Hazard Reduction Research Articles

2,109 randomized oncology trials map continuous, meager improvements in progression-free and overall survival over 50 years

ObjectivesTo assess the patterns and time trends in overall survival and progression-free survival treatment effects across randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in oncology. Study Design and SettingA PubMed search for oncology network meta-analyses (NMAs) was carried (to September 30, 2021). Relevant hazard ratios were extracted for systemic treatments from RCTs in the NMAs. After removing duplicate results, relationships between treatment effects, year of publication, trial design, and other features were explored. ResultsFrom 241 oncology NMAs, 2,109 unique eligible RCTs provided analyzable data. On average, there was a 12%–14% reduction in hazard for overall survival and 27%–30% reduction for progression-free survival, with substantial heterogeneity across different malignancies. Correlation between overall survival and progression-free survival treatment effects was modest (r = 0.60, 95% confidence interval, 0.56–0.64). Over time, there was a suggestive trend of increased progression-free survival treatment effect, although overall survival treatment effects remained steady. Only one in five trials met criteria for clinically meaningful improvements in overall survival. Among 300 randomly selected trials, mean absolute improvement was 1.6 months for median progression-free survival and 1.4 months for median overall survival. ConclusionBroad patterns across the past 50 years of oncology research suggest continuous progress has been made, but few results meet clinically meaningful thresholds for overall survival improvement.

Characteristics of the foundation rocks using geophysical techniques: A case study for the Egyptian solar plant site, Aswan, Egypt

The main target of the present study is to investigate the foundation layers and the subsurface structures in an Egyptian solar plant site using geophysical techniques including the seismic refraction and Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW). The studied solar park is situated at about 40 km to the north of Aswan city on the Aswan-Cairo highway road and is classified as the largest solar plant in Africa and worldwide. Due to its location in the vicinity of the most prone earthquake area in Egypt (Aswan seismic zone); it is imperative to mitigate the earthquake hazard in this region. The geophysical results show that the subsurface foundation in this site is primarily composed of two layers. The upper one is loose and incompetent soil sediments that extend down to about 10 m depth with P-wave velocity ranging from 400 to 1000 m/s and shear-wave velocity ranging from 260 to 550 m/s. The deeper section is considered the main foundation layer with velocities ranging between 650 and 1900 m/s and from 350 to 950 m/s for P-wave and shear-wave, respectively. The average shear-wave velocities calculated for the topmost 30 m (Vs30) vary almost between 319 and 834 m/s; thereby the studied site is primarily ranked into classes C&D (180-360 m/s & 360-760 m/s, respectively) according to the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) soil classification. Additionally, the southwestern and southeastern zones of the site area are characterized by maximum velocity values, relative high values of rock densities, rigidity or shear modulus “μ”, Standard Penetration Test (N-Value), ultimate bearing capacity and allowable bearing capacity, while the low values are observed through the northern and middle sectors across the area. This study an integral part of many works being carried out delineating the subsurface foundation structures around the solar plant and allows the most appropriate sites for constructing the renewable energy plants to be sited away from the highly hazards prone areas.

Prescribed burning in Pinus cubensis-dominated tropical natural forests: a myco-friendly fire-prevention tool

Aim of study: To evaluate the effects of two different prescribed burning strategies on ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal species in Pinus cubensis-dominated natural forest.
 Area of study: Yateras Silvicultural Base Business Unit, Guantánamo, Cuba.
 Material and methods: In June 2015, six plots (20 × 50 m) were subjected to forward or back burning. Nine interval samplings (performed 1 week before and up to 120 days after prescribed burning) were undertaken to determine the total number of sporocarps and to evaluate the effect of fire on the soil.
 Main results: Eight ECM species were collected from the study plots. Suillus sp. and Amanita muscaria started fruiting 15 and 60 days after the fire, respectively. Boletus sp., Suillus brevipes, Suillus decipiens, Suillus sp., Amanita muscaria, Lactarius semisanguifluus, Scleroderma stellatum and Pisolithus arhizus were found before and after prescribed burning. Sporocarp numbers showed an increasing trend after fire and significantly recovered 75 days after forward or back burning and were significantly higher 120 days after forward burning compared to unburned plots. The ECM fungal community in the heading fire and the backfire plots did not differ significantly. However, non-metric multidimensional scaling confirmed that ECM composition differed over time. According to a Mantel test, the sampling time after prescribed burning accounted for 64% of the variation in ECM composition, followed by edaphic factors (26%) such as organic matter and Na.
 Research highlights: This preliminary study suggests that low-intensity prescribed burning does not have a negative effect on ECM fungal dynamics in humid tropical forests.

