Chilling Effect Research Articles

Kompetencje organów Sejmu i Senatu związane z ochroną powagi izb

The article concerns the competences of the organs of the Sejm and the Senate related to protecting the dignity of the chambers. These competences were established as a part of a reaction to the course of the so-called “Sejm crisis”, consisting in the occupation, initially, of the Sejm’s rostrum and then the Sejm’s Meeting Room by MPs from opposition parties at the turn of 2016 and 2017. Using the dogmatic method, the publication aims to define the essence of competences, their applicable and planned regulations, and to evaluate these regulations and formulate possible de lege ferenda postulates on the basis of this evaluation. The main thesis of the article includes a negative evaluation of the applicable regulations of competences due to their contradiction with certain provisions of the Constitution, in particular with Art. 2 of the Constitution, i.e. within the framework of the principle of a democratic state ruled by law established in this provision and the resulting, inter alia, principles of decent legislation, including the principle of the specificity of law, as well as Art. 54 sec. 1 in connection with Art. 31 sec. 3 of the Constitution (i.e. the freedom of expression), Art. 11 of the Constitution (i.e. the freedom to establish and freedom of activity of political parties within the scope of the purpose of their activity, which is to influence on state policy by democratic methods) and Art. 32 of the Constitution (i.e. the principle of equality of political parties resulting from the principle of political pluralism). In this context, the most important is the risk of the so-called “chilling effect”. The publication also includes a positive evaluation of a few of the planned regulations of competences, which may allow for the elimination of the above contradictions or ensure a more complete implementation of the objective of competences, including guaranteeing the dignity of the chambers.

Physical and biochemical changes in ultra-rapid air chilled broiler muscle and quality of marinated chicken breast filets

The effect of ultra-rapid chilling in air at −20 °C over water-immersion chilling on broiler carcasses was investigated for physical and biochemical attributes. Forty-eight eviscerated carcasses were divided into two groups, one group were subjected to air chilling and other to water-immersion chilling, and samples were drawn at time periods of 1, 3 and 24 h post-chill to analyze for pH, ratios of adenine: inosine nucleotide (R-values), expressible moisture, cook yield, tenderness and color. Ultra-rapid air chilled carcasses showed significant differences (P < 0.05) in pH, expressible moisture and cook yield at chosen post-chill time intervals over the carcasses chilled using water-immersion technique. It was concluded that air chilled carcasses had higher pH and expressible moisture, but the R-values, and shear values did not show significant differences, and only slight difference in color of carcasses processed by the two chilling methods. In a separate experiment with 108 commercially processed carcasses, quality attributes of pre-rigor marinated breast filets were studied after subjecting the carcasses to air chilling and water-immersion chilling. Twelve filets from air and water chilled carcass aged for 1, 3, and 24 h were tumble marinated for 25 min in a Sodium Tri Polyphosphate (STPP) and NaCl solution with different pick up levels of 10, 15 and 20%. After measuring marinade absorption, filets were aged at 2 °C for 24 h. No differences were observed between the air and water chilling treatments in terms of marinade retention at different marinade target levels (10, 15 and 20%) and time intervals (24, 27 and 47 h) but cook yield of air chilled marinated fillet was higher. In conclusion, processors using further-processing operations that debone meat may find that AC to be more suitable alternative for cooling poultry carcasses because fillet color, marination yield, and tenderness were not affected, but cook yield was improved.

The ‘chilling effect’ of defamation law in Northern Ireland?

This article compares defamation law in England and Wales with that of Northern Ireland and analyses whether the current law in Northern Ireland is having a ‘chilling effect’ on free speech. At the time of writing, the Northern Ireland Assembly is formally considering adopting legislation based on the Defamation Act 2013 which reformed the law in England and Wales. The article aims to contribute to that debate in Northern Ireland, but it should also be of broader interest as an analysis of the effectiveness of the Defamation Act 2013. The article focuses on three key areas of reform, in both the Defamation Act 2013 and the Northern Ireland Defamation Bill: the presumption of jury trial, the threshold of seriousness, and the public interest defence. It demonstrates that the different approach of the law in Northern Ireland in these areas did not simply occur with the enactment of the 2013 Act, but rather that it started several years before that with a divergence from developments in the common law in England and Wales. The article argues that the difference has been entrenched by the changes in the 2013 Act, and that, in relation to each of those areas, the law in Northern Ireland is now on a singular course and one that can be seen to have a definite ‘chilling effect’ on free speech.

