Identifying Birds' Collision Risk with Wind Turbines Using a Multidimensional Utilization Distribution Method

Renewable energy plays a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, the expansion of wind farms has raised concerns about risks for bird collisions. We tested different methods used to understand whether birds' flight occurs over wind turbines and found kernel density estimators outperform other methods. Previous studies using kernel utilization distribution (KUD) have considered only the 2 horizontal dimensions (2D). However, if altitude is ignored, an unrealistic depiction of the situation may result because birds move in 3 dimensions (3D). We quantified the 3D space use of the Griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) in El Estrecho natural park in Tarifa (southern Spain, on the northern shore of the Strait of Gibraltar) during 2012-2013, and, for the first time, their risk of collision with wind turbines in an area in the south of Spain. The 2D KUD showed a substantial overlap of the birds' flight paths with the wind turbines in the study area, whereas the 3D kernel estimate did not show such overlap. Our aim was to develop a new approach using 3D kernel estimation to understand the space use of soaring birds; these are killed by collision with wind turbines more often than any other bird types in southern Spain. We determined the probability of bird collision with an obstacle within its range. Other potential application areas include airfields, plane flight paths, and tall buildings. (c) 2020 The Authors. Wildlife Society Bulletin published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Wildlife Society.Peer reviewe

Heterothermy and seasonal patterns of metabolic rate in the southern African hedgehog (Atelerix frontalis)

Animals that inhabit unfavourable habitats and experience seasons where the cost of maintenance exceeds the available energy resources have over time developed behavioural and physiological mechanisms to survive. These adaptations include changes in activity, improvement of cold tolerance by using nonshivering thermogenesis (NST), improvement of thermal conductance, reduction of body mass, or acclimation to colder temperatures (reduction of metabolic requirement). In addition some species exhibit heterothermy, in the form of either daily torpor or longer-term hibernation. The southern African hedgehog (Atelerix frontalis) is an excellent candidate to investigate the phenomenon of heterothermy because it is a small insectivore (summer body mass ca. 300 to 400g), burrows, inhabits harsh habitats and is not easy to find during the winter months. In this study I aimed to investigate whether A. frontalis exhibits seasonal differences in metabolic rate and furthermore if this species exhibits heterothermy. The study was carried out in the Northern Cape Province, South Africa. Hedgehogs were hand captured and their metabolic rates were measured using indirect calorimetry. Individuals were implanted with temperature dataloggers for a summer period (November 2009-January 2010) and a winter period (May-August 2009). The summer BMR of adult A. frontalis (0.448 ±0.035 mlO2/g/h, n=4) was significantly lower than their winter BMR (0.811 ±0.073 mlO2/g/h, n=4) and statistical analyses revealed that this was an affect caused by seasonal changes in the ambient environment. Individuals spent up to 84 percent of time during the measurement period torpid (-8°C <Ta<21°C). Body mass appears to be an important factor in determining the pattern of heterothermy (daily torpor versus hibernation) used in this species. To my knowledge the extremely low body temperature (Tb min) of 1.0°C recorded for A. frontalis is the lowest Tb min recorded for a mainland Afrotropical mammal. This species displays classic up-regulation in metabolic rate during winter, resulting in an increase in the energetic requirements of the species. As a result, heterothermy appears to play a significant role in the energy balance of this species during winter, contributing to energy saving. Heterothermy may enable this species to survive in the face of global climate change

Effects of a brief worksite stress management program on coping skills, psychological distress and physical complaints : a controlled trial

Objectives: To examine the effects of single-session, small-group stress management program on knowledge about stress, coping skills, and psychological and physical distress. Methods: A total of 300 employees from a company in western Japan were invited to participate in the study. Those who consented to enter the study were assigned to an intervention (n=149) or waiting list control group (n=151). Participants in the intervention group received a small-group stress management program. The program was primarily aimed at increasing knowledge about stress and improving coping skills. To investigate the intervention effect, change scores in outcome variables were calculated by subtracting the scores at pre-intervention from those at post-intervention (8 weeks after the pre-intervention survey). Next, the difference in the scores between groups was examined using analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) with the pre-intervention score as the covariate. Results: Favorable intervention effects were found on knowledge about stress and on coping skills (P < 0.001 and P=0.012, respectively) and adverse effects on psychological distress (P=0.022). However, this adverse effect on psychological distress did not exist among those who initially perceived higher levels of job control. Conclusion: The single-session stress management program was effective on improving knowledge about stress, and coping skills, where job control moderated the effect of the program on psychological distress

An SRAM-Based Radiation Monitor With Dynamic Voltage Control in 0.18-mu m CMOS Technology

© 1963-2012 IEEE. This paper presents a novel radiation monitor that is based on a custom static random access memory (SRAM) application-specified integrated circuit. Its sensitivity is adjustable through its core supply voltage and the radiation monitoring is based on the upset rate that is measured during a measurement interval in the memory. The sensor has different supply voltages for the SRAM core and the interface logic to prevent incorrect digital signals during the measurement cycle. The memory was processed in a 0.18-μm CMOS technology and was tested with heavy ions with an linear energy transfer from 1.8-60 MeV · cm2/mg, 24-GeV protons, and a mixed radiation field. The memory cells were also verified with a two-photon absorption laser. Furthermore, an analysis was made on single-event upsets and multibit upsets.status: publishe

From Copernicus Big Data to Big Information and Big Knowledge: A Demo from the Copernicus App Lab Project

Copernicus is the European program for monitoring the Earth. It consists of a set of complex systems that collect data from satellites and in-situ sensors, process this data and provide users with reliable and up-to-date information on a range of environmental and security issues. The data collected by Copernicus is made available freely following an open access policy. Information extracted from Copernicus data is disseminated to users through the Copernicus services which address six thematic areas: land, marine, atmosphere, climate, emergency and security. We present a demo from the Horizon 2020 Copernicus App Lab project which takes big data from the Copernicus land service, makes it available on the Web as linked geospatial data and interlinks it with other useful public data to aid the development of applications by developers that might not be Earth Observation experts. Our demo targets a scenario where we want to study the “greenness” of Paris

Providing Satellite Data to Mobile Developers Using Semantic Technologies and Linked Data

Copernicus is the European program for monitoring the Earth. It consists of a set of complex systems that collect data from satellites and in-situ sensors, process it, and provide users with reliable and up-to-date information on a range of environmental and security issues. Information extracted from Copernicus data is made available to users through Copernicus services addressing six thematic areas: land, marine, atmosphere, climate, emergency and security. The data processed and disseminated puts Copernicus at the forefront of the big data paradigm and gives rise to all relevant challenges: volume, velocity, variety, veracity and value. In this paper we discuss the challenges of big Copernicus data and how the Copernicus program handled them. We also present lessons learned from our project Copernicus App Lab, which takes Copernicus services information and makes it available on the Web using semantic technologies to aid its take up by mobile developers