Science show on d w. In. The Northern Hemisphere is 2nd hottest summer since records began is just coming to an end. In the last 140 years theres only been one summer hotter than this 12016 thats here august was particularly roasting the fall of hottest summers were all in the last 5 years Climate Change is catching up with us its particularly evident in cities because they become heat islands. Have been the heating is the name given to the socalled heat island effect temperatures and towns and cities rise more sharply than in the surrounding areas because of the density of streets and buildings and the many people cars and trains all of which produce heat. Spread over the year the media. Temperature areas is around 1. 00 to 3. 00 degrees celsius warmer than areas outside and only spaces within them. On top of this town and city centers often cooled down fall less at night because the buildings density doesnt allow cool air to move around the city. On hot Summer Nights without agree to 10 peaches difference between a city and its surroundings can be more than 10 degrees celsius. Whats needed is cool air from the surrounding area but what happens when a current of air meets an obstacle thats what under this researching with the help of water light shining on tiny white particles suspended in the water reveals currents in the tank. Here the current flows unhindered but then it hits a building. You can see there in front of it that theres turbulence and the current flows over the top of the building and theres more turbulence behind it and this is what happens when an air current is confronted with a building this is just one building but in a city up there are lots of them and that means that all kinds of air currents. Through mix. Does cold air flow over a building or around it and what happens if there are obstacles in its path rubin illuminates these issues too. If a building faces the wind its width and height are the key factors in blocking the flow of air. The bigger it is the more the current is blocked. If i add another obstacle behind the 1st one that creates an area between them that is poorly ventilated. The wind if it only comes from the front goes over the top of both buildings. The area between them remains poorly ventilated. But you can reduce this effect if you place the building with its narrow side facing the wind. That reduces the surface area the wind hits and allows it to flow passage of the building. Urban planners need to pay close attention to the orientation of buildings relative to prevailing winds here for example they block cool air coming off the high ground into the valley but if they are turned to 90 degrees the wind passes between them and everything gets nicely ventilated. High rise buildings can also do their part in ventilating a city. If i place a Tall Building behind a short one. When it goes over the top of the short one and blows down into the street in front of the top and swirls around. You can influence the exchange of air in a city quite well pending on where the building stand relative to each other. If the Tall Building is right in front of the short one that blocks the breeze and prevents cooling but if the distance is great enough the current also reaches the short building. Big gaps between city buildings are red this proximity makes them he said and some cities like chennai and mumbai in india can reach temperatures of 30 degrees celsius. Lagos in nigeria is also one of the worlds hottest city. As is mecca in saudi arabia. And heating is happening across the globe even in cooler places like the german capital living. Joke form is an urban climate expert searching for effective ways to reduce City Temperatures this detailed model of berlin is going to help him. In hot weather the german capital is an urban heat island thermal imaging shows how populated urban areas function like hot plates they can be up to 8 degrees warmer than outlying areas. The researcher is using this mini world to find a solution. Inside this model of a city apartment and ice cube will demonstrate how much heat gets through. The test houses made of regular Building Materials. To see what happens when the sun shines on a brick building the building warms up. And what happens if we use other materials insulate the facade of or if we put a tree in front of it. Using time lapse imaging we can see how people fare in this kind of building it only takes half an hour for the house to really heat up very soon they would be practically melting in the heat and no wonder its over 30 degrees. Buildings as weve reproduced them here in the model absolve the heat energy of the sun very well and stoled its energy very well. This is due to affect with the color of a Building Material dictates how much radiation from the sun is reflected by it surfaces. In the case of black slate for example the albuterol value is 0 point one that means just 10 percent of the rays from the surface are reflected. With red roof tiles the values between 0 point one and 0. 35 and with white facades like the ones common in greece the albi go value is between 0. 5 and 0. 9 the lower the value of their for solids or roofs the harder the buildings in the city will be. Now the expert tries simple Counter Measures 1st external thermal insulation panels. We want to see what effect this has on the building ultimately insulating the facade not only ensures that heat stays in the apartment it also keeps heat out of the apartment. Next comes a coat of light colored paint this reflects the sunlight and so troops the heat out. Brightly painted insulated the house then gets a layer of green or. On its roof before being bathed in another half hour of 1000. 00 watt sunshine a couple of shade providing trees round the protective measures. Behold this time our hypothermic resident is still on his feet no wonder with an interior temperature of almost 23. 00 degrees. Since now about 23. 