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We woke around 7ish and left by the same Cab with Mr. Singh (who took us to Shekhawati) around 8:30 from hotel. As Mr. Singh said jokingly lets start the day in auspicious way – which mean Birla Temple was first on the list and we reached the parking lot at dot 9. The journey took us trough the posh residential area of Jaipur with huge bungalows which have similarities with the Lutyens' Delhi but a rarity in modern India.
Birla Temple of Jaipur like any other Birla Temple is made with pure white marble. There is Moti Dungri Fort in the back ground. Next to the Birla Temple is most famous Ganesh Temple which we skipped. After the quick tour of Birla Temple Mr. Singh took us for Breakfast. The choice was very simple Jalebi and Samosa as coming from Bangalore we were craving for it. The street we stopped was full of traditional sweet makers. The Samosa was just made in front of us and it was so fricking hot that we both burnt our tongue but both were too good.
Hawa Mahal was our next stop - the iconic building of Jaipur. We entered from the side and bought a combo ticket that allows entering 5 Government maintained attractions. At ticket counter, we were told Audio Guide wasn't available but which was not right as we saw the counter once inside. We hired a guide for 150(posted price was 200 we were his first client).The guide was a gentle person who knew the history and the Kodak-spots very well.
From the back Hawa Mahal does not look that appealing, it has two big courtyards. The building was made for the royal ladies so that they can view the world without being seen. There are around thousands (937) of windows which over looks the Delhi-Jaipur highway. In those days, all the big parades or activites used to happen on this road. And that allowed ladies to watch royal processions and festivities. In this five storey building , top floor was for the maids and small children. The outer wall is not 90° rather inclined at 70° to give much better visibility from the top. The small windows on the façade gives it a honey comb look. From the top we could see city palace, Jantar Mantar clearly and the whole Aravalli (one of the oldest mountain range in the word) range which gives a natural protection to the city of Jaipur.
From here went to Jantar Mantar; this time we were not that lucky as there were no concession in terms of hiring a guide. The Founder king of Jaipur was great in astronomy, he built five such Jantar Instruments & Mantar(calculation) in India. Jaipur has the largest and best preserved of all. The largest sundial of the word has an accuracy of 2 seconds. The other instruments are more complex and innovative. There always a small replica made before the big ones are constructed to ensure the accuracy is maintained. The Jantar Matar is quite well maintained but as usual there were few Indian who don't follow rules and step into the constructions for their photos.
The Sun was getting hotter in each passing minutes and so the naughtiness of Aarush. Not sure it was due to Sun or just like that. But after running around in Jantar Mantar we crossed road and entered City Palace. The city palace is divided into two parts one for the public and other where the current ruler still stays. The administration is private here. The ticket is quite expensive but the monument is very well maintained. Chandra Mahal is part of the private part of current Royal family a seven storey building which host the royal flag of Jaipur. Almost after 90 minutes we made our exit from City palace and by that time the heat was too much. We got some curd and fruits for Aarush on way towards Amber ford.
On the way we did stopped for few minutes at Maharani ki Chhatri and Jal Mahal. Jal Mahal is on man made Man Sagar Lake.
Amber Fort was the royal fort and Amber was capital before Man Singh moved his capital and Royal Palace to the modern Jaipur. It has plenty of history and details for which a guide is must. Amber fort is build over centuries and the cost of the building is unknown but some say it might cost 3 to 4 times the cost of Taj Mahal. The palace has the famous Sheesh Mahal (palace of mirrors) which lights up with a single candle. There are many passage which carries water and air to ensure there is enough cooling for the hot summer month. The concept of sustainable architecture is at it best. I must admit the architects ensured every drops of monsoon rain is saved and properly used so they can survive a harsh drought if needed.
It took us more than an hour to walk around different parts of the palace.We had a simple vegetarian lunch (very late one) before moving to Jaigarh Fort. You can walk between Amber and Jaigarh fort if your legs and lungs permit; with car one needs to take a long detour. Aarush fall asleep as car started to roll. We paid extra so we can take our cab inside which was a great idea with sleeping Aaursh. Jaigarh Fort is situated on a higher hill and that gives it a complete view of Amber fort. Jaigarh fort was a army station so in case of an emergency it can save Royal Family located at Amber fort. It was closing time when we came out of Jaigarh fort.
Last on the list was Nahargarh Fort, it is on the edge of the hills and overlooks Jaipur city. We were lucky enough to catch Sunset but sky was not very clear. By the time we finished Nahargarh Fort and headed back to Jaipur city it was dark.
We stopped at one shop for some shopping before returning to hotel where we had a simple dinner after getting freshened up. That midnight,we had our train to Jodhpur. It was a very long day indeed.


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Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
INTRODUCTION 1 1 The Power Systems Workshop on Nanotechnology for the Intelligence Community was organizer! by the staff at the National Materials Advisory Board (NMAB) of the National Research Council (NRC) and was conducted under the intelligence community Nano-Enabled-Technology Initiative (NETI), administered! by the staff of the Intelligence Technology Innovation Center (ITIC). This interim report summarizes the highlights of the workshop, as directed by the statement of task for the project as a whole; the workshop agenda is given in Appendix A. A follow-on workshop will be conducted to explore sensing and locating technologies; summary notes from that second workshop will also be issued as an interim report. Authored by a single appointed rapporteur attending each workshop, these interim reports are subject to review for accuracy using normal National Academies procedures prior to release. A third and final report will be prepared as a full consensus study by the Committee on Nanotechnology for the Intelligence Community, which was established to assist the intelligence community by exploring the potential for nanotechnology to address key intelligence community needs. This is a summary of workshop proceedings, including the presentations made to the committee and the subsequent discussion. As such, it follows the interests ant! knowledge of the presenters and does not provide a comprehensive analysis of the topics discussed. Nor does this document contain any findings and recommendations of the committee. Rather, this summary, together with the summary of the following workshop on sensing and locating technologies, will provide useful input to the final report, in which the committee will offer its findings and recommendations. The stucly sponsors provided the committee with classified background briefings on ITIC s interest in nanotechnology-enabled opportunities in both the energy/power field and the sensing/Iocating field, in order to provide context for the committee s deliberations. This interim report does not attempt to summarize in detail these classified presentations on intelligence community programs ant! activities. In general terms, the energy/power presentation focused on ITIC s view of opportunities for nanotechnology to improve the performance of rechargeable batteries. The external ciata-gathering portion of the workshop was organizer! in five topic areas, with two or three speakers addressing each topic: 1. 2. 3. Overview of power technologies Nanoscale properties of energy storage materials Device experience
1 2 Summary of the Power Systems Workshop 4. Manufacturing and material handling considerations 5. Natural power Following the presentations for each topic, there was a brief pane} discussion involving all of the presenters for that topic. The workshop summary below follows this same organizational scheme: for each topic area, the main points of each speaker's presentation are highlighted, followed by a recapitulation of the general discussion. At the end of the workshop, Debra Rolison, a committee member from the Naval Research Laboratory, presenter} the main results of a November 2002 National Science Foundation (NSF) workshop entitled "Approaches to Combat Terrorism: Opportunities for Basic Research in Energy/Power Sources," which featured a subgroup focusing on opportunities for basic research in energy and power sources. A brief summary of her presentation is also inclucled here. Appendix B lists the workshop attendees, and a short biography for each speaker is given in Appendix C. 1

subset: commoncrawl


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via CBC
The provincial government will spend an additional $3.5 million on arts and culture on P.E.I. over the next five years under its new action plan.
The document, Cultivating Growth, was released Monday afternoon and includes many changes to the bureaucracy around creative industries, and a fund to support expansion in the local film industry — although no dollar amount is specified.
"Islanders live in a culture that is strong but capable of even more," the document said.
The strategy lays out more than three dozen actions, including:
- Initiate a local Film Media Fund to support homegrown, independent film development.
- More purchases of Island-made art for the P.E.I. Art Bank.
- Develop a digital archive of the Prince Edward Island Heritage and Museum collection.
- Invest in a Craft Development Centre in partnership with the P.E.I. Crafts Council.
- Expand apprenticeship and training programs in the cultural sector.
- Encourage expansion of high-speed internet to help creative industries and workers.
- Develop an ambassador program for travelling Island artists.
- Establish an advisory council to identify and support affordable artist live-work spaces.
Details of the new programs are still being worked on, officials said.
"We don't have all the details yet of what every program and every support is going to look like because we are just getting to the hard work now," said Michelle MacCallum, director of cultural development at Innovation PEI.
"We want to work with industry to make sure we are meeting their needs."
Finding new markets for P.E.I. creations
Some of the recommended actions relate to overhauling the province's bureaucracy around arts and culture, including creating a Creative Industries Secretariat within Innovation PEI to manage cultural development initiatives, and establishing a P.E.I. Arts Commission to provide guidance and oversee funding for cultural activities.
Much of the strategy is aimed at growing creative businesses and finding new markets for those products. Those include a recommendation to establish a Creative Industry Market Development Program.
Anne of Green Gables, potatoes, lobster and beaches are mainstays of P.E.I.'s identity and culture, noted Education, Early Learning and Culture Minister Jordan Brown. "They are not, however, the full story, particularly with our growing cultural diversity."
P.E.I.'s Indigenous people are also mentioned several times as key — the strategy suggests collaborating with Indigenous people to develop learning initiatives about Mi'kmaq history and culture for Islanders and newcomers.
The strategy was created with input from focus groups, group interviews and pop-up cafés across P.E.I. this year, as well as a public online survey which gathered more than 1,500 responses.