Research on the pyrolysis characteristics and mechanisms of waste printed circuit boards at fast and slow heating rates

The pyrolysis treatment of waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) shows great potential for sustainable treatment and hazard reduction. In this work, based on thermogravimetry (TG), pyrolysis–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), and density functional theory (DFT), the thermal weight loss, product distribution, and kinetics of WPCBs pyrolysis were studied by single-step and multi-step pyrolysis at fast (600 °C/min) and slow (10 °C/min) heating rates. The heating rates of TG and Py-GC/MS were the same for each group of experiments. In addition, the bond dissociation energy (BDE) of WPCBs polymer monomers was calculated by DFT method. Compared with slow pyrolysis, the final weight loss of fast pyrolysis is reduced by 0.76 wt%. The kinetic analysis indicates that the activation energies of main pyrolysis stages range from 98.29 kJ/mol to 177.59 kJ/mol. The volatile products of fast pyrolysis are mainly phenols and aromatics. With the increase of multi-step pyrolysis temperature, the order of the escaping volatiles is phenols, hydrocarbyl phenols, aromatics, and benzene (or diphenyl phenol). The pyrolysis residue of WPCBs may contains phenolics and polymers. Based on the free radical reactions, the mechanism and reaction pathways of WPCBs pyrolysis were deduced by the DFT. Moreover, a large amount of benzene is produced by pyrolysis, and its formation mechanism was elaborated.

The rule of biological and microbial safety in <em>Hyssopus officinalis</em> extract for influencing mozzarella cheese functionality

Mozzarella was identified as one of the most extensively consumed dairy products. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Hyssopus officinalis extract on microbial properties, antioxidant activity, and mozzarella storage. Ultrasound was applied to gain extract and tests, such as total phenolics, antioxidant attributes, and microbial investigation were accomplished. Physicochemical features, peroxide, sensory evaluation and microbial population were assessed on mozzarella including 0, 1.13 and 1.40 μg/ml Hyssopusofficinalis extract during 45 days. The highest phenolic content was observed in rosmarinic acid (60.33 ± 2.31 mg/g) and Listeria monocytogenes was recognized as the most resistant microorganism in Hyssopus officinalis. The physicochemical results were found to be standard and the lowest peroxide was detected in the sample with the highest extract amount (1.40 μg/ml) on the 45th day. The microbial evaluation showed that mentioned extract was effective to minimize survival of Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes during storage. The reduction in contamination hazard of Escherichia coli almost 1 log CFU/mL was detected in treatment samples during storage. The Hyssopus officinalis extract was spotted as the most appropriate agent to improve functional and sensory properties of mozzarella.

Differences in Fine Particle Exposure and Estimated Pulmonary Ventilation Rate with Respect to Work Tasks of Wildland Firefighters at Prescribed Burns: A Repeated Measures Study.

Wildland firefighters (WLFFs) are exposed to a mixture of chemicals found in wildland fire smoke and emissions from nonwildland-fuel smoke sources such as diesel. We investigated compositional differences in exposure to particulate matter and explored differences in ventilation rate and potential inhaled dose relative to the work tasks of WLFFs. Repeated measures on ten professional and two volunteer firefighters were collected on prescribed burn and nonburn days. Personal monitoring consisted of real-time and gravimetric fine particulate matter (PM2.5), carbon monoxide (CO), and accelerometer measurements to estimate ventilation rate and potential dose of PM2.5. The fine particulate matter was analyzed for levoglucosan (LG) and light absorbing carbon as a surrogate for black carbon (BC). Breathing zone personal exposure concentrations of PM2.5, LG, BC, and CO were higher on burn days (P < 0.05). Differences in exposure concentrations were observed between burn day tasks (P < 0.05) with firefighters managing fire boundaries (holders) being exposed to higher CO and LG concentrations and less BC concentrations than those conducting lighting (lighters). While no statistical difference in PM2.5 exposure measures was observed between the two tasks, holders in the study tended to be exposed to higher PM2.5 concentrations (~1.4×), while lighters tended to have more inhaled amounts of PM2.5 (~1.3×). Our findings demonstrate possible diversity in the sources of particulate matter exposure at the fireline and suggest the potential importance of using dose as a metric of inhalation exposure in occupational or other settings.

