Achieving sustainable construction in the developing countries Of Southeast Asia

Sustainable construction is a way for the building industry to move towards achieving sustainable development, taking into account environmental, socioeconomic and cultural issues. Differing approaches and differing economic markets lead to different priorities. This paper presents the construction scenario of Southeast Asia and the developments in sustainable construction taking place in the region. Barriers to the implementation of sustainable construction are discussed. A list of recommendations was proposed to drive sustainable construction in the region. In conclusion, the status of sustainable construction in Southeast Asia is still in its infancy. The lack of awareness, training and education and ineffective procurement systems are among the major barriers for sustainable construction in the region. In some countries public policies and regulatory frameworks do not encourage the development of the construction sector. Besides the needs for capacities, technologies and tools, total and ardent commitment by all players in the construction sectors including the governments and the public at large are required in order to achieve sustainable construction in South-East Asia

Silent voices : the role of Somali women's poetry in social and political life

In this paper women's poetry will be examined. Somali classical poetry--the type of poetry best suited to address issues of serious interest--is divided into four main styles: Gabay, Geeraar, Jiifto, and Buranbur. According to this classification, based on the way the poem is chanted and the rhythmic pattern of words, the Gabay, Geeraar, and Jiifto are seen as male genres while Buranbur is considered the female style (Andrzejewski and Lewis 1974).Issue title; "African Oral Traditions.

Electronic and Magnetic Properties of Pyrochlore (Eu(1-x)Dyx)2Ir2O7

The pyrochlore (Eu(1-x)Dyx)2Ir2O7 for x = 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.0 were prepared using solid-state reaction method. As the Dy concentration increases, the X-ray results indicate a systematic decrease of the cubic lattice parameter of (Eu(1-x)Dyx)2Ir2O7. We observed metal insulator transition in all compounds in addition two new anomalies at high temperatures in specifi c heat and resistivity results. The origin of these anoma- lies have not yet been identifi ed. The metal insulator transition temperature TMI of (Eu(1-x)Dyx)2Ir2O7 increases with the reduction in the lattice parameter. In the mag- netic susceptibility results, the effective magnetic moment increases with the increment of the Dy substitution for Eu ions. The magnetic fi eld dependence of resistivity was in- vestigated for all samples, negative and positive magnetoresistance effects are discussed

Assessment of the car-free day implementation on UTM campus using a shortest path method

Car-Free Days (CFDs) were introduced on the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) campus and intended to reduce vehicle emissions, promote healthy lifestyle modes of transportation and improve environmental sustainability awareness among campus community. The main objective of this study is to model and assess travel distances covered by vehicles during CFDs and Normal Days (NDs) on the UTM campus, Johor, Malaysia using Shortest Path (SP). In this study, online and paper-based questionnaires were designed and distributed to UTM campus community to obtain residential addresses (origins) and parking lots (destinations). In total, 119 valid questionnaires were collected for the purpose of the study. Network datasets were built within a GIS database using ArcGIS Network Analyst Extension to perform SP analyses between the two centroids of origins and destinations. The measured travel distance costs of SP analyses during CFDs and NDs were compared using dependent t-test for paired samples and the test was not significant (t(118) = 0.45, P-value > 0.05). From the results, the study reveals that there are almost no difference in travel distances during CFDs and NDs, thus, the UTM CFDs initiative has no a particular effect on travel distances

A Goal Programming Model for Fairly Scheduling Medicine Residents

In this study we develop a goal programming model for scheduling the shifts of the residents in a Qatari hospital. The residents are assigned for on-call shifts during their training (called first resident), as well as working during the regular day shifts (called helper). Residents schedules must address several considerations like work rules and hospital coverage requirements of two different departments: Oncology and Hematology as well as fairness of the workload distribution. The problem has been formulated using goal programming and solved using CPLEX. We were able to solve problems of realistic size to optimality in a few seconds

Analysing flow characteristic of breaching embankment using linear hydrodynamic porous model

The study of the overtopping flow associated with breaching embankments is an essential part of water management, particularly for emergency planning. One of the mechanisms that triggers embankment collapse is overtopping. Therefore, it is crucial to identify the zones at risk where the overtopping failure is likely to occur and where the breach might form. The nature of the failure would significantly impact the breach discharge, the variation of reservoir water levels, and the resulting water levels in the downstream valley or floodplain. This thesis presents the characteristics of flow due to an embankment breaching caused by flow overtopping. Laboratory works were carried out to observe the embankment failure, how the erosion is triggered, and factors contributing to the failure. A dimensional analysis was performed to identify the variables involved to analyse the mechanism of the embankment failure. The development of an embankment breach model using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) was carried out to model the failure patterns of a breaching embankment. This required specification of the breach formation and breach widening, and prediction of the resulting breach hydrograph. In this study, the embankment was modelled as a porous medium governed by a generalised form of Darcy’s Law. The erosion is prescribed by systematically decreasing the porous embankment resistance in those areas where erosion is likely to occur linearly. Model validations were performed by comparing CFD simulations with measured data from experimental work in the laboratory for a 2D model. The Eroding models developed were conducted in 2D and 3D, using the Realizable model and the Volume of Fluid (VOF) multiphase model to identify the free elevation surface. The 2D model results have shown good agreement with experimental data for free water surface and velocity profiles over a rigid embankment. For a porous embankment, the profiles displayed reasonable accuracy with that of a Rigid Model. The validations on the 2D porous embankment models gave reasonably good agreement on temporal breach patterns and free surface flow over the breached embankment. The results showed that the overflow volume predicted was close to the theoretical value. The percentage difference was around 13%. The study considered the mesh adaption technique using a grid refinement method. The results indicated that a 10% rule of refining and coarsening produced a difference of 6% (in peak flow of the hydrograph) compared to 10% rule of refining only technique. The 3D Eroding Models allow for the inclusion of lateral breach formation to predict flow features over a breached embankment and predict a breach discharge hydrograph. Three breach shape cases were simulated, namely the side-, trapezoidal, and triangle breach shapes. As a result, parameters such as velocity vectors at the breach area, free water surface profiles, and embankment volume lost during the breaching event were produced. The Eroding Model predicted that the initially triangular shaped beach produced 24% higher peak breach discharge compared with the trapezoidal shape. Comparisons of a maximum velocity at the breached area between the 3D Eroding Models and FLOW-3D simulation ranged from 11% to 52%. Meanwhile, the FLOW-3D simulation predicted more volume lost and peak discharge compared with observed data (Case Study E1) with a percentage difference of 42.7% and 30.2%, respectively