Uncovering the hidden values of wetlands to local communities

The values of wetlands are generally classified into use values and non-use values. The use values are straightforward andmeasurable values but the non-use values are not so. Hence they are most often neglected and not incorporated in wetlands assessment and conversion to other uses by policy makers. Although the wetlands under review are obviously being used for farming and fishing, we attempted establishing from the local users if they have other forms of values for them. We therefore interviewed four hundred and ninety four (494) wetlands users in seventeen riparian local communities in Lokoja, Nigeria. The result of our findings shows that apart from the direct use of the wetlands, other form of uses, the non-use values exists. Bequest value was however dominant among the identified non-use values. Unfortunately this type of value is not usually considered in decision making patterning to wetlands in local communities. We recommend valuation of both the use and non-use values of wetlands in local communities that are being considered for conversion to other uses. This is suggested because the unseen hidden values of wetlands can be uncovered only in a study of this nature

Performer Identification From Symbolic Representation of Music Using Statistical Models

Music Performers have their own idiosyncratic way of interpreting a musical piece. A group of skilled performers playing the same piece of music would likely to inject their unique artistic styles in their performances. The variations of the tempo, timing, dynamics, articulation etc. from the actual notated music are what make the performers unique in their performances. This study presents a dataset consisting of four movements of Schubert's ``Sonata in B-flat major, D.960" performed by nine virtuoso pianists individually. We proposed and extracted a set of expressive features that are able to capture the characteristics of an individual performer's style. We then present a performer identification method based on the similarity of feature distribution, given a set of piano performances. The identification is done considering each feature individually as well as a fusion of the features. Results show that the proposed method achieved a precision of 0.903 using fusion features. Moreover, the onset time deviation feature shows promising result when considered individually

ATEPP: A DATASET OF AUTOMATICALLY TRANSCRIBED EXPRESSIVE PIANO PERFORMANCE

Computational models of expressive piano performance rely on attributes like tempo, timing, dynamics and pedalling. Despite some promising models for performance assessment and performance rendering, results are limited by the scale, breadth and uniformity of existing datasets. In this paper, we present ATEPP, a dataset that contains 1000 hours of performances of standard piano repertoire by 49 world-renowned pianists, organized and aligned by compositions and movements for comparative studies. Scores in MusicXML format are also available for around half of the tracks. We first evaluate and verify the use of transcribed MIDI for representing expressive performance with a listening evaluation that involves recent transcription models. Then, the process of sourcing and curating the dataset is outlined, including composition entity resolution and a pipeline for audio matching and solo filtering. Finally, we conduct baseline experiments for performer identification and performance rendering on our datasets, demonstrating its potential in generalizing expressive features of individual performing style

Estimating the values of wetlands in riparian communities: a tool for decision-making in planning

In spite of the importance of wetlands to the environment and most especially to the host communities, wetlands are constantly under pressure for conversion to other forms of use by policy makers. The reason for undervaluing the significance of wetlands is possibly due to lack of data on its values for it is not easily measured like other environmental goods. This study therefore adopted the use of Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) to measure the direct use values and non-use values of riparian wetlands to the communities in Lokoja, Nigeria. Four hundred and ninety four (494) households were surveyed in seventeen (17) riparian communities involving a series of focus group discussions and questionnaire administration. Our findings show that both direct use values and non-use values of the wetlands exist and majority of the people were willing to pay for these values. Most of them were also against conversion of the wetlands to other forms of use. The mean estimate of non-use values was however more than that of direct use values. Unfortunately, non-use values are not usually considered in decision making concerning wetlands conversion to other forms of use. The estimates of the values of the wetlands to the local communities as found can be used as a basis for argument by planners for its conservation and not conversion

Income-carbon footprint relationships for urban and rural households of Iskandar Malaysia

Iskandar Malaysia has a vision to achieve sustainable development and a low carbon society status by decreasing the amount of CO2 emission as much as 60% by 2025. As the case is in other parts of the world, households are suspected to be a major source of carbon emission in Iskandar Malaysia. At the global level, 72% of greenhouse gas emission is a consequence of household activities, which is influenced by lifestyle. Income is the most important indicator of lifestyle and consequently may influence the amount of households' carbon footprint. The main objective of this paper is to illustrate the carbon-income relationships in Iskandar Malaysia's urban and rural areas. Data were gathered through a questionnaire survey of 420 households. The households were classified into six categories based on their residential area status. Both direct and indirect carbon footprints of respondents were calculated using a carbon footprint model. Direct carbon footprint includes domestic energy use, personal travel, flight and public transportation while indirect carbon footprint is the total secondary carbon emission measurement such as housing operations, transportation operations, food, clothes, education, cultural and recreational services. Analysis of the results shows a wide range of carbon footprint values and a significance correlation between income and carbon footprint. The carbon footprints vary in urban and rural areas, and also across different urban areas. These identified carbon footprint values can help the authority target its carbon reduction programs

