Continuous Hours Research Articles

Effect of a medicinal plant (Passiflora incarnata L) on sleep.

INTRODUCTION Extracts of the plant Passiflora incarnata L. (Passifloraceae) were administered intraperitoneally in order to test its effects on sleep. METHOD Experiments were carried out on chronically implanted male adult wistar rats to obtain cerebral (EEG), ocular (EOG) and muscular (EMG) activities throughout their states of vigilance. Polygraphic recordings were taken during 9 continuous hours before and after the extract administration (500 mg/kg). RESULTSPassiflora incarnata induced a significant increment in the total sleep time (p<0.05). This increment was due to an increase in the time spent by animals in slow wave sleep (SWS). Concomitantly, a significant decrement in wakefulness (W) was observed (p<0.05). In contrast, time spent in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep showed a decreasing tendency, since both its frequency and mean duration were reduced. CONCLUSIONS The extracts obtained from Passiflora incarnata can be considered as appropriated sleep inducers.

Efficient and Environmentally Friendly Synthesis of AlFe-PILC-Supported MnCe Catalysts for Benzene Combustion.

An efficient and environmentally friendly synthesis of AlFe-pillared clay (AlFe-PILC)-supported MnCe catalysts was explored. Mixed AlFe pillaring agents were prepared by a one-step method using Locron L and ferric nitrate solutions at a high temperature and high pressure. Montmorillonite was treated with the AlFe pillaring agents to synthesize AlFe-PILC. MnOx and CeO2 with different Mn/Ce atomic ratios were loaded onto the AlFe-PILC support by an impregnation method. The catalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction, N2 adsorption, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy–energy dispersive spectrometry and were tested for the catalytic combustion of benzene and temperature-programmed surface reaction using a microreactor. Compared to conventional methods, this method is simpler and less costly and results in a larger specific surface area, pore volume, and basal spacing, with the ability to control the structure of the catalytic materials. MnCe(6:1)/AlFe-PILC has the highest catalytic activity and can completely degrade benzene (600 ppm in air) at 250 °C. The activity of the catalyst is stable, and no obvious deactivation is observed at 230 °C after 1000 continuous hours. The catalyst is resistant to water and Cl-poisoning. The amount of CeO2 added is critical to the dispersion of MnOx on the support and the creation of optimum number of oxygen vacancy defect sites for the benzene oxidation reaction. The AlFe-PILC-supported MnCe catalyst is a promising porous material; the support structure, proper dispersion of active species, and addition of Ce are essential for achieving complete degradation of organic toxic chemicals at relatively low temperatures.

Pulsed-dose rate brachytherapy for pediatric bladder prostate rhabdomyosarcoma: Compliance and early clinical results

ObjectiveNo data are available on the feasibility of pulsed dose rate (PDR) brachytherapy in very young children. Our experience of PDR brachytherapy for bladder prostate (BP) rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is reported, with focus on compliance and dosimetric parameters. Materials and methodsTreatment parameters and outcome of consecutive BP RMS patients treated in our center were examined. Treatment was carried out as part of a multimodal conservative radio-surgical treatment. Four single leader plastic tubes were implanted under perioperative guidance, encompassing the prostate/bladder neck. Tubes were systematically sutured to the bladder wall. Treatment planning was based on a computed tomography and followed Paris system rules. Continuous hourly pulses of 0.42Gy were delivered, to a total dose of 60Gy. Results32 patients were treated, median age 2.6years (10months–12years). Median duration of each pulse was 8.5min (3.8–17.4min). The minimal dose in the most irradiated 1cm3 of rectum was 44.7Gyα/β=3 (range: 4.1–77.3Gyα/β=3). Brachytherapy was conducted without significant compliance concern in all but two patients, 24 and 25months-old, who pulled out plastic tubes before treatment completion. Another child needed re-planning because of slight tube displacement. With median follow-up of 14.4months (15days–75months), all patients were free from any relapse after local treatment. Four grade 3 acute urinary complications were encountered. All long-term side effects were grade 2 or less. ConclusionPDR brachytherapy is feasible in very young patients, and associated with acceptable acute toxicity rates. Longer follow-up is required to ensure that local control and long-term side effects profile are comparable to the results of low dose rate brachytherapy.

