1,722,207 research outputs found
Mini-grid hybridization and demand side management on non-interconnected small islands: The case study of Ustica, Italy
No full textSmall Mediterranean islands are typically served by mini-grids based on inefficient, polluting and costly diesel generators that provide electricity and freshwater through desalination plants. The study focuses on the case study of the Italian island of Ustica, for which the actual consumption and generation load profiles for 2018 have been used to simulate different scenarios through HOMER Pro software. The scenarios tested the possible integration of renewable energy sources (photovoltaic, small wind turbines) and electrochemical storage in the system, based on a techno-economic, financial, and environmental analysis. In addition to generation-side interventions, demand-side management strategies have been evaluated by considering the desalter as a deferrable load and by introducing energy efficiency measures. Finally, a sensitivity analysis on the most influential parameters (diesel price, discount rate) has been conducted on the base case scenario. The proposed technical solutions are compatible with the environmental and regulatory constraints of the island and lead to reduced emissions and long-term savings. The savings would enable a reduction in the cross-subsidy that the mainland electricity users pay to cover the higher costs incurred for diesel generation in non-interconnected small islands
Oscar Wilde and the Language of Music
No full textThe relationship between Wilde and music is extremely rich and complex: it involves the author’s knowledge and love for the music of his time and of previous centuries, the many references to music in his oeuvre, the literary use of forms such as chansons and ballads, the musical organization of some of his major works, the musicality of his verses and of his aphorisms but also the music of his own voice (reported by many contemporaries). Most importantly, Wilde’s very commitment to the idea of performance in art and in life will attract many Twentieth and Twenty-First centuries musicians – such as David Bowie, Gavin Friday and Morrissey – who, beside adopting a Wildean stance, will also set his verses to music, or write music inspired by the author and by his writings, showing how the strength of Wilde’s life and work also resides in its capacity of easily translating into non-literary modes
Influence of emitter-receiver number on measurement accuracy in acoustic pyrometry
Full text linkAcoustic pyrometry is an interesting technique that may find several useful applications in turbomachinery. As the speed of sound is directly related a medium temperature, this measurement technique estimates the temperature of a gas by considering the time of flight of an acoustic wave moving through it. If only an acoustic emitter-receiver couple is used, only the average temperature along the acoustic path can be determined. If multiple emitter-receiver couples laying on the same plane are used, a reconstruction of the temperature map in the section is possible. This estimation is performed by considering that multiple acoustic paths travel across the same sub-portions of the section and, therefore, the temperature of each sub-portion affects the time of flight along several sound paths. Many parameters affect the accuracy of the measurement, and they are related to the physic of the phenomena involved in the measurement, the accuracy of the instrumentation used, the interaction between the acoustic wave and the flow velocity and the hardware set-up. In this study, the impact of some set-up parameters on the accuracy of the measurement was investigated and, in particular, the number of sound emitter-receiver couples and the number of investigation sub-portions in which the section is divided. A reference temperature map has been considered as a benchmark. This study, which is a preliminary investigation on this technique, was useful to assess the capability of this methodology to correctly describe a temperature distribution in an ideal condition. Therefore, it represents a first step in the set-up of an experimental investigation with an acoustic pyrometer.
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Il questioning mediato digitalmente come alleato del feedback
Full text linkLa promozione di processi interattivi, mediati digitalmente, è diventato un elemento strategico in ambito universitario per promuovere didattiche attive. A partire da una breve analisi della letteratura, il contributo presenta una serie di indicazioni metodologiche e operative con l’intento di fare emergere la stretta re-lazione tra la capacità del docente di creare “buone domande” e l’implementazione di didattiche attive e inclusive mediate da student response systems. Le domande, infatti, rappresentano il mezzo chiave attraverso cui i docenti scoprono ciò che gli alunni già sanno, identificano le lacune e sostengono lo sviluppo dello studente colmando il divario tra le loro attuali conoscenze e gli obiettivi di apprendimento. La letteratura scientifica e i risultati di alcune sperimentazioni condotte in ambito nazionale mettono in luce che l’uso ricorsivo del feed-back durante sessioni didattiche di questioning, mediate digitalmente, può favorire la transizione da un modello d’insegnamento centrato sui contenuti disciplinari, a strategie aperte alla collaborazione e all’apprendimento significativo
Formare i docenti alle competenze di intelligenza artificiale: analisi di alcuni framework di riferimento
No full textL’intelligenza artificiale si sta diffondendo sempre più in ambito educativo, influenzando/modificando il tradizionale rapporto tra insegnante e studente in una nuova dinamica che coinvolge insegnante-IA-studente. Questa “trasformazione” richiede, evidentemente, di ripensare il ruolo degli educatori e le competenze necessarie per integrare e gestire efficacemente eco-sistemi di IA nella didattica
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