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Does Size Matter?
Hitting the road for a while requires some significant consideration about what to pack and in what to pack it. Many travelers are hardcore about carry-on only luggage. Indeed, in the last few years of business travel, we have been advocates of the carry-on only approach, but carry-on bags and backpacks limit you to somewhere in the 30-45L range which we did not think would give us the flexibility for this trip that we wanted. We chose a 58L bag with an integrated day pack that provides another 25L of storage and gives us the option of a small overnight bag for short trips from our temporary home bases.
Wheels vs Straps
Another key decision for us was to determine what type of bag we wanted to use. Duffels were definitely out – while there are some great durable, waterproof options out there and they tend to be cavernous; duffels do not offer a lot of carrying options and can often be clumsy and heavy. We looked hard at a number of backpack options – many which have methods of hiding straps and belts for airplane travel. Backpacks are the standard selection for most extended travelers, but there is one down side – the pack is always on your back – no other carrying options. Also, we found a limited amount of options for women. Wheeled options were interesting to us because a lot of our travel may be with trains and buses, and it will be nice to have the option to put the weight on your wheels (and off of your back). However, most wheeled luggage is heavy and the wheel structure can take up space, but we think we found a great option that minimizes these issues. The true test will be 30 days into the trip.
The Selection
We both went with the Eagle Creek Switchback 26 pack which we feel provides a lot of options for carry and transport. The main pack can be used with wheels or as a backpack. The day pack can be attached to main pack, attached to the handle in wheeled mode or used as a backpack by sharing the main packs removable shoulder and belt straps. It has a great design for locking the zippers for the main pack and day pack, and the material looks ready to take the wear and tear of a year of travel. And the day pack swallows a 15-inch laptop without a problem.
We bought it at LuggagePros.Com which had a fantastic price as compared with REI, eBags, and Amazon. If you are buying luggage or backpacks, we would highly recommend checking out this site.


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Lindsay Baldassano's debut novel, The Chronicle of the Hymns: Book 1 The Quest of the Amyx Amulet, is coming out soon! Here's the skinny from Lindsay about what it was like to work on this series.
What was your inspiration for writing this book:
I can't say I had one source for the inspiration. I had been interested in the fantasy, urban fantasy genres and really enjoyed how many authors have been meshing the two. I didn't want to write the Hobbit or even the Mallorean, where the characters, while they suffered, as people tend to do in story, were mostly wholesome or pristine. The villains or antagonists were the ones who truly suffered some kind of defeat. I wanted to break that mold in the fantasy genre. I wanted to write a story with characters who came a world that more real. Magick and the paranormal aside, I consider those parts of reality a matter of perspective.
What was challenging to me was write the feelings and the dialogue behind the choices that were made. In a story where the characters really have to dig deep to find any sort of truth, personal or external to them, the emotions and state of mind had to be true. Few of us begin any journey setting out to be a hero of any sort. But our choices along the way, might get us that end result.
My inspiration for any story comes from the characters. I will dream up characters and expand upon them and what kind of world they would live in. I might like a plot device, but it's always the characters that will define how well any plot device will work. So this story evolved around Krii and what her fears were, what twists her life took. And now it's evolving around the notion that Krii could be happy, and be in love, and not lose focus on herself and her life.
What are your upcoming projects:
I've already started the second book of Krii's story. The working title is the Rise of the Order of the Raven, but I expect that to change, since this is really become a story of a transformation of two people.
But, I'm an author at heart, there are so many stories that have to be told. I would imagine I will start a few projects on the side the this series. I even one book in backlog that needs to be revisioned a bit. I started it long before any story about Krii, but it began to take a direction I didn't like, I couldn't feel the internal truth of. I might revisit that soon.
Can you tell us a little bit more about the second book?
Ummmm…Well it's still being written. The characters still have a lot to decide. But in the second book, of course Krii and Xander come back together. But the tone of the story is turning out to be quite different, and Krii is being pushed in different ways and being asked to use her talents and creativity in ways she never really tried before. The end of book on put her in the clutches of one her worst fears…no spoilers here! But in the beginning of book two the reader will begin to understand why it was necessary. There was no way she could have gained the experience she did and needed if she hadn't gone through it. She's going to be more open to the things that come at her, because she is beginning to sense that she has to meet things head on. There isn't anymore room for hiding. She has to find a way to be a leader.
Why you chose to self-publish?
I honestly didn't think to choose any other type of publishing. When I began and finished writing the first book, it was for love of story. Not just the tales of Krii and songs, but because I love stories and strong characters. I wasn't in the place to invest into the process of writing novels as a profession. All I knew was that I needed to write, and this story is what was coming out from my fingers, mind, and heart.
I probably could have died without publishing anything and had been content with myself. But with the way the industry opened up to amateurs, it seemed like a silly choice not to consider at all.
Who are your favorite writers?
I hate those kinds of questions. I remember characters more than I remember author's names or where I might have read the character. I do the same thing with songs. That and I read about as much as I write, I have pretty much read my way through all the free books (and more, much more) on Kindle's fantasy section. But I have had a long readership with Koontz. I enjoyed Eddings. I enjoyed the Incarnations of Immortality. But I also really like the wordsmithery of Mixhial Bulgakov and Douglas Adams. But what would probably be more pertinent to this series is that I love love love the Allie's War series by JC Adrijeski and All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness. Those last two series probably had the most impact on Krii and her story.
What's your process? How do you get into a project or sitting down to write?
I have time set aside in my working days to work on different things. But really, I'm writing all of the time. I'm running characters and scenarios through my mind to see how they feel, where they would go. About half time, I write longhand on an abused and well used mead nylon covered portfolio I carry around with me. I keep loose leaf paper in it, and then just file away the papers in the right binders for later analysis or transcription. When I'm in story mode, if I feel I'm on to something, I will finish writing out the scene and then shape it better in editing. I use Scrivener for writing and organizing, so once pieces are transcribed I can move things around as I need to.
I do use a reaction-action-recovery kind of cycle in the writing. That mostly comes out in the editing process, rather than the writing process. When I write, I immerse myself in the emotion of the scene and the character. I try to think and feel like they would, or vice versa. If I am feeling a certain way, I ask myself how I can translate that into something one my characters might go through. I end up with more material than I need for one book, but I keep it all. It might get re-used somehow.
Lindsay's first book, The Quest of the Amyx Amulet: The Chronicle of the Hymns, is debuting soon!
Get on the mailing list to stay in touch:


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I'm a bit of a newb to modelling. I need to make a worm (well actually a bunch but once I get one...)
I figured how hard could it be, make a cylinder, slap on a texture and maybe a bump map, grab a genoma spine to animate and voila!
Well, it is not quite so easy to make it good. I'm trying to make a worm like in the image
Any suggestions on how to approach this task?


text: Schulz, 40, was an industrial electrician from Alaska The claim's authenticity could not be immediately verified. The Islamic Army in Iraq on Thursday said it had killed "the American security consultant for the Housing Ministry," after the United States failed to respond to its demand of the release of Iraqi prisoners. A video issued by the group was aired on Tuesday on the Aljazeera Arabic satellite channel showing the hostage - identified as Ronald Schulz, 40, an industrial electrician from Alaska - sitting with his hands tied behind his back. Thursday's statement, posted on an Islamic rebel Web forum, did not name the hostage and provided no evidence he had been killed, but said pictures of the slaying would be released later. Demands In the rebel tape, aired by Aljazeera two days back, the group had said it was giving the US military in Iraq 48 hours to release all Iraqi prisoners, otherwise it would kill him. The group also demanded the US army compensate the people of Anbar governorate for the losses they had suffered from the frequent US attacks on their cities. Both Falluja and Ramadi are in Anbar province and have come under heavy US fire. Last year, a group with the same name killed Italian journalist Enzo Baldoni after Rome refused its demand to pull troops from Iraq. The kidnapping comes just days after armed men seized four Christian peace activists, two Canadians, a Briton and an American, as well as a German archaeologist and a French engineer in Iraq. Thousands of civilians have been kidnapped in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein's government, including more than 200 foreigners. Many hostages have been released, but about 50 have been killed, some by beheadings broadcast on the internet. SOURCE: Aljazeera + Agencies


