Disaster Mitigation

Transportation is one of the most important and urgent tasks in a disaster, e.g., earthquake or flood. Trains, trucks and cars are very restricted by destruction of rail and road, bridges and buildings fall down, flood waters and thick mud, landslides, cracks, level differences, severe traffic jam etc. Sunken objects in the water and damages of quays prevent ships from reaching harbors. The situation remains days, weeks and even months. Hovercraft can run on almost every surface: ground, water surface, mud, sands, grits, weeds etc. The performance is very favorable in the first-aid transportation in a disaster. A middle size hovercraft with payload of 2–3 tons is suitable for first-aid work in a disaster. The amount of load is appropriate for loading and unloading by manpower without using a special loading machine. Small loads with frequent return trip are desirable to fulfill needs that are changing from time to time. A system of first-aid transportation by a number of hovercraft of middle size is proposed in this paper as an additional system of transportation to existing ones. The system is very useful for first-aid transportation in a disaster. A simulation of hovercraft transportation was carried out after the Kobe Earthquake in 1995 as an example. We assume that 20 hovercraft of middle size are operated from 6 bases just outside of the disaster area to 12 destinations in the area. The result shows that they can transport up to 1,200 tons goods in a day in addition to those of conventional transportation means without disturbing them.

Primer manual de mitigación de riesgos y desastres para Puerto Rico, desarrollado gracias al Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños de Hunter College (CUNY) y el Instituto de Desarrollo Empresarial y Acción Comunitaria (IdeaComún).  Define mitigación de riesgos; vincula los cursos de acción (COAs) del Informe de Recuperación del Gobernador con el área de mitigación; describe los tres programas que financian la mitigación aplicables a la recuperación de Puerto Rico: Mitigación bajo el Programa Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) de HUD; Mitigación 406 bajo el Programa de Public Assistance (PA) de FEMA; y el Hazard Mitigation Grants Program (HMGP/404) de FEMA; explica la importancia de los planes de mitigación municipales; y provee una guía y recursos de apoyo para el acceso inicial a los fondos HMGP mediante cartas de intención, entre otros.

The waste generated during the construction and demolition activities include sand, gravel, concrete, bricks, metal, plastic, glass etc. This construction and demolition waste is mainly disposed in landfills. Recycling and reuse of this waste will result in preservation of natural resources, effective utilization of growing waste stream, saving landfill space. This paper discusses the utilization of recycled aggregates as coarse aggregates in the preparation of concrete. In the present study, fresh concrete and recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) cubes are prepared and tested for compressive strength at the end of 7 th , 14 th and 28 th days curing. The results are compared for both the types of concrete.

Dear Colleague,

It is my great pleasure to invite you to participate in the 6th ICT Forum that will be held in October 14-16, 2014 in Nis, Serbia.
Additional information on the 6th ICT Forum is enclosed and can be found at the following website www.ictforum.rpkni.rs.

Marko Stosic

Indonesia merupakan sebuah wilayah kepulauan yang berada di atas pertemuan tiga lempeng raksasa yaitu Lempeng Benua Eurasia, Lempeng Samudera Pasifik dan Lempeng Samudera Indo-Australia. Lempeng benua ini saling berinteraksi satu sama lain. Dengan adanya interaksi antar lempeng tersebut dapat menimbulkan kerentanan terjadinya gempabumi.Pada gambar diatas, titik coklat merupakan pusat-pusat gempa bumi yang pernah terjadi. Pada wilayah yang sering terjadi gempa biasa disebut subduksi. Subduksi merupakan proses yang berlangsung terus sejak jutaan tahun lalu dan akan terus berlangsung. Hasil dari subduksi ini menyebabkan Indonesia menjadi wilayah yang memiliki beribu-ribu pulau dengan ratusan gunung berapi nan indah, yang abunya menyuburkan tanah sehingga menghijau daratannya karena dipenuhi ribuan jenis tumbuh-tumbuhan yang bermanfaat untuk kehidupan manusia yang ditakdirkan tinggal di di dalamnya. Selain itu juga terdapat kekayaan alam berbagai mineral, minyak bumi, batubara di bumi Indonesia. Namun subduksi tersebut juga menimbulkan beberapa bencana seperti tsunami dan gempabumi.

