Hasil untuk "City population. Including children in cities, immigration"

M. Nihayah, N. Almutairi, Hussam R Almutairi et al.

Background: Body surface area (BSA) is regarded as an accurate measure of metabolic mass because aberrant body mass frequently affects body weight in various therapeutic uses. This study aimed to assess the predictive power of adiposity indicators, namely body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and BSA, in a sample of children aged 7-11 years in Saudi Arabia and the relationship between them. Methods: In this retrospective study, data were collected between 2015 and 2021. This study included children registered as patients at the King Abdulaziz Medical City (KAMC) Cardiac Center. Population data, including age and gender, and main variables, including BMI, WC, BSA, and cardiometabolic disorders, were examined. Results: Dilated cardiomyopathy (9.3%), mitral valve disease (9.3%), palpitations (9.3%), and pulmonary stenosis (9.3%) were the most frequently diagnosed conditions. Regarding the correlation between BSA and BMI, approximately 75% of the children who were overweight and 100% of those who were obese had BSAs that were noticeably above average. Additionally, there was a statistically significant correlation (p < 0.001) between below-average BSA and underweight status in 87.5% of the children. Furthermore, there was a strong positive correlation (rho = 0.860, p < 0.001) between BSA and BMI. Conclusion: The findings of this study contribute to our understanding of the relationship between BMI, BSA, gender, and cardiovascular disease diagnosis in children, highlighting the importance of holistic assessments in pediatric cardiovascular care.

Minakshi Keeni, Nina Takashino

Abstract This study examines the influence of encampment policies on host community perceptions towards Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and Nepal, with an emphasis on how these perceptions shape the future of the refugees. Bangladesh, which has implemented an encampment policy, contrasts with Nepal, where no such policy exists. The research employs ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis to evaluate host community attitudes towards government policies, citizenship for newborns, and access to essential services like healthcare, jobs, education, and social security. The findings reveal that in Bangladesh, wealthier community members perceive less economic competition from refugees, particularly in job markets, due to the restrictions imposed by the encampment policy. However, social media in Bangladesh exacerbates negative perceptions, particularly concerning citizenship for Rohingya newborns, potentially hindering social cohesion. In Nepal, the absence of an encampment policy correlates with more negative perceptions among younger and economically vulnerable groups, who view refugees as competitors for limited resources. The study concludes that while encampment policies may mitigate immediate economic tensions, they risk deepening social divisions. Conversely, the lack of such policies in Nepal may lead to heightened resource competition and social tension. The research highlights the need for adaptive policy strategies that balance economic integration with social cohesion, ensuring sustainable refugee-host relations in both countries.

Gaëtan Laziou, Rémi Lemoy

A good understanding of cities is crucial to implement urban planning policies leading to social and economic sustainability and an efficient use of resources. While urban concentration has been associated with both positive and negative effects, echoing debates on compact cities, few studies have documented how density evolves with city size. We fill this gap by investigating how the population density radial structure changes across the urban hierarchy. Our results uncover strong regularities in urban settlements. In terms of density, cities can be seen as exponential cones which evolve homothetically with city population. This rather simple but universal geometric structure of cities provides a new spatial scaling law, which is an important step forward in understanding how cities work and grow. Some deviations can be observed, which mainly oppose dense cities in the developing world and sprawled cities in high-income countries, associated with high energy use per capita. This suggests that urban lifestyle in wealthiest countries has come at the price of negative impacts on environmental outcomes. This research has a broad range of applications as it provides a powerful tool to compare cities of different sizes.

Filippo Marchesani

This chapter explores the six core dimensions of smart cities (i.e. smart economy, mobility, environment, people, living, and governance) emphasizing their interdependence and the need for holistic orchestration. Building on Giffinger et al. (2007) and subsequent literature, it argues that integrating these dimensions is crucial for sustainable urban development. ICT plays a key enabling role but must be complemented by human and social capital. Through institutional examples, such as the creation of dedicated municipal offices for digital innovation, the chapter illustrates how governance and internal capacity shape smart transitions. A human-centric approach is also essential, ensuring inclusivity, creativity, and active civic participation. Ultimately, smart cities must be viewed as cohesive urban ecosystems where technology, people, and governance interact dynamically.

