Attributing the Evapotranspiration Trend in the Upper and Middle Reaches of Yellow River Basin Using Global Evapotranspiration Products

Climate variation and underlying surface dynamics have caused a significant change in the trend of evapotranspiration (ET) in the Yellow River Basin (YRB) over the last two decades. Combined with the measured rainfall, runoff and gravity recovery and climate experiment (GRACE) product, five global ET products were firstly merged using a linear weighting method. Linear slope, “two-step” multiple regression, partial differential, and residual methods were then employed to explore the quantitative impacts of precipitation (PCPN), temperature (Temp), sunshine duration (SD), vapor pressure deficit (VPD), wind speed (WS), leaf area index (LAI), and the residual factors (e.g., microtopography changes, irrigation, etc.) on the ET trend in the YRB. The results show that: (1) The ET estimates were improved by merging five global ET products using the linear weighting method. The sensitivities of climatic factors and LAI on the ET trend can be separately calculated using proposed “two-step” statistical regression method; (2) the overall ET trend in the entire study area during 2000–2018 was 3.82 mm/yr, and the highest ET trend was observed in the Toudaoguai-Longmen subregion. ET trend was dominantly driven by vegetation greening, with an impact of 2.47 mm/yr and a relative impact rate of 51.16%. The results indicated that the relative impact rate of the residual factors (e.g., microtopography, irrigation, etc.) on the ET trend is up to 28.17%. The PCPN and VPD had increasing roles on the ET trend, with impacts of 0.45 mm/yr and 0.05 mm/yr, respectively, whereas the Temp, SD, and WS had decreasing impacts of –0.19 mm/yr, –0.15 mm/yr, and –0.17 mm/yr, respectively. (3) The spatial pattern of impact of specific influencing factor on the ET trend was determined by the spatial pattern of change trend slope of this factor and sensitivity of ET to this factor. ET trends of the source area and the Qingtongxia–Toudaoguai were dominated by the climatic factors, while the residual factors dominated the ET trend in the Tangnaihai–Qingtongxia area. The vegetation restoration was the dominant factor causing the increase in the ET in the middle reaches of the YRB, and the impact rates of the LAI were ranked as follows: Yanhe Rive > Wudinghe River > Fenhe River > Jinghe River > Beiluohe River > Qinhe River > Kuyehe River > Yiluohe River.

Advanced Exergy, Exergoeconomic, and Exergoenvironmental Analyses of Integrated Solar-Assisted Gasification Cycle for Producing Power and Steam from Heavy Refinery Fuels

Integrated solar-assisted gasification cycles (ISGC) have emerged as a more flexible and environmentally friendly solution for producing power, steam, and other high-valued by-products from low-cost opportunity fuels. In this light, this paper investigates a new ISGC system for converting heavy refineries fuels into power and steam utilities while enhancing energy efficiency and economic and environmental performance indicators. In this approach, a solar energy field and a two-pressure heat recovery steam generator were integrated into the ISGC system to improve overall economic and environmental plant viability. The ISGC system was modelled in MATLAB software, and the results were validated using Thermoflex software. Conventional and advanced energy, exergy, exergoeconomic, and exergoenvironmental (4E) analyses were implemented to assess the main performance parameters and identify potential system improvements. The ISGC system produced 319.92 MW of power by feeding on 15.5 kg/s of heavy refinery fuel, with a thermal efficiency of 50% and exergy efficiency of 54%. The results also revealed an investment cost of $466 million, evaluated at a system cost rate of 446 $/min and an environmental impact rate of 72,796 pts/min. The conventional and advanced 4E analyses unveiled the process economic and environmental feasibilities, particularly for oil-rich countries with high availability of solar resources.