It is now well known that the world community must share the risks and hazards deriving from climate change and, more generally, from the environment. The fact that just a few months ago, at the end of summer 2019, the European Bank for reconstruction and development (EBRD), issued the first World's first dedicated climate resilience bond confirms the thesis according to which financial, social and economic instruments are always most necessary for the development of society and to avoid that natural hazards can, as occurred in the past, cause extremely heavy damages with negative repercussions on every single area of a community. Starting from the characteristics of resilience bonds and reinsurance, the paper seeks to highlight the potential advantages that would derive from a systematic application of recursive contractual instruments (smart contracts). The authors focused on the study of the projection of financial and quantitative data of resilience and catastrophe bonds on ...

This integrative review highlights the potential contribution of human psychology to disaster management, in terms of mitigation, advance preparedness, acute responses to events, and longer term psychosocial effects. The aim is not to conduct a detailed systematic review of the evidence in any one area, but rather to plot out a broad overview of the areas where work has been done, and highlight gaps where there is potential for further development.

In Indian scenario, any religious event is a strong reason to gather huge crowd which many a times turn out into a stampede disaster. In this paper the focus is laid on the stampedes in religious gatherings. Two case studies of stampede: a) Sri Kalubai Yatra Mandhardev at Wai, Maharashtra (2005) and b) Dussehra Festival Stampede at Patna, Bihar (2014) have been studied and analyzed for the causes and flaws in management. Important guidelines related to stampede management in religious events have been mentioned and input of more and better considerations have been proposed from our side, like allowable crowd size, maintaining database of the visitors, architectural adjustments, etc. Also the crowd behavior plays an important role in prevention of disasters of such kind.

This paper discusses various Information and Communication Tools  in the form of  Internet, GIS, Remote Sensing, Satellite communication for Disaster preparedness, warning and forecasting, Mitigation and Management

Keywords: Internet, GIS, Remote Sensing, Satellite-Based Communication, Warning and Forecasting, Financial and Administrative Arrangements.

Hampir sepanjang waktunya Gunung Merapi memberikan manfaat bagi alam dan makhluk yang ada di sekitarnya. Lereng dan wilayah sekitar Gunung Merapi terkenal dengan kesuburan tanahnya karena guyuran abu vulkanis Gunung Merapi. Padi, tanaman salak, dan pisang dan berbagai tanaman dapat tumbuh subur di sebagian besar lerengnya. Karena kesuburan tanahnya, bidang peternakan juga cukup berkembang, diantaranya adalah peternakan sapi perah yang dikelola oleh beberapa koperasi di Boyolali dan Kaliurang Sleman. Selain itu, di lereng Gunung Merapi juga terdapat beberapa tempat utuk rekreasi dan peristirahatan, diantaranya adalah obyek-obyek wisata di wilayah Kaliurang Yogyakarta dan sekitarnya. Bahan tambang Gunung Merapi yang berupa pasir dan batu vulkanis dikenal karena bermutu tinggi untuk bahan konstruksi.

What happens to property values after a catastrophic climate event such as flood, or wildfire? This study examines how North American Real Estate markets respond after catastrophic events. The study explores the present and future risks to property valuation and insuranability. The study concludes with a recommendation for the creation of a Real Estate Climate Risk Index, as an intervention for creating market stability in the face of increasing frequency and scale of property damage from climate events.

This paper is a literature study that discusses the magic of ancient Architecture, planning and construction techniques of the World. It is a brief study that describes and explains various elements of how architecture, planning and construction evolved in various corners of the world. Architecture is the art form which merges Art with Science. It unites aesthetics, safety, structure, dimensions and emotions in a solid built state. Architecture, planning and construction of shelters, temples and cities had a very primitive origin dating to the beginning of mankind. As mankind evolved so did Architecture and planning. This paper follows the traces of historic changes in trends, cultures, traditions, styles and regions through time. The various stages of evolutions are described below along with the visionary changes in Architecture, planning and construction over time. This paper is an effort to concise the evolution of architecture, planning and construction from the very beginning to a few pages.

On May 27, 2006, the earthquake with magnitude of 6.3 Mw became the most destructive earthquake ever occurred in Bantul. Recognizing the threat of earthquake hazard in the future, it is necessary to study the potential of liquefaction as a disaster mitigation effort in Pandansimo Beach area. This study aims to determine the geological character of the research area, to know the correlation between sediment facies with liquefaction potential, and to map potential liquefaction and mitigation alternatives that can be used.

