Thursday, November 28, 2019

“An Individual’s Interaction with Others and the World free essay sample

It is human nature to feel the incessant need to belong, whether it be to a particular group of people, culture or a country, This need can hinder or enhance an individual’s sense of belonging or not belonging. This essay will discuss this concept through the analysis of the following texts: Migrant Hostel, Feliks Skrzynecki written by Peter Skrzynecki in the Immigrant chronicle and the TWO other related texts â€Å"Skins† directed by Anthony Fabian and the documentary â€Å"Bully† directed by Lee Hirsch. All four texts explore modes of belonging, not belonging and the statement above. The first text, Migrant Hostel, is a reflective poem about Peter Skrzynecki’s experience in a migrant hostel in Parkes, Western Australia. Skrzynecki describes in intense detail the hardships, he, his family and immigrants of the 50’s experienced in migrant hostels. Similes and metaphors are used particularly throughout the poem to convey alienation, which is evident in the 3rd stanza, the author tells the reader that the boom gates at the entrance of the hostel that it â€Å"rose and fell like fingers† and â€Å"pointed in reprimand or shame†. We will write a custom essay sample on â€Å"An Individual’s Interaction with Others and the World or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This specific metaphor/simile informs the reader, through the feeling of empathy about the difficulties that migrants faced not only through the judgement and prejudice of the general public but by the other migrants, this may have not been the case if the general public realised how their judgements and prejudices affect the migrants ability to trust, to assimilate and to truly belong. Imagery throughout the poem is a key aspect pertaining to migrant hostel, imagery is shown when Skrzynecki refers to the migrants as â€Å"homing pigeons† and â€Å"birds of passage† this suggests a small sense of unity between common migrants, this helps the reader to realise that in a sense the migrants do belong through a sense of not belong and feeling alienated always overweigh the feeling of belonging and connection. The second text, Feliks Skrzynecki, This poem recounts the behaviour and the experiences Peter Skrzynecki had with his Father Feliks, The poem revealed the authors inner resentment towards his father, and his father’s ways, the poem also highlights Feliks’ resentment towards Peter and his dying need to connect with his culture and past. Imagery is used throughout the poem, imagery informs the reader of Feliks’ past times, establishes a relationship uilt on empathy and understanding between reader and Feliks and sheds light on the tense and almost tense relationship between Peter and Feliks, Stanza six tells us of a childhood memory of the author, it is made obvious that there is quite a distance between Peter and Feliks through this one statement â€Å" Happy as I have never been†, this statement reveals to the reader that Peter feels as though Feliks is to blame for his unhappiness. Hyperbole is exercised throughout the poem to highlight Peters resentment, The author exaggerates the military like chores the family repeated everyday such as; â€Å" He swept its paths ten times around the world† and â€Å"he spent years walking the perimeter† this makes it blatantly obvious that peter feels that Feliks cares about his garden more than what he does for him. These language techniques convey to the reader that if the author were to try to understand his father’s actions he may in fact feel as though he belongs. The film â€Å"skin† directed by Anthony Fabian is a film made to document the story of an African Women, Sandra Lang. Sandra Lang was born to two white parents who was born with coloured skin, this caused an argument as to which part of the clearly segregated societies that Africa lived in, the white society and the coloured society. Factual information within film is the biggest and foremost technique used, Lang’s story is told truthfully with no fear of controversy, the director conveys not only what happened to Lang but how she felt through these happenings, she felt as though she didn’t not belong with either society, her parents were white, she was coloured, she was raised as a â€Å"white† African women but was never accepted. Camera angles are used thoughout the film to convey power and equality, as Lang is a child in the film she is displayed in a panning shot to create a sense of belonging, innocence and equality because at this point there is little to none controversy about her, As Lang is an adult she is conveyed in below shots to show inequality and alienation, this is used in the scene where Lang has been shunned by the white community yet makes an appearance at the general store that her father owns, where coloured people are not permitted to be. The final text is the documentary â€Å"Bully† directed by Lee Hirsch, the documentary follows five children and their families over a course of one school year, the film confronts bullying’s worst outcomes, two families that lost their children to suicide and a mother who waits for her incarcerated daughter to be informed of her fate, her daughter was incarcerated after bringing a gun on a school bus with the attempt to warn of her bullies. The main technique used is the use of factual information through interviews with the children and families, the use of these interviews is to form an empathic connection between the interviewer, the victim and the audience, although the victim isn’t the only interviewee, the offender is also interviewed, which gives us, the audience, a chance to hear both sides of the story. The most common technique used is the use of the panning shot, which is a shot taken at the exact same level as the person who is in the shot, this shot gives the audience a sense of equality and also adds to the quality of empathy, a below shot is used whenever a â€Å"bully† is in the same room as their victim, this is to show the inequality of power between the victim and their bully. These techniques have been used to show the audience/viewer that it is not only yourself that limits you to your sense of belonging but your sense of belonging can be affected by others too. In conclusion, The four texts explore different modes of belonging, forced belonging and forced alienation. The only way that the texts could exercise these different modes is through the use of the techniques which has helped to emphasise the different belongings and how, if not you, than someone else can affect whether or not you belong.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

