SUBJECT

Title

Environmental biophysics

Type of instruction

lecture

Level

Doctoral

Faculty

Faculty of Science

Part of degree program

Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences

Credits

Recommended in

Semesters 1-4

Typically offered in

Autumn/Spring semester

Course description

Threats from our cosmic environment. Protective effect of the van-Allen belts of the Earth, geo-magnetosphere, polar lights (aurora). Ozon shield of the Earth, ultraviolet radiation and UV sensitivity. Perm/Trias extinction due to a supernova explosion? Nuclear winter and dinosaur extinction because of a comet impact. Physics and meteorology of lightnings, their physiological effects, ball lightning, red sprites. Ultraviolet paradox of polarization sensitivity. Light pollution. Sunburn of plants by sunlit water droplets. Hearing, noise pollution and injury.

Readings

Horváth Gábor, Farkas Alexandra, Kriska György (2016) A poláros fény környezetoptikai és biológiai vonatkozásai. ELTE Eötvös Kiadó, Budapest (ISBN 978 963 312 253 2) 485 oldal
Gábor Horváth (editor) (2014) Polarized Light and Polarization Vision in Animal Sciences. Springer-Verlag: Heidelberg, Berlin, New York (ISBN: 978-3-642-54717-1, doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-54718-8) p. 649
Gábor Horváth, Dezső Varjú (2004) Polarized Light in Animal Vision - Polarization Patterns in Nature. Springer-Verlag: Heidelberg, Berlin, New York (ISBN: 3-540-40457-0) p. 447