Effectiveness of skin-to-skin contact versus care-as-usual in mothers and their full-term infants: study protocol for a parallel-group randomized controlled trial

BackgroundTwenty-to-forty percent of women experience postpartum depressive symptoms, which can affect both the mother and infant. In preterm infants, daily skin-to-skin contact (SSC) between the mother and her infant has been shown to decrease maternal postpartum depressive symptoms. In full-term infants, only two studies investigated SSC effects on maternal depressive symptoms and found similar results. Research in preterm infants also showed that SSC improves other mental and physical health outcomes of the mother and the infant, and improves the quality of mother-infant relationship. This randomized controlled trial will investigate the effects of a SSC intervention on maternal postpartum depressive symptoms and additional outcomes in mothers and their full-term infants. Moreover, two potential underlying mechanisms for the relation between SSC and the maternal and infant outcomes will be examined, namely maternal oxytocin concentrations and infant intestinal microbiota.Methods/designDesign: A parallel-group randomized controlled trial. Participants: 116 mothers and their full-term infants. Intervention: Mothers in the SSC condition will be requested to provide daily at least one continuous hour of SSC to their infant. The intervention starts immediately after birth and lasts for 5 weeks. Mothers in the control condition will not be requested to provide SSC. Maternal and infant outcomes will be measured at 2 weeks, 5 weeks, 12 weeks and 1 year after birth. Primary outcome: maternal postpartum depressive symptoms. Secondary maternal outcomes: mental health (anxiety, stress, traumatic stress following child birth, sleep quality), physical health (physical recovery from the delivery, health, breastfeeding, physiological stress), mother-infant relationship (mother-infant bond, quality of maternal caregiving behavior). Secondary infant outcomes: behavior (fussing and crying, sleep quality), physical health (growth and health, physiological stress), general development (regulation capacities, social-emotional capacities, language, cognitive and motor capacities). Secondary underlying mechanisms: maternal oxytocin concentrations, infant intestinal microbiota.DiscussionAs a simple and cost-effective intervention, SSC may benefit both the mother and her full-term infant in the short-and long-term. Additionally, if SSC is shown to be effective in low-risk mother-infant dyads, then thought could be given to developing programs in high-risk samples and using SSC in a preventive manner.Trial registrationNTR5697; Registered on March 13, 2016.

Occupational health hazards of the female construction workers

Construction work involves several manual material handling tasks including both skilled and unskilled activities. Females are generally engaged in the unskilled works where as skilled works are completely done by male workers. Females are engaged in carrying different construction materials like brick, sand, cement and concrete. They use to carry all these materials on their head putting undue stress on their body. Present study was focused on studying the activities profile of women on construction site and assessing their health hazards and musculoskeletal problems. For the purpose of study, 10 female construction workers working within the campus of Punjab Agricultural University’s were selected. Their activity profile and health hazards were studied with the help of questionnaire whereas their musculoskeletal discomforts were studied with the help of REBA and the risk assessment scores for musculoskeletal discomfort in different body parts. Results revealed that the female workers work for an average of 9.2 hours per day with a continuous working hour of 4.1 hour. REBA analysis revealed that brick lifting was the most tedious activity as its activity score was 12 followed by brick landing (11) and brick carrying (9). Further the risk assessment scale depicted that pain was felt in the upper arms, neck, thighs, head, shoulders, wrists, low back, feet, lower arms, ankles, mid back, legs, upper back, fingers, buttock and palm. Numbness was felt in fingers and palms; Stiffness in neck and feet; tingling sensation in palms and weakness in upper arms, thighs, feet, legs, shoulder and upper back. Therefore, it can be concluded that female construction workers face high level of physical stress due to their occupation. They have to perform several hazardous activities among which brick carrying is the most frequent and most tedious task.

