bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mitigating the Effects of Climate Change through Harvesting and Planting in Boreal Forests of Northeastern China
Authors: Luo Xu , He Hong S. , Liang Yu , Fraser Jacob S. , Li Jialin
Published: October 2018

The ecological resilience of boreal forests is an important element of measuring forest ecosystem capacity recovered from a disturbance, and is sensitive to broad-scale factors (e.g., climate change, fire disturbance and human related impacts). Therefore, quantifying the effects of these factors is increasingly important for forest ecosystem management. In this study, we investigated the impacts of climate change, climate-induced fire regimes, and forest management schemes on forest ecological resilience using a forest landscape model in the boreal forests of the Great Xing’an Mountains, Northeastern China. First, we simulated the effects of the three studied variables on forest aboveground biomass, growing space occupied, age cohort structure, and the proportion of mid and late-seral species indicators by using the LANDIS PRO model. Second, we calculated ecological resilience based on these four selected indicators. We designed five simulated scenarios: Current fire only scenario, increased fire occurrence only scenario, climate change only scenario, climate-induced fire regime scenario, and climate-fire-management scenario. We analyzed ecological resilience over the five scenarios from 2000 to 2300. The results indicated that the initialized stand density and basal area information from the year 2000 adequately represented the real forest landscape of that year, and no significant difference was found between the simulated landscape of year 2010 and the forest inventory data of that year at the landscape scale. The simulated fire disturbance results were consistent with field inventory data in burned areas. Compared to the current fire regime scenario, forests where fire occurrence increased by 30% had an increase in ecological resilience of 12.4–43.2% at the landscape scale, whereas increasing fire occurrence by 200% would decrease the ecological resilience by 2.5–34.3% in all simulated periods. Under the low climate-induced fire regime scenario, the ecological resilience was 12.3–26.7% higher than that in the reference scenario across all simulated periods. Under the high climate-induced fire regime scenario, the ecological resilience decreased significantly by 30.3% and 53.1% in the short- and medium-terms at landscape scale, while increasing slightly by 3.8% in the long-term period compared to the reference scenario. Compared to no forest management scenario, ecological resilience was decreased by 5.8–32.4% under all harvesting and planting strategies for the low climate-induced fire regime scenario, and only the medium and high planting intensity scenarios visibly increased the ecological resilience (1.7–15.8%) under the high climate-induced fire regime scenario at the landscape scale. Results from our research provided insight into the future forest management and have implications for improving boreal forest sustainability.
Urban Entertainment Center (UEC) as a Redevelopment Strategy for Large-Scale Post-Industrial Sites in Seoul: Between Public Policy and Privatization of Planning
Authors: Lee Il , Hwang Soe Won
Published: October 2018

The decline of inner-city manufacturing industries is a global phenomenon, leaving behind vacant land and brownfield sites in cities. These post-industrial areas with their negative images of dereliction and obsolete urban environments have prompted many cities to implement various redevelopment strategies, among which is the concept of the Urban Entertainment Center (UEC), which combines shopping, recreation, and entertainment, with various public spaces. This study attempts to understand the changes that have been triggered by the revitalization strategy of UEC development in large-scale post-industrial sites in Seoul. Here, Special Planning District (SPD) regulation has been adopted to induce creative and long-term urban developments; however, this has been limited to private high-rise residential buildings. This paper examines two UEC development cases applied along with the SPD in semi-industrial areas for their achievements that differ from former implementations. Our analysis reveals several positive aspects: it provides a sustainable urban infrastructure for the region, overcomes the limitations of the SPD regulation practice, and establishes improved urban environment and design quality oriented toward public interest. The “privatization of planning” has become an issue in redevelopment projects. However, the two UEC precedents that are discussed imply that building cooperative public–private partnerships through a reciprocal process will secure more public benefit overall.
Determinant Factors of the Adoption of Improved Maize Seeds in Southern Mexico: A Survival Analysis Approach
Authors: Sánchez-Toledano Blanca Isabel , Kallas Zein , Palmeros Rojas Oscar , Gil José M.
Published: October 2018

Maize is the most important and strategic crop in Mexico, however, this sector suffers from low productivity. Among the various strategies to improve yield by hectare, improved maize seeds play an important role. In this context, adoption studies in Mexico of these types of seeds are scarce and in general do not jointly account for the timing of adoption factors affecting the adoption decision. This study analysed the determinants of the adoption rates of improved seeds using the survival analysis method. Farm-level data were collected in 2015 through a questionnaire administered to 200 maize farmers in Chiapas, Mexico. Our results showed that 60% of the farmers who adopted the improved seeds reached the decision within a 10 years’ period. Specifically, young farmers with a low number of family members from several generations of agricultural work, who exhibited positive attitudes towards innovation and with low risk perception were likely to adopt the new varieties. Furthermore, results showed that the NAFTA Mexican reform of agricultural policy in 1994 negatively affected the adoption rate of improved seeds. Improving the maize yield requires adequate extension information systems that allow farmers to receive more information on the importance of adoption innovation as well as help them market their products.
Implementing Green Infrastructures beyond Protected Areas
Authors: Lai Sabrina , Leone Federica , Zoppi Corrado
Published: October 2018

