Determining optimal solar power plant (SPP) sites by technical and environmental analysis: the case of Safranbolu, Türkiye.

Solar energy is among the sustainable and renewable energy sources that has become an important and inevitable part of our lives today. It is of great importance to consider economic, environmental, and social factors in determining the installation locations of solar power plants (SPP). In this study, we aimed to determine suitable areas where SPP can be established in Safranbolu District by using the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP), which is one of the multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) method together with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), to enable the decision-makers to express their preferences in approximate or adaptable ways. The criteria addressed in the technical analysis process were also determined by supporting the basic principles of impact assessment systems. Within the scope of the environmental analysis, the relevant national and international legal frameworks were also examined and the legal constraints were identified. Thus, in the process of determining the optimal areas for SPP, it has been attempted to produce sustainable solutions that are expected to have minimal impact on the integrity of the natural system. This study was carried on within a scientific, technical, and legal framework. According to the results obtained, the Safranbolu District had low, medium, and high sensitivity properties for SPP construction, and the areas suitable for SPP construction provided medium and high sensitivity of 10.86% and 27.26% correspondence detected according to the Chang (Eur J Oper Res 95(3): 649-655, 1996) and Buckley (Fuzzy Set Syst 17(3): 233-247, 1985) methods, respectively. There are very suitable areas for SPP installations in the central and western parts of Safranbolu District, and there are also areas suitable for SPP installation in the northern and southern parts of the district. Thanks to this study, suitable SPP establishment areas were determined for the under protection in a location in Safranbolu where clean energy is needed. It was also observed that these areas do not conflict with the basic principles of impact assessment systems.

The Nutrition and Health Communication Education Program and For Accurate Science Project of Sabri Ülker Foundation: Initiatives from Turkey.

In recent decades interest in food and health issues has not ceased to increase globally. Consumers typically obtain information on issues related to food, nutrition, and health via a wide variety of media channels, including TV, radio, newspapers, internet, and social media. Unfortunately, the messages that reach consumers through these different channels can be conflicting, inaccurate, or confusing. The "For Accurate Science Platform" of the Sabri Ülker Food Research Foundation aims to disseminate current and reliable information to the public about health and nutrition. Since 2017, the Sabri Ülker Food Research Foundation has also organized a 2-day education program, entitled the "Nutrition and Health Education Program," with the aim of educating and providing a better understanding of nutrition science and science communication to participants from the media and influencers who are interested in area of nutrition and health. This program is also accredited by the Society of Nutrition and Food Science (SNFS) as an international nutrition communication training program. This year the theme of the program was "Popular Diets: Health Effects and Effective Communication." Popular diets is one of the most frequent topics in nutrition communication, sought by millions of people, and where the available information is not always evidence based. A recent meta-analysis by the British Medical Journal on the role of food in weight management found that no dietary method has been shown to achieve superior results in terms of long-term weight maintenance. Many popular diets limit food groups and/or nutrients to achieve faster results. However, these limitations might cause vitamin and mineral deficiencies and lead to hidden hunger in the short and long term. Thus, inaccurate and non-scientific news about popular diets can negatively affect the worldwide burden of hidden hunger.

Landslide susceptibility mapping in an area of underground mining using the multicriteria decision analysis method.

Landslides are geomorphological phenomena that affect anthropogenic and natural features on the Earth's surface. Many previous studies have identified several factors that have contributed to landslides. Among these factors are physical characteristics, such as slope, aspect, and land cover, of Earth's surface. Moreover, landslides can be triggered by human activities such as underground mining. This study aims to identify landslide susceptibility areas by analyzing landslide-related factors, including land subsidence triggered by underground mining. The area of interest was Kozlu, Turkey, where underground mining has been in progress for the past 100 years. Thus, to identify landslide risk zones, the multicriteria decision analysis method, together with the analytical hierarchy method, was used. The datasets included were topography, land cover, geological settings, and mining-induced land subsidence. The spatial extent of land subsidence was estimated using a previously published model. A landslide susceptibility map (LSM) was developed using a purposely developed GIS-based software. The results were compared with a terrain deformation map, which was developed in a separate study using the differential synthetic aperture radar interferometry (DInSAR) technique. The results showed a substantial correlation between the LSM and DInSAR map. Furthermore, it was found that ~ 88% of the very high and high landslide risk areas coincided with location of the past landslide events. These facts suggest that the algorithm and data sources used were sufficient to produce a sufficiently accurate LSM, which may be used for various purposes such as urban planning.