Variation in posture quality across musical instruments and its impact during performances

Objective. Bad posture increases the risk that a musician may suffer from musculoskeletal disorders. This study compared posture quality required by different instruments or families of instruments. Methods. Using an ad-hoc postural observation instrument embracing 11 postural variables, four experts evaluated the postures of 100 students attending a Spanish higher conservatory of music. Results. The agreement of the experts’ evaluations was statistically confirmed by a Cohen's κ value between 0.855 and 1.000 and a Kendall value between 0.709 and 1.000 (p?χ² tests revealed significant association between instrument families and seated posture with respect to pelvic attitude, dorsal curvature and head alignment in both sagittal and frontal planes. This analysis also showed an association between instrument families and standing posture with respect to the frontal plane of the axis of gravity, pelvic attitude, head alignment in the frontal plane, the sagittal plane of the shoulders and overall posture. Conclusions. While certain postural defects appear to be common to all families of instruments, others are more characteristic of some families than others. The instrument associated with the best posture quality was the bagpipe, followed by percussion and strings.     

Trace elements and microbiological parameters in farmed Nile tilapia with emphasis on muscle,water, sediment and feed

Fish may bioaccumulate contaminants from the aquatic environment and extend them to the food chain provoking risks to human health. This study evaluated the microbiological parameters of the pond´s water and trace elements concentrations in samples of water, sediment, feed and muscle of farmed Nile tilapia used for human consumption in southern Brazil. A total of 240 fish were collected from 12 tilapia farms. Sediment, tank water and dry ration used in the animals' diet were collected for analysis. Analysis were performed by Energy Dispersion X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF), Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS), Induced Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES), and Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS-VGA). In addition, the microbiological analysis of the water was carried out. The concentrations of Se, I, Fe, Cu and Zn in fish muscle were higher than the recommended by the Brazilian legislation, considering the advised daily intake for adults. The arsenic element had concentrations above the limit stipulated by the present Brazilian legislation, observed in all samples of muscle, sediment and tank water highlighting a possible environmental and fish contamination by the toxic element. Moreover, the arsenic concentration in the water presented a positive correlation (ρ?=?0.33) with arsenic in the muscle, suggesting that tilapia is a good environmental bioindicator, once they properly reflect the levels of arsenic in the water. It is suggested to perform an arsenic speciation for quantification of the inorganic form and accurate assessment of the degree of toxicity in the muscle samples and risks it can bring to human health. Regarding the other potentially toxic elements (Hg, Pb and Cd), and microbiological analysis of water it was verified that the consumption of the fish in question does not raise risks, since the values are within a quality benchmark established by law. The concentration of total and fecal coliforms in pond´s water in the facilities was in agreement with the microbiological indexes required by the legislation of CONAMA class II. Western region presented the lowest concentrations of fecal coliforms when compared to the other regions. There was no significant difference in the microbiological counts of total heterotrophic bacteria, Vibrio spp. and Pseudomonas spp. among the regions.     

Synthesis,Characterization and Environmental Applications of a New Bio-Composite Gelatin-Zr(IV) Phosphate

Gelatin-Zr(IV) phosphate composite (GT/ZPC) was synthesized by sol–gel method. Different techniques viz. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray powdered diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used for the characterisation of GT/ZPC composite ion exchanger. The ion exchange capacity (IEC) of GT/ZPC was observed to be better (1.04 meq g^?1) than its inorganic counterpart (0.64 meq g^?1). The pH studies revealed the monofunctional nature of GT/ZPC with one inflection point. The distribution studies showed that the GT/ZPC was highly selective for Cd²⁺ as compare to other metal ions. The environmental applicability of ion exchanger has been analysed for binary separations of metal ions using column method. Cd²⁺ was effectively removed from synthetic mixture of metal ions (Zn²⁺, Pb²⁺, Ni²⁺, Co²⁺ and Cu²⁺).     