00 degrees in the apartment and compared to the temperature of around 30 degrees at the start of our experiment thats a big drop in the world. Which all goes to show that paint can play an Important Role in easing the citys he problem. As can green spaces in a city. And they dont only offer a fresh mint. Its a paradox while the habitat of wild animals shrinks thanks to expanding cities some creatures uplink to urban areas and finding refuge in them. Even develop into unique groups of city to animals. Urban foxes live among us but make only occasional fleeting appearances there a growing presence in cities and have proven to be highly adaptable. Evolutionary biologist sophia q make researchers bermans fox population for wild animals the city is a challenging habitat. I have a dent you have to family in mind will sort of a heart attack the city is its such an artificial environment miss so much man made him put the foxes have to withstand the light and noise traffic i find that fascinating to me to me and. To make has been gathering data on urban foxes for the last 5 years shes equipped 17 of them with a transmitter that allows her to track their movements shes also set up cameras near fox holes in order to monitor the activities of their inhabitants. And women must also at the moment im trying to find out if theyre actually hit. I know theyre in the area but its a wide area so there are lots of folks then and id like to know which one theyre actually using the moment but lets not. Kid make is writing a doctoral thesis at the lab and its institute for zoo and Wildlife Research on the behavioral ecology of red foxes in urban environments. She cited specimens in parks and even in berlins government district. None of the strong smell indicates fox has offered some remark. That goes a rabbit. As we can see there are rich pickings for foxes here. Hes also. One of the fox so sophia kimock has located its beneath containers at the edge of a park the foxes keep a low profile during the day but they do the traces of the monkey but if you look closely you can see a footprint up book. Urban foxes live in close proximity to the human population how come given that theyre naturally shy animals. Well theyve found a habitat in the city where no one is preying upon them as is the case in the countryside whether many food sources for omnivores. Folks is a highly opportunistic and the anything they find although theyre especially good at hunting mice and other rodents they can also live off rotting fruit. And all sorts of things really. There is no shortage of trash in the city its one big but fate as far as the foxes are concerned. Berlin is believed to be home to between 5010000 foxes fox cubs born in the city are unfixed by the hustle and bustle of the big city. Foxes are becoming ever less timid. Soviet research has revealed that berlin has its own indigenous population and the animals are in fact genetically different from their country cousins. The stock kinds of china and the city limits seem to mark a barrier between fox population was still leave men between the city and the countryside but its massively reduced. The forces that live in the city you dont want to leave it and foxes that live in the countryside dont want to venture into the city. Because theyre afraid and youre not used to being close to humans and. Her research has also shown that urban foxes mark out their territory and like to state any with some exceptions. Then took the foxes reach maturity and autumn and start to migrate to New Territory so they make their way through the city and you think they would choose to travel through the park some green spaces but in fact they tend to travel along the motorways to get from one place to the next. Foxes obviously appreciate the benefits of urban infrastructure theyre becoming increasingly bold urban foxes often even approach humans. To the consternation of many foxes are thought to carry disease although in fact release was a radical idea in germany in 2008 and fox which is highly dangerous is rare. Has been humming on this and off west from the time theres no fox tape and its rare across germany and the risk of getting infected is very very not it and if you dont come into direct contact with foxes then you are not at risk and in general you just stick to hygiene little soft or working in the garden and if youve been taking in the soil i bet you didnt even a out of. Anywhere where foxes might lurk where theres fallen fruit vegetables or berries its important to keep washing your hands and if you do encounter a fox keep your distance. Most berliners dont mind living in close proximity to foxes in fact they like them sophia to make will be completing her ph d. Thesis this year her research on urban fox populations has been exhaustive shes grown fond of her bushy tailed research subjects. Thats why to folks anywhere else is where the 2nd fox i quote with. The vix and a tough cookie who read how young hair every year. I dont get any data from her anymore but i still come back to see if shes still head to check up on her up so here are a few urban foxes live to a ripe old age in this city goals are their greatest enemy yet the growing presence of foxes shows that the opportunities of city life clearly outweigh the threats. And yet its that hes continued to sprout up at an alarming rate eating ever more into surrounding areas humans and their beloved countries are taking over like here in china. And here in custer. As a consequence animals and humans are getting closer even sharing diseases visually from india had a question about that. What is it were not take diseases they are diseases caused by pathogens carried by nonhuman animals that spread to people 6 out of every 10 Infectious Diseases are believed to be 0 enough to take. The pathogens can be viruses bacteria parasites all funky many of the diseases they cause in people a mild but some a serious and even deadly. The bubonic plague tuberculosis malaria and ebola as do an arctic diseases that have killed countless millions of people. Most itos and bats. But also cats and dogs and many other species carry pathogens that can make people sick that often. They dont make the animals that host them sick transmission can occur via a bite through eating the flesh of a carrier or contact with its blood or feces. Zoo an arctic diseases can spread fast and far if the pathogens adapted to be transmitted from person to person thats the case with the Novel Coronavirus. One hypothesis is that hang billions with the intermediaries that transported the Novel Coronavirus from its natural hosts baths to humans. What markets where life wild animals of souls are considered a potential site of transmission of zoo and disease pathogens some have been closed for that reason. Infectious diseases from animals are a growing problem of the problem has to do with humans encroaching on animal habitats forests are cleared for timber or to make space for farms or towns humans and animals species on the longer far apart this offers opportunities for the pathogens to make the leap. There are more than 200. 