English Language Prepositional Phrase Examples

English Language Prepositional Phrase Examples Prepositional phrases are  set phrases that are introduced by prepositions. These set phrases are also often used with specific verbs. The placement of prepositional phrases are often placed at the end of sentences. Here are some examples: He learned the play by heart.The company had to sell the property at a loss.We decided to move to New York for better or worse. Other prepositional phrases can also be placed at the beginning of sentences. From my point of view, Id say we need to change our provider.By the way, Tom told me he would come over this afternoon.From now on, lets try to talk once a week on the phone. Prepositional phrases often have opposite forms such as at most/least, at a profit/loss, for better/worse, under obligation/no obligation, etc. Its important to learn to identify prepositional phrases, as they are used to connect ideas and modify verbs. Practice prepositions by quizzing yourself. At at first: You should only jog one mile at first.at least: Peter tries to learn at least ten new words every day.at most: The bus ride will take one hour at most.at times: It can be difficult to use correct grammar at times.at any rate: At any rate, Ill give you a call next week and we can discuss the plans.at last: At last, I can finally relax a little bit this weekend!at the latest: Ill finish the report by Monday at the latest.at once: We need to leave at once.at short notice: Will you be able to come at short notice?at an advantage: Im afraid Peter is at an advantage when it comes to golf.at a disadvantage: Its true that Im at a disadvantage, but I still think I can win.at risk: Unfortunately, this tree is at risk of dying if we dont do something.at a profit/loss: He sold the stock at a profit to make up for the stocks he had sold at a loss. By by accident: The boy lost his toy by accident.by far: Practicing speaking is by far the most important thing to do.by all means: He should take some time off by all means.by heart: I learned the song by heart.by chance: We met in New York by chance.by and by: Id like to learn some French by and by.by the way: By the way, have you spoken to Alice yet?by the time: Hell be finished by the time were ready to leave.by no means: Grammar is by no means the most difficult thing about learning English.by name: I try to know all my students by name.by sight: She can play almost anything on the piano by sight.by now: He should be finished by now.by then: Ill have dinner ready by then.   For for now: Lets take care of dinner for now.for instance: For instance, you could get a job!for example: For example, use a broom to clean up.for sale: There are a number of beautiful dresses on sale.for a while: Id like to live in New Mexico for a while.for the moment: For the moment, lets focus on getting this job done.for ages: Ive known Jennifer for ages.for a change: Lets concentrate on grammar for a change.for better or worse: Peter got a new job for better or worse.   From from now on: From now on, lets do a better job.from then on: He decided to get serious from then on.from bad to worse: Unfortunately, it looks like the world is going from bad to worse.from my point of view: Hes guilty from my point of view.from what I understand: From what I understand, they will be in town next week.from personal experience: She was speaking from personal experience.   Under under age: Children under 18 are considered under age.under control: Do you have everything under control?under the impression: Jack was under the impression that it was easy.under guarantee: Our refrigerator is still under guarantee.under the influence of: Mary is obviously under the influence of her husband.under no obligation: Youll be under no obligation to purchase this.under suspicion: Tom is under suspicion of murder.under his thumb: Jack has Peter under his thumb.under discussion: A new building is under discussion.under consideration: That idea is currently under consideration.   Without without fail: He came to class without fail.without notice: Ill have to leave without notice next week.without exception: Sara gets As on her tests without exception.without someones consent: Im afraid you cant come without Peters consent.without success: She grew tomatoes without success.without warning: He might surprise you without warning.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Auditing,governance and scandals Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Auditing,governance and scandals - Coursework Example The problems that faced A.I.G are not purely financial crises brought about by the tough global economic condition or any form of catastrophes. The problems, as evidenced by the Mutual fund scandals (2003), the Insurer bid rigging (2004) and AIG accounting scandal (2005) were purely caused by managerial twists and dysfunctions (Evans, 2012 p62). The management administration and governance failures saw the company plunge into a deep financial crisis, from which it has been trying to recover until present day (Markham, 2005 p510). The management and governance failure for this organization are traceable in several of the management deliberate misdeeds. First, the company took a huge amount of funds that were collected from securities lending, and invested them in the subprime bonds. Additionally, the company comingled its insurance subsidiaries to give it back some more money for that purpose (Boyd, 2011 p72). In so doing, the company ignored all the risks involved in operating liquid ity subprime bonds and went on to commit huge amount of its customer’s funds to this risk. ... The organization inflated its reserves that are used to pay claims by $106 million, making its reserve appear as though it was in a good state, and thus overly stating the organization’s total net worth. Additionally, the top management of the organization engaged in an illegal scheme with its traders, where it instructed them to buy A.I.G shares from the stock market in bulk, so that its share prices would rise (Spencer, 2009 p42). The acceptance of the ethical and accounting lapses, which led to the fraudulent and manipulation of accounting practices, places this organization on the list of companies with a high management and governance failure. Finally, bid rigging is yet another management failure that adds to the governance problem of the organization. The organization and its subsidiaries were involved in colluding with the executives of leading insurance companies, to defraud customers off billions of money, under false pretenses (Markham, 2005 p496). The executives ar ranged some fake noncompetitive bids and then conveyed them to the customers of some of the company’s subsidiaries, while also hiding some commission charges, to defraud the insurance buyers. A.I.G improvements and changes after the big scandals Notwithstanding the financial crisis that the company experienced after the scandals and management malpractices, the situation of the organization has continued to improve. The organization has engaged in various practices that improved its situation. First, the organization replaced all the top management executives who were involved in the malpractices, with other fresh individuals, who are committed to the course of reviving and improving the situation

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don't Get Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don't Get - Assignment Example The assignment "20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don't Get" analyzes the article which is a good piece fit for young graduates or those yet to complete their studies. It gives pieces of advice to young people on how to face life once they come out of school. It targets both the employed young people and those yet to secure jobs who share the objective of excelling in life. The tips are applicable in the real life and are vital in overcoming the challenges that come with employment, especially for the young generation. Young people require reminder on the necessity to protect and maintain a good reputation. Damaged reputation follows you wherever you go. On working hard, the author is not very right. Being first to arrive at work and the last to leave does not translate to being effective in the workplace. It is better to work smart and achieve the set goals than spending more hours at the workplace. Hard work does not depend on the number of hours spent working but on the quality and timely delivery of targets. The point that I will take from the article is advancing in technical skills to complement my degree. According to the article, this will boost the chances of getting employment. The author also stresses on networking as a strategy for ensuring employment. It is true that securing jobs today rely more on the people that one knows than skills possessed by the person. Expanding on the network guarantees the timely receipt of information about employment opportunities.

