Search Results (20)

This study provides a data-driven evaluation of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile’s (FIA) progress toward its 2030 net-zero emissions goal, based on publicly reported data from 2019 to 2023. Using SPSS-based regression analysis, we first identify business travel emissions and the number of championships, trophies, challenges, and cups as the most significant drivers of the FIA’s total carbon footprint, jointly explaining 99.3% of its variance. These drivers then inform a three-stage forecasting model developed in MATLAB to project future emissions. The results indicate a projected 18% increase in total emissions from 2024 to 2030. This upward trajectory stands in sharp contrast to the FIA’s target of a 50% reduction by 2030, revealing a significant implementation gap. Our analysis concludes that the FIA’s current path is insufficient to meet its ambitious climate targets, underscoring the urgent need for more decisive interventions, such as emissions-based event planning and AI-powered logistics optimization. The methodology offers a replicable framework for forecasting emissions in other data-constrained, high-emission sectors. Full article

Springs are unique ecosystems found in lowland areas. In urban environments, these springs often have niches that are heavily transformed by human activity. In this study, we identified and compared the taxonomic diversity of diatom communities across various microhabitats—epilithon, epipelon, epipsammon, epibryon, and epixylon—within altered lowland urban springs. Our results revealed differences in diatom communities among the microhabitats, with the highest species richness observed in the epibryon. Notably, the presence of extremely rare species such as Amphora eximia, Caloneis aerophila, and Stauroneis muriella suggest that, even under urban conditions, springs continue to serve a refugial function for diatom diversity. These findings underscore the important role of urban springs in maintaining diatom diversity despite high anthropogenic pressure. We also assessed the ecological status of the springs using the Polish Multimetric Diatom Index (IO), which incorporates indicators of trophy, saprobity, and the abundance of reference species. All studied springs were classified as having very good ecological status. Full article

Florida bass (Micropterus salmoides) and largemouth bass (Micropterus nigricans) are iconic sport fish that hybridize readily, influencing fishery management practices. While the Florida bass has been introduced to various U.S. states to create trophy fisheries, its genetic introgression into native populations can lead to ecological and genetic consequences. Recognizing the need to assess Florida bass presence to guide future management directions, diagnostic SNPs were genotyped for 856 putative largemouth bass across 31 sampling locations across the state of West Virginia. Florida bass controls and a reduced representative sample of 226 individuals from 19 sampling locations were sequenced using the genotype-by-sequencing dd-RAD protocol. The results from the two genomic investigations found no Florida bass ancestry in West Virginia populations, suggesting either no introduction or failed reproductive success of Florida bass in the state. Among West Virginia largemouth bass populations, unique genetic ancestries were found predominantly in introduced non-native largemouth bass populations, indicating that the only sub-structuring in the state is a result of stocking non-native ancestries into the state. Genomic diversity was found to be higher in Ohio River pools compared to inland reservoirs, as well as showing higher levels of potential inbreeding. These results underscore the need to preserve the genetic integrity of native Ohio River strain largemouth bass and prevent the introduction of the Florida bass or F₁ hybrids into the Ohio River and other watersheds of West Virginia. Management recommendations include prioritizing the stocking of native strain bass to mitigate inbreeding and avoid introducing Florida bass to conserve genetic diversity. Full article

Spotted Seatrout Cynoscion nebulosus (hereafter, trout) are one of the most heavily targeted sportfish along the Gulf coast. With recent regulation changes intended to reduce the harvest mortality of trout and promote a healthy trophy-class trout fishery in Texas, understanding differences between trophy-class (>28 in, 712 mm) and adult-class (12–28 in, 305–710) trout has become especially relevant for fisheries managers. Here, we leveraged a long-term (1983–2023) gill net dataset collected by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to (1) compare the distribution of size classes both spatially and temporally, (2) determine environmental drivers of the abundance of each size class, and (3) compare the species associated with each size class in the Upper Laguna Madre. Kernel density distribution estimates, hot spot analyses, and space–time pattern mining methods were used to compare the distribution of the two size classes of trout spatially and temporally. Boosted regression trees (BRTs) were used to determine the environmental drivers of abundance, and multivariate analyses were utilized to compare the species associated with each size class. Trophy-class trout exhibited a greater degree of spatial clustering than adult-class trout, with abundance peaks concentrated along specific shorelines in Baffin Bay. Significant changes in trophy-class trout distribution over time were also found, indicating that the spatial clustering of trophy-class trout has intensified over the past four decades. Salinity and bay were strong predictors for the abundance of both size classes, with peak abundances of both trophy-class and adult-class trout in Baffin Bay and its tertiary bays and at salinities of 10–30 and above 60 psu. Dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration and temperature were good predictors of the abundance of trophy-class trout, which were most abundant at temperatures of 25–30 °C and DO levels of 5–8 mg/L. Depth, turbidity, and season were good predictors of the abundance of adult-class trout, which were most abundant at increased depths (>2 m), low-to-moderate turbidity (~125 NTU), and in the spring season (April–June). Multivariate analyses revealed differences in the communities associated with trophy-class and adult-class trout occurrence, with species such as Black Drum Pogonias cromis, Striped Mullet Mugil cephalus, and Ladyfish Elops saurus more abundant in samples associated with trophy-class trout. These results indicate that trophy-class trout display unique spatial patterns and species associations and that their abundance may be driven by a distinct set of hydrological and biotic factors, which may have important implications for the management of trophy fisheries. Full article

