Central Ellipse Research Articles

Mapping the unseen: Dissecting property crime dynamics in urban Malaysia through spatial analysis

AbstractExtensive research over the years has illuminated how urban land use and development intricately influence property crime dynamics. Yet, there remains a notable paucity of simultaneous explorations of spatial–temporal patterns and their correlation with urban geography. This study aims to bridge this gap by employing advanced spatial analytical techniques, providing a nuanced understanding of how property crime is distributed and how it evolves within the urban fabric of Malaysia. This research rigorously investigates the spatial–temporal patterns of property crime within the urban context of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor in Malaysia, utilizing a novel combination of mean center and standard deviational ellipse methodologies. Concentrating on the regions of Selangor, the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, and the Federal Territory of Putrajaya, the study meticulously analyzes property crime data spanning from 2015 to 2020. This analysis uncovers pivotal insights into the distribution and trends of criminal activities. The integration of these spatial analytical techniques not only facilitates the identification of prevalent hotspots and directional tendencies in property crimes but also probes into their association with urban land use and developmental patterns. The outcomes of this study shed light on the intricate interplay between the incidence of crime and urban spatial configurations, thereby yielding significant theoretical and practical ramifications. The research makes a substantial contribution to the disciplines of criminological geography and urban planning, underscoring the indispensable role of advanced spatial analysis in devising robust crime prevention mechanisms and bolstering the safety of urban environments.

Research on the Spatial Network Structure of Tourist Flows in Hangzhou Based on BERT-BiLSTM-CRF

Tourist flows, crucial information within online travelogues, reveal the interactive relationships between different tourist destinations and serve as the nerve center and link of the tourism system. This study takes Hangzhou, China, as a case to investigate the spatial network structure of its tourist flows. Firstly, a BERT-BiLSTM-CRF model and pan-attraction database are built to extract tourist attractions from online travelogues and create the tourist flow matrix. Then, this study uses social network analysis (SNA) to examine the structure of the tourist flow network from a county-level perspective. Additionally, GIS spatial analysis methods are applied to analyze the evolution of the tourist gravity center and standard deviation ellipse (SDE) of the network. The results reveal that the identification performances of the tourist flow extraction model this study proposed are significantly better than those of previous mainstream models, with an F1 value of 0.8752. Furthermore, the tourist flow network in Hangzhou displays a relatively sparse and unbalanced distribution, forming a “Core–Semi-Periphery–Periphery” structure. Lastly, from 2020 to 2022, the network’s gravity center experienced a shift towards the southwest, paralleled by an initial expansion and subsequent contraction of the SDE in the same southwest direction. These findings provide valuable insights into the spatial network structure of tourism in Hangzhou and can serve as a reference for policymakers to promote the “all-for-one” tourism.

Spatiotemporal Distribution and Evolution Characteristics of Water Traffic Accidents in Asia since the 21st Century

As an important mode of transportation for the global trade, waterborne transportation has become a priority option for import and export trade due to its large load capacity and relatively low cost. Meanwhile, shipping safety has been highly valued. By collecting technological water traffic accident data from the EM-DAT database, the spatiotemporal distribution and evolution characteristics were investigated in Asia since 2000. The methods of gravity center and standard deviation ellipse analysis were utilized to determine the spatial and data-related characteristics of water traffic accidents. Temporally, the results indicated that accidents occurred most frequently during the seasons of autumn and winter, leading to a significant number of casualties. Spatially, both South-eastern Asia and Southern Asia emerged as regions with a high frequency of water traffic accidents, particularly along the borders of Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Bay of Bengal region. In addition, the Daniel trend test and R/S analysis were conducted to demonstrate the evolution trend of accidents across various regions and seasons. The present study provides guidance for improving marine shipping safety, emergency resource management, and relevant policy formulation.