According to the European Commission, green infrastructure (GI) is conceived as a strategically planned network of natural and semi-natural areas. This definition highlights three important issues: environment protection, ecosystems multifunctionality and ecological connectivity. Building upon a methodology that identifies a Sardinian regional GI in relation to four values (conservation value, natural value, recreational value and landscape value), this study aims at assessing the suitability of areas situated within and outside protected areas’ boundaries to be included in the above-mentioned Sardinian regional GI. In relation to conservation value, outcomes reveal a higher suitability of patches situated within protected areas to be included in the regional GI, whereas in relation to the other three values, the behavioral patterns are less evident. These results suggest specific policy recommendations such as mitigation of land-taking processes, increase of Natura 2000 Network’s size, accurate identification of landscape goods, and improved accessibility to sites characterized by outstanding natural beauty.
Improving Development Outcomes and Reducing Disaster Risk through Planned Community Relocation
Authors: Nalau Johanna , Handmer John
Published: October 2018

The idea of relocation as a transformative disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation, and development strategy follows the assumption that relocation reduces the vulnerability of communities. Yet, it is unclear whose and what kind of vulnerability is reduced through relocation, and which factors are important in determining the “success” of relocation efforts as strategies for development, climate change adaptation (CCA), and disaster risk reduction (DRR). Temporary and short distance relocation is highly likely to achieve increased resilience by reducing exposure, but relocation to a new area and new communities brings a range of issues. CCA and DRR use different timescales and focal points regarding relocation: CCA focuses on future mass permanent relocation and the subsequent potential loss of cultures and identities mainly due to projected sea level rise. The DRR community focuses on temporary relocation as a way to reduce exposure to a range of hazards, although it is also involved in permanent movement as a transformative way to reduce risk and enhance development. We explore these differences in this paper, with examples mainly from the Pacific Small Island Developing States where past relocations have been numerous. Better understanding and articulation of the underlying assumptions and preferences in CCA, DRR, and development discourses on planned community relocation could provide a richer context for future planning and dealing with both slow-onset and sudden disasters.
Ordered Subset Expectation Maximum Algorithms Based on Symmetric Structure for Image Reconstruction
Authors: Liu Chang , Qiu Jun
Published: October 2018

In this paper, we propose the symmetric structure of the reconstructed points discretization model to partition and order the subsets of Ordered Subset Expectation Maximum (OSEM) algorithms for image reconstruction and then simplify the calculation of the projection coefficient matrix while satisfying the balancing properties of subsets. The reconstructed points discretization model was utilized to describe the forward and inverse relationships between the reconstructed points and the projection data according to the distance from the point to the ray rather than the intersection length between the square pixel and the ray. This discretization model provides new approaches for improving and constructing the reconstruction algorithms on the basis of the geometry of the model. The experimental results show that the OSEM algorithms based on the reconstructed points discretization model and its geometric symmetry structure can effectively improve the imaging speed and the imaging precision.
Estimation of Vessel Emissions Inventory in Qingdao Port Based on Big data Analysis
Authors: Sun Xing , Tian Zhe , Malekian Reza , Li Zhixiong
Published: October 2018

Exhaust emissions from vessels have increasingly attracted attention in the continuously growing marine transport world trade market. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has introduced a number of measures designed to reduce exhaust emissions from global shipping. As one of the busiest ports in the world, Qingdao port has been studied to propose possible support to the development of efficient emission reduction. In this study, a large amount data of emissions inventory in Qingdao port was used to predict its annual exhaust emissions, and hence, to help understand maritime pollution in Qingdao port. Bigdata analysis methodology was employed to perform accurate predictions on vessel emissions. The analysis results show that the emissions were dominated by container ships, oil tankers, and bulk cargo ships. The comparison between Qingdao port and other ports in emission control areas demonstrates the necessity of control measures for exhaust emissions. The adoption of shore power and efficient cargo handling seems to be a potential solution to reduce exhaust emissions. The findings of this study are meaningful for maritime safety administration to understand the current emission situation in Qingdao port, propose corresponding control measures, and perform pollution prevention.
Harmonic Index and Harmonic Polynomial on Graph Operations
Authors: Hernández-Gómez Juan C. , Méndez-Bermúdez J. A. , Rodríguez José M. , Sigarreta José M.
Published: October 2018

Some years ago, the harmonic polynomial was introduced to study the harmonic topological index. Here, using this polynomial, we obtain several properties of the harmonic index of many classical symmetric operations of graphs: Cartesian product, corona product, join, Cartesian sum and lexicographic product. Some upper and lower bounds for the harmonic indices of these operations of graphs, in terms of related indices, are derived from known bounds on the integral of a product on nonnegative convex functions. Besides, we provide an algorithm that computes the harmonic polynomial with complexity O ( n 2 ) .
Some Interval Neutrosophic Dombi Power Bonferroni Mean Operators and Their Application in Multi–Attribute Decision–Making
Authors: Khan Qaisar , Liu Peide , Mahmood Tahir , Smarandache Florentin , Ullah Kifayat
Published: October 2018

