bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Workflow to Extract the Geometry and Type of Vegetated Landscape Elements from Airborne LiDAR Point Clouds
Authors: Rosier Ine , Diels Jan , Somers Ben , Van Orshoven Jos
Published: October 2021

Rural European landscapes are characterized by a variety of vegetated landscape elements. Although it is often not their main function, they have the potential to affect river discharge and the frequency, extent, depth and duration of floods downstream by creating both hydrological discontinuities and connections across the landscape. Information about the extent to which individual landscape elements and their spatial location affect peak river discharge and flood frequency and severity in agricultural catchments under specific meteorological conditions is limited. This knowledge gap can partly be explained by the lack of exhaustive inventories of the presence, geometry, and hydrological traits of vegetated landscape elements (vLEs), which in turn is due to the lack of appropriate techniques and source data to produce such inventories and keep them up to date. In this paper, a multi-step methodology is proposed to delineate and classify vLEs based on LiDAR point cloud data in three study areas in Flanders, Belgium. We classified the LiDAR point cloud data into the classes ‘vegetated landscape element point’ and ‘other’ using a Random Forest model with an accuracy classification score ranging between 0.92 and 0.97. The landscape element objects were further classified into the classes ‘tree object’ and ‘shrub object’ using a Logistic Regression model with an area-based accuracy ranging between 0.34 and 0.95.
Remote Sensing-Based Urban Sprawl Modeling Using Multilayer Perceptron Neural Network Markov Chain in Baghdad, Iraq
Authors: Al-Hameedi Wafaa Majeed Mutashar , Chen Jie , Faichia Cheechouyang , Al-Shaibah Bazel , Nath Biswajit , Kafy Abdulla-Al , Hu Gao , Al-Aizari Ali
Published: October 2021

The global and regional land use/cover changes (LUCCs) are experiencing widespread changes, particularly in Baghdad City, the oldest city of Iraq, where it lacks ecological restoration and environmental management actions at present. To date, multiple land uses are experiencing urban construction-related land expansion, population increase, and socioeconomic development. Comprehensive evaluation and understanding of the effect of urban sprawl and its rapid LUCC are of great importance to managing land surface resources for sustainable development. The present research applied remote sensing data, such as Landsat-5 Thematic Mapper and Landsat-8 Operation Land Imager, on selected images between July and August from 1985 to 2020 with the use of multiple types of software to explore, classify, and analyze the historical and future LUCCs in Baghdad City. Three historical LUCC maps from 1985, 2000, and 2020 were created and analyzed. The result shows that urban construction land expands quickly, and agricultural land and natural vegetation have had a large loss of coverage during the last 35 years. The change analysis derived from previous land use was used as a change direction for future simulation, where natural and anthropogenic factors were selected as the drivers’ variables in the process of multilayer perceptron neural network Markov chain model. The future land use/cover change (FLUCC) modeling results from 2030 to 2050 show that agriculture is the only land use type with a massive decreasing trend from 1985 to 2050 compared with other categories. The entire change in urban sprawl derived from historical and FLUCC in each period shows that urban construction land increases the fastest between 2020 and 2030. The rapid urbanization along with unplanned urban growth and rising population migration from rural to urban is the main driver of all transformation in land use. These findings facilitate sustainable ecological development in Baghdad City and theoretically support environmental decision making.
Urban Water Quality Assessment Based on Remote Sensing Reflectance Optical Classification
Authors: Cai Xiaolan , Li Yunmei , Bi Shun , Lei Shaohua , Xu Jie , Wang Huaijing , Dong Xianzhang , Li Junda , Zeng Shuai , Lyu Heng
Published: October 2021

With the acceleration of urbanization, increasing water pollution means that monitoring and evaluating urban water quality are of great importance. Although highly accurate, traditional evaluation methods are time consuming, laborious, and vastly insufficient in terms of the continuity of spatiotemporal coverage. In this study, a water quality assessment method based on remote sensing reflectance optical classification and the traditional grading principle is proposed. In this method, an optical water type (OWT) library was first constructed using the measured in situ remote sensing reflectance dataset based on fuzzy clustering technology. Then, comprehensive scoring rules were established by combining OWTs and 12 water quality parameters, and water quality was graded into different urban water quality levels (UWQLs) based on the scoring results. Using the proposed method, the relative water quality of urban waterbodies was qualitatively evaluated at the macro level based on images from the multispectral imager of Sentinel-2. In addition, there was a significant positive correlation between the UWQLs and the water quality index (WQI). These results indicate the potential of this method for quantitative assessment of urban water quality, providing a new way to evaluate water quality using remote sensing algorithms in the future.
Accidental Combustion Phenomena at Cryogenic Conditions
Authors: Pio Gianmaria , Salzano Ernesto
Published: October 2021