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10 Images from Log Cabin Rentals In Texas
Superbe Chalet Rustique Nich Au Cur Dun Cadre Verdoyant
15 Best Summer Beach House Destinations For Families
Tiny Houses For Sale In California A Tiny Adobe In
Secluded Cabins And Houses In Texas VRBO
Pictures Of Lake Tombigbee Lake Tombigbee Campgrounds
Cabins At Smith Creek Wimberley Texas Log Cabins
Image Gallery Mountain Cabin Plans
Log Cabins In NC Mountains
Why is it that people decide not to put in granite at home? Granite for log cabin rentals in texas counter can cost you a whole lot per square foot; it is about $50 to $100. For this reason, although many men and women want to use granite to their own countertops, they sometimes wind up with the opposite decision. It's one of the priciest countertop choices so far. If you do not manage granite properly, there is a possibility that the granite's slab is going to be damage. This means, you must hire an expert to get done. In other words, you need extra money for the setup. Overall, granite is one of the best options for cabin rental countertops. However, if you don't have enough budgets you probably can't own granite countertops cabin.
Create a plan and place marks on wherever it should be. You ought to do this to make our strategy runs as it ought to be too. You also have to write in the point at which you would like to put accents or custom framing onto the watt. Permanent marker is fine.
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Jason Zweig has been a Personal Finance columnist for the Wall Street Journal for the last decade. To be honest, I'm a big fan. Way back in 2013 he wrote an article in the WSJ with the headline above and, while I only recently came upon it, what he wrote is as relevant today as it … Continue reading Saving investors from themselves
We all have to start this somewhere. But let's start!
I saw this quote on a site which promotes healthy eating and it reminded me of a conversation I had with a client earlier this week about her financial planning. She was a little embarrassed about "how little she has" and intimidated about working with me to get the best financial future we can. When … Continue reading We all have to start this somewhere. But let's start!
Why life is better with a Certified Financial Planning® professional
The Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB) is the global leader in managing, developing and certifying financial planning organisations. The FPSB promotes worldwide professional standards in financial planning and is the custodian of the coveted Certified Financial Planning® distinction and mark. Recently the FPSB, in association with the Canadian Financial Planning Standards Council, commissioned a piece … Continue reading Why life is better with a Certified Financial Planning® professional
Sometimes just getting organised is the first step in taking charge of your finances
There are many people who are interested in taking charge of their finances who just don't know where to start. Normally, deciding that you want to do something about your finances AND FOLLOWING THROUGH on that decision by finding someone to help you is a good start. But it can be intimidating. I know that … Continue reading Sometimes just getting organised is the first step in taking charge of your finances
In investing: What THE most important thing is to get right?
When it comes to your investment outcomes, what is the one most important thing you need to get right? What is the one thing that if you get it right will give you the best chance of meeting your investment goals over the chosen time periods? What is the thing that I as an adviser … Continue reading In investing: What THE most important thing is to get right?
Investing for beginners: Assets, asset classes, asset allocation & asset managers
In investing there is a lot of jargon and in order to understand the recommendations which I will make when I work with you, it is important that you understand what various terms mean. Alpha A risk adjusted measure of the "excess return" provided by an investment compared with a benchmark. Alpha can be positive, … Continue reading Investing for beginners: Assets, asset classes, asset allocation & asset managers
Average returns are not normal
Investors frequently want to know what return they can expect from an investment. This is a normal question and the answer is crucial in managing their expectations. An investor who is placed in a product that fails to meet their expectations is sure to be unhappy and likely to want to switch out of it … Continue reading Average returns are not normal
Are you ready to get financially naked?
As a Certified Financial Planner® and member of the Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa I subscribe to the international Financial Planning Standards Board's 6-step process to financial planning. The second step in this process is to "collect the client's information". We are expected to: identify the client's personal and financial objectives, needs and priorities that … Continue reading Are you ready to get financially naked?
The role of financial advice in your investment success
I would not be an Independent Certified Financial Planner® if I did not believe in what I do and how I have chosen to do it. I am driven to help people and know that my training, knowledge and experience can add immense value to my clients' lives. Allan Gray is an investment management and … Continue reading The role of financial advice in your investment success


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SUV drivers pollute the planet with their gas-guzzling snobbism. Or do they?
SUV Drivers vs You
Steve Clemens | United Business Institutes
|SUV drivers pollute the planet with their gas-guzzling snobbism. Or do they?
Steve Clemens
Prof. Env Econ at UBI www.ubi.edu
From Berlin to L.A., extreme environmentalists act their conscience when they decide to attack SUV�s. Reports state that they scratch rude remarks into the bonnet of the SUV�s, deflate their tires or smash rotten tomatoes and eggs onto them. Sure, SUV drivers are a bunch of snobs ridiculously needing to project power and wealth by sitting in a higher driving position than you. They carry about twice the mass of steel as regular cars, for hardly any extra interior space. They often say they need the 4X4 capacity for their off-road lifestyle, meaning they need the traction for the 0,00002% of all miles driven: pulling the yacht trailer up the slippery bank.
But what is the issue here? Is it the snobbism, or is it the pollution due to the unnecessary extra fuel consumption of these bigger engines? If that is the case, a well-informed environmental activist might want to redirect his or her anger.
Gas-guzzling SUV�s consume about 50% more fuel. For an average SUV driver, this will result in about 1.500 kg of CO2 per year extra.
However, an average Western World meat-eater will eat about 80kg of meat per year. And as this is an average, it includes both the lean-and-clean vegetarians as the I-love-big-bbq�s-Texas-style high-cholesterol macho, so the blame has unfairly been spread out, so to speak. Other than costing society extra due to an unhealthy lifestyle, the meat-eater will emit about 2.900 kg of CO2 per year.
Nevertheless, the biggest polluters are families who choose NOT to switch to a green electricity supplier. Up to a few years ago, it was impossible for a responsible person to have sustainable green electricity coming out of its power plugs, but nowadays, in my region of Belgium, I can choose among 5 suppliers going 100% green, and another 6 with a mix of green and dirty electrical power. An average family in Europe consumes about 3,6MWh electrical power per year. In the US, the average is about 10MWh, and the most strikingly famous exception is Al Gore himself with 221MWh per year. By going green, all the emissions as a consequence of this power production is deleted.
Thus, non-green-electricity European families unnecessarily emit about 3.600 kg CO2 per year. US families irresponsibly emit 10.000 kg CO2 per year.
To summarize:
Have you also felt agitated by people who don�t give a sh*t about the environment? Please direct your disapproving looks away from SUV drivers. Maybe a look into the mirror is at hand?
This article is an adapted excerpt from the author�s first book �Thank you for not breathing�, out soon. www.thankyoufornotbreathing.com
The content & opinions in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent the views of AltEnergyMag
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The song "Pray For Me" from the Black Panther soundtrack by Kendrick Lamar and The Weeknd really has you thinking about the lyrics. It's one of those songs that makes you look at the bigger picture and feel a deeper feeling then you were expecting. The Weekend and Kendrick Lamar's collaboration for this song is fantastic. It really couldn't be any more perfect. Once you listen to the whole song through it makes you think, wow, I need to hear that again.
The song begins with The Weeknd straight up sharing some true feelings. He starts off, "I'm always ready for a war again. Go down that road again. It's all the same. I'm always ready to take a life again. You know I'll ride again. It's all the same." Then he gets real and starts sharing some true feelings, "Who gon' pray for me? Take my pain for me? Save my soul for me?" After these few versus it starts to make the listener think, feel and connect to the song on a different level.
It gets even better when Kendrick Lamar pipes in. He goes, "I fight the world, I fight you, I fight myself. I fight God, just tell me how many burdens left. I fight pain and hurricanes, today I wept. I'm tryna fight back tears, flood on my doorsteps. Life a livin' hell, puddles of blood in the streets." He doesn't go full blast here but you can feel the sharp anger in his lyrics. I find that to be pretty powerful!
"Pray For Me" is pretty intense and continues to escalate as the song goes on. It's powerful words and deeper meaning bring out the best in the lyrics and really make you think. After I heard it for the first time I just sat there and thought about it for a minute. I kept listening to it and would pull out different emotions each time. Such a good song! If you haven't heard it yet definitely check it out. Get ready to feel some feels!


