Area Network Research Articles

A Study on the Preference for the Defensive Attribute under Environmental Risk in China

Little is known about the preference for defensive consumption goods and their defensive attributes under environmental risks in developing countries. The paper takes the water purifier as an example of defensive consumption goods against heavy metal pollution risk from drinking water. Using a survey data in China, the discrete choice experiment method is employed to investigate rural farmers’ preferences for a water purifier. The scientific knowledge and risk perception effects are used to determine farmers’ preferences for the defensive attribute on a water purifier. Using a mixed logit model, rural farmers are found to prefer a water purifier with low price, free installation, a longer warranty period, and a heavy metal filter (i.e., the defensive attribute). Farmers’ neighborhood norm perception dominates the defensive preference while scientific knowledge do not work significantly. More specifically, the more the neighborhood norm perception is recognized, the more likely farmers are to improve their own preferences for the defensive attribute. Affected by the neighborhood norm perception, rural farmers’ preferences for the defensive attribute are found to be increased significantly as average income gaps narrow. The future defensive health policies should be devoted to improving environmental risk awareness and utilizing informal social networks in areas with high environmental risks.

Seed dormancy and germination of five selected NATURA-2000 plant species from Croatia showing different germination strategies

NATURA-2000, the ecological network of protected areas in the European Union that has been included in the Croatian legislation, defines Community important plant species with imperative on their conservation ex/in situ. In the Botanical Garden of the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, five NATURA-species have been selected as research subjects for germination study to shed light on the topic of their seed ecology and consequently advance their conservation efforts: Degenia velebitica, Scilla litardierei, Klasea lycopifolia, Ligularia sibirica and Genista holopetala. The freshly matured seeds of each species were exposed to cold or warm stratification in duration of four to sixteen weeks, and their germination was investigated through different regimes of incubation parameters, i.e. illumination (light/dark) and temperature (5, 15/6, 23 °C). All species had higher germination values after cold stratification, with the exception of G. holopetala. We concluded that D. velebitica, K. lycopifolia and presumably L. sibirica seeds has non-deep physiological dormancy while S. litardierei has deep complex morphophysiological dormancy and G. holopetala has physical dormancy. The observed patterns in seeds’ behaviour are consistent with the conditions in their natural habitats in Croatia and the knowledge of these patterns is vital for successful conservation strategies in the future.

Accidental ethnographers: the Islamic State’s tribal engagement experiment

ABSTRACTThe disillusionment with U.S.-led counter insurgent efforts to gain a deeper understanding of social dynamics in countries with extensive tribal structures has led to a rejection of programs aimed to improve cultural competency. The Islamic State movement does not share this perception, and its strategists blamed its early failures during the U.S. occupation on a flawed understanding of tribal dynamics. This paper traces the political, ideological, and structural changes the leaders of the Islamic State movement made to adapt its approach toward the Sunni tribes of Iraq and later Syria, in order to develop a deeper base of popular support for its caliphate project. The group’s study of the tribes was done by a new tribal engagement office that put into motion an ethnographic study of tribal networks in key areas. There is evidence that the inspiration for this change came from its opponents. The Islamic State movement used these new insights to win a greater level of influence in rural areas, which in turn influenced its success in 2014. This research supports the idea that insurgency and counterinsurgency success often depend on which side is best at the incorporation of cultural and societal knowledge into policy and strategy.

Brightness Transformation and CNN-MRF Model for Road Network Extraction using RSI

For effective urban planning and GIS database, it is necessary to extract effectively the network of road from remote sensing images. The very high spatial resolution images (VHR) taken by space and space probes are the main source of an accurate extraction of the route. Manual techniques disappear because they take time and are expensive. As a result, the much more automated route extraction method has become a research tool in the processing of remote sensing information. The extraction of road networks in remote urban areas of images plays an important role in many urban applications (eg. Road traffic, geometric correction of remote sensing images in cities, updating geographical information, etc.). Because of the complex geometry of buildings and the geometry of sensor detection, it is generally difficult to distinguish the road from its background. In this paper, a hybrid method is proposed for the extraction of paths from high resolution images based on the segmentation using sigmoid CNN-MRF model. The proposed method includes noise removal and enhancement using brightness transformation function then segmentation of road and non-road pixels using CNN and edges are joined using CNN model also. And lastly the markov random field is used connecting edges with similar end points. Simulation will be conducted on remote sensing images in urban, suburban and rural areas to demonstrate the proposed method and compare it with other similar approaches. The results show better performance of proposed road network extraction method as compared to existing technique.

