Impact of a multi-media digital tool on identifying construction hazards under the UK construction design and management regulations

Research has shown that up to half of construction accidents in the UK had a link with design. The UK’s Construction, Design and Management Regulations, (CDM, 2015) place duties on designers of construction projects to consider the health and safety implications of their designs. However, the majority of designers fail to recognise the impact on health and safety that they can make. Previous work shows that visual methods have been used to develop shared mental models of construction safety and health hazards in construction and design teams. Potentially, these methods could also include links to alternative construction processes that may be utilized by designers to reduce the inherent hazards in the design, thereby enhancing their knowledge of construction and maintenance processes from the very people who are affected by the designs. The study reported in this paper aims to improve how designers involved in construction projects learn about how their design influences the management of occupational health and safety at the construction stage. The proposed approach involves the development of a multi-media digital tool for educating and assisting designers on typical design-related hazards. This prototype tool was used in an intervention study with novice and experienced designers, split evenly between experimental and control groups. These groups were assessed via a novel hazard test using fictitious Computer Aided Design (CAD) drawings. The results showed all experimental groups outperformed control groups, with the novice groups demonstrating the greatest increase in both hazards spotted and quality of alternative options recommended. Current research in this area promotes automated design systems for designers using Building Information Modelling (BIM). However, the research presented here advocates keeping the ‘human’ in control while supplementing designers’ knowledge with tacit knowledge gained from interaction from the developed digital tool, so that they can make informed design decisions potentially leading to safer designs

Morphologie et architecture d'une barrière composite paraglaciaire : l'isthme de Miquelon-Langlade (N- O Atlantique)

The purpose of this PhD thesis was to define a complete and continuous sea-land-sea view of a paraglacial coastal barrier system, combining morphological and architectural approaches. Particularity of the Miquelon-Langlade isthmus (NO Atlantic) lies in its diversity and complexity of systems (spits, beach ridges, and lagoon) that fit together to form a composite barrier prograding along two open coasts. Investigations of this barrier included topographic (RTK-GPS), ground-penetrating radar (GPR) seismic, sedimentary (cores, augers, samples) and chronologic (OSL) data collections. This study of this paraglacial composite barrier make possible 1) to characterize all deposits of the paraglacial sequence (FSST, LST, TST, HST); 2) to emphasize the primary influence of islands geometry, bedrock and inherited topography on the coastal progradational pattern; 3) to provide a better understanding of the internal architecture of depositional processes and driving mechanisms of mixed sand-and-gravel beach ridges; 4) to examine the potential of these mixed beach-ridge systems to record and preserve paleo-sea-level information, to produce the first sea level trends for the Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon archipelago over the last 3000 years. The combination of all these data provide a model of development of the barrier since the ice sheet retreat (13 700 yrs) to its present form, in a context of RSL rise and high local glaciogenic sediment supply, and a detailed view of the formation of the beach ridge plain over the last 3000 yrs.Cette thèse a pour objectif d’établir une vision globale et continue mer-terre-mer d’une barrière littorale paraglaciaire, en combinant une approche morphologique et architecturale. L’originalité de l’isthme de Miquelon-Langlade (NO Atlantique) entre les deux îles éponymes réside en sa diversité et complexité de systèmes (flèches, cordons littoraux, lagune) qui s’emboitent formant une barrière composite évoluant le long de deux façades ouvertes sur l’océan. Ce travail a été rendu possible grâce à l’association de données topographiques (GPS-RTK), de géophysique marine (sismique HR) et terrestre (géo-radar), sédimentaires (carottes, échantillons de surface) ainsi que des datations par OSL. L’étude de cette barrière a permis 1) d’identifier l’ensemble des dépôts d’une séquence paraglaciaire (dépôts de chute, bas niveau, augmentation et haut niveau marin); 2) de pointer l’importance de la géométrie des îles, du substratum rocheux ainsi que de la topographie héritée dans la formation de la barrière; 3) de définir l’architecture interne de beach ridges mixte sable-galet; et 4) de pointer le potentiel de ces systèmes en tant marqueur du paléo-niveau marin tout en proposant la première courbe de tendance de l’évolution du RSL pour l’Archipel de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon sur les derniers 3000 ans (+1mm/an). L’association de l’ensemble de ces informations a permis de proposer un schéma de mise en place de la barrière, depuis le retrait de la calotte (13 700 ans) jusqu’à sa forme actuelle, évoluant dans un contexte d’augmentation du RSL et de fort apport sédimentaire, tout en proposant une vision de détail de la formation de la plaine de beach ridges au cours des derniers 3000 ans