A. K. M. Bahalul Haque, Bharat Bhushan, Gaurav Dhiman

The emergence of smart cities and sustainable development has become a globally accepted form of urbanization. The epitome of smart city development has become possible due to the latest innovative integration of information and communication technology. Citizens of smart cities can enjoy the benefits of a smart living environment, ubiquitous connectivity, seamless access to services, intelligent decision making through smart governance, and optimized resource management. The widespread acceptance of smart cities has raised data security issues, authentication, unauthorized access, device-level vulnerability, and sustainability. This paper focuses on the wholistic overview and conceptual development of smart city. Initially, the work discusses the smart city idea and fundamentals explored in various pieces of literature. Further various smart city applications, including notable implementations, are put forth to understand the quality of living standards. Finally, the paper depicts a solid understanding of different security and privacy issues, including some crucial future research directions.

Diego Ortega, Elka Korutcheva

Cities have developed over time alongside advancements in civilization, focusing on efficient travel and reducing costs. Many studies have examined the distinctive features of urban road networks, such as their length, efficiency, connection to population density, and other properties. However, the relationship between car routes and population in city structures remains unclear. In this study, we used the center of mass for each city tract, defined by the US Census, as the origins and destinations for our itineraries. We calculated travel time, and both Euclidean and travel distances for sixty major cities. We discovered that the total sum of all routes adheres to an urban law. The distribution of these car journeys follows Weibull functions, suggesting that the urban center plays a crucial role in optimizing routes across multiple cities. We also developed a simple point pattern model for the population, which aligns with the well-known decreasing exponential density expression. Our findings show that the interplay between population and path optimization influences city structure through its center. This study offers a new perspective on the fundamental principles that shape urban design.

Rafael Prieto-Curiel, Carmen Cabrera-Arnau

Migration plays a crucial role in urban growth. Over time, individuals opting to relocate led to vast metropolises like London and Paris during the Industrial Revolution, Shanghai and Karachi during the last decades and thousands of smaller settlements. Here, we analyze the impact that migration has on population redistribution. We use a model of city-to-city migration as a process that occurs within a network, where the nodes represent cities, and the edges correspond to the flux of individuals. We analyze metrics characterizing the urban distribution and show how a slight preference for some destinations might result in the observed distribution of the population.

R. L. Fagundes, G. G. Piva, A. S. Mata et al.

Urban scaling laws reveal how cities evolve as their populations grow, yet the role of street network accessibility in this process remains underexplored. We analyze over 5,000 Brazilian cities to establish a scaling law linking average closeness centrality $\langle c_C\rangle$ -- a measure of structural accessibility in street networks-to population size N . Our results demonstrate that $\langle c_C\rangle$ decays sublinearly as $N^{-σ}$ ($σ\approx 0.38$), indicating that larger cities redistribute accessibility from cores to peripheries while maintaining navigability through hierarchical shortcuts. This scaling arises from the fractal interplay between infrastructure and population, characterized by a network dimension $d \approx 2.17$, which exceeds that of a 2D grid. The slower decline in closeness centrality ($σ< 0.5$) reflects a trade-off: urban expansion reduces proximity but enhances connectivity through optimized path diversity, fostering economic dynamism. By integrating the Molinero & Thurner model with network centrality metrics, we provide a framework to reconcile infrastructure efficiency with equitable accessibility in growing cities.

