Browsing by Subject "sustainability"
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Item A Digital Image Library: Making it possible with Facial Recognition(Texas Digital Library, 2023-05-17) Prud'homme, Max; Peta, LokeshEnsuring the discovery and preservation of digital archival assets is an important aspect of digital curation work at the Oklahoma State University Library. In the fall of 2023, the university archives resumed their machine learning work after conducting a successful pilot project that explored the use of facial recognition techniques to curate a high-value archival collection. With support from Library Administration, the digital archives are moving forward with the development of a dynamic search engine, using machine learning, to improve the predictability and performance for searching thousands of digital assets. To achieve this, the team is constructing a model that is easily trainable and an interactive application to search images more efficiently. With consideration to scalability and sustainability, the facial recognition technology used in the pilot project is being extended to a larger and more diverse dataset of face images. The presenters propose to showcase the project flow, context, planning, design and architecture in a demonstration/tutorial-like presentation. They will address challenges and initial feedback, with a particular focus on scalability, sustainability, as well as ethical issues associated with facial recognition technology.Item An improved methodology for multi-criteria assessment of highway sustainability(2009-05-15) Ramani, Tara LakshmiThe concept of sustainability has been widely discussed in relation to human activity and scientific development in recent times. There is an increased awareness of the current and future ramifications of people?s everyday activities on the environment, and sustainable development aims to mitigate these impacts, as well as promote social equity and economic efficiency. A majority of research concerned with transportation sustainability addresses it at the policy-planning level, though there have been recent attempts at quantitatively evaluating it. These evaluations are mostly based on multicriteria decision making processes using performance measures. However, the methods and the performance measures developed are often not geared toward being practically implemented within a transportation agency?s regular planning activities. This research effort seeks to improve upon existing sustainability evaluation processes for highways by proposing a methodology that addresses sustainability within the regular transportation planning paradigm, rather than as a separate concern. A more scientific approach to the scaling of various performance measures, as well as the evaluation of current and future planning scenarios on a common basis provides for an improved multi-criteria evaluation method. A case study was conducted using the proposed methodology for a section of US Highway 281 in San Antonio, Texas. The evaluation model developed in this study provides the basis for further research into applying decision-making processes to improve transportation sustainability by addressing some of the inherent drawbacks of existing research on sustainability evaluation.Item Change through tourism: resident perceptions of tourism development(2009-05-15) Doh, MinsunMany view tourism as a tool for community development. Especially in the rural areas experiencing economic hardships, tourism often is considered an instrument for revitalization of a local economy helping to improve quality of life and protect natural and cultural resources. However, many researchers have raised concerns about an overly optimistic view by asserting that tourism development inevitably affects the corresponding community. Empirical studies suggest that development of tourism brings environmental, sociocultural, and economic changes to the community where it is developed. Thus, it is important that planners look at the attitudes of local people towards tourism development in their community before an actual development takes place. The conceptual basis of this study is development and change theory and empirical findings of tourism impact research. This study provides information to assist in understanding questions related to the rural communities? tourism planning process in a development context, and residents? perceptions of the impact of tourism and its further development. A self-administered mail-back survey was administered to see how the residents of Brewster County, Texas perceive tourism development in the region. Considering the 43% of the Hispanic population in the area, both English and Spanish versions of the questionnaires were sent to the possible respondents. The overall response rate was 37% after two rounds of survey administered during January and February of 2006. The structural model confirmed that people?s value orientation regarding nature was an important variable that explained residents? community attachment, which influenced their attitudes toward tourism through attitudes toward local participation. The results indicated that residents? values were oriented toward nature and that they were highly attached to their communities. In addition, their tourism attitudes were varied based on the types of tourism impacts they were expecting. Although they were supportive of tourism related development, they felt that certain types of tourism development were more appropriate for their community. Specifically, ?medium impact? tourism development were perceived to be desirable for the northern part of the region, whereas low impact development options were perceived to be more acceptable for the southern part of the region by their residents.Item Design for Survival: Sustainability for Planet and Structure(2011-04-06) Lanoux, SteveBuildings in Port Aransas encounter drastic environmental challenges: the potential catastrophic storm surge and high winds from a hurricane, and daily conditions hostile to buildings, vehicles, and even most vegetation. Its location a few hundred feet from the Gulf of Mexico and near-tropical latitude expose buildings to continuous high humidity, winds laden with scouring sand and corrosive salt, and extremes of temperature and ultraviolet light. Building construction methods are able to address each of these, but doing so in a sustainable way creates significant challenges. The new research building at the Marine Science Institute has been designed and is being constructed to meet the demand for both