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The government-led public healthcare services in Sri Lanka became a major strength in managing the COVID-19 comparatively well. However, natural hazards are a major threat to this healthcare system, as they cause severe damages, especially to curative healthcare infrastructures such as hospitals. Floods have been the major contributor to the economic loss of the Sri Lankan healthcare system. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to develop a proper flood risk assessment framework for Sri Lankan hospitals.

This research study has attempted to develop a flood vulnerability assessment tool for hospitals using the concept of Depth Damage Functions (DDFs). Flood vulnerability curves have been developed for identified critical units of hospitals considering the damage caused to building contents which are predominantly expensive medical equipment. The damage caused only by wetting was considered in generating vulnerability curves. Structured interviews were conducted with government officials in the healthcare sector to gather details on the cost and damages of medical equipment. Pilot studies were carried out in two hospitals identified as located in flood-prone areas and have previous experiences of flooding, to acquire data regarding building contents of the critical units.

The developed vulnerability curves indicate that no major damage would occur to building contents in critical units (other than the labor room) until the inundation depth reaches a value of 0.6–0.9 m (varies for each type of unit). It is also noteworthy that after a certain range in the inundation depth, the damage increases drastically, and building contents would incur total damage if the inundation depth passes a value of 1.2–1.5 m.

This study explains the initial phase of developing a flood vulnerability assessment framework for Sri Lankan hospitals. Not many studies had been carried out to assess the vulnerability of hospitals specifically for floods using vulnerability curves. The study recommends a zoning system with pre-defined vulnerability levels for critical units during a flood, which can be associated with evacuation planning as well. Further studies must be carried out to verify this system for hospitals in Sri Lanka.

This paper aims at collecting and reviewing the published literature on the Six Sigma in construction along with its critical success factors (CSFs).

The research is based on literature review. Based on the keyword and semantic search techniques, papers published on the topic of Six Sigma during 2000-2015 are retrieved. Frequency analysis is performed to find out significance of identified CSFs, and zoning is performed based on the product of frequency of appearance and parties affected by the CSFs.

A total of 69 CSFs are identified as published in the literature. Based on an inclusion criterion of minimum 15 appearances, 22 CSFs are shortlisted for further analysis. Of these CSFs, around 32 per cent fall into red zone (most critical), 50 per cent into yellow and 18 per cent into green zone (least critical).

This work is limited by partial identification of CSFs. Though based on an extensive search, the retrieved CSFs may not be all the published ones. However, more thorough search techniques can be applied to improve upon this work.

The findings can be used to facilitate the decision-making in the context of project success.

This work is an original attempt at gathering Six Sigma CSFs applicable to construction projects. It may be used for further research and development to help ensure project quality and success.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a theoretical framework to support the embedding of social innovation education in existing academic programmes.

By adopting Conole et al.’s (2004) methodological approach to reviewing, mapping and modelling learning theory, this study addresses four research questions: how can social innovation education be defined? Which learning theories best support social innovation education? How do such learning theories relate to existing models of learning in higher education? What implications does a social innovation pedagogy have for learning design?

Findings suggest that social innovation education is supported by a praxis that is grounded in critical learning theory, transformational learning theory and epistemological development. By extending Conole et al.’s (2004) model of learning theory, the present study proposes a “zone of pedagogical praxis for social innovation education” that supports learning design on a more critical plane.

The proposed model of learning may be of interest to other universities as they work towards stronger thinkers and stronger communities.

Using a theory-informed model for learning design nurtures a pedagogical praxis and underpins the development of a practical toolkit for designing social innovation education.

The findings of this study will provide a point of reference for other higher education institutions as they look for guidance on embedding principles of social innovation into their curricula.