Factors affecting commercial housing prices in Vietnam

Purpose The study aims to identify the affecting factors and their impact rates on the commercial housing prices. The study also aims to suggest implications related to commercial housing prices to develop the commercial housing market. Design/methodology/approach The study investigates housing investors, real estate agents and buyers to identify factors that might affect commercial housing prices. The proposed research model has 7 latent factors and is tested by Cronbach' alpha and exploratory factor analysis by SPSS20.0 software. Findings There are 7 groups with 24 factors affecting commercial housing prices. The neighboring factor group has the greatest impact rate (18.54%); the housing service group has the lowest impact rate (11.48%). Research limitations/implications The study has only determined the affecting factors and their impact rates on commercial housing prices in Bac Ninh city. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct research on factors affecting commercial housing prices in other provinces and cities of Vietnam in the coming time. In addition, the proposed research method can also be consulted when it is necessary to determine the factors affecting commercial housing prices in other countries around the world. Practical implications The study proposes some implications related to commercial housing prices such as commercial housing valuation; housing selection with suitable prices for people intending to buy houses; state support policies for commercial housing investors to develop commercial housing with reasonable prices. Social implications The implementing the implications proposed in the study will facilitate people's easier access to commercial housing; real estate investors do business more efficiently. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper presents for the first time a method to determine the affecting factors and their impact rates on commercial housing prices in Vietnam. The paper also points out a number of specific factors affecting commercial housing prices that are different from those shown in previous studies.

The Effects of Local Food and Local Products with Geographical Indication on the Development of Tourism Gastronomy

Various tourism trends have appeared with developing technology. One of them is gastronomy tourism. It is necessary to determine the factors which affect the development of this type of tourism for supply determinants to be successful in marketing activities. Products registered with geographical indication are considered to be one of these elements. In this direction, the purpose of the study is to determine the effects of local food and local products registered with geographical indications on the development of gastronomy tourism. Bolu, which is one of the Turkey’s cities, was selected as implementation area. Data were collected from effective tourists, who visited Bolu, or potential tourists, who have a possibility of visiting Bolu, via questionnaire technique, and 391 questionnaires were reached. Data were solved using statistical package program. Multivariate regression analysis was used to determine the effect of the products registered with geographical indication. According to the research results, the most effective element on the development of gastronomy tourism is local products registered with geographical indications with an impact rate of 60%. The effect of local foods, registered with geographical indication, is 37.7%.

Development of Model for Acoustic Noise Generated from Bedload in Rivers

<p>Quantifying bedload transport is important for many applications such as river management and hydraulic structures protection. Bedload flux measurements can be achieved using physical sampler methods. However, these methods are expensive, time-consuming, and difficult to operate during high discharge events. Besides, these methods do not permit to capture the spatial and temporal variability of bedload transport flux. Recently, alternative measuring technologies have been developed to continuously monitor bedload flux and grain size distribution using passive or active sensors. Among them, the hydrophone was used to monitor bedload transport by recording the sounds generated by bedload particles colliding on the river bed (referred as self-generated noise SGN). The acoustic power of SGN was correlated with bedload flux in field experiments. To better understand these experimental results and to estimate measurement uncertainties, we developed a theoretical model to simulate the SGN. The model computes an estimation of the power spectral density (PSD)by considering the contribution of all signals generated by impacts between bedload particles and the riverbed, and accounting for the attenuation of the acoustic signal between the source and the hydrophone position due to river propagation effects,. In this model, we</p><p>The energy of acoustic noise generated from the collision between two particles is mainly dependent on the transported particles' diameter and the impact velocity. We tested different empirical formulas for the estimation of the number of impact (impact rate) and the impact velocity depending on particle size and hydraulic conditions. To characterize the acoustic power losses as a function of distance and frequency, we used an attenuation function which was experimentally calibrated for different French rivers.</p><p>We tested the model on a field dataset comprising acoustic and bedload flux measurements. The results indicate that the PSD model allows estimating acoustic power (in between a range of one order of magnitude) for most of the rivers considered.  The model sensitivity was evaluated. In particular, we observed that it is very sensitive to the empirical formulas used to determine the impact rate and impact speed. In addition, special attention should be kept in mind on the assumption of the grain size distribution of riverbed which can generate large variability in some rivers particularly in rivers with a significant sand fraction.</p>

Sport- and Gender-Based Differences in Head Impact Exposure and Mechanism in High School Sports