Current situation and future problems on epilepsy clinical network of metropolitan area in Japan

Current situation and future problems on epilepsy clinical network of metropolitan area in Japan

A methodology for the design of an effective air quality monitoring network in port areas

The assessment of the impact of ship emissions is generally realised by a network of receptors at ground level inside the port area or in the nearby urban canopy. Another possibility is the use of dispersion models capable of providing maps of concentrations to the ground taking into account ship emissions and weather conditions. In this work traffic data of passengers ships in the port of Naples were used to estimate pollutant emissions starting from EMEP/EEA (European Environment Agency/European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme) methodology and real data of power engines. In this way, a hourly file of emission rates was produced and input to CALPUFF together with meteorological data. Then SO2 concentrations at different heights (0–60 m) in correspondence of selected points within the port area were evaluated. Results are compared with data measured at ground level in monitoring campaigns showing how is possible to better identify and quantify the air pollution from ships in port by positioning the receptors inside the port area at different heights from ground-level. The results obtained give useful information for designing an optimum on-site air quality monitoring network able to quantify the emissions of pollutants due to naval traffic and to individuate the contribution of single ships or ships’ categories.

Management and evaluation system of sustainable development planning about green infrastructure

Green infrastructure is a network of interconnected natural areas and other open spaces. In the case of extremely limited urban space, how to effectively build an urban green infrastructure network and identify those network elements with critical landscape ecological functions is extremely important. In order to provide new modelling and analysis concepts for the construction and management of urban green infrastructure networks, taking the rapid urbanisation of Q city as an example, the MSPA method was used in conjunction with the landscape connectivity index to select the largest contribution to maintaining landscape connectivity. As the network centre of the green infrastructure network, the habitat patch of the site was used to construct the potential green infrastructure network. In the study, area using the minimum path method and the use of spatial syntax analysis to identify the priority of the green infrastructure network based on the structural optimisation perspective, to make the construction of green infrastructure networks more scientific. The research results can provide a research idea and method for the construction of green infrastructure networks in rapid urbanisation areas, and have certain reference significance for the priority evaluation of green infrastructure network elements.

Research on urban transport network topology vulnerability identification under rainfall conditions

Under the impact of global climate change, meteorological disasters, such as rainstorms, have occurred frequently during recent years and have led to several severe disruptions of transport network in urban areas. In order to minimise the risk of potential losses of life and properties, this paper presents a method to identify topology vulnerability of road networks for a range of rainfall scenarios. Meanwhile, a review is presented regarding the theories and methods of vulnerability analysis. The paper defines the concept of vulnerability of road network considering the intensity of rainfall. It establishes a comprehensive assessment index of 'importance of nodes and edges' by combining the 'betweenness and traffic flow' to find out the source of road network fragility considering the intensity of rainfall. Afterwards, the assessment index 'mincuts frequency vector' is introduced into the assessment of topology vulnerability. This paper provided the scientific basis for disaster control and reduction of the urban road network.

인공신경망을 활용한 미계측지역 지하수 함양량 추정 기법의 적용성 평가

국내의 경우 다양한 방법의 지하수 함양량 산정 기법이 적용되고 있으나, 표준화된 방법이 마련되어 있지 않은 실정이다. 지하수위 시계열 자료를 활용한 TSM-hWTF 방법이 개발되어 있으나 지하수 관측소의 개수가 한정적이어서 미계측 지역에 대한 지하수 함양량 산정은 어려웠다. 이를 해결하고자, 207개 지하수 관측 지점의 지형 표고, 경사, 인근 하천, 지질, 토양 등과 같은 각 관측소의 지점 특성 15개 항목을 입력 인자, 각 지점의 지하수 함양율을 출력 인자로 설정한 후 다층퍼셉트론 기법에 의한 인공신경망 모델을 개발하였다. 지하수 함양율의 모델 예측값과 실제값의 상관계수는 0.8 이상의 높은 값을 보였으며, 표토특성과 심토특성이 가장 큰 영향을 미치는 것으로 분석되었다. 홍성군 서부면 양곡리 지역에 대하여 본 모델을 적용하여 추정한 지하수 함양량과 9개 지하수 관측 자료로부터 TSM-hWTF로 추정한 지하수 함양량은 유사한 경향을 보이는 것으로 평가되어 본 인공신경망 모델에 기반한 지하수 함양량 추정이 효과적인 것으로 나타났다.