P.066 The protective effect of influenza vaccination against stroke in adults

Background: Respiratory infection can be an immediate precursor to stroke and myocardial infarction (MI). Influenza vaccination is associated with reduced risk of MI. This relationship has also been suggested for stroke although it is unclear if the effect is consistent across age and risk groups. Methods: Using administrative data in Alberta from September 2009 – December 2018 we modelled the hazard of any stroke for individuals recently exposed (< 182 days) to the influenza vaccine compared to those without recent exposure adjusted for age, sex, anticoagulant use, atrial fibrillation, COPD, diabetes, hypertension, income quintile, and rural/urban home location. Results: 4,141,209 adults (29,687,899 person-years) were included; 1,769,565 (43%) received at least one vaccination in the 10-year time span. 38,126 stroke events were recorded. Adjusted for demographics and comorbidities, recent influenza vaccination significantly reduced the hazard of stroke (HR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.76 – 0.79). This effect persisted across all stroke subtypes and across all ages and risk profiles. Conclusions: There is a 23% reduction in hazard of stroke among those recently vaccinated against influenza compared to those who were not. Protection extended to the entire adult population and was not limited to high-risk groups only.

The great security convergence: joining physical devices and cyber security

With the convergence of the physical and digital worlds comes a heightened risk of security threats. Cyber security can no longer be placed on the back burner as organisations continue to incorporate physical security solutions; the likelihood and severity of an information breach rise dramatically as additional devices are contributed to one ubiquitous network.

Methodological Bases of the Fire Hazard Reduction in Internal and External 0.38 kV Electrical Networks with Unbalancing Power Consumption

The article shows that the operation modes in three-phase four-wire 0.38 kV electrical networks are objectively associated with unbalancing power consumption. As a result, significant additional electrical energy thermal losses occur in the neutral conductor’s internal electrical networks and external electrical networks l elements, which not only increase the electrical energy consumption, but also create conditions for the fire-hazardous occurrence single-phase short circuits. A mathematical model is proposed, an algorithm and a program for calculating the limit zero sequence values flows in external neutral conductors and internal 0.38 kV electrical networks are developed. Numerical calculations are made and tabular these limit values data for different conductors’ sections made of various conductive materials are presented. The unbalancing operation modes calculations in operating external and internal 0.38 kV electrical networks have been made, on the basis of which the proposed methodology has been tested. The technical means use effectiveness for the operating modes balancing in existing electrical networks with unbalance power consumption is proved.

A phase II/III trial of chemotherapy plus cetuximab versus chemotherapy plus bevacizumab versus atezolizumab plus bevacizumab following progression on immune checkpoint inhibition in recurrent/metastatic head and neck cancers: ECOG-ACRIN EA3202.

