Anthropogenic threat assessment of marine-associated fauna in Spencer Gulf,South Australia

Assessing the vulnerability of species to [anthropogenic threats is an essential step when developing management strategies for wild populations. With industrial development forecasted to increase in Spencer Gulf, South Australia, it is crucial to assess the ongoing effects of anthropogenic threats to resident and migratory species. Expert elicitation was used to assess 27 threats against 38 threatened, protected, and iconic marine-associated species. Species and threat interactions were assessed individually, and as taxonomic or functional groups. Climate change had the greatest overall exposure (c.f. risk) across species, followed by disturbance, pollution, disease/invasive species, and fishing/aquaculture threats. The largest overall sensitivities (c.f. consequences) were pollution and disease/invasive species, followed by climate change, disturbance and fishing/aquaculture threats. Vulnerability scores (exposure x sensitivity) showed the climate change group posing the greatest overall threat in Spencer Gulf, with individual climatic threats ranking as three of the top four biggest threats to most animal groups. Noise, shipping, and net fishing were considered the greatest region-specific individual threats to marine mammals; as were trawl fishing, line fishing, and coastal activities to fish/cuttlefish; trawl fishing, line fishing, and net fishing to elasmobranchs; and oil spill, disease, and coastal activities to sea/shorebirds. Eighteen of the 20 highest vulnerability scores involved the short-beaked common dolphin, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin, and Australian sea lion, highlighting the particular susceptibility of these species to specific threats. These findings provide a synthesis of key threats and vulnerable species, and give management a basis to direct future monitoring and threat mitigation efforts in the region.     

Effects of rainfall,geomorphological and geometrical variables on vulnerability of the lower Mississippi River levee system to slump slides

This study investigated the importance of rainfall and various geomorphological and geometrical factors to the vulnerability of earthen levees to slump slides. The study was performed using a database including 34 slump slides that occurred in the lower Mississippi River levee system from 2008 to 2009. The impact of rainfall within the six months prior to slide occurrence was studied for 23 slides for which an accurate occurrence date was available. Several variables were used to develop a logistic regression model to predict the probability of slump slide occurrence. The proposed model was verified for both slide and non-slide cases. The regression analysis depicts the impact of channel width, river sinuosity index, riverbank erosion, channel shape condition and distance to river. Excluding the sinuosity index, the impact of the other independent variables examined was found to be significant. Occurrence of riverbank erosion around the slide locations was the most significant predictor factor. A channel width of less than 1000?m was ranked as the second most significant variable. The proposed model can aid in locating high-risk areas on levees in order to take prompt protective measures, increase monitoring efforts and enable early response under emergency conditions.     

1D System identification of a 54‐story steel frame building by seismic interferometry

A 54‐story steel, perimeter‐frame building in downtown Los Angeles, California, is identified by a wave method using records of the Northridge earthquake of 1994 (M_L = 6.4, R = 32 km). The building is represented as a layered shear beam and a torsional shaft, characterized by the corresponding velocities of vertically propagating waves through the structure. The previously introduced waveform inversion algorithm is applied, which fits in the least squares sense pulses in low‐pass filtered impulse response functions computed at different stories. This paper demonstrates that layered shear beam and torsional shaft models are valid for this building, within bands that include the first five modes of vibration for each of the North–South (NS), East–West (EW), and torsional responses (0–1.7 Hz for NS and EW, and 0–3.5 Hz for the torsional response). The observed pulse travel time from ground floor to penthouse level is τ ≈1.5 s for NS and EW and τ ≈ 0.9 s for the torsional responses. The identified equivalent uniform shear beam wave velocities are β_eq ≈ 140 m/s for NS and EW responses, and 260 m/s for torsion, and the apparent Q ≈ 25 for the NS and torsional, and ≈14 for the EW response. Across the layers, the wave velocity varied 90–170 m/s for the NS, 80–180 m/s for the EW, and 170–350 m/s for the torsional responses. The identification method is intended for use in structural health monitoring. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Distribution and bioaccumulation of polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine pesticides residues in sediments and Manila clams (Ruditapes philippinarum) from along the Mid-Western coast of Korea

