This work aims to reveal the current status of the city information modeling (CIM) from massive patent data, using the latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) model, and quantify the evolution trends of future topics by the Hidden Markov Model (HMM). The results show that the CIM technologies can be divided into 17 topics. At the present stage, the technologies related to the Internet of things (IOT), big data and data management are the focus of the research and development (R&D) of CIM patents. Compared with the software technology, further development is needed for the hardware technology supporting CIM, particularly in terms of information acquisition (cameras and sensors), storage, and information transmitters. This study deepens the understanding of the CIM-related technical categories, and clarifies the direction of the development and evolution of CIM technology, providing a strong support to decision-makers in urban management.

This study examines how to support regional development with the quadruple helix creative industry model through descriptive qualitative analysis. The primary data were collected through observation, interviews, and FGDs (Focus Group Discussions) with academics, creative economy actors, community leaders, and government officials. The markets in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia were studied between October 2020 and October 2021. Purposive sampling technique was used to select informants, and snowball sampling approach was utilized to conduct the interviews. The findings revealed that the lack of roles in research and knowledge production by academic actors in Medan has increased the need for a network of academic actors to fill the gap; the government has not been able to play a role in providing funding support and incentives for business actors in creative industries, especially in creating innovations. The synergy between actors in the quadruple helix implementation has not been properly utilized, even in the case of the Medan City Government, which ought to be the main source of information in social media for the city's creative sector. Following up on these findings, the quadruple helix creative industry model was implemented as an innovation model to support the regional economy of the city of Medan.

Street trees make up an important part of the eco-environment and landscape of urban roads. The species of street trees significantly affect the green volume of urban roads. The leaf area index (LAI) is often adopted to measure the ratio of green volume for urban roads, laying a scientific basis for optimizing street trees. This paper measures and analyses the LAI and green plot ratio (GPR) of 14 common street tree species in Xinxiang, a city in Central China’s Henan Province. The results show that, except for evergreens, the LAI values of deciduous trees varied significantly from month to month, forming a single-peaked curve. The LAI values of street trees have a significant positive correlation with the day of year (DOY) (P<0.01). As for the roads with a single row of street trees, the highest mean annual GPR values were achieved by Juglans regia Linn., followed in turn by Ligustrum lucidum Ait., Sophora japonica L., Populus tomentosa Carrière, Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. and Platanus orientalis Linn. Among the 12 common types of double-row road tree combinations, the GPR values all increased first and then decreased; the largest annual mean value belonged to the combination “Sophora japonica L.+ Sophora japonica L.” In the same section, the annual mean GPR value of double-row road trees was 3-7 times higher than that of single-row road trees. Our research demonstrates that the GPR can quantify the differences between different street tree species and combination types, and help to optimize the greening arrangement and plant configuration.

This paper assesses the potential of multiplicity in the housing environment for achieving social sustainability compared to singularity. For this purpose, a neighborhood assessment framework was developed to cover three values of social sustainability, namely, stability, continuity, and fairness, as well as several factors related to each value. Two cases were chosen from the neighborhoods in the city of Nablus: Type (1) as an example of multiplicity, and type (2) as an example of singularity. The research data were collected through an architectural survey on the features of both types of neighborhoods, and analyzed in details. On this basis, the two types of neighborhoods were compared based on the said values. The results show that the values of sustainability increase in type (2) at the level of the single building, while growing in type (1) at the level of the residential neighborhood. Multiplicity is a high-potential approach for achieving social sustainability, if the design of the residential buildings caters to people’s needs and wants. In addition, several suggestions were made for improving the neighborhood design in Palestine based on multiplicity.

As urbanization picks up speed, row upon row of high-rise buildings spring up, and their structure is increasingly complex. In the meantime, fire poses a more and more serious problem to these buildings. This paper summarizes the recent development of high-rise buildings, and analyzes the main features of high-rise building fire from the angles of material design, structural design, etc. The technical development of heat preservation material greatly improves the security of exterior fire prevention system. Starting from the structure of the building itself, architects have carried out systematic and reasonable planning for smoke exhaust design, automatic alarm design, stair design, and so on. The fire safety of high-rise buildings could be improved in an all-round way, drawing on advanced technologies like fighting drones, robots and the Internet of things.

The Covid-19 pandemic has put pressure on the prices of food, particularly rice, a strategic commodity for trade across Indonesia. The traditional market and wholesalers face intense price competition for rice, which renders the market ineffective. This study proves the form of rice market integration in wholesalers and traditional markets, as well as the behavior of pricing both before and after the pandemic. The research data are the weekly and monthly prices from the Indonesian National Strategic Food Price Information Center Institute for the years 2018 to 2021. Vector autoregression (VAR) and error correction model (ECM) were adopted for the integration analysis. The results suggest that prices in traditional markets and wholesalers cointegrate, but this does not persist over time. Equilibrium prices in both markets were reached after 4 months. The price trend demonstrates that price changes in both markets before and during the epidemic are not symmetric. Price changes during the Covid-19 epidemic were erratic and dramatic. Government involvement through suitable policies is required in a market environment under intense pressure to stabilize prices. Market participants must accept this policy in order to prevent any party from gaining an undue advantage.

Urban farmers who want to produce food for export must adhere to an environmental certification program due to the scarcity of resources in cities and the unpredictability of the international food trade. This paper employs a descriptive narrative technique along with a qualitative methodology. The relevant data were collected through observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation, and analyzed by condensation, data presentation, and drawing conclusions or verification. Our results suggested that certification was not yet a useful tool for persuading farmers to adopt more environmentally friendly farming practices. The majority of the agricultural business techniques used by export-scale urban farmers are not organic. There was a tendency for farmers to complete certification if it was required for export. In the meantime, social certification, food safety, and content quality were just recommendations made by international organizations rather than being strictly enforced, particularly in Indonesia.