Assessment Of Human Activities Research Articles

Grey Assessment

The assessment of human activities is an important task, because it helps to correct mistakes and to improve the overall performance of a group. Frequently, however, the individual assessment of the members of a group is performed not with numerical scores, but with qualitative grades (linguistic expressions). This happens either because the existing data are not exact, or for reasons of elasticity (e.g. teacher for students). In such cases the mean performance of the group cannot be assessed by applying the traditional method of calculating the mean value of the individual scores of its members. In this short communication, a method developed recently by the author is presented for evaluating the mean performance of a group in such cases, using grey numbers as tools. The method is illustrated by an example concerning the assessment of the mean performance of a class of students.

Physical health assessment by using mobile health technologies, literature review

A literary analysis of remote physical health assessment methods is available in this article. Indicators that directly or indirectly indicate the level of health are considered. The main focus was on methods of assessing the functional state, functional reserve, behavioral factors, disease statistics. Subjective health information such as symptoms, quality of life, and disease statistics were briefly reviewed. Because it can be easily translated into a remote format.
 Objective remote assessment methods are described in more detail. The following methods for evaluating functional reserves were considered: VO2max , lung capacity, physical exercises, heart rate variability, behavioral factors, body composition, glucose level, body posture and biomechanics, assessment of human activity, SF-36 questionnaires, WHODAS 2.0, static analysis of the number and duration of diseases. Some description of methods, statistical data and names of devices and programs were given for them.
 The greatest emphasis is placed on applications for smartphones, as they are the most accessible to the general population. The convenience and availability of mobile applications has led to the emergence of a new industry - «mobile health». The accuracy of mobile health diagnostics will increase significantly if additional sensors are added. For example: heart rate, accelerometers, gyroscopes, GPS, etc. In some cases, it can be more valuable than diagnostics in specialized medical institutions. Most of these devices are able to transmit information to the client's or specialist's smartphone.
 The article also presents alternative methods for assessing health indicators that do not require specialized equipment.

Assessment of human activities and its effects on forest management: a survey of charcoal producers in the Sekyere Central District of Ghana

A survey to assess the effects and sustainability of charcoal production on the local vegetation cover was conducted in the Sekyere Central District of Ashanti region from December 2017 to April 2018. The study involved the use of structured questionnaires, focus group discussions (FGDs), key informants, secondary data and field observation by reconnaissance survey. The socio-economic survey was to identify who in the district is undertaking charcoal production as an economic venture, how widespread the activity is, and the preferred tree species being harvested to produce charcoal. In the field survey, the vegetation types in the study area were identified in a reconnaissance survey as secondary forests with increasing grassland. The relative abundance of tree species which could be used for charcoal production was also identified and quantified. A 640-meter square plot was delimited and divided into 64 square plots within each of which five-meter quadrats were marked at random and presence or absence was recorded for the individual tree species. The results of the study indicated that charcoal production is widely carried out throughout the district especially in the Afram Plains portion. It is practiced by the Akan and the Sissala ethnic groups who have very little education. Female producers (8%) were less than their male counterparts. Majority (73%) of the producers was 31 and above years whiles those of 30 years and below was 27%. The study revealed that most tree species are becoming rare and are only common in the protected area (Kogyae strict natures reserve) in the district.

Incidence of Predators and Anthropogenic Activities Affecting Beekeeping in Nigeria

This study evaluated the incidence of predators and anthropogenic activities affecting beekeeping in Nigeria. Questionnaires were administered in Oyo, Ogun and Osun States in the Forest Vegetation and Kaduna, Niger and Kano States in the Savanah vegetation zones of Nigeria. Data obtained were analyzed with parametric statistical tool of mean. The result showed that the largest populations of beekeepers were Bachelor Degree and National Certificate in Education NCE holders (25.0% each), MSc (8%), National Diploma ND (8%) and Postgraduate Diploma PGD (9%). Assessment of human activities that were harmful to beekeeping identified by respondents in the forest vegetation zones revealed indiscriminate use of pesticide (16.67%), theft (33.33%) and herdsmen activity (cattle rearing) (31.82%) while savannah vegetation zones had the following record, indiscriminate use of pesticide (25.00%), theft (35.33%) and herdsmen activity (35.71%). Avoidance of scattering honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) combs around the apiary was found as the most effective method in preventing spread of insect pests. Other methods include: hive sanitation, hive positioning, handpicking of insects, the use of spent engine oil, regular weeding, fencing of apiary and use of bee pen. The hives painted with green coloured paint was reported by respondent to control wasp, spider, termites and lesser wax moth. Beekeepers reported weeding as the most effective method used in controlling predators as it was noted that apiaries regularly weeded controlled the following predators with their respective incidence level: rat (8.33%), snake (12.50%), toad (29.7%), frog (20.83%) and ghecko (37.50%) while the most significant was lizard incidence which was 54.17%. Report from respondents on traditional methods to detect apiary problems categorized into predator and human activities include: decreasing size of colony, majority of bees staying outside the hive, sighting of pests in the apiary and abscondment of bees while human interference was noticed with dead bees found in and outside the hive, inactive bees, trace of burnt grasses and shrubs in the apiary and felled hives from stands.

