City temperatures and city economics, a hidden relationship between sun and wind and profits

Urban design undoubtedly influences the urban economy. A simple thing like designing an area to make it more walkable can boost local business profits. This can also increase real estate value, create more and better jobs and generate stronger local economies. Street temperatures also determine their walkability. With climate change bringing longer and more frequent heatwaves, street temperatures will become even higher than at present. This will reduce walkability and, in turn, local business profitability

Urban growth, heat islands, humidity, climate change: the costs multiply in tropical cities

Some 60% of the planet’s expected urban area by 2030 is yet to be built. This forecast highlights how rapidly the world’s people are becoming urban. Cities now occupy about 2% of the world’s land area, but are home to about 55% of the world’s people and generate more than 70% of global GDP, plus the associated greenhouse gas emissions. So what does this mean for people who live in the tropical zones, where 40% of the world’s population lives? On current trends, this figure will rise to 50% by 2050. With tropical economies growing some 20% faster than the rest of the world, the result is a swift expansion of tropical cities

Cities can grow without wrecking reefs and oceans. Here's how

[Extract] "What happens if the water temperature rises by a few degrees?" is the 2018 International Year of the Reef leading question. While the ocean is the focus, urbanisation is the main reason for the rising temperatures and water pollution. Yet it receives little attention in this discussion. In turn, rising temperatures increase downpours and urban floods, adding to the pressures on urban infrastructure

Making a global agenda work locally for healthy, sustainable living in tropical Australia

[Extract] Life in the tropics is often seen as "living in paradise", a place where everything grows and flourishes. This picture-postcard environment is not the year-round reality. At certain times of year, intense heat, humidity and the wet season affect liveability, making outdoor activity unattractive and thereby reducing social cohesion

Healthy, happy and tropical – world's fastest-growing cities demand our attention

[Extract] What does it take to be a happy and healthy city? In any city, myriad factors go into the mix – and of course we are not dealing with just one kind of city. But, due to the world history of colonisation, models are still too often European-centric. In particular, we need to adjust how we think about cities in the tropics

Urban design and economic growth: an analytical tale of two tropical cities

Federal and local governments around the world usually hail urbanisation as a sign of economic progress. However, the relationship is not that simple. The existence of agglomeration economies does not mean that urbanisation will directly result in positive economic outcomes. Also, there is significant diversity in urban growth patterns, with each pattern resulting in different economic and social outcomes. The diversity in patterns of urban growth and transformation implies that different economies can grow at different speeds in achieving socioeconomic goals. This study explores the urban development of two tropical cities – Cairns and Singapore – with a focus on their different urban growth patterns. Cairns is an expanding tropical Australian city located far from main urban centres, meaning it needs attention to foster positive change that will produce distinctive urban spaces which improve quality of life while providing economic growth opportunities. The city of Singapore is a tropical island-state situated near the equator with limited land and natural resources, and one of the largest urban populations in Southeast Asia. Its landscapes are constantly changing as urban planning plays a key role in formulating and guiding the physical terrains of modern Singapore, thereby shaping the quality of life of its population

Expression of city edges in different cultures and its influence on urban landscape design: a comparison between the urban-rural interface in Brazil and New Zealand medium sized cities

Medium-sized cities are common in Brazil and are responsible for local regional development. The rapid development of these cities results in urban territorial expansion and the substitution of natural landscapes for urban ones. That is, productive land is substituted for urban development. A similar phenomenon has occurred in New Zealand in the last 15 years, where farms located close to cities have recently become urbanised. The main objective of this study is to compare and analyse the cities' edges and the interface between urban and rural environments, based on socio-cultural, political and economic values. Both cultural urban landscapes studied in this paper have specific characteristics. This paper explores the conceptual differences of urban fabric in both cities and discusses principles that should be respected in urban landscape design to achieve urban forms that respect the local cultures

DIGITAL IDENTITY AND SOCIAL PROTECTION PROGRAMS: LEAVING NO ONE BEHIND?

This study investigates the impact of digital exclusion among vulnerable groups in social protection programs. It argues that digital identity systems are capable of exarcerbating inequalities in societies characterised by poverty and vulnerability. We use the lens of adverse digital incorporation to draw on two social protection programs, Bolsa Familia in Brazil and the Public Distribution System in India, both of which have been augmented with digital identity systems. Our qualitative data reveal that digital identity systems can generate justice only if existing processes of adverse digital incorporation are acknowledged and digital systems are framed to tackle design, resource, relational, and institutional inequalities. Drawing from development studies and data justice literatures, we show the importance of infusing justice in digital identity systems to build fair and effective social protection programs

ATE Foz: Proposta de Aplicativo para Aprender Espanhol Enfocado ao Setor Turístico de Foz do Iguaçu

Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso apresentado ao Instituto Latino-Americano de Arte, Cultura e História da Universidade Federal da Integração Latino-Americana, como requisito parcial à obtenção do título de Licenciado em Letras – Espanhol e Português como Línguas Estrangeiras.Este presente trabalho busca elaborar e apresentar um aplicativo (para smartphones que utilizam o sistema operacional Android) de ensino de espanhol para trabalhadores do setor de turismo da cidade de Foz do Iguaçu a partir de uma perspectiva translingue. Primeiramente serão apresentados os conceitos de gamificação e aplicativos de línguas que se encontram disponíveis na internet e que utilizam artifícios de jogos em seus métodos de ensino. Serão abordadas noções de translinguagem e repertório linguístico para então ser apresentado o aplicativo elaborado, chamado ATE Foz, mostrando como foi seu processo de elaboração e as estratégias de ensino abordadas e como a gamificação está presente nele. Este trabalho também apresenta como o aplicativo foi recebido pelos usuários através de um questionário enviado para um grupo de pessoas de diferentes idades, conhecimentos de tecnologia digital e nível de espanhol, que testaram o aplicativo, respondendo questões de usabilidade e dificuldade encontradas durante os testes e se ele se mostrou efetivo no que se propôs a executar

Lacrimal duct obstruction after radioiodine therapy: case report and treatment

Iodotherapy represents the radioactive iodine therapy. The beta radiation emitted by radioactive iodine are particles that will be stored in the thyroid tissue destroying cancer cells that were left after surgery (thyroidectomy). It is important to emphasize a possible deleterious effect of therapy which affects the mucosa of the lacrimal system which results in a process of vascular inflammation and scarring producing disorders hypovascular, hypocellular and hypoxic.Iodoterapia representa a terapia com iodo radioativo. A radiação beta emitida pelo iodo radioativo são partículas que irão se armazenar no tecido da tireóide destruindo as células cancerígenas que ainda restaram após a cirurgia (tireoidectomia). É importante enfatizar este possível efeito deletério da terapêutica, a qual afeta a mucosa da via lacrimal, sendo o resultado do processo de inflamação e cicatrização vascular, produzindo transtornos hipovasculares, hipocelulares e hipóxicos.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESPSciEL