Search results for: geographical%20information%20system

Authors: Ali Alahmari

Abstract:

Urban drainage in Saudi Arabia is an increasingly challenging issue due to factors such as climate change and rapid urban expansion. The existing infrastructure, based on traditional drainage systems, is not always able to cope with the increased precipitation, sometimes leading to rainwater runoff and floods causing disturbances and damage to property. Therefore, there is a need to find new ways of managing drainage, such as Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS). The research has highlighted the main driving forces behind the need for change, revealed by the participants, to the need to adopt new ideas and approaches for urban drainage. However, while moving towards this, certain factors that may hinder the aim of using the experiences of other countries and taking advantage of innovative solutions. The research illustrates an initial conceptual model for these factors emerging from the analysis. It identifies some of the fundamental issues affecting the resistance to change towards the adoption of the concept of sustainability in Saudi Arabia, with Riyadh city as a case study. This was by using a qualitative approach, whereby, through two phases of fieldwork during 2013 and 2014, twenty-six semi-structured interviews were conducted with a number of representative officials and professionals from key government departments and organisations related to urban drainage management. Grounded Theory approach was followed to analyse the qualitative data obtained. Resistance to change was classified to: firstly: individual inertia (e.g. familiarity with the conventional solutions and approaches, lack of awareness, and considering sustainability as a marginal matter in urban planning). This resulted in not paying the desired attention, and impact on planning and setting priorities for development. Secondly: institutionalised inertia (e.g. lack of technical and design specifications for other unconventional drainage solutions, lack of consideration by decision makers in other disciplines such as contributions from environmental and geographical studies, and routine work and bureaucracy). This contributes to the weakness of decision-making, weakness in the role of research, and a lack of human resources. It seems that attitudes towards change may have reduced the ability to move forward towards sustainable development, in addition to contributing towards difficulties in some aspects of the decision-making process. Thus, the chapter provides insights into the current situation in Saudi Arabia and contributes to understanding the decisions that are made regarding change.

Keywords: climate change, new knowledge and approaches, resistance to change, Saudi Arabia, SUDS, urban drainage, urban expansion

Procedia PDF Downloads 152

Authors: Pandurang Balwant, Ashutosh Mishra, Jyothi V., Abhay Soni, Padmakar C., Rafat Quamar, Ramesh J.

Abstract:

The sea water intrusion in the coastal aquifers has become one of the major environmental concerns. Although, it is a natural phenomenon but, it can be induced with anthropogenic activities like excessive exploitation of groundwater, seacoast mining, etc. The geological and hydrogeological conditions including groundwater heads and groundwater pumping pattern in the coastal areas also influence the magnitude of seawater intrusion. However, this problem can be remediated by taking some preventive measures like rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge. The present study is an attempt to identify suitable sites for rainwater harvesting in salt intrusion affected area near coastal aquifer of Jafrabad town, Amreli district, Gujrat, India. The physico-chemical water quality results show that out of 25 groundwater samples collected from the study area most of samples were found to contain high concentration of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) with major fractions of Na and Cl ions. The Cl/HCO3 ratio was also found greater than 1 which indicates the salt water contamination in the study area. The geophysical survey was conducted at nine sites within the study area to explore the extent of contamination of sea water. From the inverted resistivity sections, low resistivity zone (<3 Ohm m) associated with seawater contamination were demarcated in North block pit and south block pit of NCJW mines, Mitiyala village Lotpur and Lunsapur village at the depth of 33 m, 12 m, 40 m, 37 m, 24 m respectively. Geospatial techniques in combination of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) considering hydrogeological factors, geographical features, drainage pattern, water quality and geophysical results for the study area were exploited to identify potential zones for the Rainwater Harvesting. Rainwater harvesting suitability model was developed in ArcGIS 10.1 software and Rainwater harvesting suitability map for the study area was generated. AHP in combination of the weighted overlay analysis is an appropriate method to identify rainwater harvesting potential zones. The suitability map can be further utilized as a guidance map for the development of rainwater harvesting infrastructures in the study area for either artificial groundwater recharge facilities or for direct use of harvested rainwater.

Keywords: analytical hierarchy process, groundwater quality, rainwater harvesting, seawater intrusion

Procedia PDF Downloads 147

Authors: Ahmed Abdulfatah Yusuf, Collins Oduor Ondiek

Abstract:

The automation of farming activities can have a transformational impact on the agricultural sector, especially from the emerging new technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT). The system uses water level sensors and soil moisture sensors that measure the content of water in the soil as the values generated from the sensors enable the system to use an appropriate quantity of water, which avoids over or under irrigation. Due to the increase in the world’s population, there is a need to increase food production. With this demand in place, it is difficult to increase crop yield using the traditional manual approaches that lead to the wastage of water, thus affecting crop production. Food insecurity has become a scourge greatly affecting the developing countries and agriculture is an essential part of human life and tends to be the mainstay of the economy in most developing nations. Thus, without the provision of adequate food supplies, the population of those living in poverty is likely to multiply. The project’s main objective is to design and develop an IoT (Internet of Things) microcontroller-based Smart Irrigation System. In addition, the specific research objectives are to find out the challenges with traditional irrigation approaches and to determine the benefits of IoT-based smart irrigation systems. Furthermore, the system includes Arduino, a website and a database that works simultaneously in collecting and storing the data. The system is designed to pave the way in attaining the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 1), which aims to end extreme poverty in all forms by 2030. The research design aimed at this project is a descriptive research design. Data was gathered through online questionnaires that used both quantitative and qualitative in order to triangulate the data. Out of the 32 questionnaires sent, there were 32 responses leading to a 100% response rate. In terms of sampling, the target group of this project is urban farmers, which account for about 25% of the population of Nairobi. From the findings of the research carried out, it is evident that there is a need to move away from manual irrigation approaches due to the high wastage of water to the use of smart irrigation systems that propose a better way of conserving water while maintaining the quality and moisture of the soil. The research also found out that urban farmers are willing to adopt this system to better their farming practices. However, this system can be improved in the future by incorporating it with other features and deploying it to a larger geographical area.

Keywords: crop production, food security, smart irrigation system, sustainable development goal

Procedia PDF Downloads 114

Authors: Diego Espinoza-Piedra, David Duran

Abstract:

All architectural and land use processes are framed in a cultural, social and geographical context. The present study analyzes the Andean culture before the Spanish conquest in southern Ecuador, in the province of Azuay. This area has been habited for more than 10.000 years. The Canari and the Inca cultures occupied Azuay close to the arrival of the Spanish conquers. The Inca culture was settled in the Andes Mountains. The Canari culture was established in the south of Ecuador, on the actual provinces of Azuay and Canar. In contrast with history and archeology, to the best of our knowledge, their architecture has not yet been studied in this area because of the lack of architectural structures. Consequently, the present research reviewed the land use and culture for architectonic interpretations. The two main architectural objects in these cultures were dwellings and public buildings. In the first case, housing was conceived as temporary. It had to stand as long as its inhabitants lived. Therefore, houses were built when a couple got married. The whole community started the construction through the so-called ‘minga’ or collective work. The construction materials were tree branches, reeds, agave, ground, and straw. So that when their owners aged and then died, this house was easily disarmed and overthrown. Their materials become part of the land for agriculture. Finally, this cycle was repeated indefinitely. In the second case, the buildings, which we can call public, have presented erroneous interpretations. They have been defined as temples. But according to our conclusions, they were places for temporary accommodation, storage of objects and products, and in some special cases, even astronomical observatories. These public buildings were settled along the important road system called ‘Capac-Nam’, currently declared by UNESCO as World Cultural Heritage. The buildings had different scales at regular distances. Also, they were established in special or strategic places, which constituted a system of observatories. These observatories allowed to determine the cycles or calendars (solar or lunar) necessary for the agricultural production, as well as other natural phenomena. Most of the current minimal existence of physical structures in quantity and state of conservation is at the level of foundations or pieces of walls. Therefore, this study was realized after the identification of the history and culture of the inhabitants of this Andean region.