<p><strong><em>Tingiphatnoma andreneli </em>sp. nov., a new tingid bug from the mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber (Heteroptera, Tingidae)</strong></p>

The Tingidae Laporte, 1832 is a family of small Hemiptera that are commonly referred to as lacebugs because the pronotum and fore wings of the adult have a delicate and intricate network of divided areas that resemble lace; they are considered as the sister group of Miridae (Schuh & Stys, 1991; Schuh et al., 2009). Tingidae are distributed worldwide with about 2,500 described species (Guilbert et al., 2014). They live on plants and are strictly phytophagous (sap-suckers).

Dynamics of crime activities in the network of city community areas

Understanding criminal activities, their structure and dynamics are fundamental for designing tools for crime prediction that can also guide crime prevention. Here, we study crimes committed in city community areas based on police crime reports and demographic data for the City of Chicago collected over 16 consecutive years. Our goal is to understand how the network of city community areas shapes dynamics of criminal offenses and demographic characteristics of their inhabitants. Our results reveal the presence of criminal hot-spots and expose the dynamic nature of criminal activities. We identify the most influential features for forecasting the per capita crime rate in each community. Our results indicate that city community crime is driven by spatio-temporal dynamics since the number of crimes committed in the past among the spatial neighbors of each community area and in the community itself are the most important features in our predictive models. Moreover, certain urban characteristics appear to act as triggers for the spatial spreading of criminal activities. Using the k-Means clustering algorithm, we obtained three clearly separated clusters of community areas, each with different levels of crimes and unique demographic characteristics of the district’s inhabitants. Further, we demonstrate that crime predictive models incorporating both demographic characteristics of a community and its crime rate perform better than models relying only on one type of features. We develop predictive algorithms to forecast the number of future crimes in city community areas over the periods of one-month and one-year using varying sets of features. For one-month predictions using just the number of prior incidents as a feature, the critical length of historical data, τc, of 12 months arises. Using more than τc months ensures high accuracy of prediction, while using fewer months negatively impacts prediction quality. Using features based on demographic characteristics of the district’s inhabitants weakens this impact somewhat. We also forecast the number of crimes in each community area in the given year. Then, we study in which community area and over what period an increase in crime reduction funding in this area will yield the largest reduction of the crime in the entire city. Finally, we study and compare the performance of various supervised machine learning algorithms classifying reported crime incidents into the correct crime category. Using the temporal patterns of various crime categories improves the classification accuracy. The methodologies introduced here are general and can be applied to other cities for which data about criminal activities and demographics are available.

Cross-Cumulation Arrangement as FTA Under GATT Article XXIV

ABSTRACT A cross-cumulation arrangement helps manufacturers meet the demands of the global value chain economy by facilitating the sourcing of intermediate products within the territories of participants in the arrangement. It is a de facto free-trade area formed by a network of bilateral free-trade areas underpinning the arrangement. However, a cross-cumulation clause provided in a bilateral free-trade area that underpins a cross-cumulation arrangement is inconsistent with General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) Articles I and III because the intermediate products from the participants in the arrangement are more favorably treated than products from non-participants in the arrangement. The GATT inconsistencies of a cross-cumulation clause cannot be justified by the GATT Article XXIV exception, because a cross-cumulation clause of a bilateral free-trade area derogates from the free-trade area’s aim by facilitating trade in intermediate products between the free-trade area parties and non-parties to the free-trade area that are participants in the arrangement. In contrast, a cumulation clause provided in a free-trade area contributes to the free-trade area’s aim by facilitating trade in intermediate products between the parties to the free-trade area. To bring a cross-cumulation arrangement such as the Regional Convention on Pan-Euro-Med Preferential Rules of Origin into conformity with World Trade Organization law, the arrangement and its underlying free-trade areas should be recognized as a de jure free-trade area under GATT Article XXIV and notified to the World Trade Organization as such. A large cross-cumulation arrangement as a mega-free-trade area is likely to contribute to the world trading system by harmonizing divergent free-trade area rules of origin and providing an efficient mechanism for the formation of a mega-free-trade area.

