RTI Press Publications // Carolina Digital Repository

Works (24)

1. Carbon-free power: The role of small modular (nuclear) reactors

Title Tesim:: Carbon-free power: The role of small modular (nuclear) reactors
Creator:: Rao, Vikram and Gould, Chris
Date of publication:: 2022
Abstract Tesim:: There is a new world order in electrical energy production. Solar and wind power are established as the low-cost leaders. However, these energy sources are highly variable and electrical power is needed 24/7. Alternative sources must fill the gaps, but only a few are both economical and carbon-free or -neutral. This book presents one alternative: small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs). The authors describe the technology, including its safety and economic aspects, and assess its fit with other carbon-free energy sources, storage solutions, and industrial opportunities. They also explain the challenges with SMRs, including public acceptance. The purpose of the book is to help readers consider these relatively new reactors as part of an appropriate energy mix for the future and, ultimately, to make their own judgments on the merits of the arguments for SMRs.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/rp5g-dm96
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-33-5
Keyword:: energy
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTEC and North Carolina State University
Person:: Rao, Vikram and Gould, Chris
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

2. Knowledge System Development: Insights from Indonesia and International Applications

Title Tesim:: Knowledge System Development: Insights from Indonesia and International Applications
Creator:: Hertz, Jana, Prasetiamartati, Budiati, and Wulandari, Primatia Romana
Date of publication:: 2022
Abstract Tesim:: Knowledge System Development: Insights from Indonesia and International Applications illustrates how knowledge systems work in the evidence-based policy making process and the dynamics of different actors in the ecosystem. Applying the Knowledge System Model 2.0 in Indonesia and in selected international case studies, it explores key issues and dynamics in the knowledge-to-policy process in Indonesia and offers important insights for application in other country contexts. Written from the unique vantage point of knowledge system actors themselves in cooperation with development practitioners and researchers, the book captures efforts to clarify the roles of different actors in the knowledge system and how they interacted to influence policy. When the actors and institutions in the knowledge system interact and challenge each other to articulate and commit to a shared purpose, it is easier to navigate the inherent tensions between technical solutions and political objectives to advance the reform agenda. Intermediaries in the knowledge system can play an important role in facilitating the interactions between these actors and institutions.
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/6pma-8j25
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-29-8
Keyword:: public policy
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International and Knowledge Sector Initiative
Person:: Hertz, Jana, Prasetiamartati, Budiati, and Wulandari, Primatia Romana
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

3. Measuring Everyday Life: Talking About Research and Why It Matters

Title Tesim:: Measuring Everyday Life: Talking About Research and Why It Matters
Creator:: Southwell, Brian G., Jackson, Karen Keaton, and Blackwell-Pittman, Bridget
Date of publication:: 2022
Abstract Tesim:: Why do people act as they do? How can we improve our health and well-being? What can the past tell us about our future? Research can help us address such questions, but the journey to finding answers can be challenging and full of adventure. Curated from interviews featured on the public radio show, The Measure of Everyday Life, this collection reveals ways that we can ask useful questions. The book also offers insights from behind the scenes of social science research, communication campaigns and interventions, and community engagement projects. A wide range of audiences—including anyone interested in applying academic research to practical projects, new graduate students, and undergraduate students learning about research—should find useful material in the collection.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/qqww-mh65
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-26-7
Keyword:: social science research
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International and North Carolina Central University
Person:: Southwell, Brian G., Jackson, Karen Keaton, and Blackwell-Pittman, Bridget
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

4. The essential role of language in survey research

Title Tesim:: The essential role of language in survey research
Creator:: Sha, Mandy and Gabel, Tim
Date of publication:: 2020
Abstract Tesim:: Language users, such as survey respondents and interviewers, must speak the same language literally and figuratively to interact with each other. As diversity grows in the United States and globally, interviewers and respondents may speak a different language or speak the same language differently that reflects their own cultural norms of communication. This book discusses the role of language in survey research when comparisons across groups, cultures, and countries are of interest. Language use in surveys is dynamic, including words, symbols (e.g., arrows), and even emojis. The entire survey life cycle is carried out through language. Researchers write or translate questions and instructions that will address research questions and then pretest them using various techniques, including qualitative inquiry that focuses on context beyond just “the numbers.” Human or virtual data collectors use persuasive messages to communicate with survey respondents and encourage their survey participation. Respondents must comprehend and interpret survey questions and instructions to provide a response. All of these survey processes and products contribute to data quality, and the role of language is essential.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/av9t-sd06
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-23-6
Keyword:: survey research
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: www.mandysha.com and RTI International
Person:: Sha, Mandy and Gabel, Tim
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