Keywords: Andean, pre-Colombian architecture, Southern Ecuador, sustainable

Procedia PDF Downloads 95

Authors: Sabyasachi Mukhopadhyay, Joseph Ogutu, Gundula Bartzke, Hans-Peter Piepho

Abstract:

Rainfall is a critical component of climate governing vegetation growth and production, forage availability and quality for herbivores. However, reliable rainfall measurements are not always available, making it necessary to predict rainfall values for particular locations through time. Predicting rainfall in space and time can be a complex and challenging task, especially where the rain gauge network is sparse and measurements are not recorded consistently for all rain gauges, leading to many missing values. Here, we develop a flexible Bayesian model for predicting rainfall in space and time and apply it to Narok County, situated in southwestern Kenya, using data collected at 23 rain gauges from 1965 to 2015. Narok County encompasses the Maasai Mara ecosystem, the northern-most section of the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem, famous for its diverse and abundant large mammal populations and spectacular migration of enormous herds of wildebeest, zebra and Thomson's gazelle. The model incorporates geographical and meteorological predictor variables, including elevation, distance to Lake Victoria and minimum temperature. We assess the efficiency of the model by comparing it empirically with the established Gaussian process, Kriging, simple linear and Bayesian linear models. We use the model to predict total monthly rainfall and its standard error for all 5 * 5 km grid cells in Narok County. Using the Monte Carlo integration method, we estimate seasonal and annual rainfall and their standard errors for 29 sub-regions in Narok. Finally, we use the predicted rainfall to predict large herbivore biomass in the Maasai Mara ecosystem on a 5 * 5 km grid for both the wet and dry seasons. We show that herbivore biomass increases with rainfall in both seasons. The model can handle data from a sparse network of observations with many missing values and performs at least as well as or better than four established and widely used models, on the Narok data set. The model produces rainfall predictions consistent with expectation and in good agreement with the blended station and satellite rainfall values. The predictions are precise enough for most practical purposes. The model is very general and applicable to other variables besides rainfall.

Keywords: non-stationary covariance function, gaussian process, ungulate biomass, MCMC, maasai mara ecosystem

Procedia PDF Downloads 258

Authors: Mohamed Mamdouh Al-Banna, Warda Youssef Mohamed Morsy, Hanaa Ali El-Feky, Ashraf Hussein Abdelmohsen

Abstract:

Background: The mechanically ventilated patients need a special nursing care with continuous closed observation. The patients’ body mass index may affect their prognosis or outcomes. Aim of the study: to investigate the relationship between BMI and selected outcomes of critically ill mechanically ventilated patients. Research Design: A descriptive correlational research design was utilized Research questions: a) what is the BMI profile of mechanically ventilated patients admitted to critical care units over a period of six months? b) What is the relationship between body mass index and frequency of organ dysfunction, length of ICU stay, weaning from mechanical ventilation, and the mortality rate among adult critically ill mechanically ventilated patients? Setting: different intensive care units of Cairo University Hospitals. Sample: A convenience sample of 30 mechanically ventilated patients for at least 72 hours. Tools of data collection: Three tools were utilized to collect data pertinent to the current study: tool 1: patients’ sociodemographic and medical data sheet, tool 2: BURNS Wean Assessment Program (BWAP) checklist, tool 3: Sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA score) sheet. Results: The majority of the studied sample (77%) was males, and (26.7 %) of the studied sample were in the age group of 18-28 years old, and (26.7 %) were in the age group of 40-50 years old. Moreover, two thirds (66.7%) of the studied sample were within normal BMI. No significant statistical relationship between BMI category and ICU length of stay or the mortality rate among the studied sample, (X² = 11.31, P value = 0.79), (X² = 0.15, P value = 0.928) respectively. No significant statistical relationship between BMI category and the weaning trials from mechanical ventilation among the studied sample, (X² = 0.15, P value = 0.928). No significant statistical relationship was found between BMI category and the occurrence of organ dysfunction among the studied sample, (X² = 2.54, P value = 0.637). Conclusion: No relationship between the BMI categories and the selected patients’ outcomes (weaning from MV, length of ICU stay, occurrence of organ dysfunction, mortality rate). Recommendations: Replication of this study on a larger sample from different geographical locations in Arab Republic of Egypt, conducting farther studies to assess the effect of the quality of nursing care on the mechanically ventilated patients’ outcomes.

Keywords: mechanical ventilation, body mass index, outcomes of mechanically ventilated patient, organ failure

Procedia PDF Downloads 229

Authors: Daramola Japheth, Tabiti S. Tabiti, Daramola Elizabeth Lara, Hussaini Yusuf Atulukwu

Abstract:

Bida urban centre is faced with solid waste management problems which are evident in the processes of waste generation, onsite storage, collection, transfer and transport, processing and disposal of solid waste. As a result of this the urban centre is defaced with litters of garbage and offensive odours due to indiscriminate dumping of refuse within the neighborhood. The partial removal of the fuel subsidy by the Federal Government in January 2012 leads to the formation of Subsidy Reinvestment Programmes (SURE-P), the Federal Government’s share is 41 per cent of the savings while the States and Local Government shared the remaining 59 percent. The SURE-P Committee in carrying out the mandate entrusted upon it by the President by identifying few critical infrastructure and social Safety nets that will ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians. Waste disposal programme as an aspect of Solid waste management is one of the areas of focus for Niger State SURE-programmes incorporated under Niger State Environmental Protection Agency. The emergence of this programme as related to waste management in Bida has left behind a huge refuse spots along major corridors leading to a serious state of mess. Major roads within the LGA is now turned to dumping site, thereby obstructing traffic movements, while the aesthetic nature of the town became something else with offensive odours all over. This paper however wishes to underscore the use of geographical Information System in identifying solid waste sports towards effective solid waste management in the Bida urban centre. The paper examined the spatial location of dumping points and its impact on the environment. Hand held Global Position System was use to pick the dumping points location; where a total number of 91 dumping points collected were uploaded to ArcGis 10.2 for analysis. Interview method was used to derive information from households living near the dumping site. It was discovered that the people now have to cope with offensive odours, rodents invasion, dog and cats coming around the house as a result of inadequate and in prompt collection of waste around the neighborhood. The researchers hereby recommend that more points needs to be created with prompt collections of waste within the neighborhood by the necessary SURE - P agencies.

Keywords: dumping site, neighborhood, refuse, waste

Procedia PDF Downloads 502

Authors: Oskar Sekowski

Abstract:

Current global warming causes changes in the traditional zones of viticulture worldwide. During 20th century, the average global air temperature increased by 0.89˚C. The models of climate change indicate that viticulture, currently concentrating in narrow geographic niches, may move towards the poles, to higher geographic latitudes. Global warming may cause changes in traditional viticulture regions. Therefore, there is a need to estimate the climatic conditions and climate change in areas that are not traditionally associated with viticulture, e.g., Poland. The primary objective of this paper is to prepare methodology to evaluate the climatic and meteorological potential for viticulture in Poland based on a case study. Moreover, the additional aim is to evaluate the climatic potential of a mesoregion where a university vineyard is located. The daily data of temperature, precipitation, insolation, and wind speed (1988-2018) from the meteorological station located in Łazy, southern Poland, was used to evaluate 15 climatological parameters and indices connected with viticulture. The next steps of the methodology are based on Geographic Information System methods. The topographical factors such as a slope gradient and slope exposure were created using Digital Elevation Models. The spatial distribution of climatological elements was interpolated by ordinary kriging. The values of each factor and indices were also ranked and classified. The viticultural potential was determined by integrating two suitability maps, i.e., the topographical and climatic ones, and by calculating the average for each pixel. Data analysis shows significant changes in heat accumulation indices that are driven by increases in maximum temperature, mostly increasing number of days with Tmax > 30˚C. The climatic conditions of this mesoregion are sufficient for vitis vinifera viticulture. The values of indicators and insolation are similar to those in the known wine regions located on similar geographical latitudes in Europe. The smallest threat to viticulture in study area is the occurrence of hail and the highest occurrence of frost in the winter. This research provides the basis for evaluating general suitability and climatologic potential for viticulture in Poland. To characterize the climatic potential for viticulture, it is necessary to assess the suitability of all climatological and topographical factors that can influence viticulture. The methodology used in this case study shows places where there is a possibility to create vineyards. It may also be helpful for wine-makers to select grape varieties.

