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In this paper we argue for the need to apply a cognitive approach to understand deep dynamics and determinants of technological evolutions. After examining main contributions from innovation studies to the conceptualization of innovation and change in complex socio-technical environments, we highlight the contribution coming from the application of the cognitive approach to evolutionary studies on technologies and we introduce the concept of technological memory as an interpretative tool to understand those changes. We discuss our hypothesis with reference to several observations carried out in different local contexts – Mexico, India and Italy – in relation to technological change in the water sector. In those cases deliberate attempts to substitute traditional technologies with modern ones led to interesting trajectories of change ranging from the collapse of old technologies to the development of multifaceted hybridization patterns. Tema. Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, 2014: INPUT 2014 - Smart City: planning for energy, transportation and sustainability of the urban system

Coastal hazards result from erosion of the shore, or flooding of low-elevation land when storm surges combine with high tides and/or large waves. Future sea-level rise will greatly increase the frequency and depth of coastal flooding and will exacerbate erosion and raise groundwater levels, forcing vulnerable communities to adapt. Communities, local councils and infrastructure operators will need to decide when and how to adapt. The process of decision making using adaptive pathways approaches, is now being applied internationally to plan for adaptation over time by anticipating tipping points in the future when planning objectives are no longer being met. This process requires risk and uncertainty considerations to be transparent in the scenarios used in adaptive planning. We outline a framework for uncertainty identification and management within coastal hazard assessments. The framework provides a logical flow from the land use situation, to the related level of uncertainty as determined by the situation, to which hazard scenarios to model, to the complexity level of hazard modeling required, and to the possible decision type. Traditionally, coastal flood hazard maps show inundated areas only. We present enhanced maps of flooding depth and frequency which clearly show the degree of hazard exposure, where that exposure occurs, and how the exposure changes with sea-level rise, to better inform adaptive planning processes. The new uncertainty framework and mapping techniques can better inform identification of trigger points for adaptation pathways planning and their expected time range, compared to traditional coastal flooding hazard assessments.

Science-based, multinational management of the Baltic Sea offers lessons on amelioration of highly disturbed marine ecosystems.

The article presents general principles of development of the lower Vistula channel in the Holocene period, with a particular emphasis on the unintentional human interference in the fluvial processes associated with deforestation and cultivation of cereals and root crops. It also characterises the basic hydraulic engineering works in the form of construction of embankments, adjustment of the bed and construction of the Włocławek barrage as factors of deliberate human interference and their impact on channel changes. The article characterises morphological and morphodynamic conditions of the basic bed forms, i.e. sandy and gravel bars and pools determining the possibility of river transport, and its development in time and space (depth of navigable route). Perspectives of multi-directional hydraulic development are presented, including the main cascade developments of the lower Vistula. The article presents the opportunities for a comprehensive use of the waterway, which forms route E40 in the section of the lower Vistula, taking into account sustainable development and compensation in the form of restoration of the valley bottom.

The responses of macroalgae to ocean acidification could be altered by availability of macronutrients, such as ammonium (NH4+). This study determined how the opportunistic macroalga, Ulva australis responded to simultaneous changes in decreasing pH and NH4+ enrichment. This was investigated in a week-long growth experiment across a range of predicted future pHs with ambient and enriched NH4+ treatments followed by measurements of relative growth rates (RGR), NH4+ uptake rates and pools, total chlorophyll, and tissue carbon and nitrogen content. Rapid light curves (RLCs) were used to measure the maximum relative electron transport rate (rETRmax) and maximum quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII) photochemistry (Fv/Fm). Photosynthetic capacity was derived from the RLCs and included the efficiency of light harvesting (α), slope of photoinhibition (β), and the light saturation point (Ek). The results showed that NH4+ enrichment did not modify the effects of pH on RGRs, NH4+ uptake rates and pools, total chlorophyll, rETRmax, α, β, Fv/Fm, tissue C and N, and the C:N ratio. However, Ek was differentially affected by pH under different NH4+ treatments. Ek increased with decreasing pH in the ambient NH4+ treatment, but not in the enriched NH4+ treatment. NH4+ enrichment increased RGRs, NH4+ pools, total chlorophyll, rETRmax, α, β, Fv/Fm, and tissue N, and decreased NH4+ uptake rates and the C:N ratio. Decreased pH increased total chlorophyll content, rETRmax, Fv/Fm, and tissue N content, and decreased the C:N ratio. Therefore, the results indicate that U. australis growth is increased with NH4+ enrichment and not with decreasing pH. While decreasing pH influenced the carbon and nitrogen metabolisms of U. australis, it did not result in changes in growth.

The Oum Er-Rbia estuary is located on the Atlantic littoral of Morocco. It undergoes severe clogging due to the sand deposition in its outlet. The current study examined the indicators of the morphodynamic evolution in the littoral system including the Oum Er-Rbia estuary and the neighboring beaches over 1970–2017. The methodology adopted was based on the analysis and the interpretation of aerial photographs and Google Earth images under a GIS environment and field work. The morphodynamic evolution was discussed by taking into account the evolution of hydraulic facilities installed in the watershed area, especially the construction of dams, as well as the dredging works in the Oum Er-Rbia estuary. The results highlight the morphologic evolution estimated in terms of surface units observed in the estuary and the neighboring beaches. The evolution of the littoral system was mainly influenced by the closest dam location and by the dredging works, in addition to the regulation of the river flow by the installation of hydraulic facilities upstream.

Solar distillation is a practical alternative for freshwater production in arid zones where seawater is abundant. The attractiveness of this approach resides in the simplicity of the solar still, equipment used to produce saline-free water for drinking, intensive agriculture, domestic use and other purposes. A solar still is an apparatus exposed to solar radiation that consists essentially of a basin with a solar collector where saline water is deposited and covered with a transparent inclined glass plate. The system operates as a greenhouse where the heated seawater evaporates and condensates on the inner surface of the cover. The distillate yield is collected in an external container. A research group in Mexico has been working for years doing research on the process of freshwater production with solar stills. Various research aspects have been addressed, among which are mathematical modeling of the physical phenomenon, practical research by building solar stills with different geometries and sizes, and the proposal of a process for mass-production manufacturing of solar stills with technology innovations. This paper is an overview of some of the most relevant results obtained by these research efforts.