Linking Urban Regeneration to Sustainable Urban Development of Smart Cities

Urban regeneration involves the revitalisation of distressed urban areas, through actions such as rehabilitation of historic areas, improvement of living conditions in residential districts, redevelopment of public spaces, and modernisation of urban infrastructure (Alpopi & Manole, 2013). The label 'smart city' has an impact on urban strategies in both large and small towns. It helps to face the increasing problems of urban areas, local public government, companies, non-profit organisations, and the citizens themselves. They all embraced the idea of a smarter city, using more technologies, creating better life conditions and safeguarding the environment for a better quality of life (Dameri & Rosenthal-Sabroux, 2014). This research focuses on adopting an inductive methodology of sustainable urban development in smart cities through a specific framework to be applied on the urban regeneration of city centres in cities with historical background. This will be carried out through the analysis of the interrelationship between the key principles of both urban regeneration and smart cities with the aim to compile a comprehensive list ofprinciples. This inductive methodology will be validated through a comparative study of selected relevant examples. After that the development framework will be used to apply the compiled ideas and principles, and to verify its potential to formulate multiple scenarios of urban regeneration of city centres. After that, the scenarios of development will be tested on a case study of the city of Alexandria in Egypt, by using multiple research methods such as focused interviews, structured questionnaires, personal observation and assessment. This study aims to conclude with a set of guidelines for intervention in similar urbancontexts in general, as well as in the specific case of Alexandria with its particular conditions

FTN – Frequent Transit Network: Transit Strategies towards Achieving Transit-Oriented Development in Alexandria City, Egypt

Land use policy and transport policy are normally integrated through transit-oriented development (TOD) strategies. (TOD) is a "mixed-use community”, that encourages people to live near transit services and to decrease dependence on their driving. Instead of requiring riders to consult a timetable or wait for extended periods of time, transit service is most appealing when it is frequent enough that riders can arrive at a stop knowing that a bus or train will arrive soon. Frequent Transit Networks (FTNs) aim to deliver services in high-demand areas in a convenient, connected, and memorable. (FTNs) are intended to serve the locations that the majority of people want to visit most frequently and to make service convenient by operating at least every 15 minutes from early morning until at least mid-afternoon. This paper discusses, evaluates, and looks into the possibility of implementing TOD and FTNs in Alexandria, Egypt. Alexandria is experiencing a sharp increase in transport demand as a result of its rapid urbanisation. With the narrow streets and limited spaces the rapid urbanisation process has led to a significant increase in traffic volume. This paper adopts the Frequent Transit Network (FTNs) strategies in identifying corridors linking the city’s urban centers and the nodes where these corridors intersect. The main purpose is to direct growth , development and to create a proposal for a “System Backbone” that provides a structure for other services. Expected findings from this study is to perform a framework that identify potential (FTN) solutions for the city. It also proposes a “Key Corridor Network” for the bus routes and light rail transit, emphasising corridors in which combined transport services could provide a more efficient operation of the city’s public transport

Standard Colonic Lavage Alters the Natural State of Mucosal-Associated Microbiota in the Human Colon

Past studies of the human intestinal microbiota are potentially confounded by the common practice of using bowel-cleansing preparations. We examined if colonic lavage changes the natural state of enteric mucosal-adherent microbes in healthy human subjects.Twelve healthy individuals were divided into three groups; experimental group, control group one, and control group two. Subjects in the experimental group underwent an un-prepped flexible sigmoidoscopy with biopsies. Within two weeks, subjects were given a standard polyethylene glycol-based bowel cleansing preparation followed by a second flexible sigmoidoscopy. Subjects in control group one underwent two un-prepped flexible sigmoidoscopies within one week. Subjects in the second control group underwent an un-prepped flexible sigmoidoscopy followed by a second flexible sigmoidoscopy after a 24-hour clear liquid diet within one week. The mucosa-associated microbial communities from the two procedures in each subject were compared using 16S rRNA gene based terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), and library cloning and sequencing.Clone library sequencing analysis showed that there were changes in the composition of the mucosa-associated microbiota in subjects after colonic lavage. These changes were not observed in our control groups. Standard bowel preparation altered the diversity of mucosa-associated microbiota. Taxonomic classification did not reveal significant changes at the phylum level, but there were differences observed at the genus level.Standard bowel cleansing preparation altered the mucosal-adherent microbiota in all of our subjects, although the degree of change was variable. These findings underscore the importance of considering the confounding effects of bowel preparation when designing experiments exploring the gut microbiota

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

Sensitivity of Crude Oil Price Change to Major Global Factors and to Russian–Ukraine War Crisis

To assess the elasticity of crude oil price to global factors related to supply of crude oil and the US dollar exchange rate, the authors employed nonlinear models including flexible least squares, and maximum likelihood estimator, in addition to OLS regression mode; using yearly data from 1965 to 2021. The findings indicate change in oil prices due to 1% change in any of the explanatory variables, as follows: the effect of the US dollar depreciation rate, raise crude oil price/barrel by 71 US cents; and increase in OPEC production, decrease crude oil price by 82 US cents; a decrease in non-OPEC production, raise oil price by 4.78 US$. These results imply that, if a ban imposed on Russian crude oil export, and no increase in OPEC production to compensate Russian oil loss in the international markets, global crude oil price expected to rise by 88 US$ above its level before Russian–Ukraine crisis, meaning that crude oil price expected to rise at 160 US$pbab. However, if OPEC members increase their output level by 10 million barrels per day to compensate the Russian oil loss, then global crude oil price is expected to stay at 102 US$ pb

A Comparison of Two Probiotic Strains of Bifidobacteria in Premature Infants

OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of two probiotic bifidobacteria on the fecal microbiota of premature infants fed either human milk or formula. STUDY DESIGN: In the first of two phase 1 clinical trials, twelve premature infants receiving formula feedings were randomly assigned to receive either Bifidobacterium longum ssp infantis or Bifidobacterium animalis ssp lactis in increasing doses over a five week period. In the second, nine premature infants receiving their mother’s milk received each of the two bifidobacteria for two weeks separated by a one week wash out period. Serial stool specimens from each infant were analyzed by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism and quantitative polymerase chain reaction for bacterial composition. RESULTS: Among the formula-fed infants, there was a greater increase in fecal bifidobacteria among infants receiving B. infantis than those receiving B. lactis. This difference was most marked at a dose of 1.4 × 10(9) cfu twice daily (p < 0.05). Bacterial diversity improved over dose/time in those infants receiving B. infantis. Among the human milk-fed infants, greater increases in fecal bifidobacteria and decreases in γ-Proteobacteria followed administration of B. infantis than B. lactis. The B. longum group (which includes B. infantis but not B. lactis) was the dominant bifidobacteria among the human milk-fed infants, regardless of the probiotic administered. CONCLUSIONS: B. infantis was more effective at colonizing the fecal microbiota than B. lactis in both formula-fed and human milk-fed premature infants. The combination of human milk plus B. infantis resulted in the highest fecal levels of bifidobacteria