Cellular networks undergo majors changes in theworld. Several standards have been deployed since1980. The enthusiasm of the general public quicklysaturated the first generations and the number ofservices increases for every standard. Development ofa new one is the occasion to find new ways to simplifythe radio architecture in order to relieve consumershigh quality of service.Today, this radio architecture has been simplified butbase station antennas have become more and morecritical for their size and create problems in townsspecially. Moreover, constraints from the governmentand consumers associations contest deployment ofnew base station.Works of the thesis are focused on increasing basestation antenna gain based on two differenttechnologies. Then, conception of compact radiatingelements was developed and presented through asmall array. Good results open new perspectives torealize a compact multiband base station antennathanks to new compact radiating element sized inothers frequency bands. ; Les réseaux cellulaires ont connu et continuent deconnaitre des évolutions majeures à travers le monde.Plusieurs standards ont été déployés par tous lesopérateurs depuis la fin des années 1980.L'engouement du grand public a vite fait saturer lespremières générations et le nombre de servicesaugmentent à chaque standard. Le développementd'un nouveau standard est l'occasion de simplifierl'architecture radio pour proposer une meilleurequalité de service (couverture radio ou débit).De nos jours, toute l'architecture a subi de grandesmodifications sauf les antennes panneaux classiquesqui posent des problèmes croissants surtout dans lescentres villes.Ce mémoire s'oriente sur la possibilité d'améliorer lesperformances de deux antennes de station de baseexistantes. Ensuite, la conception d'élémentsrayonnants compacts a été abordée afin de réduire lasurface occupée par un réseau. Sa faisabilité a étévalidée puis présentée par la réalisation d'un réseausimplifié. Les résultats encourageants obtenus à la findes travaux ouvrent de nouvelles perspectives pour laréalisation d'une antenne de station de base compactemultibande avec l'ajout de nouvelles antennescompactes dans d'autres bandes de fréquence.
This contribution presents the early results of a R&D collaboration established between the University of Cantabria and the Power Transformer Manufacturer EFACEC. This paper tests two different techniques of steady state thermal modelling applied to power transformer windings, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Thermal-Hydraulic Network Modelling (THNM). The state of the art of thermal modelling demonstrates that these techniques have been used to calculate both average and hotspot winding temperatures by solving the winding temperature and flows profiles within the winding. THNM models have worse accuracy than CFD in the predicted results. The improvement of these THNM models is a topic of study in transformer thermal modelling. The first goal of this paper is to test the accuracy of a new calibrated THNM model of a disc-type winding immersed in mineral oil. Then, this THNM model is tested with ester-based liquids, such as a natural ester and a synthetic ester, to determine if it can be applied to these liquids without further calibrations. Finally, the cooling performance of both type of liquids is compared using only the THNM model results. The results of this work show that the THNM model developed herein gives good estimations of temperatures compared to those obtained with CFD for both types of liquids. Also, the use of alternative fluids leads to lower temperatures when considering the same oil flow rate and temperature as inlet boundary condition. ; This work was supported in part by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme through the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action-Research and Innovation Staff Exchange (MSCA-RISE) under Agreement 823969, and in part by the Ministry of Economy through the National Research Project: Improvement of Insulation Systems of Transformers through Dielectric Nanofluids under Grant DPI2015-71219-C21-R.
