•The nexus between information and communication technology and carbon emission is analyzed.•This study considers the moderating effect of international trade and FDI.•Information and communication ...technology actively respond to climate changes.•Both international trade and FDI deepens the positive impact of ICT on CO2 emissions.
In recent years, information and communication technology (ICT) and its impact on society are debated; however, little research has been conducted regarding the future environmental consequences of ICT in various countries. However, this study presented the empirical analysis of the relationship between ICT, real income, and CO2 emissions while considering foreign direct investment and international trade. The study presents an innovative methodological approach by introducing the interaction of ICT with foreign direct investment and international trade. For empirical estimation, this study used the generalized least-square method in 59 countries along Belt and Road from 1990 to 2016. The results summarized that ICT mitigates the level of CO2 emissions in countries along Belt and Road. Further, the moderating effect of ICT and foreign direct investment reduces CO2 emissions and the interaction between ICT and international trade does the same. Based on the policy perspective, the countries along Belt and Road need to strategically focus on promoting trade and investment in the ICT sector and also on innovations to promote sustainable economic development.
This empirical work examines the relationships among energy consumption, real income, and carbon emissions considering the role of water productivity, natural resource rent, and international trade ...in the global economy from 1990 to 2013. Bayer–Hanck's combined cointegration test confirms the cointegration among variables under consideration in this study. The study also uses auto‐regressive distributive lag approach for long‐term and short‐term estimation. Empirical findings summarize that water productivity, natural resources, and international trade increase carbon emissions level. Two‐way causality is found between water productivity and carbon emissions and between energy consumption and water productivity. These results show that more efficient use of energy and water resources would be an effective strategy to combat global warming.
The benefit of an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) in patients with symptomatic systolic heart failure caused by coronary artery disease has been well documented. However, the evidence ...for a benefit of prophylactic ICDs in patients with systolic heart failure that is not due to coronary artery disease has been based primarily on subgroup analyses. The management of heart failure has improved since the landmark ICD trials, and many patients now receive cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT).
In a randomized, controlled trial, 556 patients with symptomatic systolic heart failure (left ventricular ejection fraction, ≤35%) not caused by coronary artery disease were assigned to receive an ICD, and 560 patients were assigned to receive usual clinical care (control group). In both groups, 58% of the patients received CRT. The primary outcome of the trial was death from any cause. The secondary outcomes were sudden cardiac death and cardiovascular death.
After a median follow-up period of 67.6 months, the primary outcome had occurred in 120 patients (21.6%) in the ICD group and in 131 patients (23.4%) in the control group (hazard ratio, 0.87; 95% confidence interval CI, 0.68 to 1.12; P=0.28). Sudden cardiac death occurred in 24 patients (4.3%) in the ICD group and in 46 patients (8.2%) in the control group (hazard ratio, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.31 to 0.82; P=0.005). Device infection occurred in 27 patients (4.9%) in the ICD group and in 20 patients (3.6%) in the control group (P=0.29).
In this trial, prophylactic ICD implantation in patients with symptomatic systolic heart failure not caused by coronary artery disease was not associated with a significantly lower long-term rate of death from any cause than was usual clinical care. (Funded by Medtronic and others; DANISH ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00542945 .).
Green growth has become one of the best alternative strategies for sustainable development. Although environmental technologies play a fundamental role in green growth, further investigations are ...required to understand whether and how environmental technologies affect green growth. Therefore, this study explores the role of environmental technologies in green growth by controlling renewable and non-renewable energy consumption for BRICS countries. To this end, the study conducts advanced panel data estimation techniques that produce robust results against endogeneity, heteroskedasticity, and cross-sectional dependence issues. Empirical results show that environmental-related technologies positively contribute to green growth. Results also confirm that renewable energy promotes green growth, but non-renewable energy is detrimental to green growth. BRICS countries need to improve innovations in the energy sector for achieving green growth and sustainability targets.
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•Investigates the role of environmental-related technologies on green growth•Employs total and production-based carbon dioxide emissions•Controls renewable and non-renewable energy consumption•Conducts advanced panel data estimation techniques•Determines positive impact of environmental-related technologies
The dilemma of rising environmental pollution in recent decades has raised the demand for clean energy sources. However, some newly developed energy sources, such as biomass energy, may or may not ...contribute to reducing environmental stress. This study investigates biomass energy consumption and environmental pollution in BRICS countries by applying the generalized system method of moment (GMM) model for empirical estimation from 1992 to 2013. The results show that biomass energy consumption behaves as a clean energy source in reducing environmental pollution. The study also found support for the presence of an N-shaped relationship between income and pollution and found that trade openness is the only factor that contributes to pollution in BRICS countries. These results can assist policymakers in considering biomass energy as a clean source of energy in the effort to achieve both energy security and environmental sustainability.
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•The study presents the investigation of biomass energy consumption and environmental pollution in BRICS countries.•Biomass energy consumption help in to reduce environmental pollution.•N-shaped relationship is found between income and pollution.•Besides, the trade openness contributes to environmental pollution.