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What a week this has been and what amazing days are ahead of us, culminating in the canonization Sunday of a holy woman known the world over simply as Mother Teresa. Members of the order she founded, the Missionaries of Charity, have been pouring into Rome and they have organized a grand number of events to honor their foundress and soon to be Saint Teresa of Calcutta, including concerts, symposiums, art exhibits, and multi-lingual Masses.
I took this photo this morning as I was entering Vatican Radio for my weekly program, "Joan Knows." These Missionaries of Charity Sisters were all waiting at the bus stop just out front.
Before I go further let me tell you about my guest in the interview segment. I talk with Fr. Brian Kolodeijchuk, MC, the postulator of Mother Teresa's cause for canonization. He has, of course, terrific insight and wonderful stories about this diminutive nun who was larger than life for everyone who came into contact with her.
Another big event on the calendar this weekend is the three-day Jubilee of Volunteers that culminates Sunday with the papal Mass in St. Peter's square. This event was already on the Jubilee calendar when the Vatican announced in March that Teresa's canonization would be the same September day.
Tomorrow morning there is a catechesis event for volunteers, expected to number 25,000, in St. Peter's Square with Pope Francis. Sunday, as you know, the canonization Mass takes place in the square, and Monday, as is usual after a canonization, there will be a Mass of thanksgiving in St. Peter's Square presided over by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.
The Director of the Holy See Press Office Greg Burke said it would be impossible to predict how many people will attend Sunday's canonization Mass for Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Speaking at a Vatican press conference giving details about the highly-anticipated event, Burke said all 100,000 tickets had been distributed for the Mass but that the crowd would likely be far greater, spilling into the streets around St. Peter's Square.
Some 600 journalists from all over the world have flocked to Rome to cover Mother Teresa's canonization which is being seen by many as the highlight of this Jubilee Year of Mercy. More than a dozen heads of state or government will be among the many dignitaries attending the Mass.
Among those speaking at the packed press conference on Friday morning were Sister Mary Prema Pierick, the Superior General of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity, Father Brian Kolodiejchuk, the postulator for her sainthood cause and Marcilio Haddad Andrino, the Brazilian who was declared miraculously healed through Mother Teresa's intercession.
Andrino described how he was suffering from a viral brain infection and the doctors had lost all hope of saving his life when his wife Fernanda prayed to Mother Teresa and immediately afterwards he found himself miraculously healed from the illness. He expressed gratitude for his recovery but said he is just one example of God's ample mercy and love and stressed he "did not feel special." Within a year, his wife became pregnant and they were able to have two children even though Andrino had been told that the powerful drugs he had taken had made him infertile. He called his two children "the extension of that miracle."
Turning to the technical side of the canonization Mass, Burke told journalists that the event will be filmed using 4K Ultra High Definition and using nine television cameras. He said the Canonization can also be seen on the Vatican's YouTube platform, on the Vatican player of Vatican Radio and on the website of the Vatican Television Service (CTV). (from Vatican Radio)


text: This darkling anarchist has been tattooing his spectator's nightmares on his body since the 70's. A frightening phenom, with a cutting wit and a sharp humor, MR. Darkness has been killing it on stage, TV and film, and has been getting away with it. He says Hell is only a figment of your imagination, yet this is where you will find him on his days off. A director of mayhem and fun, his heart of darkness has such sights to show you and emotions to feed you! Stay tuned to this ring leaders shadowy and static channel.


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|MTH 1102 - College Algebra
This is an advanced course in algebra. It includes a review of algebraic concepts and skills; first and second degree equations and inequalities; complex numbers; systems of equations and inequalities, including matrices and determinants; functions; graphing; the theory of equations; sequences, series; and binomial expansion. Additional topics may be selected from mathematical induction, permutations and combinations, probability. This course requires the use of appropriate technology, such as graphics calculators and/or computers. PREREQUISITE: The equivalent of 2 years of high school algebra and 1 year of geometry with grades of C or better, or PRE 0420 Intermediate Algebra and PRE 0415 Elementary Geometry, with grades of C or better, or a sufficient score on a placement test.


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JasperReports JRXML format uses its own formatting which is different from Excel and so when you want to export to Excel directly from iReport for example two things are going to happen:
- Probably you will have no formatting rule available and you will end up with an approximation of the real formatting you are after
- Your raw data could disappear and you get in the Excel output just exacty what the formatting in JRXML is specifying
When my attention was brought to this problem by a member of my current team I saw a post with some solutions I did not like.
The reason why I did not like the solutions (besides the fact they are not addressing the two points I described above) is that they basically violate separation of concerns.
The solution for this problem is indeed addressing the problem from the right angle.
It allows to format anything for non excel output from iReport (jrxml). It then relies on mapping to translate the custom jrxml format to the proprietary to Excel syntax when that format is needed.
I only came to that post after some research and the more I research the more convince I am people get easily lost nowadays when searching for solutions on the web. This is of course a result of a non semantic web markup and consequently a poor search engine filtering. Still there is something that can be done if you stick to concepts and you refine your terms following them.
Here is my personal story when I researched this issue. This could probably help others. Remember do never get the first response you get from Google as the final response to your problem:
I found a similar issue within the JasperReports forums, not from Google. Then I asked if a solution was found
I realized using JRXlsAbstractExporter was apparently the way to go.
And so I finally got it.
- As this is a solution addressable only from the JR Excel API Exporter, if you are really stuck with POI Exporter then what to do? I could not find anything but as I knew from simple concept this was a task to be done by the exporter and the exporter uses the POI API then I searched for the necessary formatting and I got into this post
I feel like posting how you research is as useful as posting a solution. A good researcher cannot give up. A path must be follow till the end which is a Proof Of Concept (POC). There is no other way.
If you are the architect you must do that job. If you are the CTO be sure you do it yourself or have an architect to delegate to. If you are a developer and you do this you are on your way to become a good architect and a good hands on CTO.


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Why Businesses Needs To Invest In A Good Commercial Air Conditioning System
For big and small businesses to avoid their employees from getting to suffer from heat exhaustion and still work effectively, they are looking for efficient ways to avoid this because of the effect of climate change. For companies to get to achieve their goals in ensuring their office space is well cooled during the summer season, it is critical for companies to choose and install the right type of air conditioning system to cool their office down. Companies must install air conditioning systems in making sure that their work environment is comfortable for their employees to work at, the system would help businesses in keeping their productivity levels high.
It is not that hard for most businesses today in finding the correct commercial air conditioning system to help them create the best working environment for their workers to work at an efficient rate. There are numerous systems that companies can get to choose from and one of the is the evaporative commercial air conditioning system, it is one of the best options for most businesses to install on their office. This type of air conditioning system is advantageous for companies due to the fact it does not required businesses to install new types of pipes because of the reason they don't have to pay extra in installing new piping.
This type of air conditioning system is not like other conventional commercial air conditioner due to the fact this does not need to be refilled by Freon gas to cool down the water that is inside the system. A number of these new air conditioning systems would not get to exhume toxic fumes that can get to be released on the environment which can harm it, so it is vital for businesses to invest on a new air conditioning system.
5 Key Takeaways on the Road to Dominating Experts
The commercial air conditioning system is well suited to be used in businesses where food production happens, the system can easily help decrease the amount of bacteria on the air and improve the air quality. Businesses must get to do some vital research on the kinds of commercial air conditioning system that they would install on their office, they must look for one that has good features and functions.
The Best Advice on Tips I've found
Companies need to know the kinds of materials that they use in manufacturing these air conditioning systems, they must ensure that the system would not rust easily because it can easily affect the system. There are different companies of most of these commercial air conditioning systems, companies need to make sure that the brand they get to pick is popular in manufacturing systems that are good in quality.


text: This american stout pours a dark rich brown with a thin tan head. The aroma hits right off with dark stale coffee with some roasted character. The flavor has the same coffee to start, with a hint of chocolate but ends with a huge lingering bitterness. This is full bodied with a lower carbonation but very smooth until you hit the bitter finish. This is good american stout that plays big on the bitterness, but I would like to see a bit more complexity. I would definitely give this a try if you love a dark bold beer with this earthy bitter twist.