An extended set of equations is formulated. The set is a combination of incremental FEM equations, constraint equations and an augmented equation corresponding to the computation of the critical zone on the fundamental equilibrium surface. The stability determinant or load program are used to formulate the augmented equation. An approximate method for computation of contour lines on the stability boundary is presented. The computation was performed for an elastic, circular, plane arch loaded by three independent concentrated forces. For data taken from Plant the stability boundary surface is convex towards the region of existence.

Unfortunately in India, most landfills are located along the banks of rivers flowing through the cities. The interaction of two big, diverse and delicate ecological systems – rivers and landfills – has been investigated in this paper. During 2000, the estimated quantity of waste generation was more than 9,000 tons per day. This is one of the biggest sources of environmental degradation in Delhi, India's capital. It contributes to river pollution in a significant way through landfill leachate and runoff, especially during the rainy season. Since the 1950s over 12 large landfills have been packed with all sorts of non‐biodegradable and toxic wastes from Delhi. The area covered by landfills is at least 1 percent (14.83 sq.km) of Delhi's total area. All the landfill sites except Tilak Nagar, Hastal and Chattarpur are located close (0‐6 km) to the river Yamuna. Further, these landfills are not engineered sanitary landfills and the waste is dumped at open sites without proper compaction. A high mountain of waste can be seen at all landfill sites without a cover. The leachate produced by landfills finally percolates to the porous ground surface at the landfills or finds its way to nearby drains. A large portion of landfill leachate and runoff produced by these landfill sites finally reaches the Yamuna through ground water flow or surface water flow through the drains. The results of analysis by investigations and environmental mapping during the study clearly indicate that river water quality is affected by the presence of landfill locations, i.e. landfill leachate and landfill surface runoff.

The Internet is used as a tool to seek health information by individuals. Mental health concerns are the high prevalence of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and preventive steps are required to curb the illness. Therefore, to gain more insight into health concerns, it is now a common practice to seek health information on the Internet. This study propose an integrated theoretical model to explore the relationship between COVID-19 protocols and perceived online trust with online health information seeking intention (OHISI) and a moderating effect of perceived severity and perceived urgency.

Data are collected from 325 athletes in the category of individual and team sports through an online survey in a Likert-scale questionnaire. The analysis is performed with a quantitative methodology.

The study reveals the bright side of online health information (OHI), which brings athletes together and has played out with virtual happy hours, meetings and events. The bright side of OHI reflects social, cultural, technological and economic benefits. An OHI chatbot offers bright personalised side information to the individual seeker, which is more convenient and efficient than human capabilities.

The pivotal contribution is the integrated theoretical framework that is derived from multidisciplinary literature to capture the complexity of OHI. Also, it conceptualises the constructs in the context of OHI and COVID-19.

This paper aims to verify that additive manufacturing technology could be used for the redesign and rapid manufacturing of tools and determine whether the mechanical performance of such tools can satisfy the practical operating requirements.

A special key was selected as the research object in this paper. The special key was innovatively redesigned and manufactured directly using selective laser melting (SLM). The function and critical geometries of the special key were first analysed, which was followed by discussions on the geometrical constraints in the manufacturing of typical geometrical features using SLM technology. Next, the special key was redesigned based on the SLM geometrical constraints and the functional requirements. Finally, the key was manufactured using SLM, and the mechanical performance characteristics of the key were determined.

The minimal geometrical feature was 0.2 mm when manufacturing thin walls using SLM. The reliable building angle of an overhanging surface was 40°. The top surface quality of the part could be greatly improved through laser surface re-melting. The volume of the redesigned special key based on the SLM process was only one-third to one-fourth of the original key. The mechanical properties, such as tensile strength and micro-hardness, of the samples manufactured using SLM were able to reach the practical operating requirements.

It is completely feasible to redesign and manufacture precision tools based on the innovative approach of SLM. The advantages of the redesigned tools includes the lack of design restrictions that hinder traditional manufacturing methods, material savings, ability to produce tools that cannot be easily copied and rapid production speed for a small number of tools.

