Methodological approaches for Moscow urban agglomeration delimitation based on mobile network operators data

Author(s):  
A. G. Makhrova ◽  
R. A. Babkin

In the article, based on the methodology of determining the functional urban areas of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) with the use of data from mobile operators about the localization of network users, the boundaries of the Moscow agglomeration are identified and it is spatial structure is analyzed using the approaches of the chrono-geography concept. The analysis showed the impossibility of using the OECD methodology without its adaptation to Russian conditions. For example, according to this technique, the entire territory of the “real city”, including the “sleeping areas” of Moscow and its satellite cities, falls into the core zone. At the same time, the suburban area extends to the territory of almost the entire Moscow region, going in many directions beyond its borders. The adapted version of the method of delimitation involves reducing the size of the core to the boundaries of the Moscow ring road with a corresponding decrease in the boundaries of the suburban area, which is consistent with the approaches and ideas developed in practice in Russia. Using the methodology of the chrono-geography concept, a model of “pulsating agglomeration” was developed. It is a new variant of studying and analyzing the dynamics of socio-economic functioning of agglomerations, taking into account the different time socio-economic rhythms of the Moscow agglomeration. As part of the agglomeration, “static” – constant throughout the year and “movable” – seasonal suburban areas were identified, which allowed to include in the analysis of “pulsation” not only the population of the structural elements of the agglomeration, but also its boundaries depending on the seasons.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibraheem Shayea ◽  
Marwan Azmi ◽  
Mustafa Ergen

<p>This paper analysis and investigate the performance of Mobile Broadband (MBB) cellular networks based on the drive tests for suburban areas (at four states) in Malaysia. The data were collected from three main national Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) by using unbranded Samsung Galaxy S6 smartphone handsets, while the period of data collection was between January and February. Two MBB services were considered which are the video streaming and web browsing. For each MNO, the performance data of one MBB service was collected through one a dedicated smartphone. One smartphone was used to browse three different webpages, and One smartphone was employed to stream two YouTube videos with two different resolutions. The study considered four MBB Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), namely: latency, coverage, speed and satisfaction. As per the results, the performance of Fourth Generation (4G) is found superior than that of Third Generation (3G) networks. For instance, a vMOS score of above 3.3 was achieved by 4G networks for MBB video-streaming service, while, score of below 2.6 was attained by 3G networks across all the four studied areas. In addition, it was observed that an enhancement factor of up to 2.86 and 2.83 in download speed was presented by 4G technology in case of video streaming and web page browsing respectively as compared to 3G technology. Examining the performance of current MBB networks is supportive before the deployment of the 5G network. The efficient development of 5G networks in Malaysia can be realized through these study findings, where the existing 4G infrastructures will contribute to supporting the 5G and 6G networks.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibraheem Shayea ◽  
Marwan Azmi ◽  
Mustafa Ergen

<p>This paper analysis and investigate the performance of Mobile Broadband (MBB) cellular networks based on the drive tests for suburban areas (at four states) in Malaysia. The data were collected from three main national Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) by using unbranded Samsung Galaxy S6 smartphone handsets, while the period of data collection was between January and February. Two MBB services were considered which are the video streaming and web browsing. For each MNO, the performance data of one MBB service was collected through one a dedicated smartphone. One smartphone was used to browse three different webpages, and One smartphone was employed to stream two YouTube videos with two different resolutions. The study considered four MBB Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), namely: latency, coverage, speed and satisfaction. As per the results, the performance of Fourth Generation (4G) is found superior than that of Third Generation (3G) networks. For instance, a vMOS score of above 3.3 was achieved by 4G networks for MBB video-streaming service, while, score of below 2.6 was attained by 3G networks across all the four studied areas. In addition, it was observed that an enhancement factor of up to 2.86 and 2.83 in download speed was presented by 4G technology in case of video streaming and web page browsing respectively as compared to 3G technology. Examining the performance of current MBB networks is supportive before the deployment of the 5G network. The efficient development of 5G networks in Malaysia can be realized through these study findings, where the existing 4G infrastructures will contribute to supporting the 5G and 6G networks.</p>


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Swasti Vardhan Mishra

The higher education departments and bodies in India have been continuously advising on the intense use of technology for educating as the need of the hour when institutions are indefinitely shut off for COVID-19. But, I would differ on a point that in a digitally divided country like India such impulses may escalate the divide further. The regular discussions on the materiality of smartphone possession as the new mantra to bridge the digital divide in India failed to take note of its spatial and infrastructural dimensions in times of crisis. The letter views spatial distance from the core urban areas as the factor that determines the mobile network availability. In times of pandemic when the services are officially declared as deploring the divide gets intensified for students. Firstly, the failed attempts of a student to join online classes deprive her/his of parity vis-à-vis students having relatively better access to the internet. Secondly, coupled with the multiple apprehensions, this deprivation would add to her/his collapsing mental health.