The EU envisions itself as a global leader in sustainable fisheries governance. This paper explores how two key policies seek to implement these aspirations internationally - the Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported (IUU) regulation and the Sustainable Fishing Partnership Agreements (SFPAs). We draw on case studies in Thailand and Senegal to examine the specific mechanisms through which the EU influences fisheries governance beyond its territory, respectively through the IUU regulation and SFPAs. Drawing on normative power literature, we argue that the EU utilises network and market modes of governance to translate normative environmental values into third country regulations as part of dialogue and negotiation processes. In particular, we expand on the functioning of the network mode of governance by looking at how the EU has used socialisation and partnership approaches to promote certain values during its dialogues with both countries. In Thailand, the EU helped promote fisheries reform through its IUU yellow card mechanism, but its influence has at times been criticised as too directive. Meanwhile, the latest iteration of the EU's bilateral fishing relations with Senegal under the new SFPA scheme shows promising improvement compared to previous versions, but remains complicated by the two countries' relative power imbalance. Overall, our paper seeks to enrich the engagement of fisheries governance literature with questions of EU relations with third countries. Our two case studies demonstrate how exploring the functioning of normative aspects is significant particularly because the advancement of sustainability in global fisheries depends on concrete, historically complex, and multilaterally constructed power relations.
Ecological networks aim to integrate biodiversity conservation with sustainable spatial development. Their governance in Europe is shaped by the interplays between multiple actors from various levels along spatial and jurisdictional-institutional scales. Despite the calls for greater public and stakeholder involvement, the legitimacy or social robustness of spatial planning and biodiversity policies in Europe has continuously been questioned by various stakeholders. This thesis, drawing on a set of qualitative case studies, provides some reflections on the participatory development of certain ecological network initiatives foremost in Estonia (e.g. the Natura 2000 and the national Green Network), as well as in other EU countries. The following questions are addressed. (1) To what extent are participatory approaches able to effectively build stakeholder awareness? (2) What are instances of and factors contributing towards knowledge integration and social learning within participatory processes? (3) Which conditions affect the legitimacy of ecological network governance? Landowners are one key stakeholder group within the Natura 2000 designations and management. Yet, their awareness on important topics, like socio-economic implications of designations, or on formal rules of consultations in the Estonian cases was rather vague. The way information is exchanged, but its content also affects the success of communication: broad awareness-raising campaigns (e.g. information distributed via mass media) are not likely to satisfy stakeholders' specific information needs and build their trust towards environmental authorities. More personalised involvement tools are needed to raise landowners' awareness. In the Estonian Natura 2000 consultations, mostly scientific knowledge stood at the forefront, but the participatory delineations of the Green Network allowed the inclusion of knowledge from a broader set of stakeholders. Trust in each other's expertise, but also certain attributes of the decision-making context, and of participatory processes (e.g. goal definition, continuity of contacts) facilitated knowledge integration in the latter case. Conflictive situations can also catalyse learning among stakeholders, e.g. support them to become aware of and respectful towards each other's concerns. The cases have illustrated several challenges that the complex architectures of multi-level governance contexts pose on certain normative criteria for assessing legitimacy, e.g. for inclusion, accountability or transparency. Under different contexts, stakeholders tend to wear "multiple hats", e.g. represent different kinds of interests, or are carriers of various knowledge claims. Often the concrete situation determines which one of such "hats" will be the most important. Here, the legitimacy of decision-making foremost depends on what kinds of stakeholders' concerns