survivability and sustainability. It is tracking towards formal certification as a LEED Gold structure while being robust and resistant to the harsh coastal environment. The effects of a hurricane are mitigated by elevating buildings and providing a windproof envelope. Ground-level enclosures are designed to be sacrificial and non-structural so they can wash or blow away without imposing damage on the upper portions of the building, and only non-critical functions and equipment will be supported within them. Design features that integrate survivability with sustainability include: orientation of building axis; integral shading from direct summer sunlight; light wells; photovoltaic arrays; collection of rainwater and air conditioning condensate for use in landscape irrigation; reduced impervious cover; xeriscaping and indigenous plants; recycling of waste heat from air conditioning systems; roofing system that reflects light and heat; long life, low maintenance stainless steel, high-tensile vinyl, hard-anodized aluminum and hot-dipped galvanized mountings throughout; chloride-resistant concrete; reduced visual impact; recycling of construction materials.Item Development of a method for recording energy costs and uses during the construction process(2009-05-15) Arnold, Althea GayleRising energy costs should be a concern to contractors, designers, and owners. It is difficult to make a quantity takeoff for energy usage because these costs are imbedded in the materials, equipment, or overhead costs. This research examines energy consumption during the construction process, sets forth methods for recording this energy consumption and establishes a program for the recording and analysis of this data. An energy study of electricity, gasoline, and diesel consumption was made for the construction of three buildings to determine what data was available. After available data was evaluated, and the Energy Data Analysis program developed, three other construction sites were visited to determine how readily energy data can be recorded using the program. Four construction energy phases were identified from this research. The four phases are: 1) site clearing and preparation, 2) building structure, 3) interior finishes, and 4) commissioning. The main type of energy consumption during Phase 1 is diesel fuel for earth moving equipment. The energy uses for Phases 2 and 3 varied considerably among the projects studied and were difficult to quantify. However, the energy use during these phases was low compared to other phases and for many projects may not be economical to evaluate. During Phase 4, electrical energy demand was high due to Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) commissioning requirements and power up of all electrical power uses including lighting. These few construction projects are not enough to make definitive conclusions about what percentage of the total project cost is spent on energy. This research found that construction energy costs vary during different phases of the building process and can be a significant part of that phase (as high as 5.7% of the cost). The Visual Basic program developed during this research will facilitate future energy studies on construction sites. When the program is applied to a project, it identifies and quantifies the energy use, and makes predictions as to which project tasks warrant further energy studies.Item Evaluating sustainability of endangered species via simulation: a case study of the Attwater's prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido attwateri)(2009-05-15) Defex Cuervo, Tulia InesOnce abundant in the Texas and Louisiana coastal prairie, currently the Attwater?s Prairie Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido attwateri, APC) is close to extinction. Efforts to increase the size of the remaining populations at the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge (APCNWR) and the Galveston Bay Prairie Preserve (GBPP) with releases of captive-reared individuals are part of the APC captive- breeding initiative. However, after a decade of yearly releases, the populations are not reaching viable sizes. I analyzed post-release survival data of individuals released at the APCNWR from 1996 to 2005. Results suggest that age at release or date of release had little influence on survival of captive-breed APC. At two weeks post-release, survival estimates (SE) were 0.76 (0.03) for females and 0.82 (0.04) for males. Approximately 50% of the females and 33% of the males died within the first 60 days post-release. Survivorship during the breeding season showed that male survival (0.36) was higher than female survival (0.23). Survivorship from the median release date to beginning of the breeding season was 52% for males and 39% for females. Mean female survival was 155 days, while median survival was 94 days. For males, mean survival was 135 days and the median was 81 days. Results from a stochastic simulation model, which was developed based on the survival analysis of APC on the APCNWR, confirmed that releasing individuals closer to the beginning of the breeding season and sex ratio at release had little effect on population growth. Regardless of the number of individuals released annually, population sizes immediately prior to the release dates were only 11?12% of the population sizes immediately after the release dates. At current mortality rates, simulated APC populations could not sustain themselves even if reproductive parameters were increased to the maximum rates reported for APC, or to the maximum rates reported for the closely related Greater prairie chicken. Based on these results, the APC may face extinction within the next decade unless conservation efforts succeed on increasing reproductive success and greatly reducing mortality rates.Item Life-Cycle Assessment of Highway Pavement Alternatives in Aspects of Economic, Environmental, and Social Performance(2012-10-19) Mao, ZhutingEconomic Input Output Life Cycle Assessment (EIO-LCA) provides economic transactions, environmental emissions, and energy use throughout a product's life cycle based on a dollar amount of the product. A custom EIO-LCA model was conducted to compare three major rigid pavements of Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement (JPCP), Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement (JRCP), and Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP) within the perspective of economic transactions, greenhouse gases, energy use, hazardous waste, toxic releases, water withdrawals, and transportation movements. The