Search

At the scale of Switzerland, the national railway company SBB Cargo AG has to schedule its locomotives and drivers in order to be able to pull all trains. Two objective functions are considered in a two-stage lexicographic fashion: (1) the locomotive and driver costs and (2) the driver time that is spent without driving. As the problem instances tend to reach really big sizes (up to 1900 trains), we propose to schedule locomotives and drivers in a sequential way, thus having a sequence of smaller problems to solve. Moreover, for smaller instances, we also propose to schedule jointly locomotives and drivers in an integrated way, therefore increasing the search space but possibly leading to better solutions. In this paper, we present a mathematical formulation and model for the problem. We also consider the contract-related constraints of the drivers, and we propose a way to integrate some time flexibility in the schedules. Next, we propose an innovative matheuristic to solve the problem, relying on a descent local search and a rolling horizon decomposition. An important goal of this method is to explore thoroughly at which extent a general-purpose solver can be used on this problem. Finally, the benefits of each aspect of the model and of the method are analyzed in detail on the results obtained for 20 real SBB Cargo AG instances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Families of persons with acquired brain injuries need to be supported from the early phase of hospitalization. To date, no known early family intervention is available for this population. Using the Medical Research Council Framework, we developed a new intervention based on the Calgary Assessment and Intervention Models that includes the family preferences, clinician's expertise, and the contextual resources. This paper aims to describe the complete development process including a scoping review, an assessment of families and clinicians' needs, an evaluation of the contextual resources, and an adaptation of the theoretical framework. Using a systemic perspective, we tailored the new intervention to involve the stakeholder's preferences. The result is an early family intervention named SAFIR©, led by a clinical nurse specialist, including five core components and structured around three phases and a follow-up. The next steps will be focused on assessment of the clinical feasibility of this new intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the impact of alternative city boundary definitions on economic performance. First we discuss the theoretical background and motivate the empirical work. Then we present the methodological concept of the sensitivity analysis, which will be applied to a variety of data of Zürich and Bern (the financial and the administrative centres of Switzerland) in order to see how the values of different indicators vary depending on the definition adopted. Finally we will show whether the empirical patterns found are statistically significant. The analysis shows, that the delimitation of a city or city region indeed matters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To facilitate evaluation of complex, organisational health interventions (OHIs), this paper aims at developing a context, process, and outcome (CPO) evaluation model. It builds on previous model developments in the field and advances them by clearly defining and relating generic evaluation categories for OHIs. Context is defined as the underlying frame that influences and is influenced by an OHI. It is further differentiated into the omnibus and discrete contexts. Process is differentiated into the implementation process, as the time-limited enactment of the original intervention plan, and the change process of individual and collective dynamics triggered by the implementation process. These processes lead to proximate, intermediate, and distal outcomes, as all results of the change process that are meaningful for various stakeholders. Research questions that might guide the evaluation of an OHI according to the CPO categories and a list of concrete themes/indicators and methods/sources applied within the evaluation of an OHI project at a hospital in Switzerland illustrate the model's applicability in structuring evaluations of complex OHIs. In conclusion, the model supplies a common language and a sharedmentalmodel for improving communication between researchers and companymembers and will improve the comparability and aggregation of evaluation study results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trees that characterized many agricultural landscapes across Europe are declining, despite the recent revival of agroforestry research and increasing direct payments for their maintenance. Therefore, in addition to field experiments, there is a need for transdisciplinary research in close alliance with local farmers. This paper proposes a three-step participatory design and assessment approach, incorporating local innovation and scientific evidence. To our knowledge, this is the first participatory and bioeconomic analysis of farmer-designed agroforestry systems in Europe. First, an exploratory survey of farmers' innovations in Switzerland was conducted together with a literature review. Based on the survey, 14 representative agroforestry practices were defined for the bioeconomic assessment, focusing on walnut ( Juglans hybr.) and wild cherry ( Prunus avium) . The predictions of long-term yields were made with the Yield-SAFE model, and the profitability was assessed using the Farm-SAFE model. The survey results suggested a lack of local knowledge on key ecosystem services provided by agroforestry. It is therefore recommended to apply the concept of ecosystem services, in order to support the design of multifunctional agriculture and to increase the willingness to pay for its services. According to our yield predictions, mixing trees and crops was commonly more productive (12 out of the 14 options, land equivalent ratio = 0.95-1.30) than growing them in separate forestry or arable systems. This result contradicts the widespread view among modern Swiss farmers that agroforestry is unproductive. In terms of profitability, 68 % of the 56 financial scenarios for the agroforestry practices, particularly those linked to innovative marketing of fruit or receiving payments for ecosystem services, were found to be more profitable than the business as usual reference systems. These results demonstrate that there is a need and a value in bridging the gap between scientists and farmers, in order to coproduce applied knowledge for the design of productive agroforestry practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Climate change will alter the environmental