Search results for: international construction joint venture

Authors: Farnia Nayar Parshi, Mohammad Shariful Islam

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Though earth construction is an ancient technology, researchers are working on increasing its strength by adding different types of stabilizers. Ordinary Portland cement for sandy soil and lime for clayey soil is very popular practice as well as recommended by various authorities for making stabilized blocks for satisfactory performance. The addition of these additives improves compressive strength but fails to improve ductility. The addition of both synthetic and natural fibers increases both compressive strength and ductility. Studies are conducted to make earth blocks more cost-effective, energy-efficient and sustainable. In this experiment, an agricultural waste banana fiber and biochar is used to study the compressive stress-strain behavior of earth blocks made with four types of soil low plastic clay, sandy low plastic clay, very fine sand and medium to fine sand. Biochar is a charcoal-like carbon usually produced from organic or agricultural waste in high temperatures through a controlled condition called pyrolysis. In this experimental study, biochar was collected from BBI (Bangladesh Biochar Initiative) produced from wood flakes around 400 deg. Celsius. Locally available PPC (Portland Pozzolana Cement) is used. 5 cm × 5 cm × 5 cm earth blocks were made with eight different combinations such as bare soil, soil with 6% cement, soil with 6% cement and 5% biochar, soil with 6% cement, 5% biochar and 1% fiber, soil with 1% fiber, soil with 5% biochar and 1% fiber and soil with 6% cement and 1% fiber. All samples were prepared with 10-12% water content. Uniaxial compressive strength tests were conducted on 21 days old earth blocks. Stress-strain diagram shows that the addition of banana fiber improved compressive strength drastically, but the combined effect of fiber and biochar is different based on different soil types. For clayey soil, 6% cement and 1% fiber give maximum compressive strength of 991 kPa, and for very fine sand, a combination of 5% biochar, 6% cement and 1% fiber gives maximum compressive strength of 522 kPa as well as ductility. For medium-to-find sand, 6% cement and 1% fiber give the best result, 1530 kPa, among other combinations. The addition of fiber increases not only ductility but also compressive strength as well. The effect of biochar with fiber varies with the soil type.

Keywords: banana fiber, biochar, cement, compressed stabilized earth blocks, compressive strength

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Authors: Christine A. Odinga, G. Sanjay, M. Mathew, S. Gupta, F. M. Swalaha, F. A. O. Otieno, F. Bux

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Wastewater discharged from municipal treatment plants contain an amalgamation of trace metals. The presence of metal pollutants in wastewater poses a huge challenge to the choice and applications of the preferred treatment method. Conventional treatment methods are inefficient in the removal of trace metals due to their design approach. This study evaluated the treatment performance of a constructed rhizofiltration system in the removal of heavy metals from municipal wastewater. The study was conducted at an eThekwni municipal wastewater treatment plant in Kingsburgh - Durban in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. The construction details of the pilot-scale rhizofiltration unit included three different layers of substrate consisting of medium stones, coarse gravel and fine sand. The system had one section planted with Phragmites australis L. and Kyllinga nemoralis L. while the other section was unplanted and acted as the control. Influent, effluent and sediment from the system were sampled and assessed for the presence of and removal of selected trace heavy metals using standard methods. Efficiency of metals removal was established by gauging the transfer of metals into leaves, roots and stem of the plants by calculations based on standard statistical packages. The Langmuir model was used to assess the heavy metal adsorption mechanisms of the plants. Heavy metals were accumulated in the entire rhizofiltration system at varying percentages of 96.69% on planted and 48.98% on control side for cadmium. Chromium was 81% and 24%, Copper was 23.4% and 1.1%, Nickel was 72% and 46.5, Lead was 63% and 31%, while Zinc was 76% and 84% on the on the water and sediment of the planted and control sides of the rhizofilter respectively. The decrease in metal adsorption efficiencies on the planted side followed the pattern of Cd>Cr>Zn>Ni>Pb>Cu and Ni>Cd>Pb>Cr>Cu>Zn on the control side. Confirmatory analysis using Electron Scanning Microscopy revealed that higher amounts of metals was deposited in the root system with values ranging from 0.015mg/kg (Cr), 0.250 (Cu), 0.030 (Pb) for P. australis, and 0.055mg/kg (Cr), 0.470mg/kg (Cu) and 0.210mg/kg,(Pb) for K. nemoralis respectively. The system was found to be efficient in removing and reducing metals from wastewater and further research is necessary to establish the immediate mechanisms that the plants display in order to achieve these reductions.

Keywords: wastewater treatment, Phragmites australis L., Kyllinga nemoralis L., heavy metals, pathogens, rhizofiltration

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Authors: Gezahegn Bekele Welldgiyorgise

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It is obvious that the economics, politics and social conditions of a country are determined by the quality and standard of its education. Indeed, education plays a vital role in changing the consciousness and awareness of society and transforming it on a large scale. Moreover, education contributes a lot to the advancement of science and technology, information and communication, and above all, it speeds up its progress in no time if it focuses mainly on the qualitative approach to education. Education brings about universal change and transformation and lightens mankind in all dimensions. It creates an educated, enlightened and brightened generation in society. The generation will be sharped, sharpened and well-oriented if it gets modern, sophisticated and standardized education in its field of study. The main goal of education is to produce well-qualified, well-trained and disciplined young offers in a given community. If the youth is well trained and well-mannered, he will certainly be enlightened, problem solvers and solution seekers, researchers, and innovators. In this respect, we have to provide the youth with modern education, a teaching-learning process led by active learning and a participatory approach with a new curriculum preparation for the age of children supported by modern facilities (ICT).In addition to that, the curriculum should have to give attention to mathematics and science lessons that include international experience in a comfortable school and classrooms. Therefore, the generation that will be created through such kinds of the guided education system will make the students active participants, self-confident, researchers and problem solvers, besides that result in changed life standards and a developed country. Similarly, our country, Ethiopia, has aimed to get such change in youth (generation) through modern education, designing a new educational policy and curriculum which was implemented for many years, although the goal of education has not reached the required level. To get the main idea of the article, I should have answered the question of why our country's educational goal had not reached the desired level because it is necessary to lay the foundation for research in finding out problems seen through students learning performance, the first task is selecting primary-school as a sample. Therefore, we selected “Dilla primary school (5-8)” which is a workplace for a teacher and gives me a chance to recognize students’ learning performance to recognize their learning grades (internal and external) and measure performance (achievement) of students easily’.

