Impacts of Roads, Hunting, and Habitat Alteration on Nocturnal Mammals in African Rainforests

Abstract:  Nocturnal mammals are poorly studied in Central Africa, a region experiencing dramatic increases in logging, roads, and hunting activity. In the rainforests of southern Gabon, we used spotlighting surveys to estimate abundances of nocturnal mammal species and guilds at varying distances from forest roads and between hunted and unhunted treatments (comparing a 130-km² oil concession that was nearly free of hunting, with nearby areas outside the concession that had moderate hunting pressure). At each of 12 study sites that were evenly divided between hunted and unhunted areas, we established standardized 1-km transects along road verges and at 50, 300, and 600 m from the road. We then repeatedly surveyed mammals at each site during 2006. Hunting had few apparent effects on this assemblage. Nevertheless, the species richness and often the abundance of nocturnal primates, smaller ungulates, and carnivores were significantly depressed within approximately 30 m of roads. Scansorial rodents increased in abundance in hunted forests, possibly in response to habitat changes caused by logging or nearby swidden farming. In multiple-regression models many species and guilds were significantly influenced by forest-canopy and understory cover, both of which are altered by logging and by certain abiotic variables. In general, nocturnal species, many of which are arboreal or relatively small in size (<10 kg), were less strongly influenced by hunting and more strongly affected by human-induced changes in forest structure than were larger mammal species in our study area.     

EVALUATING THE ACCURACY OF RAINFALL CATCH BY THREE DIFFERENT GAGES1

ABSTRACT: A U.S. standard gage, a weighing-type recording gage, a standard gage fitted with an Alter windshield, and a pit gage were installed to evaluate the accuracy and wind effects on rainfall catch. The study was conducted at the Stephen F. Austin Experimental Forest, about 20 km SW of Nacogdoches, Texas. A recording anemometer was also installed at a height corresponding to the standard gage orifice. Based on data from 67 storms collected over a one-year period (July 1995-August 1996), all three conventional gages consistently caught less rainfall than the reference pit gage with an average percent deficiency greater than 10 percent. However, the recording gage caught 2.7 percent less and the shielded gage caught 1 percent more than the standard gage—differences less than those reported elsewhere. The deficiencies were highly correlated with storm intensity, duration, or total rainfall. When the correction for wind effect on angle of raindrop inclination is included, the percent catch deficiency of the standard gage was reduced from 11 percent to 6 percent. The remaining errors may be attributed to wind effects (streamline vs. turbulent flow), nonrandom errors, or other unknown sources.     

区域管治中的博弈效应

区域管治是在经济全球化背景下，通过多种利益集团的对话、协调、合作，解决区域内经济社会冲突，增强区域效力，其核心内容是协调和化解区域发展中的各种利益冲突。本文通过引入博弈论分析方法到区域发展研究领域，构造出地方政府-中央政府政策博弈模型、地方政府-土方政府竞合博弈模型、政府-企业-公众冲突模型来分析和描述区域管涌中各利益集团之间的博弈关系和过程，分析这些决策过程中各博弈方相互制约，相互作用的规律和疚，并针对不同的利益博弈类型，提出优化协调方案，为下一步更好地协调各方利益、实施区域管涌、推动区域一体化发展奠定理论基础，也为我国在划定主体功能区后制定差别化的区域管涌政策提供参考。     

Non-Thermal Effect of Microwave Radiation on Human Brain

Summary This study focuses on an origin of interaction mechanism of microwave radiation with nervous system—quasi-thermal field effect. The microwave field can cause fluctuations and vibration of the charged particles and membranes in tissues. The hypothesis is, that this phenomenon is similar to the effect caused by Brown motion initiated by temperature and results in the same effects without rise in temperature. The electric field of 1 V/cm can introduce disturbance of the thermal equilibrium inside a cell of 10 μm radius, which is equivalent to disturbance produced by temperature rise of 1 K. The hypothesis, that microwave heating should cause an effect independent of the microwave modulation frequency, while field effect depends on modulation frequency, was examined experimentally. The 450 MHz microwave radiation, modulated at 7, 14 and 21 Hz frequencies, power density at the skin 0.16 mW/cm², was applied. The experimental protocol consisted of two series of five cycles of the repetitive microwave exposure at fixed modulation frequencies. Relative changes in EEG theta, alpha and beta rhythms of the group of 13 healthy volunteers were analysed. Analysis of the experimental data shows that: (1) statistically significant changes in EEG rhythms depend on modulation frequency of the microwave field; (2) microwave stimulation causes an increase of the EEG energy level; (3) the effect is most intense at beta1 rhythm and higher modulation frequencies. These findings confirm the quasi-thermal origin of the effect, different from average heating.     

