Search results for "Earth and Related Environmental Sciences"
showing 10 items of 6573 documents
Measuring mutagenicity in ecotoxicology: A case study of Cd exposure in Chironomus riparius.
2021
Abstract Existing mutagenicity tests for metazoans lack the direct observation of enhanced germline mutation rates after exposure to anthropogenic substances, therefore being inefficient. Cadmium (Cd) is a metal described as a mutagen in mammalian cells and listed as a group 1 carcinogenic and mutagenic substance. But Cd mutagenesis mechanism is not yet clear. Therefore, in the present study, we propose a method coupling short-term mutation accumulation (MA) lines with subsequent whole genome sequencing (WGS) and a dedicated data analysis pipeline to investigate if chronic Cd exposure on Chironomus riparius can alter the rate at which de novo point mutations appear. Results show that Cd exp…
Idiosyncratic responses to simulated herbivory by root fungal symbionts in a subarctic meadow
2021
Plant-associated fungi have elementary roles in ecosystem productivity. There is little information on the interactions between arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal symbiosis, fine endophytic (FE) and dark septate endophytic (DSE) fungi, and their host plants in cold climate systems. In particular, the environmental filters potentially driving the relative abundance of these root symbionts remain unknown. We investigated the interlinkage of plant and belowground fungal responses to simulated herbivory (clipping, fertilization, and trampling) in a subarctic meadow system. AM and FE frequency in the two target plant roots, Potentilla crantzii and Saussurea alpina, was unaffected by simulated he…
Coupled Electric and Hydraulic Control of a PRS Turbine in a Real Transport Water Network
2019
Although many devices have recently been proposed for pressure regulation and energy harvesting in water distribution and transport networks, very few applications are still documented in the scientific literature. A new in-line Banki turbine with positive outflow pressure and a mobile regulating flap, named Power Recovery System (PRS), was installed and tested in a real water transport network for the regulation of pressure and flow rate. The PRS turbine was directly connected to a 55 kW asynchronous generator with variable rotational velocity, and coupled to an inverter. The start-up tests showed how automatic adjustment of the flap position and the runner velocity variation are able to c…
Competitiveness and Sustainability in tourist firms and destinations
2020
Tourism is a major activity in the global economy, not only in terms of its economic impact but also its social and environmental implications. The management practices and processes adopted by tourist companies and destinations are very heterogeneous and have variable impacts on the triple-bottom-line sustainability (people, profit, planet) of the ecosystem. However, there is still only limited available knowledge about the value of different practices for promoting both sustainable development and greater competitiveness. This Special Issue includes papers that present new ideas, theories, advancements, experiences, evidence or methodologies that support the convergence of economic, socia…
Does Arsenic Contamination Affect DNA Methylation Patterns in a Wild Bird Population? : An Experimental Approach
2021
Pollutants, such as toxic metals, negatively influence organismal health and performance, even leading to population collapses. Studies in model organisms have shown that epigenetic marks, such as DNA methylation, can be modulated by various environmental factors, including pollutants, influencing gene expression, and various organismal traits. Yet experimental data on the effects of pollution on DNA methylation from wild animal populations are largely lacking. We here experimentally investigated for the first time the effects of early-life exposure to environmentally relevant levels of a key pollutant, arsenic (As), on genome-wide DNA methylation in a wild bird population. We experimentall…
On the use of unmanned aerial systems for environmental monitoring
2018
[EN] Environmental monitoring plays a central role in diagnosing climate and management impacts on natural and agricultural systems; enhancing the understanding of hydrological processes; optimizing the allocation and distribution of water resources; and assessing, forecasting, and even preventing natural disasters. Nowadays, most monitoring and data collection systems are based upon a combination of ground-based measurements, manned airborne sensors, and satellite observations. These data are utilized in describing both small-and large-scale processes, but have spatiotemporal constraints inherent to each respective collection system. Bridging the unique spatial and temporal divides that li…
SMOS-IC: An Alternative SMOS Soil Moisture and Vegetation Optical Depth Product
2017
© 2017 by the authors. The main goal of the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission over land surfaces is the production of global maps of soil moisture (SM) and vegetation optical depth (τ) based on multi-angular brightness temperature (TB) measurements at L-band. The operational SMOS Level 2 and Level 3 soil moisture algorithms account for different surface effects, such as vegetation opacity and soil roughness at 4 km resolution, in order to produce global retrievals of SM and τ. In this study, we present an alternative SMOS product that was developed by INRA (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique) and CESBIO (Centre d'Etudes Spatiales de la BIOsphère). One of the main go…
The use of barley straw residues to avoid high erosion and runoff rates on persimmon plantations in Eastern Spain under low frequency-high magnitude …
2016
[EN] Soil and water losses due to agricultural mismanagement are high and non-sustainable in many orchards. An experiment was set up with rainfall simulation at 78 mm h(-1) over 1 hour on 20 paired plots of 2 m(2) (bare and straw covered) in new persimmon plantations in Eastern Spain. Effects of straw cover on the control of soil and water losses were assessed. An addition of 60% straw cover (75 gm(-2)) resulted in delayed ponding and runoff generation and consequently reduced water losses from 60% to 13% of total rainfall. The straw cover reduced raindrop impact and thus sediment detachment from 1014 to 47 g plot(-1) h(-1). The erosion rate was reduced from 5.1 to 0.2 Mg ha-(1) h(-1). The …
La brecha salarial de género en las instituciones científicas. Estudio de caso
2019
espanolEl estudio al que se refiere este articulo pretende identificar factores internos y externos que son constitutivos de la brecha salarial de genero en una institucion cientifica, concretamente en la Universidad de Valencia, que se analizan a partir de los datos del registro de nominas de 2015. Se ha examinado la brecha salarial ajustada por hora trabajada, la brecha doblemente ajustada (por hora y categoria) y triplemente ajustada (por hora, categoria y complemento retributivo). La brecha salarial de genero se ha manifestado en todas las categorias del profesorado investigador y es mas intensa cuando se tienen hijos e hijas. La magnitud de la brecha y el peso de los componentes varian…
Los mapas auto-organizados para la evaluación de la investigación de tesis doctorales : el caso de la Didáctica de las Ciencias Sociales en España
2018
Resumen basado en el de la publicación Título, resumen y palabras clave también en español e inglés Disponible la versión en inglés Se tiene el objetivo de poner en valor el potencial del uso de redes neuronales del tipo mapas auto-organizados (SOM) como herramienta clarificadora en el tratamiento, análisis y visualización de datos cienciométricos, concretamente, en el caso del análisis de las tesis doctorales españolas en Didáctica de las Ciencias Sociales, indexadas en la base nacional española de tesis doctorales TESEO, defendidas entre 1976 y 2014. Se ha recuperado un censo de 301 tesis doctorales, clasificadas según las variables: comunidades autónomas (Andalucía y Cataluña), quinqueni…