Keywords: curriculum, performance, innovation, learning

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Authors: Olayinka Adeniyi, Melissa Omino

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The field of data privacy and data protection in Africa is still an evolving area, with many African countries yet to enact legislation on the subject. While African Governments are bringing their legislation to speed in this field, how patriarchy pervades every sector of African thought and manifests in society needs to be considered. Moreover, the laws enacted ought to be inclusive, especially towards women. This, in a nutshell, is the essence of data feminism. Data feminism is a new way of thinking about data science and data ethics that is informed by the ideas of intersectional feminism. Feminising data privacy and protection will involve thinking women, considering women in the issues of data privacy and protection, particularly in legislation, as is the case in this paper. The line of thought of women inclusion is not uncommon when even international and regional human rights specific for women only came long after the general human rights. The consideration is that these should have been inserted or rather included in the original general instruments in the first instance. Since legislation on data privacy is coming in this century, having seen the rights and shortcomings of earlier instruments, then the cue should be taken to ensure inclusive wholistic legislation for data privacy and protection in the first instance. Data feminism is arguably an area that has been scantily researched, albeit a needful one. With the spate of increase in the violence against women spiraling in the cyber world, compounding the issue of COVID-19 and the needful response of governments, and the effect of these on women and their rights, fast forward, the research on the feminism of data privacy and protection in Africa becomes inevitable. This paper seeks to answer the questions, what is data feminism in the African context, why is it important in the issue of data privacy and protection legislation; what are the laws, if any, existing on data privacy and protection in Africa, are they women inclusive, if not, why; what are the measures put in place for the privacy and protection of women in Africa, and how can this be made possible. The paper aims to investigate the issue of data privacy and protection in Africa, the legal framework, and the protection or provision that it has for women if any. It further aims to research the importance and necessity of feminizing data privacy and protection, the effect of lack of it, the challenges or bottlenecks in attaining this feat and the possibilities of accessing data privacy and protection for African women. The paper also researches the emerging practices of data privacy and protection of women in other jurisprudences. It approaches the research through the methodology of review of papers, analysis of laws, and reports. It seeks to contribute to the existing literature in the field and is explorative in its suggestion. It suggests a draft of some clauses to make any data privacy and protection legislation women inclusive. It would be useful for policymaking, academic, and public enlightenment.

Keywords: feminism, women, law, data, Africa

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Authors: Stacy Jarvis

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Databases such as JSTOR, RILM and WorldCat have been the main source and storage of literature in the music orb. The Reference Index to Music Literature is a bibliographic database of over 2.6 million citations to writings about music from over 70 countries. The Research Institute produces RILM for the Study of Music at the University of Buffalo. JSTOR is an e-library of academic journals, books, and primary sources. Database JSTOR helps scholars find, utilise, and build upon a vast range of literature through a powerful teaching and research platform. Another database, WorldCat, is the world's biggest library catalogue, assisting scholars in finding library materials online. An evaluation of these databases in the music sphere is conducted by looking into the description and intended use and finding similarities and differences among them. Through comparison, it is found that these aim to serve different purposes, though they have the same goal of providing and storing literature. Also, since each database has different parts of literature that it majors on, the intended use of the three databases is evaluated. This can be found in the description, scope, and intended uses section. These areas are crucial to the research as it addresses the functional or literature differences among the three databases. It is also found that these databases have different quantitative potentials. This is determined by addressing the year each database began collecting literature and the number of articles, periodicals, albums, conference proceedings, music, dissertations, digital media, essays collections, journal articles, monographs, online resources, reviews, and reference materials that can be found in each one of them. This can be found in the sections- description, scope and intended uses and the importance of the database in identifying literature on different topics. To compare the delivery of services to the users, the importance of databases in identifying literature on different topics is also addressed in the section -the importance of databases in identifying literature on different topics. Even though these databases are used in research, they all have disadvantages and advantages. This is addressed in the sections on advantages and disadvantages. This will be significant in determining which of the three is the best. Also, it will help address how the shortcomings of one database can be addressed by utilising two databases together while conducting research. It is addressed in the section- a combination of RILM and JSTOR. All this information revolves around the idea that a huge amount of quantitative and qualitative data can be found in the presented databases on music and digital content; however, each of the given databases has a different construction and material features contributing to the musical scholarship in its way.

Keywords: RILM, JSTOR, WorldCat, database, literature, research

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Authors: Gracia V. Navarro, María C. González, María G. González, María V. González

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In Chile, since 2002, there are extracurricular enrichment programs complementary to regular education for students with high intellectual capacity. This paper describes a model for the educational inclusion of students, with special educational needs associated with high intellectual capacity, developed at the University of Concepción and its effects on its students, academics and undergraduate students that collaborate with the program. The Talentos UdeC Program was created in 2003 and is intended for 240 children and youth from 11 to 18 years old, from 15 communes of the Biobio region. The case Talentos UdeC is analyzed from a mixed qualitative study in which those participating in the educational model are considered. The sample was composed of 30 students, 30 academics, and 30 undergraduate students. In the case of students, pre and post program measurements were made to analyze their socio-emotional adaptation, academic motivation and socially responsible behavior. The mentioned variables are measured through questionnaires designed and validated by the University of Concepcion that included: The Socially Responsible Behavior Questionnaire (CCSR); the Academic Motivation Questionnaire (CMA) and the Socio-Emotional Adaptation Questionnaire (CASE). The information obtained by these questionnaires was analyzed through a quantitative analysis. Academics and undergraduate students were interviewed to learn their perception of the effects of the program on themselves, on students and on society. The information obtained is analyzed using qualitative analysis based on the identification of common themes and descriptors for the construction of conceptual categories of answers. Quantitative results show differences in the first three variables analyzed in the students, after their participation for two years in Talentos UdeC. Qualitative results demonstrate perception of effects in the vision of world, project of life and in other areas of the students’ development; perception of effects in a personal, professional and organizational plane by academics and a perception of effects in their personal-social development and training in generic competencies by undergraduates students.

Keywords: educational model, high intellectual capacity, inclusion, special educational needs

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Authors: Johnson-Egemba Helen Amaka

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Music is emotional in the sense that it controls people’s feelings. The way and manner people react to music at a point in time depend on the type of music that is playing. Music can make someone to march or dance, to cry or laugh, to be happy or sad, to fight or make peace and so on. It therefore makes someone o exhibit some kind of behaviours, either positive or negative. Even dangerous animals have been found to be controlled by music. In the psychiatric homes, mad people are always found to be dancing to music. During funeral ceremony, music singing and dancing are sources of comfort to the bereaved. As a background to the study, Tarok ethnic group in Plateau State was used. The Tarok comprise of Langtang North and South Local Government Areas. The ethnic group of Tarok integrates music in almost all the activities of their lives. A total of six (6) types of folk songs were identified. These songs range from marriages, funeral, royalty, togetherness, war, rituals, festivals, and farming. This paper points out the significance of basic responsiveness of the Tarok people towards the folk songs, their reaction generally whether positive or negative. The methods of data collection employed in this work include oral interview approach, recording of various types of Tarok folk songs, consulting of journals, magazines and textbooks. The researcher used oral interview as her primary source of information which is found to be the most effective procedure in carrying out this task. The songs were textually analyzed with a view to unveiling their meanings, thought processes, and conveying their direction and functions within the context of their rendition. The major findings of the study are that music in Tarok culture covers the physical, mental, emotional and social experiences. The physical aspect is the motor skills, which include dancing and demonstration of the songs. The mental experiences are intellectual levels which include construction and manufacturing of musical instruments, composing songs, teaching and learning etc. Furthermore, this research provided in addition to musical activities, the literature, history and culture of the Tarok communities.

