Publications

2017
Research Finds Humans Have Significant Impact on Bee Survival. 2017.Abstract

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New research finds the significant effect humans have on a bee’s metabolism, and ultimately its survival.

Research from The University of Western Australia focuses on human’s significant impact on the environment had on bees, which are crucial for the planet, pollinating one-third of everything we eat. Landscapes that have been degraded mean a reduction in the availability of resources which affects the metabolic rate of the honey bee and puts more strain on its body's ability to function.

Researchers wanted to find out how honey bees' metabolism was impacted by human made changes to the environment such as clearing of land. To do this they used a unique method to measure the energy expenditure of bees, originally developed and used in his research on honey possums. Through this method they were able to measure the metabolic rate of bees when they are in their natural environment, and compare pristine environments rich in resources to degraded environments.

The research has important implications for understanding environmental impacts on bees which will help preserve bee populations in the future and may offer insight into the way other insects' metabolism works and how it affects their behavior. This is the first time the metabolic rate and feeding rate of a free-flying insect has been measured in its natural environment and paves the way for future research on pollinators other than bees.

 

The Immense Power of Wind Energy and Where to Find It. 2017.Abstract

windenergy

 

Wind, a never-ending source of useful energy that with today’s technology, can be harnessed to power everything. However, finding the best areas for constant wind energy can be challenging.

Recently, a model to help predict wind frequency and potential contributions to more traditional energy sources has been developed by the North China Electric Power University and North China University of Science and Technology.

This model uses a method based on "model predictive control," wherein checkpoints across a power grid can exchange information and adjust accordingly. The researchers decentralized this model, so that a problem in one area could be solved to benefit the entire grid. The computer algorithm predicts the variables that influence the grid and applies those constraints for any problem that any part of the system might encounter.

Traditionally, a controlled grid could redirect otherwise unused energy from sleeping citizens to a power-hungry hospital or some other entity that continues to require energy even during typical low-load times. In a decentralized system, the system works the same way, but instead of having to clear the redirection with every checkpoint, the variables are assumed and the action is nearly immediate.

To test the algorithm, the researchers compared the volume output and dependability of a four-part system—four plants sharing responsibility for generating power in different areas—with and without the incorporation of wind power.

In the analysis of a conventional power plant, the researchers found that their model required much less computational time compared to the traditional model predictive control. That's a major advantage, as the computing process is expensive in both time and energy. When the researchers added the hard-to-predict wind turbines as a source of power in the model, it still worked. According to the scientists, the major flaw is that computational needs will increase to maintain system stability, which cannot be guaranteed in their algorithm.

 

Reducing Carbon Storage in Wetland Soils. 2017.Abstract

wetlands

 

A recent study published in Nature Communications has shown that human activity and development are correlated with reduced carbon storage in wetland soils. Conducted using wetlands on a national scale, the study shows that wetlands play an important role in storing carbon in soil, thus keeping carbon dioxide out of the environment.

The study drew upon data from the USEPA’s 2011 National Wetland Condition Assessment (NWCA), which collected carbon concentration data from soil pits at nearly a thousand wetland sites across the U.S. Paired with a new version of the NWCA using data from 2016, could help researchers better track trends in carbon retention rates of wetlands.

Partly due to their cooler temperatures, the Upper Midwest and the Eastern Mountains have wetlands that are especially adept at storing carbon, accounting for nearly half the wetland carbon stocks in the U.S. But nearly 90% of the wetlands that were in the Midwest at the time of European settlement have been lost, mainly due to agricultural development. When wetlands are developed, their retention of carbon is disturbed, and the carbon cycles back into the atmosphere.

The data also showed that levels of carbon retention are significantly lower in wetlands with the greatest human activity compared to site with lesser amounts of human activity. The study does not determine causality, but it does illustrate the need to protect wetlands from disturbances in order to avoid releasing carbon into the atmosphere, accelerating climate change.

 

Emissions and Consumption Increase from Storing Solar Power. 2017.Abstract

solar

 

According to a recent study, homes that have solar panels installed do not require on-site storage to reap the biggest benefits to the environment and economic investment.

Research published in Nature Energy from the Cockrell School of Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin found that storing solar power for night use actually uses more energy and emits more emissions than sending excess solar energy directly to the utility grid.

According to the Solar Energy Industry Association, the number of rooftop solar installations grew to more than 1 million U.S. households in 2016. There is a growing interest in using energy storage to capture solar energy to reduce reliance on traditional utilities.

