What Can We Learn from Urban Crisis?

The irreversible transition towards urban living entails complex challenges and vulnerabilities for citizens, civic authorities, and the management of global commons. Many cities remain beset by political, infrastructural, social, or economic fragility, with crisis arguably becoming an increasingly present condition of urban life. While acknowledging the intense vulnerabilities that cities can face, this article contends that innovative, flexible, and often ground-breaking policies, practices, and activities designed to manage and overcome fragility can emerge in cities beset by crisis. We argue that a deeper understanding of such practices and the knowledge emerging from contexts of urban crisis may offer important insights to support urban resilience and sustainable development. We outline a simple conceptual representation of the interrelationships between urban crisis and knowledge production, situate this in the context of literature on resilience, sustainability, and crisis, and present illustrative examples of real-world practices. In discussing these perspectives, we reflect on how we may better value, use, and exchange knowledge and practice in order to address current and future urban challenges.

Climate change impact to dam Operation, case study of Darma Dam, West Java

Darma Dam is located in the upstream of Cisanggarung River, Kuningan Regency, West Java Province. Darma Dam construction dated from about 1922. Indonesian government continued the construction and began operating in 1962. With effective storage of about 40 million m3, Darma Dam provides water for about 22 thousand irrigation areas and bulk water for several cities and regencies. Several problems encountered in Darma Dam operation and water management are 1) increasing water demand from domestic and industrial sectors, and 2) high inflow variation during the dry and wet season, resulting in a large amount of water spill from the dam spillway. This paper addressed the impact of climate change on the inflow variation of Darma Dam in the dry and wet seasons. Further analysis shows average water spills from the spillway during the wet season may increase from about 12 million m3/year in the present condition to about 20 million m3/year in 2020-2050, while the average water volume during the dry season may reduce from 22.5 million m3 in the present condition to about 20.7 million m3 in 2020-2050. This study suggests that dam operation need adjustment in the future as part of adaptation to climate change.

Ecological Succession of Wetlands

The change in community structure induced by environmental perturbances over time is called ecological succession and results in modification of community structure in a particular ecosystem. However, with climatic changes and pollution, wetlands are most likely to have modified their successional trails, especially as these ecosystems are exposed to various fluctuating water rhythms enhanced carbon dioxide, salinity invasion, and climatic temperatures. The chapter is an attempt to review the present condition of wetlands with respect to pollution and its impact on successional patterns.

Robota robiona była. O instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E Dominiki Macochy rozmawiają Elżbieta Janicka, Konrad Matyjaszek, Xawery Stańczyk, Katrin Stoll i Anna Zawadzka [The Job Was Being Done: A conversation about Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation "50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E"]

The Job Was Being Done: A conversation about Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E.This article is a record of a discussion concerning Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E. The work deals with the uses of discourse and landscapes in mechanisms of camouflaging the crimes perpetrated on Jews by Poles during the Holocaust. The author lays bare and deconstructs these mechanisms – above all the mechanisms of narrative fetishism of production of artificial landscape – drawing on examples from Biłgoraj county. In the course of the discussion, the work inspired a critical reassessment of the categories dominating the ways in which the Holocaust is currently described: (1) Martin Pollack’s category of contaminated landscapes, rooted in the ideology of two totalitarianisms; (2) the category of the witness / bystander, which conceals the observers’ participation in the scenario of the crime; and (3) the category of taboo, which is ambivalent considering the universal knowledge on the part of local communities about what happened to Jews from their localities. Reflection on the production of taboo leads the discussants to deliberate on the status of Jewish sources in the field of Holocaust studies. Collected since as early as the 1940s, and containing ample and detailed information about Polish crimes perpetrated on Jews, they are nevertheless not recognised as sources by Polish historians. The conversation is concluded by an attempt at recapitulating the present condition of Polish historiography in the light of the postulated new approach to sources. Robota robiona była. O instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E Dominiki Macochy rozmawiają Elżbieta Janicka, Konrad Matyjaszek, Xawery Stańczyk, Katrin Stoll i Anna ZawadzkaNiniejszy tekst stanowi zapis dyskusji poświęconej instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej Dominiki Macochy pt. 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E. Dzieło artystki dotyczy dyskursywnych i krajobrazowych mechanizmów kamuflowania zbrodni na Żydach popełnionych przez Polaków podczas Zagłady. Macocha obnaża i dekonstruuje te mechanizmy – przede wszystkim mechanizm fetyszyzmu narracyjnego i mechanizm produkcji sztucznego krajobrazu – na przykładach zaczerpniętych z powiatu biłgorajskiego. Podczas dyskusji, z inspiracji pracą artystki, krytycznemu namysłowi poddane zostają następujące, dominujące współcześnie kategorie opisu Zagłady: 1. zaproponowana przez Martina Pollacka kategoria skażonych krajobrazów, wyrosła na gruncie ideologii dwóch totalitaryzmów; 2. kategoria świadka, maskująca udział obserwatorów w scenariuszach zbrodni; 3. kategoria tabu, ambiwalentna, jeśli wziąć pod uwagę powszechność wiedzy lokalnych społeczności o tym, co stało się z Żydami z ich miejscowości. Refleksja nad produkcją tabu prowadzi dyskutantów do namysłu nad statusem źródeł żydowskich w polu badań nad Zagładą. W źródłach tych bowiem, kompletowanych już od lat czterdziestych, znajdujemy wiele szczegółowych informacji o polskich zbrodniach na Żydach. Nie są one jednak rozpoznane jako źródła przez polskich historyków. Dyskusję kończy próba podsumowania współczesnej kondycji polskiej historiografii w świetle postulatu nowego podejścia do źródeł.