Spatial-temporal differences and influencing factors of coupling coordination between urban quality and technology innovation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The coordinated development of urban quality and technology innovation is an important element of China's technology innovation development strategy in the new era. Based on entropy TOPSIS, coupling coordination models, the gravity center and standard deviation ellipse method, the geographic probe, the GWR, and other methods, we explore the spatial variation and influencing factors of the coupling coordination relationship between urban quality and technology innovation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area from 2011 to 2020. It is found that: (1) the spatial distribution of the coupling coordination shows a characteristic of "high in the middle and low in the surroundings," and (2) the level of benign interaction in the central region is becoming more prominent. The center of gravity of coupling coordination moves toward the northeast, and the standard deviation ellipse shows a contraction trend away from the southwest. (3) Agglomeration capacity, human capital, cultural development, and infrastructure can significantly drive the improvement of the coupling coordination of urban quality and technology innovation, and the two-factor influence is significantly increased after the interaction. (4) The feedback effects of the coupling and coordination states of different cities on each factor have significant spatial differences and show the characteristics of hierarchical band distribution.

Synergistic effects of heat and carbon on sustainable urban development: Case study of the Wuhan Urban Agglomeration

The rapid pace of urbanization has resulted in pressing climatic challenges, notably an escalation in carbon emissions and rising urban temperatures. Urban expansion frequently coincides with heightened carbon emissions, releasing substantial quantities of greenhouse gases such as CO2. This exacerbates the urban heat island (UHI) effect and poses a threat to urban living conditions. To shed light on the intricate relationship between land surface temperature (LST) and carbon emissions and provide novel insights into the synergistic regulation of “heat” and “carbon” in sustainable urban development, we conducted an in-depth investigation of the Wuhan Urban Agglomeration spanning from 2003 to 2018. Employing data on impervious surface fraction (ISF), LST, and carbon emissions, we harnessed weighted center and standard deviation ellipse analyses to explore the spatiotemporal expansion patterns of ISF, LST, and carbon emissions. We examined the relationship between LST and carbon emissions using spatial correlation analysis. The results revealed that regions with high carbon emissions and elevated LST were predominantly concentrated in the central urban areas of each city, aligned with the distribution of high-density impervious surfaces. The weighted centers of ISF, LST, and carbon emissions exhibited a progressive shift toward the central region of Wuhan, intensifying spatial clustering effects. The global Moran's I index for LST and carbon emissions increased from 0.33 in 2003 to 0.48 in 2018, signifying a strong positive correlation between LST and carbon emissions. In the clustering maps of LST and carbon emissions, the high-high clustering trend persistently expanded, signifying a shift from “dispersion” to “agglomeration” in urban heat and carbon effects. In regions marked by consistent carbon emission growth, the correlation coefficient (R) between carbon emissions and LST was 0.4, and the Pearson coefficient was 0.64, both higher than those in areas with gradual carbon emission growth. Within stable carbon emission growth areas, every 0.1-ton increase in carbon emissions has a 40% probability of a 1.33 °C temperature rise. As the rate of carbon emissions increased, the positive synergistic effect between carbon emissions and LST continued to increase. This study provides empirical support and academic groundwork to reduce urban emissions and mitigate the effects of UHIs.

Elementary Treatise on Melted-like Curves Derived from Center Ellipse and Circle

This study deals with a special case in the geometry of 2D special plane curves. The research treaties the development of a method for locating points and drawing curves derived from moving points on two curved paths of conic sections, namely, circle and ellipse. The paper presents geometrical methods to determine points and nodes and to draw these melted-like curves in two cases. Parametric equations are also used to determine the ordinates of the points of each curve of the two cases of the curves. This research is the initial phase for the new type of curves and awaits future studies that will deal on 3D surfaces, such as a sphere, a right cone, or a right cylinder.

Spatial Accessibility Analysis of Medical Facilities Based on Public Transportation Networks.