Monday, November 18, 2019

Influence of the development of low carbon infrastructure in future Essay - 1

Influence of the development of low carbon infrastructure in future - Essay Example s carbon emissions would mean that certain tradeoffs must be made between meeting the societal needs the way they were traditionally met, and achieving the new objective. In this respect, the Civil engineering profession has a role to play in developing structures that will be productive at the same rate as the traditional and current structures, may it be in terms of energy, safety or economic production, but which reduces the carbon emission to the lowest level possible. Carbon emission is an occurrence that is associated with every stage of the civil engineers project development work, starting from the design face, all the way to the construction, usage, maintenance and the dismantling of the infrastructure (ICE, 2011:7). Thus, the role of the civil engineers in the development of low carbon infrastructure must start right from the design face, until the structure is completed and put in use. Thus, these are the several ways through which the civil engineers can influence the dev elopment of low carbon infrastructure: The application of more carbon intensive technology during the construction face is one of the ways through which the civil engineers can contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions by the structure in its lifetime. This is because; the use of more carbon intensive means that there will be significantly reduced usage of carbon during the phase of usage of the infrastructure that has been developed (ICE, 2011:3). Therefore, considering the fact that the time span utilized in the development of an infrastructure is too short compared to the life time use of the infrastructure, it follows that the use of more carbon intensive during construction will help to reduce the overall future emission of the structure during its prolonged lifetime (ICE, 2011:4). Therefore, the greatest influence of the civil engineers in the development of the low carbon infrastructure can be realized at the project appraisal stage, which will help the civil engineer

