the grid and the chip is sufficient to create electron induced avalanches which are detected by the pixels. The time-to-digital converter (TDC) records the drift time enabling the reconstruction of high precision 3D track segments. Recently GridPixes were produced on full wafer scale, to meet the demand for more reliable and cheaper devices in large quantities. In a recent beam test the contribution of both diffusion and time walk to the spatial and angular resolutions of a GridPix detector with a 1.2 mm drift gap are studied in detail. In addition long term tests show that in a significant fraction of the chips the protection layer successfully quenches discharges, preventing harm to the chip.

Multi-Lab EV Smart Grid Integration Requirements Study. Providing Guidance on Technology Development and Demonstration

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

Markel, T.; Meintz, A.; Hardy, K.

2015-05-28

The report begins with a discussion of the current state of the energy and transportation systems, followed by a summary of some VGI scenarios and opportunities. The current efforts to create foundational interface standards are detailed, and the requirements for enabling PEVs as a grid resource are presented. Existing technology demonstrations that include vehicle to grid functions are summarized. The report also includes a data-based discussion on the magnitude and variability of PEVs as a grid resource, followed by an overview of existing simulation tools that vi This report is available at no cost from the National Renewable Energy Laboratorymore » (NREL) at www.nrel.gov/publications. can be used to explore the expansion of VGI to larger grid functions that might offer system and customer value. The document concludes with a summary of the requirements and potential action items that would support greater adoption of VGI.« less

Interplay Between Energy-Market Dynamics and Physical Stability of a Smart Power Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Picozzi, Sergio; Mammoli, Andrea; Sorrentino, Francesco

2013-03-01

A smart power grid is being envisioned for the future which, among other features, should enable users to play the dual role of consumers as well as producers and traders of energy, thanks to emerging renewable energy production and energy storage technologies. As a complex dynamical system, any power grid is subject to physical instabilities. With existing grids, such instabilities tend to be caused by natural disasters, human errors, or weather-related peaks in demand. In this work we analyze the impact, upon the stability of a smart grid, of the energy-market dynamics arising from users' ability to buy from and sell energy to other users. The stability analysis of the resulting dynamical system is performed assuming different proposed models for this market of the future, and the corresponding stability regions in parameter space are identified. We test our theoretical findings by comparing them with data collected from some existing prototype systems.

First Steps in the Smart Grid Framework: An Optimal and Feasible Pathway Toward Power System Reform in Mexico

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

Bracho, Riccardo; Linvill, Carl; Sedano, Richard

With the vision to transform the power sector, Mexico included in the new laws and regulations deployment of smart grid technologies and provided various attributes to the Ministry of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission to enact public policies and regulation. The use of smart grid technologies can have a significant impact on the integration of variable renewable energy resources while maintaining reliability and stability of the system, significantly reducing technical and non-technical electricity losses in the grid, improving cyber security, and allowing consumers to make distributed generation and demand response decisions. This report describes for Mexico's Ministry of Energymore » (SENER) an overall approach (Optimal Feasible Pathway) for moving forward with smart grid policy development in Mexico to enable increasing electric generation from renewable energy in a way that optimizes system stability and reliability in an efficient and cost-effective manner.« less

Advances in Software Tools for Pre-processing and Post-processing of Overset Grid Computations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chan, William M.

2004-01-01

Recent developments in three pieces of software for performing pre-processing and post-processing work on numerical computations using overset grids are presented. The first is the OVERGRID graphical interface which provides a unified environment for the visualization, manipulation, generation and diagnostics of geometry and grids. Modules are also available for automatic boundary conditions detection, flow solver input preparation, multiple component dynamics input preparation and dynamics animation, simple solution viewing for moving components, and debris trajectory analysis input preparation. The second is a grid generation script library that enables rapid creation of grid generation scripts. A sample of recent applications will be described. The third is the OVERPLOT graphical interface for displaying and analyzing history files generated by the flow solver. Data displayed include residuals, component forces and moments, number of supersonic and reverse flow points, and various dynamics parameters.

Unlocking the potential of smart grid technologies with behavioral science

PubMed Central

Sintov, Nicole D.; Schultz, P. Wesley

2015-01-01

Smart grid systems aim to provide a more stable and adaptable electricity infrastructure, and to maximize energy efficiency. Grid-linked technologies vary widely in form and function, but generally share common potentials: to reduce energy consumption via efficiency and/or curtailment, to shift use to off-peak times of day, and to enable distributed storage and generation options. Although end users are central players in these systems, they are sometimes not central considerations in technology or program design, and in some cases, their motivations for participating in such systems are not fully appreciated. Behavioral science can be instrumental in engaging end-users and maximizing the impact of smart grid technologies. In this paper, we present emerging technologies made possible by a smart grid infrastructure, and for each we highlight ways in which behavioral science can be applied to enhance their impact on energy savings. PMID:25914666

Unlocking the potential of smart grid technologies with behavioral science.

PubMed

Sintov, Nicole D; Schultz, P Wesley

2015-01-01

Smart grid systems aim to provide a more stable and adaptable electricity infrastructure, and to maximize energy efficiency. Grid-linked technologies vary widely in form and function, but generally share common potentials: to reduce energy consumption via efficiency and/or curtailment, to shift use to off-peak times of day, and to enable distributed storage and generation options. Although end users are central players in these systems, they are sometimes not central considerations in technology or program design, and in some cases, their motivations for participating in such systems are not fully appreciated. Behavioral science can be instrumental in engaging end-users and maximizing the impact of smart grid technologies. In this paper, we present emerging technologies made possible by a smart grid infrastructure, and for each we highlight ways in which behavioral science can be applied to enhance their impact on energy savings.

Unlocking the potential of smart grid technologies with behavioral science

DOE PAGES

Sintov, Nicole D.; Schultz, P. Wesley

2015-04-09

Smart grid systems aim to provide a more stable and adaptable electricity infrastructure, and to maximize energy efficiency. Grid-linked technologies vary widely in form and function, but generally share common potentials: to reduce energy consumption via efficiency and/or curtailment, to shift use to off-peak times of day, and to enable distributed storage and generation options. Although end users are central players in these systems, they are sometimes not central considerations in technology or program design, and in some cases, their motivations for participating in such systems are not fully appreciated. Behavioral science can be instrumental in engaging end-users and maximizingmore » the impact of smart grid technologies. In this study, we present emerging technologies made possible by a smart grid infrastructure, and for each we highlight ways in which behavioral science can be applied to enhance their impact on energy savings.« less

Unlocking the potential of smart grid technologies with behavioral science

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

Sintov, Nicole D.; Schultz, P. Wesley

Smart grid systems aim to provide a more stable and adaptable electricity infrastructure, and to maximize energy efficiency. Grid-linked technologies vary widely in form and function, but generally share common potentials: to reduce energy consumption via efficiency and/or curtailment, to shift use to off-peak times of day, and to enable distributed storage and generation options. Although end users are central players in these systems, they are sometimes not central considerations in technology or program design, and in some cases, their motivations for participating in such systems are not fully appreciated. Behavioral science can be instrumental in engaging end-users and maximizingmore » the impact of smart grid technologies. In this study, we present emerging technologies made possible by a smart grid infrastructure, and for each we highlight ways in which behavioral science can be applied to enhance their impact on energy savings.« less

Clarifying the Construct of Occupational Engagement for Occupational Therapy Practice.

PubMed

Kennedy, Jennifer; Davis, Jane A

2017-04-01

Occupational engagement (OE) has been presented as a core construct in occupational therapy; however, its broad conceptualization and confounding definitions are problematic. Clarifying the construct of OE would help occupational therapists to explicate the nature of their practice. The purpose of this study was to explore occupational therapists' perspectives of the construct of OE. Qualitative descriptive methodology was used to collect data using semistructured interviews with nine practicing occupational therapists in the Greater Toronto Area. Qualitative content analysis, using an inductive approach, was employed to uncover emerging categories. Participants spoke about transitioning from therapeutic engagement to OE with a client by following a client's path of choice. The essential elements and influencers of OE were highlighted, and the relationship between OE and occupational performance was discussed. The findings provide an initial understanding of essential elements necessary to enable clients to initiate engagement in therapy and then, subsequently, in occupations of their choice.

Using OSG Computing Resources with (iLC)Dirac

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sailer, A.; Petric, M.; CLICdp Collaboration

2017-10-01

CPU cycles for small experiments and projects can be scarce, thus making use of all available resources, whether dedicated or opportunistic, is mandatory. While enabling uniform access to the LCG computing elements (ARC, CREAM), the DIRAC grid interware was not able to use OSG computing elements (GlobusCE, HTCondor-CE) without dedicated support at the grid site through so called ‘SiteDirectors’, which directly submit to the local batch system. This in turn requires additional dedicated effort for small experiments on the grid site. Adding interfaces to the OSG CEs through the respective grid middleware is therefore allowing accessing them within the DIRAC software without additional site-specific infrastructure. This enables greater use of opportunistic resources for experiments and projects without dedicated clusters or an established computing infrastructure with the DIRAC software. To allow sending jobs to HTCondor-CE and legacy Globus computing elements inside DIRAC the required wrapper classes were developed. Not only is the usage of these types of computing elements now completely transparent for all DIRAC instances, which makes DIRAC a flexible solution for OSG based virtual organisations, but it also allows LCG Grid Sites to move to the HTCondor-CE software, without shutting DIRAC based VOs out of their site. In these proceedings we detail how we interfaced the DIRAC system to the HTCondor-CE and Globus computing elements and explain the encountered obstacles and solutions developed, and how the linear collider community uses resources in the OSG.

Grid-enabled mammographic auditing and training system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yap, M. H.; Gale, A. G.

2008-03-01

Effective use of new technologies to support healthcare initiatives is important and current research is moving towards implementing secure grid-enabled healthcare provision. In the UK, a large-scale collaborative research project (GIMI: Generic Infrastructures for Medical Informatics), which is concerned with the development of a secure IT infrastructure to support very widespread medical research across the country, is underway. In the UK, there are some 109 breast screening centers and a growing number of individuals (circa 650) nationally performing approximately 1.5 million screening examinations per year. At the same, there is a serious, and ongoing, national workforce issue in screening which has seen a loss of consultant mammographers and a growth in specially trained technologists and other non-radiologists. Thus there is a need to offer effective and efficient mammographic training so as to maintain high levels of screening skills. Consequently, a grid based system has been proposed which has the benefit of offering very large volumes of training cases that the mammographers can access anytime and anywhere. A database, spread geographically across three university systems, of screening cases is used as a test set of known cases. The GIMI mammography training system first audits these cases to ensure that they are appropriately described and annotated. Subsequently, the cases are utilized for training in a grid-based system which has been developed. This paper briefly reviews the background to the project and then details the ongoing research. In conclusion, we discuss the contributions, limitations, and future plans of such a grid based approach.

Improving Grid Resilience through Informed Decision-making (IGRID)

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

Burnham, Laurie; Stamber, Kevin L.; Jeffers, Robert Fredric

The transformation of the distribution grid from a centralized to decentralized architecture, with bi-directional power and data flows, is made possible by a surge in network intelligence and grid automation. While changes are largely beneficial, the interface between grid operator and automated technologies is not well understood, nor are the benefits and risks of automation. Quantifying and understanding the latter is an important facet of grid resilience that needs to be fully investigated. The work described in this document represents the first empirical study aimed at identifying and mitigating the vulnerabilities posed by automation for a grid that for themore » foreseeable future will remain a human-in-the-loop critical infrastructure. Our scenario-based methodology enabled us to conduct a series of experimental studies to identify causal relationships between grid-operator performance and automated technologies and to collect measurements of human performance as a function of automation. Our findings, though preliminary, suggest there are predictive patterns in the interplay between human operators and automation, patterns that can inform the rollout of distribution automation and the hiring and training of operators, and contribute in multiple and significant ways to the field of grid resilience.« less

Parameterized Finite Element Modeling and Buckling Analysis of Six Typical Composite Grid Cylindrical Shells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lai, Changliang; Wang, Junbiao; Liu, Chuang

2014-10-01

Six typical composite grid cylindrical shells are constructed by superimposing three basic types of ribs. Then buckling behavior and structural efficiency of these shells are analyzed under axial compression, pure bending, torsion and transverse bending by finite element (FE) models. The FE models are created by a parametrical FE modeling approach that defines FE models with original natural twisted geometry and orients cross-sections of beam elements exactly. And the approach is parameterized and coded by Patran Command Language (PCL). The demonstrations of FE modeling indicate the program enables efficient generation of FE models and facilitates parametric studies and design of grid shells. Using the program, the effects of helical angles on the buckling behavior of six typical grid cylindrical shells are determined. The results of these studies indicate that the triangle grid and rotated triangle grid cylindrical shell are more efficient than others under axial compression and pure bending, whereas under torsion and transverse bending, the hexagon grid cylindrical shell is most efficient. Additionally, buckling mode shapes are compared and provide an understanding of composite grid cylindrical shells that is useful in preliminary design of such structures.

Toward the reconceptualization of the relationship between occupation and health and well-being.

PubMed

Stewart, Katherine E; Fischer, Tess M; Hirji, Rehana; Davis, Jane A

2016-10-01

Foundational to the occupational therapy profession is the belief that engagement in occupation is health promoting; however, this belief fails to account for occupational engagement that may be risky or illness producing. Consensus regarding the nature of the relationship between occupation and health has yet to be achieved. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive description of how the relationship between occupation and health and well-being is discussed within the occupational therapy and occupational science literature. The methodological framework outlined by Arksey and O'Malley served as the basis for this scoping review of the occupational therapy and occupational science literature. One hundred and twelve articles were identified as meeting the criteria for inclusion. The dominant discourse portrays the relationship between occupation and health as positive. The broader literature suggests that occupational engagement can have both positive and negative effects on health and well-being. As such, the reconceptualization of the relationship between occupation and health and well-being is warranted to enable occupational therapists to practise in a more client-centred manner.

Verification of Weather Running Estimate-Nowcast (WRE-N) Forecasts Using a Spatial-Categorical Method

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-07-01

forecasts and observations on a common grid, which enables the application a number of different spatial verification methods that reveal various...forecasts of continuous meteorological variables using categorical and object-based methods . White Sands Missile Range (NM): Army Research Laboratory (US... Research version of the Weather Research and Forecasting Model adapted for generating short-range nowcasts and gridded observations produced by the

Battery Energy Storage State-of-Charge Forecasting: Models, Optimization, and Accuracy

DOE PAGES

Rosewater, David; Ferreira, Summer; Schoenwald, David; ...

2018-01-25

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are a critical technology for integrating high penetration renewable power on an intelligent electrical grid. As limited energy restricts the steady-state operational state-of-charge (SoC) of storage systems, SoC forecasting models are used to determine feasible charge and discharge schedules that supply grid services. Smart grid controllers use SoC forecasts to optimize BESS schedules to make grid operation more efficient and resilient. This study presents three advances in BESS state-of-charge forecasting. First, two forecasting models are reformulated to be conducive to parameter optimization. Second, a new method for selecting optimal parameter values based on operational datamore » is presented. Last, a new framework for quantifying model accuracy is developed that enables a comparison between models, systems, and parameter selection methods. The accuracies achieved by both models, on two example battery systems, with each method of parameter selection are then compared in detail. The results of this analysis suggest variation in the suitability of these models for different battery types and applications. Finally, the proposed model formulations, optimization methods, and accuracy assessment framework can be used to improve the accuracy of SoC forecasts enabling better control over BESS charge/discharge schedules.« less

Current Capabilities at SNL for the Integration of Small Modular Reactors onto Smart Microgrids Using Sandia's Smart Microgrid Technology High Performance Computing and Advanced Manufacturing.

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

Rodriguez, Salvador B.

Smart grids are a crucial component for enabling the nation’s future energy needs, as part of a modernization effort led by the Department of Energy. Smart grids and smart microgrids are being considered in niche applications, and as part of a comprehensive energy strategy to help manage the nation’s growing energy demands, for critical infrastructures, military installations, small rural communities, and large populations with limited water supplies. As part of a far-reaching strategic initiative, Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) presents herein a unique, three-pronged approach to integrate small modular reactors (SMRs) into microgrids, with the goal of providing economically-competitive, reliable, andmore » secure energy to meet the nation’s needs. SNL’s triad methodology involves an innovative blend of smart microgrid technology, high performance computing (HPC), and advanced manufacturing (AM). In this report, Sandia’s current capabilities in those areas are summarized, as well as paths forward that will enable DOE to achieve its energy goals. In the area of smart grid/microgrid technology, Sandia’s current computational capabilities can model the entire grid, including temporal aspects and cyber security issues. Our tools include system development, integration, testing and evaluation, monitoring, and sustainment.« less

Battery Energy Storage State-of-Charge Forecasting: Models, Optimization, and Accuracy

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

Rosewater, David; Ferreira, Summer; Schoenwald, David

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are a critical technology for integrating high penetration renewable power on an intelligent electrical grid. As limited energy restricts the steady-state operational state-of-charge (SoC) of storage systems, SoC forecasting models are used to determine feasible charge and discharge schedules that supply grid services. Smart grid controllers use SoC forecasts to optimize BESS schedules to make grid operation more efficient and resilient. This study presents three advances in BESS state-of-charge forecasting. First, two forecasting models are reformulated to be conducive to parameter optimization. Second, a new method for selecting optimal parameter values based on operational datamore » is presented. Last, a new framework for quantifying model accuracy is developed that enables a comparison between models, systems, and parameter selection methods. The accuracies achieved by both models, on two example battery systems, with each method of parameter selection are then compared in detail. The results of this analysis suggest variation in the suitability of these models for different battery types and applications. Finally, the proposed model formulations, optimization methods, and accuracy assessment framework can be used to improve the accuracy of SoC forecasts enabling better control over BESS charge/discharge schedules.« less

Distributed Energy Systems Integration and Demand Optimization for Autonomous Operations and Electric Grid Transactions

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

Ghatikar, Girish; Mashayekh, Salman; Stadler, Michael

Distributed power systems in the U.S. and globally are evolving to provide reliable and clean energy to consumers. In California, existing regulations require significant increases in renewable generation, as well as identification of customer-side distributed energy resources (DER) controls, communication technologies, and standards for interconnection with the electric grid systems. As DER deployment expands, customer-side DER control and optimization will be critical for system flexibility and demand response (DR) participation, which improves the economic viability of DER systems. Current DER systems integration and communication challenges include leveraging the existing DER and DR technology and systems infrastructure, and enabling optimized cost,more » energy and carbon choices for customers to deploy interoperable grid transactions and renewable energy systems at scale. Our paper presents a cost-effective solution to these challenges by exploring communication technologies and information models for DER system integration and interoperability. This system uses open standards and optimization models for resource planning based on dynamic-pricing notifications and autonomous operations within various domains of the smart grid energy system. It identifies architectures and customer engagement strategies in dynamic DR pricing transactions to generate feedback information models for load flexibility, load profiles, and participation schedules. The models are tested at a real site in California—Fort Hunter Liggett (FHL). Furthermore, our results for FHL show that the model fits within the existing and new DR business models and networked systems for transactive energy concepts. Integrated energy systems, communication networks, and modeling tools that coordinate supply-side networks and DER will enable electric grid system operators to use DER for grid transactions in an integrated system.« less

Earth Science community support in the EGI-Inspire Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwichtenberg, H.

2012-04-01

The Earth Science Grid community is following its strategy of propagating Grid technology to the ES disciplines, setting up interactive collaboration among the members of the community and stimulating the interest of stakeholders on the political level since ten years already. This strategy was described in a roadmap published in an Earth Science Informatics journal. It was applied through different European Grid projects and led to a large Grid Earth Science VRC that covers a variety of ES disciplines; in the end, all of them were facing the same kind of ICT problems. .. The penetration of Grid in the ES community is indicated by the variety of applications, the number of countries in which ES applications are ported, the number of papers in international journals and the number of related PhDs. Among the six virtual organisations belonging to ES, one, ESR, is generic. Three others -env.see-grid-sci.eu, meteo.see-grid-sci.eu and seismo.see-grid-sci.eu- are thematic and regional (South Eastern Europe) for environment, meteorology and seismology. The sixth VO, EGEODE, is for the users of the Geocluster software. There are also ES users in national VOs or VOs related to projects. The services for the ES task in EGI-Inspire concerns the data that are a key part of any ES application. The ES community requires several interfaces to access data and metadata outside of the EGI infrastructure, e.g. by using grid-enabled database interfaces. The data centres have also developed service tools for basic research activities such as searching, browsing and downloading these datasets, but these are not accessible from applications executed on the Grid. The ES task in EGI-Inspire aims to make these tools accessible from the Grid. In collaboration with GENESI-DR (Ground European Network for Earth Science Interoperations - Digital Repositories) this task is maintaining and evolving an interface in response to new requirements that will allow data in the GENESI-DR infrastructure to be accessed from EGI resources to enable future research activities by this HUC. The international climate community for IPCC has created the Earth System Grid (ESG) to store and share climate data. There is a need to interface ESG with EGI for climate studies - parametric, regional and impact aspects. Critical points concern the interoperability of security mechanism between both "organisations", data protection policy, data transfer, data storage and data caching. Presenter: Horst Schwichtenberg Co-Authors: Monique Petitdidier (IPSL), Andre Gemünd (SCAI), Wim Som de Cerff (KNMI), Michael Schnell (SCAI)

Auspice: Automatic Service Planning in Cloud/Grid Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiu, David; Agrawal, Gagan

Recent scientific advances have fostered a mounting number of services and data sets available for utilization. These resources, though scattered across disparate locations, are often loosely coupled both semantically and operationally. This loosely coupled relationship implies the possibility of linking together operations and data sets to answer queries. This task, generally known as automatic service composition, therefore abstracts the process of complex scientific workflow planning from the user. We have been exploring a metadata-driven approach toward automatic service workflow composition, among other enabling mechanisms, in our system, Auspice: Automatic Service Planning in Cloud/Grid Environments. In this paper, we present a complete overview of our system's unique features and outlooks for future deployment as the Cloud computing paradigm becomes increasingly eminent in enabling scientific computing.

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

Cho, Youngho; Hur, Kyeon; Kang, Yong

This study investigates the emerging harmonic stability concerns to be addressed by grid planners in generation interconnection studies, owing to the increased adoption of renewable energy resources connected to the grid via power electronic converters. The wideband and high-frequency electromagnetic transient (EMT) characteristics of these converter-interfaced generators (CIGs) and their interaction with the grid impedance are not accurately captured in the typical dynamic studies conducted by grid planners. This paper thus identifies the desired components to be studied and subsequently develops a practical process for integrating a new CIG into a grid with the existing CIGs. The steps of thismore » process are as follows: the impedance equation of a CIG using its control dynamics and an interface filter to the grid, for example, an LCL filter (inductor-capacitor-inductor type), is developed; an equivalent impedance model including the existing CIGs nearby and the grid observed from the point of common coupling are derived; the system stability for credible operating scenarios is assessed. Detailed EMT simulations validate the accuracy of the impedance models and stability assessment for various connection scenarios. Here, by complementing the conventional EMT simulation studies, the proposed analytical approach enables grid planners to identify critical design parameters for seamlessly integrating a new CIG and ensuring the reliability of the grid.« less

Design and Implementation of Real-Time Off-Grid Detection Tool Based on FNET/GridEye

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

Guo, Jiahui; Zhang, Ye; Liu, Yilu

2014-01-01

Real-time situational awareness tools are of critical importance to power system operators, especially during emergencies. The availability of electric power has become a linchpin of most post disaster response efforts as it is the primary dependency for public and private sector services, as well as individuals. Knowledge of the scope and extent of facilities impacted, as well as the duration of their dependence on backup power, enables emergency response officials to plan for contingencies and provide better overall response. Based on real-time data acquired by Frequency Disturbance Recorders (FDRs) deployed in the North American power grid, a real-time detection methodmore » is proposed. This method monitors critical electrical loads and detects the transition of these loads from an on-grid state, where the loads are fed by the power grid to an off-grid state, where the loads are fed by an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) or a backup generation system. The details of the proposed detection algorithm are presented, and some case studies and off-grid detection scenarios are also provided to verify the effectiveness and robustness. Meanwhile, the algorithm has already been implemented based on the Grid Solutions Framework (GSF) and has effectively detected several off-grid situations.« less

Emergence of Vocational, Technical, and Occupational Education (VTO-E). Synthesis Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cupples, Michael Wayne; Tamburello, Gaspare B.

Significant concepts and emerging implications of technology, development of human capital, and visionary leadership can be applied to the design of vocational, technical, and occupational education to enable such education to meet the needs of today's information and service society. People without functional skills will be the technology…

Enabling Outcomes for Students with Developmental Disabilities through Collaborative Consultation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villeneuve, Michelle; Hutchinson, Nancy L.

2012-01-01

Collaborative consultation has been widely adopted in school-based occupational therapy practice; however, limited research has examined how collaboration between educators and occupational therapists contributes to students' outcomes. The purpose of this study was to describe the nature of collaborative working in two cases of school-based…

Fire Prevention Inspection Procedures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pribyl, Paul F.

Lesson plans are provided for a fire prevention inspection course of the Wisconsin Fire Service Training program. Objectives for the course are to enable students to describe and conduct fire prevention inspections, to identify and correct hazards common to most occupancies, to understand the types of building construction and occupancy, and to…

Accessing eSDO Solar Image Processing and Visualization through AstroGrid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Auden, E.; Dalla, S.

2008-08-01

The eSDO project is funded by the UK's Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) to integrate Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) data, algorithms, and visualization tools with the UK's Virtual Observatory project, AstroGrid. In preparation for the SDO launch in January 2009, the eSDO team has developed nine algorithms covering coronal behaviour, feature recognition, and global / local helioseismology. Each of these algorithms has been deployed as an AstroGrid Common Execution Architecture (CEA) application so that they can be included in complex VO workflows. In addition, the PLASTIC-enabled eSDO "Streaming Tool" online movie application allows users to search multi-instrument solar archives through AstroGrid web services and visualise the image data through galleries, an interactive movie viewing applet, and QuickTime movies generated on-the-fly.

A methodology toward manufacturing grid-based virtual enterprise operation platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tan, Wenan; Xu, Yicheng; Xu, Wei; Xu, Lida; Zhao, Xianhua; Wang, Li; Fu, Liuliu

2010-08-01

Virtual enterprises (VEs) have become one of main types of organisations in the manufacturing sector through which the consortium companies organise their manufacturing activities. To be competitive, a VE relies on the complementary core competences among members through resource sharing and agile manufacturing capacity. Manufacturing grid (M-Grid) is a platform in which the production resources can be shared. In this article, an M-Grid-based VE operation platform (MGVEOP) is presented as it enables the sharing of production resources among geographically distributed enterprises. The performance management system of the MGVEOP is based on the balanced scorecard and has the capacity of self-learning. The study shows that a MGVEOP can make a semi-automated process possible for a VE, and the proposed MGVEOP is efficient and agile.

Frequency Regulation Services from Connected Residential Devices: Short Paper

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

Baker, Kyri; Jin, Xin; Vaidhynathan, Deepthi

In this paper, we demonstrate the potential benefits that residential buildings can provide for frequency regulation services in the electric power grid. In a hardware-in-the- loop (HIL) implementation, simulated homes along with a physical laboratory home are coordinated via a grid aggregator, and it is shown that their aggregate response has the potential to follow the regulation signal on a timescale of seconds. Connected (communication-enabled), devices in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) received demand response (DR) requests from a grid aggregator, and the devices responded accordingly to meet the signal while satisfying user comfortmore » bounds and physical hardware limitations. Future research will address the issues of cybersecurity threats, participation rates, and reducing equipment wear-and-tear while providing grid services.« less

Impedance-Based Stability Analysis in Grid Interconnection Impact Study Owing to the Increased Adoption of Converter-Interfaced Generators

DOE PAGES

Cho, Youngho; Hur, Kyeon; Kang, Yong; ...

2017-09-08

This study investigates the emerging harmonic stability concerns to be addressed by grid planners in generation interconnection studies, owing to the increased adoption of renewable energy resources connected to the grid via power electronic converters. The wideband and high-frequency electromagnetic transient (EMT) characteristics of these converter-interfaced generators (CIGs) and their interaction with the grid impedance are not accurately captured in the typical dynamic studies conducted by grid planners. This paper thus identifies the desired components to be studied and subsequently develops a practical process for integrating a new CIG into a grid with the existing CIGs. The steps of thismore » process are as follows: the impedance equation of a CIG using its control dynamics and an interface filter to the grid, for example, an LCL filter (inductor-capacitor-inductor type), is developed; an equivalent impedance model including the existing CIGs nearby and the grid observed from the point of common coupling are derived; the system stability for credible operating scenarios is assessed. Detailed EMT simulations validate the accuracy of the impedance models and stability assessment for various connection scenarios. Here, by complementing the conventional EMT simulation studies, the proposed analytical approach enables grid planners to identify critical design parameters for seamlessly integrating a new CIG and ensuring the reliability of the grid.« less

Prevention 0f Unwanted Free-Declaration of Static Obstacles in Probability Occupancy Grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krause, Stefan; Scholz, M.; Hohmann, R.

2017-10-01

Obstacle detection and avoidance are major research fields in unmanned aviation. Map based obstacle detection approaches often use discrete world representations such as probabilistic grid maps to fuse incremental environment data from different views or sensors to build a comprehensive representation. The integration of continuous measurements into a discrete representation can result in rounding errors which, in turn, leads to differences between the artificial model and real environment. The cause of these deviations is a low spatial resolution of the world representation comparison to the used sensor data. Differences between artificial representations which are used for path planning or obstacle avoidance and the real world can lead to unexpected behavior up to collisions with unmapped obstacles. This paper presents three approaches to the treatment of errors that can occur during the integration of continuous laser measurement in the discrete probabilistic grid. Further, the quality of the error prevention and the processing performance are compared with real sensor data.

Experiences of engineering Grid-based medical software.

PubMed

Estrella, F; Hauer, T; McClatchey, R; Odeh, M; Rogulin, D; Solomonides, T

2007-08-01

Grid-based technologies are emerging as potential solutions for managing and collaborating distributed resources in the biomedical domain. Few examples exist, however, of successful implementations of Grid-enabled medical systems and even fewer have been deployed for evaluation in practice. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the use in clinical practice of a Grid-based imaging prototype and to establish directions for engineering future medical Grid developments and their subsequent deployment. The MammoGrid project has deployed a prototype system for clinicians using the Grid as its information infrastructure. To assist in the specification of the system requirements (and for the first time in healthgrid applications), use-case modelling has been carried out in close collaboration with clinicians and radiologists who had no prior experience of this modelling technique. A critical qualitative and, where possible, quantitative analysis of the MammoGrid prototype is presented leading to a set of recommendations from the delivery of the first deployed Grid-based medical imaging application. We report critically on the application of software engineering techniques in the specification and implementation of the MammoGrid project and show that use-case modelling is a suitable vehicle for representing medical requirements and for communicating effectively with the clinical community. This paper also discusses the practical advantages and limitations of applying the Grid to real-life clinical applications and presents the consequent lessons learned. The work presented in this paper demonstrates that given suitable commitment from collaborating radiologists it is practical to deploy in practice medical imaging analysis applications using the Grid but that standardization in and stability of the Grid software is a necessary pre-requisite for successful healthgrids. The MammoGrid prototype has therefore paved the way for further advanced Grid-based deployments in the medical and biomedical domains.

Dimensions of meaning in the occupations of daily life.

PubMed

Hammell, Karen Whalley

2004-12-01

According to the existential philosophers, meaning, purpose and choice are necessary for quality of life. Qualitative researchers exploring the perspectives of people who have experienced health crises have also identified the need for meaning, purpose and choice following life disruptions. Although espousing the importance of meaning in occupation, occupational therapy theory has been primarily preoccupied with purposeful occupations and thus appears inadequate to address issues of meaning within people's lives. This paper proposes that the fundamental orientation of occupational therapy should be the contributions that occupation makes to meaning in people's lives, furthering the suggestion that occupation might be viewed as comprising dimensions of meaning: doing, being, belonging and becoming. Drawing upon perspectives and research from philosophers, social scientists and occupational therapists, this paper will argue for a renewed understanding of occupation in terms of dimensions of meaning rather than as divisible activities of self-care, productivity and leisure. Focusing on meaningful, rather than purposeful occupations more closely aligns the profession with its espoused aspiration to enable the enhancement of quality of life.

Occupancy Grid Map Merging Using Feature Maps

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

each robot begins exploring at different starting points, once two robots can communicate, they send their odometry data, LIDAR observations, and maps...robots [11]. Moreover, it is relevant to mention that significant success has been achieved in solving SLAM problems when using hybrid maps [12...represents the environment by parametric features. Our method is capable of representing a LIDAR scanned environment map in a parametric fashion. In general

Calendar | NREL

Science.gov Websites

Wednesday, 13 June, 2018 12:00 PM - 01:00 PM Power Lunch Lecture Series: Smart(er) Homes: A Win-Win for Occupants and the Grid Monday, 18 June, 2018 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Walking Campus Tour Monday, 16 July, 2018 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Walking Campus Tour Monday, 20 August, 2018 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Walking Campus

Multiple Integrated Navigation Sensors for Improved Occupancy Grid FastSLAM

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-01

to the Faculty Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate School of Engineering and Management Air Force Institute of Technology Air...autonomous vehicle exploration with applications to search and rescue. To current knowledge , this research presents the first SLAM solution to...solution is a key component of an autonomous vehicle, especially one whose mission involves gaining knowledge of unknown areas. It provides the ability

Toward the reconceptualization of the relationship between occupation and health and well-being: Vers la reconceptualisation de la relation entre l'occupation et la santé et le bien-être.

PubMed

Stewart, Katherine E; Fischer, Tess M; Hirji, Rehana; Davis, Jane A

2016-10-01

Foundational to the occupational therapy profession is the belief that engagement in occupation is health promoting; however, this belief fails to account for occupational engagement that may be risky or illness producing. Consensus regarding the nature of the relationship between occupation and health has yet to be achieved. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive description of how the relationship between occupation and health and well-being is discussed within the occupational therapy and occupational science literature. The methodological framework outlined by Arksey and O'Malley served as the basis for this scoping review of the occupational therapy and occupational science literature. One hundred and twelve articles were identified as meeting the criteria for inclusion. The dominant discourse portrays the relationship between occupation and health as positive. The broader literature suggests that occupational engagement can have both positive and negative effects on health and well-being. As such, the reconceptualization of the relationship between occupation and health and well-being is warranted to enable occupational therapists to practise in a more client-centred manner. © CAOT 2015.

O.A.T.S.: What the Real World Needs in Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening: Occupational Application of Tasks and Skills in Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening--A Communication Application Curriculum and Tech Prep Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradley, Gaylene K.; Winfield, Collette M.

Enabling teachers at both the secondary and post-secondary levels to show students the communication skills they need to be successful in particular careers, this paper presents the reading, writing, speaking, and listening tasks routinely performed by persons working in a variety of occupational tasks. Occupations listed in the paper are divided…

Rapid Structured Volume Grid Smoothing and Adaption Technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen J.

2006-01-01

A rapid, structured volume grid smoothing and adaption technique, based on signal processing methods, was developed and applied to the Shuttle Orbiter at hypervelocity flight conditions in support of the Columbia Accident Investigation. Because of the fast pace of the investigation, computational aerothermodynamicists, applying hypersonic viscous flow solving computational fluid dynamic (CFD) codes, refined and enhanced a grid for an undamaged baseline vehicle to assess a variety of damage scenarios. Of the many methods available to modify a structured grid, most are time-consuming and require significant user interaction. By casting the grid data into different coordinate systems, specifically two computational coordinates with arclength as the third coordinate, signal processing methods are used for filtering the data [Taubin, CG v/29 1995]. Using a reverse transformation, the processed data are used to smooth the Cartesian coordinates of the structured grids. By coupling the signal processing method with existing grid operations within the Volume Grid Manipulator tool, problems related to grid smoothing are solved efficiently and with minimal user interaction. Examples of these smoothing operations are illustrated for reductions in grid stretching and volume grid adaptation. In each of these examples, other techniques existed at the time of the Columbia accident, but the incorporation of signal processing techniques reduced the time to perform the corrections by nearly 60%. This reduction in time to perform the corrections therefore enabled the assessment of approximately twice the number of damage scenarios than previously possible during the allocated investigation time.

Rapid Structured Volume Grid Smoothing and Adaption Technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen J.

2004-01-01

A rapid, structured volume grid smoothing and adaption technique, based on signal processing methods, was developed and applied to the Shuttle Orbiter at hypervelocity flight conditions in support of the Columbia Accident Investigation. Because of the fast pace of the investigation, computational aerothermodynamicists, applying hypersonic viscous flow solving computational fluid dynamic (CFD) codes, refined and enhanced a grid for an undamaged baseline vehicle to assess a variety of damage scenarios. Of the many methods available to modify a structured grid, most are time-consuming and require significant user interaction. By casting the grid data into different coordinate systems, specifically two computational coordinates with arclength as the third coordinate, signal processing methods are used for filtering the data [Taubin, CG v/29 1995]. Using a reverse transformation, the processed data are used to smooth the Cartesian coordinates of the structured grids. By coupling the signal processing method with existing grid operations within the Volume Grid Manipulator tool, problems related to grid smoothing are solved efficiently and with minimal user interaction. Examples of these smoothing operations are illustrated for reduction in grid stretching and volume grid adaptation. In each of these examples, other techniques existed at the time of the Columbia accident, but the incorporation of signal processing techniques reduced the time to perform the corrections by nearly 60%. This reduction in time to perform the corrections therefore enabled the assessment of approximately twice the number of damage scenarios than previously possible during the allocated investigation time.

Optimum Aggregation and Control of Spatially Distributed Flexible Resources in Smart Grid

DOE PAGES

Bhattarai, Bishnu; Mendaza, Iker Diaz de Cerio; Myers, Kurt S.; ...

2017-03-24

This paper presents an algorithm to optimally aggregate spatially distributed flexible resources at strategic microgrid/smart-grid locations. The aggregation reduces a distribution network having thousands of nodes to an equivalent network with a few aggregated nodes, thereby enabling distribution system operators (DSOs) to make faster operational decisions. Moreover, the aggregation enables flexibility from small distributed flexible resources to be traded to different power and energy markets. A hierarchical control architecture comprising a combination of centralized and decentralized control approaches is proposed to practically deploy the aggregated flexibility. The proposed method serves as a great operational tool for DSOs to decide themore » exact amount of required flexibilities from different network section(s) for solving grid constraint violations. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated through simulation of three operational scenarios in a real low voltage distribution system having high penetrations of electric vehicles and heat pumps. Finally, the simulation results demonstrated that the aggregation helps DSOs not only in taking faster operational decisions, but also in effectively utilizing the available flexibility.« less

Using ESB and BPEL for Evolving Healthcare Systems Towards Pervasive, Grid-Enabled SOA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koufi, V.; Malamateniou, F.; Papakonstantinou, D.; Vassilacopoulos, G.

Healthcare organizations often face the challenge of integrating diverse and geographically disparate information technology systems to respond to changing requirements and to exploit the capabilities of modern technologies. Hence, systems evolution, through modification and extension of the existing information technology infrastructure, becomes a necessity. Moreover, the availability of these systems at the point of care when needed is a vital issue for the quality of healthcare provided to patients. This chapter takes a process perspective of healthcare delivery within and across organizational boundaries and presents a disciplined approach for evolving healthcare systems towards a pervasive, grid-enabled service-oriented architecture using the enterprise system bus middleware technology for resolving integration issues, the business process execution language for supporting collaboration requirements and grid middleware technology for both addressing common SOA scalability requirements and complementing existing system functionality. In such an environment, appropriate security mechanisms must ensure authorized access to integrated healthcare services and data. To this end, a security framework addressing security aspects such as authorization and access control is also presented.

Optimum Aggregation and Control of Spatially Distributed Flexible Resources in Smart Grid

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

Bhattarai, Bishnu; Mendaza, Iker Diaz de Cerio; Myers, Kurt S.

This paper presents an algorithm to optimally aggregate spatially distributed flexible resources at strategic microgrid/smart-grid locations. The aggregation reduces a distribution network having thousands of nodes to an equivalent network with a few aggregated nodes, thereby enabling distribution system operators (DSOs) to make faster operational decisions. Moreover, the aggregation enables flexibility from small distributed flexible resources to be traded to different power and energy markets. A hierarchical control architecture comprising a combination of centralized and decentralized control approaches is proposed to practically deploy the aggregated flexibility. The proposed method serves as a great operational tool for DSOs to decide themore » exact amount of required flexibilities from different network section(s) for solving grid constraint violations. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated through simulation of three operational scenarios in a real low voltage distribution system having high penetrations of electric vehicles and heat pumps. Finally, the simulation results demonstrated that the aggregation helps DSOs not only in taking faster operational decisions, but also in effectively utilizing the available flexibility.« less

Boosting CSP Production with Thermal Energy Storage

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

Denholm, P.; Mehos, M.

