Source of information for ventilation design of residential settlement is generally derived from wind tunnel or, recently, CFD studies, which involves both modeling and simulation of wind flow pattern and speed. Yet this is not readily accessible to most architects. In order to gain similar objectives but without involving detailed studies, the present study introduces a graphical method of gathering information about permeability of residential. It describes how the way wind reaches and flows through built spaces and forms (streets, park/garden, buildings), and makes use of access graphs and numerical measures to indicate permeability of a given residential settlement. Since the method is still in the initial development, further study will be required for refinement and validation. Nevertheless, the method can be employed to provide information for ventilation design of low-rise residential settlements, particularly at the schematic level.

Tropical rainforests cover 13% of the Earth's land surface, account for 50% of the world's forests and the vegetation contains 40% of the world's carbon. There are many methods to destruct rainforests including the oldest of slash-and-burn agriculture. Climatological and environmental effects of rainforest destruction include prolonged dry seasons, which make it impossible for forests to reestablish themselves.

Conference 2009: Geographical focus of the symposium are the tropical regions of Africa with Madagascar, America, and Asia. Contributions on their vertebrate faunas ranging from studies on systematics and zoogeography to analyses of distribution patterns, ecology, and conservation issues are welcome.

June 9-13 2008

The notion that flu epidemics start in areas of high population density and spread outwards may not hold true for the tropics, hints a study from Brazil. In that country, new research reveals, flu starts in the less densely populated north and moves towards cities in the south. The result indicates that climate, rather than population density, plays a bigger part in the spread of the disease in Brazil. And that could have implications for how flu is managed in the tropics.