Search results for: marine protected area

Authors: Champika S. Kariyawasam

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The distribution of gorse (Ulex europaeus) plants in South Australia has been modelled using 126 presence-only location data as a function of seven climate parameters. The predicted range of U. europaeus is mainly along the Mount Lofty Ranges in the Adelaide Hills and on Kangaroo Island. Annual precipitation and yearly average aridity index appeared to be the highest contributing variables to the final model formulation. The Jackknife procedure was employed to identify the contribution of different variables to gorse model outputs and response curves were used to predict changes with changing environmental variables. Based on this analysis, it was revealed that the combined effect of one or more variables could make a completely different impact to the original variables on their own to the model prediction. This work also demonstrates the need for a careful approach when selecting environmental variables for projecting correlative models to climatically distinct area. Maxent acts as a robust model when projecting the fitted species distribution model to another area with changing climatic conditions, whereas the generalized linear model, bioclim, and domain models to be less robust in this regard. These findings are important not only for predicting and managing invasive alien gorse in South Australia and Sri Lanka but also in other countries of the invasive range.

Keywords: invasive species, Maxent, species distribution modelling, Ulex europaeus

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Authors: Kaan Koyuncu, Umut Celen Arican, Sevilay Can

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In the maritime industry, there have been regulations to prevent pollution, and the first attempt to offer a legal basis was Marpol Convention which was held in 1973 in order to provide a framework for the disposal of ship wastes. Based on this convention, ports are obliged to build waste receiving facilities. European Union regulations make several member countries to follow these directions, In Turkey, under Blue Card System, the quantity and types of wastes, the delivery time, the capacity of the receiving facilities, and other required information can be monitored online. Therefore, yachts and other boats with the bilge, sewage, and waste which illegally discharge into the sea, can be blocked. This system is an outcome of the law adopted from European Union regulations. In this study, the present systems in Turkey which occurred in 2010 after the integration of the system, which has been put in the force in 2000 in Europe will be analyzed and interpreted to provide a useful comparison, a practical guide, and a roadmap for potential improvements.

Keywords: Europe-Turkey, blue card, marine environment, ship waste tracking system

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Authors: A. H. M. Zehadul Karim

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Cameron Highlands (4°28’N, 101°23’E) is an attractive mountainous region with steep slopes located in the state of Pahang, Malaysia stretching between 1070 and 1830m above sea level with a total land area of 71,218ha. It is one of the few places in Malaysia that has a tropical highland climate as the mean annual temperature of it is 18 °C (64 °F) thus making the atmosphere perfect for specialized agriculture. Being ecologically suitable, Cameron Highlands has recently been identified as a very strategic farming area, producing multifarious vegetables, flowers and tea with a commercial motive of marketing them to Singapore and all over the urban areas of Malaysia to meet the domestic and international demands. The main intricacies of this plantation agriculture are fully dependent on the policies formulated by a group of emerging entrepreneurs who employ foreign labourers to make these agricultural activities a success in the agrarian sector in Malaysia. Based on the socio-anthropological perspective, the paper entirely relies on empirical field data generated by interviewing 10 farm owners and 200 foreign workers to find out the intricacies of this plantation agriculture which makes the research innovative and pragmatically significant. The paper deals with important issues relating to this productive plantation agriculture of Cameron Highlands and as such, narrates the various exceptional and holistic skills adopted for this type of farming.

Keywords: Cameron Highlands Malaysia, plantation agriculture, issues and challenges, mechanisms

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Authors: Nahed O. Bawakid, Walied M. Alarif

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With regard to the uniqueness of the red algae of the genus Laurencia as the source of C₁₅-acetogenins, along with the diversity of biological applications; the acetogenin content of the Red Sea L. obtusa was investigated. Fractionation and purification of the CH₂Cl₂/MeOH extract were done by applying several chromatographic techniques, including column and preparative thin-layer chromatography; followed by a series of ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance measurements to give rise of some interesting notes. A new rare chloroallene-based C₁₅ acetogenin, laurentusenin (1) along with a new furan ring containing C₁₅ acetogenin, laurenfuresenin (2), were isolated from the red alga L. obtusa. Comparing 1D and 2D NMR, MS, UV and IR spectral data for the new isolated compounds with the reported bromoallene containing acetogenins spectral data was played the crucial role for characterization of their hemical structures. The apoptosis induced by these two compounds was demonstrated by DNA fragmentation assay and microscopic observation. These observations suggest that (1) and (2) may be involved in regulation of programmed death in the initiation and propagation of inflammatory responses. The isolated metabolite (1) showed unusual substituted allene side chain, while (2) inserted furan ring as a new acetogenin nucleus.

