scholarly journals Cat Gets Its Tern: A Case Study of Predation on a Threatened Coastal Seabird

Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire N. Greenwell ◽  
Michael C. Calver ◽  
Neil R. Loneragan
Keyword(s):  
Strong Evidence ◽  
Species Conservation ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Direct Observations ◽  
Prey Behavior ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Wildlife Cameras ◽  
Considerable Loss

Domestic cats have a cosmopolitan distribution, commonly residing in urban, suburban and peri-urban environments that are also critical for biodiversity conservation. This study describes the impact of a desexed, free-roaming cat on the behavior of a threatened coastal seabird, the Australian Fairy Tern, Sternula nereis nereis, in Mandurah, south-western Australia. Wildlife cameras and direct observations of cat incursions into the tern colony at night, decapitated carcasses of adult terns, dead, injured or missing tern chicks, and cat tracks and scats around the colony provided strong evidence of cat predation, which led to an initial change in nesting behavior and, ultimately, colony abandonment and the reproductive failure of 111 nests. The death of six breeding terns from the population was a considerable loss for this threatened species and had the potential to limit population growth. This study highlights the significant negative impacts of free-roaming cats on wildlife and the need for monitoring and controlling cats at sites managed for species conservation. It also provides strong evidence against the practice of trap-neuter-release programs and demonstrates that desexed cats can continue to negatively impact wildlife post-release directly through predation, but also indirectly through fundamental changes in prey behavior and a reduction in parental care.

A case study of noise pollution levels during the restrictions period due to COVID-19.

2021 ◽  
Vol 263 (6) ◽  
pp. 206-214
Author(s):  
David Montes-González ◽  
Juan Miguel Barrigón-Morillas ◽  
Ana Cristina Bejarano-Quintas ◽  
Manuel Parejo-Pizarro ◽  
Guillermo Rey-Gozalo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Acoustic Measurements ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

The pandemic of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) led to the need for drastic control measures around the world to reduce the impact on the health of the population. The confinement of people in their homes resulted in a significant reduction in human activity at every level (economic, social, industrial, etc.), which was reflected in a decrease in environmental pollution levels. Studying the evolution of parameters, such as the level of environmental noise caused by vehicle traffic in urban environments, makes it possible to assess the impact of this type of measure. This paper presents a case study of the acoustic situation in Cáceres (Spain) during the restriction period by means of long-term acoustic measurements at various points of the city.

The Risk of Water Erosion on the Foothills of the Middle High Atlas (Morocco): Tagueleft Basin Case Study : خطر التعرية المائية على السفوح بالأطلس الكبير الأوسط (المغرب): دراسة حالة حوض تاكلفت

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rizki Mohamed
Keyword(s):  
Land Degradation ◽  
Local Development ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Potential Method ◽  
Water Erosion ◽  
High Atlas ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

The Tagueleft basin is geographically located in the northern edges of the Middle High Atlas, which is a geomorphological fragile area. The impact of human activity has accelerated water erosion in this mountains area. This is reflected in dynamic and unstable foothills, a decrease in forests density and degradation in the production of the land. On the other hand, land degradation due to human overexploitation of natural resources has increased land degradation in the area. The interest in the risk of erosion on the foothills in the area under study comes in the context of our contribution to clarify the role of geomatical and geomorphological approaches in explaining and identifying the mechanisms responsible for current foothills dynamism through water erosion and its negative impacts on the environment and local development. The aim of the study was to use the EPM (Erosion Potential Méthod) which is formulated by Slobodan Gavrilovic for erosion in mountainous areas and to test the reliability of its results based on fieldwork and remote sensing data. The results of the erosion assessment and its quantification by applying the coefficient (W) for the theoretical model in the area under study have shown that erosion is very important and it touches on wide areas as it appears through the domain classification of the distribution erosion in Tagueleft basin.

scholarly journals Socioeconomic Classes of University Students in Pakistan as Predictors of their Personality Traits: A Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-221
Author(s):  
Rafaqat Ali ◽  
Furrukh Bashir ◽  
Rashid Ahmad
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Socioeconomic Class ◽  
Lower Socioeconomic ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

The current study was heading for determining the impact of Pakistani university students’ socioeconomic classes on their personality traits. Demographic and personality questionnaires were filled by available university students online. The stepwise regression technique facilitated to generate regression models to define impacts of different socioeconomic classes on students’ different personality traits. Different regression models highlighted the significant negative impacts of the middle upper socioeconomic class on Agreeableness, Extraversion and Neuroticism personality traits. The lower socioeconomic class was found to have positive impact on only one personality sub-trait self-discipline. Whereas, the upper lower socioeconomic class caused positive impacts on students’ trust sub-trait, Conscientiousness trait and negative impact on excitement seeking sub-trait of personality. The importance of these impacts of socioeconomic classes on different personality traits and the possible implications are discussed with respect to university students’ academic performance and academic behaviour.