Sensitivity Assessment of a Runoff Formation Model in the Mozhaisk Reservoir River Basin

The physically based model of river runoff formation with a daily resolution ECOMAG was adapted for the Mozhaisk Reservoir with an area of 1360 km2. A large series of numerical experiments were carried out in order to investigate the sensitivity of the model to the spatial resolution of land surface characteristics and the size of calculation cells. Digital elevation models (DEMs) of three different spatial resolutions (50, 100 m, and 2 km) were used along with model schematizations of the catchment area and river network with varying detail. In addition, the model sensitivity to sets of calibration parameters when modelling genetic runoff components was studied, as a part of the approaches to mitigating the problem of equifinality. The importance of incorporating additional hydrochemical information for a correct description of the spatial and temporal genetic structure of river runoff is shown.

Eco- logycal and cenotic features «Ulianykivski dzherela (wellsprings)» designed landscape reserve

The main idea of forming and expanding the network of nature conservation areas is to preserve the natural complexes remains where rare and typical species and biotopes exist. In this region, important elements of the ecology network are, first of all, ravine systems and small rivers valleys that have not been cultivated for a long time due to the risk of active soil erosion. Perspective area for the landscape reserve creation is the south-eastern outskirts of the village Ulianyky in Kagarlytskyi district of Kyiv region. Physical-geographical characteristics of the hilly plain with pronounced valley and beam declines are shown for this territory. The typical elements for this territory are spacious beam relief, covered with externally leached chernozem and gray forest soils, are the surface of the runoff drained by the beam system. The watercourses of the beams flow into a weakly flowing lake located in the northern part of the village Ulianyky. Effective underground aquifers and wellsprings drain at the slopes of beams. 12 Emerald habitats have been established and described. The general assessment vegetation type diversity of the botanical component was conducted and a rare plants list of the area was made. Based on the conducted research, two species of orchids listed in the Red Book of Ukraine (Epipactis palustris (L.) Crantz, Dactylorhiza incarnata (L.) Soo) have been identified and ecological-coenotic features of their growth have been established.

Landscape Opportunities and Preferences for Choosing Recreational Places of Megalopolis Residents (on Example of St. Petersburg)

A resident of a large city is increasingly in need of a complete rest in the bosom of nature, enjoy the peace and beauty of landscapes. The administration of megacities is concerned about the problems of preserving the natural environment and creating within the city limits a network of recreational areas where recreational activities can be organized. The necessity and importance of establishing a network of specially protected natural areas within the metropolis is not in doubt. But the status of the created nature reserves implies, for the most part, prohibitions and restrictions for the organization of recreational activities. A detailed description of recreational opportunities for the rational use of individual components of the city’s natural environment is presented. The authors conducted a geoecological analysis of the allocation of recreational areas in large cities. Features of nature that should be considered when designing recreational areas in large cities, on example of St. Petersburg, are noted.

