Sediment transport and coastal evolution at Thuan An Inlet, Vietnam

The Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon is located outside of Hue in central Vietnam. Southeast of Thuan An inlet, one of the two inlets of the lagoon, a groin was constructed in 2008 as a measure to reduce the sediment transport to prevent the inlet from closing. This groin has caused erosion of the eastern sand spit of the inlet and accretion of sediment on the coastline south east of the groin. The objectives of this study was to make a model of the sediment transport on the southeast side of the groin to be able to analyse how different measures to reduce the erosion of the inlet would affect the sediment transport past the groin. The field measurements and parts of the data collection took place in Vietnam during nine weeks in the beginning of 2013. The position of the coastline at Thuan An inlet was measured and the rest of the data, such as e.g. wave data, bathymetry data, previously measured coastlines and sediment transport was obtained from Institute of Mechanics in Hanoi. Other data used in this thesis was also obtained from The University of Agriculture and Forestry in Hue and from The Oceanographic Institute in Nha Trang. The study area has a tropical monsoon climate with two monsoon season per year – the southeast monsoon and the northwest monsoon. The micro tidal climate in the area is fully semi-diurnal and gives that the main sediment transport is wave induced. The modelling software GENESIS was used to model the sediment transport past the groin. The model was calibrated and validated using measured data and then the sediment transport on the southeast side of the groin was modelled during the years 2013 to 2017. First, the case where no measures were taken was modelled, to see what will happen if no changes of the groin were made. After that, three different measures to decrease the accretion of sediment on the southeast side of the groin (i.e. increase the sediment transport past the groin in order to reduce the erosion of the Thuan An inlet) were modelled and analyzed. These three measures were making the groin shorter, increasing the permeability of the groin and dredging sand from southeast side of the groin. The result of the model and the different measures to reduce erosion were discussed. The conclusion was that interventions to reduce the erosion are needed to protect the lagoon and the people living around it and making their livelihood from it. Many people work with e.g. fishery, aquaculture and agriculture and these occupations could be severely affected of the results of continuous erosion, such as changed water environment in the lagoon and flooding

Growth in Children with Cerebral Palsy during five years after Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy: a practice-based study

Background: Overweight is reported as a side effect of SDR. The aims were to study the development of weight, height and body mass index (BMI) during five years after SDR. Methods: This prospective, longitudinal and practice-based study included all 56 children with CP spastic diplegia undergoing SDR from the start in March 1993 to April 2003 in our hospital. The preoperative Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels were I-II in 17, III in 15, IV-V in 24 children. Median age at SDR was 4.3 years (range 2.4-7.4 years). Weight and height/recumbent length were measured. Swedish growth charts for typically developing children generated weight, height and BMI z-scores for age and gender. Results: The preoperative median z-scores were for height-1.92 and for body mass index (BMI)-0.22. Five years later, the median BMI z-score was increased by + 0.57 (p + 2 SD) increased (p < 0.05). Baseline BMI and age at the start of follow-up influenced the BMI change during the five years (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05 respectively). The individual growth was highly variable, but a tendency towards increasing stunting with age was seen in severe gross motor dysfunction (GMFCS levels IV-V) and the opposite, a slight catch-up of height in children with walking ability (GMFCS levels I-III). Conclusions: These are the first available subtype-and GMFCS-specific longitudinal growth data for children with CP spastic diplegia. Their growth potential according to these data should be regarded as a minimum, as some children were undernourished. It is unknown whether the spasticity reduction through SDR increased the weight gain velocity, or if the relative weight increase was part of the general "obesity epidemic". For some children the weight increase was highly desirable. In others, it resulted in overweight and obesity with risk of negative health effects. Weight and height should be monitored to enable early prevention of weight aberrations also causing problems with mobility, activity and participation

Expression and Regulation of Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases in Human and Rat Pancreatic Islets

As shown by transgenic mouse models and by using phosphodiesterase 3 (PDE3) inhibitors, PDE3B has an important role in the regulation of insulin secretion in pancreatic β-cells. However, very little is known about the regulation of the enzyme. Here, we show that PDE3B is activated in response to high glucose, insulin and cAMP elevation in rat pancreatic islets and INS-1 (832/13) cells. Activation by glucose was not affected by the presence of diazoxide. PDE3B activation was coupled to an increase as well as a decrease in total phosphorylation of the enzyme. In addition to PDE3B, several other PDEs were detected in human pancreatic islets: PDE1, PDE3, PDE4C, PDE7A, PDE8A and PDE10A. We conclude that PDE3B is activated in response to agents relevant for β-cell function and that activation is linked to increased as well as decreased phosphorylation of the enzyme. Moreover, we conclude that several PDEs are present in human pancreatic islets