2012-06-01

Combining concentrating solar power (CSP) with thermal energy storage shows promise for increasing grid flexibility by providing firm system capacity with a high ramp rate and acceptable part-load operation. When backed by energy storage capability, CSP can supplement photovoltaics by adding generation from solar resources during periods of low solar insolation. The falling cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) - generated electricity has led to a rapid increase in the deployment of PV and projections that PV could play a significant role in the future U.S. electric sector. The solar resource itself is virtually unlimited; however, the actual contribution of PVmore » electricity is limited by several factors related to the current grid. The first is the limited coincidence between the solar resource and normal electricity demand patterns. The second is the limited flexibility of conventional generators to accommodate this highly variable generation resource. At high penetration of solar generation, increased grid flexibility will be needed to fully utilize the variable and uncertain output from PV generation and to shift energy production to periods of high demand or reduced solar output. Energy storage is one way to increase grid flexibility, and many storage options are available or under development. In this article, however, we consider a technology already beginning to be used at scale - thermal energy storage (TES) deployed with concentrating solar power (CSP). PV and CSP are both deployable in areas of high direct normal irradiance such as the U.S. Southwest. The role of these two technologies is dependent on their costs and relative value, including how their value to the grid changes as a function of what percentage of total generation they contribute to the grid, and how they may actually work together to increase overall usefulness of the solar resource. Both PV and CSP use solar energy to generate electricity. A key difference is the ability of CSP to utilize high-efficiency TES, which turns CSP into a partially dispatchable resource. The addition of TES produces additional value by shifting the delivery of solar energy to periods of peak demand, providing firm capacity and ancillary services, and reducing integration challenges. Given the dispatchability of CSP enabled by TES, it is possible that PV and CSP are at least partially complementary. The dispatchability of CSP with TES can enable higher overall penetration of the grid by solar energy by providing solar-generated electricity during periods of cloudy weather or at night, when PV-generated power is unavailable. Such systems also have the potential to improve grid flexibility, thereby enabling greater penetration of PV energy (and other variable generation sources such as wind) than if PV were deployed without CSP.« less

Grid Computing and Collaboration Technology in Support of Fusion Energy Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schissel, D. P.

2004-11-01

The SciDAC Initiative is creating a computational grid designed to advance scientific understanding in fusion research by facilitating collaborations, enabling more effective integration of experiments, theory and modeling, and allowing more efficient use of experimental facilities. The philosophy is that data, codes, analysis routines, visualization tools, and communication tools should be thought of as easy to use network available services. Access to services is stressed rather than portability. Services share the same basic security infrastructure so that stakeholders can control their own resources and helps ensure fair use of resources. The collaborative control room is being developed using the open-source Access Grid software that enables secure group-to-group collaboration with capabilities beyond teleconferencing including application sharing and control. The ability to effectively integrate off-site scientists into a dynamic control room will be critical to the success of future international projects like ITER. Grid computing, the secure integration of computer systems over high-speed networks to provide on-demand access to data analysis capabilities and related functions, is being deployed as an alternative to traditional resource sharing among institutions. The first grid computational service deployed was the transport code TRANSP and included tools for run preparation, submission, monitoring and management. This approach saves user sites from the laborious effort of maintaining a complex code while at the same time reducing the burden on developers by avoiding the support of a large number of heterogeneous installations. This tutorial will present the philosophy behind an advanced collaborative environment, give specific examples, and discuss its usage beyond FES.

Competency-Based Course Outlines for Business and Office Education. Accounting, Business Data Processing, Clerical Accounting, and Record Keeping Occupations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ricks, Betty R., Ed.; Schmidt, B. June, Ed.

Designed to assist business educators with the implementation of competency-based instruction, these course outlines identify recommended competencies and skill areas for beginning workers in accounting, business data processing, clerical accounting, and recordkeeping occupations. Each outline contains listings of enabling, terminal, and personal…

Enabling Occupational Performance of Children through Coaching Parents: Three Case Reports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graham, Fiona; Rodger, Sylvia; Ziviani, Jenny

2010-01-01

This study explores the use of occupational performance coaching (OPC) with three parent-child dyads using descriptive case study methodology. OPC is a parent-directed intervention in which parents are coached to improve their own or their children's performance in home and community contexts. In this study, parent and child performance was…

Elliptic Curve Cryptography-Based Authentication with Identity Protection for Smart Grids

PubMed Central

Zhang, Liping; Tang, Shanyu; Luo, He

2016-01-01

In a smart grid, the power service provider enables the expected power generation amount to be measured according to current power consumption, thus stabilizing the power system. However, the data transmitted over smart grids are not protected, and then suffer from several types of security threats and attacks. Thus, a robust and efficient authentication protocol should be provided to strength the security of smart grid networks. As the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system provides the security protection between the control center and substations in most smart grid environments, we focus on how to secure the communications between the substations and smart appliances. Existing security approaches fail to address the performance-security balance. In this study, we suggest a mitigation authentication protocol based on Elliptic Curve Cryptography with privacy protection by using a tamper-resistant device at the smart appliance side to achieve a delicate balance between performance and security of smart grids. The proposed protocol provides some attractive features such as identity protection, mutual authentication and key agreement. Finally, we demonstrate the completeness of the proposed protocol using the Gong-Needham- Yahalom logic. PMID:27007951

Elliptic Curve Cryptography-Based Authentication with Identity Protection for Smart Grids.

PubMed

Zhang, Liping; Tang, Shanyu; Luo, He

2016-01-01

In a smart grid, the power service provider enables the expected power generation amount to be measured according to current power consumption, thus stabilizing the power system. However, the data transmitted over smart grids are not protected, and then suffer from several types of security threats and attacks. Thus, a robust and efficient authentication protocol should be provided to strength the security of smart grid networks. As the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system provides the security protection between the control center and substations in most smart grid environments, we focus on how to secure the communications between the substations and smart appliances. Existing security approaches fail to address the performance-security balance. In this study, we suggest a mitigation authentication protocol based on Elliptic Curve Cryptography with privacy protection by using a tamper-resistant device at the smart appliance side to achieve a delicate balance between performance and security of smart grids. The proposed protocol provides some attractive features such as identity protection, mutual authentication and key agreement. Finally, we demonstrate the completeness of the proposed protocol using the Gong-Needham-Yahalom logic.

Smart Grid Development Issues for Terrestrial and Space Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soeder, James F.

2011-01-01

The development of the so called Smart Grid has as many definitions as individuals working in the area. Based on the technology or technologies that are of interest, be it high speed communication, renewable generation, smart meters, energy storage, advanced sensors, etc. they can become the individual defining characteristic of the Smart Grid. In reality the smart grid encompasses all of these items and quite at bit more. This discussion attempts to look at what the needs are for the grid of the future, such as the issues of increased power flow capability, use of renewable energy, increased security and efficiency and common power and data standards. It also shows how many of these issues are common with the needs of NASA for future exploration programs. A common theme to address both terrestrial and space exploration issues is to develop micro-grids that advertise the ability to enable the load leveling of large power generation facilities. However, for microgrids to realize their promise there needs to a holistic systems approach to their development and integration. The overall system integration issues are presented along with potential solution methodologies.

Smart Grid Development Issues for Terrestrial and Space Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soeder, James F.

2014-01-01

The development of the so called Smart Grid has as many definitions as individuals working in the area. Based on the technology or technologies that are of interest, be it high speed communication, renewable generation, smart meters, energy storage, advanced sensors, etc. they can become the individual defining characteristic of the Smart Grid. In reality the smart grid encompasses all of these items and quite at bit more. This discussion attempts to look at what the needs are for the grid of the future, such as the issues of increased power flow capability, use of renewable energy, increased security and efficiency and common power and data standards. It also shows how many of these issues are common with the needs of NASA for future exploration programs. A common theme to address both terrestrial and space exploration issues is to develop micro-grids that advertise the ability to enable the load leveling of large power generation facilities. However, for microgrids to realize their promise there needs to a holistic systems approach to their development and integration. The overall system integration issues are presented along with potential solution methodologies.

The implementation of an aeronautical CFD flow code onto distributed memory parallel systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ierotheou, C. S.; Forsey, C. R.; Leatham, M.

2000-04-01

The parallelization of an industrially important in-house computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code for calculating the airflow over complex aircraft configurations using the Euler or Navier-Stokes equations is presented. The code discussed is the flow solver module of the SAUNA CFD suite. This suite uses a novel grid system that may include block-structured hexahedral or pyramidal grids, unstructured tetrahedral grids or a hybrid combination of both. To assist in the rapid convergence to a solution, a number of convergence acceleration techniques are employed including implicit residual smoothing and a multigrid full approximation storage scheme (FAS). Key features of the parallelization approach are the use of domain decomposition and encapsulated message passing to enable the execution in parallel using a single programme multiple data (SPMD) paradigm. In the case where a hybrid grid is used, a unified grid partitioning scheme is employed to define the decomposition of the mesh. The parallel code has been tested using both structured and hybrid grids on a number of different distributed memory parallel systems and is now routinely used to perform industrial scale aeronautical simulations. Copyright

Towed-grid system for production and calorimetric study of homogenous quantum turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciapurin, Roman; Thompson, Kyle; Ihas, Gary G.

2011-10-01

The decay of quantum turbulence is not fully understood in superfluid helium at milikelvin temperatures where the viscous normal component is absent. Vibrating grid experiments performed periously produced inhomogeneous turbulence, making the results hard to interpret. We have developed experimental methods to produce homogeneous isotropic turbulence by pulling a grid at a variable constant velocity through superfluid 4He. While using calorimetric technique to measure the energy dissipation, the Meissner effect was employed to eliminate all heat sources except from turbulent decay. A controlled divergent magnetic field provides the lift to a hollow cylindrical superconducting actuator to which the grid is attached. Position sensing is performed by measuring the inductance change of a coil when a superconductor, similar to that of the actuator, is moved inside it. This position sensing technique proved to be reliable under varying temperatures and magnetic fields, making it perfect for use in the towed-grid experiment where a rise in temperature emerges from turbulent decay. Additionally, the reproducible dependency of the grid's position on the applied magnetic field enables complete control of the actuator's motion.

System design and implementation of digital-image processing using computational grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Zhanfeng; Luo, Jiancheng; Zhou, Chenghu; Huang, Guangyu; Ma, Weifeng; Ming, Dongping

2005-06-01

As a special type of digital image, remotely sensed images are playing increasingly important roles in our daily lives. Because of the enormous amounts of data involved, and the difficulties of data processing and transfer, an important issue for current computer and geo-science experts is developing internet technology to implement rapid remotely sensed image processing. Computational grids are able to solve this problem effectively. These networks of computer workstations enable the sharing of data and resources, and are used by computer experts to solve imbalances of network resources and lopsided usage. In China, computational grids combined with spatial-information-processing technology have formed a new technology: namely, spatial-information grids. In the field of remotely sensed images, spatial-information grids work more effectively for network computing, data processing, resource sharing, task cooperation and so on. This paper focuses mainly on the application of computational grids to digital-image processing. Firstly, we describe the architecture of digital-image processing on the basis of computational grids, its implementation is then discussed in detail with respect to the technology of middleware. The whole network-based intelligent image-processing system is evaluated on the basis of the experimental analysis of remotely sensed image-processing tasks; the results confirm the feasibility of the application of computational grids to digital-image processing.

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

Seal, Brian; Huque, Aminul; Rogers, Lindsey

In 2011, EPRI began a four-year effort under the Department of Energy (DOE) SunShot Initiative Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems - Advanced Concepts (SEGIS-AC) to demonstrate smart grid ready inverters with utility communication. The objective of the project was to successfully implement and demonstrate effective utilization of inverters with grid support functionality to capture the full value of distributed photovoltaic (PV). The project leveraged ongoing investments and expanded PV inverter capabilities, to enable grid operators to better utilize these grid assets. Developing and implementing key elements of PV inverter grid support capabilities will increase the distribution system’s capacity for highermore » penetration levels of PV, while reducing the cost. The project team included EPRI, Yaskawa-Solectria Solar, Spirae, BPL Global, DTE Energy, National Grid, Pepco, EDD, NPPT and NREL. The project was divided into three phases: development, deployment, and demonstration. Within each phase, the key areas included: head-end communications for Distributed Energy Resources (DER) at the utility operations center; methods for coordinating DER with existing distribution equipment; back-end PV plant master controller; and inverters with smart-grid functionality. Four demonstration sites were chosen in three regions of the United States with different types of utility operating systems and implementations of utility-scale PV inverters. This report summarizes the project and findings from field demonstration at three utility sites.« less

Improved grid-noise removal in single-frame digital moiré 3D shape measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammadi, Fatemeh; Kofman, Jonathan

2016-11-01

A single-frame grid-noise removal technique was developed for application in single-frame digital-moiré 3D shape measurement. The ability of the stationary wavelet transform (SWT) to prevent oscillation artifacts near discontinuities, and the ability of the Fourier transform (FFT) applied to wavelet coefficients to separate grid-noise from useful image information, were combined in a new technique, SWT-FFT, to remove grid-noise from moiré-pattern images generated by digital moiré. In comparison to previous grid-noise removal techniques in moiré, SWT-FFT avoids the requirement for mechanical translation of optical components and capture of multiple frames, to enable single-frame moiré-based measurement. Experiments using FFT, Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT), DWT-FFT, and SWT-FFT were performed on moiré-pattern images containing grid noise, generated by digital moiré, for several test objects. SWT-FFT had the best performance in removing high-frequency grid-noise, both straight and curved lines, minimizing artifacts, and preserving the moiré pattern without blurring and degradation. SWT-FFT also had the lowest noise amplitude in the reconstructed height and lowest roughness index for all test objects, indicating best grid-noise removal in comparison to the other techniques.

Internationalization in an Occupational Therapy Curriculum: A Philippine-American Pilot Collaboration.

PubMed

Cabatan, Maria Concepcion C; Grajo, Lenin C

This study is a pilot implementation of an Internationalization at Home (IaH) teaching and learning collaboration to enhance intercultural learning and understanding of concepts of occupation in two cohorts of occupational science and occupational therapy students from the Philippines and the United States. In this collective case study, 149 students (Cohort 1, n = 65; Cohort 2, n = 84) participated. The collaboration included virtual conversations among students, faculty presentations, reflective assignments, and completion of an anonymous online survey. Analysis yielded three essential themes: (1) perception of increased knowledge about human occupation and the influence of culture, (2) identification of teaching-learning aspects that facilitated intercultural learning outcomes, and (3) identification of factors that were enablers of and barriers to learning. This study provides insights on how intercultural learning experiences can be integrated into occupational science and occupational therapy curricula and can increase understanding of concepts related to human occupation. Copyright © 2017 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

[Evaluation and prognosis of occupational risk in workers of nonferrous metallurgy enterprises].

PubMed

Shliapnikov, D M; Kostarev, V G

2014-01-01

The article deals with results of a priori and a posteriori evaluation of occupational risk for workers' health. Categories of a priori occupational risk for workers are estimated as high to very high (intolerable) risk. Findings are that work conditions in nonferrous metallurgy workshop result in upper respiratory tract diseases (medium degree of occupational conditionality). Increased prevalence of such diseases among the workers is connected with length of service. The authors revealed priority factors for occupationally conditioned diseases. A promising approach in occupational medicine is creation of methods to evaluate and forecast occupational risk, that enable to specify goal parameters for prophylactic measures. For example, modelling the risk of occupationally conditioned diseases via changes in exposure to occupational factor and length of service proved that decrease of chemical concentrations in air of workplace to maximally allowable ones lowers risk of respiratory diseases from 14 to 6 cases per year, for length of service of 5 years and population risk.

Context-dependent spatially periodic activity in the human entorhinal cortex

PubMed Central

Nguyen, T. Peter; Török, Ágoston; Shen, Jason Y.; Briggs, Deborah E.; Modur, Pradeep N.; Buchanan, Robert J.

2017-01-01

The spatially periodic activity of grid cells in the entorhinal cortex (EC) of the rodent, primate, and human provides a coordinate system that, together with the hippocampus, informs an individual of its location relative to the environment and encodes the memory of that location. Among the most defining features of grid-cell activity are the 60° rotational symmetry of grids and preservation of grid scale across environments. Grid cells, however, do display a limited degree of adaptation to environments. It remains unclear if this level of environment invariance generalizes to human grid-cell analogs, where the relative contribution of visual input to the multimodal sensory input of the EC is significantly larger than in rodents. Patients diagnosed with nontractable epilepsy who were implanted with entorhinal cortical electrodes performing virtual navigation tasks to memorized locations enabled us to investigate associations between grid-like patterns and environment. Here, we report that the activity of human entorhinal cortical neurons exhibits adaptive scaling in grid period, grid orientation, and rotational symmetry in close association with changes in environment size, shape, and visual cues, suggesting scale invariance of the frequency, rather than the wavelength, of spatially periodic activity. Our results demonstrate that neurons in the human EC represent space with an enhanced flexibility relative to neurons in rodents because they are endowed with adaptive scalability and context dependency. PMID:28396399

Bayesian Non-Stationary Index Gauge Modeling of Gridded Precipitation Extremes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verdin, A.; Bracken, C.; Caldwell, J.; Balaji, R.; Funk, C. C.

2017-12-01

We propose a Bayesian non-stationary model to generate watershed scale gridded estimates of extreme precipitation return levels. The Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) dataset is used to obtain gridded seasonal precipitation extremes over the Taylor Park watershed in Colorado for the period 1981-2016. For each year, grid cells within the Taylor Park watershed are aggregated to a representative "index gauge," which is input to the model. Precipitation-frequency curves for the index gauge are estimated for each year, using climate variables with significant teleconnections as proxies. Such proxies enable short-term forecasting of extremes for the upcoming season. Disaggregation ratios of the index gauge to the grid cells within the watershed are computed for each year and preserved to translate the index gauge precipitation-frequency curve to gridded precipitation-frequency maps for select return periods. Gridded precipitation-frequency maps are of the same spatial resolution as CHIRPS (0.05° x 0.05°). We verify that the disaggregation method preserves spatial coherency of extremes in the Taylor Park watershed. Validation of the index gauge extreme precipitation-frequency method consists of ensuring extreme value statistics are preserved on a grid cell basis. To this end, a non-stationary extreme precipitation-frequency analysis is performed on each grid cell individually, and the resulting frequency curves are compared to those produced by the index gauge disaggregation method.

Short Paper: Frequency Regulation Services from Connected Residential Devices: Preprint

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

Baker, Kyri; Jin, Xin; Vaidhynathan, Deepthi

In this paper, we demonstrate the potential benefits that residential buildings can provide for frequency regulation services in the electric power grid. In a hardware-in-the- loop (HIL) implementation, simulated homes along with a physical laboratory home are coordinated via a grid aggregator, and it is shown that their aggregate response has the potential to follow the regulation signal on a timescale of seconds. Connected (communication-enabled), devices in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) received demand response (DR) requests from a grid aggregator, and the devices responded accordingly to meet the signal while satisfying user comfortmore » bounds and physical hardware limitations. Future research will address the issues of cybersecurity threats, participation rates, and reducing equipment wear-and-tear while providing grid services.« less

A Comparison of FPGA and GPGPU Designs for Bayesian Occupancy Filters.

PubMed

Medina, Luis; Diez-Ochoa, Miguel; Correal, Raul; Cuenca-Asensi, Sergio; Serrano, Alejandro; Godoy, Jorge; Martínez-Álvarez, Antonio; Villagra, Jorge

2017-11-11

Grid-based perception techniques in the automotive sector based on fusing information from different sensors and their robust perceptions of the environment are proliferating in the industry. However, one of the main drawbacks of these techniques is the traditionally prohibitive, high computing performance that is required for embedded automotive systems. In this work, the capabilities of new computing architectures that embed these algorithms are assessed in a real car. The paper compares two ad hoc optimized designs of the Bayesian Occupancy Filter; one for General Purpose Graphics Processing Unit (GPGPU) and the other for Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The resulting implementations are compared in terms of development effort, accuracy and performance, using datasets from a realistic simulator and from a real automated vehicle.

FORESEE™ User-Centric Energy Automation

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

FORESEE™ is a home energy management system (HEMS) that provides a user centric energy automation solution for residential building occupants. Built upon advanced control and machine learning algorithms, FORESEE intelligently manages the home appliances and distributed energy resources (DERs) such as photovoltaics and battery storage in a home. Unlike existing HEMS in the market, FORESEE provides a tailored home automation solution for individual occupants by learning and adapting to their preferences on cost, comfort, convenience and carbon. FORESEE improves not only the energy efficiency of the home but also its capability to provide grid services such as demand response. Highlymore » reliable demand response services are likely to be incentivized by utility companies, making FORESEE economically viable for most homes.« less

Collaboration Services: Enabling Chat in Disadvantaged Grids

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

grids in the tactical domain" [2]. The main focus of this group is to identify what we call tactical SOA foundation services. By this we mean which...Here, only IPv4 is supported, as differences relating to IPv4 and IPv6 addressing meant that this functionality was not easily extended to use IPv6 ...multicast groups. Our IPv4 implementation is fully compliant with the specification, whereas the IPv6 implementation uses our own interpretation of

Powering a Home with Just 25 Watts of Solar PV. Super-Efficient Appliances Can Enable Expanded Off-Grid Energy Service Using Small Solar Power Systems

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

Phadke, Amol A.; Jacobson, Arne; Park, Won Young

Highly efficient direct current (DC) appliances have the potential to dramatically increase the affordability of off-grid solar power systems used for rural electrification in developing countries by reducing the size of the systems required. For example, the combined power requirement of a highly efficient color TV, four DC light emitting diode (LED) lamps, a mobile phone charger, and a radio is approximately 18 watts and can be supported by a small solar power system (at 27 watts peak, Wp). Price declines and efficiency advances in LED technology are already enabling rapidly increased use of small off-grid lighting systems in Africamore » and Asia. Similar progress is also possible for larger household-scale solar home systems that power appliances such as lights, TVs, fans, radios, and mobile phones. When super-efficient appliances are used, the total cost of solar home systems and their associated appliances can be reduced by as much as 50%. The results vary according to the appliances used with the system. These findings have critical relevance for efforts to provide modern energy services to the 1.2 billion people worldwide without access to the electrical grid and one billion more with unreliable access. However, policy and market support are needed to realize rapid adoption of super-efficient appliances.« less

Selective Capture of Histidine-tagged Proteins from Cell Lysates Using TEM grids Modified with NTA-Graphene Oxide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benjamin, Christopher J.; Wright, Kyle J.; Bolton, Scott C.; Hyun, Seok-Hee; Krynski, Kyle; Grover, Mahima; Yu, Guimei; Guo, Fei; Kinzer-Ursem, Tamara L.; Jiang, Wen; Thompson, David H.

2016-10-01

We report the fabrication of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) grids bearing graphene oxide (GO) sheets that have been modified with Nα, Nα-dicarboxymethyllysine (NTA) and deactivating agents to block non-selective binding between GO-NTA sheets and non-target proteins. The resulting GO-NTA-coated grids with these improved antifouling properties were then used to isolate His6-T7 bacteriophage and His6-GroEL directly from cell lysates. To demonstrate the utility and simplified workflow enabled by these grids, we performed cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) of His6-GroEL obtained from clarified E. coli lysates. Single particle analysis produced a 3D map with a gold standard resolution of 8.1 Å. We infer from these findings that TEM grids modified with GO-NTA are a useful tool that reduces background and improves both the speed and simplicity of biological sample preparation for high-resolution structure elucidation by cryo-EM.

Enabling Efficient, Responsive, and Resilient Buildings: Collaboration Between the United States and India

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

Basu, Chandrayee; Ghatikar, Girish

The United States and India have among the largest economies in the world, and they continue to work together to address current and future challenges in reliable electricity supply. The acceleration to efficient, grid-responsive, resilient buildings represents a key energy security objective for federal and state agencies in both countries. The weaknesses in the Indian grid system were manifest in 2012, in the country’s worst blackout, which jeopardized the lives of half of India’s 1.2 billion people. While both countries are investing significantly in power sector reform, India, by virtue of its colossal growth rate in commercial energy intensity andmore » commercial floor space, is better placed than the United States to integrate and test state-of-art Smart Grid technologies in its future grid-responsive commercial buildings. This paper presents a roadmap of technical collaboration between the research organizations, and public-private stakeholders in both countries to accelerate the building-to-grid integration through pilot studies in India.« less

Selective Capture of Histidine-tagged Proteins from Cell Lysates Using TEM grids Modified with NTA-Graphene Oxide.

PubMed

Benjamin, Christopher J; Wright, Kyle J; Bolton, Scott C; Hyun, Seok-Hee; Krynski, Kyle; Grover, Mahima; Yu, Guimei; Guo, Fei; Kinzer-Ursem, Tamara L; Jiang, Wen; Thompson, David H

2016-10-17

We report the fabrication of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) grids bearing graphene oxide (GO) sheets that have been modified with N α , N α -dicarboxymethyllysine (NTA) and deactivating agents to block non-selective binding between GO-NTA sheets and non-target proteins. The resulting GO-NTA-coated grids with these improved antifouling properties were then used to isolate His 6 -T7 bacteriophage and His 6 -GroEL directly from cell lysates. To demonstrate the utility and simplified workflow enabled by these grids, we performed cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) of His 6 -GroEL obtained from clarified E. coli lysates. Single particle analysis produced a 3D map with a gold standard resolution of 8.1 Å. We infer from these findings that TEM grids modified with GO-NTA are a useful tool that reduces background and improves both the speed and simplicity of biological sample preparation for high-resolution structure elucidation by cryo-EM.

Scheduling in Sensor Grid Middleware for Telemedicine Using ABC Algorithm

PubMed Central

Vigneswari, T.; Mohamed, M. A. Maluk

2014-01-01

Advances in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and nanotechnology have enabled design of low power wireless sensor nodes capable of sensing different vital signs in our body. These nodes can communicate with each other to aggregate data and transmit vital parameters to a base station (BS). The data collected in the base station can be used to monitor health in real time. The patient wearing sensors may be mobile leading to aggregation of data from different BS for processing. Processing real time data is compute-intensive and telemedicine facilities may not have appropriate hardware to process the real time data effectively. To overcome this, sensor grid has been proposed in literature wherein sensor data is integrated to the grid for processing. This work proposes a scheduling algorithm to efficiently process telemedicine data in the grid. The proposed algorithm uses the popular swarm intelligence algorithm for scheduling to overcome the NP complete problem of grid scheduling. Results compared with other heuristic scheduling algorithms show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. PMID:25548557

Design study of a 120-keV, He-3 neutral beam injector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blum, A. S.; Barr, W. L.; Dexter, W. L.; Moir, R. W.; Wilcox, T. P.; Fink, J. H.

1981-01-01

A design for a 120-keV, 2.3-MW, He-3 neutral beam injector for use on a D-(He-3) fusion reactor is described. The constraint that limits operating life when injecting He is its high sputtering rate. The sputtering is partly controlled by using an extra grid to prevent ion flow from the neutralizer duct to the electron suppressor grid, but a tradeoff between beam current and operating life is still required. Hollow grid wires functioning as mercury heat pipes cool the grid and enable steady state operation. Voltage holding and radiation effects on the acceleration grid structure are discussed. The vacuum system is also briefly described, and the use of a direct energy converter to recapture energy from unneutralized ions exiting the neutralizer is also analyzed. Of crucial importance to the technical feasibility of the (He-3)-burning reactor are the injector efficiency and cost; these are 53% and $5.5 million, respectively, when power supplies are included.

Design study of a 120-keV,3He neutral beam injector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blum, A. S.; Barr, W. L.; Dexter, W. L.; Fink, J. H.; Moir, R. W.; Wilcox, T. P.

1981-01-01

We describe a design for a 120-keV, 2.3-MW,3He neutral beam injector for use on a D-3He fusion reactor. The constraint that limits operating life when injecting He is its high sputtering rate. The sputtering is partly controlled by using an extra grid to prevent ion flow from the neutralizer duct to the electron suppressor grid, but a tradeoff between beam current and operating life is still required. Hollow grid wires functioning as mercury heat pipes cool the grid and enable steady state operation. Voltage holding and radiation effects on the acceleration grid structure are discussed. We also briefly describe the vacuum system and analyze use of a direct energy converter to recapture energy from unneutralized ions exiting the neutralizer. Of crucial importance to the technical feasibility of the3He-burning reactor are the injector efficiency and cost; these are 53% and 5.5 million, respectively, when power supplies are included.

Wire-chamber radiation detector with discharge control

DOEpatents

Perez-Mendez, V.; Mulera, T.A.

1982-03-29

A wire chamber; radiation detector has spaced apart parallel electrodes and grids defining an ignition region in which charged particles or other ionizing radiations initiate brief localized avalanche discharges and defining an adjacent memory region in which sustained glow discharges are initiated by the primary discharges. Conductors of the grids at each side of the memory section extend in orthogonal directions enabling readout of the X-Y coordinates of locations at which charged particles were detected by sequentially transmitting pulses to the conductors of one grid while detecting transmissions of the pulses to the orthogonal conductors of the other grid through glow discharges. One of the grids bounding the memory region is defined by an array of conductive elements each of which is connected to the associated readout conductor through a separate resistance. The wire chamber avoids ambiguities and imprecisions in the readout of coordinates when large numbers of simultaneous or; near simultaneous charged particles have been detected. Down time between detection periods and the generation of radio frequency noise are also reduced.

An overview of distributed microgrid state estimation and control for smart grids.

PubMed

Rana, Md Masud; Li, Li

2015-02-12

Given the significant concerns regarding carbon emission from the fossil fuels, global warming and energy crisis, the renewable distributed energy resources (DERs) are going to be integrated in the smart grid. This grid can spread the intelligence of the energy distribution and control system from the central unit to the long-distance remote areas, thus enabling accurate state estimation (SE) and wide-area real-time monitoring of these intermittent energy sources. In contrast to the traditional methods of SE, this paper proposes a novel accuracy dependent Kalman filter (KF) based microgrid SE for the smart grid that uses typical communication systems. Then this article proposes a discrete-time linear quadratic regulation to control the state deviations of the microgrid incorporating multiple DERs. Therefore, integrating these two approaches with application to the smart grid forms a novel contributions in green energy and control research communities. Finally, the simulation results show that the proposed KF based microgrid SE and control algorithm provides an accurate SE and control compared with the existing method.

Effectiveness of Occupational Therapy Interventions for Lower-Extremity Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Dorsey, Julie; Bradshaw, Michelle

Lower-extremity (LE) musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) can have a major impact on the ability to carry out daily activities. The effectiveness of interventions must be examined to enable occupational therapy practitioners to deliver the most appropriate services. This systematic review examined the literature published between 1995 and July 2014 that investigated the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions for LE MSDs. Forty-three articles met the criteria and were reviewed. Occupational therapy interventions varied on the basis of population subgroup: hip fracture, LE joint replacement, LE amputation or limb loss, and nonsurgical osteoarthritis and pain. The results indicate an overall strong role for occupational therapy in treating clients with LE MSDs. Activity pacing is an effective intervention for nonsurgical LE MSDs, and multidisciplinary rehabilitation is effective for LE joint replacement and amputation. Further research on specific occupational therapy interventions in this important area is needed. Copyright © 2017 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

Scaling range sizes to threats for robust predictions of risks to biodiversity.

PubMed

Keith, David A; Akçakaya, H Resit; Murray, Nicholas J

2018-04-01

Assessments of risk to biodiversity often rely on spatial distributions of species and ecosystems. Range-size metrics used extensively in these assessments, such as area of occupancy (AOO), are sensitive to measurement scale, prompting proposals to measure them at finer scales or at different scales based on the shape of the distribution or ecological characteristics of the biota. Despite its dominant role in red-list assessments for decades, appropriate spatial scales of AOO for predicting risks of species' extinction or ecosystem collapse remain untested and contentious. There are no quantitative evaluations of the scale-sensitivity of AOO as a predictor of risks, the relationship between optimal AOO scale and threat scale, or the effect of grid uncertainty. We used stochastic simulation models to explore risks to ecosystems and species with clustered, dispersed, and linear distribution patterns subject to regimes of threat events with different frequency and spatial extent. Area of occupancy was an accurate predictor of risk (0.81<|r|<0.98) and performed optimally when measured with grid cells 0.1-1.0 times the largest plausible area threatened by an event. Contrary to previous assertions, estimates of AOO at these relatively coarse scales were better predictors of risk than finer-scale estimates of AOO (e.g., when measurement cells are <1% of the area of the largest threat). The optimal scale depended on the spatial scales of threats more than the shape or size of biotic distributions. Although we found appreciable potential for grid-measurement errors, current IUCN guidelines for estimating AOO neutralize geometric uncertainty and incorporate effective scaling procedures for assessing risks posed by landscape-scale threats to species and ecosystems. © 2017 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Neural network-based multiple robot simultaneous localization and mapping.

PubMed

Saeedi, Sajad; Paull, Liam; Trentini, Michael; Li, Howard

2011-12-01

In this paper, a decentralized platform for simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) with multiple robots is developed. Each robot performs single robot view-based SLAM using an extended Kalman filter to fuse data from two encoders and a laser ranger. To extend this approach to multiple robot SLAM, a novel occupancy grid map fusion algorithm is proposed. Map fusion is achieved through a multistep process that includes image preprocessing, map learning (clustering) using neural networks, relative orientation extraction using norm histogram cross correlation and a Radon transform, relative translation extraction using matching norm vectors, and then verification of the results. The proposed map learning method is a process based on the self-organizing map. In the learning phase, the obstacles of the map are learned by clustering the occupied cells of the map into clusters. The learning is an unsupervised process which can be done on the fly without any need to have output training patterns. The clusters represent the spatial form of the map and make further analyses of the map easier and faster. Also, clusters can be interpreted as features extracted from the occupancy grid map so the map fusion problem becomes a task of matching features. Results of the experiments from tests performed on a real environment with multiple robots prove the effectiveness of the proposed solution.

A Semantic Grid Oriented to E-Tourism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xiao Ming

With increasing complexity of tourism business models and tasks, there is a clear need of the next generation e-Tourism infrastructure to support flexible automation, integration, computation, storage, and collaboration. Currently several enabling technologies such as semantic Web, Web service, agent and grid computing have been applied in the different e-Tourism applications, however there is no a unified framework to be able to integrate all of them. So this paper presents a promising e-Tourism framework based on emerging semantic grid, in which a number of key design issues are discussed including architecture, ontologies structure, semantic reconciliation, service and resource discovery, role based authorization and intelligent agent. The paper finally provides the implementation of the framework.

geoknife: Reproducible web-processing of large gridded datasets

USGS Publications Warehouse

Read, Jordan S.; Walker, Jordan I.; Appling, Alison P.; Blodgett, David L.; Read, Emily K.; Winslow, Luke A.

2016-01-01

Geoprocessing of large gridded data according to overlap with irregular landscape features is common to many large-scale ecological analyses. The geoknife R package was created to facilitate reproducible analyses of gridded datasets found on the U.S. Geological Survey Geo Data Portal web application or elsewhere, using a web-enabled workflow that eliminates the need to download and store large datasets that are reliably hosted on the Internet. The package provides access to several data subset and summarization algorithms that are available on remote web processing servers. Outputs from geoknife include spatial and temporal data subsets, spatially-averaged time series values filtered by user-specified areas of interest, and categorical coverage fractions for various land-use types.

From Ions to Wires to the Grid: The Transformational Science of LANL Research in High-Tc Superconducting Tapes and Electric Power Applications

ScienceCinema

Marken, Ken

2018-01-09

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE) has been tasked to lead national efforts to modernize the electric grid, enhance security and reliability of the energy infrastructure, and facilitate recovery from disruptions to energy supplies. LANL has pioneered the development of coated conductors – high-temperature superconducting (HTS) tapes – which permit dramatically greater current densities than conventional copper cable, and enable new technologies to secure the national electric grid. Sustained world-class research from concept, demonstration, transfer, and ongoing industrial support has moved this idea from the laboratory to the commercial marketplace.

Engagement in patterns of daily occupations and perceived health among women of working age.

PubMed

Håkansson, Carita; Lissner, Lauren; Björkelund, Cecilia; Sonn, Ulla

2009-05-01

The aim of the present cross-sectional study was to examine how subjective experiences of engagement in patterns of daily occupations (gainful employment, domestic work, enjoyable and recreational occupations) were associated with perceived health among women of working age. The sample (n=488) was drawn from a longitudinal cohort study of women of working age in Gothenburg, Sweden. Participants were women 38 (n=202) and 50 (n=286) years of age. They completed a questionnaire including questions about occupational experiences in relation to their patterns of daily occupations, perceived health, and socioeconomic factors. The results of the present study showed that a combination of different experience dimensions of patterns of daily occupations was associated with perceived health among women of working age, even when adjusted for socioeconomic factors and age. The results provided occupational pattern-related health indicators, i.e. manageability, personally meaningful occupations, and occupational balance. To combine these health indicators can be a way for occupational therapists to enable women to develop strategies to promote health and to prevent stress and sick leave.

Interoperability Context-Setting Framework

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

Widergren, Steven E.; Hardin, Dave; Ambrosio, Ron

2007-01-31

As the deployment of automation technology advances, it touches upon many areas of our corporate and personal lives. A trend is emerging where systems are growing to the extent that integration is taking place with other systems to provide even greater capabilities more efficiently and effectively. GridWise™ provides a vision for this type of integration as it applies to the electric system. Imagine a time in the not too distant future when homeowners can offer the management of their electricity demand to participate in a more efficient and environmentally friendly operation of the electric power grid. They will do thismore » using technology that acts on their behalf in response to information from other components of the electric system. This technology will recognize their preferences to parameters such as comfort and the price of energy to form responses that optimize the local need to a signal that satisfies a higher-level need in the grid. For example, consider a particularly hot day with air stagnation in an area with a significant dependence on wind generation. To manage the forecasted peak electricity demand, the bulk system operator issues a critical peak price warning. Their automation systems alert electric service providers who distribute electricity from the wholesale electricity system to consumers. In response, the electric service providers use their automation systems to inform consumers of impending price increases for electricity. This information is passed to an energy management system at the premises, which acts on the homeowner’s behalf, to adjust the electricity usage of the onsite equipment (which might include generation from such sources as a fuel cell). The objective of such a system is to honor the agreement with the electricity service provider and reduce the homeowner’s bill while keeping the occupants as comfortable as possible. This will include actions such as moving the thermostat on the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) unit up several degrees. The resulting load reduction becomes part of an aggregated response from the electricity service provider to the bulk system operator who is now in a better position to manage total system load with available generation. Looking across the electric system, from generating plants, to transmission substations, to the distribution system, to factories, office parks, and buildings, automation is growing, and the opportunities for unleashing new value propositions are exciting. How can we facilitate this change and do so in a way that ensures the reliability of electric resources for the wellbeing of our economy and security? The GridWise Architecture Council (GWAC) mission is to enable interoperability among the many entities that interact with the electric power system. A good definition of interoperability is, “The capability of two or more networks, systems, devices, applications, or components to exchange information between them and to use the information so exchanged.” As a step in the direction of enabling interoperability, the GWAC proposes a context-setting framework to organize concepts and terminology so that interoperability issues can be identified and debated, improvements to address issues articulated, and actions prioritized and coordinated across the electric power community.« less

Integrated Occupational Program: Information Manual for Administrators, Counsellors, and Teachers. Interim 1988.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forest, Jan

The Integrated Occupational Program (IOP) was designed for students in grades 8-12 who have experienced prolonged difficulty with the regular elementary and secondary school programs, who demonstrate a significant lag in one or more of their academic courses, and who typically fall into the intelligence band of 75-95 IQ. The IOP enables students…

A tool to enhance occupational therapy reasoning from ICF perspective: The Hasselt Occupational Performance Profile (H-OPP).

PubMed

Ghysels, R; Vanroye, E; Westhovens, M; Spooren, A

2017-03-01

In order to enhance occupational therapy reasoning in clinical practice, different elements such as client-centred approach, evidence-based care and interdisciplinary work should be taken into account, but is a challenge. To describe the development of the digital Hasselt Occupational Performance Profile (H-OPP © ) that enhances occupational therapy reasoning from ICF perspective. A participative qualitative design was used to create the H-OPP © in an iterative way in which occupational therapy lectures, ICF experts, students and occupational therapists in the field were involved. After linking occupational therapy terminology to the ICF, different stages of the H-OPP were identified and elaborated with main features: generating an occupational performance profile based on inventarization of problems and possibilities, formulating an occupational performance diagnosis and enabling to create an intervention plan. In all stages, both the perspectives of the client and the occupational therapist were taken into account. To increase practical use, the tool was further elaborated and digitalized. The H-OPP © is a digital coach that guides and facilitates professional reasoning in (novice) occupational therapists. It augments involvement of the client system. Furthermore, it enhances interdisciplinary communication and evidence-based care.

Exploring perceptions of occupational competence among participants in Individual Placement and Support (IPS).

PubMed

Nygren, Ulla; Sandlund, Mikael; Bernspång, Birgitta; Fisher, Anne G

2013-11-01

The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of occupational competence and occupational value among a group of clients engaged in Individual Placement and Support (IPS). The Occupational Self-Assessment (OSA), based on the Model of Human Occupation, was used with 65 men and women with mental illness, and 45 of these completed the study. Rasch analyses showed that the participants perceived "Managing my finances", "Managing my basic needs", and "Doing activities I like" as the most valued occupations. Most competence was perceived in "Taking care of myself". Among the occupations where the participants perceived least competence, "Getting done what I need to do" and "Accomplishing what I set out to do" were the occupations that most stand out. Significant differences were also found between perceived competence and value in most of the occupations. Beyond those occupations valued as most important among the participants, it is essential also to pay attention to those in which they perceived least competence, as they are important for being able to achieve a desired occupation. Support related to perceptions of occupational competence can contribute to enabling clients in IPS to master a desired working life.

Enabling international communication among Brazilian occupational therapists: seeking consensus on occupational terminology.