Background: Repeated head impacts sustained by athletes have been linked to short-term neurophysiologic deficits; thus, there is growing concern about the number of head impacts sustained in sports. Accurate head impact exposure data obtained via head impact sensors may help identify appropriate strategies across sports and between genders to mitigate repetitive head impacts. Purpose: To quantify sport- and gender-based differences in head impact rate and mechanism for adolescents. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: High school female and male varsity soccer, basketball, lacrosse, and field hockey (female only) teams were instrumented with headband-mounted impact sensors during games over 2 seasons of soccer and 1 season of basketball, lacrosse, and field hockey. Video review was used to remove false-positive sensor-recorded events, and the head impact rate per athlete-exposure (AE) was calculated. Impact mechanism was categorized as equipment to head, fall, player to head, or head to ball (soccer only). Results: Male players had significantly higher head impact rates as compared with female players in soccer (3.08 vs 1.41 impacts/AE; rate ratio, 2.2 [95% CI, 1.8-2.6]), basketball (0.90 vs 0.25; 3.6 [2.6-4.6]), and lacrosse (0.83 vs 0.06; 12.9 [10.1-15.8]). Impact mechanism distributions were similar within sports between boys and girls. In soccer, head to ball represented 78% of impacts, whereas at least 88% in basketball were player-to-player contact. Conclusion: Across sports for boys and girls, soccer had the highest impact rate. Male high school soccer, basketball, and lacrosse teams had significantly higher head impact rates than did female teams of the same sport. For girls, basketball had a higher head impact rate than did lacrosse and field hockey, and for boys, basketball had a similar impact rate to lacrosse, a collision sport. Sport differences in the distribution of impact mechanisms create sport-specific targets for reducing head impact exposure.

Characterization of Head Impact Exposure in Women’s Collegiate Soccer

Soccer players are regularly exposed to head impacts by intentionally heading the ball. Evidence suggests repetitive subconcussive head impacts may affect the brain, and females may be more vulnerable to brain injury than males. This study aimed to characterize head impact exposure among National Collegiate Athletic Association women’s soccer players using a previously validated mouthpiece-based sensor. Sixteen players were instrumented during 72 practices and 24 games. Head impact rate and rate of risk-weighted cumulative exposure were compared across session type and player position. Head kinematics were compared across session type, impact type, player position, impact location, and ball delivery method. Players experienced a mean (95% confidence interval) head impact rate of 0.468 (0.289 to 0.647) head impacts per hour, and exposure rates varied by session type and player position. Headers accounted for 89% of head impacts and were associated with higher linear accelerations and rotational accelerations than nonheader impacts. Headers in which the ball was delivered by a long kick had greater peak kinematics (all P < .001) than headers in which the ball was delivered by any other method. Results provide increased understanding of head impact frequency and magnitude in women’s collegiate soccer and may help inform efforts to prevent brain injury.

The impact of social networking sites on the lives of individuals within Palestinian society during the period 2015-2020 "Afield study applied to the residents of Bethlehem – Palestine": أثر مواقع التواصل الاجتماعي الإلكترونية على حياة الأفراد داخل المجتمع الفلسطيني خلال الفترة ما بين 2015 – 2020 " دراسة ميدانية مطبقة على سكان مدينة بيت لحم – فلسطين"

The aim of this research is to determine the extent of the impact resulting from electronic social networking sites with their various indicators on the lives of members of the Palestinian society in all aspects of living. The researcher has used the descriptive analytical method and the questionnaire tool in collecting field data, as the research community was a resident of the Palestinian city of Bethlehem located south The West Bank from all aspects of life and living for them, and the sample taken from the research community reached (888) individuals, with a percentage (3%) of the entire research community, and this research has reached a set of important results on this topic, one of the most important being that most users The reality of social media are from the young category, and that the most used website is Facebook compared to jealousy, as it turns out that the most affected aspects of life from electronic social networking sites are the social aspect, whose impact ratio has reached a value (1.90%) followed by the religious side, which came The percentage of being affected by social media has reached a value of (3.87%), then came the educational aspect, which has reached an impact rate of (4. 83%), then the behavioral aspect came with an impact rate of (3. 81%) then, culturally, at a value of (78%), as for the psychological aspect, which reached a value of 2.63%), another and the lowest of these values ​​came to the economic aspect, which reached a value (9.58%), thus forming the least effects resulting from the existence and use of sites. Electronic social networking within the Palestinian society. As for the nature of the relationship between social media and the aspects of life for members of Palestinian society, a strong and statistically significant relationship has emerged, and the nature of this relationship came in a direct way between each of the subscription period, the number of hours of daily use, the number of added friends, the goal of the subscription, and the number of sites The electronic system used and between the various aspects related to the life of the members of the Palestinian society represented in the social, religious, educational, behavioral, cultural, psychological and economic fields. At the end of the research, the researcher made a number of recommendations at the public and private levels that came from the most important of them. The time for awareness-raising by educational institutions represented in schools and universities to warn against the increase in the use of such sites and warn of the negative consequences resulting from them, and to identify the main issues in which the use of electronic social networking sites that are beneficial to the user are required, especially in social, behavioral, and other aspects.