Changes In Spatial Distribution Research Articles

Short-Term Changes in Food Spatial Distribution by Zoo Husbandry Practices Increase Agonism and Affect Feeding Behavior in Chilean Flamingos (Phoenicopterus chilensis): A Case Study

ABSTRACT Short-term modifications to animals’ enclosures, stemming from zoo husbandry practices, can significantly impact animal behavior and, consequently, their welfare. In this case study, we examined a captive-bred population of 23 adult Chilean flamingos (Phoenicopterus chilensis) during a non-breeding season to evaluate whether short-term alterations in the spatial distribution of feeders would affect the birds’ feeding and agonistic behaviors. Initially, we developed an ethogram to establish baseline behavioral data. Subsequently, we assessed individual (latency to approach the feeders) and group (feeding and agonism) responses to feeder changes using an ABA-type experimental design (A1 and A2 feeders at the original location; B feeder location changed). Latency to approach feeders was also correlated with the birds’ sex and body weight. The results revealed that during and immediately after the alterations, agonistic behaviors at the most frequently used feeding site by the flamingos increased, while the use of alternative food sources decreased significantly. Latency was not influenced by the birds’ sex or body weight. These findings emphasize the importance of closely monitoring even seemingly minor changes in food spatial distribution to prevent negative impacts on the behavior, and presumably, the welfare of flamingos.

In Vivo Assessment on Freeze-Cast Calcium Phosphate-Based Scaffolds with a Selective Cell/Tissue Ingrowth.

Highly porous bioceramic scaffolds are widely used as bone substitutes in many applications. However, the use of bioceramics is often limited to hard tissues due to the risk of potential soft tissue calcification. A further limitation of highly porous bioceramic scaffolds is their poor mechanical stability, manifested by their tendency to break under stress. In our study, highly porous CaP-based scaffolds were prepared via freeze-casting with longitudinal and oriented pores ranging from 10 to 20 μm and a relative porosity of ∼70%. The resulting scaffolds achieved a flexural strength of 10.6 ± 2.7 MPa, which, in conjunction with their favorable bioactivity, made them suitable for in vivo testing. The prepared scaffolds were subcutaneously implanted in rats for two distinct periods: 6 weeks and 6 months, respectively. The subsequent development of fibrous tissue and involvement of myofibroblasts, newly formed vessels, and macrophages were observed, with notable changes in spatial and temporal distributions within the implantation. The absence of calcification in the surrounding soft tissue, as a result of the narrow pore geometry, indicates the opportunity to tailor the scaffold behavior for soft tissue regeneration.

The impact of geopolitical processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina on urban development and cultural identity

The historical-geographical development of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH) in the area of the fusion of Western and Eastern Christian civilizations and the Orient resulted in ethnic and religious heterogeneity, occasional political crises and ethnic conflicts that shaped the cultural identity and character of the entire development. BH was separated from the Yugoslav community in the conditions of the civil war. After the war in 1995, a complex administrative-territorial organization of the new state was established, based on the ethnic and religious affiliation of the population. At the same time, the transition of the socialist social system took place, as well as other geopolitical processes and social changes in the Western Balkans initiated by globalization. The paper focuses on cultural disintegration and changes in urban identity and development of cities through the analysis of the six largest urban centers as indicators of social changes in BH. The results of the analysis suggest that there has been a cultural differentiation of society, which is reflected in changes in the ethnic and religious structure of the population and their spatial distribution. Economic stagnation and depopulation of urban centers, as a consequence of the civil war and social reforms, were confirmed by a comparative analysis of statistical indicators of economic and demographic development. Cultural changes were determined by relevant scientific methods and approaches: historical-geographical method, comparative analysis of statistics of demographic indicators and changes in spatial distribution, ethnic and religious structure of the population, and economic changes by analysis of employment in sectors of the economy. The scientific results of previously published papers devoted to some of the mentioned problems, primarily economic development and population dynamics in BH and its large cities, were also taken into account. In this paper, social changes are observed through the cause-and-effect relationships of geopolitical and cultural processes (political, economic and cultural disintegration), social and economic reforms (ownership transition and deindustrialization) and their manifestations on cultural identity and the development of urban centers.