The presented state of the art can be intended as an overview of the current understandings and the remaining challenges on the phenomenological aspects involving systems operating at ultra-low temperature, which typically characterize the cryogenic fuels, i.e., liquefied natural gas and liquefied hydrogen. To this aim, thermodynamic, kinetic, and technological aspects were included and integrated. Either experimental or numerical techniques currently available for the evaluation of safety parameters and the overall reactivity of systems at cryogenic temperatures were discussed. The main advantages and disadvantages of different alternatives were compared. Theoretical background and suitable models were reported given possible implementation to the analyzed conditions. Attention was paid to models describing peculiar phenomena mainly relevant at cryogenic temperatures (e.g., para-to-ortho transformation and thermal stratification in case of accidental release) as well as critical aspects involving standard phenomena (e.g., ultra-low temperature combustion and evaporation rate).
Rolling Circle and Loop Mediated Isothermal Amplification Strategy for Ultrasensitive miRNA Detection
Authors: Cao Zheng , Jiang Xianfeng , Xiao Guizhou , Xu Mingcheng , Liu Hui , Cai Sheng
Published: October 2021

Rolling circle amplification (RCA) and loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) were combined to establish the rolling circle and loop mediated isothermal amplification (RC-LAMP) method for miRNA detection. With the participation of Bst 2.0 DNA Polymerase, the method enabled RCA and LAMP amplification to occur simultaneously without thermal cycling. The limit of detection of RC-LAMP was 500 amol/L, which is comparable to previously reported amplification strategies. Moreover, its upper limit of quantitation was higher and showed a stronger resistance to matrix interference. Therefore, it is possible to detect low concentrations of miRNA in samples by increasing the total RNA added. Owing to its facile detection mode and simple operation, this method has great potential in clinical sample detection.
Targeted Characterization of the Chemical Composition of JUUL Systems Aerosol and Comparison with 3R4F Reference Cigarettes and IQOS Heat Sticks
Authors: Chen Xin , Bailey Patrick C. , Yang Clarissa , Hiraki Bryant , Oldham Michael J. , Gillman I. Gene
Published: October 2021

Aerosol constituent yields have been reported from a wide range of electronic nicotine delivery systems. No comprehensive study has been published on the aerosol constituents generated from the JUUL system. Targeted analyses of 53 aerosol constituents from the four JUUL products currently on the US market (Virginia Tobacco and Menthol flavored e-liquids in both 5.0% and 3.0% nicotine concentration by weight) was performed using non-intense and intense puffing regimens. All measurements were conducted by an ISO 17025 accredited contract research organization. JUUL product aerosol constituents were compared to published values for the 3R4F research cigarette and IQOS Regular and Menthol heated tobacco products. Across the four JUUL products and two puffing regimes, only 10/53 analytes were quantifiable, including only two carbonyls (known propylene glycol or glycerol degradants). The remaining analytes were primary ingredients, nicotine degradants and water. Average analyte reductions (excluding primary ingredients and water) for all four JUUL system aerosols tested were greater than 98% lower than 3R4F mainstream smoke, and greater than 88% lower than IQOS aerosol. In summary, chemical characterization and evaluation of JUUL product aerosols demonstrates a significant reduction in toxicants when compared to mainstream cigarette smoke from 3R4F reference cigarettes or aerosols from IQOS-heated tobacco products.
Study on the Stability of Antibiotics, Pesticides and Drugs in Water by Using a Straightforward Procedure Applying HPLC-Mass Spectrometric Determination for Analytical Purposes
Authors: Barreca Salvatore , Forni Carola , Colzani Luisa , Clerici Laura , Daverio Daniela , Dellavedova Pierluisa
Published: October 2021

The stability of analytes is a critical point in chemical analysis, especially in the field of trace levels residue analysis. Nowadays, due to advances in analytical technology and in separation sciences, the analyses of water have been improved. Unfortunately, in this context, one of the most critical issues in water analysis include compound stability from sampling station to laboratory procedures. This study was carried out to explore the stability of several compounds in water from sampling to analysis concerning analytes reported in implementing decision 2018/840—Watch List. During method development and validation, the stability of compounds was investigated to detect the best operating conditions concerning sampling, extraction and analysis. In this paper, we report a study on the stability of antibiotics, pesticides and drugs in water determined using a straight-forward procedure applying mass spectrometric detection for analytical purposes. The laboratory tests were performed in Milli-Q water and surface water by analyzing samples through direct injection, solvent mixture (Water/ACN) and solid phase extraction system from time 0 to 168 h. All the analytes of the WL are stable in aqueous solutions with the addition of at least 25% ACN even after 168 h, and the analytes have shown a matrix effect on recovery of some analytes such as Famoxadone from sampling results (recovery in surface water 72%). For all the analytes investigated, recoveries were between 70 and 130% by using SPE procedures before UHPLC-MS/MS analysis, which is in good agreement with method validation procedures.
1,2-Propylene Glycol: A Biomarker of Exposure Specific to e-Cigarette Consumption
Authors: Burkhardt Therese , Pluym Nikola , Scherer Gerhard , Scherer Max
Published: October 2021