“We Have to act Like our Devices are Already Infected”: Investigative Journalists and Internet Surveillance

ABSTRACT Internet surveillance has become a crucial issue for journalism. The “Snowden moment” has shed light on the risks that journalists and their sources face while communicating online and has shown how journalists themselves can be targets of surveillance operations or other forms of malicious digital attacks from different actors. More recent revelations, such as those coming from the “Pegasus Project”, have underlined even more dangerous threats posed to the safety of journalists, increasingly targeted with spyware technology. Due to the sensitivity of their work and sources and given their strong “watchdog” role in democracies, investigative reporters are in a particularly dangerous position when it comes to the potential chilling effects of surveillance on their work of journalists. This paper analyzes investigative journalists’ views and self-reflections on the impacts of Internet surveillance on their work by means of in-depth qualitative interviews with reporters affiliated with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and working in Italy, Germany, Hungary, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK. The paper touches on different angles of the Internet surveillance issue by analyzing journalists’ concerns about national and international surveillance players and the overall impact of surveillance on news work.

Introducing a Levy Scheme to Online Educational Use of Copyrighted Works

It is common for teachers to use others' copyrighted works for the purpose of teaching. The current copyright law in many nations only exempts educational use in the context of offline classroom teaching. The use of others’ copyrighted material in online teaching may still constitute copyright infringement. To protect teachers from the chilling effect of copyright infringement, to safeguard the public's freedom to obtain knowledge, and to ensure the commensurability of the profits and responsibilities of online teaching platforms, this paper proposes a levy scheme for online teaching. Under the levy scheme, teachers are free to use others’ published work for the purpose of online teaching, provided that such use does not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work and does not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interest of the copyright owner. Online teaching platforms should remunerate the copyright owner of the work used in the platform according to the number of participants of the course that uses such work.

Comprehensive Assessment of the Dynamics of Banana Chilling Injury by Advanced Optical Techniques

Green-ripe banana fruit are sensitive to chilling injury (CI) and, thus, prone to postharvest quality losses. Early detection of CI facilitates quality maintenance and extends shelf life. CI affects all metabolic levels, with membranes and, consequently, photosynthesis being primary targets. Optical techniques such as chlorophyll a fluorescence analysis (CFA) and spectroscopy are promising tools to evaluate CI effects in photosynthetically active produce. Results obtained on bananas are, however, largely equivocal. This results from the lack of a rigorous evaluation of chilling impacts on the various aspects of photosynthesis. Continuous and modulated CFA and imaging (CFI), and VIS remission spectroscopy (VRS) were concomitantly applied to noninvasively and comprehensively monitor photosynthetically relevant effects of low temperatures (5 °C, 10 °C, 11.5 °C and 13 °C). Detailed analyses of chilling-related variations in photosynthetic activity and photoprotection, and in contents of relevant pigments in green-ripe bananas, helped to better understand the physiological changes occurring during CI, highlighting that distinct CFA and VRS parameters comprehensively reflect various effects of chilling on fruit photosynthesis. They revealed why not all CFA parameters can be applied meaningfully for early detection of chilling effects. This study provides relevant requisites for improving CI monitoring and prediction.

EU Competition Law Devours Its Children: The Proliferation of Anti-Competitive Object and the Problem of False Positives

AbstractIn the last decade, EU competition law reached a major turning point in its history. Anti-competitive object became an elusive and unpredictable rule, which boosts the risk of false positives and has a significant chilling effect. This article analyses this metamorphosis and the social damages it is causing, and proposes an alternative conception. The article demonstrates that the emerging new concept of anti-competitive object erroneously conflates ‘contextual analysis’, which has been part of the object-inquiry from the outset, and ‘effects-analysis’, which has no role to play here. It submits that both doctrinal and policy reasons confirm that anti-competitive object should be a category-building principle of ‘judicial rule-making’ (‘definition of the definition’) and not applicable to individual arrangements directly.

A Sandbox Approach to Regulating High-Risk Artificial Intelligence Applications

AbstractThis paper argues for a sandbox approach to regulating artificial intelligence (AI) to complement a strict liability regime. The authors argue that sandbox regulation is an appropriate complement to a strict liability approach, given the need to maintain a balance between a regulatory approach that aims to protect people and society on the one hand and to foster innovation due to the constant and rapid developments in the AI field on the other. The authors analyse the benefits of sandbox regulation when used as a supplement to a strict liability regime, which by itself creates a chilling effect on AI innovation, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. The authors propose a regulatory safe space in the AI sector through sandbox regulation, an idea already embraced by European Union regulators and where AI products and services can be tested within safeguards.

