Hasil untuk "Metropolitan areas"

Natacha Sohn-Hausner, Natacha Sohn-Hausner, Ricardo Guedes Correa et al.

IntroductionAlthough toxocariasis has been listed among the five most neglected parasitic infections worldwide, with higher impact in socioeconomically vulnerable populations, no study has evaluated vulnerable individuals from highly populated urban areas.MethodsAccordingly, human serum samples were collected in Curitiba, the eighth most populated metropolitan area of Brazil, and tested by indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for anti-Toxocara spp. antibodies. Sociodemographic and environmental information was collected by epidemiological questionnaires and geospatial data to assess associated risk factors and toxocariasis areas.ResultsOverall, 58 of 132 (43.9%) (95% CI: 35.8–52.5%) human samples were seropositive for Toxocara spp., with the final multivariate logistic regression model identifying age as the only predictive factor associated with seropositivity. Individuals aged 53 to 80 years had a 3.46 times higher risk (OR = 3.46; 95% CI: 1.24–10.17; p < 0.05) when compared to the 3 to 20 years group. Kernel analysis revealed an area with a higher density of seropositive individuals in locations lacking access to basic sanitation, highlighting a spatial risk area for Toxocara spp. transmission.DiscussionAlthough age over 53 years was the only predictor in the final logistic regression model, the spatial overlap between asymptomatic seropositive individuals and areas of high environmental vulnerability—marked by low income, flooding, and poor sanitation—was critical. These conditions likely facilitated the Toxocara spp. life cycle, making the identification of such areas pivotal for local public health, effectively targeting toxocariasis intervention and control strategies. In addition, the One Health approach herein highlights human vulnerability to toxocariasis as a life-course risk, beyond pet healthcare and environmental exposure in endemic areas.

Elisabeth M. Werner, Diliya Yalikun

We define new surface area measures for ball-convex bodies which we call $L_p$ relative surface areas. We show that those are rigid motion invariant valuations. We establish inequalities for these quantities and prove a monotonicity behavior which leads to a new notion of entropy for ball-convex bodies. We introduce a weighted ball floating body. A derivative of volume of a ball-convex body with a weighted ball floating body provides a geometric interpretation of the $L_p$ relative surface areas.

Matthias Kramer

This work provides a short clarification on the definition of specific interfacial areas in aerated flows, thereby distinguishing between the specific interfacial area related to the volume of an air-water mixture, and the specific interfacial area related to the water volume. This distinction is important when it comes to solving the air-water mass transfer equation, as there has been some misconception on the past. It is hoped that this contribution will help to clarify on these basic fundamentals, which is anticipated to be important for the future development and application of advanced air-water mass transfer models to aerated flows.

Jie Deng, Danfeng Hong, Chenyu Li et al.

We propose a novel joint framework by integrating super-resolution and segmentation, called JointSeg, which enables the generation of 1-meter ISA maps directly from freely available Sentinel-2 imagery. JointSeg was trained on multimodal cross-resolution inputs, offering a scalable and affordable alternative to traditional approaches. This synergistic design enables gradual resolution enhancement from 10m to 1m while preserving fine-grained spatial textures, and ensures high classification fidelity through effective cross-scale feature fusion. This method has been successfully applied to the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB), a region characterized by complex urban-rural patterns and diverse topography. As a result, a comprehensive ISA mapping product for 2021, referred to as ISA-1, was generated, covering an area of over 2.2 million square kilometers. Quantitative comparisons against the 10m ESA WorldCover and other benchmark products reveal that ISA-1 achieves an F1-score of 85.71%, outperforming bilinear-interpolation-based segmentation by 9.5%, and surpassing other ISA datasets by 21.43%-61.07%. In densely urbanized areas (e.g., Suzhou, Nanjing), ISA-1 reduces ISA overestimation through improved discrimination of green spaces and water bodies. Conversely, in mountainous regions (e.g., Ganzi, Zhaotong), it identifies significantly more ISA due to its enhanced ability to detect fragmented anthropogenic features such as rural roads and sparse settlements, demonstrating its robustness across diverse landscapes. Moreover, we present biennial ISA maps from 2017 to 2023, capturing spatiotemporal urbanization dynamics across representative cities. The results highlight distinct regional growth patterns: rapid expansion in upstream cities, moderate growth in midstream regions, and saturation in downstream metropolitan areas.

