Tag: Transport

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Wildfire’s Secrets

Hidden harm of smoke.
Microbial long-haul flights.
Lurking, infecting.

Wildfires cause huge amounts of long-term harm, including human, other animal and plant deaths, habitat loss, property and infrastructure destruction, the loss of carbon reservoirs and increased chances of flooding and landslides. Small airborne particles in smoke can be inhaled and cause fatal problems within the respiratory system, whilst the high levels of carbon monoxide produced can result in long-term brain damage, heart problems and even suffocation.

Yet researchers are revealing a new potential health threat as a result of wildfires – some microbes and fungi known to cause human infections are able to survive in the smoke plumes. Wildfires disturb soils causing these microbes to become airborne. Within the smoke the microbes ‘travel’ on particulate matter which is likely to protect them from ultraviolet radiation.

Kobziar & Thompson (2020) argue that the ability of microbes to survive in smoke plumes means that wildfires could play a role in geographical patterns of infection and that more research is needed to understand this threat. Particulate matter from wildfire smoke has been found to travel inter-continental distances. Those living close to wildfires, and even more so those firefighters working on the front lines are likely to be most at risk to such microbes – the US Centre for Disease Control has already stated that firefighting is an at-risk profession for coccidioidomycosis, a fungal infection also known as Valley fever.

The researchers argue that too little is currently known about microbe survival and spread in wildfire smoke. Essential questions remain, the answers to which will only be more important as the likelihood of wildfires increases as a result of climate change.

Original research: Kobziar & Thompson, 2020, Science, ‘Wildfire smoke, a potential infectious agent’ https://science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi/10.1126/science.abe8116

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Braking Decisions

Too posh to push? No?
How about too rich to brake?
Poor pedestrians!

Road safety and awareness is crucial for pedestrians and drivers alike, particularly when it comes to crossing the road. Yet not everyone is made equal so understanding the decisions and interactions that occur between driver and pedestrian is crucial for public health and safety.

Coughenour et al. (2020) examined driver yielding rates at a midblock crosswalk in Las Vegas. Their results reveal worrying tendencies for road safety based on both the identity of the driver and the pedestrian.

Drivers of more expensive cars were less likely to stop for pedestrians at cross walks, with yielding decreasing by 3% for each $1,000 increase in car cost. The identity of the pedestrian mattered too – cars yielded more frequently for women and white pedestrians compared to males and non-white pedestrians.

Perhaps most worryingly of all, only 28% of drivers actually yielded to pedestrians at the crosswalks, despite being legally obliged to do so.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2020.100831

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Whale strike

To avoid striking
whales, great creatures of the sea,
use the app. Impact!

Blue whales can be injured or killed in collisions with ships, particularly in regions where migration routes cross shipping lanes. Yet because they travel huge distances, predicting where whales will be at any given time is difficult. However, now research by Abrahms et al (2019) suggests that statistical modelling techniques may be able to help.

The researchers used satellite tracking data from 104 blue whales across 14 years along with daily information on three-dimensional oceanic habitats to model the whales’ daily distribution. By using an ensemble modelling approach they were able to produce daily, year-round predictions of blue whale habitat suitability in the Californian Current Ecosystem.

The statistical approach allows the researchers to quantify the spatial and temporal distribution of exposure to ship strike risk within shipping lanes in the Southern California Bight. The researchers plan on converting this approach into a downloadable app which would alert ships to the risks of whale collision and could recommend alternative shipping lanes or vessel slow-downs.

It’s a truly fascinating piece of research that seems likely to have a huge impact upon a real-world problem – research at its best.

The sciku also includes a line from Mr Scruff’s truly excellent track ‘Shanty Town’ from his ‘Keep It Unreal’ album released in 1999. The full line is ‘Whales! Great creatures of the sea! Please listen to me!’ It’s well worth checking out!

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12940

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Armyworms

Armyworms. Crop pests.

Inflict losses with our help.

Where will you strike next?

Crop pests cause vast economic losses worldwide, having a huge impact on the livelihoods of some of the most vulnerable populations. Originally from the Americas, the fall armyworm recently spread to sub-Saharan Africa, resulting in estimates of 20 to 50% maize yield losses. The armyworm appears to have arrived in sub-Saharan Africa as a result of passenger flights from America and has spread widely across the continent in only a couple of years.

Research by Early et al (2018) has considered where the pest might spread to next. By considering the armyworm’s life-history, current trade and transportation routes and the climates of countries that currently have populations of armyworms, the researchers were able to forecast the most likely next steps for this spreading species. In particular, the researchers highlight that the climactic conditions of South and Southeast Asia and Australia make these regions susceptible to invasion, with Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand the most vulnerable.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.40.28165

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Winter driving

Safe winter driving.

Does the bad outweigh the good?

Costs of studded tyres.

 

Studded tyres are commonly used in many countries in winter to increase road safety when driving in icy and snowy conditions. Yet there are increasing concerns over the costs of using studded tyres.

Research by Furberg et al (2018) examined the impacts of studded tyres, across their whole lifecycle, from production to usage. Impacts of studded tyres measured were the number of lives saved, particulate emissions during use, emissions whilst the tyres are being produced, accidents during the mining of cobalt used in the studs, as well as casualties as a result of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo where the cobalt mining occurs and which the revenues of mining effects.

When taken together the researchers found that using studded tyres cost far more lives than they saved: in Sweden it’s estimated that studded tyres save between 60 and 770 life-years, whilst the costs are between 570 and 2200 life-years. In particular, whilst the benefits of studded tyres are primarily found in the countries that use them, 23-33% of the costs are found outside of those countries.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15081774

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Dynamic toll

Dynamic toll roads.

Prices fluctuate with load,

save time, money, health.

 

Traffic congestion damages health, the environment and the economy. Whilst more roads might seem like the answer, history shows that additional roads don’t reduce traffic jams. Now Cramton et al (2018) suggest that smart toll roads – roads that track usage and charge accordingly – could be the solution.

By increasing prices in real time on roads that are busy, the authors suggest that road users would look to alternative routes and modes of transport or choose to travel at a different time. It would also reduce the financial burden on those individuals that rarely use road travel but still pay taxes to maintain road links.

Original source: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-05836-0

 

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Consider the lobster

To know global trade,

consider the lobster from

trade route to market.

 

There has been a 515% increase in the trade of fisheries products for human consumption from 1976 to 2014. This international scale leaves small-scale fishers and fishing economies vulnerable despite an apparent global market.

By mapping the global trade routes of lobsters Stoll et al (2018) have revealed vulnerabilities of small-scale producers in North America to changes in a small number of end-markets. In particular the trade routes make it harder to identify and anticipate risk – should the demand change (as a result of a trade-war between the USA and China for instance) the impact on the $1.5 billion-a-year Maine lobster industry would be vast.

This sciku also includes a reference to David Foster Wallace’s collection of essays – Consider the Lobster.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2018.00239

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Drive safe!

Why would you risk kids?

Is social media so

important? Drive safe!

 

Car accidents frequently occur when drivers are distracted. New research suggests that the temptations offered by mobile phones is too much, even when driving children.

A survey of 760 adults from the USA by McDonald et al (2018) found that 47% of respondents have driven children aged between 4 and 10 whilst on a hand held phone without hands-free. The statistics get worse: 33% of parents had read text messages, 26% had written text messages and 13% had used social media whilst driving with children.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2018.06.003