Keywords: cyclic enyne, anti-inflammatory, fatty acids, marine algae, halogenations

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Authors: Minho Lee, Donghyun Back, Jaemoon Jung, Woojin Park

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The current 3-dimensional (3D) posture prediction models commonly provide only a few optimal postures to achieve a specific objective. The problem with such models is that they are incapable of rapidly providing several optimal posture candidates according to various situations. In order to solve this problem, this paper presents a 3D memory-based posture planning (3D MBPP) model, which is a new digital human model that can analyze the feasible postures in 3D space for reaching tasks that have postural constraints and specific reaching space. The 3D MBPP model can be applied to the types of works that are done with constrained working postures and have specific reaching space. The examples of such works include driving an excavator, driving automobiles, painting buildings, working at an office, pitching/batting, and boxing. For these types of works, a limited amount of space is required to store all of the feasible postures, as the hand reaches boundary can be determined prior to perform the task. This prevents computation time from increasing exponentially, which has been one of the major drawbacks of memory-based posture planning model in 3D space. This paper validates the utility of 3D MBPP model using a practical example of analyzing baseball batting posture. In baseball, batters swing with both feet fixed to the ground. This motion is appropriate for use with the 3D MBPP model since the player must try to hit the ball when the ball is located inside the strike zone (a limited area) in a constrained posture. The results from the analysis showed that the stored and the optimal postures vary depending on the ball’s flying path, the hitting location, the batter’s body size, and the batting objective. These results can be used to establish the optimal postural strategies for achieving the batting objective and performing effective hitting. The 3D MBPP model can also be applied to various domains to determine the optimal postural strategies and improve worker comfort.

Keywords: baseball, memory-based, posture prediction, reaching area, 3D digital human models

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Authors: Roshanak Afrakhteh, Abdolrasoul Salman Mahini, Mahdi Motagh, Hamidreza Kamyab

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Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) are distinctive urban areas characterized by densely populated central cores surrounded by less densely populated peripheral lands. These areas experience elevated temperatures, primarily due to impermeable surfaces and specific land use patterns. The consequences of these temperature variations are far-reaching, impacting the environment and society negatively, leading to increased energy consumption, air pollution, and public health concerns. This paper emphasizes the need for simplified approaches to comprehend UHI temperature dynamics and explains how urban development patterns contribute to land surface temperature variation. To illustrate this relationship, the study focuses on the Guilan Plain, utilizing techniques like principal component analysis and generalized additive models. The research centered on mapping land use and land surface temperature in the low-lying area of Guilan province. Satellite data from Landsat sensors for three different time periods (2002, 2012, and 2021) were employed. Using eCognition software, a spatial unit known as a "city block" was utilized through object-based analysis. The study also applied the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) method to estimate land surface radiance. Predictive variables for urban land surface temperature within residential city blocks were identified categorized as intrinsic (related to the block's structure) and neighboring (related to adjacent blocks) variables. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to select significant variables, and a Generalized Additive Model (GAM) approach, implemented using R's mgcv package, modeled the relationship between urban land surface temperature and predictor variables.Notable findings included variations in urban temperature across different years attributed to environmental and climatic factors. Block size, shared boundary, mother polygon area, and perimeter-to-area ratio were identified as main variables for the generalized additive regression model. This model showed non-linear relationships, with block size, shared boundary, and mother polygon area positively correlated with temperature, while the perimeter-to-area ratio displayed a negative trend. The discussion highlights the challenges of predicting urban surface temperature and the significance of block size in determining urban temperature patterns. It also underscores the importance of spatial configuration and unit structure in shaping urban temperature patterns. In conclusion, this study contributes to the growing body of research on the connection between land use patterns and urban surface temperature. Block size, along with block dispersion and aggregation, emerged as key factors influencing urban surface temperature in residential areas. The proposed methodology enhances our understanding of parameter significance in shaping urban temperature patterns across various regions, particularly in Iran.

Keywords: urban heat island, land surface temperature, LST modeling, GAM, Gilan province

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Authors: Mohammed Hussaini

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This paper discusses insecurity as a challenge to the nutritional Status of children and mothers in Dansadau, Maru Local Government area of Zamfara state, Northwestern Nigeria. A Descriptive survey design was used in the study. Objectives of the study were formulated to guide the study. 20 Health workers and 100 mothers were used as population of the study; the instrument validation for data collection was interview. The interview structure was validated by 3 experts, the data collected was analyzed and presented using descriptive standard score (Z-score). The study revealed that, Nutritional Status of children and mothers in Northwest Nigeria specifically Zamfara state is low. This mostly affect children and mother as a result of serious insecurity challenge in the region, consisting of banditry and kidnapping, killing of farmers, destruction of farmland, burning of farm products. The study recommended that the focus is on implementing strong communication strategies to enhance short-term relief initiatives, both governmental and non-governmental organizations should actively play a role in initiating lasting change, especially when tackling issues of insecurity and effectively addressing the rise of armed banditry and other security concerns requires a sophisticated and nuanced strategy.

Keywords: insecurity, malnutrition, children, mothers

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Authors: Lidia Kowalska, Edward Arseniuk

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Glume and leaf blotch is a disease of wheat caused by necrotrophic fungus Parastagonospora nodorum. It is a serious pathogen in many wheat-growing areas throughout the world. Use of resistant cultivars is the most effective and economical means to control the above-mentioned disease. Plant breeders and pathologists have worked intensively to incorporate resistance to the pathogen in new cultivars. Conventional methods of breeding for resistance can be supported by using the biotechnological ones, i.e., somatic embryogenesis and androgenesis. Therefore, an effort was undertaken to compare genetic variation in P. nodorum resistance among winter wheat somaclones, dihaploids and conventional varieties. For the purpose, a population of 16 somaclonal and 4 dihaploid wheat lines from six crosses were used to assess their resistance to P. nodorum under field conditions. Lines were grown in disease-free (fungicide protected) and inoculated micro plots in 2 replications of a split-plot design in a single environment. The plant leaves were inoculated with a mixture of P. nodorum isolates three times. Spore concentrations were adjusted to 4 x 10⁶ of viable spores per one milliliter. The disease severity was rated on a scale, where > 90% – susceptible, < 10% - resistant. Disease ratings of plant leaves showed statistically significant differences among all lines tested. Higher resistance to P. nodorum was observed more often on leaves of somaclonal lines than on dihaploid ones. On average, disease, severity reached 15% on leaves of somaclones and 30% on leaves of dihaploids. Some of the genotypes were showing low leaf infection, e.g. dihaploid D-33 (disease severity 4%) and a somaclone S-1 (disease severity 2%). The results from this study prove that dihaploid and somaclonal variation might be successfully used as an additional source of wheat resistance to the pathogen and it could be recommended to use in commercial breeding programs. The reported results prove that biotechnological methods may effectively be used in breeding for disease resistance of wheat to fungal necrotrophic pathogens.