Eshant English, Christoph Lippert

Conformal prediction provides a model-agnostic framework for uncertainty quantification with finite-sample validity guarantees, making it an attractive tool for constructing reliable prediction sets. However, existing approaches commonly rely on residual-based conformity scores, which impose geometric constraints and struggle when the underlying distribution is multimodal. In particular, they tend to produce overly conservative prediction areas centred around the mean, often failing to capture the true shape of complex predictive distributions. In this work, we introduce JAPAN (Joint Adaptive Prediction Areas with Normalising-Flows), a conformal prediction framework that uses density-based conformity scores. By leveraging flow-based models, JAPAN estimates the (predictive) density and constructs prediction areas by thresholding on the estimated density scores, enabling compact, potentially disjoint, and context-adaptive regions that retain finite-sample coverage guarantees. We theoretically motivate the efficiency of JAPAN and empirically validate it across multivariate regression and forecasting tasks, demonstrating good calibration and tighter prediction areas compared to existing baselines. We also provide several \emph{extensions} adding flexibility to our proposed framework.

Geremew Worku, Dagnachew Adugna

As urbanization accelerates globally, cities face increasing challenges related to infrastructure development, especially in metropolitan areas central to economic and social activities. The main objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of the current integrated infrastructure planning in in Addis Ababa and three selected sub cities of Sheger (Burayu, Galan, and Furi), focusing on their potential to improve urban sustainability and resilience. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, utilizing both descriptive and explanatory research designs. We used a purposive sampling method to get a sample that represents the group well. This included 69 respondents, 15 key interviews, and 90 focus group discussions (FGDs). We processed, coded, classified, and input the data into Microsoft Excel for analysis. The study identifies significant gaps in current planning approaches, notably the tendency to treat urban systems in isolation. It underscores the critical roles of governance, stakeholder collaboration, and efficient resource allocation in overcoming these challenges. The research looks at Addis Ababa and Sheger to find ways to improve city infrastructure. It identifies strategies, challenges, and opportunities to make the cities stronger and more sustainable. Key findings indicate substantial gaps in governance, lack of institutional collaboration, critical gap in the regulatory frameworks, Proper drainage system, gap in waste management, inefficiencies in the transportation system, poor accessibility, absence of an integrated transport plan between the cities, and lack of existing institution managing the common transport infrastructure. These insights provide actionable recommendations for city administrations, policymakers and urban planners.

Martyn Symons, William Gilmore, Naomi Henrickson et al.

Objective: Potential negative impacts of alcohol policy on tourism are a controversial issue, particularly for regional Australia. We aimed to understand tourism activity in the context of Section 64 area-wide alcohol restrictions implemented in Western Australia. Methods: Restrictions information allowing placement of conditions on liquor licences limiting alcohol sales in specified communities was collated (e.g. off-premises trading hours). Time-trends in visitor trips across tourism regions with/without restrictions were examined for changes. For domestic trips, regional trend-fitting and time-series cross-correlations were conducted for restricted versus non-restricted non-metropolitan regions. Results: Subsequent to restrictions in North-West and Golden Outback regions, areas affected by restrictions increased over time. International trips contributed < 20 % of total trips. All domestic series were either stable or in decline up to 2009/10, and thereafter all experienced growth. Combined trip numbers for restricted versus non-restricted non-metropolitan regions were significantly cross-correlated (0.48, p=0.03). Conclusions: Restrictions aimed at reducing alcohol-related harms in regional WA do not appear to have negatively affected tourism. Implications for Public Health: Evidence-informed policies that reduce community-wide alcohol availability are critical to addressing risks to public health and safety. Objection to restrictions on the basis of negative tourism effects may be misguided and counter-productive to sustainable tourism growth.

Muhammad Adam Dombrowski, Gregory Dresden

We find the area between $\cos^p x$ and $\cos^p nx$ as $n$ heads to infinity, and we establish a connection between these limiting values and the exponential generating function for $\arcsin x/(1-x)$ at sequence number A296726 on the OEIS.

Jacopo Moi, Gherardo Chirici, Leonardo Chiesi et al.

Green areas are a crucial element in evolution of a city, contributing to improve citizens' life, to reduce effects of climate change, and to make possible the survival of other species in urban areas. Unfortunately, the above effects are difficult to assess quantitatively for regulators, stakeholders and experts, making troublesome the planning of city development. Here we present a method to estimate the impact of these areas in the city life based on the network topology of the city itself and on a simple model of dynamics on this structure. Movements between various areas of the city are simulated by means of an agent-based biased-diffusion process where citizens try to reach the nearest Public Green Area (PGA) from their position and the model is fed with real data about the density of populations in the cases of study. Firstly, we define a centrality measure of PGA's based on average farness measured on the city network; this approach outperforms information based on the simple topology. We then improve this quantity by taking into account the occupation of PGA's, thereby providing a quantitative measure of PGA usage for regulators.