Friday, November 15, 2019

Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) Model for Wind Farms

Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) Model for Wind Farms A Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) Model for Wind Farms with Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) The cost of energy is an important issue in the world as demand for renewable energy resources is growing. Performance-based energy contracts are designed to keep the price of energy as low as possible while controlling the risk for both the Buyer and the Seller. Price and risk are often balanced using Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Since wind is not a constant supply source, in order to keep risk low, wind PPAs contain clauses that require the purchase and sale of the energy to fall within reasonable limits. However, the existence of those limits creates pressure on prices, causing increases in the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE). Depending on the variation in capacity factor (CF), the power generator (the Seller) may find that the limitations on power purchases required by the utility (the Buyer) are not favorable and will result in higher costs of energy than predicted. Existing LCOE models do not take into account energy purchase limitations or variations in energy production when calculating an LCOE. The challenge addressed in this paper is that the price schedule in a PPA is determined using the LCOE provided by the Seller, but the energy delivery limits imposed within the PPA impact the LCOE in ways that are not accommodated by existing models. A new cost model has been developed to evaluate the price of electricity from wind energy under a PPA contract. This paper presents a method that an energy Seller can use to develop an appropriate Cost of Energy (COE) based on desired energy delivery quantities. The new cost model can then be used as a basis for setting an appropriate PPA price schedule. During the PPA negotiations, LCOE is calculated and used by the seller to determine an appropriate COE for each unit of energy that falls within the conditions set within the contract. As the COE isnegotiated and determined to be too high or too low by either party, the PPA terms are changed to adjust for the desired PPA prices. PPA energy purchase limitations can change the LCOE by as much as a factor of two depending on the energy limitations. The application of the model on real wind farms shows that the actual LCOE depends on the limitations on energy purchase within a PPA contract as well as the expected performance characterist ics associated with wind farms. Cost of Energy (COE) becomes a major concern for the public and utilities as the demand for power from renewable energy sources, such as wind, increases. Utilities may become reluctant to purchase more renewable energy than they are required to purchase if the COE is too high. COE is the actual cost to buy energy while LCOE is the break-even cost to generate the energy. The LCOE is a commonly accepted calculation of the Total Life-Cycle Cost (TLCC) for each unit of energy produced in the lifetime of a project[1]. In addition to the increase in the use of renewable energy sources, there is an increase in the use of PPAs for all sources of energy. PPAs are Performance-Based Contracts (PBCs) that aim to create a fair agreement for the purchase and sale of energy between a utility (the Buyer) and a generator (the Seller). The use of PPAs has been increasing around the world and they are commonly used in Europe, the U.S., and in Latin America. In Germany alone, offshore wind projects with PPAs totaled over 1.2 GW in capacity in 2013[2]. In the U.S. there existed a total of 29,632 MW of capacity in 343 signed or planned PPAs in 2014-2015[3]. Between 2008 and 2016, 650 MW of new capacity was signed in the U.S. and in 2015 the use of PPAs in the U.S. grew to 1.6 GW[4]. In Latin America, the government typically awards PPAs. In 2014, the government of Peru awarded PPAs to projects with a total of 232 MW of capacity[5]. ` PPAs use an LCOE calculation to determine a fair price of energy, much like a standard retail energy contract[1]. However, Buyers in a PPA can create terms that limit the annual purchase of energy, thereby affecting the actual LCOE. Buyers can create a limit for the minimum annual amount of energy that needs to be delivered and/or the maximum amount that energy will be bought at full price. The PPA contract limits create penalties; a penalty is incurred when the Seller does not fall within the energy delivery requirements. In a normal energy contract (such as a standard retail contract, a market retail contract, and in a PPA), the LCOE is calculated over the period of the contract and energy is purchased as it arrives at the agreed upon point of delivery. PPAs are used to share and reduce the risks of added costs, however, in some cases the costs are not accounted for within LCOE models. Conventional LCOE models include all the costs associated with an energy project. PPAs address and outline the capital costs, operational costs over the lifetime of the project, the energy produced, tax credits, and the weighted average cost of capital (WACC) within a specific project.[2] The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and others have developed and used LCOE models that typically consider all or most of these parameters [6][7][8]. The terms of the PPA are important because they create costs that affect the actual LCOE. However, current LCOE models do not include the effects of the energy delivery limits and their penalty costs imposed by PPAs as a cost to the wind farms. If the LCOE does not reflect the break-even cost, the Seller risks the projects failure and the Buyer risks the loss in profit from not providing enough energy to its end-use consumers. A more accurate LCOE could prevent the failure of a wind farm and benefit the Seller, the Buyer, and consumers. In this paper, a new LCOE model is proposed to address the PPA annual energy delivery limits, which we refer to as penalties. Although the application of penalties as a cost appears to be straightforward (because of their direct and indirect costs to the Seller), the penalties are more complex to analyze when uncertainties are introduced. The difference between the LCOE with and without penalties can be significant (see the Wind Farm Case Study). The effect of penalties on the LCOE can vary depending on the capacity factor (CF), the variation in CF, as well as the limits on the purchase of energy. Determining the best limits in a PPA depends on the needs of the Buyer in conjunction with a desire for a COE that reflects the actual LCOE for the Seller within the contract. This paper develops a method that provides a tool that the Seller can use to negotiate penalties and an appropriate COE within their PPAs. PPAs define every aspect of the project including: the terms for the entire projects construction, operation and maintenance (OM), insurance, the interconnection and grid, government involvement in the project, the delivery of energy, and any other third party involvement in the project[9]. Each of these aspects is a responsibility of the Seller that affects the cost of the wind farm. Normally, PPAs are viewed as just the relationship between the utility (Buyer) and the generator (Seller), however, this paper views the PPA as a plan with specific features defined for the success of the wind farm and all parties involved. During the negotiation of the PPA, the length of the agreement, the PPA price and the price schedule are determined[10]. All the costs determined during negotiations are reviewed to calculate the LCOE for the whole project and then the LCOE is used to determine a fair value for each unit of energy. The negotiation of the COE and PPA terms is iterated until both parties are satisfied. If the COE is too high, the terms are negotiated to drop the cost and if the terms create extra costs the COE is negotiated to a higher value. Although the PPA attempts to cover all the costs in the contract, the conventional LCOE models used do not consider the penalties on annual energy delivery limits as a cost. The purpose of creating annual energy delivery requirements is to be fair to the Buyer who takes on risk in acquiring negative profits by joining a new contract. The Buyer may not want to buy more expensive and unpredictable renewable energy, but may be required to by renewable energy requirem ents set by the government. This leads the Buyer to create limits on the amount of energy they are willing to purchase. However, the costs associated with these penalties are also a risk that could increase the LCOE without increasing the COE or the PPA price. Thus, causing a loss in profit for the Seller. The effect of penalties must be considered within the LCOE to ensure the fairness in the contract. In some cases, PPAs create minimum energy delivery requirements. If there is not enough energy being provided by the Seller, then the Buyer has to look for energy elsewhere at, possibly, spot-market prices. Spot-market prices vary daily (hourly) due to changing demand for energy buying and selling energy on the spot market is a risk that neither the Buyer nor the Seller wish to be exposed to. The Buyer creates the minimum energy delivery requirement to reduce their risk and the Seller has to pay at the PPA COE for every unit of energy under-delivered. Not all PPAs have minimum energy requirements and some that have a minimum requirement also have a maximum energy delivery requirement. The maximum energy delivery requirement has been used in locations that have renewable energy requirements mandated by customers or the government (and the Buyers would not otherwise purchase energy from renewable sources due to higher costs, e.g., the United States). Within a PPA, there are three diff erent requirements the Buyer can establish once the Seller has delivered the maximum energy delivery limit before the end of the contracted period. The Buyer could require that the energy generated cannot be sold, the energy could be sold at a fraction of the COE, or the energy could be sold in the spot-market. Both the spot-market and wind energy production are unpredictable. Energy could be produced during a period of very low demand and as such low spot-market prices would apply (e.g., at a faction of the LCOE). Although wind farms have energy that is bought and paid for monthly, the actual revenue is calculated at the end of the year. At the end of each year, the Sellers account is reviewed for penalty costs and the over purchase of energy to rectify the account balance. It is important to note that the LCOE model needs to review the annual CF and not the monthly CF and energy generation to determine the actual LCOE of a wind farm due to the PPA billing conditions stated above.[3] The levelized cost of energy, also known the levelized cost of electricity, or the levelized energy cost, is an economic assessment of the average total cost to build and operate a power-generating system over its lifetime divided by the total power generated of the system over that lifetime. LCOE is often used as an alternative to the average price that the power generating system must receive in a market to break even over its lifetime. LCOE is a first-order economic assessment of the cost competitiveness of an electricity-generating system that incorporates all costs over its lifetime accounting for the initial investment, the OM cost, the cost of fuel, and the cost of capital. The definition of LCOE is the cost that, if assigned to every unit of energy produced by the system over the analysis period, will equal the Total Life-Cycle Cost (TLCC) when discounted back to the base year [1][1], (1) where discrete compounding is assumed, Ei is the amount of energy produced in year i, r is the WACC (or discount rate), and n is the number of years over which the LCOE is calculated. E in year i is calculated as, (2) where RP is rated power, and CFiis the average capacity factor in year i. The TLCC in this model can be expressed as [11], (3) where I is the initial investment, and the Present Value of the total OM costs (PVOM) is given by[11], (4) where OMi is the OM costs in year i. LCOE is an equation that assigns a value for every unit produced during the given lifetime of a project. Traditionally, PPAs treat the contract length as the whole lifetime of the project, making short-term PPAs more expensive than long-term[11][12]. Since LCOE is by definition constant once calculated, it can be factored out of the summation in Equation (1) and the LCOE is given as, (5) Although the denominator of Equation (5) appears to be discounting the energy (and some authors have characterize it as such), the discounting is actually a result of the algebra carried through from Equation (1) in which revenues were discounted (energy is not discounted, only cost can be discounted). Based on the derivation of LCOE, the LCOE model must incorporate all financial parameters that contribute to the TLCC. Given this definition, this paper presents a model that includes PPA penalties in the TLCC. Several LCOE models currently exist and are used to determine fair prices for wind energy. NREL uses SAM (System Advisor Model) to compute the LCOE using wind farm data for PPAs[7]. Equation 6shows the LCOE model used in SAM (6) where CPEi is the cost to generate energy in year i and each parameter is given in the ith year.In the SAM model, the LCOE is calculated based on expected cash flows for OM and capital expenditures. Although cash flow is important for determining the actual money spent and costs involved in a wind farm project, SAM does not recognize the implementation of penalties or tax credits in its wind LCOE model[7]. The SAM model does calculate a PPA price within its financial model that includes tax credits, but the PPA price is only a discounted value from the calculated LCOE and does not consider penalties. Similar to SAM, the most commonly used LCOE models do not include tax credits, production losses, or penalties. Some LCOE models, such as Equation (7)[8], (7) explicitly include the following costs: fuel cost (F), production tax credit (PTC), depreciation (D), tax levy (T), and royalties (R).