scholarly journals Impact of Island Urbanization on Freshwater Lenses: A Case Study on a Small Coral Island

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 3272
Author(s):  
Zihan Ling ◽  
Longcang Shu ◽  
Ying Sun ◽  
Ran Wang ◽  
Yuxi Li

Freshwater resources on small coral islands mainly exist in the form of freshwater lenses. The freshwater lens is highly vulnerable to salinization due to natural recharge variations and urbanization construction. However, it is unclear how a freshwater lens evolves under the influence of urbanization construction and which factors control its evolution. Based on the hydrogeological data of a small coral island in China, a corresponding 3D numerical model was established by the Visual MODFLOW software to investigate the formation and evolution of freshwater lenses under natural conditions. Thereby, the island reclamation scenario and impermeable surface scenario were set up and the changes in morphology and volume of the freshwater lens were analyzed. The results show the following: (1) After island reclamation and island building, the freshwater lens would reach a stable state after 25 years and the freshwater lens would also appear in the newly added part of the island with a thickness of 9.5 m, while the volume of the total freshwater lens would increase to 1.22 times that of the original island. (2) When the impermeable surface is built at different positions of the island, the reduction in the volume of the freshwater lens, in the order from large to small, is Scenario B (northeast side), Scenario A (southwest side) and Scenario C (central); with the increase in the impermeable surface area, the volume of the freshwater lens would gradually decrease and the volume of the freshwater lens would decrease by more than 50% with the impermeable surface exceeding 30% of the island area. The study has important implications for the conservation and rational development of subsurface freshwater resources on islands.

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1137
Author(s):  
Yuxi Li ◽  
Longcang Shu ◽  
Li Zhen ◽  
Hu Li ◽  
Ran Wang ◽  
...  

The research of saltwater upconing is crucial for the development and utilization of island freshwater resources. In this paper, a laboratory physical experiment device was developed, and the saltwater upconing and recovery of island freshwater lenses were investigated using rainfall simulations and single-well and multi-well pumping tests with various pumping intensities. The results of the experiment revealed that: (1) The thickness of the freshwater lens increased continuously and linearly during the early stages of rainfall. As the rainfall continued, the upward trend slowed and eventually leveled off. (2) Under the same pumping duration, when the pumping intensity was less than the critical pumping intensity, the increasing height rate of the saltwater upconing increased linearly at a small gradient, and when the pumping intensity was greater than the critical value, the rising height rate of the saltwater upconing increased linearly at a large gradient. (3) Under the same pumping intensity conditions, the pumping duration of the multi-well was longer than that of the single-well pumping, and the pumping volume of the multi-well was also greater than that of the single-well pumping. The experiment results can provide support for the development and utilization of island freshwater lens.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (17) ◽  
pp. 4679
Author(s):  
Carina Anderson ◽  
Robert Passey ◽  
Jeremy De Valck ◽  
Rakibuzzaman Shah

This paper reports on a case study of the community group Zero Emissions Noosa, whose goal is for 100% renewable electricity in the Noosa Shire (Queensland, Australia) by 2026. Described within this paper are the processes used by Zero Emissions Noosa to set up their zero emissions plan, involving community engagement and the use of an external consultant. The external consultant was employed to produce a detailed report outlining how to successfully achieve zero emissions from electricity in the Noosa Shire by 2026. This paper explains how and why the community engagement process used to produce the report was just as important as the outcomes of the report itself. Modeling was undertaken, and both detailed and contextual information was provided. Inclusion of the community in developing the scenario parameters for the modeling had a number of benefits including establishing the context within which their actions would occur and focusing their efforts on options that were technically feasible, financially viable and within their capabilities to implement. This provided a focal point for the community in calling meetings and contacting stakeholders. Rather than prescribing a particular course of action, it also resulted in a toolbox of options, a range of possible solutions that is flexible enough to fit into whatever actions are preferred by the community. The approach and outcomes discussed in this paper should, therefore, be useful to other communities with similar carbon emission reduction goals.


Author(s):  
SHENG-LIN CHOU ◽  
WEN-HSIANG TSAI

The problem of handwritten Chinese character recognition is solved by matching character stroke segments using an iteration scheme. Length and orientation similarity properties, and coordinate overlapping ratios are used to define a measure of similarity between any two stroke segments. The initial measures of similarity between the stroke segments of the input and template characters are used to set up a match network which includes all the match relationships between the input and template stroke segments. Based on the concept of at-most-one to one mapping an iteration scheme is employed to adjust the match relationships, using the contextual information implicitly contained in the match network, so that the match relationships can get into a stable state. From the final match relationships, matched stroke-segment pairs are determined by a mutually-best match strategy and the degree of similarity between the input and each template character is evaluated accordingly. Certain structure information of Chinese characters is also used in the evaluation process. The experimental results show that the proposed approach is effective. For recognition of Chinese characters written by a specific person, the recognition rate is about 96%. If the characters of the first three ranks are checked in counting the recognition rate, the rate rises to 99.6%.


2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-413
Author(s):  
Allan Effa

In 2015 the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada concluded a six-year process of listening to the stories of Canada’s First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. More than 6000 witnesses came forth to share their personal experiences in listening sessions set up all across the country. These stories primarily revolved around their experience of abuse and cultural genocide through more than 100 years of Residential Schools, which were operated in a cooperative effort between churches and the government of Canada. The Commission’s Final Report includes 94 calls to action with paragraph #60 directed specifically to seminaries. This paper is a case study of how Taylor Seminary, in Edmonton, is seeking to engage with this directive. It explores the changes made in the curriculum, particularly in the teaching of missiology, and highlights some of the ways the seminary community is learning about aboriginal spirituality and the history and legacy of the missionary methods that have created conflict and pain in Canadian society.


