An investigation of the impact of time of generation on carbon savings from PV systems in Great Britain

PV only generates electricity during daylight hours and primarily generates over summer. In the UK, the carbon intensity of grid electricity is higher during the daytime and over winter. This work investigates whether the grid electricity displaced by PV is high or low carbon compared to the annual mean carbon intensity using carbon factors at higher temporal resolutions (half-hourly and daily). UK policy for carbon reporting requires savings to be calculated using the annual mean carbon intensity of grid electricity. This work offers an insight into whether this technique is appropriate. Using half hourly data on the generating plant supplying the grid from November 2008 to May 2010, carbon factors for grid electricity at half-hourly and daily resolution have been derived using technology specific generation emission factors. Applying these factors to generation data from PV systems installed on schools, it is possible to assess the variation in the carbon savings from displacing grid electricity with PV generation using carbon factors with different time resolutions. The data has been analyzed for a period of 363 to 370 days and so cannot account for inter-year variations in the relationship between PV generation and carbon intensity of the electricity grid. This analysis suggests that PV displaces more carbon intensive electricity using half-hourly carbon factors than using daily factors but less compared with annual ones. A similar methodology could provide useful insights on other variable renewable and demand-side technologies and in other countries where PV performance and grid behavior are different.

A typology of internet users based on comparative affective states: evidence from eight countries

Purpose - The role of affective states in consumer behaviour is well established. However, no study to date has empirically examined online affective states as a basis for constructing typologies of internet users and for assessing the invariance of clusters across national cultures. Design/methodology/approach - Four focus groups with internet users were carried out to adapt a set of affective states identified from the literature to the online environment. An online survey was then designed to collect data from internet users in four Western and four East Asian countries. Findings - Based on a cluster analysis, six cross-national market segments are identified and labelled "Positive Online Affectivists", "Offline Affectivists", "On/Off-line Negative Affectivists", "Online Affectivists", "Indistinguishable Affectivists", and "Negative Offline Affectivists". The resulting clusters discriminate on the basis of national culture, gender, working status and perceptions towards online brands. Practical implications - Marketers may use this typology to segment internet users in order to predict their perceptions towards online brands. Also, a standardised approach to e-marketing is not recommended on the basis of affective state-based segmentation. Originality/value - This is the first study proposing affective state-based typologies of internet users using comparable samples from four Western and four East Asian countries.

Stress testing credit risk: the Great Depression scenario

By employing Moody’s corporate default and rating transition data spanning the last 90 years we explore how much capital banks should hold against their corporate loan portfolios to withstand historical stress scenarios. Specifically, we will focus on the worst case scenario over the observation period, the Great Depression. We find that migration risk and the length of the investment horizon are critical factors when determining bank capital needs in a crisis. We show that capital may need to rise more than three times when the horizon is increased from 1 year, as required by current and future regulation, to 3 years. Increases are still important but of a lower magnitude when migration risk is introduced in the analysis. Further, we find that the new bank capital requirements under the so-called Basel 3 agreement would enable banks to absorb Great Depression-style losses. But, such losses would dent regulatory capital considerably and far beyond the capital buffers that have been proposed to ensure that banks survive crisis periods without government support.

Eight-plex iTRAQ analysis of variant metastatic human prostate cancer cells identifies candidate biomarkers of progression: an exploratory study.