Keywords: climatologic potential, climatic classification, Poland, viticulture

Procedia PDF Downloads 78

Authors: Prashantkumar Waghe, N. Prakash, N. D. Prasada, L. V. Lokesh, M. Vijay Kumar, Vinay Tikare

Abstract:

Arsenic is a naturally occurring metalloid with potent toxic effects. It is ubiquitous in the environment and released from both natural and anthropogenic sources. It has the potential to cause various health hazards in exposed populations. Arsenic exposure through drinking water is considered as one of the most serious global environmental threats including Southeast Asia. The aim of present study was to evaluate the modulatory role of subacute exposure to sodium (meta) arsenite on the antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic responses mediated by meloxicam in rats. Rats were exposed to arsenic as sodium arsenite through drinking water for 28 days. A single dose of meloxicam (2 mg/kg b. wt.) was administered by oral gavage on the 29th day. The exact time of meloxicam administration depended on the type of test. Rats were divided randomly into 5 groups (n=6). Group I served as normal control and received arsenic free drinking water, while rats in group II were maintained similar to Group I but received meloxicam on 29th day. Groups III, IV and V were pre-exposed to arsenic through drinking water at 0.5, 5.0 and 50 ppm, respectively, for 28 days and was administered meloxicam next day and; pain and inflammation carried out by using formalin-induced nociception and carrageenan-induced inflammatory model(s), respectively by using standard protocol. For assessment of antipyretic effects, one more additional group (Group VI) was taken and given LPS @ 1.8 mg/kg b. wt. for induction of pyrexia (LPS control). Higher dose of arsenic inhibited the meloxicam mediated antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic responses. Further, meloxicam inhibited the arsenic induced level of tumor necrosis factor-α, inetrleukin-1β, interleukin -6 and COX2 mediated prostaglandin E2 in hind paw muscle. These results suggest a functional antagonism of meloxicam by arsenic. This may relate to arsenic mediated local release of tumor necrosis factor-α, inetrleukin-1β, interleukin -6 releases COX2 mediated prostaglandin E2. Based on the experimental study, it is concluded that sub-acute exposure to arsenic through drinking water aggravate pyrexia, inflammation and pain at environment relevant concentration and decrease the therapeutic efficacy of meloxicam at higher level of arsenite exposure. Thus, the observation made has clinical relevance in situations where animals are exposed to arsenite epidemic geographical locations.

Keywords: arsenic, analgesic activity, meloxicam, Wistar rats

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Darshana Sharma

Abstract:

Distance Education has emerged as a viable alternative to serve the higher educational needs of the socially and economically disadvantaged people of the remote, rural areas of Jammu region. The University of Jammu is a National Accreditation, and Assessment Council accredited, A+ university and has been accorded graded autonomy by the University Grants Commission. It is a dual mode university offering academic programmes through the regular departments and through the Directorate of Distance Education. The Directorate of Distance Education, University of Jammu still uses printed study material as a mode of instructional delivery. The development of technologies has assured increased interaction and communication for distance learners throughout the distance open learning institutions. Though it is tempting and convenient to adopt technology already being used by others, it may not prove effective for the simple reason that two institutions may be unlike in some respect. The use of technology must be conceived in view of the needs of the learners; geographical socio-economic-cultural and technological contexts and financial, administrative and academic resources of the institution. Mobile learning (m-learning) is a novel approach to knowledge acquisition and dissemination and is gaining global attention. It has evolved as one of the useful channels of distance learning promoting interaction between learners and teachers. It is felt that the Directorate of Distance Education, University of Jammu also needs to adopt new technologies to provide more effective academic and information support to distance learners in order to keep them motivated and also to develop self-learning skills. The chief objective of the research on which this paper is based was to measure the opinion of the distance learners of the DDE, the University of Jammu about the merits of mobile learning. It also explores their preferences for implementing mobile learning. The survey research design of descriptive research has been used. The data was collected from 400 distance learners enrolled with undergraduate and post-graduate programmes using self-constructed questionnaire containing five-point Likert scale items arranging from strongly agree, agree, indifferent, disagree and strongly disagree. Percentages were used to analyze the data. The findings lead to conclude that mobile learning has a great potential for the DDE for reaching out to the rural, remotely located distance learners of the Jammu region and also to improve the teaching-learning environment. The paper also finds out the challenges in the implementation of mobile learning in the region and further makes suggestions for effective implementation of mobile learning in DDE, University of Jammu.

Keywords: directorate of distance education, mobile learning, national accreditation and assessment council, university of Jammu

Procedia PDF Downloads 102

Authors: Iman Shabanzadeh

Abstract:

Earthquake is known as one of the most frequent natural hazards in Iran. Therefore, policy making to improve the strengthening of structures is one of the requirements of the approach to prevent and reduce the risk of the destructive effects of earthquakes. In order to choose the optimal policy in the face of earthquakes, this article tries to examine the cost of financial damages caused by earthquakes in the building sector and compare it with the costs of retrofitting. In this study, the results of adopting the scenario of "action after the earthquake" and the policy scenario of "strengthening structures before the earthquake" have been collected, calculated and finally analyzed by putting them together. Methodologically, data received from governorates and building retrofitting engineering companies have been used. The scope of the study is earthquakes occurred in the geographical area of Iran, and among them, eight earthquakes have been specifically studied: Miane, Ahar and Haris, Qator, Momor, Khorasan, Damghan and Shahroud, Gohran, Hormozgan and Ezgole. The main basis of the calculations is the data obtained from retrofitting companies regarding the cost per square meter of building retrofitting and the data of the governorate regarding the power of earthquake destruction, the realized costs for the reconstruction and construction of residential units. The estimated costs have been converted to the value of 2021 using the time value of money method to enable comparison and aggregation. The cost-benefit comparison of the two policies of action after the earthquake and retrofitting before the earthquake in the eight earthquakes investigated shows that the country has suffered five thousand billion Tomans of losses due to the lack of retrofitting of buildings against earthquakes. Based on the data of the Budget Law's of Iran, this figure was approximately twice the budget of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development and five times the budget of the Islamic Revolution Housing Foundation in 2021. The results show that the policy of retrofitting structures before an earthquake is significantly more optimal than the competing scenario. The comparison of the two policy scenarios examined in this study shows that the policy of retrofitting buildings before an earthquake, on the one hand, prevents huge losses, and on the other hand, by increasing the number of earthquake-resistant houses, it reduces the amount of earthquake destruction. In addition to other positive effects of retrofitting, such as the reduction of mortality due to earthquake resistance of buildings and the reduction of other economic and social effects caused by earthquakes. These are things that can prove the cost-effectiveness of the policy scenario of "strengthening structures before earthquakes" in Iran.

