Search results for: patterns of traditional sustainability for residential buildings

Authors: Franziska Mais, Till Gramberg

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The paper presents the development of a sustainable business model for a platform-based application tailored for sawing companies in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The focus is on the integration of sustainability principles into the design of the business model to ensure a technologically advanced, legally sound, and economically efficient solution. Easy2IoT is a research project that aims to enable companies in the prefabrication sheet metal and sheet metal processing industry to enter the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) with a low-threshold and cost-effective approach. The methodological approach of Easy2IoT includes an in-depth requirements analysis and customer interviews with stakeholders along the value chain. Based on these insights, actions, requirements, and potential solutions for smart services are derived. The structuring of the business ecosystem within the application plays a central role, whereby the roles of the partners, the management of the IT infrastructure and services, as well as the design of a sustainable operator model are considered. The business model is developed using the value proposition canvas, whereby a detailed analysis of the requirements for the business model is carried out, taking sustainability into account. This includes coordination with the business model patterns, according to Gassmann, and integration into a business model canvas for the Easy2IoT product. Potential obstacles and problems are identified and evaluated in order to formulate a comprehensive and sustainable business model. In addition, sustainable payment models and distribution channels are developed. In summary, the article offers a well-founded insight into the systematic development of a sustainable business model for platform-based applications in SME sawmills, with a particular focus on the synergy of ecological responsibility and economic efficiency.

Keywords: business model, sustainable business model, IIoT, IIoT-platform, industrie 4.0, big data

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Authors: Mehrangiz Rezaee, Zabih Charrahi

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In the last decade, with increasing tourism destinations and tourism growth, we are witnessing the widespread impacts of tourism on the economy, environment and society. Tourism and its related economy are now undergoing a transformation and as one of the key pillars of business economics, it plays a vital role in the world economy. Activities related to tourism and providing services appropriate to it in an area, like many economic sectors, require the necessary context on its origin. Given the importance of tourism industry and tourism potentials of Yazd province in Iran, it is necessary to use a proper procedure for prioritizing different areas for proper and efficient planning. One of the most important goals of planning is foresight and creating balanced development in different geographical areas. This process requires an accurate study of the areas and potential and actual talents, as well as evaluation and understanding of the relationship between the indicators affecting the development of the region. At the global and regional level, the development of tourist resorts and the proper distribution of tourism destinations are needed to counter environmental impacts and risks. The main objective of this study is the sustainable development of suitable tourism areas. Given that tourism activities in different territorial areas require operational zoning, this study deals with the evaluation of territorial tourism using concepts such as land use, fitness and sustainable development. It is essential to understand the structure of tourism development and the spatial development of tourism using land use patterns, spatial planning and sustainable development. Tourism spatial planning implements different approaches. However, the development of tourism as well as the spatial development of tourism is complex, since tourist activities can be carried out in different areas with different purposes. Multipurpose areas have great important for tourism because it determines the flow of tourism. Therefore, in this paper, by studying the development and determination of tourism suitability that is related to spatial development, it is possible to plan tourism spatial development by developing a model that describes the characteristics of tourism. The results of this research determine the suitability of multi-functional territorial tourism development in line with spatial planning of tourism.

Keywords: land use change, spatial planning, sustainability, territorial tourist, Yazd

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Authors: Ayanfulu Yekini

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The hotel and tourism industry remains male-dominated, particularly in the upper echelons of management and ICT remained underutilized. While there is a massive revolution in this trend across the globe, it appears much progress has not been made in our nation Nigeria. This paper aimed at evaluating the relevance of ICT and Gender Participation to Sustainability of Hospitality and Tourism Industry in Nigeria. The research study was conducted in tourism organizations, travel agents, hotels, restaurants, resorts, professionals in tourism, travel and hospitality industry within Nigeria. The respondents are from the tourism/hospitality industries employees and entrepreneurs only.

Keywords: ICT, hotel, gender participation, Nigeria, tourism

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Authors: Simon Ayorinde Okanlawon

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The youths’ prevalent negative attitude to farming is partly due to amenities and facilities found in the urban centers at the expense of the rural areas. Hence, there is the need to create a befitting and conducive farm environment to retain farm employees and attract the youth to farming. This can be achieved through the provision of services and amenities that will ensure a comfortable standard of living higher than that obtained by a person of equal status in other forms of employment in urban centers, thereby eliminating the psychological feeling of lowered self-esteem associated with farming. This study assessed farm settlements’ facilities and patronage in Oyo State with a view to using the information to encourage sustainable agriculture in Nigeria. The study becomes necessary because of the dearth of information on the state of facilities in the farm settlements as it affects patronage of farm settlements for sustainable agriculture in the developing countries like Nigeria. The study utilized three purposely selected farm settlements- Ogbomoso, Fasola and Ilora out of the seven existing ones n Oyo State. One hundred percent (100%) of the 262 residential buildings in the three settlements were sampled, from where a household head from each of the buildings was randomly chosen. This translates to 262 household heads served with questionnaire out of which 47.7% of the questionnaires were recovered. Information obtained included respondents’ residency categories, residents’ status, residency years, housing types, types of holding and number of acres/holding. Others include the socio-economic attributes such as age, gender, income, educational status of respondents, assessment of existing facilities in the selected sites, the level of patronage of the farm settlements including perceived pull factors that can enhance farm settlements patronage. The study revealed that the residents were not satisfied with the adequacy and quality of all the facilities available in their settlements. Residents’ satisfaction with infrastructural facilities cannot be statistically linked with location across the study area. Findings suggested that residents of Ogbomoso farm settlements were not enjoying adequate provision of water supply and road as much as those from Ilora and Fasola. Patronage of the farm settlements were largely driven by farming activities and sale of farm produce. The respondents agreed that provision of farm resort centers, standard recreational and tourism facilities, vacation employment opportunities for youths, functional internet and communication networks among others are likely to boost the level of patronage of the farm settlements. The study concluded that improvement of the facilities both in quality and quantity will encourage the youths in going back to farming. It then recommends that maintenance of existing facilities and provision of more facilities such as resort centers be ensured.

