Potential of the renewable energy development in Jammu and Kashmir, India

The future economic growth for India is likely to result in rapid and accelerated surge in energy demand, with expected shortages in terms of supply. Many of its current policies and strategies are aimed at the improvement and possible maximization of energy production from the renewable sector. It is also clear that while energy conservation and energy efficiency can make an important contribution, renewable energies will be essential to the solution and are likely to play an increasingly important role for providing enhanced energy access, reducing consumption of fossil fuels, and helping India pursue its low-carbon progressive pathway. However, most of the states in India, like the northernmost state of Jammu and Kashmir, have experienced an energy crisis over a sustained period of time and the government both at center and state level has to embark upon with these pressing issues in a more sustainable manner and accordingly initiate various renewable energy projects within these states. This paper will provide a broad-spectrum view about the energy situation within Jammu and Kashmir and will highlight the current policies along with future strategies for the optimal utilization of renewable energy resources.

Renewable energies Driven by Feed-on Tariffs. Photovoltaic vs Wind Energy Development in Spain

Although others regulations regarding feed-in tariffs for photovoltaics (PV) existed in Spain previously, the one that meant a paradigm change was the introduction in 2007 of law R.D.661/2007 which established a feed-in tariff of 41,75 cents/kWh if the installed capacity was greater than 100KWp and 44,04 cents/kWh if it was smaller. The high level of the subsidies together with the lack of a limit for the total installed capacity originates the well-known Spanish photovoltaic boom. In September 2008 the installed PV capacity accounted for 3.2GWp (while the official objective stated in the national renewable roadmap was only 400MWp). To avoid this situation a new law, R.D. 1578/2008, was proclaimed which established a decreasing feed-in tariff of 32 cents/kWh (for ground installations) and 34 cents/kWh (for rooftops) and it limited the annual installed capacity to 500MWp. Although it was successful in limiting the PV subsidies total costs, the successive and sudden changes in regulations resulted very harmful to the local PV industry. In this article, the strong influence of feed-in tariff in the development of PV installed capacity and market evolution in Spain will be analyzed in detail. In addition, a comparison with other subsidized technologies which installed capacity has had a smoother evolution, as wind energy, will be presented.

Integration of cooperation for development in Survey Engineering curricula at the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) framework

Survey Engineering curricula involves the integration of many formal disciplines at a high level of proficiency. The Escuela de Ingenieros en Topografía, Cartografía y Geodesia at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Survey Engineering) has developed an intense and deep teaching on so-called Applied Land Sciences and Technologies or Land Engineering. However, new approaches are encouraged by the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). This fact requires a review of traditional teaching and methods. Furthermore, the new globalization and international approach gives new ways to this discipline to teach and learn about how to bridge gap between cultures and regions. This work is based in two main needs. On one hand, it is based on integration of basic knowledge and disciplines involved in typical Survey Engineering within Land Management. On the other, there is an urgent need to consider territory on a social and ethical basis, as far as a part of the society, culture, idiosyncrasy or economy. The integration of appropriate knowledge of the Land Management is typically dominated by civil engineers and urban planners. It would be very possible to integrate Survey Engineering and Cooperation for Development in the framework of Land Management disciplines. Cooperation for Development is a concept that has changed since beginning of its use until now. Development projects leave an impact on society in response to their beneficiaries and are directed towards self-sustainability. Furthermore, it is the true bridge to reduce gap between societies when differences are immeasurable. The concept of development has also been changing and nowadays it is not a purely economic concept. Education, science and technology are increasingly taking a larger role in what is meant by development. Moreover, it is commonly accepted that Universities should transfer knowledge to society, and the transfer of knowledge should be open to countries most in need for developing. If the importance of the country development is given by education, science and technology, knowledge transfer would be one of the most clear of ways of Cooperation for Development. Therefore, university cooperation is one of the most powerful tools to achieve it, placing universities as agents of development. In Spain, the role of universities as agents of development and cooperation has been largely strengthened. All about this work deals to how to implement both Cooperation for Development and Land Management within Survey Engineering at the EHEA framework.

Assessment of watercore development in apples with MRI: Effect offruit location in the canopy

tWatercore distribution inside apple fruit (block or radial), and its incidence (% of tissue) were relatedto the effect of solar radiation inside the canopy as measured by a set of low-cost irradiation sensors.221 samples were harvested in two seasons from the top and the bottom of the canopy and submittedto the non-invasive and non-destructive technique of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in order toobtain 20 inner tomography slices from each fruit and analyze the damaged areas using an interactive3D segmentation method. The number of fruit corresponding to each type of damage and the relevantpercentage were calculated and it was found that apples from the top of the tree were mainly of the radialtype (84%) and had more watercore (approx. 5% more) than apples from the bottom (65% radial). From theimage segmentation, the Euler number, a morphometric parameter, was extracted from the segmentedimages and related to the type of watercore symptoms. Apples with block watercore were grouped inEuler numbers between −400 and 400 with a small evolution. For apples with radial development, theEuler number was highly negative: up to −1439. Significant differences were also found regarding sugarcomposition, with higher fructose and total sugar contents in apples from the upper canopy, compared tothose in the lower canopy location. In the seasons studied (2011 and 2012), significantly higher sorbitoland lower sucrose and fructose contents were found in watercore-affected tissue compared to the healthytissue of affected apples and also compared to healthy apples.

Perspectives on climate change and human development in the Mediterranean agriculture

The Mediterranean region is one of the world's climate change hotspots. Future climate projections envisage dramatic implications for the agricultural and water sectors that will endanger economic development and lead to natural resources degradation and social instability.