BACKGROUND: Due to the heterogeneity in the biological behavior of prostate cancer, biomarkers that can reliably distinguish indolent from aggressive disease are urgently needed to inform treatment choices. METHODS: We employed 8-plex isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantitation (iTRAQ), to profile the proteomes of two distinct panels of isogenic prostate cancer cells with varying growth and metastatic potentials, in order to identify novel biomarkers associated with progression. The LNCaP, LNCaP-Pro5, and LNCaP-LN3 panel of cells represent a model of androgen-responsive prostate cancer, while the PC-3, PC-3M, and PC-3M-LN4 panel represent a model of androgen-insensitive disease. RESULTS: Of the 245 unique proteins identified and quantified (>or=95% confidence; >or=2 peptides/protein), 17 showed significant differential expression (>or=+/-1.5), in at least one of the variant LNCaP cells relative to parental cells. Similarly, comparisons within the PC-3 panel identified 45 proteins to show significant differential expression in at least one of the variant PC-3 cells compared with parental cells. Differential expression of selected candidates was verified by Western blotting or immunocytochemistry, and corresponding mRNA expression was determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Immunostaining of prostate tissue microarrays for ERp5, one of the candidates identified, showed a significant higher immunoexpression in pre-malignant lesions compared with non-malignant epithelium (P < 0.0001, Mann-Whitney U-test), and in high Gleason grade (4-5) versus low grade (2-3) cancers (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides proof of principle for the application of an 8-plex iTRAQ approach to uncover clinically relevant candidate biomarkers for prostate cancer progression.

British pharmacy professionals’ beliefs and participation in continuing professional development: a review of the literature.

Objectives Continuing professional development (CPD) has potential to be useful in pharmacy revalidation but past uptake and attitudes to CPD in Great Britain (GB) need to be mapped. This review examines published literature to chart the participation and beliefs of pharmacy professionals towards CPD in GB in a decade that had seen a formal transition from continuing education to CPD. Methods A comprehensive review of the published literature was conducted to identify studies of the uptake of, or attitudes towards, CPD cross different sectors of pharmacy in GB from 2000 to 2010. Key findings Twenty-two studies were included and analysed, including 13 research papers, six conference papers, two news items reporting survey outcomes and one commissioned study. Eight barriers to CPD were identified as: time, financial costs and resource issues, understanding of CPD, facilitation and support for CPD, motivation and interest in CPD, attitudes towards compulsory CPD, system constraints, and technical problems. Pharmacy professionals on the whole agreed with the principle of engaging with CPD but there was little evidence to suggest widespread and wholehearted acceptance and uptake of CPD, essential for revalidation. Conclusions If CPD is to succeed, people's beliefs and attitudes must be addressed by recognising and modifying perceived barriers through a combination of regulatory, professional, work-related and personal channels. A number of recommendations are made. Direct experience of effective CPD in the absence of perceived barriers could impact on personal development, career development and patient benefit thus strengthening personal beliefs in the value of CPD in an iterative manner.

British pharmacy professionals' beliefs and participation in continuing professional development: a review of the literature

Objectives:  Continuing professional development (CPD) has potential to be useful in pharmacy revalidation but past uptake and attitudes to CPD in Great Britain (GB) need to be mapped. This review examines published literature to chart the participation and beliefs of pharmacy professionals towards CPD in GB in a decade that had seen a formal transition from continuing education to CPD. Methods:  A comprehensive review of the published literature was conducted to identify studies of the uptake of, or attitudes towards, CPD cross different sectors of pharmacy in GB from 2000 to 2010. Key findings:  Twenty-two studies were included and analysed, including 13 research papers, six conference papers, two news items reporting survey outcomes and one commissioned study. Eight barriers to CPD were identified as: time, financial costs and resource issues, understanding of CPD, facilitation and support for CPD, motivation and interest in CPD, attitudes towards compulsory CPD, system constraints, and technical problems. Pharmacy professionals on the whole agreed with the principle of engaging with CPD but there was little evidence to suggest widespread and wholehearted acceptance and uptake of CPD, essential for revalidation. Conclusions:  If CPD is to succeed, people's beliefs and attitudes must be addressed by recognising and modifying perceived barriers through a combination of regulatory, professional, work-related and personal channels. A number of recommendations are made. Direct experience of effective CPD in the absence of perceived barriers could impact on personal development, career development and patient benefit thus strengthening personal beliefs in the value of CPD in an iterative manner.