Search Results (81)

The growing number of daylighting metrics—often overlapping in scope or terminology—combined with the need for prior familiarization to interpret and apply them effectively, has created a barrier to their adoption beyond academic settings. Consequently, this study analyzes a representative set of established and emerging daylighting metrics to evaluate applicability, synergies, and limitations. Particular attention is given to their implications for occupant health, well-being, performance, and energy use, especially within the context of sensorless smart control systems. A virtual room model was simulated using DaySim 3.1 in two contrasting climates—Seville and London—with varying window-to-wall ratios, orientations, and occupancy schedules. The results show that no single metric provides a comprehensive daylighting assessment, highlighting the need for combined approaches. Daylighting Autonomy (DA) proved useful for task illumination, while Useful Daylight Illuminance (UDI) helped identify areas prone to excessive solar exposure. Spatial metrics such as Spatial Daylight Autonomy (sDA) and Annual Sunlight Exposure (ASE) offer an overview but lack necessary granularity. Circadian Stimulus Autonomy (CSA) appears promising for evaluating circadian entrainment, though its underlying models remain under refinement. Continuous Overcast Daylight Autonomy (DAo.con) shows the potential for sensorless lighting control when adjusted for orientation. A nuanced, multi-metric approach is therefore recommended. Full article

The marine habitats of the world’s oceans are being driven beyond their resilience. The ongoing biodiversity crisis is happening fast, within the lifespan of researchers trying to produce the information necessary for the conservation of habitats and marine ecosystems. Here, we report on the destruction of sciaphilic sessile communities and coralligenous concretions produced by the anchoring of a high-tonnage vessel inside a Marine Protected Area in Cyprus. The damage from the anchors and the chains consisted of the dislodgement of large boulders that were dragged or rolled over the seafloor, increasing the breakage and further dislodgement of more boulders; many were left upside-down. The biological communities that thrived in the dark environments below the boulders were directly exposed to high irradiance levels and went through a slow mortality and decaying process, most probably due to a combination of several deterioration agents, such as exposure to direct sunlight, predation, mucilage aggregates, and cyanobacterial blooms. The enforcement of regulatory measures for anchoring and transit in the MPA is necessary to prevent similar destruction. Given the extent of the irreversible damage to these sciaphilic communities, our study is, unfortunately, another environmental post-mortem contribution. Full article

In this study, we present bi-layered hydrogel systems that incorporate different sizes and shapes of gold nanoparticles (nanospheres and nanorods) for potential use in areas such as photoactuators, soft robotics, artificial muscles, drug delivery and tissue engineering. The synthesized nano Au-PNiPAAm/PVA bi-layered hydrogel nanocomposites provide the unique ability to exhibit controlled motion upon light exposure, indicating that the above systems possess the capability of photo–thermal energy conversion. The chosen synthesis approach is a combination of chemical production of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) followed by gamma radiation formation of crosslinked polymer networks around them, as the final step, which also allows for sterilization in a single technological step. According to the TEM analysis, the gold nanospheres (AuNSs) with mean diameters of around 17 and 30 nm, as well as nanorods (AuNRs) with an aspect ratio of around 4.5, were synthesized and used as nanofillers in the formation of nanocomposites. Their stability within the polymer matrix was confirmed by UV–Vis spectral studies, by the presence of local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) bands, typical for nanoparticles of various shapes and sizes. Morphological studies (FE-SEM) of hydrogels revealed the formation of a porous structure with PNiPAAm hydrogel as an active layer and PVA hydrogel as a passive layer, as well as a stable interfacial layer with a thickness of around 80 μm. The synthesized bi-layered photoactuators showed a photo–thermal response upon exposure to irradiation of green lasers and lamps that simulate sunlight, resulting in bending motion. This bending response reveals the huge potential of the obtained materials as soft actuators, which are more flexible than rigid systems, making them effective for specific applications where controlled movement and flexibility are essential. Full article

