Natural Environmental Conditions Research Articles

Growth of Mustard under Open Field Conditions with Salicylic Acid and Antimicrobial Thiourea

Mustard plants were subjected to varying doses of thiourea (TU) and salicylic acid (SA) to assess their response as growth regulators. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that the growth regulator SA can enhance the protection of the photosynthetic apparatus by up-regulating morphological traits in these plants. The experimental design involved sowing mustard seeds under natural environmental conditions in a field setting. Upon reaching the 15-day growth stage, the plants were subjected to different TU and SA treatment levels for 3 days. Subsequently, they were allowed to continue growing for 90 days. Various morphological traits were meticulously evaluated in the standing mustard plants. Following the application of SA and TU, noticeable improvements were observed in the number of nodes, primary branches, leaf area, and intermodal length of the plants. The data suggested that the morphological traits in the mustard plants were up-regulated by applying SA and TU. Furthermore, after using these substances, a detailed analysis of the alterations in functional groups within the leaves was conducted.. KEYWORDS :Brassica juncea, Growth regulators, Morphology, Salicylic acid, Thiourea

Seismic Data Interpolation via Improved cGAN Network

The seismic data are always spatially undersampled during filed acquisition, limited by the natural environment and economic conditions. Irregularly missing seismic traces can affect the subsequent processing of seismic data, ultimately impacting the imaging and inversion results. Therefore, seismic data regularisation and interpolation are particularly necessary and have become an important step for data pre-processing. This abstract presents an improved GC algorithm with partial convolution layers and spectral normalization and applies it on 2D seismic data reconstruction. Compared with the traditional cGAN reconstruction method, The proposed method can effectively enhance the generative capability of the cGAN algorithm. Both synthetic and field data experiments demonstrate that the reconstruction performance of the improved cGAN method is better than the conventional cGAN method.

Significance of variation in wildlife red deer carcass yields

ABSTRACT Deer hunting has traditionally had great relevance due to the diversity of resources obtained from it, such as meat. Our aim has been to analyse the total post-mortem weight, dressed carcass weight and carcass yield, as well as their variations as a function of years, sex, age and hunting season (autumn vs. winter). Also, predictive equations for carcass weight from total weight were performed. A total of 947 red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) of both sexes, hunted from 1989 to 1993 in the Quintos de Mora National Reserve, Spain, were analysed. Seasonal and interannual differences were detected in all weight measures and carcass yield, conditioned by sex, age and climatic factors such as temperature. In general, to obtain a higher meat yield deer extractions should be carried out in autumn. In addition, carcass weight variation (measured on cold carcasses dressed without head and feet, keeping skin, lateral diaphragm portions, fat deposits and legs) can be considered a good indicator of body condition that integrates seasonal nutritional gains and/or losses and long-term nutritional legacies. This index provides information on the animal's natural history and ecological environment conditions, making its standardized record an essential tool for monitoring wild game populations.

Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorous from Synthetic Wastewater by Oscillatoria sp. Cultivated in Vertical Tubular Photobioreactor under Natural Environmental Conditions

A newly isolated cyanobacterium Oscillatoria sp. from the Sub-Himalayan region of India was assessed for nutrient removal efficiencies. It was cultivated in synthetic wastewater under uncontrolled natural environmental conditions. The filaments of cyanobacterium formed entangled mats which easily floated on the surface of the medium. This characteristic feature was exploited for easy harvesting of the biomass that is hitherto a bottleneck for the industrial scale oil production from microalgae. The cultures of Oscillatoria sp. grown in synthetic wastewater removed 93.02% of 76 mg/L nitrate and 94.11% of 51 mg/L phosphate. The fatty acid profiling of 10-day-old cultures showed the dominance of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. The percentages of predominant fatty acids found in Oscillatoria sp. were 25.25% myristoleic acid (14:1w5c), 23.3% myristic acid (14:0), 16.81% palmitoleic acid (16:1w7c), 14.88% palmitic acid (16:0) and 4.765% hexadecanoic acid (16:1 w5c). The biomass productivities of 0.065 g/L/day and 0.05 g/L/day were attained by the cultures grown in synthetic wastewater and control BG-11 growth media respectively. This mesocosm study was conducted under the influence of natural sunlight, uncontrolled temperatures and the presence of biological contaminants namely, bacteria and small ciliates. The main objective of the study was to mimic the outdoor conditions, which is the way forward for achieving economic and environmental sustainability in microalgae biomass production.