2021 ◽  
pp. 153465012110382
Author(s):  
Sampurna Chakraborty ◽  
Prasanta K. Roy

Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) is an evidence-based therapy, originally developed to treat major depression. IPT conceptualizes depression from a bio-psychosocial perspective where signs of depression are understood in the context of an individual’s current social and interpersonal stressors, defined in terms of role transitions, disputes, bereavements, and sensitivities. In this single case study, IPT was used to treat a woman undergoing primary infertility with multiple failed pregnancies and unsuccessful adoption procedures along with specific grief reactions and depressive symptoms for 2 years. The therapy was formulated over 12 weekly sessions in the outpatient set-up in a general hospital in Kolkata in 2017. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) was used to assess the efficacy of the therapy and its outcomes. The therapy was found to be effective in the patient and justifies the rationale of choosing the said therapy for the specific case from an interpersonal viewpoint. The case study may help suggest how and why to use interpersonal psychotherapy in infertility conditions with psychological ramifications.


The selection of hospital sites is one of the most important choice a decision maker has to take so as to resist the pandemic. The decision may considerably affect the outbreak transmission in terms of efficiency , budget, etc. The main targeted objective of this study is to find the ideal location where to set up a hospital in the willaya of Oran Alg. For this reason, we have used a geographic information system coupled to the multi-criteria analysis method AHP in order to evaluate diverse criteria of physiological positioning , environmental and economical. Another objective of this study is to evaluate the advanced techniques of the automatic learning . the method of the random forest (RF) for the patterning of the hospital site selection in the willaya of Oran. The result of our study may be useful to decision makers to know the suitability of the sites as it provides a high level of confidence and consequently accelerate the power to control the COVID19 pandemic.


2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 287-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynne Bowker

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the potential benefits and limitations associated with aligning accreditation and academic program reviews in post-secondary institutions, using a descriptive case study approach. Design/methodology/approach The paper describes two Canadian graduate programs that are subject to both external professional accreditation and institutional cyclical reviews, as they underwent an aligned review. The process was developed as a collaborative effort between the academic units, the professional associations and the university’s graduate-level quality assurance office. For each program, a single self-study was developed, a single review panel was constituted, and a single site visit was conducted. The merits and challenges posed by the alignment process are discussed. Findings Initial feedback from the academic units suggests that the alignment of accreditation and program reviews is perceived as reducing the burden on programs with regard to the time and effort invested by faculty, staff and other stakeholders, as well as in terms of financial expenses. Based on this feedback, along with input from reviewers and program evaluation committee members, 14 recommendations emerged for ways in which an aligned review process can be set up for success. Practical implications The results suggest that aligned reviews are not only resource-efficient but also allow reviewers to provide more holistic feedback that faculty may be more willing to engage with for program enhancement. Originality/value The present study contributes to the existing body of knowledge about conducting aligned reviews in response to external accreditation requirements or institutional needs. It summarizes the potential benefits and limitations and offers recommendations for potential best practices for carrying out aligned reviews for policymakers and practitioners.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernat López ◽  
Helle Kettner-Høeberg

The Vuelta a España is one of the three cycling Grand Tours, a long-established (first staged in 1935) and global sports mega event. Nonetheless, in the mid-noughties, it went through a financial and identity crisis, which culminated with the French company, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the organizer of the Tour de France, taking over the Spanish race in 2008. This research, an in-depth case study based on semistructured interviews and analysis of all the relevant corporate documentation and online activity, aims at shedding light on how the new ASO management has refloated the race through a reinforcement of its globalization and mediatization, on the lines of the managerial policies already in place for the Tour de France since the early 80s. This article also proposes a small theoretical refinement of the “mega sporting event” concept, moving from a binary, yes–not typology, to a four-level scale including micro (local), meso (provincial/subnational), macro (national or regional), and mega (global) sporting events. In this sense, this article concludes that the communication strategies set up by the new ASO management have pushed the Vuelta beyond the macro and towards the mega level.


2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 16259-16292 ◽  
Author(s):  
X. Liu ◽  
J. Li ◽  
Y. Qu ◽  
T. Han ◽  
L. Hou ◽  
...  

Abstract. The main objective of this study is to investigate the formation and evolution mechanism of the regional haze in megacity Beijing by analyzing the process of a severe haze that occurred 20–27 September 2011. Mass concentration and size distribution of aerosol particles as well as aerosol optical properties were concurrently measured at the Beijing urban atmospheric environment monitoring station. Gaseous pollutants (SO2, NO-NO2-NOx, O3, CO) and meteorological parameters (wind speed, wind direction, and relative humidity (RH)) were simultaneously monitored. Meanwhile, aerosol spatial distribution and the height of planetary boundary layer (PBL) were retrieved from the signal of satellite and LIDAR (light detection and ranging). Results showed that high intensity of local pollutants from Beijing urban source is the fundamental cause that led to the regional haze. Meteorological factors such as higher RH, weak surface wind speed, and decreasing height of PBL played an important role on the deterioration of air quality. New particle formation was considered to be the most important factor contributing the formation of haze. In order to improve the atmospheric visibility and reduce the occurrence of the haze, the mass concentration of PM2.5 at dry condition should be less than 60 µg m−3 in Beijing according to the empirical relationship of visibility, PM2.5 mass concentration and RH. This case study may provide valuable information for the public to recognize the formation mechanism of the regional haze event over the megacity, which is also useful for the government to adopt scientific approach to forecast and eliminate the occurrence of regional haze in China.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document