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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/portable/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
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	<title>News on Portable</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/portable/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Zika, dengue transmission expected to rise with climate change</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/zika-dengue-transmission-expected-to-rise-with-climate-change/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/zika-dengue-transmission-expected-to-rise-with-climate-change/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Aug 2023 19:20:25 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Luís Patriani]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Xavier Bartaburu]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/08/09191328/Aedes_aegypti-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=272003</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil, Latin America, and South America]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Diseases, DNA, Drinking Water, early warning, Environment, Health, Pollution, Portable, Public Health, Solutions, Technology, Water, Water Pollution, Wildtech, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A new study foresees a 20% increase in cases of viruses like dengue, Zika and chikungunya over the next 30 years due to climate change. Higher temperatures are already causing the diseases carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito to spread in cooler regions like southern Brazil and southern Europe.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The number of deaths in Brazil due to dengue hit a record high in 2022, with 1,016 — the first time in history the number had surpassed four digits. And the sobering statistic is expected to be even higher in 2023. According to the Center for Arbovirus Emergency Operations, 635 fatal cases had been reported by June 11 — up 22% as compared with the same period in 2022. The agency’s most recent update, released by the Ministry of Health, shows 1.3 million probable cases so far this year, while the total number for 2022 was 1,450,270 cases. If the threat of dengue, which is mostly transmitted by the female Aedes aegypti mosquito, seems frightening now, a study carried out at the University of Michigan in the United States painted a worse picture for the future. The transmission potential of arboviruses — which include, aside from dengue, Zika and chikungunya — could increase by 20% over the next 30 years because of climate change. The study arrived at this alarming conclusion after analyzing the incidence of these diseases in four Brazilian cities: Manaus, Recife, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. “Brazilian health agencies need to be prepared not only for the increased incidence of diseases like dengue and Zika, but also for longer transmission seasons and broader geographic areas of occurrence,” affirms epidemiologist Andrew Brouwer, co-author of the study and researcher at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. João Gabriel, born with microcephaly caused by a Zika virus&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/zika-dengue-transmission-expected-to-rise-with-climate-change/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/08/zika-dengue-transmission-expected-to-rise-with-climate-change/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-272003</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Researchers and customs officials unite to fight wildlife trafficking using eDNA</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/researchers-and-customs-officials-unite-to-fight-wildlife-trafficking-using-edna/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/researchers-and-customs-officials-unite-to-fight-wildlife-trafficking-using-edna/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jun 2019 13:18:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Klinges]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2019/06/06104426/glass-eels-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=219223</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[East Asia and Hong Kong]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Crime, data, DNA, Environment, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, Fish, Genetics, Law Enforcement, Marine, Marine Animals, Migration, Portable, Trade, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Diego Cardeñosa wasn’t expecting any work calls on a Saturday, and certainly not one from the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department. The urgency of the matter, however, became quickly apparent. &#8220;Diego, there&#8217;s two smugglers here, we need your help. Can you come to the airport&#8230;now?” Cardeñosa, a PhD candidate in marine biology at Stony [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Diego Cardeñosa wasn’t expecting any work calls on a Saturday, and certainly not one from the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department. The urgency of the matter, however, became quickly apparent. &#8220;Diego, there&#8217;s two smugglers here, we need your help. Can you come to the airport&#8230;now?” Cardeñosa, a PhD candidate in marine biology at Stony Brook University in New York, United States, grabbed a set of test tubes from his refrigerator, the suitcase next to the TV, and hopped on the next train to the airport. Once there, the customs officials laid out why they called: two men arriving from Portugal had carried with them bags of baby eels&#8211;tens of thousands of them in total. They needed to determine if these were legal shipments of American eels, or illegal transport of the endangered European Eel, Anguilla anguilla. Cardeñosa’s