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Background: The implementation science literature acknowledges a need for engagement of key stakeholders when designing, delivering and evaluating implementation work. To date, the literature reports minimal or focused stakeholder engagement, where stakeholders are engaged in either barrier identification and/or barrier prioritisation. This paper begins to answer calls from the literature for the development of tools and guidance to support comprehensive stakeholder engagement in implementation research and practice. The paper describes the systematic development of the Implementation‐STakeholder Engagement Model (I‐STEM) in the context of an international, large‐scale empirical implementation study (ImpleMentAll) aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of a tailored implementation toolkit. The I‐STEM is a sensitising tool that defines key considerations and activities for undertaking stakeholder engagement activities across an implementation process. Methods: In‐depth, semistructured interviews and observations were conducted with implementers who were tailoring implementation strategies to integrate and embed internet‐based cognitive behavioural therapy (iCBT) services in 12 routine mental health care organisations in nine countries in Europe and Australia. The analytical process was informed by principles of first‐ and third‐generation Grounded Theory, including constant comparative method. Results: We conducted 55 interviews and observed 19 implementation‐related activities (e.g., team meetings and technical support calls). The final outcome of our analysis is expressed in an initial version of the I‐STEM, consisting of five interrelated concepts: engagement objectives, stakeholder mapping, engagement approaches, engagement qualities and engagement outcomes. Engagement objectives are goals that implementers plan to achieve by working with stakeholders in the implementation process. Stakeholder mapping involves identifying a range of organisations, groups or people who may be instrumental in achieving the engagement objectives. Engagement approaches define the type of work that is undertaken with stakeholders to achieve the engagement objectives. Engagement qualities define the logistics of the engagement approach. Lastly, every engagement activity may result in a range of engagement outcomes. Conclusion: The I‐STEM represents potential avenues for substantial stakeholder engagement activity across key phases of an implementation process. It provides a conceptual model for the planning, delivery, evaluation and reporting of stakeholder engagement activities. The I‐STEM is nonprescriptive and highlights the importance of a flexible, iterative approach to stakeholder engagement. It is developmental and will require application and validation across a range of implementation activities. Patient or Public Contribution: Patient contribution to ImpleMentAll trial was facilitated by GAMIAN‐Europe at all stages—from grant development to dissemination. GAMIAN‐Europe brings together a wide variety of patient representation organisations (local, regional and national) from almost all European countries. GAMIAN‐Europe was involved in pilot testing the ItFits‐toolkit and provided their views on the various aspects, including stakeholder engagement. Patients were also represented in the external advisory board providing support and advice on the design, conduct and interpretation of the wider project, including the development of the ItFits‐toolkit. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03652883. Retrospectively registered on 29 August 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The opening up of the railway to competition in Europe has been accompanied by many technical challenges never before seen in the railway field. One of these challenges concerns precise energy metering. As European railways have been a monopoly until now, the current systems can only measure the energy consumption of a single operator. In accordance with European law, the installation of an energy meter has been mandatory in new or refurbished rolling stocks since 2014. Nevertheless, these energy meters are still not fully reliable, with misreadings and missing readings being common occurrences. To address the problem of energy metering data reliability, this paper presents a method for validating the reading measurement based on a physical model and validates it in two different case studies. For the issue of energy metering data availability, different estimators are developed, and their performance are shown with the aim of calculating the missing consumptions for both case studies. Finally, the paper suggests how these methods may be implemented in other types of trains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an overview of the modelling of particle number concentrations (PNC's) in five major European cities, namely Helsinki, Oslo, London, Rotterdam and Athens, in 2008. Novel emission inventories of particle numbers have been compiled both on urban and European scales. We use atmospheric dispersion modelling for PNC's in the five target cities and on a European scale, and evaluate the predicted results against available measured concentrations. The concentrations of PN in the selected cities were mostly influenced by the emissions originated from local vehicular traffic; however, in some of the cities, also harbour and airport activities were significant. The highest values of the predicted PNC's were higher in the megacities, London and Athens, and also in Rotterdam, whereas these were lower in Helsinki and Oslo. It was numerically evaluated that the influence of coagulation and dry deposition on the predicted PNC's was substantial for urban background in Oslo. The predicted and measured annual average PNC's in four cities agreed within approximately ⩽36% (measured as fractional biases), except for one traffic station in London. The indexes of agreement (IA) for the comparisons of hourly measured and predicted time-series in Oslo and Helsinki ranged from 0.75 to 0.79. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first pan-European kilometre-scale atmospheric chemistry simulation is introduced. The continental-scale air pollution episode of January 2009 is modelled with the CHIMERE offline chemistry-transport model with a massive grid of 2 million horizontal points, performed on 2000 CPU of a high performance computing system hosted by the Research and Technology Computing Center at the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CCRT/CEA). Besides the technical challenge, we find that model biases are significantly reduced, especially over urban areas. The high resolution grid also allows revisiting the contribution of individual city plumes to the European burden of pollution, providing new insights for designing air pollution control strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper addresses a real-time optimization-based reference calculation integrated with a control structure for Modular Multilevel Converters (MMC) operating under normal and constrained situations (where it has reached current and/or voltage limitations, as it may occur during system faults). Firstly, a nonlinear optimization problem has been developed in which it prioritizes to satisfy the AC grid current set-points imposed by the transmission System Operator (TSO). The constrained nonlinear optimization problem is formulated based on the steady-state model of the MMC, whereby the prioritization is achieved through distinct weights defined in the Objective Function’s (OF) terms. The resultant optimization problem, however, is highly nonlinear requiring high computation burden to be solved in real-time. To cope with this issue, this paper applies a Linear Time-Varying (LTV) approximation, which permits to represent the nonlinear dynamics of the system as constant parameters, while a Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) system is used to formulate the optimization constraints. The converter’s current references are determined in real-time by solving a constrained linearized optimization problem at each control time