Limits of thermoluminescence dosimetry using quartz extracted from recent building materials in urban settlements

The luminescence of quartz extracted from recently fired building material is known to detect doses of few mGy and can be successfully employed in the case of large scale radiation exposures due to nuclear accidents or terrorist acts. One brick and two tiles (50-80 years range) collected from an urban settlement were used to test the realistic minimum detectable dose limits of retrospective luminescence dosimetry. Independent methods like alpha counting, beta dosimetry, gamma spectrometry and flame photometry were used for the annual dose assessment. Two approaches were employed for the evaluation of the total accrued dose: regenerative dose and additive dose. The former allows the assessment of doses due to anthropogenic sources of radiation as low as approximately 12 mGy by using 10-year-old samples, but it can be applied only in samples showing no sensitisation. The latter can be applied to any sample, however, the related uncertainty is higher and minimum detectable anthropogenic dose in young samples amounts to 20 mGy.     

Uptake of deuterium by dead leaves exposed to deuterated water vapor in a greenhouse at daytime and nighttime

Dead leaves were exposed to deuterated water vapor (D(2)O) as a substitute of tritiated water (HTO) in a greenhouse at daytime and nighttime to examine uptake and release of tritium by dead leaves because they cover a wide area of the forest floor and are therefore a major target material to be exposed when HTO is atmospherically derived to the forest. The dead cedar needles showed faster uptake and faster release rates during and after the exposure than the fresh ones, and the equilibrium concentration of the dead cedar needles was about two times higher than the fresh ones, indicating a quick response and a high buffering potential of dead leaves. The relation between uptake of D(2)O and number of stoma was examined for dead deciduous leaves; the species with larger number of stoma accumulated more D(2)O at the daytime and nighttime exposures. However, drying of the dead leaves suppressed D(2)O uptake greatly at daytime, suggesting stomata's opening and closing controls the D(2)O uptake of dead leaves.     

Anthropogenic radionuclides in sediment in the Japan Sea: distribution and transport processes of particulate radionuclides

Distributions of anthropogenic radionuclides ((90)Sr, (137)Cs and (239+240)Pu) in seabed sediment in the Japan Sea were collected during the period 1998-2002. Concentration of (90)Sr, (137)Cs and (239+240)Pu in seabed sediment was 0.07-1.6 Bq kg(-1), 0.4-9.1 Bq kg(-1) and 0.002-1.9 Bq kg(-1), respectively. In the northern basin of the sea (Japan Basin), (239+240)Pu/(137)Cs ratios in seabed sediment were higher and their variation was smaller compared to that in the southeastern regions of the sea. The higher (239+240)Pu/(137)Cs ratios throughout the Japan Basin were considered to reflect production of Pu-enriched particles in the surface layer and substantial sinking of particulate materials in this region. In the southern regions of the Japan Sea (<38 degrees N), both inventories and (239+240)Pu/(137)Cs ratios in sediment were larger than those in the other regions. In the southern Japan Sea, observations suggested that supply of particulate radionuclides by the Tsushima Warm Current mainly enhanced accumulation of the radionuclides in this region.     

Joint analysis of process and operator performance in chemical process operational safety

Independent studies of case histories by the Health and Safety Commission in the UK and by a Honeywell led industrial consortium world-wide showed that human errors represent the major cause of failure in process plant operation. In contrast to this discovery the majority of previous studies on computer aided systems for fault detection and diagnosis has focused on the process side. This paper presents a methodology, which can involve human factors into the development of systems for automatic identification and diagnosis of abnormal operations and develops methods and techniques that can be used to simultaneously capture, characterise and assess the performance of operators as well as of the process. A joint process–operator simulation platform is developed which is used as a test-bed for carrying out the study. The process part is a simulator, which simulates in high fidelity the dynamic behaviour of the process that is subject to the influence of various disturbances and operators’ interventions. The operator module is developed as a real-time expert system, which emulates operator’s behaviour in interpretation of received signals, and planning and execution of decisions. The interaction between the two modules is managed through an interaction module, which handles the real-time exchange of data using Dynamic Data Exchange. The interaction module also contains the toolkits for analysing the dynamic behaviour of the joint process–operator system. The method and system are illustrated using a simulated case study.     

Insect harem polygyny—the case of Cardiocondyla ants: a comment on Griffin et al. (2019)

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology - Predation risk is vital in determining habitat quality. But landscapes of fear are complex and dynamic, such as temperate deciduous forests characterized by...     

