Shipping contributes to around 3% of global CO2 emissions and this is expected to increase to around 20 – 25% of global CO2 emissions by 2050 as other sectors under national inventories decarbonise to avoid dangerous climate change. Improving energy efficiency has a key role as one of the strategies to address the challenges of climate change and this research investigates the barriers to energy efficiency in shipping, which is motivated by the increasing attention given to this subject from shipping regulators, both regional (e.g. UK and EU) and international (e.g. UN and IMO). The few studies that analyse the shipping sector for barriers to energy efficiency lack clear barriers taxonomy, are not rigorous methodologically and theoretically and can benefit from empirical examination of barriers in other sectors. The aim of this research therefore is to thoroughly understand the energy efficiency gap in shipping by examining the level of implementation of energy efficient operational measures and the barriers that may be affecting implementation of these measures. To do this, the research establishes a novel framework for empirically analysing the barriers to energy efficiency. The framework utilises agency theory for comparing perceptions of barriers using the survey method to observed level of barriers using the content analysis method and actual operational data. The survey results show that operational energy efficiency measures are not fully implemented and their implementation varies by sector of operation, size of the firm and chartering level of the firm. More specifically, the survey results show that on average more operational measures are being implemented by firms which have a majority of their fleet on time charter in comparison to firms that have a majority of their fleet on voyage charter and that more measures are being implemented by firms in the drybulk sector than in the wetbulk sector. This supports the findings from fixtures analysis that shows the wetbulk sector has the majority of its fleet on voyage charter, and the content analysis findings show that the voyage charter is more prone to the principal agent usage problem, which affects the implementation of operational measures more than technical measures. The survey results also show that the respondents perceive more market failures in comparison to non-market failures as barriers to implementation of operational measures. This perception of barriers differs amongst the implementation of operational measures, with more technical operational measures being affected by informational problems and speed related measures being affected by split incentives. These findings suggest that the principal agent problem can be a plausible explanation for some of the energy efficiency gap in the implementation of operational measures in the shipping charter markets.

Between 1781-1804 the residents of a number of parishes in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Warwickshire found themselves on the receiving end of the promotion and construction of the Ashby Canal. As with most new developments, especially those that have an impact on the landscape, the local inhabitants had to decide whether they supported or opposed it, while outsiders had to consider what gains could be made from any involvement in the project. In this instance those in favour of the waterway won the day and the building process began in 1794. However, this was by no means an end to the negotiations as the canal company had to deal with continual internal disagreements and disputes with landowners over various issues such as damage, route changes and late payments for their land. Using sources which include contemporary newspapers, canal company records, a Parliamentary Act, and the diary of a local constable this thesis provides a micro-study of the complex politics of canal construction. It examines the considerations affecting participation in the process, the numbers of people who were involved, the workings and internal structures of the canal company and the exchanges of opinions within the organisation and between its supporters and opponents. Its findings reveal that the Ashby Canal had a significant and variable effect not only on the residents of the parishes the canal cut through, but also on people who were considered outsiders, such as non-local investors, Members of Parliament and the engineers, contractors and labourers who relocated to gain employment.

No description available.

In the recent years, the concept of “port community” has been adopted by the maritime transport industry in order to achieve a higher degree of coordination and cooperation amongst organizations involved in the transfer of goods through the port area. The business processes of the port community supply chain form a complicated process which involves several process steps, multiple actors, and numerous information exchanges. One of the widely used applications of ICT in ports is the Port Community System (PCS) which is implemented in ports in order to reduce paperwork and to facilitate the information flow related to port operations and cargo clearance. However, existing PCSs are limited in functionalities that facilitate the management and coordination of material, financial, and information flows within the port community supply chain. This research programme addresses the use of agent technology to introduce business process management functionalities, which are vital for port communities, aiming to the enhancement of the performance of the port community supply chain. The investigation begins with an examination of the current state in view of the business perspective and the technical perspective. The business perspective focuses on understanding the nature of the port community, its main characteristics, and its problems. Accordingly, a number of requirements are identified as essential amendments to information systems in seaports. On the other hand, the technical perspective focuses on technologies that are convenient for solving problems in business process management within port communities. The research focuses on three technologies; the workflow technology, agent technology, and service orientation. An analysis of information systems across port communities enables an examination of the current PCSs with regard to their coordination and workflow management capabilities. The most important finding of this analysis is that the performance of the business processes, and in particular the performance of the port community supply chain, is not in the scope of the examined PCSs. Accordingly, the Agent-Based Middleware for Port Community Management (ABMPCM) is proposed as an approach for providing essential functionalities that would facilitate collaborative planning and business process management. As a core component of the ABMPCM, the Collaborative Planning Facility (CPF) is described in further details. A CPF prototype has been developed as an agent-based system for the domain of inland transport of containers to demonstrate its practical effectiveness. To evaluate the practical application of the CPF, a simulation environment is introduced in order to facilitate the evaluation process. The research started with the definition of a multi-agent simulation framework for port community supply chain. Then, a prototype has been implemented and employed for the evaluation of the CPF. The results of the simulation experiments demonstrate that our agent-based approach effectively enhances the performance of business process in the port community.