The Suitability of Prehistoric Human Settlements from the Perspective of the Residents

The study of the suitability of prehistoric human settlements (SPHE) can help us reproduce the process and characteristics of prehistoric human settlements, and is an important entry point for exploring the relationship between prehistoric humans and land. In this study, we discuss the definition, compositional structure, evolutionary mechanism, and spatiotemporal representation of the suitability of prehistoric human settlements, and propose its main research lines and possible research contents. We believe that the suitability of prehistoric human settlement environments refers to the ability and process of natural and social environmental conditions to meet the needs of human survival within a certain spatial range centered on the settlement of prehistoric humans. Additionally, with the temporal and spatial evolution of humans, society, and nature, it shows local consistency and global gradual and continuous change characteristics, and the human settlement environment has a suitability hierarchy of natural original, livelihood, and living spaces nested step by step. We believe that we can adopt the main research line of prehistoric human settlement suitability system construction to conduct extensive experiments and demonstrations on the theoretical construction, the evolution of the environment and living process, the relationship and evaluation of prehistoric human needs, the transformation of the living environment, living adaptation theories and models, and value and limitation verification. Thus, a complete research system can be formed to explore the evolution of the prehistoric human–land relationship.

Interphylum dissemination of NDM-5-positive plasmids in hospital wastewater from Fuzhou, China: a single-centre, culture-independent, plasmid transmission study

The global spread of plasmid-borne carbapenem resistance is an ongoing public health challenge; however, the nature of such horizontal gene transfer events among complex bacterial communities remains poorly understood. We examined the in-situ transfer of the globally dominant New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (NDM)-5-positive IncX3 plasmid (denoted pX3_NDM-5) in hospital wastewater to simulate a real-world, One Health antimicrobial resistance context. For this transmission study, we tagged pX3_NDM-5 with the green fluorescent protein gene, gfp, using a CRISPR-based method and transferred the plasmid to a donor Escherichia coli strain. Bacteria were extracted from a hospital wastewater treatment plant (Fujian Provincial Maternity and Children's Hospital, Fuzhou, China) as the bacterial recipient community. We mixed this recipient community with the E coli donor strain carrying the gfp-tagged plasmid, both with and without sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) as an environmental stressor, and conducted several culture-based and culture-independent conjugation assays. The conjugation events were observed microscopically and quantified by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. We analysed the taxonomic composition of the sorted transconjugal pool by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and assessed the stability of the plasmid in the isolated transconjugants and its ability to transfer back to E coli. We show that the plasmid pX3_NDM-5 has a broad host range and can transfer across various bacterial phyla, including between Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Although environmental stress with NaClO did not affect the overall plasmid transfer frequency, it reduced the breadth of the transconjugant pool. The taxonomic composition of the transconjugal pool was distinct from that of the recipient communities, and environmental stress modulated the permissiveness of some operational taxonomic units towards the acquisition of pX3_NDM-5. Notably, pX3_NDM-5 transconjugants included the Gram-positive pathogen Enterococcus faecalis, and the plasmid could subsequently be reconjugated back to E coli. These findings suggest that E faecalis could act as a natural shuttle vector for the wide dissemination of pX3_NDM-5 plasmids. Our culture-independent conjugation model simulates natural environmental conditions and challenges the established theory that Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria rarely exchange clinically important plasmids. The data show that plasmids disseminate more widely across genera and phyla than previously thought. These findings have substantial implications when considering the spread of antimicrobial resistance across One Health sectors. The Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture Project, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province of China, and the Outstanding Young Research Talents Program of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University.

