Jessika Zambrano, Silvia Méri Carvalho, Gil Rito Gonçalves
Knowing about the arboreal heritage present along the city’s roads is a challenge. Acquiring this information requires personal experience, time, and investing financial resources in the field. It is not always possible to carry out counts in situ, so different techniques are implemented. Pixel-oriented methodologies (supervised, unsupervised classification) are used, along with NDVI segmented classification to gain prior knowledge of the roadside tree heritage, and to map and quantify them. The Chapada neighbourhood in the city of Ponta Grossa-PR (Brasil) has been previously mapped using the visual analysis methodology. The count of 3101 trees on 228 roads was used as a reference to compare with the three aforementioned methodologies. A soil classification was carried out using the three methodologies to find out about the presence of roadside vegetation. In the case of NDVI, it was possible to show 56.00 % similarity with the trees obtained in the visual analysis; the unsupervised classification obtained a map of 91.19 %, this being the largest number of trees counted, and the supervised classification figure was 82.68 %.
ObjectiveIn the ecologically fragile Qinghai−Xizang Plateau region, long-distance pipelines are preferred for transporting oil and gas considering their advantages of high capacity and minimal ecological impact. Despite the enactment of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Ecological Conservation on the Qinghai−Xizang Plateau to mitigate ecological risks, the project costs for oil and gas pipelines remain significantly constrained by the region’s unique geographical and climatic challenges, posing an urgent issue that requires resolution.MethodsThe geographical and climatic characteristics of the Qinghai−Xizang Plateau—such as the high altitude, cold and oxygen-deficient conditions, mountainous and water-rich terrain, fragile ecology, and complex permafrost—were analyzed from the perspective of linear engineering for long-distance oil and gas pipelines. The pricing basis for project cost calculation in this special plateau region, as outlined in the Quota of Construction and Installation Engineering Costs for Petroleum Projects (2022 Edition), along with the adjustment coefficient for altitude-induced efficiency reduction specified in the Quota for Construction Engineering Costs in the Xizang Autonomous Region (2016 Edition), were examined in detail. The effects of these geographical and climatic factors on construction and installation engineering costs, equipment procurement costs, other project construction expenses, and contingency fees were systematically evaluated. By referencing approaches adopted by the power industry for similar conditions in long-distance power transmission projects in the Qinghai−Xizang Plateau region, a pricing strategy for oil and gas pipeline cost components in this region was developed. ResultsThe adjustment coefficient for altitude-induced efficiency reduction in the quota for the Xizang Autonomous Region was more precise than that for petroleum projects. The adjustment coefficient for altitude-induced efficiency reduction for construction projects in the petroleum industry could not be determined according to the Quota of Construction and Installation Engineering Costs for Petroleum Projects (2022 Edition). Improved designs of stations and valve chambers along the pipeline have increased the proportion of monitoring and skid-mounted integrated equipment, raising equipment procurement costs. Strict environmental impact assessments and high land acquisition and compensation expenses in protected areas of the Qinghai−Xizang Plateau region have further elevated project costs. Additionally, the high risk of permafrost and natural disasters has increased contingency reserves. ConclusionWhen constructing long-distance oil and gas pipelines in the Qinghai−Xizang Plateau region, the petroleum industry should develop and regularly update supplementary budget quotas specific to the region. The pricing strategy should incorporate a quantified adjustment coefficient for altitude-induced efficiency reduction, account for plateau-specific equipment and material costs, and consider additional expenses related to ecological protection and regional characteristics.
Alaa Al Hawarneh, M. Shahria Alam, Rajeev Ruparathna
et al.