Keywords: glume and leaf blotch, somaclonal, androgenic variation, wheat, resistance breeding

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Authors: Abdel Rahman Altakhaineh

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This paper has analysed the conceptual relations between the elements of NN compounds in Arabic and compared them to those found in English based on the framework of Conceptual Semantics and a modified version of Parallel Architecture referred to as Relational Morphology. The analysis revealed that the repertoire of possible semantic relations between the two nouns in Arabic NN compounds reproduces that in English NN compounds and that, therefore, the main difference is in headedness (right-headed in English, left-headed in Arabic). Adopting RM allows productive and idiosyncratic elements to interweave with each other naturally. Semantically transparent compounds can be stored in memory or produced and understood online, while compounds with different degrees of semantic idiosyncrasy are stored in memory. Furthermore, the predictable parts of idiosyncratic compounds are captured by general schemas. In compounds, such schemas pick out the range of possible semantic relations between the two nouns. Finally, conducting a cross-linguistic study of the systematic patterns of possible conceptual relationships between compound elements is an area worthy of further exploration. In addition, comparing and contrasting compounding in Arabic and Hebrew, especially as they are both Semitic languages, is another area that needs to be investigated thoroughly. It will help morphologists understand the extent to which Jackendoff’s repertoire of semantic relations in compounds is universal. That is, if a language as distant from English as Arabic displays a similar range of cases, this is evidence for a (relatively) universal set of relations from which individual languages may pick and choose.

Keywords: conceptual semantics, morphology, compounds, arabic, english

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Authors: Afifa Mohammed, Gloria Pignatta, Mattheos Santamouris, Evangelia Topriska

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Climate change is one of the global challenges that is exacerbated by the rapid growth of urbanizations. Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon can be considered as an effect of the urbanization and it is responsible together with the Climate change of the overheating of urban cities and downtowns. The purpose of this paper is to quantify and perform analysis of UHI Intensity in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), through checking the relationship between the UHI and different meteorological parameters (e.g., temperature, winds speed, winds direction). Climate data were collected from three meteorological stations in Dubai (e.g., Dubai Airport - Station 1, Al-Maktoum Airport - Station 2 and Saih Al-Salem - Station 3) for a period of five years (e.g., 2014 – 2018) based upon hourly rates, and following clustering technique as one of the methodology tools of measurements. The collected data of each station were divided into six clusters upon the winds directions, either from the seaside or from the desert side, or from the coastal side which is in between both aforementioned winds sources, to investigate the relationship between temperature degrees and winds speed values through UHI measurements for Dubai Airport - Station 1 compared with the same of Al-Maktoum Airport - Station 2. In this case, the UHI value is determined by the temperature difference of both stations, where Station 1 is considered as located in an urban area and Station 2 is considered as located in a suburban area. The same UHI calculations has been applied for Al-Maktoum Airport - Station 2 and Saih Salem - Station 3 where Station 2 is considered as located in an urban area and Station 3 is considered as located in a suburban area. The performed analysis aims to investigate the relation between the two environmental parameters (e.g., Temperature and Winds Speed) and the Urban Heat Island (UHI) intensity when the wind comes from the seaside, from the desert, and the remaining directions. The analysis shows that the correlation between the temperatures with both UHI intensity (e.g., temperature difference between Dubai Airport - Station 1 and Saih Al-Salem - Station 3 and between Al-Maktoum Airport - Station 2 and Saih Al-Salem - Station 3 (through station 1 & 2) is strong and has a negative relationship when the wind is coming from the seaside comparing between the two stations 1 and 2, while the relationship is almost zero (no relation) when the wind is coming from the desert side. The relation is independent between the two parameters, e.g., temperature and UHI, on Station 2, during the same procedures, the correlation between the urban heat island UHI phenomenon and wind speed is weak for both stations when wind direction is coming from the seaside comparing the station 1 and 2, while it was found that there’s no relationship between urban heat island phenomenon and wind speed when wind direction is coming from desert side. The conclusion could be summarized saying that the wind coming from the seaside or from the desert side have a different effect on UHI, which is strongly affected by meteorological parameters. The output of this study will enable more determination of UHI phenomenon under desert climate, which will help to inform about the UHI phenomenon and intensity and extract recommendations in two main categories such as planning of new cities and designing of buildings.

