Compliance with standards and immerging issues of household sewage disposal systems in Gampaha Municipality Area in Western Sri Lanka

Urban centers are highly significant with limited space together with the rising urban population. Most of the houses and buildings are attached with some kind of a sewage disposal facility as central sewage disposal systems are limited. Urbanization is expected to create many problems in terms of black water disposal due to limitation of land. A study was done in Gampaha municipality area, an urban center, where there is no central sewage treatment facility. The objectives of the study were to analyze the current situation of the black water disposal system in the study area and to identify the shortcomings of the black water disposal system comparing with the standards. The study was conducted within the urban center in five GN divisions. Random samples of 44 households were selected to represent all the five GN divisions. Selected households were interviewed to collect basic data needed and physical measurements were also taken where necessary. The data categories collected are household information, toilet type and size, desludging interval and distance to nearest well. The code of practice for the design and construction of septic tanks reports that 80% of urban communities use septic tanks for sewage disposal, but this study reveals that only 18% of the population uses septic tanks. Over 82% uses typical soakage pits that are constructed with loosely constructed brick walls and bare bottom open to soil for their sewage disposal. Over 68% of the households have their toilet pits within 15m to the nearest well, which is below the recommended distance. Only 30% of the households comply with over 15m to the nearest well that is recommended for septic tanks. The recommended distance for the soakage pits to the nearest well is 30m and only 9% of the households meet this standard. The black water disposal pits are over sized in general, so that the desludging interval is more than 10 years. Recently constructed houses, due to limitation of space, have reduced the size of the pits reducing the size of desludging interval. The construction and placement of septic tanks or soakage pits in the area have not complied with the standards

Evaluation of the spatial and temporal trends of dengue outbreaks in Kolonnawa Urban Council, Western province, Sri Lanka.

Dengue which is renowned as world's fastest growing vector borne disease, has become one of the major health issues in Sri Lanka gaining a growing concern due to recent outbreaks throughout the country. Timely implementation of ideal precautionary and control measures is often respected as the prime solution for controlling and reducing potential risks posed by dengue outbreaks. Recent localized trends in spatial and temporal distribution patterns of dengue play a critical role in drafting and implementing management/action plans for effective management of dengue epidemic at regional scale. Thus, a statistic and geo informatics based analysis of the recent trends in dengue distribution was carried out to identify the trends in spatial and temporal distribution patterns of Dengue in Kolonnawa Urban Council (KUC) area (6.9283° N, 79.8950° E). Monthly records of dengue cases in 2013 and 2014 in each Grama Niladari (GN) Division (13) of KUC area were obtained from the Public Health Division of KUC. The collected data from each GN Division were then subjected to a graphical analysis (scatter plot analysis) in MINITAB (version 14.12.0) to identify the temporal patterns in dengue cases. Spatial maps of the recorded dengue case distribution in each GN Division for each month and for the whole study period were prepared using Arc GIS 10.1. The spatial and temporal variation of dengue outbreak distribution within the KUC at GND level were analyzed to identify the recent trends in dengue distribution. Significant temporal variation in dengue outbreak distribution were recognized in all GN Divisions, which is mainly influenced by the rainfall pattern, and Government and community based dengue controlling practices. Sedawatta Meethotamulla, Dahampura, Kolonnawa, Salamulla and Wellampitiya localities indicate relatively high susceptibility to dengue outbreaks while localities such as Wadulla and Gajabapura indicate less susceptibilities. The land use types, management actions taken by the Government and other relevant entities, public awareness and community participation act as the key factors that govern the trends in spatial distribution of dengue outbreaks. Thus the evaluation of the trends in temporal and spatial distribution of dengue outbreaks at the localized level, could be recommended for the government sector and other relevant entities in developing and implementing action plans to control the rise of dengue and also to evaluate the effectiveness of already implemented practices for reducing and controlling dengue outbreaks at regional scale

Evaluation of two mobile health apps in the context of smoking cessation: qualitative study of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) versus non-CBT-based digital solutions.