Majid Akbari, Atefeh Fuladi, Ali Shamsoddini et al.

Urban livability is a crucial measure of sustainable urban development. This study aims to analyze the factors influencing the livability of Tehran's 22nd metropolitan area using the Human City approach, the Fuzzy Delphi method, and structural analysis. Theoretical data was collected through documentary research, while experimental data was gathered through surveys using the Delphi technique. A total of 20 urban experts were sampled, and 41 propellant forces across five dimensions were identified. These propellants were categorized into economic, social, cultural, physical, environmental, managerial, and legal factors. The data was analyzed using Fuzzy Delphi and Cross Impact Analysis Methods in MICMAC software. The results revealed significant relationships among key propellants, indicating their strong influence. The analysis also showed a complex and interconnected network of propellant forces, with some clustering in specific areas. Seven key factors were identified as crucial for improving Job opportunities, Citizen participation, Public transport, Affordable housing, Public spaces, Walkability.

Bernard Fosu Frimpong, Addo Koranteng, Thomas Atta-Darkwa et al.

Forest loss, unbridled urbanisation, and the loss of arable lands have become contentious issues for the sustainable management of land. Landsat satellite images for 1986, 2003, 2013, and 2022, covering the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and its adjoining municipalities, were used to analyse the Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes. The machine learning algorithm, Support Vector Machine (SVM), was used for the satellite image classification that led to the generation of the LULC maps. The Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalised Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) were analysed to assess the correlations between the indices. The image overlays of the forest and urban extents and the calculation of the annual deforestation rates were evaluated. The study revealed decreasing trends in forestlands, increased urban/built-up areas (similar to the image overlays), and a decline in agricultural lands. However, there was a negative relationship between the NDVI and NDBI. The results corroborate the pressing need for the assessment of LULC utilising satellite sensors. This paper contributes to the existing outlines for evolving land design for the promotion of sustainable land use.

Hoai Nguyen Huynh

As more and more people continue to live in highly urbanised areas across the globe, reliable accessibility to amenities and services plays a vital role in sustainable development. One of the challenges in addressing this issue is the consistent and equal provision of public services, including transport for residents across the urban system. In this study, using a novel computational method combining geometrical analysis and information-theoretic measures, we analyse the accessibility to public transport in terms of the spatial coverage of the transport nodes (stops) and the quality of service at these nodes across different areas. Furthermore, using a network clustering procedure, we also characterise the land-use pattern of those areas and relate that to their public transport accessibility. Using Singapore as a case study, we find that the commercial areas in the CBD area expectedly have excellent accessibility and the residential areas also have good to very good accessibility. However, not every residential area is equally accessible. While the spatial coverage of stops in these areas is very good, the quality of service indicates substantial variation among different regions, with high contrast between the central and eastern areas compared to the others in the west and north of the city-state. We believe this kind of analysis could yield a good understanding of the current level of public transport services across the urban system, and their disparity will provide valuable and actionable insights into the future development plans.

Peter A. Gao, Jon Wakefield

Accurate estimates of subnational health and demographic indicators are critical for informing health policy decisions. Many countries collect relevant data using complex household surveys, but when data are limited, direct survey weighted estimates of small area proportions may be unreliable. Area level models treating these direct estimates as response data can improve precision but often require known sampling variances of the direct estimators for all areas. In practice, the sampling variances are typically estimated, so standard approaches do not account for a key source of uncertainty. In order to account for variability in the estimated sampling variances, we propose a hierarchical Bayesian spatial area level model that smooths both the estimated means and sampling variances to produce point and interval estimates of small area proportions. Our model explicitly targets estimation of small area proportions rather than means of continuous variables and we consider examples of both moderate and low prevalence events. We demonstrate the performance of our approach via simulation and application to vaccination coverage and HIV prevalence data from the Demographic and Health Surveys.

Ana Patricia Marques, Rui Santana, António Filipe Macedo et al.