PubMed

Magalhaes, Lilian; Galheigo, Sandra Maria

2010-09-01

The purpose of this study was to examine how key occupational therapy terminologies are used by Brazilian occupational therapists. A nominal group approach combined with a Delphi technique involving 31 Brazilian occupational therapists was applied. A sociolinguistic approach was adopted since it broadens our understanding of the social and cultural determinants of terminology consolidation. Brazilian occupational therapists were found to adopt the term activity more often than human action or doing. Even less often were praxis and occupation applied. No consensus was reached regarding which of the terms is most preferred. While Brazilian occupational therapists have been developing their profession from international standards, it is still embedded in local demands and policies. Additionally, the political context must be considered when building an international dialogue between members of a professional body. Such a dialogue could engage professionals from different countries in meaningful exchanges about their practices. These exchanges may lead to the development of solid professional communities that can contribute meaningfully to social change. Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Security and Resilience | Grid Modernization | NREL

Science.gov Websites

Security and Resilience Security and Resilience NREL develops tools and solutions to enable a more Consortium, NREL collaborates with industry, academia, and other research organizations to find solutions to

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

Harper, Jason

Jason Harper, an electrical engineer in Argonne National Laboratory's EV-Smart Grid Interoperability Center, discusses his SpEC Module invention that will enable fast charging of electric vehicles in under 15 minutes. The module has been licensed to BTCPower.

Space-based Science Operations Grid Prototype

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert N.; Welch, Clara L.; Redman, Sandra

2004-01-01

Grid technology is the up and coming technology that is enabling widely disparate services to be offered to users that is very economical, easy to use and not available on a wide basis. Under the Grid concept disparate organizations generally defined as "virtual organizations" can share services i.e. sharing discipline specific computer applications, required to accomplish the specific scientific and engineering organizational goals and objectives. Grids are emerging as the new technology of the future. Grid technology has been enabled by the evolution of increasingly high speed networking. Without the evolution of high speed networking Grid technology would not have emerged. NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC) Flight Projects Directorate, Ground Systems Department is developing a Space-based Science Operations Grid prototype to provide to scientists and engineers the tools necessary to operate space-based science payloads/experiments and for scientists to conduct public and educational outreach. In addition Grid technology can provide new services not currently available to users. These services include mission voice and video, application sharing, telemetry management and display, payload and experiment commanding, data mining, high order data processing, discipline specific application sharing and data storage, all from a single grid portal. The Prototype will provide most of these services in a first step demonstration of integrated Grid and space-based science operations technologies. It will initially be based on the International Space Station science operational services located at the Payload Operations Integration Center at MSFC, but can be applied to many NASA projects including free flying satellites and future projects. The Prototype will use the Internet2 Abilene Research and Education Network that is currently a 10 Gb backbone network to reach the University of Alabama at Huntsville and several other, as yet unidentified, Space Station based science experimenters. There is an international aspect to the Grid involving the America's Pathway (AMPath) network, the Chilean REUNA Research and Education Network and the University of Chile in Santiago that will further demonstrate how extensive these services can be used. From the user's perspective, the Prototype will provide a single interface and logon to these varied services without the complexity of knowing the where's and how's of each service. There is a separate and deliberate emphasis on security. Security will be addressed by specifically outlining the different approaches and tools used. Grid technology, unlike the Internet, is being designed with security in mind. In addition we will show the locations, configurations and network paths associated with each service and virtual organization. We will discuss the separate virtual organizations that we define for the varied user communities. These will include certain, as yet undetermined, space-based science functions and/or processes and will include specific virtual organizations required for public and educational outreach and science and engineering collaboration. We will also discuss the Grid Prototype performance and the potential for further Grid applications both space-based and ground based projects and processes. In this paper and presentation we will detail each service and how they are integrated using Grid

Grid computing enhances standards-compatible geospatial catalogue service

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Aijun; Di, Liping; Bai, Yuqi; Wei, Yaxing; Liu, Yang

2010-04-01

A catalogue service facilitates sharing, discovery, retrieval, management of, and access to large volumes of distributed geospatial resources, for example data, services, applications, and their replicas on the Internet. Grid computing provides an infrastructure for effective use of computing, storage, and other resources available online. The Open Geospatial Consortium has proposed a catalogue service specification and a series of profiles for promoting the interoperability of geospatial resources. By referring to the profile of the catalogue service for Web, an innovative information model of a catalogue service is proposed to offer Grid-enabled registry, management, retrieval of and access to geospatial resources and their replicas. This information model extends the e-business registry information model by adopting several geospatial data and service metadata standards—the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)'s 19115/19119 standards and the US Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) and US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) metadata standards for describing and indexing geospatial resources. In order to select the optimal geospatial resources and their replicas managed by the Grid, the Grid data management service and information service from the Globus Toolkits are closely integrated with the extended catalogue information model. Based on this new model, a catalogue service is implemented first as a Web service. Then, the catalogue service is further developed as a Grid service conforming to Grid service specifications. The catalogue service can be deployed in both the Web and Grid environments and accessed by standard Web services or authorized Grid services, respectively. The catalogue service has been implemented at the George Mason University/Center for Spatial Information Science and Systems (GMU/CSISS), managing more than 17 TB of geospatial data and geospatial Grid services. This service makes it easy to share and interoperate geospatial resources by using Grid technology and extends Grid technology into the geoscience communities.

SimulatorToFMU v0.1

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

Nouidui, Thierry; Wetter, Michael

SimulatorToFMU is a software package written in Python which allows users to export a memoryless Python-driven simulation program or script as a Functional Mock-up Unit (FMU) for model exchange or co-simulation.In CyDER (Cyber Physical Co-simulation Platform for Distributed Energy Resources in Smart Grids), SimulatorToFMU will allow exporting OPAL-RT as an FMU. This will enable OPAL-RT to be linked to CYMDIST and GridDyn FMUs through a standardized open source interface.

Triangle Geometry Processing for Surface Modeling and Cartesian Grid Generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aftosmis, Michael J. (Inventor); Melton, John E. (Inventor); Berger, Marsha J. (Inventor)

2002-01-01

Cartesian mesh generation is accomplished for component based geometries, by intersecting components subject to mesh generation to extract wetted surfaces with a geometry engine using adaptive precision arithmetic in a system which automatically breaks ties with respect to geometric degeneracies. During volume mesh generation, intersected surface triangulations are received to enable mesh generation with cell division of an initially coarse grid. The hexagonal cells are resolved, preserving the ability to directionally divide cells which are locally well aligned.

Self-assembled monolayers improve protein distribution on holey carbon cryo-EM supports

PubMed Central

Meyerson, Joel R.; Rao, Prashant; Kumar, Janesh; Chittori, Sagar; Banerjee, Soojay; Pierson, Jason; Mayer, Mark L.; Subramaniam, Sriram

2014-01-01

Poor partitioning of macromolecules into the holes of holey carbon support grids frequently limits structural determination by single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). Here, we present a method to deposit, on gold-coated carbon grids, a self-assembled monolayer whose surface properties can be controlled by chemical modification. We demonstrate the utility of this approach to drive partitioning of ionotropic glutamate receptors into the holes, thereby enabling 3D structural analysis using cryo-EM methods. PMID:25403871

Triangle geometry processing for surface modeling and cartesian grid generation

DOEpatents

Aftosmis, Michael J [San Mateo, CA; Melton, John E [Hollister, CA; Berger, Marsha J [New York, NY

2002-09-03

Cartesian mesh generation is accomplished for component based geometries, by intersecting components subject to mesh generation to extract wetted surfaces with a geometry engine using adaptive precision arithmetic in a system which automatically breaks ties with respect to geometric degeneracies. During volume mesh generation, intersected surface triangulations are received to enable mesh generation with cell division of an initially coarse grid. The hexagonal cells are resolved, preserving the ability to directionally divide cells which are locally well aligned.

FLAME: A platform for high performance computing of complex systems, applied for three case studies

DOE PAGES

Kiran, Mariam; Bicak, Mesude; Maleki-Dizaji, Saeedeh; ...

2011-01-01

FLAME allows complex models to be automatically parallelised on High Performance Computing (HPC) grids enabling large number of agents to be simulated over short periods of time. Modellers are hindered by complexities of porting models on parallel platforms and time taken to run large simulations on a single machine, which FLAME overcomes. Three case studies from different disciplines were modelled using FLAME, and are presented along with their performance results on a grid.

Global gridded crop specific agricultural areas from 1961-2014

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konar, M.; Jackson, N. D.

2017-12-01

Current global cropland datasets are limited in crop specificity and temporal resolution. Time series maps of crop specific agricultural areas would enable us to better understand the global agricultural geography of the 20th century. To this end, we develop a global gridded dataset of crop specific agricultural areas from 1961-2014. To do this, we downscale national cropland information using a probabilistic approach. Our method relies upon gridded Global Agro-Ecological Zones (GAEZ) maps, the History Database of the Global Environment (HYDE), and crop calendars from Sacks et al. (2010). We estimate crop-specific agricultural areas for a 0.25 degree spatial grid and annual time scale for all major crops. We validate our global estimates for the year 2000 with Monfreda et al. (2008) and our time series estimates within the United States using government data. This database will contribute to our understanding of global agricultural change of the past century.

Vessel Segmentation and Blood Flow Simulation Using Level-Sets and Embedded Boundary Methods

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

Deschamps, T; Schwartz, P; Trebotich, D

In this article we address the problem of blood flow simulation in realistic vascular objects. The anatomical surfaces are extracted by means of Level-Sets methods that accurately model the complex and varying surfaces of pathological objects such as aneurysms and stenoses. The surfaces obtained are defined at the sub-pixel level where they intersect the Cartesian grid of the image domain. It is therefore straightforward to construct embedded boundary representations of these objects on the same grid, for which recent work has enabled discretization of the Navier-Stokes equations for incompressible fluids. While most classical techniques require construction of a structured meshmore » that approximates the surface in order to extrapolate a 3D finite-element gridding of the whole volume, our method directly simulates the blood-flow inside the extracted surface without losing any complicated details and without building additional grids.« less

A Gateway for Phylogenetic Analysis Powered by Grid Computing Featuring GARLI 2.0

PubMed Central

Bazinet, Adam L.; Zwickl, Derrick J.; Cummings, Michael P.

2014-01-01

We introduce molecularevolution.org, a publicly available gateway for high-throughput, maximum-likelihood phylogenetic analysis powered by grid computing. The gateway features a garli 2.0 web service that enables a user to quickly and easily submit thousands of maximum likelihood tree searches or bootstrap searches that are executed in parallel on distributed computing resources. The garli web service allows one to easily specify partitioned substitution models using a graphical interface, and it performs sophisticated post-processing of phylogenetic results. Although the garli web service has been used by the research community for over three years, here we formally announce the availability of the service, describe its capabilities, highlight new features and recent improvements, and provide details about how the grid system efficiently delivers high-quality phylogenetic results. [garli, gateway, grid computing, maximum likelihood, molecular evolution portal, phylogenetics, web service.] PMID:24789072

A grid-enabled web service for low-resolution crystal structure refinement.

PubMed

O'Donovan, Daniel J; Stokes-Rees, Ian; Nam, Yunsun; Blacklow, Stephen C; Schröder, Gunnar F; Brunger, Axel T; Sliz, Piotr

2012-03-01

Deformable elastic network (DEN) restraints have proved to be a powerful tool for refining structures from low-resolution X-ray crystallographic data sets. Unfortunately, optimal refinement using DEN restraints requires extensive calculations and is often hindered by a lack of access to sufficient computational resources. The DEN web service presented here intends to provide structural biologists with access to resources for running computationally intensive DEN refinements in parallel on the Open Science Grid, the US cyberinfrastructure. Access to the grid is provided through a simple and intuitive web interface integrated into the SBGrid Science Portal. Using this portal, refinements combined with full parameter optimization that would take many thousands of hours on standard computational resources can now be completed in several hours. An example of the successful application of DEN restraints to the human Notch1 transcriptional complex using the grid resource, and summaries of all submitted refinements, are presented as justification.

Counterrotating prop-fan simulations which feature a relative-motion multiblock grid decomposition enabling arbitrary time-steps

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Janus, J. Mark; Whitfield, David L.

1990-01-01

Improvements are presented of a computer algorithm developed for the time-accurate flow analysis of rotating machines. The flow model is a finite volume method utilizing a high-resolution approximate Riemann solver for interface flux definitions. The numerical scheme is a block LU implicit iterative-refinement method which possesses apparent unconditional stability. Multiblock composite gridding is used to orderly partition the field into a specified arrangement of blocks exhibiting varying degrees of similarity. Block-block relative motion is achieved using local grid distortion to reduce grid skewness and accommodate arbitrary time step selection. A general high-order numerical scheme is applied to satisfy the geometric conservation law. An even-blade-count counterrotating unducted fan configuration is chosen for a computational study comparing solutions resulting from altering parameters such as time step size and iteration count. The solutions are compared with measured data.

Smart Grid, Smart Inverters for a Smart Energy Future | State, Local, and

Science.gov Websites

, legislation which defines the state's interconnection standards and permits the interconnection of smart the cost and benefits of advanced inverter enabling legislation. Expect conversations concerning

Enabling online studies of conceptual relationships between medical terms: developing an efficient web platform.

PubMed

Albin, Aaron; Ji, Xiaonan; Borlawsky, Tara B; Ye, Zhan; Lin, Simon; Payne, Philip Ro; Huang, Kun; Xiang, Yang

2014-10-07

The Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) contains many important ontologies in which terms are connected by semantic relations. For many studies on the relationships between biomedical concepts, the use of transitively associated information from ontologies and the UMLS has been shown to be effective. Although there are a few tools and methods available for extracting transitive relationships from the UMLS, they usually have major restrictions on the length of transitive relations or on the number of data sources. Our goal was to design an efficient online platform that enables efficient studies on the conceptual relationships between any medical terms. To overcome the restrictions of available methods and to facilitate studies on the conceptual relationships between medical terms, we developed a Web platform, onGrid, that supports efficient transitive queries and conceptual relationship studies using the UMLS. This framework uses the latest technique in converting natural language queries into UMLS concepts, performs efficient transitive queries, and visualizes the result paths. It also dynamically builds a relationship matrix for two sets of input biomedical terms. We are thus able to perform effective studies on conceptual relationships between medical terms based on their relationship matrix. The advantage of onGrid is that it can be applied to study any two sets of biomedical concept relations and the relations within one set of biomedical concepts. We use onGrid to study the disease-disease relationships in the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM). By crossvalidating our results with an external database, the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD), we demonstrated that onGrid is effective for the study of conceptual relationships between medical terms. onGrid is an efficient tool for querying the UMLS for transitive relations, studying the relationship between medical terms, and generating hypotheses.

ARC SDK: A toolbox for distributed computing and data applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skou Andersen, M.; Cameron, D.; Lindemann, J.

2014-06-01

Grid middleware suites provide tools to perform the basic tasks of job submission and retrieval and data access, however these tools tend to be low-level, operating on individual jobs or files and lacking in higher-level concepts. User communities therefore generally develop their own application-layer software catering to their specific communities' needs on top of the Grid middleware. It is thus important for the Grid middleware to provide a friendly, well documented and simple to use interface for the applications to build upon. The Advanced Resource Connector (ARC), developed by NorduGrid, provides a Software Development Kit (SDK) which enables applications to use the middleware for job and data management. This paper presents the architecture and functionality of the ARC SDK along with an example graphical application developed with the SDK. The SDK consists of a set of libraries accessible through Application Programming Interfaces (API) in several languages. It contains extensive documentation and example code and is available on multiple platforms. The libraries provide generic interfaces and rely on plugins to support a given technology or protocol and this modular design makes it easy to add a new plugin if the application requires supporting additional technologies.The ARC Graphical Clients package is a graphical user interface built on top of the ARC SDK and the Qt toolkit and it is presented here as a fully functional example of an application. It provides a graphical interface to enable job submission and management at the click of a button, and allows data on any Grid storage system to be manipulated using a visual file system hierarchy, as if it were a regular file system.

Spectral Topography Generation for Arbitrary Grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oh, T. J.

2015-12-01

A new topography generation tool utilizing spectral transformation technique for both structured and unstructured grids is presented. For the source global digital elevation data, the NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) 15 arc-second dataset (gap-filling by Jonathan de Ferranti) is used and for land/water mask source, the NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 30 arc-second land water mask dataset v5 is used. The original source data is coarsened to a intermediate global 2 minute lat-lon mesh. Then, spectral transformation to the wave space and inverse transformation with wavenumber truncation is performed for isotropic topography smoothness control. Target grid topography mapping is done by bivariate cubic spline interpolation from the truncated 2 minute lat-lon topography. Gibbs phenomenon in the water region can be removed by overwriting ocean masked target coordinate grids with interpolated values from the intermediate 2 minute grid. Finally, a weak smoothing operator is applied on the target grid to minimize the land/water surface height discontinuity that might have been introduced by the Gibbs oscillation removal procedure. Overall, the new topography generation approach provides spectrally-derived, smooth topography with isotropic resolution and minimum damping, enabling realistic topography forcing in the numerical model. Topography is generated for the cubed-sphere grid and tested on the KIAPS Integrated Model (KIM).

An infrastructure for the integration of geoscience instruments and sensors on the Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pugliese, R.; Prica, M.; Kourousias, G.; Del Linz, A.; Curri, A.

2009-04-01

The Grid, as a computing paradigm, has long been in the attention of both academia and industry[1]. The distributed and expandable nature of its general architecture result to scalability and more efficient utilisation of the computing infrastructures. The scientific community, including that of geosciences, often handles problems with very high requirements in data processing, transferring, and storing[2,3]. This has raised the interest on Grid technologies but these are often viewed solely as an access gateway to HPC. Suitable Grid infrastructures could provide the geoscience community with additional benefits like those of sharing, remote access and control of scientific systems. These systems can be scientific instruments, sensors, robots, cameras and any other device used in geosciences. The solution for practical, general, and feasible Grid-enabling of such devices requires non-intrusive extensions on core parts of the current Grid architecture. We propose an extended version of an architecture[4] that can serve as the solution to the problem. The solution we propose is called Grid Instrument Element (IE) [5]. It is an addition to the existing core Grid parts; the Computing Element (CE) and the Storage Element (SE) that serve the purposes that their name suggests. The IE that we will be referring to, and the related technologies have been developed in the EU project on the Deployment of Remote Instrumentation Infrastructure (DORII1). In DORII, partners of various scientific communities including those of Earthquake, Environmental science, and Experimental science, have adopted the technology of the Instrument Element in order to integrate to the Grid their devices. The Oceanographic and coastal observation and modelling Mediterranean Ocean Observing Network (OGS2), a DORII partner, is in the process of deploying the above mentioned Grid technologies on two types of observational modules: Argo profiling floats and a novel Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). In this paper i) we define the need for integration of instrumentation in the Grid, ii) we introduce the solution of the Instrument Element, iii) we demonstrate a suitable end-user web portal for accessing Grid resources, iv) we describe from the Grid-technological point of view the process of the integration to the Grid of two advanced environmental monitoring devices. References [1] M. Surridge, S. Taylor, D. De Roure, and E. Zaluska, "Experiences with GRIA—Industrial Applications on a Web Services Grid," e-Science and Grid Computing, First International Conference on e-Science and Grid Computing, 2005, pp. 98-105. [2] A. Chervenak, I. Foster, C. Kesselman, C. Salisbury, and S. Tuecke, "The data grid: Towards an architecture for the distributed management and analysis of large scientific datasets," Journal of Network and Computer Applications, vol. 23, 2000, pp. 187-200. [3] B. Allcock, J. Bester, J. Bresnahan, A.L. Chervenak, I. Foster, C. Kesselman, S. Meder, V. Nefedova, D. Quesnel, and S. Tuecke, "Data management and transfer in high-performance computational grid environments," Parallel Computing, vol. 28, 2002, pp. 749-771. [4] E. Frizziero, M. Gulmini, F. Lelli, G. Maron, A. Oh, S. Orlando, A. Petrucci, S. Squizzato, and S. Traldi, "Instrument Element: A New Grid component that Enables the Control of Remote Instrumentation," Proceedings of the Sixth IEEE International Symposium on Cluster Computing and the Grid (CCGRID'06)-Volume 00, IEEE Computer Society Washington, DC, USA, 2006. [5] R. Ranon, L. De Marco, A. Senerchia, S. Gabrielli, L. Chittaro, R. Pugliese, L. Del Cano, F. Asnicar, and M. Prica, "A Web-based Tool for Collaborative Access to Scientific Instruments in Cyberinfrastructures." 1 The DORII project is supported by the European Commission within the 7th Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. RI-213110. URL: http://www.dorii.eu 2 Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e di Geofisica Sperimentale. URL: http://www.ogs.trieste.it

A socio-technical investigation of the smart grid: Implications for demand-side activities of electricity service providers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corbett, Jacqueline Marie

Enabled by advanced communication and information technologies, the smart grid represents a major transformation for the electricity sector. Vast quantities of data and two-way communications abilities create the potential for a flexible, data-driven, multi-directional supply and consumption network well equipped to meet the challenges of the next century. For electricity service providers ("utilities"), the smart grid provides opportunities for improved business practices and new business models; however, a transformation of such magnitude is not without risks. Three related studies are conducted to explore the implications of the smart grid on utilities' demand-side activities. An initial conceptual framework, based on organizational information processing theory, suggests that utilities' performance depends on the fit between the information processing requirements and capacities associated with a given demand-side activity. Using secondary data and multiple regression analyses, the first study finds, consistent with OIPT, a positive relationship between utilities' advanced meter deployments and demand-side management performance. However, it also finds that meters with only data collection capacities are associated with lower performance, suggesting the presence of information waste causing operational inefficiencies. In the second study, interviews with industry participants provide partial support for the initial conceptual model, new insights are gained with respect to information processing fit and information waste, and "big data" is identified as a central theme of the smart grid. To derive richer theoretical insights, the third study employs a grounded theory approach examining the experience of one successful utility in detail. Based on interviews and documentary data, the paradox of dynamic stability emerges as an essential enabler of utilities' performance in the smart grid environment. Within this context, the frames of opportunity, control, and data limitation interact to support dynamic stability and contribute to innovation within tradition. The main contributions of this thesis include theoretical extensions to OIPT and the development of an emergent model of dynamic stability in relation to big data. The thesis also adds to the green IS literature and identifies important practical implications for utilities as they endeavour to bring the smart grid to reality.

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

Johnson, Jay Tillay

For three years, Sandia National Laboratories, Georgia Institute of Technology, and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign investigated a smart grid vision in which renewable-centric Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) provided ancillary services with interoperable distributed energy resources (DER). This team researched, designed, built, and evaluated real-time VPP designs incorporating DER forecasting, stochastic optimization, controls, and cyber security to construct a system capable of delivering reliable ancillary services, which have been traditionally provided by large power plants or other dedicated equipment. VPPs have become possible through an evolving landscape of state and national interconnection standards, which now require DER to include grid-supportmore » functionality and communications capabilities. This makes it possible for third party aggregators to provide a range of critical grid services such as voltage regulation, frequency regulation, and contingency reserves to grid operators. This paradigm (a) enables renewable energy, demand response, and energy storage to participate in grid operations and provide grid services, (b) improves grid reliability by providing additional operating reserves for utilities, independent system operators (ISOs), and regional transmission organization (RTOs), and (c) removes renewable energy high-penetration barriers by providing services with photovoltaics and wind resources that traditionally were the jobs of thermal generators. Therefore, it is believed VPP deployment will have far-reaching positive consequences for grid operations and may provide a robust pathway to high penetrations of renewables on US power systems. In this report, we design VPPs to provide a range of grid-support services and demonstrate one VPP which simultaneously provides bulk-system energy and ancillary reserves.« less

Design and evaluation of a grid reciprocation scheme for use in digital breast tomosynthesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patel, Tushita; Sporkin, Helen; Peppard, Heather; Williams, Mark B.

2016-03-01

This work describes a methodology for efficient removal of scatter radiation during digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT). The goal of this approach is to enable grid image obscuration without a large increase in radiation dose by minimizing misalignment of the grid focal point (GFP) and x-ray focal spot (XFS) during grid reciprocation. Hardware for the motion scheme was built and tested on the dual modality breast tomosynthesis (DMT) scanner, which combines DBT and molecular breast tomosynthesis (MBT) on a single gantry. The DMT scanner uses fully isocentric rotation of tube and x-ray detector for maintaining a fixed tube-detector alignment during DBT imaging. A cellular focused copper prototype grid with 80 cm focal length, 3.85 mm height, 0.1 mm thick lamellae, and 1.1 mm hole pitch was tested. Primary transmission of the grid at 28 kV tube voltage was on average 74% with the grid stationary and aligned for maximum transmission. It fell to 72% during grid reciprocation by the proposed method. Residual grid line artifacts (GLAs) in projection views and reconstructed DBT images are characterized and methods for reducing the visibility of GLAs in the reconstructed volume through projection image flat-field correction and spatial frequency-based filtering of the DBT slices are described and evaluated. The software correction methods reduce the visibility of these artifacts in the reconstructed volume, making them imperceptible both in the reconstructed DBT images and their Fourier transforms.

Clean vehicles as an enabler for a clean electricity grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coignard, Jonathan; Saxena, Samveg; Greenblatt, Jeffery; Wang, Dai

2018-05-01

California has issued ambitious targets to decarbonize transportation through the deployment of electric vehicles (EVs), and to decarbonize the electricity grid through the expansion of both renewable generation and energy storage. These parallel efforts can provide an untapped synergistic opportunity for clean transportation to be an enabler for a clean electricity grid. To quantify this potential, we forecast the hourly system-wide balancing problems arising out to 2025 as more renewables are deployed and load continues to grow. We then quantify the system-wide balancing benefits from EVs modulating the charging or discharging of their batteries to mitigate renewable intermittency, without compromising the mobility needs of drivers. Our results show that with its EV deployment target and with only one-way charging control of EVs, California can achieve much of the same benefit of its Storage Mandate for mitigating renewable intermittency, but at a small fraction of the cost. Moreover, EVs provide many times these benefits if two-way charging control becomes widely available. Thus, EVs support the state’s renewable integration targets while avoiding much of the tremendous capital investment of stationary storage that can instead be applied towards further deployment of clean vehicles.

Future opportunities and trends for e-infrastructures and life sciences: going beyond the grid to enable life science data analysis

PubMed Central

Duarte, Afonso M. S.; Psomopoulos, Fotis E.; Blanchet, Christophe; Bonvin, Alexandre M. J. J.; Corpas, Manuel; Franc, Alain; Jimenez, Rafael C.; de Lucas, Jesus M.; Nyrönen, Tommi; Sipos, Gergely; Suhr, Stephanie B.

2015-01-01

With the increasingly rapid growth of data in life sciences we are witnessing a major transition in the way research is conducted, from hypothesis-driven studies to data-driven simulations of whole systems. Such approaches necessitate the use of large-scale computational resources and e-infrastructures, such as the European Grid Infrastructure (EGI). EGI, one of key the enablers of the digital European Research Area, is a federation of resource providers set up to deliver sustainable, integrated and secure computing services to European researchers and their international partners. Here we aim to provide the state of the art of Grid/Cloud computing in EU research as viewed from within the field of life sciences, focusing on key infrastructures and projects within the life sciences community. Rather than focusing purely on the technical aspects underlying the currently provided solutions, we outline the design aspects and key characteristics that can be identified across major research approaches. Overall, we aim to provide significant insights into the road ahead by establishing ever-strengthening connections between EGI as a whole and the life sciences community. PMID:26157454

Building-to-Grid Integration through Commercial Building Portfolios Participating in Energy and Frequency Regulation Markets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pavlak, Gregory S.

Building energy use is a significant contributing factor to growing worldwide energy demands. In pursuit of a sustainable energy future, commercial building operations must be intelligently integrated with the electric system to increase efficiency and enable renewable generation. Toward this end, a model-based methodology was developed to estimate the capability of commercial buildings to participate in frequency regulation ancillary service markets. This methodology was integrated into a supervisory model predictive controller to optimize building operation in consideration of energy prices, demand charges, and ancillary service revenue. The supervisory control problem was extended to building portfolios to evaluate opportunities for synergistic effect among multiple, centrally-optimized buildings. Simulation studies performed showed that the multi-market optimization was able to determine appropriate opportunities for buildings to provide frequency regulation. Total savings were increased by up to thirteen percentage points, depending on the simulation case. Furthermore, optimizing buildings as a portfolio achieved up to seven additional percentage points of savings, depending on the case. Enhanced energy and cost savings opportunities were observed by taking the novel perspective of optimizing building portfolios in multiple grid markets, motivating future pursuits of advanced control paradigms that enable a more intelligent electric grid.

Future opportunities and trends for e-infrastructures and life sciences: going beyond the grid to enable life science data analysis.

PubMed

Duarte, Afonso M S; Psomopoulos, Fotis E; Blanchet, Christophe; Bonvin, Alexandre M J J; Corpas, Manuel; Franc, Alain; Jimenez, Rafael C; de Lucas, Jesus M; Nyrönen, Tommi; Sipos, Gergely; Suhr, Stephanie B

2015-01-01

With the increasingly rapid growth of data in life sciences we are witnessing a major transition in the way research is conducted, from hypothesis-driven studies to data-driven simulations of whole systems. Such approaches necessitate the use of large-scale computational resources and e-infrastructures, such as the European Grid Infrastructure (EGI). EGI, one of key the enablers of the digital European Research Area, is a federation of resource providers set up to deliver sustainable, integrated and secure computing services to European researchers and their international partners. Here we aim to provide the state of the art of Grid/Cloud computing in EU research as viewed from within the field of life sciences, focusing on key infrastructures and projects within the life sciences community. Rather than focusing purely on the technical aspects underlying the currently provided solutions, we outline the design aspects and key characteristics that can be identified across major research approaches. Overall, we aim to provide significant insights into the road ahead by establishing ever-strengthening connections between EGI as a whole and the life sciences community.

OBLIMAP 2.0: a fast climate model-ice sheet model coupler including online embeddable mapping routines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reerink, Thomas J.; van de Berg, Willem Jan; van de Wal, Roderik S. W.

2016-11-01

This paper accompanies the second OBLIMAP open-source release. The package is developed to map climate fields between a general circulation model (GCM) and an ice sheet model (ISM) in both directions by using optimal aligned oblique projections, which minimize distortions. The curvature of the surfaces of the GCM and ISM grid differ, both grids may be irregularly spaced and the ratio of the grids is allowed to differ largely. OBLIMAP's stand-alone version is able to map data sets that differ in various aspects on the same ISM grid. Each grid may either coincide with the surface of a sphere, an ellipsoid or a flat plane, while the grid types might differ. Re-projection of, for example, ISM data sets is also facilitated. This is demonstrated by relevant applications concerning the major ice caps. As the stand-alone version also applies to the reverse mapping direction, it can be used as an offline coupler. Furthermore, OBLIMAP 2.0 is an embeddable GCM-ISM coupler, suited for high-frequency online coupled experiments. A new fast scan method is presented for structured grids as an alternative for the former time-consuming grid search strategy, realising a performance gain of several orders of magnitude and enabling the mapping of high-resolution data sets with a much larger number of grid nodes. Further, a highly flexible masked mapping option is added. The limitation of the fast scan method with respect to unstructured and adaptive grids is discussed together with a possible future parallel Message Passing Interface (MPI) implementation.

Evaluation of Grid Modification Methods for On- and Off-Track Sonic Boom Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nayani, Sudheer N.; Campbell, Richard L.

2013-01-01

Grid modification methods have been under development at NASA to enable better predictions of low boom pressure signatures from supersonic aircraft. As part of this effort, two new codes, Stretched and Sheared Grid - Modified (SSG) and Boom Grid (BG), have been developed in the past year. The CFD results from these codes have been compared with ones from the earlier grid modification codes Stretched and Sheared Grid (SSGRID) and Mach Cone Aligned Prism (MCAP) and also with the available experimental results. NASA's unstructured grid suite of software TetrUSS and the automatic sourcing code AUTOSRC were used for base grid generation and flow solutions. The BG method has been evaluated on three wind tunnel models. Pressure signatures have been obtained up to two body lengths below a Gulfstream aircraft wind tunnel model. Good agreement with the wind tunnel results have been obtained for both on-track and off-track (up to 53 degrees) cases. On-track pressure signatures up to ten body lengths below a Straight Line Segmented Leading Edge (SLSLE) wind tunnel model have been extracted. Good agreement with the wind tunnel results have been obtained. Pressure signatures have been obtained at 1.5 body lengths below a Lockheed Martin aircraft wind tunnel model. Good agreement with the wind tunnel results have been obtained for both on-track and off-track (up to 40 degrees) cases. Grid sensitivity studies have been carried out to investigate any grid size related issues. Methods have been evaluated for fully turbulent, mixed laminar/turbulent and fully laminar flow conditions.

Selection of battery technology to support grid-integrated renewable electricity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leadbetter, Jason; Swan, Lukas G.

2012-10-01

Operation of the electricity grid has traditionally been done using slow responding base and intermediate load generators with fast responding peak load generators to capture the chaotic behavior of end-use demands. Many modern electricity grids are implementing intermittent non-dispatchable renewable energy resources. As a result, the existing support services are becoming inadequate and technological innovation in grid support services are necessary. Support services fall into short (seconds to minutes), medium (minutes to hours), and long duration (several hours) categories. Energy storage offers a method of providing these services and can enable increased penetration rates of renewable energy generators. Many energy storage technologies exist. Of these, batteries span a significant range of required storage capacity and power output. By assessing the energy to power ratio of electricity grid services, suitable battery technologies were selected. These include lead-acid, lithium-ion, sodium-sulfur, and vanadium-redox. Findings show the variety of grid services require different battery technologies and batteries are capable of meeting the short, medium, and long duration categories. A brief review of each battery technology and its present state of development, commercial implementation, and research frontiers is presented to support these classifications.

Integrating DICOM structure reporting (SR) into the medical imaging informatics data grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Jasper; Le, Anh; Liu, Brent

2008-03-01

The Medical Imaging Informatics (MI2) Data Grid developed at the USC Image Processing and Informatics Laboratory enables medical images to be shared securely between multiple imaging centers. Current applications include an imaging-based clinical trial setting where multiple field sites perform image acquisition and a centralized radiology core performs image analysis, often using computer-aided diagnosis tools (CAD) that generate a DICOM-SR to report their findings and measurements. As more and more CAD tools are being developed in the radiology field, the generated DICOM Structure Reports (SR) holding key radiological findings and measurements that are not part of the DICOM image need to be integrated into the existing Medical Imaging Informatics Data Grid with the corresponding imaging studies. We will discuss the significance and method involved in adapting DICOM-SR into the Medical Imaging Informatics Data Grid. The result is a MI2 Data Grid repository from which users can send and receive DICOM-SR objects based on the imaging-based clinical trial application. The services required to extract and categorize information from the structured reports will be discussed, and the workflow to store and retrieve a DICOM-SR file into the existing MI2 Data Grid will be shown.

Enabling university teaching for Canadian academics with multiple sclerosis through problem-focused coping.

PubMed

Crooks, Valorie A; Stone, Sharon Dale; Owen, Michelle

2011-02-01

Research shows that sustained employment contributes to a higher quality of life for those with multiple sclerosis (MS). Occupational therapists can work to create therapeutic interventions that assist people with MS with maintaining employment. To detail the problem-focused coping strategies that academics with MS employ to enable them to teach in universities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 45 Canadian academics with MS. Thematic analysis was used to generate findings. While there is flexibility in research and service work tasks, teaching tasks are the most seemingly inflexible. This necessitated the development of problem-focused coping strategies to enable teaching. Three categories of strategies were employed: (1) organizational; (2) before/after teaching; and (3) during teaching. This brief report is intended to serve as a resource for occupational therapists and others wanting to gain a better understanding of the types of therapeutic interventions useful to those teaching in universities.

An Object Location Detector Enabling People with Developmental Disabilities to Control Environmental Stimulation through Simple Occupational Activities with Battery-Free Wireless Mice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shih, Ching-Hsiang

2011-01-01

This study assessed whether two persons with developmental disabilities would be able to actively perform simple occupational activities by controlling their favorite environmental stimulation using battery-free wireless mice with a newly developed object location detection program (OLDP, i.e., a new software program turning a battery-free…

Efficient visibility encoding for dynamic illumination in direct volume rendering.

PubMed

Kronander, Joel; Jönsson, Daniel; Löw, Joakim; Ljung, Patric; Ynnerman, Anders; Unger, Jonas

2012-03-01

We present an algorithm that enables real-time dynamic shading in direct volume rendering using general lighting, including directional lights, point lights, and environment maps. Real-time performance is achieved by encoding local and global volumetric visibility using spherical harmonic (SH) basis functions stored in an efficient multiresolution grid over the extent of the volume. Our method enables high-frequency shadows in the spatial domain, but is limited to a low-frequency approximation of visibility and illumination in the angular domain. In a first pass, level of detail (LOD) selection in the grid is based on the current transfer function setting. This enables rapid online computation and SH projection of the local spherical distribution of visibility information. Using a piecewise integration of the SH coefficients over the local regions, the global visibility within the volume is then computed. By representing the light sources using their SH projections, the integral over lighting, visibility, and isotropic phase functions can be efficiently computed during rendering. The utility of our method is demonstrated in several examples showing the generality and interactive performance of the approach.

Self-regulation workshop and Occupational Performance Coaching with teachers: A pilot study.

PubMed

Hui, Caroline; Snider, Laurie; Couture, Mélanie

2016-04-01

Teachers' occupational role and performance can be undermined when working with students with disruptive classroom behaviours. This pilot study aimed to explore the impact of school-based occupational therapy intervention on teachers' classroom management self-efficacy and perceived performance/satisfaction in their management of students with disruptive behaviours. This pilot study used a multiple-case replication study design. A cohort of regular classroom elementary school teachers (n = 11) participated in a 1-day workshop on sensorimotor strategies for supporting student self-regulation followed by eight individual sessions of Occupational Performance Coaching (OPC). Measurement tools were the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure, Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS), and Teachers' Self-Efficacy Scale-Classroom Management. Improvement in teachers' perception of performance, satisfaction, and classroom management was seen. GAS showed clinically significant improvement. Improvements were sustained at 7 weeks follow-up. Preliminary results support the use of sensorimotor education combined with OPC to enable teachers' occupational performance. © CAOT 2016.

A Comparison of FPGA and GPGPU Designs for Bayesian Occupancy Filters

PubMed Central

Medina, Luis; Diez-Ochoa, Miguel; Correal, Raul; Cuenca-Asensi, Sergio; Godoy, Jorge; Martínez-Álvarez, Antonio

2017-01-01

Grid-based perception techniques in the automotive sector based on fusing information from different sensors and their robust perceptions of the environment are proliferating in the industry. However, one of the main drawbacks of these techniques is the traditionally prohibitive, high computing performance that is required for embedded automotive systems. In this work, the capabilities of new computing architectures that embed these algorithms are assessed in a real car. The paper compares two ad hoc optimized designs of the Bayesian Occupancy Filter; one for General Purpose Graphics Processing Unit (GPGPU) and the other for Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The resulting implementations are compared in terms of development effort, accuracy and performance, using datasets from a realistic simulator and from a real automated vehicle. PMID:29137137

Argonne's SpEC Module

ScienceCinema

Harper, Jason

2018-03-02

Jason Harper, an electrical engineer in Argonne National Laboratory's EV-Smart Grid Interoperability Center, discusses his SpEC Module invention that will enable fast charging of electric vehicles in under 15 minutes. The module has been licensed to BTCPower.

Service-Oriented Architecture for NVO and TeraGrid Computing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacob, Joseph; Miller, Craig; Williams, Roy; Steenberg, Conrad; Graham, Matthew

2008-01-01

The National Virtual Observatory (NVO) Extensible Secure Scalable Service Infrastructure (NESSSI) is a Web service architecture and software framework that enables Web-based astronomical data publishing and processing on grid computers such as the National Science Foundation's TeraGrid. Characteristics of this architecture include the following: (1) Services are created, managed, and upgraded by their developers, who are trusted users of computing platforms on which the services are deployed. (2) Service jobs can be initiated by means of Java or Python client programs run on a command line or with Web portals. (3) Access is granted within a graduated security scheme in which the size of a job that can be initiated depends on the level of authentication of the user.

Systems Integration Fact Sheet

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

None

2016-06-01

This fact sheet is an overview of the Systems Integration subprogram at the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative. The Systems Integration subprogram enables the widespread deployment of safe, reliable, and cost-effective solar energy technologies by addressing the associated technical and non-technical challenges. These include timely and cost-effective interconnection procedures, optimal system planning, accurate prediction of solar resources, monitoring and control of solar power, maintaining grid reliability and stability, and many more. To address the challenges associated with interconnecting and integrating hundreds of gigawatts of solar power onto the electricity grid, the Systems Integration program funds research, development, and demonstrationmore » projects in four broad, interrelated focus areas: grid performance and reliability, dispatchability, power electronics, and communications.« less

SAGE - MULTIDIMENSIONAL SELF-ADAPTIVE GRID CODE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davies, C. B.