conditions for crop growth and require adjustments in management practices at the field scale. In this paper, we analyzed the impacts of two different climate change scenarios on optimal field management practices in winterwheat and grain maize production with case studies from Switzerland. Management options included nitrogen fertilization (amount, timing and allocation) as well as irrigation. Optimal solutions that maximize the farmer’s utility were sought with the help of a bioeconomic modeling system that integrated the process-based crop growth model CropSyst into an economic decision model. The latter accounted not only for the crop specific average profit margins, but also for production risks, reflecting the utility (expressed as the certainty equivalent) of a risk-averse farmer’s management decisions at field scale. In view of the non-linearity and complexity of the problem, we used a genetic algorithm as optimization technique. For grain maize, our results showed that climate change will foster the use of irrigation, not only at sites prone to water limitation already under current climatic conditions, but more in general for climate change scenarios projecting a substantial decrease in summer precipitation. For winterwheat, irrigation was never identified as an optimal management option. For both crops and sites, climate change reduced the optimum nitrogen fertilization amount and decreased for winterwheat the number of fertilization applications. In all cases, the farmer’s certainty equivalent decreased between 7% and 25% under climate change, implying negative impacts on winterwheat and grain maize production even under the assumption of an adjustment of the optimum management practices. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A key element in making our food systems more efficient is the reduction of food losses across the entire food value chain. Nevertheless, food losses are often neglected. This paper quantifies food losses in Switzerland at the various stages of the food value chain (agricultural production, postharvest handling and trade, processing, food service industry, retail, and households), identifies hotspots and analyses the reasons for losses. Twenty-two food categories are modelled separately in a mass and energy flow analysis, based on data from 31 companies within the food value chain, and from public institutions, associations, and from the literature. The energy balance shows that 48% of the total calories produced (edible crop yields at harvest time and animal products, including slaughter waste) is lost across the whole food value chain. Half of these losses would be avoidable given appropriate mitigation measures. Most avoidable food losses occur at the household, processing, and agricultural production stage of the food value chain. Households are responsible for almost half of the total avoidable losses (in terms of calorific content). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper analyses the effects of Swiss agricultural policy reforms and the effects of farm income, off-farm income and direct payments on the distribution of the farm household income. To this end, the farm-level income records from the FADN data for the period 1990-2009 are used to calculate Gini coefficients and Gini elasticities. Bootstrap sampling procedures are applied to test for significant differences of the estimated parameters over time. The Gini coefficients estimated in our analysis show that the household income inequality in Swiss agriculture only slightly increased from 0.21 to 0.24, but the farm income inequality strongly increased from 0.27 to 0.38 in the considered period. We find furthermore that increasing off-farm incomes and direct payments would decrease the household income inequality. Especially direct payments that support farmers producing under adverse production conditions in the hill and mountain regions have found to be well targeted and thus contribute to the reductions in income inequality in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statements about stability, weathering behaviour and possible rockfalls affecting a real rock massif were made possible by creating a 3D surface/volume model, using as example the 'Großer Wehturm' rock massif, using the high-resolution laser scanning process together with rock mechanical 3D model calculations. The emphasis of this paper is the mathematical modelling, particularly the generation of the 3D model from the surface point cloud and the simulation possibilities. The numerical calculations are based on the Discrete Element Method, considering the rock matrix and joint or bedding interfaces. The 3D modelling delivers, in addition to answers to questions about the extent and degree of deformations and movement mechanisms, knowledge relevant to the transfer of the procedure to other locations. Aussagen zu Standsicherheit, Verwitterungsverhalten und möglichen Felsstürzen an konkreten Felsmassiven wurden mittels der Erstellung und Auswertung eines 3D-Oberflächen-/Volumenmodells am Beispiel des Felsmassivs 'Großer Wehturm' unter Nutzung des hochauflösenden Laserscansverfahrens mit kombinierter felsmechanischer 3D-Modellberechnungen durchgeführt. Der Schwerpunkt dieser Veröffentlichung liegt auf der Numerik, insbesondere der 3D-Modellgenerierung aus der Oberflächenpunktwolke und den Simulationsmöglichkeiten. Die numerischen Berechnungen basieren auf der dreidimensionalen Diskreten Elemente Methode unter Berücksichtigung der Gesteinsmatrix und Kluft- bzw. Schichtgrenzen. Die 3D-Modellierung liefert neben Antworten auf Fragen zu Umfang und Ausmaß von Deformationen und Bewegungsmechanismen auch Erfahrungen bzgl. der Übertragung auf andere Standorte. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the author explores the concepts of public regulations in regard to land use and real property ownership. The results are used to develop a theoretical, conceptual model for public regulations influencing the landowners' use of the real property. The proposed classification aims at being independent of the legal systems they are created in and are intended to be used for classification of public regulations internationally. The purpose is to establish a terminological framework for international exchange of public regulation information. The development of the public regulation model is exemplified with Swedish public regulations influencing the owner's right to use his/her real property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hardware commissioning of the Large Hadron Collider required the testing and the qualification of the cryogenic and vacuum system, as well as the electrical systems for the powering of more than 10 000 superconducting