Hydrogen alleviates hyperoxic acute lung injury related endoplasmic reticulum stress in rats through upregulation of SIRT1

Hyperoxic acute lung injury (HALI) is a major clinical problem for patients undergoing supplemental oxygen therapy. Currently in clinical settings there exist no effective means of prevention or treatment methods. Our previous study found that: hydrogen could reduce HALI, as well as oxidative stress. This research will further explore the mechanism underlying the protective effect of hydrogen on oxygen toxicity. Rats were randomly assigned into three experimental groups and were exposed in a oxygen chamber for 60 continuous hours: 100% balanced air (control); 100% oxygen (HALI); 100% oxygen with hydrogen treatment (HALI + HRS). We examined lung function by wet to dry ratio of lung, lung pleural effusion and cell apoptosis. We also detected endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) by examining the expression of CHOP, GRP78 and XBP1. We further investigated the role of Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) in HALI, which contributes to cellular regulation including ERS, by examining its expression after hydrogen treatment with SIRT1 inhibitor. Hydrogen could significantly reduce HALI by reducing lung edema and apoptosis, inhibiting the elevating of ERS and increased SIRT1 expression. By inhibition of SIRT1 expression, the effect of hydrogen on prevention of HALI is significantly weakened, the inhibition of the ERS was also reversed. Our findings indicate that hydrogen could reduce HALI related ERS and the mechanism of hydrogen may be associated with upregulation of SIRT1, this study reveals the molecular mechanisms underlying the protective effect of hydrogen, which provides a new theoretical basis for clinical application of hydrogen.

Comportamiento sexual de novillas Brahman en el trópico bajo mediante control farmacológico del estro

Se utilizaron 33 novillas Brahman, con edades y pesos similares y se conformaron tres grupos para evaluar el comportamiento sexual mediante control farmacológico del estro. A cada grupo se le asignó al azar uno de los siguientes tratamientos: Grupo control, conformado por nueve novillas (G1); día cero: implante subcutáneo en la cara externa de la oreja con 3 mg de norgestomet, más inyección muscular de 3 mg de norgestomet y 5 mg de valerato de estradiol. Día siete: inyección muscular de 0,15 mg de (D+) cloprostenol. Día nueve: retiro del implante. Grupo dos (G2), igual que G1, pero en el día nueve se introdujeron 3 novillas en celo. Grupo tres (G3), igual que G1, pero el día nueve se introdujeron 3 novillas en anestro. Las novillas se observaron por 96 horas continuas. Los datos se recolectaron por el método de “Registro de secuencias”. La información se analizó mediante estadística descriptiva y se compararon los grupos para establecer diferencias. El 100% de las novillas expresaron signos de celo y su inicio no se vio alterado con la inclusión de novillas en celo o en anestro. Después de retirado el implante, el inicio de celos para G1 fue a las 29.5 ± 4.8 h; para G2 a las 26.1 ± 4.7 h y para G3 a las 26.36 ± 4.6 horas. La duración del celo para los grupos en el mismo orden fue de 13. 6 ± 9.1 h; 12.7 ± 6.5 h y 18.7 ± 4.7 horas. El mayor porcentaje de celos y número de conductas sexuales se alcanzó entre las 30-34 horas post-retiro de los implantes (G1: 100%; G2:88.8%; G3: 100%). La inclusión de novillas el día nueve del protocolo no alteró la iniciación o retardo de la presentación de celos.

Residents’ responsibilities: Adopting a wider view

Current ACGME regulations have limited residents’ weekly hours and continuous working hours, a marked change, despite its uncertain effects on physician well-being and quality of care. Although residency programs in internal medicine and family medicine have adapted schedules to conform to these regulations, increasing evidence is accumulating to suggest that these training experiences are not adequately preparing the next generation of practicing primary care and hospital-based physicians. Data from an array of sources continue to demonstrate significant deficiencies in six areas of residents’ responsibilities towards their patients: diminished patient “face time” and direct patient care; focus on patients’ “reason for hospitalization” or “reason for visit” at the expense of possible neglect of patients’ “secondary” medical problems; limited attention to patients’ emotional or contextual problems and limited empathy; deficient implementation of the essential constituents of patient-centered care; neglect of habitual “reflective practice”; and excessive distinction between inpatient and outpatient responsibilities, leading to missed opportunities for inpatient residents to be aware of and attend to patients’ post-discharge course although new information and readmissions related to the index hospitalization are prevalent. Thus, redesigning residency programs to widen residents’ outlook and cover these inseparable components of high-quality care, may infuse the often fatigued and burnt-out residents with purpose and fulfillment, finally incorporating the missing elements of patient-centered care as integral parts of patients’ admissions and therefore, of physicians’ future careers.