Solar exposure and shading critically influence outdoor thermal comfort in residential areas, yet quantitative links between spatial morphology and microclimate remain insufficiently explored in cold-region cities. This study proposes a novel morphological indicator, the Insolation Shadow Ratio (ISR), to quantify sunlight–shade dynamics and investigates its correlation with outdoor thermal comfort (UTCI) in Xi’an, China. Combining field observations, microclimate simulations, and statistical analysis, we quantified ISR and UTCI across three representative outdoor spaces in a residential area. Photographic analysis and spatial parameterization were employed to calculate hourly ISR values. Significant correlations were observed between ISR and UTCI values. The measured data showed the strongest correlation at summer solstice at site C (Spearman’s r = 0.883, p < 0.01). GAM analysis of seasonal peak correlation data revealed that an optimal UTCI comfort range of 9 °C to 26 °C, corresponding to ISR thresholds of 0.0202–0.8384, achieved the highest autumn correlation at site C (r = 0.686, p < 0.01), while effectively balancing shade cooling effects and solar accessibility. The ISR framework provides a quantifiable tool for designers to optimize outdoor thermal environments and, when enhanced by parametric modeling tools, enables them to proactively optimize thermal performance during early-stage residential planning, offering a data-driven pathway for climate-resilient outdoor space design. Full article

Centralized daylight control has been extensively studied for its ability to optimize useful daylight while mitigating glare in targeted areas. However, this approach lacks a comprehensive visual comfort framework, as it does not simultaneously address spatial glare distribution, uniform high useful daylight levels across all sensor points, and overheating prevention through regulated annual solar exposure. Nevertheless, decentralized control facilitates autonomous operation of the individual façade components, addressing all the objectives. This study integrates a biomimetic functional approach with building performance simulations by computational design to evaluate different kinetic façade configurations. Through the implementation of parametric modeling and daylight analysis, we have identified an optimal angular configuration (60° for the focal region, 50° for the non-focal region) that significantly increases building performance. The optimized design demonstrates substantial improvements, reducing excessive sunlight exposure by 45–55% and glare incidence by 65–72% compared to other dynamic solutions. The recommended steeper angles achieve superior performance, maintaining high useful daylight illuminance (UDI > 91.5%) while dramatically improving visual comfort. Sensitivity analysis indicates that even minor angular adjustments (5–10°) can induce a 10–15% variation in glare performance, emphasizing the necessity of precise control mechanisms in both focal and non-focal regions of the façade. These findings establish a framework for creating responsive building façades that balance daylight provision with occupant comfort in real-time operation. Full article

Aedes aegypti, the main urban vector of dengue fever, represents a growing public health problem in Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania. Identifying the factors influencing the distribution and productivity of its breeding sites is essential for the development of effective control strategies. From May 2023 to April 2024, physico-chemical characteristics were recorded and mosquito larvae were collected, using a standard dipping method, from 60 water collections each month during the dry season and twice a month during the rainy season, totaling 294 observations. The larval positivity of water collections and larval abundance of breeding sites over the time were modeled using a random-effect logistic regression model and a negative binomial regression model, respectively. The depth, distance from habitat, type of water collection and exposure to sunlight were statistically significant and independently associated with water collection positivity for Ae. aegypti larvae (aOR = 5.18, 95%CI [1.66–16.18], p-value = 0.005; aOR = 0.00, 95%CI [0.00–0.02], p-value < 0.001; aOR = 252.88, 95%CI [4.05–15,786.84], p-value = 0.009 and aOR = 0.04, 95%CI [0.01–0.26], p-value < 0.001, respectively). Aedes aegypti larval habitats were mainly artificial (90%), temporary (n = 217 observations), close to dwellings (n = 114) and shaded (n = 96). Plastic water tanks (n = 17, 48.6%), wells (n = 6, 17.1%) and barrels (n = 4, 11.4%) were the most common breeding sites. Larval abundance was negatively associated with containers of increasing pH and surface area (aOR = 0.50, 95%CI [0.33–0.75] p-value = 0.001 and aOR = 0.48, 95%CI [0.27–0.87], p-value = 0.016, respectively). As Ae. aegypti mosquitoes are multi-resistant to adult insecticides and dengue has become endemo-epidemic since 2014, vector control should give the priority to the physical removal or treatment of shaded, peridomestic containers—particularly plastic water tanks and barrels—and consider the use of biological larvicides to target breeding sites with low pH and small surface areas. Full article

