Search results for: rangeland sites

Authors: M. Dahbi, M. Sellam, A. Benatiallah, A. Harrouz

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The wind energy is one of the most significant and rapidly developing renewable energy sources in the world and it provides a clean energy resource, which is a promising alternative in the short term in Algeria The main purpose of this paper is to compared and discuss the wind power potential in three sites located in sahara of Algeria (south west of Algeria) and to perform an investigation on the wind power potential of desert of Algeria. In this comparative, wind speed frequency distributions data obtained from the web site SODA.com are used to calculate the average wind speed and the available wind power. The Weibull density function has been used to estimate the monthly power wind density and to determine the characteristics of monthly parameters of Weibull for these three sites. The annual energy produced by the BWC XL.1 1KW wind machine is obtained and compared. The analysis shows that in the south west of Algeria, at 10 m height, the available wind power was found to vary between 136.59 W/m2 and 231.04 W/m2. The highest potential wind power was found at Adrar, with 21h per day and the mean wind speed is above 6 m/s. Besides, it is found that the annual wind energy generated by that machine lie between 512 KWh and 1643.2 kWh. However, the wind resource appears to be suitable for power production on the sahara and it could provide a viable substitute to diesel oil for irrigation pumps and rural electricity generation.

Keywords: Weibull distribution, parameters of Wiebull, wind energy, wind turbine, operating hours

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Authors: Lisa M. Coleman

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The focus on disability, LGBTQ+, and internationalization has certainly been the subject of much research and programmatic across higher education. Many universities have entered into global partnerships with varying success and challenges across the various areas, including laws and policies. Attentiveness to the specific nuances of global inclusion, diversity, equity, belonging, and access (GIDBEA) and the leadership to support these efforts is crucial to the development of longstanding success across the programs. There have been a number of shifts related to diversification across student and alumni bodies. These shifts include but are not limited to how people identify gender, race, and sexuality (and the intersections across such identities), as well as trends across emerging and diverse disability communities. NYU is the most international campus in the United States, with the most campuses and sites outside of its county of origin and the most international students and exchange programs than any other university. As a result, the ongoing work related to GIDEBA is at the center of much of the leadership, administrative, and research efforts. Climate assessment work across NYU’s diverse global campus landscape will serve as the foundation to exemplify best practices related to data collection and dissemination, community and stakeholder engagement, and effective implementation of innovative strategies to close gap areas as identified. The data (quantitative and qualitative) and related research findings represent data collected from close to 22,000 stakeholders across the NYU campuses. The case study centers on specific methodological considerations, data integrity, stakeholder engagement from across student-faculty, staff, and alumni constituencies, and tactics to advance specific GIDBEA initiatives related to navigating shifting landscapes. Design thinking, incubation, and co-creation strategies have been employed to expand, leverage, actualize, and implement GIDBEA strategies that are – concrete, measurable, differentiated, and specific to global sites and regions and emerging trends.

Keywords: disability, LGBTQ+, DEI, research, case studies

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: N. Tochukwu, M. Mukhopadhyay, A. Mohamed

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It is no new that Nigeria faces a continual power shortage problem due to its vast population power demand and heavy reliance on nonrenewable forms of energy such as thermal power or fossil fuel. Many researchers have recommended using geothermal energy as an alternative; however, Past studies focus on the geophysical & geochemical investigation of this energy in the sedimentary and basement complex; only a few studies incorporated the remote sensing methods. Therefore, in this study, the preliminary examination of geothermal resources in the Middle Benue was carried out using satellite imagery in ArcMap. Landsat 8 scene (TIR, NIR, Red spectral bands) was used to estimate the Land Surface Temperature (LST). The Maximum Likelihood Classification (MLC) technique was used to classify sites with very low, low, moderate, and high LST. The intermediate and high classification happens to be possible geothermal zones, and they occupy 49% of the study area (38077km2). Riverline were superimposed on the LST layer, and the identification tool was used to locate high temperate sites. Streams that overlap on the selected sites were regarded as geothermal springs as. Surprisingly, the LST results show lower temperatures (<36°C) at the famous thermal springs (Awe & Wukari) than some unknown rivers/streams found in Kwande (38°C), Ussa, (38°C), Gwer East (37°C), Yola Cross & Ogoja (36°C). Studies have revealed that temperature increases with depth. However, this result shows excellent geothermal resources potential as it is expected to exceed the minimum geothermal gradient of 25.47 with an increase in depth. Therefore, further investigation is required to estimate the depth of the causative body, geothermal gradients, and the sustainability of the reservoirs by geophysical and field exploration. This method has proven to be cost-effective in locating geothermal resources in the study area. Consequently, the same procedure is recommended to be applied in other regions of the Precambrian basement complex and the sedimentary basins in Nigeria to save a preliminary field survey cost.