Over the past decade, new emerging tobacco and nicotine-delivery products have changed the tobacco landscape. Especially, electronic cigarettes (ECs) have been suggested to be considered for tobacco harm reduction, reinforcing the need to identify novel biomarkers of exposure (BoE) specific to the EC use as this would complement exposure assessment and product compliance monitoring. Therefore, a sensitive LC-MS/MS method for the quantification of 1,2-propylene glycol (PG) and glycerol (G), the main e-liquid constituents, was established. PG and G were analyzed in plasma and urine samples from a clinical study comparing five nicotine product user groups, users of combustible cigarettes (CC), electronic cigarettes (EC), heated tobacco products (HTP), oral tobacco (OT), and oral/dermal nicotine delivery products (used for nicotine replacement therapy, NRT) with a control group of non-users (NU). Data demonstrate significantly elevated PG levels in urine and plasma in EC users compared to users of CC, HTP, NRT, OT as well as NU. In addition, PG in plasma and urine of vapers significantly correlated with nicotine (plasma) and total nicotine equivalents (urine), biomarkers reflecting product consumption, emphasizing the high specificity of PG as a BoE for EC consumption. We therefore suggest the use of PG as BoE in urine and/or plasma in order to monitor EC use compliance in exposure assessments.
Blind Source Separation in Polyphonic Music Recordings Using Deep Neural Networks Trained via Policy Gradients
Authors: Schulze Sören , Leuschner Johannes , King Emily J.
Published: October 2021

We propose a method for the blind separation of sounds of musical instruments in audio signals. We describe the individual tones via a parametric model, training a dictionary to capture the relative amplitudes of the harmonics. The model parameters are predicted via a U-Net, which is a type of deep neural network. The network is trained without ground truth information, based on the difference between the model prediction and the individual time frames of the short-time Fourier transform. Since some of the model parameters do not yield a useful backpropagation gradient, we model them stochastically and employ the policy gradient instead. To provide phase information and account for inaccuracies in the dictionary-based representation, we also let the network output a direct prediction, which we then use to resynthesize the audio signals for the individual instruments. Due to the flexibility of the neural network, inharmonicity can be incorporated seamlessly and no preprocessing of the input spectra is required. Our algorithm yields high-quality separation results with particularly low interference on a variety of different audio samples, both acoustic and synthetic, provided that the sample contains enough data for the training and that the spectral characteristics of the musical instruments are sufficiently stable to be approximated by the dictionary.
The Favela as a Place for the Development of Smart Cities in Brazil: Local Needs and New Business Strategies
Authors: Portugal Pedro Henrique Ferreira , Moreira Jéssica Freire , Póvoas Marcelo dos Santos , Silva Carlos Alberto Figueiredo da , Guedes André Luis Azevedo
Published: October 2021

Smart cities are a natural evolution of the concept of sustainable cities. These cities can be analyzed by social, economic, environmental, and technological biases. For this work, we chose the social and economic vision, with a special focus on the poorest and most vulnerable territories of Brazilian cities. These territories in Brazil are called slums, places of poverty but with opportunities for the development of the creative economy with its own brand. Seen by many in a simplistic way, summed up to be geographic spaces of drug circulation dominated by trafficking, Brazilian favelas have been consolidating themselves as a storehouse of innovative minds, a creative territory with multiple and complex cultures. These places today are capable of producing a positive image with potential for market exploitation. Therefore, the objective was to draw a relationship between the creative economy, branding and favelas, considering the concept of smart cities that include products and services from the slums. The present study shows the results of a survey and a bibliographic analysis based on the methodology Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) and with parameters that took into account the favela, branding and the creative economy. Thus, we expect that it will be possible to point out ways to accelerate entrepreneurial actions and foster the development of these locations.
Role of Internet of Things (IoT) and Crowdsourcing in Smart City Projects
Authors: Shahrour Isam , Xie Xiongyao
Published: October 2021

This paper presents and discusses the role of the Internet of Things (IoT) and crowdsourcing in constructing smart cities. The literature review shows an important and increasing concern of the scientific community for these three issues and their association as support for urban development. Based on an extensive literature review, the paper first presents the smart city concept, emphasizing smart city architecture and the role of data in smart city solutions. The second part presents the Internet of Things, focusing on IoT technology, the use of IoT in smart city applications, and security. Finally, the paper presents crowdsourcing with particular attention to mobile crowdsourcing and its role in smart cities. The paper shows that IoT and crowdsourcing have a crucial role in two fundamental layers of smart city applications, namely, the data collection and services layers. Since these two layers ensure the connection between the physical and digital worlds, they constitute the central pillars of smart city projects. The literature review also shows that the smart city development still requires stronger cooperation between the smart city technology-centered research, mainly based on the IoT, and the smart city citizens-centered research, mainly based on crowdsourcing. This cooperation could beneficiate in recent developments in the field of crowdsensing that combines IoT and crowdsourcing.
Use of Machine Learning for Leak Detection and Localization in Water Distribution Systems
Authors: Mashhadi Neda , Shahrour Isam , Attoue Nivine , El Khattabi Jamal , Aljer Ammar
Published: October 2021