Keywords: meteorological data, subtropical desert climate, urban climate, urban heat island (UHI)

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Authors: Vinay C. Doranalu, Amba Shetty

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In recent days due to climate change, there is a large variation in spatial distribution of daily rainfall within a small region. Rainfall is one of the main end climatic variables which affect spatio-temporal patterns of water availability. The real task postured by the change in climate is identification, estimation and understanding the uncertainty of rainfall. This study intended to analyze the spatial variations and temporal trends of daily precipitation using high resolution (0.25º x 0.25º) gridded data of Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). For the study, 38 grid points were selected in the study area and analyzed for daily precipitation time series (113 years) over the period 1901-2013. Grid points were divided into two zones based on the elevation and situated location of grid points: Low Land (exposed to sea and low elevated area/ coastal region) and High Land (Interior from sea and high elevated area/western Ghats). Time series were applied to examine the spatial analysis and temporal trends in each grid points by non-parametric Mann-Kendall test and Theil-Sen estimator to perceive the nature of trend and magnitude of slope in trend of rainfall. Pettit-Mann-Whitney test is applied to detect the most probable change point in trends of the time period. Results have revealed remarkable monotonic trend in each grid for daily precipitation of the time series. In general, by the regional cluster analysis found that increasing precipitation trend in shoreline region and decreasing trend in Western Ghats from recent years. Spatial distribution of rainfall can be partly explained by heterogeneity in temporal trends of rainfall by change point analysis. The Mann-Kendall test shows significant variation as weaker rainfall towards the rainfall distribution over eastern parts of the Western Ghats region of Karnataka.

Keywords: change point analysis, coastal region India, gridded rainfall data, non-parametric

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Authors: Maxime Farin, Emmanuel Moulin, Lynda Chehami, Farouk Benmeddour, Pierre Campistron

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Assessing corrosion is crucial in the petrochemical and marine industry. Usual ultrasonic methods based on guided waves to detect corrosion can inspect large areas but lack precision. We propose a complementary and sensitive ultrasonic method (~ 10 MHz) based on coda wave interferometry to detect and quantify corrosion at the surface of a steel sample. The method relies on a single piezoelectric transducer, exciting the sample and measuring the scattered coda signals at different instants in time. A laboratory experiment is conducted with a steel sample immersed in salted water for 60~h with parallel coda and temperature measurements to correct coda dependence to temperature variations. Micrometric changes to the sample surface caused by corrosion are detected in the late coda signals, allowing precise corrosion detection. Moreover, a good correlation is found between a parameter quantifying the temperature-corrected stretching of the coda over time with respect to a reference without corrosion and the corrosion surface over the sample recorded with a camera.

Keywords: coda wave interferometry, nondestructive evaluation, corrosion, ultrasonics

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Authors: Rong-Terng Juang

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Autonomous vehicles offer the possibility of significant benefits to social welfare. However, fully automated cars might not be going to happen in the near further. To speed the adoption of the self-driving technologies, many governments worldwide are passing laws requiring data recorders for the testing of autonomous vehicles. Currently, the self-driving vehicle, (e.g., shuttle bus) has to be monitored from a remote control center. When an autonomous vehicle encounters an unexpected driving environment, such as road construction or an obstruction, it should request assistance from a remote operator. Nevertheless, large amounts of data, including images, radar and lidar data, etc., have to be transmitted from the vehicle to the remote center. Therefore, this paper proposes a data compression method of in-vehicle networks for remote monitoring of autonomous vehicles. Firstly, the time-series data are rearranged into a multi-dimensional signal space. Upon the arrival, for controller area networks (CAN), the new data are mapped onto a time-data two-dimensional space associated with the specific CAN identity. Secondly, the data are sampled based on differential sampling. Finally, the whole set of data are encoded using existing algorithms such as Huffman, arithmetic and codebook encoding methods. To evaluate system performance, the proposed method was deployed on an in-house built autonomous vehicle. The testing results show that the amount of data can be reduced as much as 1/7 compared to the raw data.

Keywords: autonomous vehicle, data compression, remote monitoring, controller area networks (CAN), Lidar

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Authors: Y. Fekir, K. Mederbal, M. A. Hammadouche, D. Anteur

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The cultural park of the Tassili, occupying a large area of Algeria, is characterized by a rich vegetative biodiversity to be preserved and managed both in time and space. The management of a large area (case of Tassili), by its complexity, needs large amounts of data, which for the most part, are spatially localized (DEM, satellite images and socio-economic information etc.), where the use of conventional and traditional methods is quite difficult. The remote sensing, by its efficiency in environmental applications, became an indispensable solution for this kind of studies. Multispectral imaging sensors have been very useful in the last decade in very interesting applications of remote sensing. They can aid in several domains such as the de¬tection and identification of diverse surface targets, topographical details, and geological features. In this work, we try to extract vegetative areas using fusion techniques between data acquired from sensor on-board the Earth Observing 1 (EO-1) satellite and Landsat ETM+ and TM sensors. We have used images acquired over the Oasis of Djanet in the National Park of Tassili in the south of Algeria. Fusion technqiues were applied on the obtained image to extract the vegetative fraction of the different classes of land use. We compare the obtained results in vegetation end member extraction with vegetation indices calculated from both Hyperion and other multispectral sensors.

Keywords: Landsat ETM+, EO1, data fusion, vegetation, Tassili, Algeria

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Authors: S. Valarmathi, P. B. Harathi, R. Sridhar, S. Balasubramanian

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Machine learning tools in medical diagnosis is increasing due to the improved effectiveness of classification and recognition systems to help medical experts in diagnosing breast cancer. In this study, ID3 chooses the splitting attribute with the highest gain in information, where gain is defined as the difference between before the split versus after the split. It is applied for age, location, taluk, stage, year, period, martial status, treatment, heredity, sex, and habitat against Very Serious (VS), Very Serious Moderate (VSM), Serious (S) and Not Serious (NS) to calculate the gain of information. The ranked histogram gives the gain of each field for the breast cancer data. The doctors use TNM staging which will decide the risk level of the breast cancer and play an important decision making field in fuzzy logic for perception based measurement. Spatial risk area (taluk) of the breast cancer is calculated. Result clearly states that Coimbatore (North and South) was found to be risk region to the breast cancer than other areas at 20% criteria. Weighted value of taluk was compared with criterion value and integrated with Map Object to visualize the results. ID3 algorithm shows the high breast cancer risk regions in the study area. The study has outlined, discussed and resolved the algorithms, techniques / methods adopted through soft computing methodology like ID3 algorithm for prognostic decision making in the seriousness of the breast cancer.