Comparison of the immersion chilling and freezing and traditional air freezing on the quality of beef during storage.

Compared to traditional air freezing, immersion chilling and freezing shows an improvement in the freezing effect on meat quality, but it is not known whether this advantage persists over longer storage periods. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to compare the effects of immersion chilling and freezing (ICF) and traditional air freezing (TAF) on the physical and chemical indexes in beef longissimus muscle during a storage period of 150 days. In the current study, the longissimus muscle from Luxi cattle (aged 20–24 months) was analyzed, with samples independently frozen by ICF and TAF. After the core temperature was frozen to below −18 degrees by the two chilling methods, samples were transferred to a −18 degrees cold room for further storage. During the storage period, physical and chemical indexes, mainly including color and texture qualities, total volatile base nitrogen (TVB‐N) and peroxide value (POV) were measured and comparatively analyzed at several fixed time points. A higher freezing rate was observed in ICF (5.124 cm/h) than in TAF (0.194 cm/h), and better microstructure was observed in ICF treatment. Besides, peak force values and total energy values were significantly lower in the TAF group than in the ICF group during the first 45 days of freezing storage time (p < .05). ICF also showed better color quality due to higher L* values than TAF samples during the first 75 days of frozen storage (p < .05). In addition, the thawing loss (after 75 days of storage), total volatile base nitrogen, and peroxide value (in the 30 to 75 days of storage period) were lower in the ICF than in the TAF group. In conclusion, the immersion chilling and freezing is more conducive to the quality of beef during storage at −18 degrees compared to traditional air freezing.

The Double Whammy of Pandemic and War: A Systematic Review of India’s Education Diplomacy to Address Educational Inequities in Afghanistan

Higher education is considered an important tool for the overall development of any country, and it holds true in the context of Afghanistan as well. At the same time, a good eco-environment in terms of political will, leaders’ farsighted vision, a fair budget, good infrastructure, and a good teaching community are some of the basic requirements for higher education to move in the direction of new and higher horizons. However, due to the ongoing war during the last couple of decades, the country’s education system has become out of reach for a substantial part of the population due to poverty, lack of infrastructure, refugees and internally displaced, digital division, etc., critically affecting the education equity. This systematic review examines India’s education diplomacy in addressing the inequities in Afghanistan’s education system and making them more equitable. Education was further dilapidated with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Afghanistan is caught between a war and a pandemic and suffers from a double whammy in losses. Subsequently, given their chilling effects, higher education becomes devoid of multiples equities, including education. However, because of their historical and geo-civilizational ties, India has focused on development diplomacy in general and education diplomacy (E.D) in particular to improve educational infrastructures.

Governing Fake News: The Regulation of Social Media and the Right to Freedom of Expression in the Era of Emergency

Governments around the world are strictly regulating information on social media in the interests of addressing fake news. There is, however, a risk that the uncontrolled spread of information could increase the adverse effects of the COVID-19 health emergency through the influence of false and misleading news. Yet governments may well use health emergency regulation as a pretext for implementing draconian restrictions on the right to freedom of expression, as well as increasing social media censorship (ie chilling effects). This article seeks to challenge the stringent legislative and administrative measures governments have recently put in place in order to analyse their negative implications for the right to freedom of expression and to suggest different regulatory approaches in the context of public law. These controversial government policies are discussed in order to clarify why freedom of expression cannot be allowed to be jeopardised in the process of trying to manage fake news. Firstly, an analysis of the legal definition of fake news in academia is presented in order to establish the essential characteristics of the phenomenon (Section II). Secondly, the legislative and administrative measures implemented by governments at both international (Section III) and European Union (EU) levels (Section IV) are assessed, showing how they may undermine a core human right by curtailing freedom of expression. Then, starting from the premise of social media as a “watchdog” of democracy and moving on to the contention that fake news is a phenomenon of “mature” democracy, the article argues that public law already protects freedom of expression and ensures its effectiveness at the international and EU levels through some fundamental rules (Section V). There follows a discussion of the key regulatory approaches, and, as alternatives to government intervention, self-regulation and especially empowering users are proposed as strategies to effectively manage fake news by mitigating the risks of undue interference by regulators in the right to freedom of expression (Section VI). The article concludes by offering some remarks on the proposed solution and in particular by recommending the implementation of reliability ratings on social media platforms (Section VII).