Southwest Detroit Wind Feasibility Study

http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/120378/1/BajaGainesHoMartinSchneiderSklar_SouthwestDetroitWindFeasibilityStudy.pd

“We Never Get Stuck:” A Collaborative Analysis of Change and Coastal Community Subsistence Practices in the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas, Alaska

The Indigenous communities of the northern Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea are experiencing extensive social, economic, and technological change. The region’s marine ecosystem is also characterized by a high degree of variability and by rapid change. Residents of eight coastal communities from Savoonga to Utqiaġvik were involved in the Chukchi Coastal Communities Project, which used the results of a literature review together with the experiences of the community participants to co-analyze what is known about societal and environmental change in the region and what the communities’ experiences have been in responding to those changes. Some of the observed changes are transient in duration and effect, such as the passage of an individual ship, whereas others, such as the creation of the Red Dog Mine Port Site, persist and may force coastal residents to make lasting changes in their activities. Some responses can use existing knowledge (e.g., hunting bowhead whales in fall as well as spring), whereas others may require learning and experimentation (e.g., harvesting new species such as the Hanasaki crab). Our findings show that the results of a change are more important than the source of the change. They also emphasize the continuing importance of traditional values and practices as well as attitudes conducive to persistence and innovation. Indigenous leadership is an essential component of continued resilience as the ecosystem continues to change. The resilient characteristics of coastal communities and their ability to determine their own responses to change need greater attention to match the research effort directed at understanding the ecosystem. Les collectivités autochtones du nord de la mer de Béring et de la mer des Tchouktches font face à d’importants changements sur les plans social, économique et technologique. L’écosystème marin de la région est également caractérisé par un grand degré de variabilité et de changement rapide. Les habitants de huit collectivités côtières, de Savoonga à Utqiaġvik, ont participé au projet des collectivités côtières des Tchouktches. S’appuyant sur l’examen de documentation et sur l’expérience des participants des collectivités, les responsables de ce projet ont co-analysé les faits connus au sujet du changement social et environnemental dans la région de même que l’expérience des collectivités en matière de réponse à ces changements. La durée et l’effet des changements observés sont parfois transitoires, comme le passage d’un navire, tandis que d’autres, comme l’aménagement du site portuaire de la mine de Red Dog, perdurent et risquent de forcer les habitants de la côte à modifier leurs activités en permanence. Certaines des réponses peuvent s’appuyer sur des connaissances déjà acquises (comme le fait de chasser la baleine boréale à l’automne ainsi qu’au printemps), tandis que d’autres pourraient nécessiter de l’apprentissage et de l’expérimentation (comme la récolte d’une nouvelle espèce comme le crabe Hanasaki). Nos constatations démontrent que les résultats d’un changement sont plus importants que la source du changement. Elles mettent également l’accent sur l’importance continuelle des valeurs et des pratiques traditionnelles ainsi que sur les attitudes propices à la persistance et à l’innovation. Le leadership autochtone est une composante essentielle de la résilience continue alors que l’écosystème évolue sans cesse. Les caractéristiques de résilience des collectivités côtières et leur capacité à déterminer leurs propres réponses au changement doivent faire l’objet d’une plus grande attention afin d’être à la hauteur de l’effort de recherche visant à comprendre l’écosystème.&nbsp

Effects of Angstrom-Prescott and Hargreaves-Samani Coefficients on Climate Forcing and Solar PV Technology Selection in West Africa

We evaluated and compared the performance of simulated Angström-Prescott (AP) and Hargreaves-Samani (HS) models on monthly and annual timescales using generalized datasets covering the entire West African region. The fitted AP model yielded more efficient parameters of a = 0.366 and b = 0.459, whereas the HS model produced a 0.216 coefficient based on an annual timescale, which is more suitable in the region compared to coefficients recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (a = 0.25 and b = 0.5) and HS (0.17), respectively. Employing the FAO and HS recommended coefficients will introduce a relative percentage error (RPE) of 18.388% and 27.19% compared to the RPEs of 0.0014% and 0.1036% obtained in this study, respectively. When considering time and resource availability in the absence of ground-measured datasets, the coefficients obtained in this study can be used for predicting global solar radiation within the region. According to the AP and HS coefficients, the polycrystalline module (p-Si) is more reliable than the monocrystalline module (m-Si) because the p-Si module has a higher tendency to withstand the high temperatures projected to affect the region due to its higher intrinsic properties based on the AP and HS coefficients assessment in the region.Citation: Agbor, M. E., Udo, S. O., Ewona, I. O., Nwokolo, S. C., Ogbulezie, J. C., Amadi, S. O., and Billy, U. A. (2023). Effects of Angstrom-Prescott and Hargreaves-Samani Coefficients on Climate Forcing and Solar PV Technology Selection in West Africa. Trends in Renewable Energy, 9, 78-106. DOI: 10.17737/tre.2023.9.1.0015