Given the growing emphasis on life-cycle analysis in bridge design, the design community is transitioning from the concept of performance-based design in structural engineering to a performance-based design approach within a life-cycle context. This approach considers various indicators, including cost, environmental impact, and societal factors when designing bridges. This shift enables a comprehensive assessment of structural resilience by examining the bridge's ability to endure various hazards throughout its lifespan. This study provides a comprehensive review of two key research domains that have emerged in the field of bridge life-cycle analysis, namely life-cycle sustainability (LCS) and life-cycle performance (LCP). The discussion on the LCS of bridges encompasses both assessment-based and optimization-based studies, while the exploration of LCP focuses on research examining structures subjected to deterioration over their service life due to deprecating phenomena such as corrosion and relative humidity changes, as well as extreme hazards like earthquakes and floods. Moreover, this study discusses the integration between LCS and LCP, highlighting how combined consideration of these factors can minimize damage costs, improve resiliency, and extend the lifespan of the structure. A detailed evaluation encompasses various life-cycle metrics, structural performance indicators, time-dependent modelling techniques, and analysis methods proposed in the literature. Additionally, the research identifies critical gaps and trends in life-cycle analysis within the realm of bridge engineering, providing a concise yet thorough overview for advancing considerations in the life-cycle design of bridges.
Disasters and engineering, Cities. Urban geography
In the last two decades, seismic resilience (SR) has been developed as a main concept for the assessment of the structural vulnerabilities of buildings and city centres. In particular, historical centers consist of adjacent buildings organized in blocks with common characteristics and similar typologies. The paper proposes a methodology to quantify SR for urban regions, by overcoming the state of the art studies that focus on assessing the SR for singular buildings. In this regard, the presented methodology may calculate the SR of blocks of buildings for the assessment of recovery investments of historical city centers. The main idea is to assess the level of vulnerability by accurate 3D surveys and visual inspections in order to select empirical fragility curves. The proposed methodology was herein applied to the city center of San Marino, designated by UNESCO as a world heritage site.
Disasters and engineering, Cities. Urban geography
Engineering information systems for scientific data analysis presents significant challenges: complex workflows requiring exploration of large solution spaces, close collaboration with domain specialists, and the need for maintainable, interpretable implementations. Traditional manual development is time-consuming, while "No Code" approaches using large language models (LLMs) often produce unreliable systems. We present iProg, a tool implementing Interactive Structured Inductive Programming. iProg employs a variant of a '2-way Intelligibility' communication protocol to constrain collaborative system construction by a human and an LLM. Specifically, given a natural-language description of the overall data analysis task, iProg uses an LLM to first identify an appropriate decomposition of the problem into a declarative representation, expressed as a Data Flow Diagram (DFD). In a second phase, iProg then uses an LLM to generate code for each DFD process. In both stages, human feedback, mediated through the constructs provided by the communication protocol, is used to verify LLMs' outputs. We evaluate iProg extensively on two published scientific collaborations (astrophysics and biochemistry), demonstrating that it is possible to identify appropriate system decompositions and construct end-to-end information systems with better performance, higher code quality, and order-of-magnitude faster development compared to Low Code/No Code alternatives. The tool is available at: https://shraddhasurana.github.io/dhaani/
Hydro-Science and Engineering (Hydro-SE) is a critical and irreplaceable domain that secures human water supply, generates clean hydropower energy, and mitigates flood and drought disasters. Featuring multiple engineering objectives, Hydro-SE is an inherently interdisciplinary domain that integrates scientific knowledge with engineering expertise. This integration necessitates extensive expert collaboration in decision-making, which poses difficulties for intelligence. With the rapid advancement of large language models (LLMs), their potential application in the Hydro-SE domain is being increasingly explored. However, the knowledge and application abilities of LLMs in Hydro-SE have not been sufficiently evaluated. To address this issue, we propose the Hydro-SE LLM evaluation benchmark (Hydro-SE Bench), which contains 4,000 multiple-choice questions. Hydro-SE Bench covers nine subfields and enables evaluation of LLMs in aspects of basic conceptual knowledge, engineering application ability, and reasoning and calculation ability. The evaluation results on Hydro-SE Bench show that the accuracy values vary among 0.74 to 0.80 for commercial LLMs, and among 0.41 to 0.68 for small-parameter LLMs. While LLMs perform well in subfields closely related to natural and physical sciences, they struggle with domain-specific knowledge such as industry standards and hydraulic structures. Model scaling mainly improves reasoning and calculation abilities, but there is still great potential for LLMs to better handle problems in practical engineering application. This study highlights the strengths and weaknesses of LLMs for Hydro-SE tasks, providing model developers with clear training targets and Hydro-SE researchers with practical guidance for applying LLMs.
