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VenSpec is a spectrometer suite on board ESA's EnVision mission to planet Venus, due for launch in November 2031. VenSpec consists of three spectrometers, VenSpec-M, VenSpec-U and VenSpec-H. VenSpec-H stands for Ven us Spec trometer with H igh resolution. It operates in the near-infrared wavelength range between 1.15 and 2.5 μm and it aims at mapping the near surface atmosphere during the night and the atmosphere above the cloud deck during the day. More specific, VenSpec-H will measure gases related to volcanism and surface changes on Venus. It will perform its measurements by means of nadir observations. In this paper an overview is given of the main design requirements, followed by a description of the design activities performed during the feasibility study (phase A) and the preliminary definition (phase B1) of the instrument, including mathematical modeling and analysis, and prototyping. Focus is put on the optical working principle of the instrument, where an echelle grating, used as diffractive element, is combined with an inventive combination of filters for spectral band selection. The design and development of VenSpec-H is done in a consortium under Belgian management and with important contributions from Belgian, Swiss, Spanish, and Dutch research institutes, universities, and industrial partners. • A combination of an echelle grating and a band selector for planetary atmosphere observation. • Cooled spectrometer in orbit around Venus. • Thermal and structural compliance to stringent mission and environmental requirements. • Protecting the instrument against ATOX fluences during aerobraking. • Design of an instrument with appropriate life time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Translation abstract Sustainability certification systems for road infrastructure projects – An overview and critical comparisonThis article provides an overview of current sustainability certification systems (SCS) for road infrastructure projects. The construction industry contributes significantly to global resource consumption and CO2 emissions. As a result, the demand for SCS and sustainable solutions has increased in recent years. SCS provide stakeholders with important decision‐making tools and information on sustainability performance in all project phases. The present analysis focuses on the BREEAM Infrastructure, SUNRA, LCE4ROADS, SPeAR, Greenroads, Envision and BASt systems, addressing aspects such as applicability, certified project phases, assessment methodology and sustainability dimensions. The results show that the considered systems are similar in structure, but differ in their weighting, the relationship between the sustainability dimensions and the definition of the indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: Leadership within medical academic institutions often adheres to hierarchical structures, relying on factors like seniority and context, with limited focus on leadership development. This study aims to develop a structured framework by examining the traits, aspirations, and pre-requisites of academic leaders within medical school faculties. METHODS: A cross-sectional study collected input from regular medical faculty and those in leadership roles through an online questionnaire, followed by quantitative and qualitative analyses. Data was curated, analyzed, and triangulated to establish subdomains, domains, and themes for the framework. RESULTS: Among 229 respondents, 121 held formal academic leadership roles, the remaining 108 were regular medical faculty. And 92% of regular faculty cited lack of experience and training as significant barriers to effective leadership. Both groups agreed on the need for intensive leadership training, as 85% of leaders and 66% of regular faculty lacked formal academic leadership training. The concept of affiliative leadership was favored by 45% of leaders. Qualitative analysis and subtheme triangulation led to the development of the 6 Es Framework for Leadership in Academic Medicine (FLAM). This framework encompasses: ethics (accountability and role modeling), education (structured curriculum and training), envision (clear path and talent identification), engagement (structural foundation and attainable goals), empowerment (fostering passion), and encouragement (financial incentives). CONCLUSION: This research reinforces the necessity of structured leadership development in academic medicine. The unique attributes of the 6Es FLAM have the potential to enhance leadership in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We evaluate the efficacy and safety of UGN-102 chemoablation for the primary treatment of patients with recurrent low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer. Materials and Methods: ENVISION is an ongoing, multinational, single-arm, phase 3 study in patients with a biopsy-proven recurrence of untreated low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer. Patients received 6 weekly intravesical instillations of UGN-102 (mitomycin; outpatient setting) and were evaluated at 3 months. Patients achieving complete response (CR; negative cystoscopic examination, cytology, and for-cause biopsy) were surveilled regularly until recurrence, progression, or death. Patients who remain disease-free will be followed up to 5 years, and further results will be reported in the future. Results: Of 240 patients enrolled, 228 (95%) received all 6 planned doses; 191 (80%; 95% CI, 73.9-84.5) achieved CR at 3 months, with an 82% (95% CI, 75.9-87.1) probability of