Specific Geographical Locations Research Articles

Extreme Weather Loss and Damage Estimation Using a Hybrid Simulation Technique

History has shown that occurrences of extreme weather are becoming more frequent and with greater impact, regardless of one’s geographical location. In a risk analysis setting, what will happen, how likely it is to happen, and what are the consequences, are motivating questions searching for answers. To help address these considerations, this study introduced and applied a hybrid simulation model developed for the purpose of improving understanding of the costs of extreme weather events in the form of loss and damage, based on empirical data in the contiguous United States. Model results are encouraging, showing on average a mean cost estimate within 5% of the historical cost. This creates opportunities to improve the accuracy in estimating the expected costs of such events for a specific event type and geographic location. In turn, by having a more credible price point in determining the cost-effectiveness of various infrastructure adaptation strategies, it can help in making the business case for resilience investment.

Reporting of mycetoma cases from skin and soft tissue biopsies over a period of ten years: A single center report and literature review from Pakistan

Mycetoma is an important neglected tropical disease associated with debilitation, disfigurement and death if not diagnosed and treated adequately. In Pakistan, mycetoma cases have frequently been diagnosed in histopathology and microbiology laboratories. However, there is scarcity of published data from this country. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to evaluate the frequency and type of mycetoma reported in skin and soft tissue biopsies from a single center over 10 years and review of published literature from Pakistan. This descriptive observational retrospective study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital laboratory, Karachi, Pakistan. Laboratory data from 2009-2018 of skin and soft tissue biopsies with positive findings of mycetoma were retrieved from hospital information system. The variables for statistical analysis were age and gender of patient, anatomical site of lesion, residence of patient (geographical location) in the country, etiologic agents of mycetoma and significant gross and microscopic histopathological findings. The data was entered, and descriptive epidemiologic assessment was carried out using MS excel 2013. Geographical information system was used for mapping the location. Literature review of mycetoma cases reported from Pakistan was done on PubMed, Google search and PakMediNet from 1980 till April 2019. During ten years of study period, 89 skin and soft tissue biopsies were reported as mycetoma, majority were eumycetoma [n = 66/89 (74%)] followed by actinomycetoma [n = 23/89 (26%)]. Involvement of lower limb was predominantly observed [n = 74/89 (83%)] in which foot had significant contribution [n = 65/74 (88%)]. Only 18 specimens were submitted for microbiological assessment and six grew agents of mycetoma, with Madurella mycetomatis reported in only three. Well-formed granuloma formation was observed in only 26%[n = 23/89] of cases. Specific geographical location was not identified, and cases were reported from across the country. From Pakistan, only two original papers and 7 case reports were available in published literature. This single center study reports a handful of cases of mycetoma from Pakistan. We conclude that the index of suspicion should remain high among treating surgeons and physicians and clinical laboratories should improve their diagnostic capacity and skills. This will have a great impact on disease outcome and patient's life.

Modified load flow algorithm suitable for modern power systems under variable weather conditions

Conventional load flow algorithms are very commonly used in the system planning. In the conventional load flow methods, system electrical parameters at specific weather conditions will be considered. These methods gives results for given loading condition and have no provision to incorporate weather condition of a specific geographical location. If the load flow has the provision to incorporate the dynamic electrical characteristics of the conductors based on the operating weather condition, the results of the methods are going to be more accurate or in other words the results are close to the real values. In view of the above, in this paper a modified load flow algorithm incorporating the thermal modeling of the conductors with ambient temperature, wind velocity, conductor surface absorptivity, global solar radiation, Wind direction factor etc. is proposed. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, the thermal mathematical model of transmission lines available in IEEE Std. 738™ -2006, IEEE Std. 738™ -2012 and CIGRE WG 22.12 are considered. In the proposed algorithm, new variables corresponding to Conductor Temperature are incorporated. The proposed algorithm is tested with the real time weather data of India and demonstrated on IEEE 30 and 118 bus systems.