Evaluating driver drowsiness countermeasures

ABSTRACTObjective: Driver drowsiness contributes to a substantial number of fatal and nonfatal crashes, with recent estimates attributing up to 21% of fatal crashes to drowsiness. This article describes recent NHTSA research on in-vehicle drowsiness countermeasures. Recent advances in technology and state detection algorithms have shown success in detecting drowsiness using a variety of data sources, including camera-based eye tracking, steering wheel position, yaw rate, and vehicle lane position. However, detection is just the first step in reducing drowsy driving crashes. Countermeasures are also needed to provide feedback to the driver, modify driver behavior, and prevent crashes. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of in-vehicle drowsiness countermeasures in reducing drowsy lane departures. The tested countermeasures included different warning modalities in either a discrete or staged interface.Methods: Data were collected from 72 young adult drivers (age 21–32) in the high-fidelity full-motion National Advanced Driving Simulator. Drivers completed a 45-min simulated nighttime drive at 2 time points, late night and early morning, where drowsiness was manipulated by continuous hours awake. Forty-eight drivers were exposed to one of 6 countermeasures that varied along 2 dimensions, type and modality. The countermeasures relied on a steering-based drowsiness detection algorithm developed in prior NHTSA research. Twenty-four drivers received no countermeasure and were used as a baseline comparison. System effectiveness was measured by lane departures and standard deviation in lateral position (SDLP).Results: There was a reduction in drowsy lane departure frequency and lane position variability for drivers with countermeasures compared to the baseline no-countermeasure group. Importantly, the data suggest that multistage alerts, which provide an indication of increasing urgency, were more effective in reducing drowsy lane departures than single-stage discrete alerts, particularly during early morning drives when drivers were drowsier.Conclusions: The results indicate that simple in-vehicle countermeasures, such as an auditory–visual coffee cup icon, can reduce the frequency of drowsy lane departures in the context of relatively short drives. An important next step is to evaluate the impact of drowsiness countermeasures in the context of longer, multiple-hour drives. In these cases, it may not be possible to keep drivers awake via feedback warnings and it is important to understand whether countermeasures prompt drivers to stop to rest. The next phase of this research project will examine the role of drowsiness countermeasures over longer drives using a protocol that replicates the motivational conditions of drowsy driving.

A Threshold-Based Weather Model for Predicting Stripe Rust Infection in Winter Wheat.

Wheat stripe rust (caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici) is a major threat in most wheat growing regions worldwide, which potentially causes substantial yield losses when environmental conditions are favorable. Data from 1999 to 2015 for three representative wheat-growing sites in Luxembourg were used to develop a threshold-based weather model for predicting wheat stripe rust. First, the range of favorable weather conditions using a Monte Carlo simulation method based on the Dennis model were characterized. Then, the optimum combined favorable weather variables (air temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall) during the most critical infection period (May-June) was identified and was used to develop the model. Uninterrupted hours with such favorable weather conditions over each dekad (i.e., 10-day period) during May-June were also considered when building the model. Results showed that a combination of relative humidity >92% and 4°C < temperature < 16°C for a minimum of 4 continuous hours, associated with rainfall ≤0.1 mm (with the dekad having these conditions for 5 to 20% of the time), were optimum to the development of a wheat stripe rust epidemic. The model accurately predicted infection events: probabilities of detection were ≥0.90 and false alarm ratios were ≤0.38 on average, and critical success indexes ranged from 0.63 to 1. The method is potentially applicable to studies of other economically important fungal diseases of other crops or in different geographical locations. If weather forecasts are available, the threshold-based weather model can be integrated into an operational warning system to guide fungicide applications.

Use of high noninvasive respiratory support pressures in preterm neonates: a single-center experience

Purpose: To describe the incidence, indications and clinical outcomes following high pressures on noninvasive respiratory support (NRS) in preterm neonates.Study design: Retrospective cohort study of all neonates with BW <1.500 g admitted from July 2012 to June 2014 and placed on high noninvasive respiratory support (NRS), defined as mean airway pressure ≥10 cm H2O for at least 12 continuous hours using nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) and/or nasal high-frequency ventilation (NIHFV). Clinical and physiological outcomes following high NRS were ascertained. Median (IQR) and percentages were used to describe continuous and categorical data, respectively.Results: There were 131 instances of high NRS use in 70 of 315 eligible infants. Most common indication was post-extubation, observed in 37% (49/131) of high NRS instances. Intubation was avoided in 71% (93/131) of instances in the first 7 days following high NRS initiation. There were no physiological perturbations in heart rate, blood pressure or oxygen requirement. Furthermore, there were no instances of lung hyperinflation, pneumothoraces or spontaneous intestinal perforation following high NRS.Conclusion: The use of high NRS pressure was followed by avoidance of intubation in the majority of cases without adverse effects. Further research on high NRS use including its indications, clinical outcomes and safety profile is warranted.

