scholarly journals Consideration of Uncertainty and Multiple Disciplines in the Determination of Sustainable Criteria for Rural Roads Using Neutrosophic Logic

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9854
Author(s):  
Leonardo Sierra ◽  
Felipe Araya ◽  
Víctor Yepes
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Southern Chile ◽  
Territorial Development ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Rural Roads ◽  
Neutrosophic Logic ◽  
State Programs ◽  
Multiple Actors

In Latin America, there is a wide gap between kilometers of paved ways and those with no type of protection. This situation is worse in rural areas, limiting development opportunities and inhabitants’ quality of life. In Chile, there are state programs that seek to reduce the territorial gap through basic low-cost paving solutions; however, the prioritization criteria for rural roads are unclear. Multiple actors affect the rural territories, and the non-existence of reference patterns increases subjectivity in infrastructure decision making. This study attempts to determine criteria that influence the selection of rural roads in southern Chile to promote sustainable territorial development considering multiple actors and the uncertainty of the selection process. For this, a documentary review, field visits, and 12 semi-structured interviews were conducted. The criteria are validated through a multidisciplinary panel of experts and the application of neutrosophic numbers to address the uncertainty derived from the expert consultations. The results of this study contribute 14 sustainable criteria in order to support the planning of basic rural roads in southern Chile.

Acceptance of a Smartphone-based Visual Field Screening Platform for Glaucoma: Pre-Post Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esmael Kedir Nida ◽  
Sisay Bekele ◽  
Luc Geurts ◽  
Vero Vanden Abeele
Keyword(s):  
Visual Field ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Field Screening ◽  
Glaucoma Screening ◽  
Screening Platform

BACKGROUND Glaucoma, the “silent thief of sight”, is a major cause of blindness worldwide. It is a burden for people in low-income countries specifically, where it accounts for 15% of the total blindness. More than half of the people living with glaucoma in low-income countries, are unaware of their disease until it progresses to an advanced stage, resulting in permanent visual impairment. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the acceptability of the Glaucoma Easy Screener (GES), a low-cost and portable visual field screening platform comprising of a smartphone, a stereoscopic VR headset and a gaming joystick. METHODS A mixed-method study was conducted to evaluate the acceptability of GES, including 24 eye care professionals from four hospitals in Southwest Ethiopia. A pre-post design was employed to collect perspectives before and after using GES, using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaire and interview questions were guided by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). RESULTS Positive results were obtained both pre-use and post-use, suggesting acceptance of mHealth solutions for glaucoma screening, using a low-cost headset through a smartphone and a game controller. Ophthalmic professionals perceived GES as easy-to-use, enabling the screening of glaucoma screening tests, especially during outreach to rural areas. However, positive evaluations are contingent on adequate accuracy of the tool. Moroever, ophtalmic professionals voiced the need to limit the tool to screening only, and not for diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS The study supports the feasibility of using a mobile device in combination with a low-cost VR headset and classic controller for glaucoma screening in rural areas. GES has the potential to reduce the burden of irreversible blindness due to glaucoma. Yet, a further assessment of its sensitivity and specificity is needed.

Design and Construction of Low-Cost, Low-Volume Roads in Australia

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 173-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Bullen
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Material Behavior ◽  
Crushed Rock ◽  
Rural Roads ◽  
Highway Infrastructure ◽  
Operating Environments ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Efficient Expansion

Inexpensive roads constructed by using local knowledge of material behavior have been shown to be capable of meeting rural traffic requirements without the need for importation of hard and expensive quarried crushed rock or gravel. In Australia, low-cost, low-volume roads are typically rural roads constructed in a broad range of operating environments, varying from arid to tropical. The areas that contain the longest length of rural roads, however, are arid or semiarid and are often subjected to periods with low levels of precipitation and high levels of evaporation, frequently followed by periods of intense rainfall. Locally available materials for road making may not meet the usual standard road authority requirements for high-quality aggregate and are thus termed “marginal,” “nonstandard,” or even “inferior.” Because these materials are a resource that cannot be ignored, locally derived specifications are formulated for specific materials to allow more efficient expansion and maintenance of road networks in remote rural areas. Many of the subgrades within arid and semiarid areas are sensitive to water ingress and are termed “cracking” or “expansive” clays. The combination of hostile environment, poor subgrade, and marginal construction aggregates means that the engineer must take an entrepreneurial approach when developing the rural road infrastructure. Some of the methods used to develop and maintain a highway infrastructure for remote rural areas in Australia are outlined, with the Western Queensland region used for illustrative purposes.