Co-authors Michael Webber and Robert Fares, a Cockrell School alumnus who is now an American Association for the Advancement of Science fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy, analyzed the impact of home energy storage using electricity data from nearly 100 Texas households that are part of a smart grid test bed managed by a renewable energy and smart technology company housed at UT Austin.

They found that storing solar energy for nighttime use increases a household's annual energy consumption—in comparison with using solar panels without storage—because storage consumes some energy every time it charges and discharges. The researchers estimated that adding energy storage to a household with solar panels increases its annual energy consumption by about 324 to 591 kilowatt-hours.

The analysis showed that storing solar energy today offers fewer environmental benefits than just sending it straight to the grid, because the energy lost to storage inefficiencies is ultimately made up with fossil-fuel electricity from the grid.

Hawaiian’s Push for Stricter Pesticide Regulations. 2017.Abstract

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Many Hawaiian residents have grown concerned over the use of pesticides by major agricultural companies following the sickness of many school kids and agriculture workers. Many of these major agricultural companies use Hawaii’s year-round warm weather to test genetically engineered crops such as new types of corn and soybeans.

A recent court decision has ruled it is the state’s responsibility, rather than the individual counties to regulate agriculture and a change in committee leadership in the House have added momentum to the effort to enhance state regulation.

Advocates are pushing bills to require companies to fully disclose when and where they're spraying pesticides and to mandate buffer zones around schools and hospitals. Another proposal calls for the state and counties to stop using sprays containing glyphosate. Hawaii recently initiated a study on Oahu and Kauai to sample surface water for pesticides before and during storms to evaluate if chemicals are moving offsite at unacceptable levels.

The state also is planning to triple its fee to register pesticides to fund monitoring and to expand statewide the Kauai Good Neighbor Program—in which seed companies on Kauai voluntarily report their pesticide use monthly to the state.

But critics say the new programs fall short because reporting is voluntary and because the companies don't disclose the location where the pesticide is sprayed. Requiring companies to report spray locations could be tricky because fields where seeds are tested are generally spread out to avoid cross-pollination, and because it's a competitive industry.

 

Improving Performance with a Variety of Leadership Style and Culture. 2017.Abstract

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According to a recent research study, CEO’s having differing leadership styles from the culture of an organization improves the firm's performance.

Georgia State University, Arizona State University, the University of South Australia and Auckland University of Technology in joint research collected data from 119 CEO’s and 337 top management team members in 119 organizations in the U.S. software and hardware industries.

The researchers found CEO’s who adopt a leadership style similar to that of the organization's culture have a negative impact on firm performance. Instead, firms are most effective when CEO leadership style and organizational culture are different, a discovery that contradicts widely accepted beliefs. The findings are published in The Journal of Applied Psychology.

Organizational culture refers to shared values and norms, usually either task-oriented or relationship-oriented, which inform employee behavior. In a task-oriented culture, employees are asked to focus externally on problems such as anticipating customers' needs and preferences and monitoring competitors' behaviors. In a relationship-oriented culture, employees are encouraged to focus internally on issues such as coordination, participation and communication.

However, not all differences between leadership and culture are positive. If a leader's approach is oppositional or confrontational, he or she will likely be met with resistance and resentment. A leader who challenges or discards every assumption about what has worked in the past creates uncertainty, ambiguity and skepticism among the organization's employees.

 

Finding Supplemental Income for Rural Farmers in Africa. 2017.Abstract

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Although trees in Africa are easily spotted, many overlook their potential source of income for farming. Recently, a study performed by the University of Illinois has concluded that these trees may reduce rural poverty, and maintain biodiversity.

The study found that 1/3 of farmers across five different countries also grow trees on their property. These trees provide 17% of annual household income for these farmers. Fruit trees and cash crop trees such as coffee trees were the two most popular types of trees. Tree for timber and fuel were only reported by 5% of the households.

Trees also could act as biodiversity corridors, as trees on farms are more prevalent near forests. They can provide wildlife or bird habitat linking different forested or natural areas, while at the same time providing income potential to poor farmers. They promise a potential win-win for conservation and development.

 

Hawaii’s Goal: Completely Use Renewable Energy in All Sectors by 2045. 2017.Abstract

hawaii

 

With a goal of having 100% of utility energy generated by renewable sources by 2045, Hawaii wants to continue to push for clean and efficient energy by extending its goal to include everything in the transportation sector by the same date.

This goal presents a steep climb in the auto industry, where there are only 5,000 electric vehicles out of an estimated 1 million in the state. However, this particular goal doesn’t carry fines if not met by the deadline, whereas the utilities does.

The bill is being introduced in the Hawaii Legislature, and if passed, Hawaii would be the first in the nation to set such a high goal for its transportation sector. Vermont also has an aggressive goal for renewable fuel in transportation, but most states don't have such targets in place.

