Two-copula based simulation for detention basin design

This article presents a Monte Carlo simulation model based on Clayton copula to generate synthetic sequences of rainfall storms whose likelihood of occurrence is in consonance with historical records. These sequences are used as rainfall input data for the Storm Water Management Model to analyse a 3 km² watershed in the city of Granada, Spain. The objective of our study is to estimate the optimal volume of a detention basin that would solve the problem created by a downstream combined sewer system (CSS), part of which is undersized and which cannot be enlarged without considerable cost. In this model, the synthetic rainfall sequences provide multiple inputs to the CSS model, which produce a range of model outputs. Risk-based analysis of these outputs helps to quantify the variability of the CSS response. As a result, our model enables decisions based on the comparison of expected outcomes and the costs of different choices. The rainfall storms are represented as a sequence of rectangular pulses, whose occurrences are driven by a Poisson process with a given arrival rate. Both storm durations and average storm intensities are fitted as Pareto distributions and the dependence between these variables is described using Clayton copula.     

The effect of water on the thermal transitions of fish scales from Arapaima Gigas

Fish scales are collagen based structures that display interesting mechanical properties, particularly in the wet state. In this paper we study the effect of water content on the thermal transitions of scales from the Amazonian fish Arapaima Gigas by means of Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC) tests. The endothermic peaks found are discussed and the results are compared with previous studies of other collagen based structures. The peaks observed were found to depend on the water content of the samples. The role of water on the thermal stability of fish scales is discussed. The peak temperature related to the denaturation of collagen was found to increase with increasing water content. Hence, samples with higher water content were more thermally stable than samples with lower water content. This tendency is contradictory with regard to that observed on other collagen based structures such as bones and tendons.     

Integrating “standard” residents into “non-standard” communities: a longitudinal analysis of social capital in a new urbanist development

This article examines how levels of social capital in a new urbanist community change over time. We collected demographic and social capital data in a new urbanist community in 2001 and then again in 2010. The findings indicate that this community experienced an overall decline in social capital over this nine-year period. Additionally, we found that while residents new to the community were less concerned with social capital than long-term residents in the community, the latter group had also declined significantly in their levels of social capital. Overall, the results suggest that planners of new urbanist and other intentional communities should consider the impact of changing demographics when designing new subdivisions. Most importantly, residents and community leaders need to consider alternative means by which social capital can be retained as new residents are integrated into established communities.