Keywords: cultural, music, practice, responsiveness

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Authors: Xiaoya Yi, Yi He, Zhao Lu, Yang Zhang

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In the process of rapid urbanization, many historical cities have undergone excessive demolition and construction under the protection and renewal mechanism. The original pattern of the city has been changed, the urban context has been cut off, and historical features have gradually been lost. The historical city gradually changed into the form of decentralization and fragmentation. The understanding of the ancient city includes two levels. The first one refers to the ancient city on the physical space, which defined an ancient city by its historic walls. The second refers to the public perception of the image, which is derived from people's spatial identification of the ancient city. In ancient China, people draw maps to show their way of understanding the city. Starting from ancient maps and exploring the spatial characteristics of traditional Chinese cities from the perspective of urban imagery is a key clue to understanding the spatial characteristics of historical cities on an overall level. The spatial characteristics of the urban image presented by the ancient map are summarized into two levels by typology. The first is the spatial pattern composed of the center, axis and boundary. The second is the space element that contains the city, street, and sign system. Taking the ancient city of Shipu as a typical case, the "city image" in the ancient map is analyzed as a prototype, and it is projected into the current urban space. The research found that after a long period of evolution, the historical spatial pattern of the ancient city has changed from “dominant” to “recessive control”, and the historical spatial elements are non-centralized and fragmented. The wall that serves as the boundary of the ancient city is transformed into “fragmentary remains”, the streets and lanes that serve as the axis of the ancient city are transformed into “structural remains”, and the symbols of the ancient city center are transformed into “site remains”. Based on this, the paper proposed the methods of controlling the protection of land boundaries, the protecting of the streets and lanes, and the selective restoring of the city wall system and the sign system by accurate assessment. In addition, this paper emphasizes the continuity of the ancient city's traditional spatial pattern and attempts to explore a holistic conservation method of the ancient city in the modern context.

Keywords: ancient city protection, ancient maps, Shipu ancient city, urban intention

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Authors: Jeffrey Siphiwe Mkhize

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Twelve years of schooling for most South African children, particularly those children from disadvantaged past, are confronted with numerous and diverse challenges. These challenges range from infrastructural limitations, language of teaching, poor resources and varying family backgrounds. Likewise, schools are categorized to signify schools’ geographic location, poverty lines, societal class and type of students that the school are likely to enroll. Such categorization perpetuates particular lines of identities that are indirectly reinforced by the same system that seeks to redress. South African universities prefer point systems to determine students’ suitability to gain access to their programmes. Once students are admitted based on the qualifying points there is an assumed equity in the manner in which they receive tuition. They are assumed as equal; noting the widened access to South African universities as means to redress past inequalities. Given the challenges, inequalities, it is necessary to view higher education as a site for knowledge construction that is accessible to all students. Epistemological access is key to all students irrespective of their socio-economic status. This paper seeks to contribute to the discourse of student engagement using lecturer-student relationship as a lens to understand this phenomenon. Data were generated using South African Survey of Student Engagement, focus group interviews, semi-structured one-on-one-interviews as well as document analysis. The focus was on students registered for the first year of a Bachelor of Education degree as well as lecturers that teach high risk modules in this qualification at the same level. The findings suggest that lecturers are challenged by overcrowded classrooms and over-enrolled modules; this challenge hampers their good intentions to become more efficient and innovative in their teaching. Students lack confidence in approaching lecturers for assistance. Collaborative learning has stronger results and students believe in self-support to deal with their challenges based on their individual strengths. Collaborative learning is key to student academic performance.

Keywords: collaborative learning, consultations, student engagement, student performance

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Authors: Kamal Donko

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In the frontier zone of Benin Republic, land seems to be a fundamental political resource as it is used as a tool for socio-political mobilization, blackmail, inclusion and exclusion, conquest and political control. This paper seeks to examine the complex and intriguing interlinks between land, identity and politics in central Benin. It aims to investigate what roles territorialisation and land ownership are playing in the electioneering process in central Benin. It employs ethnographic multi-sited approach to data collections including observations, interviews and focused group discussions. Research findings reveal a complex and intriguing relationship between land ownership and politics in central Benin. Land is found to be playing a key role in the electioneering process in the region. The study has also discovered many emerging socio-spatial patterns of controlling and maintaining political power in the zone which are tied to land politics. These include identity reconstruction and integration mechanism through intermarriages, socio-political initiatives and construction of infrastructure of sovereignty. It was also found that ‘Diaspora organizations’ and identity issues; strategic creation of administrative units; alliance building strategy; gerrymandering local political field, etc. These emerging socio-spatial patterns of territorialisation for maintaining political power affect migrant and native communities’ relationships. It was also found that ‘Diaspora organizations’ and identity issues; strategic creation of administrative units; alliance building strategy; gerrymandering local political field, etc. are currently affecting migrant’s and natives’ relationships. The study argues that territorialisation is not only about national boundaries and the demarcation between different nation states, but more importantly, it serves as a powerful tool of domination and political control at the grass root level. Furthermore, this study seems to provide another perspective from which the political situation in Africa can be studied. Investigating how the dynamics of land ownership is influencing politics at the grass root or micro level, this study is fundamental to understanding spatial issues in the frontier zone.

Keywords: land, migration, politics, territorialisation

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Authors: Abdulkarem Qasem Dammag, Basema Qasim Dammag, Jian Dai

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Change in Land use and Land cover (LU/LC) has a profound impact on the area's natural, economic, and ecological development, and the search for drivers of land cover change is one of the fundamental issues of LU/LC change. The study aimed to assess the temporal and Spatio-temporal dynamics of LU/LC in the past and to predict the future using Landsat images by exploring the characteristics of different LU/LC types. Spatio-temporal patterns of LU/LC change in Ibb Governorate, Yemen, were analyzed based on RS and GIS from 1990, 2005, and 2020. A socioeconomic survey and key informant interviews were used to assess potential drivers of LU/LC. The results showed that from 1990 to 2020, the total area of vegetation land decreased by 5.3%, while the area of barren land, grassland, built-up area, and waterbody increased by 2.7%, 1.6%, 1.04%, and 0.06%, respectively. Based on socio-economic surveys and key informant interviews, natural factors had a significant and long-term impact on land change. In contrast, site construction and socio-economic factors were the main driving forces affecting land change in a short time scale. The analysis results have been linked to the CA-Markov Land Use simulation and forecasting model for the years 2035 and 2050. The simulation results revealed from the period 2020 to 2050, the trend of dynamic changes in land use, where the total area of barren land decreased by 7.0% and grassland by 0.2%, while the vegetation land, built-up area, and waterbody increased by 4.6%, 2.6%, and 0.1 %, respectively. Overall, these findings provide LULC's past and future trends and identify drivers, which can play an important role in sustainable land use planning and management by balancing and coordinating urban growth and land use and can also be used at the regional level in different levels to provide as a reference. In addition, the results provide scientific guidance to government departments and local decision-makers in future land-use planning through dynamic monitoring of LU/LC change.