Study on the ground mechanics index of deep soft foundation sections in the Dongting Lake region

Due to its special geographical location, the Dongting Lake Plain has formed a unique Dongting Lake phase deep soft ground layer. In order to investigate its stratigraphic mechanical index, a research was carried out using pile foundation static load test and pile body stress test based on a trans-Dongting Lake high speed project. The results of the study show that the ultimate bearing capacity of the test piles in this project is greater than the ultimate bearing capacity of the piles proposed by the design, and the reasons for this deviation according to the pile stress test are mainly due to the clay layer, silty powder clay layer and the side friction resistance of the fine gravel layer at the end of the pile are significantly greater than the recommended value of the ground investigation data, while the side friction resistance of the fine sand layer, powder fine sand layer and gravel sand layer is basically the same as the recommended value of the ground investigation data, This can be used as a reference for similar projects in the future.

Construction and Restoration of Landscape Ecological Network in Urumqi City Based on Landscape Ecological Risk Assessment

The ecological protection and sustainable development of Urumqi have become an important part of the high-quality growth of the urban agglomeration on the northern slope of Tianshan Mountain. Under the impacts of multi-source factors, the ecological landscape pattern of Urumqi has changed due to it being in a fragile eco-environment, so an ecological network is desperately needed to enhance ecological security patterns. Taking Urumqi city as the study area, the ecological risk evaluation model and the minimum cumulative resistance model were integrated to analyze the spatial and temporal features of landscape ecological risk from 2000 to 2020, and the future land use simulation model was used to predict the ecological risk pattern of Urumqi in 2030, construct a landscape ecological network, and propose ecological security protection strategies. Since 2000, land use in Urumqi has undergone drastic changes: the built-up land area has increased significantly, the landscape has diversified, and landscape fragmentation has shown a decreasing trend from the main urban area as the core to the urban fringe. The high-risk landscape ecology shows a decreasing trend from east to west, mainly in the bare land areas with sparse vegetation, whereas the risk is relatively low in woodland, arable land, and built-up areas. The change of risk in the study area is mainly influenced by the typical defective factors of oasis cities such as urban expansion, land desertification, and sparse vegetation. The landscape ecological network is mainly located in the southwest, central, and east of the study area, whereas there is no corridor distribution in the north and southeast, which is mainly caused by the special geographical location and climatic conditions. The ecological network mainly consists of 10 ecological sources and 10 ecological corridors and proposes conservation strategies for the optimization of the landscape pattern and for the construction of the ecological security pattern in Urumqi, providing a guide for the improvement of ecological security.

Genomic Comparisons of Alphacoronaviruses and Betacoronaviruses from Korean Bats.

Coronaviruses are well known as a diverse family of viruses that affect a wide range of hosts. Since the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, a variety of bat-associated coronaviruses have been identified in many countries. However, they do not represent all the specific geographic locations of their hosts. In this study, full-length genomes representing newly identified bat coronaviruses in South Korea were obtained using an RNA sequencing approach. The analysis, based on genome structure, conserved replicase domains, spike gene, and nucleocapsid genes revealed that bat Alphacoronaviruses are from three different viral species. Among them, the newly identified B20-97 strain may represent a new putative species, closely related to PEDV. In addition, the newly-identified MERS-related coronavirus exhibited shared genomic nucleotide identities of less than 76.4% with other Merbecoviruses. Recombination analysis and multiple alignments of spike and RBD amino acid sequences suggested that this strain underwent recombination events and could possibly use hDPP4 molecules as its receptor. The bat SARS-related CoV B20-50 is unlikely to be able to use hACE2 as its receptor and lack of an open reading frame in ORF8 gene region. Our results illustrate the diversity of coronaviruses in Korean bats and their evolutionary relationships. The evolution of the bat coronaviruses related ORF8 accessory gene is also discussed.