The power Bonferroni mean (PBM) operator is a hybrid structure and can take the advantage of a power average (PA) operator, which can reduce the impact of inappropriate data given by the prejudiced decision makers (DMs) and Bonferroni mean (BM) operator, which can take into account the correlation between two attributes. In recent years, many researchers have extended the PBM operator to handle fuzzy information. The Dombi operations of T-conorm (TCN) and T-norm (TN), proposed by Dombi, have the supremacy of outstanding flexibility with general parameters. However, in the existing literature, PBM and the Dombi operations have not been combined for the above advantages for interval-neutrosophic sets (INSs). In this article, we first define some operational laws for interval neutrosophic numbers (INNs) based on Dombi TN and TCN and discuss several desirable properties of these operational rules. Secondly, we extend the PBM operator based on Dombi operations to develop an interval-neutrosophic Dombi PBM (INDPBM) operator, an interval-neutrosophic weighted Dombi PBM (INWDPBM) operator, an interval-neutrosophic Dombi power geometric Bonferroni mean (INDPGBM) operator and an interval-neutrosophic weighted Dombi power geometric Bonferroni mean (INWDPGBM) operator, and discuss several properties of these aggregation operators. Then we develop a multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) method, based on these proposed aggregation operators, to deal with interval neutrosophic (IN) information. Lastly, an illustrative example is provided to show the usefulness and realism of the proposed MADM method. The developed aggregation operators are very practical for solving MADM problems, as it considers the interaction among two input arguments and removes the influence of awkward data in the decision-making process at the same time. The other advantage of the proposed aggregation operators is that they are flexible due to general parameter.
Model-Based Design of Energy-Efficient Human Activity Recognition Systems with Wearable Sensors
Authors: Grützmacher Florian , Hein Albert , Kirste Thomas , Haubelt Christian
Published: October 2018

The advances in MEMS technology development allow for small and thus unobtrusive designs of wearable sensor platforms for human activity recognition. Multiple such sensors attached to the human body for gathering, processing, and transmitting sensor data connected to platforms for classification form a heterogeneous distributed cyber-physical system (CPS). Several processing steps are necessary to perform human activity recognition, which have to be mapped to the distributed computing platform. However, the software mapping is decisive for the CPS’s processing load and communication effort. Thus, the mapping influences the energy consumption of the CPS, and its energy-efficient design is crucial to prolong battery lifetimes and allow long-term usage of the system. As a consequence, there is a demand for system-level energy estimation methods in order to substantiate design decisions even in early design stages. In this article, we propose to combine well-known dataflow-based modeling and analysis techniques with energy models of wearable sensor devices, in order to estimate energy consumption of wireless sensor nodes for online activity recognition at design time. Our experiments show that a reasonable system-level average accuracy above 97% can be achieved by our proposed approach.
FPGA-Based Implementation of a Multilayer Perceptron Suitable for Chaotic Time Series Prediction
Authors: Pano-Azucena Ana , Tlelo-Cuautle Esteban , Tan Sheldon , Ovilla-Martinez Brisbane , De la Fraga Luis
Published: October 2018

Many biological systems and natural phenomena exhibit chaotic behaviors that are saved in time series data. This article uses time series that are generated by chaotic oscillators with different values of the maximum Lyapunov exponent (MLE) to predict their future behavior. Three prediction techniques are compared, namely: artificial neural networks (ANNs), the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and least-squares support vector machines (SVM). The experimental results show that ANNs provide the lowest root mean squared error. That way, we introduce a multilayer perceptron that is implemented using a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) to predict experimental chaotic time series.
Wearable Inertial Sensing for ICT Management of Fall Detection, Fall Prevention, and Assessment in Elderly
Authors: Genovese Vincenzo , Mannini Andrea , Guaitolini Michelangelo , Sabatini Angelo Maria
Published: October 2018

Falls are one of the most common causes of accidental injury: approximately, 37.3 million falls requiring medical intervention occur each year. Fall-related injuries may cause disabilities, and in some extreme cases, premature death among older adults, which has a significant impact on health and social care services. In recent years, information and communication technologies (ICT) have helped enhance the autonomy and quality of life of elderly people, and significantly reduced the costs associated with elderly care. We designed and developed an integrated fall detection and prevention ICT service for elderly people, which was based on two wearable smart sensors, called, respectively, WIMU fall detector and WIMU data-logger (Wearable Inertial Measurement Unit, WIMU); their goal was either to detect falls and promptly react in case of fall events, or to quantify fall risk instrumentally. The WIMU fall detector is intended to be worn at the waist level for use during activities of daily living; the WIMU logger is intended for the quantitative assessment of tested individuals during the execution of clinical tests. Both devices provide their service in conjunction with an Android mobile device. The ICT service was developed and tested within the European project I-DONT-FALL (Integrated prevention and Detection sOlutioNs Tailored to the population and risk factors associated with FALLs, funded by EU, action EU CIP-ICT-PSP-2011-5: GA #CIP-297225). Sensor description and preliminary testing results are provided in this paper.
Characterization of MS/MS Product Ions for the Differentiation of Structurally Isomeric Pesticides by High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry
Authors: Nuñez Alberto , Sapozhnikova Yelena , Lehotay Steven J.
Published: October 2018