Aiming to look at the problems of the unreasonable layout of medical facilities and low coverage of primary medical services. This paper selects tertiary grade A hospitals, general hospitals, specialized hospitals, community-level hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies in the main urban areas of Chongqing as research objects. The nearest analysis, kernel density, mean center, and standard deviational ellipse method were used to analyze the spatial differentiation characteristics of medical facilities and public transportation stations. Spatial accessibility was assessed from the perspective of service area ratios and service population ratios by constructing multiple modes of transportation (pedestrian systems, bus lines, rail lines). The results show that (1) the spatial layout of medical facilities in the main urban area of Chongqing is unbalanced; and the spatial distribution of medical facilities is characterized by "large agglomeration, small dispersion" and "multi-center group"; (2) the sub-core circle is centered on the Southwest University Area in Beibei District, the University Town Area in Shapingba, the Yudong Area and Lijiatuo Area in Banan District, the Pingan Light Rail Station Area in Dadukou District, the Chongqing No. 8 Middle School Area in Jiulongpo District, the Tea Garden Area in Nanan District, and the Jiangbei Airport Area in Yubei District; (3) the medical facilities with the weakest average accessibility are tertiary grade A hospitals, and the strongest are pharmacies; (4) the areas with vital average accessibility are Yuzhong District, Shapingba District, Dadukou District, and Nanan District.

Michelangelo’s Presentations in the Sistine Chapel: Brain Evolution and the Relationship of the Brain to Specific Cognitive Functions

Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564) presented some of the most spectacular artworks of all times in frescos on the ceiling and behind the altar of the Sistine Chapel. While Michelangelo’s presentations depict events described in the Bible, there is broad consensus that Michelangelo was conveying his knowledge and theoretical ideas gleaned from his experiences with anatomic dissection. Michelangelo appears to have communicated several ideas about the brain in the images of the Days of Creation and the Last Judgment. Taking the Days of Creation and the Last Judgment together, Michelangelo appears to be symbolizing that God is in the brain, specifically the brainstem, and the brain performs mental functions. The five images on the ceiling of the chapel showing Days of Creation may be interpreted as reflecting the course of vertebrate brain evolution. There are further suggestions about brain function, including perceiving light and complex images and giving spirit to Adam. Furthermore, on the front wall of the Sistine Chapel behind the altar, within the work titled the Last Judgment, the central ellipse, in which Jesus is sitting, appears to represent a midcoronal cross section of a human brain, suggesting that it is the brain that renders judgments about good and evil.

Spatiotemporal patterns of commercial activities in Exarchia-Neapoli area.

The focus of this paper is the analysis of spatio-temporal patterns of commercial activities in the area of Exarchia-Neapoli, in Athens, during the last decade. A significant downturn during the financial crisis has left its mark on commerce along with all other sectors of the economy in Greece. However, there is poor geographical analysis up to this date, depicting the changes in spatial concentration and dispersion of shops, flourishing and decaying sectors and their spatial footprint. The main purpose of this study is to reveal these transformations in a central mixed-use neighborhood of Athens. The type of commercial activity of ground floor stores and offices in the area is recorded at three different points in time (2009, 2014, 2019). After the collection and categorization of data, spatial analysis was carried out using geostatistical indicators such as mean center and standard deviational ellipse and spatial patterns were determined through nearest neighbor analysis. Τhe analysis over space and time reveals trends and patterns of clustering and avoidance respectively, both within commercial uses and between different ones. Furthermore, their correlation with the centrality of the network (space syntax analysis) reveals not only proximity relationships, but also their strength and resilience over time. Finally, we discuss our findings in relation to the dynamics of commerce in the Exarchia area and propose scaled-up research opportunities.

Spatial Pattern Changing Analysis of Built-up Due to The New Era of Aerotropolis in Kulon Progo, D.I. Yogyakarta

Built-up is artificial land use representing urban-oriented activities according to the sector developed in the aerotropolis, the development concept of city activity centered on the globally networked economy’s airport. The growth of unplanned built-up often caused environmental deterioration. Therefore, the impact of the emerging of a new growth center to the growth characteristic of the built-up requires to be analyzed. This research aimed to examine the growth and spatial distribution characteristics of built-up to mitigate the undesirable impact on the environment in the early phase of aerotropolis in Kulon Progo. The growth was analyzed using the spatial intersection of land use/land cover. The distribution orientation growth was carried out by weighted mean center and spatial standard deviational ellipse. The results demonstrate that annual growth of built-up increased from 55.35 ha per year in 2010-2015 to 69.83 ha per year in 2015-2020. Dryland agriculture was the most land use converted to built-up after aerotropolis era. The direction of built-up growth also shifted from northwest to southwest, and the distance between the airport and the mean center was getting closer. Therefore, land use planning policy need to refer to this pattern changing to preserve environmental sustainability while achieving economic growth.