Tanzia Helal Niloy

The rapid growth and development of Bangladesh often overshadow the country’s rapid, unplanned urbanization. This urbanization has led to an enormous population increase and a new middle class being injected into the urban economy each year. Migration to urban centers, like Dhaka, has been one of the biggest threats to the building of livable cities. In Dhaka, the growth of the housing market has been molded and compromised by the influx of migrants. According to a BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) report (2017), 68% of the city’s residents live in rented properties, while 32% live in Dhaka’s own homes. The tenants of urban residential areas are suffering from accommodation problems, including affordability, and a lack of proper monitoring of tenant security and interest. Firstly, this study intends to measure the affordability of rental housing in Dhaka by using the rent-to-income ratio. Secondly, identify the problems that rental housing tenants face. Lastly, analyze the tenant’s legal security by examining the rental process, including rent fixation, revision periods, advance payment systems, changes to internal accessories, and eviction notices. The findings of the study suggest that the current rent rates are putting a financial housing cost burden on the middle-income families of the city. They tend to spend more than 30% of their monthly income on rent and have to compromise on other daily expenditures, such as food, household items, and children’s education. Although the Premises Rent Control Act 1991 aims to balance the interests of house owners and tenants by establishing a set of justified rules, the interests of tenants are significantly underprotected due to inadequate implementation. Given the gap between housing supply and demand in Dhaka, landlords have the opportunity to increase the cost of their rental units, frequently violating the provisions of the act. This severely affects the middle-income households that live on fixed incomes.

Rafat Sattarian, Alinaghi Aghdasi, Mehdi Aghapour et al.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of resilience training and cognitive emotion regulation training on emotional processing and anxiety in children with sluggish cognitive tempo. Methodology: The research method was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest and follow-up design including a control group. The statistical population consisted of all 9 to 12-year-old male elementary school students diagnosed with sluggish cognitive tempo in the city of Tabriz in 2023. The sample included 45 participants selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The first experimental group received resilience training over 10 sessions of 45 minutes each across four weeks, while the second experimental group received cognitive emotion regulation training in the same format. The control group did not receive any intervention. Research instruments included the Sluggish Cognitive Tempo Questionnaire, the Emotional Processing Scale, and the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance. Findings: The results indicated that both resilience training and cognitive emotion regulation training significantly influenced emotional processing and anxiety in children with sluggish cognitive tempo (p .05). Conclusion: The findings of this study highlight the importance of implementing targeted psychological interventions, such as resilience and cognitive emotion regulation training, to enhance emotional components in children with sluggish cognitive tempo, emphasizing the need to address their needs in educational programs.

Jordan González

This article explores the intersectionality of immigration, language education, and trauma among gay Dominican immigrant men living in New York City. Utilizing a qualitative case study approach, the research examines the lived experiences of four individuals, highlighting the compounded adversities they face due to their intersecting identities as LGBTQ+, men of color, and immigrants. The case studies reveal significant trauma and mental health struggles stemming from pre-migration violence, in-transit dangers, and post-migration discrimination. Additionally, the study addresses the critical role of language proficiency in their integration and the importance of tailored support systems, including community networks and legal protections. The findings underscore the severe impact of discrimination based on sexual orientation, race, and immigration status on the mental health and social integration of gay Dominican immigrant men. Despite these challenges, the participants demonstrate remarkable resilience and hope for the future, striving for better employment opportunities, educational advancement, and community belonging. This article provides insights into the specific needs of LGBTQ+ immigrants and offers recommendations for improving support systems, policies, and educational practices to better serve this vulnerable population.