DNA test kit was just what they needed. Thousands of confiscated juvenile European eels (Anguilla anguilla), called glass eels as they are transparent Image courtesy of the Sustainable Eel Group (SEG) 2018. “So I arrived to the airport, we tested the eels, and the protocol told us it was European eels,” Cardeñosa told Mongabay. “They were able to detain the smugglers, and we actually made the first prosecution of an international smuggler trying to bring European eels into Hong Kong.” Later genetic sequencing performed on the shipment of eels confirmed this result, thereby validating this test for eel identification, developed by Cardeñosa and collaborators at the Florida International University, as a rapid&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/researchers-and-customs-officials-unite-to-fight-wildlife-trafficking-using-edna/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/researchers-and-customs-officials-unite-to-fight-wildlife-trafficking-using-edna/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-219223</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>DNA test helps officials spot dodgy shark shipments</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/12/dna-test-helps-officials-spot-dodgy-shark-shipments/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/12/dna-test-helps-officials-spot-dodgy-shark-shipments/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Dec 2018 11:21:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2018/12/21104550/thresher-shark_Rafn-Ingi-Finnsson_Flickr-CC2.0-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=213916</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and Hong Kong]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, DNA, Illegal Trade, Law Enforcement, Oceans, Portable, Sharks, Technology, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A multi-national research team has developed a rapid DNA identification method to help customs inspectors detect illegally traded wildlife products, beginning with sharks. The DNA testing protocol, published last month, detects nine of 12 commonly traded shark species quickly enough to enable officials to determine whether a shipment requires further inspection. The researchers focused on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A multi-national research team has developed a rapid DNA identification method to help customs inspectors detect illegally traded wildlife products, beginning with sharks. The DNA testing protocol, published last month, detects nine of 12 commonly traded shark species quickly enough to enable officials to determine whether a shipment requires further inspection. A scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini) eyes a diver near Jarvis Island in the Pacific. These sharks have small mouths and sensing organs in their broad heads to find stingrays and other prey buried in the sand. They are considered endangered and are one of 12 shark species listed on CITES&#8217; Appendix II, which restricts trade in their meat, oil, and fins. The researchers focused on sharks because they are threatened by illegal killing and trafficking, but implementing trade laws on the ground has challenged customs officials. The 12 species are listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), meaning trade in products from these species requires certification that specimens were caught legally and that trade does not harm the survival of the species. The 12 species, which include hammerhead, thresher, porbeagle, and great white sharks, are threatened in large part by the killing of massive numbers of them mainly for their fins, but also for meat and other products. For these and other species, limiting trade to levels lower than birth/survival rates enables populations to persist and is therefore a priority for shark conservation. The researchers, from Florida International University, Stony Brook University, and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2018/12/dna-test-helps-officials-spot-dodgy-shark-shipments/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/12/dna-test-helps-officials-spot-dodgy-shark-shipments/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-213916</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Identifying Zika-transmitting mosquito fast, cheaply, and on the go</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/10/identifying-zika-transmitting-mosquito-fast-cheaply-and-on-the-go/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/10/identifying-zika-transmitting-mosquito-fast-cheaply-and-on-the-go/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>03 Oct 2018 10:00:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[David Klinges]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2018/10/02235128/Aedes_comparison_small-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=210839</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Brazil and Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Diseases, DNA, early warning, Health, Portable, Solutions, Technology, Wildtech, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A team at University of Texas Austin has developed a new method for identifying whether a mosquito is of the Aedes aegypti species, which is responsible for transmitting Zika, dengue and other deadly diseases. The method can easily be conducted while out in the field and does not need much more than a cell phone, a 3D-printed box and a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A team at University of Texas Austin has developed a new method for identifying whether a mosquito is of the Aedes aegypti species, which is responsible for transmitting Zika, dengue and other deadly diseases. The method can easily be conducted while out in the field and does not need much more than a cell phone, a 3D-printed box and a few chemical