scholarly journals Ecological tourism as a factor of rural region development of the Republic of Kazakhstan

2021 ◽  
pp. 167-174
Author(s):  
A. T. Tleuberdinova ◽  
V. B. Kulik ◽  
X. V. Kulik
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Rural Economy ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Territorial Development ◽  
Scientific Publications ◽  
The Republic ◽  
State Programs ◽  
Methodological Aspects ◽  
Ecological Tourism

The study was carried out within the framework of program-targeted funding by the Committee of Science of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Development of the concept and mechanisms of balanced territorial development of the economy and society of Kazakhstan"). The purpose of the study is to determine the role and significance of the development of ecological tourism in the Republic of Kazakhstan as a factor in the diversification of the sectoral structure of the country's rural economy. The study used a structuralfunctional approach, a review of scientific publications, including foreign authors from the Scopus, Web of Science databases; state programs and regulatory legal acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on this issue in the Republic of Kazakhstan, statistical data. The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the theoretical foundations of economic diversification and its benefits. The theoretical and methodological aspects of the development of ecological tourism as a factor in the socio-economic development of rural areas have been studied. As part of the state program for the development of the tourism industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2019–2025, tools have been proposed for transforming tourism into a highly profitable sector of the economy, the tasks of which include the creation of 75 thousand jobs in remote rural areas. The authors of the article consider the issues of priority of the development of rural areas, the need to find ways to normalize living conditions and economic growth, which should be the diversification of the economy. Tourist and recreational resources that provide the regions of the country necessary for the development of ecotourism were identified and substantiated.

Methodological bases and practice of risk management of regional development (part 1)

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 114-126
Author(s):  
Valery V. Karpov ◽  
Anna G. Breusova ◽  
Anna A. Korableva
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Regional Development ◽  
Regional Economy ◽  
Full Range ◽  
Risk Identification ◽  
Territorial Development ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
Strategic Risk ◽  
Risk Committee ◽  
State Programs

The article is devoted to the theoretical foundations and analysis of the experience of subjects of the Russian Federation in the field of regional development risk management. The article examines the concept of risk, its difference and relationship with the concepts of uncertainty, threat, danger, security and others. It is determined that dangers are constantly present in the regional economy. And risk, as a measurable uncertainty with multiple outcomes, for which the probability of occurrence of a risk event is calculated, is manifested as a result of the occurrence of a hazard. When comparing the concepts of risk and security, this means that the security of the regional economy is manifested in the ability to resist threats and manage risks, and not in the complete absence of dangers. It is revealed that ISO standards distinguish between the concepts of risk management and risk management. For further discussion, risk management is understood as a systematic approach to using the full range of mechanisms available to public authorities to reduce emerging risks and threats to the socio-economic development of the region. Further, the analysis of risk management in the practice of regional management on the example of the Omsk, Novosibirsk and Tyumen regions is carried out. The relevant tools in the activities of government bodies, such as territorial development strategies, state programs and projects, were identified, which allowed us to introduce a classification of risks with the allocation of strategic, tactical risks of territorial development and project management risks, among which there is a strategic level. The analysis of the implemented tools for compliance with the mandatory stages of risk management showed mainly the absence of risk identification, unified requirements for risk accounting and systematic risk management of regional development. Among the assessed regions, the Tyumen region has the best practices in terms of risk management. For a more detailed analysis authors highlighted the key institutional and instrumental elements of risk management such as risk committee, strategic risk map, risk register, action plan for risk management, and defined logical relationships between them.