Keywords: encourage, farm settlements' facilities, Oyo state, patronage

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Authors: Ayodele Oluwole Alejo

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Wall finishes are the term to describe an application over a wall surface to provide a suitable surface. Wall finishes are smelt, touched and seen by building occupiers even colour and design affects the user psychology and the atmosphere of our building. Building users/owners seem not to recognize the function of various wall finishes in building and factors to be considered in selecting them suitable for the type and purpose of proposed buildings. Therefore, defects such as deterioration, dampness, and stain may occur when comparisons of wall finishes are not made before the selection of appropriate materials at the design stage with knowledge of the various factors that may hinder the performance or maintenance culture of proposed building of a particular location. This research work investigates and compares various wall finishes in building. Buildings in Ondo state, Nigeria were used as the target area to conduct the research works. The factors bearing on various wall finishes were analyzed to find out their individual and collective impact using suitable analytical tools. The findings revealed that paint with high percentage score was the most preferred wall finishes, whereas wall paper was ranked the least by the respondent findings, Factors considered most in the selection of wall finishes was durability with the highest ranking percentage and least was the cost. The study recommends that skilled worker should carry out operations, quality product should be used and all of wall finishes and materials should be considered before selection.

Keywords: building, construction, design, finishes, wall

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Authors: Angana Chatterjee

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The feminist scholars point out the various problematic issues in the traditional mainstream western thought and theories. The thought practices behind the discriminatory and oppressive social practices are based on concepts that play a pivotal role in theorisation. Therefore, many feminist philosophers take up reformation or reconceptualisation projects. Such projects have bearings on various aspects of philosophical thought, namely, ontology, epistemology, logic, ethics, social, political thought, and so on. In tune with this spirit, the present paper suggests a well-established thought pattern which is not western but has got the potential to deal with the problems of mainstream western thought culture that are identified by the feminist critics. The Indian thought pattern is theorised in the domain of Indian logic, which is a study of inference patterns. As, in the Indian context, the inference is considered as a source of knowledge, certain epistemological questions are linked with the discussion of inference. One of the key epistemological issues is one regarding justification. The study about the nature of derivation of knowledge from available evidence, and the nature of the evidence itself, are integral parts of the discipline called Indian logic. But if we contrast the western tradition of thought with the Indian one, we can find that the Indian logic has got some peculiar features which may be shown to deal with the problems identified by the feminist scholars in western thought culture more plausibly. The tradition of western logic, starting from Aristotle, has been maintaining sharp differences between two forms of reasoning, namely, deductive and inductive. These two different forms of reasoning have been theorised and dealt with separately within the domain of the study called ‘logic.’ There are various philosophical problems that are raised around concepts and issues regarding both deductive and inductive reasoning. Indian logic does not distinguish between deduction and induction as thought patterns, but their distinction is very usual to make in the western tradition. Though there can be found various interpretations about this peculiarity of Indian thought pattern, these mixed patterns were actually very close to the cross-cultural pattern in which human beings would tend to argue or infer from the available data or evidence. The feminist theories can successfully operate in the domain of lived experience if they make use of such a mixed pattern of reasoning or inference. By offering sound inferential knowledge on contextual evidences, the Indian thought pattern is potent to serve the feminist purposes in a meaningful way.

Keywords: feminist thought, Indian logic, inference, justification, mixed thought pattern

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Authors: John Lamb, Robert Epstein, Vasundhara L. Bhupathi, Sanjeev Kumar Marimekala

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As we enter the new era of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cloud Computing, we mostly rely on the Machine and Natural Language Processing capabilities of AI, and Energy Efficient Hardware and Software Devices in almost every industry sector. In these industry sectors, much emphasis is on developing new and innovative methods for producing and conserving energy and sustaining the depletion of natural resources. The core pillars of sustainability are economic, environmental, and social, which is also informally referred to as the 3 P's (People, Planet and Profits). The 3 P's play a vital role in creating a core Sustainability Model in the Enterprise. Natural resources are continually being depleted, so there is more focus and growing demand for renewable energy. With this growing demand, there is also a growing concern in many industries on how to reduce carbon emissions and conserve natural resources while adopting sustainability in corporate business models and policies. In our paper, we would like to discuss the driving forces such as Climate changes, Natural Disasters, Pandemic, Disruptive Technologies, Corporate Policies, Scaled Business Models and Emerging social media and AI platforms that influence the 3 main pillars of Sustainability (3P’s). Through this paper, we would like to bring an overall perspective on enterprise strategies and the primary focus on bringing cultural shifts in adapting energy-efficient operational models. Overall, many industries across the globe are incorporating core sustainability principles such as reducing energy costs, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reducing waste and increasing recycling, adopting advanced monitoring and metering infrastructure, reducing server footprint and compute resources (Shared IT services, Cloud computing, and Application Modernization) with the vision for a sustainable environment.

Keywords: climate change, pandemic, disruptive technology, government policies, business model, machine learning and natural language processing, AI, social media platform, cloud computing, advanced monitoring, metering infrastructure

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Authors: N. A. Parvin, E. B. Ferranti, L. A. Chapman, C. A. Pfrang

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This study intends to investigate the effects of the Urban Heat Island on public health in Birmingham. Birmingham is located at the center of the West Midlands and its weather is Highly variable due to geographical factors. Residential developments, road networks and infrastructure often replace open spaces and vegetation. This transformation causes the temperature of urban areas to increase and creates an "island" of higher temperatures in the urban landscape. Extreme heat in the urban area is influencing public health in the UK as well as in the world. Birmingham is a densely built-up area with skyscrapers and congested buildings in the city center, which is a barrier to air circulation. We will investigate the city regarding heat and cold-related human mortality and other impacts. We are using primary and secondary datasets to examine the effect of population shift and land-use change on the UHI in Birmingham. We will also use freely available weather data from the Birmingham Urban Observatory and will incorporate satellite data to determine urban spatial expansion and its effect on the UHI. We have produced a temperature map based on summer datasets of 2020, which has covered 25 weather stations in Birmingham to show the differences between diurnal and nocturnal summer and annual temperature trends. Some impacts of the UHI may be beneficial, such as the lengthening of the plant growing season, but most of them are highly negative. We are looking for various effects of urban heat which is impacting human health and investigating mitigation options.

Keywords: urban heat, public health, climate change

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Authors: Jacopo Baboni Schilingi

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We here describe the theoretical and philosophical understanding of a long term use and development of algorithmic computer-based tools applied to music composition. The findings of our research lead us to interrogate some specific processes and systems of communication engaged in the discovery of specific cultural artworks: artistic creation in the sono-musical domain. Our hypothesis is that the patterns of auditory learning cannot be only understood in terms of social transmission but would gain to be questioned in the way they rely on various ranges of acoustic stimuli modes of consciousness and how the different types of memories engaged in the percept-action expressive systems of our cultural communities also relies on these shadowy conscious entities we named “Reduced Descriptive Structures”.

Keywords: algorithmic sonic computation, corrected and self-correcting learning patterns in acoustic perception, morphological derivations in sensorial patterns, social unconscious modes of communication

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Authors: Pranab Kumar Goswami, Elena Gurung

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Small and medium enterprises (SME) are considered as the driving force for the economic growth of a developing country like India. Most of the SMEs are located in residential/non-industrial areas to avoid legal obligations of occupational safety and health (OSH) provisions. This study was conducted in Delhiwith a view to analyze the accidents that occurredduringthe year 2019 & 2020. The objective of the study was to find out the accident prone SMEs in Delhi and major causes of such accidents. Methods: Survey and comprehensive data analysis methods, followed by applying simple statistical techniques, were used for this study. The accident reports for the study period collected from the labour department and police stations were analyzed for the study. The injured workers were interviewed to ascertain safety compliances, training and awareness programs, etc. The study was completed in March2021. Results: It was found that most of the accidents took place in SMEs located in residential/non- industrial areas in Delhi. The accident-prone machines were found to be power presses (42%) and injection moulding machines (37%). Predominantly unsafe machinery or unsafe working conditions and lack of training of worker were observed to be the major causes of accidents in such industries. Conclusions: It was concluded from the study that unsafe machinery/equipment and lack of proper training to the workers were two main reasons for increase in accidents.It was also concluded that the industries located in industrial areas were better placed in terms of workplace compliances. The managements who were running their operations from residential/non-industrial areaswere found to be less aware on health and safety issues. Lack of enforcement by government agencies in such areas has escalated this problem. Adequate training to workers, managing safe & healthy workplace, and sustained enforcement can reduce accidents in such industries.

Keywords: SME, accident prevention, cause of accident, unorganised

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Authors: M. Abdallah

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Urban development requires deep excavations near buildings and other structures. Deep excavation has become more a necessity for better utilization of space as the population of the world has dramatically increased. In Lebanon, some urban areas are very crowded and lack spaces for new buildings and underground projects, which makes the usage of underground space indispensable. In this paper, a numerical modeling is performed using the finite element method to study the deep excavation-diaphragm wall soil-structure interaction in the case of nonlinear soil behavior. The study is focused on a comparison of the results obtained using different support systems. Furthermore, a parametric study is performed according to the remoteness of the structure.

Keywords: deep excavation, ground anchors, interaction soil-structure, struts

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Authors: Ajibade Adeyemo

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The paper examined local terms used for spaces, forms and building practices in southwest Nigeria as cultural semiotics. Housing has more cultural meaning than mere shelter as shown in building terms such as ‘roof over my head’. The study is significant in the study area because its people were traditionally orally centered until ‘culture contact’ led to graphical presentation and appreciation in the form of drawings which is a modern language of architecture. This semiotic study will facilitate the understanding of the wholesomeness of traditional building practices and thoughts. This is in the culture of the traditional multi-sensory appreciation of architecture, urban design and the arts. It will analyze traditional aphoristic words and terms which are like proverbs which are significant in language because of their metaphorical essence. Many of such terms in the dominant Yoruba language of the study area are oftentimes phenomenal reducing universal terms like the earth and heaven to the simple module of housing. These words could be worth investigating because they are symbolic serve as codes which are cultural tool of regional ethnic significance. Sassure’s and Pierce’s concepts of Semiotics in line with Eco’s concept of semiotics of metaphor shall be deployed.