Structural isomeric pesticides are used in agriculture and may be challenging to differentiate for accurate identification in pesticide monitoring programs. Due to structural similarity, isomeric pesticides are difficult to separate chromatographically, and thus, their accurate identification may rely solely on mass spectrometric analysis (MS). In this study, we challenged the ability of high-resolution quadrupole-orbitrap (Q-Orbitrap) mass spectrometry to produce and evaluate the tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) product ions for the selected five pairs of isomeric pesticides from different classes: Pebulate and vernolate, methiocarb and ethiofencarb, uniconazole and cyproconazole, sebuthylazine and terbuthylazine, and orbencarb and thiobencarb. The use of Q-Orbitrap instrument with a mass error <3 ppm allowed proposed elucidation of the product ion structures with consideration of the ion formulae, data interpretation, and literature searches. Product ions unique to pebulate, vernolate, methiocarb, ethiofencarb, and uniconazole were observed. Elucidation of the observed MS/MS product ion structures was conducted, and the fragmentation pathways were proposed. This information is valuable to increase selectivity in MS/MS analysis and differentiate isomeric pesticides, and thereby reduce the rates of false positives in pesticide monitoring programs.
Group Field Theory and Its Cosmology in a Matter Reference Frame
Authors: Gielen Steffen
Published: October 2018

While the equations of general relativity take the same form in any coordinate system, choosing a suitable set of coordinates is essential in any practical application. This poses a challenge in background-independent quantum gravity, where coordinates are not a priori available and need to be reconstructed from physical degrees of freedom. We review the general idea of coupling free scalar fields to gravity and using these scalars as a “matter reference frame”. The resulting coordinate system is harmonic, i.e., it satisfies the harmonic (de Donder) gauge. We then show how to introduce such matter reference frames in the group field theory approach to quantum gravity, where spacetime is emergent from a “condensate” of fundamental quantum degrees of freedom of geometry, and how to use matter coordinates to extract physics. We review recent results in homogeneous and inhomogeneous cosmology, and give a new application to the case of spherical symmetry. We find tentative evidence that spherically-symmetric group field theory condensates defined in this setting can reproduce the near-horizon geometry of a Schwarzschild black hole.
HCMV Infection and Apoptosis: How Do Monocytes Survive HCMV Infection?
Authors: Collins-McMillen Donna , Chesnokova Liudmila , Lee Byeong-Jae , Fulkerson Heather L. , Brooks Reynell , Mosher Bailey S. , Yurochko Andrew D.
Published: October 2018

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection of peripheral blood monocytes plays a key role in the hematogenous dissemination of the virus to multiple organ systems following primary infection or reactivation of latent virus in the bone marrow. Monocytes have a short life span of 1–3 days in circulation; thus, HCMV must alter their survival and differentiation to utilize these cells and their differentiated counterparts—macrophages—for dissemination and long term viral persistence. Because monocytes are not initially permissive for viral gene expression and replication, HCMV must control host-derived factors early during infection to prevent apoptosis or programmed cell death prior to viral induced differentiation into naturally long-lived macrophages. This review provides a short overview of HCMV infection of monocytes and describes how HCMV has evolved to utilize host cell anti-apoptotic pathways to allow infected monocytes to bridge the 48–72 h viability gate so that differentiation into a long term stable mature cell can occur. Because viral gene expression is delayed in monocytes following initial infection and only occurs (begins around two to three weeks post infection in our model) following what appears to be complete differentiation into mature macrophages or dendritic cells, or both; virally-encoded anti-apoptotic gene products cannot initially control long term infected cell survival. Anti-apoptotic viral genes are discussed in the second section of this review and we argue they would play an important role in long term macrophage or dendritic cell survival following infection-induced differentiation.
Assay Challenges for Emerging Infectious Diseases: The Zika Experience
Authors: Roberts Christine C. , Maslow Joel N.
Published: October 2018

From the perspective of vaccine development, it is imperative to accurately diagnose target infections in order to exclude subjects with prior exposure from evaluations of vaccine effectiveness, to track incident infection during the course of a clinical trial and to differentiate immune reactions due to natural infections from responses that are vaccine related. When vaccine development is accelerated to a rapid pace in response to emerging infectious disease threats, the challenges to develop such diagnostic tools is even greater. This was observed through the recent expansion of Zika virus infections into the Western Hemisphere in 2014–2017. When initial Zika vaccine clinical trials were being designed and launched in response to the outbreak, there were no standardized sets of viral and immunological assays, and no approved diagnostic tests for Zika virus infection. The diagnosis of Zika virus infection is still an area of active research and development on many fronts. Here we review emerging infectious disease vaccine clinical assay development and trial execution with a special focus on the state of Zika virus clinical assays and diagnostics.
Report from the ‘One Health’ 9th Tick and Tick-Borne Pathogen Conference and the 1st Asia-Pacific Rickettsia Conference, Cairns, Australia, 27 August–1 September 2017
Authors: Tabor Ala , Valle Manuel
Published: October 2018