Due to its fundamental position in the aquatic food chain linking primary producers (phytoplankton) to higher trophic levels (fish), zooplankton has a crucial influence on the structure and function of lakes. The scientific literature shows that zooplankton is an effective indicator of eutrophication. However, according to the requirements of the Water Framework Directive, zooplankton is still not included as one of the biological components for assessing the ecological status of lakes. In Poland, the zooplankton-based method (ZIPLAs) has been developed to assess the ecological status of deep stratified lakes. Shallow lakes function differently from deep lakes, and literature data show that the response of zooplankton indices to eutrophication parameters is much weaker than in deep lakes. This paper presents the Zooplankton Index for Shallow Lakes’ Assessment (ZISLA), a new method for assessing ecological status based on zooplankton community structure. The ZISLA includes the body size index of Daphnia cucullata (BSI), the percentage share of high trophy-indicating rotifer species (IHTROT), the number of rotifer species (NROT), and the Margalef index (D). The ZISLA shows a strong, significant correlation with total phosphorus and total nitrogen (Spearman’s coefficient (R = −0.77, R = −0.74; p < 0.0001) and slightly weaker with Secchi disk visibility (R = 0.72; p < 0.0001). The ZISLA index shows a statistically significant good/moderate distinction for all water quality parameters. Full article

Ankle injuries are amongst the most common musculoskeletal injuries. The necessity of prevention measurements before or an early rehabilitation start after an injury, is essential for (semi-) professional sports like soccer to decrease healing duration. Sensor-supported serious games could complement a therapeutic program to support resilience and motivation during the prevention or rehabilitation process. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop and evaluate a user-centered prototype of a serious game using a commercial Off-The-Shelf MetaMotion IMU sensor. A semi-structured interview with a soccer club therapist, followed by an online questionnaire containing 48 questions (n = 91), was performed to ensure a user-centered approach. Based on this, a prototype, including five identified functional requirements and seven exercises (comprising: horizontal/vertical in- and eversion, dorsi- and plantarflexion, knee bend and squat, and toe and heel rise), was developed in an iterative process and evaluated by two participants with an acute ankle injury. The questionnaire outcomes showed averages of 3.3 ankle injuries per participant and 40 absence days per incident. Additionally, 85% of the participants reported needing more prevention time for such injuries. The evaluation phase (total training duration: 2 h 52 min) consisted of playing two different game types (1 and 2 degrees of freedom) and three different levels, where an avatar needs to be controlled while running and avoiding obstacles or collecting trophies. Both range of motion (ROM) and scores, which are directly measured by the game, showed significant improvements (ROM: t = 5.71; p < 0.01; Score: t = 3.98; p < 0.01) between the first and last session in both participants (P1: ROM +3.56°; Score +7.00%, P2: ROM +6.59°; Score +9.53%), indicating high effectiveness, despite a short training period (1 and 2 weeks). ROM improvement results and athlete feedback coincide in that the sensor-assisted serious game might be beneficial for ankle prevention and rehabilitation. At the same time, the increased scores indicate substantial motivation over several training sessions. Full article

The aim of this study was to evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of a theory-derived sedentary workplace intervention for police office staff. Twenty-four staff participated in an 8-week intervention (single arm, pre-post design) incorporating an education session, team competition with quick response (QR) codes, team trophy, weekly leaderboard newsletters, a self-monitoring phone app, and electronic prompt tools. The intervention supported participants to reduce and break up their sitting time with three minutes of incidental movement every 30 min at work. Feasibility and acceptability were assessed using mixed methods via the RE-AIM QuEST and PRECIS-2 frameworks. The intervention was highly pragmatic in terms of eligibility, organisation, adherence, outcome, and analysis. It was slightly less pragmatic on recruitment and setting. Delivery and follow-up were more explanatory. Reach and adoption indicators demonstrated feasibility among police staff, across a range of departments, who were demographically similar to participants in previous office-based multi-component interventions. The intervention was delivered mostly as planned with minor deviations from protocol (implementation fidelity). Participants perceived the intervention components as highly acceptable. Results showed improvements in workplace sitting and standing, as well as small improvements in weight and positive affect. Evaluation of the intervention in a fully powered randomised controlled trial to assess behaviour and health outcomes is recommended. Full article

