Measurement of selected indoor physical environmental factors in hairdresser salons in a Turkish City

Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine electromagnetic fields, electric fields, humidity, temperature, and illumination levels in hairdresser salons located in the downtown area of Aydin, Turkey. Also some health problems which could be related with the occupational factors are evaluated. Materials and methods The study was carried out in 30 hairdresser salons, all of which had been registered within the past 5 years. Electric and electromagnetic fields, illumination, temperature and humidity measurements were determined for hairdryers, hood hairdryers and depilatory heaters in the participating salons. A brief questionnaire about characteristics and the health status of hairdressers and workplace conditions was prepared and administered to the hairdressers at the salons. Results The mean electric fields of hairdryers, hood hairdryers and depilatory heaters were determined as 518 ± 74, 1,123 ± 199, and 648 ± 146 in V/m, respectively, at 5 cm from the surface of each device. These appliances generate mean electromagnetic fields in excess of 0.25 μT at 5 cm: hand-held hairdryers, 5.0 ± 0.7 μT; hood hairdryers, 1.6 ± 0.3 μT; and depilatory heaters 1.9 ± 0.6 μT. Total average of cumulative electric and electromagnetic fields, measured at a distance of 90 cm from the surface of these three devices was calculated to be 98.8 V/m and 0.5 μT, in the participating salons. Conclusions This preliminary study suggests that physical environmental factors in the salons may be contributing to the health problems of the hairdressers, and the electrical equipments in the workplaces may have cumulative electric and electromagnetic effects.     

Air Quality Management: Participatory Ranking of Control Measures and Conflict Analysis

The ranking of air quality control measures according to a number of evaluation criteria and with the participation of a large number of interested publics is demonstrated. A pilot study for the South Coast Air Quality Management District of California serves as the reference point. Several methodological considerations are addressed, such as: (a) the enhancement of criterion priorities to account for the variability among the performance of the control measures when incommensurable impact levels are applied: (b) the derivation of alternative rankings according to the priorities of potential coalitions; (c) the assessment of the potential acceptability of a collective ranking given the degree of solidarity among participants with similar interest affiliations; and (b) the assessment of the extent to which the performance of specific control measures may override priority differences and lead to insignificant ranking differences.     

Occupational risk from static magnetic fields of MRI scanners

The health care staff operating magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners are exposed to static magnetic field of significant spatial heterogenity and high level of flux density—usually existing permanently during the shift. The personnel can also be exposed to pulses of magnetic field of high rate of rise/fall, so-called gradient fields, which exist only during examination of patients. The level of workers’ exposure depends both on the type of the magnet and on the ergonomical characteristic of design of the particular MRI scanner. This paper presents the current state of the art on occupational exposure to static magnetic field health effects, gaps in scientific data, MRI workers’ exposure characteristics, research needs, and suggestions for the exposure assessment protocol for future investigations.     

Immune stimulation in fish and chicken through weak low frequency electromagnetic fields

A hypothesis is proposed how Low Frequency Electromagnetic Field (LF EMF) exposure can stimulate an immune response, based on recent insights in immunology. We hypothesize that the Immunent EMF treatment induces mild stress to cells, which then produce cytokines that function as alarms or so called danger signals for the immune system. In this way EMF treatment takes the place of multiplying pathogens, and the damage these cause, in the triggering of an immune response. In a first series of experiments in␣vitro common carp head kidney-derived phagocytes were used to determine ROS production as a measure for immune activation. Exposure to LF EMF signals (200–5,000 Hz) at 5 μT or 1.5 mT led to 42 or 33% increase in immune activity, respectively, compared to negative control values. EMF could also additionally stimulate chemically pre-stimulated samples up to 18% (5 μT) or 22% (1.5 mT). Significance of increase in ROS production in the total series was: p < 0.0001. In a second series of experiments in␣vitro commercial goldfish were used. Groups of fish were housed under equal conditions in at least four control tanks and 8–16 EMF-exposed tanks. Exposure was done with a predominantly vertical field at field strengths (rms) between 0.15 and 50 μT. Without treatment mortality was about 50% after 18 days, while the treatment at 5 μT reduced it to 20% on average. At field strengths 0.15, 0.5, 1.5, 5, 15 and 50 μT an equally strong effect was found. Reducing the field strength to 0.05, 0.06, 0.01 and 0.003 μT showed a gradually decreasing effect, which only at 0.003 μT is no longer statistically significant. Finally, in␣vitro experiments were done with 560 commercial broiler chickens exposed to infection pressure from coccidiosis. EMF exposure at 6.5 μT reduced intestinal lesions by 40% and improved feed conversion by 8%.     