Exploring mass customization and textile application in medical products: re-designing scoliosis brace for shorter production lead time and better quality of life

2020 ◽  
Vol 90 (19-20) ◽  
pp. 2304-2321
Author(s):  
Olivia Ho-Yi Fung ◽  
Joanne Yip ◽  
Mei-Chun Cheung ◽  
Kit-Lun Yick ◽  
Kenny Yat-Hong Kwan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Patient Compliance ◽  
Mass Customization ◽  
Lead Time ◽  
Interface Pressure ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Exerted Pressure ◽  
The Impact

Bracing is the most common non-operative treatment option for patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). However, existing brace designs have deficiencies, including a long production lead time and low patient compliance caused by the negative impacts of bracing on quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to address these problems by developing a new textile-based scoliosis brace in accordance with the biomechanics used in the existing braces for spinal correction. A case study of interface pressure had been carried out to determine the optimum combination of pads to be used in the proposed brace to correct a scoliotic spine. AIS patients who were undergoing hard brace treatment were recruited to complete a questionnaire (BrQ) on hard braces and on the proposed brace. The BrQ scores of the two types of braces were compared to assess their respective impacts on the QoL. The findings show that the proposed brace can address the issue of patient compliance by reducing the impact of bracing on QoL, and shorten the production lead time through incorporation of the mass customization concept into the design. Similar to most of the commonly-used scoliosis braces, the selected combination of pads used in the proposed brace for spinal correction shows a sufficient amount of exerted pressure and a similar function of active spinal correction.

scholarly journals Relevance of Intermittent Rivers and Streams in Agricultural Landscape and Their Impact on Provided Ecosystem Services—A Mediterranean Case Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (15) ◽  
pp. 2693 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatiana Kaletová ◽  
Luis Loures ◽  
Rui Alexandre Castanho ◽  
Elena Aydin ◽  
José Telo da Gama ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Intermittent Rivers ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Classification Tool ◽  
The Impact

Ecosystem services (ES), as an interconnection of the landscape mosaic pieces, along with temporal rivers (IRES) are an object of research for environmental planners and ecological economists, among other specialists. This study presents (i) a review on the importance of IRES and the services they can provide to agricultural landscapes; (ii) a classification tool to assess the impact of IRES to provide ES by agricultural landscapes; (iii) the application of the proposed classification to the Caia River in order to identify the importance of this intermittent river for its surrounding agricultural landscape. The classification of the ES follows the Common International Classification of Ecosystem (CICES) classification that was adapted for the purposes of this study. Firstly, the list of ES provided by agricultural landscape was elaborated. In the next step, we assessed the potential of IRES to provide ES. Next, IRES impacts to ES within the agricultural landscape were evaluated according to observations from the conducted field monitoring in the study area. This study focuses on the relevance of the intermittent Caia River—a transboundary river in Spain and Portugal—and its ephemeral tributaries in the agricultural landscape. Our study estimates that each hydrological phase of IRES increases the ES provided by the agricultural landscape. However, the dry phase can potentially have negative impacts on several services. The intensification of the agricultural sector is the main provision of the water resource within the Caia River basin, but we were able to identify several other ES that were positively impacted. The present study is in line with the conclusions of other authors who state that IRES constitute a valuable resource which should not be underestimated by society.

The Impact of Spatial Organization on Locating the Friday Mosques in the Traditional Islamic City-The Old Mosul City as a Case Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Faris A. Matloob ◽  
Ahmad B. Sulaiman
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Structure ◽  
Analytical Technique ◽  
People Movement ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Early Islamic

Islamic city has its own character that distinguishes it from other urban environments. This is because it followed the Islamic ideology related to building the land. This led to that all cities built during early Islamic ages had followed the same principles in any part of the Islamic world. It is argued that the characteristics of the urban space configuration have a big role in making these cities successful environments. The key aspect in this matter is the distribution of land uses within the urban structure as it is directly associated with people movement and the distribution of their activities. The Friday mosques as the most important components of the Islamic city was located in a way that gave the city its own character. This study supposes that the distribution of the Friday mosques was affected by the way in which the urban space was configured. It aimed to find out to what extent this configuration influenced locating the Friday mosques in the urban fabric. Using space syntax as an analytical technique and the Old Mosul city as a case study, this research analyzed the spatial structure against several spatial characteristics with mosques locations to meet its goal.  