response 12 months later. Median duration of response was not estimable over a median 13.9-month follow-up period. The most common adverse events (≥5.0% of patients) were dysuria, hematuria, UTI, pollakiuria, fatigue, and urinary retention; generally mild/moderate and resolved/resolving. Serious adverse events were observed in 29/240 (12.1%); 2 were treatment related (urinary retention/urethral stenosis), and both resolved. Conclusions: Primary chemoablation with UGN-102 in patients with recurrent low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer resulted in an 80% CR rate. Patients achieving a CR had an 82% likelihood of remaining disease-free 1 year later. The benefit-risk profile was favorable, supporting UGN-102 as a nonsurgical alternative for transurethral resection of bladder tumors in this patient population. Limitations of this study included lack of tumor sizing after the diagnostic biopsy. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05243550 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infrastructure decisions today significantly impact future generations' quality of life, especially as severe storms and rising sea levels increasingly threaten communities across the United States. Decision-makers at all levels, including those involved in disaster prevention and response, must address climate change. However, those in infrastructure design and construction often prioritize immediate gains over long-term resilience. Engineering teams typically employ decision tools to manage complexity, but these methods may not highlight the long-term consequences of their choices. This study tests whether integrating Virtual Reality (VR) technology with engineering decision-making tools, can enhance engineers’ ability to visualize the future impacts of their infrastructure projects. A group of engineering students (n = 56) was given a case study on updating roadwork systems in Norfolk, Virginia, an area vulnerable to flooding. The control group viewed images depicting current and future conditions of sea-level rise (year 2100), while the intervention group experienced the same information but through an immersive VR scenario. Participants selected achievement levels for each credit using the Envision system, with total points reflecting the resilience and sustainability of decisions. The results indicate that participants who engaged with the VR experience, achieved higher scores than those who received the images. The results also indicate a variation in VR's impact based on political affiliation, with Democrats responding more positively to the VR experience than Republicans. The findings highlight that integrating VR into decision-making tools can be a crucial advancement in infrastructure planning, enabling engineers to make more informed, sustainable choices for a resilient future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infrastructure plays the largest role in the amount of annual emissions, so much so that investments promoted in the European Union must be subjected to a careful assessment of the sustainability of projects. The current landscape for assessing the sustainability of infrastructure is varied and complex. Considering the object of the assessment methodologies (such as the Environmental Impact Assessment or the Ecological Management System) and specific tools such as Envision, there is a shift from the infrastructure in itself and the company's actions to promoting sustainable development. This article introduces a methodology to examine how tools used in environmental impact assessments of transport infrastructure projects, regardless of the actor implementing them, align with different sustainable development objectives. Moreover, it identifies the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a reference point that can be used in estimating the validity of these instruments. This paper also validates the methodology proposed in our study, by comparing the results obtained on the Envision model with those obtained from its application in a case study regarding the Terzo Valico dei Giovi, a railway infrastructure in Italy. The article shows that although the final target is in many respects the same, the nuances with which actors pursue sustainability through the different instruments vary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Dravet syndrome (DS) is a developmental and epileptic encephalopathy characterized by high seizure burden, treatment‐resistant epilepsy, and developmental stagnation. Family members rate communication deficits among the most impactful disease manifestations. We evaluated seizure burden and language/communication development in children with DS. Methods: ENVISION was a prospective, observational study evaluating children with DS associated with SCN1A pathogenic variants (SCN1A+ DS) enrolled at age ≤5 years. Seizure burden and antiseizure medications were assessed every 3 months and communication and language every 6 months with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development 3rd edition and the parent‐reported Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales 3rd edition. We report data from the first year of observation, including analyses stratified by age at Baseline: 0:6–2:0 years:months (Y:M; youngest), 2:1–3:6 Y:M (middle), and 3:7–5:0 Y:M (oldest). Results: Between December 2020 and March 2023, 58 children with DS enrolled at 16 sites internationally. Median follow‐up was 17.5 months (range =.0–24.0), with 54 of 58 (93.1%) followed for at least 6 months and 51 of 58 (87.9%) for 12 