Natural Environmental Research Articles

Effect of Noise on Vocal Loudness and Pitch in Natural Environments: An Accelerometer (Ambulatory Phonation Monitor) Study

This study investigated the effects of environmental noise on the production of vocal intensity and fundamental frequency using an accelerometer. Twenty-four vocally healthy young adults (12 men and 12 women, aged 19-22years) recorded a monologue passage using KayPENTAX (Montvale, NJ, USA) Ambulatory Phonation Monitor (model 3200) under three natural environmental conditions in a randomized order: a quiet room (mean noise, 35.5 dBA), room with moderate level of noise (mean noise, 54.5 dBA), and a room with high noise (mean noise, 67.5 dBA). Both gender groups showed significant increases in the mean vocal intensity, fundamental frequency, and perceived vocal effort in the high-noise environment than in the other two conditions. No significant difference was found in the vocal intensity between the quiet and moderately noisy environment except in the fundamental frequency in the female group. This study showed that the use of accelerometer for laryngeal signal recordings could be a useful tool for measuring phonation without being affected by the background noise. The findings also support the recommendation that noise levels for conversation should be kept <50-55dB to maintain speech intelligibility.

Role of serotonin in fish reproduction.

The neuroendocrine mechanism regulates reproduction through the hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis which is evolutionarily conserved in vertebrates. The HPG axis is regulated by a variety of internal as well as external factors. Serotonin, a monoamine neurotransmitter, is involved in a wide range of reproductive functions. In mammals, serotonin regulates sexual behaviors, gonadotropin release and gonadotropin-release hormone (GnRH) secretion. However, the serotonin system in teleost may also play unique role in the control of reproduction as the mechanism of reproductive control in teleosts is not always the same as in the mammalian models. In fish, the serotonin system is also regulated by natural environmental factors as well as chemical substances. In particular, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are commonly detected as pharmaceutical contaminants in the natural environment. Those factors may influence fish reproductive functions via the serotonin system. This review summarizes the functional significance of serotonin in the teleosts reproduction.

The influence of gender and other characteristics on rural laborers’ employment patterns in the mountainous and upland areas of Sichuan, China

This study examines gender differences in rural laborers' employment patterns in the mountainous and upland areas of Sichuan, China. The analysis employs both representative survey data of 400 households and geographical data. Multinomial logistic regression models are used to analyze the influences of gender, among other factors, on employment decisions of rural males and females, where the factors considered include personal, household, community natural environmental characteristics. Dividing laborers into four categories, we find that the proportions of males who participating in on-farm, pluriactive, and off-farm work, and unemployment were 24.41%, 28.64%, 46.27%, and 0.68% respectively, while that of females who participating in on-farm, pluriactive, and off-farm work, and unemployment were 43.20%, 13.95%, 30.95%, and 11.90% respectively. As to individual characteristics, age (AGE) and physical condition (PHY) effects appeared to be more pronounced for men, while education (EDU) and marital status (MAR) effects appeared to be more pronounced for women. Regarding household and community characteristics, the effects of the presence in the household of children aged 6- (CHI), number of persons in the household (POP), and labor force (LAB), per capita income in village (INCV), and the development status of village enterprises (ENT) on women were greater than that on men. In addition, the presence in the household of elderly individuals aged 65+ (OLD) and time to reach the nearest township (TIME) are shown to have opposite impacts on men and women. While the presence in the household of pupils (PUP) and per capital gross value of industrial output (GVIO) was found to be irresponsive to men and women taking pluriavtivity and off-farm job. With respect to natural environments characteristics, the effects on men were opposite of those on women. Unemployment of women was found to be particularly responsive to household characteristics. A multinomial regression approach is undertaken to analyze rural males' and females' decisions of the four employment patterns considered, an approach that reveals considerable heterogeneity that is concealed by the dichotomous approach employed in most previous studies. The study thus contributes to our understanding of rural employment patterns and gender difference in mountainous and upland areas.

