Higher education and sustainable development of marine resources

Marine park is a designated area of the sea where national regulatory authorities place limits on certain human activities. Marine parks usually allow multiple uses. Certain zones are protected for preserving specific habitats for marine biodiversity to achieve ecological sustainability while in others activities such as recreational fishing, ecotourism, snorkeling, and diving are allowed. Large marine parks have open zones for fishing and no-take zones where extractive activities such as fishing, sand mining, and drilling are prohibited. Generally, marine parks are considered suitable places for gaining scientific understanding and promoting environmental awareness while safeguarding the benefits of indigenous coastal communities. Sea ranching is a type of marine farming in which juveniles are released into the ocean where they grow without containment structures. The juveniles are generally produced in the hatcheries. In some cases, wild-caught juveniles from one area are also released into another area for stock enhancement or creating a fishery resource. They grow unprotected and without any assistance such as feed from outside. The marine environment provides the juveniles all the resources to grow to be subsequently harvested. Sea ranching is unlike mariculture where stocked species are held in captivity, in cages, sea pens, or other types of enclosures, and provided feed and other requirements from external sources. Nature-based solutions are human actions aimed at sustainably managing the natural or modified ecosystems. Such solutions include measures to protect and restore the ecosystems and are inspired by nature. In the context of oceans, the nature-based solutions are systematic and informed interventions that are resource-efficient and help in building resilience. This concept is based on the understanding that healthy ocean provides more ecosystem services that benefit the humanity

Simulation of performance differences between offshore and land‐based photovoltaic systems

Abstract The purpose of this study is to model, simulate, and compare the performance of a photovoltaics system on land and at sea. To be able to have a fair comparison the effect of sea waves, wind speed and relative humidity are considered in this model. The sea waves are modeled in the frequency domain, using a wave spectrum. The irradiation on a tilted surface for a floating system is calculated considering the tilt angle that is affected by the sea waves. Moreover, the temperature is estimated based on heat transfer theory and the natural cooling system for both floating and land-based photovoltaic systems. Actual measured weather data from two different locations, one located at Utrecht University campus and the other one on the North Sea, are used to simulate the systems, thus making the comparison possible. Energy yield is calculated for these weather conditions. The results show that the relative annual average output energy is about 12.96% higher at sea compared with land. However, in some months, this relative output energy increases up to 18% higher energy yield at sea

Factors controlling sediment yield in China's Loess Plateau

10.1002/esp.2109Earth Surface Processes and Landforms366816-826ESPL

Plasticity of biometrical and mechanical properties of Echinocardium cordatum spines according to environment

We investigated the plasticity of spines of the burrowing heart urchin Echinocardium cordatum inhabiting sandy beaches. This urchin has very specialized spines which play specific roles in feeding and locomotion. Biometrical and mechanical properties of the spine skeleton of individuals from a wave-exposed intertidal site and a protected subtidal site (Brittany, France) were compared and related to sediment grain size, food supply and urchin small-scale distribution and burrowing depth. The intertidal site was characterized by coarser sand; the urchins were more scattered and more deeply buried than in the subtidal site. Intertidal urchins were bigger than subtidal urchins but showed similar resource allocation. Spines of intertidal urchins were longer than those of subtidal urchins, their architecture was reinforced and they presented a higher fracture force and stiffness. These spine differences would be essentially due to passive plasticity, but could also be adaptative at a certain extent. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.IF: 2,011SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Association between occupational exposure and the clinical characteristics of COPD.

International audienceBACKGROUND: The contribution of occupational exposures to COPD and their interaction with cigarette smoking on clinical pattern of COPD remain underappreciated. The aim of this study was to explore the contribution of occupational exposures on clinical pattern of COPD. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from a multicenter tertiary care cohort of 591 smokers or ex-smokers with COPD (median FEV1 49%) were analyzed. Self-reported exposure to vapor, dust, gas or fumes (VDGF) at any time during the entire career was recorded. RESULTS: VDGF exposure was reported in 209 (35%) subjects aged 31 to 88 years. Several features were significantly associated with VDGF exposure: age (median 68 versus 64 years, p < 0.001), male gender (90% vs 76%; p < 0.0001), reported work-related respiratory disability (86% vs 7%, p < 0.001), current wheezing (71% vs 61%, p = 0.03) and hay fever (15.5% vs 8.5%, p < 0.01). In contrast, current and cumulative smoking was less (p = 0.01) despite similar severity of airflow obstruction. CONCLUSION: In this patient series of COPD patients, subjects exposed to VDGF were older male patients who reported more work-related respiratory disability, more asthma-like symptoms and atopy, suggesting that, even in smokers or ex-smokers with COPD, occupational exposures are associated with distinct patients characteristics

Caribbean Plate Relative Motions

Any reconstruction of the geological history of the Central America land bridge is dependent on conjectural motions of several lithospheric plates. The most important aspect of a timing sequence for a link between the North and South America land masses is apparently the creation of the Caribbean Plate. The geological record, however, which details a tectonic evolution of the Caribbean Plate and its margins is so enigmatic that many critical questions remain unresolved, and every developed model is couched in some incompatibilities