Information Security and Ecosystems in Smart Cities

2019 ◽  
pp. 956-973
Author(s):  
Ahmed Bin Touq ◽  
Anthony Ijeh
Keyword(s):  
Information Security ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Interconnected Systems ◽  
Secure Information ◽  
Communication Processes ◽  
Information Assets ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this article is to evaluate the impact of ecosystems on Information Security in Smart Cities using Dubai as a case study. Innovative interconnected systems can affect the integrity of the information used by residents and citizens if not properly secured. The case study research method was used to examine the impact of the Internet of Everything on secure information exchanges. Data collected from the case study was used to assess the smartness of the urban development in managing its communication processes and information assets in a secure and confidential manner. The limitations of the study are found in its focus on one single city. By evaluating processes used to obtain information from interconnected systems, steps can be taken that would help to reduce threats in thriving innovative urban environments. The findings support the theory and perceptions held by management practitioners and information security specialists.

scholarly journals The impact of climate change on tourism in Australia – a case study relating to bushfires in Australia in 2019/2020

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-107
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Kurleto
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
National Parks ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Preliminary Analysis ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Summer Season ◽  
Tourism Demand ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

The main purpose of the study is to offer a preliminary analysis of the impact of Australian bush fires on tourism in the summer season of 2019/2020. The article addresses issues related to global climate change, including Australia. The author discusses the causes and effects of recent catastrophic fires in Australia, focusing on their negative impacts for tourism. Another problem raised in the article is how climate change in Australia causes bushfires that destroy the nature and life of this country. The study mainly analyses the effects of climate change on the natural environment, especially on the most attractive tourist areas in Australia, i.e. national parks. The study uses the latest information to show the effects of damage caused by fires in Australia, especially in tourism. The author concludes that there is a direct relationship between climate change resulting from global warming and tourism demand.

scholarly journals Getting personal: investigating how living with universal credit affects emotions and identities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophia Constance Negus
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Market Society ◽  
Working Age ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
The Impact

This thesis investigates the impacts of Universal Credit (UC) on emotions, wellbeing, identities, and the ‘self’. The findings are of growing importance as increasing numbers of people are receiving UC. Six million people now engage with a ‘violent’ system (Cooper and Whyte, 2017) which pushes people further from the labour market, society, health, and their ‘self’. UC introduced radical changes to British working-age social security, with aims to ‘simplify’ the system, reduce costs and fraud, and ‘make work pay’. Since launching in 2013, there has been growing evidence on the negative impacts of UC, yet, little is known about the impact UC has on emotions, wellbeing, identities, and the ‘self’, a gap in knowledge this thesis addresses. A geographically bound case-study was adopted using semi-structured interviews and participant-solicited diaries to investigate the diverse realities and impacts of UC. The analytical framework utilises several concepts and theories, drawing upon Elias (1994) as it is argued UC is a ‘civilising offensive’ (Powell, 2013), and Goffman (1997/2007) to explore the impacts on identities. This thesis provides empirical contributions to knowledge surrounding the extent and severity of the impacts of UC on emotions and the ‘self’. The research found that harm inflicted from UC carries serious consequences and the experiences indicate a systemic erosion of people, lives, and possibilities. The findings demonstrate how UC is experienced as dehumanizing and destabilising of emotions, wellbeing and the ‘self’. It provides important insights into how people respond to UC and the significant resources spent on ‘self-management’ as individuals attempt to preserve their identities which are under threat from institutional scrutiny, stigma and increasing poverty. Therefore, this thesis provides an important contribution to knowledge surrounding the corrosive nature of UC.

The Impact of Social Networks on “Born Globals”

2019 ◽  
pp. 911-930
Author(s):  
Qingan Huang ◽  
Ellis L. C. Osabutey ◽  
Junzhe Ji ◽  
Liying Meng
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Online Social Networks ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Born Global ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Contemporary Management ◽  
The Impact

This paper aims to explore the role and impact of entrepreneurs' social networks on the internationalisation of “Born Global” firms, in particular, its de-internationalisation process. The research is based on a case study approach and adopts a series of face to face and online qualitative longitudinal interviews. It provides some useful insights into the relationship management of “Born Global” entrepreneurs and unveils some negative impacts of social networks on the initiation of ‘de-internationalisation'. The study reveals the importance of online social networks, high-tech communications and contemporary management techniques for “Born Global” entrepreneurs.

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