Shape of cumulative land use systems' area distribution as a parameter of anthropogenic impact on landscapes

Statement of the problem and paper objective. Current challenges address global and regional threats to biotic and landscape diversity and the urgent need for its conservation, restoration and reproduction. They make it necessary to improve the tools for conceptual, information and calculating assessment of human activities impact on the environment. That is why the study of the landscapes anthropization, i.e. the process of their transformation through human activity, and the identification of the effects of this anthropization on the environment remains the most pressing problem of geography and geoecology. Given this, the paper objective was to substantiate, develop and verify new and sufficiently informative analytical tools for modeling anthropogenic impact of the land use and/or land cover (LULC) system on landscapes and/or physic-geographic taxons. Methods and results. The experience shows that the resumptive graphic solutions for the analysis of anthropogenic impact on landscapes can be correctly represented in the form of certain modified graphs of statistics. So, the classified scheme of the LULC system areas' cumulative distribution in landscapes and/or physic-geographic taxons was substantiated and constructed as analytical tool for modeling anthropogenic impact on landscapes / taxons. The scheme is based on the concept that the types of the mentioned distribution in its shape are adequate a certain category and the intensity of anthropogenic impact on landscapes or taxons. Properly the distribution of LULC system areas was typified by the ranges for the parameter of polynomial trends in the cumulative graphs of these areas in landscapes or their aggregations. Under these conditions, the scheme of areas' cumulative distribution operates with ten types of distribution – from excessively convex to excessively concave. These types also reflect different anthropogenic impacts on taxons – from weak to excessively strong. Verification of the scheme calculating LULC system areas' cumulative distribution was realized for the test megaregion, including 30 physic-geographic areas and 130 physic-geographic districts of the five regions in the zones of mixed (coniferous / broad-leaved) and broad-leaved forests and forest-steppe of Ukraine. Relevant digital choropleths concerning anthropogenic impact on these taxons were simulated and analyzed. Scientific novelty and practical significance. Scientific novelty is determined by the reason that the developed scheme and obtained model results are more parametrically diverse than in the existing procedures. This is caused by the fact that the proposed tools are more informative and statistically effective for identification of anthropogenic impact on landscapes and physic-geographic taxons than the average-weighted and other calculating anthropization indexes or schemes for consideration the impact of only dominant LULC systems. The verification of the developed tools for the test megaregion affirmed the general validity of the proposed new methodical approaches. The paper results are applicable for the improvement of procedures, schemes and projects of environmental management for plain terrestrial landscapes and their aggregations in midlatitudes.

Variation of the floodplain forest ecosystem service value in the lower reaches of Tarim River, China

AbstractEcosystem service and human activity assessment are essential for effective natural resources allocation; however, these were seldom researched in arid region. This study used the theory proposed by Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to analyse ecosystem services provided by the floodplain forest in the lower reaches of the Tarim River. Results showed the following: (a) In the research area, the ecosystem service values of approximately US$216.78 × 108 occurring from 1972 to 2015 showed a decreasing trend; (b) the total ecosystem service values for floodplain forest and water area for all land use and land cover types accounted for 87.43% of the total value in the research area, and water supply, biodiversity protection, and waste treatment accounted for 55% of the total function values—these were the highest service values; (c) this research showed that the estimated ecosystem service values of research area were inelastic to value coefficients. This study showed that future work should allow land use and Ecological Water Conveyance Project to follow with rigorous environmental impact analyses. These analyses will be crucial to maintain the stability and sustainable development in the lower reaches of the Tarim River and also can provide references for research in the arid regions of Northwest China and Central Asia.

An asymmetrical sampling design as a tool for sustainability assessment of human activities in coastal systems: a fish farming study case

ABSTRACTThe proposed use of an asymmetrical sampling design to evaluate the sustainability of human activities in coastal systems was tested on an aquaculture impact assessment. Two small fish farms located in a protected area were studied, one sited on an unvegetated soft bottom and the other on a seagrass meadow. Biotic and abiotic variables at sites of fish farms were compared with appropriate reference sites located at two different distances from the cages (300 m and 1000 m) through an asymmetrical sampling design. All the considered descriptors significantly differed between the sites under the cages and the reference sites in both seagrass and unvegetated habitats; by contrast, no significant differences were detected between the reference sites located at the two different distances from the cages, suggesting a spatially limited impact of the farms. The asymmetrical sampling design was able not only to detect an impact on benthic assemblages, but also to evaluate the spatial extent of this impact. The approach proposed in this study can be considered suitable to evaluate the sustainability of aquaculture farms and other human activities in marine coastal areas.