Robota robiona była. O instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E Dominiki Macochy rozmawiają Elżbieta Janicka, Konrad Matyjaszek, Xawery Stańczyk, Katrin Stoll i Anna Zawadzka [The Job Was Being Done: A conversation about Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation "50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E"]

The Job Was Being Done: A conversation about Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E.This article is a record of a discussion concerning Dominika Macocha’s video-sculptural installation 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E. The work deals with the uses of discourse and landscapes in mechanisms of camouflaging the crimes perpetrated on Jews by Poles during the Holocaust. The author lays bare and deconstructs these mechanisms – above all the mechanisms of narrative fetishism of production of artificial landscape – drawing on examples from Biłgoraj county. In the course of the discussion, the work inspired a critical reassessment of the categories dominating the ways in which the Holocaust is currently described: (1) Martin Pollack’s category of contaminated landscapes, rooted in the ideology of two totalitarianisms; (2) the category of the witness / bystander, which conceals the observers’ participation in the scenario of the crime; and (3) the category of taboo, which is ambivalent considering the universal knowledge on the part of local communities about what happened to Jews from their localities. Reflection on the production of taboo leads the discussants to deliberate on the status of Jewish sources in the field of Holocaust studies. Collected since as early as the 1940s, and containing ample and detailed information about Polish crimes perpetrated on Jews, they are nevertheless not recognised as sources by Polish historians. The conversation is concluded by an attempt at recapitulating the present condition of Polish historiography in the light of the postulated new approach to sources. Robota robiona była. O instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E, 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E, 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E Dominiki Macochy rozmawiają Elżbieta Janicka, Konrad Matyjaszek, Xawery Stańczyk, Katrin Stoll i Anna ZawadzkaNiniejszy tekst stanowi zapis dyskusji poświęconej instalacji wideo-rzeźbiarskiej Dominiki Macochy pt. 50°31’29.7”N 22°46’39.1”E 50°30’56.2”N 22°46’01.0”E 50°30’41.0”N 22°45’49.5”E. Dzieło artystki dotyczy dyskursywnych i krajobrazowych mechanizmów kamuflowania zbrodni na Żydach popełnionych przez Polaków podczas Zagłady. Macocha obnaża i dekonstruuje te mechanizmy – przede wszystkim mechanizm fetyszyzmu narracyjnego i mechanizm produkcji sztucznego krajobrazu – na przykładach zaczerpniętych z powiatu biłgorajskiego. Podczas dyskusji, z inspiracji pracą artystki, krytycznemu namysłowi poddane zostają następujące, dominujące współcześnie kategorie opisu Zagłady: 1. zaproponowana przez Martina Pollacka kategoria skażonych krajobrazów, wyrosła na gruncie ideologii dwóch totalitaryzmów; 2. kategoria świadka, maskująca udział obserwatorów w scenariuszach zbrodni; 3. kategoria tabu, ambiwalentna, jeśli wziąć pod uwagę powszechność wiedzy lokalnych społeczności o tym, co stało się z Żydami z ich miejscowości. Refleksja nad produkcją tabu prowadzi dyskutantów do namysłu nad statusem źródeł żydowskich w polu badań nad Zagładą. W źródłach tych bowiem, kompletowanych już od lat czterdziestych, znajdujemy wiele szczegółowych informacji o polskich zbrodniach na Żydach. Nie są one jednak rozpoznane jako źródła przez polskich historyków. Dyskusję kończy próba podsumowania współczesnej kondycji polskiej historiografii w świetle postulatu nowego podejścia do źródeł.