TPS6098 Background: There is no standard treatment beyond progression on first-line pembrolizumab (P) in patients with R/M HNSCC. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) modulates anti-tumor immunity via proliferation of inhibitory T regulatory and myeloid-derived suppressor cells, inhibition of dendritic cell maturation and suppression of effector T cell responses. Efficacy data from other disease sites and from early-phase trials done in HNSCC suggests promising clinical activity of VEGF and PD-1 inhibitor combination therapy. We have thus designed a Phase II/III, randomized, multi-arm trial to evaluate the efficacy of atezolizumab (A) and bevacizumab (B) beyond progression on P in patients with R/M HNSCC. Methods: EA3202 is enrolling patients with CPS ≥1% R/M HNSCC previously treated with P either alone or in combination with other checkpoint inhibitors without progression for at least 12 weeks. In phase II, patients will be randomized to one of three treatment arms: platinum doublet chemotherapy (C) plus cetuximab (E) for six cycles followed by E maintenance (control arm), C + B for six cycles followed by B maintenance, or A + B. Therapy in each arm will continue until progression, toxicity, or for a total period of two years. Patients will be stratified by p16 status, CPS score (≥ 20 vs. < 20), distant metastases (M0 vs M1), and disease progression pattern with first-line P (while on P vs. after discontinuation). 216 patients will be enrolled. The primary endpoint for phase II is progression-free survival (PFS). Each experimental arm will be compared to the control arm at a one-sided alpha level of 0.10. Pre-specified rules will be used to pick a winner among the two experimental arms, which will then advance to phase III against the control arm. 214 patients will be enrolled in phase III for a total sample size of 430 patients. The primary endpoint for phase III is overall survival (OS) which will be compared using a stratified log-rank test. Secondary endpoints include OS in the two phase III arms among the CPS ≥ 20 cohort and comparison of grade 3 or higher treatment-related adverse events between the two arms. A total of 277 OS events will be required for full information for phase III evaluation to give a nominal ̃90% power at one-sided alpha level 0.0125. 144 patients enrolled in phase II (from the control and selected experimental arms) will be included in the phase III analysis. With this design the overall study power is at least 80% under a true 40% hazard reduction for PFS and 35% hazard reduction for OS. Blood and tumor tissue will be banked. EA3202 was activated in December 2021. It is the first randomized study to compare systemic treatments for R/M HNSCC in the immunotherapy era and will define the best second-line treatment approach beyond P. Clinical trial information: NCT05063552.

Long-term low-dose acetylsalicylic use shows protective potential for the development of both vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in patients with coronary heart disease but not in other individuals from the general population: results from two large cohort studies

BackgroundNo population-based cohort study investigated a potential inverse association between long-term low-dose acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) use and all-cause dementia and its two most common sub-types Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VD) so far.MethodsCox regression models with inverse probability of treatment weighting to model the underlying cardiovascular risk were used to assess the associations of low-dose ASA use with all-cause dementia, AD, and VD incidence in community-dwelling older adults from the German ESTHER study (N = 5258) and the UK Biobank (N = 305,394). Inclusion criteria were age of 55 years or older and completed drug assessment. Meta-analyses of the individual participant data from the two prospective cohort studies were performed.ResultsFour hundred seventy-six cases of all-cause dementia, 157 cases of AD, and 183 cases of VD were diagnosed over a median of 14.3 years of follow-up in ESTHER. In the UK Biobank, 5584 participants were diagnosed with all-cause dementia, 2029 with AD, and 1437 with VD over a median of 11.6 years. The meta-analysis of both cohorts revealed a weak reduction in hazards for all-cause dementia (hazard ratio (HR) [95% confidence interval (CI)]: 0.96 [0.93 to 0.99]). The strongest protective effect of low-dose ASA was observed in participants with coronary heart disease (CHD) in both cohorts, and a significant interaction was detected. In particular, in meta-analysis, a 31% reduction in hazard for AD, 69% for VD and 34% for all-cause dementia were observed (HR [95% CI]: 0.69 [0.59 to 0.80], 0.31 [0.27 to 0.35], 0.46 [0.42 to 0.50], respectively). Furthermore, compared to non-users, users of low-dose ASA for 10 years or longer (who likely use it because they have CHD or a related diagnosis putting them at an increased risk for cardiovascular events) demonstrated a strong protective effect on all dementia outcomes, especially for VD (HR [95% CI]: 0.48 [0.42 to 0.56]) whereas no protective associations were observed with shorter low-dose ASA use.ConclusionsThe protective potential of low-dose ASA for all-cause dementia, AD, and VD seems to strongly depend on pre-existing CHD and the willingness of patients to take it for a minimum of ten years.