Keywords: disaster economy, earthquake economy, cost-benefit analysis, resilience

Procedia PDF Downloads 28

Authors: Sunita Boro, Saurabh Kumar Dixit

Abstract:

Terroir, an intricate fusion of geography, climate, soil, and human expertise, has long been acknowledged as a defining factor in the character of wines and foods. This research embarks on an exploration of terroir's profound influence on gastronomic tourism, shedding light on the intricate interplay between the physical environment and culinary artistry. Delving into the intricate science of terroir, we scrutinize its role in shaping the sensory profiles of wines and foods, emphasizing the profound impact of specific regions on flavor, aroma, and texture. We deploy a multifaceted methodology, amalgamating sensory analysis, chemical profiling, geographical information systems, and qualitative interviews to unearth the nuanced nuances of terroir expression. Through an exhaustive review of the literature, we elucidate the historical roots of terroir, unveil the intricate cultural dimensions shaping it, and provide a comprehensive examination of prior studies in the field. Our findings underscore the pivotal role of terroir in promoting regional identities, enhancing the economic viability of locales, and attracting gastronomic tourists. The paper also dissects the marketing strategies employed to promote terroir-driven food and wine experiences. We elucidate the utilization of storytelling, branding, and collaborative endeavors in fostering a robust terroir-based tourism industry. This elucidates both the potential for innovation and the challenges posed by oversimplification or misrepresentation of terroir. Our research spotlights the intersection of terroir and sustainability, emphasizing the significance of environmentally conscious practices in terroir-driven productions. We discern the harmonious relationship between sustainable agriculture, terroir preservation, and responsible tourism, encapsulating the essence of ecological integrity in gastronomic tourism. Incorporating compelling case studies of regions and businesses excelling in the terroir-based tourism realm, we offer in-depth insights into successful models and strategies, with an emphasis on their replicability and adaptability to various contexts. Ultimately, this paper not only contributes to the scholarly understanding of terroir's role in the world of food and wine tourism but also provides actionable recommendations for stakeholders to leverage terroir's allure, preserve its authenticity, and foster sustainable and enriching culinary tourism experiences.

Keywords: terroir, food tourism, wine tourism, sustainability

Procedia PDF Downloads 34

Authors: Gamze Safak, Umut Arslanoglu

Abstract:

Cultural and tourism conservation and development zones and tourism centers are the boundaries declared for the purpose of protecting, using, and evaluating the sectoral development and planned development in areas where historical and cultural values are heavily involved and/or where tourism potential is high. The most rapidly changing regions in Turkey are tourism areas, especially the coastal areas. Planning these regions is not about only an economic gain but also a natural and physical environment and refers to a complex process. If the tourism sector is not well controlled, excessive use of natural resources and wrong location choices may cause damage to natural areas, historical values, and socio-cultural structure. Since the strategic decisions taken in the environmental order and zoning plans, which are the means of guiding the physical environment of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, which have the authority to make plans in tourism centers, are transformed into plan decisions that find the spatial expression, comprehensive evaluation of all kinds of data, following the historical development and based on the correct and current data is required. In addition, the authority has a number of competences in tourism promotion as well as the authority to plan, leading to the necessity of taking part in the applications requiring complex analysis such as the management and integration of the country's economic, political, social and cultural resources. For this purpose, Tourism Inventory System (TES) project, which consists of a series of subsystems, has been developed in order to solve complex planning and method problems in the management of site-related information. The scope of the project is based on the integration of numerical and verbal data in the regions within the jurisdiction of the authority, and the monitoring of the historical development of urban planning studies, making the spatial data of the institution easily accessible, shared, questionable and traceable in international standards. A dynamic and continuous system design has been put into practice by utilizing the advantage of the use of Geographical Information Systems in the planning process to play a role in making the right decisions, revealing the tools of social, economic, cultural development, and preservation of natural and cultural values. This paper, which is prepared by the project team members in TES (Tourism Inventory System), will present a study regarding the applicability of GIS in cultural and natural heritage conservation.

Keywords: cultural conservation, GIS, geographic information system, tourism inventory system, urban planning

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: Isabella Maria Beil

Abstract:

The International Geosciences and Geoparks Programme (IGGP) were officially created in 2015 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to enhance the protection of the geological heritage and fill the gaps on the World Heritage Convention. According to UNESCO, a Global Geopark is an unified area where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed based on a concept of sustainable development. Tourism is seen as a main activity to develop new sources of revenue. Currently (November 2022), UNESCO recognized 177 Global Geoparks, of which more than 50% are in Europe, 40% in Asia, 6% in Latin America, and the remaining 4% are distributed between Africa and Anglo-Saxon America. This picture shows the existence of a much uneven geographical distribution of these areas across the planet. Currently, there are three Geoparks in Brazil; however, the first of them was accepted by the Global Geoparks Network in 2006 and, just fifteen years later, two other Brazilian Geoparks also obtained the UNESCO title. Therefore, this paper aims to provide an overview of the current geopark situation in Brazil and to identify the main challenges faced by the implementation of these areas in the country. To this end, the Brazilian history and its main characteristics regarding the development of geoparks over the years will be briefly presented. Then, the results obtained from interviews with those responsible for each of the current 29 aspiring geoparks in Brazil will be presented. Finally, the main challenges related to the implementation of Geoparks in the country will be listed. Among these challenges, the answers obtained through the interviews revealed conflicts and problems that pose hindrances both to the start of the development of a Geopark project and to its continuity and implementation. It is clear that the task of getting multiple social actors, or stakeholders, to engage with the Geopark, one of UNESCO’s guidelines, is one of its most complex aspects. Therefore, among the main challenges, stand out the difficulty of establishing solid partnerships, what directly reflects divergences between the different social actors and their goals. This difficulty in establishing partnerships happens for a number of reasons. One of them is that the investment in a Geopark project can be high and investors often expect a short-term financial return. In addition, political support from the public sector is often costly as well, since the possible results and positive influences of a Geopark in a given area will only be experienced during future mandates. These results demonstrate that the research on Geoparks goes far beyond the geological perspective linked to its origins, and is deeply embedded in political and economic issues.

Keywords: Brazil, geoparks, tourism, UNESCO

Procedia PDF Downloads 64

Authors: Lei Zhou, Chao Li, Ruiqi Ren, Dan Li, Yali Wang, Daxin Ni, Zijian Feng, Qun Li

Abstract:

Background: Since the first human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) case was reported in China on 31 March 2013, five epidemics have been observed in China through February 2013 and September 2017. Though the overall mortality rate of H7N9 has remained as high as around 40% throughout the five epidemics, the specific mortality rate in Mainland China varied by provinces. We conducted a descriptive analysis of mortality rates of H7N9 cases to explore the various severity features of the disease and then to provide clues of further analyses of potential factors associated with the severity of the disease. Methods: The data for analysis originated from the National Notifiable Infectious Disease Report and Surveillance System (NNIDRSS). The surveillance system and identification procedure for H7N9 infection have not changed in China since 2013. The definition of a confirmed H7N9 case is as same as previous reports. Mortality rates of H7N9 cases are described and compared by time and location of reporting, age and sex, and genetic features of H7N9 virus strains. Results: The overall mortality rate, the male and female specific overall rates of H7N9 is 39.6% (608/1533), 40.3% (432/1072) and 38.2% (176/461), respectively. There was no significant difference between the mortality rates of male and female. The age-specific mortality rates are significantly varied by age groups (χ²=38.16, p < 0.001). The mortality of H7N9 cases in the age group between 20 and 60 (33.17%) and age group of over 60 (51.16%) is much higher than that in the age group of under 20 (5.00%). Considering the time of reporting, the mortality rates of cases which were reported in the first (40.57%) and fourth (42.51%) quarters of each year are significantly higher than the mortality of cases which were reported in the second (36.02%) and third (27.27%) quarters (χ²=75.18, p < 0.001). The geographic specific mortality rates vary too. The mortality rates of H7N9 cases reported from the Northeast China (66.67%) and Westeast China (56.52%) are significantly higher than that of H7N9 cases reported from the remained area of mainland China. The mortality rate of H7N9 cases reported from the Central China is the lowest (34.38%). The mortality rates of H7N9 cases reported from rural (37.76%) and urban (38.96%) areas are similar. The mortality rate of H7N9 cases infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H7N9) virus (48.15%) is higher than the rate of H7N9 cases infected with the low pathogenic avian influenza A(H7N9) virus (37.57%), but the difference is not statistically significant. Preliminary analyses showed that age and some clinical complications such as respiratory failure, heart failure, and septic shock could be potential risk factors associated with the death of H7N9 cases. Conclusions: The mortality rates of H7N9 cases varied by age, sex, time of reporting and geographical location in mainland China. Further in-depth analyses and field investigations of the factors associated with the severity of H7N9 cases need to be considered.

