What to Know About Extreme Weather Events

The extreme weather events that have characterized climate change intensify global water stress, making access safe to drinking water more difficult (UNICEF, par.1). As such, water suppliers have had to rely on alternative sources of clean water, such as desalinated seawater and recycled wastewater. Membrane Distillation (MD) is a promising technology that 

The above reason makes Allyson's subject of research a very significant one. I am glad she has done her research well and elaborately. The presentation is well planned, and the points are well organized logically and systematically. She is very accurate with her points, effectively communicates, and articulates her points very clearly. 

However, throughout her presentation, Allyson lacks enthusiasm, an essential communication tool (Young, par.1). At the same time, she chose to make the presentation a one-man show and wasted all the opportunities she had to engage her audience. The speech was a bit long and containing numerous formulae, something she should have used to her advantage to engage her audience while handling the diagrams and formulae. Since her presentation had various sub-topics, it could have prudent for her to offer an opportunity for the audience to ask questions at least after every two subtopics. When she chooses to support her argument with facts and statistics, for instance, at 5.29, when she outlines the volume of water distillate per day, it would be better to clarify whether those figures are from her research or show where she draws them from. 

Zhao's reaction to Allyson's response revealed dissatisfaction. When Allyson inquires whether she has fully answered Zao, the latter simply laughs. Allyson moves on, however, paying no attention to that. In my view, despite having the content, Allyson needs to work on her communication skills. Effective communication is not just about passing the information. It is instinctive and encompasses emotions. 

Works Cited 

Water and the global climate crisis: 10 things you should know."  UNICEF , 20 Mar. 2020, www.unicef.org/stories/water-and-climate-change-10-things-you-should-know#:~:text=Extreme%20weather%20events%20and%20changes,for%20the%20most%20vulnerable%20children.&text=Climate%20change%20exacerbates%20water%20stress,competition%20for%20water%2C%20even%20conflict. 

Young, Scott H. "Enthusiasm."  Scott H Young – Blog , May 2006, www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2006/05/02/enthusiasm/#:~:text=Enthusiasm%20is%20a%20great%20communication,that%20communication%20is%20greatly%20improved. 

Student’s Name 

Instructor’s Name 

Course Name 

Due Date 

Reaction Paper for Seminar 2: Human-building-emergency Interactions and Emergency Response 

Social environment and building environment have a fundamental impact on human safety in emergencies. This makes human-building-emergency interactions a significant point of focus, yet available literature has left it greatly unexplored. I find Runhe Zhu’s presentation particularly interesting because it addresses a topic in which I am implicitly interested. 

The research presentation is quite significant since it offers more insight into human behaviour during emergencies. According to Zhu et al. (p.13), understanding human behaviour during emergency situations is an essential requirement in enhancing the safety of people. A study by Bayat (par.12) on human reaction to emergencies established that people always tend to follow the crowd as a means of locating their exit from the emergency struck buildings. He noted that this risky behaviour is due to physical constraint and lack of information. Zhu’s research findings are not only in agreement with Bayat’s but also does offer a solution to the same. In his presentation, Zhu noted that when the staircase is less visible, people tend to follow the crowd, but when they improved the exit staircase visibility, people opted to go for the visible staircase rather than follow the crowd. It is a clear indication that building designers should consider making the exit routes more visible to aid human escape and enhance safety in times of emergency. 

The entire presentation is fascinating. Zhu organized well for the presentation and went to great length to explain his points in details. Although his presentation is characterized by excessive use of filler words, the ideas in his speech vividly come out. He makes the session interactive by letting his audience ask questions which he answers satisfactorily and is not in a hurry to proceed until the audience express their satisfaction in the answer he has given. As McGaughey noted, getting data from a real emergency or a drill would add more value to the research. 

Works Cited 

Bayat, N. "Panic and human behavior in fire & emergency situations | CTIF."  CTIF - International Association of Fire Services for Safer Citizens through Skilled Firefighters , 10 July 2018, www.ctif.org/news/panic-and-human-behavior-fire-emergency-situations. 