Keywords: LU/LC change, CA-Markov model, driving forces, change detection, LU/LC change simulation

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Authors: Charisse H. Tay

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Background: Schizophrenia is a severe chronic mental disorder that can result in hallucinations, delusions, reduced social engagement, and lack of motivation. While antipsychotic medications often provide the basis for treatment, psychosocial strategies complement the benefit of medications and can result in meaningful improvements in symptoms and functioning. The aim of the study was to investigate psychosocial strategies used by internet self-help forum participants to effectively manage symptoms caused by schizophrenia. Internet self-help forums are a resource for medical and psychological problems and are commonly used to share information about experiences with symptom management. Method: Three international self-help internet forums on schizophrenia were identified using a search engine. 1,181 threads regarding non-pharmacological, psychosocial self-management of schizophrenia symptoms underwent screening, resulting in the final identification and coding of 91 threads and 191 posts from 134 unique forum users that contained details on psychosocial strategies endorsed personally by users that allowed them to effectively manage symptoms of schizophrenia, including positive symptoms (e.g., auditory/visual/tactile hallucinations, delusions, paranoia), negative symptoms (e.g.., avolition, apathy, anhedonia), symptoms of distress, and cognitive symptoms (e.g., memory loss). Results: Effective symptom management strategies personally endorsed by online forum users were psychological skills (e.g., re-focusing, mindfulness/meditation, reality checking; n = 94), engaging in activities (e.g., exercise, working/volunteering, hobbies; n = 84), social/familial support (n = 48), psychotherapy (n = 33), diet (n = 18), and religion/spirituality (n = 14). 44.4% of users reported using more than one strategy to manage their symptoms. The most common symptoms targeted and effectively managed, as specified by users, were positive symptoms (n = 113), negative symptoms (n = 17), distress (n = 8), and memory loss (n = 6). 10.5% of users reported more than one symptom effectively targeted. 70.2% of users with positive symptoms reported that psychological skills were effective for symptom relief. 88% of users with negative symptoms and 75% with distress symptoms reported that engaging in activities was effective. Discussion: Individuals with schizophrenia rely on a variety of different psychosocial methods to manage their symptoms. Different symptomology appears to be more effectively targeted by different types of psychosocial strategies. This may help to inform treatment strategy and tailored for individuals with schizophrenia.

Keywords: psychosocial treatment, qualitative methods, schizophrenia, symptom management

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Authors: Kayne Uriel K. Rodrigo, Jerriane Hillary Heart S. Marcial, Samuel C. Brillo

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Rice leaf diseases significantly impact yield production in rice-dependent countries, affecting their agricultural sectors. As part of precision agriculture, early and accurate detection of these diseases is crucial for effective mitigation practices and minimizing crop losses. Hence, this study proposes an enhancement to the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), a widely-used method for Rice Leaf Disease Image Classification, by incorporating MobileViTV2—a recently advanced architecture that combines CNN and Vision Transformer models while maintaining fewer parameters, making it suitable for broader deployment on edge devices. Our methodology utilizes a publicly available rice disease image dataset from Kaggle, which was validated by a university structural biologist following the guidelines provided by the Philippine Rice Institute (PhilRice). Modifications to the dataset include renaming certain disease categories and augmenting the rice leaf image data through rotation, scaling, and flipping. The enhanced dataset was then used to train the MobileViTV2 model using the Timm library. The results of our approach are as follows: the model achieved notable performance, with 98% accuracy in both training and validation, 6% training and validation loss, and a Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve ranging from 95% to 100% for each label. Additionally, the F1 score was 97%. These metrics demonstrate a significant improvement compared to a conventional CNN-based approach, which, in a previous 2022 study, achieved only 78% accuracy after using 5 convolutional layers and 2 dense layers. Thus, it can be concluded that MobileViTV2, with its fewer parameters, outperforms traditional CNN models, particularly when applied to Rice Leaf Disease Image Identification. For future work, we recommend extending this model to include datasets validated by international rice experts and broadening the scope to accommodate biotic factors such as rice pest classification, as well as abiotic stressors such as climate, soil quality, and geographic information, which could improve the accuracy of disease prediction.

Keywords: convolutional neural network, MobileViTV2, rice leaf disease, precision agriculture, image classification, vision transformer

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Authors: Aldona Kluczek

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Energy efficient process have become a pressing research field in manufacturing. The arguments for having an effective industrial energy efficiency processes are interacted with factors: economic and environmental impact, and energy security. Improvements in energy efficiency are most often achieved by implementation of more efficient technology or manufacturing process. Current processes of electricity production represents the biggest consumption of energy and the greatest amount of emissions to the environment. The goal of this study is to improve the potential energy-savings and reduce greenhouse emissions related to improvement scenarios for the treatment of hardwood lumber produced by an industrial plant operating in the U.S. through the application of green balancing procedure, in order to find the preferable efficient technology. The green procedure for energy is based on analysis of energy efficiency data. Three alternative scenarios of the cogeneration systems plant (CHP) construction are considered: generation of fresh steam, the purchase of a new boiler with the operating pressure 300 pounds per square inch gauge (PSIG), an installation of a new boiler with a 600 PSIG pressure. In this paper, the application of a bottom-down modelling for energy flow to devise a streamlined Energy and Emission Flow Analyze method for the technology of producing electricity is illustrated. It will identify efficiency or technology of a given process to be reached, through the effective use of energy, or energy management. Results have shown that the third scenario seem to be the efficient alternative scenario considered from the environmental and economic concerns for treating hardwood lumber. The energy conservation evaluation options could save an estimated 6,215.78 MMBtu/yr in each year, which represents 9.5% of the total annual energy usage. The total annual potential cost savings from all recommendations is $143,523/yr, which represents 30.1% of the total annual energy costs. Estimation have presented that energy cost savings are possible up to 43% (US$ 143,337.85), representing 18.6% of the total annual energy costs.

Keywords: alternative scenario improvements, cogeneration system, energy and emission flow analyze, energy balancing, green procedure, hardwood lumber manufacturing process

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Authors: Estibe Dagne Mekonnen

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In recent years, the prevalence of undernourishment was 30 percent for sub-Saharan Africa, compared with 16 percent for Asia and the Pacific (Ali, 2011). In Ethiopia, almost 40 percent of the total population in the country and 57 percent of Addis Ababa population lives below the international poverty line of US$ 1.25 per day (UNICEF, 2009). This study aims to analyze the determinant of household food secrity in Addis Ababa city administration. Primary data were collected from a survey of 256 households in the selected sub-city, namely Addis Ketema, Arada, and Kolfe Keranio, in the year 2022. Both Purposive and multi-stage cluster random sampling procedures were employed to select study areas and respondents. Descriptive statistics and order logistic regression model were used to test the formulated hypotheses. The result reveals that out of the total sampled households, 25% them were food secured, 13% were mildly food insecure, 26% were moderately food insecure and 36% were severely food insecure. The study indicates that household family size, house ownership, household income, household food source, household asset possession, household awareness on inflation, household access to social protection program, household access to credit and saving and household access to training and supervision on food security have a positive and significant effect on the likelihood of household food security status. However, marital status of household head, employment sector of household head, dependency ratio and household’s nonfood expenditure has a negative and significant influence on household food security status. The study finally suggests that the government in collaboration with financial institutions and NGO should work on sustaining household food security by creating awareness, providing credit, facilitate rural-urban linkage between producer and consumer and work on urban infrastructure improvement. Moreover, the governments also work closely and monitor consumer good suppliers, if possible find a way to subsidize consumable goods to more insecure households and make them to be food secured. Last but not least, keeping this country’s peace will play a crucial role to sustain food security.

