A performance indicator for ranked set sampling using ranking error probability matrix

Ranked set sampling (RSS) is a sampling procedure that has been shown to provide more efficient procedures than simple random sampling, in particular the Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon (MWW) statistic and the empirical distribution function (EDF). We briefly review the work of Bohn (1992) and Stokes and Sager (1988) on the effect of imperfect ranking on the RSS-based MWW test and on the RSS-based EDF, respectively. We propose a model for a ranking error probability matrix which we hope will become a useful tool for evaluating RSS-based statistical procedures     

电镀锌镍合金与热渗锌涂层热带海洋大气环境腐蚀规律对比分析

目的 解决钢铁表面金属涂层在热带海洋大气环境中易腐蚀损伤或失效的问题,选择对热带海洋大气环境耐腐蚀性能优良的金属涂层,提高钢铁工件的使用寿命。方法 在某热带海域进行户外暴露试验,对钢铁试片电镀锌镍合金和热渗锌2种金属涂层的腐蚀规律进行研究。通过扫描电镜、X射线能谱仪、光学显微镜、划格试验等,对锌镍合金镀层和热渗锌涂层的表面形貌、化学成分、截面形貌、涂层厚度及附着力等分别进行观察与测试。结果 电镀锌镍合金镀层主要发生选择性腐蚀和点蚀,在720d内具有较好的腐蚀防护性能。热渗锌层以均匀腐蚀为主,涂层微裂纹促进了腐蚀,在90 d内基体无腐蚀,360～720 d涂层的腐蚀速率较快。结论 在采用的2种金属涂层工艺中,电镀锌镍合金镀层的耐腐蚀性能远优于热渗锌涂层。相对于该热渗锌涂层,电镀锌镍合金镀层更加适合作为钢铁工件金属涂层在该海域大气环境中长期使用。     

水库水质预测的解析计算

通过对水库恒定时间连续污染源输移扩散特征的分析 ,在其简化条件下求得一维水质模型方程的解析解。结合河道型水库断面几何参数的沿程变化规律 ,给出了 2座水库沿程BOD5浓度分布 ,并分别将解析计算结果与相应水库的一维水质数值模型预测值进行比较 ,沿程BOD5浓度分布吻合良好。 更多还原      

Are rapid population estimates accurate? A field trial of two different assessment methods

Emergencies resulting in large-scale displacement often lead to populations resettling in areas where basic health services and sanitation are unavailable. To plan relief-related activities quickly, rapid population size estimates are needed. The currently recommended Quadrat method estimates total population by extrapolating the average population size living in square blocks of known area to the total site surface. An alternative approach, the T-Square, provides a population estimate based on analysis of the spatial distribution of housing units taken throughout a site. We field tested both methods and validated the results against a census in Esturro Bairro, Beira, Mozambique. Compared to the census (population: 9,479), the T-Square yielded a better population estimate (9,523) than the Quadrat method (7,681; 95% confidence interval: 6,160-9,201), but was more difficult for field survey teams to implement. Although applicable only to similar sites, several general conclusions can be drawn for emergency planning.     

Impact of environmental factors on the sampling rate of β-blockers and sulfonamides from water by a carbon nanotube-passive sampler

Passive techniques are a constantly evolving approach to the long-term monitoring of micropollutants, including pharmaceuticals, in the aquatic environment. This paper presents, for the first time, the calibration results of a new CNTs-PSDs (carbon nanotubes used as a sorbent in passive sampling devices) with an examination of the effect of donor phase salinity, water pH and the concentration of dissolved humic acids (DHAs), using both ultrapure and environmental waters. Sampling rates (R_s) were determined for the developed kinetic samplers. It has been observed that the impact of the examined environmental factors on the R_s values strictly depends on the type of the analytes. In the case of β-blockers, the only environmental parameter affecting their uptake rate was the salinity of water. A certain relationship was noted, namely the higher the salt concentration in water, the lower the R_s values of β-blockers. In the case of sulfonamides, water salinity, water pH 7–9 and DHAs concentration decreased the uptake rate of these compounds by CNTs-PSDs. The determined R_s values differed in particular when the values obtained from the experiments carried out using ultrapure water and environmental waters were compared. The general conclusion is that the calibration of novel CNTs-PSDs should be carried out under physicochemical conditions of the aquatic phase that are similar to the environmental matrix.     

不同通风模式下地铁站毒气扩散的实地试验

为全面了解通风系统对地铁站内有毒气体扩散的影响,以北京某地铁站为研究对象,开展了全尺寸实地扩散试验.采用三维超声波风速仪对机械通风和应急通风下的站内流场进行监测,分析其气流组织形式;采用六氟化硫(SF6)释放,时序采集和离线检测的方法,研究重气的扩散与沉降,为疏散路径规划提供建议.结果表明,应急模式下各监测点的风速更大...     