Goat carcass microbial investigation in Modjo Export Abattoirs, Ethiopia

The study was conducted to investigate microbiological quality of goat carcass in the Ethiopian export abattoirs, located in Modjo from January to April, 2017. Swabbed samples of 180 were collected from three abattoirs: 144 were from 12 carcass of three anatomical sites (thorax, hind and foreleg), 24 employees' hands and apron, and 12 carcass washing water to determine coliform counts (CFU), Escherichia coli and total plate counts (TPC) as indicator organisms focusing carcass decontamination effects of post washing, acid spray and chilling. The mean result for TPC log/cm2 was 4.22, 4.03 and 3.56 for Abattoir 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Ranging from 1.7 to 7.4 and mean 3.95 ± 1.3 TPC log/cm2 for the water, employees' hands and apron. There was 1.9±1.006 TPC counts/cm2, 1.38±0.874 CFU counts/cm2 and 1.28±0.799 E. coli/cm2 mean in the carcass with statistically significant difference (p<0.05) level that meat handling procedures enabled the abattoirs with minimal microbial counts from washing to chilling. Strongly significant correlation (p<.05) among the microbials was observed. The study confirmed the abattoirs slaughtering procedures enabled to deliver safe carcass with very minimum microbial counts that 96.5% of the carcass was safe cumulative wise of which 84% was categorized in excellent standards. Carcass contaminating bacteria should be determined. Key words. Microbial, goat carcass decontamination, Ethiopian export abattoirs.

Effects of pre-treatments in relation to breaking of dormancy of endemic Hypericum adenotrichum Spach. seeds

Hypericum adenotrichum Spach. (Hypericaceae, Clusiaceae) is an endemic species to Turkey, which is one of the commonly used species in pharmacological research. We studied seed germination characteristics. The effects of dry storage (3, 9, 12 month), moist chilling (3, 6, 9, 12 month), scarification (H2SO4, sand paper), tap water, hormone (250, 500, 1000 ppm GA3), different temperature (15/10, 20/10 and 25/15 °C) and light (photoperiod, darkness) treatments on seed germination of H. adenotrichum seeds collected from subalpine belt of Uludağ Mountain were examined. Favourable germination temperature for H. adenotrichum is 20/10 °C and no light is required for the seed germination. Seeds of species have physiological dormancy. GA3 without any other treatment was not successful enough to break the dormancy status alone. Scarification by sulphuric acid and 1000 ppm GA3 combination is the most effective way for germination of H. adenotrichum seeds. Germination requirements of H. adenotrichum have not been studied previously and the data obtained could be used in the ex-situ protection of H. adenotrichum.

Do international trade and investment agreements generate regulatory chill in public health policymaking? A case study of nutrition and alcohol policy in South Africa

BackgroundTrade and health scholars have raised concern that international trade and particularly investment disputes may be used by transnational health harmful commodity corporations (THCCs) to effectively generate public health regulatory chill. The purpose of this study was to contribute to the limited evidence base of trade or investment dispute-related regulatory chill using a case study of nutrition and alcohol policy in South Africa.MethodsWe conducted 35 semi-structured interviews with 36 key stakeholders involved in nutrition, alcohol and/or trade/investment policymaking in South Africa. Interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. We used Schram et al’s theory on three forms of regulatory chill (anticipatory, response and precedential) to guide the analysis. We report evidence on each form of regulatory chill as well as specific contextual factors that may influence the risk of regulatory chill.ResultsTrade obligations were found to generate a significantly greater anticipatory-type chilling effect on nutrition and alcohol regulation than South Africa’s investment treaty obligations. Response chill was reported to have occurred in relation to South Africa’s proposed tobacco plain packaging regulation while awaiting the outcome of both Australia’s investor-state and WTO state-state disputes. No cases were reported of THCCs threatening an investor-state dispute over nutrition or food regulations, but there were reported cases of THCCs using arguments related to South Africa’s trade obligations to oppose policy action in these areas. No evidence of nutrition or alcohol policy precedential chill were identified. Factors affecting the risk of policy chill include legitimacy and perceived bias of the dispute system, costs involved in pursuing a regulation/defending a dispute and capacity to pay, social acceptability of the industry, a product’s perceived risk to health and confidence in a successful dispute outcome e.g. through cross-border policy learning.ConclusionsOur findings indicate that currently, South Africa’s trade obligations have a more prominent role in inhibiting nutrition and alcohol action than investment treaty-related concerns. However, given the potential for wider use of the ISDS mechanism by THCCs in the future, strategies to protect public health policy space in the context of both international trade and investment treaty and dispute settlement contexts remain important.