Risk Assessment of Human Activities on Protected Areas: A Case Study

ABSTRACTNo study has been done on the impact of anthropogenic risks on protected areas. This may be due to complexity and diversity of risk assessment indices. In this research, using multicriteria decision-making methods, qualitative and complex indices were converted to simple and quantitative indices by which anthropogenic risks affecting the Helleh Protected Area in Iran were analyzed. To this end, a questionnaire was prepared and delivered to Delphi panelists consisting of environmental expertise. In order to prioritize the identified risks, Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), and Simple Additive Weighting Technique (SAW) were used as a subset of Multiple Attribute Decision-making methods (MADM). In this study, risk factors were evaluated using three criteria of severity, probability of occurrence, and sensitivity of the recipient environment. In order to reach enough transcendence (consensus on priority of risks), an integrated approach comprising average, Borda, and Copeland methods was used. The obtained results suggested that “dam inundation upstream of the study area” is a top-priority risky factor threatening the wetland. “Stopping water pumps from the wetland” and “use of modern irrigation systems” were recommended as the most effective managerial strategies to control the identified risk.

Using the Ecological Risk Index Based on Combined Watershed and Administrative Boundaries to Assess Human Disturbances on River Ecosystems

ABSTRACTEfforts at the restoration of river ecosystems are needed not only in local habitats but are also important in terrestrial regions. Large-scale assessment of human activities can be useful in integrated watershed management. In this study, we modified the Ecological Risk Index (ERI) by considering the spatial distribution of human activities in China's Haihe River Basin (HRB). The stressor factors of human activities included population, impervious surface, cattle, agricultural land use, industry, fertilizers, pesticides, water conservation facilities, and roads. A total of 423 assessment units in the HRB were created by combining watershed and administrative boundaries to analyze the spatial distribution of human activities. Two index options, the ERI (including all stressors) and the ERI-D (excluding reservoirs and sluices), were examined for different management objectives. All the stressors and both ecological risk indices (ERI and ERI-D) were ranked in four levels: low, moderate, high, and very high. Our study demonstrated that the ERI and ERI-D can provide an overview of the spatial pattern of human stressors related to river ecosystems across a large geographic region. The approach developed in this study is useful for prioritizing management actions in targeted areas.

The Assessment of Human Activities Impact on Spatial Heterogeneity of Soil Environment - Taking DongPing Forest Park as an Example

Research of the impact of tourism activities on the soil has been a focus in domestic and foreign environmental impact research. Targeted at spatial heterogeneity that domestic and foreign soil environment impact research seldom touches, this paper took Dongping Forest Park on Shanghai Chongming Island as a sample land and made Chongming Forest Tourism Festival the major driving factor. Through comparative analysis of bulk density, organic matter of soil and soil available nutrient before and after the festival, the paper adopted PCA ranking to study the spatial distribution and law of heterogeneity of soil environment evolution in Dongping Forest Park under the impact of human tourism activities, and concluded that: (1) bulk density, organic matter, available nitrogen and available phosphorus showed regular changes, but the change of available potassium was not evidently regular. (2) As for the impact strength on large spatial scale, active area＞buffer area＞background area; and from the aspect of sample land scale, the sample lands of floating bridge and stage performances in the active area were under the greatest impact from tourists, while amusement park and tea house were not so strongly affected; the flower viewing2 sample land in buffer area was more affected than the flower viewing3 sample land; the background area was the least affected. (3) Bulk density, organic matter and available nitrogen in sample lands show regular changes in spatial heterogeneity, while the change of available phosphorus and available potassium was not regular enough. The impact of tourism activities on overall spatial heterogeneity of soil showed a homogeneity tendency.

Carbon-footprints for food of animal origin, reduction potentials and research need

The environmental assessment of human activities is presently a hot topic. It is not only important from an ecological perspective, but also from the view of efficient utilisation of limited natural resources such as fuel, land area, water und phosphorus. The environmental impact of food of animal origin is currently quantified by so-called CO2eq-footprints (Carbon Footprints: CF). To define CF, emissions arising along the food chain will be calculated according to their greenhouse potentials (carbon dioxide = 1 eq; methane ≈ 23 eq, laughing gas ≈ 300 eq). For the primary production of milk, meat and eggs, emissions during crop production, transportation, the storing and processing of feeds, animal keeping, enteric losses and excrement management can be mentioned as examples. Data for CF of food of animal origin and edible protein are deduced in the paper. Furthermore reduction potentials and research need are summarised.

