This study attempts to resolve to what extent individuals with Down syndrome benefit from advance information provided visually, versus the same information provided verbally when performing a manual aiming task. Adults with Down syndrome and undifferentiated developmental handicaps, as well as control subjects without a developmental handicap, performed manual aiming movements to targets 10.5 cm. away. On a particular trial, subjects were cued about the specific movement either visually or verbally. The cue provided either 50% or 80% certainty. Nonhandicapped control subjects initiated and completed their manual aiming movements more quickly than subjects with mental handicaps. As well, individuals with Down syndrome were found to be slower and more variable in reaction time than individuals in the other mentally handicapped group when valid information was provided verbally but not when the cue was provide visually. These results provide support for the Elliott and Weeks (1990) model of biological dissociation. Specifically, the atypical hemispheric lateralization for speech perception exhibited by individuals with Down syndrome results in a disruption in communication between functional systems responsible for the processing of verbal langauge, and the organization of complex movement. / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

When consumers are able to buy electricity on an hourly instead of monthly basis, the demand side flexibility is likely to increase. One way to lower the cost of electricity is to move consumption from peak price hours to low price hours, a sort of inter-temporal substitution were the net energy use is unaffected. By simulating one example of inter-temporal substitution in the Swedish spot market during 2008-2010, we show that the general welfare effects are small in terms of a more efficient energy production, but that the transfer of resources from producers to consumers is large. Whether the welfare effect is positive or negative is highly dependent on future electricity prices, the introduction of renewable energy resources, and the price of the new technology needed for the demand side regulation. If 2010 is used as a reference case, the results from our specific case concludes that a natural investment equilibrium is reached when approximately 150 000 households invest in the proposed demand side regulation technology. Using the same reference year, we see that if 70 000 households participates the Net Present Welfare benefit is around 10% of the necessary investment cost; to be compared with the transfer of benefits from producers to consumers which estimates roughly 2100% of the necessary investment cost. We argue that this imbalance in potential welfare benefits between producers and consumers might slow down the process of increasing the general welfare.

In this thesis I provide general guidelines for a commercial building owner’s decision making process for heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system energy efficiency projects, discuss an example HVAC project at an existing building, and recommend the most energy-efficient, cost-effective project option. First, a building’s HVAC system’s inefficiencies are identified. The systems and the components can be investigated to understand the nature of the operations. In the building owner’s interests, possible alternatives can be developed to address the systems with improvements. Consulting engineers, contractors, and other building professionals can assist in this process. There are necessary engineering and construction considerations for defining realistic project alternatives. With the alternatives, there are costs, benefits, and trade-offs. The costs, which mainly include the investment and the operational costs, and the benefits, which mainly include the available financial incentives, defined in dollars, are identified for the alternatives. The alternatives can be evaluated with Building Life Cycle Cost (BLCC) software. In this evaluation the net present-value (NPV) method is used to rank the alternatives. Then, the highest-ranking, lowest life-cycle cost, alternative is recommended for the owner. In the example, an existing commercial building’s HVAC systems are considered. The construction plans, the facilities records, and the existing field conditions were investigated and analyzed. A few operational inefficiencies were identified. To address two of these existing inefficiencies, there were alternatives considered to replace the standard-efficiency air handling unit motors with premium-efficiency motors and to renovate the ventilation system with an energy recovery wheel. The investment costs, the available rebates, the net annual energy savings, and the energy and other operational costs were estimated, over a 30-year study period, for each of these alternatives, and compared to the costs of the existing system. The BLCC evaluations were performed across a range of discount rates in the present-value calculations. Based on the lowest present-value life-cycle cost reports, the premium-efficiency motor replacement project only is recommended. / text