step, which considers the TSO’s demands, the current MMC operating point and its physical limitations. Theoretical analyses comparing the responses of the linear and nonlinear optimization problems are performed to validate the accuracy of the LTV approximation. Finally, the linearized-optimization problem is integrated with the MMC controllers, evaluated under different AC and DC network conditions and compared with conventional control strategies, where it is shown that the presented method can be potentially employed to obtain the MMC current references for distinct network scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to optimize the deployment and maintenance costs for service delivery in wireless networks is an essential task for each service provider. The goal of this paper was to optimize the number of service centres (gNodeB) to cover selected customer locations based on the given requirements. This optimization need is especially emerging in emerging 5G and beyond cellular systems that are characterized by a large number of simultaneously connected devices, which is typically difficult to handle by the existing wireless systems. Currently, the network infrastructure planning tools used in the industry include Atoll Radio Planning Tool, RadioPlanner and others. These tools do not provide an automatic selection of a deployment position for specific gNodeB nodes in a given area with defined requirements. To design a network with those tools, a great deal of manual tasks that could be reduced by more sophisticated solutions are required. For that reason, our goal here and our main contribution of this paper were the development of new mathematical models that fit the currently emerging scenarios of wireless network deployment and maintenance. Next, we also provide the design and implementation of a verification methodology for these models through provided simulations. For the performance evaluation of the models, we utilize test datasets and discuss a case study scenario from a selected district in Central Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diversification potential enables investors to manage their risk and decrease risk exposure. Good diversification policy is a safety net that prevents a portfolio from losing its value. A well-diversified portfolio consists of different categories of property with low correlations, while highly correlated markets have the feature of low possibilities for diversification. The biggest riddle in the world of investments is to find the optimal portfolio within a set of available assets with limited capital. There are numerous studies and mathematical models that deal with portfolio investment strategies. These strategies take advantage of diversification by spreading risk over several financial assets. Modern portfolio theory seeks to find the optimal model with the best results. This paper tries to identify relationships between returns of companies traded in South-East European equity markets. A Markowitz mean-variance (MV) portfolio optimization method is used to identify possibilities for diversification among these markets and world leading capital markets. This research also offers insight into to the level of integration of South-East European equity markets. Principal component analysis (PCA) is used to determine components that describe the strong patterns and co-movements of the dataset. Finally, we combined MV efficient frontier and equity, which represent PCA components, to draw conclusions. Our findings show that PC analysis substantially simplifies asset selection process in portfolio management. The results of the paper have practical applications for portfolio investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper derives a closed-form solution for European options on pure discount bonds, assuming a mean-reverting Gaussian interest rate model as in Vasicek [8]. The formula is extended to European options on discount bond portfolios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since its initial development, long-term contracts have been associated with the gas industry in all regions of the world. This was also the case in Europe where natural gas trade was, for a long time, dominated by bilateral long-term agreements between producers and midstreamers. These contracts fixed a minimum volume to be exchanged (take or pay) and indexed the gas price using a price formula that usually referred to oil product prices. These arrangements allowed market risk sharing between the producer (who takes the price risk) and the midstreamer (who takes the volume risk). They also offered risk hedging since oil is considered as a trusted commodity by investors. The fall of the European natural gas demand, combined with the increase of the oil price, favored the emergence of a gas volume bubble that caused significant losses for most of the European midstreamers bound by long-term agreements. As a result, the downstream part of the industry brought forward the idea of indexing contracts on gas spot prices. In this paper, we present an equilibrium model that endogenously captures the contracting behavior of both producer and midstreamer, who strive to hedge their profit-related risk. Players can choose between gas forward and oil-indexed contracts. Using the model, we show that (i) contracting can reduce the trade risk for both producer and midstreamer; (ii) oil-indexed contracts should be signed only when oil and gas spot prices are well correlated, otherwise, these contracts hold less interest for risk mitigation; (iii) contracts are best suited when the upstream cost structure is mainly driven by capital costs; and (iv) a high level of risk aversion from the midstreamer might deprive upstream investments and downstream consumer surplus. The online appendix is available at . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of evidence and expertise in policy-making has been of interest to public health professionals and political scientists alike. The public health community often sees its efforts as part of a linear knowledge transfer process and tends to blame itself for inadequate communication or translation of its arguments to policy-makers' language when its efforts fail. Political science, especially theories of the policy process, offer alternative perspectives to explain the success or failure of experts' preferred policy goals. This paper focuses on the concept of epistemic communities (groups of experts with a common policy goal derived from their shared knowledge) in policy-making, drawing on examples from the field of health technology assessment in Europe. By combining the parsimony and the central focus on experts of the linear knowledge transfer model with the recognition of complexity of political science, the epistemic communities concept provides a useful structure for the public health community to analyze its efforts to influence policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author comments on the paper "Alternative Monies and the Demand for Media of Exchange," by Anthony M. Santomero and John J. Seater, published in the November 2, 1996 issue of "The Journal of Money, Credit and Banking." He states that the researchers created a mathematical model with a narrow microbanking focus that examined the willingness of consumers to substitute electronic money for traditional paper-based money, and asks how the model can be used to illuminate the problem of persuading households to utilize electronic banking to a greater degree. He mentions that while Europe has adopted a smart card system quicker than the U.S., banks in the U.S. are significantly ahead in networking communications across offices, in using decision software, and in branch automation.