Keywords: traditional terms, spaces, forms, artifacts, cultural semiotics, southwest

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Authors: Benjamin Cramer, Josephine Chau, Helen Little, Erica Randle

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Play Streets provide a safe and open space for children to play and adults to socialize by closing residential streets to through traffic. While research on Play Streets has typically focused on physical activity outcomes in children, there is limited research on the psychosocial health externalities for the wider community. Charles Sturt, a local government area in Adelaide, South Australia, has been hosting Play Streets for several years. The current study is a mixed-methods evaluation of the Charles Sturt Play Streets, concerned with the perceived psychological and social impacts that Play Streets impact on the community. A combination of semi-structured interviews of Play Street organizers and participants will be conducted and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Pre-existing survey data will also be analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively to triangulate the findings of the qualitative interviews. The implications of this research are far-reaching, from informing local councils of any additional health benefits of Play Streets, expanding the growing literature on Play Streets beyond childhood physical activity, informing the development of city infrastructure, and advancing the Sustainability Development Goals of Good Health and Wellbeing, Reduced Inequalities, and Sustainable Cities and Communities.

Keywords: play streets, mental health, social health, community health

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Authors: Luis Lara-Valencia, Mateo Ramirez-Acevedo, Daniel Caicedo, Jose Brito, Yosef Farbiarz

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Controlling wind-induced vibrations as well as aerodynamic forces, is an essential part of the structural design of tall buildings in order to guarantee the serviceability limit state of the structure. This paper presents a numerical investigation on the optimal design parameters of a Tuned Inerter Damper (TID) based system for the control of wind-induced vibration in tall buildings. The control system is based on the conventional TID, with the main difference that its location is changed from the ground level to the last two story-levels of the structural system. The TID tuning procedure is based on an evolutionary cultural algorithm in which the optimum design variables defined as the frequency and damping ratios were searched according to the optimization criteria of minimizing the root mean square (RMS) response of displacements at the nth story of the structure. A Monte Carlo simulation was used to represent the dynamic action of the wind in the time domain in which a time-series derived from the Davenport spectrum using eleven harmonic functions with randomly chosen phase angles was reproduced. The above-mentioned methodology was applied on a case-study derived from a 37-story prestressed concrete building with 144 m height, in which the wind action overcomes the seismic action. The results showed that the optimally tuned TID is effective to reduce the RMS response of displacements up to 25%, which demonstrates the feasibility of the system for the control of wind-induced vibrations in tall buildings.

Keywords: evolutionary cultural algorithm, Monte Carlo simulation, tuned inerter damper, wind-induced vibrations

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Authors: Gram Y. Rivas Sanchez

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The seismic design codes in the world allow the analysis of structures considering an elastic-linear behavior; however, against earthquakes, the structures exhibit non-linear behaviors that induce damage to their elements. For this reason, it is necessary to use non-linear methods to analyze these structures, being the dynamic methods that provide more reliable results but require a lot of computational costs; on the other hand, non-linear static methods do not have this disadvantage and are being used more and more. In the present work, the nonlinear static analysis (pushover) of RC frame buildings of three, five, and seven stories is carried out considering models of concentrated plasticity using plastic hinges; and the seismic performance points are determined using ATC-40, FEMA 356, and FEMA 440 guidelines. Using this last standard, the highest inelastic displacements and basal shears are obtained, providing designs that are more conservative.

Keywords: pushover, nonlinear, RC building, FEMA 440, ATC 40

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Authors: Raghad Alhusari, Farag Omar, Moustafa Fadel

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A traditional greenhouse is a metal frame agricultural building used for cultivation plants in a controlled environment isolated from external climatic changes. Using greenhouses in agriculture is an efficient way to reduce the water consumption, where agriculture field is considered the biggest water consumer world widely. Controlling greenhouse environment yields better productivity of plants but demands an increase of electric power. Although various control approaches have been used towards greenhouse automation, most of them are applied to traditional greenhouses with ventilation fans and/or evaporation cooling system. Such approaches are still demanding high energy and water consumption. The aim of this research is to develop a fuzzy control system that minimizes water and energy consumption by utilizing outside weather conditions and underground heat exchanger to maintain the optimum climate of the greenhouse. The proposed control system is implemented on an experimental model of thermally isolated greenhouse structure with dimensions of 6x5x2.8 meters. It uses fans for extracting heat from the ground heat exchanger system, motors for automatic open/close of the greenhouse windows and LED as lighting system. The controller is integrated also with environmental condition sensors. It was found that using the air-to-air horizontal ground heat exchanger with 90 mm diameter and 2 mm thickness placed 2.5 m below the ground surface results in decreasing the greenhouse temperature of 3.28 ˚C which saves around 3 kW of consumed energy. It also eliminated the water consumption needed in evaporation cooling systems which are traditionally used for cooling the greenhouse environment.

