Addressing the relationships between ageing, thermal comfort, house design and health: A study in South Australia

There is a large body of evidence linking extremes of outdoor temperature with morbidity and mortality amongst older people; less is known about the indoor conditions of the houses older people live in. This is despite the fact that it is well documented that older people spend most of their time inside their houses. As the overwhelming preference amongst Australian people aged 65 and over is to remain in their home as long as possible. it is thus important to understand the relationship between the indoor thermal conditions, the perception that occupants have of these conditions, and the reactions they have to these conditions, to allow them to stay healthy and comfortable as they age in place. The research presented in this thesis has been conducted to address the relationships between ageing, thermal comfort and health, and the housing conditions of a group of older South Australians. As part of this study, a survey was undertaken to investigate the satisfaction amongst older people in regard to their housing, comfort and health. The survey found that most were satisfied with the level of year-round thermal comfort provided by their homes, and typically used their heating and cooling devices sparingly to achieve thermal comfort. Participants were more concerned about their health during heatwaves than they were during cold weather. Following the survey, a field study of 18 houses was carried out to further understand the indoor thermal conditions and occupants’ thermal comfort as well as the relationship between these variables and self-reported symptoms. The results showed a consistent trend toward a preference for cooler conditions than predicted by current thermal comfort standards. All but one of the participants reported thermal satisfaction at lower temperatures than predicted, but expressed no preference toward warmer conditions. These preferences, however, may be problematic, as the study also showed that a relationship exists between indoor minimum and maximum temperatures and the presentation of heat- and cold-related symptoms. This relationship is binomial: symptoms are related to temperatures at both ends of the temperature spectrum. The frequency of the presentation of symptoms increased and temperatures for lower or higher, for both daily maximum and minimum temperatures. Temperatures in the houses were lower than recommended by these field study results for 50% of the time, even when heating and cooling systems were used. Whilst there were some issues of overheating, the main concern that the study uncovered was the under-heating of houses. A sample of houses from the field study were then included in a study of building improvement, using a building performance simulation technique, to investigate how retrofitting insulation and double glazing might improve conditions in the houses. Simulated results showed that basic building improvements would slightly increase the time during which the temperature of the house was in the optimal range; however, there was still a need for more heating than is currently utilised by this cohort. Increasing heating use, however, increases the cost to the occupants, which some older people may not find affordable. This in turn could dissuade occupants from the recommended heating increases. For this reason, this study then examined the benefit of installing solar photovoltaic cells as a solution which offsets increased cost needed to adequately heat the building whilst being cost-neutral in a relatively short time span. A home environment that is conducive to thermal comfort and good health has the potential to allow older people to age in place, to prevent hospitalisations and to delay entry into residential aged care. It is thus in the best interest of home owners, policy makers and governments to consider building improvements as an investment in health. These stakeholders must work together to make a healthy thermal environment achievable and affordable, both for older people now and for the increasing numbers of older people in the future.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Architecture & Built Environment, 201

An Overall Policy Decision-Support System For Educational Facilities Management: An Agent-Based Approach

Although K-12 public school facilities infrastructure investments are second only to highways, schools continue to suffer from an approximately $38 billion annual funding gap. Massive reductions in funding are forcing school districts to make tough decisions to optimize maintenance expenditures. Over the last three decades, a huge body of research has determined that the condition of school facilities do affect student health and performance, and some have further demonstrated that schools are overwhelmed by deteriorating facilities that threaten the health, safety, and learning opportunities of students. The currently available educational facility management approaches oversee the influence of the complex and mutual interactions between a school facility and its occupants. This thesis aimed to develop an overall decision support system for decision-makers that promotes efficient planning and management of educational infrastructure system by embracing a proactive management style rather than reactive. The proposed system consists of three main components: (1) an overall condition prediction model for educational facilities as a whole, (2) a tactical level Agent-based model (ABM) for classroom interaction simulation, and (3) a strategic level ABM for maintenance budget allocation. ABM was selected for its flexibility, natural representation of the problem, and suitability for modeling real-world complex systems with heterogenous agents. The first tool was accomplished through the development of a three-stage condition prediction methodology. The first stage aims to recognize the deterioration pattern of the educational facility as a whole by utilizing a Markov chain modeling approach. The second stage focuses on determining the overall useful service life of educational facilities. The third stage identifies the higher and lower limits of the educational facilities’ deterioration rate. The resulted model can help decision-makers plan and forecast their maintenance needs and better manage the available resources. The proposed methodology can be applied to any multi-component asset. The second tool, the tactical level decision support ABM, was developed to provide decision-makers with new insights into the effects of different maintenance polices on the educational system. The model simulates day-by-day classroom interactions and highlights the importance of preventive maintenance on the educational system’s major stakeholders (agents). The third decision support tool presented in this research is the strategic level model for testing the effects of different maintenance budget allocation strategies on the school district revenues, overall performance, enrollment size, and land values over years. ABM enhances the overall comprehension of the current situation and its complex relations, increases resource allocation efficiency, highlights the important factors affecting the system that are overlooked in traditional management styles, thereby improving the quality of educational outcomes. The main challenge in developing the proposed ABM was identifying and quantifying the main stakeholders’ complex interactions due to the uncertainties inherent in human behavior. This thesis demonstrated the need for a holistic bottom-top asset management modeling approach rather than asset-centric top-down approach. The case study results of this research confirmed that ABM has great potential as an asset management tool for decision-makers that can provide a comprehensive and holistic understanding of the system dynamics