Disinformation, Deepfakes and Democracies: The Need for Legislative Reform

Rapid technological advancement is changing the way that political parties, voters, and media platforms engage with each other. This along with cultural change has led to an emerging era of disinformation and misinformation driven by both domestic and foreign actors. Political deepfakes, videos created through the use of artificial intelligence, allow individuals to rapidly create fake videos indistinguishable from true content. These videos have the capacity to undermine voter trust and could alter electoral outcomes. Regulating disinformation however raises significant free speech concerns, as well as questions about where liability should fall. In particular, holding large technology and media platforms accountable for content could lead to unintended chilling effects around freedom of expression, harming rather than protecting democratic institutions. Proposed regulations should therefore be carefully analysed through the framework of the implied freedom of political communication, ensuring that any new laws are proportionate and tailored to the threat they seek to prevent. This article analyses how current Australian law interacts with political deepfakes and proposes two targeted amendments to our federal electoral regulations to reduce the threat they pose to elections.

More Reward Than Punishment: Labor Resilience at Midcentury

More Reward Than Punishment: Labor Resilience at Midcentury

정치·사회, 학내 문제에 대한 ‘위축효과’ 연구 : 대학생 집단을 중심으로

진보개혁 정부로 평가받고 있는 문재인 정부에서 정치·사회적 표현, 학내 문제에 대한 표현에 위축효과가 나타날까. 위축효과를 유발하는 원인은 무엇일까. 이 연구는 이에 대한 해답을 구해보고자 했다. 대학생 268명을 대상으로 설문조사를 진행한 결과는 다음과 같다.<BR> 첫째, 사회적 고립에 대한 두려움 인식이 높을수록, 보복에 대한 두려움 인식이 높을수록, 정부를 지지하지 않을수록, 보수적 정치성향을 가지고 있을수록, 그리고 남성의 정치·사회적 이슈에 대한 위축효과가 높았다. 둘째, 사회적 고립에 대한 두려움 인식이 높을수록, 보복에 대한 두려움 인식이 높을수록 학내 문제에 대한 위축효과가 높았다. 셋째, 문재인 정부 지지 여부에 따른 정치·사회적 위축효과에는 유의미한 차이가 나타났다. 문재인 정부를 지지하지 않는 집단의 위축효과가 가장 컸고, 지지하는 집단의 위축효과가 가장 작았다. 넷째, 정치성향에 따른 정치·사회적 위축효과에는 유의미한 차이가 나타났다. 보수적인 집단이 진보적 집단이나 중립적 집단에 비해 위축효과가 크게 나타났다. 이 연구는 이상의 연구에 기반하여 인간의 기본권인 표현의 자유를 한 단계 확장하기 위한 전략을 제안했다.

Research Note: Subzero saline chilling improved chilling efficiency and bacterial reduction of turkey carcasses

The poultry industry has attempted to improve carcass chilling efficiency, meat quality, and product safety. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of subzero saline chilling on carcass chilling time and microbial safety. Eviscerated tom turkeys were randomly picked from a local turkey processing plant and subjected to chilling in one of the 3 chilling solutions: 1) 0% NaCl/0.5°C (ice slurry control), 2) 4% NaCl/−2.41°C, and 3) 8% NaCl/−5.08°C. The turkey carcasses in subzero saline solutions were chilled more efficiently and reduced the chilling time over the carcasses in ice slurry solution. No significant difference was observed for carcass chilling yield and fillet cooking yield regardless of chilling method (P > 0.05). The number of mesophilic aerobic bacteria (MAB), Escherichia coli (E. coli), and total coliform cells were significantly reduced in the carcasses chilled in subzero saline solutions over the icy control, except MAB in 4% NaCl/−2.41°C (P < 0.05). Based on these results, the chilling of turkey carcass in subzero saline solution appears to improve carcass chilling efficiency and bacterial reduction, especially Gram-negative bacteria such as E. coli and total coliforms.

THE CRIME OF DEFAMATION – STILL DEFENSIBLE IN A MODERN CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY?