solutions. This toolkit can also determine whether a mosquito has been exposed to the Wolbachia bacteria, which infects mosquitoes and prevents them from transmitting dangerous pathogens. The low-cost, 3D-printed portable toolbox identifies a pair of genes in a crushed-up mosquito that reveal whether the insect is Aedes aegypti and whether it has been exposed to the Wolbachia bacterium, which prevents the spread of diseases carried by the mosquito. Image by Vivian Abagiu. Although portable tools and “biopesticides” such as Wolbachia are currently effective, adaptive dengue and Zika viruses will likely evolve past these tactics just as they have for countless other methods. Constant attention and funding is needed to stay ahead of such pathogens in this ever-lasting battle. Biologists and doctors alike have sought creative methods to track, analyze, and prevent infectious diseases spread by mosquitoes. Some of the approaches taken may appear unconventional and yet are highly effective. For instance, what better way to fight off a mosquito-borne microbe other than to use another microbe? DIY Diagnostics, a team of researchers based at University of Texas at Austin, has been investigating how the Wolbachia bacterium can be used to suppress the load&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2018/10/identifying-zika-transmitting-mosquito-fast-cheaply-and-on-the-go/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-210839</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Cities worldwide use photo app technology to compete in nature observation challenge</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/04/cities-worldwide-use-photo-app-technology-to-compete-in-nature-observation-challenge/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/04/cities-worldwide-use-photo-app-technology-to-compete-in-nature-observation-challenge/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Apr 2018 18:02:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2018/04/25172140/Yerba_Buena_Bioblitz-5588_small-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=206156</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Artificial Intelligence, cameras, Citizen Science, data, Education, Mobile, Portable, Research, Surveying, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This coming weekend, nature lovers from cities around the globe will have a chance to test their species identification skills in a global competition. The third-annual City Nature Challenge takes place April 27-30, 2018. Participants from over 65 cities on five continents will compete to see who can make the most observations of local plants and animals, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[This coming weekend, nature lovers from cities around the globe will have a chance to test their species identification skills in a global competition. The third-annual City Nature Challenge takes place April 27-30, 2018. Participants from over 65 cities on five continents will compete to see who can make the most observations of local plants and animals, find the most species, and engage the most people in the outdoor photo exploration. The Challenge uses the iNaturalist app, which is managed by the California Academy of Sciences and National Geographic.  It started two years ago as a nature-finding competition between the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles. Despite its growth and international scope, organizers Alison Young and Rebecca Johnson of the California Academy of Sciences told Mongabay-Wildtech that their aim for the 2018 Challenge remains to connect people to their local nature and to each other and have fun while they’re at it. Having fun collecting and sharing data on the nature around us &#8211; identifying that plant, bird, or bug you see every day can make it more meaningful. Photo © 2018 California Academy of Sciences. A second aim is to collect urban biodiversity data, during the annual Challenge and throughout the year, that can be valuable for science or management. As one example, Young and Johnson wrote in an email, the many Challenge participants may document the presence of an invasive species that can trigger a rapid response from resource managers to keep the species from spreading. “Many of our&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2018/04/cities-worldwide-use-photo-app-technology-to-compete-in-nature-observation-challenge/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/04/cities-worldwide-use-photo-app-technology-to-compete-in-nature-observation-challenge/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-206156</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>10 top conservation tech innovations from 2017</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/01/10-top-conservation-tech-innovations-from-2017/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2018/01/10-top-conservation-tech-innovations-from-2017/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Jan 2018 17:00:53 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2018/01/04153729/Coeligena-helianthea-female_Blue-throated-Starfrontlet-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=202638</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Acoustic, Analysis, Artificial Intelligence, Camera Trapping, Citizen Science, Communication, Conservation Technology, Crowdsourcing, data, DNA, Drones, Genetics, Mapping, Mobile, Monitoring, Portable, Research, Satellite Imagery, Sensors, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Technology is changing how we investigate and protect planet Earth. The increased portability and reduced cost of data collection and synthesis tools, for instance — from visual and acoustic sensors to DNA sequencers, online mapping platforms, and apps for sharing photos — have rapidly transformed how we research and conserve the natural