Aims The arrival of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) therapies represented a treatment shift for several ophthalmological disorders and led to an increasing number of patients undergoing intravitreal injections. The aims of this observational study were to assess the expansion of anti-VEGF intravitreal injections in the Portuguese National Health System (NHS) and to identify factors correlated with geographical variations in episode rates.Methods Administrative database on discharge from Portuguese NHS hospitals was analysed for annual values and rates of intravitreal anti-VEGF injections at a national and regional level, between 2013 and 2018.Results The number of episodes of anti-VEGF treatment and patients treated increased 16% and 9% per year, respectively, between 2013 and 2018. During the study period around 72% of patients were treated in the Metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto and in the Central region. Intravitreal anti-VEGF treatment rates in 2018 were 560 per 100 000 population and presented high variability between municipalities. Higher anti-VEGF treatment rates at the municipality level were associated with shorter distances between their residence and the hospital. At the hospital level, higher ratio of ophthalmologists and higher organisational level were associated with higher anti-VEGF treatment rates.Conclusion The number of episodes and patients treated with anti-VEGF injections has been growing in recent years. Proximity to healthcare, more access to ophthalmologists and hospitals with higher organisational levels are associated with higher anti-VEGF treatment rates. Improving access is crucial to reduce regional discrepancies and ensure optimal treatment frequency, which may improve health outcomes.

Nikolay V. Khomutov

The demanded format of leisure today is a combination of educational and cultural services, taking into account the socio-cultural situation (a kind of “site-specificity”), the possibility of earning income from both the main and auxiliary activities. There are many examples of the successful operation of this format in capital cities and metropolitan areas (see the article in the same issue of the magazine about the Sinara Center). Medium-sized cities with a population of 50,000 to 100,000 do not yet have such a practice. On the example of the industrial city of Kirovgrad, Sverdlovsk region, the article presents the rationale for the Copper Horseshoe project, a multifunctional site that includes an exposition hall, a traditional blacksmith shop, a craft workshop, a Ural hut, a tea shop, a souvenir shop and an office. Theoretical methods of analysis and synthesis, comparative (work with analogues), as well as empirical methods - analysis of statistics, survey were used. The author describes the possibilities of the developed project: the socio-demographic situation in Kirovgrad - one in three - is young, hence the demand for new leisure formats in addition to those already operating in the city of the club, the house of culture; reliance on the identity of Kirovgrad residents - the historical and current connection of the city with metallurgy, the demand for traditional values; the initiator of the project is the NGO “Khutor Chisty”, which already has experience in implementing investment projects in the field of culture; orientation of the project towards multifunctionality, both in terms of providing services in the field of leisure, and for other tasks - renting premises and equipment, for example. The article also cites restrictions in the implementation of the project - first of all, the amount of funding, which is more than twelve million rubles, as well as the search for investors. Achievement of the project goals (preservation of the cultural and historical heritage of the Urals, functioning of the information and historical cluster, recreation of traditional handicraft technologies of the Ural crafts, etc.) indicates the scope of the project - excursion and educational activities, social and cultural events, specialized exhibitions of crafts, educational activities and etc. The development of territories through socio-cultural design is a promising direction for medium-sized industrial cities, which include Kirovgrad.

Yuji Matsuda, Taketo Tobimatsu, Risa Fujii

Abstract Japan's group homes, where usually three to seven people with disabilities live in a community residence, are gradually increasing in number as a residence for persons with disabilities. However, it remains unclear what challenges exist in opening and operating such homes, and how the challenges differ depending on the type of resident disability. A questionnaire survey was administered among corporations operating group homes for persons with disabilities (GHD) in Japan's Kanto region regarding issues during opening and operation of GHDs, as well as the condition of the buildings. The results revealed the following issues. First, in metropolitan areas such as Tokyo, it is difficult to construct or lease a building with sufficient space. Second, GHDs, where people with intellectual disabilities live, are often positioned as permanent residences. Furthermore, in GHDs where the residents primarily have physically disabilities, it is often difficult to achieve sufficient floor space. In addition, in GHDs primarily housing people with mental disabilities, they are often positioned as temporary residences prior to living alone in apartments, etc., and understanding from neighborhood residents constitutes a major issue.

Sandra Oliveira, Ana Isabel Ribeiro, Paulo Nogueira et al.

Commuting flows and long-distance travel are important spreading factors of viruses and particularly airborne ones. Therefore, it is relevant to examine the association among diverse mobility scenarios and the spatial dissemination of SARS-CoV-2 cases. We intended to analyze the patterns of virus spreading linked to different mobility scenarios, in order to better comprehend the effect of the lockdown measures, and how such measures can be better informed. We simulated the effects of mobility restrictions in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 amongst the municipalities of two metropolitan areas, Lisbon (LMA) and Porto (PMA). Based on an adapted SEIR (Suscetible-Exposed-Infected-Removed) model, we estimated the number of new daily infections during one year, according to different mobility scenarios: restricted to essential activities, industrial activities, public transport use, and a scenario with unrestricted mobility including all transport modes. The trends of new daily infections were further explored using time-series clustering analysis, using dynamic time warping. Mobility restrictions resulted in lower numbers of new daily infections when compared to the unrestricted mobility scenario, in both metropolitan areas. Between March and September 2020, the official number of new infections followed overall a similar timeline to the one simulated considering only essential activities. At the municipal level, trends differ amongst the two metropolitan areas. The analysis of the effects of mobility in virus spread within different municipalities and regions could help tailoring future strategies and increase the public acceptance of eventual restrictions.