5. Young adults in the workplace: A multisite initiative of substance use prevention programs

Title Tesim:: Young adults in the workplace: A multisite initiative of substance use prevention programs
Creator:: Galvin, Deborah M., Cluff, Laurie A., and Bray, Jeremy W.
Date of publication:: February 28, 2010
Abstract Tesim:: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration funded the multisite Young Adults in the Workplace (YIW) initiative to study the effectiveness of diverse approaches to workplace-based prevention of substance abuse. Six teams adapted evidence-based programs to target young employees and then implemented the programs in retail, restaurant, health care, construction, skilled trade, and transportation industry workplaces. This book describes the programs, the adaptation and implementation processes, and the YIW cross-site evaluation.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/q75e-9f16
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-03-8
Keyword:: substance use intervention, Young Adults in the Workplace, substance use prevention programs, program implementation, and workforce
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and RTI International
Person:: Galvin, Deborah M., Cluff, Laurie A., and Bray, Jeremy W.
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

6. Viewing America’s energy future in three dimensions

Title Tesim:: Viewing America’s energy future in three dimensions
Creator:: Pellizzari, Edo, Moore, Toby, Cooley, Phillip, Templer, Dorota, Beach, Robert, Duffer, Allen, Gallaher, Michael, Lesemann, Markus, and Hegedus, L. Louis
Date of publication:: June 16, 2011
Abstract Tesim:: The future of the US energy infrastructure is a major and urgent challenge for our society. This monograph was stimulated by a report of the National Academies' Committee on America's Energy Future, America's Energy Future: Technology and Transformation, Summary Edition, 2009. The report pointed out the critical but poorly understood and little explored role of societal considerations in determining the fate of national energy policies and programs. In our efforts to respond to those concerns, we have examined the thesis that the three major dimensions of the energy challenge—technology, economics, and societal—are overlapping, interactive, and inseparable; therefore, they can be understood only when considered simultaneously and discussed in terms of their interactions. Correspondingly, this monograph describes energy technologies in the context of their economic and societal contexts, energy economics in their technological and societal contexts, and the societal aspects of energy in their technological and economic contexts. The monograph then identifies social science–driven research opportunities pertaining to America’s energy challenge, with the hope that the proposed research will help not only overcome the societal barriers identified by the National Academies' report, but also harness societal forces in developing a rational energy future.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/6b3s-kk84
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-05-2
Keyword:: economic and society contexts, Energy infrastructure, energy economics, energy technologies, and America's Energy Future
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International
Person:: Pellizzari, Edo, Moore, Toby, Cooley, Phillip, Templer, Dorota, Beach, Robert, Duffer, Allen, Gallaher, Michael, Lesemann, Markus, and Hegedus, L. Louis
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

7. The nation’s health care bill: Who bears the burden? A chartbook

Title Tesim:: The nation’s health care bill: Who bears the burden? A chartbook
Creator:: Trebino, Diana, Healy, Deborah, Seeley, Elizabeth Jennifer, Cromwell, Jerry, and Cromwell, Genevieve
Date of publication:: July 28, 2013
Abstract Tesim:: During the past 50 years, spending on health care services—by households, private businesses, and state and federal governments—increased dramatically and now approaches one out of every five dollars spent in the United States. The benefits of health care spending have not been distributed equally across the population, with less going to a growing number of uninsured people. Moreover, the United States does not realize proportional value for its spending on health care. It spends more per capita than any of six other industrialized countries but ranks below them on measures of health care quality, efficiency, and equity. Unable to sustain rising contributions to health insurance, employers are shifting more of the cost to workers, thereby increasing the number who cannot afford coverage. Federal, state, and local governments have taken on some of these costs by subsidizing the health services of elderly, disabled, and poor people. Health spending, once a small fraction of the federal budget, now exceeds spending on defense or Social Security. State and local governments now devote more of their own taxes to health care than to elementary and secondary education, despite the federal government’s paying for the majority of Medicaid spending. The data in this chartbook indicate that the financial burden of health care spending presents a disproportionate burden on uninsured and sick people, small businesses, and low-wage workers. In addition to the magnitude and maldistribution of health spending, society’s “opportunity costs” are high: Private businesses, households, and state and federal governments could have made other highly productive purchases had health spending not exceeded economy-wide growth. For the government, health care spending decreases the money available for other investments, such as education, infrastructure, and debt reduction. As health costs increase and the population ages, the historical reallocation of US productive capacity to health care is unsustainable. With pressing needs elsewhere, the country must make the health system more efficient, equitable, and affordable. Passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) by Congress in 2010 was a comprehensive step to contain health care costs, particularly for families, while extending health care coverage to millions of uninsured people. The potential benefits of the ACA include better access to health professionals and prescription drugs, decreased medical debt and fewer subsequent bankruptcy filings, and lower labor costs for small businesses. Constrained health care spending will allow businesses and government to make more cost-effective investments elsewhere without raising prices or burdening taxpayers. With this chartbook as a baseline, users can monitor changes that result from the ACA and take future steps to enhance the cost-effectiveness of the US health care system.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/nxg8-3k89
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-12-0
Keyword:: health care spending, health care, health care subsidies, health care costs, and health insurance
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International and Harvard School of Public Health
Person:: Trebino, Diana, Healy, Deborah, Seeley, Elizabeth Jennifer, Cromwell, Jerry, and Cromwell, Genevieve
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