This paper presents an investigation of the capacity of machine learning methods (ML) to localize leakage in water distribution systems (WDS). This issue is critical because water leakage causes economic losses, damages to the surrounding infrastructures, and soil contamination. Progress in real-time monitoring of WDS and ML has created new opportunities to develop data-based methods for water leak localization. However, the managers of WDS need recommendations for the selection of the appropriate ML methods as well their practical use for leakage localization. This paper contributes to this issue through an investigation of the capacity of ML methods to localize leakage in WDS. The campus of Lille University was used as support for this research. The paper is presented as follows: First, flow and pressure data were determined using EPANET software; then, the generated data were used to investigate the capacity of six ML methods to localize water leakage. Finally, the results of the investigations were used for leakage localization from offline water flow data. The results showed excellent performance for leakage localization by the artificial neural network, logistic regression, and random forest, but there were low performances for the unsupervised methods because of overlapping clusters.
Source Information Affects Interpretations of the News across Multiple Age Groups in the United States
Authors: Michael Robert B. , Sanson Mevagh
Published: October 2021

People have access to more news from more sources than ever before. At the same time, they increasingly distrust traditional media and are exposed to more misinformation. To help people better distinguish real news from “fake news,” we must first understand how they judge whether news is real or fake. One possibility is that people adopt a relatively effortful, analytic approach, judging news based on its content. However, another possibility—consistent with psychological research—is that people adopt a relatively effortless, heuristic approach, drawing on cues outside of news content. One such cue is where the news comes from: its source. Beliefs about news sources depend on people’s political affiliation, with U.S. liberals tending to trust sources that conservatives distrust, and vice versa. Therefore, if people take this heuristic approach, then judgments of news from different sources should depend on political affiliation and lead to a confirmation bias of pre-existing beliefs. Similarly, political affiliation could affect the likelihood that people mistake real news for fake news. We tested these ideas in two sets of experiments. In the first set, we asked University of Louisiana at Lafayette undergraduates (Experiment 1a n = 376) and Mechanical Turk workers in the United States (Experiment 1a n = 205; Experiment 1b n = 201) to rate how “real” versus “fake” a series of unfamiliar news headlines were. We attributed each headline to one of several news sources of varying political slant. As predicted, we found that source information influenced people’s ratings in line with their own political affiliation, although this influence was relatively weak. In the second set, we asked Mechanical Turk workers in the United States (Experiment 2a n = 300; Experiment 2b n = 303) and University of Louisiana at Lafayette undergraduates (Experiment 2b n = 182) to watch a highly publicized “fake news” video involving doctored footage of a journalist. We found that people’s political affiliation influenced their beliefs about the event, but the doctored footage itself had only a trivial influence. Taken together, these results suggest that adults across a range of ages rely on information other than news content—such as how they feel about its source—when judging whether news is real or fake. Moreover, our findings help explain how people experiencing the same news content can arrive at vastly different conclusions. Finally, efforts aimed at educating the public in combatting fake news need to consider how political affiliation affects the psychological processes involved in forming beliefs about the news.
Child and Adolescent Multiple Victimization and/or Polyvictimization: A Portuguese Comparative Study
Authors: Sani Ana Isabel , Bastos Daniela , Dinis Maria Alzira Pimenta
Published: October 2021

Worldwide, children and adolescents are exposed to violence every day and in countless contexts, whether in the family, at school, or in the community. Child multiple victimization has been the subject of extensive international research because of the impact on child and youth development. A quantitative and comparative study aiming to understand child multiple victimization and/or polyvictimization from the perspective of children is presented. Two groups were studied, with and without psychological counselling, with 20 children each, aged 12–18 years old. All the participants answered to juvenile victimization questionnaire (JVQ). The study was approved by the University Ethics Committee responsible for the study in Portugal, and it was initiated after the obtained consent of the children’s legal guardians. The results indicated that young people frequently experience violent situations, with particular emphasis on conventional crimes, e.g., theft, robbery, vandalism, and assault with or without a weapon, with sexual victimization being less common. The results also show that there is a cumulative experience of violence, which evidences multiple victimization and polyvictimization of the child/adolescent throughout their life. These phenomena are not necessarily more common between populations with clinical follow-up. When the types of violence were compared, multiple victimization and polyvictimization, this study found no differences between the samples with and without psychological counselling. It can be concluded that the multiple victimization or polyvictimization problem is not unusual among the population in the studied age range. It is important to alert to the phenomenon of child/adolescent multiple victimization, aiming at a more effective assessment and intervention among these populations. Raising awareness of the phenomenon of multiple child and youth victimization or polyvictimization is of particular importance for preventing violence at all stages of development.
Jogging during the Lockdown: Changes in the Regimes of Kinesthetic Morality and Urban Emotional Geography in NW Italy
Authors: Fontefrancesco Michele Filippo
Published: October 2021