The method used in this study is a combination of quarterly geological mapping, sediment facies analysis, modification of simplified procedures (Idriss and Boulanger, 2008) and laboratory tests. The data used, divided into primary data, includes surface geological mapping, core drilling data, standard penetration test (SPT) test, grain size and physical properties of sediment. While the secondary data is the peak ground acceleration (PGA) of Yogyakarta.

The result of geological mapping explaining the research area is a combination of fluvial, estuary, alluvial, beach, and eolian sedimentation processes. Based on the surface geological mapping that generates the Quaternary geological map, the geological research area of the study area is divided into sediment floodplains and alluvials, river basin deposits, coastal sediments, and sand dune deposits. Geological analysis that the surface indicates a change in sedimentation facies, both lateral and vertical. Based on the calculation of modification of simplified procedures, the result of the sediment facies in the research area analyzed and correlated between the drill points affects the liquefaction potential. The highest liquefaction potential is estimated in fluvial facies, eolian facies, and estuary facies. At BH2, the weak zone is at a depth of 13 to 12 meters. BH3 has 3 weak zone segments, first at a depth of 3 to 6 meters, both 11 to 14, and third 25 to 30 meters. While BH4 is estimated to have a weak zone at a depth of 12 to 20 meters. And from the estimation of the decrease in the face of the ground is known the potential for soil deformation in the form of soil surface decrease in BH2 is 0.13 meters. At BH3, the potential for land subsidence is 0.19 meters. While at BH4, the potential for land subsidence is estimated to be about 0.12 meters. Vibrocampaction mitigation method is a method that is relatively in accordance with the conditions in the study area.


Key words: Earthquake, Liquefaction, SPT, Mitigation.

The Sidoarjo mudflow resulted in a major environmental and social disaster. Consideration of this case provides strong insight into the Indonesian government's recent environmental management of the disaster, which demonstrates weaknesses, particularly in terms of enforcement and accountability. This chapter details the events of the disaster and explores the issues of enforcement and accountability in consideration of state stewardship in preventing and managing environmental impacts. This chapter consists of six sections: the first and second sections describe Sidoarjo's geographic position and the conditions of its mining exploration activities.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe the policy actions of Texas Gulf Coast cities to mitigate the risk for potential hurricane damage. After conducting a review of the scholarly literature on hurricane damage mitigation policy, fourteen mitigation policy actions were identified, and then divided into the following five categories: building codes, the planning process, incentives to mitigate, assess vulnerability and resilience, and mitigation through zoning. After administering a survey to city officials in the Texas Coastal Zone, a preliminary assessment of the utilization of the fourteen mitigation policy actions was conducted.

Method: Survey research was the sole method of data collection for this study. The survey was sent to 71 city officials for cities located in the Texas Coastal Zone with some form of local government. The fourteen policy actions identified in the scholarly literature served as a framework that was used to develop the survey instrument. Descriptive statistics were utilized to analyze the collected survey data; this included the mean, median, mode and frequency distribution.

Findings: Preliminary findings suggested respondents were utilizing policy actions in some categories while neglecting other categories. Specifically, respondents were not using zoning practices to mitigate nor were they offering incentives to landowners to encourage mitigation efforts.

Sweetpotato is an established part of the diet of rural people at risk of Vitamin A deficiency, particularly children. It is grown in areas where other sources, e.g. oil palm and carrots, are not common. Sweetpotato has proved to play a key role for households disrupted by HIV/AIDS and other crises. In Northern Uganda, orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) vine cuttings provided by the VITAA (Vitamin A for Africa) in collaboration with PRAPACE (Regional Program for Improvement of Potatoes and Sweetpotato in East and Central Africa Region) are offering relief to farmers in the war-torn districts of Lira and Apac, where persisting violence has forced many farmers to live in protected camps. During lulls in the fighting, the farmers move from behind the defensive perimeter of the camps to attend to their fields. Sweetpotato is preferred because farmers know that it is hardy enough to thrive under the rugged conditions. Rebel troops usually raid cassava fields and leave sweetpotato unharmed because of the convenience in uprooting and chewing. Expansion of the multiplication and distribution of OFSP has supported not only food supply in the camps, but also vines that displaced people can carry back to their villages as conditions improve. Families estimated to have been reached with the planting material are 100,000 with an area of 65 hectares. Likewise in response to the devastating floods and drought in central and southern Mozambique, partners in collaboration with the Southern African Root Crops Research Network (SARRNET) embarked on the multiplication of large amounts of high-yielding, early maturing OFSP varieties. Several rapid multiplication sites from year 2000-2002 have supported up to a total of 122,616 families in Gaza, Maputo, Inhambane and Sofala provinces. The number increased to 377,000 by year 2003. In addition to distributing the planting material, the disaster mitigation program has developed a number of nutrition education and social marketing interventions strategy to educate families receiving the vines about why OFSP should substitute white-fleshed sweetpotato roots in their diets. Likewise messages on the importance of OFSP in providing Vitamin A especially for children. The communication strategy has been through training materials, "capulanas", flier, poster, and recipe books targeting women in the villages. In both disaster scenario cases, OFSP has played a key role in food security, income generation and improving nutrition for the rural poor communities.

