Search results for: weather change

Authors: Benjamin Mauck, Kevin Winter

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The city of Cape Town in South Africa, has shown consistent economic and population growth in the last few decades and that growth is expected to continue to increase into the future. These projected economic and population growth rates are set to place additional pressure on the city’s already strained water supply system. Thus, given Cape Town’s water scarcity, increasing water demands and stressed water supply system, coupled with global awareness around the issues of sustainable development, environmental protection and climate change, alternative water management strategies are required to ensure water is sustainably managed. Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) is an approach to sustainable urban water management that attempts to assign a resource value to all forms of water in the urban context, viz. stormwater, wastewater, potable water and groundwater. WSUD employs a wide range of strategies to improve the sustainable management of urban water such as the water reuse, developing alternative available supply sources, sustainable stormwater management and enhancing the aesthetic and recreational value of urban water. Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) is one WSUD strategy which has proven to be a successful reuse strategy in a number of places around the world. MAR is the process where an aquifer is intentionally or artificially recharged, which provides a valuable means of water storage while enhancing the aquifers supply potential. This paper investigates the feasibility of implementing MAR in the sandy, unconfined Cape Flats Aquifer (CFA) in Cape Town. The main objective of the study is to assess if MAR is a viable strategy for stormwater management on the Cape Flats, aiding the prevention or mitigation of the seasonal flooding that occurs on the Cape Flats, while also improving the supply potential of the aquifer. This involves the infiltration of stormwater into the CFA during the wet winter months and in turn, abstracting from the CFA during the dry summer months for fit-for-purpose uses in order to optimise the recharge and storage capacity of the CFA. The fully-integrated MIKE SHE model is used in this study to simulate both surface water and groundwater hydrology. This modelling approach enables the testing of various potential recharge and abstraction scenarios required for implementation of MAR on the Cape Flats. Further MIKE SHE scenario analysis under projected future climate scenarios provides insight into the performance of MAR as a stormwater management strategy under climate change conditions. The scenario analysis using an integrated model such as MIKE SHE is a valuable tool for evaluating the feasibility of the MAR as a stormwater management strategy and its potential to contribute towards improving Cape Town’s water security into the future.

Keywords: managed aquifer recharge, stormwater management, cape flats aquifer, MIKE SHE

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Authors: Krishna Prasad Regmi, Jun-Bo Tu, Cheng-Qun Hou, Li-Feng Li

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Maxillofacial trauma in a pediatric group of patients is particularly challenging, as these patients have significant differences from adults as far as the facial skeleton is concerned. Mandibular condylar fractures are common presentations to hospitals across the globe and remain the most important cause of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) ankylosis. The etiology and epidemiology of pediatric trauma involving the diacapitular condylar fractures (DFs) have been reported in a large series of patients. Nevertheless, little is known about treatment protocols for DFs in children. Accordingly, the treatment modalities for the management of pediatric fractures also differ. We suggest following the PDA and intracapsular ABC classification of condylar fracture to increase the overall postoperative satisfaction level that bypasses the change of subjective feelings of patients’ from preoperative to the postoperative condition. At the same time, use of 3-D technology and surgical navigation may also increase treatment accuracy.

Keywords: maxillofacial trauma, diacapitular fracture, condylar fracture, PDA classification

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Authors: Kibrom Hadush

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Countries like Ethiopia, whose economy is mainly rain-fed dependent agriculture, are highly vulnerable to climate variability and weather extremes. Sub-seasonal (monthly) and dekadal forecasts are hence critical for crop production and water resource management. Therefore, this paper was conducted to study the predictability and variability of Kiremt rainfall over the northern half of Ethiopia on monthly and dekadal time scales in association with global Sea Surface Temperature (SST) at different lag time. Trends in rainfall have been analyzed on annual, seasonal (Kiremt), monthly, and dekadal (June–September) time scales based on rainfall records of 36 meteorological stations distributed across four homogenous zones of the northern half of Ethiopia for the period 1992–2017. The results from the progressive Mann–Kendall trend test and the Sen’s slope method shows that there is no significant trend in the annual, Kiremt, monthly and dekadal rainfall total at most of the station's studies. Moreover, the rainfall in the study area varies spatially and temporally, and the distribution of the rainfall pattern increases from the northeast rift valley to northwest highlands. Methods of analysis include graphical correlation and multiple linear regression model are employed to investigate the association between the global SSTs and Kiremt rainfall over the homogeneous rainfall zones and to predict monthly and dekadal (June-September) rainfall using SST predictors. The results of this study show that in general, SST in the equatorial Pacific Ocean is the main source of the predictive skill of the Kiremt rainfall variability over the northern half of Ethiopia. The regional SSTs in the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean as well contribute to the Kiremt rainfall variability over the study area. Moreover, the result of the correlation analysis showed that the decline of monthly and dekadal Kiremt rainfall over most of the homogeneous zones of the study area are caused by the corresponding persistent warming of the SST in the eastern and central equatorial Pacific Ocean during the period 1992 - 2017. It is also found that the monthly and dekadal Kiremt rainfall over the northern, northwestern highlands and northeastern lowlands of Ethiopia are positively correlated with the SST in the western equatorial Pacific, eastern and tropical northern the Atlantic Ocean. Furthermore, the SSTs in the western equatorial Pacific and Indian Oceans are positively correlated to the Kiremt season rainfall in the northeastern highlands. Overall, the results showed that the prediction models using combined SSTs at various ocean regions (equatorial and tropical) performed reasonably well in the prediction (With R2 ranging from 30% to 65%) of monthly and dekadal rainfall and recommends it can be used for efficient prediction of Kiremt rainfall over the study area to aid with systematic and informed decision making within the agricultural sector.