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300 grams good quality white chocolate (I use Lindt chocolate)
125 ml cream
- Heat cream, just to boiling point in a saucepan then pour over the chocolate.
- Give it a little wiggle to submerge the chocolate in the cream
- Cover with glad wrap & stand for a few minutes
- Whisk until smooth & glossy
- transfer to a Tupperware container
You can use it at a sauce at this stage or cool in the fridge until it comes to a spreadable consistency to ice cakes or make truffles.
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to one week


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Categories: ASP.NET
Author: ActionThis
Latest version: 1.0Added 2008-07-28Updated 2008-09-16
Software-only solution that optimizes ASP.NET websites to improve performance and reduce load times.RPO (Runtime Page Optimizer) is a component that post-processes HTML pages at runtime to optimize the resource references external to the page. Faster time to last byte is achieved by combining and compressing resources, and ensuring that cache headers for all resources are set to values that result in persistent caching by browser clients.Features include:- Reduces the number of requests required by a site, reducing latency and increasing performance- No changes needed to clients: The RPO is a server component. Nothing needs to be installed on the web browser clients.- Page-by-page or the entire site: You can configure the RPO optimize a single page, a number of pages or the entire site.- Stealth mode: You can leave the site unoptimized for regular users, while testing and tuning the optimization just for yourself- Single server or load balanced: The RPO works in both single server and load-balanced environments- Include, exclude or strip files- Browser aware: Optimizations are automatically turned on or off depending on the client's browser- Cache management: Optimized resources are cached on the server and web browser clients- Automated or manual setup- Sprite management: Create sprite libraries that you can reference from JS or HTML- Customizable configuration


