Contact person: [email protected] INTRODUCTION There has been much recent research interest in microclimate cooling for individuals working in hot climates whilst wearing protective clothing (Bomalaski et al. 1995; Chen et al. 1997; Cheuvront et al. 2003; Chinevere et al. 2008). Attempts have been made to develop cooling garments that augment convective (air cooled garments), conductive...

BACKGROUND Malaria transmission rates in Africa can vary dramatically over the space of a few kilometres. This spatial heterogeneity reflects variation in vector mosquito habitat and presents an important obstacle to the efficient allocation of malaria control resources. Malaria control is further complicated by combinations of vector species that respond differently to control interventions. R...

Maternal preferences for oviposition sites are assumed to be adaptive, but offspring fitness is not always higher at preferred sites and, thus, further study of the selection pressures that influence oviposition behavior is warranted. Among birds, predation is regarded as the primary agent of selection on nest-site microhabitat preferences, but alternatives are rarely considered. We tested the ...

A new methodology is proposed to couple a meteorological model with a building energy use model. The aim of such a coupling is to improve the boundary conditions of both models with no significant increase in computational time. In the present case, the Canopy Interface Model (CIM) is coupled with CitySim. CitySim provides the geometrical characteristics to CIM, which then calculates a high res...

It is hard to defend the view that biotic communities represent a simple and predictable response to the abiotic environment. Biota and the abiotic environment interact, and the environment of an individual certainly includes its neighbors and visitors in the community. The complexity of community assembly calls forth a quest for general principles, yet current results and theories on assembly ...

• Effect of windbreaks on paddock microclimate highly dependent time year/day Effects are most pronounced during extreme environmental conditions Windbreak effects temperature/humidity summer Windbreaks reduced wind by up to 70%, but varied with speed and direction Understanding windbreak variability is important for predicting agricultural benefits modify microclimatic within systems, however ...

Diversity is mainly determined by climate and environment. In addition, topography is a complex factor, and the relationship between topography and biodiversity is still poorly understood. To understand the role of topography, i.e., altitude and slope, in biodiversity, we selected Jinggangshan Mountain (JGM), an area with unique topography, as the study area. We surveyed plant and animal specie...

Abstract As climate change advances, there is a need to examine conditions at scales that are ecologically relevant species. While microclimates in forested systems have been extensively studied, grasslands received little attention despite the vulnerability of this endangered biome. We employed novel combination iButton temperature and humidity measurements, fine-scale spatial observations veg...