江苏沿海地区转Bt基因抗虫棉对棉田昆虫种群的影响

2004-2005年,在江苏沿海地区采用系统调查与面上普查相结合的方法,比较分析转Bt基因抗虫棉(中棉所44)与常规棉(中棉所17)2类棉田昆虫种群的差异.结果表明,与常规棉田相比,Bt棉田棉铃虫、玉米螟、金刚钻、棉小造桥虫等鳞翅目害虫种群数量显著降低,而盲蝽象、红蜘蛛、棉蚜、烟粉虱等非靶标刺吸式害虫种群数量显著增加;蜘蛛、瓢虫等捕食性天敌种群数量显著增加,而棉铃虫的寄生性天敌种群数量则显著下降.转Bt基因抗虫棉对棉田昆虫种群的影响在数年间保持相对稳定的状态.     

黄河三角洲二元结构与多元可持续发展初探

黄河三角洲由石油资源的开发而兴起,其区位条件和油气资源条件都十分优越,但目前仍处于经济发达地区的低谷区。通过对二元结构系数的定量分析,发现该地区具有明显的复合二元结构特征,即“油地+城乡”,二元结构是制约三角洲持续发展的一个重要限制性因素。目前,石油产业的全面改组改制、优越的外部环境和自身基础条件、东营港扩建及其附属加工制造业基地的立项、综合性交通运输网络体系的形成等都是三角洲全面发展的难得机遇。要实现多元可持续发展的目标,必须转变观念,由“以油建城”到“以港兴城”、大力发展资源深加工工业和具有竞争优势的制造业;构建高效生态农业经济体系;推进城市的“内聚式”发展。     

Seventy‐One Important Questions for the Conservation of Marine Biodiversity

The ocean provides food, economic activity, and cultural value for a large proportion of humanity. Our knowledge of marine ecosystems lags behind that of terrestrial ecosystems, limiting effective protection of marine resources. We describe the outcome of 2 workshops in 2011 and 2012 to establish a list of important questions, which, if answered, would substantially improve our ability to conserve and manage the world's marine resources. Participants included individuals from academia, government, and nongovernment organizations with broad experience across disciplines, marine ecosystems, and countries that vary in levels of development. Contributors from the fields of science, conservation, industry, and government submitted questions to our workshops, which we distilled into a list of priority research questions. Through this process, we identified 71 key questions. We grouped these into 8 subject categories, each pertaining to a broad component of marine conservation: fisheries, climate change, other anthropogenic threats, ecosystems, marine citizenship, policy, societal and cultural considerations, and scientific enterprise. Our questions address many issues that are specific to marine conservation, and will serve as a road map to funders and researchers to develop programs that can greatly benefit marine conservation. Setenta y Un Preguntas Importantes para la Conservación de la Biodiversidad Marina     

Representation of critical natural capital in China

Traditional means of assessing representativeness of conservation value in protected areas depend on measures of structural biodiversity. The effectiveness of priority conservation areas at representing critical natural capital (CNC) (i.e., an essential and renewable subset of natural capital) remains largely unknown. We analyzed the representativeness of CNC‐conservation priority areas in national nature reserves (i.e., nature reserves under jurisdiction of the central government with large spatial distribution across the provinces) in China with a new biophysical‐based composite indicator approach. With this approach, we integrated the net primary production of vegetation, topography, soil, and climate variables to map and rank terrestrial ecosystems capacities to generate CNC. National nature reserves accounted for 6.7% of CNC‐conservation priority areas across China. Considerable gaps (35.2%) existed between overall (or potential) CNC representativeness nationally and CNC representation in national reserves, and there was significant spatial heterogeneity of representativeness in CNC‐conservation priority areas at the regional and provincial levels. For example, the best and worst representations were, respectively, 13.0% and 1.6% regionally and 28.9% and 0.0% provincially. Policy in China is transitioning toward the goal of an ecologically sustainable civilization. We identified CNC‐conservation priority areas and conservation gaps and thus contribute to the policy goals of optimization of the national nature reserve network and the demarcation of areas critical to improving the representativeness and conservation of highly functioning areas of natural capital. Moreover, our method for assessing representation of CNC can be easily adapted to other large‐scale networks of conservation areas because few data are needed, and our model is relatively simple.     

