ID: 56602
Title: Isolation of endosulfan degrading Acinetobacter haemolyticus with agronomic significance
Author: Akshi and Malik Deepak Kumar
Editor: Dr Shnkar Gargh
Year: 2012
Publisher: Research Journal of Chemistry and Environment, Vol 16 (1) March 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: Research Journal of Chemistry and Environment
Keywords: Endosulfan, Basal salt medium, Indole acetic acid, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, resting cell study
Abstract: Endosulfan (6,7,8,9,10,10-hexachloro-1,5,5a,6,9,9a-hexahydro-6,9-methano-2,3,4-benzo-dioxathiepin-3-oxide) is a cyclodiene organochlorine, currently used asan insecticide all over the world and its residues are posing a serious environmental threat. Ten bacterial cultures were isolated from endosulfan contaminated soil by using enrichment technique. All the isolates showed good growth in basal salt medium containing endosulfan and suggested their ability to utilize endosulfan as sole carbon and energy source.
All the ten bacterial cultures were examined for various plant groth promoting properties, out of ten only one bacterial culture Acinetobacter haemolyticus DKE7 was positive for various plant growth promoting activities (phosphate solubilization, protease activity adn IAA production). The resting cell study confirmed that the bacterial strain DKE7 degrades endosulfan by 73% within 2 days. Isolated bacterial culture can be used successfully for the removal of endosulfan from contaminated soil along with plant growth promotion, but further research is required before commercial utilization of this isolate in removing endosulfan from contaminated soil.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56601
Title: The influence of some pyrazole derivatives and matching newly synthesized Ni(II) complexes in the inhibition of Phomopsis viticola (Sacc.) Sacc.
Author: Radovic Ana, Latinovic Nedeljko and Jacimovic Zeljko
Editor: Dr Shnkar Gargh
Year: 2012
Publisher: Research Journal of Chemistry and Environment, Vol 16 (1) March 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: Research Journal of Chemistry and Environment
Keywords: (5)-amino-5(3)-hydroxy pyrazole, 3,5-dimentyl 1-thiocarboxamide pyrazole, nickel, Ph. viticola, active fungicide substances, cane and leaf spot disease
Abstract: An insignificant number of registered fungicides in Montenegro used to eradicate Phomopsis viticola (Sacc) Sacc., the cause of cane and leaf spot disease, indicates that there is a need for a multidisciplinary approach aimed at discovering new active fungicide substances. This has especially become the case after the withdrawal from use of DNOC (4,6 dinitro-o-cresol). Cane and leaf spot disease appears on an annual basis, especially with the types of grape Vranac and Kratosija, the most widespread sorts of vine in the Podgorica area. Starting from the practical use of pyrazole derivative as an active fungicide substance, the biochemical role of nickel in ecosystems, the definition of the selected pyrazole derivative inhibition effect to the fungicide substance Ph. viticola has been done: derivatives (3(5)-amino-5(3)-hydroxy pyrazole (L1 =Pz-OH), 3, 5 - dimethyl 1-thiocarboxamide pyrazole (L2 = Pz-CS), as well as the newly synthetised Ni complexes: Ni(L1)2Cl2 and [Ni(NCS)2(L2-3H)4] [Cl]2. 2C2H5OH. The results of the inhibition effects as one of the parameters of biological efficiency of the selected pyrazole derivatives indicate their anitfungicide effect and the fungotoxic effect of the newly synthesized Ni complexes.