The 9th Tick and Tick-borne Pathogen (TTP9) Conference was held in conjunction with the first Asia Pacific Rickettsia Conference (APRC1) in Cairns, Australia from 27 August until 1 September in 2017. This MDPI Veterinary Sciences Special Issue has been dedicated to selected veterinary science articles from the conference associated with the control of animal diseases in the context of ticks and tick-borne pathogens, including Rickettsia species. The articles presented in this Special Issue include novel developments for the future control of ticks and tick-borne diseases. This editorial describes the meeting content, the plenaries, the TTP awards, the MDPI Veterinary Science Special Issue articles, and serves as a legacy report for TTP9APRC1.
Correction: Galešić, M., et al. New Screening Tool for Obtaining Concentration Statistics of Pollution Generated by Rivers in Estuaries. Water 2018, 10, 639
Authors: Galešić Morena , Andričević Roko , Divić Vladimir , Šakić Trogrlić Robert
Published: October 2018

The authors wish to make the following correction to their paper [...]
Flood Forecasting Based on an Improved Extreme Learning Machine Model Combined with the Backtracking Search Optimization Algorithm
Authors: Chen Lu , Sun Na , Zhou Chao , Zhou Jianzhong , Zhou Yanlai , Zhang Junhong , Zhou Qing
Published: October 2018

Flood forecasting plays an important role in flood control and water resources management. Recently, the data-driven models with a simpler model structure and lower data requirement attract much more attentions. An extreme learning machine (ELM) method, as a typical data-driven method, with the advantages of a faster learning process and stronger generalization ability, has been taken as an effective tool for flood forecasting. However, an ELM model may suffer from local minima in some cases because of its random generation of input weights and hidden layer biases, which results in uncertainties in the flood forecasting model. Therefore, we proposed an improved ELM model for short-term flood forecasting, in which an emerging dual population-based algorithm, named backtracking search algorithm (BSA), was applied to optimize the parameters of ELM. Thus, the proposed method is called ELM-BSA. The upper Yangtze River was selected as a case study. Several performance indexes were used to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed ELM-BSA model. Then the proposed model was compared with the currently used general regression neural network (GRNN) and ELM models. Results show that the ELM-BSA can always provide better results than the GRNN and ELM models in both the training and testing periods. All these results suggest that the proposed ELM-BSA model is a promising alternative technique for flood forecasting.
Simulation of Trinitrogen Migration and Transformation in the Unsaturated Zone at a Desert Contaminant Site (NW China) Using HYDRUS-2D
Authors: Zheng Fuxin , Zhai Yuanzheng , Xia Xuelian , Yin Zhihua , Du Qingqing , Zuo Rui , Wang Jinsheng , Teng Yanguo , Xu Mo
Published: October 2018

The protection of an unsaturated zone is essential for groundwater-quality security. Neglecting pollutant changes in the saturated zone can affect the accuracy of groundwater-quality assessments. Unlike water sampling, the nonreproducibility of soil sampling complicates the observation of contaminant changes at different times in the same location. The HYDRUS-2D model, coupled with the Richards equation and the convection-dispersion equation, was applied to simulate the migration and transformation of high ammonia concentrations in wastewater in an unsaturated zone. Long-term field observations were carried out for trinitrogen (NH4+, NO2−, and NO3−) from 2015 to 2018 at a wastewater discharge site located in a desert area in northwest China. Samples were collected twice a month. The model was calibrated and validated using statistics and observation data. Variations in trinitrogen concentrations were simulated using the model and fitted well with the measured values. Simulation results for trinitrogen migration and transformation demonstrated that there was no enrichment on the ground surface. Contaminants attenuated rapidly in the unsaturated zone after wastewater discharge stopped. NH4+ was oxidized to NO2− and NO3− under nitrification, except in the anoxic subclay lenses. Subclay lenses were not considered in previous research. These lenses had high enrichment with contaminants and prevented secondary nitrification, which might have led to extremely low NO3− concentrations. The removal rate of contaminants by the unsaturated zone in natural conditions is as high as 76%, and contaminants could be degraded to acceptable levels within 10 years (3650 days) without artificial interventions. This indicates that the unsaturated zone can delay migration and degrade contaminants, and should be taken into consideration in groundwater-quality assessments.
Characterizing Hydrological Connectivity of Artificial Ditches in Zoige Peatlands of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
Authors: Li Zhiwei , Gao Peng , You Yuchi
Published: October 2018