Keywords: dekadal, Kiremt rainfall, monthly, Northern Ethiopia, sea surface temperature

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Authors: Larbi Hammadi, N. Boudjenane, N. Benhallou, R. Houjedje, R. Reffis, M. Belhadri

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Many of clays exhibited the thixotropic behavior in which, the apparent viscosity of material decreases with time of shearing at constant shear rate. The structural kinetic model (SKM) was used to characterize the thixotropic behavior of two different kinds of clays used in fabrication of ceramic. Clays selected for analysis represent the fluid and semisolid clays materials. The SKM postulates that the change in the rheological behavior is associated with shear-induced breakdown of the internal structure of the clays. This model for the structure decay with time at constant shear rate assumes nth order kinetics for the decay of the material structure with a rate constant.

Keywords: ceramic, clays, structural kinetic model, thixotropy, viscosity

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Authors: Sara Sharifi Yazdi

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The main purpose of this study is to find out about the reasons and the ways of middle-class married women betrayal via their living world. This is qualitative research, so deep semi-structured, episodic interview techniques and observation techniques were used to collect data; meanwhile, the basic theory method was used to analyze the data. The sample in this research includes 34 women with emotional and sexual relationships out of marriage. The results indicate that some set of conditions created the first spark of change in their opinions. These changes are empowered through both experiences of tolerance and exclusion, so strategies such as distance, compulsive tolerance, counteract, etc. have been used for reacting by the people in this study; besides some of the other consequences of betrayal which can be named are lack of comfort, feeling of deprivation, violence, labeling, guilty feelings of grief, and so on.

Keywords: living world, rejection, admission, betrayal, sexual relationship, marriage

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Authors: Nouf Alharbi

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The electrospray deposition technique became an important method that enables fragile, nonvolatile molecules to be deposited in situ in high vacuum environments. Furthermore, it is considered one of the ways to close the gap between basic surface science and molecular engineering, which represents a gradual change in the range of scientist research. Also, this paper talked about one of the most important techniques that have been developed and aimed for helping to further develop and characterize the electrospray by providing data collected using an image charge detection instrument. Image charge detection mass spectrometry (CDMS) is used to measure speed and charge distributions of the molecular ions. As well as, some data has been included using SIMION simulation to simulate the energies and masses of the molecular ions through the system in order to refine the mass-selection process.

Keywords: charge, deposition, electrospray, image, ions, molecules, SIMION

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Authors: Young-Kwan Choi, Gang-Wook Shin, Sung-Taek Hong

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Water supply system consumes large amount of power load during water treatment and transportation of purified water. Many energy conserving high efficiency materials such as DC motor and LED light have recently been introduced to water supply system for energy conservation. This paper performed empirical analysis on BLDC, AC motors, and comparatively analyzed the change in power according to DC power supply ratio in order to conserve energy of a next-generation water treatment system called vertical water treatment system. In addition, a DC distribution system linked with photovoltaic generation was simulated to analyze the energy conserving effect of DC load.

