1,763,780 research outputs found
2018 CAPS Infographic
No full text2018 CAPS Infographic describing demographics and benefits of CAPS progra
The Unexpected Effects of Caps on Non-Economic Damages
No full textWe study the economic and legal implications of the enactment of caps on noneconomic damages on parties in conflict who know that state supreme courts may strike down the caps as unconstitutional within a few years of enactment. We develop a simple screening model where parties have symmetric expectations regarding the probability of a strike down and asymmetric information regarding plaintiff’s non-economic harm. Our model makes several surprising predictions: First, caps may increase the length of resolution of disputes if the caps are low enough or the probability of a strike down is large enough. Second, although caps always increase the percentage of disputes that are settled out of courts, they do not necessarily save litigation expenses. Third, while caps always reduce the recoveries of plaintiffs with large claims, caps may increase recoveries of plaintiffs with low claims compared to their recoveries in states with no caps. We conclude that to increase welfare legislators have to tailor caps to the economic and constitutional circumstances in their state in ways which we characterize in the paper.Tort reform, caps on recoveries, length of dispute resolution
Shear capacity of reinforced concrete pile caps
No full textReinforced concrete pile caps may be considered to act either as deep beams, or analogous to a truss. When designed as a deep beam, there is currently a contradiction in the shear design between two UK structural engineering codes of practice – the design code BS 8110 for reinforced concrete buildings, and BS 5400: Part 4 for bridges. The majority of this difference in shear design is concerned with the width of the cap for which a shear enhancement factor for short shear spans may be applied. BS 8110 permits the factor to be applied across the full width of the cap if the pile spacing is no more than three pile diameters, whereas BS 5400 allows the factor to be applied only for the width of the pile diameters. Given that the shear enhancement factor is a very significant component of the design strength of the cap, this difference can give a factor of two or three between the shear strengths according to the two codes of practice.This paper describes research that has been carried out with the aim of resolving the issue of the width of shear enhancement. A series of sixteen four-pile caps of close to full size, with spans in the range 500mm – 1200mm and depths from 230mm – 400mm have been tested to failure in the laboratory. The test results have been used to verify three-dimensional nonlinear finite element analyses conducted using the commercial package DIANA. The results have shown good agreement of behaviour between the tests and the numerical analyses, and have also indicated that the BS 8110 shear enhancement approach is safe. It is anticipated that the results of this research will inform the next revision of the Structural Eurocode, EN 199
2015/2018 CAPS Assessment (Usage Reports and Data)
No full textCAPS Report 2015/2016, 2016/2017, 2017/201
THE SHEAR BEHAVIOUR OF THE REINFORCED CONCRETE FOUR-PILE CAPS
No full textThere has been a consistent discrepancy between UK design standards BS5400 and BS8110 in the prediction of the shear capacity of 2-way spanning reinforced concrete pile caps from bending theory-based empirical design formulae. This causes designers difficulty to predict an accurate shear capacity of the pile cap. The inherently empirical character of the formulae is due to the fact that the formulae have been extrapolated from semi-empirical shear formulae for simply supported deep 1-way spanning beam structures, and been further empirically developed for 2-way spanning caps. Thus the essential cause of the discrepancy is that the formulae lack both physical explanation in terms of the cap’s shear behaviour, and sufficient basis as empirical formulae due to the shortage of experimental data.This research focuses on the revelation of the true shear capacity and failure mechanism of pile caps by consideration of a particular prototype form, namely a singly reinforced four-pile concrete cap under wall loading. It is aided by a series of laboratory experiments which are validated by an advanced non-linear numerical modelling for the reinforced concrete structure. The experience from the numerical modelling is taken further to carry out a parametric study expanding the sample size to a range covering more practical samples and covering different load patterns in order to enrich the limited data from the experiments.The results give a verdict that both BS5400 and BS8110 are conservative with the former one most conservative. The level of conservatism of the standards, the actual shear capacity and failure mechanism of the cap vary with key pile cap dimensions such as longitudinal and transverse pile spacing, shear