Investigating spatial-temporal trend of snow cover over the three provinces of Northeast China based on a cloud-free MODIS snow cover product

Snow serves as a pivotal water resource in the three provinces of Northeast China (TPNC), the investigation of spatial and temporal distribution changes of snow cover is essential for the region’s efficient water resource management. The Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer (MODIS) snow cover product has proven effective in providing detailed spatial–temporal distribution and identification of snow cover. However, its accuracy and reliability are significantly hampered by cloud obscuration. To address this issue, we have developed a novel four-step cloud removal approach, which includes Terra and Aqua combination, 5-day temporal combination, snowline method (IMS) as well as 8-pixel and 24-pixel adjacent pixel method. Results indicate that the proposed approach successfully eliminates all cloud cover, yielding a highly accurate cloud-free snow cover product with validation accuracies of 92% and 97% when using in situ snow depth measurements and cloud masking method, respectively. We investigated the spatial and temporal variations of snow cover for the TPNC during 2003–2018 with snow coverage and snow cover days (SCD) and analyzed the correlation between snow cover and climate factors. The results showed that the annual basin-averaged snow coverage increased at a rate of 1.27% yr−1 before 2009 and decreased at a rate of 1.80% yr−1 after 2009. The Mann-Kendall tests indicated that about 72% of the total area showed an increasing trend of annual SCD during 2003–2018. Conversely, 94% of the total area exhibited a decreasing trend of annual SCD for the period of 2009–2018 due to the increasing trend of temperature and decreasing trend of precipitation. Our approach shows a promising application of generating accurate cloud-free products and its potential to examine spatial–temporal variations of snow cover under climate change for other snow-covered regions globally.

Dynamic in situ detection in iRhizo-Chip reveals diurnal fluctuations of Bacillus subtilis in the rhizosphere

Effective colonization by microbe in the rhizosphere is critical for establishing a beneficial symbiotic relationship with the host plant. Bacillus subtilis, a soil-dwelling bacterium that is commonly found in association with plants and their rhizosphere, has garnered interest for its potential to enhance plant growth, suppress pathogens, and contribute to sustainable agricultural practices. However, research on the dynamic distribution of B. subtilis within the rhizosphere and its interaction mechanisms with plant roots remains insufficient due to limitations in existing in situ detection methodologies. To achieve dynamic in situ detection of the rhizosphere environment, we established iRhizo-Chip, a microfluidics-based platform. Using this device to investigate microbial behavior within the rhizosphere, we found obvious diurnal fluctuations in the growth of B. subtilis in the rhizosphere. Temporal dynamic analysis of rhizosphere dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, dissolved organic carbon, and reactive oxygen species showed that diurnal fluctuations in the growth of B. subtilis are potentially related to a variety of environmental factors. Spatial dynamic analysis also showed that the spatial distribution changes of B. subtilis and DO and pH were similar. Subsequently, through in vitro control experiments, we proved that rhizosphere DO and pH are the main driving forces for diurnal fluctuations in the growth of B. subtilis. Our results show that the growth of B. subtilis is driven by rhizosphere DO and pH, resulting in diurnal fluctuations, and iRhizo-Chip is a valuable tool for studying plant rhizosphere dynamics.

Ecological patterns of benthic foraminiferal communities driven by seasonal and spatial environmental gradients in an Arctic fjord

AbstractArctic fjords, being transitional areas between glacier‐covered land and the ocean, are characterized by strong environmental gradients. The seasonal melting of glaciers generates strong turbidity and primary production antagonist gradients, which can affect benthic habitats. Two sampling campaigns were carried out in Kongsfjorden (Svalbard, Arctic Ocean) in May and August 2021 to investigate seasonal changes in benthic foraminifera spatial distribution and ecosystem functioning along a longitudinal transect of 10 km from the Kronebreen tidewater glacier front. Concurrently, organic matter quantity and biochemical composition, sediment grain size, and physical parameters of the water masses were investigated as possible driving factors of benthic ecosystem responses. In a previous study, three statistically determined foraminiferal biozonations (glacier proximal, medial, and distal) were observed on the basis of their species content within the closest 10 km from the glacier front, presenting similar assemblages in both seasons. Our results indicate that foraminiferal distribution at the local scale is mainly driven by physical and geochemical gradients induced by melting waters and sediment discharges from the tidewater glacier occurring during summer. Due to the climate change, the melting season is expected to last longer and increasing global temperature will much probably accelerate the melting processes. Our findings strongly support the use of foraminifera as bioindicators to monitor the effects of ongoing climate change on the benthic ecosystems of Arctic fjords and, accessorily, as proxies for reconstructing glacier front positions in the recent past.