1994-01-01

SAGE, Self Adaptive Grid codE, is a flexible tool for adapting and restructuring both 2D and 3D grids. Solution-adaptive grid methods are useful tools for efficient and accurate flow predictions. In supersonic and hypersonic flows, strong gradient regions such as shocks, contact discontinuities, shear layers, etc., require careful distribution of grid points to minimize grid error and produce accurate flow-field predictions. SAGE helps the user obtain more accurate solutions by intelligently redistributing (i.e. adapting) the original grid points based on an initial or interim flow-field solution. The user then computes a new solution using the adapted grid as input to the flow solver. The adaptive-grid methodology poses the problem in an algebraic, unidirectional manner for multi-dimensional adaptations. The procedure is analogous to applying tension and torsion spring forces proportional to the local flow gradient at every grid point and finding the equilibrium position of the resulting system of grid points. The multi-dimensional problem of grid adaption is split into a series of one-dimensional problems along the computational coordinate lines. The reduced one dimensional problem then requires a tridiagonal solver to find the location of grid points along a coordinate line. Multi-directional adaption is achieved by the sequential application of the method in each coordinate direction. The tension forces direct the redistribution of points to the strong gradient region. To maintain smoothness and a measure of orthogonality of grid lines, torsional forces are introduced that relate information between the family of lines adjacent to one another. The smoothness and orthogonality constraints are direction-dependent, since they relate only the coordinate lines that are being adapted to the neighboring lines that have already been adapted. Therefore the solutions are non-unique and depend on the order and direction of adaption. Non-uniqueness of the adapted grid is acceptable since it makes possible an overall and local error reduction through grid redistribution. SAGE includes the ability to modify the adaption techniques in boundary regions, which substantially improves the flexibility of the adaptive scheme. The vectorial approach used in the analysis also provides flexibility. The user has complete choice of adaption direction and order of sequential adaptions without concern for the computational data structure. Multiple passes are available with no restraint on stepping directions; for each adaptive pass the user can choose a completely new set of adaptive parameters. This facility, combined with the capability of edge boundary control, enables the code to individually adapt multi-dimensional multiple grids. Zonal grids can be adapted while maintaining continuity along the common boundaries. For patched grids, the multiple-pass capability enables complete adaption. SAGE is written in FORTRAN 77 and is intended to be machine independent; however, it requires a FORTRAN compiler which supports NAMELIST input. It has been successfully implemented on Sun series computers, SGI IRIS's, DEC MicroVAX computers, HP series computers, the Cray YMP, and IBM PC compatibles. Source code is provided, but no sample input and output files are provided. The code reads three datafiles: one that contains the initial grid coordinates (x,y,z), one that contains corresponding flow-field variables, and one that contains the user control parameters. It is assumed that the first two datasets are formatted as defined in the plotting software package PLOT3D. Several machine versions of PLOT3D are available from COSMIC. The amount of main memory is dependent on the size of the matrix. The standard distribution medium for SAGE is a 5.25 inch 360K MS-DOS format diskette. It is also available on a .25 inch streaming magnetic tape cartridge in UNIX tar format or on a 9-track 1600 BPI ASCII CARD IMAGE format magnetic tape. SAGE was developed in 1989, first released as a 2D version in 1991 and updated to 3D in 1993.

Sustainability of green jobs in Portugal: a methodological approach using occupational health indicators.

PubMed

Moreira, Sandra; Vasconcelos, Lia; Silva Santos, Carlos

2017-09-28

This study aimed to develop a methodological tool to analyze and monitor the green jobs in the context of Occupational Health and Safety. A literature review in combination with an investigation of Occupational Health Indicators was performed. The resulting tool of Occupational Health Indicators was based on the existing information of "Single Report" and was validated by national's experts. The tool brings together 40 Occupational Health Indicators in four key fields established by World Health Organization in their conceptual framework "Health indicators of sustainable jobs." The tool proposed allows for assessing if the green jobs enabled to follow the principles and requirements of Occupational Health Indicators and if these jobs are as good for the environment as for the workers' health, so if they can be considered quality jobs. This shows that Occupational Health Indicators are indispensable for the assessment of the sustainability of green jobs and should be taken into account in the definition and evaluation of policies and strategies of the sustainable development.

Enabling Object Storage via shims for Grid Middleware

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cadellin Skipsey, Samuel; De Witt, Shaun; Dewhurst, Alastair; Britton, David; Roy, Gareth; Crooks, David

2015-12-01

The Object Store model has quickly become the basis of most commercially successful mass storage infrastructure, backing so-called ”Cloud” storage such as Amazon S3, but also underlying the implementation of most parallel distributed storage systems. Many of the assumptions in Object Store design are similar, but not identical, to concepts in the design of Grid Storage Elements, although the requirement for ”POSIX-like” filesystem structures on top of SEs makes the disjunction seem larger. As modern Object Stores provide many features that most Grid SEs do not (block level striping, parallel access, automatic file repair, etc.), it is of interest to see how easily we can provide interfaces to typical Object Stores via plugins and shims for Grid tools, and how well experiments can adapt their data models to them. We present evaluation of, and first-deployment experiences with, (for example) Xrootd-Ceph interfaces for direct object-store access, as part of an initiative within GridPP[1] hosted at RAL. Additionally, we discuss the tradeoffs and experience of developing plugins for the currently-popular Ceph parallel distributed filesystem for the GFAL2 access layer, at Glasgow.

An Overview of Distributed Microgrid State Estimation and Control for Smart Grids

PubMed Central

Rana, Md Masud; Li, Li

2015-01-01

Given the significant concerns regarding carbon emission from the fossil fuels, global warming and energy crisis, the renewable distributed energy resources (DERs) are going to be integrated in the smart grid. This grid can spread the intelligence of the energy distribution and control system from the central unit to the long-distance remote areas, thus enabling accurate state estimation (SE) and wide-area real-time monitoring of these intermittent energy sources. In contrast to the traditional methods of SE, this paper proposes a novel accuracy dependent Kalman filter (KF) based microgrid SE for the smart grid that uses typical communication systems. Then this article proposes a discrete-time linear quadratic regulation to control the state deviations of the microgrid incorporating multiple DERs. Therefore, integrating these two approaches with application to the smart grid forms a novel contributions in green energy and control research communities. Finally, the simulation results show that the proposed KF based microgrid SE and control algorithm provides an accurate SE and control compared with the existing method. PMID:25686316

Project-based fieldwork: perspectives of graduate entry students and project sponsors.

PubMed

Fortune, Tracy; McKinstry, Carol

2012-08-01

This article builds on an earlier viewpoint regarding the need for project-focussed fieldwork. It presents the findings of an evaluative study into the value of project placements undertaken by final year graduate entry master's students as part of a capstone subject. The authors argue that provision of project placements enable impending graduates to develop and implement macro level strategies to develop prevention, resource and service development skills often required of contemporary occupational therapy practitioners. A qualitative approach is adopted. Student cohorts from 2005 and 2006 completed open-ended, written questionnaires, and agency project sponsors were interviewed to obtain their perspectives of the project placement experience. Despite some concern that project placements might be undertaken at the expense of 'clinical' placements these findings reveal that projects managed by students were perceived by services to add great value enabling them to advance important priorities. Students and sponsors highlighted a range of positive learning outcomes, including the ability to work collaboratively with supervisors and develop advanced communication skills and political acumen. The success of such placements depends on supportive supervision from academic staff. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY: The findings promote project placements as a highly authentic aspect of work integrated learning enabling learners to draw together a range of attributes that support the ability to manage complex issues that have occupational relevance at a macro level. In addition, such experiences help learners to develop agency and political acumen both increasingly important capabilities for the contemporary workplace. © 2012 The Authors Australian Occupational Therapy Journal © 2012 Occupational Therapy Australia.

Grid Technology as a Cyberinfrastructure for Delivering High-End Services to the Earth and Space Science Community

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hinke, Thomas H.

2004-01-01

Grid technology consists of middleware that permits distributed computations, data and sensors to be seamlessly integrated into a secure, single-sign-on processing environment. In &is environment, a user has to identify and authenticate himself once to the grid middleware, and then can utilize any of the distributed resources to which he has been,panted access. Grid technology allows resources that exist in enterprises that are under different administrative control to be securely integrated into a single processing environment The grid community has adopted commercial web services technology as a means for implementing persistent, re-usable grid services that sit on top of the basic distributed processing environment that grids provide. These grid services can then form building blocks for even more complex grid services. Each grid service is characterized using the Web Service Description Language, which provides a description of the interface and how other applications can access it. The emerging Semantic grid work seeks to associates sufficient semantic information with each grid service such that applications wii1 he able to automatically select, compose and if necessary substitute available equivalent services in order to assemble collections of services that are most appropriate for a particular application. Grid technology has been used to provide limited support to various Earth and space science applications. Looking to the future, this emerging grid service technology can provide a cyberinfrastructures for both the Earth and space science communities. Groups within these communities could transform those applications that have community-wide applicability into persistent grid services that are made widely available to their respective communities. In concert with grid-enabled data archives, users could easily create complex workflows that extract desired data from one or more archives and process it though an appropriate set of widely distributed grid services discovered using semantic grid technology. As required, high-end computational resources could be drawn from available grid resource pools. Using grid technology, this confluence of data, services and computational resources could easily be harnessed to transform data from many different sources into a desired product that is delivered to a user's workstation or to a web portal though which it could be accessed by its intended audience.

Barriers and enabling factors for work-site physical activity programs: a qualitative examination.

PubMed

Fletcher, Gena M; Behrens, Timothyh K; Domina, Lorie

2008-05-01

Work sites offer a productive setting for physical activity (PA) promoting interventions. Still, PA participation remains low. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the reasoning behind commonly reported barriers and enabling factors to participation in PA programs in a work-site setting. Employees from a large city government were recruited to participate in focus groups, stratified by white- and blue-collar occupations. Responses from open-ended questions about factors influencing participation in PA programs were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Resulting data were analyzed with open and axial coding. The sample consisted of 60 employees composing 9 focus groups. Although time was the most common barrier between both groups, white-collars workers responded that scheduling and work conflicts were the most common barrier concerning time. Blue-collar workers indicated shift work as their most common barrier. In addition, health was a significant enabling factor for both occupational categories. White-collar workers were much more concerned with appearances and were more highly motivated by weight loss and the hopefulness of quick results than were blue-collar workers. These findings are important in the understanding of PA as it relates to the reasoning behind participation in work-site programs in regard to occupational status.

Spiking Neurons in a Hierarchical Self-Organizing Map Model Can Learn to Develop Spatial and Temporal Properties of Entorhinal Grid Cells and Hippocampal Place Cells

PubMed Central

Pilly, Praveen K.; Grossberg, Stephen

2013-01-01

Medial entorhinal grid cells and hippocampal place cells provide neural correlates of spatial representation in the brain. A place cell typically fires whenever an animal is present in one or more spatial regions, or places, of an environment. A grid cell typically fires in multiple spatial regions that form a regular hexagonal grid structure extending throughout the environment. Different grid and place cells prefer spatially offset regions, with their firing fields increasing in size along the dorsoventral axes of the medial entorhinal cortex and hippocampus. The spacing between neighboring fields for a grid cell also increases along the dorsoventral axis. This article presents a neural model whose spiking neurons operate in a hierarchy of self-organizing maps, each obeying the same laws. This spiking GridPlaceMap model simulates how grid cells and place cells may develop. It responds to realistic rat navigational trajectories by learning grid cells with hexagonal grid firing fields of multiple spatial scales and place cells with one or more firing fields that match neurophysiological data about these cells and their development in juvenile rats. The place cells represent much larger spaces than the grid cells, which enable them to support navigational behaviors. Both self-organizing maps amplify and learn to categorize the most frequent and energetic co-occurrences of their inputs. The current results build upon a previous rate-based model of grid and place cell learning, and thus illustrate a general method for converting rate-based adaptive neural models, without the loss of any of their analog properties, into models whose cells obey spiking dynamics. New properties of the spiking GridPlaceMap model include the appearance of theta band modulation. The spiking model also opens a path for implementation in brain-emulating nanochips comprised of networks of noisy spiking neurons with multiple-level adaptive weights for controlling autonomous adaptive robots capable of spatial navigation. PMID:23577130

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

Ahn, Gail-Joon

The project seeks an innovative framework to enable users to access and selectively share resources in distributed environments, enhancing the scalability of information sharing. We have investigated secure sharing & assurance approaches for ad-hoc collaboration, focused on Grids, Clouds, and ad-hoc network environments.

Large-scale Parallel Unstructured Mesh Computations for 3D High-lift Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mavriplis, Dimitri J.; Pirzadeh, S.

1999-01-01

A complete "geometry to drag-polar" analysis capability for the three-dimensional high-lift configurations is described. The approach is based on the use of unstructured meshes in order to enable rapid turnaround for complicated geometries that arise in high-lift configurations. Special attention is devoted to creating a capability for enabling analyses on highly resolved grids. Unstructured meshes of several million vertices are initially generated on a work-station, and subsequently refined on a supercomputer. The flow is solved on these refined meshes on large parallel computers using an unstructured agglomeration multigrid algorithm. Good prediction of lift and drag throughout the range of incidences is demonstrated on a transport take-off configuration using up to 24.7 million grid points. The feasibility of using this approach in a production environment on existing parallel machines is demonstrated, as well as the scalability of the solver on machines using up to 1450 processors.

Annular Ion Engine Concept and Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Michael J.

2016-01-01

The Annular Ion Engine (AIE) concept represents an evolutionary development in gridded ion thruster technology with the potential for delivering revolutionary capabilities. It has this potential because the AIE concept: (a) enables scaling of ion thruster technology to high power at specific impulse (Isp) values of interest for near-term mission applications, 5000 sec; and (b) it enables an increase in both thrust density and thrust-to-power (FP) ratio exceeding conventional ion thrusters and other electric propulsion (EP) technology options, thereby yielding the highest performance over a broad range in Isp. The AIE concept represents a natural progression of gridded ion thruster technology beyond the capabilities embodied by NASAs Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) [1]. The AIE would be appropriate for: (a) applications which require power levels exceeding NEXTs capabilities (up to about 14 kW [2]), with scalability potentially to 100s of kW; and/or (b) applications which require FP conditions exceeding NEXTs capabilities.

Enabling People with Developmental Disabilities to Actively Follow Simple Instructions and Perform Designated Occupational Activities According to Simple Instructions with Battery-Free Wireless Mice by Controlling Environmental Stimulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shih, Ching-Hsiang; Chang, Man-Ling

2012-01-01

This study extended Battery-free wireless mouse functionality to assess whether two people with developmental disabilities would be able to actively perform designated simple occupational activities according to simple instructions by controlling their favorite environmental stimulation using Battery-free wireless mice with a newly developed…

Effect of passive acoustic sampling methodology on detecting bats after declines from white nose syndrome

USGS Publications Warehouse

Coleman, Laci S.; Ford, W. Mark; Dobony, Christopher A.; Britzke, Eric R.

2014-01-01

Concomitant with the emergence and spread of white-nose syndrome (WNS) and precipitous decline of many bat species in North America, natural resource managers need modified and/or new techniques for bat inventory and monitoring that provide robust occupancy estimates. We used Anabat acoustic detectors to determine the most efficient passive acoustic sampling design for optimizing detection probabilities of multiple bat species in a WNS-impacted environment in New York, USA. Our sampling protocol included: six acoustic stations deployed for the entire duration of monitoring as well as a 4 x 4 grid and five transects of 5-10 acoustic units that were deployed for 6-8 night sample durations surveyed during the summers of 2011-2012. We used Program PRESENCE to determine detection probability and site occupancy estimates. Overall, the grid produced the highest detection probabilities for most species because it contained the most detectors and intercepted the greatest spatial area. However, big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) and species not impacted by WNS were detected easily regardless of sampling array. Endangered Indiana (Myotis sodalis) and little brown (Myotis lucifugus) and tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) showed declines in detection probabilities over our study, potentially indicative of continued WNS-associated declines. Identification of species presence through efficient methodologies is vital for future conservation efforts as bat populations decline further due to WNS and other factors.   

Synchrotron Imaging Computations on the Grid without the Computing Element

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Curri, A.; Pugliese, R.; Borghes, R.; Kourousias, G.

2011-12-01

Besides the heavy use of the Grid in the Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SRF) Elettra, additional special requirements from the beamlines had to be satisfied through a novel solution that we present in this work. In the traditional Grid Computing paradigm the computations are performed on the Worker Nodes of the grid element known as the Computing Element. A Grid middleware extension that our team has been working on, is that of the Instrument Element. In general it is used to Grid-enable instrumentation; and it can be seen as a neighbouring concept to that of the traditional Control Systems. As a further extension we demonstrate the Instrument Element as the steering mechanism for a series of computations. In our deployment it interfaces a Control System that manages a series of computational demanding Scientific Imaging tasks in an online manner. The instrument control in Elettra is done through a suitable Distributed Control System, a common approach in the SRF community. The applications that we present are for a beamline working in medical imaging. The solution resulted to a substantial improvement of a Computed Tomography workflow. The near-real-time requirements could not have been easily satisfied from our Grid's middleware (gLite) due to the various latencies often occurred during the job submission and queuing phases. Moreover the required deployment of a set of TANGO devices could not have been done in a standard gLite WN. Besides the avoidance of certain core Grid components, the Grid Security infrastructure has been utilised in the final solution.

Re-imagining occupational therapy clients as communities: Presenting the community-centred practice framework.

PubMed

Hyett, Nerida; Kenny, Amanda; Dickson-Swift, Virginia

2018-01-09

Occupational therapists' are increasingly working with communities and providing services at the community level. There is, however, a lack of conceptual frameworks to guide this work. The aim of this article is to present a new conceptual framework for community-centered practice in occupational therapy. The conceptual framework was developed from qualitative multi-case research on exemplars of community participation. The first was, a network of Canadian food security programs, and the second, a rural Australian community banking initiative. Key themes were identified from across the case studies, and cross-case findings interpreted using occupational therapy and occupational science knowledge, and relevant social theory. The outcome is a four-stage, occupation-focused, community-centered practice framework. The Community-Centred Practice Framework can be used by occupational therapists to understand and apply a community-centered practice approach. The four stages are: (1) Community Identity, (2) Community Occupations, (3) Community Resources and Barriers, and (4) Participation Enablement. Further research is needed to trial and critically evaluate the framework, to assess its usefulness as a robust, occupation-focused, frame of reference to guide community-centered practice in occupational therapy. The proposed framework should assist occupational therapists to conceptualize community-centered practice, and to utilize and apply theory.

Vector-based navigation using grid-like representations in artificial agents.

PubMed

Banino, Andrea; Barry, Caswell; Uria, Benigno; Blundell, Charles; Lillicrap, Timothy; Mirowski, Piotr; Pritzel, Alexander; Chadwick, Martin J; Degris, Thomas; Modayil, Joseph; Wayne, Greg; Soyer, Hubert; Viola, Fabio; Zhang, Brian; Goroshin, Ross; Rabinowitz, Neil; Pascanu, Razvan; Beattie, Charlie; Petersen, Stig; Sadik, Amir; Gaffney, Stephen; King, Helen; Kavukcuoglu, Koray; Hassabis, Demis; Hadsell, Raia; Kumaran, Dharshan

2018-05-01

Deep neural networks have achieved impressive successes in fields ranging from object recognition to complex games such as Go 1,2 . Navigation, however, remains a substantial challenge for artificial agents, with deep neural networks trained by reinforcement learning 3-5 failing to rival the proficiency of mammalian spatial behaviour, which is underpinned by grid cells in the entorhinal cortex 6 . Grid cells are thought to provide a multi-scale periodic representation that functions as a metric for coding space 7,8 and is critical for integrating self-motion (path integration) 6,7,9 and planning direct trajectories to goals (vector-based navigation) 7,10,11 . Here we set out to leverage the computational functions of grid cells to develop a deep reinforcement learning agent with mammal-like navigational abilities. We first trained a recurrent network to perform path integration, leading to the emergence of representations resembling grid cells, as well as other entorhinal cell types 12 . We then showed that this representation provided an effective basis for an agent to locate goals in challenging, unfamiliar, and changeable environments-optimizing the primary objective of navigation through deep reinforcement learning. The performance of agents endowed with grid-like representations surpassed that of an expert human and comparison agents, with the metric quantities necessary for vector-based navigation derived from grid-like units within the network. Furthermore, grid-like representations enabled agents to conduct shortcut behaviours reminiscent of those performed by mammals. Our findings show that emergent grid-like representations furnish agents with a Euclidean spatial metric and associated vector operations, providing a foundation for proficient navigation. As such, our results support neuroscientific theories that see grid cells as critical for vector-based navigation 7,10,11 , demonstrating that the latter can be combined with path-based strategies to support navigation in challenging environments.

Full Multigrid Flow Solver

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mineck, Raymond E.; Thomas, James L.; Biedron, Robert T.; Diskin, Boris

2005-01-01

FMG3D (full multigrid 3 dimensions) is a pilot computer program that solves equations of fluid flow using a finite difference representation on a structured grid. Infrastructure exists for three dimensions but the current implementation treats only two dimensions. Written in Fortran 90, FMG3D takes advantage of the recursive subroutine feature, dynamic memory allocation, and structured-programming constructs of that language. FMG3D supports multi-block grids with three types of block-to-block interfaces: periodic, C-zero, and C-infinity. For all three types, grid points must match at interfaces. For periodic and C-infinity types, derivatives of grid metrics must be continuous at interfaces. The available equation sets are as follows: scalar elliptic equations, scalar convection equations, and the pressure-Poisson formulation of the Navier-Stokes equations for an incompressible fluid. All the equation sets are implemented with nonzero forcing functions to enable the use of user-specified solutions to assist in verification and validation. The equations are solved with a full multigrid scheme using a full approximation scheme to converge the solution on each succeeding grid level. Restriction to the next coarser mesh uses direct injection for variables and full weighting for residual quantities; prolongation of the coarse grid correction from the coarse mesh to the fine mesh uses bilinear interpolation; and prolongation of the coarse grid solution uses bicubic interpolation.

Accuracy Analysis for Finite-Volume Discretization Schemes on Irregular Grids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Diskin, Boris; Thomas, James L.

2010-01-01

A new computational analysis tool, downscaling test, is introduced and applied for studying the convergence rates of truncation and discretization errors of nite-volume discretization schemes on general irregular (e.g., unstructured) grids. The study shows that the design-order convergence of discretization errors can be achieved even when truncation errors exhibit a lower-order convergence or, in some cases, do not converge at all. The downscaling test is a general, efficient, accurate, and practical tool, enabling straightforward extension of verification and validation to general unstructured grid formulations. It also allows separate analysis of the interior, boundaries, and singularities that could be useful even in structured-grid settings. There are several new findings arising from the use of the downscaling test analysis. It is shown that the discretization accuracy of a common node-centered nite-volume scheme, known to be second-order accurate for inviscid equations on triangular grids, degenerates to first order for mixed grids. Alternative node-centered schemes are presented and demonstrated to provide second and third order accuracies on general mixed grids. The local accuracy deterioration at intersections of tangency and in flow/outflow boundaries is demonstrated using the DS tests tailored to examining the local behavior of the boundary conditions. The discretization-error order reduction within inviscid stagnation regions is demonstrated. The accuracy deterioration is local, affecting mainly the velocity components, but applies to any order scheme.

The illusion of client-centred practice.

PubMed

Gupta, Jyothi; Taff, Steven D

2015-07-01

A critical analysis of occupational therapy practice in the corporate health care culture in a free market economy was undertaken to demonstrate incongruence with the profession's philosophical basis and espoused commitment to client-centred practice. The current practice of occupational therapy in the reimbursement-driven practice arena in the United States is incongruent with the profession's espoused philosophy and values of client-centred practice. Occupational therapy differentiates itself from medicine's expert model aimed at curing disease and remediating impairment, by its claim to client-centred practice focused on restoring health through occupational enablement. Practice focused on impairment and function is at odds with the profession's core tenet, occupation, and minimizes the lasting impact of interventions on health and well-being. The profession cannot unleash the therapeutic power of human occupation in settings where body systems and body functions are not occupation-ready at the requisite levels for occupational participation. Client-centred practice is best embodied by occupation-focused interventions in the natural environment of everyday living. Providing services that are impairment-focused in unfamiliar settings is not a good fit for client-centred practice, which is the unique, authentic, and sustainable orientation for the profession.

The role of health and safety experts in the management of hazardous and toxic wastes in Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Supriyadi; Hadiyanto

2018-02-01

Occupational Safety and Health Experts in Indonesia have an important role in integrating environmental health and safety factors, including in this regard as human resources assigned to undertake hazardous waste management. Comprehensive knowledge and competence skills need to be carried out responsibly, as an inherent professional occupational safety and health profession. Management leaders should continue to provide training in external agencies responsible for science in the management of toxic waste to enable occupational safety and health experts to improve their performance in the hierarchy of control over the presence of hazardous materials. This paper provides an overview of what strategies and competencies the Occupational Safety and Health expert needs to have in embracing hazardous waste management practices.

The Evolution of the Internet Community and the"Yet-to-Evolve" Smart Grid Community: Parallels and Lessons-to-be-Learned

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

McParland, Charles

The Smart Grid envisions a transformed US power distribution grid that enables communicating devices, under human supervision, to moderate loads and increase overall system stability and security. This vision explicitly promotes increased participation from a community that, in the past, has had little involvement in power grid operations -the consumer. The potential size of this new community and its member's extensive experience with the public Internet prompts an analysis of the evolution and current state of the Internet as a predictor for best practices in the architectural design of certain portions of the Smart Grid network. Although still evolving, themore » vision of the Smart Grid is that of a community of communicating and cooperating energy related devices that can be directed to route power and modulate loads in pursuit of an integrated, efficient and secure electrical power grid. The remaking of the present power grid into the Smart Grid is considered as fundamentally transformative as previous developments such as modern computing technology and high bandwidth data communications. However, unlike these earlier developments, which relied on the discovery of critical new technologies (e.g. the transistor or optical fiber transmission lines), the technologies required for the Smart Grid currently exist and, in many cases, are already widely deployed. In contrast to other examples of technical transformations, the path (and success) of the Smart Grid will be determined not by its technology, but by its system architecture. Fortunately, we have a recent example of a transformative force of similar scope that shares a fundamental dependence on our existing communications infrastructure - namely, the Internet. We will explore several ways in which the scale of the Internet and expectations of its users have shaped the present Internet environment. As the presence of consumers within the Smart Grid increases, some experiences from the early growth of the Internet are expected to be informative and pertinent.« less

High extinction ratio and low transmission loss thin-film terahertz polarizer with a tunable bilayer metal wire-grid structure.

PubMed

Huang, Zhe; Parrott, Edward P J; Park, Hongkyu; Chan, Hau Ping; Pickwell-MacPherson, Emma

2014-02-15

A thin-film terahertz polarizer is proposed and realized via a tunable bilayer metal wire-grid structure to achieve high extinction ratios and good transmission. The polarizer is fabricated on top of a thin silica layer by standard micro-fabrication techniques to eliminate the multireflection effects. The tunable alignment of the bilayer aluminum-wire grid structure enables tailoring of the extinction ratio and transmission characteristics. Using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS), a fabricated polarizer is characterized, with extinction ratios greater than 50 dB and transmission losses below 1 dB reported in the 0.2-1.1 THz frequency range. These characteristics can be improved by further tuning the polarizer parameters such as the pitch, metal film thickness, and lateral displacement.

Nonlinearity of resistive impurity effects on van der Pauw measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koon, D. W.

2006-09-01

The dependence of van der Pauw resistivity measurements on local macroscopic inhomogeneities is shown to be nonlinear. A resistor grid network models a square laminar specimen, enabling the investigation of both positive and negative local perturbations in resistivity. The effect of inhomogeneity is measured both experimentally, for an 11×11 grid, and computationally, for both 11×11 and 101×101 grids. The maximum "shortlike" perturbation produces 3.1±0.2 times the effect predicted by the linear approximation, regardless of its position within the specimen, while all "openlike" perturbations produce a smaller effect than predicted. An empirical nonlinear correction for f(x ,y) is presented which provides excellent fit over the entire range of both positive and negative perturbations for the entire specimen.

iSERVO: Implementing the International Solid Earth Research Virtual Observatory by Integrating Computational Grid and Geographical Information Web Services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aktas, Mehmet; Aydin, Galip; Donnellan, Andrea; Fox, Geoffrey; Granat, Robert; Grant, Lisa; Lyzenga, Greg; McLeod, Dennis; Pallickara, Shrideep; Parker, Jay; Pierce, Marlon; Rundle, John; Sayar, Ahmet; Tullis, Terry

2006-12-01

We describe the goals and initial implementation of the International Solid Earth Virtual Observatory (iSERVO). This system is built using a Web Services approach to Grid computing infrastructure and is accessed via a component-based Web portal user interface. We describe our implementations of services used by this system, including Geographical Information System (GIS)-based data grid services for accessing remote data repositories and job management services for controlling multiple execution steps. iSERVO is an example of a larger trend to build globally scalable scientific computing infrastructures using the Service Oriented Architecture approach. Adoption of this approach raises a number of research challenges in millisecond-latency message systems suitable for internet-enabled scientific applications. We review our research in these areas.

An Accurate GPS-IMU/DR Data Fusion Method for Driverless Car Based on a Set of Predictive Models and Grid Constraints

PubMed Central

Wang, Shiyao; Deng, Zhidong; Yin, Gang

2016-01-01

A high-performance differential global positioning system (GPS)  receiver with real time kinematics provides absolute localization for driverless cars. However, it is not only susceptible to multipath effect but also unable to effectively fulfill precise error correction in a wide range of driving areas. This paper proposes an accurate GPS–inertial measurement unit (IMU)/dead reckoning (DR) data fusion method based on a set of predictive models and occupancy grid constraints. First, we employ a set of autoregressive and moving average (ARMA) equations that have different structural parameters to build maximum likelihood models of raw navigation. Second, both grid constraints and spatial consensus checks on all predictive results and current measurements are required to have removal of outliers. Navigation data that satisfy stationary stochastic process are further fused to achieve accurate localization results. Third, the standard deviation of multimodal data fusion can be pre-specified by grid size. Finally, we perform a lot of field tests on a diversity of real urban scenarios. The experimental results demonstrate that the method can significantly smooth small jumps in bias and considerably reduce accumulated position errors due to DR. With low computational complexity, the position accuracy of our method surpasses existing state-of-the-arts on the same dataset and the new data fusion method is practically applied in our driverless car. PMID:26927108

An Accurate GPS-IMU/DR Data Fusion Method for Driverless Car Based on a Set of Predictive Models and Grid Constraints.

PubMed

Wang, Shiyao; Deng, Zhidong; Yin, Gang

2016-02-24

A high-performance differential global positioning system (GPS)  receiver with real time kinematics provides absolute localization for driverless cars. However, it is not only susceptible to multipath effect but also unable to effectively fulfill precise error correction in a wide range of driving areas. This paper proposes an accurate GPS-inertial measurement unit (IMU)/dead reckoning (DR) data fusion method based on a set of predictive models and occupancy grid constraints. First, we employ a set of autoregressive and moving average (ARMA) equations that have different structural parameters to build maximum likelihood models of raw navigation. Second, both grid constraints and spatial consensus checks on all predictive results and current measurements are required to have removal of outliers. Navigation data that satisfy stationary stochastic process are further fused to achieve accurate localization results. Third, the standard deviation of multimodal data fusion can be pre-specified by grid size. Finally, we perform a lot of field tests on a diversity of real urban scenarios. The experimental results demonstrate that the method can significantly smooth small jumps in bias and considerably reduce accumulated position errors due to DR. With low computational complexity, the position accuracy of our method surpasses existing state-of-the-arts on the same dataset and the new data fusion method is practically applied in our driverless car.

Metal nano-grids for transparent conduction in solar cells

DOE PAGES

Muzzillo, Christopher P.

2017-05-11

A general procedure for predicting metal grid performance in solar cells was developed. Unlike transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) or other homogeneous films, metal grids induce more resistance in the neighbor layer. The resulting balance of transmittance, neighbor and grid resistance was explored in light of cheap lithography advances that have enabled metal nano-grid (MNG) fabrication. The patterned MNGs have junction resistances and degradation rates that are more favorable than solution-synthesized metal nanowires. Neighbor series resistance was simulated by the finite element method, although a simpler analytical model was sufficient in most cases. Finite-difference frequency-domain transmittance simulations were performed for MNGsmore » with minimum wire width (w) of 50 nm, but deviations from aperture transmittance were small in magnitude. Depending on the process, MNGs can exhibit increased series resistance as w is decreased. However, numerous experimental reports have already achieved transmittance-MNG sheet resistance trade-offs comparable to TCOs. The transmittance, neighbor and MNG series resistances were used to parameterize a grid fill factor for a solar cell. In conclusion, this new figure of merit was used to demonstrate that although MNGs have only been employed in low efficiency solar cells, substantial gains in performance are predicted for decreased w in all high efficiency absorber technologies.« less

Design and implementation of GRID-based PACS in a hospital with multiple imaging departments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Yuanyuan; Jin, Jin; Sun, Jianyong; Zhang, Jianguo

2008-03-01

Usually, there were multiple clinical departments providing imaging-enabled healthcare services in enterprise healthcare environment, such as radiology, oncology, pathology, and cardiology, the picture archiving and communication system (PACS) is now required to support not only radiology-based image display, workflow and data flow management, but also to have more specific expertise imaging processing and management tools for other departments providing imaging-guided diagnosis and therapy, and there were urgent demand to integrate the multiple PACSs together to provide patient-oriented imaging services for enterprise collaborative healthcare. In this paper, we give the design method and implementation strategy of developing grid-based PACS (Grid-PACS) for a hospital with multiple imaging departments or centers. The Grid-PACS functions as a middleware between the traditional PACS archiving servers and workstations or image viewing clients and provide DICOM image communication and WADO services to the end users. The images can be stored in distributed multiple archiving servers, but can be managed with central mode. The grid-based PACS has auto image backup and disaster recovery services and can provide best image retrieval path to the image requesters based on the optimal algorithms. The designed grid-based PACS has been implemented in Shanghai Huadong Hospital and been running for two years smoothly.

The Particle Physics Data Grid. Final Report

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

Livny, Miron

2002-08-16

The main objective of the Particle Physics Data Grid (PPDG) project has been to implement and evaluate distributed (Grid-enabled) data access and management technology for current and future particle and nuclear physics experiments. The specific goals of PPDG have been to design, implement, and deploy a Grid-based software infrastructure capable of supporting the data generation, processing and analysis needs common to the physics experiments represented by the participants, and to adapt experiment-specific software to operate in the Grid environment and to exploit this infrastructure. To accomplish these goals, the PPDG focused on the implementation and deployment of several critical services:more » reliable and efficient file replication service, high-speed data transfer services, multisite file caching and staging service, and reliable and recoverable job management services. The focus of the activity was the job management services and the interplay between these services and distributed data access in a Grid environment. Software was developed to study the interaction between HENP applications and distributed data storage fabric. One key conclusion was the need for a reliable and recoverable tool for managing large collections of interdependent jobs. An attached document provides an overview of the current status of the Directed Acyclic Graph Manager (DAGMan) with its main features and capabilities.« less

Heterogeneous Wireless Networks for Smart Grid Distribution Systems: Advantages and Limitations.

PubMed

Khalifa, Tarek; Abdrabou, Atef; Shaban, Khaled; Gaouda, A M

2018-05-11

Supporting a conventional power grid with advanced communication capabilities is a cornerstone to transferring it to a smart grid. A reliable communication infrastructure with a high throughput can lay the foundation towards the ultimate objective of a fully automated power grid with self-healing capabilities. In order to realize this objective, the communication infrastructure of a power distribution network needs to be extended to cover all substations including medium/low voltage ones. This shall enable information exchange among substations for a variety of system automation purposes with a low latency that suits time critical applications. This paper proposes the integration of two heterogeneous wireless technologies (such as WiFi and cellular 3G/4G) to provide reliable and fast communication among primary and secondary distribution substations. This integration allows the transmission of different data packets (not packet replicas) over two radio interfaces, making these interfaces act like a one data pipe. Thus, the paper investigates the applicability and effectiveness of employing heterogeneous wireless networks (HWNs) in achieving the desired reliability and timeliness requirements of future smart grids. We study the performance of HWNs in a realistic scenario under different data transfer loads and packet loss ratios. Our findings reveal that HWNs can be a viable data transfer option for smart grids.

Heterogeneous Wireless Networks for Smart Grid Distribution Systems: Advantages and Limitations

PubMed Central

Khalifa, Tarek; Abdrabou, Atef; Gaouda, A. M.

2018-01-01

Supporting a conventional power grid with advanced communication capabilities is a cornerstone to transferring it to a smart grid. A reliable communication infrastructure with a high throughput can lay the foundation towards the ultimate objective of a fully automated power grid with self-healing capabilities. In order to realize this objective, the communication infrastructure of a power distribution network needs to be extended to cover all substations including medium/low voltage ones. This shall enable information exchange among substations for a variety of system automation purposes with a low latency that suits time critical applications. This paper proposes the integration of two heterogeneous wireless technologies (such as WiFi and cellular 3G/4G) to provide reliable and fast communication among primary and secondary distribution substations. This integration allows the transmission of different data packets (not packet replicas) over two radio interfaces, making these interfaces act like a one data pipe. Thus, the paper investigates the applicability and effectiveness of employing heterogeneous wireless networks (HWNs) in achieving the desired reliability and timeliness requirements of future smart grids. We study the performance of HWNs in a realistic scenario under different data transfer loads and packet loss ratios. Our findings reveal that HWNs can be a viable data transfer option for smart grids. PMID:29751633

Metal nano-grids for transparent conduction in solar cells

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

Muzzillo, Christopher P.

A general procedure for predicting metal grid performance in solar cells was developed. Unlike transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) or other homogeneous films, metal grids induce more resistance in the neighbor layer. The resulting balance of transmittance, neighbor and grid resistance was explored in light of cheap lithography advances that have enabled metal nano-grid (MNG) fabrication. The patterned MNGs have junction resistances and degradation rates that are more favorable than solution-synthesized metal nanowires. Neighbor series resistance was simulated by the finite element method, although a simpler analytical model was sufficient in most cases. Finite-difference frequency-domain transmittance simulations were performed for MNGsmore » with minimum wire width (w) of 50 nm, but deviations from aperture transmittance were small in magnitude. Depending on the process, MNGs can exhibit increased series resistance as w is decreased. However, numerous experimental reports have already achieved transmittance-MNG sheet resistance trade-offs comparable to TCOs. The transmittance, neighbor and MNG series resistances were used to parameterize a grid fill factor for a solar cell. In conclusion, this new figure of merit was used to demonstrate that although MNGs have only been employed in low efficiency solar cells, substantial gains in performance are predicted for decreased w in all high efficiency absorber technologies.« less

JPARSS: A Java Parallel Network Package for Grid Computing

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

Chen, Jie; Akers, Walter; Chen, Ying

2002-03-01

The emergence of high speed wide area networks makes grid computinga reality. However grid applications that need reliable data transfer still have difficulties to achieve optimal TCP performance due to network tuning of TCP window size to improve bandwidth and to reduce latency on a high speed wide area network. This paper presents a Java package called JPARSS (Java Parallel Secure Stream (Socket)) that divides data into partitions that are sent over several parallel Java streams simultaneously and allows Java or Web applications to achieve optimal TCP performance in a grid environment without the necessity of tuning TCP window size.more » This package enables single sign-on, certificate delegation and secure or plain-text data transfer using several security components based on X.509 certificate and SSL. Several experiments will be presented to show that using Java parallelstreams is more effective than tuning TCP window size. In addition a simple architecture using Web services« less

Tensor-Train Split-Operator Fourier Transform (TT-SOFT) Method: Multidimensional Nonadiabatic Quantum Dynamics.

PubMed

Greene, Samuel M; Batista, Victor S

2017-09-12

We introduce the "tensor-train split-operator Fourier transform" (TT-SOFT) method for simulations of multidimensional nonadiabatic quantum dynamics. TT-SOFT is essentially the grid-based SOFT method implemented in dynamically adaptive tensor-train representations. In the same spirit of all matrix product states, the tensor-train format enables the representation, propagation, and computation of observables of multidimensional wave functions in terms of the grid-based wavepacket tensor components, bypassing the need of actually computing the wave function in its full-rank tensor product grid space. We demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the TT-SOFT method as applied to propagation of 24-dimensional wave packets, describing the S 1 /S 2 interconversion dynamics of pyrazine after UV photoexcitation to the S 2 state. Our results show that the TT-SOFT method is a powerful computational approach for simulations of quantum dynamics of polyatomic systems since it avoids the exponential scaling problem of full-rank grid-based representations.

Security and Cloud Outsourcing Framework for Economic Dispatch

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

Sarker, Mushfiqur R.; Wang, Jianhui; Li, Zuyi

The computational complexity and problem sizes of power grid applications have increased significantly with the advent of renewable resources and smart grid technologies. The current paradigm of solving these issues consist of inhouse high performance computing infrastructures, which have drawbacks of high capital expenditures, maintenance, and limited scalability. Cloud computing is an ideal alternative due to its powerful computational capacity, rapid scalability, and high cost-effectiveness. A major challenge, however, remains in that the highly confidential grid data is susceptible for potential cyberattacks when outsourced to the cloud. In this work, a security and cloud outsourcing framework is developed for themore » Economic Dispatch (ED) linear programming application. As a result, the security framework transforms the ED linear program into a confidentiality-preserving linear program, that masks both the data and problem structure, thus enabling secure outsourcing to the cloud. Results show that for large grid test cases the performance gain and costs outperforms the in-house infrastructure.« less

Security and Cloud Outsourcing Framework for Economic Dispatch

DOE PAGES

Sarker, Mushfiqur R.; Wang, Jianhui; Li, Zuyi; ...