Khalil Teber, Mélanie Weynants, Fabian Gans
et al.
Climate hazards can escalate into humanitarian disasters. Understanding their trajectories -- considering hazard intensity, human exposure, and societal vulnerability -- is essential for effective anticipatory action. The International Disaster Database (EM-DAT) is the only freely available global resource of humanitarian disaster records. However, it lacks exact geospatial information, limiting its use for climate hazard impact research. Here, we provide geocoding of 9,217 climate-related disasters reported by EM-DAT from 1990 to 2023, along with an open, reproducible framework for updating. Our method remains accurate even when only region names are available and includes quality flags to assess reliability. The augmented EM-DAT enables integration with other geocoded data, supporting more accurate assessment of climate disaster impacts and adaptation deficits.
Anuradha Madugalla, Jixuan Dong, Kai Lyne Loi
et al.
Critical systems, such as those used in healthcare, defence, and disaster management, demand rigorous requirements engineering to ensure safety and reliability. Yet, much of this rigour has traditionally focused on technical assurance, often overlooking the human and social contexts in which these systems operate. This paper argues that considering human-centric aspects is an essential dimension of dependability, and presents a human-centred RE process designed to integrate social responsibility into critical system development. Drawing from a literature review, we identified a set of guidelines for designing software for vulnerable communities and translated these into sixty-two functional and non-functional requirements. These requirements were operationalised through the design of an adaptive early warning system prototype, which was subsequently evaluated through six interviews and eight cognitive walkthroughs to validate their relevance and applicability. The findings demonstrate that human-centric requirements, when addressed early, enhance the usability and accessibility of systems for all users. The paper concludes by positioning human-centricity not as an ethical add-on but as a defining quality of safe and equitable critical systems.
Alan Forster, Leigh‐Anne Hepburn, Liz Brogden
et al.
Abstract Throughout human history, communities have responded to challenges in urban and rural contexts by engaging multiple agents and actors, including individuals, institutions, and governments. Disciplinary expertise, including deep knowledge and practice, has contributed to economic, social, technological, and political change. Yet, it is increasingly apparent that the complex global, systems‐level challenges facing twenty‐first century communities require responses that transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries. The ability of communities to respond to challenges faced, from natural and anthropogenic hazards to the systemic threat of climate change, is often referred to as ‘community resilience’. Despite increasing scholarly interest, there appears to be, however, a lack of consistency in understanding and applying community resilience among cross‐disciplinary practitioners. This ambiguity can limit the potential of collaborative action and impact at the community level. This study explores cross‐disciplinary perspectives of community resilience to better understand how the term is described and applied in practice. Drawing on the experiences of more than 100 international respondents to an online survey, this study analyses the emerging themes to gauge the potential of transdisciplinary community resilience in realising the possible value of collective action.
The instability of retaining wall is a key factor for many geo-hazards, such as landslides. To estimate the stability of retaining wall, the distribution of earth pressure is necessary. The results of in-situ observations and indoor experiments demonstrate that the distribution of earth pressure behind the retaining wall exhibits remarkable nonlinearity. When the results are analyzed in details, the oscillation and quasi-periodicity of the distribution of earth pressure are observed, which has not been given widely concerns and cannot be described by the existing analytical models. Based on the internal variable gradient theory and operator averaging method, a gradient-enhanced softening constitutive model is proposed in this paper to describe the oscillation and quasi-periodicity of the distribution of earth pressure acting on the retaining wall, by introducing the high-order gradient terms of the hydrostatic pressure into Mohr-Coulomb yield condition. In order to check the applicability of the proposed formulation, the predictions from the formulations are compared with the full-scale and laboratory-scale test results as well as the existing formulations. It is noted from the comparisons between predicted and measured values that the results of gradient-dependent softening constitutive model provides the comparable approximations for active earth pressure and describes the oscillation and quasi-periodicity very well. This model may enhance the comprehension of soil mechanics and provide a novel view for the design of the retaining wall.
