Implications of Climate Change for Soil Moisture Availability in Turkey’s Southeastern Anatolia Project Region

The Southeast Anatolia Development Project (known as GAP) is a multifaceted development project for agriculture and water resources within the Turkish portions of the Euphrates and Tigris river basins. Through this project, the vulnerability of the region to drought has been investigated in both temporal and spatial terms. On completion of the project, 28% of the total water potential of Turkey will be brought under control through facilities on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, which have a joint flow of more than 50 billion m3 (GAP Regional Development Administration, 1997). The GAP project aims to irrigate 8.5 million hectares of land in Southeast Anatolia, which is 19% of the total economically irrigable lands in Turkey. A project of such magnitude inevitably is of major importance to the region’s water resources and agricultural potential. It is therefore important to establish reasonable expectations of water use in the GAP region, since agriculture is going to be a critical component of the region’s economy in coming decades. The GAP area is located in the continental Mediterranean rainfall region, and its annual precipitation varies between 400 and 800 mm. Annual precipitation decreases from north to south in the region, and the greatest portion of the annual precipitation falls in winter, December and January being the wettest months. Summers in the region are very dry, with high temperatures

Implications of Climate Change for Soil Moisture Availability in Turkey’s Southeastern Anatolia Project Region

The Southeast Anatolia Development Project (known as GAP) is a multifaceted development project for agriculture and water resources within the Turkish portions of the Euphrates and Tigris river basins. Through this project, the vulnerability of the region to drought has been investigated in both temporal and spatial terms. On completion of the project, 28% of the total water potential of Turkey will be brought under control through facilities on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, which have a joint flow of more than 50 billion m3 (GAP Regional Development Administration, 1997). The GAP project aims to irrigate 8.5 million hectares of land in Southeast Anatolia, which is 19% of the total economically irrigable lands in Turkey. A project of such magnitude inevitably is of major importance to the region’s water resources and agricultural potential. It is therefore important to establish reasonable expectations of water use in the GAP region, since agriculture is going to be a critical component of the region’s economy in coming decades. The GAP area is located in the continental Mediterranean rainfall region, and its annual precipitation varies between 400 and 800 mm. Annual precipitation decreases from north to south in the region, and the greatest portion of the annual precipitation falls in winter, December and January being the wettest months. Summers in the region are very dry, with high temperatures

Money & Trust in Digital Society, Bitcoin and Stablecoins in ML enabled Metaverse Telecollaboration

We present a state of the art and positioning book, about Digital society tools, namely; Web3, Bitcoin, Metaverse, AI/ML, accessibility, safeguarding and telecollaboration. A high level overview of Web3 technologies leads to a description of blockchain, and the Bitcoin network is specifically selected for detailed examination. Suitable components of the extended Bitcoin ecosystem are described in more depth. Other mechanisms for native digital value transfer are described, with a focus on `money'. Metaverse technology is over-viewed, primarily from the perspective of Bitcoin and extended reality. Bitcoin is selected as the best contender for value transfer in metaverses because of it's free and open source nature, and network effect. Challenges and risks of this approach are identified. A cloud deployable virtual machine based technology stack deployment guide with a focus on cybersecurity best practice can be downloaded from GitHub to experiment with the technologies. This deployable lab is designed to inform development of secure value transaction, for small and medium sized companies

Behaviour of filled pultruded glass fibre reinforced polymer tubes under axial loading