[4] Equation (7) recognizes that the tax credits reduce costs, but it does not recognize PPA penalties as a cost. Other models, such as Equation (8)[6], (8) where CRF is the capital recovery factor, consider the LCOE as a direct project cost and not the sum of TLCC of wind farms, which should include tax credits and PPA penalty costs in the TLCC. PPAs typically consider tax credits as a part of LCOE as seen in the Delmarva-Bluewater PPA[13] and explicitly in Equation (7). However, within PPAs, the LCOE calculation does not consider the cost of penalties in the life-cycle cost. Current LCOE models do not consider all the cost parameters in a wind farm managed via a PPA. PPAs may define a maximum annual energy delivery quantity, a minimum annual energy delivery quantity, both of these limits, or neither. The energy delivery limits are cost parameters that are typically not considered in a conventional LCOE model. The terms generally follow the rule that after the maximum delivery is reached, energy will no longer is purchased by the Buyer, the energy will be sold at a reduced price, or it will be sold on the spot-market[14]. This is generally considered a cost/penalty for the Seller since they lose some value of the energy that is produced after the maximum delivery quantity is reached. Similarly, there is a direct cost/penalty in the minimum energy delivery defined in the PPA, as every unit of under-produced energy must be paid back at the agreed upon COE. We model the minimum delivery penalty based on the PacifiCorp draft PPA, which included the liquidated damages from output shortfall[15]. In Fig. 1, the Maximum and Minimum energy limits demonstrate how the penalties are applied. Each year that the energy production is above or below the limits as shown in Fig. 1, the penalty is applied. The new model reflects the costs of energy production that is above the maximum or below the minimum energy delivery limits. The model begins with an existing LCOE model (Equation (7)) and alters it to include the delivery penalties and tax credits.The cost for under-delivering energy (PN), is the difference between the energy that was generated and delivered (E) and the threshold for the minimum penalty (Minlim)based on expected energy production (Pexp). E is calculated by, (9) where Eiis the sum of all the energy produced in the wind farm from N turbines in year i, CFi,j is the average capacity factor in year i for turbine j, and RPj is the rated power of turbine j. Using this calculation for energy, the production loss and the penalty from the minimum energy delivery limit can be calculated. PN is then calculated by, (10) In Equation (10), Minlim is smallest fraction of expected energy production (Pexp) that the Buyer requires. The purpose of the minimum limit is for the benefit of the Buyer. The Buyer expects a minimum amount of energy to meet the demands of the consumers. If the energy does not meet the requirement, then the Buyer has to go to an outside source (e.g., the spot-market) and will may have to purchase energy at a higher cost, which the Buyer will require the Seller to compensate them for. Similarly, the production loss (PL) is the difference between the energy that was generated (E) in that year and the threshold for the maximum penalty (Maxlim) based on the Pexp. (1-PPAterm) (11) In Equation (11), Maxlimis the largest fraction of expected energy production that the Buyer is willing to purchase. PN is only applied during the years that actual energy production is less than the quantity of energy determined by MinlimPexp,when EilimPexp. PL is only applied when the energy produced exceeds the amount of energy determined by MaxlimPexp,when Ei>MaxlimPexp. PPA ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­term is a fraction that represents the type of penalty placed on the Seller after the maximum energy limit has been reached. In a PPA with no outside sell option the PPAterm has a value of0. When all the energy is purchased by the Buyer regardless of the limit the PPAtermis 1 and therefore PL is never applied.[5] The LCOE model including all the unaccounted for cost variables that exist in PPAs is given by, (12) where PL and PN are only included in the total penalty cost (Pen) when the calculated cost in either of those variables in a year is more than $0. In Equation (12) the sums in the numerator and denominator start at i = 0 under the assumption that the investment cost (Ii) comes from a depreciation schedule. In the case where the PPA allows for the Buyer to sell into the spot-market, the PL be a negative value. The Peni in year i is the sum of the production loss and the penalty cost, (13) and the tax credit in year i (TCi) is given by, (14) where all types of tax credits that can be applied to a wind farm are included (see nomenclature for specific tax credit contributions). Both of the Pen and the TC depend on the conditions imposed by the PPA. A controlled study of wind farms was conducted to explore the effects of CF variation and energy delivery requirements on the LCOE. LCOEs were calculated based on four types of PPAs for farms with an annual CF that ranged in decreasing and increasing in fractions of 0 to 0.4 of the average CF around the average CF of 0.4. The four types of PPAs are: a PPA with just a minimum penalty, a PPA with just a maximum penalty where no energy can be bought above the limit, a PPA with just a maximum penalty where the energy is purchased at a fraction of 0.1 (PPAterm= 0.1) of the COE value for each unit of energy above the limit (the value of PPAterm= 0.1 was based on the Pakistan PPA[17]), and a PPA with just a maximum penalty where the energy above the maximum energy delivery limit has to be sold into the spot-market. Although the average CF = 0.4 is the same in all the cases considered, the COE for each wind farm is different since the LCOE differs for each wind farm due to the variations in CF. The costs and energy produced in each year varies, thus creating differences in the discounted total costs for each farm in the years that the CF varies. Each LCOE was calculated for a duration of 5 years. The following data was used to calculate the LCOE, I = $1500 per installed kW[18] OM = $0.01 per kWh produced[18] F = $0[8] TC = $0.05 per kWh sold[19] r = 0.089 per year[20] COE = Calculated LCOE from a PPA without penalties[21] I, although shown as a single value, is a value that is depreciated over the lifetime of the wind farm and changes for every year i. The COE in a PPA is generally calculated from an LCOE that does not consider delivery penalties as a cost. For this reason, the cost calculated from penalties in the new model uses the calculated LCOE (for an individual wind farm) under a PPA without penalties as the COE. Pexpis calculated as the average annual expected energy production from a specific farm. In these cases the expected energy production is calculated using a CF of 0.4 for every year as Danish wind farms averaged 0.41 in 2012 and NREL has predicted that between 2005 and 2030, wind farms will be operating at capacity factors between 0.36 and 0.43[22]. Ei is calculated using a CF that is based on the variability around the average CF. The values of Minlim, Maxlim,and Ei, are then used to calculated penalties. CF variation is the fraction of energy that is produced in year i that falls around the average CF of a project. Fig. 2 demonstrates this effect with two farms that have an average CF of 0.4 and a rated power of 2000 kW over 5 years. Wind farm 1 in this case has a CF variation of 0.05, this means that 0.05 more energy is produced in one year and 0.05 less is produced in another. Wind farm 2 in Fig. 2is similar as it portrays a CF variation of 0.15. The algorithm used in this study valued year 2 as the unexpected higher CF year and year 4 as the lower than expected CF year. It is possible to change the algorithm for other schedules of uncertainty that would yield different results and to make the schedule more complicated with random variations in random years. In all of the LCOE verification tests, the LCOE follows a similar trend. Fig. 3 shows the results from a PPA with only a minimum energy delivery limit. In this case, as the fraction of expected energy production increases, more energy is likely to fall below the annual requirement, thus increasing the LCOE. The variation in CF determines the quantity below the minimum that the energy can fall to and how much the penalty cost will be to the Seller. The greater the variation, the more likely the LCOE will be effected by the minimum energy delivery limits. Fig. 4shows a PPA where once the energy goes above the maximum annual energy delivery requirement that energy can be sold into the spot-market. The spot market is difficult to predict, therefore this study used spot-market prices from 2014 given by the EIA and used a Monte-Carlo simulation to randomly develop a normal distribution with a mean of $52.32 and a standard deviation of 38.75. Those values were then used to determine an expected value for the PPAtermfraction used in the produce the production loss calculation. In Fig. 4 the PPAterm = 1.1, which means that it was cheaper to sell into the spot-market then to sell to the Buyer under the PPA contract (i.e., cheaper to sell means more money for the Seller).[6] The results from Fig. 4 show that the LCOE drops when more energy is sold into the spot-market under these conditions. As the required energy fraction increased, only high variation farms have a lower LCOE because they are still producing above the maximum energy delivery limit and selling into the more profitable spot-market. Fig. 5 and 6 show very similar trends for two different PPAs. Fig. 5contains results from a PPA with a PPA ­term= 0.1 and Fig. 6contains results from a PPA with no outside sell option. Fig. 5allows for energy to be purchased after the maximum energy delivery limit has been reached, but only at PPAterm = 0.1 the value of the COE. This means that production loss is 0.9 of the COE for each unit of energy produced above the maximum energy delivery limit. Fig. 6 is similar because the production loss is the whole COE value for each unit of energy sold above the maximum energy delivery requirement because all the energy produced above the maximum limit cannot be sold, but is still being produced. Both figures show that as the Maxlimis increased, meaning that the maximum energy delivery requirement is increasing, less energy is being produced outside of the limit. Higher variations in the CF are more effected by the Maxlim than those with less variation. The only difference between Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 is that in Fig. 5 the LCOE values are slightly lower than those in Fig. 6 This is due to the low value for the PPAterm. A simulation was run to determine the resulting LCOEs from the four different PPA options. The first is a PPA with no energy delivery limits, where the energy is bought and sold as it is produced. The first type of PPA reflects a conventional LCOE where the PPA energy delivery limits are not applied. The second PPA has just a minimum delivery limit, the third has just a maximum delivery limits, and the fourth PPA has both delivery limits. Real data was collected from 7 different wind farms (Table 1[23]) that varied in the number of turbines, manufacturer, year built, rated power and country (Germany or Denmark). To simplify the differences in costs across the wind farms, the same cost variable values used in the model verification tests were used. The only difference in costs used from the model verification tests and the wind farm case study is that the wind farm case study uses a fixed COE for each farm at $0.25 per kWh, based on NRELs highest expected COE[24]. These wind farms com pared the four different PPA types with a fixed Maxlim = 0.75 and a Minlim = 0.52.[7] The LCOE of each turbine was calculated from the sum of LCOE costs at the end of 5 years. Fig. 7 shows the differences in the LCOEs based on the different annual energy delivery requirements and the selection of penalties that were applied. Each wind farm was given a number because the given data did not contain the name of the farms and only serial numbers for the turbines to identify that the turbines were a part of the same farm. The results show that in most data sets, while using the same Maxlimand/or Minlim parameters, just having a maximum penalty produced LCOEs closest to the LCOEs with no penalties. The results also showed that LCOEs with both penalties or those with just minimum penalties produced higher LCOEs. Based on the results from the model verification tests, for wind farms with the same turbine types and year manufactured, it can be assumed that the different clusters of LCOEs are caused by the differences in CF. Lower CFs cause larger differences between a PPA with just a maximum penalty and a PPA with just a minimum penalty as produced by wind farm datasets 1 and 2. While datasets 4 and 7 show closer clusters of LCOE due to higher CFs that less frequently fall below the threshold for the minimum annual energy delivery limit, but more frequently have production loss by producing energy above the maximum annual energy delivery limit. Wind Farm Dataset/ Manufacturer/ Rated Power<

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Turn of the century Vermont literature :: essays research papers

The later half of the nineteenth century and early half of the twentieth century marked a period of great change in the United States. The demography was drastically affected by the influx of immigrants who left their homelands in search of a new life. People off all nationalities, languages, and colors came together as a newfound community to live work amongst one another, regardless of differences. Men sacrificed their homeland at the expense of providing for their families, their ultimate mission. With this new life brought hopes of freedom, opportunity, and work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In modern society, money and material wealth are always at the center of life. The American dream is no longer characterized by a Leave it to Beaver lifestyle, but rather much larger in scale. The world we live in today is a capitalistic society that targets itself at making enormous profits off the funds of consumers. Americans want to be rich so that they can gain more for themselves to fulfill their greed, which never can be fully satisfied. The majority of people in today’s society can be characterized as the â€Å"Takers† of the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This situation that has grown to be the common way of life has blossomed over time into the mess that we observe today. Greed did not always rule society the way it does today. Literature and memoirs from a by-gone era prove this to be especially true. In reviewing such works, much emphasis is placed upon community and family. The man was conventionally the head of the household and would labor intensely to earn the needed resources to supply for his family. None the less, families tended to be larger in those days with the mother at the forefront of household and child duties. Given this, these early people can be easily characterized as â€Å"Givers.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Marie Tomasi’s Like Lesser Gods illustrates this way of life through the men that came to Granitetown Vermont from lands far away in search of work at the granite quarries. The infinite amount of work was immeasurable which gave security to the people who came to work in this new land of Vermont. In turn, this brought self-fulfillment to the people who worked there. Mr. Tiff recalled a letter he had received from Pietro while in Italy that characterizes his feelings: â€Å"It is beautiful, this Vermont granite we work, and its lifetime is that of the pyramids†¦You ask me if here I am content?