Role of vegetation of Prebaikalia in the formation of the natural environmental quality

We investigated the ecological potential of vegetation of Prebailakia, the central region of Baikalian Siberia, with a view to identifying new tendencies in nature management. We suggest the definition of the natural environment as a set of natural systems of a different geographical dimension on a particular territory, and their components and functional connections. The natural environmental quality is assessed according to the state of its components and to the persistence of their functional connections. The focus in this study is on the vegetation as the most important polyfunctional component of natural systems (geosystems and ecosystems). For the analysis of the vegetation aimed at identifying connections between the functions of the vegetation and its role in the formation of the natural environment of Prebaikalia, we developed the legend and compiled the map (sc 1:500 000) for the present-day vegetation of the region. The vegetation map was used as the basis for assessing the quality (state) of the natural environment of Prebaikalia having regard to the main environment-forming, environment-protective and environment-regulating functions of plant communities in geosystems. The findings formed the basis for the 1:500 000 assessment map of the state of the natural environment for southern Prebaikalia. The natural environmental quality of Prebaikalia was assessed according to six categories. Analysis of the spatio-geographical characteristics of the present status of the natural environment and of the functional organization of the vegetation furnishes a means of identifying a correlation between the officially existing nature-conservation territories and the present state of the natural environment, and the structural-cenotic and functional state of vegetation. This is especially true in regard to the ecological zones of the Baikal natural territory. The assessment of the natural environmental quality of Prebaikalia as reported herein will be useful in tackling a large number of existing and future ecological nature management challenges in the region.

CBS VE AHS KULLANILARAK DOĞAL ÇEVRE BİLEŞENLERİ AÇISINDAN KENTSEL MEKÂNIN YERLEŞİME UYGUNLUK ANALİZİNE BİR ÖRNEK: ANTAKYA (HATAY)

Having grown rapidly throughout the world in recent years, cities have led to the emergence of many problems in the natural environment. It is necessary to perform appropriate space selection works in urban areas in order to solve such problems. In this regard, significant works are performed by means of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) based techniques in particular. In the present study, the natural environmental components of Antakya, the central district of Hatay province, were analyzed in terms of habitability. Thematic maps were utilized in the present study (scale being 1/25.000). The ArcGIS/ArcMap 10.1 package GIS software was used at the analysis and the mapping stages of the present study. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), one of the multiplecriteria decision-making methods, was employed as the research method. It was found out that more than half of Antakya consisted of areas having a low level of habitability. The spaces inappropriate for habitation were the areas close by river valleys the Asi (Orontes) River being in the first place and fault lines. According to the research findings, although there are some risky spaces within borders of the municipal adjacent areas to which the district is likely to extend in the near future, the safest spaces are situated there. Ultimately, studies taking into account natural environmental components should be conducted in order to plan cities for sustainability. The use of methods based on GIS in these kinds of studies is quite important for producing sound and applicable results. Such methods may be preferred as they are applicable in similar fields, too

Keys to Cultivating Uncultured Microbes: Elaborate Enrichment Strategies and Resuscitation of Dormant Cells

Keys to Cultivating Uncultured Microbes: Elaborate Enrichment Strategies and Resuscitation of Dormant Cells

What Can We Learn From Fukushima?

The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, which occurred on the occasion of the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, caused enormous damage to the political, social, cultural and natural environments in Japan and still continues to create problems.What can we learn from the case of Fukushima from the viewpoint of the philosophy of technology?First, I emphasize that technology is not considered a closed system constituted only of a technological factor in the narrow sense of the term, but must be considered an open system related to and constituted of various factors, including social, cultural, and natural environmental factors. In this sense, technology is inherently multidimensional.Second, as there is no guarantee that multiple factors maintain a harmonious and stable unity under various circumstances, technology inevitably brings about unintended consequences. We must always consider the unmanageable and unpredictable character of technology, which can be characterized as the “otherness” character of technology and is to be considered a central problem of the philosophy and ethics of technology.

Analysis of the Effect of Natural Environments on Artificial Insemination Conception Rate

This study analyzes the effect of changes in natural environments on the artificial insemination conception rate. For the analysis we set panel data that is comprised of 32 farms and 60 months. For the dependent variable, we calculate artificial insemination conception rate from the 32 farms. For the explanatory variables, we consider three major natural environmental variables: temperature, precipitation, and wind speed. Furthermore, we use monthly dummy variables to control the effects of monthly fixed effects. Results show that temperature variable is highly significant variable. It is estimated that one celsius degree increase leads to -0.6% decrease in artificial insemination conception rate. Among monthly variables, January, April, June, July, and August are highly significant. Average conception rates are 44%, 33%, 32%, and 27% for January, April, June, July, and August, respectively. Conception rate is analyzed to be decreased in Summer season and to be increased in Winter season.