Dual-core photonic crystal fiber polarization beam splitter filled with salt water

A dual-core photonic crystal fiber polarization beam splitter filled with salt water in the central ellipse is designed and optimized by the full-vector finite element method. For a polarization beam splitter length of 31.1245 μm, the orthogonally polarized light with a bandwidth of 180 nm around 1.55 μm can be separated effectively and the extinction ratio (ER) is 139.88 dB. The photonic crystal fiber polarization beam splitter offers advantages such as the short length, high ER, and broadband characteristics and have large potential in optical communication.

Direct Computation of 3-D Stress Intensity Factors of Straight and Curved Planar Cracks with the P-Version Finite Element Method and Contour Integral Method.

This paper presents direct computations of 3-D fracture parameters including stress intensity factors (SIFs) and T-stress for straight and curved planar cracks with the p-version finite element method (P-FEM) and contour integral method (CIM). No excessive singular element or enrichment function is required for the computation. To demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed approaches, several benchmark numerical models of 3-D planar straight and curved cracks with single and mixed-mode fractures are considered and analyzed: a through thickness edge straight crack in a homogeneous material, a through thickness inclined straight crack, a penny-shaped crack embedded in a cube and a central ellipse shaped crack in a homogeneous cube. Numerical results are analyzed and compared with analytical solutions and those reported by the extended finite element method (XFEM) and the scaled boundary finite element method (SBFEM) in the available literature. Numerical experiments show the accuracy, robustness and effectiveness of the present method.

Spatial Agglomeration Pattern and Driving Factors of Grain Production in China since the Reform and Opening Up

Since the reform and opening up, regional imbalances in the development of market economy and urbanization have significantly changed the spatial agglomeration pattern of grain production (GP) in China. To characterize GP by the yield, we used the gravity center (GC) and standard deviation ellipse (SDE) to investigate the evolution characteristics of the spatial agglomeration pattern of GP and its three major crops with wheat, maize and rice in China, then establish a spatial econometric model to explore the natural and socioeconomic drivers of GP at the national level, at different crops and at different regions. The research results indicate that the GC of GP gradually shifts and expands to the northeast and presents a spatial distribution pattern in a “northeast–southwest” direction. The GC of wheat production mainly expands upwards in the east–west direction. The GC of maize production shifts in a direction that is more consistent with grain production, and there is an expansion trend in the east–west direction, while the GC of rice production has the largest north–south span, and continues to expand upward to the north by the east. The status of grain production in Northeast China and Northwest China is rising and the importance of grain production in the Southeast coastal areas are decreasing. The importance of wheat and corn production in North China continues to strengthen, and Northeast China is becoming more important for rice production, but the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River are still important rice producing regions. Changes in GP with significant spatial dependence are jointly affected by many factors, such as natural and socio-economic factors, and there are obvious differences among different food crops and different division regions, with the most prominent positive effects being the multiple crop index (MCI), arable land per capita (AL) and agricultural mechanization (MECH), while economic growth and urbanization are significantly negative.

The Spatial Analysis of the Distribution of Agro-Processing Industries in Rural Areas of Guilan Province, Iran

Purpose- The growing attention to rural development issues has created a strong trend in related scientific communities, as over the last few years one can see the traces of this thinking in many relevant scientific trends. One of the most important relevant subjects was job creation using the resources available in rural areas in line with their industrialization and the emergence of agro-processing industries. Spatial distribution of rural industries, spatial justice and their fair distribution based on the distribution of rural settlements have been among the most important concerns in this field. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the distribution of agro-processing industries with a spatial approach in rural areas of Gilan Province. Design/methodology/approach- This research is an applied one conducted in a descriptive-analytical method. The collected data were analyzed using the average nearest neighbor, multi-distance spatial cluster analysis, mean center and standard deviational ellipse. Results showed that industries in rural areas of Gilan Province have been located in clusters. Finding- That is, their sites were selected with an eye to favorable conditions such as proximity to cities, population centers and markets, access to infrastructure, proximity to political and decision-making centers, access to major roads, access to more raw materials and cheaper agro-processing industries. Such industries are often located in the counties of Rasht, Rudsar, Astar, Talesh, Lahijan, Langrud and Sowmehsara. Therefore, the officials in charge should make plans to establish agro-processing industries in a more scattered and diverse manner in Gilan Province.