The state recently created a new position in the Department of Transportation to work on renewable fuels in transportation, and it is planning to build infrastructure to increase electric vehicle charging stations at work locations in Honolulu's urban core using state funds.

 

The Need for Wastewater Solutions Has Never Been Greater in Ghana. 2017.Abstract

ghana

 

As water supply in Ghana dwindles, solutions need to be found soon or the country’s 25 million population could be at risk, according to Ahmed Abuhussein, an Environmental Engineering graduate student.

Abuhussein recently spent five months in Ghana where he addressed institutional, social and technical gaps in applying treated wastewater in agriculture. With 66% of Ghana's withdrawn water earmarked for agriculture, the use of treated wastewater could have a significant impact.

Currently, 81% of the country's wastewater is not being treated and of the 9% being collected, less than 6% is 'appropriately' treated. He has conducted field work at a local waste stabilization pond and interviewed local authorities, industries and non-for-profit organizations in the country.

Abuhussein wants to look towards a project that combines technical and monetary aspects that will address the quality of the water and its end use, because the treatment will be different. He has also exclaimed that many small farms use non-treated wastewater, simply extracting what flows through the open gutters on their property.

 

Researching the Relationship of Tropical Glaciers and Water Supply. 2017.Abstract

Research from the College of Arts and Sciences are closer to understanding how the loss of glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru is affecting water resources in a region responding to global climate change.

A multinational, interdisciplinary research team doing fieldwork in the northern Peruvian Andes have been studying the groundwater hydrology of areas formed by glacier recession in the ice-capped mountains, home to the world's highest density of tropical glaciers.

The Andes contain 99% of the world's tropical glaciers—slow-moving rivers of ice whose high elevations are virtually unaffected by balmy tropical temperatures. Such glaciers, however, are vulnerable to climate change. One study suggests that, since the 1970s, Peruvian glaciers have lost nearly half of their surface area.

Given the density of glaciers in the Cordillera Blanca, communities downstream rely on groundwater discharge and glacier melt water for their water supply during the dry winter months. Runoff from glacial streams also supports small-farm and commercial agriculture, hydroelectric power generation and transnational mining operations. Whereas melt water comes from the melting of ice and snow, groundwater is the result of precipitation that soaks into the Earth's surface; is transported underground and then returns to lakes, marshes and streams.

What is not understood is the spatial distribution of the groundwater discharge. Using a model called HFLUX, an energy balance model of a stretch of river in Peru's Huascaran National Park has been created.

China: The New Leader in Clean Energy Globally. 2017.Abstract

 

According to a report, the new leader in global clean energy now has a new leader. China's overseas investment in renewable energy projects jumped last year by 60% to a record $32 billion. In 2016, China finalized 11 foreign deals worth more than a billion dollars each, and is expected to pick up the pace this year, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

China announced that it would sink at least $361 billion into renewables by 2020, key to the country's transition away from polluting coal power. Overseas investments last year ranged from lithium battery makers in Australia and Chile to an electricity distribution deal in Brazil and the building of a solar cell factory in Vietnam. China now owns five of the six largest solar module manufacturing firms in the world.

 

A Glimmer of Hope for Poland’s Wind Energy?. 2017.Abstract

 

A new Polish law imposing rules for the installation of wind turbines is likely to limit the development of renewables in the country, which continues to focus on its main energy source, coal. However, small wind turbines, which fall outside the scope of the recent measures, could represent a loophole for the wind energy sector.

In 2016, the Polish parliament, where the conservative Law and Justice party has an outright majority, voted one of the most severe anti-wind energy bills in Europe. The new law requires companies to locate turbines at least 10 times the distance of their total height from the nearest housing and "valuable natural areas.”

Renewable energy sources accounted for just 11.45% of the energy produced in Poland in 2015, while its national target is to increase this figure to 15% by 2020.

However, the law does have a loophole. The regulation explicitly excludes "micro installations" of power under 40 kW from its scope, such as the small wind turbines installed on the roofs of buildings.

Since the energy sector is moving from a centralized energy system to a distributed one, small wind turbines are expected to play an increasingly important role in the coming years. Their importance was recognized by the European Union, which is supporting a project aiming to develop innovative solutions to make smaller-sized wind turbines more competitive, and to facilitate their deployment into urban and peri-urban areas. The so-called SWIP project, aspires to reinvigorate the small wind turbines sector across Europe.

