scholarly journals Informed Geoheritage Conservation: Determinant Analysis Based on Bibliometric and Sustainability Indicators Using Ordination Techniques

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 539
Author(s):  
Boglárka Németh ◽  
Károly Németh ◽  
Jon N. Procter

Ordination methods are used in ecological multivariate statistics in order to reduce the number of dimensions and arrange individual variables along environmental variables. Geoheritage designation is a new challenge for conservation planning. Quantification of geoheritage to date is used explicitly for site selection, however, it also carries significant potential to be one of the indicators of sustainable development that is delivered through geosystem services. In order to achieve such a dominant position, geoheritage needs to be included in the business as usual model of conservation planning. Questions about the quantification process that have typically been addressed in geoheritage studies can be answered more directly by their relationships to world development indicators. We aim to relate the major informative geoheritage practices to underlying trends of successful geoheritage implementation through statistical analysis of countries with the highest trackable geoheritage interest. Correspondence analysis (CA) was used to obtain information on how certain indicators bundle together. Multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) was used to detect sets of factors to determine positive geoheritage conservation outcomes. The analysis resulted in ordination diagrams that visualize correlations among determinant variables translated to links between socio-economic background and geoheritage conservation outcomes. Indicators derived from geoheritage-related academic activity and world development metrics show a shift from significant Earth science output toward disciplines of strong international agreement such as tourism, sustainability and biodiversity. Identifying contributing factors to conservation-related decisions helps experts to tailor their proposals for required evidence-based quantification reports and reinforce the scientific significance of geoheritage.

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 15-28
Author(s):  
Guanlong Li ◽  
Yueqing Li ◽  
Yalong Li ◽  
Brian Craig ◽  
Xing Wu

Driving is the essential means of travel in Southeast Texas, a highly urbanized and populous area that serves as an economic powerhouse of the whole state. However, driving in Southeast Texas is subject to many risks as this region features a typical humid subtropical climate with long hot summers and short mild winters. Local drivers would encounter intense precipitation, heavy fog, strong sunlight, standing water, slick road surface, and even frequent extreme weather such as tropical storms, hurricanes and flood during their year-around travels. Meanwhile, research has revealed that the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles driven in urban Texas became considerably higher than national average since 2010, and no conclusive study has elucidated the association between Southeast Texas crash severity and potential contributing factors. This study used multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) to examine a group of contributing factors on how their combinatorial influences determine crash severity by creating combination clouds on a factor map. Results revealed numerous significant combinatorial effects. For example, driving in rain and extreme weather on a wet road surface has a higher chance in causing crashes that incur severe or deadly injuries. Besides, other contributing factors involving risky behavioral factors, road designs, and vehicle factors were well discussed. The research outcomes could inspire local traffic administration to take more effective countermeasures to systematically mitigate road crash severity.


Author(s):  
Italo Testa ◽  
Raffaele De Luca Picione ◽  
Umberto Scotti di Uccio

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to analyse Italian high school and university students’ attitudes towards physics using the Semiotic Cultural Psychological Theory (SCPT). In the SCPT framework, attitudes represent how individuals interpret their experience through the mediation of generalized meaning with which they are identified. A view-of-physics questionnaire was used as an instrument to collect data with 1603 high school and university students. Data were analysed through multiple correspondence analysis and cluster analysis. We identified four generalized meanings of physics: (a) interesting and important for society; (b) a quite interesting, but badly taught subject at school and not completely useful for society; (c) difficult to study and irrelevant for society; and (d) a fascinating and protective niche from society. The identified generalized meanings are significantly correlated to the choice to study physics at undergraduate level and to the choice of attending physics-related activities in high school. Implications for research are discussed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Flávia Silvestre Outtes Wanderley ◽  
Ulisses Montarroyos ◽  
Cristine Bonfim ◽  
Carolina Cunha-Correia

Abstract Background To assess the effectiveness of mass treatment of Schistosoma mansoni infection in socially vulnerable endemic areas in northeastern Brazil. Method An ecological study was conducted, in which 118 localities in 30 municipalities in the state of Pernambuco were screened before 2011 and in 2014 (after mass treatment). Information on the endemic baseline index, mass treatment coverage, socio-environmental conditions and social vulnerability index were used in the multiple correspondence analysis. One hundred fourteen thousand nine hundred eighty-seven people in 118 locations were examined. Results The first two dimensions of the multiple correspondence analysis represented 55.3% of the variability between locations. The human capital component of the social vulnerability index showed an association with the baseline endemicity index. There was a significant reduction in positivity for schistosomes. For two rounds, for every extra 1% of initial endemicity index, the fixed effect of 13.62% increased by 0.0003%, achieving at most 15.94%. Conclusions The mass treatment intervention helped to reduce transmission of schistosomiasis in areas of high endemicity. Thus, it can be recommended that application of mass treatment should be accompanied by other control actions, such as basic sanitation, monitoring of intermediate vectors and case surveillance.


Psychometrika ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heungsun Hwang ◽  
Yoshio Takane

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