An Overview on Recycling of Photovoltaic Modules at the End of Life (EoL)

Due to the current situation of fossil fuels eradication and over-exploitation across the world. The energy demands of the world are to be fulfilled by renewable energy sources. Among these Solar energy has the maximum potential to be exploited to the maximum level to full fill the energy demands of the world. Renewable energies contribute to the environmental, social, and economic development of countries [1]. There are various of clean and renewable energy sources such as Solar, biomass, wind, hydrogen, fuel cell, nanocomposite, and supercapacitor. Each of the energy sources are suitable for specific geographical locations and can suits from region to region [6]. Since ages Sun has been praised as a vitalizer of life. The total Solar energy absorbed by Earth's atmosphere, oceans and land masses is approximately 122 PW·year = 3,850,000 exajoules (EJ) per year. Most of the world's population live in areas with insolation levels of 150– 300 watts/m2, or 3.5–7.0 kWh/m2 per day [2 google- Solar Wikipedia]. Solar energy is the most secure and ubiquitous source of energy to meet the power needs after coal exploitation. In present time installation of photovoltaic (PV) Solar modules are growing extremely fast. As result of the increase, the volume of modules that reach the end of their life will grow at the same rate in the near future. Global installed PV capacity reached around 773 GW at the end of 2020 [3] and is expected to rise further to 2840 GW by 2030 and 4500 GW by 2050 [4, 5-Abstract ]. Considering an average module lifetime of 25 years, the worldwide Solar PV waste is anticipated to reach between 4%-14% of total generation capacity by 2030 and rise to over 80% (around 78 million tonnes) by 2050 [5-Abstract]. Therefore, the disposal of PV modules will become a pertinent environmental issue in the next decades. Eventually, there is plenty of room for progress in this area. This review present core reality of Photovoltaic Life Cycle, Photovoltaic Technology, Photovoltaic Recycling Process as well as global Waste Management Regulation in different countries and the Environmental & Economic Aspects of recycling. At present, PV recycling management in many countries envisages to extend the duties of the manufacturers of PV materials to encompass their eventual disposal or reuse. However, further improvements in the economic viability, practicality, high recovery rate and environmental performance of the PV industry with respect to recycling its products are indispensable. There is potential to develop new pathway for PV waste management industry development and offer employment and prospects for both public and private sector investors. Keywords: Recycling, End of life (EoL), Photovoltaic, Waste, Regulatory, c-Si, Thin film, Life cycle

Climate-related financial risk assessment on energy infrastructure investments

This study assesses climate-related financial risks on energy infrastructure investments. We conduct an asset-level and forward-looking risk assessment on three downstream energy assets: natural gas, coal, and solar photovoltaic power plants. We first identify climate risk factors (physical and transition) that an asset is highly exposed to with its specific asset type, geographic location, time frame, and financing structure and build plausible climate risk scenarios using single or multiple risk factors. We then project an energy asset's cash flow and estimate the asset's probability of default under the built scenarios. We compare the financial impacts of varying climate risk scenarios by analyzing the time and size of the losses due to the given default. We observe climate-related financial risks that are systematic and idiosyncratic: some scenarios affect certain energy assets negatively and others positively, while others negatively affect multiple asset types simultaneously. Our comparative case study results also show that renewable energy investments are likely to be more resilient to climate change than fossil fuel-based energy assets.

Between Uncertainty, Submission and Hope - Experiences and Reflections on Waiting by Theater Migrants

While flight and exile are primarily associated with movement, this article aims to examine their static side, focusing on the element of waiting in the refugee and exile processes of theatre migrants. Examining the memoirs of the playwright, theatre manager and journalist, Heinrich Börnstein (1805–1892), and the documentary stage production What They Want to Hear (2018, Kammerspiele München) by the Argentinian director Lola Arias, it seeks to identify the subjective experiences of waiting of individual theatre makers and asks how they are configured in different settings and over time, in specific geographic and political locations. These subjective experiences of theatre migrants viewed through the analytical lens of waiting provide – as will be shown – crucial insights into social organising principles and power hierarchies.

Protocolo diagnóstico y tratamiento de la afectación neurológica en las parasitosis

Parasitic diseases that affect the central nervous system are associated with high mortality and morbidity, especially in countries with few resources. In spite of this, these diseases continue to be neglected. These infections are more and more common in our setting due to migration, international travel, and immunosuppressive treatments. The most common parasitic disease with neurological involvement is cysticercosis. These diseases can cause seizures, cognitive impairment, sensory deficits or movement abnormalities, and, on occasion, significant life-long sequelae. The characteristics of each parasite, with their lifecycles and specific geographic location, as well as the clinical manifestations, which are nonspecific and overlap in many cases, greatly hinder the diagnosis of these diseases. Below, the main parasitic diseases caused by cestodes, trematodes, nematodes, and protozoa that cause neurological manifestations are reviewed and a simplified algorithm for their diagnosis and treatment is proposed.

The magnetic field self-display system of coupler for wireless power transfer systems based on magnetic structure factor

The magnetic field surrounding wireless power transfer (WPT) systems is difficult for the general public to discern in practice. To address this problem, a system that only measures the current in the coils for transferring and receiving to get the coupler’s magnetic field strength at a specific geographic location in space is proposed. The system includes a current transformer, inductive power-harvesting device, rectifier module, voltage regulation module, microprocessor, AD module, and display module. Due to the fixed mechanical structure and position of the coupler when working, the calculation model of the magnetic field of the coupler is established, and the magnetic structure factor based on the mechanical structure of the coupler is defined. The system can obtain power and operate based on the inductive power harvesting principle without damaging the WPT system structure. It also can realize the convenient display of the magnetic field and avoid the dependence on professional instruments when measuring the magnetic field of the coupler. In addition, it is easy to implement in practice.

Preliminary studies on soil radon activity at geothermal hotspot of Bakreswar-Tantloi

Bakreswar-Tantloi region of India, besides being a geothermally active region, also harbours a high amount of Radon in soil-gas and groundwater of the region. Measurement of Radon-content across the region is an active area of research aimed to properly understand the geothermal potential of the region, the study of local geology and to determine the risks of Radon exposure in the area. In an aim to evaluate the Radon potential of this important geothermal hub, we have done a pilot study on the region by doing spot measurements of Soil-Radon activity in 41 specific geographic locations spread out across the region of interest which will act as groundwork for further in-depth analysis. The measurements showed that Radon activity varies widely in the region with the Radon activity ranging from 1 to 52 across the measured locations. Mean Radon activity across the measured locations was found to be 16 with standard deviation of the sample set of 14 Seven locations recorded Radon activity to be greater than standard deviation from average while four locations recorded Radon activity greater than twice the standard deviation from average.

To Develop a Model for 4g LTE and Predictable 5G at 3500 Mhz that Would Predict the Path Loss for the Environment in Semi-Urban or Mixture of Urban and Rural Surroundings at Specific Geographical Locations

Abstract: In wireless communication, a planned network is given by the path loss model. Link budgeting, coverage prediction, and system performance optimization are indispensable in developing an accurate, simple, and general path loss model. To predict path loss in a particular environment each type of path loss propagation model is designed, it may be inaccurate in another different environment. In this paper, we are trying to predict a path loss model of Durgapur considering a particular place with a mixture of high-rise buildings, sub-urban, open, and foliage environments. For this proposal, the model area has been divided into twelve sectors taking 30° sectoring of radii 5 km and applying the path loss model for the calculation of path loss. Index Terms: Path loss, Predicted model, Outdoor propagation model consideration, Cell site selection, results, and discussions.

“I Just Wanna Be a Woman”: Some Not So Simple Ways: Families, Femininity and/as Affective Entanglement

Catherine is age 21 years. She is part of a research project that has followed her life from age 4 until 21 years. She is driving along in her car and we hear a song, with the lines “I just wanna be a woman” sung plaintively over and over again. This article considers what the song might mean in the context of what we learn from a very close reading of observation and interview data with her, her parents, and teachers at various stages of her life. The article describes the process of conducting a slow reading and argues that it presents to us an approach to what I call “affective entanglement” as an antidote to classificatory prescriptions of causality. We begin to understand how the complexity of the entanglement of family lives, lived at particular historical periods and in specific geographical locations, gives us a detailed insight into not only the entanglements that shape Catherine’s life, but also allow us to understand something about the affective transmission of class, gender, and sexuality in all its complexity.

Comparative Genomics Identifies Features Associated with Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Transmission in Hospital Settings.

ABSTRACTMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a serious public health concern in the United States. Patients colonized and/or infected can transmit MRSA to healthcare workers and subsequent patients However, the components of this transmission chain are just becoming evident, including certain patient factors, specific patient-healthcare worker interactions, and microbial factors. We conducted a comparative genomic analysis of 388 isolates from four hospitals in three states: Maryland, California, and New York. Isolates from nasal surveillance or clinical cultures were categorized as high, moderate, or low transmission surrogate outcomes based on the number of times the species was identified on the gloves or gowns of healthcare providers. The comparative analyses included a single gene, multigene, and core genome phylogenetic analysis, as well as a genome-wide association analysis to identify molecular signatures associated with the observed transmission surrogate outcomes, geographic origin, or sample source of isolation. Based on the phylogenetic analysis, 95% (n = 372) of the MRSA isolates were from four well-described genomic clades, with most of the isolates being part of the USA300 containing clade (n = 187; 48%). Genome-wide association studies also identified genes that were exclusive or prevalent among specific geographic locations. The identified genes provide insights into the transmission dynamics of MRSA isolates providing additional insights into the basis of the geographical differences of MRSA for molecular diagnostics.IMPORTANCE Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is considered a serious threat to public health and contributes to the dissemination of S. aureus in both the healthcare and community setting. Transmission of MRSA between patients via healthcare worker (HCW) has been described. However, what is not understood are the genetic determinants that contribute to the transmission of MRSA from patients to HCWs. In this study, we demonstrated that certain genes may be associated with transmission in the hospital setting.

An integration of UPLC-Q-TOF/MS and chemometrics analysis for the holistic quality evaluation of different geographical Paederia scandens.

Due to the special geographical location and climate of China, there are large differences in the chemical composition and content of Paederia scandens (PS) from different origins, which will have a large impact on its efficacy. An efficient quality control method for PS was established by combining ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry analyses. First, a UPLC-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry system was employed to identify the chemical composition of PS from seven different origins. Then, the chemical variation in 73 batches of PS samples was subsequently investigated by quantitation of four marker compounds. A total of 15 common compounds were identified in the samples of PS from seven origins. And four of the marker compounds were chosen based on VIP values to characterize the differences between PS samples of different origins. The linearity ranged between 0.005 and 2.500 mg/mL; the correlation coefficients (r2 ) ranged from 0.999 to 1; the limits of detection ranged from 0.013 to 0.033 μg/mL; and the relative standard deviations for repeatability, precisions, and stabilities were below 0.2%, 1.6%, and 0.6%, respectively. The results show that the method can be effective and comprehensive in evaluating the quality of PS from different origins. And this comprehensive strategy proved to be a powerful technique used to differentiate between different geographical herbs.

Flavonoids and essential oil composition of Stachys lavandulifolia, Teucrium polium, Thymus daenensis and Ziziphora clinopodioides

Iran has different environmental conditions due to its specific geographical location. Therefore, exploring essential oil and flavonoid components among medicinal plants in different areas may result in discoveries about valuable bioactive compounds. The present investigation aimed to study flavonoids profile and essential oils composition of four Lamiaceae species i.e., Stachys lavandulifolia, Teucrium polium, Thymus daenensis and Ziziphora clinopodioides from Oshtorankoh located on Zagros Mountains, Iran. A chemical study using two dimentional paper chromatography (2-DPC) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) showed that the four studied species contained flavone C and C-/O glucosides and flavonoid sulphates. The present study revealed that T. polium had high levels of many flavonoids such as apigenin, genistein, isorhamnetin, kaempferol, quercetin, rutin, and vitexin compared to the other studied plants. The results of GC/MS analysis showed that S. lavandulifolia was rich in ?-pinene (21.16 %) and 1,8-cineol (16.95 %), T. polium in ?-pinene (12.21 %) and sabinene (9.55 %), T. daenensis in ?-Terpinene (36.98 %) and p-Cymene (26.87 %), and Z. clinopodioides in piperitone (16.84 %) and 1,8-cineol (16.11 %) components.