Zhu, R., et al. "Human-building-emergency interactions and their impact on emergency response performance: A review of the state of the art."  Safety Science , vol. 127, 2020, p. 104691, sci-hub.se/10.1016/j.ssci.2020.104691. 

Student’s Name 

Instructor’s Name 

Course Name 

Due Date 

Reaction Paper for Seminar 3: Energy Efficiency of Desalination 

As global water stress worsens daily due to climate change, pollution, and the ever-increasing human population, desalination has proven to be a basic toolset in dealing with the water shortage. However, pundits have argued that this process is not a viable one due to the high operating costs it occasioned by high energy consumption (Werft, par.11). Shihong Lin’s presentation is of great significance as it seeks to address the energy challenge in desalination. 

To comprehensively address the energy consumption of desalination, it is necessary to achieve an intuitive coherence of energy efficiency. However, this has not been possible since each of the various desalination processes uses a different mechanism. Shihong’s research gives a breakdown of the energy efficiency of the different desalination mechanisms. The use of graphs makes it easier for the audience to understand the TEE, basically the ratio between the specific energy consumption and the specific Gibbs free energy. 

I have always wondered why Reverse Osmosis (RO) technology has ruled the desalination industry for decades. Due to Shihong's research and effective presentation skills, I now understand why RO is the most mature and competitive technology in the industry. He has vividly demonstrated that other available technologies, such as the multistaged flash (MSF) and ED, have relatively high specific energy consumption (SEC) than RO. SEC is the amount of energy consumed in the desalination process to produce a unit of deionized water (Stillwell & Webber, par.4). Another notable point is that thermal mechanisms tend to be energy in-efficient due to the high energy required to evaporate the water. Other than the excellent research, Shihong utilized effective communication tools in presenting his findings. He allowed questions in between the session, thereby making it more interactive. He also brings the presentation to life by his enthusiasm and onstage energy. 

Works Cited 

Stillwell, Ashlynn, and Michael Webber. "Predicting the Specific Energy Consumption of Reverse Osmosis Desalination."  Water , vol. 8, no. 12, 2016, p. 601, www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/8/12/601/htm. 

Werft, Meghan. "Will Turning Seawater Into Drinking Water Help Water Shortages?"  Global Citizen , 1 Sept. 2016, www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/is-desalination-the-answer-to-water-shortages/#:~:text=The%20only%20way%20desalination%20can,place%20for%20marine%20life%20too.&text=Desalination%20does%20allow%20for%20severely,comes%20at%20a%20high%20cost. 

Student’s Name 

Instructor’s Name 

Course Name 

Due Date 

Reaction Paper for Publication of Qiming Wang: Mechanics of Bacteria-assisted Extrinsic Healing 

For quite some time, the concept of medical three-dimension (3D) printing remained an ambitious pipe dream. When finally, it materialized, it was received with great anticipation and has been under the spotlight since. Its ability to fabricate ceramic components of haphazardly complex shapes (Chen et al., p.662) has offered significant hope and opportunities in treating fractures. This hope has, however, been dogged by challenges. 

Despite its great potential, the technology has had a persistent challenge in that the 3D printed ceramics have proven to be so susceptible to fractures and damages (Eckel et al, par.1). This article, "Mechanics of bacteria-assisted extrinsic healing," is both exciting and inspiring as it offers a solution to this longstanding problem and takes medical 3D printing a step higher. Wang et al. are convinced that the new technology will make 3D printed ceramics more tolerant to damage and fractures. Another challenge present with this paradigm is that all available healable ceramics only work under oxidation and re-sintering at too high temperatures. The advancement engineered by Wang et al. will enable the healing of ceramic at room temperature, a development that will expand the application of self-healing ceramics. 

Mr. Wang and his colleagues present very strong assertions of how their proposed paradigm will revolutionize the medical 3D printing and self-healing ceramics medication. However, they fail to explain how exactly this is going to be achievable. For instance, when they say it will support healing of ceramics at room temperature, I would expect them to state what is it that is missing in the existing ceramics that make it rely on high temperatures for healing, and what they have done to counter that to be so confident that the high temperatures will no longer be necessary. When they say the new paradigm will improve the 3D printed ceramics' tolerance to damage and fracture, what mechanism will that be achieved? The research is of great value to medical 3D printing; however, the researchers ought to present their findings more elaborately. 