Keywords: automation, earth-to-air heat exchangers, fuzzy control, greenhouse, sustainable buildings

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Authors: Haruna Abdu Usman, Bashir Usman Mohammed, Mohammed Umar Jamil

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Municipal solid waste management constitutes a serious problem bedeviling environmental protection agencies in many cities of developing countries. Most agencies do not collect the totality of the waste generated in their cities. This study presents the current solid waste management practices and problems in Bauchi metropolis, Bauchi state Nigeria. The general feature is characterized by inefficient, insufficient and irrational collection and improper disposal alternatives. The consequent environmental effects of these problems depict clogged city drains, uncollected heap of waste on road sides of residential areas, vacant plots and uncompleted buildings and highways. This contributes immensely to flooding in the city. The major challenges facing the state environmental protection agency includes; lack of collection and disposal points, technical and institutional arrangements, financial resources and general attitude of the serving public among others. The study suggested a comprehensive and integrated approach to the solid waste management which recognizes and incorporates the interventionist role of the state government, the private formal and informal waste management operators and the serving public.

Keywords: municipal solid waste, bauchi metropolitan area, environmental protection agency, solid waste management, waste disposal

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Authors: Muhammad Idnan, Arshad Javid, Muhammad Nadeem

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The present study was conducted from April 2013 to March 2014 to observe the behavioral parameters of Chinkara (Gazella bennettii) under captive conditions by comparing the captive-born and wild-caught animals for conservation strategies. Understanding the behavioral conformations plays a significant role in captive management. Due to human population explosion and mechanized hunting, the captive breeding seems to be the best way for sports hunting, bush meat, for leather industry and horns for traditional medicinal usage. Primarily, captive management has been used on trial and error basis due to deficiency of ethology of this least concerned species. Behavior of [(20 wild-caught (WC) and 10 captive-bred (CB)] adult Chinkara was observed at captive breeding facilities for ungulates at Ravi Campus, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Kasur district which is situated on southeast side of Lahore. The average annual rainfall is about 650 mm, with frequent raining during monsoon. A focal sample was used to observe the various behavioral patterns for CB and WC chinkara. A similarity was observed in behavioral parameters in WC and CB animals, however, when the differences were considered, WC male deer showed a significantly higher degree of agonistic interaction as compared to the CB male chinkara. These findings suggest that there is no immediate impact of captivity on behavior of chinkara nevertheless 10 generations of captivity. It is suggested that the Chinkara is not suitable for domestication and for successful deer farming, a further study is recommended for ethology of chinkara.

Keywords: Chinkara (Gazella bennettii), domestication, deer farming, ex-situ conservation

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Authors: A. A. Azemati, H. Hosseini, B. Shirkavand Hadavand

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By using an adequate thermal barrier coating in buildings the energy saving will be happened. In this study, a range of wall paints with different absorption coefficient in different climates has been investigated. In order to study these effects, heating and cooling loads of a common building with different ordinary paints and paint with mineral coating have been calculated. The effect of building paint in different climatic condition was studied and comparison was done between ordinary paints and paint with mineral insulators in temperate climate to obtain optimized energy consumption. The results have been shown that coatings with inorganic micro particles as insulation reduce the energy consumption of buildings around 14%.

Keywords: climate, energy consumption, inorganic, mineral coating

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Authors: Stefan Kurbatfinski, Aliyah Dosani, Andrew F. Hayes, Deborah Dewey, Nicole Letourneau

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Background: Maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been associated with internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems in preschool children. However, little is known about the influence of maternal adult attachment patterns on this association. Further, potential moderation by maternal mental health, maternal social support, or child sex is poorly understood. Therefore, this study examined associations between 1) maternal ACEs and preschool children’s behavioural problems, with mediation through maternal attachment patterns and moderation by maternal mental health, maternal social support, and child sex; and 2) maternal attachment patterns and children’s behavioural problems, with mediation through maternal mental health and social support and moderation by child sex. Methods: This secondary analysis used data (n=625) from a high socioeconomic, longitudinally prospective cohort (Alberta Pregnancy Outcomes and Nutrition). Child behaviour (BASC-2) and maternal adult attachment (ECR-Q) were measured at five years of child age, maternal ACEs (ACEs Questionnaire) at around 12 months, and maternal mental health (CESD and SCL-90-R) and social support (SSQ) across various prenatal and postnatal time points. All moderation and mediation analyses occurred through RStudio using PROCESS, interpreting significant interactions through Johnson-Neyman plots. Findings: Maternal ACEs interacted with maternal anxiety symptoms to predict both behavioural problems (pexternalizing=0.007; pinternalizing=0.0159). An indirect pathway via dismissive attachment was moderated by maternal social support ([0.0058, 0.0596]). Attachment patterns predicted all behavioural problems (p<0.05) and interacted with maternal anxiety symptoms to predict internalizing behaviours among male children ([0.0321, 0.1307]; [0.0321, 0.1291]). Interpretation: Maternal attachment patterns may predict children’s behavioural problems more than ACEs. Social support interventions may not always be beneficial for highly dismissively attached mothers. Implications for policy and child health include mandatory sex and gender education for teachers; assessing attachment patterns prior to recommending social support as an intervention; and anxiety-focused interventions for mothers in higher socioeconomic populations.