BACKGROUND: Mobile health (mHealth) apps can offer users numerous benefits, representing a feasible and acceptable means of administering health interventions such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is commonly used in the treatment of mental health conditions, where it has a strong evidence base, suggesting that it represents an effective method to elicit health behavior change. More importantly, CBT has proved to be effective in smoking cessation, in the context of smoking-related costs to the National Health Service (NHS) having been estimated to be as high as £2.6bn in 2015. Although the evidence base for computerized CBT in mental health is strong, there is limited literature on its use in smoking cessation. This, combined with the cost-effectiveness of mHealth interventions, advocates a need for research into the effectiveness of CBT-based smoking cessation apps. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was, first, to explore participants' perceptions of 2 mHealth apps, a CBT-based app, Quit Genius, and a non-CBT-based app, NHS Smokefree, over a variety of themes. Second, the study aimed to investigate the perceptions and health behavior of users of each app with respect to smoking cessation. METHODS: A qualitative short-term longitudinal study was conducted, using a sample of 29 smokers allocated to one of the 2 apps, Quit Genius or Smokefree. Each user underwent 2 one-to-one semistructured interviews, 1 week apart. Thematic analysis was carried out, and important themes were identified. Descriptive statistics regarding participants' perceptions and health behavior in relation to smoking cessation are also provided. RESULTS: The thematic analysis resulted in five higher themes and several subthemes. Participants were generally more positive about Quit Genius's features, as well as about its design and information engagement and quality. Quit Genius users reported increased motivation to quit smoking, as well as greater willingness to continue using their allocated app after 1 week. Moreover, these participants demonstrated preliminary changes in their smoking behavior, although this was in the context of our limited sample, not yet allowing for the finding to be generalizable. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings underscore the use of CBT in the context of mHealth apps as a feasible and potentially effective smoking cessation tool. mHealth apps must be well developed, preferably with an underlying behavioral change mechanism, to promote positive health behavior change. Digital CBT has the potential to become a powerful tool in overcoming current health care challenges. The present results should be replicated in a wider sample using the apps for a longer period so as to allow for generalizability. Further research is also needed to focus on the effect of greater personalization on behavioral change and on understanding the psychological barriers to the adoption of new mHealth solutions

Utilization of High Volume Fraction of Binary Combinations of Supplementary Cementitious Materials in the Production of Reactive Powder Concrete

The reactive powder concrete (RPC) is one of the special concrete types that characteristics with high cement content which means high production cost and CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. Therefore, to enhance the environment as well as to develop green RPC, alternatives to cement, such as supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) were used. Limited studies addressed the use of a high volume fraction of SCMs as a binary combination in the production of RPC. Thus, this study aims to replace a high percentage of cement (50%) with binary combinations of silica fume (SF), type F fly ash (FA) and metakaolin (MK). The experimental program included two phases. In phase one, two groups (SF+FA and MK+FA) were cast without steel fibers. Based on group performance in the first phase, one group was chosen to be used with steel fibers in the second phase. The flow rate, compressive and flexural strengths, density, ultrasonic pulse velocity and dynamic modulus of elasticity tests were conducted. The phase one results showed that SF+FA combination mixtures had better performance than MK+FA mixtures thus they were selected to be used in the second phase (with the addition of 1% volumetric fraction micro steel fibers). Results indicated that it is possible to produce sustainable RPC in which the cement can be replaced with 30% SF and 20% FA (the total replacement is 50%) in the presence of 1% steel fibers with a remarkable enhancement in compressive strength and flexural strength reached up to 44% and 10%, respectively

Thermophysical optimization of specialized concrete pavement materials for collection of surface heat energy and applications for shallow heat storage

There is great potential to use pavement structures to collect and/or store solar energy for the heating and cooling of adjacent buildings, e.g. airport terminals, shopping malls, etc. Therefore, pavement materials comprising both conventional and unconventional concrete mixtures with a wide range of densities, thermal conductivities, specific heat capacities, and thermal diffusivities were investigated. Their thermo-physical properties were then used as inputs to a one dimensional transient heat transport model in order to evaluate the temperature changes at the various depths at which heat might be abstracted or stored. The results indicated that a high diffusivity pavement, e.g. incorporating high conductive aggregates and/or metallic fibres, can significantly enhance heat transfer as well as reduction of thermal stresses across the concrete slab. On the other hand a low diffusivity concrete can induce a more stable temperature at shallower depth enabling easier heat storage in the pavement as well as helping to reduce the risk of damage due to freeze-thaw cycling in cold regions

Modélisation d'horizons sismiques à l'aide des algorithmes génétiques

Dans le contexte de l'analyse des images sismiques, ce travail propose la mise en valeur de structures continues (horizons) par une nouvelle méthode de reconnaissance de formes nommée « approche par correspondance géométrique ». Il s'agit d'une mesure non linéaire de similitude entre vecteurs qui correspondent respectivement, dans notre cas, à un segment particulier et préalablement choisi (horizon de référence) et un segment quelconque de l'image traitée. Le segment dit de référence est représenté par un modèle polynomial estimé à l'aide des algorithmes génétiques. Nous avons ainsi obtenu une carte d'attribut de similitude qui renforce la géométrie de structures géologiques initialement peu visibles sur une image sismique réelle