The purpose of this paper is to show the extent of desertification and land degradation as threat to sustainable environmental, agricultural and land development in the Sahel of Nigeria with its consequences; with also some efforts to control desertification.

Several desertification attenuation projects in Nigeria are employing different methods for maximum benefits obtainable from the objectives) of the particular project. Specific methods will be cited for particular projects mentioned as appropriate. It is noted however that environmental impact assessment, community reconnaissance or needs assessments were initial part of pre-project activities.

Desertification has reached an alarming state in Nigeria. The frontline desert threatened States of Nigeria constitute 40 per cent of the land mass of the country. With increased pressure of desertification, exacerbated by a period of prolonged drought of about 20 years, climate change and human activities, it is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain sustainability in the management of the fragile lands and the region’s ecosystem. Strategic interventions in combating the problem of desertification in Nigeria have attenuated some of the detrimental social, economic and environmental impacts on the affected communities of the Sahel of the country. Programmes and projects are designed to strengthen the resilience of the people in the affected region with sound ecosystems’ management; support the efforts of the communities resulting in increased agricultural yields. Programmes and projects have strengthened the resilience of the people, participating in sand dune stabilization, the Great Green Wall Sahara Sahel Initiative and other shelterbelt development. Government has sustained inputs in environmentally friendly agriculture and also encouraged synergetic collaborative activities with national agencies, international agencies and local institutions.

These results/activities give evidence of the increased public awareness of environmental degradation due to desertification in Nigeria; the realization in environmental stabilization needs with ready participation of the communities for improved livelihoods in arid agriculture; resulting in internalization of these problems for Nigeria.

This paper aims to provide a case study focused on the substitution through selective laser melting of a part typically fabricated by traditional manufacturing.

To exploit the additive manufacturing (AM) advantages, the retrieving of the reconfiguration part data was provided, the process strategies by means of the interchange file handling and pre and post-processing were investigated and a re-design of the part was developed. Finally, the fabricated part was tested and analyzed.

Results claimed that a reconfiguration of the manufacturing framework plays an important role at each step of the process otherwise many AM benefits can be lost. In the paper, a set of recommendations, suggestions and hints regarding the implementation of AM for part substitutions is provided.

Many aspects of the AM adoption, such as the production cost, energy consumption, sustainability and production volume, depend upon the geometry, batch size and other impactful factors, and thus they need to be studied in a case-by-case manner.

The proposed approaches have the concrete aim to address industrial resources toward the maximization of AM benefits in part substituting.

In this paper, the substitution of a part is fully undertaken from the early data collection to the manufactured part testing providing integrated approaches for each process step.

Information technology (IT) systems are already ubiquitous, and their future growth is expected to drive the global economy for the next several decades. However, energy consumption by these systems is growing rapidly, and their sustained growth requires curbing the energy consumption, and the associated heat removal requirements. Currently, 20-50 percent of the incoming electrical power is used to meet the cooling demands of IT facilities. Careful co-optimization of electrical power and thermal management is essential for reducing energy consumption requirements of IT equipment. Such modeling based co-optimization is complicated by the presence of several decades of spatial and temporal scales. The purpose of this paper is to review recent approaches for handling these challenges.

In this paper, the authors illustrate the challenges and possible modeling approaches by considering three examples. The multi-scale modeling of chip level transient heating using a combination of Progressive Zoom-in, and proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) is an effective approach for chip level electrical/thermal co-design for mitigation of reliability concerns, such as Joule heating driven electromigration. In the second example, the authors will illustrate the optimal microfluidic thermal management of hot spots, and large background heat fluxes associated with future high-performance microprocessors. In the third example, data center facility level energy usage reduction through a transient measurements based POD modeling framework will be illustrated.

Through modeling based electrical/thermal co-design, dramatic savings in energy usage for cooling are possible.

The multi-scale nature of the thermal modeling of IT systems is an important challenge. This paper reviews some of the approaches employed to meet this challenge.