Characterizing the spatial and temporal variation of the land surface temperature hotspots in Wuhan from a local scale

ABSTRACT Land Surface Temperature (LST) derived from space-borne Thermal-infrared (TIR) sensors is a key parameter of urban climate studies. Current studies are inefficient to capture the spatial and temporal variations of LST for only one snapshot adopted at one time. Focusing on the characterization of the spatial and temporal of LST variations at local scales, the latent patterns, and morphological characteristics are extracted in this study. Technically, sixteen MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) eight-day synthesized LST products (MYD11A2) in 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017 are employed. First, the non-parametric Multi-Task Gaussian Process Model (MTGP) is used to extract the smooth and continuous Latent LST (LLST) patterns using one LST subset and its temporally adjacent images. Second, the Multi-Scale Shape Index (MSSI) is then applied to quantify the morphological characteristics at the optimal scale. Then, the LLST patterns and MSSI maps are clustered into multiple spatial categories. The specific clusters with the highest LLST and MSSI values are considered as local LLST hotspots. The Hotspots Weighted Mean Center (HSWMC) and standard deviation ellipse are adopted to further investigate the spatiotemporal change of hotspots orientation, direction, and trajectories. Results revealed that Impervious Surfaces (IS) composition is the most significant external forcing of local LST anomalies. The configuration factors (e.g., shape index, aggregation index) also have a noticeable local warming effect. This study represents a latent pattern and morphology-based framework for LST hotspots spatial and temporal variations characterization, catering to the zoning and grading strategies in urban planning.

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel Frescoes: communications about the brain

ABSTRACT In a 1990 JAMA cover story Frank Meshberger reported that Michelangelo’s central composition on the Sistine Chapel ceiling (1508–1512), The Creation of Adam, portrays God in the form of a brain. The present report suggests that Michelangelo’s images on the chapel ceiling depicting Creation describe the course of vertebrate brain development. Further, on the front wall of the Sistine Chapel, within the work titled The Last Judgment (1525–1541), the central ellipse, where Jesus is making judgments about good and evil, represents a mid-coronal cross-section of a human brain, implying that the brain is man’s instrument for making decisions.

Impervious Surface Expansion: A Key Indicator for Environment and Urban Agglomeration—A Case Study of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area by Using Landsat Data

Impervious surface (IS) is a key indicator to measure the urbanization process and ecological environment. Many studies have observed an urbanization process based on IS at the city scale. Understanding the changes in the IS over a period at a regional level offers an alternative and effective approach to characterize and quantify the spatial process of urban agglomeration. This study focuses on the urban agglomeration of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) by utilizing the sensor-based Landsat data during 1987-2017 and investigates the spatiotemporal distribution of IS expansion at both regional and city scales. The modified linear spectral mixture analysis (MLSMA) method is used to extract the IS of the GBA. Then, the IS mapping accuracies were assessed after comparison with high-resolution historical data. The spatiotemporal and directional changes of IS surfaces for GBA are analyzed by using Gravity Center (GC) and Standard Deviational Ellipse (SDE). Finally, Shannon’s Diversity Index (SHDI) is used to analyze the overall characteristics of landscape level, and the Patch Density (PD) and Landscape Shape Index (LSI) are used to describe the characteristics of different classes of the IS. The results show that the IS of the whole region experienced rapid and massive expansion during the past 30 years and exhibited a distinct characteristic along the Pearl River Delta (PRD) and the coastline. Furthermore, the IS area increased rapidly in the PRD, while it is relatively stable in Hong Kong and Macao. We believe that the findings of this study can help policy makers to better understand and maintain the sustainable development of the GBA.