Application of fuzzy logic in constant speed control of hydraulic retarder

Hydraulic retarders are extensively used in commercial vehicles because of their advantages, such as their large braking torque and long continuous operating hours. In this article, the structure and working principles of hydraulic retarders are introduced, and their dynamic characteristics are analyzed. The theoretical model of a hydraulic retarder is then established based on the dynamic analysis of a vehicle driving downhill. The braking process that involves the hydraulic retarder is divided into three stages. Moreover, the filling ratio controller of the hydraulic retarder is designed by adopting fuzzy control theory to control the braking torque of the vehicle while driving downhill. The vehicle dynamic model and constant-speed control model were then established in the MATLAB/Simulink environment. The simulation results showed that the fuzzy logic controller designed in this study has good constant-torque control and anti-inference performances, which can accurately and immediately produce braking torque to satisfy the braking requirement, thereby enabling the vehicle to drive downhill at a constant speed. As a result, the control strategy designed in this article can lead to significant improvements toward a safe road transport.

Vascular Injuries Associated with Video Gaming

With the continued increase of video gaming around the world, we present a review of the literature on vascular injuries associated with gaming to explore any common mechanisms of vascular injuries sustained and make recommendations to prevent them. A 2017 systematic review of all reported vascular injuries associated with video gaming was performed using Medline and PubMed searches including the following keywords: “Thrombosis” or “Artery” or “Vascular” or “ethrombosis” and “Video game” or “Wii” or Nintendo” or “Wiiitis” or “Computer game.” A total of 11 case reports reporting 12 vascular injuries associated with gaming were identified. Nine vascular injuries from gaming were associated with venous thromboembolism (VTE). Nearly 67% of cases resulted in major pulmonary emboli, one fatal. In the majority of VTE cases, the only risk factor known was prolonged immobility. All cases had negative thrombophilia screens or no history of thrombophilia. Two injuries occurred from intense physical activity on Nintendo Wii causing internal carotid artery dissection and permanent disability. One case was of an intraventricular hemorrhage from an arteriovenous malformation rupture occurring during gaming causing neurological deficits. Most vascular injuries from gaming were related to VTE. Immobility appears to be the solitary risk factor reported in most of the cases, an unusual finding with regard to the multifactorial nature of VTE pathogenesis. We recommend gamers not remain immobile for more than one continuous hour, taking breaks to mobilize or perform lower limb exercises.

Electric Vehicle Charging Station Placement for Urban Public Bus Systems

Due to the low pollution and sustainable properties, using electric buses for public transportation systems has attracted considerable attention, whereas how to recharge the electric buses with long continuous service hours remains an open problem. In this paper, we consider the problem of placing electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at selected bus stops, to minimize the total installation cost of charging stations. Specifically, we study two EV charging station placement cases, with and without considering the limited battery size, which are called ECSP_LB and ECSP problems, respectively. The solution of the ECSP problem achieves the lower bound compared with the solution of the ECSP_LB problem, and the larger the battery size of the EV, the lower the overall cost of the charging station installation. For both cases, we prove that the placement problems under consideration are NP-hard and formulate them into integer linear programming. Specifically, for the ECSP problem we design a linear programming relaxation algorithm to get a suboptimal solution and derive an approximation ratio of the algorithm. Moreover, we derive the condition of the battery size when the ECSP problem can be applied. For the ECSP_LB problem, we show that, for a single bus route, the problem can be optimally solved with a backtracking algorithm, whereas for multiple bus routes we propose two heuristic algorithms, namely, multiple backtracking and greedy algorithms. Finally, simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed schemes.