Peats have the unique ability of effectively storing water and carbon. Unfortunately, this ability has been undermined by worldwide peatland degradation. In the Zoige Basin, located in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China, peatland degradation is particularly severe. Although climate change and (natural and artificial) drainage systems have been well-recognized as the main factors catalyzing this problem, little is known about the impact of the latter on peatland hydrology at larger spatial scales. To fill this gap, we examined the hydrological connectivity of artificial ditch networks using Google Earth imagery and recorded hydrological data in the Zoige Basin. After delineating from the images of 1392 ditches and 160 peatland patches in which these ditches were clustered, we calculated their lengths, widths, areas, and slopes, as well as two morphological parameters, ditch density (Dd) and drainage ability (Pa). The subsequent statistical analysis and examination of an index defined as the product Dd and Pa showed that structural hydrological connectivity, which was quantitatively represented by the value of this index, decreased when peatland patch areas increased, suggesting that ditches in small patches have higher degrees of hydrological connectivity. Using daily discharge data from three local gauging stations and Manning’s equation, we back-calculated the mean ditch water depths (Dm) during raining days of a year and estimated based on Dm the total water volume drained from ditches in each patch (V) during annual raining days. We then demonstrated that functional hydrological connectivity, which may be represented by V, generally decreased when patch areas increased, more sensitive to changes of ditch number and length in larger peatland patches. Furthermore, we found that the total water volume drained from all ditches during annual raining days only took a very small proportion of the total volume of stream flow out of the entire watershed (0.0012%) and this nature remained similar for the past 30 years, suggesting that during annual rainfall events, water drained from connected ditches is negligible. This revealed that the role of connected artificial ditches in draining peatland water mainly takes effect during the prolonged dry season of a year in the Zoige Basin.
Experimental and Simulation Investigation on the Kinetic Energy Dissipation Rate of a Fixed Spray-Plate Sprinkler
Authors: Zhang Yisheng , Sun Bin , Fang Hongyuan , Zhu Delan , Yang Lingxia , Li Zhansong
Published: October 2018

Sprinkler irrigation is promoted due to its remarkable advantages in water conservation, but the high energy consumption limits its development in a situation of energy scarcity. In order to determine the energy consumption of a fixed spray-plate sprinkler (FSPS), its discharge and initial trajectory velocity were investigated using a particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analyses. A nozzle diameter of 4.76 mm was used under windless conditions. Overall, good agreement between simulation results and experimental values was obtained. On the premise that the simulation method produced high accuracy, a series of simulations was performed with different nozzle diameters. The water distribution pattern, stream trajectory velocity and kinetic energy dissipation were analyzed. The results show that the jet produced at the nozzle is split by grooves after it hits the plate, with separation occurring earlier with decreasing nozzle diameter. The area of the flow cross-section of the outlet is mainly influenced by nozzle diameter rather than working pressure. The initial trajectory velocity of the grooves increases logarithmically with increasing working pressure. A high working pressure may not cause large kinetic energy dissipation. The dissipation rate of the FSPS ranged from 28.01–50.97%, i.e., a large kinetic energy rate was observed. To reduce this energy dissipation and improve water use efficiency, the structure of the FSPS should be optimized in further research.
Study on Risk Assessment and Early Warning of Flood-Affected Areas when a Dam Break Occurs in a Mountain River
Authors: Fan Qiang , Tian Zhong , Wang Wei
Published: October 2018

Under the influence of extreme weather conditions or other unfavorable factors, if a dam break occurs in a mountain river, it will cause a great number of casualties and property losses in the affected downstream areas. Usually, early warning of the affected areas downstream of the dam depends mainly on qualitative evaluation and cannot be quantitatively evaluated. Based on the authors’ calculation of floods for many years, this study presents a quantitative assessment method for flood risk. The Ertan Hydropower Station in Southwest China and the flood-affected areas were chosen as the object of this study. Based on field surveys, research literature data, and the authors’ calculations, the basic data of the Ertan Hydropower Station and the calculation results of the dam break were obtained, and 35 representative flood-affected areas were selected to study risk assessment and early warning. The fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) was used to build a mathematical model for quantitative analysis. The population, flood arrival time, flood level, evacuation time, and local GDP (Gross Domestic Product) were selected as five typical evaluation factors. Finally, this study calculated and counted the risk level of 35 representative flood-affected areas, and the study results were applied to Quxue and Guanmaozhou Hydropower Station.
Flood Mitigation through Optimal Operation of a Multi-Reservoir System by Using Model Predictive Control: A Case Study in Myanmar
Authors: Myo Lin Nay , Rutten Martine , Tian Xin
Published: October 2018

