Neuropsychological Assessment of Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Cognitive impairment in older adults is a major public concern for Kazakhstan's aging population. We aimed to (1) administer a neuropsychological test battery (NTB) in domains relevant to aging-associated cognitive impairment in a sample of adults aged 60+ without dementia in Almaty, Kazakhstan; (2) investigate the associations between demographic factors and test performance; and (3) provide information on the distribution of NTB scores as preliminary local normative data relevant for this population. A cross-sectional evaluation of 276 participants aged 60+ in Almaty, Kazakhstan, was conducted using cognitive instruments including tests of memory, attention, language, executive functions, visuospatial abilities, and processing speed. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to examine the association of demographic factors with neuropsychological test performance. The results from the regression analysis showed that those who are younger, have more years of education, are women, and are of Russian ethnicity had significantly better performance. The current study illustrated (1) the feasibility of administering the NTB to older adults in the general population in Kazakhstan; (2) the preliminary local normative neuropsychological measures; and (3) their independent associations with age, education, gender, and ethnicity. The findings are a platform for future research on dementia and cognitive impairment in older adults in Kazakhstan.

Assessment of the association between dust storms and COVID-19 infection rate in southwest Iran.

This study assesses a plausible correlation between a dust intrusion episode and a daily increase in COVID-19 cases. A surge in COVID-19 cases was observed a few days after a Middle East Dust (MED) event that peaked on 25th April 2020 in southwest Iran. To investigate potential causal factors for the spike in number of cases, cross-correlations between daily combined aerosol optical depths (AODs) and confirmed cases were computed for Khuzestan, Iran. Additionally, atmospheric stability data time series were assessed by covering before, during, and after dust intrusion, producing four statistically clustered distinct city groups. Groups 1 and 2 had different peak lag times of 10 and 4-5 days, respectively. Since there were statistically significant associations between AOD levels and confirmed cases in both groups, dust incursion may have increased population susceptibility to COVID-19 disease. Group 3 was utilized as a control group with neither a significant level of dust incursion during the episodic period nor any significant associations. Group 4 cities, which experienced high dust incursion levels, showed no significant correlation with confirmed case count increases. Random Forest Analysis assessed the influence of wind speed and AOD, showing relative importance of 0.31 and 0.23 on the daily increase percent of confirmed cases, respectively. This study may serve as a reference for better understanding and predicting factors affecting COVID-19 transmission and diffusion routes, focusing on the role of MED intrusions.

Assessment of potential benefits of traffic and urban mobility reductions during COVID-19 lockdowns: dose-response calculations for material corrosions on built cultural heritage.

Air pollution, particularly in urban areas, puts human health in danger and has adverse impacts on the built environment. It can accelerate the natural corrosion rate of cultural heritages and monuments, leading to premature aging and lowering their aesthetic value. Globally, at the beginning of 2020, to tackle the spread of novel COVID-19, the lockdown was enforced in the most hard-hit countries. Therefore, this study assesses, as a first time, the plausible benefits of traffic and urban mobility reductions on the natural process of deterioration of materials during COVID-19 lockdown in twenty-four major cities on five continents. The potential risk is estimated based on exceeding the tolerable degradation limits for each material. The notable impact of COVID-19 mobility restrictions on air quality was evidenced in 2020 compared to 2019. The introduced mobility restrictions in 2020 could decrease the surface recession rate of materials. Extremely randomized trees analysis showed that PM10 was the main influencing factor for corrosion of portland, copper, cast bronze, and carbon steel with a relative importance of 0.60, 0.32, 0.90, and 0.64, respectively, while SO2 and HNO3 were mainly responsible for corrosion of sandstone and zinc with a relative importance of 0.60 and 0.40, respectively. The globally adverse governed meteorological conditions in 2020 could not positively influence the movement restrictions around the world in air quality improvements. Our findings can highlight the need for additional policies and measures for reducing ambient pollution in cities and the proximity of sensitive cultural heritage to avoid further damage.

Assessment method for new sustainability indicators providing pandemic resilience for residential buildings.

The method presented in this paper aims to support the sustainability assessment methods of residential buildings under pandemic conditions. The main purpose of the study is to review existing criteria of the well-known assessment tools and then to suggest a set of assessment measures for the emerging pandemic-resilient indicators. Current sustainability assessment methodologies mostly focus on the conventional sustainability pillars (Environmental, Social, Economic), whereas the proposed emerging sustainability assessment indicators include changes in sustainability requirements brought by the current pandemic. Firstly, a set of indicators with possible measures was identified; then, we reviewed several existing green building certification systems to identify their gaps and developed a foundation for each indicator. Finally, several round table discussions involving various stakeholders (e.g., engineers, designers, health care experts, academics) were conducted to consolidate the identified measures. The findings of the present study indicate that certain pandemic-resilient indicators are not fully addressed by existing assessment tools, pointing out the importance of the development of new measures to make them more suitable to use under pandemic conditions. Thus, the present study contributes to the building assessment methods by proposing a set of emerging assessment indicators with measures, which can be used by various professionals that would contribute to more sustainable buildings in upcoming pandemics.•A 5-point scale was used to assess the indicators, and various stakeholders in a previous study identified their weights.•The methodology introduces new pandemic-related indicators into the conventional sustainability concept.•The assessment measures are rapid and economically efficient to apply for any residential building.

Indicator rating methodology for Rapid Sustainability Assessment Method (RSAM) for existing residential buildings using opinions of residents.

The presented method provides the details for how each indicator in "RSAM: A Rapid Sustainability Assessment Method" is scored using a residents' opinions-based sustainability assessment procedure that is specifically designed for the assessment of existing residential buildings. Existing methods in the literature mostly suggest indicator scores in construction sustainability assessments using highly technical data and require a high level of engineering and management expertise. This makes them elaborate but labor-, time-, and cost-intensive; and thus, their use is more frequently favored in new projects.•The presented method redefines a set of conventional environmental, social-functional, and economic indicators in a context which combines data from residents' opinions (e.g. perceived quality of indoor temperature comfort level) and easy-to-obtain information (e.g. annual utility bills).•All indicator ratings are represented within a 10-point scale, and their weights on the overall model are identified by stakeholders.•RSAM provides a rapid and low-cost assessment for existing buildings which normally may not go through a conventional sustainability assessment due to resource limitations.