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Safeguarding the diversity of natural and semi-natural habitats in Europe is one of the aims set out by the Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora) and one of the targets of the European 2020 Biodiversity Strategy, and is to be accomplished by maintaining a favourable conservation status. To reach this aim a high-level un

The R&D project GMES4Mining aims to support particular tasks within the different phases of a mining life cycle. Within this project one task concentrates on vegetation monitoring in order to detect damages caused by mining. In Germany several mining districts have been exploited for a long time. Mining areas are associated with certain environmental hazards, such as surface subsidence and flo

Placenta protein 14 (PP14), which is the most abundant product of the secretory endometrium, has been proposed as the best biochemical marker of endometrial function in women. In this study, 19 normogonadotrophic women of infertile couples were monitored with serial measurements of concentrations of PP14, gonadotrophins and sex steroids and ultrasound scanning of endometrial thickness throughout t

The Natura 2000 network of protected sites is one of the means to enable biodiversity conservation in Europe. EU member states have to undertake surveillance of habitats and species of community interest protected under the Habitat Directive. Remote sensing techniques have been applied successfully to monitor biodiversity aspects according to Natura 2000, but many challenges remain in assessing dy

Summary: The Natura 2000 network of protected sites is one of the means to address the issue of biodiversity conservation in Europe. Protected under the habitat directive, EU member states have to undertake surveillance of habitats and species of community interest and report every six years on habitat range and distribution, conservation status and the future prospects of the habitats within and

Information on the distribution, level of fragmentation, extent and ecosystem health of tropical forests is key for sustainable landscape management. Therefore, information generated from different types of multispectral and hyperspectral sensors is key to monitoring programs that aimed to link ecosystems dynamics to ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration. This is especially significant f

We review the ecological and socio-economic impacts of the catastrophic dam failure in Mariana, Brazil. Tailing management practices by Samarco mining company ultimately caused a dam breach that abruptly discharged between 55 and 62 million m3 of tailings into the Doce River watershed. On November 5th, 2015, a tsunami of slurry engulfed the small district of Bento Rodrigues, loading the Doce River

Background: LDH may be a valuable marker for some of the most important diseases in newborns, and umbilical cord blood is a non-invasive and easy way to obtain blood for analysis. Aims of this study were to define interval for LDH in arterial and venous cord blood at delivery in truly healthy newborns. Method: a prospective observational study was performed at Soder Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden dur

Maps of the MT-saturation as derived in FLASH-based multi-parameter mapping (MPM) are largely corrected for effects of flip angle inhomogeneity. Here, we present a heuristic model for residual effects of B1+ that is rooted in the dynamics of macromolecule saturation. Model parameters were validated for brain tissues by variation of the MT-pulse flip angle in an established MPM protocol. White and

One of the challenges in wooden constructions is to be able to achieve a good acoustic insulation especially in the low frequency range. The prediction of acoustic performance of wooden buildings before erection becomes important and reliable predictive tools are in great need. To that end, the first question that arises is how to accurately model the excitation source which generates the structur

The aim of this work was to investigate the optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) properties of potassium chloride (KCl) and its potential use in radiation dosimetry. The optimal condition for OSL readout with blue light stimulation were designated using a commercially available Risø TL/OSL reader. KCl was studied in three sample forms: crystals, powder and pellets. The following OSL characteris

In the recovery phase after a radioactive release incident, it is important to be able to focus decontamination operations on the areas that contribute most to the radiation dose. Monte Carlo simulations were applied to determine the shielding effect of a building against radiation from various directions, also giving information on the dose contributions at various locations inside the building f

The most common sound insulation problem for lightweight timber structures is impact sounds from people walking. This is especially apparent in the low frequency range, due to differences in weight, stiffness, density and repartitioning as compared to more traditional materials. As lightweight timber structures increase their market share, the understanding of their behaviour and the ability to pr

Common marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) are increasingly used in models of neurodegenerative diseases. Serial measurements of gadolinium excretion were performed using the dual flip angle method to map R1 on three animals in the wrist coil of a 3T whole-body system. R1 values were analyzed in a ROI in the straight sinus and fitted with a single compartment model. Slow injection of 0.3 mmol Ga

The fields of tropical biology and conservation face significant transformations due to rapid technological developments in remote sensing. Other fields (e.g. Archeology) are experiencing this momentous change even more rapidly. In this article, we review some of the challenges that the fields of tropical biology and conservation face during the first quarter of the twenty-first century from the p

The tropical dry forest (TDF) is one the most threatened ecosystems in South America, existing on a landscape with different levels of ecological succession. Among satellites dedicated to Earth observation and monitoring ecosystem succession, CHRIS/PROBA is the only satellite that presents quasi-simultaneous multi-angular pointing and hyperspectral imaging. These two characteristics permit the stu