Ontologies as Filters

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurt Cagle
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
The Us ◽  
Privacy Legislation ◽  
Knowledge Graphs ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

The Covid-19 pandemic, in addition to affecting public health, has highlighted the challenges involved in attempting to collect, curate, and disseminate data sets throughout the US, the EU, and the UK. Wildly divergent datasets require an incredible amount of effort both to harmonize the contents and to comply with privacy legislation such as the GDPR. A potential federated solution might be built around knowledge graphs that could act as both data catalogs and harmonizing proxies. Such an application could be launched quickly and could work across multiple open source and commercial platforms. This talk is intended to discuss that process and to illustrate how it applies to the markup world as well when dealing with narrative information.

Biopesticide Summit – Regulatory Reform of Biopesticides, Virtual Conference, 6th July 2021

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 168-170
Author(s):  
Robin Blake
Keyword(s):  
Market Share ◽  
Regulatory System ◽  
Regulatory Reform ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Media ◽  
Virtual Conference ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Chemical Pesticides ◽  
The Eu

This virtual event was held as a follow-up to the inaugural Biopesticide Summit and Exhibition at Swansea University in July 2019, and postponed in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Sarah Harding, Communication Director at The World BioProtection Forum (WBF) & Biopesticide Summit opened the event with a few brief words of introduction before handing over to Dr Minshad Ansari, Chairman of the WBF.<br/> Dr Ansari was delighted with the more than 150 attendees already logged into the event with over 300 registered. The WBF was created in 2019 as a non-profit organization to bring together industry and academia for innovation. Dr Ansari thanked the event's supporters – AgBio, Agri Life, Bayer, Bionema, Ecolibrium Biologicals, Koppert Biological Systems, Harry Butler Institute and Sri BioAesthetics, as well as the media partners including Outlooks on Pest Management. He reiterated the need for regulatory reform due to removal of chemical pesticides, demands for organic food, limited biopesticide products registered and a lengthy and costly biopesticide registration process (5 years in EU where there are just 60 products available vs. 2.1 years in USA and where over 200 products are already available on market). The US is clearly in a much better place; in Europe, it is too expensive for SMEs and little progress has been made despite the work of the IBMA (International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association) and others. With respect to the biopesticides market share (value) by region, Europe has 27.7% market share (21.3% CAGR) and yet within UK, the CAGR is limited (unlike other European countries) – there are few products available in the market compared to chemical pesticides. The current biopesticide regulation is complex and not fit for purpose (compare 60 vs 200). Industry is facing a serious problem with pest control following the removal of some chemical pesticides, e.g.European cranefly which has caused many problems to the turf industry and has been impacted by the removal of chlorpyrifos. However, Brexit provides opportunities in the UK through government plans to "Build Back Better" by supporting Green Tech. At the EU level, the EU has committed to reducing use of pesticides by 50% (equating to 505 products) by 2030 so there are opportunities here for biopesticides to fill the market.<br/> Dr Ansari finished his introduction by restating the objectives for the meeting: for the speakers to present and debate the need for reform, their visions for a successful regulatory system, and how the WBF is working towards process reform in UK biopesticide regulation.

Wind energy

2007 ◽  
Vol 365 (1853) ◽  
pp. 957-970 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.E Leithead
Keyword(s):  
Wind Energy ◽  
Current Drive ◽  
Department Of Energy ◽  
The Us ◽  
Technical Issues ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Renewable Energy Generation ◽  
Expected Increase ◽  
Eu Commission ◽  
The Eu

From its rebirth in the early 1980s, the rate of development of wind energy has been dramatic. Today, other than hydropower, it is the most important of the renewable sources of power. The UK Government and the EU Commission have adopted targets for renewable energy generation of 10 and 12% of consumption, respectively. Much of this, by necessity, must be met by wind energy. The US Department of Energy has set a goal of 6% of electricity supply from wind energy by 2020. For this potential to be fully realized, several aspects, related to public acceptance, and technical issues, related to the expected increase in penetration on the electricity network and the current drive towards larger wind turbines, need to be resolved. Nevertheless, these challenges will be met and wind energy will, very likely, become increasingly important over the next two decades. An overview of the technology is presented.

scholarly journals Wholegrain health claims in Europe

2003 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 161-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
David P. Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Protective Effect ◽  
Health Claims ◽  
Whole Grain ◽  
Health Implications ◽  
Joint Health ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Grain Foods ◽  
The Eu

Wholegrain foods are important sources of nutrients and phyto-protective components, which are in short supply in many member states of the EU, including the UK. Encouraging the public to increase consumption of whole-grain foods is a positive health message that has critical public health implications. In February 2002 the UK Joint Health Claims Initiative (JHCI) published its authoritative endorsement that whole-grain foods are associated with a healthy heart (Joint Health Claims Initiative, 2002). This new health claim reflects a similar one in the USA based on the accumulation of epidemiological evidence between 1996 and 2001 from several very large cohort studies in the USA, Finland and Norway, which show a consistent protective effect of whole grain and reduced risk of CHD. The JHCI code of practice on health claims requires that the claimed benefit must be scientifically valid, with evidence supporting efficacy of the food in human consumers, under typical conditions of use. The evidence-based approach consists of the identification of studies, an evaluation of individual references, a critical evaluation of the totality of the evidence and a statement that there is significant scientific agreement to establish the validity of the claim. The studies suggest that an intake of three servings per d may have an important cardio-protective effect. The development of a process for the substantiation of health claims in the UK and in the EU is important to underpin regulatory developments, which should protect the consumer, promote fair trade and encourage innovation in the food industry. The present paper sets out the format of the scientific dossier that was presented to the JHCI and includes a call to promote further research to identify the important protective components in the whole grain ‘package’ and the biological mechanisms behind the observed beneficial effects on health. The major sources of whole grain in the UK are bread and breakfast cereals, and >90% of adults in the UK consume less than three servings per d. Increasing the variety and availability of acceptable whole-grain foods could lead to greater consumption levels, which has important public health implications and offers an attractive and food-based dietary strategy for targeting the whole population.