Scale-dependence effects of landscape on seasonal water quality in Xitiaoxi catchment of Taihu Basin, China

Further understanding the mechanisms of landscape-water interactions is of great importance to water quality management in the Xitiaoxi catchment. Pearson's correlation analysis, stepwise multiple regression and redundancy analysis were adopted in this study to investigate the relation between water quality and landscape at the sub-catchment and 200 m riparian zone scales during dry and wet seasons. Landscape was characterized by natural environmental factors, land use patterns and four selected landscape configuration metrics. The obtained results indicated that land use categories of urban and forest were dominant landscape attributes, which influenced water quality. Natural environment and landscape configuration were overwhelmed due to land management activities and hydrologic conditions. In general, the landscape of the 200 m riparian zone appeared to have slightly greater influence on water than did the sub-catchment, and water quality was slightly better explained by all landscape attributes in the wet season than in the dry season. The results suggested that management efforts aimed at maintaining and restoring river water quality should currently focus on the protection of riparian zones and the development of an updated long-term continuous data set and higher resolution digital maps to discuss the minimum width of the riparian zone necessary to protect water quality.

Monitoring of Vegetation Dynamics in the Mongolia Using MODIS NDVIs and their Relationship to Rainfall by Natural Zone

Vegetation plays a very important role conserving the natural environment and improving the living environment for humans. Thus, investigating spatio-temporal changes in vegetation is a crucial indicator to understand natural environmental changes. We explored the spatio-temporal trends of changing vegetation cover in Mongolia from 2002 to 2010 by investigating changes in the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) with rainfall. The 16-day composite NDVI time series Terra MODIS (MOD13A2) and the gridded rainfall data of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were used to identify the relationship between vegetation dynamics and rainfall. Residual NDVI trends were computed. Following our general procedure, monthly NDVI and annual rainfall were correlated for each pixel. The resulting regression equation represented the statistical association between observed NDVI and rainfall, and the model predicted NDVI according to rainfall. Residuals of NDVI (differences between the observed and predicted NDVI) for each pixel were calculated, and the trends in these residuals was analyzed by linear regression. From the 12 months NDVI and rainfall values they determine a linear regression line for each pixel. The positive or negative slope of this line is considered to reflect an increase or decrease in green biomass. Our results show that vegetation cover changes in Mongolia were caused by both natural factors and human activities. The natural vegetation change, such as those in forests was influenced by climate change, whereas human activities were the main reason for the change in vegetation planted.

Environmentally responsive genome-wide accumulation of de novo Arabidopsis thaliana mutations and epimutations.

Evolution is fueled by phenotypic diversity, which is in turn due to underlying heritable genetic (and potentially epigenetic) variation. While environmental factors are well known to influence the accumulation of novel variation in microorganisms and human cancer cells, the extent to which the natural environment influences the accumulation of novel variation in plants is relatively unknown. Here we use whole-genome and whole-methylome sequencing to test if a specific environmental stress (high-salinity soil) changes the frequency and molecular profile of accumulated mutations and epimutations (changes in cytosine methylation status) in mutation accumulation (MA) lineages of Arabidopsis thaliana. We first show that stressed lineages accumulate ∼100% more mutations, and that these mutations exhibit a distinctive molecular mutational spectrum (specific increases in relative frequency of transversion and insertion/deletion [indel] mutations). We next show that stressed lineages accumulate ∼45% more differentially methylated cytosine positions (DMPs) at CG sites (CG-DMPs) than controls, and also show that while many (∼75%) of these CG-DMPs are inherited, some can be lost in subsequent generations. Finally, we show that stress-associated CG-DMPs arise more frequently in genic than in nongenic regions of the genome. We suggest that commonly encountered natural environmental stresses can accelerate the accumulation and change the profiles of novel inherited variants in plants. Our findings are significant because stress exposure is common among plants in the wild, and they suggest that environmental factors may significantly alter the rates and patterns of incidence of the inherited novel variants that fuel plant evolution.

Public Facilities Design in Sustainable Ways for Reconstruction Work of Yushu Area

The region of Yushu has fragile natural environment. In 2010, it suffered severe damages caused by earthquakes. This paper subject, on the basis of status research of natural and cultural environment in Yushu area and urban public facilities across the world, is aiming at a design attempt of public facilities suitable for Yushu area under the guidance of sustainable-development design theory. After constructing computer models, we made physical models to further test the reliability of our scheme. The overall design acts according to circumstances, and makes it environmental friendly, developmental sustainable, economical, aesthetic, practical and reliable. We also added to our design some local characteristics to make it better integrate into the local natural environmental features so that it could be widely used. In the end, we summarized the pros and cons of the scheme through theoretical analysis of our design process, despite that, in June 2014, we had an on-the-spot investigation in Yushu, and according to its current state of development, we made outlooks of our further scheme practice.