are considered and/or included in the processes and their outcomes. Stakeholder analyses could help to identify the actors, analyse their roles, claims, and their relevance. The issue(s) at stake also affect stakeholders' expectations towards participatory decision-making. So, stakeholders' expectations towards participation, but the overall process boundaries should also be clarified from the outset, in order to avoid raising unjustified expectations. If conflicts within ecological network governance are caused by fundamental differences in frames, i.e. the various ways people make sense of problems, re-framing exercises could be one solution to reconcile such conflicts. Re-framing helps stakeholders to focus on common aspects in their views, which could facilitate mutual understanding and collaboration. Ultimately, participatory practices are influenced by the prevailing participatory culture, e.g. the ways different stakeholders, including public officials, have been used to conceptualise and exercise participation. ; Ökovõrgustike planeerimine ja rakendamine ühendab maastiku ökoloogilised funktsioonid mitmesuguste sotsiaal-majanduslike aspektidega ning hõlmab geograafilisi ja administratiivtasandeid kohalikest omavalitsustest Euroopa Liiduni (EL). Asjaliste (ingl stakeholders) kaasamist otsustusprotsessidesse peetakse mitmetel pragmaatilistel ning normatiivsetel kaalutlustel oluliseks ökovõrgustike valitsemise osaks. Väitekiri tugineb juhtumiuuringute analüüsil, käsitledes ökovõrgustikega seonduvate kaasamisprotsesside tõhusust ja tulemuslikkust Eestis ning mõnedes teistes EL riikides, ning juhindub järgmistest uurimisküsimustest. (1) Kuidas saab kaasamisega toetada tulemuslikku suhtlust eri osapoolte vahel (sh tõsta maaomanike teadlikkust) Natura 2000 alade määratlemise kontekstis? (2) Millistel juhtudel on / ei ole kaasamine toiminud õpi- ning erinevate asjaliste teadmisi koondava protsessina? Millised faktorid seda mõjutavad? (3) Millised asjaolud määravad otsustusprotsesside ja nende tulemite legitiimsuse (s.t vastuvõetavuse)? Maaomanikud on Natura 2000 võrgustiku moodustamisel üks olulisimaid asjalistegruppe. Analüüsitud juhtumid näitavad, et laialdased avalikustamiskampaaniad ei suuda rahuldada maaomanike spetsiifilist infovajadust, kuid vahetumad ja konkreetsemat sisulist infot pakkuvad suhtlusvormid (nt telefonivestlus looduskaitseametnikuga või osalemine asjaliste koosolekutel) tõstavad tõenäolisemalt maaomanike teadlikkust ning aitavad ennetada arusaamatusi maaomanike ja looduskaitse-ekspertide vahel. Eesti Natura 2000 alade määratlemine põhines eeskätt teaduslikel alustel, kuid maakondade rohevõrgustiku planeerimine võimaldas paljude erinevate teadmistega asjaliste kaasamist. Viimasel juhul olid määravad edutegurid otsustusprotsessi varases etapis loodud usalduslik kontakt ja osapoolte vahelise hea suhte järjepidevus. Kui varasemalt on leitud, et kaasamine on õpiprotsess eeskätt koostööliste suhete tingimustes, siis käesolev uurimus kinnitab, et ka konfliktiolukorrad võivad soodustada üksteise seisukohtade ja huvide teadvustamist ning nendega arvestamist. Valitsustasandite paljusus võib takistada tõhusat teabevahetust neil toimivate asjaliste vahel, samuti asjaliste võrdväärset kaasamist, vastutusvaldkondade selget piiritlemist ja otsustetegijate aruandekohustuse (accountability) täitmist mitme erineva valitsustasandi ees. Laiapõhjaline asjaliste kaasatus (inclusion) otsustusprotsessidesse ei pruugi alati tagada lõplike otsuste legitiimsust. Otsuste vastuvõetavust mõjutavad siinkohal eeskätt asjaliste hinnangud sellele, kuivõrd nende panusega on kaasamisel arvestatud. Asjalised võivad eri olukordades esindada väga mitmesuguseid rolle, millele vastavalt nad otsustesse panustavad, nt oma teadmiste või huvide kajastamisega. Asjalistel on tihti ka erinevad ootused kaasamisprotsesside ülesehituse ja tulemuste osas, seega tuleks ekslike ootuste vältimiseks kaasamise aluspõhimõtted ning täpsemad protsessireeglid varakult kõigi osapooltega läbi rääkida. Asjaliste analüüs (stakeholder analysis) võimaldab otsusetegijail asjalisi ja nende rolle kaardistada ning lõppkokkuvõttes hinnata, milliseid osapooli tuleks antud kontekstis esmajoones kaasata. Väitekirjas tuli esile legitiimsuseuuringutes seni vähest kajastamist leidnud aspekt, et otsuste illegitiimsus võib tuleneda ka asjaolust, et kaasamisel pole piisavalt arvestatud märkimisväärsete erinevustega asjaliste probleemikäsitlustes (frames). Seda tüüpi vastuolude lahendamisel võib abi olla probleemide ümbersõnastamisest (re-framing) nii, et keskendutakse seisukohtades peituvaile ühisjoontele, millele ehitada üles