The distribution and bioaccumulation features of PCBs, DDTs, and HCHs were investigated in the sediments and Manila clams collected from along the Mid-Western coast of Korea. The measured concentrations of ΣPCBs, ΣDDTs and ΣHCHs were 1.08–3.5, 0.12–0.35 and 0.090–0.30 ng g⁻¹ dw in sediment, and 33–390, 7.4–46 and 6.3–27 ng g⁻¹ lipid in Manila clam, respectively. Their levels were found to be relatively lower than those of other contaminated areas and the consumption of Manila clam from these areas seems to be safe for human health according to calculated lifetime cancer risk and hazard indices. The ΣPCBs and ΣDDTs concentrations in sediments showed a significant relationship to those in clams. The significant correlation was observed between BSAF in clams and K_ow for each PCB congeners and DDT metabolites. These findings support that the PCBs and DDTs levels, which are highly hydrophobic chemicals, in clam reflect the sediment pollution through bioaccumulation.     

The Impact of Human Activities on CO2 Intake by Carbonate Weathering: A Case Study of Conglin Karst Ridge-trough at Fuling Town,Chongqing, China

The chemical weathering can consume atmosphere/soil CO2. Human activities such as pollution, fertilization and acid precipitation have exerted a large impact on CO2 intake by carbonate weathering. Thus, based on the analysis on chemical component change of the karst groundwater in the karst ridge watershed of Conglin Village, Fuling District of Chongqing City, the influence of human activities such as fertilization, sewage discharges from mustard tuber processing, breeding industry and acid rain precipitation on carbonate weathering and CO2 intake in 1980, 2003 and 2006 was studied. The results showed that CO2 intake by carbonate rock declined with year. Because H+ derived from acid sewage discharge, fertilization and acid precipitation reacted with carbonate rock when mustard tuber production and swine breeding were developed fleetly after 2000 as well as the burning amount of high-sulfur coal augmented persistently, which led to the increase of (Ca2++Mg2+)/HCO3-. The difference on charge between Ca2++Mg2+ and HCO3- was balanced by NO3-+SO42-. The control on pollution and acid rain, especially the pre-neutralization of acid waste water, would rejuvenate the atmospheric CO2 intake strength of carbonate weathering besides the protection of water and soil environment     

Variation in DOC and trace metal concentration along the heavily urbanized basin in Kathmandu Valley,Nepal

Water samples were analyzed for DOC and trace metals from Bagmati River within Kathmandu valley, Nepal, to understand the variation trends of DOC and trace metals and their relationship along the drainage network. The variability in organic matter and wastewater input within the Bagmati drainage basin appeared to control DOC and most of the trace metal concentration. The large input of organic matter and wastewater creates anoxic condition by consuming dissolved oxygen and releasing higher concentrations of DOC, trace elements such as nickel, arsenic, barium, cadmium, and copper with downstream distance. Concentrations of DOC and trace metals like barium and zinc showed strong relationships with human population density and suggest that human activities have strong control on these parameters along the drainage network. The DOC and most of the trace metal concentration increased with downstream distance and appeared to be directly associated with human activities. The variation trends of most of the trace metals appeared to be the same; however, concentration varied widely. Inputs of organic matter and wastewater due to human activities appeared directly to be associated for the variation of DOC and trace metals along the Bagmati drainage network within Kathmandu valley.     

可视化人体的整体坐标系统

可视人数据集是人体解剖结构的基础信息数据集.为了确定人体结构在三维空间中的准确定位以及在不同个体之间便于比较,文中提出和建立了可视化人体的整体坐标系统.以通过耻骨联合上缘中点的水平横切面为标准原点平面,将人体分为上、下部:上部包括头,颈、胸、腹、上臂、前臂等重要部位;下部包括骨盆、下肢和手.人体的整体坐标系可以确定人体重要结构的每一个体元的空间绝对坐标及相对坐标,在图像的分割、匹配、重建中起重要作用.通过坐标系统的变换,人体整体坐标系统可以方便地应用于临床的定位定量诊断,手术导航,放射定位治疗以及人体运动功能等领域的研究.