The use of fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) materials in civil engineering applications has been broadened as an alternative construction material due to their features such as high strength, stiffness-to-weight ratio and excellent durability characteristics in aggressive environments. They act as a non-corrosive reinforcement for concrete structures and as a permanent formwork. Pultruded FRP (PFRP) profiles are made in shapes similar to those are made of steel. The usage of pultruded FRP tube sections for column applications in civil infrastructure is not widespread. This is because their full capacity is not utilised due to low stiffness and buckling issues. To overcome this shortage in their axial compressive behaviour, it is necessary to study effects of tube shape, wall thickness, fibre orientation and layup using different sections. Examining effects of filler materials having different stiffness and simulate the axial behaviour using finite element method to study impacts of change in different parameters on the axial behaviour of pultruded FRP tubes are provided a comprehensive understanding about improving the stiffness and load capacity of pultruded FRP tube columns. Firstly, the mechanical properties of different pultruded FRP tubes were calculated by conducting material tests. The results show that the mechanical properties of the pultruded FRP tubes rely mainly on the percentage of the fibre content and fibre orientation. Moreover, it provides an enhancing approach to the axial behaviour of the FRP columns. The basis of this approach is selection the appropriate fibre orientation and layup for the targeted applications for the best structural performance. Secondly, the effect on the axial behaviour of PFRP tube columns due to different types of fillers was experimentally investigated. The results revealed that the stiffness and load carrying capacity of filled columns is increased as the modulus of infill concrete increases. It further shows that the degree of improvement depends on the properties of PFRP tube and concrete. The other important output is the axial behaviour after the peak load. The strength of the filled columns does not decrease sharply after the point of the peak load instead it declines gradually. The properties of infill concrete and transverse modulus of PFRP tube govern the rate of strength reduction in the post-peak region of the load deflection curves and capacity of the energy absorption. Thirdly, finite element simulation was performed to study the axial behaviour of the hollow and filled pultruded FRP columns. The simulation accuracy level was checked against the experimental results. The load-deflection curves, based on the lamina method, give a better agreement compared with the curves of the full-scale column tests. The numerical values of the load capacity also coincide well with those of the experimental tests. The importance of obtaining finite element model with adequate level of accuracy is important to investigate the effects of other parameters. Finally, the last part of this study is numerically examining the effect of different parameters using a parametric study. The parameters considered are wall thickness, fibre orientation and fibre concentration of the pultruded FRP tubes and properties of the infill concrete. The results show that the wall thickness impact positively on the stiffness and load capacity of the hollow square and circular columns. The stiffness of filled columns depends on the compressive strength of filler. The influence of fibre orientation on the performance of hollow circular columns is more significant than its influence on square columns. The significant outcomes of this study are advancing the knowledge of axial compressive behaviour of hollow pultruded FRP columns and establishing the effect of infill concrete on enhancing stiffness, load capacity and energy absorption capacity of filled pultruded FRP columns. Moreover, impacts of various parameters related to shape, dimensions, fibre structure and properties of the concrete filler material are also determined. This study outlines the importance of properties of FRP tube and filler material to enhance the axial behaviour of filled FRP tubes towards broadening their utilisation in civil infrastructure

Structural applications of fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composite tubes: a review of columns members

Use of fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) in column applications is increased because it can act as a confining material, a reinforcement and a structural column. The application of FRP tubes is correlated with the fibre orientation since tube stiffness is mainly attributed to the stiffness of fibres. Thus, for confinement, the fibres should align in the transverse direction of the tube while they should align in the axial direction when tubes are used as compression members. FRP tubes with fibres mainly in axial direction may reach failure because the stiffness in the perpendicular direction to fibres depends only on the stiffness of the matrix. In order to boost the stiffness in the secondary direction while supporting fibres in the main direction, fibres should be in multi-directions. This paper reviews and identifies gaps in knowledge on the use of FRP materials in column applications in new or existing construction regimes

Diagnostic value of CA 19-9 in pregnancies complicated by spinal neural tube defects: a preliminary study

Objectives: Various physiological and pathological conditions can induce significant variations in plasma concentrations of tumor markers, such as CA 19-9, which is present in the serum and amniotic fluid of pregnant women. Herein, we aimed to determine the clinical importance of maternal serum CA 19-9 levels in the diagnosis of neural tube defects (NTDs). Material and methods: A total of 100 women were included in this controlled cross-sectional study. Thirty-three patients whose pregnancies were complicated by isolated meningocele or meningomyelocele constituted the study group, whereas 33 normal, healthy pregnant women constituted the control group, and 34 age- and body mass index (BMI)-matched non-pregnant women were chosen for the validation group. Results: The mean maternal serum CA 19-9 levels were 17.2 ± 17.0 IU/mL, 7.1 ± 5.9 IU/mL, and 4.7 ± 3.6 IU/mL in the study, control, and validation groups, respectively (p < 0.001). ROC analyses showed that elevated CA 19-9 values may predict NTDs (p < 0.001). The cut-off value for CA 19-9 was found to be 9.6 IU/mL at 70% (51%–84%, 95% CI) sensitivity and 84% (74%–92%, 95% CI) specificity. Conclusions: CA 19-9 may be a promising noninvasive marker for NTDs. Further studies are needed to reveal the clinical applicability and diagnostic potential of maternal serum CA 19-9 levels in the identification of NTDs

Challenges on the morbidly obese endometrial cancer surgery: Laparotomy or laparoscopy, lymphadenectomy or no lymphadenectomy?