Geographic sampling of urban soils for contaminant mapping: how many samples and from where

Properly sampling soils and mapping soil contamination in urban environments requires that impacts of spatial autocorrelation be taken into account. As spatial autocorrelation increases in an urban landscape, the amount of duplicate information contained in georeferenced data also increases, whether an entire population or some type of random sample drawn from that population is being analyzed, resulting in conventional power and sample size calculation formulae yielding incorrect sample size numbers vis-à-vis model-based inference. Griffith (in Annals, Association of American Geographers, 95, 740–760, 2005) exploits spatial statistical model specifications to formulate equations for estimating the necessary sample size needed to obtain some predetermined level of precision for an analysis of georeferenced data when implementing a tessellation stratified random sampling design, labeling this approach model-informed, since a model of latent spatial autocorrelation is required. This paper addresses issues of efficiency associated with these model-based results. It summarizes findings from a data collection exercise (soil samples collected from across Syracuse, NY), as well as from a set of resampling and from a set of simulation experiments following experimental design principles spelled out by Overton and Stehman (in Communications in Statistics: Theory and Methods, 22, 2641–2660). Guidelines are suggested concerning appropriate sample size (i.e., how many) and sampling network (i.e., where).

Parameter uncertainties in the modelling of vegetation dynamics—Effects on tree community structure and ecosystem functioning in European forest biomes

Dynamic vegetation models are useful tools for analysing terrestrial ecosystem processes and their interactions with climate through variations in carbon and water exchange. Long-term changes in structure and composition (vegetation dynamics) caused by altered competitive strength between plant functional types (PFTs) are attracting increasing attention as controls on ecosystem functioning and potential feedbacks to climate. Imperfect process knowledge and limited observational data restrict the possibility to parameterise these processes adequately and potentially contribute to uncertainty in model results. This study addresses uncertainty among parameters scaling vegetation dynamic processes in a process-based ecosystem model, LPJ-GUESS, designed for regional-scale studies, with the objective to assess the extent to which this uncertainty propagates to additional uncertainty in the tree community structure (in terms of the tree functional types present and their relative abundance) and thus to ecosystem functioning (carbon storage and fluxes). The results clearly indicate that the uncertainties in parameterisation can lead to a shift in competitive balance, most strikingly among deciduous tree PFTs, with dominance of either shade-tolerant or shade-intolerant PFTs being possible, depending on the choice of plausible parameter values. Despite this uncertainty, our results indicate that the resulting effect on ecosystem functioning is low. Since the vegetation dynamics in LPJ-GUESS are representative for the more complex Earth system models now being applied within ecosystem and climate research, we assume that our findings will be of general relevance. We suggest that, in terms of carbon storage and fluxes, the heavier parameterisation requirement of the processes involved does not widen the overall uncertainty in model predictions.     

Current Trends in Plant and Animal Population Monitoring

Abstract:  Animal and plant population monitoring programs are critical for identifying species at risk, evaluating the effects of management or harvest, and tracking invasive and pest species. Nevertheless, monitoring activities are highly decentralized, which makes it difficult for researchers or conservation planners to get a good general picture of what real-world monitoring programs actually entail. We used a Web-based survey to collect information on population monitoring programs. The survey focused on basic questions about each program, including motivations for monitoring, types of data being collected, spatiotemporal design of the program, and reasons for choosing that design. We received responses from 311 people involved in monitoring of various species and used these responses to summarize ongoing monitoring efforts. We also used responses to determine whether monitoring strategies have changed over time and whether they differed among monitoring agencies. Most commonly, monitoring entailed collection of count data at multiple sites with the primary goal of detecting trends. But we also found that goals and strategies for monitoring appeared to be diversifying, that area-occupied and presence–absence approaches appeared to be gaining in popularity, and that several other promising approaches (monitoring to reduce parameter uncertainty, risk-based monitoring, and directly linking monitoring data to management decisions) have yet to become widely established. We suggest that improved communication between researchers studying monitoring designs and those who are charged with putting these designs into practice could further improve monitoring programs and better match sampling designs to the objectives of monitoring programs.     

Measurement of Atmospheric Deposition Under Forest Canopies: Some Recommendations for Equipment and Sampling Design

Quantification of the forest water flux provides valuable information for the understanding of forest ecosystem functioning. As such, throughfall (and stemflow to a lesser extent) has been frequently measured. Although throughfall collection may seem relatively simple, the requirements to obtain reliable estimates are often underestimated. This review addresses the criteria to take into account when working out the sampling procedure, from the selection of equipment to implementation in the field. Sound sampling of the forest water flux is difficult due to its high spatial and temporal variation. The high costs entailed by the ideal sampling design often prohibit its implementation. Different procedures are available, some of which are compromises between the aim of the study (monitoring or experimental study, short or long term objectives, absolute or relative estimates, quality of the assessment to be achieved) and the available means.