Keywords: determinants, household, food security, order logit model, Addis Ababa

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Authors: Dongshuo Wang, Minjie Xing

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International businesses prefer to hire people who speak more than one language. With the booming of China’s market, industries and trade, business leaders are looking for people who can speak Chinese and operate successfully in a Chinese cultural context, and therefore an increasing number of tertiary students choose a Business Chinese (BC) course. As a result, BC syllabus design is urgently needed. What business knowledge should be included in China’s context? What aspects of BC culture should be included? How much Chinese language should be introduced to conduct business in China? With these research questions, this research explores a syllabus design that integrates the three aspects of subject knowledge of business in communication, business practice including the procedure of and strategies for communicating business in practice and language skills including the disciplinary and professional contexts in which linguistic choices are made. After literature review and consultancy with China-related business professionals, senior staff from business schools and representatives of students, the authors of this paper, together with language tutors drafted a syllabus based on the integrated approach to include subject knowledge, business practice and language skills. Due to the nature of this research which requires trial/test and detailed description for each correction, qualitative methods are adopted. Two in-depth focus group interviews (with 2 staff and 4 students in each group), and 18 individual interviews (8 staff and 10 students) were conducted. QDA was used for systematizing, organizing, and analysing qualitative data. It was discovered that the business knowledge related to a Chinese cultural context, including face value, networking skills, strategic plans for signing a contract, marketing, sales, and after-sale service, should be introduced through lectures and seminars; business practice could be implemented by students setting up their own companies, virtual or real; and language skills would be trained via writing business messages and presenting their companies in fairs and exhibitions. After a longitudinal study of trials and amendments for three years from 2013 to 2016, the syllabus was approved by staff and students and the university. Students appreciated the syllabus, as they could apply the subject knowledge into practice by using it in their own companies and Chinese language was used throughout the process. The syllabus is now ready to be used in universities offering BC, and the designing process can be applied to other new courses as well.

Keywords: business Chinese, syllabus design, business knowledge, language skills

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Authors: Agnieszka Rolinska, Marta Makara-Studzinska

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Introduction: In recent years, there has been an intensive development of research into the physiological relationships between the experienced stress and obesity. Moreover, strong chronic stress leads to the disorganization of a person’s activeness on various levels of functioning, including the behavioral and cognitive sphere (also in one’s diet). Aim: The present work addresses the following research questions: Is there a relationship between an increase in stress related to the disease and the need for the cyclicality of diabetologic education in gestational diabetes? Are there any differences in terms of the experienced stress during the last three months of pregnancy in women with gestational diabetes and in normal pregnancy between the patients with normal weight gains and those with abnormal weight gains? Are there any differences in terms of stress coping styles in women with gestational diabetes and in normal pregnancy between the patients with normal weight gains and those with abnormal weight gains? Method: The study involved pregnant women with gestational diabetes (treated with diet, without insulin therapy) and in normal pregnancy – 206 women in total. The following psychometric tools were employed: Perceived Stress Scale (PSS; Cohen, Kamarck, Mermelstein), Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS; Endler, Parker) and authors’ own questionnaire. Gestational diabetes mellitus was diagnosed on the basis of the results of fasting oral glucose tolerance test (75 g OGTT). Body weight measurements were confirmed in a diagnostic interview, taking into account medical data. Regularities in weight gains in pregnancy were determined according to the recommendations of the Polish Gynecological Society and American norms determined by the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Conclusions: An increase in stress related to the disease varies in patients with differing requirements for the cyclical nature of diabetologic education (i.e. education which is systematically repeated). There are no differences in terms of recently experienced stress and stress coping styles between women with gestational diabetes and those in normal pregnancy. There is a relationship between weight gains in pregnancy and the stress experienced in life as well as stress coping styles – both in pregnancy complicated by diabetes and in physiological pregnancy. In the discussion of the obtained results, the authors refer to scientific reports from English-language magazines of international range.

Keywords: diabetologic education, gestational diabetes, stress, weight gain in pregnancy

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Authors: Khaled Asfour

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Going for LEED certification is the latest concern in Egyptian practice that only materialized during the last 4 years. Egyptian Consultant Group (ECG) together with Credit Agricole had the vision to design a headquarters (Cairo) that delivers a serious sustainable design. The bank is a strong advocator of “green banking” and supports renewable energy and energy saving projects. Their HQ in Cairo has passed all the hurdles to become the first platinum LEED certificate holder in Egypt. With this design Egyptian practice has finally re-engaged in a serious way with its long-standing traditions in sustainable architecture. Perhaps the closest to our memory is the medieval houses of Cairo. Few centuries later these qualities disappeared with the advent of Modern Movement that focused more on standard modernist image making than real localized quality of living environments. The first person to note this disappearance was Hassan Fathy half a century ago. Despite international applaud for his efforts he had no effect on prevailing local practice that continued senselessly adopting recycled modernist templates. The Egyptian society was not ready to accept any reference to historic architecture. Disciples of Hassan Fathy, few decades later sought, of tackling the lack of interest in green architecture in a different way. Mohamed Awad introduced in his design sustainable ideals inspired from traditional architecture rather than recycling directly historic forms and images. Despite success, this approach did not go far enough to influence the prevailing practice. Since year 2000 Egyptian economy was ebbing and flowing dramatically. This staggering fluctuation coupled by energy crisis has disillusioned architects and clients on the issue of modern image making. No more shining architecture under the sun with high running cost of fossil fuel. They sought of adopting contemporary green measures that offer pleasant living while saving on energy. A revival is on its way but is very slow and timid. The paper will present this problem of reviving sustainable architecture. How this process can be accelerated in order to give stronger impact on current practice will be addressed through the works of Mario Cucinella and Norman Foster.

Keywords: LEED certification, Hasan Fathy, Medieval architecture, Mario Cucinella, Norman Foster

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Authors: Yuanrui Xu, Zailin Yang, Yunqiu Song, Guanxixi Jiang

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It is an important subject of seismology on the influence of local topography on ground motion during earthquake. In mountainous areas with complex terrain, the construction of the tunnel is often the most effective transportation scheme. In these projects, the local terrain can be simplified into hills with different shapes, and the underground tunnel structure can be regarded as a subsurface cavity. The presence of the subsurface cavity affects the strength of the rock mass and changes the deformation and failure characteristics. Moreover, the scattering of the elastic waves by underground structures usually interacts with local terrains, which leads to a significant influence on the surface displacement of the terrains. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to study the surface displacement of local terrains with underground tunnels in earthquake engineering and seismology. In this work, the region is divided into three regions by the method of region matching. By using the fractional Bessel function and Hankel function, the complex function method, and the wave function expansion method, the wavefield expression of SH waves is introduced. With the help of a constitutive relation between the displacement and the stress components, the hoop stress and radial stress is obtained subsequently. Then, utilizing the continuous condition at different region boundaries, the undetermined coefficients in wave fields are solved by the Fourier series expansion and truncation of the finite term. Finally, the validity of the method is verified, and the surface displacement amplitude is calculated. The surface displacement amplitude curve is discussed in the numerical results. The results show that different parameters, such as radius and buried depth of the tunnel, wave number, and incident angle of the SH wave, have a significant influence on the amplitude of surface displacement. For the underground tunnel, the increase of buried depth will make the response of surface displacement amplitude increases at first and then decreases. However, the increase of radius leads the response of surface displacement amplitude to appear an opposite phenomenon. The increase of SH wave number can enlarge the amplitude of surface displacement, and the change of incident angle can obviously affect the amplitude fluctuation.