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Pretty Flacko Nigga

The poem â€Å"Hard Rock† by Tethering Knight is a poem that takes place in a prison (or possibly somewhere else like a sporting event, a dining room, etc. But a prison fits the context better). The poem is about a black prisoner that comes back after being in the Hospital for the Criminally Insane. The Inmates are reminiscing on all the crazy stuff Hard Rock used to do that they had always wished they could do. During Hard Rock's time at the Hospital he had a brain surgery In which they â€Å"cut out part of his brain and shot electricity through the rest.The speaker of the poem Is recalling all the stones of crazy things Hard Rock used to do before he left and telling the listener how much of a bad ass Hard Rock was. The speaker of the poem Is an Inmate at the prison; maybe Hard Rock's cell mate, friend, or Just someone that knew about him. Who the speaker Is talking to Is unclear though. It Is most likely another Inmate, assuming that the setting is In a prison, however It Is not clear within the poem exactly who the auditor is. The situation of the poem and the whole reason why the speaker is even recalling all of these memories is because it's been said that HardRock is soft now. The â€Å"word† has it that Hard Rock is a shell of what he used to be and will just stand there with a stupid smile on his face when tested. The old Hard Rock didn't â€Å"take no sit from nobody' but now the word going around is that the new Hard Rock has been tamed. The tone of this poem begins as inspired and almost proud, like a little brother talking about his cool older brother. The speaker seems to have a lot of respect for Hard Rock. Hard Rock is a hero to the speaker because Hard Rock will act out situations that the speaker could only ever dream of doing; he was their â€Å"destroyer.The tone quickly changes in line 27 to sad, almost nostalgic sounding. The inmates are reliving all of the crazy stuff he did before his surgery. The fact that he has been tamed now leaves the inmates â€Å"crushed† and hopeless. They no longer have someone that will carry out the fantasies they dream of doing, whether it be sticking up for the blacks when the Jail block bully comes around or even beating up a guard. They want to convince themselves that it is all an act, Hard Rock Is a little bit smarter now and is waiting for his opportunities, but they know in their hearts that Hard Rock is no longer the same guy he used to be.The theme of this poem Is about race and what problems black people faced In those times. The poem was published in 1968- the same year that Martin Luther King Jar. Was assassinated. The poem Hard Rock could be a metaphor for timeline of events that happened In the ‘offs. Martin Luther King (Hard Rock) was one of, If not the most, prominent face of the civil rights movement. MILK wouldn't settle for anything less than what he wanted to see happen and nobody could stand In his way. If someone tried to stop him he would Just keep trucking and fighting for his goal. In the poem,Hard Rock would pummel any and every body In his way, regardless of who they were, similar to how MILK would â€Å"take out† whoever stood in his way. The surgery Hard Rock goes under could be a metaphor for the assassination of MILK. Hard Rock is no longer what he used to be, he can no longer kick ass and take names because he is physically unable to (MILK is physically unable to keep fighting because he is hopeless. They always dreamed of doing the things Hard Rock did but they feel incapable (the black population is shocked and devastated by Milk's death and feel hopeless and as if they can never achieve what he did).The fears of years, like a biting whip, Had cut grooves too deeply across our backs. † The years and years of slavery, torture and demutualization of black people is too ingrained into the current (sass's) black population's minds and they feel as if they are not brave enough, smart enough, or important enough to take a stand and make the kind of changes that MILK had once done. The poem is written in mostly iambic pentameter. Lambs are how people speak in everyday life so with it being written in iambs it makes the poem seem â€Å"regular† and not â€Å"poetic. The poem sounds like a conversation you would hear f you were to listen in on prisoners talking. The dialect of the poem also gives it more of a natural feel. The reader feels as if they're reading an excerpt from a prison conversation rather than reading a poem. No rhyme scheme is detected in the poem- except for 4 lines. The author adds two couplets in the beginning and the middle of the poem. He does this to reinforce the point what he is trying to get across within these lines. The break in the normal flow and rhythm of the poem with these couplets grabs the attention of the reader and makes them focus on what the lines have to say.

Friday, November 8, 2019

The History and Deculturalizat essays

The History and Deculturalizat essays The Discovery of America Brings Annihilation When Christopher Columbus landed on Hispaniola, the estimates for the number of Native Americans were astronomical in comparison to what the number is today. Estimates place 800 separate nations, with one-hundred fifty language families and 1,500 to 2,000 dialects. Population studies show between 75 to 145 million inhabitants in North and South America (Buan, 1991). By 1890, the number in North America had been reduced to 250,000. Total nations have been annihilated. When the Spaniards came to North America, Europe had already been ravaged with smallpox, measles, bubonic plague, diphtheria, influenza, yellow fever, typhoid, syphilis, tuberculosis and a host of other plagues. But the Americas had been isolated from these great ravages. When the sailing ships appeared on the horizon, they came not only to plunder but to spread their diseases as well. While it is not documentable that the Spanish deliberately spread diseases, it is well documented that they were merciless with the natives. Whole nations were destroyed by the invaders and their European plagues. Estimates nearing a 98% death rate from diseases alone are not uncommon. Three important points to remember for effective biological munitions are: first, the introduction of chronic illnesses for which there is no known cure. The second, cloak the toxin under a guise so the enemy takes it unawares until it is too late. Finally, combine weapons so that what one weapon fails to accomplish, the subsequent weapons will finish. The British had seen the effectiveness of diseases among the natives and employed a disguise. Diseases were not fast enough to accomplish the dreaded annihilation, so they combined this biological warfare with the sword, guns and hunting dogs as the Spanish did to exterminate the vermin. That the mercilessness of the British was not forgotten by invading settlers can be seen on the Trail of Tears. On the Tr...