Natural Environmental Responsibility in Indian Corporations: A Mixed-method Study

The world is going through unprecedented environmental crisis. The type of destruction and dissolution of natural resources and elements by individuals and institutions that has been witnessed in the last century is much more than that witnessed in the previous millennia. To tackle this, for more than three decades, a number of discussions have taken place at diverse international fora, and frameworks and propositions have been put forth for corporate implementation. Consequently, a perceptible change has come about in the understanding of corporations and their approach towards the Natural Environment, as a vital organizational stakeholder. While many companies use the pro-tection and preservation of the Natural Environment as a tool for brand building and corporate communications, many others have integrated economic and environmental goals to create mutually beneficial win-win situations. This article attempts to study such Natural Environmental Responsibility (NER) practices in corporate India. Through a mixed-method inductive study the article also proposes ‘Natural Environmental Responsibility Framework’. This is based on the triangulation of data wherein the quantitative data has been gathered through responses to an Executive Perception Survey with 400 responses from 125 organizations; and qualitative data has been gathered through personal interactions with 40 senior management executives from six eminent corporations across industry categories in India. The framework and its major components are based on empirical data of practices as existent in corporate India in contemporary times. Hence, the framework could be considered as a working model of NER in India.

Satellite remote sensing of chlorophyll a in support of nutrient management in the Neuse and Tar–Pamlico River (North Carolina) estuaries

The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission (EMC) has adopted as a water quality standard that chlorophyll a concentration should not exceed 40μg/L in sounds, estuaries and other slow-moving waters. In 1996, nutrient load reductions were placed into North Carolina (NC) law to reduce the extent and duration of algal blooms in the Neuse and Tar River estuaries (Session Law 1995, Section 572). The chlorophyll a criterion was used as the endpoint to manage total nitrogen concentrations, and compliance would be achieved if chl a exceedances occurred in fewer than 10% of the samples collected in a specified area and time (known as the 10/40 criterion).In 2009, discussions were held between the North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (NCDENR) and US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning the practicality of using satellite-derived chl a concentrations to monitor water quality, enforce water quality-related environmental regulations, and understand the environmental impacts of the watershed land-use practices on coastal waters.In this study, the MERIS chlorophyll a data product was used to conduct a retrospective analysis of the NC standard for water quality and Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for total nitrogen in the Neuse and Tar–Pamlico River estuaries from 2006 to 2009. From daily MERIS images, compliance and chlorophyll exceedances in the Neuse and Tar–Pamlico River estuaries were assessed at daily and aggregated to annual time scales.

Humic substances enhance growth and respiration in the basidiomycetes Trametes maxima under carbon limited conditions.

Humic substances (HS) represent the major reservoir of carbon (C) in ecosystems, and their turnover is crucial for understanding the global C cycle. Although basidiomycetes clearly have a role in HS degradation, much less is known about the effect of HS on fungal traits. We studied the alteration of physiological, biochemical, and morphological characteristics of Trametes maxima in the presence of HS. Both complete medium and minimal (C-limited) medium mimicking natural environmental conditions were used. Adding HS led to increased biomass yield, but under C-limited conditions the effect was more apparent. This result indicated that HS were used as an additional substrate and agreed with data showing a greater penetration of tritium-labeled HS into the cell interior under C-limited conditions. Humic substances induced ultra-structural changes in fungal cells, especially under C limitation, including reducing the thicknesses of the hyphal sheath and cell wall. In the minimal medium, cellular respiration increased nearly three-fold under HS application, while the corresponding effect in complete medium was lower. In addition, in the presence of inhibitors, HS stimulated either the cytochrome or the alternative pathway of respiration, depending on presence or absence of glucose in the medium. Our results suggest that, under conditions mimicking the natural environment, HS may play three major roles: as a surplus substrate for fungal growth, as a factor positively affecting cell morphology, and as an activator of physiological respiration.

Moralny obowiązek ochrony środowiska naturalnego według ks. prof. Tadeusza Ślipko

In his paper, the author makes an attempt at reconstructing one of the first propositions in Poland to start a philosophical discourse on ecological problems. The author of this proposition is priest Tadeusz Ślipko. According to this author the problems of the moral aspects of natural environmental protection are also bioethical problems. Therefore, we can see that he does not consider ethics of the environment as an individual philosophical discipline. The article concentrates on presenting the sources and the range of moral duties of humankind towards the natural environment. Tadeusz Ślipko does not approve of the anthropocentric or biocentric standpoints in the issues of natural environmental protection. He offers his own idea of anthropopriorism, which takes the middle ground between these two extreme concepts. In conclusion, the author underlines that there is still a strong need for ethical reflection over the state of the natural environment along the lines of Ślipko’s stance.