months. Monthly countable seizure frequency (MCSF) increased with age (median [minimum–maximum] = 1.0 in the youngest [1.0–70.0] and middle [1.0–242.0] age groups and 4.5 [.0–2647.0] in the oldest age group), and remained high, despite use of currently approved antiseizure medications. Language/communication delays were observed early, and developmental stagnation occurred after age 2 years with both instruments. In predictive modeling, chronologic age was the only significant covariate of seizure frequency (effect size =.52, p =.024). MCSF, number of antiseizure medications, age at first seizure, and convulsive status epilepticus were not predictors of language/communication raw scores. Significance: In infants and young children with SCN1A+ DS, language/communication delay and stagnation were independent of seizure burden. Our findings emphasize that the optimal therapeutic window to prevent language/communication delay is before 3 years of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The one step combination of an objective particle in a similar response vessel is generally viewed as an effective methodology in manufactured natural science. Several one step synthesis of biologically active molecules, primarily employing organo catalytic methods, is discussed in this overview, along with their strengths and weaknesses. The one step economy ideas presented here are not only applicable to catalysis but also to organometallic and organic reaction techniques in general. A synthesis that requires multiple steps could instead be carried out in a single reaction flask with a one step synthesis. Envision that a union including numerous means expects that you stir up the response at each step, then decontaminate and carry on the material to the following stage. During workup and/or purification, you will, of course, lose some materials regardless of how cautiously you move chemicals from flask to flask. As a result, I believe that the fact that it is less likely to lose material during workup and purification is the most significant advantage. The use of chemicals and solvents is cost-effective, which is the second benefit. If the reaction needs to be worked up at each step, you will almost always need to use solvents that will eventually go to waste. Multiple-step one-flask synthesis would only require final workup at the final step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several rating definitions must be met following the envision's system. The envisioned system aims to develop the green building concept in the existing jetty building. These definitions are quality of life, leadership, resource allocation, nature, climate, and resilience. This sustainability is needed to initiate changes in the planning, design, and provision of sustainable infrastructure together with the company. This also applies to implementing long-term infrastructure investments that are more cost-effective, resource-efficient, and adaptable. The study uses a qualitative and quantitative method, where data is obtained by distributing questionnaires and simulating using Statistical Products and Solution Services (SPSS). The application of Value Engineering (VE) and Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) has been chosen by researchers on existing jetty buildings with the green jetty concept, with investment costs in economic green jetty buildings and a return on investment costs of less than four years. In achieving the ten most influential factors in improving cost performance in sustainable dock construction, the results of the SPSS simulation processing obtained the ten most influential factors, namely: Planning, Energy, Siting, Materials, Ecology, Community, Economy, Operation, and Maintenance Cost, Follow-up Inspection, and Labor Experience.

Civil infrastructures as the foundation of social, environmental, and economic development are facing many challenges, such as the optimal use of natural resources as a result of population growth and climate change. Therefore, previous standards and methods of development are not capable of meeting future needs and the sustainability of infrastructure projects has become a fundamental issue for developing countries like Iran. To address the need of enhancing the infrastructure's performance, this research aimed at introducing an appropriate tool for sustainability assessment by customizing an infrastructure sustainability rating system (Envision) according to Iran's conditions. Accordingly, the credits’ list was firstly investigated through in-depth interviews with experts. Then, the validity for each credit’s existence was assessed through the Likert spectrum. Finally, the weights were revised based on the context-specific circumstances using the paired comparison technique. Alongside the five newly added credits, the research’s findings regarding the main groups’ weights including the Quality of Life, Natural Environment, Resource Allocation, Climate and Resilience, and Leadership highlight the significance of paying more attention to the social aspect of sustainability. The results were structured in a framework consisting of five main groups, 14 subgroups, and 69 credits with new points. The results of this research can be useful in not only the infrastructure’s performance improvement but also enhancing the decision-making process for infrastructure development. Accordingly, investigating the implementation of the proposed framework in Iran’s infrastructure projects, and its application by policymakers and planners is highly recommended for future studies.

