Harringtonjennings6676

utilize measurement techniques that adequately assess exposure, access, use, and perception of NEs in order to contribute to a better understanding of health impacts of surrounding natural environments.As an internal functional trait of a community, the body-size spectrum is a highly informative indicator for bioassessment of water/environmental quality in aquatic ecosystems. To determine the influence of tidal events on body-size spectra of protozoan periphytons, a 3-month baseline survey was conducted in Korean coastal waters using the polyurethane foam enveloped slide system (PFES) and conventional slide system (CS). The body-size spectrum of the protozoans showed a clear temporal pattern during the study period using both sampling systems. However, the temporal dynamics showed significantly different trajectories in the body-size spectrum between the two sampling methods during the study period. The bootstrapped average analysis revealed that the patterns of the body-size spectrum were significantly different between the PFES and CS systems, especially in terms of frequency of occurrence. These findings suggest that the tidal events may significantly influence body-size spectrum of periphytic ciliates for bioassessment in marine ecosystems.Microplastic pollution is one of the most significant global environmental concerns. This study represents a first attempt to establish connections between the concentration of microplastics and both ocean surface circulation direction and land-based sources along the western Gulf of Thailand. Microplastics at the high-tide line from 25 beaches in 5 provinces were quantified. Observed amounts range from 20 to 273 (max. 5741) pieces/kg. Sheets were the most common shape and black the most common color of microplastics. Our study showed a significant, positive correlation between the number of microplastics and land-based sources (e.g., aquatic industries). While human activities were the dominant factor affecting microplastic concentrations, the newly designed surface circulation direction (SCD) index reflected relative changes in microplastic amounts. Our study identified several locations with substantial microplastic pollution which require a proper management system with appropriate laws and regulations, and a public awareness campaign about effects of microplastics on ecosystems.The natural radioactivity of intertidal sediment samples collected from the beaches of Oman was investigated. Using gamma ray spectrometry, the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in the sediment samples were measured to have average values of 20.49 ± 3.50, 2.26 ± 0.60 and 44.83 ± 4.60 Bq kg-1 respectively. The activity levels reported are considerably lower than the worldwide average. The annual effective dose rate was estimated to be 0.015 mSv yr-1 on average. Additionally, the mean radium equivalent, external and internal indices were 26.89, 0.07 and 0.13 Bq kg-1 respectively which were well below the risk limits. Gamma and alpha radiation indices were computed to be less than unity and show no exceedance beyond the recommended level. Our results provide baseline data for radioactivity in intertidal sediment samples of Oman and show that intertidal beach sand does not pose significant radiological risk to human health.The conventional survey of marine debris standing-stock has various drawbacks such as high cost and inaccuracy because the total amount of debris in the whole beach is inferred using the results of the manual investigation in selected narrow areas. To overcome the disadvantages, an automatic detection method using a deep learning-based network model was developed to detect and quantify the beach debris. The network model developed in this study classified items with a precision of 0.87 (87%) mAP and showed less then 5% error compared to actual survey. This study is the first fieldwork in Korea that shows the difference between automatic and conventional methods to predict the beach debris standing-stock. The results provide essential information for the development of effective beach debris management systems and policies.The study was carried out to estimate the burden and pattern of antibiotic resistance and to identify antibiotic resistance genes with focus on ESBL producers, plasmid mediated quinolone resistance, and tetracycline efflux genes, in faecal bacterial isolates collected from poultry farms of coastal Southern Karnataka, India. High resistance to fluoroquinolones was observed with 94% Escherichia coli and 80% Klebsiella pneumoniae being resistant to both ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin. All the Escherichia coli strains were resistant to tetracycline (100%). qnrB (38%) was the most common gene detected followed by qnrS (27%) and qnrA (21.5%). All Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates resistant to tetracycline harbored tetA gene. Most of the isolates in our study had high MAR indices indicating rampant use of antibiotics.The road environment has changed markedly over the years. Train horns are ostensibly used to alert road users and are typically mandatory on approach to railway level crossings. However, they have increasingly been seen as a nuisance. Beyond their negative aspects, a study has yet to comprehensively evaluate train horn effectiveness and understand if they remain beneficial and relevant in the contemporary environment. Hence, this study aimed to provide evidence on the actual use of train horns. Field observations were conducted at 54 railway crossings across four Australian States. The effects of level crossing type, location, and environmental conditions were investigated in relation to train horn loudness as objectively measured at the crossing. Results revealed that train horns were not always used, presenting an issue for passive level crossings. find more However, when sounded, train horn use was redundant and insufficiently loud at level crossings equipped with bells. Taken together, current train horn practice was found to be highly variable and dependent on crossing type, remoteness, and individual train drivers, thus resulting in inconsistent warnings and raising important implications for standardisation.