Keywords: vertical water treatment system, DC power supply, energy efficiency, BLDC

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Authors: Marine Regnier, Pascal Bost, Matthieu Horgnies

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Some of the problems to be solved for the concrete industry are linked to the use of low-reactivity cement, the hardening of concrete under cold-weather and the manufacture of pre-casted concrete without costly heating step. The development of these applications needs to accelerate the hydration kinetics, in order to decrease the setting time and to obtain significant compressive strengths as soon as possible. The mechanisms enhancing the hydration kinetics of alite or Portland cement (e.g. the creation of nucleation sites) were already studied in literature (e.g. by using distinct additions such as titanium dioxide nanoparticles, calcium carbonate fillers, water-soluble polymers, C-S-H, etc.). However, the goal of this study was to establish a clear ranking of the efficiency of several types of additions by using a robust and reproducible methodology based on isothermal calorimetry (performed at 20°C). The cement was a CEM I 52.5N PM-ES (Blaine fineness of 455 m²/kg). To ensure the reproducibility of the experiments and avoid any decrease of the reactivity before use, the cement was stored in waterproof and sealed bags to avoid any contact with moisture and carbon dioxide. The experiments were performed on Portland cement pastes by using a water-to-cement ratio of 0.45, and incorporating different compounds (industrially available or laboratory-synthesized) that were selected according to their main composition and their specific surface area (SSA, calculated using the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) model and nitrogen adsorption isotherms performed at 77K). The intrinsic effects of (i) dry powders (e.g. fumed silica, activated charcoal, nano-precipitates of calcium carbonate, afwillite germs, nanoparticles of iron and iron oxides , etc.), and (ii) aqueous solutions (e.g. containing calcium chloride, hydrated Portland cement or Master X-SEED 100, etc.) were investigated. The influence of the amount of addition, calculated relatively to the dry extract of each addition compared to cement (and by conserving the same water-to-cement ratio) was also studied. The results demonstrated that the X-SEED®, the hydrated calcium nitrate, the calcium chloride (and, at a minor level, a solution of hydrated Portland cement) were able to accelerate the hydration kinetics of Portland cement, even at low concentration (e.g. 1%wt. of dry extract compared to cement). By using higher rates of additions, the fumed silica, the precipitated calcium carbonate and the titanium dioxide can also accelerate the hydration. In the case of the nano-precipitates of calcium carbonate, a correlation was established between the SSA and the accelerating effect. On the contrary, the nanoparticles of iron or iron oxides, the activated charcoal and the dried crystallised hydrates did not show any accelerating effect. Future experiments will be scheduled to establish the ranking of these additions, in terms of accelerating effect, by using low-reactivity cements and other water to cement ratios.

Keywords: acceleration, hydration kinetics, isothermal calorimetry, Portland cement

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Authors: Rajan Ghimire

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One of the diseases caused by the coronavirus shook the whole world. This situation challenged the education system across the world and compelled educators to shift to an online mode of teaching. Many academic institutions that were persistent to keep their traditional pedagogical approach were also forced to change their teaching methods. This study aims to assess science education students' experiences and perceptions of this global issue, especially on the science teaching and learning process. The study is based on qualitative research and through in-depth interviews with respondents and data is analyzed. Online distance teaching and learning processes meet the requirements of students who cannot or prefer not to participate in conventional classroom settings. But there are some challenges for the students and teachers in the science teaching learning process. This study recommends some points to all stakeholders.

Keywords: electronic devices, internet, online and distance learning, science education, educational policy

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Authors: Salem Ali Jebreil

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In this work, a polyaniline/Iron oxide (PANI/Fe2O3) composite was chemically prepared by oxidative polymerization of aniline in acid medium, in presence of ammonium persulphate as an oxidant and amount of Fe2O3. The composite was characterized by a scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The prepared composite has been used as adsorbent to remove Tartrazine dye form aqueous solutions. The effects of initial dye concentration and temperature on the adsorption capacity of PANI/Fe2O3 for Tartrazine dye have been studied in this paper. The Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption models have been used for the mathematical description of adsorption equilibrium data. The best fit is obtained using the Freundlich isotherm with an R2 value of 0.998. The change of Gibbs energy, enthalpy, and entropy of adsorption has been also evaluated for the adsorption of Tartrazine onto PANI/ Fe2O3. It has been proved according the results that the adsorption process is endothermic in nature.

Keywords: adsorption, composite, dye, polyaniline, tartrazine

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Authors: Nevruz Zogu, Shpetim Rezniqi

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In the framework of transformational economic development social pluralism and the free, market health systems operating in the countries of our region are naturally involved in a process of profound change and reform. Health systems actually represent complex ensembles centers and public and private institutions (domestic and foreign), who administer substantial amounts of human, technological, material, financial, information and scientific facts • The goal of health systems is much more than medical care. It includes the promotion, protection, treatment and rehabilitation of health of the population. • Meeting the needs of increasingly diverse broader health services efficient, secure the quality and affordability of their increasing cost of unstoppable, requires the necessary reform of health systems and implementing policies and new management methods, to ensure effectiveness and health benefits as higher population.