Multiple-system trophy (MSA) and Parkinson’s Disease (PD) are both progressive, neurodegenerative diseases characterized by neuropathological deposition of aggregated alpha-synuclein (αSyn). The causes behind this aggregation are still unknown. We have reported aberrancies in MSA and PD patients in naturally occurring autoantibodies (nAbs) against αSyn (anti-αSyn-nAbs), which are important partakers in anti-aggregatory processes, immune-mediated clearance, and anti-inflammatory functions. To elaborate further on the timeline of autoimmune aberrancies towards αSyn, we investigated here the Immunoglobulin (Ig) affinity profile and subclass composition (IgG-total, IgG1-4 and IgM) of anti-αSyn-nAbs in serum samples from prodromal (p) phases of MSA and PD. Using an electrochemiluminescence competition immunoassay, we confirmed that the repertoire of high-affinity anti-αSyn-nAbs is significantly reduced in pMSA and pPD. Further, we demonstrated that pPD had increased anti-αSyn IgG-total levels compared to pMSA and controls, concordant with increased anti-αSyn IgG1 levels in pPD. Anti-αSyn IgG2 and IgG4 levels were reduced in pMSA and pPD compared with controls, whereas anti-αSyn IgG3 levels were reduced in pMSA compared to pPD and controls. The results indicate that the impaired reactivity towards αSyn occurs prior to disease onset. The apparent lack of high-affinity anti-αSyn nAbs may result in reduced clearance of αSyn, leading to aggregation of the protein. Thus, this study provides novel insights into possible causes behind the pathogenesis in synucleinopathies such as MSA and PD. Full article

Phytoplankton is one of the five biological quality elements used in the assessment of the ecological status of surface waters according to the European Water Framework Directive established in 2000. In this study, we determined the ecological status of three small and shallow lakes in the Polesie Plain, Eastern Poland, by using indices based on phytoplankton assemblages. The predominant phytoplankton of all three lakes were filamentous cyanobacteria, both heterocystous and non-heterocystous, represented by the genera Aphanizomenon, Planktothrix, Limnothrix, and Planktolyngbya. We used the Hungarian Q index, German PSI (Phyto-See-Index), and recently developed PMPL (Phytoplankton Metrics for Polish Lakes) for Polish lakes. We compared the results from the calculation of the indices to physicochemical data obtained from the lake water and Carlson’s Trophy State Index (TSI). On the basis of TSI, Gumienek and Glinki lakes were classified as advanced eutrophic, whereas Czarne Lake had a better score and was classified as slightly eutrophic. The trophic state was generally confirmed by the ecological status based on phytoplankton indices and also showed the diverse ecological situation in the lakes studied. Based on the Polish PMPL, Gumienek Lake was classified as having bad status (ecological quality ratio (EQR) = 0.05), whereas Glinki and Czarne lakes were classified within the poor status range (EQR = 0.25 and 0.35, respectively). However, based on the German PSI, the lakes were classified in a different manner: the status of Gumienek and Czarne lakes was better, but unsatisfactory, because they were still below the boundary for the good status category recommended by the European Commission. The best ecological status for the studied lakes was obtained using the Q index: Gumienek Lake with EQR = 0.42 had a moderate status, and Czarne Lake with EQR = 0.62 obtained a good status. However, Glinki Lake, with EQR = 0.40, was classified at the boundary for poor and moderate status. Based on our study, it seems that the best index for ecological status assessment based on phytoplankton that can be used for small lakes is the Polish (PMPL) index. Full article

Cultural eutrophication, the process by which pollution due to human activity speeds up natural eutrophication, is a widespread and consequential issue. Here, we present the 85-year history of a small, initially Lobelia–Isoëtes dominated lake. The lake’s ecological deterioration was intensified by water pumping station activities when it received replenishment water for more than 10 years from a eutrophic lake through a pipe. In this study, we performed a paleolimnological assessment to determine how the lake’s ecosystem functioning changed over time. A multi-proxy (pollen, Cladocera, diatoms, and Chironomidae) approach was applied alongside a quantitative reconstruction of total phosphorus using diatom and hypolimnetic dissolved oxygen with chironomid-based transfer functions. The results of the biotic proxy were supplemented with a geochemical analysis. The results demonstrated significant changes in the lake community’s structure, its sediment composition, and its redox conditions due to increased eutrophication, water level fluctuations, and erosion. The additional nutrient load, particularly phosphorus, increased the abundance of planktonic eutrophic–hypereutrophic diatoms, the lake water’s transparency decreased, and hypolimnetic anoxia occurred. Cladocera, Chironomidae, and diatoms species indicated a community shift towards eutrophy, while the low trophy species were suppressed or disappeared. Full article

