Educating the next generation of atmospheric scientists within a European Network of Excellence

In order to promote the next generation of atmospheric scientists, the task Training and Education (T&E) in ACCENT, the European Network of Excellence in Atmospheric Composition Change (www.accent-network.org) has developed and implemented an Integrated Learning Environment (ILE). For school teachers and their students, the Internet-based “Global Change Magazine” provides up-to-date and freely accessible scientific material in English and five other languages. Additionally, T&E has produced online teaching material for early-career scientists. These e-learning modules are now being used in University Master's courses across Europe. T&E also organised training events for early-career scientists, combining scientific content with development in transferable skills, to focus on interdisciplinary collaboration, interaction with senior scientists, communication with stakeholders, and dissemination to the general public. Evaluation based on participant feedback evidences the effectiveness of these events, e.g., in terms of motivation to remain in the field. Methodologies and materials from T&E are being published in a Handbook on Best Practice, intended for both educators and scientists around the globe who are involved in education in the field of air quality and climate change science.     

WalkSafe: a school-based pedestrian safety intervention program

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of the WalkSafe program, an elementary school-based pedestrian safety program in a single high-risk district in Miami-Dade County. METHODS: Sixteen elementary schools were identified in a single high-risk district and enrolled in a one-year study. All schools implemented the WalkSafe program on the last week of January 2003. A pre, post, and three-month post testing of pedestrian safety knowledge was conducted. An observational component was also implemented at four schools that were randomly chosen. Engineering recommendations and law enforcement initiatives were also performed. RESULTS: A total of 6467 children from K-5th grade from 16 elementary schools participated in the program. Of these 5762 tests were collected over three different testing times. A significant difference (p-value < 0.001) was found between the pre and post testing conditions across all grade levels. There was no significant difference found between the post and three-month post testing conditions across all grade levels (p-value > 0.05). The observational data collected at four schools across the different testing times demonstrated a significant difference found between pre and post testing conditions for Group A (stop at the curb and look left, right, left) and also for Group B (midstreet crossing and darting out) (p-value < 0.05). There was no difference found between comparing the pre-test or post-test condition with the three-month post-test time. There were many environmental modifications that were recommended and actually performed. CONCLUSION: The WalkSafe program implemented in a single high-risk district was shown to improve the pedestrian safety knowledge of elementary school children. The observational data demonstrated improved crossing behaviors from pre-test to post-testing conditions. Future research will focus on sustaining the program in this district and expanding the program throughout our county.     

Net Present Biodiversity Value and the Design of Biodiversity Offsets

There is an urgent need to develop sound theory and practice for biodiversity offsets to provide a better basis for offset multipliers, to improve accounting for time delays in offset repayments, and to develop a common framework for evaluating in-kind and out-of-kind offsets. Here, we apply concepts and measures from systematic conservation planning and financial accounting to provide a basis for determining equity across type (of biodiversity), space, and time. We introduce net present biodiversity value (NPBV) as a theoretical and practical measure for defining the offset required to achieve no-net-loss. For evaluating equity in type and space we use measures of biodiversity value from systematic conservation planning. Time discount rates are used to address risk of non-repayment, and loss of utility. We illustrate these concepts and measures with two examples of biodiversity impact–offset transactions. Considerable further work is required to understand the characteristics of these approaches.     

The mutagenic activity of thirty polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and oxides in urban airborne particulates

Data are presented on the mutagenicity of an organic extract of a composite sample of urban air particulates and of thirty PAH compounds in such samples, including four quinone derivatives, isolated quantitatively by thin-layer chromatography and identified by fluorescence or other spectral techniques. Mutagenic activity was determined by the Ames assay, using histidine auxotrophs of Salmonella typhimurium strains TA98, TA100, TA1537 and TA1538. All compounds were dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) which was the least toxic of eight organic solvents tested.The mutagenic activity of a benzene extract of suspended particulates from the air of Hamilton, Ontario was significantly greater with strain TA98 than with strain TA100, suggesting the presence of more frame-shift acting mutagens. The mutagenic response of this extract was similar with and without S-9 activation.Mutagenic tests on the 30 PAH compounds indicated that only the benzo(a)pyrene quinones were direct acting mutagens. All of the chemical compounds were tested with and without S-9 activation. The following PAH showed unequivocal mutagenic activity, with S-9 activation: benz(a)anthracene, benzo-(a)pyrene, benzo(ghi)perylene, benzo(rst)pentaphene, benzophenanthrene, chrysene, 1, 2, 3, 4-dibenzanthracene, 2, 3, 6, 7-dibenzanthracene, and 3-methyl cholanthrene. The quinones of 1, 6-; 3, 6-; and 6, 12-benzo(a)pyrenes showed weak mutagenic activity but 3, 6-benzo(a)pyrene elicited also a photodynamic response.     