magnets. Nonconformities had to be resolved within a tight schedule. In this paper, we focus on the role that electromagnetic-field computation has played during hardware commissioning in terms of the analysis of a magnet quench and electromagnetic-force calculations in busbars and splices, as well as field-quality prediction for the optimization of powering cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Facility for Anti-proton and Ion Research (FAIR), under development at GSI, includes the synchrotron SIS300, so called because the magnetic rigidity is 300 Tm. In order to reach the required high intensities of proton and heavy ions beams, the bending dipole magnets have to be pulsed from the injection magnetic field of 1.5 T up to 4.5 T maximum field at the rate of 1 T/s. These 7.8 m long magnets have \cos\theta shaped coils with a 100 mm bore and the particular characteristic to be geometrically curved, with a sagitta of 112.9 mm. These challenging requirements triggered R&D activities, aimed at the development of suitable construction technologies for fast ramped curved coils. The heart of the R&D program is the construction of a 3.9 m long model. The paper discusses the main problems faced during the design and the construction of the cold mass, mainly covering the aspects related to the manufacture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the preferences of cantonal politicians for future agricultural land-use scenarios in a rural region of the Swiss lowlands. We combine results from a choice experiment with the outcome of a mathematical programming model. As a result, we define cost-efficient future land-use scenarios which would find acceptance in the cantonal parliament. Our study indicates that the level of agricultural production associated with the extent of environmental goods and services in these land-use scenarios is a crucial issue in the political acceptance and thus in the design of green payments for agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measurements from load tests may lead to numerical models that better reflect structural behavior. This kind of system identification is not straightforward due to important uncertainties in measurement and models. Moreover, since system identification is an inverse engineering task, many models may fit measured behavior. Traditional model updating methods may not provide the correct behavioral model due to uncertainty and parameter compensation. In this paper, a multimodel approach that explicitly incorporates uncertainties and modeling assumptions is described. The approach samples thousands of models starting from a general parametrized finite-element model. The population of selected candidate models may be used to understand and predict behavior, thereby improving structural management decision making. This approach is applied to measurements from structural performance monitoring of the Langensand Bridge in Lucerne, Switzerland. Predictions from the set of candidate models are homogenous and show an average discrepancy of 4-7% from the displacement measurements. The tests demonstrate the applicability of the multimodel approach for the structural identification and performance monitoring of real structures. The multimodel approach reveals that the Langensand Bridge has a reserve capacity of 30% with respect to serviceability requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents a dynamic model of the helium flow in the cryogenic distribution line (QRL) used in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. The study is focused on the return pumping line, which transports gaseous helium at low pressure and temperature over . Our aim is to propose a new real-time model of the QRL while taking into account the non-homogeneous transport phenomena. The flow model is based on 1D Euler equations and considers convection heat transfers, hydrostatic pressure and friction pressure drops. These equations are discretized using a finite difference method based on an upwind scheme. A specific model for the interconnection cells is also proposed. The corresponding simulation results are compared with experimental measurements of a heat wave along the line that results from a quench of a superconducting magnet. Different hypotheses are presented and the influence of specific parameters is discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The mathematical model of urban dynamics introduced in an earlier paper is applied to a case study in a small region in the southern part of Switzerland. The model mixes the point of view of cellular automata (cellular decomposition of the space, neighbourhood relations among cells, dynamics based on local evolution rules) with the approach to multiagent systems: the dynamics of the urban system are described in terms of decision processes of agents formalized using fuzzy-decision-theory methods. The region chosen for the case study evolves under the pressure of the nearby city of Lugano, owing to several factors: the accessibility of the area from Lugano, the availability of spatial resources for new development, the high level of quality of space, and the high level of congestion of Lugano. Local changes in the master plan from agricultural to residential use are taken into account, by introducing suitable memory variables that keep track of the demand of spatial resources for building in the recent past. Computer simulations showing the time evolution of the spatial distribution of the population and the real estate value are presented. The use of measures of attractiveness based on a fuzzy logic approach, and of Poisson-distributed events, enables us to introduce new effective approaches to parameter calibration and model validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper elucidates and discusses Jung's conceptions of the relation between psychology, psychotherapy and religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: With the intention of developing a new data analysis method using virtual experiments we have built a detailed virtual model of the cold triple-axis spectrometer RITA-II at PSI, Switzerland, using the McStas neutron ray-tracing package. The parameters characterising the virtual instrument were carefully tuned against real experiments. In the present paper we show that virtual experiments reproduce experimentally observed linewidths within 1–3% for a variety of samples. Furthermore we show that the detailed knowledge of the instrumental resolution found from virtual experiments, including sample mosaicity, can be used for quantitative estimates of linewidth broadening resulting from, e.g., finite domain sizes in single-crystal samples. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]