Devastation from Dust Bowl Era Still Would Devastate Today’s Agriculture. 2017.Abstract

 

If a drought similar to the Dust Bowl crisis of the 1930s were to strike today, it would have similar results despite the developments of technology and agricultural advances.

According to a recent study from the University of Chicago published in Nature Plants, extreme weather simulated from the Dust Bowl era on today’s crops would be cause them to become severely damaged.

The severe damage of the Dust Bowl was actually caused by three distinct droughts in quick succession, occurring in 1930-31, 1933-34 and 1936. From 1933 to 1939, wheat yields declined by double-digit percentages, reaching a peak loss of 32% in 1933. The economic and societal consequences were vast, eroding land value throughout the Great Plains states and displacing millions of people.

In the eight decades since that crisis, agricultural practices have changed dramatically. But many technological and geographical shifts were intended to optimize average yield instead of resilience to severe weather, leaving many staple crops vulnerable to seasons of unusually low precipitation and/or high temperatures.

As a result, when the researchers simulated the effects of the 1936 drought upon today's agriculture, they still observed roughly 40% losses in maize and soy yield, while wheat crops declined by 30%. The harm would be 50% worse than the 2012 drought, which caused nearly $100 billion of damage to the U.S. economy.

 

New Water Policy Needed for Mexico Energy Reform. 2017.Abstract

 

According to a new paper from the Mexico Center at Rice University, the Mexican government should consider how to best prioritize water use in accordance with the law and thoughtfully allocate supplies during the implementation of the country’s energy reform. Water-resource allocation may become a source of conflict and social tension in Mexico argues the paper.

“Recent constitutional reforms have begun to open Mexico's energy sector to the world," the authors wrote. "The reforms are targeted, in part, at facilitating access to vast amounts of technically recoverable shale gas via unconventional recovery efforts, a massive and expensive undertaking that will require the use of large volumes of water in a region of the country where water is already scarce. The new energy laws prioritize energy development, imposing requirements on landowners to cooperate with companies attempting to develop the resource."

The Mexican energy reform is targeted at facilitating access to vast amounts of technically recoverable shale gas. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that 545 trillion cubic feet of this valuable resource underlie Mexico. Most of the shale gas is located in the northern part of the country, which is also where much of Mexico's large-scale agriculture and industry is located.

 

2016
Creating Marketing Personas Using Social Media. 2016.Abstract

 

According to research completed at Pennsylvania State University, computers now have the ability to divide consumers in marketing segments automatically based solely on how they respond to social media data.

Marketers, who create personas manually with data from focus groups, ethnography methods and surveys, can then hold conversations and make decisions based on these personas. A downfall of this is that it is very time consuming, expensive, and become obsolete quickly.

However, computer-drawn personas not only can be created in real time and at relatively low costs, but they can be updated quickly as economic conditions and demographics continue to change.

Algorithms were created and used to analyze different data, such as demographics, interests, and interactions from 188,000 subscribers of a news website. The data included the subscribers' YouTube profiles, which included demographic information such as gender, age and country location, and their interactions with videos on the site, such as the topics of videos watched by the users.

This site had posted approximately 2,807 videos to its YouTube channel that were viewed by 30 million users in 217 countries. The algorithms then identified unique ways that groups of people were interacting with the information, in this case, news videos. While the researchers used news and information in this study, the technology could be applied to other types of consumer transactions.

 

Capturing Energy from Human Motion. 2016.Abstract

Researchers from Michigan State University have recently created a way to capture energy by using human motions. They used a device similar to film that can be folded to create more power. The low-cost device, a nanogenerator (FENG), was operated by simply touching or pressing, and doesn’t use a battery.

The findings, published in the journal Nano Energy, claim that this finding puts us on the path toward wearable devices powered by human motion.

The innovative process starts with a silicone wafer, which is then fabricated with several layers, or thin sheets, of environmentally friendly substances. Ions are added so that each layer in the device contains charged particles. Electrical energy is created when the device is compressed by human motion, or mechanical energy.

The device is as thin as a sheet of paper and can be adapted to many applications and sizes. The device used to power the LED lights was palm-sized, for example, while the device used to power the touch screen was as small as a finger.

Advantages such as being lightweight, flexible, biocompatible, scalable, low-cost and robust could make FENG "a promising and alternative method in the field of mechanical-energy harvesting" for many autonomous electronics such as wireless headsets, cell phones and other touch-screen devices.

How Does Consumer Behavior Respond to Corporate Social Responsibility Marketing?. 2016.Abstract

 

According to a new study from a University of Kansas marketing and consumer behavior researcher, consumers in dominant collectivist cultures, are more likely to support corporate social responsibility initiatives from brands based in their own country as opposed to foreign or global corporations. This distinction matters much less to consumers in individualist cultures, such as the United States and Canada.