Keywords: ArcMap, geothermal resources, Landsat 8, LST, thermal springs, MLC

Procedia PDF Downloads 154

Authors: Jose Flores, Nadia Gamboa

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A proper water quality management requires the establishment of a monitoring network. Therefore, evaluation of the efficiency of water quality monitoring networks is needed to ensure high-quality data collection of critical quality chemical parameters. Unfortunately, in some Latin American countries water quality monitoring programs are not sustainable in terms of recording historical data or environmentally representative sites wasting time, money and valuable information. In this study, multivariate statistical techniques, such as principal components analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), are applied for identifying the most significant monitoring sites as well as critical water quality parameters in the monitoring network of the Jequetepeque River basin, in northern Peru. The Jequetepeque River basin, like others in Peru, shows socio-environmental conflicts due to economical activities developed in this area. Water pollution by trace elements in the upper part of the basin is mainly related with mining activity, and agricultural land lost due to salinization is caused by the extensive use of groundwater in the lower part of the basin. Since the 1980s, the water quality in the basin has been non-continuously assessed by public and private organizations, and recently the National Water Authority had established permanent water quality networks in 45 basins in Peru. Despite many countries use multivariate statistical techniques for assessing water quality monitoring networks, those instruments have never been applied for that purpose in Peru. For this reason, the main contribution of this study is to demonstrate that application of the multivariate statistical techniques could serve as an instrument that allows the optimization of monitoring networks using least number of monitoring sites as well as the most significant water quality parameters, which would reduce costs concerns and improve the water quality management in Peru. Main socio-economical activities developed and the principal stakeholders related to the water management in the basin are also identified. Finally, water quality management programs will also be discussed in terms of their efficiency and sustainability.

Keywords: PCA, HCA, Jequetepeque, multivariate statistical

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: S. Khosravi, X. Chelius, A. Unger, D. Rieger, J. Frickel, T. Sachsenheimer, C. Luechtenborg, R. Schieweck, B. Bruegger, B. Westermann, T. Klecker, W. Neupert, M. E. Harner

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The use of Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model organism to study eukaryotic cell functions has been used successfully for decades. Like virtually all eukaryotic cells, they contain mitochondria as essential organelles performing various functions, including participation in lipid metabolism. They are separated from the cytosol by a double membrane system consisting of the mitochondrial inner membrane (MIM) and the mitochondrial outer membrane (MOM). This physical separation of the mitochondria requires an exchange of metabolites, proteins, and lipids. Proteinaceous contact sites are thought to be important for this communication. Recently, it was found that Cqd1, in cooperation with Cqd2, controls the distribution of Coenzyme Q within the cell. In this study, a contact site is described, formed by the MOM protein complex Por1-Om14 and the UbiB protein kinase-like MIM protein Cqd1. The present results suggest the additional involvement of Cqd1 in the homeostasis of phospholipids. Moreover, we show that overexpression of the UbiB family proteins also causes tethering of the mitochondria to the endoplasmatic reticulum. Due to the conservation of the subunits of this contact site to higher eukaryotes, its identification in S. cerevisiae might provide promising avenues for further research in other organisms.

Keywords: contact sites, mitochondrial architecture, mitochondrial proteins, yeast mitochondria

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Authors: Amany A. Ragheb, Ghada Ragheb, Abd ElRahman A.

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Egypt has a countless heritage of mansions, castles, cities, towns, villages, industrial and manufacturing sites. This richness of heritage provides endless and matchless prospects for culture. Despite being famous worldwide, Egypt’s heritage still is in constant need of protection. Political conflicts and religious revolutions form a direct threat to buildings in various areas, historic, archaeological sites, and religious monuments. Egypt has witnessed two revolutions in less than 60 years; both had an impact on its architectural heritage. In this paper, the authors aim to review legal and policy framework to protect the cultural heritage and present the risk management strategy for cultural heritage in conflict. Through a review of selected international models of devastated architectural heritage in conflict zones and highlighting some of their changes, we can learn from the experiences of other countries to assist towards the development of a methodology to halt the plundering of architectural heritage. Finally, the paper makes an effort to enhance the formulation of a risk management strategy for protection and conservation of cultural heritage, through which to end the plundering of Egypt’s architectural legacy in the Egyptian community (revolutions, 1952 and 2011); and by presenting to its surrounding community the benefits derived from maintaining it.

Keywords: cultural heritage, legal regulation, risk management, preservation

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Authors: Purva Mishra, Rajesh Potlia, Kuljeet Singh Sandhu

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The role of glycyl residues in the protein structure has lingered within the research community for the last several decades. Glycyl residue is the only amino acid that is achiral due to the lack of a side chain and can, therefore, exhibit Ramachandran conformations that are disallowed for L-amino acids. The structural and functional significance of glycyl residues with L-disallowed conformation, however, remains obscure. Through statistical analysis of various datasets, we found that the glycyls with L-disallowed conformations are over-represented at disease-associated sites and tend to be evolutionarily conserved. The mutations of L-disallowed glycyls tend to destabilize the native conformation, reduce protein solubility, and promote inter-molecular aggregations. We uncovered a structural motif referred to as “β-crescent” formed around the L-disallowed glycyl, which prevents β-sheet aggregation by disrupting the alternating pattern of β-pleats. The L-disallowed conformation of glycyls also holds predictive power to infer the pathogenic missense variants. Altogether, our observations highlight that the L-disallowed conformation of glycyls is selected to facilitate native folding and prevent inter-molecular aggregations. The findings may also have implications for designing more stable proteins and prioritizing the genetic lesions implicated in diseases.

Keywords: Ramachandran plot, β-sheet, protein stability, protein aggregation

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Authors: Katherine Arquio

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Community-based Forest Management (CBFM) is one of the integrative programs that slowly turned the course of forest management from traditional corporate to community-based practice resulting to people empowerment. As such, one of its goals is to promote socio-economic welfare among the people in the community in which social equity is included. This study aims to look at the equity aspect of the program, particularly if there are equity differences between two CBFM sites- Matikiw in Pakil, Laguna and Minayutan and Bacong Sigsigan in Famy, Laguna. Equity indicators were identified first, since these will be the basis of the questions that will be asked on the survey, after this, the survey proper was conducted, and finally, the analysis. Two tailed t-test was used as statistical tool since the difference between the two sites is the focus of the study. Statistical analysis was done through the use of STATA program, a statistical software. There were 32 indicators identified and results showed that, out of these indicators, only 13 were found significantly different between the two. The 13 indicators were significantly observed only in Matikiw; the other 19 indicators were commonly observed in both areas and are conducive as equity indicators for the CBFM program.