Data & Policy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Vespe ◽  
Stefano Maria Iacus ◽  
Carlos Santamaria ◽  
Francesco Sermi ◽  
Spyridon Spyratos

Abstract The rapid spread of COVID-19 infections on a global level has highlighted the need for accurate, transparent and timely information regarding collective mobility patterns to inform de-escalation strategies as well as to provide forecasting capacity for re-escalation policies aiming at addressing further waves of the virus. Such information can be extracted using aggregate anonymized data from innovative sources such as mobile positioning data. This paper presents lessons learnt and results of a unique Business-to-Government initiative between several mobile network operators in Europe and the European Commission. Mobile positioning data have supported policy-makers and practitioners with evidence and data-driven knowledge to understand and predict the spread of the disease, the effectiveness of the containment measures, their socio-economic impacts while feeding scenarios at European Union scale and in a comparable way across countries. The challenges of these data sharing initiative are not limited to data quality, harmonization, and comparability across countries, however important they are. Equally essential aspects that need to be addressed from the onset are related to data privacy, security, fundamental rights, and commercial sensitivity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin H White ◽  
Jessi L Brown ◽  
Zachary E Ormsby

Abstract Despite the unique threats to wildlife in urban areas, many raptors have established successfully reproducing urban populations. To identify variations in raptor breeding ecology within an urban area, we compared metrics of Red-tailed Hawk reproductive attempts to landscape characteristics in Reno and Sparks, NV, USA during the 2015 and 2016 breeding seasons. We used the Apparent Nesting Success and logistic exposure methods to measure nesting success of the Red-tailed Hawks. We used generalized linear models to relate nesting success and fledge rate to habitat type, productivity to hatch date (Julian day) and hatch date to urban density. Nesting success was 86% and 83% for the respective years. Nesting success increased in grassland-agricultural and shrub habitats and decreased in riparian habitat within the urban landscape. Productivity was 2.23 and 2.03 per nest for the breeding seasons. Fledge rates were 72% and 77%, respectively, and decreased in riparian areas. Nestlings hatched earlier with increased urban density and earliest in suburban areas, following a negative quadratic curve. Nesting success and productivity for this population were high relative to others in North America. Productivity increased in habitats where ground prey was more accessible. We suggest that suburban areas, if not frequently disturbed, provide sufficient resources to sustain Red-tailed Hawks over extended periods. As urban expansion continues in arid environments globally, we stress that researchers monitor reproductive output across the urban predator guild to elucidate patterns in population dynamics and adaptation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Luca Pulvirenti ◽  
Marco Chini ◽  
Nazzareno Pierdicca

A stack of Sentinel-1 InSAR data in an urban area where flood events recurrently occur, namely Beletweyne town in Somalia, has been analyzed. From this analysis, a novel method to deal with the problem of flood mapping in urban areas has been derived. The approach assumes the availability of a map of persistent scatterers (PSs) inside the urban settlement and is based on the analysis of the temporal trend of the InSAR coherence and the spatial average of the exponential of the InSAR phase in each PS. Both interferometric products are expected to have high and stable values in the PSs; therefore, anomalous decreases may indicate that floodwater is present in an urban area. The stack of Sentinel-1 data has been divided into two subsets. The first one has been used as a calibration set to identify the PSs and determine, for each PS, reference values of the coherence and the spatial average of the exponential of the interferometric phase under standard non-flooded conditions. The other subset has been used for validation purposes. Flood maps produced by UNOSAT, analyzing very-high-resolution optical images of the floods that occurred in Beletweyne in April–May 2018, October–November 2019, and April–May 2020, have been used as reference data. In particular, the map of the April–May 2018 flood has been used for training purposes together with the subset of Sentinel-1 calibration data, whilst the other two maps have been used to validate the products generated by applying the proposed method. The main product is a binary map of flooded PSs that complements the floodwater map of rural/suburban areas produced by applying a well-consolidated algorithm based on intensity data. In addition, a flood severity map that labels the different districts of Beletweyne, as not, partially, or totally flooded has been generated to consolidate the validation. The results have confirmed the effectiveness of the proposed method.


2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 102086
Author(s):  
William Lehr ◽  
Fabian Queder ◽  
Justus Haucap

Author(s):  
Jianhong Ye ◽  
Daoge Wang ◽  
Hua Zhang ◽  
Hong Yang

Carsharing as a service has been growing rapidly worldwide. Its expansion has drawn wide attention in the research community with regard to the underlying driving factors and user characteristics. Despite these extensive investigations, there are still limited studies focusing on the examination of users using carsharing as a commuting mode. The answers to questions such as what kind of people would like to use carsharing for commuting and why they frequently use carsharing to commute are not clear. To enrich our understanding of these problems, this paper aims to investigate carsharing commuters in a mega city. Specifically, it intends to integrate the actual user order data with survey data from 1,920 participants to uncover the characteristics of carsharing commuters. Data from the Evcard carsharing systems in Shanghai were explicitly analyzed. Through descriptive analysis and logistic regression models, the characteristics and critical factors that affect the choice of carsharing as a commuting mode were captured. The results show that: 1. carsharing commuters mostly live or work in suburban areas in which public transport accessibility is limited; 2. carsharing commuters are more likely to be highly educated, in a higher income bracket, and older than other carsharing members; 3. high-frequency carsharing commuters own a reduced number of private cars; and 4. those high-frequency carsharing commuters with higher income are less sensitive to the carsharing costs caused by congestion. The findings in the study offer some insights into carsharing commuters and provide some supportive information for considering policies in developing carsharing systems in urban areas.


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