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ENERGY

2:13 AM |


In the late 1970s, Resources for the Future produced a set of landmark studies on America’s energy situation. Many of the studies’ major points remain as cogent today as they were then, including the dangers of “picking winners” among competing energy technologies, the need to take into account the full costs associated with different technology options, and the importance of the right price signals.
High prices, the climate challenge, and concern about geostrategic implications of U.S. dependence on oil, have placed energy once again near the top of the public agenda.   RFF research on energy focuses on key sectors, including electric power, transportation, and agriculture, as well as evaluating policy options to promote the development and implementation of new technologies.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION

2:08 AM |



Analysis of regulations cuts across Resources for the Future, whether looking at regulations to address energy use, air and water quality, fisheries management, transportation, or energy use, among many other issues.
RFF research has made significant contributions to the development of incentive-based regulatory approaches and improved techniques for measuring the costs and benefits of regulation. In applied settings, RFF scholars have analyzed the performance of specific regulatory programs and performed comparative studies of different regulatory approaches, as well as alternatives to regulation like voluntary programs and public disclosure efforts.

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Function Discontinuity Detection and Location

12:21 AM |


Graphics systems do not generally provide primitives for drawing general smooth curves. The most commonly used technique is to approximate the curve by a connected piece wise straight-line "polyline".
In R the curve defined by the function f over the interval [a,b] could be drawn as follows.
x = seq(a, b, length = 1000)
y = f(x)
plot(x, y, type = "n")
lines(x, y)
If the function f is discontinuous this approach fails (e.g. consider the function f(x) = 1/x on the interval [-1,1]).
The purpose of this topic is to explore techniques for automatically detecting and locating function discontinuities and drawing the function over the intervals between the discontinuities.
The project could be taken further by developing methods for detecting and locating sharp "corners" in a function's graph. This amounts to finding the discontinuities in the derivative f'(x).
To take on this project you will need to be a competent R programmer (i.e. have completed or be doing 782) and be familiar with notions like "discontinuity", "derivative", "smooth" etc.

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AIR QUALITY

12:07 AM |



Despite significant progress of over the last three decades, air quality remains a significant environmental problem in the U.S. and other developed countries.  With low-cost emission reductions strategies already in place and epidemiological evidence showing a greater threat from air pollutants than previously recognized, regulators are struggling to find the tools to make continued improvements in air quality.
Current research at Resources for the Future assesses the costs and benefits of air quality regulations and examines the potential for innovative regulatory approaches, like incentive-based mechanisms, to achieve reductions fairly and efficiently. Increasingly RFF researchers are turning their attention to policy in developing countries, where urban air quality often poses a serious health threat.

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WASTE MANAGEMENT AND SITE CLEANUP

12:03 AM |


 Many different kinds of wastes are generated in this country: by consumers, businesses, and government. Each of these wastes has different kinds of properties and is subject to different regulatory regimes. The Resource, Conservation and Recovery Act is the primary federal statute that regulates the management and disposition of wastes. Superfund and Brownfields legislation govern how contaminated sites are cleaned up.  And many states have their own laws governing these and other waste issues.
Research at Resources for the Future looks at the full range of policy challenges: from programs to encourage recycling of solid waste to programs and policies to deal with contaminated sites. Topics  include brownfields, the federal superfund program, and nuclear weapon facilities.

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Insights & Reflections about the poem "Desiderata" by Mac Ehrmann

11:20 PM |

          After reading the poem, many words stroke me. I realized many facts and lessons about life. For me, Desiderata is a poem worth reading. It gives inspiration to everyone especially to the people who are lost and feel that they're hopeless. And as I am reading the poem, every word comes into my heart.
         "Live. Laugh. Love." As the poem says, be yourself. Do whatever you want to do. Don't mind other's opinion. It's your own life. Cherish every moment. Every success, every failure, every memory. 'Cause it only comes once. Don't try to impress others. You are put in this world to express not to impress. And even though you fall, stand up! Nobody will help you but yourself. Don't depend to others. You have your own mind. And love everything. Love your family. Love your friends. Love your haters. Love all the people around you. And be thankful to all of them because with them, you are yourself now. Don't judge the people and things around you. You don't know them. Look at them at their good side and not at their negative side for someday, you will be thankful to them for coming into your life. Learn also to accept failure. Because once you're in the top, means you're always there. You should learn in your mistakes. For they will serve as a lesson for you someday. Smile and be happy. Everyone deserves to be happy! Everyone deserves to be inspired. Being happy doesn't need any reasons. You woke up this morning, it's a reason for you to be happy. God had given you another day to live.
           Go. Go explore the world. Live your life to the fullest. All of us have given time for us to live. All we can do is to use that 'time' wisely. Don't lose any chances. 'Cause maybe that chance happens just once. We are all put here to be happy. To learn. And to be a part of this peaceful world. We have our own roles. We have our own stories. And I believe in happy endings. When you're not happy, well it's not yet the end. Strive harder! To make your life meaningful!Leave all the fears behind. Do what makes you happy. Forget all the worries. We're not getting any younger. The opportunities today might not be there forever.
            Do your best always. That's all you can do to prevent regretting. And I believed that, 'everything happens for a reason'. God must put you there for a reason. And you know why are you here? For you to find out what's that reason is.

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