world. These tools [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Technology is changing how we investigate and protect planet Earth. The increased portability and reduced cost of data collection and synthesis tools, for instance — from visual and acoustic sensors to DNA sequencers, online mapping platforms, and apps for sharing photos — have rapidly transformed how we research and conserve the natural world. The still-intact Amazon rainforest in southeastern Peru. Photo credit: Amazon Aerobotany These tools afford research and conservation projects across the globe an unprecedented capacity to access, collect, organize, analyze, and convey information. But these new tools are being developed and deployed so quickly, it can be hard to stay on top of them all. Below, we review some of 2017’s conservation tech trends that have helped researchers and conservationists better understand their species and systems of interest, monitor their status, and take actions to conserve them. We hope Mongabay-Wildtech’s coverage of their experiences will help readers advance their own projects and priorities. A pair of saki monkeys approach an arboreal camera trap in the Peruvian rainforest. Photo credit: SCBI-CCS Understand target species and systems 1. Camera traps are remote cameras that take photos when a sensor is triggered by the movement of an animal or person and, increasingly, send the image in real-time to the operator. They have helped researchers document the presence of elusive wildlife  for decades, but innovative scientists have begun to apply this technology to new environments and species. The installation of camera traps in trees, for example, has successfully documented canopy use by&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2018/01/10-top-conservation-tech-innovations-from-2017/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-202638</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Portable DNA analysis tool identifies species on site to help combat wildlife crime</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/portable-dna-analysis/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/portable-dna-analysis/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Dec 2017 09:32:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/12/04113533/Tanzania-Tarangire-ellies-2011_feature-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=201805</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global and South Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, DNA, Genetics, Law Enforcement, Portable, Technology, Wildlife, Wildlife Trafficking, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Each year, trafficking in wildlife parts earns international crime syndicates some $8 billion to $10 billion. A portable DNA analysis tool can now rapidly identify the species of plant and animal samples found on suspected smugglers.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Each year, trafficking in wildlife parts earns international crime syndicates some $8 billion to $10 billion. The illegal timber trade brings in another estimated $7 billion, and illegal fishing $10 billion to $23 billion. The legal trade of these items is worth even more. Effective enforcement is contingent on police, customs and other officials being able to distinguish animal and plant products that can be traded legally from those that can’t. However, the typical traits that authorities look out for — size, shape, location and behavior —are often insufficient to tell species apart, especially if the samples are young individuals or animal parts, products, and processed samples, such as teeth, bones, skins, tusks, seeds or powders. Elephant herd in Tanzania. DNA analysis can identify ivory from African elephants, which is shipped illegally to Asia and difficult to distinguish from legally traded Asian elephant ivory. Photo credit: Sue Palminteri Scientists and trade authorities have increasingly turned to the DNA of traded products to identify the associated species. They typically collect and send a sample of the plant, animal or its product to a laboratory for genetic analysis. Over the last decade, scientists have developed DNA barcoding, a technique that scans a short sequence from a standard part of the organism’s DNA and compares it to a database of sequences to see where it matches. Similar to how a supermarket scanner recognizes products using the black stripes of the Universal Product Code (UPC), DNA barcoding can associate a sample with a particular&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/portable-dna-analysis/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-201805</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Tuna catch monitoring enters the electronic age</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/tuna-catch-monitoring-enters-the-electronic-age/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/tuna-catch-monitoring-enters-the-electronic-age/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jul 2017 23:12:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/07/16234409/Skipjack_tuna_Stuffed_specimens_Momotarou20120-CC_small-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=197355</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Cook Islands and Pacific Ocean]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Fish, Fisheries, GPS, Marine, Mobile, Portable, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A new electronic approach to monitoring tuna fishing fleets is being tested to improve the timeliness and accuracy of catch data, the transparency of tuna supply chains, and the safety of on-board observers. Key to the new approach are a set of electronic reporting apps for fishing boats and port officials developed in response to this [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A new electronic approach to monitoring tuna fishing fleets is being tested to improve the timeliness and accuracy of catch data, the transparency of tuna supply chains, and the safety of on-board observers. Key to the new approach are a set of electronic reporting apps for fishing boats and port officials developed in response to this persistent problem. Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing results in overharvesting and an annual loss of US $600 million for the region. A report by the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency found that licensed vessels hauling in unreported and unregulated fish stock comprised most of the region’s IUU fishing. The Pacific Community (SPC), a regional scientific and technical organization focused on development, created the Onboard e-Reporting app for ship captains to electronically report effort and catch data. A shoal of skipjack tuna, a key species for fisheries in the western and central Pacific. Photo credit: NOAA, CC A corresponding Observer e-Reporting App, developed by the Integrated Fisheries Information Management System (iFIMS), is for use by on-board fisheries observers in the Pacific. The apps are being tested by the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), a regional body that manages shared tuna resources, including the world&#8217;s largest certified sustainable tuna purse seine fishery. The western and central Pacific Ocean, where the PNA operates, is home to a variety of tuna species that supply markets around the world and roughly 60 percent of global tuna catches. This initial adoption of electronic reporting will help make near-real time&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/tuna-catch-monitoring-enters-the-electronic-age/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/tuna-catch-monitoring-enters-the-electronic-age/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-197355</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Catching the buzz: acoustic monitoring of bees could determine pollination services</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/catching-the-buzz-acoustic-monitoring-of-bees-could-determine-pollination-services/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/catching-the-buzz-acoustic-monitoring-of-bees-could-determine-pollination-services/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>13 Jul 2017 11:20:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Danielle Bettermann]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Dbettermann]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/07/12101817/149986938062998-768x505.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=197255</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Acoustic, Analysis, Conservation, Invertebrates, Mobile, Monitoring, Portable, Research, Technology, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Researchers have developed a new acoustic monitoring method to measure bees’ productivity to facilitate management and response to population decline.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In a study published last month, Dr. Nicole E. Miller-Struttmann and a research team from the University of Missouri tested a new method to study bees–through acoustics. Pollinator species are in decline as habitat loss, climate change and exposure to pesticides affect their health and access to food resources.  Studies have concluded that 87.5 percent of flowering plants and 75 percent of commodity crops are pollinated by animal species, of which 200,000 are wild bees. With the decline of bee populations, the most effective pollinators, loss of their production services will be costly to native flowering plants and agriculture. Long-tongued bumble bee queens of Bombus balteatus visit flowers of the alpine skypilot Polemonium viscosum. These large bees have a distinctive flight buzz, the bee version of a cargo-plane flying from flower to flower. Photo credit: Zoe Maffett To help combat the decline in bee populations, scientists and policymaking bodies, such as the Pollinator Health Task Force, are working towards methods for thorough and extensive population monitoring. According to the 2015 National Strategy to Promote the Health of Honey Bees and Other Pollinators, pollinators are responsible for the production of one in every three bites of food that we take and increase the value of agriculture in the U.S. by over $15 billion annually. “Unabated, these losses of our pollinators threaten agricultural production, the maintenance of natural plant communities, and the important services provided by those ecosystems, such as carbon cycling, flood and erosion control, and recreation,” the task force states in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/07/catching-the-buzz-acoustic-monitoring-of-bees-could-determine-pollination-services/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-197255</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Story-telling app and website help communities improve their ‘backyards’</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/06/story-telling-app-and-website-help-communities-improve-their-backyards/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/06/story-telling-app-and-website-help-communities-improve-their-backyards/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Jun 2017 10:54:19 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Danielle Bettermann]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/06/23103543/TIMBY6_crop-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=196793</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Chile, Global, Kenya, and Liberia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Citizen Science, Communication, Crime, GPS, Law Enforcement, Mapping, Portable, and Videos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[This is My Backyard (TIMBY) digital tools support safe reporting and story-telling for addressing conflict-prone issues around the globe.