Carbon metabolism modelling and regulation in Beijing

Land use and cover change leads to significant increases in urban carbon emissions. Considering the insufficiency of spatially fine-grained management in previous carbon emission studies, this study integrated top-down and bottom-up methods to simulate urban carbon metabolism. Metabolic actors were allocated to grids based on land use and POI data and then attributed to districts. Results indicated that from 2000 to 2018, Beijing's Carbon Imbalance Index increased by 55.81% in 2010 and declined by 12.46%. Carbon emission dominated the changes in the Carbon Imbalance Index, with the Production and Supply of Electric Power actors consistently accounting for over 25.96%, while the contribution of Urban and Transportation actors reached 20.11% and 27.74% in 2018, respectively. The metabolic actors exhibited a gradient distribution pattern from southeast to northwest. Artificial actors' carbon emissions decreased from the center to the periphery and spread along the road network, with the High-High cluster in the southeast mainly contributed by Manufacturing (22.33%) and the Production and Supply of Electric Power (20.16%) actors. Spatial distribution changes of Natural actors mainly occurred in Daxing and Chaoyang districts, whose absorption area extended by 45% and 37.26%, respectively, contributing to an increase in carbon absorption by 2.47 and 0.15 times. The Semi-natural actor exhibited net carbon emissions, with the High-High cluster in the southeast zone contributing 60.96% of emissions in 2000. We also categorized Beijing into four Areas based on the relationship between carbon emission and absorption. Targeted policy recommendations were formulated for different districts and metabolic actors.

Electrical resistivity imaging of crude oil contaminant in coastal soils – A laboratory sandbox study

Characterizing the subsurface distribution of crude oil after a spill in a coastal environment is challenging due to variations in the soil and fluid properties. In situ sampling is limited in capturing the lateral and vertical migration of the crude oil within the vadose and saturated zones. This study presents a laboratory sandbox framework used to assess the effectiveness of electrical resistivity imaging for investigating the spatiotemporal distribution of crude oil in coastal sandy soils. A sandbox with dimensions L = 240 cm, W = 60 cm, and H = 60 cm was constructed using a 10 mm plexiglass and filled to a 40 cm height with 2 mm medium to fine-grained sand. At each stage of the experiment, 20 kg of sand was mixed with 1 l of water to create moist sand, after which the mixture was flushed over 12 h to remove suspended fine particles. Both saturated and unsaturated conditions were simulated by setting the water table at 10 cm and draining a fully saturated system overnight. Two liters of crude oil were spilled and monitored for 30 h. A surface array of 98 electrodes, with a unit electrode spacing of 2 cm, was installed along two transects 12 cm apart. Resistivity measurements were collected using a dipole-dipole array before, during, and after the simulated crude oil spill. The time-lapse electrical resistivity results revealed an initial gravity-induced vertical migration under both saturated and unsaturated conditions; over time, lateral migration of crude oil became apparent. In the saturated zone, there was a noticeable reduction in the percentage difference in resistivity from 700 % to 400 % after 24 h, depicting a spatial and temporal redistribution of the crude oil attributed to variation in pore geometry. This highlights the sensitivity of electrical resistivity measurements to subtle but measurable anisotropy in the distribution of soil pores. Overall, electrical resistivity proved successful in imaging the non-ideal behavior of crude oil pollutants and the associated spatial changes in the pore-size distribution of subsurface sediments.