Systematic review of conservation interventions to promote voluntary behavior change

Understanding human behavior is vital to developing interventions that effectively lead to proenvironmental behavior change, whether the focus is at the individual or societal level. However, interventions in many fields have historically lacked robust forms of evaluation, which makes it hard to be confident that these conservation interventions have successfully helped protect the environment. We conducted a systematic review to assess how effective nonpecuniary and nonregulatory interventions have been in changing environmental behavior. We applied the Office of Health Assessment and Translation systematic review methodology. We started with more than 300,000 papers and reports returned by our search terms and after critical appraisal of quality identified 128 individual studies that merited inclusion in the review. We classified interventions by thematic area, type of intervention, the number of times audiences were exposed to interventions, and the length of time interventions ran. Most studies reported a positive effect (n = 96). The next most common outcome was no effect (n = 28). Few studies reported negative (n = 1) or mixed (n = 3) effects. Education, prompts, and feedback interventions resulted in positive behavior change. Combining multiple interventions was the most effective. Neither exposure duration nor frequency affected the likelihood of desired behavioral change. Comparatively few studies tested the effects of voluntary interventions on non-Western populations (n = 17) or measured actual ecological outcome behavior (n = 1). Similarly, few studies examined conservation devices (e.g., energy-efficient stoves) (n = 9) and demonstrations (e.g., modeling the desired behavior) (n = 5). There is a clear need to both improve the quality of the impact evaluation conducted and the reporting standards for intervention results.     

Using the past to contextualize anthropogenic impacts on the present and future distribution of an endemic Caribbean mammal

Island species are difficult to conserve because they face the synergy of climate change, invasive species, deforestation, and increasing human population densities in areas where land mass is shrinking. The Caribbean island of Hispaniola presents particular challenges because of geopolitical complexities that span 2 countries and hinder coordinated management of species across the island. We employed species distribution modeling to evaluate the impacts of climatic change and anthropogenic activities on the distribution of an endemic mammal of conservation concern, the Hispaniolan solenodon (Solenodon paradoxus). We aggregated occurrence points for this poorly known species for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and the present (1975–2016) based on museum collections, online biodiversity databases, and new field surveys. We quantified degree of overlap between periods and scenarios with Schoener's D. Through a conservation paleobiology lens, we found that over time humans played an increasing role in shaping the distribution of S. paradoxus, thus, providing a foundation for developing conservation strategies on appropriate spatiotemporal scales. Human population density was the single most important predictor of S. paradoxus occurrence. Densities >166 people/km² corresponded to a near-zero probability of occurrence. Models that accounted for climate but not anthropogenic variables falsely identified suitable habitat in Haiti, where on-the-ground surveys confirm habitat is unavailable. Climate-only models also significantly overestimated the potential for habitat connectivity between isolated populations. Our work highlights that alternative fates for S. paradoxus in the Anthropocene exist across the political border between the Dominican Republic and Haiti due to the fundamentally different economic and political realities of each country. Relationships in the fossil record confirm that Hispaniola's sociopolitical boundary is not biologically significant but instead represents one imposed on the island's fauna in the past 500 years by colonial activity. Our approach reveals how a paleontological perspective can contribute to concrete management insights.     

Glyphosate application increased catabolic activity of gram-negative bacteria but impaired soil fungal community

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Glyphosate is a non-selective organophosphate herbicide that is widely used in agriculture, but its effects on soil microbial communities are highly...     

Association of extinction risk of saproxylic beetles with ecological degradation of forests in Europe

To reduce future loss of biodiversity and to allocate conservation funds effectively, the major drivers behind large‐scale extinction processes must be identified. A promising approach is to link the red‐list status of species and specific traits that connect species of functionally important taxa or guilds to resources they rely on. Such traits can be used to detect the influence of anthropogenic ecosystem changes and conservation efforts on species, which allows for practical recommendations for conservation. We modeled the German Red List categories as an ordinal index of extinction risk of 1025 saproxylic beetles with a proportional‐odds linear mixed‐effects model for ordered categorical responses. In this model, we estimated fixed effects for intrinsic traits characterizing species biology, required resources, and distribution with phylogenetically correlated random intercepts. The model also allowed predictions of extinction risk for species with no red‐list category. Our model revealed a higher extinction risk for lowland and large species as well as for species that rely on wood of large diameter, broad‐leaved trees, or open canopy. These results mirror well the ecological degradation of European forests over the last centuries caused by modern forestry, that is the conversion of natural broad‐leaved forests to dense conifer‐dominated forests and the loss of old growth and dead wood. Therefore, conservation activities aimed at saproxylic beetles in all types of forests in Central and Western Europe should focus on lowlands, and habitat management of forest stands should aim at increasing the amount of dead wood of large diameter, dead wood of broad‐leaved trees, and dead wood in sunny areas.