• Publicationsclose
• Article close
• English close
• Digital Humanities and Cultural Heritage close
• Rural Digital Europe close

Abstract. In the last years many efforts have been invested in the cultural heritage digitization: surveying, modelling, diagnostic analysis and historic data collection. Nowadays, this effort is finalized in many cases towards the Historical Building Information Modelling. The number of informative models testifying the multifaceted richness and unicity of the architectural heritage and its components is progressively increasing. Information and Model are generally acquired under researches and analysis phases addressed to the preservation and restoration process. Unfortunately, once concluded the research such documentation is mostly left abandoned in the drawers or in the local memory of the computers, and in some cases totally missed. Just a few of them are saved in a server or in the cloud for the duration of the restoration, but without any connection with the maintenance process of historic architectures or knowledge transfer purposes and dissemination. This data loss would lead to the breaking of the cycle of past, present and future, with loss of memory and knowledge. The paper start facing the aspect of managing the information and models acquired on the case of vaulted systems. Information is collected within a semantic based hub platform to perform cross co-relation at a PanEuropean level. Such functionality allows to reconstruct the rich history of the construction techniques and skilled workers across Europe, enriched by 3 case studies surveyed in Prague region. To this purpose a Vault DB has been undertaken with a Vocabulary enriched by the granular information gained from the HBIM models, and with the vault sub-typologies highlighted by a detailed surveying.

This paper presents a new method for the isolation of displacement from atmospheric fringes. This novel approach is based on complex correlation of interferograms. Compared to other methods, this method has the advantage of requiring only a few interferograms (two at least). Its main limitation is the hypothesis of temporally varying atmospheric conditions between acquisitions (not the same heterogeneities on different interferograms). In the city of Paris, this method reveals 2 subsiding zones. Both have the same location as an important underground working site, which took place from 1995 to 1997. The existence of subsidence in the area was known previously from ground truth data. Their spatial extent can now be mapped by interferometry, and the temporal evolution of the subsidence is also examined here.

Abstract. The recovery phase of an earthquake-affected settlement is a time-consuming and complex process that requires monitoring, which is now possible using UAS. The purpose of this paper is to present the methodology followed and the results obtained by the exploitation of UAS for rapid multitemporal 3D mapping during the recovery phase of Vrisa traditional settlement, Lesvos island, Greece, which was highly damaged by the earthquake (Mw=6.3) on 12th June 2017. More analytically, three (3) flight campaigns covering the period July 2017 – May 2020 took place by means of an UAS for collecting high-resolution images on: i) 19th May 2019, ii) 29th September 2019, iii) 17th May 2020. Structure from Motion (SfM) and Multi Stereo View (MSV) methods have been applied and produced: i) Digital Surface Models – DSMs, ii) 3D Point Clouds – 3DPC and iii) Orthophoto-maps, of Vrisa. In parallel, GIS capabilities has been exploit to calculate building volumes based on: a) DSM produced by UAS image processing, b) DEM produced by 233 RTK measurements and c) building footprints derived by the digitization of the orthophoto-map of 25th July 2017. The methodology developed and implemented achieves extremely reliable results in a relatively easy, fast and economically feasible way, which is confirmed with great precision by field work. By applying the above-described methodology, it was possible to monitoring the recovery phase during July 2017 and May 2020 which 302/340 buildings that had been severely damaged by the earthquake have been demolished. A small number of new buildings have also been rebuilded and small number of buildings that have just begun excavations for their construction. An important parameter for obtaining reliable data and comparable results is the correct selection of flight parameters and their maintenance at all times when it is decided to take data, without affecting the accuracy of the results from taking photos or videos. Automation in the future of the proposed methodology can significantly accelerate the achievement of reliable results without the intermediate interpretation of orthophoto-maps.

Cybersecurity is critical in realizing Internet of Things (IoT) applications and many different standards have been introduced specifically for this purpose. However, selecting relevant standards is not trivial and requires a broad understanding of cybersecurity and knowledge about the available standards. In this study, we present a systematic approach that guides IoT system developers in selecting relevant cybersecurity standards for their IoT projects. The systematic approach has been developed in four stages. First, the common and variant features of IoT cybersecurity have been modeled using a feature model. Second, an up-to-date overview of the IoT cybersecurity standards landscape has been mapped by combining existing overviews. Third, a text mining algorithm has been implemented. Fourth, the systematic approach has been modeled using business process modeling notation. Our case study demonstrated that this approach is effective and efficient for guiding the selection of IoT cybersecurity standards. 2021 The Authors. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library. Scopus 2-s2.0-85107878531

Interdisciplinary research in the fields of forestry and sustainability studies often encounters seemingly incompatible ontological assumptions deriving from natural and social sciences. The perceived incompatibilities might emerge from the epistemological and ontological claims of the theories or models directly employed in the interdisciplinary collaboration, or they might be created by other epistemological and ontological assumptions that these interdisciplinary researchers find no reason to question. In this paper we discuss the benefits and risks of two possible approaches, Popperian optimism and Kuhnian pessimism, to interdisciplinary knowledge integration where epistemological and ontological differences between the sciences involved can be expected. Peer reviewed

Territorial development and rural tourism are linked. Rural tourism involves tourists in rural areas who are attracted by the distinctive character of the landscape, recreation such as local and food resources, and the potential for spiritual, environmental, and cultural growth. The aim of the present paper is to investigate the economic, sustainable, and social role of tourism in the development of the rural area of Mărginimea Sibiului in Romania. It highlights the role of local entrepreneurs in developing new practices and sustainable approaches. Drawing on the literature review on the topic of sustainable rural tourism, this paper uses the case study as a methodological approach. We have developed consistent desk research relying on the processing of official governmental data and of national statistics, supported by analytical strategies involving induction and deduction. The main findings lead towards the conclusion that Mărginimea Sibiului has managed to gain both national and international notoriety while developing coherently, capitalizing on its natural and cultural heritage, and providing services in successful agritourist boarding houses and rural guesthouses, which have continuously developed both numerically and in terms of comfort levels. Because more than two thirds of the initially established lodgings in the early 2000s continue to function today, these facilities have proven to be sustainable and attractive businesses.