Promoting technology development co-operation is particularly relevant while addressing global climate change or regional pollution. Investors may contribute to increasing environmental-related ...patents, which may help to improve the quality of the environment as long as supported by proper regulations and policies. In the quest towards a cleaner environment via the mitigation of climate change, this study investigates the relationship between technological innovation, income level, renewable energy and carbon emissions in both the United States and China. Applying the dynamic auto-regressive distributive lag (DARDL) simulation method revealed varying impacts of regressors on CO2 emissions in the short-run and long-run. Accordingly, this study empirically confirms that (i) technological innovation reduces carbon emissions in the United States but it is not statistically significant in China. (ii) Renewable energy reduces carbon emissions in both countries. (iii) The impact of income level on emissions decreases from short-run to long-run in both countries. Decision-makers in China should stimulate more effective environmental-related innovations to decrease CO2 emissions and should permit easy access to environmental-related patents together with reducing its cost of registration.
•Investigates the role of green technological innovation in decreasing CO2 emissions.•Applies the novel Dynamic ARDL simulation.•Green technological innovation reduces CO2 emissions in the U.S. Only.•Confirms that renewable energy mitigates CO2 emissions both in the U.S. and China.
Activated carbon has been an ideal material for the separation of a variety of chemical pollutants. Its extensive use is limited due to the cost of production, which has triggered the researches on ...the viable option for the non-conventional and cost-effective production. The application of biomass waste has been widely explored as an alternative to expensive methods of activated carbon production from coal. In this study, detailed list of production methods of activated carbon from wood biomass is presented systematically. The attempt has also been made to review the physical properties, such as ultimate and proximate analyses of wood biomass material. Further, the chemical compositions of wood, such as hemicelluloses, cellulose, and lignin are also dealt with. Finally, this review incorporates the existing research papers on wood-derived activated carbons to understand the influence of pyrolysis temperature, activation temperature, and effect of various physical and chemical activation conditions on the production, surface characteristics and adsorption behavior of activated carbons. The outcome of this study revealed that the activated carbons from wood biomass exhibit promising characteristics in terms of surface area, pore size and pore volume, surface functional groups, and surface entrapment behavior against various water soluble chemical toxicants.
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•Utilization of wood waste faces increasing environmental and economic challenges.•Current activated carbon technology requires renewable source as precursor.•Characterized activated carbons have tremendous demand in medical and wastewater treatment industry.•Application of wood waste derived activated carbon have wide possibility.
The post-infection of COVID-19 includes a myriad of neurologic symptoms including neurodegeneration. Protein aggregation in brain can be considered as one of the important reasons behind the ...neurodegeneration. SARS-CoV-2 Spike S1 protein receptor binding domain (SARS-CoV-2 S1 RBD) binds to heparin and heparin binding proteins. Moreover, heparin binding accelerates the aggregation of the pathological amyloid proteins present in the brain. In this paper, we have shown that the SARS-CoV-2 S1 RBD binds to a number of aggregation-prone, heparin binding proteins including Aβ, α-synuclein, tau, prion, and TDP-43 RRM. These interactions suggests that the heparin-binding site on the S1 protein might assist the binding of amyloid proteins to the viral surface and thus could initiate aggregation of these proteins and finally leads to neurodegeneration in brain. The results will help us to prevent future outcomes of neurodegeneration by targeting this binding and aggregation process.
•SARS-CoV-2 Spike S1 protein receptor binding domain (SARS-CoV-2 S1 RBD) binds to heparin and heparin binding proteins.•Heparin binding accelerates the aggregation of the pathological amyloid proteins present in the brain.•SARS-CoV-2 S1 RBD binds to a number of aggregation-prone, heparin binding proteins including Aβ, α-synuclein, tau, prion, and TDP-43 RRM.•Heparin-binding site on the S1 might assist the binding of amyloid proteins to the viral surface and thus could leads to neurodegeneration in brain.
In the recent era of globalisation, the tourism sector is growing rapidly and stimulates economic growth across the world, however, the inevitable environmental consequences of tourism cannot be ...ignored. For sustainable tourism, it is necessary to understand the interrelationship between economic growth, tourism, and environmental quality. Hence, the objective of the current research is to investigate the dynamic relationship between tourism, economic growth, and CO2 emissions from 1995 to 2014 in the context of BRICS economies. A group of econometric tests robust to heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence is applied to achieve accurate and unbiased results. Empirical findings propose that tourism sector significantly encourages economic growth; however, tourism degrades the quality of the environment. Also, globalisation has a long-term relationship with economic growth but an insignificant relationship with CO2 emissions. The long-term elasticities further recommend that investment stimulate economic growth and mitigate CO2 emissions. Moreover, environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) holds in BRICS countries in its significance to tourism and globalisation. Finally, a heterogeneous panel non-causality test detects bi-directional causality between tourism receipts and CO2 emissions. Moreover, tourism and investment in tourism Granger cause each other. Empirical findings direct towards important policy implications.
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