Keywords: social equity, CBFM, social forestry, equity indicators

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Authors: Hossam Shalabi, George Hadjisophocleous

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The Canadian Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) use some portions of NUREG/CR-6850 in carrying out Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA). An assessment for the applicability of NUREG/CR-6850 to CANDU reactors was performed and a CANDU Fire PRA was introduced. There are 19 operating CANDU reactors in Canada at five sites (Bruce A, Bruce B, Darlington, Pickering and Point Lepreau). A fire load density survey was done for all Fire Safe Shutdown Analysis (FSSA) fire zones in all CANDU sites in Canada. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 557 proposes that a fire load survey must be conducted by either the weighing method or the inventory method or a combination of both. The combination method results in the most accurate values for fire loads. An updated CANDU Fire PRA model is demonstrated in this paper that includes the fuel survey in all Canadian CANDU stations. A qualitative screening step for the CANDU fire PRA is illustrated in this paper to include any fire events that can damage any part of the emergency power supply in addition to FSSA cables.

Keywords: fire safety, CANDU, nuclear, fuel densities, FDS, qualitative analysis, fire probabilistic risk assessment

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Authors: Ime R. Udotong, Ofonime U. M. John, Justina I. R. Udotong

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Ibeno, Nigeria hosts the operational base of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU), a subsidiary of ExxonMobil and the current highest oil and condensate producer in Nigeria. Besides MPNU, other multinational oil companies like Shell Petroleum Development Company Ltd, Elf Petroleum Nigeria Ltd and Nigerian Agip Energy, a subsidiary of ENI E&P operate onshore, on the continental shelf and deep offshore of the Atlantic Ocean in Ibeno, Nigeria, respectively. This study was designed to carry out the survey of the oil impacted sites in Ibeno, Nigeria. A combinations of electrical resistivity (ER), ground penetrating radar (GPR) and physico-chemical as well as microbiological characterization of soils and water samples from the area were carried out. Results obtained revealed that there have been hydrocarbon contaminations of this environment by past crude oil spills as observed from significant concentrations of THC, BTEX and heavy metal contents in the environment. Also, high resistivity values and GPR profiles clearly showing the distribution, thickness and lateral extent of hydrocarbon contamination as represented on the radargram reflector tones corroborates previous significant oil input. Contaminations were of varying degrees, ranging from slight to high, indicating levels of substantial attenuation of crude oil contamination over time. Hydrocarbon pollution of the study area was confirmed by the results of soil and water physico-chemical and microbiological analysis. The levels of THC contamination observed in this study are indicative of high levels of crude oil contamination. Moreover, the display of relatively lower resistivities of locations outside the impacted areas compared to resistivity values within the impacted areas, the 3-D Cartesian images of oil contaminant plume depicted by red, light brown and magenta for high, low and very low oil impacted areas, respectively as well as the high counts of hydrocarbonoclastic microorganisms in excess of 1% confirmed significant recent pollution of the study area.

Keywords: oil-polluted sites, physico-chemical analyses, microbiological characterization, geotechnical investigations, total hydrocarbon content

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Authors: Regina Streltsov

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The Archipelago of the Azores in the NE Atlantic is a hot spot of marine biodiversity, both pelagic and demersal. Epinephelus marginatus is a solitary species commonly observed in these waters, with distinct territorial/residential behaviors from their post- larva and juvenile stages to the adult phase. Being commercially high valued species, about 13% of all groupers (Family Epinephelidae) face an increasing pressure that has produced known impacts in both the abundance and distribution of this group of fishes. Epinephelus marginatus is currently assessed by the IUCN as a vulnerable species. Dusky gropers inhabit rocky bottoms from shallow waters down to 200 m. Juveniles are usually found in shallow shoreline waters. Population dynamics of juveniles can lead to a better understanding of the competition for resources and predation and further conservation measures that must be taken upon dusky groupers. This study is carried out in rocky reefs from two sheltered bays on the south and north coast of the island in two different spots with four sampling sites in total. Using Transects individuals are counted at the peak of high tide and all abiotic factors are recorded. Our goal is to complete a statistically significant number of observations in order to detail these populations and to better understand their dynamics and dimension.

Keywords: Azores, dusky groupers, Epinephelus marginatus, population dynamics

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: E. D. Paul, H. Otanwa, O. F. Paul, A. J. Salifu, J. E. Toryila, C. E. Gimba

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The concentration levels of six heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and two mineral elements (Ca and Mg) were determined in soil samples collected from the vicinity of two auto mechanic workshops in Sabon-Gari, Kaduna state, Nigeria, using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS), in order to compare the gradation of their concentrations with distance and depth of soil from the workshop sites. At site 1, concentrations of lead, chromium, iron, and zinc were generally found to be above the World Health Organization limits, while those of Nickel and Cadmium fell within the limits. Iron had the highest concentration with a range of 176.274 ppm to 489.127 ppm at depths of 5 cm to 15 cm and a distance range of 5 m to 15 m, while the concentration of cadmium was least with a range of 0.001 ppm to 0.008 ppm at similar depth and distance ranges. In addition, there was more of calcium (11.521 ppm to 121.709 ppm), in all the samples, than magnesium (11.293 ppm to 21.635 ppm). Similar results were obtained for site II. The concentrations of all the metals analyzed showed a downward gradient with an increase in depth and distance from both workshop sites except for iron and zinc at site 2. The immediate and remote implications of these findings on the biota are discussed.

