Flood modelling and hazard assessment for extreme events in Riverine Basin

Throughout the history of mankind, floods have caused destruction and negatively impacted communities. Recently, effects of climate change and the increasing rate of anthropic activities in flood-prone areas are aggravating the dangers posed by floods to people. Hence, it is crucial to have a better understanding of flood hazard aspects, particularly when considering pedestrians. Indeed, one of the main reasons for fatality during flood events is walking through floodwaters. Although authorities strongly advise against wading in floodwaters, people continue this dangerous behaviour. Alternatively, evacuations or the accessing of flooded areas by emergency services might be necessary. The scope of this research work is to contribute to improving flood hazard assessment and to the design of flood evacuation plans from a pedestrian perspective. To enhance flood hazard assessment a mechanics-based method has been improved by considering effects of terrain slope and updating values of human body characteristics, as well considering body mass index to identify the critical pedestrian category. Different criteria to assess flood hazard have been considered, including the revised mechanics-based approach reported herein. Results from the application of the different criteria to two different case studies, namely Boscastle and Borth, showed that methods based on a full physical analysis, and which also consider human characteristics, give more insight and reliability in assessing flood hazard, especially when considering pedestrians. Results in terms of flood hazard assessments can be used to: i) design evacuation plans; ii) identify hotspots in the study area which will help with prioritisation of the adaption measures; iii) improve resilience of sites prone to flooding and plan more resilient future developments. In this regard this research work proposes a novel approach to increasing flood resilience by retrofitting existing infrastructures to enhance evacuation and access routes by reducing flood hazard rate. Results of the application of this novel methodology to the aforementioned case studies highlighted that retrofitting small portions of the existing roads can enhance iii people’s safety during the evacuation, and hence provide a cost-effective solution to improve the resilience of the existing environment

The AMLEV technology applied to low speed urban transportation systems

The American version of Maglev (AMLEV) was developed in the USA since 1992. It is based on the interaction between a system of permanent magnets (PMs) installed on the vehicle, and steel cores positioned along the guideway. By using an analytical model, the inventor demonstrated that the system was able to produce levitating and stabilizing forces, allowing to safely reach a speed up to 150 m/s. In the present paper, the AMLEV technology is firstly simulated by using a FEM model; then its possible application in a low speed urban transportation system is verified. Finally, a comparison in terms of energy consumption and braking energy recovery efficiency is performed

Mapping the danger to life in flash flood events adopting a mechanics based methodology and planning evacuation routes

Extreme flood events are becoming more frequent and challenging due to climate change. Key objectives of this study are to evaluate different criteria used in assessing the hazard to people during flood events and, once determined, the most suitable method is then used to assess the hazard and the safest route(s) for evacuation during a flood event and for a particular case study. The results of the application of two criteria are analysed in terms of the flood hazard assessment with the two criteria being based on a widely used empirical approach and a mechanics based approach. Both criteria are used to assess the flood hazard to people during an extreme flash flood, which occurred on 16th August 2004 in Boscastle (UK). Results obtained for this study have highlighted that the mechanics based criteria are preferable in identifying the ideal escape routes, when considering the flood characteristics and the corresponding response of a human body. The main novelty of this study lies in linking the flood hazard rating with the human body characteristics, when determining the safest route and with a revised formula being developed, which includes the effects of ground slope in the application to a real case study

Epigenetics of aging and disease: a brief overview

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Enhancing pedestrian evacuation routes during flood events

The increasing rate of anthropic activities in flood-prone areas and the effects of climate change are aggravating the dangers posed by floods to people. One of the main reasons for fatality during flood events is walking through floodwaters. Although authorities strongly advise against walking in flood waters, evacuations or the accessing of flooded areas by emergency services might be necessary. This research proposes a novel approach to increasing resilience by retrofitting existing infrastructures to enhance evacuation and access routes by reducing flood hazard rate based on flood and pedestrian characteristics. The methodology was applied to flash floods in two case studies in the UK, namely Boscastle and Borth, highlighting that retrofitting small regions of the existing roads and pathways to reduce flood hazard can enhance people’s safety during the evacuation, and hence provides a solution to improve the resilience of the existing environment

From green-energy to green-logistics: a pilot study in an Italian port area

Abstract An ongoing two-year research is performing with the general objective to assess the feasibility of a system integrating the production of green-energy and its consumption inside and close to port areas for mobility services. The system is composed by two elements: (a) a "sea-to-grid" technological component harvesting and producing electrical energy from sea waves; and (b) a "green" logistic service based on the use of Fully Electric Vehicles (FEVs). A pilot study will be conducted near an Italian port area supporting passengers and freight mobility between a port and a backward (sub)-urban area. The proposed system is within the environmental goals set by the EU (Europe 2020 Strategy) and the Italian Government (National Energy Masterplan). Indeed, the energy-producing technology reduces dependence from traditional energy sources (coal, gas, oil) and consequently reduces their negative effects (greenhouse gases, air pollution, etc.). Considering that the energy is produced by sea waves, the system transfers the entire amount of produced (green) energy to the electric vehicles. The system will be experimented in a medium size urbanized area and the energy will be produced in a small size port

NS3 Variability in Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 1A Isolates from Liver Tissue and Serum Samples of Treatment-Naïve Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C.

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS3 resistance-associated substitutions (RASs) reduce HCV susceptibility to protease inhibitors. Little is known about NS3 RASs in viral isolates from the liver of chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients infected with HCV genotype-1a (G1a). Aim: The objective of this work was to study NS3 variability in isolates from the serum and liver of HCV-G1a-infected patients naïve to direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). Methods: NS3 variability of HCV-G1a isolates from the serum and liver of 11 naïve CHC patients, and from sera of an additional 20 naïve CHC patients, was investigated by next-generation sequencing. Results: At a cutoff of 1%, NS3 RASs were detected in all the samples examined. At a cutoff of 15%, they were found in 54.5% (6/11) and 27.3% (3/11) of the paired liver and serum samples, respectively, and in 22.5% (7/31) of the overall serum samples examined. Twenty-six out of thirty-one (84%) patients showed NS3 variants with multiple RASs. Phylogenetic analysis showed that NS3 sequences clustered within 2 clades, with 10/31 (32.2%) patients infected by clade I, 15/31 (48.8%) by clade II, and 6/31 (19.3%) by both clades. Conclusions: Though the number of patients examined was limited, NS3 variants with RASs appear to be major components of both intrahepatic and circulating viral quasispecies populations in DAA-naïve patients

A chromEM-staining protocol optimized for cardiac tissue

Three-dimensional (3D) chromatin organization has a key role in defining the transcription program of cells during development. Its alteration is the cause of gene expression changes responsible for several diseases. Thus, we need new tools to study this aspect of gene expression regulation. To this end, ChromEM was recently developed: this is an electron-microscopy staining technique that selectively marks nuclear DNA without altering its structure and, thus, allows better visualization of 3D chromatin conformation. However, despite increasingly frequent application of this staining technique on cells, it has not yet been applied to visualize chromatin ultrastructure in tissues. Here, we provide a protocol to carry out ChromEM on myocardial tissue harvested from the left ventricles of C57BL/6J mice and use this in combination with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to measure some morphological parameters of peripheral heterochromatin in cardiomyocytes. This protocol could also be used, in combination with electron tomography, to study 3D chromatin organization in cardiomyocytes in different aspects of heart pathobiology (e.g., heart development, cardiac aging, and heart failure) as well as help to set-up ChromEM in other tissues