Keywords: method of region matching, scattering of SH wave, subsurface cavity, trapezoidal hill

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Authors: Katarzyna Stoklosa

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Introduction: European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is an independent office in European Union which was established under the article 86 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union by the Treaty of Lisbon following the method of enhanced cooperation. EPPO is aimed at combating crimes against the EU’s financial interest et fraud against the EU budgets on the one hand, EPPO will give a chance to effective fight with organized criminality, on the other it seems to be a threat for member-states which bound with justice the problem of sovereignty. It is a new institution that will become effective from 2020, which is why it requires prior analysis. Methodology: The author uses statistical and comparative methods by collecting and analyzing the work of current institutions such as Europol, Eurojust, as well as the future impact of EPPO on detection and prosecution of crimes. The author will also conduct questionnaire among students and academic staff involved in the perception of EU institutions and the need to create new entities dealing with inter-agency cooperation in criminal matters. Thanks to these research the author will draw up present ways of cooperation between member-states and changes in fighting with financial crimes which will grow up under new regulation. Major Finding of the Study: Analysis and research show that EPPO is an institution based on the principle of mutual recognition, which often does not work in cooperation between Member States. Distrust and problems with the recognition of judgments of other EU Member States may significantly affect the functioning of EPPO. Poland is not part of the EPPO, because arguments have been raised that the European Public Prosecutor's Office interferes too much with the Member States’ pro-active sovereignty and duplicates competences. The research and analyzes carried out by the author show that EPPO has completely new competences, for example, it may file indictments against perpetrators of financial crimes. However, according to the research carried out by the author, such competences may undermine the sovereignty and the principle of protecting the public order of the EU. Conclusion: After the analysis, it will be possible to set following thesis: EPPO is only possible way to effective fight with organized financial criminality. However in conclusion Polish doubts should not be criticized at all. Institutions as EPPO must properly respect sovereignty of member-states. Even instruments like that cannot provoke political contraventions, because there are no other ways to effective resolving of international criminality problem.

Keywords: criminal trial, economic crimes, European Public Prosecutor's Office, European Union

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Authors: Qiuyu Chen, Bin Long, Junxi Yang

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Located in the southwest of the "roof of the world", Tibet is the origin center of Tibetan Culture.Lhasa, Shigatse and Gyantse are three famous historical and cultural cities in Tibet. They have always been prominent political, economic and cultural cities, and have accumulated the unique aesthetic orientation and value consciousness of Tibet's urban construction. "Archetype" usually refers to the theoretical origin of things, which is the collective unconscious precipitation. The archetype theory fundamentally explores the dialectical relationship between image expression, original form and behavior mode. By abstracting and describing typical phenomena or imagery of the archetype object can observe the essence of objects, explore ways in which object phenomena arise. Applying archetype theory to the field of urban planning helps to gain insight, evaluation, and restructuring of the complex and ever-changing internal structural units of cities. According to existing field investigations, it has been found that Dzong, Temple, Linka and traditional residential systems are important structural units that constitute the urban space of Lhasa, Shigatse and Gyantse. This article applies the thinking method of archetype theory, starting from the imagery expression of urban spatial pattern, using technologies such as ArcGIS, Depthmap, and Computer Vision to descriptively identify the spatial representation and plane relationship of three cities through remote sensing images and historical maps. Based on historical records, the spatial characteristics of cities in different historical periods are interpreted in a hierarchical manner, attempting to clarify the origin of the formation and evolution of urban pattern imagery from the perspectives of geopolitical environment, social structure, religious theory, etc, and expose the growth laws and key driving forces of cities. The research results can provide technical and material support for important behaviors such as urban restoration, spatial intervention, and promoting transformation in the region.

Keywords: archetype theory, urban spatial imagery, original form and pattern, behavioral driving force, Tibet

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Authors: Paul Essel, Eric T. Glover, Gustav Gbeddy, Yaw Adjei-Kyereme, Abdallah M. A. Dawood, Evans M. Ameho, Emmanuel A. Aberikae

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Radioactive materials mainly in the form of Sealed Radioactive Sources are being used in various sectors (medicine, agriculture, industry, research, and teaching) for the socio-economic development of Ghana. The use of these beneficial radioactive materials has resulted in an inventory of Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources (DSRS) in storage. Most of the DSRS are legacy/historic sources which cannot be returned to their manufacturer or country of origin. Though small in volume, DSRS can be intensively radioactive and create a significant safety and security liability. They need to be managed in a safe and secure manner in accordance with the fundamental safety objective. The Radioactive Waste Management Center (RWMC) of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) is currently storing a significant volume of DSRS. The initial activities of the DSRS range from 7.4E+5 Bq to 6.85E+14 Bq. If not managed properly, such DSRS can represent a potential hazard to human health and the environment. Storage is an important interim step, especially for DSRS containing very short-lived radionuclides, which can decay to exemption levels within a few years. Long-term storage, however, is considered an unsustainable option for DSRS with long half-lives hence the need for a disposal facility. The GAEC intends to use the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA’s) Borehole Disposal System (BDS) to provide a safe, secure, and cost-effective disposal option to dispose of its DSRS in storage. The proposed site for implementation of the BDS is on the GAEC premises at Kwabenya. The site has been characterized to gain a general understanding in terms of its regional setting, its past evolution and likely future natural evolution over the assessment time frame. Due to the long half-lives of some of the radionuclides to be disposed of (Ra-226 with half-life of 1600 years), the engineered barriers of the system must be robust to contain these radionuclides for this long period before they decay to harmless levels. There is the need to assess the safety related functions of the engineered barriers of this disposal system.

