Search Results (3)

Due to climate change, enhancing outdoor and indoor thermal comfort is increasingly important. Solar radiation drives temperature increases, making solar exposure reduction essential in urban design. Most previous research has focused on parametric analysis to optimize small urban blocks, often overlooking the impact of the overall urban district (UD) on reducing Solar Radiation Access (SRA). This work aims to find the optimized UD to minimize SRA and maximize Floor Area (FA). The proposed methodology is developed to achieve these objective functions using a single-objective Genetic Algorithm (GA) with three street layout patterns: random, radial, and grid layout. Further SRA analysis is conducted at the urban block level, focusing on blocks with the highest SRA in the optimized UD to achieve further SRA reduction while maintaining the same FA. Dubai Silicon Oasis district in the UAE was selected as a case study. Elk2-0.3.1 (GIS data), Ladybug (1.7.0), DeCodingSpaces-Toolbox (2021.10), and Galapagos (1.0.0007) Plugins in Grasshopper (0.9.0076) were used. The results show that the radial street pattern achieved better results with an 8.4% reduction in SRA with an 8.9% increase in FA. Additional analysis of the blocks with the highest SRA can achieve an additional 7.4% reduction in SRA. Full article

In response to Canada’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and to making pathways to achieve carbon neutral buildings, this paper presents two real case studies. The paper first outlines the potential of trees to absorb CO₂ emissions through photosynthesis, and the methods used for the estimation of their annual carbon sequestration rates. The net annual carbon sequestration rate of 0.575 kgCO₂eq/m² of tree cover area is considered in our study. Then, this paper presents the carbon life cycle assessment of an all-electric laboratory at Concordia University and of a single-detached house, both located in Montreal. The life cycle assessment (LCA) calculations were performed using two software tools, One Click LCA and Athena Impact Estimator for Buildings. The results in terms of Global Warming Potential (GWP) over 60 years for the laboratory were found to be 83,521 kgCO₂eq using One Click LCA, and 82,666 kgCO₂eq using Athena. For the single-detached house that uses natural gas for space heating and domestic hot water, the GWP was found to be 544,907 kgCO₂eq using One Click LCA, and 566,856 kgCO₂eq using Athena. For the all-electric laboratory, a garden fully covered with representative urban trees could offset around 17% of the total life cycle carbon emissions. For the natural gas-powered single-detached house, the sequestration by trees is around 3% of the total life cycle carbon emission. This paper presents limits for achieving carbon neutral buildings when only the emissions sequestration by trees is applied, and discusses the main findings regarding LCA calculations under different scenarios. Full article

Healthcare workers have reported a certain segment of geriatric patients that are suffering from abuse/neglect, which in turn has been associated with anxiety, depression, and helplessness in the individual. Family caregivers (blood relations), being the most common perpetrators of elder abuse and neglect (EAN), have also been shown to respond to sensitization if the type of EAN and the interventions are appropriate. This study was aimed to comparatively analyze the influence of intervention (psychotherapeutic sensitization of FCG) upon long-term (24 months) treatment maintenance and satisfaction in elderly neglected patients. One hundred and fifty patients (aged 41–80 years) suffering from elder neglect (EN) (self-confession) and their respective FCGs, fulfilling the study criteria, participated in this longitudinal 2-year study. The patients were randomly distributed (simple random, convenient) in two equal groups (75 each), namely Group (GP) A (control) and GP B (test). A standardized, complete denture treatment was initiated for all the participants. Both the FCGs and the patients of GP B were sensitized (psychotherapeutic education) for EN, while there was no such intervention in GP A. The influence of such intervention was measured for denture maintenance [denture plaque index (DPI) scores] and treatment satisfaction (10-point visual analog scale). Absolute/relative frequencies and means were major calculations during data analysis. Differences between the groups for any treatment compliance parameter was done through the unpaired t-test, while Karl Pearson’s test determined the level of relationship between variables (p-value < 0.05). Decrease in mean DPI scores (suggesting improvement) was seen among patients in GP A from 1 month (m = 2.92) to 24 months (m = 2.77). A negligible increase in DPI scores was observed among patients of GP B from 1 month (m = 1.38) to 24 months (m = 1.44). Differences in mean values between the two groups were statistically significant at 24-month intervals, while the relationship between the variables was nonsignificant. FCG sensitization through psychotherapeutic education shows a long-term positive influence on the treatment compliance (maintenance and satisfaction). Identifying the existence of EAN among geriatric patients, followed by psychotherapeutic education of FCGs is recommended for routine medical and dental long-duration treatment procedures. Full article