00 known zoonotic diseases that direct countless germs out there to which humans have no immunity and new devastating disease is lurking to prevent the making the jump to humans we need to protect wild animals and their habitats. You know to diseases can result from intensive livestock farming the over the grid animals are more susceptible to disease and so theyre given blanket antibiotics this can lead to resistant bacteria which can then be transmitted to people. Intensive farming also causes other problems its resins genetic diversity by repressing older brutes of farm animals. Knee jerk pull your pigs. Styria and chickens and the ancient british white. People have been breeding and domesticated animals for at least 11000 years. Now a days 180 breeds of farm animals are endangered in europe alone among them the german saddle back. At the head open air museum favre is working to preserve the rare breed with its distinctive features for one thing its meat tastes very different from that of pigs raised on a factory farm. And we have. In the autumn when the acorns fall to the ground the saddle back seat lots and lots of them are so their meat has this wonderful acorn and flavor its something you dont often find nowadays we also make sausage out of the meat and its very special those. Pigs have been bred mainly for their meat. The german saddleback has a generous layer of fat which nearly smelled its due. Tastes changed in the 1960 s. And demand for fatty meat declined. The Food Industry responded by getting it scientists to breed futuristic new pigs with more meat chops all the same size and crucially a lot less fat. The breeders did not care much about the health or well being of the animals these newfangled swine were too big and heavy for their legs and hearts specimens were put on treadmills so the strongest could be identified and allowed to have offspring. These pigs were longer and had 2 more ribs than most and lots of lean flesh. But modern pigs are susceptible to stress for example when being transported to slaughter but efforts are under way debris. At a variety that takes even that in its stride. Old breeds are more robust and on the whole healthier and that probably has to do with their genetic make up. There are collections of genetic material from old breeds of farm animals. They are very important for research and for breeding purposes. One aim is to combine genes from different breeds in order to reduce the susceptibility to certain diseases. But its far from certain that epidemics of say swine fever could be prevented this way. German bred mountain cattle are long lived and undemanding. Have without complaining or complications for the most part. In the olden days there were no vets just down the road so everything had to just function properly and thats the case here even though its cold when they have their tops in fabry humans rarely have to get involved its a great advantage to very healthy. And the ancient celts are believed to have bred these red brown cattle 2000 or more years ago the cattle provide milk and meat and can be harnessed to plough the fields this breed is endangered outdone by modern turbo cows. Breeders have been adapting cows to the requirements of industrial farming. New greens have been designed on the drawing board. The cows utter was bred to fit the shape of a milking machine milk production increased the bodys use of feed was optimized. Red mountain cattle were regarded as extinct in the 1970 s. But thanks to a coincidence it has survived a stud seen it was discovered at a breeding facility. As he was known sire to a new generation and in doing so saved the breed from extinction the. Characteristics could be useful in the future. Even if they are no longer used in production their genetic material is needed for further breeding and we cant know today exactly what kind of breeding requirements will have a century from now. A change of scene the rain mountains of central germany are home to the ruined sheet its positive characteristics were also nearly forgotten. Once demand for its ruined sheep pelts dried up its numbers dropped from hundreds of thousands to just a few 100 creatures the sheep scratchy wool became unmarketable. Modern sheep were needed to provide more meat more milk and above all softer wool. None of this applies to the ruined sheep but still its being rediscovered for landscaping purposes modern sheep brains often suffer from both disorders but not the root in their trotters are especially tough. Thanks to this hardness they have no problem grazing year round and since sheep are big eaters they help maintain sensitive ecosystems. This is silver thistle an emblem of the run their only chance of survival depends on the grazing strategy used on the sheep are best suited to the purpose of this the sheep choose what they like and they leave the rest alone that means this biodiversity already exists i mean actually want more of this dismissed my. Old farm animals theyre still useful for Landscape Maintenance for their ease of care for their taste and for their genetic diversity. If outlet is right why im a latin even if she had a science question youd like us to onset say and get in if we featured on this show you did in little surprise as a thank you. Come on just ask the but. Want to hear most stories about science then visit our website and check us out on twitter. The but thats all from us at to morrow today thanks for joining us. Were back next week so then you stay healthy im curious. A country at peace and yet on the front lines. Germany during the cold war the been for decades this is what these studies off against the bulge in ordinary germans experienced the conflict the bombing and the cold war. 15 minutes on d w. In the height of Climate Change. Africas most. Of whats in store for. Years to come for their future. E. W. Dot com the friggin megacities the multimedia inside clear answer. Media and Information Literacy the 7th online session of the Global Media Forum coded 19 has changed the way we communicate. This brings new opportunities but also risks. One solution media and Information Literacy. Is this enough to approach the challenges in our media landscape and join our discussion starts 1230 u. T. C. Heard. The more. I can. Because you know forward isnt love. And will swallow smaller. As low as lows. Theres no use in the love of her for the wicked. Doesnt. Work history never heard her. Hands. Her. The state of the news live from perth to donald trump on the fly off to making a brief appearance outside hospital to create supporters drive by outside the Medical Center where the u. S. President is being treated for kind of the time taina slabbed as political theater is dr saif you could be just charged as early as monday night also coming up. Britains thing in new influx of migrants crossing the English Channel from fronts pretty sidetracks of nonsense of the promises by my body to government to take back control of its borders osterberg