Keywords: H7N9 virus, Avian Influenza, mortality, China

Procedia PDF Downloads 207

Authors: Al. Harshan, Hazamah Ali Mahdi

Abstract:

The Big House literature embodies Irish history. It requires a special dimension of moral and social significance in relation to its owners. The Big House is a metaphor for the decline of the protestant Ascendancy that ruled in a catholic country and oppressed a native people. In the tradition of the Big House fiction, Maria Edgeworth's Castle Rackrent and the Absentee explore the effect of the Anglo-Irish protestant Ascendancy as it governed and misgoverned Ireland. Edgeworth illustrates the tradition of the Big House as a symbol of both a personal and historical theme. This paper provides a reading of Castle Rackrent and The Absentee from a post-colonial perspective. The paper maintains that Edgeworth's novel contain elements of a radical critique of the colonialist enterprise. In our postcolonial reading of Maria Edgeworth's novels, one that goes beyond considering works as those of Sir Walter Scoot, regional evidence has been found of Edgeworth's colonial ideology. The significance of Castle Rackrent lies mainly in the fact that is the first English novel to speak in the voice of the colonized Irish. What is more important is that the irony and the comic aspect of the novel comes from its Irish narrator (Thady Quirk) and its Irish setting Ireland. Edgeworth reveals the geographical 'other' to her English reader, by placing her colonized Irish narrator and his son, Jason Quirk, in a position of inferiority to emphasize the gap between Englishness and Irishness. Furthermore, this satirical aspect is a political one. It works to create and protect the superiority of the domestic English reader over the Irish subject. In other words, the implication of the colonial system of the novel and of its structure of dominance and subordination is overlooked by its comic dimension. The matrimonial plot in the Absentee functions as an imperial plot, constructing Ireland as a complementary but ever unequal partner in the family of Great Britain. This imperial marriage works hegemonically to produce the domestic stability considered so crucial to national and colonial stability. Moreover, in order to achieve her proper imperial plot, Edgeworth reconciliation of England and Ireland is seen in the marriage of the Anglo-Irish (hero/Colambre) with the Irish (heroine/Grace Nugent), and the happy bourgeois family; consequently, it becomes the model for colonizer-colonized relationships. Edgeworth must establish modes of legitimate behavior for women and men. The Absentee explains more purposely how familial reorganization is dependent on the restitution of masculine authority and advantage, particularly for Irish community.

Keywords: Maria Edgeworth, post-colonial, reading, Irish

Procedia PDF Downloads 514

Authors: Kumar Divyendra

Abstract:

Underwater Sensor Networks (UWSNs) have wide applications in areas such as water quality monitoring, marine wildlife management etc. A typical UWSN system consists of a set of sensors deployed randomly underwater which communicate with each other using acoustic links. RF communication doesn't work underwater, and GPS too isn't available underwater. Additionally Automated Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) are deployed to collect data from some special nodes called Cluster Heads (CHs). These CHs aggregate data from their neighboring nodes and forward them to the AUVs using optical links when an AUV is in range. This helps reduce the number of hops covered by data packets and helps conserve energy. We consider the three-dimensional model of the UWSN. Nodes are initially deployed randomly underwater. They attach themselves to the surface using a rod and can only move upwards or downwards using a pump and bladder mechanism. We use graph theory concepts to maximize the coverage volume while every node maintaining connectivity with at least one surface node. We treat the surface nodes as landmarks and each node finds out its hop distance from every surface node. We treat these hop-distances as coordinates and use them for AUV navigation. An AUV intending to move closer to a node with given coordinates moves hop by hop through nodes that are closest to it in terms of these coordinates. In absence of GPS, multiple different approaches like Inertial Navigation System (INS), Doppler Velocity Log (DVL), computer vision-based navigation, etc., have been proposed. These systems have their own drawbacks. INS accumulates error with time, vision techniques require prior information about the environment. We propose a method that makes use of the earth's magnetic field values for navigation and combines it with other methods that simultaneously increase the coverage volume under the UWSN. The AUVs are fitted with magnetometers that measure the magnetic intensity (I), horizontal inclination (H), and Declination (D). The International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) is a mathematical model of the earth's magnetic field, which provides the field values for the geographical coordinateson earth. Researchers have developed an inverse deep learning model that takes the magnetic field values and predicts the location coordinates. We make use of this model within our work. We combine this with with the hop-by-hop movement described earlier so that the AUVs move in such a sequence that the deep learning predictor gets trained as quickly and precisely as possible We run simulations in MATLAB to prove the effectiveness of our model with respect to other methods described in the literature.

Keywords: clustering, deep learning, network backbone, parallel computing

Procedia PDF Downloads 64

Authors: Doreen Chemutai

Abstract:

While women's parliamentary representation has increased over the years, most women contest the affirmative action seat (A.A). There is a lack of knowledge on why women prefer the affirmative seat vis- a- vis the open seat. This study argues that comparing women's path on the reserved and open seat to parliamentary representation enables us to pass judgment on why this trend continues. This paper provides a narrative analysis of women members of parliament's (MPs) trajectory in the open seat and Affirmative Action seat to parliamentary representation. Purposive sampling was used to select participants from the Northern Uganda districts of Kitgum, Pader, Oyam, Agago, and Gulu. The eight women MPs chosen for the study completed in-depth interviews exploring their qualifications, careers, and experiences before joining the political office, their party affiliation, and the kind of seat they currently occupy in the 10th parliament. Findings revealed similarities between women on the open and reserved to include; women generally irrespective of the seat they choose to contest for find it difficult to win elections because voters doubt women's effectiveness as leaders. All women as incumbents find it difficult to be re-elected because their evaluation is harsher than that for men. Findings also revealed that women representatives are motivated by their personal lived experiences, community work, educational leadership, and local leadership. The study establishes that the popularity of the party in a given geographical location and the opponents' quality will determine the success of the parliamentary candidate in question irrespective of whether one is contesting on the open or Affirmative seat. However, the study revealed differences between MPs' experiences in the quest for the parliamentary seat, females on the open seat are subjected to gender discrimination in elections by party leadership, stereotyped, and are victims of propaganda in the initial contesting stages. Women who win elections in the open seat have to be superior to their male opponents. In other circumstances where a woman emerges successful, she may be voted for due to other reasons beyond capability, such as physical appearance or sociability. On the other hand, MPs' revelations on affirmative action seats show that the political terrain is smoother despite larger constituencies. Findings show that women on the Affirmative Action seat do not move to the open seat because of the comfort associated with the seat and maintain consistency, since the constituencies doubt the motives of representatives who change from one seat to another. The study concludes that women MPs who contest on the open seat are likely to suffer structural barriers such as gender discrimination and political recruitment bias instead of women on the affirmative seat. This explains why the majority of women contest on the affirmative seat.

Keywords: affirmative action seats, open seats, parliamentary representation, pathways

Procedia PDF Downloads 128

Authors: Rommila Chandra, Harshika Choudhary

Abstract:

The present-day tourism sector is globally developing at a fast pace, searching for new ideas and new venues. In the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR), tourism has experienced a vast growth and continuous diversification over the last few years, thus becoming one of the fastest-growing economic sectors in India. With its majestic landscape, high peaks, rich floral and faunal diversity, and cultural history, the IHR has continuously attracted tourists and pilgrims from across the globe. The IHR has attracted a vast range of visitors who seek adventure sports, natural and spiritual solace, peace, cultural assets, food, and festivals, etc. Thus, the multi-functionality of the region has turned tourism into a key component of economic growth for the rural communities in the hills. For the local mountain people, it means valuable economic opportunity for income generation, and for the government and entrepreneurs, it brings profits. As the urban cities gain attention and investment in India, efforts have to be made to protect, safeguard, and strengthen the cultural, spiritual, and natural heritage of IHR for sustainable livelihood development. Furthermore, the socio-economic and environmental insecurities, along with geographical isolation, adds to the challenging survival in the tough terrains of IHR, creating a major threat of outmigration, land abandonment, and degradation. The question the paper intends to answer is: whether the rural community of IHR is aware of the new global trends in rural tourism and the extent of their willingness to adapt to the evolving tourism industry, which impacts the rural economy, including sustainable livelihood opportunity. The objective of the paper is to discuss the integrated nature of rural tourism, which widely depends upon natural resources, cultural heritage, agriculture/horticulture, infrastructural development, education, social awareness, and willingness of the locals. The sustainable management of all these different rural activities can lead to long-term livelihood development and social upliftment. It highlights some gap areas and recommends fewcommunity-based coping measures which the local people can adopt amidst the disorganized sector of rural tourism. Lastly, the main contribution is the exploratory research of the rural tourism vulnerability in the IHR, which would further help in studying the resilience of the tourism sector in the rural parts of a developing nation.