Keywords: ID3 algorithm, breast cancer, fuzzy logic, MATLAB

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Authors: Robson C. Santos, Christian N. Barreto, Gerson G. Cunha, Severino J. C. Neto

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This paper aims to project the construction of a prototype azimuthal thruster, mounted with materials of low cost and easy access, testing in a controlled environment to measure their performance, characteristics and feasibility of future projects. The construction of the simulation of dynamic positioning software, responsible for simulating a vessel and reposition it when necessary . Tests for partial and full validation of the model were conducted, operates independently of the control system and executes the commands and commands of the helix of rotation azimuth. The system provides an interface to the user and simulates the conditions unfavorable positioning of a vessel, accurately calculates the azimuth angle, the direction of rotation of the helix and the time that this should be turned on so that the vessel back to position original. There is a serial communication that connects the Simulation Dynamic Positioning System with Embedded System causing the user-generated data to simulate the DP system arrives in the form of control signals to the motors of the propellant. This article addresses issues in the marine industry employees.

Keywords: azimuthal thruster, dynamic positioning, embedded system, simulator dynamic positioning

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Authors: Stephen Hamafyelto, Hussaini Garba, Mary Pindar Ndahi

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The study was carried out with the intent to mitigate the trauma experienced by victims of insurgent attacks by the so-called Boko Haram militants in Borno state of Nigeria. The area was ridden by the crisis over the past 9 years. As a result, many people were killed, maimed and raped. Some others suffered all manner of inhuman treatment at the hands of their captors. The extent to which this dehumanized treatment has gone and impacted on the people in this area has left most of them traumatised. Victims who survived the attacks have been resettled in camps provided by government where their needs have been cared for. This can never be the same with their natural habitats. Many interventions have also been done by government, non-governmental organisations and corporate and individual bodies. In this regard, social needs of the victims have been the immediate concerns of most organisations, where food, shelter, and clothing were provided. However, there is little that has been done to rehabilitate these victims psychosocially. In this regard, sports and games including the victims’ local games were used to provide psychosocial rehabilitation of victims. The intent was to bring them back to social reality, social inclusion, and stable emotions and peer integration. Descriptive statistics and Multivariate analysis were done. No statistically significant difference was found among male and female children and adults in terms of psychosocial rehabilitation using sports and games.

Keywords: social reality, social inclusion, emotional intellegence, peer model

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Authors: William Abiodun Duyile

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It is common knowledge that marine food has always been found from the sea, energy can also be found underneath and, to a growing extent; other mineral resources have come from the sea spaces. It is the importance of the sea and the sea lines of communication to littoral nations that has made concepts such as sea power, naval power, etc., significant to them. The study relied on documentary data. The documentary data were sourced from government annual departmental reports, newspapers and correspondence. The secondary sources used were subjected to internal and external criticism for authentication, and then to textual and contextual analyses. The study found that the differential level of seamanship amongst states defined their relationship. It was sea power that gave some states an edge over the others. The study proves that over the ages sea power has been core to the development of States or Empires. The study found that the Nigerian Navy was centre to Nigeria’s conquest of the littoral areas of Biafra, like Bonny, Port-Harcourt, and Calabar; it was also an important turning point of the Nigerian civil war since by it Biafra became landlocked. The research was able to identify succinctly the Nigerian Navy’s contribution to the security and development of the Nigerian State.

Keywords: sea power, naval power, land locked states, warship

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Authors: Oluwasefunmi Eunice Irewole, Enrique Armas Arévalos

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Agriculture has played a crucial role in the economy and the development of many countries. Moreover, the basic needs for human survival are; food, shelter, and cloth are link on agricultural production. Most developed countries see that agriculture provides them with food and raw materials for different goods such as (shelter, medicine, fuel and clothing) which has led to an increase in incomes, livelihoods and standard of living. This study aimed at analysing the relationship between International competitiveness of agricultural products, with the area, fertilizer, labour force, economic growth, foreign direct investment, exchange rate and inflation rate in Latin America during the period of 1991-to 2019. In this study, panel data econometric methods were used, as well as cross-section dependence (Pesaran test), unit root (cross-section Augumented Dickey Fuller and Cross-sectional Im, Pesaran, and Shin tests), cointergration (Pedroni and Fisher-Johansen tests), and heterogeneous causality (Pedroni and Fisher-Johansen tests) (Hurlin and Dumitrescu test). The results reveal that the model has cross-sectional dependency and that they are integrated at one I. (1). The "fully modified OLS and dynamic OLS estimators" were used to examine the existence of a long-term relationship, and it was found that a long-term relationship existed between the selected variables. The study revealed a positive significant relationship between International Competitiveness of the agricultural raw material and area, fertilizer, labour force, economic growth, and foreign direct investment, while international competitiveness has a negative relationship with the advantages of the exchange rate and inflation. The economy policy recommendations deducted from this investigation is that Foreign Direct Investment and the labour force have a positive contribution to the increase of International Competitiveness of agricultural products.

