The Lord of Uraniborg is a comprehensive biography of Tycho Brahe, father of modern astronomy, famed alchemist and littérateur of the sixteenth-century Danish Renaissance. Written in a lively and engaging style, Victor Thoren's biography offers interesting perspectives on Tycho's life and presents alternative analyses of virtually every aspect of his scientific work. A range of readers interested in astronomy, history of astronomy and the history of science will find this book fascinating.
When a utility's costs change quickly, rates can be designed to correctly hedge against revenue uncertainty
The shift toward conservation rate structures, although they may provide better incentives to use scarce water wisely, changes who pays what and can increase the variability of future revenue streams to the water agency. Though the definition of the “correct” rate structure varies by community, the managerial strategies necessary to cope with the uncertainty brought about by conservation rate structures apply universally. Revenue instability directly increases water suppliers' borrowing costs and adds indirect costs in the form of more complicated planning to provide for a reliable future water supply. This article describes an empirical study using data from two water agencies that have adopted conservation rate structures. The article proposes ways quantitative tools may be used to (1) measure and cope with added uncertainty and (2) make explicit the magnitude of trade‐offs between revenue stability, equity, and the provision of incentives for efficient use of water resources.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.