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[At the center of several conflict-prone issues around the world, TIMBY (This is my Backyard) has been working to help local communities hold parties or individuals accountable for their actions. Founded by filmmaker Anjali Nayar as a result of her work with a team of activists from the Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) in Liberia, TIMBY has developed into a platform for changing the narrative of conflict stories in several regions across the globe. The platform includes easy-to-use, organized and safe tools for reporting, investigating and storytelling. With automated GPS location recording and the ability to record video, take pictures or upload audio recordings, the platform enables users to report on illegal activities in their communities. Reports can be shared publicly, providing more people with the information and power to hold policy-makers responsible for stopping the conflict. A video of the Jogbhan Clan chief is recorded using the TIMBY phone application in Grand Bassa, Liberia. Photo credit: Anjali Nayar. “There&#8217;s an opportunity to not only change the narrative by providing ways for communities to voice their concerns earlier, but also…to stop the takeovers from happening [in the process], before irreparable damage is done,” Nayar said. Nayar said that an issue-based narrative is often relayed in simple terms, such as “community X has lost land to company Y,” but the reality of these processes stretches over months or years, and there are stories to tell from several perspectives. During Liberia’s 14-year civil war, logging was a source of funding for rebel groups,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/06/story-telling-app-and-website-help-communities-improve-their-backyards/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-196793</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Whistleblowing for wildlife</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/whistleblowing-for-wildlife/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/whistleblowing-for-wildlife/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Dec 2016 21:54:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Julia John]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/12/27184006/USFWS_is_sending_a_clear_message_that_the_nation_will_not_tolerate_wildlife_crime_that_threatens_to_wipe_out_the_African_elephant._10855990065-768x432.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=191933</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, Global, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Communication, Conservation, Crime, Forests, Interviews, Law Enforcement, Mobile, Open-source, Poaching, Portable, Software, Technology, Trade, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[From the Lacey Act to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), many laws aim to protect wildlife, but the clandestine nature of wildlife crime makes it hard to identify violations. Wildlife crime often sidesteps official surveillance, but those involved in the illegal activity and independent citizens can bear witness to such lawbreaking. As Stephen Kohn, a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[From the Lacey Act to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), many laws aim to protect wildlife, but the clandestine nature of wildlife crime makes it hard to identify violations. Wildlife crime often sidesteps official surveillance, but those involved in the illegal activity and independent citizens can bear witness to such lawbreaking. As Stephen Kohn, a founder and Executive Director of the National Whistleblower Center (NWC), points out in the Environmental Law Reporter, both of those laws—in addition to several others pertaining to wildlife—“include language providing monetary incentives to persons who disclose information about wildlife crimes, but these provisions have not been effectively implemented.” Wildtech spoke with NWC’s Chief Operating Officer Ashley Binetti earlier this month to learn how the organization’s emerging Global Wildlife Whistleblower Program works to counter wildlife crime and promote conservation by harnessing such whistleblower reward laws. The innovation consists of a secure website where potential whistleblowers can confidentially and anonymously submit intelligence on wildlife crime, as well as an attorney referral service that assists them in delivering their tips to appropriate law enforcement agencies and accessing monetary rewards for their contributions under applicable U.S. laws. The NWC&#8217;s Global Wildlife Whistleblower Program helps whistleblowers securely provide tips on wildlife crime online and receive monetary compensation through legal reward provisions. Photo credit: NWC. Wildtech: Can you describe the NWC whistleblower platform and its significance for conservation? Binetti: The NWC has been doing whistleblower advocacy for 30 years. Not too long ago, Stephen Kohn found that important wildlife laws like&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/whistleblowing-for-wildlife/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-191933</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Acoustic monitoring: mapping ecosystems by animal calls</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/10/whos-calling/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/10/whos-calling/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Oct 2016 21:58:48 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri (1965-2019)]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/10/01185405/El-Yungue-forest-ElfinWoodsWarbler-occupancy_CamposCerqueira-Aide-2016-723x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=189934</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Puerto Rico]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Acoustic, Analysis, data, Monitoring, Portable, Research, Sensors, Surveying, Technology, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Automated acoustic monitoring of animal sounds can help assess faunal communities and detect endangered species.