Keywords: maternal adverse childhood experiences, internalizing behaviours, externalizing behaviours, mediators and moderators, attachment patterns, child health

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Authors: M. G. Nasuruddin, S. Ishak

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This paper deals with the traditional Malay healing ritualistic ceremony known as Main Puteri. This non-invasive intervention uses the vehicle of performance to administer the healing process. It employs the performance elements of Makyung, that is, music, movements/dance, and dramatic dialogue to heal psychosomatic maladies. There are two perspectives to this therapeutic healing process, one traditional and the other scientific. From the traditional perspective, the psychosomatic illness is attributed to the infestations/possessions by malevolent spirits. To heal such patients, these spirits must be exorcised through placating them by making offerings. From the scientific perspective, the music (sonic orders), movements (kinetic energy), and smell (olfactory) connect with the brain waves to release the chemicals that would activate the internal healing energy. Currently, in Main Puteri, the therapeutic healing ritual is no longer relevant as modern clinical medicine has proven to be more effective. Thus, Main Puteri is an anachronism in today’s technologically advanced Malaysia.

Keywords: exorcism, main puteri, shamans, therapeutic healing

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Authors: Ibrahim Tiryakioglu, Mehmet Ali Ugur, Caglar Ozkaymak

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The development of GNSS technology has led to increasingly widespread and successful applications of GNSS surveys for monitoring crustal movements. However, multi-period GPS survey solutions have not been applied in monitoring vertical surface deformation. This study uses long-term GNSS time series that are required to determine vertical deformations. In recent years, the surface deformations that are parallel and semi-parallel to Bolvadin fault have occurred in Western Anatolia. These surface deformations have continued to occur in Bolvadin settlement area that is located mostly on alluvium ground. Due to these surface deformations, a number of cracks in the buildings located in the residential areas and breaks in underground water and sewage systems have been observed. In order to determine the amount of vertical surface deformations, two continuous GNSS stations have been established in the region. The stations have been operating since 2015 and 2017, respectively. In this study, GNSS observations from the mentioned two GNSS stations were processed with GAMIT/GLOBK (GNSS Analysis Massachusetts Institute of Technology/GLOBal Kalman) program package to create a coordinate time series. With the time series analyses, the GNSS stations’ behavior models (linear, periodical, etc.), the causes of these behaviors, and mathematical models were determined. The study results from the time series analysis of these two 2 GNSS stations shows approximately 50-80 mm/yr vertical movement.

Keywords: Bolvadin fault, GAMIT, GNSS time series, surface deformations

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Authors: Yi-Yu Huang, Chien-Kuo Wang, Sreerag Chota Veettil, Hang Zhang, Hu Yike

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Regarding the pressing issue of reducing energy consumption and carbon footprint of buildings, past research has focused more on analyzing the thermal performance of the extensive terrestrial green roofs with sedum plants in summer. However, the disadvantages of this type of green roof are relatively limited thermal performance, low extreme weather adaptability, relatively higher demands in maintenance, and lower added value in healing landscape. In view of this, this research aims to develop the extensive wetland green roofs with higher thermal performance, high extreme weather adaptability, low demands in maintenance, and high added value in healing landscape, and to measure its thermal performance for buildings in winter. The following factors are considered including the type and mixing formula of growth medium (light weight soil, akadama, creek gravel, pure water) and the type of aquatic plants. The research adopts a four-stage field experiment conducting on the rooftop of a building in a humid subtropical climate. The results found that emergent (Roundleaf rotala), submerged (Ribbon weed), floating-leaved (Water lily) wetland green roofs had similar thermal performance, and superior over wetland green roof without plant, traditional terrestrial green roof (without plant), and pure water green roof (without plant, nighttime only) in terms of overall passive cooling (8.00C) and thermal insulation (4.50C) effects as well as a reduction in heat amplitude (77-85%) in winter in a humid subtropical climate. The thermal performance of the free-floating (Water hyacinth) wetland green roof is inferior to that of the other three types of wetland green roofs, whether in daytime or nighttime.

Keywords: thermal performance, extensive wetland green roof, Aquatic plant, Winter , Humid subtropical climate

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Authors: Vivek Kumar Singh, Tripti Singh

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An ad hoc wireless network consists of mobile networks which creates an underlying architecture for communication without the help of traditional fixed-position routers. Ad-hoc On-demand Distance Vector (AODV) is a routing protocol used for Mobile Ad hoc Network (MANET). Nevertheless, the architecture must maintain communication routes although the hosts are mobile and they have limited transmission range. There are different protocols for handling the routing in the mobile environment. Routing protocols used in fixed infrastructure networks cannot be efficiently used for mobile ad-hoc networks, so that MANET requires different protocols. This paper presents the performance analysis of the routing protocols used various parameter-patterns with Two-ray model.