Keywords: AAS, heavy metals, mechanic workshops, soil, variation

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Authors: Ulli Heinlein, Thomas Freimann

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Pre-applied bonded membranes are used as positive-side waterproofing on concrete basements, are installed before the concrete work, and achieve a tear-resistant and waterproof bond with the subsequently placed fresh concrete. This bond increases redundancy compared to lose waterproofing membranes by preventing lateral water migrations in the event of damage. So far, the membranes have been tested in the laboratory, but it is not yet known how they behave on construction sites in the presence of dirt, soil, cement paste or moisture. This article, therefore, conducts investigations on six construction sites using 18 test slabs where the pre-applied bonded membranes are selectively contaminated or wetted. Subsequently, cores are taken, and the influence of the contaminations on the adhesive tensile strength and waterproof bond is tested. Pre-applied bonded membranes with smooth or granular but closed surfaces show no sensitivity to wetness, whereas open-pored membranes with nonwovens do not tolerate standing water. Contaminations decline the performance of all pre-applied bonded membranes since a separating layer is formed between the bonding layer and the concrete. The influence depends on the thickness of the contamination and its mechanical properties.

Keywords: waterproofing, positive-side waterproofing, basement, pre-applied bonded waterproofing membrane, In-situ testing, lateral water migrations

Procedia PDF Downloads 161

Authors: Daruliza Kernain, Shaharum Shamsuddin, See Too Wei Cun

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CTCF is a unique, highly conserved and ubiquitously expressed 11 zinc finger (ZF) transcriptional factor with multiple target sites. It is able to bind to various target sequences to perform different regulatory roles including promoter activation or repression, creating hormone-responsive gene silencing element, and functional block of enhancer-promoter interactions. The binding of CTCF to the essential binding site is through the combination of different ZF domain. On the other hand, BORIS for brother of the regulator of imprinted sites, which expressed only in the testis and certain cancer cell line is homology to CTCF 11 ZF domains. Since both transcriptional factors share the same ZF domains hence there is a possibility for both to bind to the same target sequences. In this study, the interaction of these two proteins to multi-functional Y-box DNA/RNA-binding factor, YB-1 was determined. The protein-protein interaction between CTCF/YB-1 and BORIS/YB-1 were discovered by Co-immuno-precipitation (CO-IP) technique through reciprocal experiment from RGBM total cell lysate. The results showed that both CTCF and BORIS were able to interact with YB-1 in Glioma RGBM cell line. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first findings demonstrating the ability of BORIS and YB-1 to form a complex in vivo.

Keywords: immunoprecipitation, CTCF/BORIS/YB-1, transcription factor, molecular medicine

Procedia PDF Downloads 240

Authors: Joseph Shanks, Matthew Taylor, Foong Kiew Ooi, Chee Keong Chen

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Introduction: Evidences of relationship between bone, muscle and standard of competition among young British population is limited in literature. The current literature recognises the independent and synergistic effects of fat free and fat mass as the stimulus for osteogenesis. This study assessed the extent to which physical activity (PA) and standard of competition (CS) influences quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements of bone on a cross-sectional basis accounting for muscular strength and anthropometrics in British young males. Methods: Pre-screening grouped 66 males aged 18-25 years into controls (n=33) and district level athletes (DLAs) (n=33) as well as low (n=21), moderate (n=23) and high (n=22) physical activity categories (PACs). All participants underwent QUS measurements of bone (4 sites, i.e. dominant distal radius (DR), dominant mid-shaft tibia (DT), non-dominant distal radius (NR) and non-dominant mid-shaft tibia (NT)), isokinetic strength tests (dominant and non-dominant knee flexion and extension) and anthropometric measurements. Results: There were no significant differences between any of the groups with respect to QUS measurements of bone at all sites with regards to PACs or CS. Significant higher isokinetic strength values were observed in DLAs than controls (p < 0.05), and higher than low PACs (p < 0.05) at 60o.s-1 of concentric and eccentric measurements. No differences in subcutaneous fat thickness were found between all the groups (CS or PACs). Percentages of body fat were significantly higher (p < .05) in low than high PACs and CS groups. There were significant positive relationships between non dominant radial speed of sound and fat free mass at both DR (r=0.383, p=0.001) and NR (r=0.319, p=0.009) sites in all participants. Conclusion: The present study findings indicated that muscular strength and body fat are closely related to physical activity level and standard of competition. However, bone health status reflected by quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements of bone is not related to physical activity level and standard of competition in British young males.