Karuk ecological fire management practices promote elk habitat in northern California

Abstract After a century of fire suppression and accumulating fuel loads in North American forests, prescribed burns are increasingly used to prevent conditions leading to catastrophic megafire. There is widespread evidence that prescribed fire was used by Indigenous communities to manage natural and cultural resources for thousands of years. Wildlife habitat is an example of an ecological response that was actively managed with prescribed burns by Indigenous American peoples and is an important factor in western US forest management planning, restoration and climate resilience efforts. We analysed the effects of modern prescribed burns informed by traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) on the predicted change in elk winter habitat in Karuk aboriginal territory in Northern California between 2013 and 2018 using species distribution and simultaneous autoregressive modelling techniques. Burn types most closely resembling Karuk traditional practices, specifically those incorporating multiple‐year broadcast burns, had significant positive effects on elk winter habitat suitability. Conversely, concentrated burns focused solely on reducing fuel loads had significant negative effects on elk winter habitat suitability. However, areas where these fuel‐reduction burns were combined with multiple years of broadcast burns featured the highest increases in habitat. Synthesis and applications. Our results suggest that transitioning to prescribed burns that more closely follow Karuk traditional ecological knowledge will promote elk habitat in the region. This would be best achieved through continuing to work closely with Indigenous representatives to plan and implement cultural fire prescriptions on a landscape scale, a trend we posit would benefit environmental management efforts across the globe.

Phosphorus/nitrogen compound and zinc hydroxystannate‐modified graphene oxide for efficient flame retardancy and smoke suppression of epoxy resin

AbstractDespite many important industrial applications, epoxy resin (EP) suffers from high flammability and toxicity emission. To circumvent the problem, phosphorus/nitrogen compound and zinc hydroxystannate‐modified graphene oxide is successfully fabricated. The functionalized graphene (FGO) exhibits high thermal stability and excellent dispersity in the EP matrix. The storage modulus of EP/FGO2 increases to 2713 MPa from 2176 MPa. Meanwhile, the results show a significant reduction in fire, smoke, and toxicity hazards. Compared with pure EP, incorporating only 2.0 wt% FGO2 into EP, smoke production rate, the peak heat release rate, and peak carbon monoxide production are dramatically reduced by 40.1%, 40.3%, and 37.7%, respectively. Especially, the fire growth index of EP/FGO2 is reduced by 36.0%. Moreover, the limiting oxygen index value of EP/FGO2 enhances to 28.5% and its UL‐94 achieves V‐1 rating. These superior fire safety properties are due to the catalytic, barrier effect of the FGO, the compact char blocks the diffusion of smoke and heat during combustion. This work provides an efficient strategy to prepare a promising graphene‐based flame retardant to improve the fire safety and mechanical property of EP.

Assessing the role of multiple mechanisms increasing the age of dengue cases in Thailand

The mean age of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) cases increased considerably in Thailand from 8.1 to 24.3 y between 1981 and 2017 (mean annual increase of 0.45 y). Alternative proposed explanations for this trend, such as changes in surveillance practices, reduced mosquito–human contact, and shifts in population demographics, have different implications for global dengue epidemiology. To evaluate the contribution of each of these hypothesized mechanisms to the observed data, we developed 20 nested epidemiological models of dengue virus infection, allowing for variation over time in population demographics, infection hazards, and reporting rates. We also quantified the effect of removing or retaining each source of variation in simulations of the age trajectory. Shifts in the age structure of susceptibility explained 58% of the observed change in age. Adding heterogeneous reporting by age and reductions in per-serotype infection hazard to models with shifts in susceptibility explained an additional 42%. Reductions in infection hazards were mostly driven by changes in the number of infectious individuals at any time (another consequence of shifting age demographics) rather than changes in the transmissibility of individual infections. We conclude that the demographic transition drives the overwhelming majority of the observed change as it changes both the age structure of susceptibility and the number of infectious individuals. With the projected Thai population age structure, our results suggest a continuing increase in age of DHF cases, shifting the burden toward individuals with more comorbidity. These insights into dengue epidemiology may be relevant to many regions of the globe currently undergoing comparable changes in population demographics.

Multistep enzyme cascades as a route towards green and sustainable pharmaceutical syntheses.

Enzyme cascades are a powerful technology to develop environmentally friendly and cost-effective synthetic processes to manufacture drugs, as they couple different biotransformations in sequential reactions to synthesize the product. These biocatalytic tools can address two key parameters for the pharmaceutical industry: an improved selectivity of synthetic reactions and a reduction of potential hazards by using biocompatible catalysts, which can be produced from sustainable sources, which are biodegradable and, generally, non-toxic. Here we outline a broad variety of enzyme cascades used either in vivo (whole cells) or in vitro (purified enzymes) to specifically target pharmaceutically relevant molecules, from simple building blocks to complex drugs. We also discuss the advantages and requirements of multistep enzyme cascades and their combination with chemical catalysts through a series of reported examples. Finally, we examine the efficiency of enzyme cascades and how they can be further improved by enzyme engineering, process intensification in flow reactors and/or enzyme immobilization to meet all the industrial requirements.