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[What is living where? We collect weather data at sites all over the globe, so why not collect species data at those sites as well?  This is the question that Mitch Aide and colleagues at the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) are asking. Despite an explosion of research activity across the world, however, our understanding of which animals live where is still very limited. Studies that confirm the presence of particular species are often costly, time-consuming and thus few and far between. Aide and his fellow UPR researchers want to fill the gap in our knowledge of animal communities by applying acoustic monitoring technology to record the daily calls and other sounds animals make everywhere. The team captures these calls using automated acoustic monitoring stations. An aerial photo showing the Sabana Seca acoustic monitoring station relative to various vegetation types. Photo credit: Serge Aucoin Aide and his colleagues began a Kickstarter campaign&#8211;ending this Thursday, October 6—to wire up research stations, protected areas, ecolodges, city parks, and other nature tourism centers across the globe with acoustic monitoring devices. By doing so, the researchers hope to address what he considers the “urgent need to increase the temporal and spatial coverage of ecological data collection.” Why collect acoustic data? “Acoustic monitoring can help us greatly improve our ability to monitor population change in thousands of species, but the ecological and conservation community has been slow in incorporating this technology into their monitoring and research projects,” Aide explained. Over the past 10 years, his&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/10/whos-calling/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-189934</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Experts hack away at portable DNA barcode scanner to fight timber and wildlife trafficking</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/09/experts-hack-away-at-portable-dna-barcode-scanner-to-fight-timber-and-wildlife-trafficking/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/09/experts-hack-away-at-portable-dna-barcode-scanner-to-fight-timber-and-wildlife-trafficking/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Sep 2016 10:37:04 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Julia John]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/09/01185942/cx_5-768x414.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=189743</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Canada, Global, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Crime, DNA, Forests, Law Enforcement, Open-source, Portable, Research, Technology, Trade, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[How could we harness DNA barcode technology in a handheld device that frontline officials could use to combat timber and wildlife trafficking?]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Survey responses to the Wildtech needs assessment—especially from field researchers—put portable DNA analysis near the top of the research and conservation technology wish-list. How could we harness DNA barcode technology in an adaptable, handheld device that frontline officials in developing countries could use to combat timber and wildlife trafficking? The DNA Barcode Scanner Hack that took place in Washington, DC on Friday, August 29, dug into this question. The meeting brought together over 40 experts in evolution and molecular biology, conservation, design, engineering and enforcement to brainstorm an open-source technology that could identify timber samples in the field, help flag wildlife trafficking, detect novel pathogens and enhance fisheries traceability, bypassing the need for an expensive, distant laboratory. Conservation X Labs, Smithsonian Institution and the Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL) hosted the event at the National Museum of American History. Paul Bunje facilitates his group&#8217;s thought process exercises for developing blue-sky breakthroughs for challenges associated with choosing and integrating DNA analysis technologies. Photo credit: Sarah Snyder. “The event was extraordinary,” said David Baisch, Molecular Innovations Fellow at Conservation X Labs. “We hoped that this event would identify clear development pathways for approaching a prototype which combined synergistic DNA isolation and analysis methods for timber, while keeping our design criteria of being cheap (a device cost of less than $1000, which could analyze a sample for $5 or less), portable, manufacturable, scalable, usable by an individual with no scientific training, in conditions without regular access to power, challenging environmental conditions,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/09/experts-hack-away-at-portable-dna-barcode-scanner-to-fight-timber-and-wildlife-trafficking/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-189743</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Bringing Star Trek tricorder analysis to the 21st century</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/07/bringing-star-trek-tricorder-analyzers-21st-century-earthlings/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/07/bringing-star-trek-tricorder-analyzers-21st-century-earthlings/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Jul 2016 07:30:49 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Hina Alam]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sue Palminteri]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/07/01193403/Portable-DNA-sequencer_ULeicester-Oxford-Nanopore-520x291.