abstract: This thesis provides a cost to benefit assessment of the proposed next generation distribution system, the Future Renewable Electric Energy Distribution Management (FREEDM) system. In this thesis, a probabilistic study is conducted to determine the payback period for an investment made in the FREEDM distribution system. The stochastic study will help in performing a detailed analysis in estimating the probability density function and statistics associated with the payback period. This thesis also identifies several parameters associated with the FREEDM system, which are used in the cost benefit study to evaluate the investment and several direct and indirect benefits. Different topologies are selected to represent the FREEDM test bed. Considering the cost of high speed fault isolation devices, the topology design is selected based on the minimum number of fault isolation devices constrained by enhanced reliability. A case study is also performed to assess the economic impact of energy storage devices in the solid state transformers so that the fault isolation devices may be replaced by conventional circuit breakers. A reliability study is conducted on the FREEDM distribution system to examine the customer centric reliability index, System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI). It is observed that the SAIFI was close to 0.125 for the FREEDM distribution system. In addition, a comparison study is performed based on the SAIFI for a representative U.S. distribution system and the FREEDM distribution system. The payback period is also determined by adopting a theoretical approach and the results are compared with the Monte Carlo simulation outcomes to understand the variation in the payback period. It is observed that the payback period is close to 60 years but if an annual rebate is considered, the payback period reduces to 20 years. This shows that the FREEDM system has a significant potential which cannot be overlooked. Several direct and indirect benefits arising from the FREEDM system have also been discussed in this thesis. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Electrical Engineering 2016

This diploma thesis deals with the evaluation of economic efficiency of investment projects in transport infrastructure in the Czech Republic. The evaluation of road and motorway infrastructure projects is carried out according to the methodological documents of the Ministry of Transport, the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure and the Road and Motorway Directorate of the Czech Republic. As changes in methodological procedures have taken place in recent years, the diploma thesis deals with the resulting values of economic efficiency indicators, especially with net present value. The thesis analyzes the basic calculation formula for the evaluation of road and motorway infrastructure, which is an integral part of the evaluation of road projects. There are also described fundamental methodological changes regarding, for example, the calculation of the residual value of the project at the end of the reference period or the change in the discount rate. The changes are applied to a case study of a specific section of the Czech transport industry. It evaluates their impact on the final value of the critical indicator of economic efficiency, which is the net present value.

Äldre är överrepresenterade i dödsbrandsstatistiken där 90 procent av bostadsbränderna som inträffar i Sverige drabbar personer över 65 år. 2011 presenterade MSB en nollvision med målet att ingen ska dö eller skadas allvarligt till följd av brand, för att motverka att bland annat äldre omkommer och för att höja kunskapen kring individanpassat brandskydd hos kommunerna. Att bo kvar i sitt hem trots åldrande, sjukdom och funktionsnedsättning är en stigande trend hos den svenska befolkningen. Vid flytt till ett särskilt boende följer mer omfattande krav på det byggnadstekniska brandskyddet, vilket är en följd av att bland annat funktionsförmågan hos de boende kan vara nedsatt. Denna studie består av litteraturstudier, intervjuer och en kostnad- och nyttoanalys där målgruppen var personer över 65 år som är hemmaboende och fått en behovsprövning med hemtjänst som följd. Litteraturstudierna undersöker hur lagar, regler och rekommendationer behandlar individanpassat brandskydd. Genom litteraturstudien har också vägledningar som beskriver för kommunerna hur det går att arbeta med individanpassat brandskydd granskats och jämförts mot verkligheten. Intervjuerna genomfördes för att undersöka hur de upprättade vägledningarna implementeras hos kommunerna, i vilken utsträckning arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd bedrivs och vilka svårigheter och utmaningar som finns. Kostnad-och nyttoanalysen berör de tekniska tillämpningar som både kan och har använts hos de riskutsatta personer som identifieras i verksamheten. Denna genomfördes för tre olika fall där kostnaden av olika tekniska lösningar, så som brandvarnare, brandfilt, brandsläckare, spisvakt och portabel sprinkler, jämfördes med deras effekt. Målet var att undersöka om det fanns en samhällsnytta med att installera ett tekniskt brandskydd för olika fall, där effekten varierar mellan 10, 50 och 90 procent för tre olika fall med olika brandtekniska skyddsnivåer. Kostnad- och nyttoanalysen visar på en samhällsnytta för två av de tre fallen där flertalet liv kan räddas vid installation av ett aktivt brandskydd. Studien visar på att lagar, regler och rekommendationer i dagsläget inte direkt behandlar hur arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd ska bedrivas. Genom vissa tolkningar av befintlig lagtext och gällande regelverk kan dock ett visst arbete motiveras, dock har intervjuerna i denna studie visat att en tydligare styrning och ansvarsfördelning behöver tillkomma för ett mer enhetligt arbete i landet. Intervjuerna visar på att kommunerna är medvetna om vikten och