Climate change vulnerability assessment in the new urban planning process in Tanzania

Climate change vulnerability assessment is an essential tool for identifying regions that are most susceptible to the impacts of climate change and designing effective adaptation actions that can reduce vulnerability and enhance long-term resilience of these regions.This study explored a framework for climate change vulnerability assessment in the new urban planning process in Jangwani Ward,Tanzania.Specifically,taking flood as an example,this study highlighted the steps and methods for climate change vulnerability assessment in the new urban planning process.In the study area,95 households were selected and interviewed through purposeful sampling.Additionally,10 respondents(4 females and 6 males)were interviewed for Focus Group Discussion(FGD),and 3 respondents(1 female and 2 males)were selected for Key Informant Interviews(KII)at the Ministry of Lands,Housing and Human Settlements Development.This study indicated that climate change vulnerability assessment framework involves the assessment of climatic hazards,risk elements,and adaptive capacity,and the determination of vulnerability levels.The average hazard risk rating of flood was 2.3.Socioeconomic and livelihood activities and physical infrastructures both had the average risk element rating of 3.0,and ecosystems had the average risk element rating of 2.9.Adaptive capacity ratings of knowledge,technology,economy or finance,and institution were 1.6,1.9,1.4,and 2.2,respectively.The vulnerability levels of socioeconomic and livelihood activities and physical infrastructure were very high(4.0).Ecosystems had a high vulnerability level(3.8)to flood.The very high vulnerability level of socioeconomic and livelihood activities was driven by high exposure and sensitivity to risk elements and low adaptive capacity.The study recommends adoption of the new urban planning process including preparation,planning,implementation,and monitoring-evaluation-review phases that integrates climate change vulnerability assessment in all phases.

The Relationship between Parental Stress and Child Conformity:The Mediating Role of Resilience

Background:In today’s society,parental stress has become a prevalent and significant issue,impacting not only parents’mental health but also potentially profoundly affecting children’s growth and education.This topic has garnered continuous attention from scholars.The present study aims to delve into the relationship between parental stress and children’s behavior,particularly focusing on children’s conformity and discipline development during crucial stages.This study aims to explore the relationship between parental stress,child conformity,and resilience,and further examines the mediating role of resilience in the relationship between parental stress and child conformity.Methods:We used three scales:the Parental Stress Scale,the Child Conformity Scale,and the Resilience Scale,to survey 890 elementary school students(aged 6–12)and their parents in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region of China.We employed SPSS 26.0 software for data analysis,conducting descriptive statistics,correlation analysis,and mediation effect tests sequentially.In the mediation effect tests,we utilized structural equation modeling(SEM)and regression analysis to examine the mediation effects,ensuring the accuracy and scientific nature of our analysis.Results:Through descriptive statistics,correlation analysis,regression models,and mediation effect tests,we found that parental stress significantly negatively predicts child conformity,while resilience shows a significant positive prediction.Further mediation analysis indicates that resilience plays a partial mediating role between parental stress and child conformity,with the mediation effect accounting for 36.67%.Conclusion:These findings highlight the importance of the family environment on child behavior and provide valuable insights and recommendations for family education practices in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.Therefore,we suggest future research should further explore the complex relationships among parental stress,child conformity,and resilience,and examine regional differences to better promote children’s overall development.

FROM THE SAME TREE--A Myanmar scholar and his Chinese friends

My early understanding of the People’s Republic of China was drawn from a few books I read while growing up in a mountain village in Myanmar. I was particularly fascinated by The Other Side of the River and Red Star Over China, both written by American journalist Edgar Snow. Those books triggered great curiosity about China in me. Later, while serving in the army I was stationed in the northern and later eastern regions of Myanmar’s Shan State, both bordering China, but still never found the chance to set foot in the country. During my service at army headquarters, I was assigned to conduct research on the situation in Myanmar’s neighbors including China as well as other influential countries in the world.

When Technology Encounters Culture: A Closer Watch on Dajia Mazu Patrol and Pilgrimage in Taiwan

Mazu, a protective sea God, has been worshipped by residents of Taiwan and southeast coast of China's Mainland as well as overseas Chinese around the globe for hundreds of years. The number of people around the world under her influence of religious belief and moral culture can reach up hundreds of million. Every year in lunar March, the over- one-week long Mazu patrol and pilgrimage held by Jenn Lann Temple in Dajia County of Taiwan attracts millions of pilgrims and tourists around the world to participate in one of the biggest religious events in the world. To keep track of the entire patrol and pilgrimage, Jenn Lann Temple has been cooperating with GIS Research Center, Feng-Chia University since 2008, setting up a GPS receiver, a digital camera, and 4 video recorders on Mazu’s palanquin. Both real-time position of the palanquin and live videos on the scene along the way of pilgrimage were published on the Internet, providing pilgrims, tourists and viewers around the world with an open access to observe the entire event. This paper details this initiative of introducing spatial technology to large cultural events. The study collects the historic tracks of Mazu’s palanquin during the pilgrimage from 2008 to 2010, analyzes their spatial-temporal attributes, and elicits several interesting facts behind the figures and maps. It also explores how spatial technologies can help organize large-scale events and even accelerate the dissemination of culture.

Catalytic fast pyrolysis of corn stover in a fluidized bed heated by hot flue gas:Physicochemical properties of bio-oil and its application

Fast pyrolysis of corn stover was performed at temperatures in the range of 450℃-525℃ in a fluidized bed.The chemical composition of the bio-oil acquired was analyzed by GC/MS,and its pH,kinetic viscosity and calorific values were determined.In the pyrolysis system used in this experiment,some improvements to former pyrolysis systems were done.Two screw feeders were used to prevent jamming the feeding system,and the condenser was equipped with some nozzles and a heat exchanger to cool quickly the cleaned hot gas into bio-oil.The results showed that the bio-oil yield increased with increasing pyrolysis temperature and then declined with a further increase in pyrolysis temperature.The highest bio-oil yield of 43.3 wt.%was obtained at 500℃ with the dolomite as bed material.The char yield always decreased with the increase of temperature.The major chemical compounds of bio-oil included acetol,butanone,acetic acid,propionic acid,ethylene glycol,phenol,etc.Pyrolysis oil was completely immiscible in diesel,but homogeneous emulsions were obtained when mixing the pyrolysis oil,emulsifier with diesel in different ratios.