In this paper we consider the problem of DTM extraction in dense urban areas. To this aim, we need valuable and reliable data in the tiny open areas among buildings, and a suitable algorithm to reconstruct the terrain discarding these same structures. So, we compare first LIDAR and aerial photogrammetry by evaluating the relative accuracy of the three-dimensional reconstructed surface in the sm...

Motivated by concern about rising obesity rates, researchers have begun to map the neighborhood " food environment " and examine its association with the risk of overweight or obesity. Some argue that " food deserts " – areas with little or no provision of fresh produce and other healthy food – may contribute to disparities in obesity, diabetes, and related health problems. When access to healt...

As the number of people who reside and work in urban areas increases, so, too, do the needs and demands placed on the infrastructure. This has led to severe congestion in many European cities, a situation which affects not only the environment in terms of pollution, but most notably levels of traffic safety. In Europe, tens of thousands of people are killed in road traffic accidents, and more t...

The paper presents an advanced system for railway and road traffic noise monitoring in metropolitan areas. This system is a functional part of a more complex solution designed for environmental monitoring in cities utilizing analyses of sound, vision and air pollution, based on a ubiquitous computing approach. The system consists of many autonomous, universal measuring units and a multimedia se...

The effect of small urban areas on cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning activity is analysed for Spain. The results shown that the CG-flash number is enhanced within and downwind the most of towns considered and that large population and higher SO2 concentration contribute to the increase of the number of CG-flashes. INTRODUCTION AND DATA Several studies have reported that large cities of the USA are...

Rapid urbanization and increasing demand for transportation burdens urban road infrastructures. The interplay of number of vehicles and available road capacity on their routes determines the level of congestion. Although approaches to modify demand and capacity exist, the possible limits of congestion alleviation by only modifying route choices have not been systematically studied. Here we coup...

Average Winter electricity consumption for rural residents in Utah is significantly greater than for those living in urban areas. Based on data from a 1980 survey of Utah residents, this rural-urban consumption differential was investigated using multiple regression analysis. It was determined that the stock of electricity-using devices, climate, and demographic characteristics were the most im...

China has been experiencing rapid urbanization in parallel with its economic boom over the past three decades. To date, the organic carbon storage in China's urban areas has not been quantified. Here, using data compiled from literature review and statistical yearbooks, we estimated that total carbon storage in China's urban areas was 577 ± 60 Tg C (1 Tg = 10(12) g) in 2006. Soil was the larges...

The role for Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Applications are increasing and encompass industries as diverse as telecommunications, forestry, municipal engineering and precision agriculture to name only a few. The accuracy and detail required varies with application, and a number of technologies are able to provide DEMs appropriate to particular mappi...