Keywords: revealed comparative advantage, agricultural products, area, fertilizer, economic growth, granger causality, panel unit root

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Authors: Haitham Qaralleh, Syed Z. Idid, Shahbudin Saad, Deny Susanti, Osama Althunibat

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This study was carried out to isolate the active antimicrobial compounds from Neopetrosia exigua using bio-guided assay isolation against Staphylococcus aureus. N. exigua was extracted using methanol and subjected to liquid-liquid extraction using solvents with different polarity (n-hexane, carbon tetrachloride, dichloromethane, n-butanol and water). Purification of the active components of n-butanol and dichloromethane fractions was done using Sephadex LH-20 and reverse phase chromatography. Based on the biological guided fractionation results, dichloromethane and n-butanol fractions showed the highest antimicrobial activity. Purification of the active components of n-butanol and dichloromethane fractions yielded three compounds. The structure of the isolated compounds were elucidated and found to be 5-hydroxy-1H-indole-3-carboxylic acid methyl ester, cyclo-1`-demethylcystalgerone and avarol derivative. Avarol was showed potent bactericidal effect against S. aureus. N. exigua appears to be rich source of natural antimicrobial agents. Further studies are needed to investigate the mode of action of these compounds.

Keywords: antimicrobial, avarol, Neopetrosia exigua, Staphylococcus aureus

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Authors: Ubon Asuquo Essien, Okwudili Bismark Ibeagwa, Daberechi Peace Ubabuko

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The Broiler Poultry subsector is dominated by small scale production with low aggregate output. The high cost of inputs currently experienced in Nigeria tends to aggravate the situation; hence many broiler farmers struggle to break-even. This study was designed to examine income and input factors in small scale deep liter broiler production in Imo state, Nigeria. Specifically, the study examined; socio-economic characteristics of small scale deep liter broiler producing Poultry farmers; estimate cost and returns of broiler production in the area; analyze input factors in broiler production in the area and examined marketability, age and profitability of the enterprise. A multi-stage sampling technique was adopted in selecting 60 small scale broiler farmers who use deep liter system from 6 communities through the use of structured questionnaire. The socioeconomic characteristics of the broiler farmers and the profitability/ marketability age of the birds were described using descriptive statistical tools such as frequencies, means and percentages. Gross margin analysis was used to analyze the cost and returns to broiler production, while Cobb Douglas production function was employed to analyze input factors in broiler production. The result of the study revealed that the cost of feed (P<0.1), deep liter material (P<0.05) and medication (P<0.05) had a significant positive relationship with the gross return of broiler farmers in the study area, while cost of labour, fuel and day old chicks were not significant. Furthermore, Gross profit margin of the farmers who market their broiler at the 8th week of rearing was 80.7%; and 78.7% and 60.8% for farmers who market at the 10th week and 12th week of rearing, respectively. The business is, therefore, profitable but at varying degree. Government and Development partners should make deliberate efforts to curb the current rise in the prices of poultry feeds, drugs and timber materials used as bedding so as to widen the profit margin and encourage more farmers to go into the business. The farmers equally need more technical assistance from extension agents with regards to timely and profitable marketing.

Keywords: broilers, factor analysis, income, small scale

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Authors: M. Linda Phooko, Phesheya E. Dlamini, Vusumuzi E. Mbanjwa, Rhandu Chauke

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The decline of yields as a consequence of miss-informed land-use decisions poses a threat to sustainable agriculture in South Africa. The non-uniform growth pattern of wheat crop and the yields below expectations has been one of the main concerns for Timatjatji community farmers. This study was then conducted to characterize, classify, and evaluate soils of the farm for sustainable land use planning. A detailed free survey guided by surface features was conducted on a 25 ha farm to check soil variation. It was revealed that Sepane (25%), Bonheim (21%), Rensburg (18%), Katspruit (15%), Arcadia (12%) and Dundee (9%) were the dominant soil forms found across the farm. Field soil description was done to determine morphological characteristics of the soils which were matched with slope percentage and climate to assess the potential of the soils. The land capability results showed that soils were generally shallow due to high clay content in the B horizon. When the climate of the area was factored in (i.e. land potential), it further revealed that the area has low cropping potential due to heat, moisture stress and shallow soils. This implies that the farm is not suitable for annual cropping but can be highly suitable for planted pastures.

Keywords: characterization, land capability, land evaluation, land potential

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Authors: Hiripurage Mallika Sandamali Dissanayaka