The Spill Over of Crime from Urban Centers: An Account of the Changing Spatial Distribution of Violent Crime in Guyana

As the rate of crime decelerates in the developed world, the opposite phenomenon is being observed in the developing world, including Latin America and the Caribbean. Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean has been concentrated in urban settings, but the expertise for studying crime and providing guidance on policing remain heavily rooted in the developed world. A hindrance to studying crime in the developing world is the difficulty in obtaining official data, allowing for generalizations on where crime is concentrated to persist. This paper tackles two challenges facing crime analysis in the developing world: the availability of data and an examination of whether crime is concentrated in urban settings. We utilized newspaper archival data to study the spatial distribution of crime in Guyana, South America, across the landscape, and in relation to rural indigenous villages. Three spatial analysis tools, hotspot analysis, mean center, and standard deviation ellipse were used to examine the changing distribution of crime across 20 years. Based on 3900 reports of violent crime, our analyses suggest that the center of the gravity of crime changed over the years, spilling over to indigenous peoples’ landscapes. An examination of murder, where firearms and bladed weapons were the weapons of choice, suggests that these weapons moved beyond the coastal zone. The movement of weapons away from the coast raises concerns for the security of indigenous peoples and their associated wildlife. Our analysis suggests that policing measures should seek to extend towards Amerindian landscapes, and this is perhaps indicative of Latin American states with demographics similar to Guyana’s.

Statistical significance of spatial correlation patterns in armoured gravel beds

ABSTRACTStructure function analyses are increasingly used to investigate spatial correlation patterns of river bed roughness. However, traditional structure function analyses remain mostly qualitative as the statistical significance of correlation patterns has not been explicitly addressed. This paper proposes a methodology for the analysis of 2D second-order structure functions based on statistical significance testing. Using data from flume experiments with gravel beds, a method to create surrogate rough beds is proposed. The surrogate beds are subsequently used to carry out Monte-Carlo simulations which in turn are used to evaluate statistical significance of the structure functions values. The method is applied to two datasets of gravel surfaces and the results are used to investigate the physical meaning of the obtained significance patterns. The results confirm previous studies that the orientation of large grains can be described by 2D second-order structure functions through a central ellipse reflecting areas of high spatial correlation. The main axes of the ellipses can hence be interpreted to define characteristic roughness length scales. The novelty of the present paper is that the proposed significance testing allows for a more rigorous definition of the spatial extent of the central ellipse.

360° deterministic magnetization rotation in a three-ellipse magnetoelectric heterostructure

A magnetic dipole-coupled magnetoelectric heterostructure comprised of three closely spaced ellipse shapes was designed and shown to be capable of achieving deterministic in-plane magnetization rotation. The design approach used a combination of conventional micromagnetic simulations to obtain preliminary configurations followed by simulations using a fully strain-coupled, time domain micromagnetic code for a detailed assessment of performance. The conventional micromagnetic code has short run times and was used to refine the ellipse shape and orientation, but it does not accurately capture the effects of the strain gradients present in the piezoelectric and magnetostrictive layers that contribute to magnetization reorientation. The fully coupled code was used to assess the effects of strain and magnetic field gradients on precessional switching in the side ellipses and on the resulting dipole-field driven magnetization reorientation in the center ellipse. The work led to a geometry with a CoFeB ellipse (125 nm × 95 nm × 4 nm) positioned between two smaller CoFeB ellipses (75 nm × 50 nm × 4 nm) on a 500 nm PZT-5H film substrate clamped at its bottom surface. The smaller ellipses were oriented at 45° and positioned at 70° and 250° about the central ellipse due to the film deposition on a thick substrate. A 7.3 V pulse applied to the PZT for 0.22 ns produced 180° switching of the magnetization in the outer ellipses that then drove switching in the center ellipse through dipole-dipole coupling. Full 360° deterministic rotation was achieved with a second pulse. The temporal response of the resulting design is discussed.