This thesis draws from data collected over thirteen months of fieldwork working with “Boaters”, a boat-dwelling itinerant group on the waterways of Southern England. In the first of three parts, the thesis focusses on the individual motivations (economic, personal and political) behind becoming a travelling Boater, and on how one acquires the requisite skills and knowledge to become part of a community of practice on the waterways. Boaters on the whole do not have a sense of being an ethnically distinct group and, as such, this thesis interrogates what kind of an identity is being created or reinforced when individuals recognise themselves as Boaters. This part further deals with the specific temporal experience of boating (commonly known as “boat time”) that creates a shared experiential pattern between Boaters, and also examines the informal networks of trade, exchange and barter which enmesh Boaters in a web of reciprocal relationships. In the subsequent part, the focus of the thesis widens to take in the boating “community” as it is imagined. It asks how the concept of community is rhetorically constructed and corporately enacted on the inland waterways and identifies the creation of an emic and local conception of community. In the third part, the focus widens further still in order to interrogate the troubled relationships between Boaters and sedentary populations and between Boaters and agents of the State. By looking at Boaters’ different (essentially nomadic) understandings of locality and political organisation, this thesis attempts to more broadly explain the fraught relationship between state agencies and itinerant populations. The thesis concludes that the community of Boaters is constructed through the shared understandings which emerge due to the Boaters experiencing much of their world as being flexible, fluid and unfixed. Boaters are bound by acts of dwelling together on the waterways, acts that emerge from the specific material conditions of boat life, and further from acts of support where Boaters bind together for the security of the group against antagonistic outsiders and the interventions of agencies of the state.

B. Josephson, Jr. [and] M. W. P. Strandberg. / "January 1, 1962." " ... based on a Ph.D. thesis by B. Josephson, Jr., submitted to the Department of Physics, M.I.T., May 19, 1958." Reprinted from J. Phys. Chem. Solids ... 1962, vol.23, pp. 67-73." / Bibliography: p. 73. / Army Signal Corps Contract DA 36-039-sc-78108 Department of the Army Task 3-99-20-001 and Project 3-99-00-000. Army Signal Corps Contract DA 36-039-sc-87376.

Η εργασία κάνει μια ιστορική αναδρομή της διάνοιξης της διώρυγας της Κορίνθου και παράλληλα παρουσιάζονται γεωλογικά δεδομένα που προέκυψαν κατά τη διαδικασία διόρυξης καθώς και σύγχρονα δεδομένα. / Geological information of the canal of Corinth. The history of construction of the canal.

Lien naturel entre Rennes et la mer, la Vilaine n’est navigable au début de l’époque moderne que dans sa basse vallée. Depuis l’océan, des navires remontent l’estuaire de la Vilaine jusqu’au port de Redon. En amont, de petits barques progressent jusqu’au port de Messac, qui matérialise la fin de la voie navigable. Dans le sens de la remontée, la ville de Rennes se trouve à une trentaine de kilomètres de Messac. Principale ville de Bretagne, Rennes ne bénéficie pas de sa situation sur les rives de la Vilaine. Au XVIe siècle, le conseil de ville initie la canalisation de la Vilaine entre Messac et Rennes. L’objectif est de rattacher Rennes à la voie de transport fluviomaritime. À la fin du XVIe siècle, la Vilaine est aménagée durablement à l’aide d’écluses à sas. La navigation se développe jusqu’à Rennes. Au XVIIe siècle, la voie d’eau devient un axe essentiel de l’approvisionnement rennais. Des projets de canalisation du XVIe siècle au commerce de la Vilaine au XVIIe siècle, ce travail de recherche vise à étudier les perspectives et les conséquences de l’essor du fret fluviomaritime pour la ville de Rennes. / Natural link between Rennes and the sea, the river Vilaine in the early modern period was only navigable in its lower valley. From the ocean, vessels flowed in the river Vilaine estuary to Redon harbour. Upstream, small boats could reach Messac harbour, which was the term of the waterway. Further upstream, Rennes is located about thirty kilometers from Messac. Most city of Brittany, Rennes didn’t take full advantage of its situation on the banks of the river Vilaine. In the 16th century, the city council instigated the river Vilaine development between Messac and Rennes. The aim was to relate Rennes to the river-sea shipping. At the end of the 16th century, the river Vilaine was sustainably channeled thanks to a modern lock system. Navigation expanded to the city of Rennes. In the 17th century, the waterway became an essential supply line for Rennes.