The Neural Correlates of Sexual Arousal and Sexual Disgust

Background: Humans exhibit category-specific networks of activity when viewing sexual stimuli. The differences and relationships between stimulus-related brain activation for sexual arousal and sexual disgust are still unclear. This study aimed to identify brain regions that were mostly associated with sexual stimuli. Methods: A systematic search was performed to identify fMRI studies that reported brain activity during sexual stimuli. The activation foci were subjected to meta-analysis using the activation likelihood estimation (ALE) method. Subsequently, meta-analytic connectivity modelling (MACM) was used to create a model for the core brain network involved in responses to sexual stimuli. The functional properties of the network were assessed using behavioural domain (BD) metadata in the BrainMap database. Findings: An ALE meta-analysis of a total of 368 subjects showed that sexual stimuli are related to the extensive activation of the occipital-temporal-limbic system and less extensive activation of the basal ganglia. Sexual arousal activated mainly the anterior cingulate cortex and right fusiform gyrus, while sexual disgust activated the limbic system, occipital gyrus, and thalamus. MACM analysis showed a network of the core brain areas involved in response to sexual stimuli, and behavioural domain analysis indicated that these areas have both common and discrete functional properties. Interpretation: Our findings suggested that the anterior cingulate cortex is an important cognitive control area for both sexually arousing and disgust stimuli. The activation of the thalamus may indicate a general automatic response towards sexual disgust. These results revealed consistent coactivation maps across experiments and behaviours for convergent areas. Funding Statement: This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 81971595, 81771812 and 81571637), the Sichuan Science and Technology Program (2018SZ0391) and the Innovation Spark Project of Sichuan University (No. 2019SCUH0003). Declaration of Interests:There are no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. Ethics Approval Statement: Not required.

The Network of Protected Areas (NPA) as an Instrument to Implement Cross-Border Public Services

Polycentric development, territorial cohesion, and territorial diversity are some of the main principles supported at the European level for reducing regional disparities and for making territories more resilient and diversified, which strengthens the competitiveness of Europe in the global economy. This research article, starting from the final results of the ESPON Linking Networks of Protected Areas to Territorial Development (LinkPAs) project, considers that the protected areas (PAs) are a territorial unit able to connect—in a polycentric approach—the different territorial aspects (economic, social, environmental) present in an area to implement cross-border public services (CPS) to share in a larger territorial context through a network of protected areas (NPA). Toward this aim, this paper suggests applying the NPA management model developed in the ESPON LinkPAs project to CPS to assess if a soft governance mechanism is able to efficiently and sustainably manage the CPS.

Identification of the Node Importance of a Passenger Transport Network in Metropolitan Areas

To identify the node importance of a passenger transport network in metropolitan areas, this study measures the synthetical passenger node importance of cities in three aspects by considering space of flow theory in a social network. First, a framework with eight selected basic features is constructed to identify basic urban attribute indexes by using the traditional node importance method in transport network design. Second, network topology attributes (i.e., aggregation and betweenness degrees) are proposed on the basis of a passenger transport network. Third, an urban linkage model based on the gravity model is developed by considering urban linkage in metropolitan areas. The three aspects are integratively evaluated by using the entire-array-polygon method, and then cluster analysis of the comprehensive node importance of a passenger network is performed using the k-means algorithm. A case study of the Chengdu metropolitan area in Sichuan is conducted, and results verify that the proposed algorithm is reasonable and suitable for identifying the node importance of a passenger transport network in a megalopolis.

An atlas of protected hydrothermal vents

Active hydrothermal vents are valued worldwide because of the importance of their biodiversity and their influence on scientific discovery and insight about life on Earth and elsewhere in the Universe. There exist at least 20 areas and area networks with conservation measures for deep-sea hydrothermal vents, established by 11 countries and three Regional Fisheries Management Organisations, in six oceanic regions. Area-based management tools (ABMT) implemented by these countries illustrate multiple categories and means of protection and management of these rare and vulnerable habitats. Some ABMTs only regulate bottom and deep-trawling fisheries activities, others manage additional activities such as mining, scientific research, and bioprospecting, while still others protect active hydrothermal vents through broad conservation interventions. This atlas summarizes the “who”, “what”, “when”, “where” of protected hydrothermal vents worldwide and underscores recognition of the importance of hydrothermal-vent ecosystems by coastal States.

GIS modeling of flooding exposure in Dar es Salaam coastal areas

ABSTRACT Sea-Level Rise (SLR) above the Mean Sea Level can pose a considerable hazard to coastal areas. This study used an elevation-based GIS analysis to determine the physical vulnerability of Dar es Salaam coastal areas under a range of SLR scenarios. A model of possible flooded areas is created on a digital elevation model. Using this model, the impact of SLR was measured on the surface area, buildings, and road networks. The study shows that SLR will cause damage to various areas and infrastructure. In numerous areas, flooding incidences are intensified by blocked drainage channels that have garbage hampering the movement of wastewater, resulting in homes inundated by polluted wastewater.