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Smart Meters (SMs) offer remote switching functionalities to the Distribution System Operators (DSOs). The DSO can switch the breaker of the SM of any customer remotely whenever needed. The DSOs are currently applying this technique for customers typically one by one when customers are changing their addresses or when contracts are terminated. The breaker functionalities of the SMs could be used for multiple customers, thereby opening up new possibilities to balance electricity consumption and production. How the technology has been functioning in practice has, however, not been fully investigated with regard to multiple SM switching. In this paper, the experience from real tests on simultaneous multiple SM switching is presented. The tests have been conducted to observe the effect of SM switching on power quality (PQ). Power Quality Meters (PQMs) had been used both at the substation as well as the customer level to measure the PQ during SM switching. This paper presents the results by showing current measurements during switching ON and OFF of multiple SMs belonging to each substation.
Smart Meters (SMs) are undergoing an increasing deployment all over the world and have been introduced to several regions. The SMs generally have remotely accessible breakers which offer remote switching functionalities to the Distribution System Operators (DSOs). The DSOs have the possibility of using this unique functionality of SMs for various future applications, e.g., switching some loads during peak loads crisis or outage management during natural disasters. Under these conditions, the DSO can disconnect selected customers by using SM switching while continuing power supply to risk customers and emergency service providers. During multiple SM switching, the power quality (PQ) of the connected loads might be affected. This paper presents results on the impact of multiple SM switching at customer level. Data are used from a field test on multiple SM switching from a DSO in Sweden. The number of customers in this test was higher compared to the previous two tests of the work. Moreover, all customers in the selected test area were not switched in this test. Almost half of the customers in the test area were disconnected remotely using SMs while the other half of the customers remained connected with power supply to investigate the impact of SMs switching in a different way. This work observed some transient events during the SMs switching. Voltage quality was stable during the test except some flickering effects beyond the limit.
This paper consolidates the data, analysis andobservations from a case study conducted in cooperation withthe Smart Grid Gotland project. The analysis identifies howelectrical power consumption interacts with distributedelectricity generation such as wind and solar power andpresents how it correlates to weather data and smart gridsolutions. The analysis model developed based on the Gotlandnetwork is generic and hence can be functional in investigatingother power networks of different size, voltage level andstructures. The key observations from the study of smart gridsolutions such as dynamic load capacity and energy storagesolutions are specified. Based on the project, an overview offuture risks and opportunities of smart grid systems is presented.
Global policy targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have led to increased interest in plug-in electric vehicles (PEV) and their integration into the electricity network. Existing electricity markets, however, are not well suited to encourage direct participation of flexible demand from small consumers such as PEV owners. The introduction of an aggregator agent with the functions of gathering, aggregating, controlling and representing the energy needs of PEV owners in the electricity market could prove useful in this regard. In this chapter, a mathematical model of PEV aggregator for participation in the day-ahead electricity market is described. The modeling is done by treating each of the individual vehicle batteries as a single large battery. The centralized charging and discharging of this battery is then scheduled based on the traveling needs of the PEV owners determined by an aggregated driving profile and the cumulative electrical energy needs of vehicles over the optimization horizon. Two methods for scheduling PEV demand named as joint scheduling method (JSM) and aggregator scheduling method (ASM) are presented. The two methods are subsequently used to observe the effects of introducing flexible scheduling of PEVs on the day-ahead market price in an IEEE test system and a Nordic test system. Results from the IEEE test system case studies will indicate that the scheduling of PEV energy through direct centralized control at high PEV penetration levels of 50 % or greater could lead to potential lowering of day-ahead market prices as compared to an indirect control method such as the use of fixed period charging. Results from the Nordic test system case study shows that controlled scheduling of PEV demand could lead to only a small increase in day-ahead market price of electricity.
During the past decade wind turbines have proven to be a promising source of renewable power. Wind turbines are generally placed in remote locations and are subject to harsh environmental conditions throughout their lifetimes. Consequently, the failures in wind turbines are expensive to repair and cause loss of revenue due to long down times. Asset management in wind turbines can aid in assessing and improving the reliability and availability of wind turbines, thereby making them more competitive. Maintenance policies play an important role in asset management and different maintenance models have been developed for wind turbine applications. Typically, mathematical models for maintenance optimization provide either an age based or a condition based preventive maintenance schedule. Age based preventive maintenance schedules provide the owner with the possibility to financially plan for maintenance activities for the entire lifetime of the wind turbine by providing the expected number of replacements for each component. However, age based preventive maintenance schedule may not consume the operating life of the wind turbine components to the maximum. Condition based maintenance scheduling has the advantage of better utilizing the operating life of the components. This paper proposes a wind turbine maintenance management framework which utilizes operation and maintenance data from different sources to combine the benefits of age based and condition based maintenance scheduling. This paper also presents an artificial neural network (ANN) based condition monitoring method which utilizes data from supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system to detect failures in wind turbine components and systems. The procedures to construct ANN models for condition monitoring application are outlined. In order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the ANN based condition monitoring method it is applied to case studies from real wind turbines. Furthermore, a mathematical model called preventive maintenance schedule with interval costs (PMSPIC) is discussed and its application to a case study within the maintenance management framework is presented. The case study demonstrates the advantage of combining both the age based and condition based maintenance scheduling methods.
Asset management of wind turbines has gained increased importance in recent years. High maintenance cost and longer downtimes of wind turbines have led to research in methods to optimize maintenance activities. Condition monitoring systems have proven to be a useful tool towards aiding maintenance management of wind turbines. Methods using Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system along with artificial intelligence (AI) methods have been developed to monitor the condition of wind turbine components. Various researchers have presented different artificial neural network (ANN) based models for condition monitoring of components in a wind turbine. This paper presents an application of the approach to decide and update the training data set needed to create an accurate ANN model. A case study with SCADA data from a real wind turbine has been presented. The results show that due to a major maintenance activity, like replacement of component, the ANN model has to be re-trained. The results show that application of the proposed approach makes it possible to update and re-train the ANN model.
Gearbox has proven to be a major contributor toward downtime in wind turbines. The majority of failures in the gearbox originate from the gearbox bearings. An early indication of possible wear and tear in the gearbox bearings may be used for effective predictive maintenance, thereby reducing the overall cost of maintenance. This paper introduces a self-evolving maintenance scheduler framework for maintenance management of wind turbines. Furthermore, an artificial neural network (ANN)-based condition monitoring approach using data from supervisory control and data acquisition system is proposed. The ANN-based condition monitoring approach is applied to gearbox bearings with real data from onshore wind turbines, rated 2 MW, and located in the south of Sweden. The results demonstrate that the proposed ANN-based condition monitoring approach is capable of indicating severe damage in the components being monitored in advance.
This panel presentation discusses the development of a functional relationship between failure rates and maintenance measures for insulated cables. The approach has been applied to rural and urban distribution systems, and demonstrates the value of using a systematic quantitative approach for investigating the effect of different maintenance strategies.
This report summarizes the status of the computer program RADPOW. RADPOW is a program for Reliability Assessment of electrical Distribution POWer systems. It was developed at KTH School of Electrical Engineering, within the research program EKC and the research project on reliability of new electrical distribution systems. Further on, RADPOW has been used and further developed within the RCAM research group at KTH School of Electrical Engineering.
This status report contains a brief description of the RADPOW_2006 version, the Loadflow module from the RADPOW_1999_PH version and a description of the work done in the resulting RADPOW_2007 version. This version now includes a tested load flow module and the ability to calculate the latest component importance indices developed within the RCAM research group. The source code for the program has also been restructured and commented in a more detailed level than before.
A new regulatory model for the Swedish electrical distribution system operators has been proposed, and is now being implemented. The model is referred to as the Network Performance Assessment Model (NPAM). The NPAM is based on fictive reference networks. These emanate from a radial network that is reinforced with redundant components if it increases the customer value more than required investment cost for higher system reliability. The NPAM involves a paradigm shift for the Swedish DSO from a system based on compensation for costs to one based on performance. Evidently, it is of great importance to both the regulator and the different DSOs to evaluate how well the NPAM calculates the performance i.e. the customer values. The aim for this paper is to take a first step in this process; by putting light on how these redundant reference networks are created and used for the NPAM. In order to do this a comparative study has been made for a small test system where two different approaches are used for identifying the resulting redundant reference network for a system. The NPAM approach uses a Monte Carlo simulation technique, and the comparative approach uses an analytical based reliability assessment tool RADPOW, developed at KTH.
The Swedish energy agency (STEM), has developed a new regulatory model to supervise the revenues of the Distribution System Operators (DSO), referred to as the Network Performance Assessment Model (NPAM). The fundamental idea of the NPAM is that the electrical distribution system provides customer values, and the DSO is allowed to collect revenue corresponding to these values. The NPAM calculates customer values for a fictive electrical distribution system, with a total cost referred to as the Network Performance Assessment (NPA). The allowed debiting rate for a DSO is defined by the quotient of the revenue and the NPA. If the debiting rate is higher than a certain value, defined by the Energy Market Inspection (EMI) at STEM, the DSO is placed under review and could be forced to pay back revenue to customers. A lawsuit is currently in progress on this use of the NPAM, which has highlighted drawbacks in the model. This paper provides a comprehensive presentation of the NPAM. It describes in detail the different input data for the model, the steps in the calculations and the resulting cost factors. The paper also presents for the first time details on the theory underlying the calculations.
This panel presentation aims to propose a possible solution for how to evaluate the effect of RCM as a tool for maintenance management. The starting point is a general understanding of the RCM methodology. Further on, a quantitative approach for relating the impact of component maintenance on system reliability and total cost is introduced. The method, referred to as reliability-centred asset maintenance method (RCAM) is being developed within a research group at KTH in Sweden. Finally the presentation comments on ongoing research to evaluate the introduction of RCM. The aim of RCM is to optimize the maintenance achievements in a systematic way.
This paper proposes a method for comparing the effect of different maintenance strategies on system reliability and cost. This method relates reliability theory with the experience gained from statistics and practical knowledge of component failures and maintenance measures. The approach has been applied to rural and urban distribution systems. In particular, a functional relationship between failure rate and maintenance measures has been developed for a cable component. The results show the value of using a systematic quantitative approach for investigating the effect of different maintenance strategies.
The development of a Smart Grid in Europe has a strong link to the climate goals for sustainable energy systems. Europe has been at the forefront of smart grid deployments, especially in the areas of managing large penetrations of renewable sources of energy, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and on advanced information technology.
A sound maintenance planning is of crucial importance for wind power systems. There is a large potential in cost savings by optimizing maintenance decisions to make the projects more cost-efficient. This paper presents an approach to optimize condition-based maintenance strategies for components which degradation can be classified according to the severity of the damage. The approach is applicable to inspection-based maintenance as well as maintenance based on online condition-monitoring systems. This enables us to compare the maintenance strategies within a unified framework. First decisions associated with the different maintenance strategies are optimized, then the expected life cycle maintenance costs of the strategies are compared. The model is applied to blades of wind turbine in order to compare three maintenance strategies: visual inspection, inspection with a condition-monitoring technique (e.g., ultrasonic or thermography), and online condition monitoring (e.g., fiber optic). It is shown that online condition monitoring is the optimal maintenance strategy for high failure rate and low crack time to failure. In other cases, inspection with condition-based maintenance is slightly more beneficial. © 2010 IEEE.
The large growth in the wind power industry in the past years mainly focuses on a growing market and the development of large turbines and offshore farms. The high technical availability of wind turbines comes with a high need for frequent maintenance. Current maintenance planning is generally not optimized, and it is possible to make maintenance more efficient. Condition Monitoring Systems (CMS) are commonly used in other industries and can reduce the consequential damage at failure and provides advantages for the planning of the maintenance. It is of interest to determine if the wind industry would benefit of the use of CMS. This paper shows results from Life-Cycle-Cost (LCC) evaluated with probabilistic methods and sensitivity analysis to identify the benefit of using CMS. The results highlight that there is a high economic benefit of using CMS, as well as benefits on the risk. The benefit is highly influenced by the reliability of the gearbox.
A sound maintenance planning is of crucial importance for wind power farms, and especially for offshore locations. There is a large potential in cost savings by maintenance optimization to make the projects more cost-efficient. This paper presents an opportunistic maintenance optimization model for offshore wind power system. The model takes advantage of wind forecasts and corrective maintenance activities in order to perform preventive maintenance tasks at low costs. The approach is illustrated with an example to demonstrate the value of the optimization. In this example 43% of the cost to perform preventive maintenance could be saved using the proposed method.
This paper presents a bibliography of papers on the subject of power system reliability evaluation. Papers in such areas as: probabilistic load flow, probabilistic production costing, probabilistic transient stability evaluation etc. have not been included except where they specifically address power system reliability evaluation. It includes material which has been made available since the publication of six previous papers Bibliography on the Application of Probability Methods in Power System Reliability Evaluation, IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems PAS-91, 1972, pp. 649-660, Pas-97, 1978, pp. 2235-2242, PAS-103, 1984, pp. 275-282, IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, Vol. 3, no. 4, Nov. 1988, pp. 1555-1564, Vol. 9, No. 1, Feb. 1994, pp. 41-49, and Vol. 14, no. 1, Feb. 1999, pp. 51-57.
The methodology used to assess the historical reliability performance of a Canadian Utility's electric distribution system is outlined. Included is an overview of the process used to collect and organize the required interruption data as well as a description of the performance indices calculated for use in the causal assessment. The various component parts of the reliability performance assessment are described. This includes a description of indices comparison between years and to the average at different levels of the system and by outage cause and component failure. Finally, results from the 2004 reliability assessment of the utility's electric distribution system are summarized and the application of the calculated performance statistics in planning, operating and maintaining distribution systems is described.
This paper describes the Mid-Continent Area Power Pool (MAPP) transmission equipment outage data collection scheme and presents bulk transmission line average outage statistics for forced outage category for the 230 kV and above systems computed using the data for the ten-year operating period from 1991 to 2000. In addition, a causal and seasonal contribution to forced outages of bulk transmission line is analyzed that helps to identify appropriate remedial actions to improve transmission line reliability. This paper presents selected applications of transmission line forced outage statistics by different MAPP member utilities.
Power system reliability assessment methods can be categorized either analytical or as Monte Carlo simulation. Analytical methods represent the power system by a mathematical model and assess the reliability performance indices from the model utilizing mathematical solutions. On the other hand, Monte Carlo simulation methods, compute the reliability indices by simulating the actual process and random behavior of the power system, and can include any system effects or system processes which may have to be approximated in analytical methods. This paper describes a Monte Carlo simulation tool, which has been developed by General Electric (GE) Company for the reliability analysis of multi-area generation systems with explicit recognition of those unit and system operating considerations, rules, and constraints that influence system reliability indices. The basic features, capabilities and applications of the Monte Carlo simulation model are illustrated using the Mid-Continent Area Power Pool (MAPP) interconnected system reserve capacity obligation (RCO) study in this paper.
This paper presents a novel reliability cost-benefit approach, taking into account customer value of reliability, to compare different transformer loading philosophies while concurrently considering varying levels of transformer emergency capability. Using this cost benefit approach, guidelines for loading existing transformers can be determined. The developed methodology can also be used to establish standard emergency rating criteria for purchasing new transformers, which will optimize reliability performance versus cost. The methodology is illustrated using practical system examples.
This paper describes the Mid-Continent Area Power Pool (MAPP), transmission equipment outage data collection scheme and presents bulk transmission line average outage statistics for forced outage category for the 230 kV and above systems computed using the data for the ten-year operating period from 1991 to 2000. In addition, a causal and seasonal contribution to forced outages of bulk transmission line is analyzed that helps to identify appropriate remedial actions to improve transmission line reliability. This paper presents selected applications of transmission line forced outage statistics by different MAPP member utilities.
This paper presents an anomaly detection approach using machine learning to achieve condition monitoring for wind turbines. The approach applies the information in supervisory control and data acquisition systems as data input. First, machine learning is used to estimate the temperature signals of the gearbox component. Then the approach analyzes the deviations between the estimated values and the measurements of the signals. Finally, the information of alarm logs is integrated with the previous analysis to determine the operation states of wind turbines. The proposed approach has been tested with the data experience of a 2MW wind turbine in Sweden. The result demonstrates that the approach can detect possible anomalies before the failure occurrence. It also certifies that the approach can remind operators of the possible changes inside wind turbines even when the alarm logs do not report any alarms.
This paper presents an anomaly detection approach using artificial neural networks and the wavelet transform for the condition monitoring of wind turbines. The method aims to attain early anomaly detection and to prevent possible false alarms under healthy operations. In the approach, nonlinear autoregressive neural networks are used to estimate the temperature signals of the gearbox. The Mahalanobis distances are then calculated to measure the deviations between the current states and healthy operations. Next, the wavelet transform is applied to remove noisy signals in the distance values. Finally, the operation information is considered together with the refined distance values to detect potential anomalies. The proposed approach has been tested with the real data of three 2 MW wind turbines in Sweden. The results show that the approach can detect possible anomalies before failure events occur and avoid reporting alarms under healthy operations.
Two recently proposed methods for evaluating the effects of various maintenance policies on the reliability and operating costs of electric power systems are compared. Both programs, the one developed in Canada and the other in Sweden, first generate a priority list of components whose failures have the highest effect on system reliability, then examine the failure rates of the components on the top of the list when various maintenance policies are applied. Finally, reliability indices for the whole system are computed with the critical components represented by the failure rates corresponding to the various policies. This way, maintenance policies can be selected either to achieve the highest system reliability or the lowest operating costs. The approach is illustrated in a numerical example where both the similarities of, and the differences between, the two methods can be recognized. Comments are made on the reasons for the differences.
In this paper, an extended optimal power-flow (OPF) model incorporating a detailed model of a voltage-source con- verter-based–multiterminal high-voltage direct current system (VSC–MTDC) is proposed, hereafter referred to as the mixed ac/dc OPF (M-OPF) model. A cost-benefit analysis approach using the M-OPF model as the calculation engine is proposed to determine the preferred VSC-MTDC alternative to be installed in an existing ac transmission system. In this approach, the op- erational benefits of VSC–MTDC systems are evaluated against their investment costs to derive the benefit-to-cost ratios (BCR) which reflect the cost-effectiveness of the alternatives. A case study has been carried out using a modified Nordic 32-bus system. The results of the study show that VSC–MTDC systems might lead to a reduction in total operation cost, and the reduction of the total system transmission loss depends to a large extent on the VSC–MTDC configuration. The results from sensitivity analyses show that if the VSC loss could be reduced to a third of the original level, the total benefit from the system would be increased by about 70%. A suggestion for the placement and configuration of a VSC–MTDC system is made based on calculated BCRs.
This paper proposes a reliability importance index that is possible to extract from existing reliability simulations at a low additional computational cost. The index utilizes the concept of reliability worth as a measure of system reliability in order to establish the importance of components in systems with several load points. Since the method is based on simulations, it is suitable for large networks with a high level of detail. The index can be used as decision support for asset management, for example where maintenance actions will become most beneficial. The index is evaluated against the background of a number of analytically calculated indices. Furthermore, the index is applied to a network in the Stockholm area. The conclusion of the paper is that the proposed simulation based importance index provides a means of improving analysis of electrical network reliability.
This paper presents three new component reliability importance indices, developed for electrical networks. Component reliability importance indices are useful for prioritization of components as part of a system, especially when considering maintenance activities and/or investment in new equipment. Traditional component reliability importance indices were developed for systems with one input and one output point, which not captures the general function of electrical networks. The proposed indices utilize the concept of reliability worth as a single measure of system reliability in order to establish the importance of the components. This single measure of reliability works over several supply and load points and does for example enable comparisons between components decicated to different load points as well as components from different systems. Furthermore this paper presents data from application studies, which shows on some of the possibilities with the indices. The conclusion of the paper is that the proposed indices provide means of improving analysis of electrical network reliability.
This paper proposes a method for defining the importance of individual components in a network with respect to total interruption cost. Since the method considers several customer nodes simultaneously, it is especially suitable for network structures that serve many purposes/customers e.g. transmission and distribution networks with more than one load point. The major result is an importance index, I-H, for every component. This index can be used for the evaluation of maintenance actions. Furthermore, the importance index is used to calculate the component contribution to the total system interruption cost. Finally, the goal to reach an optimal maintenance plan is outlined. The methodology is presented together with an application study for an electrical distribution system in-the Stockholm area.
Maintenance managers of today's electrical distribution systems are faced with the problem of where their maintenance resources will be utilized best. In previous work the authors have developed a method for maintenance policy optimization for electrical networks. This paper presents results from an application study performed for a distribution system, including both urban and rural parts, for this method. A basic optimization is performed in order to find the right level of maintenance for the involved components with respect to customer interruption costs and maintenance budget. For the rural parts of the system the conclusion is that intensified tree trimmings is the most beneficial maintenance activity. While for the urban parts the maintenance should be focused towards customer intense areas. Furthermore, it becomes clear, especially for the urban part of the system, that the operation mode of the network becomes important. The method presented helps the managers to prioritize their maintenance to the places where it will result in the best system performance.
This paper evaluates the correlation between failures and power consumption for a distribution systems operator. This is done in order to scrutinize whether the commonly used assumptions of constant failure rate and constant power consumption is reasonable to use for reliability calculations. The studied entity is energy not supplied, which is assumed to be a good estimate of how customer interruption costs are affected. Three different aspects are studied with respect to energy not supplied; seasonal variations, daily variations and repair time variations (as a function of the hour of day). The conclusion is that by using constant failure rates, repair rates and power consumption the approximation of customer costs becomes somewhat low, i.e. by 7% for the studied case. This result indicates that the assumptions of constant failure rates, repair rates and power consumption are quite sufficient for at least the actual case study. Le. since this error probably is significantly smaller than other types of errors, for example customer outage costs estimates. Nevertheless, having performed these calculations the current results should be applied to further modeling of the studied network.
In this paper we present a method for establishing the value of a network's components from a reliability worth perspective. The method can be applied to a general distribution system i.e. both for radial and meshed network systems. Moreover, this paper shows results from an application study for a rural network system that is dominated by overhead lines. The purpose of the study was to establish the value of a secondary feeding point. Further, the method is used to establish the best replacement strategy for the concerned overhead lines.
A major goal for managers of electric power networks is maximum asset performance. Minimal life cycle cost and maintenance optimization becomes crucial in reaching this goal, while meeting demands from customers and regulators. This necessitates the determination of the optimal balance between preventive and corrective maintenance in order to obtain the lowest total cost.
The approach of this paper is to study the problem of balance between preventive and corrective maintenance as a multiobjective optimization problem, with customer interruptions on one hand and the maintenance budget of the network operator on the other. The problem is solved with meta-heuristics developed for the specific problem, in conjunction with an evolutionary particle swarm optimization algorithm.
The maintenance optimization is applied in a case study to an urban distribution system in Stockholm, Sweden. Despite a general decreased level of maintenance (lower total maintenance cost), better network performance can be offered to the customers. This is achieved by focusing the preventive maintenance on components with a high potential for improvements. Besides this, this paper displays the value of introducing more maintenance alternatives for every component and choosing the right level of maintenance for the components with respect to network performance.
This paper proposes a performance assessment framework to estimate operation status of wind turbines. The overall objective is to propose a method for health assessment to support preventive maintenance strategies for wind turbines. The framework uses the data in the supervisory control and data acquisition systems as input. The framework consists of three main stages: power curve prediction, sliding window method analysis and performance assessment. At the first stage, k-means and density-based clustering are applied to eliminate noisy measurements. Then both parametric and non-parametric methods are applied to estimate the ideal power curve, which is used as a reference value to assess the actual one. At the second stage, the sliding window method is used to calculate the deviation between actual power data and ideal values, which indicates the real time performance of wind turbines. At the third stage, different performance zones are defined to assess health conditions. The proposed approach has been applied with the experience data of six onshore wind turbines from a single wind farm. The results indicate that the introduced framework can monitor the operation conditions and evaluate the performance of wind turbines.
This paper presents a reliability assessment of the HVDC converter transformer system (CTS) comparing different component models and configurations. The CTS model is based on the Markov modelling approach, which is shown to be well suited for these relatively small systems. The failure rate data in the models is based on statistical surveys by CIGRE. A number of scenarios are calculated in order to evaluate the impact of the availability of the CTS given different conditions. The result shows on the benefit in availability using a spare transformer, particularly at a close location of the HVDC station.
This paper presents a practical method of quantifying and evaluating changes to existing thermography inspection schemes for disconnector contacts. The inspection interval availability is used to calculate disconnector contact average maintenance costs. Any changes to existing thermography schemes regarding load or inspection intervals are subsequently evaluated using these maintenance costs. The proposed method is illustrated by a case study of three disconnectors in the Swedish 400-220kV transmission system. The three disconnectors represent different typical load characteristics. The result of the case study was that the new thermography inspection scheme would reduce the total average maintenance cost by a third, for the three disconnectors. In the study, the large reduction in maintenance cost was due to the specific load characteristics of the disconnectors. When applying the method to a larger disconnector population the cost reduction would depend on the actual loading characteristics of all disconnectors. The aim of the case study is to illustrate the usefulness of the proposed method when it comes to quantifying the effect of changes in thermography inspection schemes. The only failure mode considered in this paper is contact over-heating. A disconnector contact that is found to be failed is assumed to be replaced by a new identical contact. Since the exact time of a hidden failure is unknown, the exponential distribution is used for the time to failure in order to adapt the model to the amount of information available to the network owner. The proposed method provides a practical tool to quantify and evaluate the effect of different changes to the inspection scheme with respect to maintenance costs and availability.
Infrared thermography is the most common way to assess the condition of high-voltage electrical contacts in electric distribution and transmission systems. However, thermography has one major drawback as contacts carrying low or no load may not be assessed.
This paper proposes a method to save and make use of thermography measurements to estimate statistical distribution parameters for the time to failure for a population of electrical contacts. The statistical distributions may then be used to support maintenance decisions for the sometimes large proportion of contacts that may not be assessed directly due to low load. As the measurement results accumulate over the years more accurate predictions can be made.
The proposed method is illustrated using three test cases applied to a population of high-voltage disconnectors with randomly generated thermography measurements.
The main conclusion of the paper is that using the proposed method will provide maintenance decision support for high-voltage apparatus that may not be assessed directly by thermography.
To support the maintenance optimization carried out within the framework of the reliability-centered asset management (RCAM) method this paper presents a feasibility study for the probabilistic modeling of the aging of circuit-breakers (CB). The aim of the study is to investigate the possibilities of the development of a reliability model for a CB, using failure data and maintenance records. A study of such statistics was carried out on all 565 CBS in the Swedish National Grid (transmission level) during a time period ranging from 1999-01-01 to 2003-06-30. A total of 53 CB failures were identified and studied with respect to faulty subcomponent, CB function, number of operating cycles to failure and time in operation to failure. Results from this study are presented in this paper.
This paper introduces a first step towards establishing the effect of maintenance on component reliability. The concept of relative age is introduced and defined as well as a method to establish this relative age of electric power system components for the purpose of maintenance optimization. The proposed method is demonstrated by modeling the relative age of a sub-component for a circuit breaker (CB). The modeling is based on the results from a major CB reliability study and a survey of all CB failures in the Swedish National Grid during the period from January 1(st), 1999 to July 31(st), 2003. The results from this application study show that it is possible to model the reliability of power system components by using results from development tests and calculations from the design process along with failure and maintenance data.
The results from an extensive study of SF6 and minimum-oil circuit breaker failures in the Swedish and Finnish transmission systems are presented. The study includes 1546 breakers with a total operating history of 16 384 years. In the study, a detailed analysis of a specific SF6 type of breaker revealed which parts caused the failures and an estimation of their hazard rates was made. A model of complete reliability for this type of breaker is presented, illustrated by presenting the operating and maintenance history of a shunt reactor breaker in the Swedish transmission system.
In order to optimize the maintenance of electric power equipment, models of equipment reliability as a function of age and maintenance are necessary. As a first step towards the development of these kinds of models, this paper proposes a quantitative method for establishing the condition of disconnector contacts by the use of thermography, which is a well-established diagnostic practice used in preventive maintenance programmes. Results from two sets of thermography measurements carried out in the Swedish transmission grid are presented. Statistical distributions for the uncertainties when using the method are estimated from the measurements. A method for converting temperature rises measured at non steady state loading conditions to a corresponding steady state temperature rise have been devised using a simple thermal model. The probability of sending an unaged contact to maintenance is estimated using Monte Carlo simulations based on the statistical distributions of the uncertainties. Finally, it is shown that by using the method proposed in this paper it is possible to estimate the contact condition of disconnectors, including Monte Carlo simulated confidence intervals.
This paper proposes an approach for maintenancemanagement of wind turbines based on their life. The proposedapproach uses performance analysis and anomaly detection(PAAD) which can detect anomalies and point out the originof the detected anomalies. This PAAD algorithm utilizes neuralnetwork (NN) technique in order to detect anomalies in theperformance of the wind turbine (system layer), and then appliesprincipal component analysis (PCA) technique to uncover theroot of the detected anomalies (component layer). To validatethe accuracy of the proposed algorithm, SCADA data obtainedfrom online condition monitoring of a wind turbine are utilized.The results demonstrate that the proposed PAAD algorithm hasthe capability of exposing the cause of the anomalies. Reducingtime and cost of maintenance and increasing availability and inreturn profits in form of savings are some of the benefits of theproposed PAAD algorithm.