Keywords: bone, muscular strength, physical activity, standard of competition

Procedia PDF Downloads 490

Authors: G. Gevorgyan, S. Khudaverdyan, A. Vaseashta

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The Lake Sevan basin is situated in the eastern part of the Republic of Armenia (Gegharquniq marz/district). The heavy metal pollution of the some tributaries of Lake Sevan was investigated. Water sampling was performed in August and December, 2014 from the 4 observation sites: 1) Sotq river upstream (about 600 meters upstream from the Sotq gold mine); 2) Sotq river mouth; 3) Masrik river mouth; 4) Dzknaget river mouth. Heavy metal (V, Fe, Ni, Cu, As, Mo, Pb) concentrations in the water samples were determined by the standard methods using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results of the study showed that heavy metal content mainly increased from the upstream of the Sotq river to the mouth of the Masrik river which may have been conditioned by the influence of gold mining activity as the Masrik and its tributary-Sotq rivers passing through the gold mining area were exposed to heavy metal pollution. The observation sites can be ranked by pollution degree as follows: №3> №2> №1> №4. The highest heavy metal pollution degree was observed in the Masrik river mouth which may have been conditioned by the direct impact of gold mining activity and the pressure of its tributary–the Sotq river which flows through the gold mining area. The lowest heavy metal pollution degree was registered in the Dzknaget river mouth which flowing through rural areas wasn’t subject to significant heavy metal pollution. According to the observation sites of the Sotq and Masrik rivers, high positive correlation was mainly observed between the concentrations of the investigated heavy metals (except nickel) which indicated that all the heavy metals except the nickel had the same anthropogenic pollution source which was the activity of the Sotq gold mine. In general, it is possible to state that the activity of the Sotq gold mine in the Lake Sevan basin caused the heavy metal pollution of the Sotq and Masrik rivers which may have posed environmental hazards. Heavy metals are nondegradable substances, and heavy metal pollution of freshwater systems may pose risks to the environment and human health through accumulation in the tissues of aquatic organisms, water-food chain as well as oral ingestion and dermal contact.

Keywords: Armenia, Lake Sevan basin, gold mining activity, river ecosystems, heavy metal pollution

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Authors: Abduladim Maitieg

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The oil manufacture is one of the main productive activities in Libya and has a massive infrastructure, including offshore drilling and exploration and wide oil export platform sites that located in coastal area. There is a threat to marine and coastal area of oil spills is greatest in those sites with a high spills comes from urban and industry, parallel to that, monitoring oil spills and risk emergency strategy is weakness, An approach for estimating a coastal resources vulnerability to oil spills is presented based on abundance, environmental and Scio-economic importance, distance to oil spill resources and oil risk likelihood. As many as 10 coastal resources were selected for oil spill assessment at the coast. This study aims to evaluate, determine and establish vulnerable coastal resource maps and estimating the rate of oil spill comes for different oil spill resources in Misratah marine environment. In the study area there are two type of oil spill resources, major oil resources come from offshore oil industries which are 96 km from the Coast and Loading/Uploading oil platform. However, the miner oil resources come from urban sewage pipes and fish ports. In order to analyse the collected database, the Geographic information system software has been used to identify oil spill location, to map oil tracks in front of study area, and developing seasonal vulnerable costal resources maps. This work shows that there is a differential distribution of the degree of vulnerability to oil spills along the coastline, with values ranging from high vulnerability and low vulnerability, and highlights the link between oil spill movement and coastal resources vulnerability. The results of assessment found most of costal freshwater spring sites are highly vulnerable to oil spill due to their location on the intertidal zone and their close to proximity to oil spills recourses such as Zreag coast. Furthermore, the Saltmarsh coastline is highly vulnerable to oil spill risk due to characterisation as it contains a nesting area of sea turtles and feeding places for migratory birds and the . Oil will reach the coast in winter season according to oil spill movement. Coastal tourist beaches in the north coast are considered as highly vulnerable to oil spill due to location and closeness to oil spill resources.

Keywords: coastal recourses vulnerability, oil spill trajectory, gnome software, Misratah coast- Libya, GIS

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Authors: Abul B. M. M. K. Islam, Nuria Lopez-Bigas, Elizaveta V. Benevolenskaya

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RBP2 has shown to be important for cell differentiation control through epigenetic mechanism. The main aim of the present study is genome-wide location analysis of human RBP2 isoforms that differ in a histone-binding domain by ChIPseq. It is conceivable that the larger isoform (LI) of RBP2, which contains a specific H3K4me3 interacting domain, differs from the smaller isoform (SI) in genomic location, may account for the observed diversity in RBP2 function. To distinguish the two RBP2 isoforms, we used the fact that the SI lacks the C-terminal PHD domain and hence used the antibodies detecting both RBP2 isoforms (AI) through a common central domain, and the antibodies detecting only LI but not SI, through a C-terminal PHD domain. Overall our analysis suggests that RBP2 occupies about 77 nucleotides and binds GC rich motifs of active genes, does not bind to centromere, telomere, or enhancer regions, and binding sites are conserved compare to random. A striking difference between the only-SI and only-LI is that a large number of only-SI peaks are located in CpG islands and close to TSS compared to only-LI peaks. Enrichment analysis of the related genes indicates that several oncogenic pathways and metabolic pathways/processes are significantly enriched among only-SI/AI targets, but not LI/only-LI peak’s targets.

Keywords: bioinformatics, cancer, ChIP-seq, KDM5A

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Authors: Souhila Terfi, Fatma Hassaine-Sadi

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In the present study, wet digestion with HCl and HNO3 mixture was used to extract the heavy metals (copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd)) from the leaves, the stems and the roots of Malva sylvestris L., which were subsequently analyzed by AAS. The samples (soil and parts of species) were collected from different sites: the industrial area (IA) (Rouiba), the rubbish dump area (RDA) (Boudouaou), the residential area (RA) with large open fields and construction activities (Blida), the Montaigne area (MA) (Chrea) and the high plateau area (HPA) (Berouaguia). The study showed differences in metal concentrations according to the analysed parts and the different sampling locations. In the contaminated site of the industrial area (IA), high content of the toxic heavy metals (Cd: 3.18 µg/g DW and Pb: 34.48 µg/g DW) were found in the leaves of Malva sylvestris L. This finding suggests that the consumers of this species could be exposed to a risk associated with this higher level of these toxic metals. It was found that Malva sylvestris L. is rich by Zn and Cu in some sites, which are considered to be the essential elements for the human health. The obtained results with the control site (Montaigne area) suggest that this species can be applicable in both the health and food, feasible alternatives as medicinal plant without any risk.