Features of support of agriculture (the case of the Tyumen Region)

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-48
Author(s):  
Aleksandra G. Balakhnina ◽  
Gulnara F. Romashkina
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Federal Budget ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
State Support ◽  
Budget Planning ◽  
Social Forms ◽  
Regional Budget ◽  
State Programs

This article systematizes the legal framework, forms, and volumes of support for agriculture from the federal budget of Russia and the regional budget (on the example of the Tyumen Region). The authors have performed a detailed analysis of the directions of such support for 2016-2019. The historical, economic and social features of the relationship between the state and agriculture are shown. State support for agriculture is objectively necessary, and competent budget planning makes it possible to develop. However, the dominance of direct forms of spending support does not stimulate cost-effective and innovative activities, which in the future can bring the industry to a competitive level. There is very little and irregular support for social forms, the development of farming and other forms of private farming in rural areas. The authors conclude that the policy of state support is sufficiently provided by legislative acts, resolutions and state programs. Many programs are updated, and new versions are adopted even before the previous ones expire. Such strong volatility hurts strategic projects and agricultural initiatives. Less expensive forms of activity-mediation and trade turn profitable. Living conditions in the villages significantly stay behind in quality and opportunities, which leads to the human capital leaving rural areas. The authors propose to pay more attention to the development of indirect forms of support, to stimulate economic activity and small businesses.

scholarly journals The Impact of Social Media Use on Consumers’ Restaurant Consumption Experiences: A Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6581
Author(s):  
Jooyoung Hwang ◽  
Anita Eves ◽  
Jason L. Stienmetz
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
High Standards ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality Industry ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality ◽  
Search For Information ◽  
The Impact

Travellers have high standards and regard restaurants as important travel attributes. In the tourism and hospitality industry, the use of developed tools (e.g., smartphones and location-based tablets) has been popularised as a way for travellers to easily search for information and to book venues. Qualitative research using semi-structured interviews based on the face-to-face approach was adopted for this study to examine how consumers’ restaurant selection processes are performed with the utilisation of social media on smartphones. Then, thematic analysis was adopted. The findings of this research show that the adoption of social media on smartphones is positively related with consumers’ gratification. More specifically, when consumers regard that process, content and social gratification are satisfied, their intention to adopt social media is fulfilled. It is suggested by this study that consumers’ restaurant decision-making process needs to be understood, as each stage of the decision-making process is not independent; all the stages of the restaurant selection process are organically connected and influence one another.

scholarly journals Loneliness Among the Elderly in Rural Contexts: A Mixed-Method Study Protocol

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 160940692199686
Author(s):  
Borja Rivero Jiménez ◽  
David Conde-Caballero ◽  
Lorenzo Mariano Juárez
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Population Group ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Interaction Patterns ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Strict Adherence ◽  
Data Collection And Analysis ◽  
Technological Tools

Loneliness among the elderly has become a pressing issue in Western societies. In the Spanish context, the problem of the so-called “empty” Spain disproportionately affects this population group—elderly individuals living in rural areas with low population density, and therefore at higher risk of social exclusion and isolation. We introduce here a mixed-method, quantitative-qualitative research protocol, triangulated with technological tools, designed to improve both data acquisition and subsequent data analysis and interpretation. This study will take place in a rural locality in the Extremadura region (Spain), chosen according to a particular socio-demographic profile. The De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale will be used on a cohort of 80 people over 65 years old. Within this cohort, a smaller sample of 20–30 individuals will be selected for semi-structured interviews about their beliefs and experiences of loneliness. Finally, data gathered from technological tools (smartbands, Bluetooth sensors) will allow us to monitor social interactions and to map daily loneliness/interaction patterns. Data will be triangulated by analyzing and comparing the empirical material gathered through these different methods and tools. Strict adherence to ethical standards for data protection and handling will be essential through data collection and analysis. As well as providing insights into the phenomenon of loneliness in old age, the use of different methods and tools for data collection will provide the basis for an epistemological reflection on the scope and limits of each one of these methods.

scholarly journals A Model-Driven-to-Sample-Driven Method for Rural Road Extraction

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1417
Author(s):  
Jiguang Dai ◽  
Rongchen Ma ◽  
Litao Gong ◽  
Zimo Shen ◽  
Jialin Wu
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Template Matching ◽  
Color Space ◽  
Recall Rate ◽  
Road Extraction ◽  
Rural Roads ◽  
Model Driven ◽  
The Road ◽  
Center Point ◽  
Manual Input