2017-04-24

The computational complexity and problem sizes of power grid applications have increased significantly with the advent of renewable resources and smart grid technologies. The current paradigm of solving these issues consist of inhouse high performance computing infrastructures, which have drawbacks of high capital expenditures, maintenance, and limited scalability. Cloud computing is an ideal alternative due to its powerful computational capacity, rapid scalability, and high cost-effectiveness. A major challenge, however, remains in that the highly confidential grid data is susceptible for potential cyberattacks when outsourced to the cloud. In this work, a security and cloud outsourcing framework is developed for themore » Economic Dispatch (ED) linear programming application. As a result, the security framework transforms the ED linear program into a confidentiality-preserving linear program, that masks both the data and problem structure, thus enabling secure outsourcing to the cloud. Results show that for large grid test cases the performance gain and costs outperforms the in-house infrastructure.« less

A new service-oriented grid-based method for AIoT application and implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, Yiqin; Quan, Li

2017-07-01

The traditional three-layer Internet of things (IoT) model, which includes physical perception layer, information transferring layer and service application layer, cannot express complexity and diversity in agricultural engineering area completely. It is hard to categorize, organize and manage the agricultural things with these three layers. Based on the above requirements, we propose a new service-oriented grid-based method to set up and build the agricultural IoT. Considering the heterogeneous, limitation, transparency and leveling attributes of agricultural things, we propose an abstract model for all agricultural resources. This model is service-oriented and expressed with Open Grid Services Architecture (OGSA). Information and data of agricultural things were described and encapsulated by using XML in this model. Every agricultural engineering application will provide service by enabling one application node in this service-oriented grid. Description of Web Service Resource Framework (WSRF)-based Agricultural Internet of Things (AIoT) and the encapsulation method were also discussed in this paper for resource management in this model.

Distributed Monte Carlo production for DZero

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snow, Joel; DØ Collaboration

2010-04-01

The DZero collaboration uses a variety of resources on four continents to pursue a strategy of flexibility and automation in the generation of simulation data. This strategy provides a resilient and opportunistic system which ensures an adequate and timely supply of simulation data to support DZero's physics analyses. A mixture of facilities, dedicated and opportunistic, specialized and generic, large and small, grid job enabled and not, are used to provide a production system that has adapted to newly developing technologies. This strategy has increased the event production rate by a factor of seven and the data production rate by a factor of ten in the last three years despite diminishing manpower. Common to all production facilities is the SAM (Sequential Access to Metadata) data-grid. Job submission to the grid uses SAMGrid middleware which may forward jobs to the OSG, the WLCG, or native SAMGrid sites. The distributed computing and data handling system used by DZero will be described and the results of MC production since the deployment of grid technologies will be presented.

New Antarctic Gravity Anomaly Grid for Enhanced Geodetic and Geophysical Studies in Antarctica

PubMed Central

Scheinert, M.; Ferraccioli, F.; Schwabe, J.; Bell, R.; Studinger, M.; Damaske, D.; Jokat, W.; Aleshkova, N.; Jordan, T.; Leitchenkov, G.; Blankenship, D. D.; Damiani, T. M.; Young, D.; Cochran, J. R.; Richter, T. D.

2018-01-01

Gravity surveying is challenging in Antarctica because of its hostile environment and inaccessibility. Nevertheless, many ground-based, airborne and shipborne gravity campaigns have been completed by the geophysical and geodetic communities since the 1980s. We present the first modern Antarctic-wide gravity data compilation derived from 13 million data points covering an area of 10 million km2, which corresponds to 73% coverage of the continent. The remove-compute-restore technique was applied for gridding, which facilitated levelling of the different gravity datasets with respect to an Earth Gravity Model derived from satellite data alone. The resulting free-air and Bouguer gravity anomaly grids of 10 km resolution are publicly available. These grids will enable new high-resolution combined Earth Gravity Models to be derived and represent a major step forward towards solving the geodetic polar data gap problem. They provide a new tool to investigate continental-scale lithospheric structure and geological evolution of Antarctica. PMID:29326484

New Antarctic Gravity Anomaly Grid for Enhanced Geodetic and Geophysical Studies in Antarctica

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scheinert, M.; Ferraccioli, F.; Schwabe, J.; Bell, R.; Studinger, M.; Damaske, D.; Jokat, W.; Aleshkova, N.; Jordan, T.; Leitchenkov, G.;

New Antarctic Gravity Anomaly Grid for Enhanced Geodetic and Geophysical Studies in Antarctica.

PubMed

Scheinert, M; Ferraccioli, F; Schwabe, J; Bell, R; Studinger, M; Damaske, D; Jokat, W; Aleshkova, N; Jordan, T; Leitchenkov, G; Blankenship, D D; Damiani, T M; Young, D; Cochran, J R; Richter, T D

2016-01-28

Gravity surveying is challenging in Antarctica because of its hostile environment and inaccessibility. Nevertheless, many ground-based, airborne and shipborne gravity campaigns have been completed by the geophysical and geodetic communities since the 1980s. We present the first modern Antarctic-wide gravity data compilation derived from 13 million data points covering an area of 10 million km 2 , which corresponds to 73% coverage of the continent. The remove-compute-restore technique was applied for gridding, which facilitated levelling of the different gravity datasets with respect to an Earth Gravity Model derived from satellite data alone. The resulting free-air and Bouguer gravity anomaly grids of 10 km resolution are publicly available. These grids will enable new high-resolution combined Earth Gravity Models to be derived and represent a major step forward towards solving the geodetic polar data gap problem. They provide a new tool to investigate continental-scale lithospheric structure and geological evolution of Antarctica.

Cyberinfrastructure for End-to-End Environmental Explorations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merwade, V.; Kumar, S.; Song, C.; Zhao, L.; Govindaraju, R.; Niyogi, D.

2007-12-01

The design and implementation of a cyberinfrastructure for End-to-End Environmental Exploration (C4E4) is presented. The C4E4 framework addresses the need for an integrated data/computation platform for studying broad environmental impacts by combining heterogeneous data resources with state-of-the-art modeling and visualization tools. With Purdue being a TeraGrid Resource Provider, C4E4 builds on top of the Purdue TeraGrid data management system and Grid resources, and integrates them through a service-oriented workflow system. It allows researchers to construct environmental workflows for data discovery, access, transformation, modeling, and visualization. Using the C4E4 framework, we have implemented an end-to-end SWAT simulation and analysis workflow that connects our TeraGrid data and computation resources. It enables researchers to conduct comprehensive studies on the impact of land management practices in the St. Joseph watershed using data from various sources in hydrologic, atmospheric, agricultural, and other related disciplines.

Making the most of cloud storage - a toolkit for exploitation by WLCG experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alvarez Ayllon, Alejandro; Arsuaga Rios, Maria; Bitzes, Georgios; Furano, Fabrizio; Keeble, Oliver; Manzi, Andrea

2017-10-01

Understanding how cloud storage can be effectively used, either standalone or in support of its associated compute, is now an important consideration for WLCG. We report on a suite of extensions to familiar tools targeted at enabling the integration of cloud object stores into traditional grid infrastructures and workflows. Notable updates include support for a number of object store flavours in FTS3, Davix and gfal2, including mitigations for lack of vector reads; the extension of Dynafed to operate as a bridge between grid and cloud domains; protocol translation in FTS3; the implementation of extensions to DPM (also implemented by the dCache project) to allow 3rd party transfers over HTTP. The result is a toolkit which facilitates data movement and access between grid and cloud infrastructures, broadening the range of workflows suitable for cloud. We report on deployment scenarios and prototype experience, explaining how, for example, an Amazon S3 or Azure allocation can be exploited by grid workflows.

Hyperviscosity for unstructured ALE meshes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, Andrew W.; Ulitsky, Mark S.; Miller, Douglas S.

2013-01-01

An artificial viscosity, originally designed for Eulerian schemes, is adapted for use in arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian simulations. Changes to the Eulerian model (dubbed 'hyperviscosity') are discussed, which enable it to work within a Lagrangian framework. New features include a velocity-weighted grid scale and a generalised filtering procedure, applicable to either structured or unstructured grids. The model employs an artificial shear viscosity for treating small-scale vorticity and an artificial bulk viscosity for shock capturing. The model is based on the Navier-Stokes form of the viscous stress tensor, including the diagonal rate-of-expansion tensor. A second-order version of the model is presented, in which Laplacian operators act on the velocity divergence and the grid-weighted strain-rate magnitude to ensure that the velocity field remains smooth at the grid scale. Unlike sound-speed-based artificial viscosities, the hyperviscosity model is compatible with the low Mach number limit. The new model outperforms a commonly used Lagrangian artificial viscosity on a variety of test problems.

Do tilt-in-space wheelchairs increase occupational engagement: a critical literature review.

PubMed

Harrand, Jenny; Bannigan, Katrina

2016-01-01

A wheelchair can enhance the quality of life of an individual with limited mobility, poor trunk control and stability, by enabling activity and participation and so occupational engagement. High specification wheelchairs which can tilt-in-space enable the position of users to be altered to suit activity and context. Despite tilt-in-space wheelchairs being expensive little is known about their therapeutic value. A critical literature review of the evidence was undertaken to evaluate whether the use of tilt-in-space increases occupational engagement. A wide ranging search strategy identified 170 articles which were screened using inclusion criteria. The eligible literature (n = 6) was analysed thematically using open coding. The majority of the participants used tilt-in-space but the data was too heterogeneous to combine. Measures of occupational engagement were not used so the therapeutic value could not be assessed. There is a lack of high quality evidence about the therapeutic benefits of tilt-in-space wheelchairs. Given the expense associated with providing these wheelchairs, and the increase in their provision, research is needed to justify provision of high specification wheelchairs to meet the occupational needs of users within the limited resources of health and social care. Implications for Rehabilitation Tilt-in-space wheelchairs. Wheelchairs are an important and essential assistive device for promoting independence and function. Suggests there are benefits for tilt-in-space wheelchairs. Identifies the need for additional large scale research.

Grid-Enabled Measures

PubMed Central

Moser, Richard P.; Hesse, Bradford W.; Shaikh, Abdul R.; Courtney, Paul; Morgan, Glen; Augustson, Erik; Kobrin, Sarah; Levin, Kerry; Helba, Cynthia; Garner, David; Dunn, Marsha; Coa, Kisha

2011-01-01

Scientists are taking advantage of the Internet and collaborative web technology to accelerate discovery in a massively connected, participative environment —a phenomenon referred to by some as Science 2.0. As a new way of doing science, this phenomenon has the potential to push science forward in a more efficient manner than was previously possible. The Grid-Enabled Measures (GEM) database has been conceptualized as an instantiation of Science 2.0 principles by the National Cancer Institute with two overarching goals: (1) Promote the use of standardized measures, which are tied to theoretically based constructs; and (2) Facilitate the ability to share harmonized data resulting from the use of standardized measures. This is done by creating an online venue connected to the Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid (caBIG®) where a virtual community of researchers can collaborate together and come to consensus on measures by rating, commenting and viewing meta-data about the measures and associated constructs. This paper will describe the web 2.0 principles on which the GEM database is based, describe its functionality, and discuss some of the important issues involved with creating the GEM database, such as the role of mutually agreed-on ontologies (i.e., knowledge categories and the relationships among these categories— for data sharing). PMID:21521586

PLOT3D Export Tool for Tecplot

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alter, Stephen

2010-01-01

The PLOT3D export tool for Tecplot solves the problem of modified data being impossible to output for use by another computational science solver. The PLOT3D Exporter add-on enables the use of the most commonly available visualization tools to engineers for output of a standard format. The exportation of PLOT3D data from Tecplot has far reaching effects because it allows for grid and solution manipulation within a graphical user interface (GUI) that is easily customized with macro language-based and user-developed GUIs. The add-on also enables the use of Tecplot as an interpolation tool for solution conversion between different grids of different types. This one add-on enhances the functionality of Tecplot so significantly, it offers the ability to incorporate Tecplot into a general suite of tools for computational science applications as a 3D graphics engine for visualization of all data. Within the PLOT3D Export Add-on are several functions that enhance the operations and effectiveness of the add-on. Unlike Tecplot output functions, the PLOT3D Export Add-on enables the use of the zone selection dialog in Tecplot to choose which zones are to be written by offering three distinct options - output of active, inactive, or all zones (grid blocks). As the user modifies the zones to output with the zone selection dialog, the zones to be written are similarly updated. This enables the use of Tecplot to create multiple configurations of a geometry being analyzed. For example, if an aircraft is loaded with multiple deflections of flaps, by activating and deactivating different zones for a specific flap setting, new specific configurations of that aircraft can be easily generated by only writing out specific zones. Thus, if ten flap settings are loaded into Tecplot, the PLOT3D Export software can output ten different configurations, one for each flap setting.

The stratifying role of job level for sickness absence and the moderating role of gender and occupational gender composition.

PubMed

Kröger, Hannes

2017-08-01

The study investigates whether sickness absence is stratified by job level - understood as the authority and autonomy a worker holds - beyond the association with education, income, and occupation. A second objective is to establish the moderating role of gender and occupational gender composition on this stratification of sickness absence. Four competing hypotheses are developed that predict different patterns of moderation. Associations between job level and sickness absence are estimated for men and women in three groups of differing occupational gender composition, using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP). For the purpose of moderation analysis, this study employs a new method based on Bayesian statistics, which enables the testing of complex moderation hypotheses. The data support the hypothesis that the stratification of sickness absence by job level is strongest for occupational minorities, meaning men in female-dominated and women in male-dominated occupations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The use of drama and puppetry in occupational therapy during the 1920s and 1930s.

PubMed

Phillips, M E

1996-03-01

The occupational therapy literature was reviewed to determine how drama was used as a clinical modality in the 1920s and 1930s. It appears that the emergence of the Little Theater Movement in the early 1900s, which enabled amateurs to perform publicly, provided the impetus for occupational therapists to use drama as purposeful activity. The theatrical modes most frequently used were pageantry, puppetry, and comedic plays. Additionally, the collective nature of drama facilitated group-centered treatment. Noble, a psychiatrist at Sheppard and Enoch Pratt in Maryland, used drama for insight-oriented therapy and recommended that occupational therapists use drama for treatment of persons with mental illness. Drama in occupational therapy still exists in some psychiatric settings, although a new discipline known as drama therapy, which is a division of the creative arts therapies, has arisen. Although drama therapy addresses psychodynamic goals, drama also can be used in occupational therapy to promote competence, enhance self-concept, and improve socialization.

African American Fathers' Occupational Participation: "Keeping the Mothers in a Positive Vibe".

PubMed

Pizur-Barnekow, Kris; Pate, David; Lazar, Katie; Paul, Nelly; Pritchard, Kathleen; Morris, George

2017-10-01

Infant mortality is a major public health issue in the United States that disproportionally affects African Americans. Evidence suggests reducing stress on African American women and engaging African American fathers may improve health and social outcomes for families. This study sought to understand the experiences of African American fathers through a positivistic lens and to inform future interventions that support father engagement. A descriptive, qualitative study using the Person, Environment, Occupation-Performance (PEO-P) model as a framework for analysis was conducted involving 45 fathers participating in four focus groups and one member-checking group. An initial content analysis was followed by constant comparative methods to identify categories related to the PEO-P model. Transcripts revealed a range of factors that enable or inhibit fathers' occupational performance and engagement including environmental barriers such as societal expectations and perceptions. Occupational therapy practitioners may utilize population health approaches to support African American fathers' occupational engagement.

Capturing presence moments: the art of mindful practice in occupational therapy.

PubMed

Reid, Denise

2009-06-01

This paper explores theoretical and practical views of mindfulness and phenomena of presence moments. The potential for altering life and enabling change through lived experience of mindful presence moments has relevance for occupational therapy practice. To suggest ways for occupational therapists to become mindfully present during practice. Based on theoretical perspectives drawn from the fields of psychology, philosophy, psychoanalysis, neuroscience, and education, a four-fold approach will be outlined for occupational therapists to practice mindfully and experience presence moments. This approach emphasizes key concepts of awareness, non-judgment, reflection, curiosity, and commitment to practice. A clinical scenario is used to illustrate the approach. The ideas raised in this paper need to be incorporated into daily practice by occupational therapists so that a culture of mindful practice can be cultivated. Suggestions are provided throughout the paper for an agenda of potential research studies to address aspects of mindfulness and presence moments more fully.

Global Multi-Resolution Topography (GMRT) Synthesis - Recent Updates and Developments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrini, V. L.; Morton, J. J.; Celnick, M.; McLain, K.; Nitsche, F. O.; Carbotte, S. M.; O'hara, S. H.

2017-12-01

The Global Multi-Resolution Topography (GMRT, http://gmrt.marine-geo.org) synthesis is a multi-resolution compilation of elevation data that is maintained in Mercator, South Polar, and North Polar Projections. GMRT consists of four independently curated elevation components: (1) quality controlled multibeam data ( 100m res.), (2) contributed high-resolution gridded bathymetric data (0.5-200 m res.), (3) ocean basemap data ( 500 m res.), and (4) variable resolution land elevation data (to 10-30 m res. in places). Each component is managed and updated as new content becomes available, with two scheduled releases each year. The ocean basemap content for GMRT includes the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO), the International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO), and the GEBCO 2014. Most curatorial effort for GMRT is focused on the swath bathymetry component, with an emphasis on data from the US Academic Research Fleet. As of July 2017, GMRT includes data processed and curated by the GMRT Team from 974 research cruises, covering over 29 million square kilometers ( 8%) of the seafloor at 100m resolution. The curated swath bathymetry data from GMRT is routinely contributed to international data synthesis efforts including GEBCO and IBCSO. Additional curatorial effort is associated with gridded data contributions from the international community and ensures that these data are well blended in the synthesis. Significant new additions to the gridded data component this year include the recently released data from the search for MH370 (Geoscience Australia) as well as a large high-resolution grid from the Gulf of Mexico derived from 3D seismic data (US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management). Recent developments in functionality include the deployment of a new Polar GMRT MapTool which enables users to export custom grids and map images in polar projection for their selected area of interest at the resolution of their choosing. Available for both the south and north polar regions, grids can be exported from GMRT in a variety of formats including ASCII, GeoTIFF and NetCDF to support use in common mapping software applications such as ArcGIS, GMT, Matlab, and Python. New web services have also been developed to enable programmatic access to grids and images in north and south polar projections.

Sustainability of green jobs in Portugal: a methodological approach using occupational health indicators

PubMed Central

Moreira, Sandra; Vasconcelos, Lia; Silva Santos, Carlos

2017-01-01

Objective: This study aimed to develop a methodological tool to analyze and monitor the green jobs in the context of Occupational Health and Safety. Methods: A literature review in combination with an investigation of Occupational Health Indicators was performed. The resulting tool of Occupational Health Indicators was based on the existing information of "Single Report" and was validated by national's experts. Results: The tool brings together 40 Occupational Health Indicators in four key fields established by World Health Organization in their conceptual framework "Health indicators of sustainable jobs." The tool proposed allows for assessing if the green jobs enabled to follow the principles and requirements of Occupational Health Indicators and if these jobs are as good for the environment as for the workers' health, so if they can be considered quality jobs. Conclusions: This shows that Occupational Health Indicators are indispensable for the assessment of the sustainability of green jobs and should be taken into account in the definition and evaluation of policies and strategies of the sustainable development. PMID:28794392

The Electrochemical Flow Capacitor: Capacitive Energy Storage in Flowable Media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dennison, Christopher R.

Electrical energy storage (EES) has emerged as a necessary aspect of grid infrastructure to address the increasing problem of grid instability imposed by the large scale implementation of renewable energy sources (such as wind or solar) on the grid. Rapid energy recovery and storage is critically important to enable immediate and continuous utilization of these resources, and provides other benefits to grid operators and consumers as well. In past decades, there has been significant progress in the development of electrochemical EES technologies which has had an immense impact on the consumer and micro-electronics industries. However, these advances primarily address small-scale storage, and are often not practical at the grid-scale. A new energy storage concept called "the electrochemical flow capacitor (EFC)" has been developed at Drexel which has significant potential to be an attractive technology for grid-scale energy storage. This new concept exploits the characteristics of both supercapacitors and flow batteries, potentially enabling fast response rates with high power density, high efficiency, and long cycle lifetime, while decoupling energy storage from power output (i.e., scalable energy storage capacity). The unique aspect of this concept is the use of flowable carbon-electrolyte slurry ("flowable electrode") as the active material for capacitive energy storage. This dissertation work seeks to lay the scientific groundwork necessary to develop this new concept into a practical technology, and to test the overarching hypothesis that energy can be capacitively stored and recovered from a flowable media. In line with these goals, the objectives of this Ph.D. work are to: i) perform an exploratory investigation of the operating principles and demonstrate the technical viability of this new concept and ii) establish a scientific framework to assess the key linkages between slurry composition, flow cell design, operating conditions and system performance. To achieve these goals, a combined experimental and computational approach is undertaken. The technical viability of the technology is demonstrated, and in-depth studies are performed to understand the coupling between flow rate and slurry conductivity, and localized effects arising within the cell. The outlook of EFCs and other flowable electrode technologies is assessed, and opportunities for future work are discussed.

Spatial occupancy models applied to atlas data show Southern Ground Hornbills strongly depend on protected areas.

PubMed

Broms, Kristin M; Johnson, Devin S; Altwegg, Res; Conquest, Loveday L

2014-03-01

Determining the range of a species and exploring species--habitat associations are central questions in ecology and can be answered by analyzing presence--absence data. Often, both the sampling of sites and the desired area of inference involve neighboring sites; thus, positive spatial autocorrelation between these sites is expected. Using survey data for the Southern Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri) from the Southern African Bird Atlas Project, we compared advantages and disadvantages of three increasingly complex models for species occupancy: an occupancy model that accounted for nondetection but assumed all sites were independent, and two spatial occupancy models that accounted for both nondetection and spatial autocorrelation. We modeled the spatial autocorrelation with an intrinsic conditional autoregressive (ICAR) model and with a restricted spatial regression (RSR) model. Both spatial models can readily be applied to any other gridded, presence--absence data set using a newly introduced R package. The RSR model provided the best inference and was able to capture small-scale variation that the other models did not. It showed that ground hornbills are strongly dependent on protected areas in the north of their South African range, but less so further south. The ICAR models did not capture any spatial autocorrelation in the data, and they took an order, of magnitude longer than the RSR models to run. Thus, the RSR occupancy model appears to be an attractive choice for modeling occurrences at large spatial domains, while accounting for imperfect detection and spatial autocorrelation.

MIDG-Emerging grid technologies for multi-site preclinical molecular imaging research communities.

PubMed

Lee, Jasper; Documet, Jorge; Liu, Brent; Park, Ryan; Tank, Archana; Huang, H K

2011-03-01

Molecular imaging is the visualization and identification of specific molecules in anatomy for insight into metabolic pathways, tissue consistency, and tracing of solute transport mechanisms. This paper presents the Molecular Imaging Data Grid (MIDG) which utilizes emerging grid technologies in preclinical molecular imaging to facilitate data sharing and discovery between preclinical molecular imaging facilities and their collaborating investigator institutions to expedite translational sciences research. Grid-enabled archiving, management, and distribution of animal-model imaging datasets help preclinical investigators to monitor, access and share their imaging data remotely, and promote preclinical imaging facilities to share published imaging datasets as resources for new investigators. The system architecture of the Molecular Imaging Data Grid is described in a four layer diagram. A data model for preclinical molecular imaging datasets is also presented based on imaging modalities currently used in a molecular imaging center. The MIDG system components and connectivity are presented. And finally, the workflow steps for grid-based archiving, management, and retrieval of preclincial molecular imaging data are described. Initial performance tests of the Molecular Imaging Data Grid system have been conducted at the USC IPILab using dedicated VMware servers. System connectivity, evaluated datasets, and preliminary results are presented. The results show the system's feasibility, limitations, direction of future research. Translational and interdisciplinary research in medicine is increasingly interested in cellular and molecular biology activity at the preclinical levels, utilizing molecular imaging methods on animal models. The task of integrated archiving, management, and distribution of these preclinical molecular imaging datasets at preclinical molecular imaging facilities is challenging due to disparate imaging systems and multiple off-site investigators. A Molecular Imaging Data Grid design, implementation, and initial evaluation is presented to demonstrate the secure and novel data grid solution for sharing preclinical molecular imaging data across the wide-area-network (WAN).

Unstructured Grid Adaptation: Status, Potential Impacts, and Recommended Investments Toward CFD Vision 2030

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Park, Michael A.; Krakos, Joshua A.; Michal, Todd; Loseille, Adrien; Alonso, Juan J.

2016-01-01

Unstructured grid adaptation is a powerful tool to control discretization error for Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). It has enabled key increases in the accuracy, automation, and capacity of some fluid simulation applications. Slotnick et al. provides a number of case studies in the CFD Vision 2030 Study: A Path to Revolutionary Computational Aerosciences to illustrate the current state of CFD capability and capacity. The authors forecast the potential impact of emerging High Performance Computing (HPC) environments forecast in the year 2030 and identify that mesh generation and adaptivity continue to be significant bottlenecks in the CFD work flow. These bottlenecks may persist because very little government investment has been targeted in these areas. To motivate investment, the impacts of improved grid adaptation technologies are identified. The CFD Vision 2030 Study roadmap and anticipated capabilities in complementary disciplines are quoted to provide context for the progress made in grid adaptation in the past fifteen years, current status, and a forecast for the next fifteen years with recommended investments. These investments are specific to mesh adaptation and impact other aspects of the CFD process. Finally, a strategy is identified to diffuse grid adaptation technology into production CFD work flows.

A practical approach to virtualization in HEP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buncic, P.; Aguado Sánchez, C.; Blomer, J.; Harutyunyan, A.; Mudrinic, M.

2011-01-01

In the attempt to solve the problem of processing data coming from LHC experiments at CERN at a rate of 15PB per year, for almost a decade the High Enery Physics (HEP) community has focused its efforts on the development of the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid. This generated large interest and expectations promising to revolutionize computing. Meanwhile, having initially taken part in the Grid standardization process, industry has moved in a different direction and started promoting the Cloud Computing paradigm which aims to solve problems on a similar scale and in equally seamless way as it was expected in the idealized Grid approach. A key enabling technology behind Cloud computing is server virtualization. In early 2008, an R&D project was established in the PH-SFT group at CERN to investigate how virtualization technology could be used to improve and simplify the daily interaction of physicists with experiment software frameworks and the Grid infrastructure. In this article we shall first briefly compare Grid and Cloud computing paradigms and then summarize the results of the R&D activity pointing out where and how virtualization technology could be effectively used in our field in order to maximize practical benefits whilst avoiding potential pitfalls.

On the ``optimal'' spatial distribution and directional anisotropy of the filter-width and grid-resolution in large eddy simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toosi, Siavash; Larsson, Johan

2017-11-01

The accuracy of an LES depends directly on the accuracy of the resolved part of the turbulence. The continuing increase in computational power enables the application of LES to increasingly complex flow problems for which the LES community lacks the experience of knowing what the ``optimal'' or even an ``acceptable'' grid (or equivalently filter-width distribution) is. The goal of this work is to introduce a systematic approach to finding the ``optimal'' grid/filter-width distribution and their ``optimal'' anisotropy. The method is tested first on the turbulent channel flow, mainly to see if it is able to predict the right anisotropy of the filter/grid, and then on the more complicated case of flow over a backward-facing step, to test its ability to predict the right distribution and anisotropy of the filter/grid simultaneously, hence leading to a converged solution. This work has been supported by the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division at Pax River, MD, under contract N00421132M021. Computing time has been provided by the University of Maryland supercomputing resources (http://hpcc.umd.edu).

Dose calculation algorithm of fast fine-heterogeneity correction for heavy charged particle radiotherapy.

PubMed

Kanematsu, Nobuyuki

2011-04-01

This work addresses computing techniques for dose calculations in treatment planning with proton and ion beams, based on an efficient kernel-convolution method referred to as grid-dose spreading (GDS) and accurate heterogeneity-correction method referred to as Gaussian beam splitting. The original GDS algorithm suffered from distortion of dose distribution for beams tilted with respect to the dose-grid axes. Use of intermediate grids normal to the beam field has solved the beam-tilting distortion. Interplay of arrangement between beams and grids was found as another intrinsic source of artifact. Inclusion of rectangular-kernel convolution in beam transport, to share the beam contribution among the nearest grids in a regulatory manner, has solved the interplay problem. This algorithmic framework was applied to a tilted proton pencil beam and a broad carbon-ion beam. In these cases, while the elementary pencil beams individually split into several tens, the calculation time increased only by several times with the GDS algorithm. The GDS and beam-splitting methods will complementarily enable accurate and efficient dose calculations for radiotherapy with protons and ions. Copyright © 2010 Associazione Italiana di Fisica Medica. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Overset grid implementation of the complex Kohn variational method for electron-polyatomic molecule scattering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCurdy, C. William; Lucchese, Robert L.; Greenman, Loren

2017-04-01

The complex Kohn variational method, which represents the continuum wave function in each channel using a combination of Gaussians and Bessel or Coulomb functions, has been successful in numerous applications to electron-polyatomic molecule scattering and molecular photoionization. The hybrid basis representation limits it to relatively low energies (< 50 eV) , requires an approximation to exchange matrix elements involving continuum functions, and hampers its coupling to modern electronic structure codes for the description of correlated target states. We describe a successful implementation of the method using completely adaptive overset grids to describe continuum functions, in which spherical subgrids are placed on every atomic center to complement a spherical master grid that describes the behavior at large distances. An accurate method for applying the free-particle Green's function on the grid eliminates the need to operate explicitly with the kinetic energy, enabling a rapidly convergent Arnoldi algorithm for solving linear equations on the grid, and no approximations to exchange operators are made. Results for electron scattering from several polyatomic molecules will be presented. Army Research Office, MURI, WN911NF-14-1-0383 and U. S. DOE DE-SC0012198 (at Texas A&M).

Wire chamber radiation detector with discharge control

DOEpatents

Perez-Mendez, Victor; Mulera, Terrence A.

1984-01-01

A wire chamber radiation detector (11) has spaced apart parallel electrodes (16) and grids (17, 18, 19) defining an ignition region (21) in which charged particles (12) or other ionizing radiations initiate brief localized avalanche discharges (93) and defining an adjacent memory region (22) in which sustained glow discharges (94) are initiated by the primary discharges (93). Conductors (29, 32) of the grids (18, 19) at each side of the memory section (22) extend in orthogonal directions enabling readout of the X-Y coordinates of locations at which charged particles (12) were detected by sequentially transmitting pulses to the conductors (29) of one grid (18) while detecting transmissions of the pulses to the orthogonal conductors (36) of the other grid (19) through glow discharges (94). One of the grids (19) bounding the memory region (22) is defined by an array of conductive elements (32) each of which is connected to the associated readout conductor (36) through a separate resistance (37). The wire chamber (11) avoids ambiguities and imprecisions in the readout of coordinates when large numbers of simultaneous or near simultaneous charged particles (12) have been detected. Down time between detection periods and the generation of radio frequency noise are also reduced.

Parametric Geometry, Structured Grid Generation, and Initial Design Study for REST-Class Hypersonic Inlets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferlemann, Paul G.; Gollan, Rowan J.

2010-01-01

Computational design and analysis of three-dimensional hypersonic inlets with shape transition has been a significant challenge due to the complex geometry and grid required for three-dimensional viscous flow calculations. Currently, the design process utilizes an inviscid design tool to produce initial inlet shapes by streamline tracing through an axisymmetric compression field. However, the shape is defined by a large number of points rather than a continuous surface and lacks important features such as blunt leading edges. Therefore, a design system has been developed to parametrically construct true CAD geometry and link the topology of a structured grid to the geometry. The Adaptive Modeling Language (AML) constitutes the underlying framework that is used to build the geometry and grid topology. Parameterization of the CAD geometry allows the inlet shapes produced by the inviscid design tool to be generated, but also allows a great deal of flexibility to modify the shape to account for three-dimensional viscous effects. By linking the grid topology to the parametric geometry, the GridPro grid generation software can be used efficiently to produce a smooth hexahedral multiblock grid. To demonstrate the new capability, a matrix of inlets were designed by varying four geometry parameters in the inviscid design tool. The goals of the initial design study were to explore inviscid design tool geometry variations with a three-dimensional analysis approach, demonstrate a solution rate which would enable the use of high-fidelity viscous three-dimensional CFD in future design efforts, process the results for important performance parameters, and perform a sample optimization.

Manpower Management: No Tiered Readiness - Enabling The Nation’s Force in Readiness

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-09

physically qualified (medical, dental , panorex) 2,D, D,H,Q Pregnancy (after determination by proper authority) N Postpartum (up to six...identifying surfaces and gaps are elemental to both the Marine Corps Planning Process and this study, and assist in the overall problem framing. Manning...of the Marine Corps on T/Os. To assist the deputy commandants in this task, each occupational field retains an occupational field sponsor. The

MrGrid: A Portable Grid Based Molecular Replacement Pipeline

PubMed Central

Reboul, Cyril F.; Androulakis, Steve G.; Phan, Jennifer M. N.; Whisstock, James C.; Goscinski, Wojtek J.; Abramson, David; Buckle, Ashley M.

2010-01-01

Background The crystallographic determination of protein structures can be computationally demanding and for difficult cases can benefit from user-friendly interfaces to high-performance computing resources. Molecular replacement (MR) is a popular protein crystallographic technique that exploits the structural similarity between proteins that share some sequence similarity. But the need to trial permutations of search models, space group symmetries and other parameters makes MR time- and labour-intensive. However, MR calculations are embarrassingly parallel and thus ideally suited to distributed computing. In order to address this problem we have developed MrGrid, web-based software that allows multiple MR calculations to be executed across a grid of networked computers, allowing high-throughput MR. Methodology/Principal Findings MrGrid is a portable web based application written in Java/JSP and Ruby, and taking advantage of Apple Xgrid technology. Designed to interface with a user defined Xgrid resource the package manages the distribution of multiple MR runs to the available nodes on the Xgrid. We evaluated MrGrid using 10 different protein test cases on a network of 13 computers, and achieved an average speed up factor of 5.69. Conclusions MrGrid enables the user to retrieve and manage the results of tens to hundreds of MR calculations quickly and via a single web interface, as well as broadening the range of strategies that can be attempted. This high-throughput approach allows parameter sweeps to be performed in parallel, improving the chances of MR success. PMID:20386612

On the fly quantum dynamics of electronic and nuclear wave packets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Komarova, Ksenia G.; Remacle, F.; Levine, R. D.

2018-05-01

Multielectronic states quantum dynamics on a grid is described in a manner motivated by on the fly classical trajectory computations. Non stationary electronic states are prepared by a few cycle laser pulse. The nuclei respond and begin moving. We solve the time dependent Schrödinger equation for the electronic and nuclear dynamics for excitation from the ground electronic state. A satisfactory accuracy is possible using a localized description on a discrete grid. This enables computing on the fly for both the nuclear and electronic dynamics including non-adiabatic couplings. Attosecond dynamics in LiH is used as an example.

The global lambda visualization facility: An international ultra-high-definition wide-area visualization collaboratory

USGS Publications Warehouse

Leigh, J.; Renambot, L.; Johnson, Aaron H.; Jeong, B.; Jagodic, R.; Schwarz, N.; Svistula, D.; Singh, R.; Aguilera, J.; Wang, X.; Vishwanath, V.; Lopez, B.; Sandin, D.; Peterka, T.; Girado, J.; Kooima, R.; Ge, J.; Long, L.; Verlo, A.; DeFanti, T.A.; Brown, M.; Cox, D.; Patterson, R.; Dorn, P.; Wefel, P.; Levy, S.; Talandis, J.; Reitzer, J.; Prudhomme, T.; Coffin, T.; Davis, B.; Wielinga, P.; Stolk, B.; Bum, Koo G.; Kim, J.; Han, S.; Corrie, B.; Zimmerman, T.; Boulanger, P.; Garcia, M.

2006-01-01

The research outlined in this paper marks an initial global cooperative effort between visualization and collaboration researchers to build a persistent virtual visualization facility linked by ultra-high-speed optical networks. The goal is to enable the comprehensive and synergistic research and development of the necessary hardware, software and interaction techniques to realize the next generation of end-user tools for scientists to collaborate on the global Lambda Grid. This paper outlines some of the visualization research projects that were demonstrated at the iGrid 2005 workshop in San Diego, California.

Technical Challenges and Potential Solutions for Cross-Country Multi-Terminal Superconducting DC Power Cables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Taie, A.; Graber, L.; Pamidi, S. V.

2017-12-01

Opportunities for applications of high temperature superconducting (HTS) DC power cables for long distance power transmission in increasing the reliability of the electric power grid and to enable easier integration of distributed renewable sources into the grid are discussed. The gaps in the technology developments both in the superconducting cable designs and cryogenic systems as well as power electronic devices are identified. Various technology components in multi-terminal high voltage DC power transmission networks and the available options are discussed. The potential of ongoing efforts in the development of superconducting DC transmission systems is discussed.

Residential Customer Enrollment in Time-based Rate and Enabling Technology Programs: Smart Grid Investment Grant Consumer Behavior Study Analysis

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

Todd, Annika; Cappers, Peter; Goldman, Charles

2013-05-01

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) program is working with a subset of the 99 SGIG projects undertaking Consumer Behavior Studies (CBS), which examine the response of mass market consumers (i.e., residential and small commercial customers) to time-varying electricity prices (referred to herein as time-based rate programs) in conjunction with the deployment of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and associated technologies. The effort presents an opportunity to advance the electric industry’s understanding of consumer behavior.

Resilient Core Networks for Energy Distribution

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

Kuntze, Nicolai; Rudolph, Carsten; Leivesley, Sally

2014-07-28

Abstract—Substations and their control are crucial for the availability of electricity in today’s energy distribution. Ad- vanced energy grids with Distributed Energy Resources require higher complexity in substations, distributed functionality and communication between devices inside substations and between substations. Also, substations include more and more intelligent devices and ICT based systems. All these devices are connected to other systems by different types of communication links or are situated in uncontrolled environments. Therefore, the risk of ICT based attacks on energy grids is growing. Consequently, security measures to counter these risks need to be an intrinsic part of energy grids. Thismore » paper introduces the concept of a Resilient Core Network to interconnected substations. This core network provides essen- tial security features, enables fast detection of attacks and allows for a distributed and autonomous mitigation of ICT based risks.« less

Blockchain: A Path to Grid Modernization and Cyber Resiliency

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

Mylrea, Michael E.; Gourisetti, Sri Nikhil G.

Blockchain may help solve several complex problems related to integrity and trustworthiness of rapid, distributed, complex energy transactions and data exchanges. In a move towards resilience, blockchain commoditizes trust and enables automated smart contracts to support auditable multiparty transactions based on predefined rules between distributed energy providers and customers. Blockchain based smart contracts also help remove the need to interact with third-parties, facilitating the adoption and monetization of distributed energy transactions and exchanges, both energy flows as well as financial transactions. This may help reduce transactive energy costs and increase the security and sustainability of distributed energy resource (DER) integration,more » helping to remove barriers to a more decentralized and resilient power grid. This paper explores the application of blockchain and smart contracts to improve smart grid cyber resiliency and secure transactive energy applications.« less

Smart signal processing for an evolving electric grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silva, Leandro Rodrigues Manso; Duque, Calos Augusto; Ribeiro, Paulo F.

2015-12-01

Electric grids are interconnected complex systems consisting of generation, transmission, distribution, and active loads, recently called prosumers as they produce and consume electric energy. Additionally, these encompass a vast array of equipment such as machines, power transformers, capacitor banks, power electronic devices, motors, etc. that are continuously evolving in their demand characteristics. Given these conditions, signal processing is becoming an essential assessment tool to enable the engineer and researcher to understand, plan, design, and operate the complex and smart electronic grid of the future. This paper focuses on recent developments associated with signal processing applied to power system analysis in terms of characterization and diagnostics. The following techniques are reviewed and their characteristics and applications discussed: active power system monitoring, sparse representation of power system signal, real-time resampling, and time-frequency (i.e., wavelets) applied to power fluctuations.

Borrego springs microgrid demonstration project

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

None, None

SDG&E has been developing and implementing the foundation for its Smart Grid platform for three decades – beginning with its innovations in automation and control technologies in the 1980s and 1990s, through its most recent Smart Meter deployment and re-engineering of operational processes enabled by new software applications in its OpEx 20/20 (Operational Excellence with a 20/20 Vision) program. SDG&E’s Smart Grid deployment efforts have been consistently acknowledged by industry observers. SDG&E’s commitment and progress has been recognized by IDC Energy Insights and Intelligent Utility Magazine as the nation’s “Most Intelligent Utility” for three consecutive years, winning this award eachmore » year since its inception. SDG&E also received the “Top Ten Utility” award for excellence in Smart Grid development from GreenTech Media.« less

An Integrated Software Package to Enable Predictive Simulation Capabilities

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

Chen, Yousu; Fitzhenry, Erin B.; Jin, Shuangshuang

The power grid is increasing in complexity due to the deployment of smart grid technologies. Such technologies vastly increase the size and complexity of power grid systems for simulation and modeling. This increasing complexity necessitates not only the use of high-performance-computing (HPC) techniques, but a smooth, well-integrated interplay between HPC applications. This paper presents a new integrated software package that integrates HPC applications and a web-based visualization tool based on a middleware framework. This framework can support the data communication between different applications. Case studies with a large power system demonstrate the predictive capability brought by the integrated software package,more » as well as the better situational awareness provided by the web-based visualization tool in a live mode. Test results validate the effectiveness and usability of the integrated software package.« less

Intelligent energy allocation strategy for PHEV charging station using gravitational search algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahman, Imran; Vasant, Pandian M.; Singh, Balbir Singh Mahinder; Abdullah-Al-Wadud, M.