Sustainable development in North Bohuslän (Sweden): an analysis in three scales

Partiendo del estudio de la zona que discurre por la carretera E6 en su recorrido desde el municipio de Uddevala, al suroeste de Suecia hasta la frontera con Noruega se analizan las afecciones producidas en los asentamientos y el paisaje. El proyecto se estructura en tres escalas diferentes: regional, intermedia y local para entender la fuerte conexión entre las mismas. A nivel regional se analizan los tipos de paisaje por medio de un inventario utilizando el método PEBOSCA, dentro del programa Hábitat de las Naciones Unidas estudiando todos los recursos (físicos, biológicos, sociales, económicos, organizacionales... ) de una zona determianda ; y el método DAFO (en inglés SWOT)que se ocupa de las fuerzas y debilidades de la región. Se identifican los problemas más importantes, a saber, ampliar los servicios durante todo el año, mejorar la conectividad extendiendo el transporte público y carriles para bicicletas y mejorar la calidad del agua mitigando su efecto barrera. En un nivel intermedio, el proyecto se centra en la localidad de Hogdalsnäset por estar afectado por una falta de estructura urbana y por su proximidad a la frontera con Noruega. En el plano local se analiza la zona de Nordby presentando un plan alternativo de desarrollo a corto, medio y largo plazo. Por último, la autora concluye con la propuesta de construcción del "Parque del Humedal".

Technological development in Spanish gothic vaults design

The principle of complexity as the evolution vector of the gothic style was an idea largely developed by Paul Frankl. The high complexity reached in the 15th and 16th centuries was possible thanks to the geometrical resources developed in the workshops of the medieval stonemasons. The search for more sophisticated designs was possible also with the higher standardization, so that the most complex ribbed vault could be built with ribs that had all the same curvature and with voussoirs that were therefore identical. Spanish Gothic architecture has been deeply studied from a historical and artistic point of view. The present paper, as a complement to these analyses, aims to point out some of the geometrical methods and technological improvements that late medieval masons were able to develop. In that way, some selected vaults have been measured, in order to study their geometry and design process. Also scale models of some vaults have been built at the Escuela de Arquitectura (Madrid) to validate these geometrical principles. More than just a research method, the scale models allow to understand the medieval construction techniques, and they are a powerful pedagogical tool with which pupils can reach a rewarding experience based on the “medieval-way” praxis.

Distinct and conserved transcriptomic changes during nematode-induced giant cell development in tomato compared with Arabidopsis: a functional role for gene repression

Root-knot nematodes (RKNs) induce giant cells (GCs) from root vascular cells inside the galls. Accompanying molecular changes as a function of infection time and across different species, and their functional impact, are still poorly understood. Thus, the transcriptomes of tomato galls and laser capture microdissected (LCM) GCs over the course of parasitism were compared with those of Arabidopsis, and functional analysis of a repressed gene was performed. Microarray hybridization with RNA from galls and LCM GCs, infection-reproduction tests and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) transcriptional profiles in susceptible and resistant (Mi-1) lines were performed in tomato. Tomato GC-induced genes include some possibly contributing to the epigenetic control of GC identity. GC-repressed genes are conserved between tomato and Arabidopsis, notably those involved in lignin deposition. However, genes related to the regulation of gene expression diverge, suggesting that diverse transcriptional regulators mediate common responses leading to GC formation in different plant species. TPX1, a cell wall peroxidase specifically involved in lignification, was strongly repressed in GCs/galls, but induced in a nearly isogenic Mi-1 resistant line on nematode infection. TPX1 overexpression in susceptible plants hindered nematode reproduction and GC expansion. Time-course and cross-species comparisons of gall and GC transcriptomes provide novel insights pointing to the relevance of gene repression during RKN establishment.

Development in Rural Areas Through Capacity Building and Education for Business

This paper is based on a case study located in Avila, central Spain. Its main objectives are to implement an entrepreneurship program and design a plan of capacity building and education for business in order to promote the development of rural areas. The methodological approach of the program is based on the use of tools that permit involving the various actors of the area from the early planning stages. The university's group that is carrying out the field work has relied on these participatory tools in very different areas and contexts for over 25 years. This has allowed the development of an advanced planning model called ?Working With People? that connects expert and experience knowledge in the territories where it is applied. With this methodological approach, the diagnosis of the territory and the design of the program's strategy has been carried out. Once completed the first phase of the program and in order to ensure the sustainability and applicability of future entrepreneurial initiatives, it is necessary to support and strengthen potential entrepreneurs through training activities and capacity building. It relies on ?How to learn from people who live there? to promote investment projects and to teach them with adequate educational skills. In this context, this article aims to study the implementation strategy of these training and capacity building activities studied from an academic perspective, as well as analyzing the potential effects of these actions in promoting entrepreneurship in the territories

Sildenafil citrate modifies fetoplacental development in a rabbit model of intrauterine growth restriction

The failure of fetuses to achieve the ir full growth potential is known as intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Silde nafil citrate (SC) is a phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE 5) inhibitor, which enhances nitric oxide (NO) dependent vasodilatation, adn it may have a potential therapeutic role in the treatment of IUGR.

Feto-placental development in the rabbit is altered by maternal food restriction from early pregnancy

Feto-placental development in the rabbit is altered by maternal food restriction from early pregnancy Maternal under-nutrition can induce Intrauterine Growth Restriction by placental insufficiency. To determine the consequences in the rabbit feto-placental unit, 32 pregnant rabbits were allocated in three feeding groups: ad libitum diet (Group C; n=9); restricted to 50% of their ad libitum intake during the pre-implantational period (Day 0 to Day 7) (Group PR; n=11) or restricted from Day 0 to Day 28 (Group TR; n=12).