Keywords: community-based approach, sustainable livelihood development, Indian Himalayan region, rural tourism

Procedia PDF Downloads 118

Authors: Tsu-Yun Chiu, Tsung-Hsueh Lu, Tain-Junn Cheng

Abstract:

Background: Traditional chronic disease management did not pay attention to effects of geographic factors on the compliance of treatment regime, which resulted in geographic inequality in outcomes of chronic disease management. This study aims to examine the geographic distribution and clustering of quality indicators of diabetes care. Method: We first extracted address, demographic information and quality of care indicators (number of visits, complications, prescription and laboratory records) of patients with diabetes for 2014 from medical information system in a medical center in Tainan City, Taiwan, and the patients’ addresses were transformed into district- and village-level data. We then compared the differences of geographic distribution and clustering of quality of care indicators between districts and villages. Despite the descriptive results, rate ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated for indices of care in order to compare the quality of diabetes care among different areas. Results: A total of 23,588 patients with diabetes were extracted from the hospital data system; whereas 12,716 patients’ information and medical records were included to the following analysis. More than half of the subjects in this study were male and between 60-79 years old. Furthermore, the quality of diabetes care did indeed vary by geographical levels. Thru the smaller level, we could point out clustered areas more specifically. Fuguo Village (of Yongkang District) and Zhiyi Village (of Sinhua District) were found to be “hotspots” for nephropathy and cerebrovascular disease; while Wangliau Village and Erwang Village (of Yongkang District) would be “coldspots” for lowest proportion of ≥80% compliance to blood lipids examination. On the other hand, Yuping Village (in Anping District) was the area with the lowest proportion of ≥80% compliance to all laboratory examination. Conclusion: In spite of examining the geographic distribution, calculating rate ratios and their 95% CI could also be a useful and consistent method to test the association. This information is useful for health planners, diabetes case managers and other affiliate practitioners to organize care resources to the areas most needed.

Keywords: catchment area of healthcare, chronic disease management, Geographic information system, quality of diabetes care

Procedia PDF Downloads 258

Authors: Radwa Saad

Abstract:

The Sahara is normatively treated as a barrier separating “two Africas"; one to the North with closer affinity to the Arab world, and one to the South that encompasses a diverse range of racial, ethnic and religious groups, commonly referred to as "Sub-Saharan Africa". This dichotomy however was challenged by many anticolonial leaders and intellectuals seeking to advance counter-hegemonic narratives that treat the Sahara as a bridge facilitating a long history of exchange, collaboration, and fusion between different civilizations on the continent. This paper reexamines the discourses governing the geographic distinction between North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. It argues that demarcating the African continent along the lines of the Sahara is part-and-parcel of a Euro-centric spatial imaginary that has served to enshrine a racialized global hierarchy of power. By drawing on Edward Said’s concept of ‘imagined geography’ and Charles Mill’s notion of “the racial contract”, it demonstrates how spatial boundaries often coincide with racial epistemologies to reinforce certain geopolitical imaginaries, whilst silencing others. It further draws on the works of two notable post-colonial figures - Gamal Abdel Nasser and Leopold Senghor - to explore alternative spatial imaginaries while highlighting some of the tensions embedded in advancing a trans-Saharan political project. Firstly, it deconstructs some of the normative claims used to justify the distinction between North and “sub-Saharan” Africa across political, literary and disciplinary boundaries. Secondly, it draws parallels between Said’s and Mills’ work to demonstrate how geographical boundaries and demarcations have been constructed to create racialized subjects and reinforce a hierarchy of color that favors European standpoints and epistemologies. Third, it draw on Leopard Senghor’s The Foundations of Africanité and Gamal Abdel Nasser’s The Philosophy of the Egyptian Revolution to examine some of the competing strands of unity that emerged out of the Saharan discourse. In these texts, one can identify a number of convergences and divergences in how post-colonial African elites attempts to reclaim and rearticulate the function of the Sahara along different epistemic, political and cultural premises. It concludes with reflections on some of the policy challenges that emerge from reinforcing the Saharan divide, particularly in the realm of peace and security.

Keywords: regional integration, politics of knowledge production, arab-african relations, african solutions to african problems

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Hussah Alotaishan

Abstract:

In today’s globally-driven modern cities diverse groups of new visitors face various challenges when attempting to find their desired location if culture and language are barriers. The most common way-showing tools such as directional and identificational signs are the most problematic and their usefulness can be limited or even non-existent. It is argued new methods should be implemented that could support or replace such conventional literacy and language dependent way-finding aids. It has been concluded in recent research studies that local urban features in complex pedestrian spaces are worthy of further study in order to reveal if they do function as way-showing clues. Some researchers propose a more comprehensive approach to the complex perception of buildings, façade design and surface patterns, while some have been questioning whether we necessarily need directional signs or can other methods deliver the same message but in a clearer manner for a wider range of users. This study aimed to test to what extent do existent environmental and urban features through the city center area of Swansea in the UK facilitate the way-finding process of a first time visitor. The three-hour experiment was set to attempt to find 11 visitor attractions ranging from recreational, historical, educational and religious locations. The challenge was attempting to find as many as possible when no prior geographical knowledge of their whereabouts was established. The only clues were 11 pictures representing each of the locations that had been acquired from the city of Swansea official website. An iPhone and a heart-rate tracker wristwatch were used to record the route was taken and stress levels, and take record photographs of destinations or decision-making points throughout the journey. This paper addresses: current limitations in understanding the ways that the physical environment can be intentionally deployed to facilitate pedestrians while finding their way around, without or with a reduction in language dependent signage; investigates visitor perceptions of their surroundings by indicating what urban elements manifested an impact on the way-finding process. The initial findings support the view that building facades and street features, such as width, could facilitate the decision-making process if strategically employed. However, more importantly, the anticipated features of a specific place construed from a promotional picture can also be misleading and create confusion that may lead to getting lost.

Keywords: pedestrian way-finding, environmental features, urban way-showing, environmental affordance

Procedia PDF Downloads 141

Authors: Riofrio Jonathan, Fernandez Guillermo

Abstract:

Renewable energy represented around 80% of the energy matrix for power generation in Ecuador during 2020, so the deployment of current public policies is focused on taking advantage of the high presence of renewable sources to carry out several electrification projects. These projects are part of the portfolio sent to the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as a commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in the established national determined contribution (NDC). In this sense, the Ecuadorian Organic Energy Efficiency Law (LOEE) published in 2019 promotes E-mobility as one of the main milestones. In fact, it states that the new vehicles for urban and interurban usage must be E-buses since 2025. As a result, and for a successful implementation of this technological change in a national context, it is important to deploy land surveys focused on technical and geographical areas to keep the quality of services in both the electricity and transport sectors. Therefore, this research presents a technological and energy comparison between a conventional diesel bus and its equivalent E-bus. Both vehicles fulfill all the technical requirements to ride in the study-case city, which is Ambato in the province of Tungurahua-Ecuador. In addition, the analysis includes the development of a model for the energy estimation of both technologies that are especially applied in a highland city such as Ambato. The altimetry of the most important bus routes in the city varies from 2557 to 3200 m.a.s.l., respectively, for the lowest and highest points. These operation conditions provide a grade of novelty to this paper. Complementary, the technical specifications of diesel buses are defined following the common features of buses registered in Ambato. On the other hand, the specifications for E-buses come from the most common units introduced in Latin America because there is not enough evidence in similar cities at the moment. The achieved results will be good input data for decision-makers since electric demand forecast, energy savings, costs, and greenhouse gases emissions are computed. Indeed, GHG is important because it allows reporting the transparency framework that it is part of the Paris Agreement. Finally, the presented results correspond to stage I of the called project “Analysis and Prospective of Electromobility in Ecuador and Energy Mix towards 2030” supported by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