Jogging is the most practiced physical activity in the west. This form of light running appears a solution to the health problems caused by the sedentary of contemporary dwelling and affirmed the role of the extensive use of urban space as a key to individual well-being and health. The COVID-19 pandemic and the imposition of lockdowns imposed a new form of kinesthetic morality based on domestic confinement; a morality that is in open contrast to that of jogging. The article explores this conflict and its consequences in terms of perception of the urban environment and the society among joggers. Based on case study research conducted in 2020 in Alessandria, NW Italy, this study delves into this abrupt change and explores how the urban spatiality changed for the joggers. In so doing, it asks what this event teaches us about the development of new, more effective, urban policies.
A Longitudinal Examination of Perceived Parent Behavior and Positive Youth Development: Child-Driven Effects
Authors: Kaniušonytė Goda , Leggett-James Mary Page , Laursen Brett
Published: October 2021

The advent of the 21st Century brought a new interest in promoting Positive Youth Development and a renewed emphasis on understanding transactional relations between parenting and adolescent development. The present study examined conventional parent-driven pathways, which describe the putative role of parents in the formation of positive characteristics in children, as well as the prospect of child-driven effects, which describe how parents respond to evidence of Positive Youth Development by potentially increasing support and reducing psychological control. We tested these pathways in a sample of 458 Lithuanian adolescents (52.2% girls; M = 15.14 years old at the outset) who completed surveys assaying perceptions of parent behaviors and self-reports of positive development (character, competence, connection, caring, and confidence) at annual intervals from ages 15–18. Across most lags, children’s perceptions of parenting changed in response to their own positive development with increased support and decreased psychological control. In contrast, there were no longitudinal associations from perceptions of parenting to subsequent Positive Youth Development. The results offer insight into parenting in the 21st Century, a time when youth are increasingly encouraged/required to acquire volunteer experiences designed to promote positive development. To the extent that these experiences are successful, one unexpected offshoot may be better relationships with parents.
Fragmentation and Grievances as Fuel for Violent Extremism: The Case of Abu Musa’ab Al-Zarqawi
Authors: Alkhayer Talip
Published: October 2021

Violent extremism naturally benefits from any state of fragmentation. This article focuses on Iraq in a period of a staggering rise in terrorist attacks that started with “operation Iraqi Freedom.” The rhetoric of Abu Musa’ab Al-Zarqawi is used as a case study. Analyzing his statements between 2003 and 2006 shows his weaponization of the concepts of out-groups and threat; it is shown to have a temporaneous association between the escalating violence and successful mobilization. This highlights the saliency of these concepts, the crucial role of Iraq’s Sunni Arabs’ grievances, and the resulting societal fragmentations, which all play in Zarqawi’s efforts to mobilize his in-group. The use of Social Identity Theory and Integrated Threat Theory outlines Zarqawi’s rhetorical strategies in portraying his enemies, and therefore, exposes the rhetorical justifications behind his violent extremism. Results show, temporally, prominent implementation of out-group/threat in the rhetoric, the different out-groups in question, and the types of threats portrayed. In addition, this article concretely shows the effect of the allied forces/Iraqi government’s policies in fortifying Zarqawi’s rhetoric by way of adopting hostile and discriminatory measures against Sunni Arabs. This article also shows an undeniable dialectical relationship between societal fragmentation/grievances and violent-extremist rhetoric and returns the question to policy makers.
Evaluating Potential Ecological Risks of Heavy Metals of Textile Effluents and Soil Samples in Vicinity of Textile Industries
Authors: Kaur Jaskaran , Bhatti Sandip Singh , Bhat Sartaj Ahmad , Nagpal Avinash Kaur , Kaur Varinder , Katnoria Jatinder Kaur
Published: October 2021

The present study pertains to assessing the heavy metal (Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, and Zn) contents of untreated and treated effluents of two textile industries and agricultural soil samples in the vicinity of these industries located in Ludhiana, Punjab (India). The genotoxicity of the effluents samples was estimated using Allium cepa root chromosomal aberration assay. The exposure of Allium cepa roots to untreated effluents from both industries resulted in the reduction of mitotic index (MI) and increase in chromosomal aberrations in the root tip meristematic cells when compared to those that were exposed to the treated effluents indicating the significant genotoxic potential of untreated effluents. Risk characterization of soil sample was carried out by calculating the potential ecological and human health risks of heavy metals. The hazard index was observed to be less than 1, indicating there was no potential health risk of heavy metals in soil samples. Furthermore, bioaccumulation potential studies on plant species grown in the vicinity of these industries have shown that bioaccumulation factor (BAF) varied as Ricinus communis L. > Chenopodium album L. > Cannabis sativa L. with Co and Pb having maximum and minimum values, respectively.
Static Hardness Testing of Cement Mortars Containing Different Types of Recycled Construction Waste Powders
Authors: Gyurkó Zoltán , Nemes Rita
Published: October 2021