Unstable politics may make trade deals uncertain

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Financial Services ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
National Elections ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
Ideological Divergence ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Trade Deals ◽  
Trade Partners ◽  
The Eu

Subject Politics and trade talks. Significance Understanding the factors that determine how long trade negotiations take will help businesses navigate the uncertainty, as the UK government prepares to negotiate trade agreements once it leaves the EU. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU took seven years to finalise. Less comprehensive renegotiations of international agreements can be shorter, including the US-Mexico-Canada agreement, which took less than two years. Impacts UK sectors highly exposed to the EU or United States, including automotive and financial services, face prolonged investment uncertainty. Timing of national elections, lobbying and the ideological divergence between trade partners will determine post-Brexit trade deal talks. Continued polarisation of major economies' electorates will delay or stop other global deals, including on foreign aid and climate change.

The Globalization of Carbon Trading: Transnational Business Coalitions in Climate Politics

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 26-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Meckling
Keyword(s):  
Global Climate ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Policy Instrument ◽  
Carbon Trading ◽  
Environmental Groups ◽  
Climate Politics ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

Over the past decade, carbon trading has emerged as the policy instrument of choice in the industrialized world to address global climate change. In this article I argue that a transnational business coalition, representing mostly energy firms and energy-intensive manufacturers, actively promoted the global rise of carbon trading. In this process, business was able to draw on the support of government allies and business-oriented environmental groups, particularly in the UK and the US. Alongside its allies, the coalition had pivotal influence in the internationalization of carbon trading through the Kyoto Protocol, in the U-turn of the EU from skeptic to frontrunner on carbon trading and in the re-import of carbon trading to the US. While business was not able to prevent mandatory emission controls, it was able to critically affect the regulatory style of climate policy in favor of low-cost, market-based options.

London

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Roberts
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
Financial Regulation ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
Services Sector ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Global Financial Crisis ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

At the onset of the Global Financial Crisis in 2007 London was one of the two foremost global financial centres, along with New York. London experienced a 12 per cent fall in wholesale financial services jobs in 2008–9, but a recovery got underway in 2010 and London’s wholesale financial services sector staged a wavering advance. But now there were new challenges, in particular the avalanche of financial regulation coming from the UK, the EU, the US and the G20. Fintech engendered new uncertainties. The impact of Brexit was uncertain, but mostly expected to be negative, at least in the short-term. Furthermore, there was growing competition from Asian and other financial centres. Nevertheless, London remained pre-eminent as one of the two largest global concentrations of wholesale financial services activity and at the top of the Global Financial Centres Index.

Productivity and Convergence in the EU

2002 ◽  
Vol 180 ◽  
pp. 72-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary O'Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Environment ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Favourable Effect ◽  
Individual Member ◽  
Postwar Period ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

For most of the postwar period both labour and total factor productivity growth in the EU was higher than in the US. The 1990s witnessed a change in this trend with the US experiencing higher growth rates for the first time in decades. This was partly due to the end of catch-up growth as many larger EU Member States had reached US levels by the beginning of the decade with also some evidence of a higher ‘New Economy’ impact in the US. The productivity record of the UK was poor relative to its major European competitors throughout most of the postwar period, although this relative decline appears to have come to an end. This paper presents figures on relative productivity for the total EU and individual Member States in the 1990s. Both postwar convergence and trends in the 1990s are discussed in terms of a number of factors which result in the emergence of differences across European countries. These include the skill composition of the workforce, the rate of introduction of new technology and the institutional environment in which firms operate. The latter include the stability of the macroeconomic environment and aspects of competition and regulation. The paper concludes that trends in productivity largely reflect long-term structural aspects but that EMU membership might have a small favourable effect on UK productivity.

How Britain Will React to a WTO-Based Brexit

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Minford
Keyword(s):  
Financial Contribution ◽  
The Us ◽  
The World ◽  
Trading Partners ◽  
State Behaviour ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

Abstract The government of Boris Johnson has restarted negotiations with the EU over the proposed Withdrawal Agreement. If these fail the UK will exit without an agreed trade deal. This exit would not however be ‘lawless’, with unknown and chaotic consequences. Trade is governed in both the UK and the EU by WTO rules and these are highly prescriptive, preventing both sides from imposing border hold-ups and imposing arbitrary new standards on exporters whose products have long satisfied existing standards. Chaos produced by such state behaviour would be illegal and so is highly unlikely. Consequently such a ‘no deal’ would lead to the speediest Brexit, and avoid any UK financial contribution. It would also allow the rapid conclusion of FTAs with the US and other major trading partners, driving UK prices to world levels rapidly. Without an EU FTA tariffs would have to be imposed by both sides; their incidence would fall on EU traders who would have to match the world prices now prevailing in the UK market. Technically therefore no deal is the UK’s best option while it is damaging to the EU. However undoubtedly the UK would welcome a deal for reasons of good neighbourliness.

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