Abstract The frequency analysis method is commonly used to calculate design floods. Under the double challenge of the non‐stationary situation under the changing environment and the inadequate length of flood series, developing a new method to integrate the historical extraordinary floods into the non‐stationary frequency analysis is essential. First, the Multi‐Model Ensemble projections of temperature and precipitation based on Global Climate Model outputs were employed to drive the Soil & Water Assessment Tool hydrological model for runoff simulation. Then, the Integrated Time‐Varying Moment (ITVM) model was developed to re‐analyze the design floods based on the Pearson‐III distribution. The calibrated SWAT model can satisfactorily simulate the rainfall‐runoff relationship in the Yalong River basin. The developed ITVM model is effective to conduct the design flood frequency analysis to cope with the problems of insufficient length and non‐stationarity of the flood series. The design flood values of Maidilong station show an obvious increase, with variations of 6.5%–9.4%, 2.9%–12.3%, and 16%–33.7% for SSP1‐2.6, SSP2‐4.5, and SSP5‐8.5, respectively. The significant increase of low frequencies (p = 0.2%, p = 0.1%) floods, especially for SSP5‐8.5 scenario, requires more attention, as the increased floods may exceed the discharge capacity of the reservoir determined at the design stage.
River protective works. Regulation. Flood control, Disasters and engineering
Abstract This study investigates boreal spring events of Pacific Meridional Mode (PMM) from 1950 to 2022, revealing that cold PMM is more effective in triggering subsequent La Niña compared to warm PMM's induction of following El Niño. This asymmetry stems from the varying origins and sub‐efficacies of PMM groups. The cold PMM is primarily initiated by pre‐existing La Niña, while the warm PMM is comparably activated by pre‐existing El Niño and internal atmospheric dynamics. PMMs initiated by pre‐existing El Niño or La Niña play a crucial role in determining the efficacies of PMMs in triggering subsequent El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The strong discharge of pre‐existing El Niño hampers warm PMM's induction of subsequent El Niño, whereas weak recharge from pre‐existing La Niña enhances the efficacy of cold PMM in inducing subsequent La Niña. Comprehending not only the PMM phase but also its origin is crucial for ENSO research and prediction.
Kyrillos M. P. Ebrahim, Ali Fares, Nour Faris
et al.
Abstract Introduction Landslides pose significant geological hazards, necessitating advanced prediction techniques to protect vulnerable populations. Research Gap Reviewing landslide time series analysis predictions is found to be missing despite the availability of numerous reviews. Methodology Therefore, this paper systematically reviews time series analysis in landslide prediction, focusing on physically based causative models, highlighting data preparation, model selection, optimizations, and evaluations. Key Findings The review shows that deep learning, particularly the long-short-term memory (LSTM) model, outperforms traditional methods. However, the effectiveness of these models hinges on meticulous data preparation and model optimization. Significance While the existing literature offers valuable insights, we identify key areas for future research, including the impact of data frequency and the integration of subsurface characteristics in prediction models.
Abstract This study aimed to assess sand and dust storm (SDS) risks in arid Central Asia during 2001–2021 from a multisectoral (environment, society, and agriculture) and comprehensive perspective on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. The results show that the areas with moderate or greater SDS risk accounted for 18.75% of the total area of arid Central Asia. The high SDS risk areas are mainly concentrated in the oases around the desert and are most widely distributed in spring and summer. The SDS risk in the oasis area of southern Xinjiang increased significantly, while the SDS risk in the northeastern Aral Sea region and the Kazakh hilly region decreased significantly over the 21 years. Khwarazm of Uzbekistan, located in the Amu Darya River Delta, is the administrative district with the highest comprehensive risk of sandstorms, and the Balkan State of Turkmenistan and Kashi City and Zepu County in China are the administrative districts with the highest multisectoral risk of sandstorms. The results of this study provide a complete picture of SDS risks in the arid Central Asia region and will provide some guidance to policymakers and local authorities in SDS risk mitigation.