Уважаемые господа,

С большим удовольствием приглашаем Вас принять участие в работе VI Международного форума по информационно-коммуникационным технологиям "ICT Forum 2014", который пройдет с 14 по 16 октября 2014 г. в Нише.

Всю нужную информацию о форуме в этом году, Вы найдете во вложении настоящей электронной почты или  по адресу www.ictforum.rpkni.rs.

С уважением,

Марко Стошич

Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB) menyatakan sejak tahun 2002 lebih dari 50 persen bencana alam terjadi di Jawa. Kantor Staf Khusus Presiden Bidang Bantuan Sosial dan Bencana tahun 2013 menyatakan masyarakat harus tanggap bencana terhadap potensi gempa di Selat Sunda, sesar Cimandiri dan sesar Lembang Jawa Barat serta Bali. UNDP PBB menyatakan tanggap bencana akan meminimalisir dampak merugikan melalui pencegahan yang efektif, rehabilitasi dan pengiriman bantuan tepat waktu. Solusi menyelesaikan problem penampungan korban bencana secara cepat, murah dan menampung jumlah banyak adalah penggunaan material tenda air inflated structure. Air inflated structure sebelum dan sesudah bencana dapat disimpan secara compact, bahan strukturnya (0.55mm PVC Terpaulin) mudah dilipat dan cepat diangkut ke daerah bencana. Tujuan Penelitian adalah merencanakan, membuat dan menguji protitipe air inflated structure sebagai fasilitas tanggap bencana guna memenuhi aspek kekuatan, kecepatan dan kenyamanan penampungan korban bencana. Metode Penelitian menggunakan Metode Eksperimen, berupa perancangan, pembuatan dan pengujian prototipe tenda meliputi (1) uji kekuatan bahan dan ketahanan bahan terhadap cuaca (2) uji meterial yang paling efektif guna komponen struktur dan jenis sambungan struktur (3) uji kecepatan proses pembuatan, pengangkutan, perakitan, pemasangan, pembongkaran (4) uji kenyamanan termal pengguna bangunan. Pengujian dilakukan di Lab Struktur Universitas Narotama dan Lab Bahan Universitas Merdeka Malang serta Uji Lapangan kerjasama dengan BUMD Kabupaten Blitar, terbukti memberikan hasil yang handal meliputi kuat uji tarik hingga 218,3 kg, daya tahan material >70C, instalasi 3menit, pemasangan 3menit dan pembongkaran 3menit serta suhu dalam ruangan <35C. Air inflated structure dapat menjadi prototipe nasional sebagai Rumah Sakit Darurat dan Sekolah Darurat.

