Syllabus: Drinking Water, Sanitation, and Global development

Within the past three decades, more than 2.6 billion people have gained access to an improved water source and 2.1 billion have gained access to an improved sanitation facility. However, improved does not always mean people have safe, reliable, accessible, or equitable water and sanitation services. Waterborne diseases continue to cause and estimated 500,000 deaths each year. What causes waterborne diseases, and what is the role of engineered systems in their spread or prevention? How can we evaluate interventions to improve health and well-being? How can research address these challenges

Investigation of compaction characteristics of subbase material using the superpave gyratory compactor

The purpose of this study is to complete an in-depth analysis of data from both the Federal Aviation Administration\u27s (FAA) full-scale testing and Superpave Gyratory Compactor testing to determine if the SGC is a valuable tool for the prediction of airport pavement performance and design. The practicality of the SGC was based on extensive laboratory and field testing of three unbound materials including P-154, P-209, and DGA, which are the subbase and base materials used by the FAA at the National Airport Pavement Test Facility (NAPTF). During the past construction cycles at the NAPTF, it has been found that the flexible pavements failed due to excessive compaction of the subbase material. To better study this phenomena in the laboratory, SGC tests were done at various moisture contents, while varying other variables such as the confining pressure and number of gyrations. The laboratory tests were correlated with field performance characteristics during construction such as changes in density of the soil with each pass of the roller. It was found that the SGC results are capable of replicating the field compaction characteristics irrespective of the roller used. In addition, the laboratory SGC results were correlated with field trafficking data such as magnitude of deflections with each pass of the aircraft gear and a direct correlation has been found. The excessive compaction observed in the subbase layer during trafficking is shown to be due to abrasion and attrition of the aggregate changing the aggregate from an angular to a more rounded aggregate, which reduces interlock and causes more compaction. Ultimately, the study has provided correlations between passes of various landing gear configurations and gyrations in the SGC

Branch banking in the United States

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Boston University, 1928. This item was digitized by the Internet Archive

Dry Pipes: Associations between Utility Performance and Intermittent Piped Water Supply in Low and Middle Income Countries

Abstract Intermittent piped water supply impacts at least one billion people around the globe. Given the environmental and public health implications of poor water supply, there is a strong practical need to understand how and why intermittent supply occurs, and what strategies may be used to move utilities towards the provision of continuous water supply. Leveraging data from the International Benchmarking Network for Water and Sanitation Utilities, we discover 42 variables that have statistically significant associations with intermittent water supply at the utility scale across 2115 utilities. We categorized these under the following themes: Physical infrastructure system scale, coverage, consumer type, public water points, financial, and non-revenue water and metering. This research identifies globally relevant factors with high potential for cross-context, scaled impact. In addition, using insights from the analysis, we provide empirically grounded recommendations and data needs for improved global indicators of utility performance related to intermittent supply

Rain Rain Flush Away: Evaluating Rainwater Catchment First Flush Volumes

Rainwater harvesting systems often include quality control systems such as a diverted first flush volume to improve the collected water quality. The first flush volume has traditionally been defined as a set volume of rain based on the first 1-2 millimeters of rain that falls on a roof. Diverting a volume of water can be seen as a waste when rainwater is a main source of potable water, sometimes leading to lack of implementation, and thus contaminating the final collected water. Understanding the variability of first flush volume required due to environmental parameters can be used to develop an optimized first flush system. This study evaluated rainwater catchment first flush volumes by assessing the rainwater quality over volume and time. To study these effects, we built a rainwater collection system on a test site in Amherst, Massachusetts. We performed a tracer study with the rainwater collection system to model the first flush volume required to wash out a dissolved contaminant. We collected four rain events using a fractionation first flush design. We measured water quality parameters in the atmospheric rain, first flush, and collection tank samples for each rain event. Our first flush samples resulted in elevated dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations up to 40 mg/L, although there was high variation between the rain events. UV 254, DOC, and conductivity all trended together within each rain event, demonstrating a uniform wash off, of contaminants. Indicator bacteria up to 200 MPN/100 mL within rain event 1 and 2, indicates the need for disinfection if the water is to be potable. The high levels of DOC and SUVA characterization presented a concern for disinfection by-products (DBP) potential if the water were treated with chlorine. Higher intensity storms seem to increase roof wash-off deposition in the first flush. The majority of contaminants washed off in the first flush seemed to originate from roof wet and dry deposition, demonstrating the need for variable first flush volumes. Hydraulic parameters that affect wash-off, such as rain intensity and collection location, also led to varied first flush volumes. Considering these factors in the first flush volume required, could decrease treatment needs, system maintenance, and concern from treatment by-products

A finite loop space not rationally equivalent to a compact Lie group

We construct a connected finite loop space of rank 66 and dimension 1254 whose rational cohomology is not isomorphic as a graded vector space to the rational cohomology of any compact Lie group, hence providing a counterexample to a classical conjecture. Aided by machine calculation we verify that our counterexample is minimal, i.e., that any finite loop space of rank less than 66 is in fact rationally equivalent to a compact Lie group, extending the classical known bound of 5.Comment: 8 page