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

Background Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI &lt;18·5 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). For school&#x2;aged children and adolescents, we report thinness (BMI &lt;2 SD below the median of the WHO growth reference) and obesity (BMI &gt;2 SD above the median). Findings From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining underweight or thinness. Interpretation The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesit

Lek + matematik = lustfyllt lärande : Att använda styrd lek som pedagogiskt verktyg i matematikundervisning

Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att undersöka hur styrd lek används som pedagogiskt verktyg i undervisning, i synnerhet i matematikundervisning, i förskoleklass och år 2. Ett ytterligare syfte är att få en inblick i hur lärare i förskoleklass och år 2 ser på styrd lek som pedagogiskt verktyg samt att studera skillnader mellan de olika årskurserna gällande användandet av styrd lek i matematikundervisning. Observationer och intervjuer har använts som metod. Studien är gjord på två skolor. Fyra lärare har intervjuats samt observerats och fem observationstillfällen i matematikundervisning har ägt rum.  I observationerna synliggörs hur lärarna i förskoleklass och år 2 arbetar med styrd lek i matematikundervisningen och i intervjuerna framkommer hur lärarna ser på styrd lek som pedagogiskt verktyg samt hur de anser att de arbetar och vill arbeta med detta. Skolorna som väljs för studien är skolor som det finns etablerade kontakter hos och de lärare som är aktuella för studien tillfrågas och tilldelas ett missivbrev som skrivs inför studien. Missivbrevet informerar lärarna om de forskningsetiska principerna och vad det innebär att delta samt vad studien handlar om. I arbetet synliggörs likheter och skillnader mellan de olika årskurserna gällande arbetssättet utifrån ett lekinriktat perspektiv samt de likheter och skillnader som finns mellan lärarnas syn på styrd lek som pedagogiskt verktyg. En slutsats är att lärarna ser styrd lek som betydelsefull och att de vill arbeta ur ett lekinriktat perspektiv men lärarna i år 2 är osäkra på hur de ska utforma undervisningen ur detta perspektiv

Förändrade resvanor och mobilitetstjänster - En kunskapsöversikt

Denna rapport tittar närmare på de förändringarna i resvanor som skett de senaste årtiondena, inklusive en kort historisk utblick, vilka har identifierats i transportlitteraturen. Rapporten undersöker även möjligheten till innovation kopplat till transportslag och till mobilitetstjänster med syfte att svara upp till befintliga och framtida resebehov.Specifikt presenteras några möjliga svar till frågorna:1. Vilka trender gällande resvanor har observerats hittills under 2000-talet och hur har covid-19-pandemin påverkat dessa trender?2. Vilka faktorer påverkar och hur kan vi förklara olika resvanor?3. Vilka är de nya och kommande transportalternativen och -tjänsterna som kan påverka hur vi reser?Att analysera de beteendeförändringar som sker är relevant för att tillgodose och anpassa sig till samhällets förändrade behov och för att uppnå ett hållbart framtida transportsystem

Kollektiv mobilitet : Ett scenario för hållbar samhällsutveckling

Trafikverket har fått i uppdrag av regeringen att genomföra informations- och kunskapshöjande insatser som avser mobilitet som en tjänst. Mobilitet som tjänst har beskrivits som en lösning för att minska samhällets beroende av den privata bilen, i synnerhet i städerna. Inom ramen för regeringsuppdraget har K2 ombetts att beskriva och analysera två scenarier för framtiden. Det ena scenariot beskriver en utveckling i linje med vad vi ser idag, enligt den trend som dominerat de senaste decennierna. Det andra scenariot beskriver en utveckling av mobilitet som tjänst där kollektivtrafiken knyts samman med andra delade mobilitetstjänster, samtidigt som det också görs andra förändringar för att främja delat resande. Detta scenario bygger på begreppet kollektiv mobilitet som utvecklades inom ramen för Rådslaget, ett initiativ från K2 som involverade ett 80-talexperter inom kollektivtrafik, andra delade mobilitetstjänster och stadsutveckling. Syftet med rapporten är att beskriva en framtid där den kollektiva mobiliteten tar störreplats och vad en sådan utveckling kan få för konsekvenser för samhällets utveckling

Measures reducing travel by public transport during peak hours

Generally, the cost of public transport has increased. Previous research has identified peak hour traffic as the main cost driver, mostly because the travel demand increases the number of vehicles and drivers needed. The purpose of this study is to identify measures aiming to reduce travel with public transport during peak hours, conducted through a semi-systematic literature review. The measures found were fare price differentiation, rewards, information regarding vehicle crowding, staggered school hours, flexible working hours, and working remotely. No studies of soft measures (e.g., campaigns and travel advice) for transport demand management were found. The results indicate that commuters with flexible working hours might have limiting factors that affect their ability to change departure time, for example, activities in connection to work and family responsibilities