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

The El Nino Ocean-Atmosphere Interaction

The El Nino Ocean-Atmosphere Interaction Often blamed for any and all out-of-the ordinary weather, El Nià ±o is a naturally occurring climate event  and the warm phase of the El Nià ±o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) during which sea surface temperatures in the eastern and equatorial Pacific Ocean are warmer than average. How much warmer? An increase of 0.5 C or more in average sea surface temperatures lasting 3 months in a row, suggest the onset of an El Nià ±o episode.   Meaning of the Name El Nià ±o means the boy, or male child, in Spanish and refers to Jesus, the Christ Child. It comes from South American sailors, who in the 1600s, observed the warming conditions off the Peruvian coast at Christmastime and named them after the Christ Child. El Nio Happens El Nià ±o conditions are caused by a weakening of the trade winds. Under normal circumstances, the trades drive surface waters towards the west; but when these die down, they allow the warmer waters of the western Pacific to seep eastward toward the Americas. Frequency, Length, and Strength of Episodes A major El Nià ±o event generally occurs every 3 to 7 years, and lasts for up to several months at a time. If El Nià ±o conditions will appear, these should begin to form sometime in the late summer, between June and August. Once they arrive, conditions typically reach peak strength from December to April, then subside from May to July of the following year. Events are categorized as either neutral, weak, moderate, or strong. The strongest El Nià ±o episodes occurred in 1997-1998 and 2015-2016. To date, the 1990-1995 episode is the longest-lasting on record. What El NioMeans For Your Weather Weve mentioned that El Nià ±o  is an ocean-atmosphere climate event, but how do warmer-than-average waters in the far-off tropical Pacific Ocean affect weather? Well, these warmer waters warm up the atmosphere above it. This leads to more rising air and convection.  This excess heating intensifies the Hadley circulation, which in turn, disrupts circulation patterns around the globe, including things like the position of the jet stream.   In this way, El Nià ±o  triggers a departure from our normal weather and rainfall patterns  including: Wetter-than-normal conditions along coastal Ecuador, northwestern Peru, southern Brazil, central Argentina, and equatorial eastern Africa (during the months of December, January, February); and over the inter-mountainous U.S. and central Chile (June, July, August). Drier-than-normal conditions over northern South America, Central America, and southern Africa (December, January, February); and over eastern Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines (June, July, August). Warmer-than-normal conditions in southeast Asia, southeast Africa, Japan, southern Alaska, and west/central Canada, SE Brazil, and SE Australia (December, January, February); and along South Americas west coast, and again SE Brazil (June, July, August). Cooler-than-normal conditions along the U.S. Gulf coast (December, January, February). Current El NioForecast As of Fall 2016, El Nià ±o is has weakened and ended and a La Nià ±a Watch  is now in effect. (This simply means that the ocean-atmosphere conditions look favorable for La Nià ±a to develop.)   To learn more about La Nià ±a (cooling of the ocean surface in the central and eastern tropical Pacific) read What is La Nià ±a.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Hospice A Nurses Role Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hospice A Nurses Role - Essay Example Hospice care originated in England in 1973 and was filtered in to the United States through the knowledge of an over whelming need for services that could provide more extensive, and compassionate nursing care for terminal patients (The Hastings Report 2003). According to The Hastings Report (2003), hospice care was originally designed to bring more comforting and specialized regimens to patients who were diagnosed with aggressive forms of cancer. However, through time, the program transformed and adapted to the many changes in the medical care system. Its berth widened and recognized the fact that there were patients suffering from other terminal illnesses that could benefit from the hospice care program as well. Hospice services actually have an extensive range and the program includes specialties in professional nursing care, personal assistance with activities of daily living (ADL's), various forms of rehabilitation therapy, dietary counseling, psychological and spiritual counseling for both patient and family, volunteer services, respite care, provision of medical drugs and devices necessary for palliative care, and family bereavement services following the patients death (The Hastings Report 2003). ... As was briefly mentioned, this is a program that can be found in many areas of the medical world. One of the more vast areas where hospice care is utilized the most is in elderly care facilities, and communities. Age brings disease and hospice care nurses are trained to meet a large variety of the needs of patients who suffer with a myriad of deteriorative illnesses, such as can be found in the elderly community (Trail-Ross 1998). There are quantifiable factors found that point to a stronger need for hospice care in the elderly population, as well as other medical facilities that are outside of a direct hospital environment. One of the key issues that are evaluated when attempting to determine a need for hospice care focuses on how well a person can function on their own. Hospice care nurses carefully asses the functional states of every potential patient they might acquire (Trail-Ross 1998). ADL's are essential in understanding if the needs of a specific patient are going to be appropriately met with hospice care. The World Health Organization draws their own conclusions as to what extent hospice care might be needed, but it is the hospice care nurses themselves who know the exact percentile of need since they have direct contact with the patients and are aware of where their patients ADL levels are at (Trail-Ross 1998). Another area that is analyzed is the ability a patient has with their IADL's, which are m ore complex than basic ADL's. Within this realm, a hospice nurse might find he or she is of more benefit to the patient by offering help with tasks such as cooking, shopping, cleaning house, and even managing the patients'

Friday, November 1, 2019

Organizational Learning and Environmental Change Essay

Organizational Learning and Environmental Change - Essay Example Still, most of this is still commandeered by human intelligence however, networked computing is able to reap efficiency and outputs undreamt off earlier.Often new concepts are ignored till the time they translate into a competitive disadvantage. This paper examines the various approaches to learning which an organization can adopt so that learning challenges in the environment are not only recognized right in time but also ingrained into the operations of the organization and reflect in employees’ learning to derive competitive advantage. This paper examines the relevance of the Revans formula which emphasizes the importance of keeping pace in the learning process. All organizations can be viewed as offering some kind of solution to the problems of their stakeholders in the widest and deepest marketing sense. An essential blueprint for the organizational survival is derived from the writing of Revans(1980,1982). Revans(1980) posited that in order for an organization to succeed the learning(L) within an organization must be greater than or equal to the rate of change(C)in the environment (L ≠¥ C). This is called the Raven formula. This concept maintains that organizations must become learning organizations if they are to survive the changes in the external environment that affect the business and its operations. Revans recommended action learning to essentially mean removing the gap between ideas and actions, between thinking and doing, action and learning as parts of each other. Revans coined the phrase,† â€Å"helping each other to help the helpless†.Revans philosophy is based on three concepts of honesty about self, all know ledge ought to be action-oriented and most action should lead to camaraderie. An immediate example can prove Revans theory in relation to stakeholders of any organization. The organization  like airlines –offering the services of air travel-were faced with a new and emerging niche of customers who were upwardly mobile professionals with high spending powers in the  early 1990s.