Objectives: A considerable proportion of endometrial cancer patients are morbidly obese. Management of these cases is a serious dilemma. The aim of this study was to investigate the relevance of laparoscopic route and omission of lymphadenectomy as morbidity-reducing strategies in this special population. Material and methods: Endometrial cancer patients’ archival records were retrospectively reviewed and cases with body mass index ≥ 40 kg/m2 were selected. A comparative evaluation of their characteristics and survival rates were performed. Firstly, according to the surgical approach; laparoscopy or laparotomy, and then regarding to performing lymphadenectomy or not. Results: There were 146 patients enrolled in this study. Whereas, significantly higher postoperative complications and longer hospital stays were determined in the laparotomy compared to laparoscopy groups. Five years disease-free and overall survival were not significantly different (83.6% vs 70.7%, p = 0.184 and 83.9% vs 86.6%, p = 0.571, respectively). On the other hand, operation length, postoperative hospitalization time, both intraoperative and postoperative complications were significantly lower in the non-lymphadenectomy compared to the lymphadenectomy groups. However, five-years disease-free and overall survival were not significantly different (77.3% vs 81.3%, p = 0.586 and 87.5% vs 78%, p = 0.479, respectively). Conclusions: Laparoscopic approach and omission of lymphadenectomy are worthy policies in the morbidly obese endometrial cancer patients

Clinicopathologic characteristics and prognosis comparison of the uterine high grade endometrial carcinomas

Objectives: Grade 3 endometrioid adenocarcinomas (G3 EAC), type two endometrial carcinomas (Type 2 EC), and alsouterine carcinosarcomas (UCS) are considered as high-grade endometrial adenocarcinomas. The aim of this study was tocompare the clinicopathologic features and survival of patients with UCS, G3 EAC, Type2 EC.Material and methods: We included two hundred and thirty-five patients in this study. Patients were divided into threegroups according to the type of tumor as uterine G3 EAC (group 1, n = 62), Type 2 EC (serous, clear and mixed types; group 2,n = 93), and UCS (group 3, n = 80). We compared the groups according to age, initial symptom, surgical approach, stage,myometrial invasion (MI), lymph node invasion (LNI), lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), adjuvant therapy, and survival.When comparing the survival outcomes the Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed.Results: The groups were similar according to age, menopausal status, nulliparity, initial symptoms, stage, LVSI, and LNI.Positive cytology was determined significantly more in group 3. There was a significant difference between the groups interms of myometrial invasion degree. Optimal cytoreduction was similar among the groups. The primary adjuvant treatmentwas chemotherapy for UCS and Type2 EAC whereas radiotherapy was the main adjuvant treatment for G3 EAC. Therewere no significant differences among the groups according to overall survival (OS) (p = 0.290).Conclusions: Although the survival difference among the groups can not be revealed, these patients have different clinicaland pathological features and they should be considered as different groups

Using the SPI to Analyze Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Drought in Turkey

Drought is a natural phenomenon that has significant economic, social, and environmental impacts. Drought differs from other natural hazards in that its onset and end are difficult to determine. It develops slowly, and its impacts may remain for years after termination of the event. No single definition of drought exists that applies to all circumstances, but most definitions of drought are based on an expression of deficiency of precipitation resulting in water shortage for some activity related to use of water (Wilhite and Glantz, 1985; Dracup et al., 1980). Water resources planners usually rely on quantitative indices to decide whether or not a drought exists. Consequences of drought are usually defined by the impacts that human use systems place on water supply. Drought impacts are usually first apparent in agriculture but gradually move to other water-dependent sectors. Recovery time for water stored in surface and subsurface systems can be quite long under severe drought conditions. Risk of drought is still a major concern in parts of Turkey where precipitation amounts are low and extremely variable. The combination of rainfall deficiency and other climatic factors, especially high temperature, creates a serious risk of drought in the central and southeastern parts of the country, where agriculture is the main economic sector (Komuscu, 1998). The impacts of drought in the low and variable rainfall regions of the country can be widespread, affecting such diverse sectors as agriculture, irrigation, and energy. In particular, the southeastern Anatolian region, which is the host of the Southeastern Anatolian Project (GAP), may face a serious threat from persisting drought conditions. Moreover, the project includes large-scale irrigation, which stimulates higher competition among the water-dependent sectors