Keywords: AODV, packet transmission rate, pause time, ZRP, QualNet 6.1

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Authors: Amir Shouri, Fereshteh Tabe

Abstract:

Master planning and urban infrastructure’s thoughtful and sequential design strategies will play the major role in reducing the damages of natural disasters, war and or social/population related conflicts for cities. Defensive strategies have been revised during the history of mankind after having damages from natural depressions, war experiences and terrorist attacks on cities. Lessons learnt from Earthquakes, from 2 world war casualties in 20th century and terrorist activities of all times. Particularly, after Hurricane Sandy of New York in 2012 and September 11th attack on New York’s World Trade Centre (WTC) in 21st century, there have been series of serious collaborations between law making authorities, urban planners and architects and defence related organizations to firstly, getting prepared and/or prevent such activities and secondly, reduce the human loss and economic damages to minimum. This study will work on developing a model of planning for New York City, where its citizens will get minimum impacts in threat-full time with minimum economic damages to the city after the stress is passed. The main discussion in this proposal will focus on pre-hazard, hazard-time and post-hazard transformative policies and strategies that will reduce the “Life casualties” and will ease “Economic Recovery” in post-hazard conditions. This proposal is going to scrutinize that one of the key solutions in this path might be focusing on all overlaying possibilities on architectural platforms of three fundamental infrastructures, the transportation, the power related sources and defensive abilities on a dynamic-transformative framework that will provide maximum safety, high level of flexibility and fastest action-reaction opportunities in stressful periods of time. “Planning Fore Stress” is going to be done in an analytical, qualitative and quantitative work frame, where it will study cases from all over the world. Technology, Organic Design, Materiality, Urban forms, city politics and sustainability will be discussed in deferent cases in international scale. From the modern strategies of Copenhagen for living friendly with nature to traditional approaches of Indonesian old urban planning patterns, the “Iron Dome” of Israel to “Tunnels” in Gaza, from “Ultra-high-performance quartz-infused concrete” of Iran to peaceful and nature-friendly strategies of Switzerland, from “Urban Geopolitics” in cities, war and terrorism to “Design of Sustainable Cities” in the world, will all be studied with references and detailed look to analysis of each case in order to propose the most resourceful, practical and realistic solutions to questions on “New City Divisions”, “New City Planning and social activities” and “New Strategic Architecture for Safe Cities”. This study is a developed version of a proposal that was announced as winner at MoMA in 2013 in call for ideas for Rockaway after Sandy Hurricane took place.

Keywords: urban scale, city safety, natural disaster, war and terrorism, city divisions, architecture for safe cities

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Authors: Ozoemelam Ikechukwu Lazarus, Nizamuddin B. Zainuddi, Abdul Kafi

Abstract:

Numerous studies have been carried out on Green Logistics Management Practices (GLMPs) across the globe. The study on the practices and performance of green chain practices in Africa in particular has not gained enough scholarly attention. Again, the majority of supply chain sustainability research being conducted focus on environmental sustainability. Logistics has been a major cause of supply chain resource waste and environmental damage. Many sectors of the economy that engage in logistical operations significantly rely on vehicles, which emit pollutants into the environment. Due to urbanization and industrialization, the logistical operations of manufacturing companies represent a serious hazard to the society and human life, making the sector one of the fastest expanding in the world today. Logistics companies are faced with numerous difficulties when attempting to implement logistics practices along their supply chains. In Nigeria, manufacturing companies aspire to implement reverse logistics in response to stakeholders’ requirements to reduce negative environmental consequences. However, implementing this is impeded by a criteria framework, and necessitates the careful analysis of how such criteria interact with each other in the presence of uncertainty. This study integrates most of the green logistics management practices (GLMPs) into the Nigerian firms to improve generalizability, and credibility. It examines the effect of Green Logistics Management Practices on environmental performance, social performance, market performance, and financial performance in the logistics industries. It seeks to identify the critical success factors in order to develop a model that incorporates different factors from the perspectives of the technology, organization, human and environment to inform the adoption and use of technologies for logistics supply chain social sustainability in Nigeria. It uses exploratory research approach to collect and analyse the data.

Keywords: logistics, management, sustainability, environment, operations

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Authors: Domenico Palladino, Nicolandrea Calabrese, Francesca Caffari, Giulia Centi, Francesca Margiotta, Giovanni Murano, Laura Ronchetti, Paolo Signoretti, Lisa Volpe, Silvia Di Turi

Abstract:

The aim to achieve a fully decarbonized building stock by 2050 stands as one of the most challenging issues within the spectrum of energy and climate objectives. Numerous strategies are imperative, particularly emphasizing the reduction and optimization of energy demand. Ensuring the high energy performance of buildings emerges as a top priority, with measures aimed at cutting energy consumptions. Concurrently, it is imperative to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by using renewable energy sources for the on-site energy production, thereby striving for an energy balance leading towards zero-emission buildings. Italy's predominant building stock comprises ancient buildings, many of which hold historical significance and are subject to stringent preservation and conservation regulations. Attaining high levels of energy efficiency and reducing CO2 emissions in such buildings poses a considerable challenge, given their unique characteristics and the imperative to adhere to principles of conservation and restoration. Additionally, conducting a meticulous analysis of these buildings' current state is crucial for accurately quantifying their energy performance and predicting the potential impacts of proposed renovation strategies on energy consumption reduction. Within this framework, the paper presents a pilot case in Rome, outlining a methodological approach for the renovation of historic buildings towards achieving Zero Emission Building (ZEB) objective. The building has a mixed function with offices, a conference hall, and an exposition area. The building envelope is made of historical and precious materials used as cladding which must be preserved. A thorough understanding of the building's current condition serves as a prerequisite for analyzing its energy performance. This involves conducting comprehensive archival research, undertaking on-site diagnostic examinations to characterize the building envelope and its systems, and evaluating actual energy usage data derived from energy bills. Energy simulations and audit are the first step in the analysis with the assessment of the energy performance of the actual current state. Subsequently, different renovation scenarios are proposed, encompassing advanced building techniques, to pinpoint the key actions necessary for improving mechanical systems, automation and control systems, and the integration of renewable energy production. These scenarios entail different levels of renovation, ranging from meeting minimum energy performance goals to achieving the highest possible energy efficiency level. The proposed interventions are meticulously analyzed and compared to ascertain the feasibility of attaining the Zero Emission Building objective. In conclusion, the paper provides valuable insights that can be extrapolated to inform a broader approach towards energy-efficient refurbishment of historical buildings that may have limited potential for renovation in their building envelopes. By adopting a methodical and nuanced approach, it is possible to reconcile the imperative of preserving cultural heritage with the pressing need to transition towards a sustainable, low-carbon future.