Effects of Prescribed Burning on Soil CO2 Emissions from Pinus yunnanensis Forestland in Central Yunnan, China

The effects of low-intensity and high-frequency prescribed burning on the soil CO2 emissions from Pinus yunnanensis forestland should be explored to achieve sustainable operation and management under fire disturbance. A Li-6400XT portable photosynthesis meter (equipped with a Li-6400-09 soil respiration chamber) and a TRIME®-PICO 64/32 soil temperature and moisture meter were used to measure the soil CO2 flux, soil temperature, and soil moisture at fixed observation sites in two treatments (i.e., unburned (UB) and after prescribed burning (AB)) in a Pinus yunnanensis forest of Zhaobi Mountain, Xinping County, Yunnan, China from March 2019 to February 2021. We also determined the relationships between the soil CO2 flux and soil hydrothermal factors. The results showed that (1) the soil CO2 flux in both UB and AB plots exhibited a significant unimodal trend of seasonal variations. In 2020, the highest soil CO2 fluxes occurred in September; they were 7.08 μmol CO2·m−2·s−1 in the morning and 7.63 μmol CO2·m−2·s−1 in the afternoon in the AB treatment, which was significantly lower than those in the UB treatment (p < 0.05). The AB and the UB treatment showed no significant differences in annual soil carbon flux (p > 0.05). (2) The relationship between the soil CO2 flux and moisture in the AB and UB plots was best fitted by a quadratic function, with a degree of fitting between 0.435 and 0.753. The soil CO2 flux and soil moisture showed an inverted U-shaped correlation in the UB plot (p < 0.05) but a positive correlation in the AB plot (p < 0.05). Soil moisture was the key factor affecting the soil CO2 flux (p < 0.05), while soil temperature showed no significant effect on soil CO2 flux in this area (p > 0.05). Therefore, the application of low-intensity prescribed burning for fire hazard reduction in this region achieved the objective without causing a persistent and drastic increase in the soil CO2 emissions. The results could provide important theoretical support for scientific implementation of prescribed burning, as well as scientific evaluation of ecological and environmental effects after prescribed burning.

Evaluating Basin-Scale Forest Adaptation Scenarios: Wildfire, Streamflow, Biomass, and Economic Recovery Synergies and Trade-Offs

Active forest management is applied in many parts of the western United States to reduce wildfire severity, mitigate vulnerability to drought and bark beetle mortality, and more recently, to increase snow retention and late-season streamflow. A rapidly warming climate accelerates the need for these restorative treatments, but the treatment priority among forest patches varies considerably. We simulated four treatment scenarios across the 3,450 km2 Wenatchee River basin in eastern Washington, United States. We used a decision support tool (DST) to assess trade-offs and synergies within and among treatments on wildfire risk and smoke emissions, water yield and snow retention, biomass production, and economic return. Treatment scenarios emphasized prescribed burning (BurnOnly), biomass production (MaxBiomass), gap-based thinning to optimize water yield (IdealWater), and a principle-based restoration scenario (RA1). Fire hazard, smoke emissions, and biomass production metrics were evaluated across scenarios using the Forest Vegetation Simulator, and water yields were modeled using the Distributed Hydrology Soil Vegetation Model. Simulations were summarized to both patch- (101–102 ha) and subwatershed- (103–104 ha) scales, and treatment effects were evaluated against an untreated baseline landscape. We used logic models to rank effect sizes by scenario across metrics along a continuum between −1 (no or weak effect) to +1 (large effect). All treatments produced benefits across one or more ecosystem services and led to synergistic benefits to water yield and wildfire hazard reduction. Tradeoffs among resource benefits were clear in wilderness where reliance on prescribed burning without mechanical treatment increased costs and eliminated the potential for biomass recovery. The BurnOnly scenario improved fire risk metrics and streamflow, but effect sizes were lower compared to other treatments. IdealWater showed the strongest benefits overall, demonstrating the ability to capture multiple resource benefits through spatially explicit thinning. Our study provides a framework for integrating strategic and tactical models that evaluate tradeoffs and synergies gained through varied management approaches. We demonstrate the utility of decision support modeling to enhance management synergies across large landscapes.