The present paper deals with the hardness of cement mortars prepared with recycled materials that are potential supplementary cementitious materials (SCM). Two potential SCMs (aerated concrete powder (ACP) and concrete powder) were investigated and compared with a reference (neat cement) sample and a sample containing metakaolin (MK). The long-term performance of the mortars was studied up to the age of one year. Based on the compressive strength tests at different ages, neither concrete powder nor ACP significantly decreases the compressive strength at a 10% substitution ratio. The samples were studied with two types of static hardness tests: the Brinell hardness test and the depth sensing indentation test at two different load levels. The hardness test results indicated that the standard deviation of the results is lower at a higher load level. In the case of metakaolin and concrete powder, the change in the compressive strength was observable in the hardness test results. However, in case of the ACP, the compressive strength decreased, while the hardness increased, which can be traced back to the filler effect of aerated concrete powder. Finally, using the DSI test, the hardness results were analyzed on an energy basis. The analysis highlighted that the change in the hardness is connected to the elastic indentation energy, while it is independent from the dissipated (plastic) indentation energy.
Prospect and Challenges for Sustainable Management of Climate Change-Associated Stresses to Soil and Plant Health by Beneficial Rhizobacteria
Authors: Sarker Aniruddha , Ansary Most. Waheda Rahman , Hossain Mohammad Nabil , Islam Tofazzal
Published: October 2021

Climate change imposes biotic and abiotic stresses on soil and plant health all across the planet. Beneficial rhizobacterial genera, such as Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Paraburkholderia, Rhizobium, Serratia, and others, are gaining popularity due to their ability to provide simultaneous nutrition and protection of plants in adverse climatic conditions. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria are known to boost soil and plant health through a variety of direct and indirect mechanisms. However, various issues limit the wider commercialization of bacterial biostimulants, such as variable performance in different environmental conditions, poor shelf-life, application challenges, and our poor understanding on complex mechanisms of their interactions with plants and environment. This study focused on detecting the most recent findings on the improvement of plant and soil health under a stressful environment by the application of beneficial rhizobacteria. For a critical and systematic review story, we conducted a non-exhaustive but rigorous literature survey to assemble the most relevant literature (sorting of a total of 236 out of 300 articles produced from the search). In addition, a critical discussion deciphering the major challenges for the commercialization of these bioagents as biofertilizer, biostimulants, and biopesticides was undertaken to unlock the prospective research avenues and wider application of these natural resources. The advancement of biotechnological tools may help to enhance the sustainable use of bacterial biostimulants in agriculture. The perspective of biostimulants is also systematically evaluated for a better understanding of the molecular crosstalk between plants and beneficial bacteria in the changing climate towards sustainable soil and plant health.
Influence of Cultural Intelligence and Psychological Capital on Service Quality: A Study of the Hotel Industry in Sabah, Malaysia
Authors: Jiony Mary Monica , Lew Tek Yew , Gom Daria , Tanakinjal Geoffrey Harvey , Sondoh Stephen
Published: October 2021

Cultural intelligence (CQ) and psychological capital (PsyCap) are two critical characteristics that can be leveraged to develop dynamic hotel frontline employees capable of sustaining service excellence. While both the hotel industry and researchers have followed this trend, there are few studies in the research setting that delve into this relationship. This study examines the effects of cultural intelligence on service quality with psychological capital serving as a mediating variable. To confirm the proposed hypotheses, this study collects 300 questionnaires from four- and five-star hotels. For quantitative analysis, partial least squares structural equation modelling was used. The findings revealed that PsyCap is favorably associated with three components of CQ (metacognitive, motivational, and behavioral elements). Simultaneously, the CQ cognitive and behavioral elements were found to be positively related with service quality (SQ). These findings offer hotel managers practical guidance on how to evaluate critical internal resources and capabilities as a source to implementing and sustaining human resource practices.
Customer Relationship Marketing and Institutional Support Influence on the Women’s Companies Sustainability in Serbia
Authors: Ćurčić Nikola V. , Grubor Aleksandar , Muhović Almir
Published: October 2021

Current sustainability challenges require businesses to develop their relations with customers and markets through relationship marketing and jointly create added value of their services responsive to environmental, social and economic requirements at the same time. This article also supports the gender equality within the SDGs (fifth goal). As (SMEs Report, 2018) micro companies make 89.137, small enterprises make 11.219, entrepreneurs in shops and services sectors make 272.969 and cooperatives in agriculture and food trade make 1.196, they comprise most of the SMEs sector in Serbia, while Medium-sized firms make 2.517, and large enterprises make 540. Female entrepreneurs, which represent 32% of all SMEs and 22% from cooperatives were selected for the research sample with the aim to primarily represent the sectors their businesses operate within. The empirical research was provided in Serbia in 2021 on the sample of 220 female enterprises, shops and cooperatives, most of which operate in service sectors. The aim is to indicate the importance of the institutional factors (IF, government support) and customer relationship marketing (CRM) and their influence on the sustainability of the women’s enterprises (WES). Findings show that CRM significantly impacts the WES, showing that the market and customer loyalty are the most important for the sustainability and resilience of the business. At the same time, results show the importance of the IF government measures’ and policies’ influence and reveal that insufficient attention that has been dedicated to (WES) and SDGs goals of gender equality in feminist economics.
Gender Equality for a Thriving, Sustainable Arctic
Authors: Oddsdóttir Embla , Ágústsson Hjalti , Svensson Eva-Maria , Hoogensen Gjørv Gunhild , Kendall Sarah , Smieszek Malgorzata , Prior Tahnee , Hayfield Erika , Williamson Karla , Rozanova-Smith Marya , Petrov Andrey , Williams Varvara
Published: October 2021