Keywords: energy conservation and transition, energy efficiency in historical buildings, buildings energy performance, energy retrofitting, zero emission buildings, energy simulation

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Authors: A. Flora, A. Di Lascio, D. Cardone, G. Gesualdi, G. Perrone

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This paper considers the seismic assessment and retrofit of a pilotis-type RC frame building, which was designed for gravity loads only, prior to the introduction of seismic design provisions. Pilotis-type RC frame buildings, featuring an uniform infill throughout the height and an open ground floor, were, and still are, quite popular all over the world, as they offer large open areas very suitable for retail space at the ground floor. These architectural advantages, however, are of detriment to the building seismic behavior, as they can determine a soft-storey collapse mechanism. Extensive numerical analyses are carried out to quantify and benchmark the performance of the selected building, both in terms of overall collapse capacity and expected losses. Alternative retrofit strategies are then examined, including: (i) steel jacketing of RC columns and beam-column joints, (ii) steel bracing and (iv) seismic isolation. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) of the selected case-study building, pre- and post-rehabilitation, is evaluated, following a probabilistic approach. The breakeven time of each solution is computed, comparing the initial cost of the retrofit intervention with expected benefit in terms of EAL reduction.

Keywords: expected annual loss, reinforced concrete buildings, seismic loss assessment, seismic retrofit

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Authors: Zahid Ahmad, Samia Yousaf

Abstract:

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate and assess the financial position, operating performance, and recent outlook of the companies. This study investigates the impact of capital structure, dividend policy and sustainability on the value of firms of textile spinning sector of Pakistan which is listed on Pakistan stock exchange. The panel data technique has been applied to this group of textile sector which is textile spinning. This study covers the last ten years of time period. All the data related to the variables have been collected from the annual reports and financial statements of the textile sector firms. There are differently related determinants to measure the capital structure which are fixed assets turnover ratio, debt ratio, equity ratio, debt to equity ratio, assets tangibility, and shareholder’s equity. Dividend policy is being measured by two determinants which are earning per share (EPS) and dividend payout ratio. Sustainability is being measured by three suitable factors which are sales growth, gross profit margin ratio and firm size. These are three independent variables and their determinants of this study. Value of firm is measured through the return on asset (ROA). Capital structure is at the top of the list among all the three variables. According to the results of this research work, somewhere all the three variables generates positive and significant effect on the firm’s performance and its growth.

Keywords: capital structure, dividend policy, panel data, sustainability

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Authors: Tanya Kaur Bedi, Shankha Pratim Bhattacharya

Abstract:

The US Environmental Protection Agency defines indoor air pollution as “The air quality within and around buildings, especially as it relates to the health and comfort of building occupants”. According to the 2021 report by the Energy Policy Institute at Chicago, Indian residents, a country which is home to the highest levels of air pollution in the world, lose about 5.9 years from life expectancy due to poor air quality and yet has numerous dwellings dependent on natural ventilation. Currently the urban population spends 90% of the time indoors, this scenario raises a concern for occupant health and well-being. This study attempts to demonstrate the causal relationship between the indoor air pollution and its determining aspects. Detailed indoor air pollution audits were conducted in residential buildings located in Kolkata, India in the months of December and January 2021. According to the air pollution knowledge assessment city program in India, Kolkata is also the second most polluted mega-city after Delhi. Although the air pollution levels are alarming year-long, the winter months are most crucial due to the unfavourable environmental conditions. While emissions remain typically constant throughout the year, cold air is denser and moves slower than warm air, trapping the pollution in place for much longer and consequently is breathed in at a higher rate than the summers. The air pollution monitoring period was selected considering environmental factors and major pollution contributors like traffic and road dust. This study focuses on the relationship between the built environment and the spatial-temporal distribution of air pollutants in and around it. The measured parameters include, temperature, relative humidity, air velocity, particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde, and benzene. A total of 56 rooms were audited, selectively targeting the most dominant middle-income group in the urban area of the metropolitan. The data-collection was conducted using a set of instruments positioned in the human breathing-zone. The study assesses the relationship between indoor air pollution levels and factors determining natural ventilation and air pollution dispersion such as surrounding environment, dominant wind, openable window to floor area ratio, windward or leeward side openings, and natural ventilation type in the room: single side or cross-ventilation, floor height, residents cleaning habits, etc.

Keywords: indoor air quality, occupant health, air pollution, architecture, urban environment

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