Numerical Simulation and Experimental Research of Spatial Volume Distribution and Velocity Changes of Abrasive Suspension Jet Based on LES + VOF + DEM

The machining accuracy and cutting ability of abrasive suspension jet (ASJ) are affected by the spatial volume distribution and velocity changes of jet flow and abrasives in the free jet area outside the nozzle. In this paper, large eddy simulation (LES) flow model, volume of fluid (VOF) multiphase flow model and discrete element model (DEM) were used to simulate the flow field characteristics of ASJ. The spatial volume distribution and velocity changes of jet flow and abrasives under 10[Formula: see text]MPa jet pressure were studied and the model validation experiments were carried out. In the comparison between the numerical simulation results and the experimental results, it was found that the average error of the percentage of central jet flow is 3.4%, the percentage of central abrasive particles is 3.0% and the velocity of abrasive particles is 4.2%. The physical structure of the numerical model is fixed (so it does not support abrasive injection jet (AIJ)), and the material physical parameters, initial conditions and boundary conditions are editable. Therefore, it can be used to predict the degree of water divergence, abrasives divergence and abrasives velocity attenuation of ASJ with different jet pressure and abrasive types. This numerical model can provide guidance for the parameter setting of ASJ machining process in order to obtain better machining accuracy and cutting ability.

Effects of coal mining disturbance on spatial and temporal distribution of soil water content in Northwest China‐based on 3D EBK model

AbstractNorthwest China is both an important coal storage base and an ecologically fragile area, and soil water content (SWC) is a key factor limiting the ecological development of Northwest China. Revealing the characteristics of spatial and temporal distribution changes of soil water content in mining areas under coal mining disturbance and the influencing mechanism is crucial for the protection of water resources in mining areas. In this study, the soil water content (depth 0–1000 cm) of a typical coal mine subsidence area in the western part of Shendong Coal Group was monitored in situ for 1 year after mining, and the absolute value, variability, and spatial distribution of soil water content were temporally analysed by combining classical statistics, 2D Ordinary Kriging and 3D Empirical Bayesian kriging spatial interpolation. sequence analysis. The results showed that the shallow SWC (0 ~ 60 cm) was distributed horizontally in bands, and gradually increased along the direction from northwest to southeast; with the increase of coal mining time, the absolute value of SWC decreased by 0.81% ~ 33.58%, and the coefficient of variation decreased and then increased, with the range of variation from 2.19% ~ 34.49%. The deep SWC (100 ~ 1000 cm) was stratified vertically and increased with soil depth, and the shallow and deeper soil moisture would gradually migrate to the middle layer under the influence of coal mining. In addition, this paper accurately portrays the three‐dimensional spatial and temporal distribution of soil water content by the 3D EBK model, which further reveals the mechanism of coal mining's influence on soil water content. This study can provide technical and data support for predicting and evaluating the potential impacts of mining activities on the water cycle, and help mining areas to formulate policies for managing and protecting water resources.

Hydro-morphology and water quality jointly shape the structure and network stability of the plankton community in multi-tributary river basins

Revealing the spatial variation in phytoplankton and zooplankton communities, along with their responses to water flow, climate, and water quality from headwaters to downstream, is crucial for grasping their evolutionary dynamics and crafting ecological preservation strategies. Here, the spatial distribution, assembly processes, and stability changes of phytoplankton and zooplankton in the tributaries from headwaters to downstream reaches of the Danjiang River and the upper Hanjiang River (China) were analyzed using environmental DNA (eDNA) technology. Geographic factors accounted for over 60% of the variation in the distribution of phytoplankton and zooplankton, although environmental factors also played a significant role. From upstream to downstream, the proportion of phytoplankton Bacillariophyta decreased from 37.12% to 33.07% in March and from 27.68% to 25.36% in August. Euglenophyta decreased from 1.04% to 0.53% in March and 10.48% to 2.16% in August. The proportion of zooplankton Ciliophora increased from 67.17% to 85.04%, while Amoebozoa decreased by approximately 9.83% in August. Phytoplankton and zooplankton richness initially increased, then declined from upstream to downstream. The assembly of zooplankton and phytoplankton communities was mainly driven by deterministic processes, with values ranging from 0.2 to 0.5. Furthermore, the upstream community showed a stronger dominance of deterministic processes, while the mainstream community exhibited weaker determinism than the tributaries. In both March and August, zooplankton were more influenced by deterministic processes than phytoplankton. From upstream to downstream, the stability and complexity of phytoplankton and zooplankton networks decreased, significantly influenced by river width, flow velocity, agricultural land proportion, and nutrient concentration. Maintaining diverse phytoplankton was crucial for sustaining zooplankton diversity and ensuring network stability. Furthermore, the growth duration of phytoplankton and zooplankton was influenced by the spatial distribution of sampling points in the river, contributing to complex interactions with environmental factors. The complexity of these interactions necessitates careful consideration in future studies on spatial patterns in riverine plankton communities.

