Flow or Fence: Learning, Preserving, and Redefining the Riverfront Cultural Landscape

The Chao Phraya River and the network of canals or “klongs” are the origin of Bangkok’s nick-name “Venice of the East”. Its amphibian nature of lower delta area where used to be covered by the sea around 5000 years ago provides a water-based settlement for the citizens. Rivers as an agricultural irrigation system are also used for daily consumption, transportation, and drainage channels. Bangkok was established in 1782 as the capital of Thailand by King Rama I of the Chakri Dynasty. The location is on a flood plain delta of the Chao Phraya River with the same consideration as the up north old capital Ayutthaya;the river is performed as a natural defense against enemies and also provides a water-based settlement for the citizens. The worst flood in Thailand’s history occurred during the 2011 monsoon season;July to November;that became the severest flood disaster hit parts of the capital city of Bangkok and resulted in a total of 815 deaths and 65 of Thailand’s 77 provinces were declared flood disaster zones, and over 20,000 square kilometers (7700 square miles) of farmland was damaged. The most affected areas were the recent capital Bangkok and the old capital Ayutthaya. The major causes were not only from the natural disaster but also water management failures from the human disaster. The studies aimed to include the survey of after-flood areas, reviewing the history of the waterfront communities and their attitudes toward development and changes, then discussed threats and crisis to the cultural landscape, the cause and effects of the disaster, the theoretical framework of the best management practices and the resolutions models proposed by the involved authorities. Whilst, history also gives us a sense of identity and traditional wisdom, the paper tried to find a paradigm shift and invented best practices for future generation flood protection using “the meaning and spirit of cultural landscape” model.

Ecosystem services of coastal sand dunes saw from the aspect of Sake breweries in Chiba Prefecture, Japan: A comparison of coastal and inland areas

In this report, we reviewed the differences in the ecosystem services of coastal and inland areas surrounding 39 Sake breweries in Chiba Prefecture by investigating environmental variables (e.g., location, altitude, soil, and hardness of preparation water). The Sake breweries were located in three distinct environments: the coastal vicinity, the river plains region, and the plateau/ mountainous region. The hardness of the preparation water and the soil types in the coastal vicinity were compared with those of the river plains and the plateau/mountainous region. Strong hard and hard water sources were observed in 70% or more of the breweries in the coastal vicinity, and sand dune regosol, coarse particle brown lowland soil, and coarse particle grey soil were more prevalent along the coast than inland. Most of the Sake brewery wells in the coastal vicinity were approximately 5 - 10 munderground, and there were no great differences in the number of Sake breweries in each well depth class in the river plains and the plateau/mountains region. We analysed environmental factors (distance from the sea, soil type, water hardness and preparation water collection depth) using a principal component analysis. This analysis revealed the existence of three main environments: the coastal vicinity, the river plains and the plateau/mountainous region. We conclude that the decrease in altitude between the inland Sake breweries and those along the coast is accompanied by a corresponding increase in the hardness of preparation water (from soft water to strong hard or hard water) and shifts in soil composition from gley soil, grey lowland soil, brown forest soil, and andosol to sand dune regosol, coarse particle brown lowland soil, and coarse particle grey soil.

Traditional Food Culture (Local Cuisines, Japanese Sake) That Has Been Nurtured by the Rich Nature of the Prefecture, Japan

In Chiba Prefecture, Japan, during the Edo period (1603-1867), the development of waterway traffic by ships and the management of ports, highways and post towns around the ports progressed with the prosperity of the Edo (present-day Tokyo), which became heavily populated and the center of politics. We estimated that the demand of Japanese sake, which is luxury grocery item, was high. The freshwater layer that is abundant in mineral water to a depth of approximately 10 m is formed in coastal sand dunes. The fresh water layer is hard water, in which the concentrations of minerals such as calcium and magnesium are high. When the fresh water layer is used as the preparation water, the working rice malt and yeast in the sake brewing process become active. Japanese sake trends to be dry with a full-bodied taste. In addition, the main ingredients of local cuisines are fish and shellfish;many local cuisines are seasoned using soy sauce, miso and salt, and these local cuisines pair well with the type of Japanese sake described above. The local cuisines have been nurtured in harmony with the region’s rich nature and heritage. In the future, we need to conserve the rich natural environment of the tidal flat, coast, seaweed beds, and marine, which have been producing the main local cuisine in Chiba Prefecture, and the water source area (a successive environment on the plateau from the coast, which was previously called the coastal dune area) of the preparation water for making Japanese sake. We also need to proactively develop local production for local consumption activities. Thus, we hypothesize that if the Japanese food life is secured and the traditional food culture is continued, the region will become revitalized by the development of the exchanges in the region.

Prediction of post-progression survival in patientswith advanced hepatocellular carcinoma treated with sorafenib by using time-dependent changes inclinical characteristics

Aim: Sorafenib has been shown to improve time to tumor progression (TTP) and overall survival (OS) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC);however, post-progression survival (PPS) has not been well characterized in these patients. This study aimed to evaluate the predictors of PPS by using time-dependent and dynamic changes in radiologic progression patterns, liver function, and performance status (PS) in patients with advanced HCC receiving sorafenib treatment. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical characteristics of 128 advanced HCC patients with Child-Pugh scores ≤ 7 at the initiation of sorafenib treatment. Results: The median TTP, OS, and PPS were 3.8, 15.6, and 9.9 months, respectively. At the time of confirmation of radiologic progressive disease (PD), a total of 46 (35.6%) patients showed impairments in their PS of ≥ +1 points over time. For the Child-Pugh score, 27 (21.1%) and 26 (10.9%) patients exhibited an impairment of ≥ +1 and ≥ +2 points, respectively. Multivariate analysis identified the following independent predictors of PPS: impairment in the PS score of ≥+1 point [hazard ratio (HR) 1.81, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.16-2.82], impairment in the Child-Pugh score of ≥ +2 points (HR 3.70, 95% CI 1.68-8.15), radiologic pattern of progression (target lesion growth and emergence of a new lesion) (HR 2.91, 95% CI 1.79-2.91), a TTP < 4 months(HR 1.87, 95% CI 1.21-2.91), second-line treatment after radiologic confirmation of PD (HR 0.16, 95% CI 0.08-0.32), and continuous sorafenib treatment after radiologic confirmation of PD (HR 1.76, 95% CI 1.06-3.00). Conclusion: PPS in patients with advanced HCC can be characterized by using time-dependent dynamic changes in clinical parameters.