Location: 241
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56600
Title: Crop planting and type proportion method for crop acreage estimation of complex agricultural landscapes
Author: Bingfang Wu, Qjangzi Li
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Crop acreage estimation, Crop planting and type proportion, Remote sensing, Transact sampling, CropWatch
Abstract: This study presents a crop planting and type proportion (CPTP) method for crop acreage estimation of complex and diverse agricultural landscapes. CPTP has three major components: (1) Crop planting proportion (CPP), estimated with wide-swath satellite remote sensing data to completely cover the monitoring area by sementing cropped and non-cropped areas through unsupervised classification . (2) Crop type proportion (CTP), estimated by transect sampling and a special GPS-Video-GIS instrument (GVG) and a visual interpretation of crop type proportion in collected pictures for different strata. (3) Multiplication of CPP and CTP with arable land area at the strata level, summed to the province and national level. Validation has been done with in situ data for different agricultural landscapes over China. Both CPP estimation with remote sensing data and CTP estimation through ground survey have a high accuracy with average relative error (RE) and root mean square error (RMSE) equal to 1.42% and 1.67% for CPP and to 2.63% and 2.25% for CTP. The RE for crop acreage estimation equals to 4.09%. The CPTP method thus has a high accuracy, yields timely information at low costs, and is robust and provides objective results. The study concludes that the CPTP method can be used for large area crop acreage estimation of complex agriculture landscapes.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56599
Title: Multivariate outlier detection based on robust computation of Mahalanobis distances. Application to positioning assisted by RTK GNSS networks
Author: Elena Gimenez, Mattia Crespi, M Selmira Garrido, Antonio J Gil
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: RTK GNSS Networks, outlier detection, Robust statistics, Mahalanobis distance
Abstract: RTK GNSS Networks for real time and post-processing positioning services are becoming more and more numerous throughout the world. In order to study the quality of the real time positioning services offered by these facilities with particular respect t outlier identification and rejection and accuracy assessment, classical statistical methods do not appear adequate. In fact, they are mainly based on Least Squares adjustment results and on the hypothesis of normally distributed samples; in addition, most outlier detection tests are set up for univariate samples. This paper presents a method based on the robust computation of Mahalanobis distances able to detect outliers in multivariate samples, and its evaluation by comparing the results obtained from randomly generated data with those stemming from other classical methods. The application of this method in the processing of RTK postions, recorded in real time with a GNSS receiver assisted by a RTK Network for positioning services is shown. In the various tests performed using both simulated samples and those from real GPS observations, the proposed method has been found effective for the outlier detection.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56598
Title: Potential utility of the spectral red-edge region of SumbandilaSat imagery for assessing indigenous forest structure and health
Author: Moses Azong Cho, Pravesh Debba, Onisimo Mutanga, Nontembeko Dudeni-Tlhone, Thandulwazi Magadla, Sibusisiwe A Khuluse
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Red-edge, SumbandilaSat, Forest structure and health
Abstract: Indigenous forest degradation is regarded as one of the most important environmental issues facing Sub-Saharan African and South Africa in particular. We tested the utility of the unique band settings of the recently launched South African satellite, SumbandilaSat in characterising forest fragmentation in a fragile rural landscape in Dukuduku, northern KwaZulu-Natal. The AISA Eagle hyperspectral image was resampled to the band settings of SumbandilaSAT and SPOT 5 (green, red and near infrared bands only) for comparison purposes. variogram analysis and the red edge shift were used to quantify forest heterogeneity and stress levels, respectively. Results showed that the range values from variograms can quantify differences in spatial heterogeneity across landscapes. The study has also shown that the unique band settings of SumbandilaSat provide additional information for quantifying stress in vegetation as compared to SPOT image data. This is critical in light of the fact that stress levels in vegetation have previously been quantified using hyperspectral sensors, which are more expensive and do not cover large areas as compared to SumbandilaSat satellite. The study moves remote sensing a step closer to operational monitoring of indigenous forests.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56597