Assessing egg deposition behaviour of female black soldier fly (Hermetia: Illucens) in Kumasi, Ghana using MOSW as bait

The availability of the black soldier fly (BSF) at a location is of great importance if its larvae are to be used for commercial composting of municipal organic solid waste (MOSW). In this context, it is crucial to determine where the insects are readily available and how natural environmental conditions influence their oviposition. This study used MOSW as bait to determine locations where these insects are readily available and their egg cluster as an indication of their presence. Data were collected at four locations: Plantain farm, poultry farm, under a pear tree, and waste communal container site. For each site, data were collected in the morning (6:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.), afternoon (12:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.), and evening (after 6:00 p.m.) to determine the peak egg-laying times of these insects. This was carried out for two seasons of the year – rainy season (June, July and August) and dry season (December, January, and February) to assess seasonal variability on oviposition and fecundity. Environmental conditions such as temperature, relative humidity, and light intensity were also measured under which oviposition took place. The highest average number of BSF egg clusters of 17.5 ± 13.74 was harvested at the waste communal container site and the lowest average number of 2 ± 0.81 was harvested at the poultry farm. Peak egg laying times were recorded in the afternoon between 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., where an average of 15.17 ± 4.7 clusters were harvested. Most BSF egg clusters were harvested during the rainy season, averaging 9.1 ± 12.2. The dry season recorded a higher average number of eggs per cluster at 454.18 ± 164.92. It is concluded that BSF larval composting technology can be commercialized in Kumasi, Ghana as the insects were readily available during the two main seasons in the country.

Comparison between insects gathered on a death corpse from the study site and insects obtained by rearing larvae within the laboratory under natural environmental conditions

Comparison between insects gathered on a death corpse from the study site and insects obtained by rearing larvae within the laboratory under natural environmental conditions

Preparation of future science teachers for cognitive visualization of the educational process

The issue of designing a qualitative educational environment for the formation of a flexible personality in the light of global world changes has been actualized in the article. Its main essential characteristic is the ability to adapt to the changing conditions of the modern natural and social environment. We consider the visualization of the educational process as a means of improving the quality of educational services, forming a holistic perception of the environment that combines logical and visual thinking. According to the purpose of the article, based on the analysis of existing visualization techniques and their expert evaluation, the most effective ones for mastering the content of natural sciences disciplines as well as professional and methodological training of future natural sciences teachers have been identified and substantiated. The significance of visualization techniques for the educational environment has been determined by the method of expert evaluation according to the criterion of «didactic quality». Its indicators are: the possibility to use information educational environment of the higher education institution on the base of existing material and technical support; importance for creating a positive emotional background for teaching; importance for organizing interactive pedagogical interaction of participants in the educational process; accessibility for perception of educational information; expediency of use in the future natural sciences teachers professional training; easy to use both for teachers and students. The five most effective visualization techniques for ensuring a holistic perception of knowledge by combining logical and imaginative thinking (scribing, mind map, infographics, timeline, tag cloud) have been identified by ranking. The effectiveness of the scribing technique and its influence on the formation of indicators of the fully assimilated knowledge quality such as depth and awareness has been experimentally proved.

Vegetative response to Verticillium dahliae of italian varieties of olive (Olea europaea L.)

Verticillium dahliae, the causal agent of vascular wilt, is a cosmopolitan pathogen of olive (Olea europaea L.). Italy is a traditional oil-producing country and its olive growing system is characterized by hundreds of regional varieties. They are widely employed for yielding oils protected by geographical indication systems of the European Union. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of V. dahliae on the vegetative growth of young, own-rooted olive plants under natural environmental conditions. Specifically, we analyzed differences in stem elongation, number of leaves and stem diameters in eight local varieties of the Campania region of Italy, plus a reference national cultivar, following artificially infection with a non-defoliating pathotype. Multivariate analysis indicated that a distinction in vulnerability among cultivar can be made considering the inhibitory effect of the fungus on stem extension growth, while the other parameters are less influential. Our work also illustrated the variability in some vegetative parameters among the Campanian germplasm and its influence on the inhibitory effect of the pathogen. Further studies will have to analyze the mechanisms connecting the morpho-physiological alterations with the pathogen invasion of the host tissue.