edasine arutelu ning võimalik koostöö. Selgus ka, et mõnesid Eesti keskkonnakorralduspraktikas laialdaselt kasutatavaid kaasamisvorme (nt avalikke koosolekuid) peavad asjalised ebapiisavateks võimalusteks otsuseid mõjutada. Võimalik, et koosolekuid jt sarnaseid kaasamisvorme aitaksid tõhustada nende parem organiseeritus, mida soodustaksid nt professionaalsed hõlbustajad (facilitators) või ametnike koosolekujuhtimisalaste oskuste arendamine. Kaasamise tõhusust ja tulemuslikkust mõjutab suuresti ka osalus- ja kaasamiskultuur: erinevate asjaliste, sh ametnike arusaamad kaasamisest-osalusest. ; Publication of this dissertation has been supported by the Estonian University of Life Sciences and by the Doctoral School of Earth Sciences and Ecology created under the auspices of European Social Fund.
Background. Implementing health improvement is often perceived as diverting resource away from schools' core business, reflecting an assumption of a "zero-sum game" between health and education. There is some evidence that health behaviors may affect young people's educational outcomes. However, associations between implementation of school health improvement and educational outcomes remains underinvestigated. Methods. The study linked school-level data on free school meal (FSM) entitlement, educational outcomes, and school attendance, obtained from government websites, with data from the School Environment Questionnaire (SEQ) on health improvement activity collected in Wales (2015/2016). Spearman's rank correlation coefficients and linear regression models tested the extent of association between health improvement activity and attendance and educational outcomes. Results. SEQ data were provided by 100/115 network schools (87%), of whom data on educational performance were obtained from 97. The percentage of pupils entitled to FSM predicted most of the between-school variance in achievement and attendance. Linear regression models demonstrated significant positive associations of all measures of health improvement activity with attainment at Key Stage (KS) 3, apart from mental health education in the curriculum and organizational commitment to health. Student and parent involvement in planning health activities were associated with improved school attendance. There were no significant associations between health improvement and KS4 attainment. Conclusion. Implementing health improvement activity does not have a detrimental effect on schools' educational performance. There is tentative evidence of the reverse, with better educational outcomes in schools with more extensive health improvement policies and practices. Further research should investigate processes by which this occurs and variations by socioeconomic status.
Streamflow forecasts are essential for water resources management. Although there are many methods for forecasting streamflow, real-time forecasts remain challenging. This study evaluates streamflow forecasts using a process-based model (Soil and Water Assessment Tool-Variable Source Area model-SWAT-VSA), a stochastic model (Artificial Neural Network -ANN), an Auto-Regressive Moving-Average (ARMA) model, and a Bayesian ensemble model that utilizes the SWAT-VSA, ANN, and ARMA results. Streamflow is forecast from 1 to 8 d, forced with Quantitative Precipitation Forecasts from the US National Weather Service. Of the individual models, SWAT-VSA and the ANN provide better predictions of total streamflow (NSE 0.60-0.70) and peak flow, but underpredicted low flows. During the forecast period the ANN had the highest predictive power (NSE 0.44-0.64), however all three models underpredicted peak flow. The Bayesian ensemble forecast streamflow with the most skill for all forecast lead times (NSE 0.49-0.67) and provided a quantification of prediction uncertainty. ; National Science FoundationNational Science Foundation (NSF) [1360415, 1343802]; USDAUnited States Department of Agriculture (USDA) [2012-67019-19434] ; We would like to acknowledge high-performance computing support from Yellowstone (http://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d7wd3xhc) provided by NCAR's Computational and Information Systems Laboratory, support from the National Science Foundation under award numbers 1360415 and 1343802, and funding support from the USDA under project number 2012-67019-19434. All data and methods used in this manuscript are available upon request. ; Public domain authored by a U.S. government employee