Electromagnetic and thermal performance study on a canted stack of REBCO tapes

Abstract Due to the critical current limitation of a single REBCO tape, stacking methods are generally employed to increase the current carrying capacity in practical high-temperature superconducting (HTS) applications. However, the overall critical current is strongly dependent on the self-magnetic field, which is influenced by the geometrical arrangement of conductors in the stack. Due to the brittle ceramic property, REBCO tapes are conventionally bent along the thickness side of the tape. However, the difference in bending radii of the outer and inner tape surfaces in the stack may lead to fracture deformation, thereby limiting the stacking number of REBCO tapes. To balance the stacking number with the bending issue, canted stack is proposed as a variant of normal stack for REBCO tapes. As a potential HTS intermediate component, it is imperative to conduct a comprehensive study on electromagnetic and thermal performance of canted stack. The unique geometrical arrangement of canted stack introduces new factors that affect critical current and transport AC loss. This paper concludes the special influencing factors of canted stack, including canted angle, stacking number, tape width, and spatial structure. The metal interleaving method is introduced for spatial distribution changing and thermal stability. Furthermore, orthogonal analysis is performed to elucidate the comprehensive correlation among these multiple factors. This study provides insights into the overall critical current and transport AC loss for different combinations of canted stack and establishes a predicting function for critical current to support the structural design of canted stack. Based on the specific case study, the improvement effect of canted stack is confirmed by both experiments and simulations.

Recent Changes in Spatial Population Distributions within Municipalities in the Tohoku Region, Japan

Recent Changes in Spatial Population Distributions within Municipalities in the Tohoku Region, Japan

Mitochondrial plasticity and synaptic plasticity crosstalk; in health and Alzheimer's disease.

Synaptic plasticity is believed to underlie the cellular and molecular basis of memory formation. Mitochondria are one of the main organelles involved in metabolism and energy maintenance as plastic organelles that change morphologically and functionally in response to cellular needs and regulate synaptic function and plasticity through multiple mechanisms, including ATP generation, calcium homeostasis, and biogenesis. An increased neuronal activity enhances synaptic efficiency, during which mitochondria's spatial distribution and morphology change significantly. These organelles build up in the pre-and postsynaptic zones to produce ATP, which is necessary for several synaptic processes like neurotransmitter release and recycling. Mitochondria also regulate calcium homeostasis by buffering intracellular calcium, which ensures proper synaptic activity. Furthermore, mitochondria in the presynaptic terminal have distinct morphological properties compared to dendritic or postsynaptic mitochondria. This specialization enables precise control of synaptic activity and plasticity. Mitochondrial dysfunction has been linked to synaptic failure in many neurodegenerative disorders, like Alzheimer's disease (AD). In AD, malfunctioning mitochondria cause delays in synaptic vesicle release and recycling, ionic gradient imbalances, and mostly synaptic failure. This review emphasizes mitochondrial plasticity's contribution to synaptic function. It also explores the profound effect of mitochondrial malfunction on neurodegenerative disorders, focusing on AD, and provides an overview of how they sustain cellular health under normal conditions and how their malfunction contributes to neurodegenerative diseases, highlighting their potential as a therapeutic target for such conditions.

Temporal and spatial changes in the environmental lapse rate distribution over the Arctic

Abstract The Environmental Lapse Rate (ELR) depicts how the temperature near the surface varies with altitude and can be used for temperature downscaling coarse resolution data and for understanding boundary layer processes. We calculated the ELR using ERA5 reanalysis data, examined its temporal and larger-scale spatial variability, and found a prevalent seasonal ELR cycle over the Arctic. There are extensive positive ELR values resulting from pervasive inversions over most of the Arctic in winter; hence, we also explored the possible factors that lead to inversions in polar regions. Our results can serve as a reference for future research on the inversions in different morphological regions at different pressure levels. By improving the characterization of the ELR, we obtain a more explicit representation of the vertical temperature variation across the Arctic region and examine potential trends in ELR over time. Our results challenge the commonly assumed fixed ELR values that are typically used in the Arctic region in, for example, correcting ice-core temperature reconstructions or estimating higher-resolution runoff from land ice.