Radar sounders (RSs) are gaining importance in planetary missions thanks to their unique capability of providing direct measurements of subsurface (SS) structures. To support their design and data interpretation, several electromagnetic (e.m.) simulation techniques have been developed with enhanced capabilities for emulating the RS acquisition process. However, the raw simulated radargrams obtained from e.m. simulators are difficult to interpret and analyze without a focusing operation, which results in an underestimation of the RS detection performance. While frequency methods for range and azimuth compression of real RS data are well-established, their use on simulated data is not addressed in the literature and requires major modifications. This article presents a novel method that implements azimuth compression using unfocused and focused processing on simulated raw data. The proposed method is based on an adaptation of the range-Doppler algorithm to the case of raw data generated by a coherent RS simulator. The method is demonstrated in three case studies to show the similarity between simulated and real data processing: 1) simple geometries; 2) a simulated SHAllow RADar (SHARAD) radargram compared with the real data product; and 3) a real application scenario for supporting the design of a new RS instrument. The results indicate higher fidelity of the focused simulated data with the real data product and the target structure, confirming the usefulness of the proposed approach in obtaining realistic processing of simulated radargrams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Restoring wide areas of fire excluded western US landscapes to fuel limited, fire resilient systems where fires self-regulate and burn with low or mixed severity will require expanded use of both prescribed and natural fire, coupled with strategic mechanical fuels management. However, optimal admixtures of fire and fuel management to set landscapes on trajectories to improve fire resilience and conserve carbon are not well understood. Objectives: To understand the effect of accelerating restoration and fuel management in response to potential future fire regimes on a large fire excluded mixed-owner forest landscape. Methods: We simulated 50-year wildfire and active forest management scenarios on a multi-owner landscape in southcentral Oregon, crossed in a factorial design with a range of wildfire and forest management intensities. Results: Wildfire was more efficient at reducing potential high-severity fire, whereas restoration treatments created patches of fire resilient old forest, especially on federally managed land. With some exceptions, both disturbances reduced aboveground carbon over time, although the magnitude varied among the combinations of fire and active management intensities. We observed interactive effects from specific combinations of fire and management in landscape response metrics compared to stand-alone disturbances. Conclusions: Fire and active management have similar landscape outcomes for some but not all restoration objectives, and active management will be required under future predicted fire regimes to conserve and create fire resilient old forest. Achieving widespread fire resilient forest structure will be limited by divergent landowner management behaviors on mixed-owner landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of UGN-102 chemoablation for the primary treatment of patients with recurrent low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer., Materials and Methods: ENVISION is an ongoing, multinational, single-arm, Phase 3 study in patients with a biopsy-proven recurrence of untreated low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer. Patients received 6 weekly intravesical instillations of UGN-102 (mitomycin; outpatient setting) and were evaluated at 3 months. Patients achieving complete response (CR; negative cystoscopic examination, cytology, and for-cause biopsy) were surveilled regularly until recurrence, progression, or death. Patients who remain disease-free will be followed up to 5 years, and further results will be reported in the future., Results: Of 240 patients enrolled, 228 (95%) received all 6 planned doses; 191 (79.6%; 95% CI, 73.9-84.5) achieved CR at 3 months, with an 82.3% (95% CI, 75.9-87.1) probability of response 12 months later. Median duration of response was not estimable over a median 13.9-month follow-up period. The most common adverse events (≥5.0% of patients) were dysuria, hematuria, urinary tract infection, pollakiuria, fatigue, and urinary retention; generally mild/moderate and resolved/resolving. Serious adverse events were observed in 29/240 (12.1%), 2 were treatment-related (urinary retention/urethral stenosis), both resolved., Conclusions: Primary chemoablation with UGN-102 in patients with recurrent low-grade intermediate-risk nonmuscle-invasive bladder cancer resulted in a 79.6% CR rate. Patients achieving a CR had an 82.3% likelihood of remaining disease-free 1 year later. The benefit-risk profile was favorable, supporting UGN-102 as a nonsurgical alternative for transurethral resection of bladder tumors in this patient population. Limitations of this study included lack of tumor sizing after the diagnostic biopsy., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05243550.

Occidentalism is the envision for the West of authors living out of West. Similar with the act of Western authors towards orientalism, occidentalism is an attempt to code West in various ways and perceive it in a certain model, and is a conscious or unconscious way of thinking activated in the first encounter with West and transformed throughout life. The belatedness sense of non-western societies in modernization causes them to see West as a target and therefore produce West-centered occidentalist texts. Occidentalist discourse does not have a commonality linearly developing in a single line and having same codes. It reflects a hesitation having internal dilemmas and tensions, both demanding to be included and drawing itself back. Reading this tension through literary texts can be guiding in analyzing the discourse of Occidentalism. The present study executes discourse analysis on the biography Özgürlük Peşinde Bir Osmanlı Kadın (An Ottoman Woman in Pursuit of Freedom) and the novel Bir Sürgün (An Exile), which all picture the perspective of Ottoman to West. Thus, the similarities between occidentalist discourses are aimed to be presented in a biography written by a woman named Zeynep Hanım and novel written by Yakup Kadri despite gender difference. Exploring the tensions of Occidentalism, its solutions for problems and the disappointments at the end reveal the problematic relationship of Ottomans with the West, and how literature is built in accordance with this aim. The present study aims to answer the questions as “why do these authors need a perception of West?”, “Which spatial technologies are needed to build the West in their dreams?”, “Why do these two authors get disappointed upon experiencing the reality of West?”, and “What does this difference between truth and dream point out?”. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Fuel management projects on national forests typically have multiple objectives. • Project performance must account for uncertainty in wildfire occurrence. • Performance can be measured by fire-treatment interactions over time. • Wildfire stochasticity limits the potential for fire-treatment interactions. • Spatial prioritization based on burn probability had the highest performance. Abstract Predicting the efficacy of fuel treatments aimed at reducing high severity fire in dry-mixed conifer forests in the western US is a challenging problem that has been addressed in a variety of ways using both field observations and wildfire simulation models. One way to describe the efficacy of fuel treatments is to quantify how often wildfires are expected to intersect areas prioritized for treatment. In real landscapes treatments are static, restricted to a small portion of the landscape and against a background of stochastic fire and dynamic vegetation, thus the likelihood of fire encountering a treatment during the period treatments remain effective is small. In this paper we simulate a wide range of different treatment prioritization schemes using the forest landscape simulation model Envision to examine 50 years of fire-treatment interactions and forest succession. We first reviewed 47 fuel management projects in Oregon, USA to build prioritization schemes that addressed different fuel management objectives. We then simulated different priority schemes in the 18 planning areas of the Deschutes National Forest in central Oregon and measured potential fire-treatment interactions over time. Simulated annual area burned was used to calculate the success odds for each priority scheme and planning area. Out of the ten metrics considered only three had higher success odds than a random prioritization of planning areas. Spatial allocation of projects based on burn probability and transmitted wildfire had the highest success odds among the tested metrics. However, success odds declined sharply as desired success levels increased suggesting that fuel management goals need to be tempered to consider the stochastic nature of wildfire. Meeting long-term multiple management goals over time can benefit from consideration of short- and long-term tradeoffs from different treatment prioritization schemes. Our work contributes towards a better framing of both management and public expectations regarding the performance of fuel treatments programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Coupled models of coastal hazards, ecosystems, socioeconomics, and landscape management in conjunction with alternative scenario analysis provide tools that can allow decision-makers to explore effects of policy decisions under uncertain futures. Here, we describe the development and assessment of a set of model-based alternative future scenarios examining climate and population driven landscape dynamics for a coastal region in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. These scenarios incorporated coupled spatiotemporal models of climate and coastal hazards, population and development, and policy and assessed a variety of landscape metrics for each scenario. Coastal flooding and erosion were probabilistically simulated using 99 future 95-year climate scenarios. Five policy scenarios were iteratively co-developed by researchers and stakeholders in Tillamook County, Oregon. Results suggest that both climate change and management decisions have a significant impact across the landscape, and can potentially impact geographic regions at different magnitudes and timescales. Highlights • A framework for comparing adaptation policies under a range of climate impact scenarios is presented. • Probabilistic simulation of total water levels capture coastal flooding and erosion hazards. • Policy scenarios were co-developed with local stakeholders to represent a range of management strategies. • Simulated future landscapes were compared using metrics related to development, property risk, and public good. • Both climate change and management decisions have a significant impact across the coastal landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed and applied a wildfire simulation package in the Envision agent-based landscape modelling system. The wildfire package combines statistical modelling of fire occurrence with a high-resolution, mechanistic wildfire spread model that can capture fine scale effects of fire feedbacks and fuel management, and replicate restoration strategies at scales that are meaningful to forest managers. We applied the model to a landscape covering 1.2 million ha of fire prone area in central Oregon, USA where wildland fires are increasingly impacting conservation, amenity values and developed areas. We conducted simulations to examine the effect of human versus natural ignitions on future fire regimes under current restoration programs, and whether contemporary fire regimes observed in the past 20 years are likely to change as result of fire feedbacks and management activities. The ignition prediction model revealed non-linear effects of location and time of year, and distinct spatiotemporal patterns for human versus natural ignitions. Fire rotation interval among replicate simulations varied from 78 to 170 years and changed little over the 50-yr simulation, suggesting a stable but highly variable and uncertain future fire regime. Interestingly, the potential for fire-on-fire feedbacks was higher for human versus natural ignitions due to human ignition hotspots within the study area. We compare the methods and findings with other forest landscape simulation model (FLSM) studies and discuss future application of FLSMs to address emerging wildfire management and policy issues on fire frequent forests in the western US. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Lipiec, E.; Ruggiero, P.; Mills, A.; Serafin, K.A.; Bolte, J.; Corcoran, P.; Stevenson, J.; Zanocco, C., and Lach, D., 2018. Mapping out climate change: Assessing how coastal communities adapt using alternative future scenarios. Coastal communities are increasingly experiencing climate change–induced coastal disasters and chronic flooding and erosion. Decision makers and the public alike are struggling to reconcile the lack of “fit” between a rapidly changing environment and relatively rigid governance structures. In efforts to bridge this environment-governance gap in Tillamook County, Oregon, stakeholders formed a knowledge-to-action network (KTAN). The KTAN examined alternative future coastal policy and climate scenarios through extensive stakeholder engagement and the spatially explicit agent-based modeling framework Envision. The KTAN's results were further evaluated through a two-step mixed methods approach. First, KTAN-identified metrics were quantitatively assessed and compared under present-day vs. alternative policy scenarios. Second, the feasibility of implementing these policy scenarios was qualitatively evaluated through a review of governmental regulations and semistructured interviews. The findings show that alternative policy scenarios ranged from significantly beneficial to extremely harmful to coastal buildings and beach accessibility in comparison to present-day policies, and they were relatively feasible to almost impossible to implement. Beneficial policies that lower impacts of flooding and erosion clearly diverge from the existing regulatory environment, which inhibits their implementation. In response, leadership and cross-sector cooperation and coordination can help to overcome mixed interests and motivations, and increase information exchange between and within the public and government organizations. The combination of stakeholder engagement, an alternative futures modeling framework, and the robust quantitative and qualitative evaluation of policy scenarios provides a powerful model for coastal communities hoping to adapt to climate change along any coastline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Network for Light Ion Hadron Therapy (ENLIGHT) was established in 2002 following various European particle therapy network initiatives during the 1980s and 1990s (e.g. EORTC task group, EULIMA/PIMMS accelerator design). ENLIGHT started its work on major topics related to hadron therapy (HT), such as patient selection, clinical trials, technology, radiobiology, imaging and health economics. It was initiated through CERN and ESTRO and dealt with various disciplines such as (medical) physics and engineering, radiation biology and radiation oncology. ENLIGHT was funded until 2005 through the EC FP5 programme. A regular annual meeting structure was started in 2002 and continues until today bringing together the various disciplines and projects and institutions in the field of HT at different European places for regular exchange of information on best practices and research and development. Starting in 2006 ENLIGHT coordination was continued through CERN in collaboration with ESTRO and other partners involved in HT. Major projects within the EC FP7 programme (2008–2014) were launched for R&D and transnational access (ULICE, ENVISION) and education and training networks (Marie Curie ITNs: PARTNER, ENTERVISION). These projects were instrumental for the strengthening of the field of hadron therapy. With the start of 4 European carbon ion and proton centres and the upcoming numerous European proton therapy centres, the future scope of ENLIGHT will focus on strengthening current and developing European particle therapy research, multidisciplinary education and training and general R&D in technology and biology with annual meetings and a continuously strong CERN support. Collaboration with the European Particle Therapy Network (EPTN) and other similar networks will be pursued. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study was to integrate a crop model, DNDC (DeNitrification-DeComposition), with life cycle assessment (LCA) and economic analysis models using a GIS-based integrated platform, ENVISION. The integrated model enables LCA practitioners to conduct integrated economic analysis and LCA on a regional scale while capturing the variability of soil emissions due to variation in regional factors during production of crops and biofuel feedstocks. In order to evaluate the integrated model, the corn-soybean cropping system in Eagle Creek Watershed, Indiana was studied and the integrated model was used to first model the soil emissions and then conduct the LCA as well as economic analysis. The results showed that the variation in soil emissions due to variation in weather is high causing some locations to be carbon sink in some years and source of CO 2 in other years. In order to test the model under different scenarios, two tillage scenarios were defined: 1) conventional tillage (CT) and 2) no tillage (NT) and analyzed with the model. The overall GHG emissions for the corn-soybean cropping system was simulated and results showed that the NT scenario resulted in lower soil GHG emissions compared to CT scenario. Moreover, global warming potential (GWP) of corn ethanol from well to pump varied between 57 and 92 g CO 2 -eq./MJ while GWP under the NT system was lower than that of the CT system. The cost break-even point was calculated as $3612.5/ha in a two year corn-soybean cropping system and the results showed that under low and medium prices for corn and soybean most of the farms did not meet the break-even point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expanding the footprint of natural fire has been proposed as one potential solution to increase the pace of forest restoration programs in fire-adapted landscapes of the western USA. However, studies that examine the long-term socio-ecological trade-offs of expanding natural fire to reduce wildfire risk and create fire resilient landscapes are lacking. We used the model Envision to examine the outcomes that might result from increased area burned by what we call “restoration” wildfire in a landscape where the ecological benefits of wildfire are known, but the need to suppress high-risk fires that threaten human values is also evident. Our study area, in the eastern Cascades of Oregon, USA, includes the Deschutes National Forest where large tracts of mixed conifer forest structure are outside the historical range of variation and characterized by multi-layer, closed-canopy stands. We found