analysis results indicate that CRCP be the most cost-efficient and sustainable choice among the selected rigid pavement alternatives as it requires the lowest life-cycle cost and has the least unfavorable impact on environment when compared to the JPCP and JRCP. Potential improvements could be investigated for the processes of cement manufacturing, power generation and supply, ready-mix concrete manufacturing, and truck transportation because the EIO-LCA results reveal that they are the top sectors contributing to the energy use and greenhouse gases emissions. The results also indicate that some sectors such as storage of materials, landfills, and soil waste management should be taken into account in order to reduce toxic releases. Moreover, the utilization of local human resources as well as raw materials would help to minimize transportation movement. This study shows that EIO-LCA is a valuable tool and presents how it can help decision-makers make a better-informed decision when there are multiple options. In future studies, uncertainties related to location and time should be captured to generalize the results of the EIO-LCA with more sophisticated data collection and stratification protocol.Item Novel visualization and algebraic techniques for sustainable development through property integration(Texas A&M University, 2007-04-25) Kazantzi, VasilikiThe process industries are characterized by the significant consumption of fresh resources. This is a critical issue, which calls for an effective strategy towards more sustainable operations. One approach that favors sustainability and resource conservation is material recycle and/or reuse. In this regard, an integrated framework is an essential element in sustainable development. An effective reuse strategy must consider the process as a whole and develop plant-wide strategies. While the role of mass and energy integration has been acknowledged as a holistic basis for sustainable design, it is worth noting that there are many design problems that are driven by properties or functionalities of the streams and not by their chemical constituency. In this dissertation, the notion of componentless design, which was introduced by Shelley and El-Halwagi in 2000, was employed to identify optimal strategies for resource conservation, material substitution, and overall process integration. First, the focus was given on the problem of identifying rigorous targets for material reuse in property-based applications by introducing a new property-based pinch analysis and visualization technique. Next, a non-iterative, property-based algebraic technique, which aims at determining rigorous targets of the process performance in materialrecycle networks, was developed. Further, a new property-based procedure for determining optimal process modifications on a property cluster diagram to optimize the allocation of process resources and minimize waste discharge was also discussed. In addition, material substitution strategies were considered for optimizing both the process and the fresh properties. In this direction, a new process design and molecular synthesis methodology was evolved by using the componentless property-cluster domain and Group Contribution Methods (GCM) as key tools in developing a generic framework and systematic approach to the problem of simultaneous process and molecular design.Item Session 2C | Building a sustainable digital community archive in rural Colorado(Texas Digital Library, 2021-05-25) Matusiak, Krystyna K; Kord, Alexandrea; Aro, WendyCollaboration and community engagement are critical to sustaining community archives and building their digital presence. This presentation describes a collaborative project aimed at digitizing materials from the Park County Local History Archive and supporting the Archive’s sustainability efforts. The Archive was organized by volunteers and is located in the rural area of Colorado. The Digital Archive was built in partnership with the University of Denver Library and Information Science program and the Park County local government. The presenters will focus on the processes of working with a remote community archive, building community relationships, and constructing the Digital Archive in Omeka.Item Sustainability Policy and Green Growth of the South Korean Construction Industry(2011-10-21) Jeong, HwayeonSouth Korea is among a host of countries trying to achieve sustainable development across whole industry sectors by adopting "Green Growth" as the vision of the national development in the Korean government. The government has executed a vast effort regarding the policy, and these efforts have produced several successful results. However, the vision of the Green Growth does not appear to be settled in the construction industry, which is a sector that has a huge impact on sustainability and has made striking economic impacts over the last several decades to Korea's growth and development. Although the performances under the Green Growth are difficult to be evaluated because the Green Growth policy is now in the process of revisions and supplement, this is the time to diagnose the current situation and efforts of Green Growth in the Korean construction industry. A primary goal of the thesis is developing a preliminary framework to promote Green Growth in the Korean construction industry in order to reduce possible trials and errors in the early phase of the implementation of Green Growth. To accomplish this goal, a detailed analysis of the current Korean sustainability system, Green Growth, was then undertaken given this is the current policy guidance for the Korean construction industry. To garner further input on the direction of sustainability policy and methods in Korea, in-depth interviews with professionals in relevant construction-related businesses were conducted. In addition, the study conducts an analysis how sustainable development has occurred in the U.S. construction industry to determine what the driving forces that could transfer and be of assistance to Korea. A preliminary sustainability system framework is developed along with associated guidelines. The guidelines suggest that sustainability policy directed towards the Korean construction industry should be apparent so that stakeholder can implement it with consistency and detail. Also suggested is a movement away from the current policy that largely focuses on green building to one that is more holistic and includes infrastructure and other aspects of the built, environmental, and socio-economic systems. In this light, the primary concept