Reducing nitrous oxide emissions while supporting subtropical cereal production in Oxisols

This is the first study to investigate alternative fertilisation strategies to increase cereal production while reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the most common soil type in subtropical regions. The results of this research will contribute to define future farming practices to achieve global food security and mitigate climate change. The study established that introducing legumes in cropping systems is the most agronomically viable and environmentally sustainable fertilisation strategy. Importantly, this strategy can be widely adopted in subtropical regions since it is economically accessible, requires little know-how transfer and technology investment, and can be profitable in both low- and high-input cropping systems.

Efficiency of parallelisation of genetic algorithms in the data analysis context

Most real-life data analysis problems are difficult to solve using exact methods, due to the size of the datasets and the nature of the underlying mechanisms of the system under investigation. As datasets grow even larger, finding the balance between the quality of the approximation and the computing time of the heuristic becomes non-trivial. One solution is to consider parallel methods, and to use the increased computational power to perform a deeper exploration of the solution space in a similar time. It is, however, difficult to estimate a priori whether parallelisation will provide the expected improvement. In this paper we consider a well-known method, genetic algorithms, and evaluate on two distinct problem types the behaviour of the classic and parallel implementations.

Text mining for screening efficiency? Testing within a Cochrane public health review

Background The requirement for dual screening of titles and abstracts to select papers to examine in full text can create a huge workload, not least when the topic is complex and a broad search strategy is required, resulting in a large number of results. An automated system to reduce this burden, while still assuring high accuracy, has the potential to provide huge efficiency savings within the review process. Objectives To undertake a direct comparison of manual screening with a semi‐automated process (priority screening) using a machine classifier. The research is being carried out as part of the current update of a population‐level public health review. Methods Authors have hand selected studies for the review update, in duplicate, using the standard Cochrane Handbook methodology. A retrospective analysis, simulating a quasi‐‘active learning’ process (whereby a classifier is repeatedly trained based on ‘manually’ labelled data) will be completed, using different starting parameters. Tests will be carried out to see how far different training sets, and the size of the training set, affect the classification performance; i.e. what percentage of papers would need to be manually screened to locate 100% of those papers included as a result of the traditional manual method. Results From a search retrieval set of 9555 papers, authors excluded 9494 papers at title/abstract and 52 at full text, leaving 9 papers for inclusion in the review update. The ability of the machine classifier to reduce the percentage of papers that need to be manually screened to identify all the included studies, under different training conditions, will be reported. Conclusions The findings of this study will be presented along with an estimate of any efficiency gains for the author team if the screening process can be semi‐automated using text mining methodology, along with a discussion of the implications for text mining in screening papers within complex health reviews.

Promoting pro-environmental action in climate change deniers

A sizeable (and growing) proportion of the public in Western democracies deny the existence of anthropogenic climate change. It is commonly assumed that convincing deniers that climate change is real is necessary for them to act pro-environmentally. However, the likelihood of ‘conversion’ using scientific evidence is limited because these attitudes increasingly reflect ideological positions. An alternative approach is to identify outcomes of mitigation efforts that deniers find important. People have strong interests in the welfare of their society, so deniers may act in ways supporting mitigation efforts where they believe these efforts will have positive societal effects. In Study 1, climate change deniers (N D 155) intended to act more pro-environmentally where they thought climate change action would create a society where people are more considerate and caring, and where there is greater economic/technological development. Study 2 (ND347) replicated this experimentally, showing that framing climate change action as increasing consideration for others, or improving economic/technological development, led to greater pro-environmental action intentions than a frame emphasizing avoiding the risks of climate change. To motivate deniers’ pro-environmental actions, communication should focus on how mitigation efforts can promote a better society, rather than focusing on the reality of climate change and averting its risks.

Environmental conditions are important for establishing and evaluating pre-clinical models of GVHD

GVHD remains the major complication of allo-HSCT. Murine models are the primary system used to understand GVHD, and to develop potential therapies. Several factors are critical for GVHD in these models; including histo- compatibility, conditioning regimen, and T-cell number. We serendipitously found that environmental factors such as the caging system and bedding also significantly impact the kinetics of GVHD in these models. This is important because such factors may influence the experimental conditions required to cause GVHD and how mice respond to various treatments. Consequently, this is likely to alter interpretation of results between research groups, and the perceived effectiveness of experimental therapies.

