Mobility restrictions in older adults are common and increase the likelihood of negative health outcomes and premature mortality. The effect of built environment on mobility in older populations, among whom environmental effects may be strongest, is the focus of a growing body of the literature. We reviewed recent research (1990-2010) that examined associations of objective measures of the buil...

Informal urban green-space (IGS) such as vacant lots, brownfields and street or railway verges is receiving growing attention from urban scholars. Research has shown IGS can provide recreational space for residents and habitat for flora and fauna, yet we know little about the quantity, spatial distribution, vegetation structure or accessibility of IGS. We also lack a commonly accepted definitio...

Toxocariasis has long been considered a parasitic disease affecting pet owners and children who often play in sandboxes at public parks. Recent cases of this animal-borne infection, however, indicate that its clinical manifestations and etiologies are changing. In this article, we will describe the critical characteristic features of toxocariasis alongside the contributions of Japanese research...

Urban green spaces play an important role in maintaining urban biodiversity in the Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Plant-dependent insect assemblages such as Cerambycidae, in particular, are likely influenced by the existence of green spaces in Tokyo's urbanised environments. This study is the first comprehensive inventory of the cerambycid fauna in the Komaba Campus of the University of Tokyo. A cera...

Prior research has shown that the physical characteristics of one's environment have wide ranging effects on affect and cognition. Other research has demonstrated that one's thoughts have impacts on mood and behavior, and in this three-part research program we investigated how physical features of the environment can alter thought content. In one study, we analyzed thousands of journal entries ...

A protocol is developed for the incorporation of multiple criteria, including spatial design and socio-political criteria, into the design of conservation area networks. This protocol begins with the identification of the non-dominated set of alternatives, where each alternative is a network of conservation areas that satisfies biodiversity representation targets. This set is then refined to id...

Contemporary park and wilderness carrying capacity frameworks rely on formulation of standards of quality, which are defined as minimum acceptable resource and social conditions. Formulation of standards of quality involves elements of both science and values, and both of these elements must be integrated into informed judgments on the part of park and wilderness managers. That is, managers mus...

Understanding how to manage biodiversity in urban areas will become increasingly important as density of humans residing in urban centers increases and urban areas expand. While considerable research has documented the shifts in biodiversity along urbanization gradients, much less work has focused on how characteristics of dense urban centers, effectively novel environments, influence behavior ...

As a multimodal travel behavior, park and ride includes several trip modes such as car, walking, bus, or railway. And people’s choice of park and ride is influenced by many factors. This paper, based on the park and ride behavior survey in Beijing, will analyze the relationship between the perception of the influencing factors and the behavior intent for park and ride by using structural equati...