Title: Tropical forest monitoring, combining satellite and social data, to inform management and livelihood implications: Case studies from Indonesian West Timor
Author: Rohan Fisher
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Forest cover change, satellite monitoring, Indonesia, Transdisciplinary, livelihoods
Abstract: Deforestation in the world ' s tropics is an urgent international issue. One response has been the development of satellite based monitoring initiatives largely focused on the carbon rich forest of western Indonesia. In contrast this study focuses on one eastern Indonesian district, Kabupaten kupang, which has some of the largest and least studied tracts of remaining forest in West Timor. A combination of remote sensing, GIS and social science methods were used to describe the state of forests in kabupaten Kupang, how and why they are changing. Using satellite imagery, case studies and on-ground interviews, this study explores the proposition that transdisciplinary local social, cultural and biophysical knowledge is important for effectively using remotely sensed data as a tool to inform local management policies. When compared to some other parts of Indonesia, the rate and extent of deforestation in West Timor was found to be relatively small and a satellite based assessment alone could conclude that it is not a critical issue. However this study showed that when on - ground social data are coupled with (such) satellite-based data a more complex picture emerges, related to key livelihood issues. The causes of forest cover change were found to be multivariate and location specific, requiring management approaches tailored to local social issues. This study suggests that integrative research can maximise the utility of satellite data for understanding causation and thus informing management strategies. In addition, the satellite based assessment found that at the time of the study less than 4% of forested land was within national parks and nature reserves and less than a third of the protected catchment forest zone was forested. These data suggest considerable scope for upland re-forestation activities or the redrawing of protected forest boundaries.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56596
Title: Assessing landscape changes and dynamics using patch analysis and GIS modeling
Author: Sushant Paudel, Fei Yuan
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Landscape change, Landscape indices, GIS modeling, Regional land use planning, urban in-filling
Abstract: Landscape ecology has brought spatial analysis and geospatial modeling to the forefront of ecological research. In this study, we investigated changes in landscape structure and the ecological consequences of urbanization in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area using spatial indices, change analysis, and geospatial modeling. Major land transformation patterns from 1975 to 2006 were mapped using multi-temporal classification maps. Landscape metrices for 1975, 1986, 1998 and 2006 were calculated and analyzed using Patch Analyst. The deforestation process due to urbanization in the future was modeled using GEOMOD within the framework of 2030 regional land use planning. Results reveal urban area expanded 82% from 1975 to 2006, mainly by displacing forest and agricultural lands by in-filling gaps within the urban area or near its periphery. Leap-frog development was noticeably absent. Many small patches of forest and agriculture located within or near the urban and suburban areas were replaced directly by urban land uses. Urbanization has become ecologically complicated but geometrically simpler whereas the rural landscape became less abundant and diverse. We predict: (1) forest cover will continue to decrease consistently due to on-going urbanization process; and (2) the pattern of deforestation will occur within the urban area due to in-filling and along its periphery as the urban area expands outward into undeveloped areas.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56595
Title: Impact of remotely sensed land - coer proportions on urban runoff prediction
Author: Tomasz Berezowski, Jaroslaw Chormanski, Okke Batelaan, Frank Canters, Tim Van de Voorde
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Hydrological modeling, Land-cover, sub-pixel classification, impervious surfaces, high resolution imagery, landsat, Ikonos, urbanized catchment