Soft water lakes with isoetids (SLI) are ecosystems prone to degradation due to the low buffer capacity of their waters. One of the main threats resulting from human impact is eutrophication due to agriculture, catchment urbanization and recreational use. In this paper, changes in the water chemistry and transformation of biocoenoses of one of the largest Polish SLI, Lake Jeleń, over the past 30 years are presented. The lake is located within the borders of a city, and a significant part of its catchment is under agriculture and recreation use. The physicochemical (concentration of nutrients, organic matter, electrical conductivity, oxygen saturation and water pH) and biological parameters (macrophytes and phytoplankton) were measured in summer 1991, 2004, 2013 and 2018. Since the beginning of the 1990s, a gradual increase in the trophy of the lake has been observed as indicated by increased nutrient availability, deterioration of oxygen conditions and a decrease in water transparency. The alterations of water chemistry induce biological transformations, in particular, an increase in phytoplankton abundance (4-fold increase of biomass in epilimnion) as well as a gradual reduction in the range of the phytolittoral (from 10 to 6 m), a decrease in the frequency of isoetids, Lobelia dortmanna and Isoetes lacustris, and expansion of plant species characteristic for eutrophy. Full article

The aim of the work was to analyze the influence of wave activity on invertebrate fauna living in the littoral zone. For this purpose, an algorithm was developed to analyze spatial and meteorological data, calculating the values of fetch and wind exposure. The taxonomic composition of the fauna and the values of selected water quality indicators were analyzed against the background of varied wind exposure, trophy, and various habitats. A significant negative impact of wind exposure on the taxonomic variety of the macrozoobenthic community, the number of Coenagrionidae damselflies and Baetidae mayflies was found. It is difficult to separate the impact of waves on the fauna from the impact of other natural and anthropogenic factors, because those factors may also be affected by water movements. The tool produced as part of this work can also be used to further investigate the issue of impact of waves on all the communities living in the littoral zone. Full article

Lobelia lakes are valuable elements of the natural environment. They are characterised by low trophy, mainly in-forest location and a high transparency of water. However, similarly to other surface waters, they are subjected to increasing anthropogenic pressures, a good indicator of which is the level of surfactants, also called surface-active agents (SAAs). The aim of the study was to evaluate the intensity of anthropogenic pressures in 13 selected lobelia lakes and 14 streams in the catchments of these lakes in Northern Poland, based on SAA concentrations in the waters of these water bodies. We collected one water sample from each of these water bodies and determined the concentrations of cationic, anionic and non-ionic SAAs. We then compared the results with data concerning the ways in which these catchments and water bodies are used. While ionic (cationic and anionic) SAAs were found to be present in all the 27 samples (with concentrations ranging from 0.05 to 0.51 mg dm⁻³), non-ionic SAAs were identified in 17 of 27 samples (from 0.00 to 2.43 mg dm⁻³) with three samples largely exceeding the maximum concentration values reported by other authors. We concluded that SAAs are a real threat to the aquatic geoecosystems of lobelia lakes and that the pressures of tourism and leisure have the greatest impact. Full article

Analysis of non-pollen palynomorphs supplemented by pollen analysis, microcharcoal analysis and geochemical data from laminated sediments from Lake Jaczno were used to establish different phases of land-use in the catchment between c.a. AD 1840 and AD 2013. The results show that during the first eighty years the vicinity of the lake was heavily deforested. During this period erosional inputs caused accumulation of abundant fungal spores, indicators of pastures and natural fertilizers (manure) as well as of corroded pollen grains and charcoal. Gradual regeneration of forest cover took place after World War II, when expansion of pioneer trees occurred (Betula, Salix, Carpinus, Populus). At the same time, a considerable increase in the lake trophy was observed, leading to the changes in phytoplankton and macrophyte communities: a decrease in the proportion of Botryococcus and an increase in the Nymphaea alba population. The non-pollen palynomorphs analyses indicate the substantial human impact that caused changing local environmental conditions, compatible with the results based on pollen analysis and geochemical data. Full article

Rotifer abundance and species composition in lakes of the Suwalki Landscape Park were studied in the years 1983–1985, 2009, 2012 and 2015. Rotifer trophic state indices (TSI_ROT) were used to assess changes in the trophic state of the studied lakes. In most lakes of the Suwalki Landscape Park, there were no changes in rotifer communities over the 25–32 year period to indicate a decline in trophy of the lakes. However, in lakes with the strongest decline in TSI_ROT values, the values of indicative parameters widely varied in 2015, which may indicate that the status of rotifer communities in the lakes may be dependent on non-trophic factors. Full article