BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Tag: drones

Will Electrifying Delivery Trucks Limit the Predicted CO2 Emissions of this Decade?

The Australia Wildfires have evoked a sense of urgency concerning the climate change issue. The numbers, specifically the 500 million animals killed in the fires, are astonishing and heartbreaking. The fires have been a result of record high temperatures and low moisture in the air and earth. Climate change caused these fires, and it will continue to make them worse. Many people now are wondering what will come next? What can we do to help Australia? What will we do to prevent more events like this?

Maxine Joselow writes for the Scientific American about the impact that the commercial delivery process has on the environment. The World Economic Forum released a report in early January, 2020 on the rise of e-commerce in major cities around the world. The report showed that the number of delivery vehicles in the top 100 cities is predicted to rise 36% within the next decade, and as a result, carbon dioxide emissions will rise 32% from the delivery traffic alone; that’s 6 million tons.

My brother recently received a camera drone for Christmas, and I was immediately reminded of it while reading this article. My initial reaction was, “just replace the trucks with drones,” since I remember hearing about the new advancements in drone delivery. However, Joselow reminded me that drone technology, though very advanced, is not yet at a level in which it could be used efficiently, safely, and practically. The possibility of drone delivery in the future also depends on the area in which they would be delivering. In urban communities, there is are safety concerns surrounding air traffic and pedestrians.

The report from the World Economic Forum recommended several solutions to the carbon-emitting delivery truck problem, including replacing trucks with drones and requiring all delivery trucks to be electric. One author at the World Economic Forum Richa Sahay analyzes supply chain and transport work, and he claims that making the switch from gas to electric delivery vehicles would make the biggest dent in carbon emission levels.

 

Bears Are Adapting To Our Unbearable Drones

A recent paper by Mark A Ditmer’s researchers offers some insight that suggests that American black bears are adapting to the exposure of unmanned drones.

An American Black Bear
Photo Credit: Stephan Oachs

These drones are used mainly for conservation purposes to gather data in various environments. Yet, animals are known to be disturbed by low flying drones, displaying changes in animal behavior when drones are near. In fact, many animals display behavioral signs of fear towards a low flying drone.

However, most recently, Ditmer’s group of researchers discovered American black bears are adapting to the presence of drones after repeated exposure. The researchers performed used drones previously before not using them for 118 days. Afterwards, they began drone tests again. Immediately, using cardiac biologgers, the researchers saw signs of increased tolerance from American black bears to drone presence.

Something to note is that this tolerance to drone exposure is probably species dependent. In particular, more social animals that interact with humans frequently are assumed to have higher tolerance drones. This implies that the American black bear has evolved and habituated to human exposure and, as a result, have increased tolerance after repeated exposure to unique stimuli.

Despite this discovery, Ditmer warns that “close-proximity drones near wildlife should [still] be avoided.” However, he expresses that this new discovery “can provide benefits without long-term high-stress consequences” for drones with conservation purposes.

 

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