Background: In a context of population ageing, it is a priority for planning and prevention to understand the socioeconomic (SE) patterning of functional limitations and its consequences on healthcare needs. This paper aims at measuring the gender and SE inequalities in functional limitations and their age of onset among the Southern European elderly; then, we evaluate how functional status is linked to formal and informal care use. Methods: We used Portuguese, Italian and Spanish data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) of 2011 (n = 9233). We constructed a summary functional limitation score as the sum of two variables: i) Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and ii) Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL). We modelled the functional limitation as a function of age, gender, education, subjective poverty, employment and marital status using multinomial logit models. We then estimated how functional limitation affected informal and formal care demand using negative binomial and logistic models. Results: Women were 2.3 percentage points (pp) more likely to experience severe functional limitation than men, and overcame a 10% probability threshold of suffering from severe limitation around 5 years earlier. Subjective poverty was associated with a 3.1 pp. higher probability of severe functional limitation. Having a university degree reduced the probability of severe functional limitation by 3.5 pp. as compared to none educational level. Discrepancies were wider for the oldest old: women aged 65-79 years old were 3.3 pp. more likely to suffer severe limitations, the excess risk increasing to 15.5 pp. among those older than 80. Similarly, educational inequalities in functional limitation were wider at older ages. Being severely limited was related with a 32.1 pp. higher probability of receiving any informal care, as compared to those moderately limited. Finally, those severely limited had on average 3.2 hospitalization days and 4.6 doctor consultations more, per year, than those without limitations. Conclusion: Functional limitations are unequally distributed, hitting women and the worse-off earlier and more severely, with consequences on care needs. Considering the burden on healthcare systems and families, public health policies should seek to reduce current inequalities in functional limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Europe is undergoing rapid social change and is distinguished by its cultural superdiversity. Healthcare is facing an increasing need for professionals to adapt to this environment. Thus, the promotion of cultural competence in healthcare has become a priority. However, the training being developed and their suitability for the European context are not well known. The aim of this qualitative study has been to map the scientific literature in order to comprehend the current state of research on this topic. For this purpose, we conducted a systematic scoping review of the empirical publications focused on cultural competence interventions for healthcare professionals in European countries. The search was conducted in eight thematic (PsycINFO, MedLine, and PubPsych) and multidisciplinary databases (Academic Search Ultimate, E-Journals, Scopus, ProQuest, and Web of Science) to identify relevant publications up to 2023. Results were presented qualitatively. Out of the initial 6506 records screened, a total of 63 publications were included. Although the interventions were implemented in 23 different European countries, cultural competence interventions have not been widely adopted in Europe. Significant heterogeneity was observed in the conception and operacionalización of cultural competence models and in the implementation of the interventions. The interventions have mostly aimed at improving healthcare for minority population groups and have focused on the racial and ethnic dimensions of the individual. Future research is needed to contribute to the conceptual development of cultural competence to design programs tailored to European superdiversity. This scoping review has been registered in OSF and is available for consultation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voltage-source-converter (VSC) technologies present a bright opportunity in a variety of fields within the power system industry. New modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are expected to supersede two- and three-level VSC-based technologies for HVDC applications due to their recognized advantages in terms of scalability, performance, and efficiency. The computational burden introduced by detailed modeling of MMC-HVDC systems in electromagnetic-transients (EMT)-type programs complicates the study of transients especially when these systems are integrated into a large network. This paper presents a novel average-value model (AVM) for efficient and accurate representation of a detailed MMC–HVDC system. It also develops a detailed 401-level MMC-HVDC model for validating the AVM and studies the performance of both models when integrated into a large 400-kV transmission system in Europe. The results show that the AVM is significantly more efficient while maintaining its accuracy for the dynamic response of the overall system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A precise 3D model of the crust is necessary to start any tectonic or geodynamic interpretation. It is also essential for seismic interpretations of structures lying below as well as for correct analysis of shallow structures using reflection seismics. During the last decades, a number of wide-angle refraction experiments were performed on the territory of central and eastern Europe (POLONAISE'97, CELEBRATION 2000, SUDETES 2003), resulting in many high quality 2D models. It is an interesting and complicated transition zone between Precambrian and Palaeozoic Platforms. This paper presents 3D model of the velocity distribution in the crust and upper mantle interpolated from 2D models of the structure along 33 profiles. The obtained model extends to a depth of 50 km and accurately describes the main features of the crustal structures of Poland and surrounding areas. Different interpolation techniques (Kriging, linear) are compared to assure maximum precision. The final model with estimated uncertainty is an interesting reference of the area for other studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of the spot electricity markets in Europe shall lead to multi-area power exchanges that will substitute the local markets. In such scheme, market prices are affected by physical (e.g., network) constraints, yet they should sometimes follow regulatory policy rules, which do not necessarily reflect or depend on physical characteristics. In some cases, complex pricing rules should be implemented, which impose price discrimination for supply and demand entities within the same area. The methodology presented in this paper enables the balancing of supply and demand in a multi-area market considering energy and reserve bids, under complex pricing rules, which mix energy and reserve prices. A demand bid corresponds to the whole cost a demand entity is willing to pay for its participation in the energy market, including the cost for the procurement of the necessary reserves. The approach attains price integration of energy and reserves markets, simultaneous settlement of energy and reserves, and significant decrease of the payments through the uplift accounts. The main principle is the formulation of a mixed complementarity problem for the system equilibrium conditions, in which supply and demand are associated to explicitly or implicitly defined prices, which may be different even in the same zone. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Age-specific fertility rates can be smoothed using parametric models or splines. Alternatively a relational model can be used which relates the age profile to be fitted or projected to a standard age schedule. This paper introduces TOPALS (tool for projecting age patterns using linear splines), a new relational method that is less dependent on the choice of the standard age schedule than previous methods. TOPALS models the relationship between the age-specific fertility rates to be fitted and the standard age schedule by a linear spline. This paper uses TOPALS for smoothing fertility age profiles for 30 European countries. The use of TOPALS to create scenarios of the future level and age pattern of fertility is illustrated by applying the method to project future fertility rates for six European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the nature and details of the association that the integration of social and environmental considerations with corporate strategy has for different competitive advantages and innovation activities at the firm level. Its objective is to answer the question as to whether a positive link exists between integration and the effects of environmental and social performance on these different dimensions of economic performance. The question of the specific form of this relationship is also raised. These questions are analysed using cluster analysis and regression models. Results are presented for four different dimensions of competitive advantage, and for two types of innovation activity. These raise the possibility that the process of integration is more important for bringing about a positive link than a resulting integration type. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flood hazard is being analysed with ever-more complex models on national, continental and global scales. In this paper we investigate an alternative, simplified approach, which combines statistical and physical models in order to carry out flood mapping for Europe. Estimates of extreme river discharges made using a Bayesian Network-based model from a previous study are employed instead of rainfall-runoff models. Those data provide flood scenarios for simulation of water flow in European rivers with a catchment area above 100 km2. The simulations are performed using a one-dimensional steady-state hydraulic model and the results are post-processed using geographical information system (GIS) software in order to derive flood zones. This approach is validated by comparison with Joint Research Centre's (JRC) pan-European map and five local flood studies from different countries. Overall, both our and JRC's maps have similar performance in recreating flood zones of local maps. The simplified approach achieved similar level of accuracy, while substantially reducing the computational time. The paper also presents the summarized results from the flood hazard maps, including future projections. We find that relatively small changes in flood hazard are observed (increase of flood zones area by 2–4 %). However, when current flood protection standards are taken into account, there is a sharp increase in flood-prone area in the future (28–38 % for a 1000 year return period). This is because in many parts of Europe river discharge with the same return period is projected to increase in the future, thus making the protection standards insufficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integral attention in practice: In this paper three models of successful integration of mental health and experiences in the form of case studies, three relevant institutions will be presented in the field of mental health and integrated within the Soma & Psy network: the Hospital Consortium of Vic, the Fondation de Nant (Suïssa) and the Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Deu. Today, mental health is an emerging social need. Mental disorders are a wide range of situations of varying importance and gravity affecting every year almost 20% of the population. In this regard, WHO brand as an objective in its Action Plan on Mental that 80% of countries have developed or updated their mental health policies in accordance with international and regional human rights instruments Health 2020. A model of care for mental health problems, implies the existence of a number of community, hospital, health and social services that are managed holistically based on a specific territory or betting the three institutions. However, the application of a particular model is not always easy and you have to deal with resistance and many obstacles. Each of the institutions will present greater challenges and difficulties which have been found to implement a model of integration in mental health. Description of the paper: The Consortium of Vic Hositalari detail the geographical context of the region Osona, the story of Vic Health Consortium, as well as inclusion in the Comprehensive System Salut d'Osona. Also, the problem of a fragmented mental health care will be addressed and how it has been overcome with an assistance model quality health standards, health and mental health partner who attends a reference population of 160,000 people. From the Fondation de Nant, founded in 1943, the service young, adults and the elderly, as well as its commitment to proximity, accessibility and stigmatizing offered will be addressed. The focus is marked by a humanistic spirit to their beneficiaries and their collaborators. In the Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Deu is remarkable the evolution of the organization, founded in 1854, and addressing the synergies that have been created in recent years between physical health and mental health to provide the health center of a health model comprehensive and open to the community. The health park serves a reference population of over five million people. Results: The greatest impacts and outcomes of the three institutions will be presented in the form of case studies. The Vic Hospital Consortium will present the impact of the Integrat System Salut Osona focused on the needs of the patient as well as the changes that have occurred in Osona from the implementation of the Strategic Plan de Salut Mental in Osona. From the Fondation de Nant the result of networking and the impact of a conceptual model of integration based on proximity, accessibility and stigmatizing will be displayed. From the experience of six years of the inclusion of four-bed child and adolescent psychiatry in a pediatric service and rich experience of liaison with the same service they will be evoked the teachings of this form of integration and whys accent since the notion of link with broader than those traditionally invoked meanings. From the Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Deu major transformations in recent decades entity will be addressed in line with changes in mental health policies in Europe, specifically in Spain and Catalunya. Also, if the start of the guards at the general hospital psychiatry with other medical specialties will be detailed. Previously these guards were realized in the acute inpatient unit. Featured: The field of mental health should be an example of care model: integrated, territorially-based, community-oriented, managed by various by establishing partnerships between various actors in a territory. Conclusion: A comprehensive health model is complex, but only through mainstreaming, shared practices, territorially and focused on the patient can move toward better mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This Scoping review (ScR) builds upon the 2017 review conducted by Hansen et al which contributed to evidence base shinrin-yoku (SY), also known as forest bathing (FB), has many positive health effects and is becoming a prescribed dose (specific time spent in nature) by health care providers. Practice and research regarding SY, has been historically based in Asian countries with a recent increase in Europe. The need and call for more research worldwide continues to further the evidence of SY as a health promotion modality. Through this ScR the authors identified programmatic components, health information monitored and screened, time spent in nature, geographical regions, trends, and themes in SY research worldwide. Methods: Following PRISMA-ScR guidelines we searched across 7 electronic databases for SY or FB research articles from 2017 through 2022. PubMed, CINAHL, PsycInfo, ScienceDirect, SCOPUS, Embase, JSTOR were included due to the interdisciplinary nature of SY or FB research. Each database provided unique strengths ensuring a capture of a wide range of articles. The resulting articles were screened and extracted through Covidence. Results: Database searches returned 241 results, with 110 references removed during the deduplication process, 131 were initially screened in the title and abstract review stage. Resulting in 82 unique results deemed relevant and screened in full text. During the final stage of the review, 63 articles met all inclusion criteria and were extracted for data. Conclusions: The practice of SY has physiological (PHYS) and psychological (PSYCH) benefits across age groups. Research findings indicate either the natural or the virtual environment (VW) has significant health benefits. Continued research is encouraged globally for short- and long-term health outcomes for all individuals. The connection with nature benefits the mind, body and soul and is supported by Henry David Thoreau's philosophy: "Our livesneed the relief of where the pine flourishes and the jay still scream." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous investigations have revealed the unsafety of the current calculation methods in Eurocode 4 for evaluating the fire resistance of concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) columns, which has given place to a movement in Europe for correcting the existing methods and developing new design rules. In order to support the development of new guidance, further experimental research is needed, especially concerning slender columns and large eccentricities. In this paper, the results of a series of fire tests on slender CFST columns of different section shape (circular and square) subjected to large eccentricities are presented. The influence of the cross-section shape, load eccentricity and percentage of reinforcement on the response of these columns at elevated temperatures is studied in this paper, focusing on the effect of large eccentricities combined with high slenderness. On the basis of the experimental results, the current design rules in Eurocode 4 are assessed, and a previous calculation method developed by the authors is also evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of mixed municipal waste changes due to the increase of separation rate, urbanization and other factors. The future changes in the legislation and technology development influences the way the waste is being treated. Thus the method, location and capacity of processing sites are unknown. The realization of future projects can be supported by the developing of transportation infrastructure. Such a feature may be represented by a robust transfer station grid, which can be designed to handle all possible future realizations and technological solutions (establishment of waste treatment facilities). The paper presents an approach utilising a mathematical model for the design of transfer stations. It is formulated as a multi-objective two-stage mixed-integer stochastic programming problem, where the trade-off between the environmental aspect and the economic viability is considered. The model is tested through a case study for the Czech Republic, where the waste treatment of over 6,000 municipalities is analysed. The solutions for different preferences are assessed throughout the principle called out-of-sample stability with 10,000 scenarios. The optimal decision consists of the robust transfer station grid with selected locations and their respective capacity. The particular solution with respect to the potential trade-off suggests to save 1.148 mil of travelled kilometres with only 0.77 mil EUR. The output in the form of decision support can serve possible stakeholders from the field of waste management to plan more sustainable projects. • A transfer station grid designed to handle future realizations and developments. • The efficiency of waste transport was analysed for more than 6000 municipalities. • A trade-off between environmental aspects and the economic viability was considered. • A solution suggests to save travelled 1.148 mil km with only extra 0.77 mil EUR. • Introduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Recently, Chinese carriers entered the Australia–Europe route, a market currently served by several established airlines. The paper aims to explore and identify the contextual factors affecting the choice of China-based carriers for long-haul travel. The paper's innovation is in the way it uses the online comments made by readers of an aviation news article. In doing so, the paper highlights the advantages and limitations of such a data source and the full range of positive and negative perceptions about Chinese airlines as recorded by potential and actual travelers. This study highlights that in order to understand flight choice, it is worthwhile to consider the conventional itinerary choice factors in the context of the socio-cultural and historical influences. For researchers, the paper provides some evidence that air travelers apply compensatory decision rule in making airline choices. This supports the validity of the assumption of random-utility based choice models used in the study of air travel behavior. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background High levels of sedentary behavior are often measured in preschoolers, but only a few interventions have been developed to counteract this. Furthermore, detailed descriptions of interventions in preschoolers targeting different forms of sedentary behavior could not be located in the literature. The aim of the present paper was to describe the different steps of the Intervention Mapping Protocol used towards the development of an intervention component of the ToyBox-study focusing on decreasing preschoolers' sedentary behavior. The ToyBoxstudy focuses on the prevention of overweight in 4- to 6-year-old children by implementing a multi-component kindergarten-based intervention with family involvement in six different European countries. Methods Applying the Intervention Mapping Protocol, six different steps were systematically completed for the structured planning and development of the intervention. A literature search and results from focus groups with parents/caregivers and kindergarten teachers were used as a guide during the development of the intervention and the intervention materials. Results The application of the different steps in the Intervention Mapping Protocol resulted in the creation of matrices of change objectives, followed by the selection of practical applications for five different intervention tools that could be used at the individual level of the preschool child, at the interpersonal level (i.e., parents/caregivers) and at the organizational level (i.e., kindergarten teachers). No cultural differences regarding preschoolers' sedentary behavior were identified between the participating countries during the focus groups, so cultural and local adaptations of the intervention materials were not necessary to improve the adoption and implementation of the intervention. Conclusions A systematic and evidence-based approach was used for the development of this kindergarten-based family-involved intervention targeting preschoolers, with the inclusion of parental involvement. The application of the Intervention Mapping Protocol may lead to the development of more effective interventions. The detailed intervention matrices that were developed as part of the ToyBox-study can be used by other researchers as an aid in order to avoid repetitive work for the design of similar interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a wide variety of flood damage models in use internationally, differing substantially in their approaches and economic estimates. Since these models are being used more and more as a basis for investment and planning decisions on an increasingly large scale, there is a need to reduce the uncertainties involved and develop a harmonised European approach, in particular with respect to the EU Flood Risks Directive. In this paper we present a qualitative and quantitative assessment of seven flood damage models, using two case studies of past flood events in Germany and the United Kingdom. The qualitative analysis shows that modelling approaches vary strongly, and that current methodologies for estimating infrastructural damage are not as well developed as methodologies for the estimation of damage to buildings. The quantitative results show that the model outcomes are very sensitive to uncertainty in both vulnerability (i.e. depth--damage functions) and exposure (i.e. asset values), whereby the first has a larger effect than the latter. We conclude that care needs to be taken when using aggregated land use data for flood