Assessment of water-induced soil erosion as a threat to cultural heritage sites: the case of Chania prefecture, Crete Island, Greece

Among the environmental threats, the intensification of natural hazards, such as soil erosion may threaten the integrity and value of cultural heritage sites. In this framework, the present study’s main objective was to identify archaeological sites susceptible by soil erosion, taking the case study of Chania prefecture in Crete Island. Remotely sensed and other available geospatial datasets were analyzed in a GIS-based empirical model, namely Unit Stream Power Erosion and Deposition (USPED), to estimate the average annual soil loss and deposition rates due to water-induced erosion in the study area. The resultant erosion map was then intersected with the locations and surrounding zones of the known archaeological sites for identifying the sites and the portions of their vicinity being at risk. The results revealed that Chania prefecture and its cultural heritage are significantly affected by both soil loss and deposition processes. Between the two processes, soil loss was found to be more intensive, influencing a larger part of the prefecture (especially to the west) as well as a higher amount of archaeological sites. The extreme and high soil loss classes were also detected to cover the most considerable portion of the sites’ surrounding area. The identification of the archaeological sites being most exposed to soil erosion hazard can constitute a basis for cultural heritage managers in order to take preventive preservation measures and develop specific risk mitigation strategies

Exploring spatial non-stationarity in the relationships between landslide susceptibility and conditioning factors: a local modeling approach using geographically weighted regression

Landslide susceptibility is the likelihood of landslide occurrence, in a specific place and time. The identification of the potential relationships between landslide susceptibility and conditioning factors is very important towards landslide hazard mitigation. In this paper, we implement a local statistical analysis model geographically weighted regression, in two catchment areas located in northern Peloponnese, Greece. For this purpose, we examined the following eight conditioning factors: elevation, slope, aspect, lithology, land cover, proximity to the drainage network, proximity to the road network, and proximity to faults. Moreover, the relationship between these factors and landsliding in the study area is examined. The local statistical analysis model was also evaluated by finding its differences with the performance of a standard global statistical model logistic regression. The results indicated that the global statistical model can be enhanced by the application of a local model. The outputs of the proposed approach favored a better understanding of the factors influencing landslide occurrence and may be beneficial to local authorities and decision-makers dealing with the mitigation of landslide hazard

Autoimmune inflammatory reactions triggered by the COVID-19 genetic vaccines in terminally differentiated tissues

As a result of the spread of SARS-CoV-2, a global pandemic was declared. Indiscriminate COVID-19 vaccination has been extended to include age groups and naturally immune people with minimal danger of suffering serious complications due to COVID-19. Solid immuno-histopathological evidence demonstrates that the COVID-19 genetic vaccines can display a wide distribution within the body, affecting tissues that are terminally differentiated and far away from the injection site. These include the heart and brain, which may incur in situ production of spike protein eliciting a strong autoimmunological inflammatory response. Due to the fact that every human cell which synthesises non-self antigens, inevitably becomes the target of the immune system, and since the human body is not a strictly compartmentalised system, accurate pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies are needed in order to determine precisely which tissues can be harmed. Therefore, our article aims to draw the attention of the scientific and regulatory communities to the critical need for biodistribution studies for the genetic vaccines against COVID-19, as well as for rational harm-benefit assessments by age group