Intellectual Property Management in Health and Agricultural Innovation: Executive Guide

Prepared by and for policy-makers, leaders of public sector research establishments, technology transfer professionals, licensing executives, and scientists, this online resource offers up-to-date information and strategies for utilizing the power of both intellectual property and the public domain. Emphasis is placed on advancing innovation in health and agriculture, though many of the principles outlined here are broadly applicable across technology fields. Eschewing ideological debates and general proclamations, the authors always keep their eye on the practical side of IP management. The site is based on a comprehensive Handbook and Executive Guide that provide substantive discussions and analysis of the opportunities awaiting anyone in the field who wants to put intellectual property to work. This multi-volume work contains 153 chapters on a full range of IP topics and over 50 case studies, composed by over 200 authors from North, South, East, and West. If you are a policymaker, a senior administrator, a technology transfer manager, or a scientist, we invite you to use the companion site guide available at http://www.iphandbook.org/index.html The site guide distills the key points of each IP topic covered by the Handbook into simple language and places it in the context of evolving best practices specific to your professional role within the overall picture of IP management

The influence of tall buildings on the pedestrian level micro-climate in Lujiazui New District, Shanghai

In relation to Chinese cities, both thermal comfort and urban air ventilation have been researched extensively in the past decades while the quality of open urban spaces have received increasing attention in developed countries in recent years. However, there has been relatively little research addressing how microclimatic conditions also contribute to the quality of life. This thesis aims to obtain the local outdoor thermal comfort criteria, assess the wind environment around the built tall buildings and suggest an approach for urban design. To achieve that, winter outdoor thermal comfort will be determined through a pedestrian thermal comfort questionnaire survey and monitoring of site climatic conditions help to generate local thermal comfort criteria. Summer comfort conditions were determined from an analysis of the literature. After that, the wind environment will be simulated with wind tunnel tests and computational numerical modelling. This will be assessed to improve outdoor wind comfort in urban areas and to build more comfortable and healthier open spaces for pedestrians. Nevertheless, after the creation of the Lujiazui Financial Centre in the Pudong district of Shanghai, a high-density area, with a huge number of tall buildings and the core of the economic development, further improvement has been planned. According to the questionnaire on thermal comfort and the meteorological data retrieved from the monitoring of the site, the majority of participants were satisfied with the outdoor thermal environment found in Lujiazui during the winter and a series of findings demonstrated that microclimate is a very important parameter for outdoor thermal comfort. For instance, it was observed that: (a) the mean neutral air temperature is 14.7℃ and the accepted temperature range is 7.7℃ to 21.8℃; (b) the neutral global radiation is 856W/m2; (c) the neutral air humidity is 67%; and (d) the neutral wind velocity is 0.55m/s with an accepted wind velocity range of 0-3.2m/s in winter. Furthermore, the application of wind tunnel tests and computational numerical modelling simulations revealed that the microclimate of an environment would be affected every time a new building is erected. This is why, especially in rapidly developing areas characterised by high-density, generating high-speed winds at the pedestrian level in order to increase air circulation and therefore create a healthier environment in terms of air quality is not uncommon, although these man-made air flows may be perceived as distressful or unsafe. In the light of such conditions, when designing a new building its morphology, its influence on the interior environment, and its impact on the outdoor environment should be equally taken into account. Furthermore, some suggestions for optimised urban design methods about building more skyscrapers in the extended area of Lujiazui are provided, which could become a guideline for the government and the urban designers with the aim to create better, more comfortable and healthier urban open spaces in a sustainable city

Volume 2 – Conference: Wednesday, March 9

10. Internationales Fluidtechnisches Kolloquium:Group 1 | 2: Novel System Structures Group 3 | 5: Pumps Group 4: Thermal Behaviour Group 6: Industrial Hydraulic

Liveability analysis of gated and non-gated low middle income communities in kuala lumpur, Malaysia

The aim of this paper is to examine the liveability conditions in gated and non-gated low middle income communities in Kuala Lumpur where rapid urban growth has led to many disruptions in the urban living environment. Hence, a livability framework was developed with dimensions from housing condition, economic condition, functional environment, social relations and community safety towards achieving the research objectives of – a) to study the liveability level in gated and non-gated communities, b) to compare the level of liveability between gated and non-gated communities, and c) to determine the dimensions and indicators which influence the level of liveability in both communities. Residents’ views were collected through a questionnaire survey which consisted of twenty-four indicators of liveability belonging to five dimensions from three communities in Kuala Lumpur. Two communities belong to non-gated and one community had gated living status. The findings of the research revealed that gated community has a better living conditions compared to the non-gated community. Thus, this research can be used as a turning point to improve the living environment of both gated and non-gated communit