Simulating urban growth in the George town conurbation

Simulation of land use changes has been discussed at length, with increasing papers proposing new methods to predict urban growth. Simulating urban growth can provide a clearer view of urban expansion which gave huge impact in developing a city. This phenomenon, however, also has driven the encroachment into agricultural and forest land in order to cater urban growth expansion. Therefore, this paper aims to develop an urban growth simulation model using GIS-based CA-Markov approach, incorporated with driving forces of urban growth in the Malaysian context. Land use data based on year 2006, 2010 and 2014 of the study area were prepared in a GIS database and used to develop and validate a CA-Markov Model using Idrisi Kilimanjaro software. The findings indicated new or expanded built-up areas of 2018 are found to be located in close proximity to existing growth centers and settlements.Keywords: CA-Markov; Geograpghic Information Sciences (GIS); Land use changes;Urbanization

Measuring a Level of Water Pollution in Sungai Pinang Using a Mathematical Model

Mathematical models are now a popular tool in many applications such as physics, economics and engineering; and provide useful information for decision making and planning. Water pollution in Malaysia has reached a level that needs attention and intervention from environmental department and government. In order to make a strong case, this paper has done a study on measuring the pollution level of Sungai Pinang which is located in Penang Island, Malaysia. Advection-Dispersion equation is one of the mathematical models that often use in evaluating the level of water pollution in the river. This paper applies this model and compares the result of this study with the studies done in the previous research worldwide to evaluate the severity of the pollution. The authors hope that this paper will create awareness to relevant department and also to community in genera

Laboratory Investigation on the Behaviour of Improved Organic Soil of Khulna Region

The conventional foundation systems are not suitable for the massive structures in Khulna region i.e. South-west part of Bangladesh because an organic soil layer exists at a depth 10ft to 25ft from the existing ground surface. The existence of organic soil layer in the deposits results excessive settlement due to its high compressibility and low shear strength. To overcome the problem, soil improvement techniques are usually adopted depending upon the type of constructions. It is necessary to know the degree of improvement for the different improved grounds prior to the selection of ground improvement techniques. So a laboratory investigation was conducted to find out the effect of improvement techniques on reconstituted organic soil to obtain a guideline for selection, design and construction of suitable soil improvement method for this region. The laboratory investigation reveals that the compacted sand bed improves bearing capacity of organic ground significantly

Internal erosional behaviour of lignosulfonate treated dispersive clay

Internal erosional behaviour of lignosulfonate treated dispersive clay has been studied using the Process Simulation Apparatus for Internal Crack Erosion (PSAICE) designed and built at UOW. Effectiveness of lignosulfonate treated dispersive clay on the erosion resistance has been investigated and its advantage over traditional admixtures is presented. Test results show that the hydraulic shear stress increases with increase in the amount of lignosulfonate. In addition, the micro-chemical analysis has been carried out using FTIR. Based on the Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy results a stabilization mechanism has been proposed for lignosulfonate treated dispersive soil

Possibilità di sviluppo della coltivazione del sorgo per l'alimentazione del bestiame in Somalia

In 1979, a trial concerning yield differences between 2 different periods of harvesting (soft dough and complete maturation of the grain) of a sorghum hybrid BR has been carried out in Afgoy (Somalia). The effects of four nitrogen level have been also evaluated. The results show no effect of different nitrogen levels on total dry matter production and grain quality. Maximum dry matter yield and maximum F.U. production has been reached at complete maturation of the grain. General level of grain yield has been restricted in consequence of bird damage in spite of the presence of the gene BR

Can the intra-operative measurement of the diameter of the femoral head help surgeons to choose the best size of the acetabular cup?

Purpose: We hypothesized that the intra-operative measurement of the femoral head may increase the accuracy of the acetabular cup size optimal selection in total hip arthroplasty (THA). The purpose of this clinical research was to analyze the correlation between the estimated cup size from intra-operative measurement of the femoral head and the pre-operative templated cup size. Methods: A prospective observational single-center study was conducted from June 2019 to January 2020 including primary THA (n = 100). All cases were pre-operatively templated. The measurement of the anterior-posterior diameter of the femoral head was routinely intra-operatively performed. Any definitive implanted cup was considered as 'oversized' when the size was > 4 mm than the diameter of the native head. Results: The median (interquartile range) size of the implanted cup, pre-operative planned cup size, and diameter of the femoral head were measured 52 (50-54) mm, 50 (48-54) mm and 49 (45-51) mm, respectively. Pre-operative planned size cup accurately predicted the implanted cup or differed in only one size (2 mm) in 77 (78%) cases. Otherwise, intra-operative femoral head measurement method accurately predicted the implanted or differed in only one size (2 mm) in 51 (87%) cases (p = 0.097). Conclusion: The intra-operative femoral head measurement is a simple and reliable tool to help the surgeons choose the best size of the acetabular cup and is as reliable as the pre-operative templating in order to avoid cup oversizing in THA. Utmost caution is warranted whenever the cup reamer is > 4 mm than the anterior-posterior diameter of the native head