Phenotypic response of a geographically expanding species, Scomber colias: Clues in the fish otolith shape

During the last decades, there has been a growing interest in the Atlantic chub mackerel, Scomber colias, owing to its northward expansion across the East Atlantic Ocean. This trend has been observed from regions of higher abundance off northwest Africa to the waters of the Atlantic Iberian and the Mediterranean Sea. Changes in abundance and spatial distribution of Atlantic chub mackerel have been previously studied and various theoretical models have been proposed to elucidate the changes in its abundance and biomass. However, within this fishing context, only a limited number of studies have attempted to understand how this species has responded at both the individual and population levels to the changing environmental conditions. The phenotypic variability of 1660 individuals of S. colias collected from the Canary Islands, Madeira, the Cantabrian Sea and the Central-Northern Mediterranean Sea was examined, with a specific focus on otolith shape. We identified six morphotypes classified into two groups and associated to the four analyzed regions. Despite of the occurrence of shared phenotypes in varying proportions among the different fishing grounds, this classification might be explained by the adaptation of certain morphotypes to specific environmental conditions and the migratory behavior of this species. The morphotypes M1-M5 were more abundant in the warmer waters of Madeira-Canary Islands region and M6 in the colder waters of Ligurian-Cantabrian. It is plausible that the former set may represent resident contingents, while morphotypes M2-M3 and M4 are likely to exhibit migratory behavior. Therefore, we suggest a complex metapopulation structure, where different contingents coexist.

Spatial-temporal characterization of cropland abandonment and its driving mechanisms in the Karst Plateau in Eastern Yunnan, China, 2001-2020.

The karst plateau is dominated by mountainous and hilly landforms, with low mechanization level of cropland, high difficulty of cultivation, and obvious phenomenon of cropland abandonment, which threatens regional food security. This study aims to analyze the spatial-temporal variation and its driving mechanisms of abandoned cropland in the Karst Plateau in Eastern Yunnan, China (KPEYC) between 2001 and 2020. To achieve this goal, 18 key factors from population, economic environment, cropland attributes, and farming conditions are selected. Moreover, correlation analysis, geodetector, and regression analysis methods are applied from three perspectives: temporal change, spatial distribution and spatial-temporal change. The results show that: (i) The cropland abandonment rate (CAR) in the KPEYC shows a fluctuating trend, with an average value of 9.78%, and the spatial distribution shows a pattern of "high in the center and low in the south and north". (ii) From the perspective of temporal change, gross value of agricultural production, and gross value of industrial production have the largest correlation coefficients with CAR. (iii) The explanatory power of gross tertiary industrial production, gross value of industrial production, followed by soil thickness. (iv) Gross value of agricultural production, and gross tertiary industrial production are the core driving forces for the spatial-temporal change of CAR. The higher the gross value of agricultural production and gross tertiary industrial production, the lower the CAR. elevation, soil thickness, and traffic mileage are the main driving factors for the spatial-temporal change of CAR. The study indicates that economic factors are decisive for cropland abandonment in the KPEYC. Based on the results, this study can provide decision-making support for local prevention and control of cropland abandonment, and the local community needs to promote land transfer and concentration and local urbanization according to local conditions, improve agricultural policies, improve farming conditions, etc. in order to increase farmers' enthusiasm for production, promote the rational use of cropland, and solidly push forward ecological restoration and management, optimize ecological spatial patterns, manage serious areas of rocky desertification, and appropriately alleviate the contradiction between people and land.

Alkali induced changes in spatial distribution of functional groups in carboxymethylated cellulose – comparison of cotton and viscose fibers

The aim of the work was to compare the levels of carboxymethylation on cotton with what was obtained previously on viscose fibers under the same treatment conditions. In addition to carboxymethylation levels, their performance was also compared in terms of their propensity for sorption of methylene blue, a cationic dye that is a putative wastewater contaminant. Under comparable conditions of treatment, the degree of carboxymethylation in cotton was 30–90% of that in viscose but the molar ratio of dye sorption to carboxyl groups was 100–230% of that in viscose. In other words, as compared to cotton, viscose fibers showed higher degrees of carboxymethylation but lower accessibility of the carboxyl groups to dye molecules. The divergence between the fiber types is attributed to differences in the spatial distribution of substituted carboxymethyl groups within their structures, as well as the inherently greater swelling propensity of the viscose as compared to cotton. Further work is under way to determine if the order of performance as measured through dye sorption (cotton better than viscose) will also hold true if the performance metric is changed to water and moisture sorption.