Keywords: Malva sylvestris L., toxic heavy metal, medicinal plant, impact on human health

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Authors: K. O. Igwe, E. N. Onyeike, A. A. Uwakwe

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Comparative proximate composition of selected edible vegetables (Abelmoschus esculentus, Telfairia occidentalis, vernonia amygdalina and Talinum triangulare ) harvested in farmland nearby oil impacted sites in Rivers State was investigated. The result obtained was compared to the proximate composition of similar edible vegetables harvested from non oil producing areas in Imo State. Values from the study areas indicated vegetables with high moisture levels (highest values in Abelmoschus esculentus and Telfairia occidentalis; 6.07±0.11% and 4.10±0.12%) low ash contents (lowest value in Telfairia occidentalis 9.80±0.08%) low crude protein (lowest value in Talinum triangulare 8.15±0.06 %) high lipid content (highest value in Talinum triangulare 4.12± 0.20%) lower crude fibre (lowest value in Abelmoschus esculentus 9.58±0.08 %) and higher Carbohydrate contents (highest value in vernonia amygdalina 62.18± 0.67%). Values obtained indicated vegetables with lower quality in the study areas.

Keywords: edible vegetables, proximate composition, oil spill, farmland

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Authors: Ella Zahra

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Sea urchins are keystone species in many global benthic ecosystems. The concentration of microplastics (MPs) in sea urchin organs was quantified in 120 individuals of 2 different species and from 4 sites across the Greek island Lipsi, with special interest in the differences between the native Arbacia lixula and the invasive Diadema setosum. Over 93% of MPs observed in both species were fibrous. MP abundance was found to correlate with exposure to open sea and harsh prevailing winds, irrespective of proximity to urban activities. The MP abundance in the invasive species was not found to be significantly dependent on site. Interestingly, the smaller native species contained significantly larger sized MPs than the invasive, possibly as a result of a greater feeding rate in A. lixula individuals. Sexually immature urchins may also have a higher feeding rate, giving rise to the negative correlation between gonad index and MPs per individual. The size of MPs ranged from 10µm to 24210µm, heavily skewed towards smaller particles. Few differences in colour were noted between the species and sites. MPs were detected in 100% of the samples with abundance ranging from 19.27 ± 6.77 to 26.83 ± 8.15 items per individual, or 3.55 ± 3.73 to 7.34 ± 10.51 items per gram of wet organ weight. This high value could lead to health risks in East Asia and the Mediterranean, where sea urchin is widely consumed, due to toxins adsorbed to the MPs.

Keywords: microplastics, plastic pollution, invertebrate ecology, invasive marine species

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Authors: Tanu Khanuja, Harikrishnan N. Unni

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Head is the most vulnerable part of human body and may cause severe life threatening injuries. As the in vivo brain response cannot be recorded during injury, computational investigation of the head model could be really helpful to understand the injury mechanism. Majority of the physical damage to living tissues are caused by relative motion within the tissue due to tensile and shearing structural failures. The present Finite Element study focuses on investigating intracranial pressure and stress/strain distributions resulting from impact loads on various sites of human head. This is performed by the development of the 3D model of a human head with major segments like cerebrum, cerebellum, brain stem, CSF (cerebrospinal fluid), and skull from patient specific MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). The semi-automatic segmentation of head is performed using AMIRA software to extract finer grooves of the brain. To maintain the accuracy high number of mesh elements are required followed by high computational time. Therefore, the mesh optimization has also been performed using tetrahedral elements. In addition, model validation with experimental literature is performed as well. Hard tissues like skull is modeled as elastic whereas soft tissues like brain is modeled with viscoelastic prony series material model. This paper intends to obtain insights into the severity of brain injury by analyzing impacts on frontal, top, back, and temporal sites of the head. Yield stress (based on von Mises stress criterion for tissues) and intracranial pressure distribution due to impact on different sites (frontal, parietal, etc.) are compared and the extent of damage to cerebral tissues is discussed in detail. This paper finds that how the back impact is more injurious to overall head than the other. The present work would be helpful to understand the injury mechanism of traumatic brain injury more effectively.

Keywords: dynamic impact analysis, finite element analysis, intracranial pressure, MRI, traumatic brain injury, von Misses stress

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Authors: Tarek Abdoun, Waleed Elsekelly

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Introduction: Liquefaction of soils during earthquakes can have significant consequences on the stability of structures and infrastructure. This study focuses on comparing two liquefaction case histories in California, namely the response of the Wildlife site in the Imperial Valley to the 2010 El-Mayor Cucapah earthquake (Mw = 7.2, amax = 0.15g) and the response of the Treasure Island Fire Station (F.S.) site in the San Francisco Bay area to the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake (Mw = 6.9, amax = 0.16g). Both case histories involve liquefiable layers of silty sand with non-plastic fines, similar shear wave velocities, low CPT cone penetration resistances, and groundwater tables at similar depths. The liquefaction charts based on shear wave velocity field predict liquefaction at both sites. However, a significant difference arises in their pore pressure responses during the earthquakes. The Wildlife site did not experience liquefaction, as evidenced by piezometer data, while the Treasure Island F.S. site did liquefy during the shaking. Objective: The primary objective of this study is to investigate and understand the reason for the contrasting pore pressure responses observed at the Wildlife site and the Treasure Island F.S. site despite their similar geological characteristics and predicted liquefaction potential. By conducting a detailed analysis of similarities and differences between the two case histories, the objective is to identify the factors that contributed to the higher liquefaction resistance exhibited by the Wildlife site. Methodology: To achieve this objective, the geological and seismic data available for both sites were gathered and analyzed. Then their soil profiles, seismic characteristics, and liquefaction potential as predicted by shear wave velocity-based liquefaction charts were analyzed. Furthermore, the seismic histories of both regions were examined. The number of previous earthquakes capable of generating significant excess pore pressures for each critical layer was assessed. This analysis involved estimating the total seismic activity that the Wildlife and Treasure Island F.S. critical layers experienced over time. In addition to historical data, centrifuge and large-scale experiments were conducted to explore the impact of prior seismic activity on liquefaction resistance. These findings served as supporting evidence for the investigation. Conclusions: The higher liquefaction resistance observed at the Wildlife site and other sites in the Imperial Valley can be attributed to preshaking by previous earthquakes. The Wildlife critical layer was subjected to a substantially greater number of seismic events capable of generating significant excess pore pressures over time compared to the Treasure Island F.S. layer. This crucial disparity arises from the difference in seismic activity between the two regions in the past century. In conclusion, this research sheds light on the complex interplay between geological characteristics, seismic history, and liquefaction behavior. It emphasizes the significant impact of past seismic activity on liquefaction resistance and can provide valuable insights for evaluating the stability of sandy sites in other seismic regions.