Keywords: health, management, economy, finance

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Authors: Bahram Fathi, Mahdi Khodaparast Mashhadi, Masuod Homayounifar

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Global awareness on energy security and climate change has created much interest in assessing energy efficiency performance. A number of previous studies have contributed to evaluate energy efficiency performance using different analytical techniques among which data envelopment analysis (DEA) has recently received increasing attention. Most of DEA-related energy efficiency studies do not consider undesirable outputs such as CO2 emissions in their modeling framework, which may lead to biased energy efficiency values. Within a joint production frame work of desirable and undesirable outputs, in this paper we construct energy efficiency performance index for measuring energy efficiency performance by using environmental DEA model with CO2 emissions. We finally apply the index proposed to assess the energy efficiency performance in OPEC over time.

Keywords: energy efficiency, environmental, OPEC, data envelopment analysis

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Authors: L. Strauta, S. Muižniece-Brasava

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Even though legumes possess high nutritional value and have a rather high protein content for plant origin products, they are underutilized mostly due to their lengthy cooking time. To increase the presence of legume-based products in human diet, new extruded products were made of cow peas (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.). But as it is known, adding different moisture content to flour before extrusion can change the physical properties of the extruded product. Experiments were carried out to estimate the optimal moisture content for cow pea extrusion. After extrusion, the pH level had dropped from 6.7 to 6.5 and the lowest hardness rate was observed in the samples with additional 9 g 100g^-1 of moisture - 28±4N, but the volume mass of the samples with additional 9 g100g^-1 of water was 263±3 g L^-1; all samples were approximately 7±1mm long.

Keywords: cow pea, extrusion–cooking, moisture, size

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Authors: Thiru Vandeyar

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The present study set out to determine how Q methodology may be used as an inclusive education policy development process. Utilising Q-methodology as a strategy of inquiry, this qualitative instrumental case study set out to explore how teachers, as a crucial but often neglected human resource, may be included in developing policy. A social constructivist lens and the theoretical moorings of Proudford’s emancipatory approach to educational change anchored in teachers’ ‘writerly’ interpretation of policy text was employed. Findings suggest that Q-method is a unique research approach to include teachers’ voices in policy development. Second, that beliefs, attitudes, and professionalism of teachers to improve teaching and learning using ICT are integral to policy formulation. The study indicates that teachers have unique beliefs about what statements should constitute a school’s information and communication (ICT) policy. Teachers’ experiences are an extremely valuable resource in and should not be ignored in the policy formulation process.

Keywords: teachers, q-methodology, education policy, ICT

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Authors: Magdalena Biela, Marta Weber-Siwirska, Edyta Sierka

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The current noticed trend in Central European countries, as in other regions of the world, is for people to migrate to cities. As a result, the urban population is to have reached 70% of the total by 2050. Due to this tendency, as well as taking high real estate prices and limited reserves of city green areas into consideration, the greenery and agricultural soil adjacent to cities is are to be devoted to housing projects, while city centres are expected to undergo partial depopulation. Urban heat islands and phenomena such as torrential rains may cause serious damage. They may even endanger the very life and health of the inhabitants. Due to these tangible effects of climate change, residents expect that local government takes action to develop green infrastructure (GI). The main purpose of our research has been to assess the degree of readiness on the part of the local government in Poland to develop BGI. A questionnaire using the CAWI method was prepared, and a survey was carried out. The target group were town hall employees in all 380 powiat cities and towns (380 county centres) in Poland. The form contained 14 questions covering, among others, actions taken to support the development of GI and ways of motivating residents to take such actions. 224 respondents replied to the questions. The results of the research show that 52% of the cities/towns have taken or intend to take measures to favour the development of green spaces. Currently, the installation of green roofs and living walls is are only carried out by 6 Polish cities, and a few more are at the stage of preparing appropriate regulations. The problem of rainwater retention is much more widespread. Among the municipalities declaring any activities for the benefit of GI, approximately 42% have decided to work on this problem. Over 19% of the respondents are planning an increase in the surface occupied by green areas, 14% - the installation of green roofs, and 12% - redevelopment of city greenery. It is optimistic that 67% of the respondents are willing to acquire knowledge about BGI by means of taking part in educational activities both at the national and international levels. There are many ways to help GI development. The most common type of support in the cities and towns surveyed is co-financing (35%), followed by full financing of projects (11%). About 15% of the cities declare only advisory support. Thus, the problem of GI in Central European cities is at the stage of initial development and requires advanced measures and implementation of both proven solutions applied in other European and world countries using the concept of Nature-based Solutions.