Keywords: high altitude cities, energy planning, NDC, e-buses, e-mobility

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Natasha Perez

Abstract:

This autobiographical narrative inquiry explores the relationship between religious practice, identity, language and literacy in the author’s life experience as a second-generation Cuban-American growing up in the bilingual spaces of South Florida. The author describes how the social practices around language, including the flexibility to communicate in English and Spanish simultaneously, known as translanguaging, were instrumental to developing a biliterate cosmopolitan identity, along with a greater sense of Latinidad through interactions with diverse Latinx church members. This narrative study involved cycles of writing, reading, and reflection within a three-dimensional narrative inquiry space in order to discover the ways in which language and literacy development in the relationship between the personal and the social, across time and space, as historically situated phenomena. The findings show that Catholic faith practices have always been a source and expression of Cuban-ness, a means of sustaining Cuban identity, as well as a medium for bilingual language and literacy practice in the author’s life. Despite lacking formal literacy education in Spanish, she benefitted from the Catholic Church’s response to the surge of Spanish-speaking immigrants in South Florida in the 1980s and the subsequent flexibility of language practice in church-sponsored youth groups. The faith-sharing practices of the youth group created a space to use Spanish in more sophisticated ways that served to build confidence as a bilingual speaker and expand bilingual competence. These experiences also helped the author develop a more salient identity as Cuban-American and a deeper connection to her Cuban-ness in relation to the Nicaraguan, Venezuelan, and first-generation Cuban identities of my peers. The youth group also fostered cosmopolitan identity building through interactions with pan-ethnic Spanish speakers, with Catholicism as a common language and culture that served as a uniting force. Interaction with these peers also fostered cosmopolitan understandings that deepened the author’s knowledge of the geographical boundaries, political realities, and socio-historical differences between these groups of immigrants. This narrative study opens a window onto the micro-processes and socio-cultural dynamics of language and identity development in the second generation, with the potential to deepen our understanding of the impact of religious practice on these.

Keywords: literacy, religion, identity, comopolitanism, culture, language, translanguaging

Procedia PDF Downloads 63

Authors: Gedefaye Nibret Mihretie

Abstract:

Background: Transactional sex is casual sex between two people to receive material incentives in exchange for sexual favors. Transactional sex is associated with negative consequences, which increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and physiological trauma. Many primary studies in Sub-Saharan Africa have been conducted to assess the prevalence and associated factors of transactional sex among women. These studies had great discrepancies and inconsistent results. Hence, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesize the pooled prevalence of the practice of transactional sex among women and its associated factors in Sub-Saharan Africa. Method: Cross-sectional studies were systematically searched from March 6, 2022, to April 24, 2022, using PubMed, Google Scholar, HINARI, Cochrane Library, and grey literature. The pooled prevalence of transactional sex and associated factors was estimated using DerSemonial-Laird Random Effect Model. Stata (version 16.0) was used to analyze the data. The I-squared statistic was used to assess the studies' heterogeneity. A funnel plot and Egger's test were used to check for publication bias. A subgroup analysis was performed to minimize the underline heterogeneity depending on the study years, source of data, sample sizes and geographical location. Results: Four thousand one hundred thirty articles were extracted from various databases. The final thirty-two studies were included in this systematic review, including 108,075 participants. The pooled prevalence of transactional sex among women in Sub-Saharan Africa was 12.55%, with a confidence interval of 9.59% to 15.52%. Educational status (OR = .48, 95%CI, 0.27, 0.69) was the protective factors of transactional sex whereas, alcohol use (OR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.52), early sex debut (OR = 2.57, 95%CI, 1.17, 3.98), substance abuse (OR = 4.21, 95% CI: 2.05, 6.37), having history of sexual experience abuse (OR = 4.08, 95% CI: 1.38, 6.78), physical violence abuse (OR = 6.59, 95% CI: 1.17, 12.02), and sexual violence abuse (OR = 3.56, 95% CI: 1.15, 8.27) were the risk factors of transactional sex. Conclusion: The prevalence of transactional sex among women in Sub-Saharan Africa was high. Educational status, alcohol use, substance abuse, early sex debut, having a history of sexual experiences, physical violence, and sexual violence were predictors of transaction sex. Governmental and other stakeholders are designed to reduce alcohol utilization, provide health information about the negative consequences of early sex debut, substance abuse, and reduce sexual violence, ensuring gender equality through mass media, which should be included in state policy.

Keywords: women’s health, child health, reproductive health, midwifery

Procedia PDF Downloads 65

Authors: Fangjing Zhou, Wen Chen, Brian J. Hall, Yu Wang, Carl Latkin, Li Ling, Joseph D. Tucker

Abstract:

Background: Economic and social reforms designed to open China to the world has been successful, but also appear to have rapidly laid the foundation for the reemergence of STIs since 1980s. Changes in sexual behaviors, relationships, and norms among Chinese contributed to the STIs epidemic. As the massive population moved during the last 30 years, early coital debut, multiple sexual partnerships, and unprotected sex have increased within the general population. Our objectives were to assess associations between residences location, sexual risk behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among adults living in Guangzhou, China. Methods: Stratified cluster sampling followed a two-step process was used to select populations aged 18-59 years in Guangzhou, China. Spatial methods including Geographic Information Systems (GIS) were utilized to identify 1400 coordinates with latitude and longitude. Face-to-face household interviews were conducted to collect self-report data on sexual risk behaviors and diagnosed STIs. Kulldorff’s spatial scan statistic was implemented to identify and detect spatial distribution and clusters of sexual risk behaviors and STIs. The presence and location of statistically significant clusters were mapped in the study areas using ArcGIS software. Results: In this study, 1215 of 1400 households attempted surveys, with 368 refusals, resulting in a sample of 751 completed surveys. The prevalence of self-reported sexual risk behaviors was between 5.1% and 50.0%. The self-reported lifetime prevalence of diagnosed STIs was 7.06%. Anal intercourse clustered in an area located along the border within the rural-urban continuum (p=0.001). High rate clusters for alcohol or other drugs using before sex (p=0.008) and migrants who lived in Guangzhou less than one year (p=0.007) overlapped this cluster. Excess cases for sex without a condom (p=0.031) overlapped the cluster for college students (p<0.001). Conclusions: Short-term migrants and college students reported greater sexual risk behaviors. Programs to increase safer sex within these communities to reduce the risk of STIs are warranted in Guangzhou. Spatial analysis identified geographical clusters of sexual risk behaviors, which is critical for optimizing surveillance and targeting control measures for these locations in the future.

