A Study on the Roads Flatness Using International Roughness Index in New Taipei City

The quality of roads is an indicator of urban progress. The development of tourism and economy contributes to the increasing demands for transportation and, thus, aggravated burdens and vulnerability to damage of these roads, and the result is compromised transportation quality and safety. The Road Leveling Project is aimed to road updates and improvement of pavement quality. New Taipei City was selected as the subject for this study. International roughness index (IRI) was selected for field survey and statistical comparison. The outcome indicated that the IRI spread between 3.5 and 6.5 m/km before road leveling with an average of 4.71 m/km; the index fell between 2.5 and 4.5 m/km after road leveling with an average of 3.12m/km, suggesting that the IRI of the tested road sections showed a declining trend. For multi-lane road sections tested, the improvement was greater on the outer lanes than on the inner lanes. This proves that the implementation of the Road Leveling Project has made significant improvement in terms of pavement flatness. Suggestions are proposed in this study for the subsequent management and improvement polices of the Road Leveling Project, hoping that the pavement quality improvement continues to contribute to the extension of road service life and ride comfort.

Evaluating the food consumption among Indonesian young adults lived in a different environment

Background: Indonesian young adults who live abroad usually buy meals from café or catering. These meals tend to be less nutritious, including high fat, low fiber, and high carbohydrate.Objective: This study aimed to investigate the pattern of food consumption among young Indonesian adults who lived in a different environment.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was carried out with 497 participants (73 men and 420 women). Data were collected using a validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) of 78 food groups. In addition, the Mann-Whitney U test was conducted to compare consumption patterns among study participants who lived in a different environment (Malang city, East Java, Indonesia, and Taipei City, Taiwan). Furthermore, the Chi-Square test and Fisher’s exact test analyzed the consumption level by gender.Results: Our study indicated no significant differences between food consumption of Indonesian young adults in Malang city, Indonesia, and Taipei City, Taiwan (p=0.623). Meanwhile, beverage (tea) was significantly different between gender in the home country (p=0.005). In contrast, participants who lived abroad showed significantly different consumption levels of fast food (instant noodle) and plant protein source (tofu) across gender (p=0.01 and p=0.02).Conclusion: The present study showed that fruits were often changed into juices, especially more frequent in a home country than abroad. Meanwhile, several food items, including beverages (tea), fast food, and plant protein source (tofu), showed significant differences across gender.

Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in Sewage Treatment Plants between January 2020 and July 2021 in Taiwan

An outbreak of a new type of coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) began in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, at the end of 2019, and it later spread to other areas of China and around the world. Taiwan reported the first confirmed case from an individual who returned from Wuhan, China, in January 2020 for Chinese New Year. Monitoring microbes in environmental sewage is an important epidemiological indicator, especially for pathogens that can be shed in feces such as poliovirus. We have conducted additional SARS-CoV-2 sewage testing since January 2020 using a well-established poliovirus environmental sewage surveillance system in Taiwan. Wastewater samples were collected from 11 sewage treatment plants from different parts of Taiwan twice a month for laboratory testing. By the end of July 2021, 397 wastewater specimens had been tested, and two samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2. These two wastewater samples were collected in the northern region of Taiwan from Taipei (site A) and New Taipei City (site C) at the beginning of June 2021. This result is consistent with the significant increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases observed in the same period of time. As the pandemic ebbed after June, the wastewater samples in these areas also tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 in July 2021.

Resolution of the M-shape Pattern of the Outdoor Air Temperature Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) for Metropolitan Areas in a Country: Using Long-term Monthly Level Data of Taipei City as Empirical Evidence

In Taiwan, the heat island effect is the most significant in Taipei City. Thus this research provides a causal explanation for why urban outdoor air temperature has an M-shape EKC pattern for metropolitan areas in a country. Results show that the growth rate change in CO2 concentration can induce changes to the periods of the La Nino effect and EI Nino effect, causing high fluctuations in rain accumulation. The amount of rain then alters A-type evaporation, and so the evaporation amount is the top factor for the diffusion of a city’s heat. This fluctuation plays as a cooling and heating source for the V region of the M shape in the outdoor air temperature EKC pattern. In our previous studies, the growth rate change in CO2 concentration correlates to the energy structure. Therefore, a heat sinking model has been proposed to explain the accumulation of heat in a city, in which a proportion process for the solar irradiation source from buildings and remodeling engineering from a public housing policy and the private sector can play as a heating source of the two peaks of the M shape and present long-term linear growth in the outdoor air temperature EKC pattern.

Detection of chlorophyll fluorescence as a rapid alert of eutrophic water

An in-situ detection of chlorophyll fluorescence was used in an innovative manner to detect eutrophic water, and the results were compared with the Carlson's Trophic State Index (CTSI) indicators. Eutrophication was due to climate warming and anthropogenic activities. The turbidity and chromaticity showed a strong linear relationship (R2 = 0.85) of the Bi Lake in Taipei city. Both the swimming area and the bridge are popular with the general public and had the worst turbidity (35.80–44.00 NTU) and chromaticity (495.37–552.27 Pt). The CTSI had a stronger linear relationship with the phycocyanin (PC) concentration (R2 = 0.605) than with any other three CTSI factors like chlorophyll-a concentration, total phosphorus (TP) concentration, and transparency. The TP pollution had a potential to cause an increase in PC concentration found in this study (R2 = 0.86). The absorbances of the water samples represented the environment is PC (cyanobacteria) dominant in winter. The PC concentration in Bi Lake ranged from 75.55 to 80.24 μg/L and higher with lower water temperature. Measurement of in-situ chlorophyll fluorescence is similar to lab-scaled spectrophotometer (R2>0.92). The real-time detection of PC concentration could be the basis of a rapid alert system to biological threats to waters.

Geothelphusa boreas, a new montane freshwater crab (Crustacea: Potamidae: Geothelphusa) from northeastern Taiwan, and the identity of G. hirsuta Tan & Liu, 1998

A new freshwater crab is described from the montane area in northeastern Taiwan based on morphological and molecular evidence. Geothelphusa boreas sp. nov., from the Fushan Botanical Garden situated around New Taipei City and Yilan County, is distinct from similar congeners by the structure of the male first gonopod and the proportions of the male thoracic sternites. In addition, after comparing the holotypes of G. takuan and G. hirsuta Tan & Liu, 1998, no substantial difference could be found. Molecular evidence from mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I also supports the recognition of the new species and the conspecificity of G. hirsuta with G. takuan.