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Butterflies are found everywhere on Earth, helping flowering plants reproduce through pollination. Wetlands perform many valuable functions such as providing wildlife habitat. Diyasaru Wetland Park was chosen as the study site. It is located in a highly urbanized area of Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Sri Lanka. A distribution map was prepared to increase butterfly habitat in the urbanized area, and research was conducted to determine the most suitable sections for using it. As this wetland has footpaths for walking, line transect surveys were used to mark species within the sampling area, and directly observed species were recorded. All data collection was done from 0900 to 1200 hours and 1300 to 1600 hours and fieldwork was done from 11 February 2020 to 20 January 2021. ED binoculars (10.5x45), DSLR cameras (Canon EOS/EFS5 mm 3.5-5.6), and Garmin GPS (Etrex 10) were used to observe butterfly species, identify locations, and take photographs as evidence. Analyzing their habitats using GIS (ArcGIS Pro) to identify their distribution within the park premises, the distribution density of the known size of the population was calculated for each point by kernel density, and local similarity values were calculated for each pair of corresponding features through hotspot analysis, and cell values were determined by inverse distance weighting (IDW) using a linearly weighted combination of a set of sample points. According to the maps prepared to predict the distribution of butterflies in this park, the high level of distribution or favorable areas were near flower gardens and meadows, but some individual species prefer habitats that are more suitable for their life activities, so they live in other areas. Sixty-six (66) species belonging to six (6) families have been recorded in the premises. Sixty (60) species of least concern (LC), two (2) near threatened (NT), and four (4) vulnerable (VU) species have been recorded, and several new species, such as Plum Judy (Abisara echerius), were reported. The outcome of the study will form the basis for decision-making by the Sri Lanka Land Development (SLLD) Corporation for the future development and maintenance of the park.

Keywords: wetland, Lepidoptera, habitat, urban, west

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Authors: Shahid Iqbal, Haroon Z. Khan, Muhammad Arif

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A sustainable agricultural system involving the improvement in soil properties and crop performance cannot be developed without organic fertilizer use. The effects of poultry manure compost (PMC) and pressmud compost (PrMC) at different levels on improving the soil properties and maize performance has not been yet described by any study comprehensively. Thus, field experiments (2011 and 2012) were conducted at Agronomy Research Area, University of Agriculture Faisalabad (31°26'5" N and 73°4'6" E) in sandy loam soil to determine the improvement in soil properties and maize performance due to application of PMC and PrMC each at five different levels (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 t ha-1). A control (unamended) treatment was also included for comparison. The results indicated that performance of PMC levels was superior to PrMC levels. Increasing both composts levels improved soil properties, maize growth, and stover yield. Results showed that during both years’ highest rates of PMC i.e. 10 and 8 t ha-1 improved the soil properties: ECe, pH, inorganic N, OM, and WHC higher than other treatments. While, 10 and 8 t PMC ha-1 also significantly increased leaf area index (LAI), crop growth rate (CGR) and net assimilation rate (NAR), and stover yield. Similarly, 10 and 8 t PMC ha-1 also improved the grain protein content, but contrarily, grain oil was lowest for 10 and 8 t ha-1 PMC during both years. Moreover, in both years highest gross and net income, and benefit cost ratio was also achieved by 10 and 8 t ha-1 PMC. It is concluded that PMC at rate of 10 and 8 t ha-1 sustainably improved soil properties and maize performance.

Keywords: compost, soil, maize, growth, yield

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Authors: Sudarshan Kalsulkar, Sunil S. Bhagwat

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Biosorption is a physiochemical process that occurs naturally in certain biomass which allows it to passively concentrate and bind contaminants onto its cellular structure. Activated carbons (AC) are one such efficient biosorbents made by utilizing lignocellulosic materials from agricultural waste. Steam activated carbon (AC) was synthesized from Barley husk. Its synthesis parameters of time and temperature were optimized. Its physico-chemical properties like density, surface area, pore volume, Methylene blue and Iodine values were characterized. BET surface area was found to be 42 m²/g. Batch Adsorption tests were carried out to determine the maximum adsorption capacity (qmax) for various metal ions. Cd+2 48.74 mg/g, Pb+2 19.28 mg/g, Hg+2 39.1mg/g were the respective qmax values. pH and time were optimized for adsorption of each ion. Column Adsorptions were carried for each to obtain breakthrough data. Microbial adsorption was carried using E. coli K12 strain. 78% reduction in cell count was observed at operating conditions. Thus the synthesized Barley husk AC can be an economically feasible replacement for commercially available AC prepared from the costlier coconut shells. Breweries and malting industries where barley husk is a primary waste generated on a large scale can be a good source for bulk raw material.

Keywords: activated carbon, Barley husk, biosorption, decontamination, heavy metal removal, water treatment

Procedia PDF Downloads 408

Authors: Fernanda M. Assef, Maria Teresinha A. Steiner, David Gabriel F. Barros

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Review researches are useful in terms of analysis of research problems. Between the types of review documents, we commonly find bibliometric studies. This type of application often helps the global visualization of a research problem and helps academics worldwide to understand the context of a research area better. In this document, a bibliometric view surrounding clustering techniques and sustainability problems is presented. The authors aimed at which issues mostly use clustering techniques, and, even which sustainability issue would be more impactful on today’s moment of research. During the bibliometric analysis, we found ten different groups of research in clustering applications for sustainability issues: Energy; Environmental; Non-urban planning; Sustainable Development; Sustainable Supply Chain; Transport; Urban Planning; Water; Waste Disposal; and, Others. And, by analyzing the citations of each group, we discovered that the Environmental group could be classified as the most impactful research cluster in the area mentioned. Now, after the content analysis of each paper classified in the environmental group, we found that the k-means technique is preferred for solving sustainability problems with clustering methods since it appeared the most amongst the documents. The authors finally conclude that a bibliometric assessment could help indicate a gap of researches on waste disposal – which was the group with the least amount of publications – and the most impactful research on environmental problems.