Στόχος της εργασίας ήταν η απεικόνιση των φυσικοχημικών παραμέτρων σε διαγράμματα για τρεις περιόδους, προκειμένου να αντληθούν συμπεράσματα σχετικά με το ωκεανογραφικό καθεστώς του Αμβρακικού κόλπου. / The objective of this project was the depiction of the physicochemical parameters on diagrams for three different periods, so as to derive conclusions about the oceanographic regime of Amvrakikos Gulf.

Η ωκεανογραφική μελέτη αυτή λαμβάνει χώρα στον Αμβρακικό κόλπο ο οποίος είναι ένας ημίκλειστος κόλπος στη Δυτική Ελλάδα και απομονώνεται από το Ιόνιο πέλαγος μέσω ενός στενού ρηχού φράγματος, έδειξε ότι χαρακτηρίζεται από ένα φιόρδ1 όπως αυτά του ωκεανογραφικού καθεστώτος. Ο κόλπος χαρακτηρίζεται από δύο καλά δομημένα στρώματα στη υδάτινη στήλη που απαρτίζονται από ένα επιφανειακό στρώμα και ένα στρώμα πυθμένα που διαχωρίζονται από μεγάλη αλλαγή στη πυκνότητα με το βάθος στο σώμα νερού (πυκνοκλινές). Πέρα από την είσοδο υπάρχει υφάλμυρο νερό το οποίο εκρέει στο επιφανειακό στρώμα νερού και ένα αλμυρό στρώμα νερού το οποίο εισρέει κοντά στο βυθό. Η μορφολογία και η κυκλοφορία των υδάτων καθιστούν το Αμβρακικό κόλπο το μοναδικό φιόρδ στη Μεσογειακή θάλασσα. Οι έρευνες έδειξαν ότι στο πυκνοκλινές η διαλυτότητα του οξυγόνου μειώνεται δραστικά φτάνοντας στα επίπεδα του μηδέν διαχωρίζοντας έτσι τη υδάτινη στήλη σε οξικά, δυσοξικά και ανοξικά περιβάλλοντα. Οι δυσόξινες και ανοξικές συνθήκες εμφανίστηκαν τα τελευταία 20-30 χρόνια και έχει προκληθεί από τα λιπάσματα , την αύξηση σε ζήτηση ζώων, τις ιχθυοκαλλιέργειες μεγάλων διαστάσεων και τα οικιακά απόβλητα. Η εμφάνιση της δυσοξίας και ανοξίας έχει ως αποτέλεσμα την καταστροφή αποικιών στο πυθμένα σε έκταση πέραν του 50% του κόλπου και περίπου 28% του όγκου του νερού. Επιπρόσθετα η ανοξία είναι μάλλον υπεύθυνη για το αιφνίδιο θάνατο πολλών ψαριών το οποίο συνέβη στις υδατοκαλλιέργειες του κόλπου το Φεβρουάριο του 2008. Η ανοξία επιφέρει αρνητικά αποτελέσματα στο οικοσύστημα, στη ακμάζουσα αλιεία και στις βιομηχανίες ιχθυοκαλλιέργειας του κόλπου. Ο εντοπισμός αυτών των ανοξικών και δυσοξικών συνθηκών μας όρισε ως σκοπό μελέτης το προσδιορισμό της ρίζας του προβλήματος μέσω της διερεύνησης του παλαιοπεριβάλλοντος . Η παρούσα εργασία έχει ως θέμα τη μικροπαλαιοντολογική ανάλυση η οποία ασχολείται με τη μελέτη τρηματοφόρων. Η μελέτη των τρηματοφόρων παρέχει πληροφορίες λόγω των ιδιοτήτων τους οι οποίες είναι: α) είναι πολυπληθή και επιδέχονται στατιστική ανάλυση, β) είναι άριστοι βιοστρωματογραφικοί δείκτες λόγω της ποικιλίας ,αφθονίας και της γρήγορης ανάπτυξης τους και γ) εντοπίζονται στα ιζήματα όλων των γεωλογικών εποχών, σχεδόν σε όλα τα θαλάσσια περιβάλλοντα. / --