A fungal perspective on conservation biology

Hitherto fungi have rarely been considered in conservation biology, but this is changing as the field moves from addressing single species issues to an integrative ecosystem‐based approach. The current emphasis on biodiversity as a provider of ecosystem services throws the spotlight on the vast diversity of fungi, their crucial roles in terrestrial ecosystems, and the benefits of considering fungi in concert with animals and plants. We reviewed the role of fungi in ecosystems and composed an overview of the current state of conservation of fungi. There are 5 areas in which fungi can be readily integrated into conservation: as providers of habitats and processes important for other organisms; as indicators of desired or undesired trends in ecosystem functioning; as indicators of habitats of conservation value; as providers of powerful links between human societies and the natural world because of their value as food, medicine, and biotechnological tools; and as sources of novel tools and approaches for conservation of megadiverse organism groups. We hope conservation professionals will value the potential of fungi, engage mycologists in their work, and appreciate the crucial role of fungi in nature. Una Perspectiva Micótica de la Biología de la Conservación     

Hatch success and temperature-dependent development time in two broadly distributed topminnows (Fundulidae)

Metabolic scaling laws predict a variety of emergent properties of biological systems based on relationships among temperature, body size, and rates of physiological processes. These models have been criticized as being overly simplistic and not accounting for directional variability arising from evolutionary tradeoffs. I measured hatch success and egg development time at six temperatures for 12 populations throughout the latitudinal range of two broadly distributed topminnows (Fundulus). I asked if hatch success and development time differed between the species and northern and southern populations. Hatch success reaction norms suggested that the more broadly (and northern) distributed Fundulus notatus was more eurythermic with a lower optima and broader performance breadth than Fundulus olivaceus. Temperature explained most variability in mass-corrected development time. Development time differed between the species, but not northern and southern populations. Deviations from predictions of universal scaling laws were most pronounced away from specie's thermal optima.     

Levels and trends of brominated flame retardants in the European environment

In this paper, we review those data which have recently become available for brominated flame retardants (particularly the brominated diphenyl ethers (BDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD)) in samples from the European environment. Environmental compartments studied comprise the atmosphere, sediments and soils, sewage sludges, and a variety of biological samples and food chains. This is currently a very active research area, and we cite over 70 studies reported in the literature during 2003-04. Findings include that the input of BDEs (especially BDE209) to the Baltic Sea by atmospheric deposition now exceeds that of PCBs by a factor of almost 40 times. Sewage sludge samples from both industrial and background locations show concentrations of BDEs, HBCD and tetrabromobisphenol-A (TBBP-A) that are of a similar order, indicating that the major source is from diffuse leaching from products into wastewater streams from users, households and industries generally. Point-sources from industries using BFRs (e.g. the textile industry) also generate local hot-spots. Sediment core studies identified the presence of two of the three PBDE formulations. The penta-mix formulation was clearly present from the beginning of the 1970s, but the deca-mix only appeared in the late 1970s. BDE183, BDE209 and HBCD were detected in peregrine falcons from Sweden and other birds feeding on terrestrial food chains. BDEs are found widely distributed in fish, including those from high mountain lakes in Europe, as a consequence of long-range atmospheric transport and deposition. A temporal trend study in archived freeze-dried mussels from the Seine estuary, France, indicated an exponential increase in BDE concentrations during the period 1982-1993, which levelled off in 1999 and 2001 and then began to decline after 2002. HBCD was detected in liver and blubber samples from harbour seals and harbour porpoises from the Wadden and North Seas, though very few animals yielded positive values for TBBP-A. There are difficulties in comparing data on summation operatorBDE from studies in which different suites of BDE congeners have been determined, and we suggest a common suite which will allow the study of all three commercial PBDE formulations.