of the policy aligns with the sustainability concept of the triple bottom line: environment, economy and society. Through the feedback from a performance measurement system, the policy is evaluated and is adjusted to stimulate the Green Growth over the construction industry in South Korea.Item Sustainable Water Supply: Rainwater Harvesting for Multistoried Residential Apartments in Dhaka, Bangladesh(2009-05-15) Sultana, FarzanaRainwater harvesting is a familiar term for Bangladesh. People in areas that lack drinking water, particularly the coastal areas and the rural areas in the country, practice rain water harvesting. The high annual rainfall in the country makes rainwater harvesting a logical solution for the arsenic contamination of ground water in Bangladesh (Rahman et al. 2003). Also, the increasing population in the urban as well as rural areas is putting increased load on underground aquifers which is evident in the fact that the piezometric level in Dhaka has decreased by more than 65 feet in the last decade. The annual rain fall that the city receives may be an effective answer to the recharge of aquifers. Rain water harvesting during the rainy season can reduce the increasing load on groundwater levels. This study aims to provide some guidelines for economic rainwater harvesting system, especially for urban areas for specific user groups. These guidelines were formulated through literature review, analysis of some case studies on rainwater harvesting, and, to a certain extent, practical experience of the researcher. Data from secondary sources have also been used for the purpose. The guidelines have been formulated using existing data on rainwater harvesting systems. Based on these guidelines, a mathematical model has been developed to figure out cistern sizes for collection of rainwater. The solution is applied to a typical plan of an apartment house in Dhaka (multistoried) using programming and visualization so as to demonstrate the scope and benefit of integration of rain water harvesting technique with the architectural design. The harvested rainwater definitely does not meet the basic domestic requirement, but supplements it during the rainy season which, most importantly, is usable for individual household use. Large-scale rainwater harvesting also, hopefully, results in a decrease of seasonal flooding in the urban areas. The products of this research are a) a computer program for sizing cisterns and b) an animation of the proposed rainwater harvesting system that may be used as a tool to demonstrate the benefits of the technique.Item The long-term development of a watershed: spatial patterns, streamflow, and sustainability(Texas A&M University, 2005-02-17) DeFee, Buren Brooks, IIThis study examines the relationship between the developing landscape and the water flowing through it. The study area was an 86 sq. mi. watershed located in the coastal plains in Harris County, Texas. Daily streamflow data for 52 years was obtained from USGS and coincident precipitation data was obtained from NOAA. Georeferenced parcel-level data was obtained from the Harris County Appraisal District with sufficient detail to determine year of development, parcel area, and impervious cover. Watershed boundaries were obtained from the Harris County Flood Control District. After controlling for daily precipitation, streamflow exhibited significant increases at all levels over time. Increasing streamflow was not associated with climate change. FRAGSTATS was used to quantify spatial patterns in the developed landscape on an annual basis. Regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between spatial and non-spatial measures of development and streamflow. It was found that models based on the spatial configuration of the developed landscape predict streamflow better than non-spatial measures such as total impervious cover. Several metrics were identified for their potential use as guidelines for urban planning.Item Urban-Architectural Design After Exile: Communities in Search of a Minor Architecture(2012-08-30) Angell, Bradley 1976-This dissertation analogically applies a framework of minor literary analysis to uniquely political units of the built environment. As urbanism is conventionally understood to be executed per the greatest utility of established communal objectives, an underlying politicization is inherent as such forms must adhere to dominant norms of development which potentially marginalize those who practice cultural methods outside normative standards. Employing a uniquely architectural method of environmental justice advocacy, select communities facing disenfranchisement react by self-producing urban-architectural forms ("UAFs") to protect threatened cultural values from marginalization. Installed to subvert the existing power dynamic, such UAFs are potential exhibitions of minor architecture. Adopting the analytical standards established by Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari for evaluating Franz Kafka's literature, this paper tests six UAFs to discover if a minor architecture is possible under contemporary globalization. Employing an enumerated framework of minor production characteristics, an interpretive-historical analysis is the primary method of judgment regarding each unit's execution of minor architecture. Two secondary tests are undertaken to validate the primary findings, the first of which is a physio-logical evaluation that characterizes and measures urban resource utility as per collective minority aims. Second, a newspaper correlation test is undertaken so as to judge the enunciative effectiveness of each community per issues of minority politics. Of the six cases examined, two have their source in cinema including "Bartertown" of MAD MAX BEYOND THUNDERDOME (1985) and the "House on Paper Street" of FIGHT CLUB (1999). The four remaining cases include the Tibetan Government-in-Exile of Dharamsala, India; Student Bonfire of Robertson County, Texas; Isla Vista Recreation & Park District of Santa Barbara County, California; and the Emergent Cannabis Community of Arcata, California. Of all the cases studied, only the Tibetan Government-in-Exile met both the conditions of minor architecture and was validated in terms of practiced urban resource use as well as effective representation in mainstream newsprint. Both cinematic cases failed as minor productions of the built environment. Although they did not find full validation, the three remaining real-world UAFs each were found on a course of minor architectural expression at varying stages of execution.