Fire is one of the main causes of the destruction of cultural heritage, and mostly of the vernacular heritage. Wood is an organic material, thus during fire it forms a protective layer on the surface. In this way, wooden structural elements maintain their strength a little longer. While this characteristic saves lives of the inhabitants, the irreplaceable historic building, along with the other entire cultural heritage it may contain is lost forever.
In Turkey, procedure after a fire event does not require that the remaining materials of the building are kept and/or documented. The Fire Department prepares a simple report with no details about the event. If the damage is great, the damaged building is torn down, and in some cases even the foundations of the building are dug out. The preservation councils are not informed about the situation, unless the owner decides to reconstruct their by then completely lost building. Although in some cases façades and rarely plan schemes too, can be recreated by the help of written, photographic and oral documents, architectural details, material information and construction techniques that form the self and spirit of the building can never be retained. Especially in the past, debris of cultural heritage damaged by fire would simply be cleared away and a new building would be built with modern construction systems and technique, imitating unsuccessfully the damaged asset.
The objective of this study is to set out the problems concerning fire protection of cultural heritage, to propose modifications in the fire legislation, and to propose a new legislation and standardization concerning reducing fire risks and damages, and documentation of cultural heritage after fire events. The purpose of proposals is to prevent destruction of cultural heritage because of fires, and to provide proper documentation after a fire event.
First of all, current applications of fire and conservation legislations, namely Fire Regulation, Law of Preservation of Cultural and Natural Assets (2863), and Principle No 05.11.1999/660 of the Higher Council of Preservation of Cultural Assets will be analyzed. Secondly, various cases will be studied on causes of fire events, the condition of the damaged building before the event, and how the event has been handled by owners and different concerned organizations. Thirdly, fire risk of cultural heritage of various structural systems and materials within various urban contexts will be determined, based on current preservation and control mechanisms.
Evaluations of the current system have shown that restoration projects approved by preservation councils and fire departments include no fire prevention measures. Fire department enforces precautions only when the building will be used for commercial purposes. Unfortunately these enforced precautions are not presented to preservation councils with a report stating the reasons, nor do they take the historical value of the building into consideration. When we study the suggested precaution measures, it is clear that they are simplistic measure and that their sole aim is to provide life safety, and not fire safety.

Seismic hazards pose a high risk to the Kathmandu Valley. This paper aims to assess the urban vulnerabilities of the valley, highlighting specific factors that increase risk. It also aims to evaluate the valley’s capacity to cope in the event of a powerful earthquake. To do this, this paper will firstly highlight how ‘natural disasters’ are not in fact natural and the threat to development they present. Hazards pose a risk to all nations, but this risk is especially high for developing countries. A literature review of the elements that determine risk will be presented, focusing on vulnerability, capacity, risk behaviour and school safety. The risks posed to the valley as well as the mitigation work of the National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET) and Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) to reduce these risks will be analysed. The School Earthquake Safety Programme (SESP) is one of NSET’s main divisions. The work of SESP and DPSS (Disaster Preparedness for Safer Schools) I & II to reduce risk in 23 schools will be evaluated with cost-benefit analysis. This will determine the long term benefits of these programmes and assess their cost-effectiveness. Finally, this paper will bring all these factors together to provide policy implications for disaster risk management organisations.

Nepal is a mountainous country situated in the heart of the Himalaya. The Himalaya is also famous worldwide for its very active tectonics. In Nepal, over 80% of the rainfall occurs within a short three months during the monsoon period and extreme rainfall events are very common such as over 400 mm of rainfall can occur within 24 hours. Thus, these geological and climatic factors make the mountain slopes of Nepal most susceptible for rainfall triggered landslides. In Nepal, to provide transportation facilities to all people, in last ten years, road construction projects are considered as a major part of infrastructure development and the growth of the roads shows exponential increase from 376 km in 1950 to 15,308 km by 2000 within a period of 50 years. In which nearly half of total road length is earthen roads. These road construction and maintenance programs are widely affected by both shallow and deep seated landslides triggered by monsoon rainfall. This paper comprehensively deals with roadside slope failures during torrential rainfall events in major road of Nepal such as Tribhuvan Highway, Siddhartha Highway, Prithivi Highway, Arniko Highway, Dhulikhel-Sindhuli Road, Mugling-Narayanghat Road, Dharan-Dhankuta Road, Pokhara-Baglung Road, Beni-Jomsom Road, as well as some rural roads. Similarly, in this paper, mitigation measures used to stabilize the slopes are also discussed with some illustrations.

Bencana alam adalah ancaman lingkungan yang harus diantisipasi oleh Indonesia karena menimbulkan kerugian besar bagi masyarakat domestik maupun masyarakat di kawasan Asia Tenggara. Hal ini mengakibatkan juga munculnya ancaman terhadap posisi politik Indonesia sebagai salah satu anggota ASEAN. Ancaman lingkungan merupakan salah satu sektor keamanan yang berkaitan dengan sektor-sektor lainnya, termasuk sektor politik, sehingga terbentuklah pendekatan comprehensive security. Level dampak dan analisisnya yang mencakup kawasan melibatkan pendekatan keamanan regional. Kombinasi keduanya menghasilkan konsep cooperative security. Berdasarkan konsep cooperative security tersebut, melalui program kerja sama teknologi luar angkasa ASEAN-SCOSA, Indonesia mampu mengantisipasi ancaman lingkungan dan politik di kawasan Asia Tenggara secara bersamaan.