氮肥运筹对稻田CH4和N2O排放的影响

开展了连续2 a（2019～2020年）的田间试验,通过设置不施肥（CK）、农户习惯施肥（CF）、二次追肥（TT）和有机肥替代20%化肥（OF）这4个处理,用静态箱-气相色谱法研究施肥对稻田CH₄和N₂O排放的影响,并综合水稻产量和综合温室效应（GWP）对单位水稻产量温室气体排放强度（GHGI）进行分析,探讨长江中下游典型水稻种植区增产减排的施肥方式.结果表明：（1）与CK相比,两年间各施肥处理均降低了CH₄排放,降幅为14.6%～25.1%;增加了N₂O排放,增幅为610%～1 836%;（2）与CF相比,TT和OF处理均呈现增加CH₄排放和降低N₂O排放的趋势,TT和OF处理两年CH₄累积排放量年均值的增幅分别为1.8%（P>0.05）和14.0%（P<0.05）; TT和OF处理两年N₂O累积排放量年均值的降幅分别为63.3%（P<0.05）和49.2%（P<0.05）;（3）与CK...     

长年耕作对北方旱作麦田土壤细菌群落结构及理化性质的影响

为探究旱作麦田长期耕作对不同土层细菌群落结构的影响及其与土壤理化性质的关系,于2016~2021年在山西农业大学闻喜旱地小麦试验示范基地开展长期定位试验,研究夏闲期免耕（NT）、深松（ST）和深翻（DP）这3种耕作方式对不同土层土壤理化性质,细菌群落α、β多样性,细菌门和属优势物种及差异物种的影响,并采用PICRUSt2预测其代谢功能.结果表明,旱作麦田连续5a深松和深翻较免耕显著提高了20~40 cm土层土壤含水量,显著降低了0~20 cm土层土壤有机碳含量;深松较深翻显著提高了0~20 cm土层土壤含水量、土壤有机碳、可溶性有机碳和可溶性有机氮含量.深松和深翻较免耕可提高0~40 cm土层土壤细菌群落的α多样性,且深松高于深翻.深松和深翻较免耕显著提高了0~20 cm土层中酸杆菌门、硝化螺旋菌门和20~40 cm土层中酸杆菌门、绿弯菌门、芽单胞菌门、Rokubacteria门、GAL15门和硝化螺旋菌门的相对丰度;显著提高了0~20 cm土层硝化螺旋菌属和20~40 cm土层Rubrobacter属和链霉菌属的相对丰度.深松较深翻显著提高了0~40 cm土层酸杆菌门、芽单胞菌门的相对丰度.冗余分析表明,0~20 cm土层的土壤有机碳、可溶性有机碳和可溶性有机氮含量对放线菌门和牙殖球菌属产生正向效应,且深松下0~40 cm土层的土壤含水量对酸杆菌门、绿弯菌门和芽单胞菌门产生正向效应.PICRUSt2预测结果表明,深松和深翻较免耕显著提高了20~40 cm土层细菌群落的氨基酸代谢和辅酶维生素代谢的相对丰度,但降低了脂质代谢的相对丰度;深松较深翻显著提高了0~40 cm土层细菌群落的氨基酸代谢和0~20 cm土层其他氨基酸代谢的相对丰度.总之,旱地麦田夏闲期深松或深翻均可提高土壤含水量、土壤细菌群落的α多样性及细菌群落的代谢能力,深松还可提高酸杆菌门和芽单胞菌门的相对丰度,并提高细菌群落的氨基酸代谢能力,从而提高了土壤可溶性有机碳、氮含量.