risk assessment, and that it is essential to adjust asset values to the regional economic situation and property characteristics. We call for the development of a flexible but consistent European framework that applies best practice from existing models while providing room for including necessary regional adjustments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many European countries different types of policy reforms intending to encourage growth in the domestic service sector have been introduced. The methods and reforms differ but mainly the reforms intend to stimulate growth of a 'new' legal labour market sector within private households. This potential growth sector in combination with insufficient or declining welfare states, inclining female labour market participation and ageing populations could be viewed as explanatory factors to the increased demand for domestic services. A growing amount of those performing paid domestic work in European homes are migrant women with or without papers. The aim of this article is to create a model that enables comparisons of these reforms, with a special focus on changing social organizations of care for elders, children and other dependent persons. Included in the analysis are European countries that have introduced wide domestic service policy reforms as measurement to encourage growth in the domestic service sector, i.e. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are numerous useful methods that can be conducted in data analysis in order to check data correctness and authenticity. One of contemporary and efficient methods is application of so-called Benford's Law. In this paper we examine ways of application of this law in investigation of specific net income number set. Our aim is to make a conclusion if this number set conforms to Benford's Law. An examination target focus is set on values of top 500 central and east European companies according to their income. Data set contains 1,500 records and spans through 3 years (2007, 2008 and 2009) including 500 net incomes per year. Research is based on net income profit and loss subsets as well as absolute values of net income. Analysis covers first digit Benford's Law test and proves conformance to Benford's Law of all observed subsets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at investigating empirically the relationship between self-declared satisfaction with life and an individual's well-being as measured by the indices of deprivation and social exclusion proposed in the income distribution literature. Results on European countries show that life satisfaction decreases with an increase in deprivation and exclusion after controlling for individual's income, relative income and other influential factors in a multivariate setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes aerosol modelling in Europe with a focus on Switzerland during summer and winter periods. We modelled PM2.5 (particles smaller than 2.5 µm in aerodynamic diameter) for one summer and two winter periods in years 2006 and 2007 using the CAMx air quality model. The meteorological fields were obtained from MM5 simulations. The modelled wind speeds during some lowwind periods, however, had to be calibrated with measurements to use realistic input for the air quality model. The detailed AMS (aerosol mass spectrometer) measurements at specific locations were used to evaluate the model results. In addition to the base case simulations, we carried out sensitivity tests with modified aerosol precursor emissions, air temperature and deposition. Aerosol concentrations in winter 2006 were twice as high as those in winter 2007, however, the chemical compositions were similar. CAMx could reproduce the relative composition of aerosols very well both in the winter and summer periods. Absolute concentrations of aerosol species were underestimated by about 20 %. Both measurements and model results suggest that organic aerosol (30-38 %) and particulate nitrate (30-36 %) are the main aerosol components in winter. In summer, organic aerosol dominates the aerosol composition (55-57 %) and is mainly of secondary origin. The contribution of biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC) emissions to the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) was predicted to be very large (>95 %) in Switzerland. The main contributors to the modelled SOA concentrations were oxidation products of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes as well as oligomerization of oxidized compounds. The fraction of primary organic aerosol (POA) derived from measurements was lower than the model predictions indicating the importance of volatility of POA, which has not yet been taken into account in CAMx. Sensitivity tests with reduced NOx and NH3 emissions suggest that aerosol formation is more sensitive to ammonia emissions in winter in a large part of Europe. In Switzerland however, aerosol formation is predicted to be NOx-sensitive. In summer, effects of NOx and NH3 emission reductions on aerosol concentrations are predicted to be lower mostly due to lower ammonium nitrate concentrations. In general, the sensitivity to NH3 emissions is weaker in summer due to higher NH3 emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deriving a parameterisation of ammonia emissions for use in chemistry-transport models (CTMs) is a complex problem as the emission varies locally as a result of local climate and local agricultural management. In current CTMs such factors are generally not taken into account. This paper demonstrates how local climate and local management can be accounted for in CTMs by applying a modular approach for deriving data as input to a dynamic ammonia emission model for Europe. Default data are obtained from information in the RAINS system, and it is demonstrated how this dynamic emission model based on these input data improves the NH3 calculations in a CTM model when the results are compared with calculations obtained by traditional methods in emission handling. It is also shown how input data can be modified over a specific target region resulting in even further improvement in performance over this domain. The model code and the obtained default values for the modelling experiments are available as supplementary information to this article for use by the modelling community on similar terms as the EMEP CTM model: the GPL licencse v3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of “reference conditions” describes the benchmark against which current conditions are compared when assessing the status of water bodies. In this paper we focus on the establishment of reference conditions for European lakes according to a phytoplankton biomass indicator—the concentration of chlorophyll- a. A mostly spatial approach (selection of existing lakes with no or minor human impact) was used to set the reference conditions for chlorophyll- a values, supplemented by historical data, paleolimnological investigations and modelling. The work resulted in definition of reference conditions and the boundary between “high” and “good” status for 15 main lake types and five ecoregions of Europe: Alpine, Atlantic, Central/Baltic, Mediterranean, and Northern. Additionally, empirical models were developed for estimating site-specific reference chlorophyll- a concentrations from a set of potential predictor variables. The results were recently formulated into the EU legislation, marking the first attempt in international water policy to move from chemical quality standards to ecological quality targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A major bottleneck for data-based policy making is that data sources are collected, managed, and distributed by different institutions, residing in different locations, resulting in conceptual and practical problems. The use of dispersed data for agricultural systems research requires the integration of data sources, which means to ensure consistency in data interpretations, units, spatial and temporal scales, to respect legal regulations of privacy, ownership and copyright, and to enable easy dissemination of data. This paper describes the SEAMLESS integrated database on European agricultural systems. It contains data on cropping patterns, production, farm structural data, soil and climate conditions, current agricultural management and policy information. To arrive at one integrated database, a shared ontology was developed according to a collaborative process, which facilitates interdisciplinary research. The paper details this process, which can be re-used in other research projects for integrating data sources. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The aim of this paper is to present a teaching experience developed in the Polytechnic University of Cartagena and, more specifically, in the subject of Mathematical Methods Applied to Civil Engineering, that belongs to the Master Degree of Paths, Channels and Ports. Our classes were a mix between the traditional system and the new educational system. Moreover, we tried to adapt the evaluation process to the new European Framework for Higher Education. We have used videos developed by us and by students in our classes. We have noticed that the interest and motivation in class has grown. Also the grades have improved. We did a survey during this academic year and the results were strongly positive for both students and teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper describes a 44-year (from 1958 to 2001) wave hindcast conducted for the North Atlantic, using a fine grid in the North East Atlantic coastal areas of Europe. The wind fields were obtained by a local area model that was applied in the areas adjacent to the European coasts, which was forced by the results of the NCEP reanalysis. While the NCEP results have a spatial distribution of 2° and a time step of 6 h the wind fields produced by the local area model have a spatial resolution of 0.5° and a time step of 1 h, which is important for accurate descriptions of the conditions in coastal areas and in rapidly changing storms. A version of the WAM model that allowed two-way nesting was adopted and calculations were made with nested grids allowing a fine resolution in the coastal areas of Europe. This paper includes the description of the set-up of the wave model and the validation performed vs. in-situ measurements so as to allow assessments of the quality of the data produced in this study. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

For the purpose of short-term forecasting of high ozone concentration episodes stochastic models have been suggested and developed in the literature. The present paper compares the quality of forecasts produced by a grey box and a component time-series model. The summer ozone patterns for three European urban areas (two continental and one mediterranean) are processed. By means of forecast performance indices according to EC and WHO guidelines, the following features of the models could be found: The grey box model is highly adaptive and produces forecasts with low error variance that increases with the time horizon of forecast. The component model is more 'stiff' that results in a higher forecast-error variance and poorer adaption in detail. The forecast horizon, however, could be enlarged with this model. The accuracy of predicting threshold exceedance is similar for both models. This can be understood from the assumption of a cyclical time development of ozone that was made for both models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indirect methods for the indirect estimation of reference intervals are increasingly being used, especially for validation of reference intervals, as they can be applied to routine patient data. In this study, we compare three statistically different indirect methods for the verification and validation of reference intervals in eight laboratories distributed throughout Europe. The RefLim method is a fast and simple approach which calculates the reference intervals by extrapolating the theoretical 95 % of non-pathological values from the central linear part of a quantile-quantile plot. The Truncated Maximum Likelihood (TML) method estimates a smoothed kernel density function for the distribution of the mixed data, for which it is assumed that the "central" part of the distribution represents the healthy population. The refineR utilizes an inverse modelling approach. This algorithm identifies a model that best explains the observed data before transforming the data with the Box-Cox transformation. We show that the different indirect methods each have their advantages but can also lead to inaccurate or ambiguous results depending on the approximation of the mathematical model to real-world data. A combination of different methodologies can improve the informative value and thus the reliability of results. Based on routine measurements of four enzymes alkaline phosphatase (ALP), total amylase (AMY), cholinesterase (CHE) and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) in adult women and men, we demonstrate that some reference limits taken from the literature need to be adapted to the laboratory's particular local and population characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout the United States and Europe, demand for airport use has been increasing rapidly, while airport capacity has been stagnating. Over the last ten years the number of passengers has increased by more than 50 percent and is expected to continue increasing at this rate. Acute congestion in many major airports has been the unfortunate result. For U.S. airlines, the expected yearly cost of the resulting delays is currently estimated at $3 billion. In order to put this number in perspective, the total reported losses of all U.S. airlines amounted to approximately $2 billion in 1991 and $2.5 billion in 1990. Furthermore, every day 700 to 1100 flights are delayed by 15 minutes or more. European airlines are in a similar plight. Optimally controlling the flow of aircraft either by adjusting their release times into the network (ground-holding) or their speed once they are airborne is a cost effective method to reduce the impact of congestion on the air traffic system. This paper makes the following contributions: (a) we build a model that takes into account the capacities of the National Airspace System (NAS) as well as the capacities at the airports, and we show that the resulting formulation is rather strong as some of the proposed inequalities are facet defining for the convex hull of solutions; (b) we address the complexity of the problem; (c) we extend that model to account for several variations of the basic problem, most notably, how to reroute flights and how to handle banks in the hub and spoke system; (d) we show that by relaxing some of our constraints we obtain a previously addressed problem and that the LP relaxation bound of our formulation is at least as strong when compared to all others proposed in the literature for this problem; and (e) we solve large scale, realistic size problems with several thousand flights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, a mathematical model capable of simulating the heat transfer of cylindrical vessels whose properties are dependent on temperature is proposed. As a case study, it compares, from an approach of their heat transfer and chemical migration characteristics as a function of the temperature reached, different materials commonly used for the manufacture of water bottles. More specifically, the materials studied were aluminium, polyethylene terephthalate, and polypropylene. The validation of the model consists of an experiment carried out in the laboratory with three water bottles of each of the materials under study, as well as simulations using the Network Simulation Method to recreate the heat transfer that occurs through the walls of the bottles. On the other hand, the nondimensionalization technique is also applied, which allows us to obtain the weight of each of the variables on the problem, as well as the existing relationship between them. Finally, an outside temperature of 30 °C to 50 °C is simulated, which is a common temperature range in southern Europe during the summer season, and an initial temperature of 20 °C for the water contained in the bottle to know the behaviour of the materials and what the final temperature of the water would be after one hour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Exclusive breastfeeding is the optimal infant nutrition, providing infants immunoprotection against many diseases including SARS-CoV-2 infection. Restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic may have negatively affected breastfeeding practices in maternity care facilities. The aims of the study were to examine exclusive breastfeeding rates at discharge over time and to identify factors associated with exclusive breastfeeding during the pandemic. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among mothers who gave birth in a maternity care facility in the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. The socio-ecological model was employed to examine intrapersonal, interpersonal, organizational, and community/society factors associated with maternal report of exclusive breastfeeding at the time of discharge. Results: There were 26,709 participating mothers from 17 European Region countries who were included in the analysis. Among the mothers, 72.4% (n = 19,350) exclusively breastfed and 27.6% (n = 7,359) did not exclusively breastfeed at discharge. There was an overall decline in exclusive breastfeeding rates over time (p = 0.015) with a significantly lower rate following the publication of the WHO breastfeeding guidelines on 23 June 2020 (AOR 0.88; 95% CI 0.82, 0.94). Factors significantly associated with exclusive breastfeeding outcomes in the logistic regression analysis included maternal age, parity, education, health insurance, mode of birth, inadequate breastfeeding support, lack of early breastfeeding initiation, lack of full rooming-in, birth attendant, perceived healthcare professionalism and attention, facility room cleanliness, timing of birth, and location of birth. Conclusions: Results from the study indicate the decline in exclusive breastfeeding rates in the WHO European Region during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the socio-ecological model to identify factors associated with breastfeeding outcomes facilitates an integrated and holistic approach to address breastfeeding needs among women across the region. These findings demonstrate the need to augment breastfeeding support and to protect exclusive breastfeeding among mother-infant dyads, in an effort to reverse the declining exclusive breastfeeding rates. The study highlights the need to educate mothers and their families about the importance of exclusive breastfeeding, reduce maternal-infant separation, increase professional breastfeeding support, and follow evidence-based practice guidelines to promote breastfeeding in a comprehensive and multi-level manner. Trial registration number: Clinical Trials NCT04847336. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Convex hull pricing is a well-documented method for coping with the non-existence of uniform clearing prices in electricity markets with non-convex costs and constraints. We revisit primal and dual methods for computing convex hull prices, and discuss the positioning of existing approximation methods in this taxonomy. We propose a dual decomposition algorithm known as the Level Method and we adapt the basic algorithm to the specificities of convex hull pricing. We benchmark its performance against a column generation algorithm that has recently been proposed in the literature. We provide empirical evidence about the favorable performance of our algorithm on large test instances based on PJM and Central Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper deals with the management problem how to decide on tree species suitability under changing environmental conditions. It presents an algorithm that classifies the output of a range shift model for major tree species in Europe into multiple classes that can be linked to qualities characterizing the ecological niche of the species. The classes: i) Core distribution area, ii) Extended distribution area, iii) Occasional occurrence area, and iv) No occurrence area are first theoretically developed and then statistically described. The classes are interpreted from an ecological point of view using criteria like population structure, competitive strength, site spectrum and vulnerability to biotic hazards. The functioning of the algorithm is demonstrated using the example of a generalized linear model that was fitted to a pan-European dataset of presence/absence of major tree species with downscaled climate data from a General Circulation Model (GCM). Applications of the algorithm to tree species suitability classification on a European and regional level are shown. The thresholds that are used by the algorithm are precision-based and include Cohen's Kappa. A validation of the algorithm using an independent dataset of the German National Forest Inventory shows good accordance of the statistically derived classes with ecological traits for Norway spruce, while the differentiation especially between core and extended distribution for European beech that is in the centre of its natural range in this area is less accurate. We hypothesize that for species in the core of their range regional factors like forest history superimpose climatic factors. Problems of uncertainty issued from potentially applying a multitude of modelling approaches and/or climate realizations within the range shift model are discussed and a way to deal with the uncertainty by revealing the underlying attitude towards risk of the decision maker is proposed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An analysis of Bošković's early paper concerned with the polar light (aurora borealis) gives an insight into the validity of the mathematical method which the young Bošković applied to significant geophysical phenomena in order to comprehend their nature. Based on the given data, we have examined numerical results about the height of atmosphere and the heights of the auroras which were observed over Europe in 1726 and in 1737. In his text there is not a single mathematical formula. Following his instructions we have derived a formula which may be used to determine the distance of an aurora by observing it from one station. For the assumed aurora model, his method is applicable. We find that described ideas on the physical cause of aurora, conceived in a fluid coming from the sun, have elements of modern knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Energy efficiency in buildings is essential for economic, social, and environmental reasons. Under current European legislation, buildings have to be certified with an energy efficiency index. To provide a fair comparison of the energy performance in buildings we need a global and unified representation. In this paper we propose the Energy Efficiency Ontology (EEOnt) to provide a foundation upon which this requirement can be built. EEOnt extends the applicability of other ontological models of buildings incorporating energy efficiency data and knowledge that can be calculated with high spatial and temporal resolution in what we call an Energy Efficiency Landscape (EELB). These EELB''s provide significant information which allows a detailed diagnosis of the energy efficiency within the building. Consequently, EEOnt is capable of representing buildings and energy efficiency in a unified way. Furthermore, it supplies a tool for managing the energy efficiency in buildings and constructing national inventories. These two features link the global and particular needs of governments and users, thus becoming key to both improve the energy efficiency in buildings and to implement viable certification schemes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Black-Scholes model is a renowned pricing method for European options. Weather derivatives are a financial product at the convergence of the insurance and stock markets that are at the present of a high level of interest. This product can hedge and be a profitable investment at the same time, and can be used on its own or as part of a portfolio. In this paper we wish to analyze if and how the Black-Scholes model applies to Weather derivatives. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]