Response of segmented bored transit tunnels to surface blast

Increasing threat of terrorism highlights the importance of enhancing the resilience of underground tunnels to all hazards. This paper develops, applies and compares the Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian (ALE) and Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) techniques to treat the response of buried tunnels to surface explosions. The results and outcomes of the two techniques were compared, along with results from existing test data. The comparison shows that the ALE technique is a better method for describing the tunnel response for above ground explosion with regards to modeling accuracy and computational efficiency. The ALE technique was then applied to treat the blast response of different types of segmented bored tunnels buried in dry sand. Results indicate that the most used modern ring type segmented tunnels were more flexible for in-plane response, however, they suffered permanent drifts between the rings. Hexagonal segmented tunnels responded with negligible drifts in the longitudinal direction, but the magnitudes of in-plane drifts were large and hence hazardous for the tunnel. Interlocking segmented tunnels suffered from permanent drifts in both the longitudinal and transverse directions. Multi-surface radial joints in both the hexagonal and interlocking segments affected the flexibility of the tunnel in the transverse direction. The findings offer significant new information in the behavior of segmented bored tunnels to guide their future implementation in civil engineering applications.

Socio-environmental drivers and suicide in Australia: Bayesian spatial analysis

Background The impact of socio-environmental factors on suicide has been examined in many studies. Few of them, however, have explored these associations from a spatial perspective, especially in assessing the association between meteorological factors and suicide. This study examined the association of meteorological and socio-demographic factors with suicide across small areas over different time periods. Methods Suicide, population and socio-demographic data (e.g., population of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (ATSI), and unemployment rate (UNE) at the Local Government Area (LGA) level were obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for the period of 1986 to 2005. Information on meteorological factors (rainfall, temperature and humidity) was supplied by Australian Bureau of Meteorology. A Bayesian Conditional Autoregressive (CAR) Model was applied to explore the association of socio-demographic and meteorological factors with suicide across LGAs. Results In Model I (socio-demographic factors), proportion of ATSI and UNE were positively associated with suicide from 1996 to 2000 (Relative Risk (RR)ATSI = 1.0107, 95% Credible Interval (CI): 1.0062-1.0151; RRUNE = 1.0187, 95% CI: 1.0060-1.0315), and from 2001 to 2005 (RRATSI = 1.0126, 95% CI: 1.0076-1.0176; RRUNE = 1.0198, 95% CI: 1.0041-1.0354). Socio-Economic Index for Area (SEIFA) and IND, however, had negative associations with suicide between 1986 and 1990 (RRSEIFA = 0.9983, 95% CI: 0.9971-0.9995; RRATSI = 0.9914, 95% CI: 0.9848-0.9980). Model II (meteorological factors): a 1°C higher yearly mean temperature across LGAs increased the suicide rate by an average by 2.27% (95% CI: 0.73%, 3.82%) in 1996–2000, and 3.24% (95% CI: 1.26%, 5.21%) in 2001–2005. The associations between socio-demographic factors and suicide in Model III (socio-demographic and meteorological factors) were similar to those in Model I; but, there is no substantive association between climate and suicide in Model III. Conclusions Proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, unemployment and temperature appeared to be statistically associated with of suicide incidence across LGAs among all selected variables, especially in recent years. The results indicated that socio-demographic factors played more important roles than meteorological factors in the spatial pattern of suicide incidence.

