This study aims to create more accurate and efficient near-real-time forecasts of hypoxia that will give researchers advance notice for manual sampling during hypoxic events. Hypoxic or dead zones, which occur when dissolved oxygen levels in water drop below 2 mg/L, are prevalent worldwide. An example of such an hypoxic zone forms intermittently in Corpus Christi Bay (CC Bay), Texas, a USEPA-recognized estuary of national significance. Hypoxia in CC Bay is caused by inflow of hypersaline waters that enter from adjacent bays and estuaries, natural fluctuations in oxygen levels due to the oxygen production-consumption cycle of the aquatic flora and fauna, seasonal fluctuations, and discharges from several wastewater treatment plants. The hypoxia forecasting method tested in this work involves a suite of data-driven model fusion techniques such as historical scenario modeling and boosting both a k-nearest neighbor (KNN) algorithm and the historical scenario model. Existing data-driven k-nearest neighbor and physics-based valve models are used as the basis for the model fusion. The historical scenario model combines the k-nearest neighbor algorithm with the valve model to predict the probability of hypoxia twenty-four hours ahead. Boosting involves training the model repeatedly on subsets of the training dataset. The results of the fused models are compared with those of the individual models to test the effectiveness of model fusion in predicting the estuarine conditions. The results showed that the valve model, which has been hitherto computing oxygen profiles, can be extended to forecast probabilities of hypoxia when combined with the k-nearest neighbor algorithm to form the historical scenario model. The findings also show that boosting significantly enhances the performance of the k-nearest neighbor algorithm and the historical scenario model, although further testing on more extensive continuous datasets is needed to verify the findings in other locations. The results show promise for model fusion to be effective for real-time forecasting in hypoxia-affected water bodies.

This book provides a snapshot of representative modeling analyses of coastal hypoxia and its effects. Hypoxia refers to conditions in the water column where dissolved oxygen falls below levels that can support most metazoan marine life (i.e., 2 mg O2 l-1). The number of hypoxic zones has been increasing at an exponential rate since the 1960s; there are currently more than 600 documented hypoxic zones in the estuarine and coastal waters worldwide. Hypoxia develops as a synergistic product of many physical and biological factors that affect the balance of dissolved oxygen in seawater, including temperature, solar radiation, wind, freshwater discharge, nutrient supply, and the production and decay of organic matter. A number of modeling approaches have been increasingly used in hypoxia research, along with the more traditional observational and experimental studies. Modeling is necessary because of rapidly changing coastal circulation and stratification patterns that affect hypoxia, the large spatial extent over which hypoxia develops, and limitations on our capabilities to directly measure hypoxia over large spatial and temporal scales. This book consists of 15 chapters that are broadly organized around three main topics: (1) Modeling of the physical controls on hypoxia, (2) Modeling of biogeochemical controls and feedbacks, and, (3) Modeling of the ecological effects of hypoxia. The final chapter is a synthesis chapter that draws generalities from the earlier chapters, highlights strengths and weaknesses of the current state-of-the-art modeling, and offers recommendations on future directions.

This book presents the latest science and social science research on whether the world can adapt to climate change.

Harmful algal can cause a variety of deleterious effects, including the poisoning of fish and shellfish, habitat disruptions for many organisms, water discoloration, beach fouling, and even toxic effects for humans. In this volume, international experts provide an in-depth analysis of harmful algae topics and offer a comprehensive synthesis of the latest research in the field.

The purpose of this publication is to consolidate the training material utilized in the Managing Death Investigation Course and Death Investigation Field Schools conducted by the Behavioural Science Unit, FBI Academy,

This book is an unpretentious editing venture to fill the gap in our current knowledge on the ecological implications caused by anthropogenic disturbances upon benthic communities in several regions of the world, including the Western Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Eastern Pacific Ocean, as well as the pristine environments of the Andes in South America. The common goal of the contributing authors in this book was to unravel the complex processes that make possible the life existence of bottom-living animals in different environmental scenarios. To achieve such a goal, the authors focus their attention on the emerging issues inherent to global climate change or the pollution of aquatic systems. These are all themes that might be of interest to scientists active in a wide range of oceanographic subdisciplines. Well-established researchers would appreciate the innovative approach adopted in each chapter of the book, which extends from the ecosystem level to refined molecular interpretations.

This book provides a broad and well-integrated overview of recent major scientific results in wetland science and their applications in natural resource management issues. The contributors, internationally known experts, summarize the state of the art on an array of topics, divided into four broad areas: The Role of Wetlands for Integrated Water Resources Management: Putting Theory into Practice; Wetland Science for Environmental Management; Wetland Biogeochemistry; Wetlands and Climate Change Worldwide.

It is estimated that the functionally significant body of knowledge for a given medical specialty changes radically every 8 years. New specialties and "sub-specialization" are occurring at approximately an equal rate. Historically, established journals have not been able either to absorb this increase in publishable material or to extend their readership to the new specialists. International and national meetings, symposia and seminars, workshops, and newsletters suc cessfully bring to the attention of physicians within developing spe cialties what is occurring, but generally only in demonstration form without providing historical perspective, pathoanatomical corre lates, or extensive discussion. Page and time limitations oblige the authors to present only the essence of their material. Pediatric neurosurgery is an example of a specialty that has de veloped during the past 15 years. Over this period neurosurgeons have obtained special training in pediatric neurosurgery and then dedicated themselves primarily to its practice. Centers, Chairs, and educational programs have been established as groups of neuro in different countries throughout the world organized surgeons themselves respectively into national and international societies for pediatric neurosurgery. These events were both preceded and fol lowed by specialized courses, national and international journals, and ever-increasing clinical and investigative studies into all aspects of surgically treatable diseases of the child's nervous system.

This second edition emphasizes the environmental impact on reproduction, with updated chapters throughout as well as complete new chapters on species such as sharks and rays. This is a wide-ranging book that will be of relevance to anyone involved in species conservation, and provides critical perspectives on the real utility of current and emerging reproductive sciences. Understanding reproductive biology is centrally important to the way many of the world’s conservation problems should be tackled. Currently the extinction problem is huge, with up to 30% of the world’s fauna being expected to disappear in the next 50 years. Nevertheless, it has been estimated that the global population of animals in zoos encompasses 12,000 – 15,000 species, and we anticipate that every effort will be made to preserve these species for as long as possible, minimizing inbreeding effects and providing the best welfare standards available. Even if the reproductive biology community cannot solve the global biodiversity crisis for all wild species, we should do our best to maintain important captive populations. Reproductive biology in this context is much more than the development of techniques for helping with too little or too much breeding. While some of the relevant techniques are useful for individual species that society might target for a variety of reasons, whether nationalistic, cultural or practical, technical developments have to be backed up by thorough biological understanding of the background behind the problems.