A Survey: Implementations of Non-fungible Token System in Different Fields

In the realm of digital art and collectibles, NFTs are sweeping the board. Because of the massive sales to a new crypto audience, the livelihoods of digital artists are being transformed. It is no surprise that celebs are jumping on the bandwagon. It is a fact that NFTs can be used in multiple ways, including digital artwork such as animation, character design, digital painting, collection of selfies or vlogs, and many more digital entities. As a result, they may be used to signify the possession of any specific object, whether it be digital or physical. NFTs are digital tokens that may be used to indicate ownership of one of a-kind goods. For example, I can buy a shoe or T shirt from any store, and then if the store provides me the same 3D model of that T-Shirt or shoe of the exact same design and color, it would be more connected with my feelings. They enable us to tokenize items such as artwork, valuables, and even real estate. NFTs can only be owned by one person at a time, and they are protected by the Ethereum blockchain no one can alter the ownership record or create a new NFT. The word non-fungible can be used to describe items like your furniture, a song file, or your computer. It is impossible to substitute these goods with anything else because they each have their own distinct characteristics. The goal was to find all the existing implementations of Non-fungible Tokens in different fields of recent technology, so that an overall overview of future implementations of NFT can be found and how it can be used to enrich user experiences.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, 3 table

Differential Response of Sugar Beet to Long-Term Mild to Severe Salinity in a Soil-Pot Culture

Attempts to cultivate sugar beet (Beta vulgaris spp. vulgaris) in the sub-tropical saline soils are ongoing because of its excellent tolerance to salinity. However, the intrinsic adaptive physiology has not been discovered yet in the sub-tropical climatic conditions. In this study, we investigated morpho-physiological attributes, biochemical responses, and yield of sugar beet under a gradient of salinity in the soil-pot culture system to evaluate its adaptive mechanisms. Results exhibited that low and high salinity displayed a differential impact on growth, photosynthesis, and yield. Low to moderate salt stress (75 and 100 mM NaCl) showed no inhibition on growth and photosynthetic attributes. Accordingly, low salinity displayed simulative effect on chlorophyll and antioxidant enzymes activity which contributed to maintaining a balanced H2O2 accumulation and lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, relative water and proline content showed no alteration in low salinity. These factors contributed to improving the yield (tuber weight). On the contrary, 250 mM salinity showed a mostly inhibitory role on growth, photosynthesis, and yield. Collectively, our findings provide insights into the mild-moderate salt adaptation strategy in the soil culture test attributed to increased water content, elevation of photosynthetic pigment, better photosynthesis, and better management of oxidative stress. Therefore, cultivation of sugar beet in moderately saline-affected soils will ensure efficient utilization of lands

Quantifying movement patterns and vaccination status of high risk mobile populations in Pakistan and Afghanistan to inform poliovirus risk and vaccination strategy.

BACKGROUND: Stopping serotype 1 wild poliovirus transmission in Pakistan and Afghanistan requires ensuring all children 90% across HRMP type, ethnic group, language and mobility means. CONCLUSION: Large numbers of HRMPs were found across Pakistan, with substantial links throughout the country and with Afghanistan. While vaccination coverage of HRMPs was high, ensuring these populations are consistently vaccinated remains a priority

Mechanical properties of longitudinal basalt/woven-glass-fiber-reinforced unsaturated polyester-resin hybrid composites

This work represents a study to investigate the mechanical properties of longitudinal basalt/woven-glass-fiber-reinforced unsaturated polyester-resin hybrid composites. The hybridization of basalt and glass fiber enhanced the mechanical properties of hybrid composites. The unsaturated polyester resin (UP), basalt (B) and glass fibers (GF) were fabricated using the hand lay-up method in six formulations (UP, GF, B7.5/G22.5, B15/G15, B22.5/G7.5 and B) to produce the composites, respectively. This study showed that the addition of basalt to glass-fiber-reinforced unsaturated polyester resin increased its density, tensile and flexural properties. The tensile strength of the B22.5/G7.5 hybrid composites increased by 213.92 MPa compared to neat UP, which was 8.14 MPa. Scanning electron microscopy analysis was used to observe the fracture mode and fiber pullout of the hybrid composites