Yvonne Dittrich, Johan Bolmsten, Catherine Seidelin
Action research provides the opportunity to explore the usefulness and usability of software engineering methods in industrial settings, and makes it possible to develop methods, tools and techniques with software engineering practitioners. However, as the research moves beyond the observational approach, it requires a different kind of interaction with the software development organisation. This makes action research a challenging endeavour, and it makes it difficult to teach action research through a course that goes beyond explaining the principles. This chapter is intended to support learning and teaching action research, by providing a rich set of examples, and identifying tools that we found helpful in our action research projects. The core of this chapter focusses on our interaction with the participating developers and domain experts, and the organisational setting. This chapter is structured around a set of challenges that reoccurred in the action research projects in which the authors participated. Each section is accompanied by a toolkit that presents related techniques and tools. The exercises are designed to explore the topics, and practise using the tools and techniques presented. We hope the material in this chapter encourages researchers who are new to action research to further explore this promising opportunity.
Writing secure code is challenging and so it is expected that, following the release of code-generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot, developers will use these tools to perform security tasks and use security APIs. However, is the code generated by ChatGPT secure? How would the everyday software or security engineer be able to tell? As we approach the next decade we expect a greater adoption of code-generative AI tools and to see developers use them to write secure code. In preparation for this, we need to ensure security-by-design. In this paper, we look back in time to Saltzer & Schroeder's security design principles as they will need to evolve and adapt to the challenges that come with a world of AI-generated code.
In the wake of the Castanheira de Pera disaster in 2017, Médicos do Mundo implemented the Hope Mission, with the aim of providing people with humanitarian support. It involved the Equipa Técnica de Rua [Technical Street Team], for community intervention. This consisted of one occupational therapist, two final year Occupational Therapy degree students, one nurse, and one local facilitator. It was the first time in Portugal that Occupational Therapy professionals participated in a humanitarian mission in the context of a disaster. In this interventional study, the occupational therapy was implemented in three strands: Home, with adaptation of the context, insertion of support products, teaching energy conservation, and counselling; Institutional, with implementation of group activities to promote the sharing and solving of problems, and the creation of healthy habits/routines in the population; Community, in terms of health education, cultural and artisanal activities such as tapestry or the commemoration of World Mental Health Day. We intend to raise awareness about the oOccupational Therapy intervention in this context, to encourage autonomy and participation.
Chloride resistance is important for the durability of geopolymers used in construction applications, particularly in coastal and saline areas. In this study, the workability, mechanical performance, and chloride resistance of class C/class F fly ash-based geopolymer mortars were investigated. First, the effects of the water-to-fly ash ratio, class C fly ash content, and sand-to-ash ratio, on the fluidity, and mechanical properties of the geopolymers were examined. Second, based on the results, geopolymer mortars with three different strength grades were chosen for chloride resistance tests. After these were subjected to a NaCl solution, their weight change, ultrasonic flight-time, and compressive strength were determined. Moreover, corrosion products were evaluated by conducting microstructural analysis. The results indicated that a high class C fly ash content, small water-to-fly ash ratio, and small sand-to-ash ratio led to low fluidity and a high compressive strength of the specimens. The ultrasonic flight-time and the pore structures of the geopolymers were strongly related. Furthermore, after corrosion, the hydration products appeared as new crystalline zeolite phases in the low-strength samples. Compared with the high- and medium- strength mortars, the low-strength samples showed excellent chloride resistance.
Materials of engineering and construction. Mechanics of materials
Software engineering capabilities are increasingly important to the success of economic and political blocs. This paper analyzes quantity and quality of software engineering research output originating from the US, Europe, and China over time. The results indicate that the quantity of research is increasing across the board with Europe leading the field. Depending of the scope of the analysis, either the US or China come in second. Regarding research quality, Europe appears to be lagging the other blocs, with China having caught up to and even having overtaken the US over time.