Managing a multi-reservoir system is complicated, due to conflicting interests among various objectives. This study proposes an optimization-based approach for the operations of a multi-reservoir system. An advanced real-time control technique, Model Predictive Control (MPC), is adopted to control a multi-reservoir system with two control objectives, i.e., flood mitigation and water conservation. The case study area is the Sittaung River basin in Myanmar, where the current reservoir operating rule needs to be improved for a more effective operation. A comparison between an MPC-based operation and the current operation is presented by using performance indicators. The result shows a reduction of the system’s vulnerability by 0.9 percent using MPC. Due to the physical constraint of the reservoirs, it is impossible to completely eliminate the flood risk at Taungoo City during high inflow events. However, the results indicate that the potential flood risk can be mitigated by improving the current operating rule.
Trend Analysis of Long-Term Reference Evapotranspiration and Its Components over the Korean Peninsula
Authors: Ghafouri-Azar Mona , Bae Deg-Hyo , Kang Shin-Uk
Published: October 2018

In this study, the spatial and temporal trends of reference evapotranspiration (ETo) and its components consisting of the energy term (ENo) and the aerodynamic term (AEo) were considered over the Korean Peninsula. The T-test and Mann–Kendall (MK) test were used to detect parameter trends after removing the effect of serial correlation from annual and seasonal time series between 1980 and 2017. Due to the lack of solar-radiation data for North Korea (NK), a regionally calibrated model based on South Korea (SK) weather data was developed to estimate daily solar radiation in NK. The results showed that spatial distribution of the ETo increased southward in the range from 705 mm/year in the northeast to 1195 mm/year in the southeast of the Korean Peninsula. The spatial patterns of the ENo and AEo varied from the minimum in the north and increased southward, reaching their maximum values in the southern parts of the Korean Peninsula. The mean annual ETo values of SK and NK were also compared. Over the 37-year period, mean annual evapotranspiration in SK was approximately 18% higher than that in NK. Moreover, mean areal ENo and AEo in SK were higher than in NK. The trend of the ENo on annual and seasonal scales was also upward. In contrast, the trend of the AEo decreased over the Korean Peninsula through all seasons and annual scales. These opposite trends in the ENo and AEo parameters mitigated the significant trends of the ETo. Finally, the stronger significant upward trend of the energy term led to significant increasing trends of ETo on the Korean Peninsula, with ENo being the dominant component in the increase of the ETo.
Effects of Guide Vane Placement Angle on Hydraulic Characteristics of Flow Field and Optimal Design of Hydraulic Capsule Pipelines
Authors: Zhang Chunjin , Sun Xihuan , Li Yongye , Zhang Xueqin , Zhang Xuelan , Yang Xiaoni , Li Fei
Published: October 2018

With the rapid growth of agricultural trade volumes, the transportation of agricultural products has received widespread attention from society. Aiming at these problems of low transport efficiency and high transport cost in long-distance transport of agricultural products, an energy-saving and environmental-friendly transport mode of agricultural machinery—hydraulic capsule pipelines (HCPs)—was proposed. HCPs effectively solve issues like traffic congestion, energy crises, and atmospheric pollution. Published literature is mainly limited to the capsule speed and the pressure drop characteristics of the fluid within the pipelines. This research was conducted on the following four aspects of HCPs. Firstly, the structure of the carrier was improved and called a ‘piped carriage’. Secondly, a coupled solution between the structural domain of the piped carriage and the fluid domain within the pipelines was numerically investigated by using the commercial CFD software ANSYS Fluent 12.0 based on the bidirectional fluid–structure interaction methods. Thirdly, the effects of guide vane placement angle on hydraulic characteristics of the internal flow field within the horizontal pipelines transporting the piped carriage were extensively evaluated. Finally, based on least-cost principle, an optimization model of HCPs was established. The results indicated that the simulated results were in good agreement with the experimental results, which further demonstrated that it was feasible to adopt the bidirectional fluid–structure interaction methods for solving the hydraulic characteristics of the internal flow field when the piped carriage was moving along the pipelines. This article will provide an abundant theoretical foundation for the rational design of HCPs and its popularization and application.
Solitary Wave Generation and Propagation under Hypergravity Fields
Authors: Wang Qiao-Sha , Li Ming-Hai , Li Dai-Wei
Published: October 2018

The traditional small-scale marine engineering experiments that are performed under normal gravity fields always encounter one stubborn difficulty related to full-scale prototype models. However, the difficulty can be resolved by centrifuge experiments that can generate hypergravity fields in which the centrifuge acceleration is many times greater than the gravity acceleration. In this study, the generation of solitary waves in hypergravity fields is proposed using solitary wavemaker theory and scaling laws. A series of case simulations are performed under four different gravity fields (1 g, 30 g, 50 g, and 100 g, where g is the gravity acceleration). These cases are presented and discussed in detail to understand and verify the scaling laws and the stability of the solitary wave during its generation and propagation within hypergravity fields. The numerical results show that the waveform and the static pressure field that are obtained during the simulations performed under different gravity fields agree well at the macroscale. Since the velocity field is sensitive to wave attenuation, time lag, fluid viscosity and surface tension, some discrepancies can be found in the velocity field. It should be noted that the fluid viscosity and surface tension have influence on the wave attenuation. However, wave attenuation and time lag can be offset by a well-designed incident wave condition.
Barriers in providing primary care for immigrant patients with dementia: GPs’ perspectives
Authors: Vissenberg Rosa , Uysal Ozgul , Goudsmit Miriam , van Campen Jos , Buurman-van Es Bianca
Published: October 2018

Background

Dementia rates are growing rapidly in all regions of the world. In the Netherlands, the incidence of dementia among older immigrants will increase twice as fast compared with the native older population. It, therefore, needs special attention.