innebörden av att bedriva ett arbete med individanpassat brandskydd. Dock finns det stora skillnader i hur långt i arbetet olika kommuner har kommit. Till grund för detta ligger ofta organisatoriska och ekonomiska svårigheter, där det upplevs oklart vem som har ansvaret samtidigt som uppfattningen är att det är dyrt att bedriva arbetet. Samtidigt prioriteras de uppgifter som är kravställda i större utsträckning än övrigt. För att uppnå MSB:s nollvision om att Ingen ska omkomma eller skadas allvarligt till följd av brand och de upprättade målen krävs mer än bara tekniska lösningar hos de boende. En av många svårigheter är ansvarsfrågan, vilken behöver förtydligas från politiskt håll. En annan problematik finns i hanteringen av vägledningar som är för svåra för kommunerna och dess verksamheter att implementera med dagens utformning. Som en lösning på detta bedriver MSB tillsammans med Socialstyrelsen ett arbete med att uppdatera befintlig vägledning Brandsäker bostad för alla. Detta för att kommunerna enklare ska kunna upprätta och bedriva arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd, som en naturlig del i den befintliga verksamheten samtidigt som ansvarsfrågan också hoppas kunna bli tydligare än i dagsläget. Studien visar att en tydligare politisk inriktning, ett bättre underbyggt stöd från MSB och en insikt i organisation, ansvar och ekonomi kan leda till att arbetet med individanpassat brandskydd kraftigt underlättas för kommunerna. / The elderly is over-represented in the death statistics regarding fires at home, 90 percent of the housing fires resulting in deaths in Sweden affect persons over 65 years. In 2011 MSB presented a vision that nobody should die or be severely injured as a result of fire, to counteract that elderly die and to raise the knowledge amongst the municipality. Continued living in your own home despite increasing age, sickness and disability is a rising trend among the Swedish population. When moving to a retirement accommodation, the demands on the building's fire protection are increased and the expectations of the residents are reduced. But what happens to the fire protection and expectations regarding, for example, evacuation for the elderly who want to, or are forced to stay in their homes? This study consists of literature studies, interviews and a cost-benefit analysis in which the target group was persons over 65 years of age, who lives in their own homes and has a need for home care. The literature studies examine how laws, rules and recommendations deal with individualized fire protection. Through the literature study, guidance documents describing how to work with personalized fire protection in municipalities has been reviewed and compared to reality. The interviews were conducted to investigate how the established guidance documents are implemented in the municipalities, the extent to which they work on personalized fire protection is conducted and the difficulties and challenges that exists. The cost- and benefit analysis concerns the technical applications that both has been- and can be used in the homes of risk-sensitive persons. This was carried out for three different cases where the cases of various technical solutions, such as fire detectors, fire blanket, fire extinguisher, stove guard and portable sprinkler, were compared with their effect. The goal was to investigate whether there was a societal benefit in installing a technical fire protection for different cases, where the effect varies between 10, 50 and 90 percent for cases 1–3. The cost and benefit analysis show a societal benefit for two out of three cases where most lives can be saved when installing an active fire protection. The study shows that laws, rules and recommendations does not directly address how the work with personalized fire protection should be conducted. Interpretations of existing legal texts and regulatory frameworks may provide guidance for some work to be justified. However, the interviews have led to the result that clearer governance and responsibilities need to be added for more uniform work in the country. The interviews show that the municipalities are aware of the importance and meaning of pursuing a work with individualized fire protection. However, there are major differences in how far the work in different municipalities have come. The reason for this is often organizational and financial difficulties, where it is unclear who is responsible at the same time as the perception is that it is costly to carry out the work. At the same time, priority is given to other things in the municipality, which are required and must be carried out instead of something that is not controlled or followed up. In order to achieve the MSB's vision that Nobody should die or be seriously injured as a result of fire and the defined goals, it takes more than just technical solutions. One of many difficulties is the question of responsibility, which needs clarification from political quarters. Another problem exists in the handling of guidance documents that are too difficult for the municipalities and its occupations to implement with the current design. As a solution to this, MSB along with the National Board of Health and Welfare conducts a work to update the existing guidance Brandsäker bostad för alla. This is to make it easier for the municipalities to both establish and carry out work on personalized fire protection, as a natural part of the existing business. While the liability issue also hopes to be clearer than it is at present.