Production and maintenance in industries: impact of industry 4.0

Purpose Production industries are undergoing a digital transition, referred to as the fourth industrial revolution or Industry 4.0, as a result of rapidly expanding advances in information and communication technology. The purpose of this research is to provide a conceptual insight into the impact of unique capabilities from the fourth industrial revolution on production and maintenance tasks in terms of providing the existing production companies a boost by making recommendations on areas and tasks of great potential. Design/methodology/approach A survey and a literature review are among the research methods used in the research. The survey collected empirical data using a semi-structured questionnaire, which provided a broad overview of the company's present condition in terms of production and maintenance, resulting in more comprehensive and specific information regarding the study topics. Findings The study points out that, the implementation of I4.0-technology leads to an increase in production, asset utilization, quality, reduced machine down time in industries, and maintenance. Sensor technology, big data analysis, cloud technologies, mobile end devices, and real-time location systems are now being implemented to improve production processes and boost organizational competitiveness. Moreover, the study highlights that data acquired throughout the production process is utilized for quality control, predictive maintenance, and automatic production control. Furthermore, I4.0 solutions help companies to be more efficient with assets at each stage of the process, allowing them to have a stronger control on inventories and operational-optimization potential. Originality/value The findings of the study was supported by empirical data collected through survey that provides an intangible understanding of the importance of distinctive capabilities from the I4.0 revolution on production and maintenance tasks. In this study, some recommendations and guidelines to enhance these tasks are provided that are vital for existing production companies.

Endgame: The false destruction of the social imaginary

Vogl’s account of contemporary financial truth games suggests that a full understanding of our present condition requires the kind of knowledge produced by fiction and those who study it. But what kind of knowledge is that, and how does it escape the capitalist ontology of information?

Study on the reducibility of iron ore pellets at high temperature

The behaviour of iron ore pellets in a blast furnace must be considered to improve ironmaking operations, especially when a large amount of the pellets is used. This study presents the reduction degree, mineralogical composition, and morphology of the pellet reduced in a gas mixture of 60% CO and 40% Ar at temperatures between 900 and 1,100oC. The pellet was prepared from iron ore from the Cao Bang province, Vietnam, by rotary drum. The obtained results showed that the reduction degree of the pellet increased with increasing reduction time and temperature. The activation energy of the reducing reaction was calculated to be 63.2 kJ/mol, which indicated that reduction occurred more easily in the present condition. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results revealed mineralogical phases such as hematite (Fe2O3), magnetite (Fe3O4), wüstite (FeO), metallic iron (Fe), and fayalite (Fe2SiO4) existing in the pellets when reduced for different times and temperatures. Fe and Fe2SiO4 were found to be the majority in the pellet that was reduced for 90 min at 1,100oC. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations suggested the formation of a liquid phase, e.g., Fe2SiO4, which retarded the reducing reaction because it hindered the diffusion of gas flow inside the pellet. This phenomenon is essential to blast furnace ironmaking because pellets must be completely reduced before they move down to the liquid zone.

Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons Contamination of the Surface Water and Sediments of Orashi River, Engenni, Ahoada West, Rivers State, Nigeria

The level of contamination of Orashi River by total petroleum hydrocarbons were investigated through the collection of surface water samples and sediment samples from four locations along the river. Determination of the level of contamination was done with the use of gas chromatography-flame ionization detector after following laid down clean-up procedures. The results obtained showed that total petroleum hydrocarbons in the surface water were 10.913±2.2022mg/L, 7.645±2.683mg/L, 9.074±2.1654mg/L and 12.212±3.3034mg/L for stations 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively with a mean value of 9.961±2.5885mg/L, while in the sediment samples concentration values recorded were 22.3925±5.2104mg/Kg, 35.1071±9.9652mg/Kg, 50.4431±15.9916mg/Kg and 29.3869±8.0410mg/Kg for stations 1, 2 3 and 4 respectively with a mean value of 34.3324±9.8021mg/Kg. The partition coefficient calculations revealed that the sediment phase is more stable for total petroleum hydrocarbons as compared to the water phase. The analysis of the randomly collected samples revealed that total petroleum hydrocarbons have contaminated the river and therefore adequate steps should be taken to remedy the present condition of the Orashi River in order to mitigate any probable rise in the quantity of total petroleum hydrocarbons in the river above allowable limit.