Works Cited 

Chen, Zhangwei, et al. "3D Printing of Ceramics: A Review."  Elsevier , sci-hub.se/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2018.11.013. 

Eckel, Zak C., et al. "Additive Manufacturing of Polymer-derived Ceramics."  Science , 1 Jan. 2016, science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6268/58. 

Wang, Qimig, et al. "Mechanics of bacteria-assisted extrinsic healing."  Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids , vol. 139, 2020, p. 103938. 

Student’s Name 

Instructor’s Name 

Course Name: 

Due Date 

Reaction Paper for Publication of Azim Eskandarian: A Probabilistic Approach to Driver Assistance for Delay Reduction at Congested Highway Lane Drops 

Highway driving calls for both skills and knowledge on the design and functionalities of the highway. Lane changes are one of the critical fundamentals of highway driving. These maneuvers, which are a primary method of navigating the highways, are affected by various factors such as the state of nearby vehicles, urgency of changing lanes, and driving behavior (Mehr & Eskandarian, p.1). During these maneuvers, any slight mistake is costly and accounts for four to ten percent of all road carnages reported in the US ( Mehra & Eskandariana , P.1). The research by Mehra and Eskandariana is timely, coming at a time when there is a growing need to curb the menace of motor vehicle accidents due to road traffic not only in the US but globally. 

The theoretical findings of the research are synonymous with the practical situation on the roads. Their simulation established that as vehicle density increases, lane changes by motorists result in further traffic disruptions and delays. The proposed system reduced the delay by up to 18.8 percent in this simulation ( Mehra & Eskandariana , p.7). By this, I am convinced that if this case scenario is replicated in a practical road situation, the system will eliminate delays and enhance smooth lane changes. 

There are, however, two critical limitations of this research that the authors have inadequately addressed and which, in my view, will need further study. When there are fewer vehicles on the road, a situation they denote as r=10% representing 4400 vehicles, the system has minimal impact ( Mehra & Eskandariana , p.7). Yet, it is at such times that accidents occur mostly due to over speeding and lane-changes errors by motorists (National Safety Council, par.6). The second limitation occurs where no advanced warning system was present; what the authors have cod named p 1 . The introduction of the warning system has a negative impact on traffic flow ( Mehra & Eskandariana , p.7). This is the exact opposite of the reason for which the research was developed, and the authors need to address it adequately. 

Works Cited 

Mehr, Goodarz, and Azim Eskandarian. "Estimating the Probability That a Vehicle Reaches a Near-Term Goal State Using Multiple Lane Changes."  ResearchGate , Apr. 2020, www.researchgate.net/publication/340826696_Estimating_the_Probability_That_a_Vehicle_Reaches_a_Near-Term_Goal_State_Using_Multiple_Lane_Changes. 

Mehra, Goodarz, and Azim Eskandariana. "A Probabilistic Approach to Driver Assistance for Delay Reduction at Congested Highway Lane Drops." https://arxiv.org/pdf/2007.14232.pdf 

Motor Vehicle Fatality Rates Jump 14% in March Despite Quarantines."  National Safety Council , 20 May 2020, www.nsc.org/in-the-newsroom/motor-vehicle-fatality-rates-jump-14-in-march-despite-quarantines. 

Student’s Name 

Instructor’s Name 

Course Name 

Due Date 

Addressing Occupant Comfort from the Occupant Interaction Perspective 

Various building designs and structures of operation affect the indoor environmental quality (IEQ). IEQ refers to the quality of a building's environment in the prospects of the thermal environment, olfactory, illumination levels, acoustic environments, and occupant interactions (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, par.1). The IEQ directly impacts and correlates with human response factors such as health, comfort, productivity, and well-being (Brager, p.192). 