城市消费结构变动的环境效应及作用机理探析

城市生态经济系统是一个由“环境-资源-生产-消费-环境”组成的物质循环系统．在这一物质循环系统中消费通过前后相关联，从生产到资源利用和直接向环境排放废弃物两个方向影响着城市环境。据此．以河谷型大城市兰州市为例．以能源、交通、水资源和家庭消费等四项指标代表消费结构构成．利用灰色关联度模型等计量模型来定量研究1990-2002年13年尺度下消费构成变动对环境的影响．探讨城市消费结构变动的环境效应及其作用机理。     

浙江省丽水市空气质量的健康效应分析

本研究利用2013~2018年丽水空气质量、健康及气象等官方数据，采用半参数广义可加模型分析了丽水市空气质量状况与人群健康效应之间的关系.结果表明：（1）大气污染物可导致人群心血管疾病和呼吸系统疾病死亡率的增加，PM_2.5和O₃对于男性的影响显著高于女性，NO₂和SO₂对于女性的影响显著高于男性，污染物对于65岁以上人口的影响更为明显；（2）O₃对于全人群超额死亡风险的贡献率高达40%~50%，远高于PM_2.5对健康造成的危害，O₃已经成为丽水市最为突出的空气污染物.但是男性和女性有明显差异，O₃对于男性的超额风险贡献率最大，NO₂对于女性的超额风险贡献率最大；（3）丽水市污染物浓度处于剂量-效应关系曲线的低浓度处，单位污染物浓度的变化导致超额死亡率变化较大，降低单位浓度污染物产生的健康效益也更为显著.     

4-n-Nonylphenol and 17-β estradiol may induce common DNA effects in developing barnacle larvae

There is a growing concern over the potential effects of environmental endocrine disrupters on both human and wildlife populations. However, to date, minimal research has been conducted to determine the effect of estrogens and xenoestrogens at the DNA level. In this study, we used the random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) assay to evaluate the effects on the genomic DNA of barnacle larvae that had been exposed to 17β-estradiol (E₂) and low concentrations of 4-n-nonylphenol (NP). DNA effects include DNA damage as well as mutations and possibly other effects at the DNA level that can be induced by chemical or physical agents that directly and/or indirectly interact with genomic DNA. Not only did exposure to NP and E₂ induce changes in RAPD profiles in the exposed barnacle larvae when compared to control patterns, but also, and more importantly, there were similarities in the RAPD modifications in the exposed populations that had been treated to either chemical. We propose that NP and E₂ induced some common DNA effects in barnacle larvae and that these specific modifications in RAPD patterns may arise as a consequence of hot spot DNA damage (e.g. DNA adducts) and/or mutations (point mutations or genomic rearrangements). This could help to explain how xenoestrogens mimic the effects produced by natural estrogens. In conclusion, in the field of endocrine disruption, the study of DNA effects induced by estrogens and/or xenoestrogens warrants further investigation. Indeed, changes at the DNA level may be the precursors of some of the numerous effects reported at higher levels of biological organisation such as the feminization of males, developmental abnormalities, and infertility.     

Microencapsulated chlorpyrifos: Degradation in soil and influence on soil microbial community structures

Degradation kinetics of microencapsulated chlorpyrifos （CPF-MC） in soil and its influence on soil microbial community structures were investigated by comparing with emulsifiable concentration of chlorpyrifos （CPF-EC） in laboratory. The residual periods of CPF-MC with fortification levels of 5 and 20 mg/kg reached 120 days in soil, both of the degradation curves did not fit the first-order model, and out-capsule residues of chlorpyrifos in soil were maintained at 1.76 （±0.33） and 5.92 （±1.20） mg/kg in the period between 15 and 60 days, respectively. The degradation kinetics of CPF-EC fit the first-order model, and the residual periods of 5 and 20 mg/kg treatments were 60 days. Bacterial community structures in soil treated with two concentrations of CPF-MC showed similarity to those of the control during the test period, as seen in the band number and relative intensities of the individual band on DGGE gels （p 〉 0.05）. Fungal community structures were slightly affected in the 5 mg/kg treatments and returned to the control levels after 30 days, but initially differed significantly from control in the 20 mg/kg treatments （p 〈 0.05） and did not recover to control levels until 90 days later. The CPF-EC significantly altered microbial community structures （p 〈 0.05） and effects did not disappear until 240 days later. The results indicated that the microcapsule technology prolonged the residue periods of chlorpyrifos in soil whereas it decreased its side-effects on soil microbes as compared with the emulsifiable concentration formulation.     

丁草胺对泥鳅的毒性效应的研究

本文选定丁草胺和泥鳅作为研究对象,希望通过实验研究出除草剂丁草胺对泥鳅的急性毒性效应。研究表明：60％丁草胺乳油商品剂对泥鳅的24hLC50为0．74mg／L;48h LC50为0．61mg／L,安全浓度（SC）为0．33mg／L。60％丁草胺乳油商品剂可以直接杀死泥破外,对泥鳅的行为也产生了明显的影响,是一种高毒农药。     

长输油气管道工程建设对生态影响及对策研究

文章通过对东北地区长输油气管道工程建设可能产生的生态影响进行预测和分析,从工程建设的短期影响和长期影响两个方面,阐述长输油气管道工程建设对草原生态系统、湿地生态系统、森林生态系统、农田生态系统以及土壤所产生的生态影响,并从施工前期准备、施工期、施工后期恢复以及长期监测和管理等几个方面提出相应的对策和建议。