Road extraction in rural areas is one of the most fundamental tasks in the practical application of remote sensing. In recent years, sample-driven methods have achieved state-of-the-art performance in road extraction tasks. However, sample-driven methods are prohibitively expensive and laborious, especially when dealing with rural roads with irregular curvature changes, narrow widths, and diverse materials. The template matching method can overcome these difficulties to some extent and achieve impressive road extraction results. This method also has the advantage of the vectorization of road extraction results, but the automation is limited. Straight line sequences can be substituted for curves, and the use of the color space can increase the recognition of roads and nonroads. A model-driven-to-sample-driven road extraction method for rural areas with a much higher degree of automation than existing template matching methods is proposed in this study. Without prior samples, on the basis of the geometric characteristics of narrow and long roads and using the advantages of straight lines instead of curved lines, the road center point extraction model is established through length constraints and gray mean contrast constraints of line sequences, and the extraction of some rural roads is completed through topological connection analysis. In addition, we take the extracted road center point and manual input data as local samples, use the improved line segment histogram to determine the local road direction, and use the panchromatic and hue, saturation, value (HSV) space interactive matching model as the matching measure to complete the road tracking extraction. Experimental results show that, for different types of data and scenarios on the premise, the accuracy and recall rate of the evaluation indicators reach more than 98%, and, compared with other methods, the automation of this algorithm has increased by more than 40%.

scholarly journals Homeless on Main Street: Using Photovoice to Highlight Older Adults Among the Hidden Homeless

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 728-728
Author(s):  
H Shellae Versey
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Photo Elicitation ◽  
Service Agency ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Formerly Homeless

Abstract Homelessness is a reality for a growing number of Americans living in small towns and rural areas. However, unlike in cities, housing instability may be less visible. Using a photo-elicitation method (i.e., Photovoice), this study explores the meaning of place and obscured visibility to currently and formerly homeless older adults living in a small town in central Connecticut. Participants (N = 27) were recruited from a local service agency, given cameras and asked to photograph areas around town that were meaningful to them. Photographs were developed and followed by in-person, semi-structured interviews with participants in which photos and experiences during the project were discussed. Primary themes included belonging, generativity, social isolation, and place-making as meaning-making. The study culminated in a community photography exhibition in which photographs from the project were displayed in public spaces around town. Implications for community-based interventions to reach homeless groups in rural areas are discussed. Part of a symposium sponsored by the Qualitative Research Interest Group.

scholarly journals Homegarden agroecosystems managed by Salar people on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mingjing Zhu ◽  
Binsheng Luo ◽  
Ben La ◽  
Ruijie Chen ◽  
Fenggui Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Field Investigation ◽  
Tibet Plateau ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Services Research ◽  
Qinghai Tibet Plateau

Abstract Background Salar is a Turkic-speaking Islamic ethnic group in China living mainly in Xunhua Salar Autonomous County (Xunhua or Xunhua County), Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Salar people are skilled in horticulture and their homegarden (HG) management. They are regarded as the first people on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to practice horticulture, especially manage their HGs, traditional farming systems, and supplementary food production systems. Traditional knowledge of Salar people associated with their HGs always contributes significantly to the local livelihood, food security, ornamental value, and biodiversity conservation. The cultivation of different plants in HGs for self-sufficiency has a long tradition in China’s rural areas, especially in some mountainous areas. However, Salar traditional HGs have not been described. The present paper aims to report the features of Salar HGs mostly based on agrobiodiversity and its ecosystem services. Methods The methods used in this work included semi-structured interviews and participatory observation. A total of 60 households in three townships, 9 villages were surveyed. There are 4–12 family members in each household, aged from 20 to 86 years old. The homestead size is between 200 and 1200 m2. Plant species cultivated in Salar HGs were identified according to Flora of China. Based on a comprehensive survey of Salar HGs and related to background data, we identified and characterized the most important services and functions provided by Salar HGs. Results According to primary production systems, there are 4 different types of Salar HGs, including ornamental focus, product focus, dual-purpose and multi-purpose. In total, 108 (excluding weeds and bonsai) plant species were recorded in Salar HGs, within 43 plant families. The most important and frequently used plants are Rosa chinensis, Armeniaca vulgar, Prunus salicina, and Ziziphus jujuba. About 4 to 32 plant species were recorded in each homegarden. We found that the Salar HGs, as a typical agroecosyste, prossess multiple servcices and functions that directly benefit households according to the field investigation. Conclusion This paper reveals the floristic diversity of Salar HGs. It presents useful information in the homegarden agroecosystem of Salar people, such as HG types and species diversity in Salar HGs. Ecosystem functions and services research suggested that the Salar HG agroecosystem provides agroecosystem services mainly related to supply and culture services. Salar HGs are important as food supplement resources, aesthetics symbol, and cultural spaces.

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