enhancement factor, and the width of the cap over which the shear enhancement factor is applied. The shear behaviour of pile caps is also influenced by the load patterns. In this research, the strut-and-tie method has been proved to be a more efficient and precise method than the empirical formulae because it presents a physical explanation of the shear mechanism. Suggestions to improve the design method are given.A particular feature of this research is the application of a digital photogrammetry technique (PIV), normally applied in soil and fluid mechanics, to a solid mechanics situation. The tool has successfully detected the full-field displacement on the concrete surface and strains which are of high magnitude. The outputs have been compared with those from numerical modelling and they are in the same order of magnitude. The thesis describes the procedure of the application and an analysis of errors expected to occur in its application
Welfare Effects of Salary Caps in Sports Leagues with Win-Maximizing Clubs
No full textThis paper studies the welfare effect of a percentage-of-revenue salary cap in a European context with win-maximizing clubs. It shows that a percentage-of-revenue cap increases competitive balance and decreases the overall salary payments in the league, therefore contributing to financial stability. A percentage-of-revenue cap will always increase social welfare if the weight on aggregate club surplus in the welfare function is sufficiently high. Additionally, if fans’ preferences for aggregate talent are sufficiently high then the percentage-of-revenue cap will also increase social welfare; no matter how much weight the league puts on financial stability.Salary Caps, Social Welfare, Competitive Balance, Team Sports League
Operation of FDI caps in India and corporate control mechanisms
No full textWhile India has generally been following an open door FDI policy, a few areas are still subject to caps on FDI and/or specific government approval. One of the justifications for the same is the need to retain a degree of control over the operations of the investee companies in Indian hands. Earlier this year, the government specified the methodology for calculating direct and indirect foreign equity in Indian companies in order to remove ambiguities in calculating the extent of FDI in a company. Based on empirical evidence this paper argues that percentage of shares or proportion of directors do not necessarily represent the extent of control and more direct intervention would be required if the objectives of imposing the caps are to be achieved.FDI; corporate control, veto powers, India, joint control, joint ventures, corporate governance
Hedging with interest rate caps compared with a policy of maintaining a balanced portfolio of loans (PLA) and averaging the borrowing costs
No full textThis paper compares two different strategies for managing interest rate exposure. One involves maintaining a borrowing portfolio using short and long term debt lines in order to maintain an average borrowing cost. The second involves using interest rate caps to manage exposure to interest rate risk. The two strategies are compared using a set of daily quarterly rates from three months out to 10 years (120 months) of BBSW zero rates, par rates and forward rates from June 2000 to September 2006. The data set of implied volatilities (Appendix I used for interest cap quoting and pricing) consists of volatilities for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 10 year maturities; the data set is made up of daily closing mid-quotes for the period. We examine whether interest rate caps would be a better alternative for minimising interest rate risk as compared to a structure that combines a portfolio of rolling short-term debt with one of rolling long-term debt lines. Using principal component analysis (PCA) we explore the behaviour of, and the number of factors driving volatilities. As caps are quoted in terms of implied volatilities, and we know BlackÃŒs (1976) model is very sensitive to changes in these volatilities. We use PCA to examine the factors driving cap price volatilities. We explore the best way of using caps to manage interest rate risk. This should help us understand what factors affect cap prices and how many factors might be used in the interest rate models used to price interest rate derivatives such as caps and floors. We use Sharpe ratios to assess the relative borrowing costs of different strategies in relation to the volatility of their outcomes. We examine whether interest rate caps would be a more efficient method for minimising interest rate risk as compared to the a portfolio of loans.Hedging with interest rate caps, Vegas, Sharpe ratios, Principle components analysis
Desinstitucionalização e a prática nos Centros de Atenção Psicossocial (CAPS): a percepção dos profissionais de Santa Catarina