Keywords: city/town, blue-green infrastructure, green roofs, climate change adaptation

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Authors: Sakura Yoshii, Masakazu Abe, Akihiro Iijima

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Nitrogen saturation has become one of the serious issues in the field of forest environment. The watershed protection forests located in the downwind hinterland of Tokyo Metropolitan Area are believed to be facing nitrogen saturation. In this study, we carefully focus on the balance of nitrogen between load and runoff. Annual nitrogen load via atmospheric deposition was estimated to 461.1 t-N/year in the upper reaches of the Kanna River. Annual nitrogen runoff to the forested headwater stream of the Kanna River was determined to 184.9 t-N/year, corresponding to 40.1% of the total nitrogen load. Clear seasonal change in NO3-N concentration was still observed. Therefore, watershed protection forest of the Kanna River is most likely to be in Stage-1 on the status of nitrogen saturation.

Keywords: atmospheric deposition, nitrogen accumulation, denitrification, forest ecosystems

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Authors: M. M. Mekkakia, M. P Luong, A. Arab

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These controlling the water content of compaction are a major concern of fundamental civil engineers. Also, the knowledge of the fundamentals of the behaviour of compacted clay soils is essential to predict and quantify the effects of a change in water content. The study of unsaturated soils is a very complex area which several studies are directed to in recent years. Our job work is to perform tests of Proctor, Oedometer and shear, on samples of unsaturated clay in order to see the influence of water content on the compressibility and the shear strength. The samples were prepared at different amounts of water from water content to optimum water contents close to saturation. This study thus allowed us to measure and monitor the parameters of compressibility and shear strength as a function of water content.

Keywords: laboratory tests, clay, unsaturated soil, atterberg limits, compaction, compressibility, shear

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Authors: HoYoung Son, Ki Young Kim, Woo Young Jung

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This study investigated the change of weir structure performances when durability of concrete, which is the main material of weir structure, decreased due to their aging by mean of seismic fragility analysis. In the analysis, it was assumed that the elastic modulus of concrete was reduced by 10% in order to account for their aged deterioration. Additionally, the analysis of seismic fragility was based on Monte Carlo Simulation method combined with a 2D nonlinear finite element in ABAQUS platform with the consideration of deterioration of concrete. Finally, the comparison of seismic fragility of model pre- and post-deterioration was made to study the performance of weir. Results show that the probability of failure in moderate damage for deteriorated model was found to be larger than pre-deterioration model when peak ground acceleration (PGA) passed 0.4 g.

Keywords: weir, FEM, concrete, fragility, aging

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Authors: N. Das, N. Samanta, L. Pandey, C. Roy Chaudhuri

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Early diagnosis of infection like Hep-B virus in blood is important for low cost medical treatment. For this purpose, it is desirable to develop a point of care device which should be able to detect trace quantities of the target molecule in blood. In this paper, we report a nanoporous silicon oxide sensor which is capable of detecting down to 1fM concentration of Hep-B surface antigen in blood without the requirement of any centrifuge or pre-concentration. This has been made possible by the presence of resonant peak in the sensitivity characteristics. This peak is observed to be dependent only on the concentration of the specific antigen and not on the interfering species in blood serum. The occurrence of opposite impedance change within the pores and at the bottom of the pore is responsible for this effect. An electronic interface has also been designed to provide a display of the virus concentration.

Keywords: impedance spectroscopy, ultrasensitive detection in blood, peak frequency, electronic interface

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Authors: Sarah El Mokadem

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Egypt has been the focus of international media since 2011 revolution and its repercussions. By the end of 2017, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi will have finished his first term of presidency. With an upcoming presidential election, all eyes are returning back to Egypt as there are speculations about whether the current regime will uphold or change points in the constitution determining the years of presidency term and the allowed number or reelections. In this paper, the researcher examines the reports related to Egypt in three international news channels with different ideologies. The research aims to identify the frames used to portray major issues in Egypt like the economic struggle, democracy levels and stability and safety of the country. All available reports from these three channels in 2017 on YouTube were analyzed which is the year before the presidential elections.

