Photosynthetic quantum efficiency in south‐eastern Amazonian trees may be already affected by climate change

Tropical forests are experiencing unprecedented high‐temperature conditions due to climate change that could limit their photosynthetic functions. We studied the high‐temperature sensitivity of photosynthesis in a rainforest site in southern Amazonia, where some of the highest temperatures and most rapid warming in the Tropics have been recorded. The quantum yield (F v /F m ) of photosystem II was measured in seven dominant tree species using leaf discs exposed to varying levels of heat stress. T 50 was calculated as the temperature at which F v /F m was half the maximum value. T 5 is defined as the breakpoint temperature, at which F v /F m decline was initiated. Leaf thermotolerance in the rapidly warming southern Amazonia was the highest recorded for forest tree species globally. T 50 and T 5 varied between species, with one mid‐storey species, Amaioua guianensis , exhibiting particularly high T 50 and T 5 values. While the T 50 values of the species sampled were several degrees above the maximum air temperatures experienced in southern Amazonia, the T 5 values of several species are now exceeded under present‐day maximum air temperatures

The effectiveness of chemical denture cleansers and ultrasonic device in biofilm removal from complete dentures

Adequate denture hygiene can prevent and treat infection in edentulous patients. They are usually elderly and have difficulty for brushing their teeth. OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the efficacy of complete denture biofilm removal using chemical (alkaline peroxide-effervescent tablets), mechanical (ultrasonic) and combined (association of the effervescent and ultrasonic) methods. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eighty complete denture wearers participated in the experiment for 21 days. They were distributed into 4 groups (n=20): (1) Brushing with water (Control); (2) Effervescent tablets (Corega Tabs); (3) Ultrasonic device (Ultrasonic Cleaner, model 2840 D); (4) Association of effervescent tablets and ultrasonic device. All groups brushed their dentures with a specific brush (Bitufo) and water, 3 times a day, before applying their treatments. Denture biofilm was collected at baseline and after 21 days. To quantify the biofilm, the internal surfaces of the maxillary complete dentures were stained and photographed at 45º. The photographs were processed and the areas (total internal surface stained with biofilm) quantified (Image Tool 2.02). The percentage of the biofilm was calculated by the ratio between the biofilm area multiplied by 100 and the total area of the internal surface of the maxillary complete denture. RESULTS: The Kruskal-Wallis test was used for comparison among groups followed by the Dunn multiple-comparison test. All tests were performed respecting a significance level of 0.05. Significant difference was found among the treatments (KW=21.18; P<0.001), the mean ranks for the treatments and results for Dunn multiple comparison test were: Control (60.9); Chemical (37.2); Mechanical (35.2) and Combined (29.1). CONCLUSION: The experimental methods were equally effective regarding the ability to remove biofilm and were superior to the control method (brushing with water). Immersion in alkaline peroxide and ultrasonic vibration can be used as auxiliary agents for cleaning complete dentures

Pre- and post-fire comparison of forest areas in 3D

A satellite processing platform for high resolution forest assessment (FORSAT) was developed. It generates the digital surface models (DSMs) of the forest canopy by advanced processing of the very-high resolution (VHR) optical satellite imagery and automatically matches the pre- and post-fire DSMs for 3D change detection. The FORSAT software system can perform the following tasks: pre-processing, point measurement, orientation, quasi-epipolar image generation, image matching, DSM extraction, orthoimage generation, photogrammetric restitution either in mono-plotting mode or in stereo models, 3D surface matching, co-registration, comparison and change detection. It can thoroughly calculate the planimetric and volumetric changes between the epochs. It supports most of the VHR optical imagery commonly used for civil applications. Capabilities of FORSAT have been tested in two real forest fire cases, where the burned areas are located in Cyprus and Austria. The geometric characteristics of burned forest areas have been identified both in 2D plane and 3D volume dimensions, using pre- and post-fire optical image data from different sensors. The test studies showed that FORSAT is an operational software capable of providing spatial (3D) and temporal (4D) information for monitoring of forest fire areas and sustainable forest management. Beyond the wildfires, it can be used for many other forest information needs.Publisher's Versio

Pre-and post-fire comparison of forest areas in 3D

\u3cp\u3eA satellite processing platform for high resolution forest assessment (FORSAT) was developed. It generates the digital surface models (DSMs) of the forest canopy by advanced processing of the very-high resolution (VHR) optical satellite imagery and automatically matches the pre- and post-fire DSMs for 3D change detection. The FORSAT software system can perform the following tasks: pre-processing, point measurement, orientation, quasi-epipolar image generation, image matching, DSM extraction, orthoimage generation, photogrammetric restitution either in mono-plotting mode or in stereo models, 3D surface matching, co-registration, comparison and change detection. It can thoroughly calculate the planimetric and volumetric changes between the epochs. It supports most of the VHR optical imagery commonly used for civil applications. Capabilities of FORSAT have been tested in two real forest fire cases, where the burned areas are located in Cyprus and Austria. The geometric characteristics of burned forest areas have been identified both in 2D plane and 3D volume dimensions, using pre- and post-fire optical image data from different sensors. The test studies showed that FORSAT is an operational software capable of providing spatial (3D) and temporal (4D) information for monitoring of forest fire areas and sustainable forest management. Beyond the wildfires, it can be used for many other forest information needs.\u3c/p\u3