On 21 May 2021, a milestone Pan-Arctic Report: Gender Equality in the Arctic was published in tandem with the Arctic Council’s Ministerial Meeting held in Reykjavík, 19–20 May 2021. This article provides a brief review of the report and its major findings across six chapters that address key themes concerning gender equality in the Arctic: Law and Governance, Security, Gender and Environment, Migration and Mobility, Indigeneity, Gender, Violence, Reconciliation and Empowerment and Fate Control. A major conclusion of the report is that accessible, comparable, gender-disaggregated, and Arctic -specific data is severely lacking. Further, all chapters highlight the importance of gender-based analysis and gender mainstreaming in all decision-making processes at national and regional levels. The varying roles that gender—and its intersections with existing inequalities—plays in mediating the impacts of climate change and other socioeconomic transformations are also discussed throughout the report. The Arctic Council is identified as the main driver for implementing recommendations that were provided and discussed at the Council’s Ministerial Meeting and in the Reykjavík Declaration 2021, where the eight ministers of Arctic states “Emphasize[s] the importance of gender equality and respect for diversity for sustainable development in the Arctic… encourage[s] the mainstreaming of gender-based analysis in the work of the Arctic Council and call[s] for further action to advance gender equality in the Arctic”. This report and its policy relevant highlights, address these priorities and serve as a knowledge base for promoting gender equality and non-discrimination in the Arctic.
Assessing the Availability of Global Metals and Minerals for the Sustainable Century: From Aluminium to Zirconium
Authors: Mudd Gavin M.
Published: October 2021

Mining supplies metals and minerals to meet the material and energy needs of the modern world. Typically, mineral resources are widely considered to be ‘finite’ in nature, yet, paradoxically, global production and reported reserves and resources continue to grow. This paper synthesizes an extensive array of data on the long-term trends in cumulative mine production, reserves and resources at a global level as well detailed case studies of Australia, a global leader in many sectors of mining, and lithium, a new metal with rapidly growing demand. Overall, the paper shows that growing mine production has been clearly matched by growing reserves and resources, although there are numerous complex social, environmental and governance factors which are already affecting mines and are expected to increasingly affect mining into the future. Thus it is not possible at present to determine the ‘ultimately recoverable resource’, especially as this is a dynamic quantity dependent on a variety of inter-related factors (e.g., exploration, social issues, technology, market dynamics, environmental risks, governance aspects, etc.). This finding reinforces the need for continuing detailed studies of all metals and minerals to understand their individual supply and use dynamics to help modern society meet its needs and sustainable development goals.
Effects of Exogenous Application of Plant Growth Regulators (SNP and GA3) on Phytoextraction by Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) Grown in Lead (Pb) Contaminated Soil
Authors: Beavers Adrianne , Koether Marina , McElroy Thomas , Greipsson Sigurdur
Published: October 2021

Soil lead (Pb) contamination is a major environmental and public health risk. Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), a second-generation biofuel crop, is potentially useful for the long-term phytoremediation and phytoextraction of Pb contaminated soils. We evaluated the efficacy of a coordinated foliar application of plant growth regulators and soil fungicide and a chelator in order to optimize phytoextraction. Plants were grown in soil culture under controlled conditions. First, three exogenous nitric oxide (NO) donors were evaluated at multiple concentrations: (1) S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP); (2) sodium nitroprusside (SNP); and (3) S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO). Second, the effect of SNP (0.5 μM) was examined further with the model chelate EDTA and the soil fungicide propicanazole. Third, a combined foliar application of SNP and gibberellic acid (GA3) was examined with EDTA and propicanazole. The soil application of propiconazole (a broad-spectrum fungicides) reduced AMF colonization and allowed greater Pb phytoextraction. The foliar application of SNP resulted in similar concentrations of Pb (roots and foliage) to plants that were challenged with chelates and soil fungicides. The combined foliar application of SNP and GA3 resulted in significantly greater average Pb concentration (243 mg kg−1) in plant foliage in comparison to control plants (182 mg kg−1) and plants treated with GA3 alone (202 mg kg−1). The combined foliar application of SNP and GA3 resulted in the greatest phytoextraction efficiency and could therefore potentially improve phytoextraction by switchgrass grown in Pb contaminated soils.
Current State and Development of Green Bonds Market in the Latin America and the Caribbean
Authors: Mejía-Escobar Juan Camilo , González-Ruiz Juan David , Franco-Sepúlveda Giovanni
Published: October 2021