Marcela Maury-Mora, M. T. Gómez-Villarino, C. Varela-Martínez

Due to the unexpected emergence of COVID-19, different cities improvised responses to prevent the virus from spreading and infecting the population. Madrid, capital of Spain and one of the most affected cities in Europe, confined everyone home and closed most public and private spaces, including public parks. The whole situation was surely to be responsible for stress-levels to peak. We developed an online survey to better understand the relationship between people and Urban Green Spaces prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the new bond that may have emerged from this interruption. We recruited participants, without gender or age preference, excluding underage children and teenagers, using a combination of convenience sample and a snowball approach. A total of 132 responses were logged. The study was limited to mental health inferences, specifically related to stress and its most frequent manifestations among the urban population. These indicators included physical, mood or behavioral changes and were studied on those participants who had access to UGS before and during confinement. Among the most important findings, we confirmed that when people are confronted with stressful situations, indoor plant interaction is not a substitute for different outdoor green experiences; those who interacted with green spaces in a daily manner managed stress levels better than people who didn’t (but their effects might lose strength over time); and turning to green spaces for comfort during stressful times when you don’t usually do so helps overcome difficult situations. This article contributes to the growing study of green spaces as a means towards improved mental well-being in urban areas.

Stephanie A. Alexander

ABSTRACT Increasing the population’s access to urban public spaces has become a political priority for many cities. Street calming initiatives, including play streets, have been one means to make urban public spaces more accessible, especially to children. While play streets have proliferated globally, most are ‘one off’ events. The key elements involved in developing a longstanding play street remain unclear. Drawing on concepts from realist evaluation, this study involved the qualitative examination of a locally developed and recurring play street in Paris-Centre. It aimed to identify key contexts surrounding a play street and the mechanisms activated to illustrate how these can contribute to the play street’s development and sustainability. Collaborating with play associations, mobilizing knowledge about play, activating local networks, and receiving funding activated mechanisms of legitimacy, acceptance, and confidence in the play street. This was critical to launch the play street. Local priorities, strong leadership with shared values and aims activated mechanisms of enthusiasm among families and commitment and perseverance among the project leaders to defend their ideas. There were important for the play street’s sustainability. These findings can be a critical starting point for other localities aiming to develop a play street.

Fahimeh AdibSaber, S. Ansari

Objective: The present study aims to compare the effectiveness of aquatic and karate training programs on sleep habits and stereotypic behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methods: This research was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test/post-test design, with two intervention groups and one control group. The statistical population included all boys with ASD who were a member of the Autism Institute in Rasht City, Iran, in 2019. Of whom 30 individuals were selected using the purposive sampling method. Thirty children with autism (8–14 years) were randomly divided into karate exercise (n=10), aquatic training (n=10), and wait list control (n=10) conditions. The training groups practiced for 10 weeks, two sessions of 60 minutes per week. Karate exercises involved mindfulness Taikyoku Jodan Kata, consisting of blocking, punching, sticking, and kicking moves against an imaginary opponent. Aquatic training was a group intervention, including orientation training, basic swimming skills, and free swimming. Children’s sleep habits questionnaire (CSHQ, 2000) and stereotype subscale of the Gilliam autism rating scale (GARS-2, 2006) were completed by parents during pre-and post-intervention. Analysis of variance for repeated measures was utilized for data analysis. Results: The results indicated that both training interventions have a significant positive effect on stereotypic behaviors compared to the pre-intervention and control groups (P<0.01). We also found that the aquatic exercise group obtained better scores (P<0.001) and two subscale scores (sleep anxiety (P<0.001) and Parasomnias (P<0.05)) than the kata techniques training group, but no significant group effects were observed regarding the other subscales. Conclusion: It is recommended to provide a suitable environment at school or institute for children with ASD to participate in physical activities, such as aquatic and karate exercises to alleviate repetitive behaviors. Furthermore, it is suggested to use aqua-based training as a complementary approach in the field of improving common problems, such as the sleep habits of children with ASD.

Asmaul Lutfauziah, Frysca Virnanda Retikasari, Dewi Rahmawati et al.