This study examines the tensile behavior of both plain and seamed geotextiles. Samples were taken from two geotextile tube test beds, one made of composite materials and the other of woven materials, constructed in 2013 and 2016, respectively, in the Saemangeum reclaimed area. These test tubes have been exposed to marine conditions and sunlight for 10 and 8 years, respectively. Based on sunlight exposure, samples of plain and seamed geotextiles were collected from both exposed (top) and non-exposed (bottom) locations. The tensile strength–strain curves, strength degradation, and seam efficiencies of the original samples were compared with those exposed to marine environments and sunlight for 8–10 years. Geotextile tubes have been found to function normally even after being exposed to seawater and sunlight for 8–10 years, with sunlight being identified as the most significant factor affecting long-term tensile strength. The influence of seawater on tensile behavior is minimal, and it was observed that the tensile strength of the seam after 8–10 years is only about 10–19% of the initial plain tensile strength. Nevertheless, the tubes operate without failure, suggesting that the earth pressure acting on stabilized geotextile tubes is relatively low. These findings offer valuable insight into the long-term durability of geotextiles tubes under harsh environmental conditions and serve as a reference for future applications. Full article

Under accelerated global warming, frequent droughts pose mounting threats to vegetation productivity, yet the spatiotemporal patterns and primary controls of drought resilience (DR) in China remain insufficiently quantified. This study aimed to characterize DR trends across Köppen–Geiger climate zones in China from 2001 to 2020 and to identify the dominant drivers and their interactions. We constructed a hazard–exposure–adaptability framework, combining multi-source satellite observations and the station data. A Bayesian-optimized Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM, version 4.3.0) model was trained under five-fold cross-validation. Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis decomposed each driver’s main and interaction effects on DR. The results indicated that DR was better in tropical regions, whereas arid and polar regions require more attention. From 2001 to 2020, 45.3% of China’s land area saw DR increases, while 36.4% declined. The key drivers influencing DR were temperature, sunlight hours, potential evapotranspiration, and precipitation. Notably, an increase in sunlight hours was often accompanied by a decrease in precipitation, resulting in suboptimal DR in China. When the normalized precipitation fell within the range of 0.12 to 0.65, elevated temperature exhibited an inhibitory effect on DR. Overall, this study established a DR assessment framework, elucidated its spatiotemporal dynamics, and revealed key driver interactions, offering timely insights for ecosystem research and management in the face of climate change. Full article

Background/Objectives: Facial melasma is a common, chronic, and relapsing hyperpigmentation disorder, affecting up to 40% of adult women in Southeast Asia. Although most cases are mild, the condition may have a considerable psychological impact. Ocular photoaging diseases are also common and have been increasingly recognized in aging populations exposed to chronic sunlight. Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is implicated in both melasma and ocular photoaging; however, their relationship remains unclear. Methods: This cross-sectional study investigated the association between facial melasma and UV-induced ocular conditions among 315 participants aged 30–80 years at Walailak University Hospital, Thailand. Facial melasma was diagnosed clinically and dermoscopically, with severity assessed using the modified Melasma Area Severity Index. Ophthalmological examinations evaluated UV-related ocular conditions, including pinguecula, pterygium, climatic droplet keratopathy, cataracts, and age-related macular degeneration. Logistic regression analyses were performed, adjusting for age, sex, and sun exposure. Results: Facial melasma was identified in 66.0% of participants (n = 208), and nuclear cataracts were significantly associated with melasma (adjusted odds ratio, 2.590; 95% confidence interval, 1.410–4.770; p = 0.002). Additionally, melasma severity correlated with nuclear cataract severity (ρ = 0.186, p = 0.001). Other ocular conditions were not significantly associated with melasma. Conclusions: These findings suggest a shared UV-related pathogenesis between facial melasma and nuclear cataracts. Sun protection measures, including regular sunscreen use, UV-blocking eyewear, and wide-brimmed hats, may help mitigate the risk of both conditions. Further multicenter studies are warranted to confirm these findings and explore the underlying mechanisms. Full article

The tropical coral Siderasterea radians is typically found in mangrove areas, seagrass beds, and environments tolerated by few other scleractinians in the Caribbean and South Florida. Siderastrea radians experience bleaching stress in Buttonwood Sound in Florida Bay during April–May, a time when the seawater is below bleaching temperatures. Stress first appears as a pink coloration due to the presence of fluorescent pigments protecting the coral tissue and algal symbionts from exposure to excessive sunlight/UV light. Surveys of S. radians in areas frequented by parrotfish showed that up to 38.5% of the corals were pink, with about a quarter of all the corals having bite marks. In areas not frequented by parrotfish, only 3.2% of the corals were pink, and none had bite marks. A seasonal analysis in parrotfish-frequented seawater showed S. radians contained among the lowest tissue biomass and density of symbiotic algae during April–May 2010–2017, often looking pink. It is hypothesized that seawater temperature is not the cause of bleaching in Buttonwood Sound during April–May but rather predation by the rainbow parrotfish Scarus guacamaia. Full article

This study examines the role of violet light (VL) in preventing myopia progression, addressing a critical need in urban environments where VL exposure is limited. Recent research suggests that VL, within the 360–400 nm wavelength range, may reduce myopia risk. To investigate, we conducted spectroscopic measurements in various settings across Tokyo, quantifying VL irradiance in natural sunlight. The results showed high VL levels outdoors, averaging 583 μW/cm² on sunny days and 271 μW/cm² on cloudy days, leading to a weighted annual average of approximately 310 μW/cm². In contrast, indoor environments lacked VL due to UV-blocking materials in windows, glasses, and lighting. This deficiency may contribute to the rising incidence of myopia, particularly in urban areas with reduced outdoor exposure. Our findings highlight the need for innovative solutions to mitigate VL deficiency indoors, such as optimizing architectural designs and artificial lighting to better incorporate VL. This study provides foundational insights for future interventions aimed at reducing myopia risk through improved indoor light environments. Full article

Extreme heat is one of the main climate-induced public health risks to communities around the world. Understanding an individual’s vulnerability to heat is challenging, as heat exposures vary significantly depending on occupation, travel behaviors, personal activities, and the surrounding urban environment. Previous validation studies have found that commonly used wearable temperature sensors are less reliable in highly urbanized areas and when worn in direct sunlight. The aim of our study is to investigate the potential to improve the reliability of wearable temperature sensors commonly used in personal heat exposure studies. To accomplish this aim, we designed and rapidly prototyped a set of solar radiations shields to decrease temperature bias when worn in direct sunlight and in areas of high impervious surfaces. In a field deployment, we tested four different form factors for solar radiation shields, which were specifically designed to house the iButton sensor and to be worn on-body. Initial results have shown that these wearable solar radiation shields can improve sensor reliability by decreasing temperature bias by 3 $°$F on average. These findings highlight the potential for wearable radiation shields to enhance personal heat exposure measurements in urban environments. Full article