Keywords: content analysis, Egypt, image building, news channel ideology

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Authors: Eva L. Suarez, Daniel E. Meeroff, Yan Yong

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The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) developed flood maps based on experts’ experience and estimates of the probability of flooding. Current flood-risk models evaluate flood risk with regional and subjective measures without impact from torrential rain and nuisance flooding at the neighborhood level. Nuisance flooding occurs in small areas in the community, where a few streets or blocks are routinely impacted. This type of flooding event occurs when torrential rainstorm combined with high tide and sea level rise temporarily exceeds a given threshold. In South Florida, this threshold is 1.7 ft above Mean Higher High Water (MHHW). The National Weather Service defines torrential rain as rain deposition at a rate greater than 0.3-inches per hour or three inches in a single day. Data from the Florida Climate Center, 1970 to 2020, shows 371 events with more than 3-inches of rain in a day in 612 months. The purpose of this research is to develop a data-driven method to determine comprehensive analytical damage-avoidance criteria that account for nuisance flood events at the single-family home level. The method developed uses the Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) method from the American Society of Quality (ASQ) to estimate the Damage Avoidance (DA) preparation for a 1-day 100-year storm. The Consequence of Nuisance Flooding (CoNF) is estimated from community mitigation efforts to prevent nuisance flooding damage. The Probability of Nuisance Flooding (PoNF) is derived from the frequency and duration of torrential rainfall causing delays and community disruptions to daily transportation, human illnesses, and property damage. Urbanization and population changes are related to the U.S. Census Bureau's annual population estimates. Data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service’s National Resources Inventory (NRI) and locally by the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) track the development and land use/land cover changes with time. The intent is to include temporal trends in population density growth and the impact on land development. Results from this investigation provide the risk of nuisance flooding as a function of CoNF and PoNF for coastal areas of South Florida. The data-based criterion provides awareness to local municipalities on their flood-risk assessment and gives insight into flood management actions and watershed development.

Keywords: flood risk, nuisance flooding, urban flooding, FMEA

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Authors: Dimitri Bacco, Arianna Trentini, Fabiana Scotto, Flavio Rovere, Daniele Foscoli, Cinzia Para, Paolo Veronesi, Silvia Sandrini, Claudia Zigola, Michela Comandini, Marilena Montalti, Marco Zamagni, Vanes Poluzzi

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The Po Valley, in the north of Italy, is one of the most polluted areas in Europe. The air quality of the area is linked not only to anthropic activities but also to its geographical characteristics and stagnant weather conditions with frequent inversions, especially in the cold season. Even the coastal areas present high values of particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) because the area closed between the Adriatic Sea and the Apennines does not favor the dispersion of air pollutants. The aim of the present work was to identify the main sources of particulate matter in Rimini, a tourist city in northern Italy. Two sampling campaigns were carried out in 2018, one in winter (60 days) and one in summer (30 days), in 4 sites: an urban background, a city hotspot, a suburban background, and a rural background. The samples are characterized by the concentration of the ionic composition of the particulates and of the main a hydro-sugars, in particular levoglucosan, a marker of the biomass burning, because one of the most important anthropogenic sources in the area, both in the winter and surprisingly even in the summer, is the biomass burning. Furthermore, three sampling points were chosen in order to maximize the contribution of a specific biomass source: a point in a residential area (domestic cooking and domestic heating), a point in the agricultural area (weed fires), and a point in the tourist area (restaurant cooking). In these sites, the analyzes were enriched with the quantification of the carbonaceous component (organic and elemental carbon) and with measurement of the particle number concentration and aerosol size distribution (6 - 600 nm). The results showed a very significant impact of the combustion of biomass due to domestic heating in the winter period, even though many intense peaks were found attributable to episodic wood fires. In the summer season, however, an appreciable signal was measured linked to the combustion of biomass, although much less intense than in winter, attributable to domestic cooking activities. Further interesting results were the verification of the total absence of sea salt's contribution in the particulate with the lower diameter (PM2.5), and while in the PM10, the contribution becomes appreciable only in particular wind conditions (high wind from north, north-east). Finally, it is interesting to note that in a small town, like Rimini, in summer, the traffic source seems to be even more relevant than that measured in a much larger city (Bologna) due to tourism.

Keywords: aerosol, biomass burning, seacoast, urban area

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Authors: Mohamed A. Abou-Shouk, Mahamoud M. Hewedi

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This study extends technology acceptance model (TAM) to investigate the antecedents and consequences of social media adoption by tourists and travel agents. It compares their perceptions on social media adoption and its consequences. Online survey was addressed to tourists and travel agents for data collection purposes. Structural equation modelling was employed for analysis purposes. The findings revealed that the majority of tourists and travel agents involved in the study believe in the usefulness of social media adoption for travel planning and marketing purposes. They agree that adopting social media could change the attitude of tourists towards specific destination or attraction and influence their purchasing decisions. This study contributes to knowledge by extending TAM and provides some managerial implication to marketers.

