[en] Neutron activation analysis is an outstanding analytical method having very wide applications in various fields. Analysis of human hair within last decades mostly based on neutron activation analysis is a very attractive illustration of the application of nuclear analytical techniques. Very interesting question is how the elemental composition differs in different areas or cities. In this connection the present paper gives average data and maps of various localities in the vicinity of drying-out Aral Sea and of various industrial cities in Central Asia. (author)

[en] Most of the world’s population lives in urban areas (54%). Near 42% of the global urban population live in cities with more than 1 million inhabitants, where problems associated with urban sprawl such as informal settlement, social-economic changes, environmental degradation and deficient high-capacity transport (HCT) systems are common. Meanwhile, urbanization and its associated transportation infrastructure define the relationship between city and countryside, between the city’s inner core and the periphery, between the citizen and his right to move. This article discusses and presents an overview about the relationship between the planning and extension of HCT systems and urban planning, (in the figure of the floor-area ratio - FAR- prescribed in regulations). The methodological approach consists of drawing a conceptual framework and studying 33 different cities of metropolitan areas on five continents. It’s noticed that areas in cities with a high construction potential but with an insufficient HCT negatively influence in urban mobility and hence the right to the city. We consider right to the city the various social and fundamental rights that, among others, includes the right to public transportation. Therefore there’s a real need of an integrated approach of community participation, FAR distribution, urban planning and transportation planning and so that urbanization, inevitable these days, takes place in a fair and harmonious way. (Author)

[en] The determination of radionuclides in human excreta is one method for monitoring the internal exposure of workers handling radioactive material. For the purposes of calculating the internal dose from such exposures one has to consider the natural background caused by the ubiquitous but area-dependent exposure to natural radionuclides. This is especially true of monitoring of the exposure to long-lived natural radionuclides of the ²³⁸U and ²³²Th series. To get a first impression of the natural background of some of these radionuclides the amount of various natural radionuclides present in faeces and urine of non-exposed persons from Berlin were measured. In the faecal samples, each collected over a period of 24 h, the following levels were found: uranium ranged from 0.4 to 2.2 μg.d^-1, mean 1.4 μg.d^-1, ²²⁶Ra from 38 to 121 mBq.d^-1, mean 65 mBq.d^-1, ²¹⁰Pb from 52 to 185 mBq.d^-1, mean 111 mBq.d^-1, ²³²Th from 1.6 to 12 mBq.d^-1, mean 5.4 mBq.d^-1, ²³⁰Th from 1.7 to 16 mBq.d^-1, mean 9.8 mBq.d^-1, and ²²⁸Th ranged from 11 to 39 mBq.d^-1, mean 23 mBq.d^-1. Ten 24 h urine samples were analysed to determine ²¹⁰Pb and ²¹⁰Po. Only one value for ²¹⁰Pb and six for ²¹⁰Po were above the detection limit of 6 mBq.1^-1 and 2 mBq.1^-1, respectively. The highest value for ²¹⁰Po was at 10 mBq.d^-1. (author)

[en] The objective of this investigation is to evaluate how visual perception varies as the rural landscape is altered by human interventions of varying character. An experiment is carried out using Semantic Differential Analysis to analyse the effect of the character and the type of the intervention on perception. Interventions are divided into elements of “permanent industrial character”, “elements of permanent rural character” and “elements of temporary character”, and these categories are sub-divided into smaller groups according to the type of development. To increase the reliability of the results, the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient tool, is applied to validate the semantic space of the perceptual responses and to determine the number of subjects required for a reliable evaluation of the scenes.

[en] Aim: To review the activity and impact of an out-of-hours (OOH) interventional radiology service introduced in Glasgow in 2007. Material and methods: A retrospective review of the first 42 months formal OOH activity across 11 hospital sites covering a population of 1.2 million was undertaken. The 30 day mortality and cause of death was logged for each procedural subtype [nephrostomy, biliary and abscess drainage, enteric stenting, transjugular intrahepatic porto-systemic shunt (TIPS), thoracic endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (TEVAR), endovascular, and embolization]. Results: From October 2007 to March 2011, 502 cases were identified. The mean number of procedures performed per month was 12 (range 5–21). This represents an event rate of 12/100,000 population/year. A minority (11%) of cases were undertaken after midnight. The activity levels were stable over the 42 month study period. The most frequent procedures were percutaneous nephrostomy (32%) and embolization for haemorrhage (30%). Thirty-day mortality was 17% for the entire group but varied from 53% (biliary intervention) to 0% (TEVAR). There was no death following embolization for obstetric haemorrhage. Approximately half of the deaths were due to a failure of the procedure to control the underlying clinical problem. Conclusion: The demand for OOH services is important but not unduly onerous. There is no evidence of expansion of demand after launching such a service. Mortality rates probably reflect the underlying clinical status of this emergency patient group. Certain procedures carry a high mortality rate, raising issues of clinical judgement, appropriateness of intervention, and/or timing

No abstract available

[en] The subject is concerned, in general, with the mathematical modelling of city structure and life, of the interaction between people, the activities which they perform, e.g. work, travel, shopping, etc., and the places to which they go, e.g. factories, shops, residences, etc., and the infrastructure of that interaction, e.g. road network, travel cost, etc. As an example, the problem of retailing is treated, in which is examined what governs the flow of revenue into a shopping zone/centre, how such processes can be mathematically modelled and how such models could be applied to the study of the evolution of an urban city structure in relation to the placement and size of its shopping zones/centres and the background cash-spending distribution in the city. 3 refs, 16 figs

No abstract available

[en] The present study aims to provide an overview of the development models and territorial organization from the perspective of the relationship between the urban environment, rururban and rural, in Spain. Therefore, once know and appreciate the conceptual and thematic approach, urban growth is studied in our country in recent decades, analyzing in detail the importance acquired and charges the legislative implementation of laws, plans and policies, both in the own urban growth and housing demand in the Spanish cities and, similarly, linking both to the price of housing, relating to the issue of rurbanization and rural. (Author)

[en] Over the last decades, continuous urban expansion at rates much higher than population growth has resulted in a massive urban footprint all over the world. In Lebanon, a civil war in the mid 70s has resulted in a low densityand fragmented urban sprawl. Nearly after 1990, when the declaration of Taaef ended the Lebanese war, a major reconstruction and reforms havetakenplace. This peaceful atmosphere launched a massive construction of roads and buildings, water and sanitation facilities, and energy and transport systems, which transformed eternally land cover and cities of Lebanon. This study aims to follow the evolution of urbanization from 1963 till 2005 in Lebanese major cities by processing and interpreting topographical maps and satellite images acquired by different space platforms. One examinesurban growth trends in Lebanon between different years and provide a characterization of Lebanese urban development per governorate and per district. Also, we inspect urban agglomeration in Greater Beirut Area (GBA), which is the main urban center in the country, as well as sevenmajor Lebanese cities(i.e. Tripoli, Zahle, Saida, Tyre, Baalbek, Nabatiyeand Jounieh). Some cities showa positive trend (e.g. Zahle illustrates a urban expansion from 3 percent of its district region in 1963 to 10percent in 2005, Tripoli grows from 20 to 56percent of the district in 2005,etc.). While Nabatiye, and South Lebanon region in general, reveala high rate of urbanization, a weak rate of urban expansion is shown particularly in North Lebanon. Political favoritism is one of the mainreasonto blame. Anyhow, the adequacy of the remote sensing in evaluating urbanism is proven again, particularly inunstable countries and regions. This research intends to provide policy makers in Lebanon an essential decision tool, given the absence of a comprehensive population survey, to build and support sustainable urban planning. (author)