Keywords: cluster analysis, migrant, sexual risk behaviors, spatial distribution

Procedia PDF Downloads 309

Authors: Epaminondas G. Kyriakidis, Theodosis D. Dimitrakos, Constantinos C. Karamatsoukis

Abstract:

The vehicle routing problem (VRP) is a well-known problem in Operations Research and has been widely studied during the last fifty-five years. The context of the VRP is that of delivering products located at a central depot to customers who are scattered in a geographical area and have placed orders for these products. A vehicle or a fleet of vehicles start their routes from the depot and visit the customers in order to satisfy their demands. Special attention has been given to the capacitated VRP in which the vehicles have limited carrying capacity of the goods that must be delivered. In the present work, we present a specific capacitated stochastic vehicle routing problem which has realistic applications to distributions of materials to shops or to healthcare facilities or to military units. A vehicle starts its route from a depot loaded with items of two similar but not identical products. We name these products, product 1 and product 2. The vehicle must deliver the products to N customers according to a predefined sequence. This means that first customer 1 must be serviced, then customer 2 must be serviced, then customer 3 must be serviced and so on. The vehicle has a finite capacity and after servicing all customers it returns to the depot. It is assumed that each customer prefers either product 1 or product 2 with known probabilities. The actual preference of each customer becomes known when the vehicle visits the customer. It is also assumed that the quantity that each customer demands is a random variable with known distribution. The actual demand is revealed upon the vehicle’s arrival at customer’s site. The demand of each customer cannot exceed the vehicle capacity and the vehicle is allowed during its route to return to the depot to restock with quantities of both products. The travel costs between consecutive customers and the travel costs between the customers and the depot are known. If there is shortage for the desired product, it is permitted to deliver the other product at a reduced price. The objective is to find the optimal routing strategy, i.e. the routing strategy that minimizes the expected total cost among all possible strategies. It is possible to find the optimal routing strategy using a suitable stochastic dynamic programming algorithm. It is also possible to prove that the optimal routing strategy has a specific threshold-type structure, i.e. it is characterized by critical numbers. This structural result enables us to construct an efficient special-purpose dynamic programming algorithm that operates only over those routing strategies having this structure. The findings of the present study lead us to the conclusion that the dynamic programming method may be a very useful tool for the solution of specific vehicle routing problems. A problem for future research could be the study of a similar stochastic vehicle routing problem in which the vehicle instead of delivering, it collects products from ordered customers.

Keywords: collection of similar products, dynamic programming, stochastic demands, stochastic preferences, vehicle routing problem

Procedia PDF Downloads 239

Authors: P. L. Madhushi Kavindya

Abstract:

Sri Lanka is a developing country where hydrology plays an important role in its economic and social growth, followed by irrigation and power generation. Therefore, reservoirs are a principal element of the culture and social status of Sri Lankans. The emergence of a newly built reservoir goes along with a community relocation process which eventually causes alterations in the cultural landscape around it. From the 18th century, the emergence of reservoirs has caused major impacts on the landscape of Sri Lanka. Foremost aspects can be identified as the increased and decreased value of the cultural landscape around a reservoir. Community relocation in regard to reservoir projects is discussed as a key factor in the research. The study further carries out observations and findings of the relocation process of reservoirs in global and local contexts. Consequently, the study discusses the vast study area of ‘cultural landscape’ in brief and its behavior overall. Besides, specific data about reservoir-related cultural landscapes in a worldwide context, along with facts about the evolution, has been discussed. The significance and diversity of the Sri Lankan reservoir-related cultural landscape are explored in the succeeding study. This study will mainly identify the existing constraints and tendencies regarding the relocation process in an overall status. The base for the research has been laid thereafter by broadening the study on alterations which occur in the cultural landscape in relevance to reservoir-related relocation. Uma Oya multipurpose development project is selected as the exemplary study area considering its visible impacts. This analysis will indicate strategies, theories, and methods that can be applied to apprehend the impact of the relocation process on the cultural landscape of reservoirs. The research was carried out by conducting the Uma Oya multipurpose development project case study and by defining its cultural landscape and process of relocation. A suitable theoretical framework is developed in order to assess the set of vulnerable areas of a cultural landscape which are likely to change due to relocation. A questionnaire survey is done in order to assess socio-economic aspects, and a GIS data analysis is conducted to analyze the impact on physical aspects. Findings show that the impacts of the cultural landscape fall under both positive and negative categories. It also shows that the previous condition before resettlement and post stages have significant changes, where the previous condition had more socio-economic benefits for the community. And it also shows a clear alteration pattern of physical environment changes. These specifically developed theories, areas of assessment, and strategies, along with the outcomes, can be used for any location with geographical similarities worldwide.

Keywords: cultural diffusion theory, cultural landscape, physical aspects, relocation, reservoirs, socio-economic aspects

Procedia PDF Downloads 137

Authors: Tassadit Issaadi Hamitouche, Nicolas Gillard, Jean Petit, Valerie Lavaste, Celine Mayousse

Abstract:

Water is a fundamental resource for the industry. It is taken from the environment either from municipal distribution networks or from various natural water sources such as the sea, ocean, rivers, aquifers, etc. Once used, water is discharged into the environment, reprocessed at the plant or treatment plants. These withdrawals and discharges have a direct impact on natural water resources. These impacts can apply to the quantity of water available, the quality of the water used, or to impacts that are more complex to measure and less direct, such as the health of the population downstream from the watercourse, for example. Based on the analysis of data (meteorological, river characteristics, physicochemical substances), we wish to predict water stress episodes and anticipate prefectoral decrees, which can impact the performance of plants and propose improvement solutions, help industrialists in their choice of location for a new plant, visualize possible interactions between companies to optimize exchanges and encourage the pooling of water treatment solutions, and set up circular economies around the issue of water. The development of a system for the collection, processing, and use of data related to water resources requires the functional constraints specific to the latter to be made explicit. Thus the system will have to be able to store a large amount of data from sensors (which is the main type of data in plants and their environment). In addition, manufacturers need to have 'near-real-time' processing of information in order to be able to make the best decisions (to be rapidly notified of an event that would have a significant impact on water resources). Finally, the visualization of data must be adapted to its temporal and geographical dimensions. In this study, we set up an infrastructure centered on the TICK application stack (for Telegraf, InfluxDB, Chronograf, and Kapacitor), which is a set of loosely coupled but tightly integrated open source projects designed to manage huge amounts of time-stamped information. The software architecture is coupled with the cross-industry standard process for data mining (CRISP-DM) data mining methodology. The robust architecture and the methodology used have demonstrated their effectiveness on the study case of learning the level of a river with a 7-day horizon. The management of water and the activities within the plants -which depend on this resource- should be considerably improved thanks, on the one hand, to the learning that allows the anticipation of periods of water stress, and on the other hand, to the information system that is able to warn decision-makers with alerts created from the formalization of prefectoral decrees.

Keywords: data mining, industry, machine Learning, shortage, water resources

Procedia PDF Downloads 95

Authors: Anusha Vaddiraj Pallapu

Abstract:

Across the globe, there is a steady increase in people residing in urban areas. Due to this increase in urban population, urban health is affecting. The major issues identified like overcrowding, air pollution, unhealthy diet, inadequate infrastructure, poor solid waste management systems and insufficient access to health facilities, these issues are gradually clearly observed in health statistics of diseases and deaths rapidly increase in urban areas. Therefore, the present study aims to assess the health statistics and infrastructure services at urban areas to know the cause and effect between Infrastructure, its management and diseases (water borne). Most of the Indian cities have the municipal boundaries, which authorized by their respective municipal corporations and development authorities. Generally, cities have various zones under which municipal wards exist. The paper focuses on the city Ahmedabad, at Gujarat state. Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is divided into six zones namely Central zone, West zone, New-West zone, East zone, North zone, and South zone. Each zone includes various wards within it. Incidence of diseases in Ahmadabad which are linked to infrastructure was identified such as water-borne diseases. Later on, the occurrence of water-borne diseases at urban area was examined at each zone level. The study methodology follows four steps i.e. 1) Pre-Field literature study: Study on Sewerage system in urban areas and its best practices and public health status globally and Indian scenario; 2) Field study: Data collection and interviews of stakeholders regarding heal status and issues at each zone and ward level; 3) Post field: Data analysis with qualitative description of each ward of zones, followed by correlation coefficient analysis between sewerage coverage, diseases and density of each ward using geographic information system mapping (GIS); 4) Identification of reasons: Affected health on each of zone and wards followed by correlation analysis on each reason. The results reveal that the health conditions in Ahmedabad municipal zones or boundaries are effected due to the slums created by the migrated people from various rural and urban areas. It is also observed that due to increase in population water supply and sewerage management is affecting. The overall effect on infrastructure is creating the health diseases which detailed in the paper using geographical information system in Indian city.

Keywords: infrastructure, municipal wards, GIS, water supply, sewerage, medical facilities, water borne diseases

Procedia PDF Downloads 177