Stefano Maria Iacus, Carlos Santamaria, Francesco Sermi et al.

This work introduces a new concept of functional areas called Mobility Functional Areas (MFAs), i.e., the geographic zones highly interconnected according to the analysis of mobile positioning data. The MFAs do not coincide necessarily with administrative borders as they are built observing natural human mobility and, therefore, they can be used to inform, in a bottom-up approach, local transportation, spatial planning, health and economic policies. After presenting the methodology behind the MFAs, this study focuses on the link between the COVID-19 pandemic and the MFAs in Austria. It emerges that the MFAs registered an average number of infections statistically larger than the areas in the rest of the country, suggesting the usefulness of the MFAs in the context of targeted re-escalation policy responses to this health crisis. The MFAs dataset is openly available to other scholars for further analyses.

Clémentine Préau, Nicolas Dubos, Maxime Lenormand et al.

Context - Prioritising is likely to differ depending on the species considered for connectivity assessments, leading to a lack of consensual decisions for territorial planning. Objectives - The objective was to assess the relevance of identifying priority areas for connectivity for groups of species based on common dispersal abilities. We aimed to assess the impact of target groups choices on predicted priority areas. Method - The study was located at the Thau Lagoon territory to demonstrate the methodological approach. Ecological niche modelling was used to quantify species resistance and to identify suitable habitat patches. We coupled the least-cost path methodology with circuit theory to assess species connectivity. We classified connectivity from high to low levels and averaged the results by dispersal groups. Results - We found important differences in identified priority areas between groups with dissimilar dispersal abilities, with little overlap between highly connected areas. We identified a gap between the level of protection of low dispersal species and highly connected areas. We found mismatches between existing corridors and connectivity in low dispersal species, and a greater impact in areas of expected urban sprawl projects on favourably connected areas for species with high dispersal capabilities. Conclusion - We have demonstrated that a diversity of dispersal capacity ranges must be accounted for in order to identify ecological corridors in programmes that aim to restore habitat connectivity at territorial levels. Our findings are oriented to support the decisions of planning initiatives, at both local and regional scale.

E. Zarghami, S. M. Behrooz

Background and Objective: Interdisciplinary scientific perspectives define learning as part of the individual’s process of shaping physiology, morphology and behavior within the boundary of organism’s biological nature, to adjust the environment, which in premodren childhood occurs through play, exploration and participation in socially meaningful contexts over an extended period of immaturity. This type of learning has become subordinate to the official schooling these days.In the past, children spent most of their free time outdoors; this time was spent on activities in informal spaces, without control and in other words, unstructured. These spaces in ancestral life (before the advent of agriculture and settling down) were of ancestral nature and then the neighborhood environment, that were an important place for children to play throughout history and around the world. However, children today spend most of their free time indoors, and most of their outdoor time on scheduled and structured activities. This routine has led to physical and emotional problems such as body imbalance, type 2 diabetes, obesity and a sense of loneliness. The development of brain neural system occurs in the early years of childhood through movement and stimulation, indicating the importance of children's experiences, activities, and daily interactions for their physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of children's natural learning opportunities in environments with varying degrees of urbanization.Methods: By means of Gibson’s affordances concept, using the affordance taxonomy of Heft-Kytta  on 10–12-year-old children in metropolitan, urban, semi-urban/rural and rural communities, through questionnaires and Analysis of variance in 2018.Findings: Significant differences were observed among the communities in affordance availability, in the level of affordances actualization, in the distribution of affordances within the categories of the taxonomy, and also the location of the affordances, whether they were at home, in the yard, in immediate surroundings or elsewhere.Conclusion:Children's natural and everyday learning occurs through environmental provision. In the environments of human’s past history, children had a great deal of freedom to use existing natural elements and features, while intertwined in the daily social and work relationships of their neighborhood. However, in today's urbanized environments, both children's freedom has diminished, and those elements and natural features have become inaccessible (or, in other words, carefully removed from everyday life), and the environment of social and work interactions has distanced them from their place of residence. The results of this study testified to the severity of these three events, especially in metropolitan areas. This decrease was especially evident for exercise equipment, detachable hand objects, slippery, climbing, hanging, and height-changing features. Based on the findings and their interpretations, it is suggested that children have adequate access to messy spaces, various spatial fixed and loose elements, to have learning chances.