Abstract: Land-cover impacts volume, intensity and contamination of runoff generated by rainfal events in catchments. This study demonstrates how the method used for estimation of land-cover proportions impacts the runoff from a distributed, physically based hydrological model-WetSpa. The study area is the urbanized catchment of Biala River, situated in the northeastern part of Poland. Three scenarios of landcover proportion estimation were tested: a semi-distributed approach where the average proportion of impervious surface cover per land-use type is estimated based on hard classification of a high-resolution IKONOS scene and two distributed approaches with land-cover class proportions estimated at the level of individual cells based on hard classification of a high-resolution IKONOS scene and sub-pixel classification of a medium-resolution Landsat 5 TM scene respectively. Validation of the three scenarios based on a comparison of modeled versus observed discharge shows that best results are obtained for the two distributed scenarios with a Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NS) of 0.62 for the hard classification approach and NS = 0.63 for the sub-pixel approach. The hard classification approach performed best in the estimation of peak discharges. The semi-distributed modeling scenario resulted in the lowest simulation efficiency (NS = 0.40) and did not perform well in estimating observed peak discharges. It is concluded that scenarios in which land-cover proportions are distributed improved considerably the simulationresults of hydrological process in physically based models.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56594
Title: Modeling land use interaction using linguistic variables
Author: Mohammad Karimi, Mohammad Ali Sharifi, Mohammad Saadi Mesgari
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Land use interaction, Neighborhood effect, cellular automata, linguistic variables, GIS, expert knowledge
Abstract: One of the main factors of land use change (LUC) modeling is the land use intersection (LUI) or neighborhood effect, which is normally modeled using cellular automata (CA) concept. The effects of LUI over distance are represented in terms of CA transition rules. In this paper, a new model for LUI process is developed that makes use of expert knowledge to define the transition rules. In this model, the region of influence is defined using a new radial structure; the transition rules area described by expert knowledge and spatial metrics in the form of linguistic variables; and finally, the neighborhood effect is classified into three groups of compactness, dependency and incomparibility. The model is implemented and evaluated using the data of Borkhar and Meymeh township, in Esfahan, Iran, for the two periods of 1986-1998 and 1998-2005. The results show that the model and its related concept are performing rather well.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56593
Title: A differentiated approach to the seismic tomography problem: Method, testing and application to the Western Nagano fault area (Japan)
Author: Tatyana A Smaglichenko, Shigeki Horiuchi, Kaori Takai
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Seismic tomography, Inversion problem, Seismic anisotropy, Statistical approach, fault area, Central Japan
Abstract: Results of tomographic inversion enrich our understanding of the geodynamic processes in the Earth. Seismic imaging of fault zones, the shear rupture permits us to investigate the structure under gas storage areas, in districts of large hydroelectric power stations, nuclear plants. The information about the geodynamic evolution of seismic structures in areas that are close to oceans helps us in assumption of epicenters of destructive earthquakes. A differentiated approach (DA) has been developed to overcome an interference of parameterizatin and observation errors distoring an accuracy of the three-dimensional tomography images. We have designed a method based upon revision of Gauss elimination scheme to the modern problem of large and sparse system of equations. The best linear unblashed estimations of seismic velocity parameter have been obtained by means of incorporating criterion. We used the statistical analyze to select optimal solution having minimal dispersion of parameterization error. In order to decrease a risk of a high error rate we applied the theory of Tikhonov regularization. Due to these measures the evaluated parameters of a medium possess isometric properties and thus for them the problem of seismic anisotropy has a real chance to be solved. By using a simple arbitrary model as well as a complex one for the fault region in Western Nagano, Japan, we demonstrated that the DA method is an effective alternative for the standard method. An application of DA to the real data underlines the high capability of DA of defining the fault planes as compared to the double-difference algorithm under the same condition of experiment. The detailed DA image suggests that the narrow rupture zone after the 1984 Naganoken-Seibu earthquake still exists.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56592
Title: Landscape change and hydrologic alteration associate with dam construction
Author: Qinghe Zhao, Shiliang Liu, Li Deng, Shikui Dong, Cong, Wang, Zhifeng Yang, Juejie Yang
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Landscape change, hydrologic alteration, range of variability approach, dam construction, Lancang river