Problem statement 

The design of a building has a crucial role in determining whether or not the interior of the building will be comfortable and healthy for the human occupants. An assertion has always been made that green buildings have a better IEQ compared to conventional buildings as far as occupants’ comfort is concerned. When occupants have higher comfort and satisfaction, they become more productive (Brager, p.192). However, the question of comfort appears to have been centered more on the quality of the building’s environment at the expense of the interaction experience of the occupants of the building. As a result, designers have focused more on the quality of design leaving the interactive perspective widely unattended to. It would be important to pay attention to the impacts of occupants’ interaction within the built environment on comfort and satisfaction. More specifically, the research is premised on the following questions 

What elements influence the human perception of comfort? 

Does the occupants’ style of interacting with the building elements have an impact on their comfort? 

Does awareness creation impact the way the occupants pursue comfort in interacting with the building? 

Research Objectives 

The research aims to reformulate and expand the concept of occupant comfort from the known quality of building design to a broader scope covering the human occupants' interactive experience. 

Literature Review 

A preliminary review of the available literature shows that previous studies majorly focused on the physical design of the built environment in defining occupant comfort. (Brager, p.192) rightly observed that today's designers do not have the occupant in mind when designing the building plans. He notes the cost of this negligence, which is common with today's designers to be so high, totaling to $60 billion annually in the US alone, an equivalent of a 3% decrease in labor productivity (Brager, p.192). However, he approaches this matter as purely dependent on physical design, merely stating that the comfort and health environments are mainly impacted by interior qualities as influenced by the design of the building (Brager, p.192). Dong and is co-authors pursue a similar course by batter building design is everything that is needed in achieving comfort and productivity (Dong et al., p.2), paying no attention to the human interaction aspect. Andargie and colleagues observed that comfort is affected by various factors, including indoor environmental conditions, outdoor environmental conditions, building characteristics, and occupant-related characteristics (Andargie et al., p.11). They went ahead to explain these factors in detail but went silent on the occupant -related characteristics under which occupant interaction falls. Indeed, very little progress has been made in defining occupant comfort based on human interaction, and there is a need to develop models that take occupant interaction into consideration. 

Methodology 

The research will rely on subjective questionnaires as the sole method of collecting data. This method has, however, been noted to have certain limitations. If the questionnaires are not designed with caution, the research results are likely to be biased (Rattray & Jones, par.6). To address this limitation and minimize biases, an initial interview will be conducted before designing the questionnaire. The questionnaires will also be designed to include open ended questions to offer more insight into the subject matter. This will help in coming up with a better structured questionnaire. The survey will target occupants of buildings in human centered environments such as office buildings and healthcare buildings. 

Works Cited 

Andargie, Maedot S., et al. "A review of factors affecting occupant comfort in multi-unit residential buildings."  Building and Environment , vol. 160, 2019, p. 106182, sci-hub.se/10.1016/j.buildenv.2019.106182. 

Brager, Gail S. "Benefits of Improving Occupant Comfort and Well-being in Buildings."  403 - Forbidden: Access is Denied , src.lafargeholcim-foundation.org/dnl/93603859-d59e-498a-b056-405d16e39171/F13_OrangeWS_Brager.pdf. 

Center for Disease Control and Prevention. "Indoor Environmental Quality."  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , CDC, 16 July 2020, www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/indoorenv/default.html#:~:text=Indoor%20environmental%20quality%20(IEQ)%20refers,who%20occupy%20space%20within%20it.&text=Workers%20are%20often%20concerned%20that,the%20buildings%20where%20they%20work. 

Dong, Bing, et al. "Modeling occupancy and behavior for better building design and operation—A critical review."  Building Simulation , vol. 11, no. 5, 2018, pp. 899-921, www.researchgate.net/publication/325874774_Modeling_occupancy_and_behavior_for_better_building_design_and_operation-A_critical_review. 

Rattray, Janice, and Martyn C. Jones. "Essential elements of questionnaire design and development."  Journal of Clinical Nursing , vol. 16, no. 2, 2007, pp. 234-243, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2006.01573.x.