Keywords: TAM, social media, travel and tourism, travel agents

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Authors: Zaffar Hayat Nawaz Khan

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In the face of growing environmental concerns, the need for sustainable practices has become increasingly urgent. This paper aims to explore the path towards a greener and more resilient future by examining key strategies and initiatives that address environmental challenges. The paper begins by analyzing the current state of the environment, highlighting the various concerns such as climate change, deforestation, pollution, and depletion of natural resources. It emphasizes the need for immediate action and proposes a comprehensive approach to tackle these issues. Furthermore, the paper delves into the concept of resilience and its importance in creating a sustainable future. It discusses the need to build resilient systems and communities that can withstand and adapt to environmental shocks and stresses. The paper highlights the role of innovation, technology, and policy frameworks in promoting resilience and fostering a greener and more sustainable future.

Keywords: environmental concerns, ustainable development, greener future, energy, waste management

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Authors: Sung-Wook Shin, Sung-Taek Chung

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Hand grip strength has been utilized as an indicator to evaluate the motor ability of hands, responsible for performing multiple body functions. It is, however, difficult to evaluate other factors (other than hand muscular strength) utilizing the hand grip strength only. In this study, we analyzed the motor ability of hands using EMG and the hand grip strength, simultaneously in order to evaluate concentration, muscular strength reaction time, instantaneous muscular strength change, and agility in response to visual reaction. In results, the average time (and their standard deviations) of muscular strength reaction EMG signal and hand grip strength was found to be 209.6 ± 56.2 ms and 354.3 ± 54.6 ms, respectively. In addition, the onset time which represents acceleration time to reach 90% of maximum hand grip strength, was 382.9 ± 129.9 ms.

Keywords: hand grip strength, EMG, visual reaction, endurance

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Authors: Farah Islam, Md. Monirul Islam, Mosammat Salma Akter, Goutam Kumar Kundu

Abstract:

The continuous variability of climate and the risk associated with it have a significant impact on the fisheries leading to a global concern for about half a billion fishery-based livelihoods. Though in the context of Bangladesh mounting evidence on the impacts of climate change on fishery-based livelihoods or their socioeconomic conditions are present, the country’s inland fisheries sector remains in a negligible corner as compared to the coastal areas which are spotted on the highlight due to its higher vulnerability to climatic hazards. The available research on inland fisheries, particularly river fisheries, has focussed mainly on fish production, pollution, fishing gear, fish biodiversity and livelihoods of the fishers. This study assesses the impacts of climate variability and changes on the Jamuna (a transboundary river called Brahmaputra in India) River fishing communities and their coping and adaptation strategies. This study has used primary data collected from Kalitola Ghat and Debdanga fishing communities of the Jamuna River during May, August and December 2015 using semi-structured interviews, oral history interviews, key informant interviews, focus group discussions and impact matrix as well as secondary data. This study has found that both communities are exposed to storms, floods and land erosions which impact on fishery-based livelihood assets, strategies, and outcomes. The impact matrix shows that human and physical capitals are more affected by climate hazards which in turn affect financial capital. Both communities have been responding to these exposures through multiple coping and adaptation strategies. The coping strategies include making dam with soil, putting jute sac on the yard, taking shelter on boat or embankment, making raised platform or ‘Kheua’ and involving with temporary jobs. While, adaptation strategies include permanent migration, change of livelihood activities and strategies, changing fishing practices and making robust houses. The study shows that migration is the most common adaptation strategy for the fishers which resulted in mostly positive outcomes for the migrants. However, this migration has impacted negatively on the livelihoods of existing fishers in the communities. In sum, the Jamuna river fishing communities have been impacted by several climatic hazards and they have traditionally coped with or adapted to the impacts which are not sufficient to maintain sustainable livelihoods and fisheries. In coming decades, this situation may become worse as predicted by latest scientific research and an enhanced level of response would be needed.

Keywords: climatic hazards, impacts and adaptation, fisherfolk, the Jamuna River

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Authors: K. Khadidja

Abstract:

Solitons are stable solution of nonlinear Schrodinger equation. Their stability is due to the exact combination between nonlinearity and dispersion which causes pulse broadening. Higher order solitons are born when nonlinear length is N multiple of dispersive length. Soliton order is determined by the number N itself. In this paper, evolution of higher order solitons is illustrated by simulation using Matlab. Results show that higher order solitons change their shape periodically, the reason why they are bad for transmission comparing to fundamental solitons which are constant. Partial analysis of a soliton of higher order explains that the periodic shape is due to the interplay between nonlinearity and dispersion which are not equal during a period. This class of solitons has many applications such as generation of supercontinuum and the impulse compression on the Femtosecond scale. As a conclusion, the periodicity which is harmful to transmission can be beneficial in other applications.