2014-10-01

Recent researches towards the use of green technologies to reduce pollution and increase penetration of renewable energy sources in the transportation sector are gaining popularity. The development of the smart grid environment focusing on PHEVs may also heal some of the prevailing grid problems by enabling the implementation of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) concept. Intelligent energy management is an important issue which has already drawn much attention to researchers. Most of these works require formulation of mathematical models which extensively use computational intelligence-based optimization techniques to solve many technical problems. Higher penetration of PHEVs require adequate charging infrastructure as well as smart charging strategies. We used Gravitational Search Algorithm (GSA) to intelligently allocate energy to the PHEVs considering constraints such as energy price, remaining battery capacity, and remaining charging time.

New trends in the virtualization of hospitals--tools for global e-Health.

PubMed

Graschew, Georgi; Roelofs, Theo A; Rakowsky, Stefan; Schlag, Peter M; Heinzlreiter, Paul; Kranzlmüller, Dieter; Volkert, Jens

2006-01-01

The development of virtual hospitals and digital medicine helps to bridge the digital divide between different regions of the world and enables equal access to high-level medical care. Pre-operative planning, intra-operative navigation and minimally-invasive surgery require a digital and virtual environment supporting the perception of the physician. As data and computing resources in a virtual hospital are distributed over many sites the concept of the Grid should be integrated with other communication networks and platforms. A promising approach is the implementation of service-oriented architectures for an invisible grid, hiding complexity for both application developers and end-users. Examples of promising medical applications of Grid technology are the real-time 3D-visualization and manipulation of patient data for individualized treatment planning and the creation of distributed intelligent databases of medical images.

Musculoskeletal complaints among physiotherapy and occupational therapy rehabilitation professionals in Bangladesh.

PubMed

Islam, Md Shofiqul; Habib, Md Monjurul; Hafez, Md Abdul; Nahar, Nazmun; Lindstrom-Hazel, Debra; Rahman, Mohammad Khalilur

2015-01-01

Physiotherapy and occupational therapy professionals are at high risk of developing occupational musculoskeletal injuries globally. Musculoskeletal pain is the most common problem. To determine the extent of discomfort that physiotherapy and occupational therapy health professionals report while working at a physical rehabilitation centre. Physiotherapy and occupational therapy professionals which include both graduate and diploma physiotherapists and occupational therapists as well as physiotherapy and occupational therapy assistants. A self administered questionnaire (survey) was conducted on a convenient sample of 101 physiotherapy and occupational therapy personnel. The mean age of the 101 participants was 27.8 (± 4.5) years and most of the participants (62%) had less than 5 years of work experience. Ninety-five percent of the participants complained of work related pain. Most of the participants reported pain in the lower back (n=84) followed by upper back (n=71) and neck (n=66). Significant associations were found for pain in ankles/feet with age (p=0.05) and pain in neck with gender (p=0.01). Physiotherapy and occupational therapy professionals suffer from pain in relation to the work they do as therapists which may be due to non-practice of appropriate body mechanics. Mechanism to assess level of practice during dealing with patients may be introduced to enable corrective measures. Incentives should be considered for appropriate practice.

Background factors related to and/or influencing occupation in mentally disordered offenders.

PubMed

Lindstedt, Helena; Ivarsson, Ann-Britt; Söderlund, Anne

2006-09-01

Knowledge of background and occupational related factors of mentally disordered offenders are missing. It is essential to understand these issues when planning discharge from forensic psychiatric hospital care to enable community dwelling. One aim was to investigate mentally disordered offenders' background factors, confidence in and how they value occupations. Another aim was to investigate MDOs background factors' in relation to and the influences on Occupational Performance and Social Participation. Data was collected with an explorative, correlative design after informed consent, from 74 mentally disordered offenders (mean age 34,2) cared for in forensic psychiatric hospitals. Assessments were Allen Cognitive Level Screen, Capability to Perform Daily Occupations, Interview Schedule of Social Interaction, Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life, Self-efficacy Scale and Importance scale. Eight background factors were assembled from the individual forensic psychiatric investigation. Most of the investigated background factors relate to and half of them influence occupational performance, particular the cognitive aspect of occupational performance. The influences on occupation originate from adulthood, such as suffering from schizophrenia, psycho/social problems, and having performed violent crimes. These findings indicate that staff in forensic hospital care should initiate rehabilitation with knowledge about MDOs' complex daily occupations. For avoiding information bias, information gathering preceding treatment planning should be performed in collaboration between caring staff and mentally disordered offenders.

Management of accidental exposure to HIV: the COREVIH 2011 activity report.

PubMed

Rouveix, E; Bouvet, E; Vernat, F; Chansombat, M; Hamet, G; Pellissier, G

2014-03-01

Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) relies on procedures allowing quick access to treatment in case of accidental exposure to viral risk (AEV). Occupational blood exposure (OBE) affects mainly caregivers; these accidents are monitored and assessed by the inter-regional center for nosocomial infections (C-CLIN), occupational physicians, and infection control units. They are classified apart from sexual exposure for which there is currently no monitoring. Data was extracted from the COREVIH (steering committee for the prevention of HIV infection) 2011 activity reports (AR), available online. Data collection was performed using a standardized grid. Twenty-four out of 28 AR were available online. Nine thousand nine hundred and twenty AEV were reported, 44% of OBE, and 56% of sexual and other exposures. PEP was prescribed in 8% of OBE and in 77% of sexual exposures. The type of PEP was documented in 52% of the cases. Follow-up was poorly documented. AR provide an incomplete and heterogeneous review of exposure management without any standardized data collection. The difficulties encountered in data collection and monitoring are due to differences in care centers (complex patient circuits, multiple actors) and lack of common dedicated software. Sexual exposures account for 50% of AEV and most are treated; but they are incompletely reported and consequently not analyzed at the regional or national level. A typical AR collection grid is being studied in 2 COREVIH, with the objective to improve collection and obtain useful national data. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Intensive client-centred occupational therapy in the home improves older adults' occupational performance. Results from a Danish randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Nielsen, Tove Lise; Andersen, Niels Trolle; Petersen, Kirsten Schultz; Polatajko, Helene; Nielsen, Claus Vinther

2018-01-12

There is growing interest in enabling older adults' occupational performance. We tested whether 11 weeks of intensive client-centred occupational therapy (ICC-OT) was superior to usual practice in improving the occupational performance of home-dwelling older adults. An assessor-masked randomized controlled trial among adults 60 + with chronic health issues, who received or applied for homecare services. Recruitment took place September 2012 to April 2014. All participants received practical and personal assistance and meal delivery as needed. In addition, they were randomized to receive either a maximum 22 sessions of occupation-based ICC-OT (N = 59) or to receive usual practice with a maximum three sessions of occupational therapy (N = 60). The primary outcome was self-rated occupational performance assessed with the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM). No important adverse events occurred. ICC-OT was accepted by 46 participants (88%), usual practice by 60 (100%). After 3 months, the ICC-OT-group had improved 1.86 points on COPM performance; the Usual-Practice group had improved 0.61 points. The between-group difference was statistically significant (95% confidence interval 0.50 to 2.02), t-test: p = 0.001. ICC-OT improved older adults' occupational performance more effectively than usual practice. This result may benefit older adults and support programmatic changes.

Occupant-responsive optimal control of smart facade systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Cheol-Soo

Windows provide occupants with daylight, direct sunlight, visual contact with the outside and a feeling of openness. Windows enable the use of daylighting and offer occupants a outside view. Glazing may also cause a number of problems: undesired heat gain/loss in winter. An over-lit window can cause glare, which is another major complaint by occupants. Furthermore, cold or hot window surfaces induce asymmetric thermal radiation which can result in thermal discomfort. To reduce the potential problems of window systems, double skin facades and airflow window systems have been introduced in the 1970s. They typically contain interstitial louvers and ventilation openings. The current problem with double skin facades and airflow windows is that their operation requires adequate dynamic control to reach their expected performance. Many studies have recognized that only an optimal control enables these systems to truly act as active energy savers and indoor environment controllers. However, an adequate solution for this dynamic optimization problem has thus far not been developed. The primary objective of this study is to develop occupant responsive optimal control of smart facade systems. The control could be implemented as a smart controller that operates the motorized Venetian blind system and the opening ratio of ventilation openings. The objective of the control is to combine the benefits of large windows with low energy demands for heating and cooling, while keeping visual well-being and thermal comfort at an optimal level. The control uses a simulation model with an embedded optimization routine that allows occupant interaction via the Web. An occupant can access the smart controller from a standard browser and choose a pre-defined mode (energy saving mode, visual comfort mode, thermal comfort mode, default mode, nighttime mode) or set a preferred mode (user-override mode) by moving preference sliders on the screen. The most prominent feature of these systems is the capability of dynamically reacting to the environmental input data through real-time optimization. The proposed occupant responsive optimal control of smart facade systems could provide a breakthrough in this under-developed area and lead to a renewed interest in smart facade systems.

Graphic Representations as Tools for Decision Making.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Judith

2001-01-01

Focuses on the use of graphic representations to enable students to improve their decision making skills in the social studies. Explores three visual aids used in assisting students with decision making: (1) the force field; (2) the decision tree; and (3) the decision making grid. (CMK)

Enablers of and barriers to high quality clinical supervision among occupational therapists across Queensland in Australia: findings from a qualitative study.

PubMed

Martin, Priya; Kumar, Saravana; Lizarondo, Lucylynn; VanErp, Ans

2015-09-24

Health professionals practising in countries with dispersed populations such as Australia rely on clinical supervision for professional support. While there are directives and guidelines in place to govern clinical supervision, little is known about how it is actually conducted and what makes it effective. The purpose of this study was to explore the enablers of and barriers to high quality clinical supervision among occupational therapists across Queensland in Australia. This qualitative study took place as part of a broader project. Individual, in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with occupational therapy supervisees in Queensland. The interviews explored the enablers of and barriers to high quality clinical supervision in this group. They further explored some findings from the initial quantitative study. Content analysis of the interview data resulted in eight themes. These themes were broadly around the importance of the supervisory relationship, the impact of clinical supervision and the enablers of and barriers to high quality clinical supervision. This study identified a number of factors that were perceived to be associated with high quality clinical supervision. Supervisor-supervisee matching and fit, supervisory relationship and availability of supervisor for support in between clinical supervision sessions appeared to be associated with perceptions of higher quality of clinical supervision received. Some face-to-face contact augmented with telesupervision was found to improve perceptions of the quality of clinical supervision received via telephone. Lastly, dual roles where clinical supervision and line management were provided by the same person were not considered desirable by supervisees. A number of enablers of and barriers to high quality clinical supervision were also identified. With clinical supervision gaining increasing prominence as part of organisational and professional governance, this study provides important lessons for successful and sustainable clinical supervision in practice contexts.

"It's Not Much of a Life": The Benefits and Ethics of Using Life History Methods With People Who Inject Drugs in Qualitative Harm Reduction Research.

PubMed

Harris, Magdalena; Rhodes, Tim

2018-06-01

A life history approach enables study of how risk or health protection is shaped by critical transitions and turning points in a life trajectory and in the context of social environment and time. We employed visual and narrative life history methods with people who inject drugs to explore how hepatitis C protection was enabled and maintained over the life course. We overview our methodological approach, with a focus on the ethics in practice of using life history timelines and life-grids with 37 participants. The life-grid evoked mixed emotions for participants: pleasure in receiving a personalized visual history and pain elicited by its contents. A minority managed this pain with additional heroin use. The methodological benefits of using life history methods and visual aids have been extensively reported. Crucial to consider are the ethical implications of this process, particularly for people who lack socially ascribed markers of a "successful life."

Collaboration tools and techniques for large model datasets

USGS Publications Warehouse

Signell, R.P.; Carniel, S.; Chiggiato, J.; Janekovic, I.; Pullen, J.; Sherwood, C.R.

2008-01-01

In MREA and many other marine applications, it is common to have multiple models running with different grids, run by different institutions. Techniques and tools are described for low-bandwidth delivery of data from large multidimensional datasets, such as those from meteorological and oceanographic models, directly into generic analysis and visualization tools. Output is stored using the NetCDF CF Metadata Conventions, and then delivered to collaborators over the web via OPeNDAP. OPeNDAP datasets served by different institutions are then organized via THREDDS catalogs. Tools and procedures are then used which enable scientists to explore data on the original model grids using tools they are familiar with. It is also low-bandwidth, enabling users to extract just the data they require, an important feature for access from ship or remote areas. The entire implementation is simple enough to be handled by modelers working with their webmasters - no advanced programming support is necessary. ?? 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mapping Atmospheric Moisture Climatologies across the Conterminous United States

PubMed Central

Daly, Christopher; Smith, Joseph I.; Olson, Keith V.

2015-01-01

Spatial climate datasets of 1981–2010 long-term mean monthly average dew point and minimum and maximum vapor pressure deficit were developed for the conterminous United States at 30-arcsec (~800m) resolution. Interpolation of long-term averages (twelve monthly values per variable) was performed using PRISM (Parameter-elevation Relationships on Independent Slopes Model). Surface stations available for analysis numbered only 4,000 for dew point and 3,500 for vapor pressure deficit, compared to 16,000 for previously-developed grids of 1981–2010 long-term mean monthly minimum and maximum temperature. Therefore, a form of Climatologically-Aided Interpolation (CAI) was used, in which the 1981–2010 temperature grids were used as predictor grids. For each grid cell, PRISM calculated a local regression function between the interpolated climate variable and the predictor grid. Nearby stations entering the regression were assigned weights based on the physiographic similarity of the station to the grid cell that included the effects of distance, elevation, coastal proximity, vertical atmospheric layer, and topographic position. Interpolation uncertainties were estimated using cross-validation exercises. Given that CAI interpolation was used, a new method was developed to allow uncertainties in predictor grids to be accounted for in estimating the total interpolation error. Local land use/land cover properties had noticeable effects on the spatial patterns of atmospheric moisture content and deficit. An example of this was relatively high dew points and low vapor pressure deficits at stations located in or near irrigated fields. The new grids, in combination with existing temperature grids, enable the user to derive a full suite of atmospheric moisture variables, such as minimum and maximum relative humidity, vapor pressure, and dew point depression, with accompanying assumptions. All of these grids are available online at http://prism.oregonstate.edu, and include 800-m and 4-km resolution data, images, metadata, pedigree information, and station inventory files. PMID:26485026

Occupational therapy influence on a carer peer support model in a clinical mental health service.

PubMed

Bourke, Cate; Sanders, Bronwyn; Allchin, Becca; Lentin, Primrose; Lang, Shannon

2015-10-01

Current policy frameworks call for the participation of consumers and carers in all levels of mental health service delivery in Australia. Such inclusion leads to better outcomes for all, however, it is recognised that carers have needs and occupations beyond their carer role. The aim of this article is to describe an innovative carer peer support program developed by a group of occupational therapists. The article describes the rationale, phases of development and the role that occupational therapists played in developing and sustaining the model. This is followed by an exploration of the occupational therapy attitudes, knowledge and skills that contributed to the conceptualisation and implementation of the model. Five occupational therapists engaged in a review process involving documentation, literature review, evaluation, reflection and discussion. Four of the occupational therapists had either coordinated or managed the service described. The fifth author facilitated the process. Review of the model indicates it equips carers to perform their caring occupation and helps carers recognise the need for occupations beyond caring, for their health and wellbeing. Employing carers as paid workers values their 'real life' experience in their caring occupation. Findings also illustrate that the attitudes, knowledge, skills and competency standards of occupational therapists are well suited in enabling this emerging area of service delivery. Although this model has been developed in a clinical mental health setting, the key principles could be applied with carers or consumers across a variety of settings in which occupational therapists are employed. © 2015 Occupational Therapy Australia.

Grid cells on steeply sloping terrain: evidence for planar rather than volumetric encoding

PubMed Central

Hayman, Robin M. A.; Casali, Giulio; Wilson, Jonathan J.; Jeffery, Kate J.

2015-01-01

Neural encoding of navigable space involves a network of structures centered on the hippocampus, whose neurons –place cells – encode current location. Input to the place cells includes afferents from the entorhinal cortex, which contains grid cells. These are neurons expressing spatially localized activity patches, or firing fields, that are evenly spaced across the floor in a hexagonal close-packed array called a grid. It is thought that grids function to enable the calculation of distances. The question arises as to whether this odometry process operates in three dimensions, and so we queried whether grids permeate three-dimensional (3D) space – that is, form a lattice – or whether they simply follow the environment surface. If grids form a 3D lattice then this lattice would ordinarily be aligned horizontally (to explain the usual hexagonal pattern observed). A tilted floor would transect several layers of this putative lattice, resulting in interruption of the hexagonal pattern. We model this prediction with simulated grid lattices, and show that the firing of a grid cell on a 40°-tilted surface should cover proportionally less of the surface, with smaller field size, fewer fields, and reduced hexagonal symmetry. However, recording of real grid cells as animals foraged on a 40°-tilted surface found that firing of grid cells was almost indistinguishable, in pattern or rate, from that on the horizontal surface, with if anything increased coverage and field number, and preserved field size. It thus appears unlikely that the sloping surface transected a lattice. However, grid cells on the slope displayed slightly degraded firing patterns, with reduced coherence and slightly reduced symmetry. These findings collectively suggest that the grid cell component of the metric representation of space is not fixed in absolute 3D space but is influenced both by the surface the animal is on and by the relationship of this surface to the horizontal, supporting the hypothesis that the neural map of space is “multi-planar” rather than fully volumetric. PMID:26236245

Integrated Multi-Scale Data Analytics and Machine Learning for the Distribution Grid and Building-to-Grid Interface

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

Stewart, Emma M.; Hendrix, Val; Chertkov, Michael

This white paper introduces the application of advanced data analytics to the modernized grid. In particular, we consider the field of machine learning and where it is both useful, and not useful, for the particular field of the distribution grid and buildings interface. While analytics, in general, is a growing field of interest, and often seen as the golden goose in the burgeoning distribution grid industry, its application is often limited by communications infrastructure, or lack of a focused technical application. Overall, the linkage of analytics to purposeful application in the grid space has been limited. In this paper wemore » consider the field of machine learning as a subset of analytical techniques, and discuss its ability and limitations to enable the future distribution grid and the building-to-grid interface. To that end, we also consider the potential for mixing distributed and centralized analytics and the pros and cons of these approaches. Machine learning is a subfield of computer science that studies and constructs algorithms that can learn from data and make predictions and improve forecasts. Incorporation of machine learning in grid monitoring and analysis tools may have the potential to solve data and operational challenges that result from increasing penetration of distributed and behind-the-meter energy resources. There is an exponentially expanding volume of measured data being generated on the distribution grid, which, with appropriate application of analytics, may be transformed into intelligible, actionable information that can be provided to the right actors – such as grid and building operators, at the appropriate time to enhance grid or building resilience, efficiency, and operations against various metrics or goals – such as total carbon reduction or other economic benefit to customers. While some basic analysis into these data streams can provide a wealth of information, computational and human boundaries on performing the analysis are becoming significant, with more data and multi-objective concerns. Efficient applications of analysis and the machine learning field are being considered in the loop.« less

Irvine Smart Grid Demonstration, a Regional Smart Grid Demonstration Project

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

Yinger, Robert; Irwin, Mark

ISGD was a comprehensive demonstration that spanned the electricity delivery system and extended into customer homes. The project used phasor measurement technology to enable substation-level situational awareness, and demonstrated SCE’s next-generation substation automation system. It extended beyond the substation to evaluate the latest generation of distribution automation technologies, including looped 12-kV distribution circuit topology using URCIs. The project team used DVVC capabilities to demonstrate CVR. In customer homes, the project evaluated HAN devices such as smart appliances, programmable communicating thermostats, and home energy management components. The homes were also equipped with energy storage, solar PV systems, and a number ofmore » energy efficiency measures (EEMs). The team used one block of homes to evaluate strategies and technologies for achieving ZNE. A home achieves ZNE when it produces at least as much renewable energy as the amount of energy it consumes annually. The project also assessed the impact of device-specific demand response (DR), as well as load management capabilities involving energy storage devices and plug-in electric vehicle charging equipment. In addition, the ISGD project sought to better understand the impact of ZNE homes on the electric grid. ISGD’s SENet enabled end-to-end interoperability between multiple vendors’ systems and devices, while also providing a level of cybersecurity that is essential to smart grid development and adoption across the nation. The ISGD project includes a series of sub-projects grouped into four logical technology domains: Smart Energy Customer Solutions, Next-Generation Distribution System, Interoperability and Cybersecurity, and Workforce of the Future. Section 2.3 provides a more detailed overview of these domains.« less

Management decision making for fisher populations informed by occupancy modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fuller, Angela K.; Linden, Daniel W.; Royle, J. Andrew

2016-01-01

Harvest data are often used by wildlife managers when setting harvest regulations for species because the data are regularly collected and do not require implementation of logistically and financially challenging studies to obtain the data. However, when harvest data are not available because an area had not previously supported a harvest season, alternative approaches are required to help inform management decision making. When distribution or density data are required across large areas, occupancy modeling is a useful approach, and under certain conditions, can be used as a surrogate for density. We collaborated with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) to conduct a camera trapping study across a 70,096-km2 region of southern New York in areas that were currently open to fisher (Pekania [Martes] pennanti) harvest and those that had been closed to harvest for approximately 65 years. We used detection–nondetection data at 826 sites to model occupancy as a function of site-level landscape characteristics while accounting for sampling variation. Fisher occupancy was influenced positively by the proportion of conifer and mixed-wood forest within a 15-km2 grid cell and negatively associated with road density and the proportion of agriculture. Model-averaged predictions indicated high occupancy probabilities (>0.90) when road densities were low (<1 km/km2) and coniferous and mixed forest proportions were high (>0.50). Predicted occupancy ranged 0.41–0.67 in wildlife management units (WMUs) currently open to trapping, which could be used to guide a minimum occupancy threshold for opening new areas to trapping seasons. There were 5 WMUs that had been closed to trapping but had an average predicted occupancy of 0.52 (0.07 SE), and above the threshold of 0.41. These areas are currently under consideration by NYSDEC for opening a conservative harvest season. We demonstrate the use of occupancy modeling as an aid to management decision making when harvest-related data are unavailable and when budgetary constraints do not allow for capture–recapture studies to directly estimate density.

Global Marine Gravity and Bathymetry at 1-Minute Resolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandwell, D. T.; Smith, W. H.

2008-12-01

We have developed global gravity and bathymetry grids at 1-minute resolution. Three approaches are used to reduce the error in the satellite-derived marine gravity anomalies. First, we have retracked the raw waveforms from the ERS-1 and Geosat/GM missions resulting in improvements in range precision of 40% and 27%, respectively. Second, we have used the recently published EGM2008 global gravity model as a reference field to provide a seamless gravity transition from land to ocean. Third we have used a biharmonic spline interpolation method to construct residual vertical deflection grids. Comparisons between shipboard gravity and the global gravity grid show errors ranging from 2.0 mGal in the Gulf of Mexico to 4.0 mGal in areas with rugged seafloor topography. The largest errors occur on the crests of narrow large seamounts. The bathymetry grid is based on prediction from satellite gravity and available ship soundings. Global soundings were assembled from a wide variety of sources including NGDC/GEODAS, NOAA Coastal Relief, CCOM, IFREMER, JAMSTEC, NSF Polar Programs, UKHO, LDEO, HIG, SIO and numerous miscellaneous contributions. The National Geospatial-intelligence Agency and other volunteering hydrographic offices within the International Hydrographic Organization provided global significant shallow water (< 300 m) soundings derived from their nautical charts. All soundings were converted to a common format and were hand-edited in relation to a smooth bathymetric model. Land elevations and shoreline location are based on a combination SRTM30, GTOPO30, and ICESAT data. A new feature of the bathymetry grid is a matching grid of source identification number that enables one to establish the origin of the depth estimate in each grid cell. Both the gravity and bathymetry grids are freely available.

Coarse Grid Modeling of Turbine Film Cooling Flows Using Volumetric Source Terms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heidmann, James D.; Hunter, Scott D.

2001-01-01

The recent trend in numerical modeling of turbine film cooling flows has been toward higher fidelity grids and more complex geometries. This trend has been enabled by the rapid increase in computing power available to researchers. However, the turbine design community requires fast turnaround time in its design computations, rendering these comprehensive simulations ineffective in the design cycle. The present study describes a methodology for implementing a volumetric source term distribution in a coarse grid calculation that can model the small-scale and three-dimensional effects present in turbine film cooling flows. This model could be implemented in turbine design codes or in multistage turbomachinery codes such as APNASA, where the computational grid size may be larger than the film hole size. Detailed computations of a single row of 35 deg round holes on a flat plate have been obtained for blowing ratios of 0.5, 0.8, and 1.0, and density ratios of 1.0 and 2.0 using a multiblock grid system to resolve the flows on both sides of the plate as well as inside the hole itself. These detailed flow fields were spatially averaged to generate a field of volumetric source terms for each conservative flow variable. Solutions were also obtained using three coarse grids having streamwise and spanwise grid spacings of 3d, 1d, and d/3. These coarse grid solutions used the integrated hole exit mass, momentum, energy, and turbulence quantities from the detailed solutions as volumetric source terms. It is shown that a uniform source term addition over a distance from the wall on the order of the hole diameter is able to predict adiabatic film effectiveness better than a near-wall source term model, while strictly enforcing correct values of integrated boundary layer quantities.

An interpolation-free ALE scheme for unsteady inviscid flows computations with large boundary displacements over three-dimensional adaptive grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Re, B.; Dobrzynski, C.; Guardone, A.

2017-07-01

A novel strategy to solve the finite volume discretization of the unsteady Euler equations within the Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian framework over tetrahedral adaptive grids is proposed. The volume changes due to local mesh adaptation are treated as continuous deformations of the finite volumes and they are taken into account by adding fictitious numerical fluxes to the governing equation. This peculiar interpretation enables to avoid any explicit interpolation of the solution between different grids and to compute grid velocities so that the Geometric Conservation Law is automatically fulfilled also for connectivity changes. The solution on the new grid is obtained through standard ALE techniques, thus preserving the underlying scheme properties, such as conservativeness, stability and monotonicity. The adaptation procedure includes node insertion, node deletion, edge swapping and points relocation and it is exploited both to enhance grid quality after the boundary movement and to modify the grid spacing to increase solution accuracy. The presented approach is assessed by three-dimensional simulations of steady and unsteady flow fields. The capability of dealing with large boundary displacements is demonstrated by computing the flow around the translating infinite- and finite-span NACA 0012 wing moving through the domain at the flight speed. The proposed adaptive scheme is applied also to the simulation of a pitching infinite-span wing, where the bi-dimensional character of the flow is well reproduced despite the three-dimensional unstructured grid. Finally, the scheme is exploited in a piston-induced shock-tube problem to take into account simultaneously the large deformation of the domain and the shock wave. In all tests, mesh adaptation plays a crucial role.

Analytical Computation of Effective Grid Parameters for the Finite-Difference Seismic Waveform Modeling With the PREM, IASP91, SP6, and AK135

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toyokuni, G.; Takenaka, H.

2007-12-01

We propose a method to obtain effective grid parameters for the finite-difference (FD) method with standard Earth models using analytical ways. In spite of the broad use of the heterogeneous FD formulation for seismic waveform modeling, accurate treatment of material discontinuities inside the grid cells has been a serious problem for many years. One possible way to solve this problem is to introduce effective grid elastic moduli and densities (effective parameters) calculated by the volume harmonic averaging of elastic moduli and volume arithmetic averaging of density in grid cells. This scheme enables us to put a material discontinuity into an arbitrary position in the spatial grids. Most of the methods used for synthetic seismogram calculation today receives the blessing of the standard Earth models, such as the PREM, IASP91, SP6, and AK135, represented as functions of normalized radius. For the FD computation of seismic waveform with such models, we first need accurate treatment of material discontinuities in radius. This study provides a numerical scheme for analytical calculations of the effective parameters for an arbitrary spatial grids in radial direction as to these major four standard Earth models making the best use of their functional features. This scheme can analytically obtain the integral volume averages through partial fraction decompositions (PFDs) and integral formulae. We have developed a FORTRAN subroutine to perform the computations, which is opened to utilization in a large variety of FD schemes ranging from 1-D to 3-D, with conventional- and staggered-grids. In the presentation, we show some numerical examples displaying the accuracy of the FD synthetics simulated with the analytical effective parameters.

A Testbed Environment for Buildings-to-Grid Cyber Resilience Research and Development

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

Sridhar, Siddharth; Ashok, Aditya; Mylrea, Michael E.

The Smart Grid is characterized by the proliferation of advanced digital controllers at all levels of its operational hierarchy from generation to end consumption. Such controllers within modern residential and commercial buildings enable grid operators to exercise fine-grained control over energy consumption through several emerging Buildings-to-Grid (B2G) applications. Though this capability promises significant benefits in terms of operational economics and improved reliability, cybersecurity weaknesses in the supporting infrastructure could be exploited to cause a detrimental effect and this necessitates focused research efforts on two fronts. First, the understanding of how cyber attacks in the B2G space could impact grid reliabilitymore » and to what extent. Second, the development and validation of cyber-physical application-specific countermeasures that are complementary to traditional infrastructure cybersecurity mechanisms for enhanced cyber attack detection and mitigation. The PNNL B2G testbed is currently being developed to address these core research needs. Specifically, the B2G testbed combines high-fidelity buildings+grid simulators, industry-grade building automation and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems in an integrated, realistic, and reconfigurable environment capable of supporting attack-impact-detection-mitigation experimentation. In this paper, we articulate the need for research testbeds to model various B2G applications broadly by looking at the end-to-end operational hierarchy of the Smart Grid. Finally, the paper not only describes the architecture of the B2G testbed in detail, but also addresses the broad spectrum of B2G resilience research it is capable of supporting based on the smart grid operational hierarchy identified earlier.« less

Non-Pilot Protection of the HVDC Grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badrkhani Ajaei, Firouz

This thesis develops a non-pilot protection system for the next generation power transmission system, the High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) grid. The HVDC grid protection system is required to be (i) adequately fast to prevent damages and/or converter blocking and (ii) reliable to minimize the impacts of faults. This study is mainly focused on the Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) -based HVDC grid since the MMC is considered as the building block of the future HVDC systems. The studies reported in this thesis include (i) developing an enhanced equivalent model of the MMC to enable accurate representation of its DC-side fault response, (ii) developing a realistic HVDC-AC test system that includes a five-terminal MMC-based HVDC grid embedded in a large interconnected AC network, (iii) investigating the transient response of the developed test system to AC-side and DC-side disturbances in order to determine the HVDC grid protection requirements, (iv) investigating the fault surge propagation in the HVDC grid to determine the impacts of the DC-side fault location on the measured signals at each relay location, (v) designing a protection algorithm that detects and locates DC-side faults reliably and sufficiently fast to prevent relay malfunction and unnecessary blocking of the converters, and (vi) performing hardware-in-the-loop tests on the designed relay to verify its potential to be implemented in hardware. The results of the off-line time domain transients studies in the PSCAD software platform and the real-time hardware-in-the-loop tests using an enhanced version of the RTDS platform indicate that the developed HVDC grid relay meets all technical requirements including speed, dependability, security, selectivity, and robustness. Moreover, the developed protection algorithm does not impose considerable computational burden on the hardware.

Visually Imperceptible Liquid-Metal Circuits for Transparent, Stretchable Electronics with Direct Laser Writing.

PubMed

Pan, Chengfeng; Kumar, Kitty; Li, Jianzhao; Markvicka, Eric J; Herman, Peter R; Majidi, Carmel

2018-03-01

A material architecture and laser-based microfabrication technique is introduced to produce electrically conductive films (sheet resistance = 2.95 Ω sq -1 ; resistivity = 1.77 × 10 -6 Ω m) that are soft, elastic (strain limit >100%), and optically transparent. The films are composed of a grid-like array of visually imperceptible liquid-metal (LM) lines on a clear elastomer. Unlike previous efforts in transparent LM circuitry, the current approach enables fully imperceptible electronics that have not only high optical transmittance (>85% at 550 nm) but are also invisible under typical lighting conditions and reading distances. This unique combination of properties is enabled with a laser writing technique that results in LM grid patterns with a line width and pitch as small as 4.5 and 100 µm, respectively-yielding grid-like wiring that has adequate conductivity for digital functionality but is also well below the threshold for visual perception. The electrical, mechanical, electromechanical, and optomechanical properties of the films are characterized and it is found that high conductivity and transparency are preserved at tensile strains of ≈100%. To demonstrate their effectiveness for emerging applications in transparent displays and sensing electronics, the material architecture is incorporated into a couple of illustrative use cases related to chemical hazard warning. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Empowerment and occupational engagement among people with psychiatric disabilities.

PubMed

Hultqvist, Jenny; Eklund, Mona; Leufstadius, Christel

2015-01-01

Empowerment is essential in the rehabilitation process for people with psychiatric disabilities and knowledge about factors that may play a key role within this process would be valuable for further development of the day centre services. The present study investigates day centre attendees' perceptions of empowerment. The aim was to investigate which factors show the strongest relationships to empowerment when considering occupational engagement, client satisfaction with day centres, and health-related and socio-demographic factors as correlates. 123 Swedish day centre attendees participated in a cross-sectional study by completing questionnaires regarding empowerment and the targeted correlates. Data were analysed with non-parametric statistics. Empowerment was shown to be significantly correlated with occupational engagement and client satisfaction and also with self-rated health and symptoms rated by a research assistant. The strongest indicator for belonging to the group with the highest ratings on empowerment was self-rated health, followed by occupational engagement and symptom severity. Occupational engagement added to the beneficial influence of self-rated health on empowerment. Enabling occupational engagement in meaningful activities and providing occupations that can generate client satisfaction is an important focus for day centres in order to assist the attendees' rehabilitation process so that it promotes empowerment.

Addressing agricultural issues in health care education: an occupational therapy curriculum program description.

PubMed

Smallfield, Stacy; Anderson, Angela J

2008-01-01

Medical and allied health professionals who work in agricultural states frequently address the needs of clients who live and work in rural and frontier environments. The primary occupations of those living in rural areas include farming, ranching, or other agriculture-related work. Farming is consistently ranked as one of the most high-risk occupations for work-related injuries and accidents; therefore, it is critical that health education programs include content to prepare future medical and health professionals to work with this population. This paper describes the rural issues component of the occupational therapy curriculum at The University of South Dakota. This rural issues module is designed to provide occupational therapists with training about the physical, temporal, and sociocultural aspects of production agriculture and the impact these have on the health and well-being of the agricultural population. It also addresses the occupational therapy implications for farmers and ranchers who have disabilities. Student assessments of the course content have been above average. Training in agricultural health enables our occupational therapy students to be well prepared for work in the rural and frontier areas of South Dakota and other rural locations.

Exploring poverty: skeletal biology and documentary evidence in 19th-20th century Portugal.

PubMed

Alves Cardoso, Francisca; Assis, Sandra; Henderson, Charlotte

2016-01-01

The inference of the state of wealth or poverty from human skeletal remains is a difficult task, as the limited number of skeletal changes are mediated by numerous other physiological, biomechanical and pathological events. In recent years, identified skeletal collections have become valuable resources in enabling aetiologies of these changes to be understood while controlling for some known causative factors, e.g. age, sex and occupation. This has favoured more rigorous data analysis and interpretation. This study compares the presence of osteological makers of occupation - specifically degenerative joint changes (DJC) - between socio-economically framed occupational groups whilst controlling for age-at-death. A total of 603 individuals were distributed into seven occupational groups used as a proxy for their socio-economic status. The results demonstrated that age was a contributing factor for DJC. Differences between occupational groups were only found for the hips, right shoulder and ankle. Differences found were not necessarily representative of low vs high socio-economic status. Furthermore, there are limitations associated with the use of occupation-at-death, based on documentary evidence, which does not necessarily reflect wealth-status.

Advances in Parallelization for Large Scale Oct-Tree Mesh Generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

O'Connell, Matthew; Karman, Steve L.

2015-01-01

Despite great advancements in the parallelization of numerical simulation codes over the last 20 years, it is still common to perform grid generation in serial. Generating large scale grids in serial often requires using special "grid generation" compute machines that can have more than ten times the memory of average machines. While some parallel mesh generation techniques have been proposed, generating very large meshes for LES or aeroacoustic simulations is still a challenging problem. An automated method for the parallel generation of very large scale off-body hierarchical meshes is presented here. This work enables large scale parallel generation of off-body meshes by using a novel combination of parallel grid generation techniques and a hybrid "top down" and "bottom up" oct-tree method. Meshes are generated using hardware commonly found in parallel compute clusters. The capability to generate very large meshes is demonstrated by the generation of off-body meshes surrounding complex aerospace geometries. Results are shown including a one billion cell mesh generated around a Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle geometry, which was generated on 64 processors in under 45 minutes.

Power Hardware-in-the-Loop Testing of a Smart Distribution System

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

Mendoza Carrillo, Ismael; Breaden, Craig; Medley, Paige

This paper presents the results of the third and final phase of the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) INTEGRATE demonstration: Smart Distribution. For this demonstration, high penetrations of solar PV and wind energy systems were simulated in a power hardware-in-the-loop set-up using a smart distribution test feeder. Simulated and real DERs were controlled by a real-time control platform, which manages grid constraints under high clean energy deployment levels. The power HIL testing, conducted at NREL's ESIF smart power lab, demonstrated how dynamically managing DER increases the grid's hosting capacity by leveraging active network management's (ANM) safe and reliable control framework.more » Results are presented for how ANM's real-time monitoring, automation, and control can be used to manage multiple DERs and multiple constraints associated with high penetrations of DER on a distribution grid. The project also successfully demonstrated the importance of escalating control actions given how ANM enables operation of grid equipment closer to their actual physical limit in the presence of very high levels of intermittent DER.« less

The smart meter and a smarter consumer: quantifying the benefits of smart meter implementation in the United States.

PubMed

Cook, Brendan; Gazzano, Jerrome; Gunay, Zeynep; Hiller, Lucas; Mahajan, Sakshi; Taskan, Aynur; Vilogorac, Samra

2012-04-23

The electric grid in the United States has been suffering from underinvestment for years, and now faces pressing challenges from rising demand and deteriorating infrastructure. High congestion levels in transmission lines are greatly reducing the efficiency of electricity generation and distribution. In this paper, we assess the faults of the current electric grid and quantify the costs of maintaining the current system into the future. While the proposed "smart grid" contains many proposals to upgrade the ailing infrastructure of the electric grid, we argue that smart meter installation in each U.S. household will offer a significant reduction in peak demand on the current system. A smart meter is a device which monitors a household's electricity consumption in real-time, and has the ability to display real-time pricing in each household. We conclude that these devices will provide short-term and long-term benefits to utilities and consumers. The smart meter will enable utilities to closely monitor electricity consumption in real-time, while also allowing households to adjust electricity consumption in response to real-time price adjustments.

Grids, Clouds, and Virtualization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cafaro, Massimo; Aloisio, Giovanni

This chapter introduces and puts in context Grids, Clouds, and Virtualization. Grids promised to deliver computing power on demand. However, despite a decade of active research, no viable commercial grid computing provider has emerged. On the other hand, it is widely believed - especially in the Business World - that HPC will eventually become a commodity. Just as some commercial consumers of electricity have mission requirements that necessitate they generate their own power, some consumers of computational resources will continue to need to provision their own supercomputers. Clouds are a recent business-oriented development with the potential to render this eventually as rare as organizations that generate their own electricity today, even among institutions who currently consider themselves the unassailable elite of the HPC business. Finally, Virtualization is one of the key technologies enabling many different Clouds. We begin with a brief history in order to put them in context, and recall the basic principles and concepts underlying and clearly differentiating them. A thorough overview and survey of existing technologies provides the basis to delve into details as the reader progresses through the book.

Analyzing system safety in lithium-ion grid energy storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosewater, David; Williams, Adam

2015-12-01

As grid energy storage systems become more complex, it grows more difficult to design them for safe operation. This paper first reviews the properties of lithium-ion batteries that can produce hazards in grid scale systems. Then the conventional safety engineering technique Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) is reviewed to identify its limitations in complex systems. To address this gap, new research is presented on the application of Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis (STPA) to a lithium-ion battery based grid energy storage system. STPA is anticipated to fill the gaps recognized in PRA for designing complex systems and hence be more effective or less costly to use during safety engineering. It was observed that STPA is able to capture causal scenarios for accidents not identified using PRA. Additionally, STPA enabled a more rational assessment of uncertainty (all that is not known) thereby promoting a healthy skepticism of design assumptions. We conclude that STPA may indeed be more cost effective than PRA for safety engineering in lithium-ion battery systems. However, further research is needed to determine if this approach actually reduces safety engineering costs in development, or improves industry safety standards.