Turkey’s Primary English-as-a-foreign Language (EFL) Coursebooks: An Investigation of Emergent Literacy Tasks

Turkey’s most recent primary English language curriculum, which highlights oral skills, mandates communicative English language teaching to young English language learners. Recent primary English curriculum comprises two hours per week of English-as-a-foreign language (EFL) instruction to include listening and speaking only for Grade 2 and very limited reading and writing for Grade 3 onward. While communicative skills are highly emphasized, literacy skills are kept on the back burner as reading and writing are incorporated gradually with minimal reading and writing at earlier grade levels and some literacy practices at upper grade levels. Successful emergent literacy development in English highly depends on young language learners’ phonological (e.g. alliteration, rhyme), phonemic (i.e. sound manipulation), and orthographic awareness (i.e. spelling conventions) in English. The present study investigates to what extent Turkey’s locally-designed primary EFL coursebooks—used in 2018-2021 academic period—cater to the early literacy needs of young learners at grades two, three, and four. The study explores early literacy content in coursebooks in a mixed-methods design: qualitatively with the descriptive content analysis and quantitatively with the frequency of early literacy constructs. The results of those analyses reveal primary English coursebooks do not promote a linguistically sound and pedagogically appropriate integration of literacy skills according to principles of second language (L2) literacy acquisition at primary levels. Turkey’s misaligned early English literacy curriculum, in its current state, sends alarming messages to foreign language policy-makers, material designers, and EFL educators.

A New Model for Vertical-to-Horizontal Response Spectral Ratios for Central and Eastern North America

ABSTRACT It is a well-known fact that critical structures are required to be designed for the vertical effects of earthquake ground motions as well as the horizontal effects. We developed a new model for the spectral ratio of vertical-to-horizontal components of earthquakes (V/H ratio) for central and eastern North America (CENA). The proposed V/H ratio model has the advantage of considering the earthquake magnitude, source-to-site distance, and the shear-wave velocity of soil deposits in the upper 30 m of the site for peak ground acceleration and a wide range of spectral periods (0.01–10.0 s). The model evaluation is based on a comprehensive set of regression analysis of the compiled Next Generation Attenuation-East database of the available CENA recordings with M ≥ 3.4 and Rrup<1000 km. The median value of the geometric mean of the orthogonal horizontal motions rotated through all possible nonredundant rotation angles, known as the RotD50, is used along with the vertical component to perform regression using the nonlinear mixed-effect regression. We excluded the earthquakes and recording stations in the Gulf Coast region due to their different ground motion attenuation (Dreiling et al., 2014). To compute V/H ratios for the Gulf Coast region, we refer the readers to the study of Haji-Soltani et al. (2017). Moreover, we excluded the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program site class E sites from consideration because of their complex site response characteristics and their potential for nonlinear site effects. The predicted V/H ratios from the proposed model are compared with recently published V/H ratio models. We suggest our model to be used for developing the vertical response spectra for CENA sites.

Digital Taste in Mulsemedia Augmented Reality: Perspective on Developments and Challenges

Digitalization of human taste has been on the back burners of multi-sensory media until the beginning of the decade, with audio, video, and haptic input/output(I/O) taking over as the major sensory mechanisms. This article reviews the consolidated literature on augmented reality (AR) in the modulation and stimulation of the sensation of taste in humans using low-amplitude electrical signals. Describing multiple factors that combine to produce a single taste, various techniques to stimulate/modulate taste artificially are described. The article explores techniques from prominent research pools with an inclination towards taste modulation. The goal is to seamlessly integrate gustatory augmentation into the commercial market. It highlights core benefits and limitations and proposes feasible extensions to the already established technological architecture for taste stimulation and modulation, namely, from the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Past research on taste has had a more software-oriented approach, with a few trends getting exceptions presented as taste modulation hardware. Using modern technological extensions, the medium of taste has the potential to merge with audio and video data streams as a viable multichannel medium for the transfer of sensory information.