EFFECT OF GALLIC ACID ON LIPID PROFILE AND ANTIOXIDANT STATUS IN CADMIUM CHLORIDE TREATED RATS

This study was aimed to explore the role of gallic acid (GA) in ameliorating in reducing adverse effects of cadmium chloride (CdCl2) on antioxidant status and lipid profile in adult male rats. Twenty-eight (28) adult male rats were divided randomly into four equal groups; they were daily handled for 30 days, as follows: control group (C), received tap water only. (G1), received 100ppm of CdCl2 in drinking tap water, animals in proceeding groups were given in addition to CdCl2 in drinking water the following: intraperitoneal injection of GA 100 mg/kg. daily (G2 group) and the combination of GA and CdCl2 were given to rats in group (G3) in the same pattern.  At the end of the experiment, fasting blood samples were collected and serum was isolated for measuring of antioxidant status and lipid profile. The results showed that administration CdCl2 (G1 group) caused a case of dyslipidemia illustrated by significant elevation in serum cholesterol concentration in lipoprotein low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and very low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (VLDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TAG) and non-HDL-C accompanied with significant decrease in cholesterol of high density lipoprotein (HDL-C) concentrations. The results also revealed a significant elevation in lipid indices including, coronary risk index (CRI), and cardiovascular risk index (CVRI) in CdCl2 exposed rats. While significant elevation in malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduction in (GSH) concentrations observed in the same group comparing to gallic acid and control group, indicating a case of oxidative stress. The current results also recorded that intraperitoneal injection of GA against CdCl2 caused amelioration of all previously estimated parameters

Intestinal Bacteria in the University of Basrah fish ponds, Iraq

Total bacterial load, total coliforms and faecal coliforms in ponds water and sediments, intestine of common carp Cyprinus carpio and birds faeces were investigated monthly over a period of one year from May 2007 to April 2008. Fish were collected randomly by a cast net from ponds of University of Basra. Total viable bacterial counts were ranging from 2.8،ہ1.9 x 101 to 7.0،ہ2.2 x 103 cfu ml -1 in ponds water, 4.2،ہ2.2 x 104 to 3.8،ہ2.5 x 106 cfu g -1 in ponds sediments, 9.2،ہ2.6 x 104 to 10.9،ہ2.5 x 106 cfu g -1 fish intestine and 2.0،ہ1.4x 106 to 10.7،ہ1.2 x 108 cfu g-l in birds faeces. The most probable number (MPN) of faecal coliforms ranged from 94،ہ5 to ،ـ920،ہ0 100 ml-1 in ponds water; while MPN ranges in sediment, common carp intestine and birds faeces were 63،ہ18 to ،ـ540،ہ0 g-l, 43،ہ5 to ،ـ540،ہ0 g-l and 240،ہ22 to ،ـ540،ہ0 g-l respectively. The abundance of normal bacteria coliforms was greater in the warm months than in the cold months. There were no sources of human faecal matter in the ponds. So, it is clear that faecal coliforms from water birds faeces significantly contaminated (P< 0.05) the ponds and common carp intestines

Comparative Study of Reversal Flow during the Evaporation or Condensation of Water and Ethanol Film in a Vertical Channel

A comparative study of reversal flow is carried out to investigate the effect of thermal and mass buoyancy forces with evaporation or condensation along a vertical channel. The highlight is focused on the effects of phase change of two different liquid films having widely different properties, on heat and mass transfer rates in the channel. The evaporation occurs along isothermal and wetted walls. The induced laminar upward flow consists of a mixture of blowing air and vapour of water or ethanol. Various combinations of thermal and solutal boundary conditions (cooling and heating modes) are considered to investigate extensively their influence on the flow development. A two-dimensional steady state and elliptical flow model is used and the liquid film is assumed extremely thin. The governing equations of the model are solved by FVM and the velocity-pressure fields are treated with the SIMPLER algorithm. The results show that the buoyancy forces have a significant effect on the hydrodynamic, thermal and mass fields of both gas mixtures. In addition, the flow reversal is predicted with a relatively high temperature difference between the air-mixture and the wetted walls