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What's new, you ask? SLOPERAMA!
Tom Sloper has a masterful Mah Jongg website called Sloperama.
You've got questions? He's got answers!
Earlier today I sent Tom an email in hopes that he'd want to purchase a copy of my book and he not only bought a copy, he also began promoting my flipbook on his website. Scroll down a bit if you want to see what he posted. That's really exciting news! So, of course I am promoting his book on my website.
Looking for a good book on game playing strategies? Check out Tom Sloper's book.


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Monthly Archives: October 2011
Makeup Tips for People with Sparse Eyebrows
Having sparse and thin eyebrows are a common problem. Makeup artists swear by using the most traditional method to make the eyebrows appear thick and full. Not all women are having voluminous eye brow. For them, the makeup comes to … Continue reading
5 Steps for Healthy Skin
Following are 5 basic steps that can help you get a healthy glowing skin. 1. Cleanse moisturize and tone your face regularly. All these three things are extremely essential for you to have a glowing vibrant skin. 2. Drink lots … Continue reading
Evening Makeup Tips and Tricks
Evening makeup is all loud and vibrant. Your dramatization can be at its pinnacle level while applying makeup for evening. You can experiment with shades and colors to play with your stunning features. All your boldness can be depicted through … Continue reading
How to look fresh and beautiful all the time
All of us wish to look to vibrant and fresh all the time. We always feel that wherever we go, we leave a long lasting impression on others. And to look fresh and vibrant what is the most important thing … Continue reading
Cute and Funky Nail Art Idea
Nail art is the new rage and everybody, from celebs to college girls, are hung-over it! Here are some nail art tricks that can be easily done at home. You can apply the shatter polish design with much ease and … Continue reading
Be a Shining Star This Diwali with Beauty Makeup Kit
On the occasion of this Diwali, Coollifeshop.com presents Diwali Beauty Fiesta. Diwali, the festival of lights, comes with many bright and memorable moments. Get an assured gift with every purchase that you make on CoolLifeShop.com! The online store is offering … Continue reading
Tips for Awesome Looking Skin
Following are some easy tips to have awesome and radiant skin. • Prevent Smoking and drinking as multiple the aging process make you feel dull and sick after a particular age. • Make sure to reduce the intake of caffeine … Continue reading


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The importance of tail recursion
On your way to becoming a more functional developer, you have to regain some of your recursion skills. Recursion is pure functional programming best natural match because you don't need any state to recurse.
If we look into its pure mathematical concept, a function has no side effects and no state. No side effects mean you can't use counters in loops since that would be a mutable state being modified (with would be the side effect). Recursive algorithms are simpler because they only deal with input values. In an iterative algorithm, we need to consider the list as a whole.
def factorial_iterative(n)
accumulated = 1
while n > 1
accumulated = n * accumulated
n = n - 1
However, dealing with recursion is a dangerous thing, also a bad smell, since we could end up with a stack overflow if we are not careful enough. The stack will expand per call. Several languages help us avoid having expanding stacks.
def factorial_recursive(n)
return 1 if n <= 1
n * factorial_recursive(n - 1)
A tail call happens when a function makes a function call as its final action so there are no outstanding operations within the function at the moment the return occurs. If you no longer need the stack, you can unwind the recursive calls.
def factorial_tailcall(n, accumulated=1)
return accumulated if n <= 1
factorial_tailcall(n - 1, n * accumulated)
Sadly, some languages like Java don't support tail recursion.
I've found a few tricks to reach a similar optimization using lambda expressions in Java 8. Almost like the trampolines used in Groovy.
def factorial
factorial = {
it <= 1 ? 1 : it * factorial(it - 1)
By just adding the trampoline, the function will be returning a TrampolineClosure until it reaches the value, without increasing the stack.
def factorial
factorial = {it, acc = 1->
it <= 1 ? acc : factorial.trampoline(it - 1, it * acc)
Java 8 didn't add any compile level tail recursion support. There are some security sensitive methods that count stack frames between JDK library code and calling code to figure out who's calling them. We can still create our own functional interface with a similar behavior inspired by the Groovy TrampolineClosure implementation.
public interface Trampoline<V> {
V trampoline();
default V call() {
Object trampoline = this;
while (trampoline instanceof Trampoline) {
trampoline = ((Trampoline) trampoline).trampoline();
V value = (V) trampoline;
return value;
By using this Trampoline interface our factorial function will look like this:
public static Trampoline factorial(final int n, final BigInteger accumulated) {
return () -> {
if (n <= 1) return accumulated;
return factorial(n - 1, accumulated.multiply(BigInteger.valueOf(n)));
Full examples can be found here:
- Ruby: https://gist.github.com/AlbertoImpl/1bc5fe6f30653c4fbf58
- Java: https://gist.github.com/AlbertoImpl/3fbf55d5310e0b185e9a