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to discuss the guidelines and modification of practices with respect to corneal transplantation and eye banking during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period and beyond, at a network of tertiary care centers in India. METHODS: Descriptive study of the challenges faced in eye banking during the lockdown, and practices adopted to overcome the critical aspects in the clinical care of patients who presented with emergency corneal diseases requiring keratoplasty. RESULTS: Complete lockdown orders from the Indian government, as a strategy to control the Coronavirus pandemic, resulted in drastic reduction of all types of elective corneal transplants and eye banking activities from March 24, 2020 to May 31, 2020. The sudden cessation of eye banking resulted in an acute demand and supply imbalance of fresh donor corneas for transplants during this time. Our network of eye banks addressed this issue by adopting glycerol preservation of donor corneas, which were subsequently utilized for tectonic penetrating keratoplasty. The donor cornea retrieval was resumed in a strategized manner 3 weeks prior to the date of exit of the lockdown, with modified guidelines on donor suitability, screening, retrieval, processing, and harvesting from various sources. A triage of keratoplasty priority was formulated to tide over the post lockdown shortage of corneas. We performed 31 therapeutic keratoplasties during the nationwide lockdown among our network of tertiary eye care centers. CONCLUSION: The study highlights the approach and strategies to manage and tide over an unprecedented crisis situation faced by corneal surgeons in general and, specifically, the eye banking community.
In: van Meerkerk , I & Edelenbos , J 2013 , ' The effects of boundary spanners on trust and performance of urban governance networks: findings from survey research on urban development projects in the Netherlands ' , Policy Sciences , vol. 47 , no. 1 , pp. 3-24 . https://doi.org/10.1007/s11077-013-9181-2
Previous research has extensively analyzed the role, and indicated the importance, of network management for the functioning and performance of public or governance networks. In this article, we focus on the influence of boundary spanning actors in such networks—an aspect less examined in the governance network literature. Boundary spanners are considered to be important for governance network performance. Building on the literature, we expect a mediating role of trust in this relationship. To empirically test these relationships, we conducted survey research (N = 141) among project managers involved in urban governance networks: networks around complex urban projects that include the organizations involved in the governance process (the formulation of policies, decision making, and implementation) in these complex projects. We found a strong positive relationship between the presence of boundary spanners and trust and governance network performance. The results indicate a partially mediating role of trust in this relationship. Furthermore, we found that these boundary spanners originated mainly from private and societal organizations, and less from governmental organizations.
Differentiating between Parkinson's disease (PD) and atypical parkinsonian syndromes (APS) is still a challenge, specially at early stages when the patients show similar symptoms. During last years, several computer systems have been proposed in order to improve the diagnosis of PD, but their accuracy is still limited. In this work we demonstrate a full automatic computer system to assist the diagnosis of PD using 18F-DMFP PET data. First, a few regions of interest are selected by means of a two-sample t-test. The accuracy of the selected regions to separate PD from APS patients is then computed using a support vector machine classifier. The accuracy values are finally used to train a Bayesian network that can be used to predict the class of new unseen data. This methodology was evaluated using a database with 87 neuroimages, achieving accuracy rates over 78%. A fair comparison with other similar approaches is also provided. ; This work is part of a project approved by the Andalucía Talent Hub Program launched by the Andalusian Knowledge Agency, co-funded by the European Union's Seventh Framework Program, Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions (COFUND Grant Agreement no 291780) and the Ministry of Economy, Innovation, Science and Employment of the Junta de Andalucía. The work was also supported by the University of Granada (Spain), the University for Munich (Germany), the MICINN (Spain) under the TEC2012–34306 project and the Consejera de Innovacin, Ciencia y Empresa (Junta de Andaluca, Spain) under the P11–TIC–7103 excellence project.