Microbial reduction of synthetic Biogenic Iron Oxides containing various amounts of Organic Carbon and Silica

Iron oxides formed in close association with bacteria are referred to as biogenic minerals (BIOS). Both the organic part of BIOS and the iron oxide particles affect the net surface charge of those iron-organic carbon aggregates and offer reactive sites that can immobilize many soluble contaminants (Warren and Haack 2001) making BIOS a contender in bioremediation technologies. However, before using BIOS in bioremediation, it is essential to understand the interactions of impurities such as organic matter and other minor components (including silica) (Dyer et al. 2010). This project involves the synthesis of Biogenic Iron Oxides (BIOS) using various silica contents and different soluble alginate concentrations (as an analogue for bacterial exopolysaccharides) close to natural environmental conditions. The mineralogical, chemical and physical composition of the synthesized samples was determined by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and with a Malvern Zetasizer Nano instrument. The various samples (mainly ferrihydrite) were then reduced in the presence of Shewanella putrefaciens CN32, a well-known iron reducing bacterium. All microbial reduction experiments (see Table 1) with different types of BIOS were performed under anoxic conditions. Results indicate that the ratio of organic matter and silica to Fe (III) in BIOS affects the reduction rate. It is proposed that alginate binds to iron oxide particles and protects them from reduction. However, samples in presence of high concentration of silica (i.e.,> 0.05) showed structural disorder which likely prevented nucleation of well ordered ferrihydrite, which in return increased their rate of reduction. In addition, higher reduction rates of ferrihydrite were reported at higher concentrations of silica in BIOS, even in the presence of alginate.

Traits linked to natural variation of sulfur content in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Sulfur (S) is an essential mineral nutrient for plant growth and development; it is important for primary and specialized plant metabolites that are crucial for biotic and abiotic interactions. Foliar S content varies up to 6-fold under a controlled environment, suggesting an adaptive value under certain natural environmental conditions. However, a major quantitative regulator of S content in Arabidopsis thaliana has not been identified yet, pointing to the existence of either additional genetic factors controlling sulfate/S content or of many minor quantitative regulators. Here, we use overlapping information of two separate ionomics studies to select groups of accessions with low, mid, and high foliar S content. We quantify series of metabolites, including anions (sulfate, phosphate, and nitrate), thiols (cysteine and glutathione), and seven glucosinolates, gene expression of 20 genes, sulfate uptake, and three biotic traits. Our results suggest that S content is tightly connected with sulfate uptake, the concentration of sulfate and phosphate anions, and glucosinolate and glutathione synthesis. Additionally, our results indicate that the growth of pathogenic bacteria is enhanced in the A. thaliana accessions containing higher S in their leaves, suggesting a complex regulation between S homeostasis, primary and secondary metabolism, and biotic pressures.

Investigation into the electrochemical advanced oxidation of p-arsanilic acid: Peculiar role of electrolytes and unexpected formation of coupling byproducts

Although banned in some countries, p-arsanilic acid (ASA) is still widely used as feed additive in poultry production. As a result, ASA is usually released into the aquatic environment without any treatments. Although ASA exhibits low toxicity, it can be transformed into highly toxic aromatic amines and inorganic arsenic species (As (V) as H2AsO4− and HAsO42−) under natural environmental conditions. Hence, it is necessary to develop efficient technologies for its removal or degradation. In this contribution, electrochemical advanced oxidation technology with boron-doped diamond (BDD) had been initially used to degrade ASA pollutants. A five-level central composite rotatable design (CCRD) was implemented to optimize the various influencing factors involved, among applied current density, NaCl concentration, Na2SO4 concentration and NaHCO3 concentration on the oxidation efficiency; the latter was assessed in terms of ASA degradation percentage. The results obtained highlighted the unique and important roles of electrolytes during the electrolytic oxidations. Meanwhile, the major degradation byproducts detected were also strongly dependent on the electrolyte adopted. In particular, several oligomer byproducts with novel structures were initially identified in BDD-treated ASA solutions. Two different electrochemical transformation pathways of ASA on BDD anode were thus proposed. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of BDD technology in the degradation of ASA, as well as the potential minor risk of its application in actual ASA wastewater treatment.

Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study on Adsorption Characteristics of Illite for Hg2+

The Three Gorges Reservoir area of the Yangtze River has formed vast riverine fallout zones as a result of its periodic water storage and flood discharge operations, and the main constituents of this area are quaternary loose clays. It is important to study the microscopic characteristics of clay minerals in these fallout zones and their adsorption properties of Hg2+ to guide the environmental safety of the fallout zones in the Three Gorges Reservoir area. In this context, the authors of this paper used X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments to reveal the main clay mineral compositions in the fallout zones and then constructed the molecular model structures of the clay minerals based on molecular dynamics theory and studied the adsorption characteristics of these clay minerals with Hg2+ in depth. The results show that the main clay minerals in the Three Gorges Reservoir area fallout zone include illite, illite-mixed layer and green-mixed layer, in which the content of illite ranges from 21% to 54%. Taking illite as the study object, the heat of adsorption of Hg2+ in illite ranged from 14.83 kJ·mol−1 to 31.92 kJ·mol−1, which is a physical adsorption. The heat of adsorption was mainly affected by the water content and had little relationship with temperature. With the gradual increase in water content, the heat of adsorption gradually decreases. The adsorption amount of Hg2+, on the other hand, is jointly affected by water content and temperature and decreases with the increase in water content and temperature; under natural environmental conditions (P = 0.1 Mpa), the adsorption characteristics of Hg2+ in illite change with the change in water content. When the water content was between 0% and 6.95%, the increase in water content led to an increase in the interlayer spacing of illite, and the adsorption of Hg2+ in illite was in a monolayer state, with the adsorption peaks located from 4.5~5.5 Å. When the water content increased to 6.95% to 13.90%, the layer spacing of illite reached the maximum, and the adsorption of Hg2+ in illite transitioned from a monolayer to a bilayer, with the adsorption peaks located between 5 Å and 9~10 Å, respectively. When the water content was further increased to 13.90% to 20.85%, the increase in water content instead led to a slight decrease in the layer spacing of illite, showing a tendency of transitioning from a bilayer to a monolayer adsorption layer, which at the same time changed the number of adsorption layers of Hg2+; the study also revealed that the interaction between illite and Hg2+ was regulated by van der Waals and Coulomb forces, whereas the increase in temperature promoted the Hg2+ +diffusion, and an increase in water content inhibits the diffusion of Hg2+. In summary, these findings provide valuable theoretical support for solving the problem of Hg2+ pollution in the Three Gorges Reservoir Decline Zone.

The Release Potential of Microplastics from Face Masks into the Aquatic Environment

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, a huge number of face masks have been used to prevent the spread of the coronavirus on a global scale. Unfortunately, several studies have reported the presence of used face masks in marine litter in different countries around the world. Face masks produced from synthetic polymers can increase the environmental burden and contradict sustainability. This study aimed to investigate the environmental behavior of face masks when exposed to natural environmental conditions following improper disposal. New and naturally aged surgical and FFP2 masks were exposed to deionized water (DI) and sea water conditions to understand the environmental behavior of face masks when exposed to different environmental conditions. Following natural aging and DI and sea water exposure, face masks were characterized with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and compared with new masks. According to the results, the middle layers of both mask types were exposed to more severe degradation. Aging resulted in higher microplastic (MP) release than new masks in DI and seawater for both types of face masks. Compared to new ones, aging and seawater exposure caused 11 to 13 and 14 to 22 times higher MP release from surgical and FFP2 face masks, respectively. Following seawater exposure, aged FFP2 mask released higher amounts of MP (4.36–6.20 × 106) than aged surgical masks (4.03–5.45 × 106). According to the results, a significant portion of the released MPs were <10 µm for both types of masks. However, when aged FFP2 masks were exposed to seawater, a remarkable increase was found in the fraction of 10–50 µm and 50–100 µm, suggesting that aged FFP2 masks also became fragmented in seawater conditions. FTIR and SEM analyses confirmed the transformation in the structure and chemical composition of the materials. A significant change was observed in chemical and physical structure of the masks after being exposed to weathering conditions in a relatively short period of time (one month).