Affordances of ICTs: an environmental study of a French language unit offered at university level

This project investigates the integration of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) into educational settings by closely looking at the uptake of the perceived affordances offered by ICTs by students enrolled in a French language course at Queensland University of Technology. This cross-disciplinary research uses the theoretical concepts of: Ecological Psychology (Gibson, 1979; Good, 2007; Reed, 1996); Ecological Linguistics (Greeno, 1994; Leather & van Dam, 2003; van Lier 2000, 2003, 2004a, 2004b); Design (Norman, 1988, 1999); Software Design/ Human-Computer Interaction (Hartson, 2003; McGrenere & Ho, 2000); Learning Design (Conole & Dyke, 2004a, 2004b; Laurillard et al. 2000;); Education (Kirschner, 2002; Salomon, 1993; Wijekumar et al., 2006) and Educational Psychology (Greeno, 1994). In order to investigate this subject, the following research questions, rooted in the theoretical foundations of the thesis, were formulated: (1) What are the learners’ attitudes towards the ICT tools used in the project?; (2) What are the affordances offered by ICTs used in a specific French language course at university level from the perspective of the teacher and from the perspective of language learners?; (3) What affordances offered by ICT tools used by the teacher within the specific teaching and learning environment have been taken up by learners?; and (4) What factors influence the uptake by learners of the affordances created by ICT tools used by the teacher within the specific teaching and learning environment? The teaching phase of this project, conducted between 2006 and 2008, used Action Research procedures (Hopkins, 2002; McNiff & Whitehead, 2002; van Lier 1994) as a research framework. The data were collected using the following combination of qualitative and quantitative methods: (1) questionnaires administered to students (Hopkins, 2002; McNiff & Whitehead, 2002) using Likert-scale questions, open questions, yes/no questions; (2) partnership classroom observations of research participants conducted by Research Participant Advocates (Hopkins, 2002; McNiff & Whitehead, 2002); and (3) a focus group with volunteering students who participated in the unit (semi-structured interview) (Hopkins, 2002; McNiff & Whitehead, 2002). The data analysis confirms the importance of a careful examination of the teaching and learning environment and reveals differences in the ways in which the opportunities for an action offered by the ICTs were perceived by teacher and students, which impacted on the uptake of affordances. The author applied the model of affordance, as described by Good (2007), to explain these differences and to investigate their consequences. In conclusion, the teacher-researcher considers that the discrepancies in perceiving the affordances result from the disparities between the frames of reference and the functional contexts of the teacher-researcher and students. Based on the results of the data analysis, a series of recommendations is formulated supporting calls for careful analysis of frames of reference and the functional contexts of all participants in the learning and teaching process. The author also suggests a modified model of affordance, outlining the important characteristics of its constituents.

Environmental contamination and hospital-acquired infection: factors that are easily overlooked

There is an ongoing debate about the reasons for and factors contributing to healthcare-associated infection (HAI). Different solutions have been proposed over time to control the spread of HAI, with more focus on hand hygiene than on other aspects such as preventing the aerial dissemination of bacteria. Yet, it emerges that there is a need for a more pluralistic approach to infection control; one that reflects the complexity of the systems associated with HAI and involves multidisciplinary teams including hospital doctors, infection control nurses, microbiologists, architects, and engineers with expertise in building design and facilities management. This study reviews the knowledge base on the role that environmental contamination plays in the transmission of HAI, with the aim of raising awareness regarding infection control issues that are frequently overlooked. From the discussion presented in the study, it is clear that many unknowns persist regarding aerial dissemination of bacteria, and its control via cleaning and disinfection of the clinical environment. There is a paucity of good-quality epidemiological data, making it difficult for healthcare authorities to develop evidence-based policies. Consequently, there is a strong need for carefully designed studies to determine the impact of environmental contamination on the spread of HAI.

Sustainability in infrastructure asset management

The expectation to integrate sustainability aspects (social, environmental, and economic success) into the design, delivery, and operation of infrastructure assets is growing rapidly and globally. There are now several tools and frameworks available to benchmark and measure sustainable performance of infrastructure projects and assets. This paper briefly describes the infrastructure sustainability (IS) rating tool developed by the Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC) that was launched in February 2012. This tool evaluates sustainability initiatives and potential environmental, social, and economic impacts of infrastructure projects and assets. The rating tool provides the following benefits to industry: a common national language for sustainability; a vehicle for consistent application and evaluation of sustainability in tendering processes; assists in scoping whole-of-life sustainability risks, enabling smarter solutions that reduce risks and costs; fosters resource efficiency and waste reduction, reducing costs; fosters innovation and continuous improvement in sustainability outcomes; and builds an organization’s credentials and reputation in its approach to sustainability. The infrastructure types covered by this tool include transport, energy, water, and communication. The key themes of sustainability evaluation will be briefly presented in this paper, and they include management and governance; use of resources; emissions, pollution, and waste; ecology; people and place; and innovation.