Dificultad, solidaridad y rehabilitación: hacia una mirada crítica de los discursos sobre la discapacidad en colombia

In recent years, it has seen a growing interest in inquiring about the narratives that predispose people to establish a course of action towards people with disabilities. The aim of this study was to analyze the dominants speech of disability in Colombia, trough the review of 42 videos of the Teleton Foundation, an institution that organizes an annual television event of 27 continuous hours, though which it seeks obtain financial resources to support rehabilitation centers dedicated to providing care to people with physical disabilities. The methodological path was drawn from the critical discourse analysis of Van Dijk (1999). The results shows four categories: rehabilitation as a panacea, disability as something difficult, solidarity towards disability as a persuasion from us, against those who requires our help; and the people’s family with disabilities, as a savior, who is in charge of disability, like the problem was personal. We conclude that the narrative structure of the videos analyzed converges on a representation of disability as something sad, frustrating and limiting that requires heroes –family– and solidarity from society that still moves prevalently in the duality normality/abnormality.

Robust increase in extreme summer rainfall intensity during the past four decades observed in China.

Global warming increases the moisture holding capacity of the atmosphere and consequently the potential risks of extreme rainfall. Here we show that maximum hourly summer rainfall intensity has increased by about 11.2% on average, using continuous hourly gauge records for 1971–2013 from 721 weather stations in China. The corresponding event accumulated precipitation has on average increased by more than 10% aided by a small positive trend in events duration. Linear regression of the 95th percentile daily precipitation intensity with daily mean surface air temperature shows a negative scaling of −9.6%/K, in contrast to a positive scaling of 10.6%/K for hourly data. This is made up of a positive scaling below the summer mean temperature and a negative scaling above. Using seasonal means instead of daily means, we find a consistent scaling rate for the region of 6.7–7%/K for both daily and hourly precipitation extremes, about 10% higher than the regional Clausius-Clapeyron scaling of 6.1%/K based on a mean temperature of 24.6 °C. With up to 18% further increase in extreme precipitation under continuing global warming towards the IPCC’s 1.5 °C target, risks of flash floods will exacerbate on top of the current incapability of urban drainage systems in a rapidly urbanizing China.

Global distribution and variability of quasi 2 day waves based on the NOGAPS‐ALPHA reanalysis model

AbstractThis study presents the analysis of 14 months (January 2009 to February 2010) of continuous hourly Navy Operational Global Atmospheric Prediction System‐Advanced Level Physics High Altitude reanalysis data used for examining the quasi 2 day wave (QTDW). The global structure and seasonal variability of the eastward and westward traveling QTDWs in all meteorological fields (geopotential height, zonal and meridional wind, and temperature) have been studied. The use of hourly reanalysis data allows a comprehensive understanding of the global spatial‐temporal QTDW distribution by simultaneous separations of all tides and planetary waves. The wave characteristics (amplitudes and phases) are presented in latitude range ±80° and altitudes from 15 to 95 km. Two different types of eastward traveling waves are identified: (i) waves at middle and high latitudes with zonal wave numbers 2 and 3, which are observed in the local winters, and (ii) waves observed predominantly over the equator with zonal wave number 2, which do not have a well‐defined seasonal variability but show some enhancement between June and August. While the first type waves are seen in all meteorological fields, the second ones are not seen in the meridional wind and belong to the ultrafast Kelvin waves. Two different types of westward traveling waves have been identified as well: (i) waves at middle and high latitudes with zonal wave numbers 2, 3, and 4, which are observed mainly in summer hemisphere, and (ii) waves observed predominantly over the equator with zonal wave numbers 1, 2, and 3, enhanced predominantly at both solstices but are seen in other seasons as well. While the first type waves are seen in all meteorological fields, the second ones are observed in the meridional wind and are Rossby‐gravity normal modes.

Characterising the influence of atmospheric mixing state on Urban Heat Island Intensity using Radon-222

Characterisation of the effects of varying atmospheric mixing states (stability) in urban climate studies has historically been hampered by problems associated with the complexity of the urban environment, representativity of measurement techniques, and the logistical and financial burdens of maintaining multiple long-term comprehensive measurement sites. These shortcomings, together with a lack of a consistent measurement approach, have limited our ability to understand the physical processes contributing to the urban heat island effect. In this study, we analyse 4 years of continuous hourly near-surface meteorological and atmospheric radon data from an urban–rural site pair in central Poland. A recently-developed radon-based stability classification technique, previously developed for urban pollution characterisation, is employed to characterise the Urban Heat Island Intensity (UHII) and other climatic factors over the full diurnal cycle by season and atmospheric mixing state. By characterising the UHII over a range of atmospheric mixing states in a statistically robust way, this technique provides an effective tool for assessing the efficacy of mitigation measures for urban climate effects in a consistent way over timescales of years to decades. The consistency of approach, ease of application, and unprecedented clarity of findings, provide a strong argument for atmospheric radon observations to be included as part of the ‘standard measurement suite’ for urban climate monitoring networks for non-coastal cities.