8. The Early Grade Reading Assessment: Applications and interventions to improve basic literacy

Title Tesim:: The Early Grade Reading Assessment: Applications and interventions to improve basic literacy
Creator:: Wetterberg, Anna and Gove, Amber
Date of publication:: September 28, 2011
Abstract Tesim:: The Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) measures students' progress towards reading. EGRA gauges early literacy skills through a 15-minute individual oral assessment of five fundamental reading skills. RTI worked with education experts to develop the EGRA in 2006, and it has been piloted and implemented in more than 40 countries. This volume aims to take stock of the substantial amount of information and experience generated through the use of EGRA, and to share this knowledge with practitioners, policymakers, and international donors. Chapters cover not only particular applications of the instrument but also put EGRA in the context of broader issues and developments in literacy and education.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/x0gw-5q28
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-08-3
Keyword:: fundamental reading skills, Early Grade Reading Assessment, oral assessments, and international education
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International
Person:: Wetterberg, Anna and Gove, Amber
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

9. Shale oil and gas: The promise and the peril

Title Tesim:: Shale oil and gas: The promise and the peril
Creator:: Rao, Vikram
Date of publication:: August 9, 2015
Abstract Tesim:: In the first edition, Shale Gas: The Promise and the Peril, Vikram Rao explained that shale gas has the potential to transform the U.S. energy-based economy in the electricity, transportation, and chemical sectors. Since then, shale oil burst into the national consciousness even more rapidly than did shale gas. In the second edition, Rao does more justice to the shale oil–related issues, including the consequences of unpreparedness of infrastructure to deliver fluids to market. Six new chapters discuss issues such as chemicals disclosure and challenges to the orthodoxy in the production of fuels and chemicals. Both the first and second editions are intended to inform both sides of the fracturing debate, where currently rhetoric is overtaking understanding. Tailored for a nontechnical audience—with technical chemistry and geology information couched in sidebars—the second edition culminates in suggestions for research and guidance for policy making.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/q2v4-6g95
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-07-6
Keyword:: shale gas, hydraulic fracturing, fracking, energy policy, and shale oil
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International
Person:: Rao, Vikram
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright

10. Shale gas: The promise and the peril

Title Tesim:: Shale gas: The promise and the peril
Creator:: Rao, Vikram
Date of publication:: June 26, 2012
Abstract Tesim:: Shale gas has the potential to transform the U.S. energy-based economy in the electricity, transportation, and chemical sectors. U.S. success can be expected to translate to Europe and other parts of the world. Shale gas production is uniquely enabled by hydraulic fracturing, a technique that has come under heavy scrutiny for its potential to cause environmental damage. In this book, Vikram Rao addresses the issues surrounding shale gas in a balanced fashion. The book is intended to inform both sides of the fracturing debate, where currently rhetoric is overtaking understanding. Tailored for a nontechnical audience—with technical chemistry and geology information couched in sidebars—the book culminates in suggestions for research and guidance for policymaking.
Resource type:: Book
Type:: http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text
DOI:: https://doi.org/10.17615/4x3k-7k29
ISBN:: 978-1-934831-10-6
Keyword:: hydraulic fracturing, shale gas, fracking, energy-based economy, and energy policy
Language Label:: English
License Label:: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
ORCID:
Other Affiliation:: RTI International
Person:: Rao, Vikram
Publisher:: RTI Press
Rights Statement Label:: In Copyright