Smart Grid Interoperability Maturity Model Beta Version

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

Widergren, Steven E.; Drummond, R.; Giroti, Tony

The GridWise Architecture Council was formed by the U.S. Department of Energy to promote and enable interoperability among the many entities that interact with the electric power system. This balanced team of industry representatives proposes principles for the development of interoperability concepts and standards. The Council provides industry guidance and tools that make it an available resource for smart grid implementations. In the spirit of advancing interoperability of an ecosystem of smart grid devices and systems, this document presents a model for evaluating the maturity of the artifacts and processes that specify the agreement of parties to collaborate across anmore » information exchange interface. You are expected to have a solid understanding of large, complex system integration concepts and experience in dealing with software component interoperation. Those without this technical background should read the Executive Summary for a description of the purpose and contents of the document. Other documents, such as checklists, guides, and whitepapers, exist for targeted purposes and audiences. Please see the www.gridwiseac.org website for more products of the Council that may be of interest to you.« less

NUMERICAL MODELS AS ENABLING TOOLS FOR TIDAL-STREAM ENERGY EXTRACTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT

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

Yang, Zhaoqing; Wang, Taiping

This paper presents a modeling study conducted to evaluate tidal-stream energy extraction and its associated potential environmental impacts using a three-dimensional unstructured-grid coastal ocean model, which was coupled with a water-quality model and a tidal-turbine module.

Mobility Patterns Informing V2X Research Projects: Eco-Routing and Electrified Roadway Project Examples

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

Gonder, Jeff; Brooker, Aaron; Burton, Evan

Presentation given at an 'Expert Workshop on V2X Enabled Electric Vehicles' hosted at NREL on behalf of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Implementing Agreement for Task 28: Home Grids and V2X Technologies.

Increase in fault ride through capability of direct drive permanent magnet based wind farm using VSC-HVDC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maleki, Hesamaldin; Ramachandaramurthy, V. K.; Lak, Moein

2013-06-01

Burning of fossil fuels and green house gasses causes global warming. This has led to governments to explore the use of green energies instead of fossil fuels. The availability of wind has made wind technology a viable alternative for generating electrical power. Hence, many parts of the world, especially Europe are experiencing a growth in wind farms. However, by increasing the number of wind farms connected to the grid, power quality and voltage stability of grid becomes a matter of concern. In this paper, VSC-HVDC control strategy which enables the wind farm to ride-through faults and regulate voltage for fault types is proposed. The results show that the wind turbine output voltage fulfills the E.ON grid code requirements, when subjected to three phase to ground fault. Hence, continues operation of the wind farm is achieved.

Security Policies for Mitigating the Risk of Load Altering Attacks on Smart Grid Systems

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

Ryutov, Tatyana; AlMajali, Anas; Neuman, Clifford

2015-04-01

While demand response programs implement energy efficiency and power quality objectives, they bring potential security threats to the Smart Grid. The ability to influence load in a system enables attackers to cause system failures and impacts the quality and integrity of power delivered to customers. This paper presents a security mechanism to monitor and control load according to a set of security policies during normal system operation. The mechanism monitors, detects, and responds to load altering attacks. We examined the security requirements of Smart Grid stakeholders and constructed a set of load control policies enforced by the mechanism. We implementedmore » a proof of concept prototype and tested it using the simulation environment. By enforcing the proposed policies in this prototype, the system is maintained in a safe state in the presence of load drop attacks.« less

The Proteome Folding Project: Proteome-scale prediction of structure and function

PubMed Central

Drew, Kevin; Winters, Patrick; Butterfoss, Glenn L.; Berstis, Viktors; Uplinger, Keith; Armstrong, Jonathan; Riffle, Michael; Schweighofer, Erik; Bovermann, Bill; Goodlett, David R.; Davis, Trisha N.; Shasha, Dennis; Malmström, Lars; Bonneau, Richard

2011-01-01

The incompleteness of proteome structure and function annotation is a critical problem for biologists and, in particular, severely limits interpretation of high-throughput and next-generation experiments. We have developed a proteome annotation pipeline based on structure prediction, where function and structure annotations are generated using an integration of sequence comparison, fold recognition, and grid-computing-enabled de novo structure prediction. We predict protein domain boundaries and three-dimensional (3D) structures for protein domains from 94 genomes (including human, Arabidopsis, rice, mouse, fly, yeast, Escherichia coli, and worm). De novo structure predictions were distributed on a grid of more than 1.5 million CPUs worldwide (World Community Grid). We generated significant numbers of new confident fold annotations (9% of domains that are otherwise unannotated in these genomes). We demonstrate that predicted structures can be combined with annotations from the Gene Ontology database to predict new and more specific molecular functions. PMID:21824995

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

Wilder, Todd; Moragne, Corliss L.

The City of Tallahassee's Innovative Energy Initiatives program sought, first, to evaluate customer response and acceptance to in-home Smart Meter-enabled technologies that allow customers intelligent control of their energy usage. Additionally, this project is in furtherance of the City of Tallahassee's ongoing efforts to expand and enhance the City's Smart Grid capacity and give consumers more tools with which to effectively manage their energy consumption. This enhancement would become possible by establishing an "operations or command center" environment that would be designed as a dual use facility for the City's employees - field and network staff - and systems responsiblemore » for a Smart Grid network. A command center would also support the City's Office of Electric Delivery and Energy Reliability's objective to overcome barriers to the deployment of new technologies that will ensure a truly modern and robust grid capable of meeting the demands of the 2151 century.« less

Monitoring of the electrical parameters in off-grid solar power system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Idzkowski, Adam; Leoniuk, Katarzyna; Walendziuk, Wojciech

2016-09-01

The aim of this work was to make a monitoring dedicated to an off-grid installation. A laboratory set, which was built for that purpose, was equipped with a PV panel, a battery, a charge controller and a load. Additionally, to monitor electrical parameters from this installation there were used: LabJack module (data acquisition card), measuring module (self-built) and a computer with a program, which allows to measure and present the off-grid installation parameters. The program was made in G language using LabVIEW software. The designed system enables analyzing the currents and voltages of PV panel, battery and load. It makes also possible to visualize them on charts and to make reports from registered data. The monitoring system was also verified by a laboratory test and in real conditions. The results of this verification are also presented.

Compact, Interactive Electric Vehicle Charger: Gallium-Nitride Switch Technology for Bi-directional Battery-to-Grid Charger Applications

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

None

2010-10-01

ADEPT Project: HRL Laboratories is using gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors to create battery chargers for electric vehicles (EVs) that are more compact and efficient than traditional EV chargers. Reducing the size and weight of the battery charger is important because it would help improve the overall performance of the EV. GaN semiconductors process electricity faster than the silicon semiconductors used in most conventional EV battery chargers. These high-speed semiconductors can be paired with lighter-weight electrical circuit components, which helps decrease the overall weight of the EV battery charger. HRL Laboratories is combining the performance advantages of GaN semiconductors with anmore » innovative, interactive battery-to-grid energy distribution design. This design would support 2-way power flow, enabling EV battery chargers to not only draw energy from the power grid, but also store and feed energy back into it.« less

A gateway for phylogenetic analysis powered by grid computing featuring GARLI 2.0.

PubMed

Bazinet, Adam L; Zwickl, Derrick J; Cummings, Michael P

2014-09-01

We introduce molecularevolution.org, a publicly available gateway for high-throughput, maximum-likelihood phylogenetic analysis powered by grid computing. The gateway features a garli 2.0 web service that enables a user to quickly and easily submit thousands of maximum likelihood tree searches or bootstrap searches that are executed in parallel on distributed computing resources. The garli web service allows one to easily specify partitioned substitution models using a graphical interface, and it performs sophisticated post-processing of phylogenetic results. Although the garli web service has been used by the research community for over three years, here we formally announce the availability of the service, describe its capabilities, highlight new features and recent improvements, and provide details about how the grid system efficiently delivers high-quality phylogenetic results. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press, on behalf of the Society of Systematic Biologists.

Collaborative Simulation Grid: Multiscale Quantum-Mechanical/Classical Atomistic Simulations on Distributed PC Clusters in the US and Japan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kikuchi, Hideaki; Kalia, Rajiv; Nakano, Aiichiro; Vashishta, Priya; Iyetomi, Hiroshi; Ogata, Shuji; Kouno, Takahisa; Shimojo, Fuyuki; Tsuruta, Kanji; Saini, Subhash;

An Empirical Model for Vane-Type Vortex Generators in a Navier-Stokes Code

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dudek, Julianne C.

2005-01-01

An empirical model which simulates the effects of vane-type vortex generators in ducts was incorporated into the Wind-US Navier-Stokes computational fluid dynamics code. The model enables the effects of the vortex generators to be simulated without defining the details of the geometry within the grid, and makes it practical for researchers to evaluate multiple combinations of vortex generator arrangements. The model determines the strength of each vortex based on the generator geometry and the local flow conditions. Validation results are presented for flow in a straight pipe with a counter-rotating vortex generator arrangement, and the results are compared with experimental data and computational simulations using a gridded vane generator. Results are also presented for vortex generator arrays in two S-duct diffusers, along with accompanying experimental data. The effects of grid resolution and turbulence model are also examined.

Grid Inertial Response-Based Probabilistic Determination of Energy Storage System Capacity Under High Solar Penetration

DOE PAGES

Yue, Meng; Wang, Xiaoyu

2015-07-01

It is well-known that responsive battery energy storage systems (BESSs) are an effective means to improve the grid inertial response to various disturbances including the variability of the renewable generation. One of the major issues associated with its implementation is the difficulty in determining the required BESS capacity mainly due to the large amount of inherent uncertainties that cannot be accounted for deterministically. In this study, a probabilistic approach is proposed to properly size the BESS from the perspective of the system inertial response, as an application of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). The proposed approach enables a risk-informed decision-making processmore » regarding (1) the acceptable level of solar penetration in a given system and (2) the desired BESS capacity (and minimum cost) to achieve an acceptable grid inertial response with a certain confidence level.« less

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

Denholm, Paul

While it may seem obvious that wind and solar 'need' energy storage to be successfully integrated into the world's electricity grids, both detailed integration studies and real-world experience have shown that storage is only one of many options that could enable substantially increased growth of these renewable resources. This talk will discuss the potential role of energy storage in the integrating wind and solar, demonstrating that in the near term perhaps less exciting -- but often more cost-effective -- alternatives will likely provide much of the grid flexibility needed to add renewable resources. The talk will also demonstrate that themore » decreasing value of PV and wind and at increased penetration creates greater opportunities for storage. It also demonstrates the fact that 'the sun doesn't always shine and the wind always doesn't blow' is only one reason why energy storage may be an increasingly attractive solution to the challenges of operating the grid of the future.« less

Performance of large area xenon ion thrusters for orbit transfer missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rawlin, Vincent K.

1989-01-01

Studies have indicated that xenon ion propulsion systems can enable the use of smaller Earth-launch vehicles for satellite placement which results in significant cost savings. These analyses have assumed the availability of advanced, high power ion thrusters operating at about 10 kW or higher. A program was initiated to explore the viability of operating 50 cm diameter ion thrusters at this power level. Operation with several discharge chamber and ion extraction grid set combinations has been demonstrated and data were obtained at power levels to 16 kW. Fifty cm diameter thrusters using state of the art 30 cm diameter grids or advanced technology 50 cm diameter grids allow discharge power and beam current densities commensurate with long life at power levels up to 10 kW. In addition, 50 cm diameter thrusters are shown to have the potential for growth in thrust and power levels beyond 10 KW.

NB-PLC channel modelling with cyclostationary noise addition & OFDM implementation for smart grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Togis; Gupta, K. K.

2016-03-01

Power line communication (PLC) technology can be a viable solution for the future ubiquitous networks because it provides a cheaper alternative to other wired technology currently being used for communication. In smart grid Power Line Communication (PLC) is used to support communication with low rate on low voltage (LV) distribution network. In this paper, we propose the channel modelling of narrowband (NB) PLC in the frequency range 5 KHz to 500 KHz by using ABCD parameter with cyclostationary noise addition. Behaviour of the channel was studied by the addition of 11KV/230V transformer, by varying load location and load. Bit error rate (BER) Vs signal to noise ratio SNR) was plotted for the proposed model by employing OFDM. Our simulation results based on the proposed channel model show an acceptable performance in terms of bit error rate versus signal to noise ratio, which enables communication required for smart grid applications.

Energy Edge Post-Occupancy Evaluation Project: The Emerald People's Utility District Building (EPUD) Eugene, Oregon

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

Not Available

1990-06-01

The Workspace Satisfaction Survey measures occupant satisfaction with the thermal, lighting, acoustical, and air quality aspects of the work environment. In addition to ratings of these ambient environmental features, occupants also rate their satisfaction with a number of functional and aesthetic features of the office environment as well as their satisfaction with specific kinds of workspaces (e.g., computer rooms, the lobby, employee lounge, etc.). Each section on ambient conditions includes questions on the frequency with which people experience particular kinds of discomforts or problems, how much the discomfort bothers them, and how much it interferes with their work. Occupants aremore » also asked to identify how they cope with discomfort or environmental problems, and to what extent these behaviors enable them to achieve more satisfactory conditions. This report documents the results of this survey of the occupants of the Emerald People's Utility District office building in Eugene, Oregon.« less

Energy Edge Post-Occupancy Evaluation Project: The Eugene Water and Electric Board Building (EWEB) Eugene, Oregon

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

Not Available

1990-06-01

The Workspace Satisfaction Survey measures occupant satisfaction with the thermal, lighting, acoustical, and air quality aspects of the work environment. In addition to ratings of these ambient environmental features, occupants also rate their satisfaction with a number of functional and aesthetic features of the office environment as well as their satisfaction with specific kinds of workspaces (e.g., computer rooms, the lobby, employee lounge, etc.) Each section on ambient conditions includes questions on the frequency with which people experience particular kinds of discomforts or problems, how much the discomfort bothers them, and how much it interferes with their work. Occupants aremore » also asked to identify how they cope with discomfort or environmental problems, and to what extent these behaviors enable them to achieve more satisfactory conditions. Results of this survey of occupants of the four story Eugene Water Electric Boards (EWEB) main office building on the banks of the Wilamette River in Eugene, Oregon are the subject of this report.« less

[Wet work].

PubMed

Kieć-Swierczyńska, Marta; Chomiczewska, Dorota; Krecisz, Beata

2010-01-01

Wet work is one of the most important risk factors of occupational skin diseases. Exposure of hands to the wet environment for more than 2 hours daily, wearing moisture-proof protective gloves for a corresponding period of time or necessity to wash hands frequently lead to the disruption of epidermal stratum corneum, damage to skin barrier function and induction of irritant contact dermatitis. It may also promote penetration of allergens into the skin and increase the risk of sensitization to occupational allergens. Exposure to wet work plays a significant role in occupations, such as hairdressers and barbers, nurses and other health care workers, cleaning staff, food handlers and metalworkers. It is more common among women because many occupations involving wet work are female-dominated. The incidence of wet-work-induced occupational skin diseases can be reduced by taking appropriate preventive measures. These include identification of high-risk groups, education of workers, organization of work enabling to minimize the exposure to wet work, use of personal protective equipment and skin care after work.

Investigation of occupational asthma: Do clinicians fail to identify relevant occupational exposures?

PubMed Central

de Olim, Carlo; Bégin, Denis; Boulet, Louis-Philippe; Cartier, André; Gérin, Michel; Lemière, Catherine

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Specific inhalation challenges (SIC) enable the identification of the agent responsible of occupational asthma (OA). A clinician may fail to identify a specific agent in the workplace, which may potentially lead to a misdiagnosis. The expert assessment method performed by an occupational hygienist has been used to evaluate occupational exposures in epidemiological studies. OBJECTIVE: The broad aim of the present study was to evaluate the contribution of an expert assessment performed by an occupational hygienist to the diagnosis of OA. The specific aim was to compare work-place exposures identified by an occupational hygienist and by chest physicians in subjects with positive SICs and subjects with asthma, but with a negative SIC. METHODS: SICs were performed in 120 cases: 67 were positive and 53 were negative. A clinician assessed occupational exposures to sensitizers during a routine clinical evaluation preceding the performance of the SIC. An expert assessment of occupational exposures was performed by an occupational hygienist blind to the result of the SIC. RESULTS: The occupational hygienist identified the causal agent in 96.7% of the 61 cases of positive SIC. In 33 (62.3%) cases of negative SICs, the occupational hygienist identified ≥1 sensitizing agent(s) that had not been identified by the clinician. CONCLUSION: The hygienist identified the causal agent in almost all subjects with OA. In contrast, the clinician failed to identify potential exposures to sensitizers in >60% of the negative SIC subjects, which may have resulted in some subjects being misdiagnosed as not having OA. PMID:26422401

Secure and Time-Aware Communication of Wireless Sensors Monitoring Overhead Transmission Lines.

PubMed

Mazur, Katarzyna; Wydra, Michal; Ksiezopolski, Bogdan

2017-07-11

Existing transmission power grids suffer from high maintenance costs and scalability issues along with a lack of effective and secure system monitoring. To address these problems, we propose to use Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) as a technology to achieve energy efficient, reliable, and low-cost remote monitoring of transmission grids. With WSNs, smart grid enables both utilities and customers to monitor, predict and manage energy usage effectively and react to possible power grid disturbances in a timely manner. However, the increased application of WSNs also introduces new security challenges, especially related to privacy, connectivity, and security management, repeatedly causing unpredicted expenditures. Monitoring the status of the power system, a large amount of sensors generates massive amount of sensitive data. In order to build an effective Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) for a smart grid, we focus on designing a methodology of efficient and secure delivery of the data measured on transmission lines. We perform a set of simulations, in which we examine different routing algorithms, security mechanisms and WSN deployments in order to select the parameters that will not affect the delivery time but fulfill their role and ensure security at the same time. Furthermore, we analyze the optimal placement of direct wireless links, aiming at minimizing time delays, balancing network performance and decreasing deployment costs.

Buried MoO x/Ag Electrode Enables High-Efficiency Organic/Silicon Heterojunction Solar Cells with a High Fill Factor.

PubMed

Xia, Zhouhui; Gao, Peng; Sun, Teng; Wu, Haihua; Tan, Yeshu; Song, Tao; Lee, Shuit-Tong; Sun, Baoquan

2018-04-25

Silicon (Si)/organic heterojunction solar cells based on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and n-type Si have attracted wide interests because they promise cost-effectiveness and high-efficiency. However, the limited conductivity of PEDOT:PSS leads to an inefficient hole transport efficiency for the heterojunction device. Therefore, a high dense top-contact metal grid electrode is required to assure the efficient charge collection efficiency. Unfortunately, the large metal grid coverage ratio electrode would lead to undesirable optical loss. Here, we develop a strategy to balance PEDOT:PSS conductivity and grid optical transmittance via a buried molybdenum oxide/silver grid electrode. In addition, the grid electrode coverage ratio is optimized to reduce its light shading effect. The buried electrode dramatically reduces the device series resistance, which leads to a higher fill factor (FF). With the optimized buried electrode, a record FF of 80% is achieved for flat Si/PEDOT:PSS heterojunction devices. With further enhancement adhesion between the PEDOT:PSS film and Si substrate by a chemical cross-linkable silance, a power conversion efficiency of 16.3% for organic/textured Si heterojunction devices is achieved. Our results provide a path to overcome the inferior organic semiconductor property to enhance the organic/Si heterojunction solar cell.

Secure and Time-Aware Communication of Wireless Sensors Monitoring Overhead Transmission Lines

PubMed Central

Mazur, Katarzyna; Wydra, Michal; Ksiezopolski, Bogdan

2017-01-01

Existing transmission power grids suffer from high maintenance costs and scalability issues along with a lack of effective and secure system monitoring. To address these problems, we propose to use Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs)as a technology to achieve energy efficient, reliable, and low-cost remote monitoring of transmission grids. With WSNs, smart grid enables both utilities and customers to monitor, predict and manage energy usage effectively and react to possible power grid disturbances in a timely manner. However, the increased application of WSNs also introduces new security challenges, especially related to privacy, connectivity, and security management, repeatedly causing unpredicted expenditures. Monitoring the status of the power system, a large amount of sensors generates massive amount of sensitive data. In order to build an effective Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) for a smart grid, we focus on designing a methodology of efficient and secure delivery of the data measured on transmission lines. We perform a set of simulations, in which we examine different routing algorithms, security mechanisms and WSN deployments in order to select the parameters that will not affect the delivery time but fulfill their role and ensure security at the same time. Furthermore, we analyze the optimal placement of direct wireless links, aiming at minimizing time delays, balancing network performance and decreasing deployment costs. PMID:28696390

Maui Smart Grid Demonstration Project Managing Distribution System Resources for Improved Service Quality and Reliability, Transmission Congestion Relief, and Grid Support Functions

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

none,

2014-09-30

The Maui Smart Grid Project (MSGP) is under the leadership of the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (HNEI) of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. The project team includes Maui Electric Company, Ltd. (MECO), Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. (HECO), Sentech (a division of SRA International, Inc.), Silver Spring Networks (SSN), Alstom Grid, Maui Economic Development Board (MEDB), University of Hawaii-Maui College (UHMC), and the County of Maui. MSGP was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under Cooperative Agreement Number DE-FC26-08NT02871, with approximately 50% co-funding supplied by MECO. The project was designed to develop and demonstrate an integrated monitoring, communications,more » database, applications, and decision support solution that aggregates renewable energy (RE), other distributed generation (DG), energy storage, and demand response technologies in a distribution system to achieve both distribution and transmission-level benefits. The application of these new technologies and procedures will increase MECO’s visibility into system conditions, with the expected benefits of enabling more renewable energy resources to be integrated into the grid, improving service quality, increasing overall reliability of the power system, and ultimately reducing costs to both MECO and its customers.« less

Use of Emerging Grid Computing Technologies for the Analysis of LIGO Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koranda, Scott

2004-03-01

The LIGO Scientific Collaboration (LSC) today faces the challenge of enabling analysis of terabytes of LIGO data by hundreds of scientists from institutions all around the world. To meet this challenge the LSC is developing tools, infrastructure, applications, and expertise leveraging Grid Computing technologies available today, and making available to LSC scientists compute resources at sites across the United States and Europe. We use digital credentials for strong and secure authentication and authorization to compute resources and data. Building on top of products from the Globus project for high-speed data transfer and information discovery we have created the Lightweight Data Replicator (LDR) to securely and robustly replicate data to resource sites. We have deployed at our computing sites the Virtual Data Toolkit (VDT) Server and Client packages, developed in collaboration with our partners in the GriPhyN and iVDGL projects, providing uniform access to distributed resources for users and their applications. Taken together these Grid Computing technologies and infrastructure have formed the LSC DataGrid--a coherent and uniform environment across two continents for the analysis of gravitational-wave detector data. Much work, however, remains in order to scale current analyses and recent lessons learned need to be integrated into the next generation of Grid middleware.

IEEE 1547 and 2030 Standards for Distributed Energy Resources Interconnection and Interoperability with the Electricity Grid

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

Basso, T.

Public-private partnerships have been a mainstay of the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (DOE/NREL) approach to research and development. These partnerships also include technology development that enables grid modernization and distributed energy resources (DER) advancement, especially renewable energy systems integration with the grid. Through DOE/NREL and industry support of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standards development, the IEEE 1547 series of standards has helped shape the way utilities and other businesses have worked together to realize increasing amounts of DER interconnected with the distribution grid. And more recently, the IEEE 2030 series ofmore » standards is helping to further realize greater implementation of communications and information technologies that provide interoperability solutions for enhanced integration of DER and loads with the grid. For these standards development partnerships, for approximately $1 of federal funding, industry partnering has contributed $5. In this report, the status update is presented for the American National Standards IEEE 1547 and IEEE 2030 series of standards. A short synopsis of the history of the 1547 standards is first presented, then the current status and future direction of the ongoing standards development activities are discussed.« less

Contributing opportunistic resources to the grid with HTCondor-CE-Bosco

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weitzel, Derek; Bockelman, Brian

2017-10-01

The HTCondor-CE [1] is the primary Compute Element (CE) software for the Open Science Grid. While it offers many advantages for large sites, for smaller, WLCG Tier-3 sites or opportunistic clusters, it can be a difficult task to install, configure, and maintain the HTCondor-CE. Installing a CE typically involves understanding several pieces of software, installing hundreds of packages on a dedicated node, updating several configuration files, and implementing grid authentication mechanisms. On the other hand, accessing remote clusters from personal computers has been dramatically improved with Bosco: site admins only need to setup SSH public key authentication and appropriate accounts on a login host. In this paper, we take a new approach with the HTCondor-CE-Bosco, a CE which combines the flexibility and reliability of the HTCondor-CE with the easy-to-install Bosco. The administrators of the opportunistic resource are not required to install any software: only SSH access and a user account are required from the host site. The OSG can then run the grid-specific portions from a central location. This provides a new, more centralized, model for running grid services, which complements the traditional distributed model. We will show the architecture of a HTCondor-CE-Bosco enabled site, as well as feedback from multiple sites that have deployed it.

A Security-façade Library for Virtual-observatory Software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rixon, G.

2009-09-01

The security-façade library implements, for Java, IVOA's security standards. It supports the authentication mechanisms for SOAP and REST web-services, the sign-on mechanisms (with MyProxy, AstroGrid Accounts protocol or local credential-caches), the delegation protocol, and RFC3820-enabled HTTPS for Apache Tomcat. Using the façade, a developer who is not a security specialist can easily add access control to a virtual-observatory service and call secured services from an application. The library has been an internal part of AstroGrid software for some time and it is now offered for use by other developers.

An Analysis for an Internet Grid to Support Space Based Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert; McNair, Ann R. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Currently, and in the past, dedicated communication circuits and "network services" with very stringent performance requirements have been used to support manned and unmanned mission critical ground operations at GSFC, JSC, MSFC, KSC and other NASA facilities. Because of the evolution of network technology, it is time to investigate other approaches to providing mission services for space ground and flight operations. In various scientific disciplines, effort is under way to develop network/komputing grids. These grids consisting of networks and computing equipment are enabling lower cost science. Specifically, earthquake research is headed in this direction. With a standard for network and computing interfaces using a grid, a researcher would not be required to develop and engineer NASA/DoD specific interfaces with the attendant increased cost. Use of the Internet Protocol (IP), CCSDS packet spec, and reed-solomon for satellite error correction etc. can be adopted/standardized to provide these interfaces. Generally most interfaces are developed at least to some degree end to end. This study would investigate the feasibility of using existing standards and protocols necessary to implement a SpaceOps Grid. New interface definitions or adoption/modification of existing ones for the various space operational services is required for voice both space based and ground, video, telemetry, commanding and planning may play a role to some undefined level. Security will be a separate focus in the study since security is such a large issue in using public networks. This SpaceOps Grid would be transparent to users. It would be anagulous to the Ethernet protocol's ease of use in that a researcher would plug in their experiment or instrument at one end and would be connected to the appropriate host or server without further intervention. Free flyers would be in this category as well. They would be launched and would transmit without any further intervention with the researcher or ground ops personnel. The payback in developing these new approaches in support of manned and unmanned operations is lower cost and will enable direct participation by more people in organizations and educational institutions in space based science. By lowering the high cost of space based operations and networking, more resource will be available to the science community for science. With a specific grid in place, experiment development and operations would be much less costly by using standardized network interfaces. Because of the extensive connectivity on a global basis, significant numbers of people would participate in science who otherwise would not be able to participate.

Smart Grid Demonstration Project

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

Miller, Craig; Carroll, Paul; Bell, Abigail

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) organized the NRECA-U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Smart Grid Demonstration Project (DE-OE0000222) to install and study a broad range of advanced smart grid technologies in a demonstration that spanned 23 electric cooperatives in 12 states. More than 205,444 pieces of electronic equipment and more than 100,000 minor items (bracket, labels, mounting hardware, fiber optic cable, etc.) were installed to upgrade and enhance the efficiency, reliability, and resiliency of the power networks at the participating co-ops. The objective of this project was to build a path for other electric utilities, and particularly electrical cooperatives,more » to adopt emerging smart grid technology when it can improve utility operations, thus advancing the co-ops’ familiarity and comfort with such technology. Specifically, the project executed multiple subprojects employing a range of emerging smart grid technologies to test their cost-effectiveness and, where the technology demonstrated value, provided case studies that will enable other electric utilities—particularly electric cooperatives— to use these technologies. NRECA structured the project according to the following three areas: Demonstration of smart grid technology; Advancement of standards to enable the interoperability of components; and Improvement of grid cyber security. We termed these three areas Technology Deployment Study, Interoperability, and Cyber Security. Although the deployment of technology and studying the demonstration projects at coops accounted for the largest portion of the project budget by far, we see our accomplishments in each of the areas as critical to advancing the smart grid. All project deliverables have been published. Technology Deployment Study: The deliverable was a set of 11 single-topic technical reports in areas related to the listed technologies. Each of these reports has already been submitted to DOE, distributed to co-ops, and posted for universal access at www.nreca.coop/smartgrid. This research is available for widespread distribution to both cooperative members and non-members. These reports are listed in Table 1.2. Interoperability: The deliverable in this area was the advancement of the MultiSpeak™ interoperability standard from version 4.0 to version 5.0, and improvement in the MultiSpeak™ documentation to include more than 100 use cases. This deliverable substantially expanded the scope and usability of MultiSpeak, ™ the most widely deployed utility interoperability standard, now in use by more than 900 utilities. MultiSpeak™ documentation can be accessed only at www.multispeak.org. Cyber Security: NRECA’s starting point was to develop cyber security tools that incorporated succinct guidance on best practices. The deliverables were: cyber security extensions to MultiSpeak,™ which allow more security message exchanges; a Guide to Developing a Cyber Security and Risk Mitigation Plan; a Cyber Security Risk Mitigation Checklist; a Cyber Security Plan Template that co-ops can use to create their own cyber security plans; and Security Questions for Smart Grid Vendors.« less

Gridded Data in the Arctic; Benefits and Perils of Publicly Available Grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coakley, B.; Forsberg, R.; Gabbert, R.; Beale, J.; Kenyon, S. C.

2015-12-01

Our understanding of the Arctic Ocean has been hugely advanced by release of gridded bathymetry and potential field anomaly grids. The Arctic Gravity Project grid achieves excellent, near-isotropic coverage of the earth north of 64˚N by combining land, satellite, airborne, submarine, surface ship and ice set-out measurements of gravity anomalies. Since the release of the V 2.0 grid in 2008, there has been extensive icebreaker activity across the Amerasia Basin due to mapping of the Arctic coastal nation's Extended Continental Shelves (ECS). While grid resolution has been steadily improving over time, addition of higher resolution and better navigated data highlights some distortions in the grid that may influence interpretation. In addition to the new ECS data sets, gravity anomaly data has been collected from other vessels; notably the Korean Icebreaker Araon, the Japanese icebreaker Mirai and the German icebreaker Polarstern. Also the GRAV-D project of the US National Geodetic Survey has flown airborne surveys over much of Alaska. These data will be Included in the new AGP grid, which will result in a much improved product when version 3.0 is released in 2015. To make use of these measurements, it is necessary to compile them into a continuous spatial representation. Compilation is complicated by differences in survey parameters, gravimeter sensitivity and reduction methods. Cross-over errors are the classic means to assess repeatability of track measurements. Prior to the introduction of near-universal GPS positioning, positional uncertainty was evaluated by cross-over analysis. GPS positions can be treated as more or less true, enabling evaluation of differences due to contrasting sensitivity, reference and reduction techniques. For the most part, cross-over errors for racks of gravity anomaly data collected since 2008 are less than 0.5 mGals, supporting the compilation of these data with only slight adjustments. Given the different platforms used for various Arctic Ocean surveys, registration between bathymetric and gravity anomaly grids cannot be assumed. Inverse methods, which assume co-registration of data produce, sometimes surprising results when well-constrained gravity grid values are inverted against interpolated bathymetry.

Grid-Tied Photovoltaic Power System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eichenberg, Dennis J.

2011-01-01

A grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) power system is connected directly to the utility distribution grid. Facility power can be obtained from the utility system as normal. The PV system is synchronized with the utility system to provide power for the facility, and excess power is provided to the utility. Operating costs of a PV power system are low compared to conventional power technologies. This method can displace the highest-cost electricity during times of peak demand in most climatic regions, and thus reduce grid loading. Net metering is often used, in which independent power producers such as PV power systems are connected to the utility grid via the customers main service panels and meters. When the PV power system is generating more power than required at that location, the excess power is provided to the utility grid. The customer pays the net of the power purchased when the on-site power demand is greater than the onsite power production, and the excess power is returned to the utility grid. Power generated by the PV system reduces utility demand, and the surplus power aids the community. Modern PV panels are readily available, reliable, efficient, and economical, with a life expectancy of at least 25 years. Modern electronics have been the enabling technology behind grid-tied power systems, making them safe, reliable, efficient, and economical with a life expectancy equal to the modern PV panels. The grid-tied PV power system was successfully designed and developed, and this served to validate the basic principles developed, and the theoretical work that was performed. Grid-tied PV power systems are reliable, maintenance- free, long-life power systems, and are of significant value to NASA and the community. Of particular value are the analytical tools and capabilities that have been successfully developed. Performance predictions can be made confidently for grid-tied PV systems of various scales. The work was done under the NASA Hybrid Power Management (HPM) Program, which is the integration of diverse power devices in an optimal configuration for space and terrestrial applications.

Smart Grid Adoption Likeliness Framework: Comparing Idaho and National Residential Consumers' Perceptions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baiya, Evanson G.

New energy technologies that provide real-time visibility of the electricity grid's performance, along with the ability to address unusual events in the grid and allow consumers to manage their energy use, are being developed in the United States. Primary drivers for the new technologies include the growing energy demand, tightening environmental regulations, aging electricity infrastructure, and rising consumer demand to become more involved in managing individual energy usage. In the literature and in practice, it is unclear if, and to what extent, residential consumers will adopt smart grid technologies. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationships between demographic characteristics, perceptions, and the likelihood of adopting smart grid technologies among residential energy consumers. The results of a 31-item survey were analyzed for differences within the Idaho consumers and compared against national consumers. Analysis of variance was used to examine possible differences between the dependent variable of likeliness to adopt smart grid technologies and the independent variables of age, gender, residential ownership, and residential location. No differences were found among Idaho consumers in their likeliness to adopt smart grid technologies. An independent sample t-test was used to examine possible differences between the two groups of Idaho consumers and national consumers in their level of interest in receiving detailed feedback information on energy usage, the added convenience of the smart grid, renewable energy, the willingness to pay for infrastructure costs, and the likeliness to adopt smart grid technologies. The level of interest in receiving detailed feedback information on energy usage was significantly different between the two groups (t = 3.11, p = .0023), while the other variables were similar. The study contributes to technology adoption research regarding specific consumer perceptions and provides a framework that estimates the likeliness of adopting smart grid technologies by residential consumers. The study findings could assist public utility managers and technology adoption researchers as they develop strategies to enable wide-scale adoption of smart grid technologies as a solution to the energy problem. Future research should be conducted among commercial and industrial energy consumers to further validate the findings and conclusions of this research.

Grid Computing: Topology-Aware, Peer-to-Peer, Power-Aware, and Embedded Web Services

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-09-22

Dist Simulation • Time Management enables temporal causality to be enforced in Distributed Simulations • Typically enforced via a Lower Bound Time...algorithm • Distinguished Root Node Algorithm developed as a topology-aware time management service – Relies on a tree from end-hosts to a

Composeable FORCEnet Command and Control: The Key to Energizing the Global Information Grid to Enable Superior Decision Making

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-01-01

Women, Messages and Media: Understanding Human Communication Introduction: One of the most critical aspects of transforming information...and Porter 1982) Wilbur Schramm and William Porter, Men, Women, Messages and Media: Understanding Human Communication (New York, Harper and Rowe

SURA Coastal Ocean Observing and Prediction (SCOOP) Program: Integrating Marine Science and Information Technology

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-09-30

coastal phenomena. OBJECTIVES SURA is creating a SCOOP “Grid” that extends the interoperability enabled by the World Wide Web. The coastal ... community faces special challenges with respect to achieving a level of interoperability that can leverage emerging Grid technologies. With that in mind

Exposure Estimation and Interpretation of Occupational Risk: Enhanced Information for the Occupational Risk Manager

PubMed Central

Waters, Martha; McKernan, Lauralynn; Maier, Andrew; Jayjock, Michael; Schaeffer, Val; Brosseau, Lisa

2015-01-01

The fundamental goal of this article is to describe, define, and analyze the components of the risk characterization process for occupational exposures. Current methods are described for the probabilistic characterization of exposure, including newer techniques that have increasing applications for assessing data from occupational exposure scenarios. In addition, since the probability of health effects reflects variability in the exposure estimate as well as the dose-response curve—the integrated considerations of variability surrounding both components of the risk characterization provide greater information to the occupational hygienist. Probabilistic tools provide a more informed view of exposure as compared to use of discrete point estimates for these inputs to the risk characterization process. Active use of such tools for exposure and risk assessment will lead to a scientifically supported worker health protection program. Understanding the bases for an occupational risk assessment, focusing on important sources of variability and uncertainty enables characterizing occupational risk in terms of a probability, rather than a binary decision of acceptable risk or unacceptable risk. A critical review of existing methods highlights several conclusions: (1) exposure estimates and the dose-response are impacted by both variability and uncertainty and a well-developed risk characterization reflects and communicates this consideration; (2) occupational risk is probabilistic in nature and most accurately considered as a distribution, not a point estimate; and (3) occupational hygienists have a variety of tools available to incorporate concepts of risk characterization into occupational health and practice. PMID:26302336

E-Science and Grids in Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hey, Tony

2002-08-01

After defining what is meant by the term 'e-Science', this talk will survey the activity on e-Science and Grids in Europe. The two largest initiatives in Europe are the European Commission's portfolio of Grid projects and the UK e-Science program. The EU under its R Framework Program are funding nearly twenty Grid projects in a wide variety of application areas. These projects are in varying stages of maturity and this talk will focus on a subset that have most significant progress. These include the EU DataGrid project led by CERN and two projects - EuroGrid and Grip - that evolved from the German national Unicore project. A summary of the other EU Grid projects will be included. The UK e-Science initiative is a 180M program entirely focused on e-Science applications requiring resource sharing, a virtual organization and a Grid infrastructure. The UK program is unique for three reasons: (1) the program covers all areas of science and engineering; (2) all of the funding is devoted to Grid application and middleware development and not to funding major hardware platforms; and (3) there is an explicit connection with industry to produce robust and secure industrial-strength versions of Grid middleware that could be used in business-critical applications. A part of the funding, around 50M, but requiring an additional 'matching' $30M from industry in collaborative projects, forms the UK e-Science 'Core Program'. It is the responsibility of the Core Program to identify and support a set of generic middleware requirements that have emerged from a requirements analysis of the e-Science application projects. This has led to a much more data-centric vision for 'the Grid' in the UK in which access to HPC facilities forms only one element. More important for the UK projects are issues such as enabling access and federation of scientific data held in files, relational databases and other archives. Automatic annotation of data generated by high throughput experiments with XML-based metadata is seen as a key step towards developing higher-level Grid services for information retrieval and knowledge discovery. The talk will conclude with a survey of other Grid initiatives across Europe and look at possible future European projects.

Respiratory Disease in Relation to Outdoor Air Pollution in Kanpur, India

PubMed Central

Liu, Hai-Ying; Bartonova, Alena; Schindler, Martin; Sharma, Mukesh; Behera, Sailesh N.; Katiyar, Kamlesh; Dikshit, Onkar

2013-01-01

ABSTRACT This paper examines the effect of outdoor air pollution on respiratory disease in Kanpur, India, based on data from 2006. Exposure to air pollution is represented by annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2), particulate matter (PM), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) from 11 source categories, established as a geographic information system (GIS)-based emission inventory in 2 km × 2 km grid. Respiratory disease is represented by number of patients who visited specialist pulmonary hospital with symptoms of respiratory disease. The results showed that (1) the main sources of air pollution are industries, domestic fuel burning, and vehicles; (2) the emissions of PM per grid are strongly correlated to the emissions of SO2 and NOx; and (3) there is a strong correlation between visits to a hospital due to respiratory disease and emission strength in the area of residence. These results clearly indicate that appropriate health and environmental monitoring, actions to reduce emissions to air, and further studies that would allow assessing the development in health status are necessary. [Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Archives of Environmental & Occupational Health for material on emission of SO2, PM, NOx from various sources, and total number of inhabitants, total number of patients in grid squares covering the Kanpur city.] PMID:23697693

Mechanistic models enable the rational use of in vitro drug-target binding kinetics for better drug effects in patients.

PubMed

de Witte, Wilhelmus E A; Wong, Yin Cheong; Nederpelt, Indira; Heitman, Laura H; Danhof, Meindert; van der Graaf, Piet H; Gilissen, Ron A H J; de Lange, Elizabeth C M

2016-01-01

Drug-target binding kinetics are major determinants of the time course of drug action for several drugs, as clearly described for the irreversible binders omeprazole and aspirin. This supports the increasing interest to incorporate newly developed high-throughput assays for drug-target binding kinetics in drug discovery. A meaningful application of in vitro drug-target binding kinetics in drug discovery requires insight into the relation between in vivo drug effect and in vitro measured drug-target binding kinetics. In this review, the authors discuss both the relation between in vitro and in vivo measured binding kinetics and the relation between in vivo binding kinetics, target occupancy and effect profiles. More scientific evidence is required for the rational selection and development of drug-candidates on the basis of in vitro estimates of drug-target binding kinetics. To elucidate the value of in vitro binding kinetics measurements, it is necessary to obtain information on system-specific properties which influence the kinetics of target occupancy and drug effect. Mathematical integration of this information enables the identification of drug-specific properties which lead to optimal target occupancy and drug effect in patients.