EFFECT OF CONTINUOUS AND INTERMITTENT HIGH AMBIENT TEMPERATURE ON GROWING MALES OF GIMMIZAH AND GOLDEN-MONTAZAH CHICKEN PERFORMANCE

This study was carried out in the Poultry Experimental Farm of Animal production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Al-Azhar University, Assiut Branch, Egypt. It amid to study the effect of continuous and intermittent high ambient temperature on growing males of Gimmizah and Golden-Montazah chickens performance from 4 up to 16 weeks of age. A total of 96 male chicks 4 weeks old, were randomly classified to three equal groups each of them 16 Golden-Montazah and 16 Gimmizah. The chicks in the first group (control) were daily exposed to normal conditions. The chicks in the second and third groups were daily exposed to continuous and intermittent high temperatures (35°C) for 5 hours, respectively. All chicks were housed on a partition of floor pens and reared under normal environmental poultry house and daily exposed to 16 continuous lighting hours. All chicks were fed ad-libitum on a commercial standard starter diet. The obtained results revealed that the Golden-Montazah was significantly higher body weight (p < 0.05) compared to Gimmizah. Whereas, daily weight gain between both strains were not differed. Body weight and body weight gain for chicks exposed to intermittent heat cyclic decreased significantly as compared with control and continuous heat cyclic. Daily feed consumption was significantly (p < 0.05) affected by strain, heat cyclic and their interactions, while feed conversion ratio was insignificantly by strain and heat cyclic just during the periods from 4-12 and 12-16 weeks of age. Carcass cutup parts and hematological parameters were not affected by strain, heat cyclic and their interaction. Liver and testes percentages were significantly affected by strain, while heart and thymus were significantly affected by heat cyclic. The total protein, GPT, T3 and T4 concentrations were significantly affected by strain, heat cyclic and their interaction. Phosphorous, T3 and T4 concentrations were significantly increased in Golden-Montazah compared with Gimmizah. Thus, it could be concluded that the Golden-Montazah more tolerant to high temperature compared to Gimmizah under Upper Egypt climatic conditions.

Near-surface and columnar measurements with a micro pulse lidar of atmospheric pollen in Barcelona, Spain

Abstract. We present for the first time continuous hourly measurements of pollen near-surface concentration and lidar-derived profiles of particle backscatter coefficients and of volume and particle depolarization ratios during a 5-day pollination event observed in Barcelona, Spain, between 27 and 31 March 2015. Daily average concentrations ranged from 1082 to 2830 pollen m−3. Platanus and Pinus pollen types represented together more than 80 % of the total pollen. Maximum hourly pollen concentrations of 4700 and 1200 m−3 were found for Platanus and Pinus, respectively. Every day a clear diurnal cycle caused by the vertical transport of the airborne pollen was visible on the lidar-derived profiles with maxima usually reached between 12:00 and 15:00 UT. A method based on the lidar polarization capabilities was used to retrieve the contribution of the pollen to the total aerosol optical depth (AOD). On average the diurnal (09:00–17:00 UT) pollen AOD was 0.05, which represented 29 % of the total AOD. Maximum values of the pollen AOD and its contribution to the total AOD reached 0.12 and 78 %, respectively. The diurnal means of the volume and particle depolarization ratios in the pollen plume were 0.08 and 0.14, with hourly maxima of 0.18 and 0.33, respectively. The diurnal mean of the height of the pollen plume was found at 1.24 km with maxima varying in the range of 1.47–1.78 km. A correlation study is performed (1) between the depolarization ratios and the pollen near-surface concentration to evaluate the ability of the former parameter to monitor pollen release and (2) between the depolarization ratios as well as pollen AOD and surface downward solar fluxes, which cause the atmospheric turbulences responsible for the particle vertical motion, to examine the dependency of the depolarization ratios and the pollen AOD upon solar fluxes. For the volume depolarization ratio the first correlation study yields to correlation coefficients ranging 0.00–0.81 and the second to correlation coefficients ranging 0.49–0.86.