Keywords: radionuclides, disposal, radioactive waste, engineered barrier

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Authors: Bayarmaa Enkhbold, Kenichi Matsui

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Urban parks are important assets to every community in terms of providing space for health, cultural and leisure activities. However, Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, faces a shortage of green spaces, particularly urban parks, due to overpopulation and haphazard growth. Therefore, in order to increase green space per person, the city government has planned to increase green space per person up to 20m² by 2020 and 30m² by 2030 by establishing more urban parks throughout the city. But this plan was estimated that it is highly unlikely to reach those goals according to the analysis of the present status of plan implementation because the current amount of green space per person is still 4m². In the past studies globally, city planners and scientists agree that it is highly improbable to develop urban parks and keep maintenance sustainably without reflecting community perceptions and their involvement in the park establishment. Therefore, this research aims to find the challenges which stymie urban park development in Ulaanbaatar city and recommend dealing with the problems. In order to reach the goal, communities’ perceptions about the current challenges and their necessity for urban parks were identified and determined whether they differentiated depending on two different types of residential areas (urban and suburban areas). It also attempted to investigate international good practices on how they deal with similar problems. The research methodology was based on a questionnaire survey among city residents, a document review regarding the involvement of stakeholders, and a literature review of relevant past studies. According to the residents’ perceptions, the biggest challenge was a lack of land availability and followed by a lack of proper policy, planning, management, and maintenance out of seven key challenges identified. The biggest community demand from the urban park was a playground for children and followed by recreation and relaxation out of six types of needs. Based on research findings, the study proposed several recommendations for enhancements as institutional and legal framework, park plan and management, supportive environment and monitoring, evaluation, and reporting.

Keywords: challenges of urban park planning and maintenance, community-based urban park establishment, community perceptions and participation, urban parks in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

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Authors: Josué Alfredo Tomas Machaca Fajardo, Jhon Elvis Chahua Janampa, Pedro Rau Lavado

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A flood vulnerability index was developed for the Piura River watershed in northern Peru using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to assess flood risk. The official methodology to assess risk from natural hazards in Peru was introduced in 1980 and proved effective for aiding complex decision-making. This method relies in part on decision-makers defining subjective correlations between variables to identify high-risk areas. While risk identification and ensuing response activities benefit from a qualitative understanding of influences, this method does not take advantage of the advent of national and international data collection efforts, which can supplement our understanding of risk. Furthermore, this method does not take advantage of broadly applied statistical methods such as PCA, which highlight central indicators of vulnerability. Nowadays, information processing is much faster and allows for more objective decision-making tools, such as PCA. The approach presented here develops a tool to improve the current flood risk assessment in the Peruvian basin. Hence, the spatial analysis of the census and other datasets provides a better understanding of the current land occupation and a basin-wide distribution of services and human populations, a necessary step toward ultimately reducing flood risk in Peru. PCA allows the simplification of a large number of variables into a few factors regarding social, economic, physical and environmental dimensions of vulnerability. There is a correlation between the location of people and the water availability mainly found in rivers. For this reason, a comprehensive vision of the population location around the river basin is necessary to establish flood prevention policies. The grouping of 5x5 km gridded areas allows the spatial analysis of flood risk rather than assessing political divisions of the territory. The index was applied to the Peruvian region of Piura, where several flood events occurred in recent past years, being one of the most affected regions during the ENSO events in Peru. The analysis evidenced inequalities for the access to basic services, such as water, electricity, internet and sewage, between rural and urban areas.

Keywords: assess risk, flood risk, indicators of vulnerability, principal component analysis

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Authors: Yasaman Ashrafi, Stephen Kajewski, Annastiina Silvennoinen, Madhav Nepal

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Mega projects either in construction, urban development or energy sectors are one of the key drivers that build the foundation of wealth and modern civilizations in regions and nations. Such projects require economic justification and substantial capital investment, often derived from individual and corporate investors as well as governments. Cost overruns and time delays in these mega projects demands a new approach to more accurately predict project costs and establish realistic financial plans. The significance of this paper is that the cost efficiency of megaprojects will improve and decrease cost overruns. This research will assist Project Managers (PMs) to make timely and appropriate decisions about both cost and outcomes of ongoing projects. This research, therefore, examines the oil and gas industry where most mega projects apply the classic methods of Cost Performance Index (CPI) and Schedule Performance Index (SPI) and rely on project data to forecast cost and time. Because these projects are always overrun in cost and time even at the early phase of the project, the probabilistic methods of Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) and Bayesian Adaptive Forecasting method were used to predict project cost at completion of projects. The current theoretical and mathematical models which forecast the total expected cost and project completion date, during the execution phase of an ongoing project will be evaluated. Earned Value Management (EVM) method is unable to predict cost at completion of a project accurately due to the lack of enough detailed project information especially in the early phase of the project. During the project execution phase, the Bayesian adaptive forecasting method incorporates predictions into the actual performance data from earned value management and revises pre-project cost estimates, making full use of the available information. The outcome of this research is to improve the accuracy of both cost prediction and final duration. This research will provide a warning method to identify when current project performance deviates from planned performance and crates an unacceptable gap between preliminary planning and actual performance. This warning method will support project managers to take corrective actions on time.

Keywords: cost forecasting, earned value management, project control, project management, risk analysis, simulation

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Authors: Janet Modu, Jean-Francois Georgin, Laurent Briancon, Eric Antoinet

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The current practice during the repowering phase of wind turbines is deconstruction of existing foundations and construction of new foundations to accept larger wind loads or once the foundations have reached the end of their service lives. The ongoing research project FUI25 FEDRE (Fondations d’Eoliennes Durables et REpowering) therefore serves to propose scalable wind turbine foundation designs to allow reuse of the existing foundations. To undertake this research, numerical models and laboratory-scale models are currently being utilized and implemented in the GEOMAS laboratory at INSA Lyon following instrumentation of a reference wind turbine situated in the Northern part of France. Sensors placed within both the foundation and the underlying soil monitor the evolution of stresses from the foundation’s early age to stresses during service. The results from the instrumentation form the basis of validation for both the laboratory and numerical works conducted throughout the project duration. The study currently focuses on the effect of coupled mechanisms (Thermal-Hydro-Mechanical-Chemical) that induce stress during the early age of the reinforced concrete foundation, and scale factor considerations in the replication of the reference wind turbine foundation at laboratory-scale. Using THMC 3D models on COMSOL Multi-physics software, the numerical analysis performed on both the laboratory-scale and the full-scale foundations simulate the thermal deformation, hydration, shrinkage (desiccation and autogenous) and creep so as to predict the initial damage caused by internal processes during concrete setting and hardening. Results show a prominent effect of early age properties on the damage potential in full-scale wind turbine foundations. However, a prediction of the damage potential at laboratory scale shows significant differences in early age stresses in comparison to the full-scale model depending on the spatial position in the foundation. In addition to the well-known size effect phenomenon, these differences may contribute to inaccuracies encountered when predicting ultimate deformations of the on-site foundation using laboratory scale models.