Quantitative Analysis of Coenzyme F430 in Environmental Samples: A New Diagnostic Tool for Methanogenesis and Anaerobic Methane Oxidation

Coenzyme F430 is a nickel hydrocorphinoid and is the prosthetic group of methyl-coenzyme M reductase that catalyzes the last step of the methanogenic reaction sequence and its reversed reaction for anaerobic methane oxidation by ANME. As such, function-specific compound analysis has the potential to reveal the microbial distribution and activity associated with methane production and consumption in natural environments and, in particular, in deep subsurface sediments where microbiological and geochemical techniques are restricted. Herein, we report the development of a technique for high-sensitivity analysis of F430 in environmental samples, including paddy soils, marine sediments, microbial mats, and an anaerobic groundwater. The lower detection limit of F430 analysis by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry is 0.1 femto mol, which corresponds to 6 × 10(2) to 1 × 10(4) cells of methanogens. F430 concentrations in these natural environmental samples range from 63 × 10(-6) to 44 nmol g(-1) and are consistent with the methanogenic archaeal biomass estimated by microbiological analyses.

Land Degradation and Natural Environment in the Western Anatolia

The study area is located in the lower part of the Aegean region which is part of the Western Anatolia. The area has appropriate natural environmental conditions (such as climate, topography, soil, water, natural harbor, transportation facilities, etc.). Due to the suitable conditions, there are intensive population and variety economic activities. The settlement started in 2,000 BC with Lydian, Ionians (Ephesus, Miletus, Pergamum, etc.) and continued with Roman, Seljuk and Ottomans. These can be seen in the several places in the research area. Due to the suitable land for agriculture, water sources and forest land, transportation facilities (land and sea transport availability), western Anatolia has been seen continuously under the human pressure.Depending on the increased requirements, settlement areas in the agricultural lands and agricultural activities in the forest land have developed.

Personality predicts behavioral flexibility in a fluctuating, natural environment

In captivity, personality types differ in behavioral flexibility: “fast” (neophilic, exploratory, and aggressive) types quickly form routines, whereas “slow” types continually adjust their behavior with environmental changes. If these differences extend to pertinent natural environmental changes, which indicate changing predation or starvation threat, then personality may reflect important variation in how animals manage risk. We examined whether personality traits classified in captivity would predict the behavioral flexibility of blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus as they foraged in the wild. Behavioral flexibility was defined as the tendency to adjust feeder use with changing winter air temperature, an indicator of starvation risk. At the population level, birds reduced their feeder use on warm days. Individuals, though, varied widely, with some instead using feeders at a relatively fixed, temperature-independent rate. Sex and size, correlates of dominance in blue tits, did not predict behavioral flexibility. Instead, behavioral flexibility was predicted by age and 2 personality traits: old, neophobic, and exploratory birds were more behaviorally flexible than young, neophilic, and nonexploratory birds. Our findings suggest that personality types differ in how they use information about their environments and hence cope with environmental change.

Behind the Myth: Indigenous Knowledge and Belief Systems in Natural Resource Conservation in North East Ghana

Natural resource management issues in developing countries are increasingly mimicking western theories and the contribution of indigenous cultures and institutions are often overlooked. This research examines the role traditional belief systems and indigenous knowledge and practices have played in the management and conservation of natural environmental resources in the Upper East Region of Ghana. Some cultural practices and belief systems like sacrifices, worship, the Tindaanaship organization and the Tingaane civilization and how the Tindaanas (chief priest) communicates through the Tingaane (shrines and sacred groves) to the ancestral spirits or gods, how the people are punished if the gods are provoked were examined. The study revealed that the significant attribute of the belief systems that rest on the ascription of supernatural powers to some parts of the environment as the home of the gods has significantly helped to conserve the natural environment. The protection of these homes/areas from utilization, exploitation and use explicitly encourages conservation of environmental resources. Forbidden areas and totemic items/objects associated with worship immensely promoted conservation of resources. Over the years, traditional belief systems, practices and indigenous knowledge strategies that conserve the natural resources have been eroded or corroded by western cultural infiltration and religion. The study recommends a re-visitation of the traditional belief systems and cultural practices that promote the management, preservation and conservation of natural resources for the sustainable development of the Upper East Region and the nation at large.