On February 27, 2010, a magnitude 8.8 Mw earthquake struck Chile and provoked a tsunami that wreaked havoc on the Chilean coast. A total of 830 failures in the transportation system were registered on roads, with 91 concession bridges and 221 public bridges suffered damage or collapsed. This study aims to test a methodology for teaching people about the characteristics of each post-disaster phase concerning road infrastructure and business continuity. The methodology is based on ludic activities designed as a non-structural mitigation action to reduce cascading risk and enhance business continuity. Activities include answering questions related to experiences with earthquakes, completing puzzles as a metaphor of a city during the reconstruction process and associating scale models of vehicles and machinery with a specific post-disaster phase. The methodology was tested with Chilean high school students aged 11 to 15. Answers from the participants indicate that girls were more aware of protection techniques during earthquakes than boys. In contrast, boys were more mindful of terminology and engaged in decisionmaking activities. The similarity between completing a puzzle and a city in reconstruction after an earthquake was easy for participants to understand. Initially, participants only identified relief as a post-disaster phase but did not recognise the other post-disaster phases of early recovery, recovery and development. After the workshop, they managed to identify vehicles related to the relief phase, some vehicles and machinery related to the early recovery and recovery phases, and others that can be used in more than one or two post-disaster phases.

Makalah ini  berusaha mengkaji substansi KTSP dan Kurikulum  2013 di  Sekolah Dasar (SD) dalam tinjauan  .pendidikali mitigasi bencana gunung api.  Analisis ini  dimaksudkan untuk mendapatkan gambaran sejauh mana pendidikan  dasar mernpersiapkan  peserta didik untuk memahami  karakterisrik gurumg api, potensi dan resika bencana  erupsi gunung  api yang kemungkinan  ditirnbulkannya.  Peserta didik di SD memegang peranan penting dalam upaya pendidikan  mitigasi  bencana  sebab pengetahuan mengenai  dampak  dan resiko  tinggal  di sekitar gunung  api  harus diberikan sejak dini. Pengetahuan dan pemahaman  yang baik tentang  manfaat dan resiko tinggal di sekitar gunung api sangat rnembantu upaya  menumbuhkan sikap kesiapsiagaan  bencana erupsi gunung api. UNESCO/UNICEF  (2012) telah menyusun  lima dimensi  dalam  upaya  mereduksi  bahaya bencana  alam.  Salah  satu  dimensi  tersebut adalah  pemahaman  ilmiah  dan  mekanisme  terjadinya  bencana  alam.  Hasil analisis, dan  kajian  ini diharapkan  dapat dijadikan  bahan  pertimbangan dalam  peninjauan kembali  muatan  materi resiko bencana dalam pengembangan kurikulum di masa mendatang  maupun  upaya penyusunan muatan Iokal bagi pembelajaran  di jenjang SD. Pentingnya pemetaan  substansi  materi ini dilararbelakangi  oleh kondisi geografis Indonesia  yang sangat  rentan terhadap  terjadinya  bencana alam khususnya  bencana geologi. Analisis  dilakukan  terhadap KTSP dan Kurikulum 2013 untuk jenjang SekolahDasar

A Conferência Internacional Riscos, Segurança e Cidadania decorrerá durante dois dias, em Setúbal. O programa contempla Sessões Temáticas, que decorrem em vários pontos da cidade, em simultâneo. __________________________ Veja-se o artigo "
O Planeamento da Segurança no Planeamento Urbano (The Safety Planning in the Urban Planning)" na secção "PUBLISHED PAPERS" e a respectia apresentação na secção "CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS".

Civil Engineering and Urban Planning: An International Journal (CiVEJ) is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal that publishes articles which contribute new results in all areas of the Civil Engineering and Urban Planning. The journal is devoted to the publication of high quality papers on theoretical and practical aspects of Civil Engineering and Urban Planning. The goal of this journal is to bring together researchers and practitioners from academia and industry to focus on Civil Engineering and Urban Planning advancements, and establishing new collaborations in these areas. Original research papers, state-of-the-art reviews are invited for publication in all areas of Civil Engineering and Urban Planning.