Predicting per-lesion local recurrence in locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer following definitive radiation therapy using pre- and mid-treatment metabolic tumor volume

Background: We evaluated whether pre- and mid-treatment metabolic tumor volume (MTV) predicts per lesion local recurrence (LR) in patients treated with definitive radiation therapy (RT, dose≥60 Gy) for locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods: We retrospectively reviewed records of patients with stage III NSCLC treated from 2006 to 2018 with pre- and mid-RT PET-CT. We measured the MTV of treated lesions on the pre-RT (MTVpre) and mid-RT (MTVmid) PET-CT. LR was defined per lesion as recurrence within the planning target volume. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, cumulative incidence rates, and uni- and multivariable (MVA) competing risk regressions were used to evaluate the association between MTV and LR. Results: We identified 111 patients with 387 lesions (112 lung tumors and 275 lymph nodes). Median age was 68 years, 69.4% were male, 46.8% had adenocarcinoma, 39.6% had squamous cell carcinoma, and 95.5% received concurrent chemotherapy. Median follow-up was 38.7 months. 3-year overall survival was 42.3%. 3-year cumulative incidence of LR was 26.8% per patient and 11.9% per lesion. Both MTVpre and MTVmid were predictive of LR by ROC (AUC = 0.71 and 0.76, respectively) and were significantly associated with LR on MVA (P = 0.004 and P = 7.1e-5, respectively). Among lesions at lower risk of LR based on MTVpre, higher MTVmid was associated with LR (P = 0.001). Conclusion: Per-lesion, larger MTVpre and MTVmid predicted for increased risk of LR. MTVmid was more highly predictive of LR than MTVpre and if validated may allow for further discrimination of high-risk lesions at mid-RT informing dose painting strategies

FOREDUNE GUIDED REMOBILIZATION EXPERIMENTS ALONG THE SOUTHWEST COAST OF FRANCE

This contribution presents the response of experimental management methods implemented along 2 km stretch of the southwest coast of France with the objective to restore aeolian dynamics and foredune mobility to promote quasi alongshore-uniform landward foredune migration. The analysis based on eight airborne LiDAR campaigns and several morphometric indicators shows that the alongshore and temporal variability of foredune evolution depends on natural dynamics and contrasted managed strategies. These experiments offer new perspectives and guidelines for coastal dune managers in areas where chronic erosion threatens fixed dune systems

Polymorphisms in Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter and multidrug resistance 1 genes: parasite risk factors that affect treatment outcomes for P. falciparum malaria after artemether-lumefantrine and artesunate-amodiaquine.

Adequate clinical and parasitologic cure by artemisinin combination therapies relies on the artemisinin component and the partner drug. Polymorphisms in the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (pfcrt) and P. falciparum multidrug resistance 1 (pfmdr1) genes are associated with decreased sensitivity to amodiaquine and lumefantrine, but effects of these polymorphisms on therapeutic responses to artesunate-amodiaquine (ASAQ) and artemether-lumefantrine (AL) have not been clearly defined. Individual patient data from 31 clinical trials were harmonized and pooled by using standardized methods from the WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network. Data for more than 7,000 patients were analyzed to assess relationships between parasite polymorphisms in pfcrt and pfmdr1 and clinically relevant outcomes after treatment with AL or ASAQ. Presence of the pfmdr1 gene N86 (adjusted hazards ratio = 4.74, 95% confidence interval = 2.29 - 9.78, P < 0.001) and increased pfmdr1 copy number (adjusted hazards ratio = 6.52, 95% confidence interval = 2.36-17.97, P < 0.001 : were significant independent risk factors for recrudescence in patients treated with AL. AL and ASAQ exerted opposing selective effects on single-nucleotide polymorphisms in pfcrt and pfmdr1. Monitoring selection and responding to emerging signs of drug resistance are critical tools for preserving efficacy of artemisinin combination therapies; determination of the prevalence of at least pfcrt K76T and pfmdr1 N86Y should now be routine