Keywords: liquefaction, case histories, centrifuge, preshaking

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Authors: Abdul Musaweer Habib, Habibul Hasan Mazumder, Saiful Islam, Sohel Sikder, Omar Faruk Sikder

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The plethora of genome sequence information of bacteria in recent times has ushered in many novel strategies for antibacterial drug discovery and facilitated medical science to take up the challenge of the increasing resistance of pathogenic bacteria to current antibiotics. In this study, we adopted subtractive genomics approach to analyze the whole genome sequence of the Fusobacterium nucleatum, a human oral pathogen having association with colorectal cancer. Our study divulged 1499 proteins of Fusobacterium nucleatum, which has no homolog in human genome. These proteins were subjected to screening further by using the Database of Essential Genes (DEG) that resulted in the identification of 32 vitally important proteins for the bacterium. Subsequent analysis of the identified pivotal proteins, using the KEGG Automated Annotation Server (KAAS) resulted in sorting 3 key enzymes of F. nucleatum that may be good candidates as potential drug targets, since they are unique for the bacterium and absent in humans. In addition, we have demonstrated the 3-D structure of these three proteins. Finally, determination of ligand binding sites of the key proteins as well as screening for functional inhibitors that best fitted with the ligands sites were conducted to discover effective novel therapeutic compounds against Fusobacterium nucleatum.

Keywords: colorectal cancer, drug target, Fusobacterium nucleatum, homology modeling, ligands

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Authors: Gil Yaron, Rebecca Gordon, John Best, Sunil Choudhary

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There have been a number of studies examining the impact of microfinance; however, the magnitude of impact varies across regions, and there has been mixed evidence due to the differences in the nature of interventions, context and the way in which microfinance is implemented. The Rojiroti approach to microfinance involves the creation of women's self-help groups (SHGs), rotated loans from savings and subsequent credit from a Bihar-based NGO. Rojiroti serves customers who are significantly poorer and more marginalised than those typically served by microfinance in India. In the data analysed, more than 90 percent of members are from scheduled caste and tribes (62 percent) or other disadvantaged castes. This paper analyses the impact of Rojiroti microfinance using panel data on 740 new SHG members and 340 women in matched control sites at baseline and after 18 months. We consider changes in assets, children's education, women's mobility and domestic violence among other indicators. These results show significant gains for Rojiroti borrowers relative to control sites for important, but not all, variables. Comparison with more longstanding SHGs (at least 36 months) helps to explain how the borrowing patterns of poor and marginalised SHG members evolve. The context of this intervention is also important; in this case, innovative microfinance is provided too much poorer and marginalised women than is typically the case, and so the results seen are in contrast to numerous studies that show little or no effect of microfinance on the lives of their clients.

Keywords: microfinance, gender, impact, pro-poor

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Authors: C. Nathanailides, S. Anastasiou, P. Logothetis, G. Kanlis

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Production parameters of gilt head sea bream fish farm such as feeding regimes, mortalities, fish densities were used to calculate the economic efficiency of six different aquaculture sites from West Greece. Samples of farmed sea bream were collected and lipid content, microbial load and filleting yield of the samples were used as quality criteria. The results indicate that Lipid content, filleting yield and microbial load of fish originating from different fish farms varied significantly with improved quality exhibited in fish farms which exhibited improved Feed conversion rates and lower mortalities. Changes in feeding management practices such as feed quality and feeding regimes have a significant impact on the financial performance of sea bass farms. Fish farms which exhibited improved feeding conversion rates also exhibited increased profitability. Improvements in the FCR explained about 13.4 % of the difference in profitability of the different aquaculture sites. Lower mortality and higher growth rates were also exhibited by the fish farms which exhibited improved FCR. It is concluded that best feeding management practices resulted in improved product quality and profitability.

Keywords: aquaculture economics, gilt head sea, production fish, feeding management

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Authors: M. Nakkuntod, S. Srinarang, K.W. Hilu

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Water lily (Nymphaea L.) is the largest genus of Nymphaeaceae. This family is composed of six genera (Nuphar, Ondinea, Euryale, Victoria, Barclaya, Nymphaea). Its members are nearly worldwide in tropical and temperate regions. The classification of some species in Nymphaea is ambiguous due to high variation in leaf and flower parts such as leaf margin, stamen appendage. Therefore, the phylogenetic relationships based on 18S rDNA were constructed to delimit this genus. DNAs of 52 specimens belonging to water lily family were extracted using modified conventional method containing cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB). The results showed that the amplified fragment is about 1600 base pairs in size. After analysis, the aligned sequences presented 9.36% for variable characters comprising 2.66% of parsimonious informative sites and 6.70% of singleton sites. Moreover, there are 6 regions of 1-2 base(s) for insertion/deletion. The phylogenetic trees based on maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood with high bootstrap support indicated that genus Nymphaea was a paraphyletic group because of Ondinea, Victoria and Euryale disruption. Within genus Nymphaea, subgenus Nymphaea is a basal lineage group which cooperated with Euryale and Victoria. The other four subgenera, namely Lotos, Hydrocallis, Brachyceras and Anecphya were included the same large clade which Ondinea was placed within Anecphya clade due to geographical sharing.

Keywords: nrDNA, phylogeny, taxonomy, waterlily

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Authors: Mathilde Kirkegaard

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The paper will focus on management of heritage that integrates the local community, and argue towards an obligation to integrate this social aspect in heritage management. By broadening the understanding of heritage, a sustainable heritage management takes its departure in more than a continual conservation of the physicality of heritage. The social aspect, or the local community, is in many govern heritage management situations being overlooked and it is not managed through community based urban planning methods, e.g.: citizen-inclusion, a transparent process, informative and inviting initiatives, etc. Historical sites are often being described by embracing terms such as “ours” and “us”: “our history” and “a history that is part of us”. Heritage is not something static, it is a link between the life that has been lived in the historical frames, and the life that is defining it today. This view on heritage is rooted in the strive to ensure that heritage sites, besides securing the national historical interest, have a value for those people who are affected by it: living in it or visiting it. Antigua Guatemala is a UNESCO-defined heritage site and this site is being ‘threatened’ by tourism, habitation and recreation. In other words: ‘the use’ of the site is considered a threat of the preservation of the heritage. Contradictory the same types of use (tourism and habitation) can also be considered development ability, and perhaps even a sustainable management solution. ‘The use’ of heritage is interlinked with the perspective that heritage sites ought to have a value for people today. In other words, the heritage sites should be comprised of a contemporary substance. Heritage is entwined in its context of physical structures and the social layer. A synergy between the use of heritage and the knowledge about the heritage can generate a sustainable preservation solution. The paper will exemplify this symbiosis with different examples of a heritage management that is centred around a local community inclusion. The inclusive method is not new in architectural planning and it refers to a top-down and bottom-up balance in decision making. It can be endeavoured through designs of an inclusive nature. Catalyst architecture is a planning method that strives to move the process of design solutions into the public space. Through process-orientated designs, or catalyst designs, the community can gain an insight into the process or be invited to participate in the process. A balance between bottom-up and top-down in the development process of a heritage site can, in relation to management measures, be understood to generate a socially sustainable solution. The ownership and engagement that can be created among the local community, along with the use that ultimately can gain an economic benefit, can delegate the maintenance and preservation. Informative, inclusive and transparent planning methods can generate a heritage management that is long-term due to the collective understanding and effort. This method handles sustainable management on two levels: the current preservation necessities and the long-term management, while ensuring a value for people today.

Keywords: community, intangible, inclusion, planning

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Authors: Hanyu Wei

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The last two decades have witnessed a significant number of regeneration practices in historical Chinese cities with the context of rapid urbanisation and economic development. As a response to the possible loss of place identity in the redevelopment process, city makers recognise the potentials of places with cultural significance for maintaining the original landscape. In Chongqing, the prosperities of human settlement history together with the anti-war and post-industrial culture bring this riverside city with its unique urban landscape. Great amounts of historical sites are identified and subjected to conservation planning approaches for urban revitalisation while also maintaining the historic urban landscape. This paper reviews three practices of cultural-led regeneration projects (Hongyadong, Ciqikou, Danzishi) in Chongqing, detailing the urban design and planning principals for the case sites. The paper also presents the conflicting opinions from groups with different interests. By carrying a systematical sustainability evaluation assessment on those projects, the paper critically analyzes the influence of these projects on the broad socio-economic aspects. Although these regeneration cases are thought to achieve the general success in abstaining economic benefits, they are criticised for the over-tourism issues and damages on the authenticity, which further fails to achieve sustainable development.

Keywords: Chongqing, historic urban landscape, sustainable development, urban regeneration

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Authors: Tasir Khan, Yejuan Wan, Kalim Ullah

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Hydrological frequency analysis has been conducted to estimate the minimum flow elevation of the Indus River in Pakistan to protect the ecosystem. The Maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) technique is used to estimate the best-fitted distribution for Minimum Ecological Flows at nine stations of the Indus River in Pakistan. The four selected distributions, Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) distribution, Generalized Logistics (GLO) distribution, Generalized Pareto (GPA) distribution, and Pearson type 3 (PE3) are fitted in all sites, usually used in hydro frequency analysis. Compare the performance of these distributions by using the goodness of fit tests, such as the Kolmogorov Smirnov test, Anderson darling test, and chi-square test. The study concludes that the Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) method recommended that GEV and GPA are the most suitable distributions which can be effectively applied to all the proposed sites. The quantiles are estimated for the return periods from 5 to 1000 years by using MLE, estimations methods. The MLE is the robust method for larger sample sizes. The results of these analyses can be used for water resources research, including water quality management, designing irrigation systems, determining downstream flow requirements for hydropower, and the impact of long-term drought on the country's aquatic system.

Keywords: minimum ecological flow, frequency distribution, indus river, maximum likelihood estimation

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