Abstract: Characterizing the landscape changes and hydrologica alterations associated with dam construction is very important for watershed management. This paper presents a case study of the Lancang River in Yunnan Province following dam construction. The landscape patterns and dynamics indicate the fragmentation, shape, and diversity of the river in 1980, 1990, and 2000. The Range of Variability Approach (RVA) is used to evaluate the degree of hydrologica alteration (DHA) using 44 years (1957 - 2000) of hydrologic data. The results indicate that the midstream and downstream landscapes were affected by dam construction, becoming more complex and fragmented during the 1980-2000 period; the upstream area was not influenced by dam construction and the reservior impoundment exhibited less change. The variability in maximum runoff coccurrence in the post-dam period was less than that in the pre-dam period. The integrated DHAs of the Jiuzhou (upstream), Gajiu (midstream), and Yunjinghong (downstream) stations were relatively low, reaching 26.28%, 33.40% and 37.14% respectively. However, the alteration became obvious in the midstream area, and the situation worsened when the river was simultaneously influenced by dam construction and other other human activities (downstream). The results of the regression analysis show strong relationships of landscape metric changes with DHA, and the forestland and water areas with DHA. The DHA increased along with the agrravation of landscape fragmentation, the complexity of the landscape shape, and the diversification of the landscape.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56591
Title: Prediction of bathymetry from satellite altimeter based gravity the Arabian sea: Mapping of two unnamed deep seamounts
Author: B Jena, P J Kurian, D Swain, A Tyagi, R Ravindra
Editor: Freek Van der Meer
Year: 2012
Publisher: Elsevier, Vol 16, June 2012
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation
Keywords: Multibeam echosounder, Bathymetry, Satellite altimetry, ANN, Seamount
Abstract: This work attempts to predict bathymetry from satellite altimeter based gravity in the Arabian Sea. A col - located match-up database (n = 17.016) was created on Multibean Echosounder (MBES) bathymetry and satellite gravity values (~1min spatial resolution) derived from remote sensing satellites. A Radial Basis Function (RBF) based Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model was developed to predict bathymetry from satellite gravity values. The ANN model was trained with variable undersea features such as seamount, knoll, abyssal pain, hill, etc. to familiarize the network with all possible geomorphic features as inputs through learning and the corresponding target outputs. The performance of the predictive model was evaluated by comparing bathymetric values with MBES datasets that were not used during the training and verification steps of the ANN model formulation. The model was then compared with MBES surveyed seamount observations (those were not used during ANN anlaysis) and global model bathymetry products. Results demonstrate better performance of ANN model compared to global model products for mapping of two unnamed seamounts in the Arabian Sea. These two unnamed seamounts have been predicted, mapped and their morphology is reported for the first time through this work.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56590
Title: Geolocation - Lawmakers eye geolocation apps
Author: Kevin D Pomfret
Editor: Prof Arup Dasgupta
Year: 2011
Publisher: Geospatial Media and Communications Pvt. Ltd,Vol 02, Issue 01 August 2011
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: Geospatial World
Keywords: Geolocation technology,
Abstract: If it bleeds, it leads. So goes the cliche about the mainstream media. Little wonder, then, that news about the far-reaching economic and social benefits of geolocation technology tends to be overshadowed by stories like " Woman Sues Google for Showing Image of Underwear" (The Telegraph) or "How one App Sees Location Without Asking" (Wall Street Journal).
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56589
Title: GNSS interference - The debate rages on
Author: Stephanie Wan
Editor: Prof Arup Dasgupta
Year: 2011
Publisher: Geospatial Media and Communications Pvt. Ltd,Vol 02, Issue 01 August 2011
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: Geospatial World
Keywords: Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS)
Abstract: For the younger generation, ' GPS ' has become a ubiquitous term synonymous to how one can whip out their smart phone and simply ' Google ' for an answer. However, the term Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) is a topic that the general public knows very little about and would require a thorough search.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None
ID: 56588
Title: Vietnam: Catching up with g-revolution
Author: Deepali Roy
Editor: Prof Arup Dasgupta
Year: 2011
Publisher: Geospatial Media and Communications Pvt. Ltd,Vol 02, Issue 03, October 2011
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: None
Subject: Geospatial World
Keywords: Geospatial footprint
Abstract: Putting itself on the path of economic growth and development post the War. Vietnam is adopting modern technologies to be onpar with other South East Asian countries and is capitalising on the second mover advantage to evolve its geospatial footprint.
Location: 231
Literature cited 1: None
Literature cited 2: None