TCF7L2 gene polymorphism rs7903146 and gestational diabetes mellitus

Gestatsioonidiabeet on süsivesikute ainevahetuse häire, mis tekib ainult raseduse käigus. TCF7L2 on valku kodeeriv geen, mis on peamiselt seotud β-rakkude proliferatsiooni ja proinsuliini sünteesi reguleerimisega. TCF7L2 polümorfismi rs7903146 on kõige rohkem seostatud teist tüübi diabeediga, kuid kuna teist tüüpi diabeet ja gestatsioonidiabeet on patofüsioloogiliselt sarnased, on seda polümorfismi uuritud ka gestatsioonidiabeedi patsientide seas. Selle uurimistöö eesmärgiks oli määrata TCF7L2 polümorfismi rs7903146 genotüübid gestatsioonidiabeedi riskirühma kuuluvatel rasedatel ning analüüsida polümorfismi mõju genotüübiti nii gestatsioonidiabeedi kujunemisele kui ka sellega seotud tulemitele. Uuritavate rühma moodustasid 473 naist, kellest gestatsioonidiabeedi diagnoosiga oli 181. Tulemustest selgus, et TCF7L2 riskigenotüüp T/T polnud seotud gestatsioonidiabeedi diagnoosi, veresuhkru ega C-peptiidi väärtustega, kuid suurendas insuliinravi vajaduse šanssi raseduse lõpus

MiR-30d-5p, miR-92-5p ja miR-195-5p ekspressioon gestatsioonidiabeediga patsientide vereplasmas raseduse teisel trimestril

MikroRNA-d on üheahelalised mittekodeerivad lühikesed RNA-molekulid, mis reguleerivad geenide ekspressiooni post-transkriptsioonilisel tasemel. Gestatsioonidiabeet on raseduse ajal tekkiv süsivesikute metabolismi häire. On täheldatud, et mikroRNA-de ekspressioonitasemete muutused võivad olla seotud gestatsioonidiabeedi kujunemisega. Antud bakalaureusetöö eesmärgiks oligi määrata miR-30d-5p, miR-92-5p ja miR-195-5p ekspressioonitasemete muutusi gestatsioonidiabeediga patsientide vereplasmast

Entorno de realidad virtual controlado en tiempo real por señales motoras para la rehabilitación del miembro superior en pacientes con daño cerebral

Este trabajo tiene como meta el desarrollo de un sistema de neurorrehabilitación mediante realidad virtual para pacientes con problemas motores en las extremidades superiores provocados por un daño cerebral. Para entender y enfrentarse de manera correcta al problema, se han revisado todos los aspectos concernientes al daño cerebral y déficits motores derivados así como las terapias empleadas para su rehabilitación, como las que utilizan tecnologías asistidas como la realidad virtual. Se han expuesto las ventajas que han llevado a utilizar esta terapia en el proyecto y se han mencionado algunos estudios de investigación previos y con resultados favorables. Por último, se ha hecho hincapié en las novedades (embodiment y neuronas espejo) que aporta este proyecto con las que se podría acelerar la rehabilitación de los pacientes incidiendo en la plasticidad cerebral. En lo que se refiere al desarrollo del entorno, se ha utilizado el motor de videojuegos Unity 3D, con el que se ha integrado el dispositivo Myo Armband, para capturar el movimiento, y las gafas de realidad virtual Oculus Rift DK2. Durante la terapia, el paciente tiene que superar una serie de niveles definidos por el terapeuta y, para ello, debe realizar un alcance y tocar un botón un número de veces por cada nivel. En cada nivel, el esfuerzo que tiene que realizar el paciente es distinto, dependiendo de la distancia a la que se encuentre el botón (relativa al calibrado previo del paciente) e igualmente, está definido por el terapeuta. También se lleva a cabo un registro de las aceleraciones y del porcentaje de acierto del paciente en un fichero, para llevar un control de su progreso. Como conclusión, cabe mencionar que el entorno desarrollado es adaptable a las posibilidades de cada paciente, permitiendo una recuperación óptima. Se trata de un sistema de bajo coste, intuitivo y que lleva a cabo un registro de datos de la actividad del paciente, lo que posibilita, como trabajo futuro, el control de forma remota por parte del terapeuta. Todos estos aspectos dejan abierta la posibilidad de que el paciente lo utilice a domicilio, con las ventajas que conlleva. Del mismo modo, el sistema se podría adaptar fácilmente para la rehabilitación de las extremidades inferiores. Tras su análisis, los investigadores expertos en la materia del Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas afirman que el sistema satisface con creces su propósito. Con todo esto, se concluye que este entorno tiene un excelente presente y un futuro muy prometedor