On the incorporation of interval-valued fuzzy sets into the Bousi-Prolog system: declarative semantics, implementation and applications

In this paper we analyse the benefits of incorporating interval-valued fuzzy sets into the Bousi-Prolog system. A syntax, declarative semantics and im- plementation for this extension is presented and formalised. We show, by using potential applications, that fuzzy logic programming frameworks enhanced with them can correctly work together with lexical resources and ontologies in order to improve their capabilities for knowledge representation and reasoning

Urban livability indicators for secondary cities in ASEAN region

Urban livability indicators have tremendous influence on policies and growth trajectories of cities or metropolises to the benefit of their communities. Livability is a threshold for measuring the social dimension of people wrought by exogenous factors like infrastructure, environment, social cohesion, transportation, health and education, among others. This research is aimed to generate prototype urban livability indicators for secondary cities in Southeast Asia, benchmarked on the livability indicators of Iskandar Malaysia, Davao City in the Philippines and Makassar in Indonesia. A three-round iterative Delphi survey (scoping, convergence, and consensus) was conducted to pre-qualified 60 experts with equal representations from the three metropolises. The significant phase was the scoping where experts have to supplement the given framework for their aspired urban livability sub-indicators under specific domain indicators. In the convergence phase, reconsideration of sub-indicators and preliminary ranking of domain indicators using the 5-point Likert Scale’s degree of agreement and Kendall’s W coefficient of concordance were performed. In the consensus phase, both domain indicators and sub-indicators were ranked separately and assigned corresponding weightings. With the total of 108 framework-based and supplementary sub-indicators categorized under the 11 domain indicators, the study conclusively yielded 75 common, comparative, interconnected, and consistent urban livability indicators ranked according to the aspiration of stakeholders in three ASEAN secondary cities. This research, through the employ of robust methodology, has generated comprehensive composite urban livability indicators for secondary metropolitan settlements in Southeast Asia; thus, the resulting final indicators can be potentially engaged to determine a comparative urban livability index of cities in the ASEAN region

Development of an indoor air quality checklist for risk assessment of indoor air pollutants by semiquantitative score in nonindustrial workplaces

Background: To meet the current diversified health needs in workplaces, especially in nonindustrial workplaces in developing countries, an indoor air quality (IAQ) component of a participatory occupational safety and health survey should be included. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate and suggest a multidisciplinary, integrated IAQ checklist for evaluating the health risk of building occupants. This IAQ checklist proposed to support employers, workers, and assessors in understanding a wide range of important elements in the indoor air environment to promote awareness in nonindustrial workplaces. Methods: The general structure of and specific items in the IAQ checklist were discussed in a focus group meeting with IAQ assessors based upon the result of a literature review, previous industrial code of practice, and previous interviews with company employers and workers. Results: For practicality and validity, several sessions were held to elicit the opinions of company members, and, as a result, modifications were made. The newly developed IAQ checklist was finally formulated, consisting of seven core areas, nine technical areas, and 71 essential items. Each item was linked to a suitable section in the Industry Code of Practice on Indoor Air Quality published by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health. Conclusion: Combined usage of an IAQ checklist with the information from the Industry Code of Practice on Indoor Air Quality would provide easily comprehensible information and practical support. Intervention and evaluation studies using this newly developed IAQ checklist will clarify the effectiveness of a new approach in evaluating the risk of indoor air pollutants in the workplace

Poor sitting posture and a heavy schoolbag as contributors to musculoskeletal pain in children: an ergonomic school education intervention program

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a multidisciplinary, interventional, ergonomic education program designed to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal problems by reducing schoolbag weight and correcting poor sitting posture. Methods: Data were collected twice before and twice following intervention using the Standardized Nordic Body Map Questionnaire, a rapid upper limb assessment for posture evaluation, and schoolbag weight measurement in children aged 8 and 11 years attending two schools within the central region of Malaysia. Results: Students who received the ergonomic intervention reported significant improvements in their sitting posture in a classroom environment and reduction of schoolbag weight as compared with the controls. Conclusion: A single-session, early intervention, group ergonomics education program for children aged 8 and 11 years is appropriate and effective, and should be considered as a strategy to reduce musculoskeletal pain among schoolchildren in this age group