Evolutionary optimization and game strategies for advanced multi-disciplinary design : applications to aeronautics and UAV design

Many complex aeronautical design problems can be formulated with efficient multi-objective evolutionary optimization methods and game strategies. This book describes the role of advanced innovative evolution tools in the solution, or the set of solutions of single or multi disciplinary optimization. These tools use the concept of multi-population, asynchronous parallelization and hierarchical topology which allows different models including precise, intermediate and approximate models with each node belonging to the different hierarchical layer handled by a different Evolutionary Algorithm. The efficiency of evolutionary algorithms for both single and multi-objective optimization problems are significantly improved by the coupling of EAs with games and in particular by a new dynamic methodology named “Hybridized Nash-Pareto games”. Multi objective Optimization techniques and robust design problems taking into account uncertainties are introduced and explained in detail. Several applications dealing with civil aircraft and UAV, UCAV systems are implemented numerically and discussed. Applications of increasing optimization complexity are presented as well as two hands-on test cases problems. These examples focus on aeronautical applications and will be useful to the practitioner in the laboratory or in industrial design environments. The evolutionary methods coupled with games presented in this volume can be applied to other areas including surface and marine transport, structures, biomedical engineering, renewable energy and environmental problems.

Country review on the main building energy-efficiency policy instrument

Building energy-efficiency (BEE) is the key to drive the promotion of energy saving in building sector. A large variety of building energy-efficiency policy instrument exist. Some are mandatory, some are soft scheme, and some use economic incentives from country to country. This paper presents the current development of implementing BEE policy instruments by examining the practices of BEE in seven selected countries and regions. In the study, BEE policy instruments are classified into three groups, including mandatory administration control instruments, economic incentive instruments and voluntary scheme instruments. The study shows that different countries have adopted different instruments in their practices for achieving the target of energy-saving and gained various kinds of experiences. It is important to share these experiences gained.

The good, the bad, and the efficient: Productivity, efficiency, and technical change in the airline industry, 2004–11

This study models the joint production of desirable and undesirable output production (that is, CO2 emissions) of airlines. The Malmquist–Luenberger productivity index is employed to measure productivity growth when undesirable output production is incorporated into the production model. The results show that pollution abatement activities of airlines lowers productivity growth, which suggests that the traditional approach of measuring productivity growth, which ignores CO2 emissions, overstates ‘true’ productivity growth. The reliability of the results is also tested and verified using confidence intervals based on bootstrapping.

Performance evaluation of non-thermal plasma on particulate matter, ozone and CO2 correlation for diesel exhaust emission reduction

This study is seeking to investigate the effect of non-thermal plasma technology in the abatement of particulate matter (PM) from the actual diesel exhaust. Ozone (O3) strongly promotes PM oxidation, the main product of which is carbon dioxide (CO2). PM oxidation into the less harmful product (CO2) is the main objective whiles the correlation between PM, O3 and CO2 is considered. A dielectric barrier discharge reactor has been designed with pulsed power technology to produce plasma inside the diesel exhaust. To characterise the system under varied conditions, a range of applied voltages from 11 kVPP to 21kVPP at repetition rates of 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10 kHz, have been experimentally investigated. The results show that by increasing the applied voltage and repetition rate, higher discharge power and CO2 dissociation can be achieved. The PM removal efficiency of more than 50% has been achieved during the experiments and high concentrations of ozone on the order of a few hundreds of ppm have been observed at high discharge powers. Furthermore, O3, CO2 and PM concentrations at different plasma states have been analysed for time dependence. Based on this analysis, an inverse relationship between ozone concentration and PM removal has been found and the role of ozone in PM removal in plasma treatment of diesel exhaust has been highlighted.