that simulation of one restoration wildfire per year in addition to high-risk wildfires in the regular fire season and over the course of 50 yr resulted in a 23% increase in total area burned, but the same probability of fire-on-fire interactions. This translated into 0.3% of the national forest burned by restoration wildfire per year and had a small impact in area burned by high-risk fires albeit more likely in extreme fire years. Smoke production doubled in the restoration scenario relative to the scenario without restoration wildfire, but still resulted in minimal smoke production in most years. Restoration fires burned with low- to mixed-severity and led to a steady reduction in canopy cover and increase in resilient forest structure in dry-forest types. Habitat for the federally protected northern spotted owl declined with the inclusion of restoration fire, while habitat for species that use recently burned forest stands (e.g., black-backed woodpecker) increased. Our results suggest that restoration wildfire can improve forest resilience and contribute to restoration efforts in fire-adapted forests, but there are trade-offs (wildlife habitat, smoke, area burned in fire-sensitive forest types), and the level of restoration fire use we simulated is unlikely to have a significant impact on the occurrence of high-severity wildfires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unstoppable world population growth is increasing the concentration of people in urban settlements and the number of megacities, especially in developing countries where urbanization exacerbates social and economic inequalities. Green rating systems have been launched during the last decades to facilitate the assessment of sustainable development in terms of building and infrastructure, including the evaluation of sustainable urban development through the study of communities. This article assesses two of the most renowned sustainable rating systems through the prism of economy, environment and society and the international actions undertaken toward the promotion of sustainable development worldwide, in order to determine their effectiveness to assess urban development in poorer nations. Hence, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighbourhood Development (LEED ND) and Envision, both from the United States, were chosen as representatives of building and infrastructure fields, respectively, so that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda (Habitat III) were the benchmarks selected to define the sustainability aspects required to evaluate their potential application in less developed countries. The absence of metrics in the New Urban Agenda led to relate its commitments to the SDGs, which revealed that the prerequisites and credits included in LEED ND and Envision mainly focused on managerial and environmental aspects and disregarded the economic and social dimensions. Consequently, the premises under which LEED ND and Envision were developed must be updated and complemented with the two latest guidelines recently adopted by the United Nations in the field of urban and sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, several transportation sustainability rating systems (TSRS) have been developed to measure and promote sustainability. However, studies show that these TSRS have not been developed with a consistent sustainability scope. This raises the question of the consistency of these TSRS in measuring the sustainability of transportation projects. This study assesses how three prominent TSRS (Envision, INVEST, and GreenLITES) rate the sustainability performance of transportation projects with the goal of determining if a consistency exists in the way these three TSRS measure sustainability. These three TSRS are applied to five transportation projects. The results showed that these three rating tools assess and reward sustainability practices differently. Additionally, results suggest that it may be easier for a project to get awarded in GreenLITES compared to the other two TSRS. Notwithstanding all of the above, a consistency was noted in all three rating systems in the quality of life/social performance of projects. This study helps to inform stakeholders in the transportation industry on how transportation projects perform when run through each of these rating systems. This will help stakeholders to make informed decisions with respect to choosing one (or more) TSRS to assess their projects with and evaluating the results obtained from such TSRS.

Wildland fire suppression practices in the western United States are being widely scrutinized by policymakers and scientists as costs escalate and large fires increasingly affect social and ecological values. One potential solution is to change current fire suppression tactics to intentionally increase the area burned under conditions when risks are acceptable to managers and fires can be used to achieve long-term restoration goals in fire adapted forests. We conducted experiments with the Envision landscape model to simulate increased levels of wildfire over a 50-year period on a 1.2 million ha landscape in the eastern Cascades of Oregon, USA. We hypothesized that at some level of burned area fuels would limit the growth of new fires, and fire effects on the composition and structure of forests would eventually reduce future fire intensity and severity. We found that doubling current rates of wildfire resulted in detectable feedbacks in area burned and fire intensity. Area burned in a given simulation year was reduced about 18% per unit area burned in the prior five years averaged across all scenarios. The reduction in area burned was accompanied by substantially lower fire severity, and vegetation shifted to open forest and grass-shrub conditions at the expense of old growth habitat. Negative fire feedbacks were slightly moderated by longer-term positive feedbacks, in which the effect of prior area burned diminished during the simulation. We discuss trade-offs between managing fuels with wildfire versus prescribed fire and mechanical fuel treatments from a social and policy standpoint. The study provides a useful modeling framework to consider the potential value of fire feedbacks as part of overall land management strategies to build fire resilient landscapes and reduce wildfire risk to communities in the western U.S. The results are also relevant to prior climate-wildfire studies that did not consider fire feedbacks in projections of future wildfire activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Envision