This research aims to develop and evaluate the hybrid-based learning media "Rotemz" in elementaryschools, especially to foster students’ interest in learning. Currently, hybrid-based learning media is stillrarely available in elementary schools. The research method used is research and development. Thedevelopment of this teaching media was carried out based on an analysis of the needs of grade 4 studentsusing the 4D development model. The development procedure includes the Define, Design and Developstages. Media validation is carried out by involving media experts, natural science material experts, andpractitioners. The validation results are used as a basis for improving learning media. This teaching mediawas implemented at SDN Ketintang II Surabaya involving 30 grade 4 students. The effectiveness of themedia in fostering students’ interest in learning was evaluated using a questionnaire filled in by teachers andstudents after the learning process. The research results show that Rotemz teaching media obtained verygood validation results based on several important aspects such as media appearance, material durability,language, suitability to learning objectives, and concept correctness. Rotemz teaching media is very suitablefor use in learning in fourth grade elementary schools. The use of this media has succeeded in growingstudents’ interest in learning and helping overcome students’ learning concentration problems. Rotemzteaching media is different from existing learning media because this media is hybrid and 3-dimensionalbased with a focus on natural resource material.

A. M. Andrade, João Rafael Valentim-Silva, A. Ramalho et al.

Aims: To analyze the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and the associated factors, including educational level, number of prenatal visits, and food insecurity, during pregnancy. Study Desing: Population-based cross-sectional study. Place and Durationof Study: The sample were recruited in two maternity hospitals of Rio Branco, Acre, Brazil. The Santa Juliana Hospital and Maternity (HSJ) and the Bárbara Heliodora Maternity in April 6 and July 10, 2015 Methodology: Demographic, socioeconomic, reproductive, maternal habits, prenatal care, and newborn status were investigated. Multivariate analysis with logistic regression was performed, considering p<0.05 for association. Results: 1190 postpartum women were interviewed. Anti-inflammatories were not used by only 13.2% of pregnant women. The prevalence of dipyrone use was 72.7%, paracetamol 50.3%, nimesulide 16.1%, and diclofenac 5.2%. Women with lower educational levels (up to high school OR=1.55, 95% CI 1.07-2.25), those who consumed alcohol (OR=1.96, 95% CI 1.03-3.73), and those with a higher number of living children (more than 4 children OR=1.6, 95% CI 1.06-2.24, 2 to 3 children OR=1.52, 95% CI 1.10-2.27) had a higher chance of using anti-inflammatories during pregnancy. Primiparous women (OR=0.66, 95% CI 0.47-0.93), those with more than eight prenatal visits (OR=0.55, 95% CI 0.35-0.85), and those experiencing moderate to severe food insecurity (OR=0.42, 95% CI 0.25-0.69) had a lower chance of using anti-inflammatories during pregnancy. After adjusted analysis, alcohol consumption and the number of living children lost statistical significance and were not included in the final model as independent variables. Conclusion: The prevalence of anti-inflammatory use was high. Alternative therapies and restricting prescriptions to necessary cases could be proposed to reduce the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) during pregnancy.

Shan Hu

: With the continuous advancement of urbanization in China, the phenomenon of "family migration" of rural population to the city is becoming more and more common, and the education of floating children has become a focus issue. In order to further study the problem of migrant children's education, the basic research on migrant children's education has been carried out, including three aspects: First, the research status, by means of literature research, the research status of migrant children's education is analyzed from both foreign and domestic aspects, so as to determine the starting point of the research of this topic. The second is related theories, which reveal the correlation between research topics and existing theoretical frameworks, including social exclusion theory, public goods theory, educational equity theory and service-oriented government theory. The third is the policy combing, which provides guidance for the formulation of education policies for migrant children, respectively from the embryonic stage, the initial stage, the running-in stage and the promotion stage.

Jet Opbroek, Evelise Pereira Barboza, M. Nieuwenhuijsen et al.

