Environmental degradation has been identified as a major worldwide concern in recent decades, with CO2 emissions considered as one of the primary drivers of this catastrophe. This study creatively ...analyzes the underlying impact of urbanization, population growth, Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, energy use on CO2 emissions to mitigate the environmental degradation from the five most populated regions of Asia i.e., China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. To investigate the integrated impact of CO2 emission and associated factors, a grey relational analysis (GRA) based weights and ranking were estimated for the year 2001 to 2014. Then, utilizing the Conservative minimax approach, we sought to determine which country contributes the most to CO2 emissions based on weights acquired by Second Synthetic Grey Relational Analysis (SSGRA). The Grey technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (G-TOPSIS) technique was employed for further optimization by prioritizing the explanatory factors that have the greatest influence on CO2 emissions. The outcomes through GRA techniques discovered that India is a major contributor of carbon emission caused by population growth and economic development. Whereas the use of energy and urbanization are grounded factors of emission for China and Pakistan respectively. The outcomes of the Conservative minimax criterion indicate that India is a leading contributor to carbon emissions in Asia. Also, the unsustainable growth of population and CO2 emissions indicates a direct causative relationship for environmental damage based on the G-TOPSIS. The findings of the study potentially aid governments and policymakers in making better decisions and investments to mitigate CO2 emissions while fostering a more environmentally friendly atmosphere.
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•This paper investigates CO2 emissions convergence in the Asian region.•Grey relation analysis and G-TOPSIS are utilized as the MCDM approach.•More evidence against India as a major contributor of emissions.•Population growth appeared as the most intensifying factor of the CO 2 emissions.
The study aims to predict and assess cardiovascular disease (CVD) patterns in highly affected countries such as Pakistan, India, China, Kenya, the USA, and Sweden. The data for CVD deaths was ...gathered from 2005 to 2019.
We utilized non-homogenous discrete grey model (NDGM) to predict growth of cardiovascular deaths in selected countries. We take this process a step further by utilizing novel Synthetic Relative Growth Rate (RGR) and Synthetic Doubling Time (Dt) model to assess how many years it takes to reduce the cardiovascular deaths double in numbers.
The results reveal that the USA and China may lead in terms of raising its number of deaths caused by CVDs till 2027. However, doubling time model suggests that USA may require 2.3 years in reducing the cardiovascular deaths.
This study is significant for the policymakers and health practitioners to ensure the execution of CVD prevention measures to overcome the growing burden of CVD deaths.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination hesitancy has emerged as a substantial concern among the adult population globally. However, limited evidence is available about parental hesitancy to ...vaccinate their children against COVID-19 within the Pakistani context. Thus, the present investigation aimed to assess parental attitudes, perceptions, and willingness regarding vaccination hesitancy and associated predictors of getting their children vaccinated against COVID-19. We conducted a cross-sectional population-based, self-administered online questionnaire in Punjab, Pakistan, on randomly selected parents between October 2022 and February 2023. The data were collected based on socio-demographics, attitudes, perceptions, and willingness of parents regarding COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy for their children. Adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were estimated to identify the predictors of vaccine hesitancy. The findings demonstrated that among 1,478 participants, a total of 40% believed that the COVID-19 vaccine may pose a greater risk to children than adults, while 38% exhibited no concerns. Around 13% of children were not vaccinated in our study sample. More than half expressed hesitancy toward vaccination, and only 35.25% were inclined to get their children vaccinated in our study sample. In addition, only 16% of the parents believed that the COVID-19 vaccination may cause an alteration in their children's DNA. A similar proportion of parents were aware of the significance of getting their children vaccinated and expressed their willingness to vaccinate their children to prevent the COVID-19 infection. However, a higher odds ratio was observed in females with a higher educational background and those in the healthcare profession. In conclusion, healthcare awareness-supporting programs for educating parents should be designed and implemented. These insights might aid in the development of strategies to eradicate barriers in existing coronavirus vaccination programs and may vaccinate a larger child population to reduce the adverse consequences of the pandemic.
Global warming regarded as the major global issue over the past few decades, whereas carbon dioxide (CO
2
) emissions have been cited as one of the main causes of this problem. Therefore, this study ...aims to investigate the effect of energy consumption, economic development, and population growth on high CO
2
emitting sectors of Pakistan such as transportation, industrial, and household. The data used in this study was taken from multiple databases from 2000 to 2018. We employed novel grey relational analysis (GRA) models to assess the connection between gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, population, energy consumption, and CO
2
emission. Furthermore, the Hurwicz method was used to analyze which factor contributing more to CO
2
emission. Result reveals that CO
2
emission, gross domestic product per capita, population, and energy consumption showed a strong association among all sectors. Whereas, population contributes more to intensifying CO
2
emissions in the transportation sector of Pakistan. This study provides useful insights for policymakers to take preventive and corrective measures to overcome CO
2
emissions as well as sustainable development.
SARS-CoV-2 was first detected in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. In this study, we identified 11 unique mutations in viral SARS-COV-2 isolates from Turkey. Nine of them cause structural ...alterations in the S protein, nsp2, nsp3, nsp4 and nsp12 regions. The mutations identified here might have significant functional implications that need to be addressed in future studies in the context of vaccine engineering and therapeutic interventions. Moreover, transmission and phylogenetic analysis revealed multiple independent sources of introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into Turkey and a close relationship to the isolates from Saudi Arabia.