The crime of defamation, known as criminal libel in some jurisdictions, has (along with associated “insult laws”) been identified in the 2007 Declaration of Table Mountain of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers as the “greatest scourge of press freedom on the continent”. The Declaration proceeds to call for the abolition of such laws as a matter of urgency. This call has similarly been made in the Caribbean context by the International Press Institute and in the Commonwealth by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI). Writing on behalf of CHRI, Cowell notes the “chilling effect” of defamation laws (along with the procedural laws and regulations governing libel actions), defining this phenomenon as “partially … self-censorship on the part of individuals but in general…a wider culture of fear and uncertainty within society that limits free speech”. On this basis, Cowell argues (for CHRI) that criminal defamation represents the “clearest threat to the exercise of freedom of speech withCommonwealth states” and that the “threat of criminal sanction can act as asignificant and widespread deterrent against all freedom of speech”, and that they should therefore be repealed. Similar calls forthe abolition of criminal defamation laws have issued from the Organization of American States and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and in response to a complaint relating to a criminal libel conviction emanating from the Philippines, the United Nations Human Rights Council stated that “States parties should consider the decriminalization of defamation … application of the criminal law [in the context of defamation] should only be countenanced in the most serious of cases and imprisonment is never an appropriate remedy”.Despite these calls for the abolition of the crime, it is noteworthy that the crime is retained in many jurisdictions, including European jurisdictions and Commonwealth countries. For example, every Commonwealth state in the English-speaking Caribbean (except Grenada) has specific criminal libel laws, Asian Commonwealth countries such as India, Singapore and Malaysia have corresponding criminaldefamation provisions, and so do African Commonwealth countries such as Botswana and South Africa. In addition, Commonwealth members such as Australia and Canada retain criminal defamation laws. An approach from the Commonwealth Press Union arguing for the abolition of the crime of defamation on the basis that such a crime threatens freedom of expression and is subject to abuse, being used in cases which do not involve the public interest, did not find favour with the Commonwealth Law ministers in their meeting in Accra in 2005.

Evaluation of Thermal Indices as the Indicators of Heat Stress in Dairy Cows in a Temperate Climate.

Simple SummaryWhen the ambient temperature exceeds the upper limit of a certain temperature range, heat stress is triggered and then negatively affects the production, reproduction, health, and welfare of livestock animals. Due to the limitations of ambient temperature alone as a representative measure of the thermal environment, heat stress is commonly assessed by thermal indices, which contain two or more environmental parameters representing the influence of heat exchanges between the animal and its environment. To understand and utilize the thermal indices better, we evaluated several thermal indices commonly used in the heat stress assessment of dairy cows. We found that the comprehensive climate index (CCI), which includes air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation, showed a better relationship with the animal-based indicators (i.e., rectal temperature, skin temperature, and eye temperature) of heat stress. According to the results of this study, the CCI has the potential to replace the temperature–humidity index in quantifying the severity of heat stress in dairy cows.Many thermal indices (TIs) have been developed to quantify the severity of heat stress in dairy cows. Systematic evaluation of the representative TIs is still lacking, which may cause potential misapplication. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the theoretical and actual performance of the TIs in a temperate climate. The data were collected in freestall barns at a commercial dairy farm. The heat transfer characteristics of the TIs were examined by equivalent air temperature change (ΔTeq). One-way ANOVA and correlation were used to test the relationships between the TIs and the animal-based indicators (i.e., rectal temperature (RT), respiration rate (RR), skin temperature (ST), and eye temperature (ET)). Results showed that the warming effect of the increased relative humidity and the chilling effect of the increased wind speed was the most reflected by the equivalent temperature index (ETI) and the comprehensive climate index (CCI), respectively. Only the equivalent temperature index for cows (ETIC) reflected that warming effect of solar radiation could obviously increase with increasing Ta. The THI and ETIC showed expected relationships with the RT and RR, whereas the CCI and ETIC showed expected relationships with the ST and ET. Moreover, CCI showed a higher correlation with RT (r = 0.672, p < 0.01), ST(r = 0.845, p < 0.01), and ET (r = 0.617, p < 0.01) than other TIs (p < 0.0001). ETIC showed the highest correlation with RR (r = 0.850, p < 0.01). These findings demonstrated that the CCI could be the most promising thermal index to assess heat stress for housed dairy cows. Future research is still needed to develop new TIs tp precisely assess the microclimates in cow buildings.