Seasonality in Human Salmonellosis: Assessment of Human Activities and Chicken Contamination as Driving Factors

This study used integrated surveillance data to assess the seasonality in retail chicken contamination and of human activities and their role on the seasonality of human endemic salmonellosis. From June 2005 to May 2008, reported cases of salmonellosis were followed-up comprehensively using a standardized questionnaire, and 616 retail chicken breasts were systematically tested for Salmonella, in one Canadian community. Poisson regression was used to model seasonality of human cases, Salmonella in retail chicken, and to assess the relationship between these and selected meteorological variables. The case-case approach was used to compare the activities of salmonellosis cases that occurred during the summer peak to the other cases. There were 216 human endemic salmonellosis cases (incidence rate: 14.7 cases/100,000 person-years), predominantly of Typhimurium and Enteritidis serotypes (28.4% and 20.8%, respectively). The monthly distribution of cases was associated with ambient temperature (p < 0.001) with a significant seasonal peak in June (p = 0.03) and July (p = 0.0005), but it was not associated with precipitation (p = 0.38). Several activities reported by cases tended to be more frequent during summer. Particularly, attending a barbeque and gardening within the 3 days before the disease onset were two significant risk factors for salmonellosis in June or July compared with the salmonellosis cases that occurred in the other months. Out of all chicken samples, 185 (30%) tested positive for Salmonella spp., Kentucky being the dominant serotype (44.3% of positive samples). The monthly proportion of positive chicken samples showed no seasonal variations (p = 0.30) and was not associated with the monthly count of human cases (p = 0.99). In conclusion, even though evidence generally supports chicken as a primary vehicle of Salmonella to humans, the contamination of retail chicken was not driving the seasonality in human salmonellosis. Attending a barbeque or gardening during the hotter months of the year should be further assessed for their risk.

A Real-Time and Self-Calibrating Algorithm Based on Triaxial Accelerometer Signals for the Detection of Human Posture and Activity

Assessment of human activity and posture with triaxial accelerometers provides insightful information about the functional ability: classification of human activities in rehabilitation and elderly surveillance contexts has been already proposed in the literature. In the meanwhile, recent technological advances allow developing miniaturized wearable devices, integrated within garments, which may extend this assessment to novel tasks, such as real-time remote surveillance of workers and emergency operators intervening in harsh environments. We present an algorithm for human posture and activity-level detection, based on the real-time processing of the signals produced by one wearable triaxial accelerometer. The algorithm is independent of the sensor orientation with respect to the body. Furthermore, it associates to its outputs a "reliability" value, representing the classification quality, in order to launch reliable alarms only when effective dangerous conditions are detected. The system was tested on a customized device to estimate the computational resources needed for real-time functioning. Results exhibit an overall 96.2% accuracy when classifying both static and dynamic activities.

An operational approach to the ocean management in the Indonesian Archipelago

A feasibility study for the development of an Indonesian innovative ocean operational system defined user requirements, facilitated the identification of gaps in marine research, and developed a strategy plan to build the system in the framework of a regional Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), Global Monitoring for Environmental Security (GMES), and Global Earth Observation System of Systems.The Indonesian system would aim to capitalise on the national capability in oceanography for the provision of services in support to fisheries, environmental policies, business activities and the assessment of human activities on the marine environment. This paper describes the requirements, status and present needs in Indonesian marine research and how this research is aiming to prioritise an operational approach to ocean management in local politics.

Observations on resource use in Mabira Forest Reserve, Uganda

AbstractThe study was conducted in Mabira Forest Reserve, which is located between Kampala City and Jinja town (Uganda). The Reserve is predominantly occupied by tropical high forest communities of medium altitude moist semi‐deciduous and moist evergreen forest. The forest was greatly influenced by human activities but has been recovering since illegal settlement and encroachment were stopped between 1988 and 1989. An assessment of human activities within the forest was conducted (March–November 2004). Tree stumps were enumerated along transects established in different parts of the forest and the tree species cut identified from the stumps coppicing. Interviews were conducted around four village enclaves to establish forest product utilization. Timber extraction, tree harvesting for building poles, firewood and charcoal burning were common activities in addition to nontimber product utilization. Shoots and thin branches are cut daily for chicken and beef roasting. These activities degrade the forest, compromising its status as a reserve and destroy the habitat and its biodiversity. Drastic management measures are needed to check these activities so as to enhance its conservation status.