The development of the fluorescent lamp and the air-conditioning system resulted in buildings being lit inexpensively without having to rely on daylighting to save energy, as was the case during the incandescent lamp era. Consequently, architects were able to design buildings with deep floor plates for maximum occupancy, placing workstations far away from windows since daylighting was no longer a necessity. Floor-to-ceiling heights became lower to minimize the inhabitable volumes that needed to be cooled or heated. With the rising costs of land in some major American cities such as New York City and Chicago at the beginning of the twentieth century, developers sought to optimize their investments by erecting tall structures, giving rise to densely inhabited city centers with massive street canyons that limit sunlight access in the streets. Today, there is growing awareness in terms of the impact of the built environment on people’s health especially in terms of the health benefits of natural light. The fact that buildings, through their shapes and envelope, filter a large amount of daylight, which may impact building occupants’ health and well-being, should cause architects and building developers to take this issue seriously. The amount and quality of light we receive daily impacts many of our bodily functions and consequently several aspects of our health and well-being. The human circadian rhythm is entrained by intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) in our eyes that are responsible for non-visual responses due to the presence of a short-wavelength sensitive pigment called melanopsin. The entrainment of the circadian rhythm depends on several factors such as the intensity, wavelength, timing, and duration of light exposure. Recently, this field of research has gained popularity, and several researchers have tried to create metrics to quantify photopic light, which is the standard way of measuring visual light, into a measure of circadian effective lighting. This paper discusses the relationship between different parameters of daylighting and their non-visual effects on the human body. It also summarizes the existing metrics of daylighting, especially those focusing on its effects on the human circadian rhythm and its shortcomings. Finally, it discusses areas of future research that can address these shortcomings and potentially pave the way for a universally acceptable standardized metric. Full article

Background/Objectives: In recent years, there has been a growing interest in precision nutrition and its potential for disease prevention. Differences in individual responses to diet, especially among populations of different ancestry, have underlined the importance of understanding the effects of genetic variations on nutrient intake (nutrigenomics). Since humans generally cannot synthesize essential vitamins, the maintenance of healthy bodily functions depends on dietary vitamin intake. Understanding the differences in vitamin uptake and metabolism across diverse populations may allow for targeted treatment plans and improved overall health. We assessed the current scientific evidence on genetic variations (such as single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)) affecting vitamin metabolism in humans. Methods: A systematic literature review of primary studies on genetic variations associated with (personalized) nutrition was conducted. Using key terms related to personalized nutrition, nutrigenomics, SNPs, and genetic variations, three online databases were searched for studies published between 2007 and 2023 that included healthy adult subjects. Only results that were confirmed at least once were included. Study quality was assessed with the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal tool. Results: Eighty-six articles were included in this review. Our analysis revealed associations with homocysteine metabolism and B Vitamins, Vitamin D, and components of Vitamin E. Genetic associations with Vitamin D, particularly with the GC gene, were extensively researched and linked to lower 25(OH)D concentrations, with sunlight exposure as a contributing factor. Most variants had a negative effect on homocysteine levels. Additionally, we observed general increases in carotenoid levels in the presence of SNPs, although more research on Selenium and Selenoprotein P concentrations is warranted. No studies on Vitamin C were obtained, indicating an area for further methodological improvement. Ancestry is believed to be a significant factor influencing SNP associations and significance. Conclusions: The current review emphasizes the importance of genetics in targeted disease prevention and health care. Our comprehensive findings may provide healthcare practitioners with reliable information to make recommendations in precision nutrition, specifically vitamin supplementation. Full article

Skin aging is intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic, or chronological, skin aging is an inevitable process of chronological and physiological alterations. The factors contributing to extrinsic skin aging involve sunlight, nutrients, and stress. Thus, extrinsic aging is thought to be superimposed over intrinsic aging and depends on the intensity and duration of environmental exposure and skin type (e.g., dry skin, oily skin, or eczema). The most significant extrinsic aging factor is UV radiation, which causes cellular senescence in a process known as photoaging. This study aimed to illuminate the mechanism whereby solubilized elastin peptide lotion (EL) from the bulbus arteriosus of yellowtail (Seriola quinqueradiata) prevents skin photoaging in hairless mice. EL reduced wrinkle formation, epidermal skin thickness, and Ki67 (cell growth marker) mRNA expression in skin tissues from ultraviolet B (UVB)-irradiated mice. EL treatment also reduced glyoxalase-1 (key enzyme of glucose metabolism) levels in skin tissue. Although no significant differences in collagen and elastin contents were found in dermal areas, matrix metalloproteinase-12 (wrinkle-related marker) expression was reduced following EL application. Furthermore, skin DPP-IV/CD26 (new senescence marker) levels decreased following EL treatment in photoaging model mice. These results suggest that EL moderates skin damage caused by UVB irradiation by regulating senescence-related molecule expression. Full article