BACKGROUND Urban environments lack natural features, while nature exposure in cities has been associated with health benefits, including children's neurodevelopment. Through extensive street greening, Barcelona's Eixos Verds (Green Axis) Plan enhances safety, environment, and climate resilience. We aimed to assess the Eixos Verds Plan's potential impact on children's behavioral and cognitive development due to the increased green space expected under the Eixos Verds implementation. METHODS We performed a quantitative health impact assessment for Barcelona children at census-tract level (n = 1068). We assessed the Eixos Verds Plan's impact by comparing baseline green space distribution with the proposed plan, translating it into percentage green area (%GA) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). By combining these exposure metrics with child-specific risk estimates and population data, we estimated potential improvements in children's behavioral and cognitive development due to full Eixos Verds implementation. RESULTS With the full Eixos Verds implementation, citywide, %GA increased by 6.9% (IQR: 6.4%; range: 0-23.1%) and NDVI by 0.065 (IQR: 0.083; range: 0.000-0.194). Child behavioral and cognitive development outcomes are expected to improve compared to the baseline. Based on NDVI increases, children's Total Difficulties and Hyperactivity/Inattention scores, based on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), are projected to decrease by 5% (95% CI: 0-15%) and 6% (95% CI: 0-17%). Working Memory and Superior Working Memory scores are expected to increase by 4% and 5%, respectively, based on the computerized n-back test, while the Inattentiveness score could be reduced by 1%, based on the computerized attentional test (ANT). INTERPRETATION Urban greening as planning tool can improve behavioral and cognitive development in city children. Methods and results of our study are applicable to many cities worldwide, and similar results for children of real-life urban greening interventions can be expected.

C. Blumenberg, Janaína Calu Costa, Luiza I. C. Ricardo et al.

Rapid urbanization is likely to be associated with suboptimal access to essential health services. This is especially true in cities from sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where urbanization is outpacing improvements in infrastructure. We assessed the current situation in regard to several markers of maternal, newborn, and child health, including indicators of coverage of health interventions (demand for family planning satisfied with modern methods, at least four antenatal care visits (ANC4+), institutional birth, and three doses of DPT vaccine[diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus]) and health status (stunting in children under 5 years, neonatal and under-5 mortality rates) among the poor and non-poor in the most populous cities from 38 SSA countries. We analyzed 136 population-based surveys (year range 2000–2019), contrasting the poorest 40% of households (referred to as poor) with the richest 60% (non-poor). Coverage in the most recent survey was higher for the city non-poor compared to the poor for all interventions in virtually all cities, with the largest median gap observed for ANC4+ (13.5 percentage points higher for the non-poor). Stunting, neonatal, and under-5 mortality rates were higher among the poor (7.6 percentage points, 21.2 and 10.3 deaths per 1000 live births, respectively). The gaps in coverage between the two groups were reducing, except for ANC4, with similar median average annual rate of change in both groups. Similar rates of change were also observed for stunting and the mortality indicators. Continuation of these positive trends is needed to eliminate inequalities in essential health services and child survival in SSA cities.

Faun E Rice, Trevor R. Quan

Canada has long sought to disperse skilled immigration across the country, with the goal of promoting economic development, improving cultural diversity, and mitigating population decline. The Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) are one mechanism for achieving regionalized immigration: they allow Canadian provinces and territories to use labor market information (LMI) to identify in-demand skills and offer visas to newcomers who match local needs. However, even when LMI is accurate, many factors can prevent newcomer access to local labor markets, particularly in third-tier cities (populations of 100,000 to 500,000), including credential recognition, discrimination, and a lack of settlement infrastructure. This paper centers the stories of three newcomers to Canada, each with senior technology sector experience and arriving through PNPs into third-tier cities. Amidst well-established themes in settlement narratives, such as housing affordability, family, lifestyle, and the role of Local Immigration Partnerships (LIPs), this paper suggests that newcomers arriving under programs such as the PNPs may experience LMI congruence or incongruence: the degree to which expectations of a labor market (shaped by being selected for immigration based on particular in-demand skills) match or do not match newcomers’ real experiences of labor market access. Policymakers and institutions that use LMI to guide decisions may consider two lessons from the narratives offered in this study: one, the continued importance of reducing barriers to labor market entry for newcomers, and two, the possibility that LMI congruence and accurate expectations play a role in retention.