Energy subsidies from a climate and trade perspective

A short paper for dissemination based on a research piece published by the E15Initiative: Subsidies, Clean Energy, and Climate Change, February 2015. Implemented jointly by ICTSD and the World Economic Forum, the E15Initiative convenes world-class experts and institutions to generate strategic analysis and recommendations for government, business, and civil society geared towards strengthening the global trade and investment system. The paper is also published in Spanish and Portuguese.

Export Restrictions in relation to Extractive Industries

A new E15 Think Piece by Ilaria Espa produced under the E15Initiative (E15). Implemented jointly by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) and the World Economic Forum, the E15 convenes world-class experts and institutions to generate strategic analysis and recommendations for government, business and civil society geared towards strengthening the global trade system. This paper considers concrete policy options to better regulate the use of export restrictions in relation to extractive industries. It briefly describes recent trends in the use of export restrictions on mineral and energy resources. It gives an account of the main shortcomings in the WTO legal treatment of export restrictions. It accordingly discusses possible avenues for reforming existing WTO disciplines in the interest of secure access to supplies, while still taking into account the need to preserve some policy space for host countries to use such measures as legitimate development tools.

Service-Centric Networking

Content-centric networking is a novel paradigm for the Future Internet that treats content as a first class citizen. This paper argues that content-centric networking should be generalized towards a service-centric networking scheme. We propose a service-centric networking design based on an object-oriented approach, in which content and services are considered objects. We show implementation architectures for example services and how these can benefit from service-oriented networking.

Learning real-world stimuli in a neural network with spike-driven synaptic dynamics

We present a model of spike-driven synaptic plasticity inspired by experimental observations and motivated by the desire to build an electronic hardware device that can learn to classify complex stimuli in a semisupervised fashion. During training, patterns of activity are sequentially imposed on the input neurons, and an additional instructor signal drives the output neurons toward the desired activity. The network is made of integrate-and-fire neurons with constant leak and a floor. The synapses are bistable, and they are modified by the arrival of presynaptic spikes. The sign of the change is determined by both the depolarization and the state of a variable that integrates the postsynaptic action potentials. Following the training phase, the instructor signal is removed, and the output neurons are driven purely by the activity of the input neurons weighted by the plastic synapses. In the absence of stimulation, the synapses preserve their internal state indefinitely. Memories are also very robust to the disruptive action of spontaneous activity. A network of 2000 input neurons is shown to be able to classify correctly a large number (thousands) of highly overlapping patterns (300 classes of preprocessed Latex characters, 30 patterns per class, and a subset of the NIST characters data set) and to generalize with performances that are better than or comparable to those of artificial neural networks. Finally we show that the synaptic dynamics is compatible with many of the experimental observations on the induction of long-term modifications (spike-timing-dependent plasticity and its dependence on both the postsynaptic depolarization and the frequency of pre- and postsynaptic neurons).

A treatment method for Class II Division 1 patients with extraction of permanent maxillary first molars

Throughout the years, various treatment modalities have been presented for the treatment of Class II Division 1 malocclusions. The goal of this paper is to present a treatment approach that involves the extraction of the maxillary first molars followed by use of fixed appliances with low-friction brackets. This treatment approach has proven to be an efficient treatment modality for Class II Division 1 malocclusions, especially with noncompliant patients.

Calibrating Wireless Sensor Network Simulation Models with Real-World Experiments

This paper studies the energy-efficiency and service characteristics of a recently developed energy-efficient MAC protocol for wireless sensor networks in simulation and on a real sensor hardware testbed. This opportunity is seized to illustrate how simulation models can be verified by cross-comparing simulation results with real-world experiment results. The paper demonstrates that by careful calibration of simulation model parameters, the inevitable gap between simulation models and real-world conditions can be reduced. It concludes with guidelines for a methodology for model calibration and validation of sensor network simulation models.

Evaluating watershed service availability under future management and climate change scenarios in the Pangani Basin

Watershed services are the benefits people obtain from the flow of water through a watershed. While demand for such services is increasing in most parts of the world, supply is getting more insecure due to human impacts on ecosystems such as climate or land use change. Population and water management authorities therefore require information on the potential availability of watershed services in the future and the trade-offs involved. In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is used to model watershed service availability for future management and climate change scenarios in the East African Pangani Basin. In order to quantify actual “benefits”, SWAT2005 was slightly modified, calibrated and configured at the required spatial and temporal resolution so that simulated water resources and processes could be characterized based on their valuation by stakeholders and their accessibility. The calibrated model was then used to evaluate three management and three climate scenarios. The results show that by the year 2025, not primarily the physical availability of water, but access to water resources and efficiency of use represent the greatest challenges. Water to cover basic human needs is available at least 95% of time but must be made accessible to the population through investments in distribution infrastructure. Concerning the trade-off between agricultural use and hydropower production, there is virtually no potential for an increase in hydropower even if it is given priority. Agriculture will necessarily expand spatially as a result of population growth, and can even benefit from higher irrigation water availability per area unit, given improved irrigation efficiency and enforced regulation to ensure equitable distribution of available water. The decline in services from natural terrestrial ecosystems (e.g. charcoal, food), due to the expansion of agriculture, increases the vulnerability of residents who depend on such services mostly in times of drought. The expected impacts of climate change may contribute to an increase or decrease in watershed service availability, but are only marginal and much lower than management impacts up to the year 2025.