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are one of the leading causes of global warming. Therefore, accuracy estimates for greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions are a key element in defining the best strategies for ...reducing GHG emissions from various source sectors of the economy. In the present study, an initial attempt has been made to estimate and forecast the GHG emissions in Pakistan from five major sectors, such as energy, industrial, agriculture, waste, and land-use change and forestry. The data were taken from the official website of the Pakistan climate database from 1990 to 2016. We employed advanced mathematical modeling, namely a non-homogenous discrete grey model (NDGM), to predict sector-wise GHGs emissions. Moreover, the present study is a milestone in the GHGs growth analysis by utilizing the synthetic relative growth rate (SRGR) and synthetic doubling time model (SDTM). The results reveal that the industry and land-use change and forestry contribute more in terms of increasing GHGs emissions till 2024, whereas agriculture and waste required comparatively less time to reduce GHGs emissions double in number among five sectors. All five sectors show an increasing trend in forecasting GHGs emissions between 1990 and 2016. However, the results indicate that land-use change and forestry and industrial sectors are more likely to be a reason for the increase in GHGs emissions in the future, followed by the agriculture, energy, and waste sectors. The land-use change and forestry was found prone to increase emission in the future, and the doubling time (
D
t
) suggests less time expected to reduce GHGs. Finally, the study has suggested some policies for the policymakers, government, and decision-makers to reduce GHGs emissions and achieve sustainable development.
This study aims to investigate the impact of hypertension, diabetes, and high blood cholesterol on increased mortality from cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke, and ...pulmonary heart disease in a multi-dimensional way.
The grey relational analysis methodology is adopted to assess the connection between cardiac risk factors and related mortality. The Hurwicz and the Conservative (Min-Max) criterion approach are also utilized to identify the prospective risk factor that contributes the most to increased cardiac mortality.
The findings reveal that hypertension has a more grounded relationship with stroke and pulmonary heart disease mortality, whereas high blood cholesterol appears to be the leading contributor to deaths from coronary heart disease. The results based on the Hurwicz and the Min-Max criterion show a robust connection between dyslipidemia, coronary heart disease, and cardiovascular disease mortality.
Combating uncontrolled blood cholesterol and blood pressure levels would necessitate a multi-pronged strategy at both the national and local levels. Besides, the suggested methodologies provide a valuable tool and additional practical knowledge for public health policymakers and decision-makers in drawing rational decisions to combat China's rising CVD burden.
This study explored multiplex, country-level connections between a wide range of cardiac risk factors and associated mortality within the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) ...countries. The grey relational analysis (GRA) methodology is used to evaluate data from 2001 to 2018 to compute scores and rank countries based on cardiac mortality. Subsequently, we used the conservative (Min-Max) technique to determine which South Asian country contributes the most to cardiac mortality. The Hurwicz criterion is further applied for optimization by highlighting the risk factors with the highest impact on cardiac mortality. Empirical findings revealed that India and Nepal are the leading drivers of cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality among all SAARC nations based on the results of the GRA methodology. Moreover, the outcomes based on the Hurwicz criterion and the conservative criterion indicated that CVD mortality is considerably impacted by household air pollution from the combustion of solid fuel, with India as a potential contributor in the SAARC region. The outcomes of this research may enable international organizations and public health policymakers to make better decisions and investments within the SAARC region to minimize the burden of CVD while also strengthening environmentally sustainable healthcare practices.
Environmental degradation has been identified as a major worldwide concern in recent decades, with CO
2
emissions considered as one of the primary drivers of this catastrophe. This study creatively ...analyzes the underlying impact of wind and solar energy generation, economic development, fossil fuel consumption on CO
2
emissions to mitigate the environmental degradation in the world’s top three largest energy consumers and CO
2
emitters nations namely, China, India, and the USA. To investigate the integrated impact of CO
2
emission, a grey relational analysis (GRA) technique is adopted for the year 1990–2017. The Grey technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (G-TOPSIS) technique was employed for further optimization by prioritizing the explanatory factors that have potential influence on CO
2
emissions in the selected nations. The outcomes through the GRA technique discovered that India is a major contributor of carbon emission caused by economic development, and China appeared to be the more afflicted nation for raising its carbon emissions owing to fossil fuel consumption. Whereas, the generation of solar and wind energy are grounded factors in the reduction of carbon emissions for China and the USA. In addition, the generation of wind energy showed a considerable impact in the reduction of CO
2
emissions, based on the G-TOPSIS analysis. This suggests that reducing CO
2
emissions would require a compendious transition from nonrenewable to renewable resources, while the United States and China appear to be on a more promising direction to environmental sustainability than India. As a growing renewable energy pioneer, India should increase the utilization of minimal carbon sources of energy in its electricity grid while limiting its reliance on fossil fuels. The findings of the study potentially aid governments and policymakers in making better decisions and investments to mitigate CO
2
emissions while fostering a more environmentally friendly atmosphere.