The green bonds market has had a growth in recent years within its different sectors and regions. Specifically, up to 2020, the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region has issued USD 26 billion. Some authors have studied the factors influencing financing through green bonds. However, a research gap is identified in the analysis of the regions that contribute to the issuance of this type of bond, specifically for LAC. This is the first study to examine the variables such as issue amount, number and type of issuers, currency, and maturity data in the region using a dataset of issuing performed between 2014–2020. We find the typical sizes of the issues, the search for a premium in the issue, the perception of complexity, the issuance of guides, and tax incentives as the main factors affecting this market. Finally, the study presents the potential for further research.
Evaluation of Five Gas Diffusion Models Used in the Gradient Method for Estimating CO2 Flux with Changing Soil Properties
Authors: Yan Xiaofei , Guo Qinxin , Zhao Yajie , Zhao Yandong , Lin Jianhui
Published: October 2021

The gradient method used to estimate soil CO2 flux is distinctive because it can provide additional information about CO2 production and consumption of soil profile. However, choosing an appropriate gas diffusion model with confidence with the gradient method is a big challenge. There is no universal optimal diffusion model but only the most suitable model in specific soils. This paper evaluates the applicability of five commonly used diffusion models in laboratory with changing soil properties and in a forest farm, respectively. When soil moisture, bulk density and fertility status were changed in the laboratory, the applicability of the five diffusion models was discussed. Moreover, this paper shows diurnal variation of soil CO2 flux estimated by the gradient method under four different climatic conditions in the forest farm, and the applicability of the five models was also analyzed. Both laboratory and forest experimental results confirm that the estimating accuracy of the Moldrup model is the highest, followed by the Millington–Quirk model, while those of the Penman, Marshall and Penman–Millington–Quirk models are poor. Furthermore, the results indicate that soil CO2 flux estimated by the gradient method is highly sensitive to the diffusion model and insensitive to the changes of soil properties. In general, the gradient method can be used as a practical, cost-effective tool to study soil respiration only when the appropriate diffusion model is first determined.
Urban Sustainability and Climate Issues: The Effect of Physical Parameters of Streetscape on the Thermal Comfort in Urban Public Spaces; Case Study: Karimkhan-e-Zand Street, Shiraz, Iran
Authors: Sadeghi Ali Reza , Bahadori Yasaman
Published: October 2021

One of the most important issues in urban studies relating to climate and environmental sustainability is the analysis of the thermal conditions of urban public spaces, especially urban streets, since this issue seems to affect the comfort of citizens using such spaces. Thus, the main aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of streetscape parameters on the thermal comfort of citizens using urban streets in a hot summer and in a hot semi-arid climate. For this purpose, Karimkhan-e-Zand Street in Shiraz, Iran, was selected as the case study. The selected street is a historical and popular public space of Shiraz. In the present study, using physical and micro-climatic data analyzed in ENVI-met v4 software, the thermal comfort conditions of Karimkhan-e-Zand in Shiraz on 10 July were simulated during the hottest day of the year. Furthermore, the relationships between physical street parameters and micro-climatic parameters and their effects on the thermal comfort index (PMV) were investigated through running a set of regressions in STATA 14 and analysis of ENVI-met v4 output maps. The results of the present study show that the thermal comfort of the citizens, which is determined by the PMV index values, is in very poor condition in almost all the studied hours, and the air temperature has the greatest effect compared to other micro-climatic parameters on the PMV index. The results of present study also show a significant relationship between the sky view factor and mean radiant temperature, as well as between the surface albedo and relative humidity. Furthermore, the type of vegetation and the aspect ratio of the street affect the level of increase in thermal comfort on the street.
Evaluating Benefits of Eco-Agriculture: The Cases of Farms along Taiwan’s East Coast in Yilan and Hualien
Authors: Chen Kai-Lih , Kong Wei-Hsin , Chen Chi-Cheng , Liou Je-Liang
Published: October 2021

The ecological agriculture (hereinafter referred to as eco-agriculture) concept has grown rapidly in Taiwan in recent years. More and more successful eco-agriculture projects have thus sprouted up in Taiwan, and so a quantitative evaluation model of such projects becomes critically important for improving public understanding of eco-agriculture and for providing a basis for policy analysis. This research thus proposes a quantitative evaluation model for eco-agriculture and analyzes the empirical data collected. We take four farms that practice eco-agriculture in eastern Taiwan for the estimation of direct benefits by surveying farmers about their revenues and costs of crop yields. To evaluate indirect benefits, we employ the Contingent Value Method (CVM) to investigate the willingness-to-pay (WTP) of users and non-users to support eco-agriculture. Results from the direct benefit estimation indicate that eco-agriculture adoption is unlikely to improve the local livelihoods of farming communities. In terms of indirect benefit estimation, eco-agriculture is beneficial to society, but based on our analysis of the direct benefits, these indirect benefits fail to be transformed into profits, showing that eco-agriculture exhibits positive externalities. This constitutes unavoidable challenges for eco-agriculture to be sustainable if these positive externalities cannot be internalized.