is another tool that expands the teacher's ability to change forms and methods of learning without affecting content or goals. All students in the classroom have wireless mice connected to the teacher's computer. Students perform tasks with the help of their mice or answer questions posed in different ways. Envision is a didactic tool, i.e. its main function is to assist the teacher in teaching and in providing feedback to students. Using the software makes students active, focused. They compete, work simultaneously or in groups. With this publication the author tries to prove that the product has a place in the Bulgarian school, and especially in the mathematics education of the young pupils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the experience of the authors in using specialized educational software in class. Such approach turns students into active participants in the learning process and the learning itself - more enjoyable. The text mentions the advantages of such a method. The authors share their experience in adapting the training to the individual abilities of students, in displaying the curricula, motivating students, introducing a competitive element in the lesson, getting feedback on time, turning the classroom into an interactive environment. An improved quality of education of students expressed in durability of knowledge, interest in acquiring it and in individual studying is achieved as a result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exploration of Venus is increasingly gaining importance in the planetary science community. Recently, EnVision has been selected as the European Space Agency's fifth Medium-class mission with a launch targeted in 2030. The subsurface radar sounder (SRS) instrument on board EnVision aims at profiling the shallow crust of Venus. The current phase of development of SRS focuses on a detailed performance analysis based on 3D simulations of the expected subsurface scenarios. This requires inputs on the composition, roughness, location and geometry of the geological features. However, the high uncertainty in the current knowledge of Venus due to the lack of high-quality data implies that several hypotheses exist for these inputs. The goal of this paper is to identify these hypotheses from the perspective of the scientific objectives of subsurface exploration of Venus' shallow crust. In this context, we identify geological features (a.k.a. targets) that are likely to be associated with subsurface dielectric interfaces. For each target, we review the literature for information on the simulation inputs, analogs of the targets (with possible detection by past radar sounders on other planetary bodies), expected subsurface models representing different hypotheses and the potential role of SRS data in resolving the ambiguities. The material presented here will be critical to support future activities on detailed performance assessment and radar sounder simulations. We also present a map of the potential targets for subsurface sounding, which can support operations planning of SRS. • Definition and analysis of the science objectives of the Subsurface Radar Sounder onboard ESA's EnVision mission. • Identification of subsurface targets and review of their properties. • Analysis of target properties such as dimension, composition, location and geological analogs. • A map of SRS regions of interest is defined and provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A North American survey on current sustainable infrastructure practices among water and wastewater utilities was conducted in April 2014. The survey queried utilities on the types of infrastructure practices they use, ranging from renewable energy to infrastructure repair to demand management. The survey also collected information on utilities' sustainability-related reporting, project evaluation, and decision-making. The survey found that less than half of utilities that responded implement some form of sustainability practice. Of the 125 US respondents, 18% of utilities reported publishing a sustainability policy or vision statement. A large fraction of utilities reported not using sustainability tools or metrics; 26% of respondents reported using no metrics, and 46% of utilities used no sustainability tools. Energy and water audits (30 and 28%, respectively) were by far the most common tools used by utilities to evaluate the sustainability of their infrastructure. Less than 4% of respondents reported using Envision, the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure's rating system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Cognitive limitations lead to suboptimal infrastructure designs. • BIM has been proven effective in facilitating the sustainability analysis of assets. • Sustainability rating systems are reliable sources for comprehensive sustainability measurement. • This research integrates BIM and rating systems to deliver automated, sustainable solutions. With infrastructure services demand rising, a significant contributor to sustainable development goals, infrastructure systems have to evolve and adapt effectively, efficiently, and sustainably. The broad set of decision variables coupled with the trade-off among the economic, social, and environmental aspects complicate sustainability assessment and optimization during the design stage. Thus, this paper presents a Building Information Modeling (BIM)-based automated framework for real-time evaluation and optimization of sustainability in infrastructure projects. The proposed framework benefits from infrastructure sustainability rating systems that provide a systemic and balanced set of indicators for careful consideration of sustainability. On the other hand, to automate the process, BIM, with its 3D shared environment, is used as an integrated platform for dynamic sustainability analysis. The proposed framework integrates both novelties in real-time during the early design stages, which helps designers to select the most sustainable alternative. A prototype and a hypothetical case study are conducted to validate the framework's applicability through Infraworks 360 as the operating BIM platform and Envision as the baseline rating system. The results confirm that adopting the suggested method simplifies the inclusion of sustainability into design decisions while facilitating documentation of compliance with credit assessment for both project teams and verification agencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]