Contribution of free hydroxyl radical to the formation of micro(nano)plastics and release of additives during polyethylene degradation in water

The omnipresence of secondary microplastics (MPs) in aquatic ecosystems has become an increasingly alarming public health concern. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an important oxidant in nature and the most stable reactive oxygen species occurred in natural water. In order to explore the contribution of free ˙OH generated from H2O2-driven Fenton-like reactions on the degradation of polyethylene (PE) and generation of micro- and nano-scale plastics in water, a batch experiment was conducted over a period of 620 days in water treated with micromolar H2O2. The incorporation of H2O2 in water induced the formation of flake-like micro(nano)-sized particles due to intensified oxidative degradation of PE films. The presence of ˙OH significantly enhanced the generation of both micro- and nano-scale plastics exhibiting a higher proportion of particles in the range of 200–500 nm compared to the Control. Total organic carbon in the H2O2 treated solution was nearly 174-fold higher than that of the Control indicating a substantial liberation of organic compounds due to the oxidative degradation of native carbon chain of PE and subsequent decomposition of its additives. The highly toxic butylated hydroxytoluene detected from the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis implied the toxicological behavior of secondary micro(nano)plastics influenced by the oxidation and decomposition processes The findings from this study further expand our understanding of the role of ˙OH in degrading PE micro-scale plastics into nanoparticles as an implication of naturally occurring H2O2 in aquatic environments. In the future, further attention should be drawn to the underlying mechanisms of H2O2-driven in-situ Fenton reaction mediated by natural environmental conditions targeting the alternation of light and darkness on the oxidative degradation of plastics.

Does partition matter? A new approach to modeling land use change

Cellular automata (CA) is a classical method for studying land use change. However, homogeneous transformation rules have commonly been used to conduct simulations in the past, and these rules seldom consider the spatial heterogeneity of geographic elements. Therefore, in this study, we incorporated spatial-temporal heterogeneity transformation rules into the CA framework based on spatial data mining. A model that couples self-organizing maps (SOM), hierarchical clustering (HC), and patch generation land use simulation (PLUS) was proposed; it is called the SOM-HC-PLUS model. This model considers the difference in local-area driving factors, and therefor it not only determines the optimal partition scheme automatically, but it also measures the contribution of partition driving factors. The Jinpu New Area in Dalian, China, was used to test the validity of the model by comparing the traditional PLUS model and the administrative division (AD)-PLUS model based on AD partition. The results showed that the partition scheme of the SOM-HC-PLUS model was reasonable and credible. Further, compared with other models, this model showed higher simulation accuracy and a more realistic land use distribution pattern. The driving factors showed significant differences in the overall and regional intensity. Moreover, the importance of natural environmental conditions, represented by elevation factors, in the expansion of artificial surfaces increased significantly. By 2030, artificial surfaces were projected to increase significantly through the conversion of cultivated lands. The sustainable development scenario showed a more compact patch layout and exhibited better protection of grasslands and forests than the historical development scenario. In summary, this study proposed a mixture CA model based on the idea of geographic partition, one that proved the reliability of the SOM-HC-PLUS model to conduct spatial-temporal heterogeneity studies on land use partition. It provides the possibility to explore patterns of regional land use changes over multiple periods, and can assist in urban planning and management and promoting sustainable development.

Bioremediation of n-alkanes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and heavy metals from wastewater using seaweeds