This research could provide insight to firms seeking to expand into developing markets in Asia or elsewhere because their marketing success in the United States might not necessarily translate in a country where consumers practice more collectivist philosophies.

Researchers typically consider consumers in collectivistic societies to value the needs of a group or community over that of an individual, whereby people tend to focus on the importance of the family, and pursue harmony and group cohesion. Individualistic societies are considered to be the opposite.

An Evolving Power Sector Receives Guidance from Energy Report. 2016.Abstract

 

Relatively small-scale power technologies such as wind, energy storage, power electronics, and solar are being deployed rapidly in the global shift toward a low-carbon energy future. To ensure that both distributed and centralized energy resources are integrated efficiently, electric power systems in the U.S., Europe, and other parts of the world need major regulatory, policy, and market overhauls claims the report "Utility of the Future," released by the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI).

Today's electric power systems were designed, built, and regulated well before distributed energy resources had come onto the horizon as viable options for widespread use.

Now, the businesses and regulatory bodies that determine how power is distributed need a path forward to incorporate these rapidly proliferating technologies. They also need to evolve to meet changing consumer preferences and increase efficiency across the system to achieve cost savings and carbon emissions reductions.

Among the study's recommendations is a set of measures to improve tariff and rate structures for electricity services. Electricity services should be priced in a "technology-agnostic" manner that is based solely on how consumers use these services. Making use of "peak-coincident capacity charges," which increase prices when electricity networks are under stress or generating capacity is scarce, can discourage consumers from drawing on the grid during these times.

Prices and charges should also better reflect how the value of services changes at different times of day or at different locations in the grid. Such cost-reflective pricing can open up opportunities for distributed resources and enable significant cost savings.

 

Uncollected E-Commerce Taxes on the Rise?. 2016.Abstract

 

The US Supreme Court rejected a case earlier this week that could lead to states collecting billions of dollars in sales taxes that are lost to e-commerce shopping.

The court would not hear a challenge to a Colorado law requiring online sellers to notify customers and the state how much they owe in taxes. State officials have estimated that Colorado alone has been missing out on as much as $172.7 million a year.

Online shoppers always have owed state sales taxes on their purchases, but the rule has been widely ignored. States have spent years examining ways to capture those lost tax dollars, but their options are limited when the retailers are not based in the state.

The Colorado Legislature found a possible solution in 2010 when it passed a law requiring online retailers to notify customers to pay sales tax and report purchases to the state. That's not the same as demanding tax payments from out-of-state retailers.

The Data and Marketing Association sued, and a federal judge put the law on hold in 2012. A year later, a federal appeals court sided with Colorado. The association appealed to the nation's highest court, arguing that the law would meddle in interstate commerce. The Supreme Court's refusal to hear the case could have far-reaching implications for online shoppers.

 

Small Businesses Thrive on Quality Management. 2016.Abstract

 

The health of U.S. small businesses is a key to the health of the U.S. economy. Small firms account for about half of the nation's gross domestic product and employ about half the workforce, so if they are struggling it is very hard for the economy as a whole to grow in line with its long-term trend?

A recent study "Quality management (QM) leads to healthier small businesses," published in the Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, explores how small businesses in the housing industry have embraced quality management approaches. Study authors William H. Murphy and Denis Leonard interviewed ten owners of small family-owned businesses who have won the National Housing Quality Award (NHQA), which is based on the Baldrige Excellence Framework and its criteria.

"Once small business owners realize that the QM journey is a sensible, necessary, business-changing journey, change can happen swiftly," write Murphy and Leonard. "Yet, truly seeing the truth of this claim and following up by changing one's business toward a QM journey is often a tough step for many small business owners to take. After all, small business owners are often extremely busy, with time-pressing commitments and little wiggle room for figuring out how to engage new platforms such as QM. Yet, as our interviews repeatedly revealed, life gets a lot easier for everyone once QM is part of the business."

As a whole, the small business owners interviewed in the study were "certain that positive outcomes follow" once a business implements QM; however, the owners did recognize some barriers to engagement. Small business owners recommend customizing tools and staying the course once started on QM.

According to Murphy and Leonard, "The first step toward launching QM is generally the hardest, as most businesses have to stumble along for a while before truly catching on to QM's logic and potential. And yet, by targeting easy projects and using a few tools from QM toolboxes, change for the better is soon realized. Over time, with a conviction gained by success and the developing belief that QM is a game changer for one's small business, owners may find themselves pushing their QM platforms in unexpected directions."

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