ELSiTO. a collaborative European initiative to foster social inclusion with persons experiencing mental illness.

PubMed

Ammeraal, M; Kantartzis, S; Burger, M; Bogeas, T; van der Molen, C; Vercruysse, L

2013-06-01

ELSiTO (Empowering Learning for Social Inclusion Through Occupation), an international collaborative partnership, with over 30 members from Belgium, Greece and the Netherlands, aimed to explore the nature and processes of social inclusion for persons experiencing mental illness. Members included persons experiencing mental illness and health professionals. Four international visits and local activities enabled a knowledge creation process that combined the experience of social inclusion as we lived and worked together with exploration of the processes of community projects, narratives of experiences and reflective workshops. Outcomes included identification and description of the following: the nature of social inclusion as lived by the participants; the critical elements that support inclusion; and the competences that are developed by all stakeholders during this process. The complex process of social inclusion is facilitated by doing together in environments that enable equality, trust, risk taking and realignment of power. These conceptual understandings of inclusion are discussed in relation to the ongoing activities of the partners, to their potential contribution to the education of occupational therapists (and other professionals) and to the development of socially inclusive occupation-based projects in the community. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Using Unsupervised Learning to Unlock the Potential of Hydrologic Similarity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaney, N.; Newman, A. J.

2017-12-01

By clustering environmental data into representative hydrologic response units (HRUs), hydrologic similarity aims to harness the covariance between a system's physical environment and its hydrologic response to create reduced-order models. This is the primary approach through which sub-grid hydrologic processes are represented in large-scale models (e.g., Earth System Models). Although the possibilities of hydrologic similarity are extensive, its practical implementations have been limited to 1-d bins of oversimplistic metrics of hydrologic response (e.g., topographic index)—this is a missed opportunity. In this presentation we will show how unsupervised learning is unlocking the potential of hydrologic similarity; clustering methods enable generalized frameworks to effectively and efficiently harness the petabytes of global environmental data to robustly characterize sub-grid heterogeneity in large-scale models. To illustrate the potential that unsupervised learning has towards advancing hydrologic similarity, we introduce a hierarchical clustering algorithm (HCA) that clusters very high resolution (30-100 meters) elevation, soil, climate, and land cover data to assemble a domain's representative HRUs. These HRUs are then used to parameterize the sub-grid heterogeneity in land surface models; for this study we use the GFDL LM4 model—the land component of the GFDL Earth System Model. To explore HCA and its impacts on the hydrologic system we use a ¼ grid cell in southeastern California as a test site. HCA is used to construct an ensemble of 9 different HRU configurations—each configuration has a different number of HRUs; for each ensemble member LM4 is run between 2002 and 2014 with a 26 year spinup. The analysis of the ensemble of model simulations show that: 1) clustering the high-dimensional environmental data space leads to a robust representation of the role of the physical environment in the coupled water, energy, and carbon cycles at a relatively low number of HRUs; 2) the reduced-order model with around 300 HRUs effectively reproduces the fully distributed model simulation (30 meters) with less than 1/1000 of computational expense; 3) assigning each grid cell of the fully distributed grid to an HRU via HCA enables novel visualization methods for large-scale models—this has significant implications for how these models are applied and evaluated. We will conclude by outlining the potential that this work has within operational prediction systems including numerical weather prediction, Earth System models, and Early Warning systems.

The Healthgrid White Paper.

PubMed

Breton, Vincent; Dean, Kevin; Solomonides, Tony; Blanquer, I; Hernandez, V; Medico, E; Maglaveras, N; Benkner, S; Lonsdale, G; Lloyd, S; Hassan, K; McClatchey, R; Miguet, S; Montagnat, J; Pennec, X; De Neve, W; De Wagter, C; Heeren, G; Maigne, L; Nozaki, K; Taillet, M; Bilofsky, H; Ziegler, R; Hoffman, M; Jones, C; Cannataro, M; Veltri, P; Aloisio, G; Fiore, S; Mirto, M; Chouvarda, I; Koutkias, V; Malousi, A; Lopez, V; Oliveira, I; Sanchez, J P; Martin-Sanchez, F; De Moor, G; Claerhout, B; Herveg, J A M

2005-01-01

Over the last four years, a community of researchers working on Grid and High Performance Computing technologies started discussing the barriers and opportunities that grid technologies must face and exploit for the development of health-related applications. This interest lead to the first Healthgrid conference, held in Lyon, France, on January 16th-17th, 2003, with the focus of creating increased awareness about the possibilities and advantages linked to the deployment of grid technologies in health, ultimately targeting the creation of a European/international grid infrastructure for health. The topics of this conference converged with the position of the eHealth division of the European Commission, whose mandate from the Lisbon Meeting was "To develop an intelligent environment that enables ubiquitous management of citizens' health status, and to assist health professionals in coping with some major challenges, risk management and the integration into clinical practice of advances in health knowledge." In this context "Health" involves not only clinical procedures but covers the whole range of information from molecular level (genetic and proteomic information) over cells and tissues, to the individual and finally the population level (social healthcare). Grid technology offers the opportunity to create a common working backbone for all different members of this large "health family" and will hopefully lead to an increased awareness and interoperability among disciplines. The first HealthGrid conference led to the creation of the Healthgrid association, a non-profit research association legally incorporated in France but formed from the broad community of European researchers and institutions sharing expertise in health grids. After the second Healthgrid conference, held in Clermont-Ferrand on January 29th-30th, 2004, the need for a "white paper" on the current status and prospective of health grids was raised. Over fifty experts from different areas of grid technologies, eHealth applications and the medical world were invited to contribute to the preparation of this document.

Parents' perspectives on a collaborative approach to the application of the Handwriting Without Tears(®) programme with children with Down syndrome.

PubMed

Patton, Sandra; Hutton, Eve

2016-08-01

The active involvement of parents and children in goal setting and intervention is integral to contemporary occupational therapy process models. However, parental perspectives on collaborative handwriting intervention are limited. This paper presents parental perspectives on a three-way collaboration involving teachers, parents and an occupational therapist in the application of Handwriting Without Tears(®) (HWT(®) ) with children with Down syndrome. Within a larger mixed methods study, 44 parents completed purpose-designed questionnaires and six parents participated in a focus group, post 8 months of programme implementation. Both methods gathered parent's perspectives on the usefulness and limitations of applying HWT(®) . The focus group explored collaboration in depth. Analysis involved triangulation of data from descriptive analysis of numerical data with content analysis of open-ended questions and focus group data. Enablers of parent-child engagement in HWT(®) were identified as; the parent-child-friendly aspects of HWT(®) , the teacher involvement ensuring continuity which eased demands on parents, the ongoing support/guidance of the occupational therapist and the child's involvement in HWT(®) group intervention. The occupational therapists' involvement was reported as essential to encouraging teacher/parent involvement. Barriers to child-parent engagement included fluctuations in child health, mood, attention span and time limitations including the child's involvement in other therapy programmes. Parents perceived the HWT(®) and the three-way collaborative approach as enabling active parent-child engagement in handwriting intervention. This approach warrants further investigation. Findings have the potential to inform practice guidelines and pre- and post-graduation education related to collaborative handwriting intervention with children with Down syndrome and their families. © 2016 Occupational Therapy Australia.

Wireless Sensor Network for Electric Transmission Line Monitoring

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

Alphenaar, Bruce

Generally, federal agencies tasked to oversee power grid reliability are dependent on data from grid infrastructure owners and operators in order to obtain a basic level of situational awareness. Since there are many owners and operators involved in the day-to-day functioning of the power grid, the task of accessing, aggregating and analyzing grid information from these sources is not a trivial one. Seemingly basic tasks such as synchronizing data timestamps between many different data providers and sources can be difficult as evidenced during the post-event analysis of the August 2003 blackout. In this project we investigate the efficacy and costmore » effectiveness of deploying a network of wireless power line monitoring devices as a method of independently monitoring key parts of the power grid as a complement to the data which is currently available to federal agencies from grid system operators. Such a network is modeled on proprietary power line monitoring technologies and networks invented, developed and deployed by Genscape, a Louisville, Kentucky based real-time energy information provider. Genscape measures transmission line power flow using measurements of electromagnetic fields under overhead high voltage transmission power lines in the United States and Europe. Opportunities for optimization of the commercial power line monitoring technology were investigated in this project to enable lower power consumption, lower cost and improvements to measurement methodologies. These optimizations were performed in order to better enable the use of wireless transmission line monitors in large network deployments (perhaps covering several thousand power lines) for federal situational awareness needs. Power consumption and cost reduction were addressed by developing a power line monitor using a low power, low cost wireless telemetry platform known as the ''Mote''. Motes were first developed as smart sensor nodes in wireless mesh networking applications. On such a platform, it has been demonstrated in this project that wireless monitoring units can effectively deliver real-time transmission line power flow information for less than $500 per monitor. The data delivered by such a monitor has during the course of the project been integrated with a national grid situational awareness visualization platform developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Novel vibration energy scavenging methods based on piezoelectric cantilevers were also developed as a proposed method to power such monitors, with a goal of further cost reduction and large-scale deployment. Scavenging methods developed during the project resulted in 50% greater power output than conventional cantilever-based vibrational energy scavenging devices typically used to power smart sensor nodes. Lastly, enhanced and new methods for electromagnetic field sensing using multi-axis magnetometers and infrared reflectometry were investigated for potential monitoring applications in situations with a high density of power lines or high levels of background 60 Hz noise in order to isolate power lines of interest from other power lines in close proximity. The goal of this project was to investigate and demonstrate the feasibility of using small form factor, highly optimized, low cost, low power, non-contact, wireless electric transmission line monitors for delivery of real-time, independent power line monitoring for the US power grid. The project was divided into three main types of activity as follows; (1) Research into expanding the range of applications for non-contact power line monitoring to enable large scale low cost sensor network deployments (Tasks 1, 2); (2) Optimization of individual sensor hardware components to reduce size, cost and power consumption and testing in a pilot field study (Tasks 3,5); and (3) Demonstration of the feasibility of using the data from the network of power line monitors via a range of custom developed alerting and data visualization applications to deliver real-time information to federal agencies and others tasked with grid reliability (Tasks 6,8).« less

Tariff Considerations for Micro-Grids in Sub-Saharan Africa

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

Reber, Timothy J.; Booth, Samuel S.; Cutler, Dylan S.

This report examines some of the key drivers and considerations policymakers and decision makers face when deciding if and how to regulate electricity tariffs for micro-grids. Presenting a range of tariff options, from mandating some variety of national (uniform) tariff to allowing micro-grid developers and operators to set fully cost-reflective tariffs, it examines various benefits and drawbacks of each. In addition, the report and explores various types of cross-subsidies and other transitional forms of regulation that may offer a regulatory middle ground that can help balance the often competing goals of providing price control on electricity service in the namemore » of social good while still providing a means for investors to ensure high enough returns on their investment to attract the necessary capital financing to the market. Using the REopt tool developed by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory to inform their study, the authors modeled a few representative micro-grid systems and the resultant levelized cost of electricity, lending context and scale to the consideration of these tariff questions. This simple analysis provides an estimate of the gap between current tariff regimes and the tariffs that would be necessary for developers to recover costs and attract investment, offering further insight into the potential scale of subsidies or other grants that may be required to enable micro-grid development under current regulatory structures. It explores potential options for addressing this gap while trying to balance This report examines some of the key drivers and considerations policymakers and decision makers face when deciding if and how to regulate electricity tariffs for micro-grids. Presenting a range of tariff options, from mandating some variety of national (uniform) tariff to allowing micro-grid developers and operators to set fully cost-reflective tariffs, it examines various benefits and drawbacks of each. In addition, the report and explores various types of cross-subsidies and other transitional forms of regulation that may offer a regulatory middle ground that can help balance the often competing goals of providing price control on electricity service in the name of social good while still providing a means for investors to ensure high enough returns on their investment to attract the necessary capital financing to the market. Using the REopt tool developed by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory to inform their study, the authors modeled a few representative micro-grid systems and the resultant levelized cost of electricity, lending context and scale to the consideration of these tariff questions. This simple analysis provides an estimate of the gap between current tariff regimes and the tariffs that would be necessary for developers to recover costs and attract investment, offering further insight into the potential scale of subsidies or other grants that may be required to enable micro-grid development under current regulatory structures. It explores potential options for addressing this gap while trying to balance stakeholder needs, from subsidized national tariffs to lightly regulated cost-reflective tariffs to more of a compromise approach, such as different standards of regulation based on the size of a micro-grid.takeholder needs, from subsidized national tariffs to lightly regulated cost-reflective tariffs to more of a compromise approach, such as different standards of regulation based on the size of a micro-grid.« less

Research priorities in mental health occupational therapy: A study of clinician perspectives.

PubMed

Hitch, Danielle; Lhuede, Kate

2015-10-01

The evidence to support mental health occupational therapy has proliferated in the early years of this century, but this growth has tended to be organic rather than targeted. Previous efforts to identify research priorities in this area of practice are either out dated, or encompass discrete areas of practice. The aim of this study was to identify priority areas for research in mental health occupational therapy from clinician's perspectives. A Policy Delphi method was used to enable occupational therapists to define and differentiate their perspectives on research priorities. Forty-two occupational therapists took part in the first two rounds of this method, with 69% (n = 29) going on to complete the third and final round of data collection. A Likert scale was used to rate the importance of each priority, and descriptive quantitative analysis undertaken to identify those most consistently identified as being highly important. Four research priorities were identified as being highly important in this study: (i) working in an occupationally focussed way; (ii) consumer experience of therapy groups; (iii) identifying factors which increase consumer engagement in occupation; and (iv) engaging patients on the inpatient unit in meaningful and positive occupation. Two of the priority areas are already the subject of substantial evidence bases, but there has been far less research into consumer experiences of groups and occupational engagement in acute settings. Collaboration between research teams and greater consumer inclusion are recommended for the future. This study provides an updated indication of research priorities for mental health occupational therapy in Australia. © 2015 Occupational Therapy Australia.

[Influence of occupational factors on the bone and joint functional state in the upper extremities and cervical spine in female workers of clothing manufacture].

PubMed

Druzhinin, V N; Shardakova, É F; Cherniĭ, A N

2014-01-01

The studies using multiple X-ray methods covered influence of complex containing working process and occupational environment factors on locomotory apparatus of upper limbs and cervical spine in female seamers engaged into various productions. Comparative analysis involved results of regular (standard X-ray) and special X-ray methods (stereoroentgenography, high definition roentgenography, roentgen densitometry, roentgenogrammetry) in 370 examinees with early and moderate clinical symptoms of occupationally mediated diseases of the stated areas. X-ray studies of locomotory apparatus of upper limbs and cervical spine in clothing manufacture workers, with special diagnostic methods, enabled to determine incidence and severity of functional and structural changes more reliably than via standard examination. The changes revealed were assigned mostly in "early" and "moderate" categories and matched with occupational peculiarities of the workers examined.

Learning in occupational transitions: a study of the process following job loss.

PubMed

Hallqvist, Anders; Hydén, Lars-Christer

2012-01-01

This article examines how workers supported by outplacement services engage with an occupational transition through problem solving and learning. The participants were 23 mid-life redundant white collar workers with at least eight years in their sector, organization or occupation. The selected interviewees either participated in training to broaden their professional competence or did not make any such 'expansive' efforts. The study was based on narrative interviews, which enabled a detailed cross case examination of individuals' actions and choices and how the process unfolds over time. The results showed that people treat their job loss as a practical problem to be solved using various strategies. This problem-solving process is structured, with people passing similar crossroads defining particular challenges and opportunities giving people limited sets of choices. The results point to the significance of creativity and learning in occupational transitions.

Occupancy and abundance of wintering birds in a dynamic agricultural landscape

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, Mark W.; Pearlstine, Elise V.; Dorazio, Robert M.; Mazzotti, Frank J.

2011-01-01

Assessing wildlife management action requires monitoring populations, and abundance often is the parameter monitored. Recent methodological advances have enabled estimation of mean abundance within a habitat using presence–absence or count data obtained via repeated visits to a sample of sites. These methods assume populations are closed and intuitively assume habitats within sites change little during a field season. However, many habitats are highly variable over short periods. We developed a variation of existing occupancy and abundance models that allows for extreme spatio-temporal differences in habitat, and resulting changes in wildlife abundance, among sites and among visits to a site within a field season. We conducted our study in sugarcane habitat within the Everglades Agricultural Area southeast of Lake Okeechobee in south Florida. We counted wintering birds, primarily passerines, within 245 sites usually 5 times at each site during December 2006–March 2007. We estimated occupancy and mean abundance of birds in 6 vegetation states during the sugarcane harvest and allowed these parameters to vary temporally or spatially within a vegetation state. Occupancy and mean abundance of the common yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) was affected by structure of sugarcane and uncultivated edge vegetation (occupancy=1.00 [95%CĪ=0.96–1.00] and mean abundance=7.9 [95%CĪ=3.2–19.5] in tall sugarcane with tall edge vegetation versus 0.20 [95%CĪ=0.04–0.71] and 0.22 [95%CĪ=0.04–1.2], respectively, in short sugarcane with short edge vegetation in one half of the study area). Occupancy and mean abundance of palm warblers (Dendroica palmarum) were constant (occupancy=1.00, 95%CĪ=0.69–1.00; mean abundance=18, 95%CĪ=1–270). Our model may enable wildlife managers to assess rigorously effects of future edge habitat management on avian distribution and abundance within agricultural landscapes during winter or the breeding season. The model may also help wildlife managers make similar management decisions involving other dynamic habitats such as wetlands, prairies, and even forested areas if forest management or fires occur during the field season.

Occupancy and abundance of wintering birds in a dynamic agricultural landscape

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, M.W.; Pearlstine, E.V.; Dorazio, R.M.; Mazzotti, F.J.

2011-01-01

Assessing wildlife management action requires monitoring populations, and abundance often is the parameter monitored. Recent methodological advances have enabled estimation of mean abundance within a habitat using presence-absence or count data obtained via repeated visits to a sample of sites. These methods assume populations are closed and intuitively assume habitats within sites change little during a field season. However, many habitats are highly variable over short periods. We developed a variation of existing occupancy and abundance models that allows for extreme spatio-temporal differences in habitat, and resulting changes in wildlife abundance, among sites and among visits to a site within a field season. We conducted our study in sugarcane habitat within the Everglades Agricultural Area southeast of Lake Okeechobee in south Florida. We counted wintering birds, primarily passerines, within 245 sites usually 5 times at each site during December 2006-March 2007. We estimated occupancy and mean abundance of birds in 6 vegetation states during the sugarcane harvest and allowed these parameters to vary temporally or spatially within a vegetation state. Occupancy and mean abundance of the common yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) was affected by structure of sugarcane and uncultivated edge vegetation (occupancy = 1.00 [95%C?? = 0.96-1.00] and mean abundance = 7.9 [95%C?? = 3.2-19.5] in tall sugarcane with tall edge vegetation versus 0.20 [95%C?? = 0.04-0.71] and 0.22 [95%C?? = 0.04-1.2], respectively, in short sugarcane with short edge vegetation in one half of the study area). Occupancy and mean abundance of palm warblers (Dendroica palmarum) were constant (occupancy = 1.00, 95%C?? = 0.69-1.00; mean abundance = 18, 95%C?? = 1-270). Our model may enable wildlife managers to assess rigorously effects of future edge habitat management on avian distribution and abundance within agricultural landscapes during winter or the breeding season. The model may also help wildlife managers make similar management decisions involving other dynamic habitats such as wetlands, prairies, and even forested areas if forest management or fires occur during the field season. ?? 2011 The Wildlife Society.

Modeling pedestrian evacuation with guiders based on a multi-grid model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Shuchao; Song, Weiguo; Lv, Wei

2016-02-01

Pedestrian evacuation with guidance is investigated by a multi-grid model in this paper. The effects of guider type, guider number, guider distribution and guidance strategy on evacuation are discussed. From the analysis of simulation results, it is found that the identified guiders are more beneficial to evacuation because they can be distinguished easily by pedestrians during evacuation; The optimal guider number exists in view of the human cost and can be obtained in our model; The uniform distribution of guiders covers more area in the room and makes evacuation efficient; Evacuation guidance is more effective when the speed of guider is about 75% of herding pedestrian's speed in our simulation scenario; The performance of evacuation guidance strategy considering both distance and occupant number is the best when compared to other strategies; The coordination and cooperation between guiders are very important and necessary to facilitate the evacuation. The study may be useful for understanding the importance of guidance in evacuation and developing efficient evacuation strategy for management under emergency.

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

Magee, Thoman

The Consolidated Edison, Inc., of New York (Con Edison) Secure Interoperable Open Smart Grid Demonstration Project (SGDP), sponsored by the United States (US) Department of Energy (DOE), demonstrated that the reliability, efficiency, and flexibility of the grid can be improved through a combination of enhanced monitoring and control capabilities using systems and resources that interoperate within a secure services framework. The project demonstrated the capability to shift, balance, and reduce load where and when needed in response to system contingencies or emergencies by leveraging controllable field assets. The range of field assets includes curtailable customer loads, distributed generation (DG), batterymore » storage, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, building management systems (BMS), home area networks (HANs), high-voltage monitoring, and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI). The SGDP enables the seamless integration and control of these field assets through a common, cyber-secure, interoperable control platform, which integrates a number of existing legacy control and data systems, as well as new smart grid (SG) systems and applications. By integrating advanced technologies for monitoring and control, the SGDP helps target and reduce peak load growth, improves the reliability and efficiency of Con Edison’s grid, and increases the ability to accommodate the growing use of distributed resources. Con Edison is dedicated to lowering costs, improving reliability and customer service, and reducing its impact on the environment for its customers. These objectives also align with the policy objectives of New York State as a whole. To help meet these objectives, Con Edison’s long-term vision for the distribution grid relies on the successful integration and control of a growing penetration of distributed resources, including demand response (DR) resources, battery storage units, and DG. For example, Con Edison is expecting significant long-term growth of DG. The SGDP enables the efficient, flexible integration of these disparate resources and lays the architectural foundations for future scalability. Con Edison assembled an SGDP team of more than 16 different project partners, including technology vendors, and participating organizations, and the Con Edison team provided overall guidance and project management. Project team members are listed in Table 1-1.« less

Archived data management system in Kentucky.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-05-01

Archived Data User Service (ADUS) was added to the national ITS architecture in 1999 to enable multiple uses for ITS-generated data. In Kentucky, ARTIMIS and TRIMARC are collecting volume, speed, occupancy, length-based classification, and incident d...

78 FR 69134 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Current...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-18

... survey will be used to estimate the size and nature of the population affected by job displacements and... year. Combining the questions on displacement, job tenure, and occupational mobility will enable...

Spaceflight Operations Services Grid (SOSG)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradford, Robert N.; Thigpen, William W.

2004-01-01

In an effort to adapt existing space flight operations services to new emerging Grid technologies we are developing a Grid-based prototype space flight operations Grid. This prototype is based on the operational services being provided to the International Space Station's Payload operations located at the Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama. The prototype services will be Grid or Web enabled and provided to four user communities through portal technology. Users will have the opportunity to assess the value and feasibility of Grid technologies to their specific areas or disciplines. In this presentation descriptions of the prototype development, User-based services, Grid-based services and status of the project will be presented. Expected benefits, findings and observations (if any) to date will also be discussed. The focus of the presentation will be on the project in general, status to date and future plans. The End-use services to be included in the prototype are voice, video, telemetry, commanding, collaboration tools and visualization among others. Security is addressed throughout the project and is being designed into the Grid technologies and standards development. The project is divided into three phases. Phase One establishes the baseline User-based services required for space flight operations listed above. Phase Two involves applying Gridlweb technologies to the User-based services and development of portals for access by users. Phase Three will allow NASA and end users to evaluate the services and determine the future of the technology as applied to space flight operational services. Although, Phase One, which includes the development of the quasi-operational User-based services of the prototype, development will be completed by March 2004, the application of Grid technologies to these services will have just begun. We will provide status of the Grid technologies to the individual User-based services. This effort will result in an extensible environment that incorporates existing and new spaceflight services into a standards-based framework providing current and future NASA programs with cost savings and new and evolvable methods to conduct science. This project will demonstrate how the use of new programming paradigms such as web and grid services can provide three significant benefits to the cost-effective delivery of spaceflight services. They will enable applications to operate more efficiently by being able to utilize pooled resources. They will also permit the reuse of common services to rapidly construct new and more powerful applications. Finally they will permit easy and secure access to services via a combination of grid and portal technology by a distributed user community consisting of NASA operations centers, scientists, the educational community and even the general population as outreach. The approach will be to deploy existing mission support applications such as the Telescience Resource Kit (TReK) and new applications under development, such as the Grid Video Distribution System (GViDS), together with existing grid applications and services such as high-performance computing and visualization services provided by NASA s Information Power Grid (IPG) in the MSFC s Payload Operations Integration Center (POIC) HOSC Annex. Once the initial applications have been moved to the grid, a process will begin to apply the new programming paradigms to integrate them where possible. For example, with GViDS, instead of viewing the Distribution service as an application that must run on a single node, the new approach is to build it such that it can be dispatched across a pool of resources in response to dynamic loads. To make this a reality, reusable services will be critical, such as a brokering service to locate appropriate resource within the pool. This brokering service can then be used by other applications such as the TReK. To expand further, if the GViDS application is constructed using a services-based mel, then other applications such as the Video Auditorium can then use GViDS as a service to easily incorporate these video streams into a collaborative conference. Finally, as these applications are re-factored into this new services-based paradigm, the construction of portals to integrate them will be a simple process. As a result, portals can be tailored to meet the requirements of specific user communities.

The meanings of craft to an occupational therapist.

PubMed

Harris, Emma

2008-06-01

Craft was the first therapeutic occupation of occupational therapy. Since the early days of the profession, the value of craft in practice is a topic that has been discussed with fluctuating interest. Recent discussions by occupational therapists have reinforced that although craft is relevant to occupational therapy, there are uncertainties about its place in contemporary practice. Presently, scholars have identified that occupation is both the center of human experience and the core of our profession. Therefore, this study aimed to begin to clarify the meaning of craft to practice today by gaining a deep understanding of the meanings that one occupational therapist attributes to craft. Using narrative inquiry, data were gathered through a conversation held between the research participant and myself. A reflexive journal was also kept to support this data gathering process. Narrative analysis enabled intimate engagement with the data and the emergence of themes and sub-themes. The findings, in the form of an interpretive story, suggest first, that craft-making has therapeutic value; second, that reasoning about the therapeutic use of craft is similar to reasoning about other therapeutic activities; and third, that personal experience with craft-making can influence the selection of craft as therapeutic media. From this study, further research into the impact personal and professional experiences can have on choice of therapeutic media and an analysis of the sociopolitical context of the meanings that occupational therapists attribute to craft-making is suggested.

Enabling people with developmental disabilities to actively perform designated occupational activities according to simple instructions with a Nintendo Wii Remote Controller by controlling environmental stimulation.

PubMed

Shih, Ching-Hsiang; Wang, Shu-Hui; Chang, Man-Ling; Shih, Ching-Hsiang

2012-01-01

The latest researches have adopted software technology, turning the Nintendo Wii Remote Controller into a high performance three-dimensional object orientation detector. This study extended Wii Remote Controller functionality to assess whether two people with developmental disabilities would be able to actively perform designated simple occupational activities according to simple instructions by controlling their favorite environmental stimulation using a Nintendo Wii Remote Controller. This study was conducted using ABAB designs. The data showed that both participants significantly increased their target response (performing a designated occupational activity) by activating the control system to produce their preferred environmental stimulation during the intervention phases. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Occupational balance: exploring the relationships among daily occupations and their influence on well-being.

PubMed

Backman, Catherine L

2004-10-01

In this lecture, I have reviewed theoretical discussions and definitions of occupational balance, findings from selected studies, and highlighted some methods for measuring aspects of occupational balance. Are any of these ideas directly applicable to occupational therapy practice, education and research? Consider the hassles of everyday life, and add the complicating factors of illness, injury, disability, and limited income. Life, and the pursuit of necessary, desirable and obligatory occupations, can become overwhelming. Given that occupational therapists aim to enable individuals, regardless of ability, to successfully engage in a range of occupations, the answer to the question is yes. Furthering our understanding of occupational balance can improve our ability to serve individual clients and society. In 2001, Fearing stated in her Muriel Driver Memorial Lecture: We will not only recognize and value the skill of maintaining balance, our own and that of our clients, but we will live it. Balance will not be viewed as a set of scales that has equal parts such as work on one side and play on the other but rather the kind of balance that comes from being centred so that we act from a stable base. From that stable base, we will gain a keen sensitivity to rhythm--knowing when to move and when to let go. (Fearing, 2001 pp. 214-215) Perhaps these reflections have added a little coherence to the study of occupational balance. Occupational balance is a relative state, recognizable by a happy or pleasant integration of life activities and demands. There are indicators of imbalance, more so than tangible ways to measure it, and once recognized occupational therapists have the strategies to help restore a sense of occupational balance. Given our collective history and skill in client-centred practice, occupational therapists are capable of both advancing this line of inquiry and attaining occupational balance for ourselves and our clients.

Controllable Grid Interface for Testing Ancillary Service Controls and Fault Performance of Utility-Scale Wind Power Generation: Preprint

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

Gevorgian, Vahan; Koralewicz, Przemyslaw; Wallen, Robb

The rapid expansion of wind power has led many transmission system operators to demand modern wind power plants to comply with strict interconnection requirements. Such requirements involve various aspects of wind power plant operation, including fault ride-through and power quality performance as well as the provision of ancillary services to enhance grid reliability. During recent years, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the U.S. Department of Energy has developed a new, groundbreaking testing apparatus and methodology to test and demonstrate many existing and future advanced controls for wind generation (and other renewable generation technologies) on the multimegawatt scale andmore » medium-voltage levels. This paper describes the capabilities and control features of NREL's 7-MVA power electronic grid simulator (also called a controllable grid interface, or CGI) that enables testing many active and reactive power control features of modern wind turbine generators -- including inertial response, primary and secondary frequency responses, and voltage regulation -- under a controlled, medium-voltage grid environment. In particular, this paper focuses on the specifics of testing the balanced and unbalanced fault ride-through characteristics of wind turbine generators under simulated strong and weak medium-voltage grid conditions. In addition, this paper provides insights on the power hardware-in-the-loop feature implemented in the CGI to emulate (in real time) the conditions that might exist in various types of electric power systems under normal operations and/or contingency scenarios. Using actual test examples and simulation results, this paper describes the value of CGI as an ultimate modeling validation tool for all types of 'grid-friendly' controls by wind generation.« less

Calculating depths to shallow magnetic sources using aeromagnetic data from the Tucson Basin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Casto, Daniel W.

2001-01-01

Using gridded high-resolution aeromagnetic data, the performance of several automated 3-D depth-to-source methods was evaluated over shallow control sources based on how close their depth estimates came to the actual depths to the tops of the sources. For all three control sources, only the simple analytic signal method, the local wavenumber method applied to the vertical integral of the magnetic field, and the horizontal gradient method applied to the pseudo-gravity field provided median depth estimates that were close (-11% to +14% error) to the actual depths. Careful attention to data processing was required in order to calculate a sufficient number of depth estimates and to reduce the occurrence of false depth estimates. For example, to eliminate sampling bias, high-frequency noise and interference from deeper sources, it was necessary to filter the data before calculating derivative grids and subsequent depth estimates. To obtain smooth spatial derivative grids using finite differences, the data had to be gridded at intervals less than one percent of the anomaly wavelength. Before finding peak values in the derived signal grids, it was necessary to remove calculation noise by applying a low-pass filter in the grid-line directions and to re-grid at an interval that enabled the search window to encompass only the peaks of interest. Using the methods that worked best over the control sources, depth estimates over geologic sites of interest suggested the possible occurrence of volcanics nearly 170 meters beneath a city landfill. Also, a throw of around 2 kilometers was determined for a detachment fault that has a displacement of roughly 6 kilometers.

MODFLOW–LGR—Documentation of ghost node local grid refinement (LGR2) for multiple areas and the boundary flow and head (BFH2) package

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mehl, Steffen W.; Hill, Mary C.

2013-01-01

This report documents the addition of ghost node Local Grid Refinement (LGR2) to MODFLOW-2005, the U.S. Geological Survey modular, transient, three-dimensional, finite-difference groundwater flow model. LGR2 provides the capability to simulate groundwater flow using multiple block-shaped higher-resolution local grids (a child model) within a coarser-grid parent model. LGR2 accomplishes this by iteratively coupling separate MODFLOW-2005 models such that heads and fluxes are balanced across the grid-refinement interface boundary. LGR2 can be used in two-and three-dimensional, steady-state and transient simulations and for simulations of confined and unconfined groundwater systems. Traditional one-way coupled telescopic mesh refinement methods can have large, often undetected, inconsistencies in heads and fluxes across the interface between two model grids. The iteratively coupled ghost-node method of LGR2 provides a more rigorous coupling in which the solution accuracy is controlled by convergence criteria defined by the user. In realistic problems, this can result in substantially more accurate solutions and require an increase in computer processing time. The rigorous coupling enables sensitivity analysis, parameter estimation, and uncertainty analysis that reflects conditions in both model grids. This report describes the method used by LGR2, evaluates accuracy and performance for two-and three-dimensional test cases, provides input instructions, and lists selected input and output files for an example problem. It also presents the Boundary Flow and Head (BFH2) Package, which allows the child and parent models to be simulated independently using the boundary conditions obtained through the iterative process of LGR2.

[The role and future task of the occupational health nurse].

PubMed

Ikeda, Tomoko

2013-10-01

The Industrial Safety and Health Act was enacted focusing on occupational disease prevention in 1972. It has been revised over the years to include consideration of work associated diseases, and the participation and cooperation of employer and employees. From now, positive participation of employer-and-employees in occupational health activity becomes important in order to achieve the expanded purpose of the law. It is necessary to empower all workers to be able to perform occupational health activity independently. Florence Nightingale defined nursing in the 1850's. "Nursing is to put the patient in the best condition by improvement of environment, including a population approach. The goal of nursing is to enable the patient to use his faculty fully." The Public Health Nurse is, "assistance to the process of solving one's health, identifying health issues based on a community, using systematic measures which lead to prevention, and aiming at public responsibility." The daily activity of Nurses including Occupational Health Nurses (OHNs) is based on the theory and technology of "empowerment". In promoting the employer-and-employees independent Occupational Safety and Health Activity, the OHN's professional specialty of "empowerment" can play an important role.

Occupations, perceived stress, and stress-related disorders among women and men in the public sector in Sweden.

PubMed

Håkansson, Carita; Ahlborg, Gunnar

2017-01-01

Stress-related disorders are a public health problem and represent a significant burden to individuals and society. It is, therefore, of importance to regard stress in a wider context and identify risk factors not only at work but in all occupations in everyday life, to prevent ill health. The aim of this study was to examine potential associations between everyday occupations, perceived stress, and stress-related disorders as well as potential gender differences. A survey was mailed to a random selection of 3481 employees in the public sector in Western Sweden. Cox regressions with constant time at risk were used, in order to calculate prevalence ratios (PR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI). The results showed a clear association between reporting imbalance between different everyday occupations and both perceived stress and stress-related disorders among men and women. Imbalance between different everyday occupations seems to be an important risk factor for perceived stress and stress-related disorder among both women and men. To enable people to achieve balance between different everyday occupations may be a useful way to prevent stress, stress-related disorders, and sick leave, and to promote better health and well-being.

Modeling occupancy distribution in large spaces with multi-feature classification algorithm

DOE PAGES

Wang, Wei; Chen, Jiayu; Hong, Tianzhen

2018-04-07

We present that occupancy information enables robust and flexible control of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems in buildings. In large spaces, multiple HVAC terminals are typically installed to provide cooperative services for different thermal zones, and the occupancy information determines the cooperation among terminals. However, a person count at room-level does not adequately optimize HVAC system operation due to the movement of occupants within the room that creates uneven load distribution. Without accurate knowledge of the occupants’ spatial distribution, the uneven distribution of occupants often results in under-cooling/heating or over-cooling/heating in some thermal zones. Therefore, the lack of high-resolutionmore » occupancy distribution is often perceived as a bottleneck for future improvements to HVAC operation efficiency. To fill this gap, this study proposes a multi-feature k-Nearest-Neighbors (k-NN) classification algorithm to extract occupancy distribution through reliable, low-cost Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) networks. An on-site experiment was conducted in a typical office of an institutional building to demonstrate the proposed methods, and the experiment outcomes of three case studies were examined to validate detection accuracy. One method based on City Block Distance (CBD) was used to measure the distance between detected occupancy distribution and ground truth and assess the results of occupancy distribution. Finally, the results show the accuracy when CBD = 1 is over 71.4% and the accuracy when CBD = 2 can reach up to 92.9%.« less

Modeling occupancy distribution in large spaces with multi-feature classification algorithm

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

Wang, Wei; Chen, Jiayu; Hong, Tianzhen

We present that occupancy information enables robust and flexible control of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems in buildings. In large spaces, multiple HVAC terminals are typically installed to provide cooperative services for different thermal zones, and the occupancy information determines the cooperation among terminals. However, a person count at room-level does not adequately optimize HVAC system operation due to the movement of occupants within the room that creates uneven load distribution. Without accurate knowledge of the occupants’ spatial distribution, the uneven distribution of occupants often results in under-cooling/heating or over-cooling/heating in some thermal zones. Therefore, the lack of high-resolutionmore » occupancy distribution is often perceived as a bottleneck for future improvements to HVAC operation efficiency. To fill this gap, this study proposes a multi-feature k-Nearest-Neighbors (k-NN) classification algorithm to extract occupancy distribution through reliable, low-cost Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) networks. An on-site experiment was conducted in a typical office of an institutional building to demonstrate the proposed methods, and the experiment outcomes of three case studies were examined to validate detection accuracy. One method based on City Block Distance (CBD) was used to measure the distance between detected occupancy distribution and ground truth and assess the results of occupancy distribution. Finally, the results show the accuracy when CBD = 1 is over 71.4% and the accuracy when CBD = 2 can reach up to 92.9%.« less

Implications of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's bloodborne pathogen standard for the occupational health professional.

PubMed

Udasin, I G; Gochfeld, M

1994-05-01

On December 6, 1991. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) issued its final regulation concerning occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens (29 CFR 1910.1030). OSHA has determined that workers in a variety of settings face a significant health risk as the result of occupational exposure to blood and other body fluids. The pathogens that are of the most concern include human immunodeficiency type 1 (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV). OSHA concludes that the hazard can be minimized via engineering and work practice controls, personal protective equipment, HBV vaccination, training and education, and appropriate use of signs and labels. Occupational health professionals, including physicians, nurses, industrial hygienists, and safety officers, are faced with the challenge of writing and periodically updating exposure control plans that are unique to their settings, as well as advising colleagues in other settings. They are charged with identifying the appropriate at-risk groups within their workplace, and providing them with the appropriate training to enable employees to understand the rationale for the safety procedures that prevent exposures to blood-borne pathogens. This review of HIV/HBV articles pertinent to the occupational setting analyzes six topics including: (1) occupational risk of transmission of HIV, (2) occupational risk of transmission of HBV, (3) special concerns of dental practices, (4) risk of HIV/HBV outside the hospital, medical, or dental office setting, (5) legal and ethical issues involved in HIV testing, and (6) the United States Public Health Service postexposure HIV/HBV prophylaxis/treatment recommendations.

Individualized grid-enabled mammographic training system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yap, M. H.; Gale, A. G.

2009-02-01

The PERFORMS self-assessment scheme measures individuals skills in identifying key mammographic features on sets of known cases. One aspect of this is that it allows radiologists' skills to be trained, based on their data from this scheme. Consequently, a new strategy is introduced to provide revision training based on mammographic features that the radiologist has had difficulty with in these sets. To do this requires a lot of random cases to provide dynamic, unique, and up-to-date training modules for each individual. We propose GIMI (Generic Infrastructure in Medical Informatics) middleware as the solution to harvest cases from distributed grid servers. The GIMI middleware enables existing and legacy data to support healthcare delivery, research, and training. It is technology-agnostic, data-agnostic, and has a security policy. The trainee examines each case, indicating the location of regions of interest, and completes an evaluation form, to determine mammographic feature labelling, diagnosis, and decisions. For feedback, the trainee can choose to have immediate feedback after examining each case or batch feedback after examining a number of cases. All the trainees' result are recorded in a database which also contains their trainee profile. A full report can be prepared for the trainee after they have completed their training. This project demonstrates the practicality of a grid-based individualised training strategy and the efficacy in generating dynamic training modules within the coverage/outreach of the GIMI middleware. The advantages and limitations of the approach are discussed together with future plans.

Wildlife monitoring across multiple spatial scales using grid-based sampling

Treesearch

Kevin S. McKelvey; Samuel A. Cushman; Michael K. Schwartz; Leonard F. Ruggiero

2009-01-01

Recently, noninvasive genetic sampling has become the most effective way to reliably sample occurrence of many species. In addition, genetic data provide a rich data source enabling the monitoring of population status. The combination of genetically based animal data collected at known spatial coordinates with vegetation, topography, and other available covariates...

Energy Systems Integration News | Energy Systems Integration Facility |

Science.gov Websites

the electric grid. These control systems will enable real-time coordination between distributed energy with real-time voltage and frequency control at the level of the home or distributed energy resource least for electricity. A real-time connection to weather forecasts and energy prices would allow the