The removal of n-alkanes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and heavy metals from wastewater using three dried seaweeds Ulva intestinalis Linnaeus (green alga), Sargassum latifolium (Turner) C.Agardh (brown alga), and Corallina officinalis Kützing (red alga) has been shown to evaluate their potential usage as inexpensive adsorbents. Under natural environmental conditions, numerous analytical methods, including zeta potential, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), SEM, and FT-IR, are used in this study. The results showed that n-alkanes and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons adsorption increased with increasing contact time for all three selected algae, with a large removal observed after 15 days, while the optimal contact time for heavy metal removal was 3 h. S. latifolium dry biomass had more potential as bioadsorbent, followed by C. officinalis and then U. intestinalis. S. latifolium attained removal percentages of 65.14%, 72.50%, and 78.92% for light n-alkanes, heavy n-alkanes, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), respectively, after 15 days. Furthermore, it achieved removal percentages of 94.14, 92.62, 89.54, 87.54, 82.76, 80.95, 77.78, 73.02, and 71.62% for Mg, Zn, Cu, Fe, Cr, Pb, Cd, Mn, and Ni, respectively, after 3 h. Carboxyl and hydroxyl from FTIR analysis took part in wastewater treatment. The zeta potentials revealed that algal cells have a negatively charged surface, and the cell surface of S. latifolium has a more negative surface charge than U. intestinalis and C. officinalis. Our study suggests that seaweeds could play an important role in wastewater treatment and thus help as an economical, effective, and ecofriendly bioremediation system for ecological health and life protection.

Effectiveness of organic food marketing

The principal aim of this study was to assess the economic results and marketing effectiveness of selected companies dealing with the production and distribution of organic food. The diagnostic survey method was applied in the study. It was conducted on popular social media in 2021 with 686 respondents. The study findings show that the marketing strategy has been ineffective so far. This means that there exists an informationally excluded area, which must be filled in. Therefore, effective product marketing should be developed based on personalised advertisements on social media and online trade. The study findings can contribute to the popularisation and broadening of knowledge regarding the behaviour of organic food buyers. Determining the factors affecting the buying process and motivations will aid stakeholders in building an effective marketing strategy for organic food. This may have a beneficial effect on the development and diversification of the organic food market, whose production may contribute to an improvement of the natural environment condition and the quality of life, as well as the promotion of local food producers.

Natural Environmental Conditions in the Eastern Part of Beyşehir Lake and its Impact on Land Use

“Beyşehir Gölü’nün doğu kesiminde doğal ortam koşulları ve arazi kullanımına etkisi” adlı çalışma, arazi kullanımına etki eden doğal ortam koşullarını ve bunların arazi kullanımındaki etkilerini ortaya koymayı hedeflemektedir. Çalışma süresi boyunca farklı tarihlerde ve sahanın farklı yerlerinde arazi gözlemleri ve tetkikler yapılmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular dahilinde konu amacına uygun haritalar ArcGIS, ArcMap arayüzü, 10.5 sürümü kullanılarak hazırlanmıştır. 
 Araştırma sahasındaki doğal ortam koşullarının arazi kullanımı üzerinde olumsuz sonuçları bulunmaktadır. Bu sonuçlar arasında; tarımsal potansiyelin verimli kullanılamaması, orman alanlarının tahrip edilerek tarım alanlarına dönüştürülmesi, yüksek eğim ve yanlış arazi kullanımı nedeniyle şiddetli erozyon, mahallelerin atık suları ile akarsuların kirletilmesi, gölet sayısının artması ve yerleşmelerin tarım alanlarına kurulması yer almaktadır. 
 Beyşehir Gölü’nün doğu kesimindeki kıyı ovası ve plato sahalarında tarım alanları geniş sahalar kaplamaktadır. %52’lik orana sahip tarım alanlarının (839 km2); %29’u (461 km2) kuru tarım, %12’si (196 km2) karışık tarım ve %11’i (182 km2) ise sulu tarım alanı olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Dağlık kesimlerde ise maki ve otsu bitkiler (%26) ve ormanlık sahalar (%9) önemli yer tutar. Araştırma sahasındaki arazi kullanımında en büyük değişim kıyı ovası üzerindeki sulu tarım arazilerindeki artıştır. Sulu tarım alanlarındaki artışın olumlu ve olumsuz sonuçları ortaya çıkmıştır. Olumlu sonuçları arasında ürün deseni ve miktarındaki artış; olumsuz sonuçları arasında ise Beyşehir Gölü sularının fiziksel ve kimyasal özelliklerindeki değişimlerdir. 
 Sonuç olarak, göl çevresinde arazi kullanımı ile ilgili problemlerin çözümü ancak sahanın doğal potansiyeline uygun, sürdürülebilir planlamalarla sağlanabilir.