Keywords: cement hydration, early age behavior, reinforced concrete, shrinkage, THMC 3D models, wind turbines

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Authors: Navid Mirzaei Varzeghani, Mahmoud Saffarzadeh, Ali Naderan, Amirhossein Taheri

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Countries are progressing, and the world's busiest airports see year-on-year increases in travel demand. Passenger acceptability of an airport depends on the airport's appeals, which may include one of these routes between the city and the airport, as well as the facilities to reach them. One of the critical roles of transportation planners is to predict future transportation demand so that an integrated, multi-purpose system can be provided and diverse modes of transportation (rail, air, and land) can be delivered to a destination like an airport. In this study, 356 questionnaires were filled out in person over six days. First, the attraction of business and non-business trips was studied using data and a linear regression model. Lower travel costs, a range of ages more significant than 55, and other factors are essential for business trips. Non-business travelers, on the other hand, have prioritized using personal vehicles to get to the airport and ensuring convenient access to the airport. Business travelers are also less price-sensitive than non-business travelers regarding airport travel. Furthermore, carrying additional luggage (for example, more than one suitcase per person) undoubtedly decreases the attractiveness of public transit. Afterward, based on the manner and purpose of the trip, the locations with the highest trip generation to the airport were identified. The most famous district in Tehran was District 2, with 23 visits, while the most popular mode of transportation was an online taxi, with 12 trips from that location. Then, significant variables in separation and behavior of travel methods to access the airport were investigated for all systems. In this scenario, the most crucial factor is the time it takes to get to the airport, followed by the method's user-friendliness as a component of passenger preference. It has also been demonstrated that enhancing public transportation trip times reduces private transportation's market share, including taxicabs. Based on the responses of personal and semi-public vehicles, the desire of passengers to approach the airport via public transportation systems was explored to enhance present techniques and develop new strategies for providing the most efficient modes of transportation. Using the binary model, it was clear that business travelers and people who had already driven to the airport were the least likely to change.

Keywords: multimodal transportation, demand modeling, travel behavior, statistical models

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Authors: Selin Guleroglu, Ilker Kahraman, E. Selahattin Umdu

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In today’s world, the building sector has a significant impact on primary energy consumption and CO₂ emissions. While new buildings must have high energy performance as indicated by the Energy Performance Directive in Buildings (EPBD), published by the European Union (EU), the energy performance of the existing buildings must also be enhanced with cost-efficient methods. Turkey has a high historical building density similar to south European countries, and the high energy consumption is the main contributor in the energy consumptioın of Turkey, which is rather higher than European counterparts. Historic buildings spread around Turkey for four main climate zones covering very similar climate characteristics to both the north and south European countries. The case study building is determined as the most common building type in Turkey. This study aims to investigate energy retrofit measures covering but not limited to passive and active measures to improve the energy performance of the historical buildings located in different climatic zones within the limits of preservation of the historical value of the building as a crucial constraint. Passive measures include wall, window, and roof construction elements, and active measures HVAC systems in retrofit scenarios. The proposed methodology can help to reach up to 30% energy saving based on primary energy consumption. DesignBuilder, an energy simulation tool, is used to determine the energy performance of buildings with suggested retrofit measures, and the Net Present Value (NPV) method is used for cost analysis of them. Finally, the most efficient energy retrofit measures for all buildings are determined by analyzing primary energy consumption and the cost performance of them. Results show that heat insulation, glazing type, and HVAC system has an important role in energy saving. Also, it found that these parameters have a different positive or negative effect on building energy consumption in different climate zones. For instance, low e glazing has a positive impact on the energy performance of the building in the first zone, while it has a negative effect on the building in the forth zone. Another important result is applying heat insulation has minimum impact on building energy performance compared to other zones.

Keywords: energy performance, climatic zones, historic building, energy retrofit measures, NPV

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Authors: Jarwa Prasetya Sih Handoko

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The issue of energy crisis for big cities in Indonesia are issues raised in line with the development of the city is rapidly increasing. Various attempts were made by the government in overcoming problems of energy needs in Indonesia. In addition to the efforts of the government required the efforts made by the public to solve this problem. The concept of green building in the design of the building with efforts to use energy efficiently can be one of the efforts that can be applied to solve this problem. Jakarta is capital and the one of the major cities in Indonesia with high economic growth. This leads to increased demand for office space for the people. So that the construction of office buildings in big cities like Jakarta very numerous. Office building is one of the buildings that require large energy consumption. As a building that could potentially require huge amounts of energy, the design should consider the use of energy to help provide solutions to problems of energy crisis in Indonesia. The concept of energy efficient is one of the concepts addressed in an effort to use energy in buildings to save energy needs of the building operations. Therefore, it is necessary to have a study that explores the application of the concept of energy efficiency and conservation in office buildings in Jakarta. In this study using two (2) buildings case study that Sequis Center Building and Sampoerna Strategic Square. Both are office buildings in Jakarta have earned the Green Building Certificate of Green Building Council Indonesia (GBCI). The study used literature review methods to address issues raised earlier. Whether it's related to a literature review on the study of office buildings and green building. With this paper is expected to be obtained on the application of the concept of energy efficiency and conservation in office buildings that have earned recognition as a green building by GBCI. The result could be a reference to the architect in designing the next office buildings, especially related to the concept of energy use in buildings. From this study, it can be concluded that the concept of energy efficiency and conservation in the design of office buildings can be applied to its orientation, the openings, the use shade in buildings, vegetation and building material selection and efficient use of water. So that it can reduce energy requirements needed to meet the needs of the building user activity. So the concept of energy efficiency and conservation in office buildings can be one of the efforts to realize the Green Office Building. Recommendations from this study is that the design of office buildings should be able to apply the concept of energy utilization in the design office. This is to meet the energy needs of the office buildings in an effort to realize the Green Building.

Keywords: energy crisis, energy efficiency, energy conservation, green building, office building

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Authors: Aijing Luo, Zirui Xin, Yifeng Yuan

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Background: With the rapid development of the online health community, more and more patients or families are seeking health information on the Internet. Objective: This study aimed to discuss how to fully reveal the health information needs expressed by hypertensive patients in their questions in the online environment. Methods: This study randomly selected 1,000 text records from the question data of hypertensive patients from 2008 to 2018 collected from the website www.haodf.com and constructed a classification system through literature research and content analysis. This paper identified the background characteristics and questioning the intention of each hypertensive patient based on the patient’s question and used co-occurrence network analysis to explore the features of the health information needs of hypertensive patients. Results: The classification system for health information needs of patients with hypertension is composed of 9 parts: 355 kinds of drugs, 395 kinds of symptoms and signs, 545 kinds of tests and examinations , 526 kinds of demographic data, 80 kinds of diseases, 37 kinds of risk factors, 43 kinds of emotions, 6 kinds of lifestyles, 49 kinds of questions. The characteristics of the explored online health information needs of the hypertensive patients include: i)more than 49% of patients describe the features such as drugs, symptoms and signs, tests and examinations, demographic data, diseases, etc. ii) these groups are most concerned about treatment (77.8%), followed by diagnosis (32.3%); iii) 65.8% of hypertensive patients will ask doctors online several questions at the same time. 28.3% of the patients are very concerned about how to adjust the medication, and they will ask other treatment-related questions at the same time, including drug side effects, whether to take drugs, how to treat a disease, etc.; secondly, 17.6% of the patients will consult the doctors online about the causes of the clinical findings, including the relationship between the clinical findings and a disease, the treatment of a disease, medication, and examinations. Conclusion: In the online environment, the health information needs expressed by Chinese hypertensive patients to doctors are personalized; that is, patients with different background features express their questioning intentions to doctors. The classification system constructed in this study can guide health information service providers in the construction of online health resources, to help solve the problem of information asymmetry in communication between doctors and patients.

Keywords: online health community, health information needs, hypertensive patients, doctor-patient communication

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