It remains debatable whether slash-and-burn practices were adopted in rice cultivation by the Neolithic Kuahuqiao culture in the Ningshao Plain, one of the birthplaces of rice farming. Here, we established charcoal-based indices to reconstruct the history of fire and vegetation in the Ningshao Plain since the last glacial period. We collected representative modern vegetation and conducted combustion and fragmentation experiments to simulate fire and depositional processes, respectively. Charcoals from modern vegetation show clear morphological differences between herbaceous and woody plants. In particular, the length to width ratios (L/W) of herbaceous charcoals were systematically higher than those of woody charcoals, and the associated end-member values were 4.50 and 1.94, respectively. These values were then applied to sediment cores (KHQ-14/15) collected in proximity to the Kuahuqiao archaeological site. Results show that the amount of combusted herbaceous plants increased sharply after the Holocene, and the most remarkable rise occurred around 8550 yr B.P. This observation may reflect local environment (sedimentary and/or climatic) changes or small-scale early human activities. During the Kuahuqiao cultural period (8250-7450 yr B.P.), the relative abundance of woody charcoals increased, but the overall fire intensity decreased. This finding suggests that the Kuahuqiao farming was restricted to a small geographic area and large-scale slash-and-burn farming activities were not adopted.

The development of new technologies and the information society has accelerated changes in everyday life and modern teaching. Information and communication technologies (ICT) better motivate students to learn. In order to better preserve historical sources, they are digitized and thus protected, hence researchers can access the source faster and at a less cost. The possibilities of using the Internet in teaching are vast. It is necessary for schools to have computers, as well as for teachers and students to be motivated to use new electronic sources. Many websites have original historical material, from written and printed sources to audio-visual ones. We can call all this material digital resources (materials, sources, electronic historical sources). Teachers need to create engaging and imaginative teaching materials. However, a critical approach and caution in working with materials from the internet is essential. It is the teacher's responsibility to recommend verified sites and documents. Much of the material on the Internet has been posted with the conscious intention of spreading inaccurate data. The possibilities of ICT are great in history studies, as well. It is possible to modernize teaching at all levels of studies, but the financial capabilities of schools do not allow the possibility of keeping up with those innovations. One of the web portals that can be used for teaching purposes with its digitized content is Europeana. It is a database of the cultural and historical heritage of Europe, through which it is possible to search the digitized material of institutions. The Europeana portal is a broad project that provides free access to tens of millions of digital units. One of the most important collections within this portal is dedicated to the First World War and is called Europeana 1914-1918.

Abstract. Now spanning five simultaneous open-pit operations with exploration carried out through open pit benching, Carajás complex encompasses the world´s largest iron reserves. Open pit mining operations in the area can lead to slope instabilities with risks to personnel, equipment and production due to intense excavations in rock products of low geomechanical quality, blasting practices and heavy precipitation. Thus, an effective prediction and management of surface deformations should be a key concern for the mining operations. The ground displacement monitoring techniques in Carajás include surface measurement techniques at discrete points (total station/reflective prisms) and over area using SSR (Slope Stability Radar, a ground based radar). On the other hand, DInSAR techniques are receiving relevance in the mining industry for reasons such a synoptic and continuous coverage without the need for ground instrumentation and a point-to-point good accuracy of measuring displacements (millimeter to centimeter scale) over a dense grid. Using a stack of 33 StripMap TerraSAR-X images acquired over Carajás covering the time span from March 2012 to April 2013, a monitoring approach is discussed based on the complementary use of information provided by DInSAR (DInSAR Time-Series and Persistent Scatterer Interferometry) and surface measuring techniques (total station/prisms, ground-based radar).

During the twenty-first century, large carnivores have increased in human dominated landscapes after being extinct or nearly extinct. This has resulted in increasing numbers of livestock killed by large carnivores. The intent of this paper is to give a land use-historical perspective on the recent livestock-carnivore conflict in boreal Sweden. More specifically we address: (1) depredation risks (livestock killed by carnivores) and (2) local knowledge of how to protect livestock from predation and whether it survived among pastoralists until the present. This study provides numeric information on carnivores, livestock and depredation, combined with oral information from summer farmers about livestock protection. We compare recent (since 1998) and historical (late nineteenth century) depredation rates in two Swedish counties. In Dalarna recent depredation rates are higher than historical rates while the opposite pattern is seen in Jamtland. Recent depredation rates in Dalarna are twice the recent rates in Jamtland, in contrast to the historical situation. Recent and historical depredation rates are of the same order. Summer farmers traditionally graze their livestock in forested areas where carnivores reside. Interviews show that traditional knowledge of how to protect livestock from carnivores was lost during the twentieth century, but recently new knowledge has developed leading to changes in summer farming practices. The carnivore-livestock situation today differs from the historical situation, not so much in levels of depredation, but mainly regarding the possibilities of farmers to face challenges associated with increasing carnivore populations.