峡山地不同垂直带土壤层的水文功能及其影响因子

渗透性能和持水能力是土壤重要的水力学性质，是土壤调节径流、保持水土和涵养水源等水文功能的基础。以三峡库首的夷陵-大老岭山地为对象，采集亚高山棕壤针叶林地、中山黄棕壤针阔混交林与茶园地和低山黄壤针叶林地等4个样点剖面的土壤样品，在室内进行土壤饱和导水率、水分特征曲线和理化性质测定，量化了不同样地土壤渗透性能、持水能力和水分库容等水文功能参数，并明确了其主要影响因子。结果表明: 研究区山地土壤饱和导水率在0.06～14.78 mm/min之间，亚高山棕壤和中山黄棕壤林地土壤渗透性能较好，其平均饱和导水率在7.15～14.78 mm/ min之间，低山黄壤次之（1.3 9 mm/min），中山黄棕壤茶园土壤渗透能力最差（1.17 mm/min）。不同类型土壤的饱和含水量、毛管含水量、田间持水量存在较大差异，凋萎含水量差异较小。同一类型土壤的不同发生层内，土壤饱和含水量随土壤深度的增加而递减，毛管持水量和田间持水量随土层深度的增加波动上升。不同样地间土壤水分总库容差异较大，随着海拔的升高，土壤水分总库容增加。土壤水分特征参数与土壤性质的相关分析表明，饱和导水率与土壤总孔隙度呈显著正相关，与容重呈显著负相关；饱和含水量、毛管持水量、田间持水量均与土壤总孔隙度、粘粒含量呈显著性正相关，与容重呈显著负相关；饱和含水量与根系重量呈显著正相关；毛管持水量、田间持水量与砂粒含量呈显著负相关。与中山茶园地和低山黄壤林地相比，亚高山棕壤和中山黄棕壤林地渗透性能较好且持水性更强，具有更好的调蓄径流和涵养水源的水文功能。 关键词： 山地土壤；土壤孔隙度；饱和导水率；持水能力；三峡库区     

发挥城市基层组织作用,有效进行公众参与工作

根据作者从事环境评价工作的经验,结合北京市的城市建设项目的案例,说明在公众参与工作中结合中国城市基层组织特点,发挥基层组织作用,能够有效使公众参与环境保护、体现公众环境知情权、制止群体事件的发生,进一步做好公众参与工作。     

Ambient levels of atmospheric carbonyls in Beijing during the 2008 Olympic Games

The measurements of atmospheric carbonyls concentrations in Beijing were conducted from 12 July to 8 October, 2008, covering the periods of the 2008 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. Six carbonyls, including formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acetone, butyraldehyde, valeraldehyde, and hexaldehyde, were identified in all air samples. The total average concentrations of these carbonyls before, during, and after traffic restriction were (48.1 ± 15.2), (36.6 ± 14.5) and (23.4 ± 12.3) μg/m3, respectively. Compared with the period after traffic restriction, the distinct high concentrations of the carbonyls before and during traffic restriction were primarily ascribed to the remarkable contribution of photochemical reactions. With respect to our previous investigation in the summer of 2005, the reductions of formaldehyde, acetaldehyde and acetone during traffic restriction period were about 64%, 47% and 27%, respectively, indicating that the air cleaning actions adopted by the Chinese government for the two games were efficient. The lowest levels of atmospheric carbonyls and the extremely high composition proportion of acetone after the traffic restriction were mainly attributed to the long-term effect of the control measures for the two games.     

IAHP法在建筑施工企业环境因素评价中的应用

针对传统层次分析法（AHP）计算过程中元素相对重要性难以判定且一致性检验计算量偏大的缺点,改进型层次分析法（IAHP）采用三标度法联合自调节方法构造比较矩阵,并转化为一致判断矩阵。结合实例介绍了IAHP法的运用,该方法易于进行元素相对重要性赋值,使专家和决策者较易接受,且不需要进行一致性检验。明显降低了运算量。     

石油污染地的土壤修复技术

对石油污染土壤的各类修复技术进行了总结和归纳,并对各项技术的优缺点加以比较,提出了一套石油污染地生态恢复的流程。