Keywords: bibliometric assessment, clustering, sustainability, territorial partitioning

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Authors: Daniel O. Wasonga, Jouko Kleemola, Laura Alakukku, Pirjo Makela

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Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a major food crop for millions of people in the tropics. Growth and yield of cassava in the arid-tropics are seriously constrained by intermittent water deficit and low soil K content. Therefore, experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of interaction between water deficit and K fertigation on growth and yield response of biofortified cassava at early growth phase. Yellow cassava cultivar was grown under controlled glasshouse conditions in 5-L pots containing 1.7 kg of pre-fertilized potting mix. Plants were watered daily for 30 days after planting. Treatments were three watering levels (30%, severe water deficit; 60%, mild water deficit; 100%, well-watered), on which K (0.01, 1, 4, 16 and 32 mM) was split. Plants were harvested at 90 days after planting. Leaf area was smallest in plants grown with 30% watering and 0.01 mM K, and largest in plants grown with 100% watering and 32 mM K. Leaf, root, and total dry mass decreased in water-stressed plants. However, dry mass was markedly higher when plants were grown with 16 mM K under all watering levels in comparison to other K concentrations. The highest leaf, root and total dry mass were in plants with 100% watering and 16 mM K. In conclusion, K improved the growth of plants under water deficit and thus, K application on soils with low moisture and low K may improve the productivity of cassava.

Keywords: dry mass, interaction, leaf area, Manihot esculenta

Procedia PDF Downloads 109

Authors: Chinwe Juliana Abara, Dayo Keshi

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Through cultural heritage materials, nations witness significant boom in the world of art and tourism as well as attract foreign investors and tourists to the benefit of the regions and countries where they are located. There are notable heritage sites which record visits by tourists in their thousands annually. According to UNESCO the cultural heritage reflects the life of the community, its history and its identity. Its preservation helps to rebuild broken communities, re-establish their identities, and link their past with their present and future. During any form of conflict or war, a lot happen. People die, houses destroyed and every other thing in the society suffers. Wars and conflicts in various countries have claimed antiquities, heritage materials, contemporary Arts, Galleries, Museums, Archives and very important Monuments and Heritage sites. My Paper deals with the effects of insurgencies and conflicts on cultural heritage and tourism industries in Nigeria and how they can be protected and restored so as to yield the desirable economic gains. Preceding from the premise that conflict of any type puts our cultural heritage at risk; this paper also explores the practical challenges and opportunities available to us in the face of incessant ethnic and Boko Haram (western education is abomination) insurgents and their wanton destruction of lives and properties. There will be a review of relevant literature and documents on the effects of violence on heritage materials and tourism industries in Nigeria particularly and other parts of the world in generally .My paper also highlights the activities the National Council for Arts and Culture as well as other Cultural Agencies in Nigeria have employed to sensitize the stakeholders, the youth, the elderly, and the community at large on the need for peaceful co-existence so as to collectively strive to safeguard and secure our cultural heritage in the face of all these challenges for posterity and desirable economic gains.

Keywords: cultural heritage, conflict, tourism, insurgency, challenges

Procedia PDF Downloads 381

Authors: Daniyar Bossinov

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This paper considers a non-isothermal stationary waxy crude oil flow in a two-dimensional axisymmetric pipe with the transition of a Newtonian fluid to a non-Newtonian fluid. The viscosity and yield stress of waxy crude oil are highly dependent on temperature changes. During the hot pumping of waxy crude oil through a buried pipeline, a non-isothermal flow occurs due to heat transfer to the surrounding soil. This leads to a decrease in flow temperature, an increase in viscosity, the appearance of yield stress, the crystallization of wax, and the deposition of solid particles on the pipeline's inner wall. The deposition of oil solid particles reduces a pipeline flow area and leads to the appearance of a stagnant zone with thermal insulation in the near-wall area. Waxy crude oil properties change. A Newtonian fluid at low temperatures transits to a non-Newtonian fluid. The one-dimensional modeling of a non-isothermal waxy crude oil flow in a two-dimensional axisymmetric pipeline by traditional averaging of temperature and velocity over the pipeline cross-section does not allow for explaining a physics phenomenon. Therefore, in this work, a two-dimensional flow model and the heat transfer of waxy oil are constructed. The calculated data show the transition of a Newtonian fluid to a non-Newtonian fluid due to the heat exchange of waxy oil with the environment.

Keywords: non-isothermal laminar flow, waxy crude oil, stagnant zone, yield stress

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Authors: S. Ngcinela, A. Mushunje, A. Taruvinga, C. S. Mutengwa, T. S. Masehela

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There is high demand and competing needs when it comes to land use practices. Several factors contribute to this trend, for example, the ever-increasing human population, the need to produce more food than before, and the expansion of industrial and agricultural areas. This paper, focused on the cultivation patterns, land use change over time, of maize and soybean (i.e. both genetically modified and non-genetically modified) in two South African provinces to establish their land cover changes over time. From a global context, genetically modified crops have been advocated by some to be saving land – due to more yield over small cultivation area(s); while other argue and even criticise their cultivation as they take up more land, replace other crops or are the expense of natural (pristine) vegetation. The study quantified and mapped land used for the cultivation of maize and soybean from 2006 to 2017 in Free State and North West provinces, using ArcGIS. The results show both provinces to have minimal expansion or change in cultivation area for both maize and soybean between 2006 and 2017. The results further indicate that both maize and soybean cultivation areas in these provinces, did not expand beyond the current agricultural areas (space), and did not encroach onto new land areas. This suggests that both maize and soybean, do not currently pose a threat to the surrounding landscape and are not in direct coemption with other neighboring land use practices.

Keywords: agriculture, crops, cultivation, genetically modified, land use, maize, soybean

Procedia PDF Downloads 151