SWOT Analysis of the Regional Economic Development of Western Part of Guangdong Province — Take Zhanjiang City as a Case Study

The western part of Guangdong is an important part of Guangdong province, it owns myriads of natural resources, special geographical location, and stores rich crude oil. And economic development of western Guangdong will have significant impact on economic development of its surrounding provinces, such as Guangxi and Hainan. And Zhanjiang, as a center city in the western part of Guangdong province, plays an essential role in the economic development of the western Guangdong, and her economic development would fuel the development of three regions: Guangxi, Hainan and Guangdong. So, in this study, it will take Zhanjiang city in the southwest of Guangdong Province as an example, and will make a SWOT(An acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)analysis of Zhanjiang's economic development factors on the basis of three national dividend policies, Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hongkong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Development Planning of Guangxi Beibu Gulf Economic Zone, and the Overall Plan for the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port, and then it would put forward the author's suggestions on how to make good use of the strengths and opportunities of this region from the perspective of regional economics.

Target localization based on cross-view matching between UAV and satellite

Matching remote sensing images taken by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with satellite remote sensing images with geolocation information. Thus, the specific geographic location of the target object captured by the UAV is determined. Its main challenge is the considerable differences in the visual content of remote sensing images acquired by satellites and UAVs, such as dramatic changes in viewpoint, unknown orientations, etc. Much of the previous work has focused on image matching of homologous data. To overcome the difficulties caused by the difference between these two data modes and maintain robustness in visual positioning, a quality-aware template matching method based on scale-adaptive deep convolutional features is proposed by deeply mining their common features. The template size feature map and the reference image feature map are first obtained. The two feature maps obtained are used to measure the similarity. Finally, a heat map representing the probability of matching is generated to determine the best match in the reference image. The method is applied to the latest UAV-based geolocation dataset (University-1652 dataset) and the real-scene campus data we collected with UAVs. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and superiority of the method.

Spatiotemporal variations in evapotranspiration and its influencing factors in the semiarid Hailar river basin, Northern China

Evapotranspiration (ET) is a critical variable in the world's water cycle, and plays a significant role in estimating the impact of environmental change on the regional hydrothermal cycle. Moreover, as an essential of eco-hydrological processes, changes in ET may exceptionally impact the local climate and provide indicative information on the eco-system's functioning. The Hailar River Basin (HRB), located in northern China, is one of the most sensitive areas to climate warming. Under the influence of climate change in recent years, the vegetation dynamics of the basin have been significant and have had profound effects on the regional water cycle conditions and hydrological processes. The HRB is located in a semiarid region and ET is the main mode of water consumption. The ET response to climate change and vegetation dynamics is the focus of research on ecohydrological processes in this basin. In this study, a distributed hydrological model, the BTOPMC model, is used to evaluate the actual ET in the HRB from 1981 to 2020, based on in situ meteorological data as well as LAI data obtained by satellite remote sensing. The seasonal, interannual and spatial dynamics of ET were characterized. The contribution of meteorological factors to ET was calculated by sensitivity analysis and multiple linear regression analysis, and the predominant elements influencing the difference in ET in the HRB were also discussed. The results show that: (1) estimated ET values can clarify over 85% of the seasonal variation in the observed values (R2= 0.79, P < 0.001; R2= 0.84, P < 0.001), which demonstrates that the model has a high precision. (2) Over the past 40 years, the annual ET has shown a clear increasing trend and a large spatial heterogeneity in its spatial distribution, which is consistent with the trend of vegetation. It mainly shows that the eastern forest area is larger than the central forest–grass transition area and the western meadow steppe area. (3) Sensitivity and influential factor contribution analyses show that the main factor driving interannual variability in ET is climate warming, followed by precipitation. At the same time, vegetation dynamics also play a crucial role in ET, especially in areas with different vegetation types and high coverage, while climatic factors also have a strong influence on ET indirectly through vegetation. Due to its special geographic location, the HRB is more sensitive to global climate change and is a typical ecologically fragile area. Therefore, this study has important scientific value and social significance for maintaining ecological security and the sustainable use of water resources.