Aim

To describe the barriers for providing primary care to immigrant patients (Turkish, Moroccan and Surinamese) with dementia from the perspectives of GPs.

Design & setting

A mixed-method study, consisting of an online survey and focus groups.

Method

An online survey was performed among 76 GPs working in the four biggest cities of the Netherlands. The barriers to providing primary care for immigrants with dementia were identified. Subsequently, three focus groups were carried out among 17 primary care physicians to discuss this topic further, and identify possible solutions and recommendations to improve dementia care.

Results

GPs experience many obstacles in the care for the immigrant patient with dementia, namely in the diagnostic process, early detection, and assessment of care needs. Strong collaboration between primary care, community care organisations, specialised memory clinics, and municipalities is needed to optimise healthcare information provision, the availability of culturally sensitive facilities, and the enhancement of healthcare professionals' training and education.

Conclusion

Important barriers were identified and recommendations were formulated for future healthcare policy. To be prepared and guarantee optimal care for the rising number of immigrant patients with dementia, recommendations should be implemented and effectiveness should be evaluated as soon as possible.
Learning from B12 enzymes: biomimetic and bioinspired catalysts for eco-friendly organic synthesis
Authors: Tahara Keishiro , Pan Ling , Ono Toshikazu , Hisaeda Yoshio
Published: October 2018

Cobalamins (B12) play various important roles in vivo. Most B12-dependent enzymes are divided into three main subfamilies: adenosylcobalamin-dependent isomerases, methylcobalamin-dependent methyltransferases, and dehalogenases. Mimicking these B12 enzyme functions under non-enzymatic conditions offers good understanding of their elaborate reaction mechanisms. Furthermore, bio-inspiration offers a new approach to catalytic design for green and eco-friendly molecular transformations. As part of a study based on vitamin B12 derivatives including heptamethyl cobyrinate perchlorate, we describe biomimetic and bioinspired catalytic reactions with B12 enzyme functions. The reactions are classified according to the corresponding three B12 enzyme subfamilies, with a focus on our recent development on electrochemical and photochemical catalytic systems. Other important reactions are also described, with a focus on radical-involved reactions in terms of organic synthesis.
A FUZZY RULE BASED INFERENCE SYSTEM FOR EARLY DEBT COLLECTION
Authors: Onar Sezi Cevik , Oztaysi Basar , Kahraman Cengiz
Published: October 2018

Nowadays, unpaid invoices and unpaid credits are becoming more and more common. Large amounts of data regarding these debts are collected and stored by debt collection agencies. Early debt collection processes aim at collecting payments from creditors or debtors before the legal procedure starts. In order to be successful and be able to collect maximum debts, collection agencies need to use their human resources efficiently and communicate with the customers via the most convenient channel that leads to minimum costs. However, achieving these goals need processing, analyzing and evaluating customer data and inferring the right actions instantaneously. In this study, fuzzy inference based intelligent systems are used to empower early debt collection processes using the principles of data science. In the paper, an early debt collection system composed of three different Fuzzy Inference Systems (FIS), one for credit debts, one for credit card debts, and one for invoices, is developed. These systems use different inputs such as amount of loan, wealth of debtor, part history of debtor, amount of other debts, active customer since, credit limit, and criticality to determine the output possibility of repaying the debt. This output is later used to determine the most convenient communication channel and communication activity profile.
NEW HYBRID FMADM MODEL FOR MOBILE COMMERCE IMPROVEMENT
Authors: Hu Shu-Kung , Liou James , Chuang Yen-Ching , Tzeng Gwo-Hshiung
Published: October 2018

Internet of things (IoT) can provide an extensive scope of services via smart devices to promote the convenience of life. With advances being made in smart phones, enterprises are increasingly considering expanding their customer base through mobile commerce services. To promote m-commerce improvement, enterprises should organize an excellent m-commerce environment and attempt to realize user needs in the era of IoT. In a fuzzy environment of the real world, objective decision-making for m-commerce improvement is usually a FMADM problem involving feedback-effect and interdependence among the dimensions and criteria. But, many traditional decision models cannot conduct the complicated interrelationships among dimensions and criteria. This study proposes an improvement model that can promote m-commerce improvement towards achieving the aspiration level in fuzzy environment. The proposed hybrid model conducts the feedback-effect and dependence among attributes, and it combines the FDEMATEL technique, FDANP, and MFGRA methods. The empirical case study was conducted to prove the utility of the new hybrid FMADM model in evaluating an m-commerce environment. Comparative results exhibited that the proposed approach is superior to the traditional method and that it can obtain most real grey relational degree that can be used for establishing the best performance improvement strategy in reality.