This monograph is generally designed to analyze the roles of “Al-munaasabah Application Scales for Soft Skills Enhancement” (MASSSE) for the second year USIM students during this period of COVID-19 pandemic. The following are the two main objectives of this book:

1-To Introduce the Al-munaasabah Application Scales for Soft Skills Enhancement (MASSSE) for the second year USIM students during this period of COVID-19 pandemic.

2-To analyze the level of Al-munaasabah Application for social-academic values enhancement as the Naqli-Aqli Integration showcase for the second year USIM students during this period of COVID-19 pandemic.

Thus, this book addresses the significance of Al-munaasabah in activating a wider use of soft skills even if they apparently look irrelevant from Aqli points of view.

The method adapted was the descriptive analytical method, in which Al-munaasabah Application Scales for soft skills enhancement (MASSSE) was used to collect the data from the selected stratified sample of the second year USIM students sized n=266.

This results yielded that Al-munaasabah procedures open up a wider range of Soft Skills variables’ predictions and implantations.

It also assert that Al-munaasabah is a supreme controller over all soft skills enhancement space by reducing the gap between Islamic practices and contemporary social skills variable. Thus, Al-munaasabah principles encompass the vast scientific capacities that reproduce a variety of theoretical and practical alternatives that enable researchers to comprehend the relevancy of various Aqli variables for soft skills enhancement .

The results further indicate that although some of apparent Aqil literature on the soft skills enhancement might look insignificant from the statistical points of view, they are ultimately viable and meaningful for Naqli Al-munaasabah points of observation.

More findings reported in this book will encourage scientific researchers to apply Al-munaasabah principles for both the soft skills developments enhancement and examination process so that Al-munaasabah is applied to understand a large amount of soft skills issue related to the contemporary phenomena.

The big picture of the findings reveals that the Naqli-Aqli integration in our day to day life brings about peace of minds and harmony rooted in believing in God and the sense of optimism; Husnu Al-dha’n; It rather sounds like a “Blessing in Disguise” empowered the Al-Qura’n Al-Kareem Surah 2: Al-Baqara - Juz' 2:
“…But you may hate a thing although it is good for you, and may love a thing although it is evil for you. Allah knows, and you do not.” Surah 2: Al-Baqara - Juz' 2 (216).
﴿…”وَعَسَى أَنْ تَكْرَهُوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ وَعَسَى أَنْ تُحِبُّوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ" ﴾ سورة البقرة الآية: 216.

Nowadays, using ionizing radiation (IR) is necessary for clinical, agricultural, nuclear energy or industrial applications. Accidental exposure to IR after a radiation terror or disaster poses a threat to human. In contrast to the old dogma of radiation toxicity, several experiments during the last two recent decades have revealed that intercellular signaling and communications play a key role in this procedure. Elevated level of cytokines and other intercellular signals increase oxidative damage and inflammatory responses via reduction/oxidation interactions (redox system). Intercellular signals induce production of free radicals and inflammatory mediators by some intermediate enzymes such as cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), nitric oxide synthase (NOS), NADPH oxidase, and also via triggering mitochondrial ROS. Furthermore, these signals facilitate cell to cell contact and increasing cell toxicity via cohort effect. Nitric oxide is a free radical with ability to act as an intercellular signal that induce DNA damage and changes in some signaling pathways in irradiated as well as non-irradiated adjacent cells. Targeting of these mediators by some anti-inflammatory agents or via antioxidants such as mitochondrial ROS scavengers opens a window to mitigate radiation toxicity after an accidental exposure. Experiments which have been done so far suggests that some cytokines such as IL-1β, TNF-α, TGF-β, IL-4 and IL-13 are some interesting targets that depend on irradiated organs and may help mitigate radiation toxicity. Moreover, animal experiments in recent years indicated that targeting of toll like receptors (TLRs) may be more useful for radioprotection and mitigation. In this review, we aimed to describe the role of intercellular interactions in oxidative injury, inflammation, cell death and killing effects of IR. Moreover, we described evidence on potential mitigation of radiation injury via targeting of these mediators.