Keywords: dispersion, nonlinearity, optical fiber, soliton

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Authors: Abdoulie K. Ceesay

Abstract:

Within the sequence of the whole genome, it is known that 99.9% of the human genome is similar, whilst our difference lies in just 0.1%. Among these minor dissimilarities, the most common type of genetic variations that occurs in a population is SNP, which arises due to nucleotide substitution in a protein sequence that leads to protein destabilization, alteration in dynamics, and other physio-chemical properties’ distortions. While causing variations, they are equally responsible for our difference in the way we respond to a treatment or a disease, including various cancer types. There are two types of SNPs; synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (sSNP) and non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (nsSNP). sSNP occur in the gene coding region without causing a change in the encoded amino acid, while nsSNP is deleterious due to its replacement of a nucleotide residue in the gene sequence that results in a change in the encoded amino acid. Predicting the effects of cancer related nsSNPs on protein stability, function, and dynamics is important due to the significance of phenotype-genotype association of cancer. In this thesis, Data of 5 oncogenes (ONGs) (AKT1, ALK, ERBB2, KRAS, BRAF) and 5 tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) (ESR1, CASP8, TET2, PALB2, PTEN) were retrieved from ClinVar. Five common in silico tools; Polyphen, Provean, Mutation Assessor, Suspect, and FATHMM, were used to predict and categorize nsSNPs as deleterious, benign, or neutral. To understand the impact of each variation on the phenotype, Maestro, PremPS, Cupsat, and mCSM-NA in silico structural prediction tools were used. This study comprises of in-depth analysis of 10 cancer gene variants downloaded from Clinvar. Various analysis of the genes was conducted to derive a meaningful conclusion from the data. Research done indicated that pathogenic variants are more common among ONGs. Our research also shows that pathogenic and destabilizing variants are more common among ONGs than TSGs. Moreover, our data indicated that ALK(409) and BRAF(86) has higher benign count among ONGs; whilst among TSGs, PALB2(1308) and PTEN(318) genes have higher benign counts. Looking at the individual cancer genes predisposition or frequencies of causing cancer according to our research data, KRAS(76%), BRAF(55%), and ERBB2(36%) among ONGs; and PTEN(29%) and ESR1(17%) among TSGs have higher tendencies of causing cancer. Obtained results can shed light to the future research in order to pave new frontiers in cancer therapies.

Keywords: tumor suppressor genes (TSGs), oncogenes (ONGs), non synonymous single nucleotide polymorphism (nsSNP), single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)

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Authors: Wilaiwan Sornpoon, Sébastien Bonnet, Savitri Garivait

Abstract:

Continuous measurements of greenhouse gases (GHGs) emitted from soils are required to understand diurnal and seasonal variations in soil emissions and related mechanism. This understanding plays an important role in appropriate quantification and assessment of the overall change in soil carbon flow and budget. This study proposes to monitor GHGs emissions from soil under sugarcane cultivation in Thailand. The measurements were conducted over 379 days. The results showed that the total net amount of GHGs emitted from sugarcane plantation soil amounts to 36 Mg CO2eq ha-1. Carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) were found to be the main contributors to the emissions. For methane (CH4), the net emission was found to be almost zero. The measurement results also confirmed that soil moisture content and GHGs emissions are positively correlated.

Keywords: soil, GHG emission, sugarcane, agriculture, Thailand

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Authors: S. Zouainia, R. Djebar, H. Berrebah, A. Sayeb

Abstract:

This work focused on the study of physiological and biochemical changes observed in tadpoles exposed to fungicide Rana saharica Artea 330ec recently introduced in Algeria. For this, we tested the effect of xenobiotics on growth and development of tadpoles; among the studied parameters: total protein, glutathione and respiratory activity. The study of physiological parameters showed that the tadpoles change perfectly in the absence of toxic and in favorable conditions (pH, temperature). Our results showed an increased rate of protein and GSH in the presence of the fungicide Artea 330ec. The latter causes uninhibited very highly significant respiratory activity of tadpoles treated. The presence of xenobiotics in the breeding tadpoles water causes disturbances in behavior and food metabolism.

Keywords: amphibians, fungicides, pesticides, pollution

Procedia PDF Downloads 404