本論文之研究目的在以成本與利益觀點，驗證產品資訊搜尋過程，消費者於對搜尋時間成本與產品資訊信心程度之主觀估計，在極大化程度對消費者產品資訊搜尋行為影響所扮演的中介變數角色，藉此瞭解產品資訊搜尋階段，極大化程度對消費者資訊搜尋行為與態度之影響機制。 極大化程度為一種個人追求最佳選擇程度之人格特質傾向。過去極大化程度在消費者行為領域之相關研究，多聚焦於探討不同極大化程度消費者之選項數量偏好、時間成本投入意願與決策後情感反應之差異，甚少有消費者資訊搜尋過程相關議題之討論。本研究認為，產品資訊搜尋實為消費者整體選擇與決策歷程最重要之階段，經常影響消費決策之最終品質，因此若要真正瞭解極大化程度對消費者選擇行為與態度差異之影響，除從極大化人格特質基本定義做為影響之解釋外，亦須藉由探討極大化程度在產品資訊搜尋過程，對消費者資訊成本與利益認知之影響中，連結出整段消費者選擇行為歷程之影響機制關係。 本論文以Ratchford (1982) 所提之「資訊搜尋之成本－利益模式 (The Cost-Benefit Model for Information Seeking)」為理論基礎，並將研究分為兩部份，研究一為探討不同極大化程度消費者在產品挑選機制與產品屬性要求標準上的差異，透過受測者對四項產品之屬性重要度評估、對特定屬性規格之期望標準，得知不同極大化程度受測者在產品屬性重視的程度、視為重要的屬性數量，以及產品屬性要求標準上之差異。研究二則採取2 (資訊延遲時間高、低)×2 (產品屬性離散程度高、低) 組間設計實驗，透過本研究設計之虛擬產品購物網站平台，讓受測者執行產品資訊搜尋任務，從中衡量受測者對產品資訊搜尋時間成本與資訊信心之主觀估計，驗證單位搜尋時間估計與單位資訊效用估計在極大化程度對受測者產品資訊搜尋數量、搜尋過程滿意度與產品知覺價值中，扮演之中介變數角色，以瞭解箇中之內在心理機制。 研究結果顯示，極大化程度與產品屬性重視程度及屬性要求標準呈現顯著正向關係，極大化受測者對產品屬性的重視程度與對產品屬性的要求標準皆較滿足化者高。足見不同極大化程度消費者對選擇之追求目標差異，會具體展現於產品遴選機制與屬性要求標準上。而經過中介變數關係檢定後也發現，極大化程度越高之受測者所估計之搜尋時間與對資訊在決策幫助上的信心越低，因而正向影響了搜尋的產品數量，搜尋時間成本與資訊效用估計亦分別成為受測者對搜尋過程滿意度以及對產品知覺價值之中介變數。 本論文之研究成果除驗證極大化選擇目標與產品遴選機制及屬性要求標準之關聯性外，亦進一步得知極大化程度影響消費者產品資訊搜尋行為與態度之內在心理機制，成功將系統性之消費者資訊搜尋經濟模式與極大化概念結合，為極大化程度研究領域帶來更深入且具理論基礎之發現。研究成果亦可作為通路或產品廠商思索產品陳列與資訊呈現方式時之參考依據，以降低顧客之主觀成本花費、提升產品資訊帶給顧客決策上的利益，提高顧客對個人整體消費過程之滿意度與所選產品之知覺價值。 / The purpose of this research is to demonstrate whether consumers’ subjective estimations of search time and product information confidence are the mediators mediating the effects of maximization tendency on consumers’ product information seeking behavior and attitude. From the perspective of information cost-benefit, the psychological mechanism will be found from this effect of personality on consumer behavior in this research. Maximization tendency was conceptualized in recent ten years to describe individual’s personality that strives for pursuing the best choice. After this concept was developed, most of the researches in this domain focused on discussing in the relationships between maximization orientation and consumers’ choice preferences such as the differences in the amount of alternatives, the aspiration to invest search time, and affective response after making decision. However seldom of them paid their attentions to the stage of product information search to probe the mechanism for the effect of maximization tendency on consumers’ searching behaviors about product information. Since the information seeking is the most important process to influence consumers’ decisions, the current study aims to explore the effects of maximization tendency on the individuals’ subjective estimations of time cost and benefit of product information. Hereby, the whole picture of the causal relationship in consumers’ information searching process would be drawn in this study. Referring to the rationales of Ratchford’s cost-benefit model, this research conducts two studies: the first part is to assess the differences in the criteria and attribute standard of consumers’ product selection with differential maximization tendencies. The second part is to conduct a 2 (the delay length of information appearance: low and high)×2 (the the dispersion of information attributes: low and high) between subject design experiments to demonstrate the mediating effect of two variables: consumers’ subjective estimation of time cost and information confidence during searching for information in the relations between maximization tendency and consumers’ information seeking behavior. The result shows the relationship between participants’ maximization orientation and their selection criteria as well as attribute demand standard exists. In general, maximizers have more complex choice criteria and higher picking standards than satisficers do when they choose the same products. The psychological mechanism is confirmed to help us understand how maximization tendency affect seeking behaviors and attitudes of product information from consumer’s product information seeking behavior and attitude. Manufacturers and store owners are suggested to apply these findings in the arrangement of alternatives and the display of product attribute information in order to reduce customers’ subjective estimation of time cost and improve their perception on information utility to, eventually, increase their satisfaction with the whole consumption experiences.