No full textDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde Coletiva, Florianópolis, 2011Trata-se de uma pesquisa de abordagem qualitativa, caracterizada como exploratória e descritiva que visa analisar a percepção dos profissionais sobre a desinstitucionalização e a prática nos Centros de Atenção Psicossocial (CAPS) de Santa Catarina. O campo de pesquisa ficou delimitado nos 12 CAPS II, que estão distribuídos por todas as regiões do estado e são estruturados para prestar atendimento especificamente aos sujeitos diagnosticados com algum "transtorno mental" e egressos de hospitais psiquiátricos. A coleta dos dados ocorreu por meio de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com 12 coordenadores e um técnico e aplicação de questionários abertos com 22 técnicos graduados. Os relatos das entrevistas e dos questionários foram distribuídos em categorias e subcategorias que foram definidas a posteriori a coleta de dados. A análise foi realizada com base no pensamento hermenêutico-dialético, o qual possibilita compreender a realidade em transformação dentro de um contexto histórico. Os resultados da pesquisa demonstraram que a maioria dos profissionais conhecem as propostas da desinstitucionalização, mas encontram dificuldades em aplicar na prática cotidiana nos CAPS. Já alguns profissionais apresentam uma compreensão equivocada sobre a desinstitucionalização, de forma que não acreditam, não sabem ou não distinguem de desospitalização. A desinstitucionalização nos CAPS pode significar um avanço nas práticas no âmbito da saúde mental, pois os próprios profissionais perceberam que estão reproduzindo o modelo manicomial. Observa-se que não são realizadas ações de desinstitucionalização voltadas aos sujeitos que estão um longo período nos hospitais psiquiátricos de Santa Catarina. No estado, praticamente não existem dispositivos para a reinserção social dos sujeitos com sofrimento psíquico. A deficiência da articulação entre os CAPS e os demais serviços de saúde é uma questão crucial que tem como efeito o retrocesso no âmbito da saúde mental. A situação atual de Santa Catarina requer que os CAPS trabalhem no limiar da institucionalização, uma vez que os usuários não têm o suporte fora das instituições que prestam assistência à saúde mental.This is a qualitative research approach, characterized as exploratory and descriptive which analyze the perceptions of professionals regarding deinstitutionalization and the practice in the network of Centers for Psychosocial Care (CAPS) in Santa Catarina (SC). The field of research was limited to 12 CAPS II, which are found in all the regions of the state and structured to attend specifically to patients diagnosed with mental disorders and patients who have left psychiatric hospitals. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 12 coordinators and a technician and the application of open questionnaires conducted with 22 technicians. The results of interviews and questionnaires were placed in categories and subcategories that were defined after the collection of data. The analysis was based on the hermeneutic-dialectical thinking that allow to understand the reality with in a historical context. The reports demonstrated that many professionals are aware of the proposals of deinstitutionalization but have difficulties to apply them in daily practice in CAPS. Some professionals present a dubious understanding of de-institutionalization, in that either they do not believe in it, or do not know how do distinguish it from de-hospitalization. The professionals have the impression that they are reproducing the asylum model, this fact is a signal that deinstitutionalization could lead to an advance in mental health treatment. There have been few actions of deinstitutionalization for the people who have been for a long periods in psychiatric hospitals in Santa Catarina. There are almost no resources in Santa Catarina for the reintroduction of subjects with psychiatric problems into the community. The lack of connection between CAPS and the health services is a critical problem that has the effect of holding back mental health treatment in Santa Catarina. The current situation in Santa Catarina demands that CAPS works at the limits of institucionalization, even if users do not have support outside of institutions that provide mental health assistance
Using Smart Technologies for Climate Change Adaptation in Western Sydney: A CAPS Research Report
No full textThe Climate Adapted People Shelters (CAPS) project has initiated collaborative, design-led approaches to reimagining the place and function of bus shelters, specifically in response to conditions of increasing urban heat and extreme weather events in Western Sydney.
This Report contributes to the research outputs of the project, with a focus on the current and potential uses of smart infrastructure technologies within bus shelter designs. Looking ahead, research into potential areas for future investigation has also been undertaken, with a view to informing ideas and strategies for future investment in urban heat mitigation activities in Western Sydney
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