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://wildtech-mongabay-com.mongabay.com/?p=185386</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, Madagascar, and United Kingdom]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Analysis, data, DNA, Portable, Research, Technology, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Handheld, palm-sized, lightweight DNA preparation and sequencing devices are coming your way soon.]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Bulky, large, unwieldy machines are so 20th century. Technology for the next generation comes in the form of palm-sized devices that can be carried in pockets, not just backpacks. Beyond GPS, phones, and music players, devices that can miniaturize DNA amplification (copying) and sequencing (analyzing) promise to accelerate biological and medical research. And the field research community is ready. In an assessment conducted by wildtech-mongabay-com.mongabay.com of the technology needs of front-line conservationists and wildlife researchers, many researchers maintained that “hand-held DNA readers with up-to-date reference libraries” would be a game-changer in their work. Some have already experimented with its use in identifying species in the field. DNA section with the four base molecules. Image credit: WikiSummarizer Amplify in the field Reading the genetic code of a plant or an animal is considered the most reliable way to identify its species. The code is a sequence of molecules, called nucleotides – adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine – that are found in a specific order, which is unique to each organism. “DNA science can improve crops, solve crimes, protect biodiversity, and develop medical treatments,” said Dr. Sebastian Kraves, co-founder of miniPCR, in an email interview with WildTech. “Yet most of us have no access to DNA technologies because they are complex and expensive. We&#8217;ve created the DNA Discovery System to make DNA science simple and accessible for everyone, everywhere.” The miniPCR DNA Discovery System, Kraves continued, is a DNA lab that you can take to even your remote study site. To produce sufficient DNA for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/07/bringing-star-trek-tricorder-analyzers-21st-century-earthlings/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-188416</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Portable scanners that identify timber species could detect illegal logging</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/04/portable-scanners-identify-timbers-detect-illegal-logging/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/04/portable-scanners-identify-timbers-detect-illegal-logging/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>04 Apr 2016 15:04:30 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Julia John]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Julia John]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/04/01193351/715_v2-850x310-1-wp-520x190.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://wildtech-mongabay-com.mongabay.com/?p=185139</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, Forests, Law Enforcement, Portable, Research, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Many timber woods of conservation concern are hard to distinguish anatomically from species resembling them, especially when the wood sample lacks leaves or other botanical features. For instance, big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, is confused with the structurally similar Crabwood (Carapa guianensis), Cedar (Cedrela odorata), Cedrinho (Erisma uncinatum) [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Many timber woods of conservation concern are hard to distinguish anatomically from species resembling them, especially when the wood sample lacks leaves or other botanical features. For instance, big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, is confused with the structurally similar Crabwood (Carapa guianensis), Cedar (Cedrela odorata), Cedrinho (Erisma uncinatum) and Curupixá (Micropholis melinoniana). It’s critical that law enforcement accurately discriminate among woods to prevent the illegal logging and trading of threatened tree species without hindering legal trade. Wood anatomist José Arlete Camargos identifying cedar wood log in Acre, Brazil. Photo credit: Project NIRS ID. A team of scientists at the Brazilian Forest Service&#8217;s (SFB) Laboratory of Forest Products (LPF) has harnessed near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in a portable device to quickly and correctly identify wood to the species level.  The technology is an indirect chemical analysis involving a complex interpretation of the near-infrared region of the material’s electromagnetic spectrum and the application of multivariate statistics, or chemometrics. Researchers hope it will help environmental and trade agents in forests, on roads, at control posts, ports, borders and other stages of the supply chain detect unlawful timber in real time and strengthen forest law enforcement around the globe. Fieldwork team preparing wood surface and taking NIRS spectra of big-leaf mahogany in Acre, Brazil. Photo credit: Project NIRS ID. “Considering law enforcement will have an agile tool for wood identification in the forest, we believe it can help fight illegal logging, contribute to the preservation of native forests and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/04/portable-scanners-identify-timbers-detect-illegal-logging/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-188169</doi>				</item>
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