Publications by authors named "P A Forbes"

Article Synopsis
  • Strong emission control plans have successfully reduced pollutants, yet PCDDs and PCDFs are still emitted from sources like waste incinerators, necessitating effective monitoring due to their high toxicity.
  • Current analysis of these compounds in Africa is costly and limited, often done overseas, leading to fewer measurements and less data.
  • A new, cost-effective laboratory method for analyzing PCDD/Fs was developed, significantly simplifying extraction and clean-up processes, achieving comparable recovery rates to established methods while being faster and more efficient.
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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a group of emerging chemical pollutants that pose severe health challenges and toxicity to people and aquatic organisms exposed to these pollutants. This study sought to assess the types and levels of PAHs and their eco-toxicity indices in surface waters of Narok and Bomet counties of Kenya, which have witnessed an increase in charcoal-burning activities and vehicular emissions near water bodies. Sampling was done in eight regions of the two counties based on their proximity to PAH sources.

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Our affective states can influence whether we help others and after helping we often experience improved affect. One important factor determining whether we help, is the amount of effort involved. Using an ecological momentary assessment approach across two measurement bursts (N = 803; N = 303), we investigated the affective antecedents and consequences of everyday helping in terms of participants' self-reported momentary stress and mood valence, with a specific focus on the perceived amount of effort involved.

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Article Synopsis
  • Human balance relies on sensory signals to assess motion and orientation, but when these signals become irrelevant, balance responses can be quickly suppressed without conscious awareness.
  • A study used a robotic balance simulator to explore how learned postural responses are affected by incongruence between sensory and motor signals during various conditions of balance control.
  • Results showed that conditioned responses were context-dependent, being expressed only when relevant to the individual's ability to control balance, suggesting different mechanisms for sensory-evoked and conditioned responses operate separately.
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Water disinfection inevitably leads to disinfection byproduct formation, such as haloacetic acids. Many disinfection byproducts reportedly have adverse health effects and, in many instances, including four haloacetic acids, are classified as potential carcinogens. As the global awareness of these compounds increases, more regulatory bodies include certain disinfection byproduct groups in their regulations.

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