The main target of this diploma thesis is to confirm the hypothesis that the project "Ski resort Lipno regional winter sport centre" has an unquestionable and a region wide impact on social and economical development of the municipality Lipno nad Vltavou as well as on the whole micro region Lipensko. Within the assessment of social and economical costs and benefits and based on a set of methods used to evaluate projects of ROP NUTS II Southwest which was also a financial source of this project, it was possible to prove the existence of significant and positive impacts on social and economical development of both municipality Lipno nad Vltavou and the whole micro region Lipensko (new jobs, increase revenue of other tourism subjects in this area etc.). Total social and economic effect of the investment is financially positive. It was confirmed by means of the cost- benefit analysis. Present value (PV) is 330 million CZK, net present value (NPV) of the project is about 133 million CZK. Economic rate of return (ERR) reached 11.47 %, profitability index (NPV/I) reached 0.67 CZK net discounted profit per 1 CZK invested in 8 year payback. All these values are positive and it is possible to state that this project has a great value added and it brings good societal benefits.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T15:30:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao part1 Denise Milioli Ferreira.pdf: 425784 bytes, checksum: 2fa9fb3f87bb9afd8a2ef9c5ee09a0a8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2001-12-14 / Accidental tetanus is a millenary disease of high lethal indices, even when proven and effective, low cost prophylactics are available. Several studies have tried to identify the physiopathological process which releases the succession of clinical manifestations of the disease. The objective of these studies is to recognize and make available a new strategy for the treatment of tetanus after exposition to the toxin. The diagnosis of tetanus is eminently clinical. Several factors may occur during the evolution of the disease which complicate its prognosis. The most frequent complications are infections and autonomic dysfunction. Several therapeutic options exist. However, they have a supportive and symptomatic role. This study has as its objective to show the complexity which involves the physiopathological process and treatment of accidental tetanus as well as to emphasize that the only effective way of reducing tetanic mortality is, doubtless, a better vaccine coverage of susceptible individuals. NOTE: Essay with review articles. This is the sum of the first. / O Tétano acidental é uma doença milenar, que mesmo com a disponibilidade de profilaxia de comprovada eficácia e baixo custo, mantém alta taxa demorbiletalidade. Vários estudos vêm tentando identificar em nível biomolecular, o processo fisiopatológico que desencadeia as manifestações clínicas da doença, com o objetivo de conhecer e disponibilizar uma nova estratégia para o tratamento do tétano, após a exposição à toxina e sua fixação nos neurotransmissores. O diagnostico do tétano é eminentemente clínico. Podem ocorrer várias complicações durante a evolução da doença que comprometem o seu prognóstico. As complicações mais freqüentes e de maior gravidade são as infecciosas e a disautonomia simpática. Existem várias opções para o tratamento do tétano, todas porém de caráter suportivo e sintomático. Este estudo tem como objetivos: ressaltar a complexidade do processo fisiopatológico e do tratamento do tétano acidental e enfatizar como única forma efetiva de se reduzir a morbiletalidade do tétano, a cobertura vacinal das populações susceptíveis, constituída basicamente por adultos e idosos. OBS: Dissertação com artigos de revisão. Este é o resumo do primeiro.