A new method for spectrophotometric determination of benzene in air

A new spectrophotometric method for the determination of benzene in air is described. The method is based upon the nitration of benzene to m-dinitrobenzene and subsequent reduction to m-phenylenediamine. m-Phenylenediamine is determined by diazotization-coupling reaction. α-Naphthol is used as a coupling reagent. Beer's law is obeyed in the range of 10–80 μg of m-dinitribenzene per 25 mL sample. The dye shows a wavelength of maximum absorption at 530 nm. The dye is stable for ～ 30 h. Toluene, the major interferent, can be separated. Beer's law, sensitivity, reproducibility, and other reaction conditions such as time, temperature, and acidity were studied. Formation of stable dye is the main advantage of the method over the butanone method for benzene, in which the colored complex is stable for only 5 min. It is possible to determine traces of benzene (0.05–0.30 μg/mL) by extracting the azo dye in 10 mL iso-amyl alcohol; this also increases the stability of the dye up to 42 h.     

Water immersion and flotation: From stress experiment to stress treatment

Evolving from the water immersion sensory deprivation techniques of the 1960s, tank flotation has recently become a popular recreational activity, with commercial manufacturers and facilities available in most major American cities. This paper reviews research using two versions of the technique, and evaluates the responses of 27 customers using one such commercial facility. These customers indicate relaxation and pleasant mood, findings that are compatible with popular treatments and other reports but differ widely from earlier stereotypes about the experience.     

Classifying hazardous events

Classification is an information management technique that helps achieve the goals of scientific and applied research by simplifying and ordering complex and varied observations. This paper is intended as a guide to the use and application of classifications of hazardous events. Proposed classifications are reviewed and evaluated in terms of their purposes, methods, supportive evidence and the scientific and applied goals of classification. The review is structured according to the metaphor of the natural life history of a hazard that distinguishes three stages of human-environment interaction: (a) hazard causes, (b) physical and psychosocial characteristics of hazards, and (c) individual and aggregate responses to hazards. The life history perspective has the advantage of being multidimensional and transactional. The structure highlights the relationship between proposed classifications, identifies needed areas of conceptual and empirical development, and provides a general guideline for the selection and use of classifications for hazard management.     

对秦皇岛市水资源的再认识

本文对秦皇岛市的水资源进行了重新认识,指出在秦皇岛市特别的降水特征与地貌特征联合作用下,水资源表现出了它的特殊之处,惜用经济学上“可支配收入”一词的词意,对秦皇岛市水资源做了“可支配水资源”与“不可支配水资源”的鉴别,这将对制定秦皇岛市国民经济发展规划起到一定的积极作用。     

Residential mobility and personal well-being

This research examines the relationship between personal mobility rate (number of lifetime moves/respondent's age) and health status. A contextual analysis is proposed in which the health consequences of relocation depend not only on the immediate circumstances surrounding a move, but also on the broader context of the individual's residential history, current life situation, and aspirations for the future. Two hundred and forty-two adult employees completed an initial survey of lifetime residential history, current residential desirability, employment experience, and perceived housing options for the future. Three months later, a panel group of 121 respondents completed a follow-up survey of emotional and physical well-being. Frequent relocation was directly associated with a greater number of illness-related symptoms, but the impact of mobility rate was largely mediated by psychological factors. Health problems were more prevalent among high-mobility individuals characterized by low rather than high levels of environmental exploratory tendency; among low-mobility persons reporting low versus high levels of residential choice and congruence; and among low residential-quality individuals who perceived future residential options to be unavailable rather than available.     

Snowblower injuries in Vermont, 1981–1984

The Vermont Department of Health carried out two studies of snowblower injuries in Vermont during the winters of 1982–1983 and 1983–1984. The first was a case-control study in which we assessed risk factors that predisposed operators to injury during snowblower use. We found 20 persons who had been injured by snowblowers and matched 28 controls to these by neighborhood. In this study, owning a snowblower for 1 year or less and having operated a snowblower for 10 days or less in one's lifetime were significantly associated with injury. The second study was population-based. We estimated that approximately 1.5% of Vermont residents owned snowblowers during the winter of 1982–1983 and that, among snowblower owners, injuries occurred at a rate of 1.3/1,000 person-years of ownership (0.1% chance of injury).     

Educational issues, school settings, and environmental psychology

This paper reviews selected research on classroom and school environments, using a framework that views schools from three perspectives—as places for learning, as places for socialization and as places for psychological development. Studies are included that deal with the impact of noise and classroom design on learning; the relationship between seating position, achievement and status; spatial cognition; the classroom environment and sex role stereotyping; privacy; and density. The need for classrooms to enhance children's feelings of competence, security and self-esteem is also stressed. The goal of the paper is to point out ways in which environmental psychologists can contribute to the improvement of the educational system and to the quality of life in schools.     

渔洞水库pH值异常成因分析及水资源保护建议

酸碱平衡失调是渔洞水库水生生态系统失衡的具体表现形式。文章立足工作实际,分析渔洞水库pH值异常变化成因,藻类的生长与N、P的联系,pH值异常变化与藻类优势种群的出现以及藻类与富营养化之间的关系,鲢鱼、鳙鱼控藻利弊。分析认为:保护好渔洞水库水资源需要在水环境的保护上建立长效机制,在水量和水质方面认真、彻底做好相关的工作,切实把预防突发性水污染事件放在突出位置,把有效去除N、P等(特别是P)营养物质,有效遏制水体富营养化的发展作为根本性任务。     

“双轨制”土地资源评价在土地利用总体规划中的应用

本文通过大连市和辽阳市及其所属的两个城市边缘区的土地利用总体规划的实践认为,在市、县（区）级土地利用总体规划中,土地资源采用已利用土地的利用现状类型评价和未利用土地适宜性评价的＂双轨制＂评价方法,比统盘采用土地适宜性评价的方法具有更大的优越性。文中以辽阳市为例,简要地介绍了＂双轨制＂评价的方法和成果在土地利用总体规划中的应用效果。     

三峡消落带适生植物根系活动调控土壤养分与细菌群落多样性特征

植物通过根系分泌修饰根际土壤微环境.从植物根系-土壤-微生物三者密切关联的根际土壤微环境角度,研究三峡消落带植被修复重建后根部土壤微生态动态特征,对于认识和评估消落带退化土壤环境的生态修复工作具有重要意义.从三峡库区忠县石宝寨汝溪河消落带植被修复示范基地采集人工植被中4种优势植物落羽杉(Taxodium distichum)、立柳(Salix matsudana)、狗牙根(Cynodon dactylon)和牛鞭草(Hemarthria altissima)的根际与非根际土壤,探究其根际与非根际土壤的养分含量与酶活性差异,同时通过高通量测序进行细菌群落多样性分析,以阐明三峡消落带不同物种逆境胁迫下的生长适应性以及养分利用策略.结果表明:①三峡库区消落带4种适生植物根系活动导致根际与非根际土壤养分含量产生显著差异,主要表现为根际土壤有机质、全氮、碱解氮以及有效磷的显著富集,而钾素在不同物种间的根际效应变化趋势并不一致;②蔗糖酶、脲酶以及酸性磷酸酶在4种适生植物中均表现出正向根际效应(R/S>1),但由于不同物种生理特征的差异,不同物种根系活动对3种土壤酶的激活效应存在差异;③高通量...