Integrating Passive Biomonitoring and Active Monitoring: Spider Web Silk and Portable Instruments for Air Quality in Urban Areas

Urban areas worldwide face significant challenges from increasing air pollution, posing health risks and environmental concerns. Lahore, a major city in Pakistan, is particularly affected by severe air pollution due to rapid industrial growth, high vehicle emissions, and various human activities. Traditional air quality monitoring methods, while effective, are often costly and complex, limiting their widespread use. This study investigates a dual monitoring system combining passive biomonitoring with spider web silk and active measurements using portable instruments to assess airborne pollutants in urban environments. Spider webs, collected from various sites in Lahore, were analyzed for heavy metals, while portable instruments simultaneously measured PM2.5, PM10, total volatile organic contents, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide at the same locations. A spatial distribution analysis using GIS and statistical analysis revealed a pattern with significant changes as per land use in the urban environment related to anthropogenic activities. The Principal Component Analysis revealed three distinct clusters of pollutants origins consisting of: I) effluent drains and landfills, II) construction sites, and III) residential areas. The concentrations of Hg in spider silk (average ~ 2.66 mg/kg) were found to be significantly higher in the northeastern part of Lahore, with a similar trend observed in Cd, Cu, Ni, and As levels (average ~ 15.45, 102.87, 31.72, and 6.64, respectively). Several-fold changes in levels and spatial distribution of Pb (15.12 to 356.41 mg/kg) showed a higher concentration in the northern and northeastern parts of Lahore. The spatial variation pattern of Cr (average~ 57.04 mg/kg) registered a higher concentration in southwestern Lahore. Ambient air levels of measured pollutants followed almost similar patterns in spatial distribution. PM2.5 and PM10 measured higher levels (195 and 226 μg/m3, respectively) in the southwestern and northwestern areas, with a similar pattern of variation observed in TVOC (average ~ 0.14 μg/m3). The concentration of HCHO (average ~ 0.003 μg/m3) was higher in the southwest of Lahore. All measured pollutants registered higher values than air quality standards. Particulate matter is the most dominant pollutant contributing to air pollution (up to 20x higher than WHO guidelines). The findings support the use of a dual monitoring system, integrating passive spider web silk biomonitoring and active portable instruments, as a scalable and sustainable solution for air quality management. This approach holds potential for global application in diverse urban environments, with future research focusing on further validation and integration with advanced remote sensing technologies to enhance air quality monitoring and contribute to improved public health and environmental management worldwide. Hence, this research work points to the potential use of spider silk as a biomonitoring tool in combination with instrumental measurement of ambient air pollutants.

Modeling the species occurrence probability and response of climate change on Himalayan Somalata plant under different Shared Socioeconomic Pathways.

In this study, the current distribution probability of Ephedra gerardiana (Somalata), a medicinally potent species of the Himalayas, was assessed, and its spatial distribution change was forecasted until the year 2100 under three Shared Socioeconomic Pathways. Here, we used the maximum entropy model (MaxEnt) on 274 spatially filtered occurrence data points accessed from GBIF and other publications, and 19 bioclimatic variables were used as predictors against the probability assessment. The area under the curve, Continuous Boyce Index, True Skill Statistics, and kappa values were used to evaluate and validate the model. It was observed that the SSP5-8.5, a fossil fuel-fed scenario, saw a maximum habitat decline for E. gerardiana driving its niche towards higher altitudes. Nepal Himalayas witnessed a maximum decline in suitable habitat for the species, whereas it gained area in Bhutan. In India, regions of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, and Sikkim saw a maximum negative response to climate change by the year 2100. Mean annual temperature, isothermality, diurnal temperature range, and precipitation seasonality are the most influential variables isolated by the model that contribute in defining the species' habitat. The results provide evidence of the effects of climate change on the distribution of endemic species in the study area under different scenarios of emissions and anthropogenic coupling. Certainly, the area of consideration encompasses several protected areas, which will become more vulnerable to increased variability of climate, and regulating their boundaries might become a necessary step to conserve the regions' biodiversity in the future.