Category: Adaptation

Abstract.

Under the settings of the occupant population growth, higher building, and transportation masses, traditional houses in a tropical climate are not designed as a consequence of the optimal model in rural environments with improved air circulation and lower noise sources as original types in the past. Those conditions take consequences on occupational adaptation, physically and psychologically. The study intended to analyze the occupant’s sensitivity and adaptation to heat and noise environments. The tropical environment, which is represented by geographical altitude, lowland, and upland, was taken as the study location. The number of surviving traditional houses was 19 houses as the representative numbers, both lowland and upland areas, with 71 occupants as the respondents. The thermometer and sound level meter instruments were set at occupant reference height and used to obtain simultaneous results with an interview. The result emphasized that psychologically, the environmental settings result in accumulative effects on votes, different altitudes, and urban growth results in different thermal votes and noise preferences. The occupant indices are not significant factors. However, males are the most sensitive in higher conditions, and females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. The close-the-building aperture is the most frequently used as passive method for noise regulation, while it is also flexible in combining with heat control.

Introduction

The interaction between individuals and their built and physical setting generates environmental psychology [1]. It examines the effect on human understandings by their existence and behavior, as well as the effect of personalities on the location, that is, factors inducing environmental presentation and conduct to encourage pro-environmental performance. Most of the individuals within the background optimize their association with the given atmosphere over environmental adjustment, behavioral, and normative adaptation, and such optimization procedures are constantly transformed by the objectives and determinations of their activities concerning the social and physical background [2].

As pro-environmental actions, which have been well-defined as personal behaviors affecting the sustainability of the environment, in the high compactness of urban environment in the tropical region, thermal and noise have concurrent consequences on the enclosed atmosphere in addition to the whole environmental issues. The indoor comfort requirement determines the different environmental considerations, such as indoor air quality (IAQ), thermal, luminous, and sonic environments standards [3]. It has both physical and psychological effects on occupant adaptation, especially for traditional buildings that have experienced changing environments. In free-running tropical buildings as in traditional housing, when the temperature and air humidity might be modified difficulty without artificial resources, their occupants request a higher wind speed [4].

In a noisy environment, annoyance as a reaction indicator should be evaluated with caution for non-acoustical reasons, such as economic, cultural, and social situations ([5,6]). As Samodra [7] explained, the effect of one factor on the others only or partial argument has been resulted by related research ([8,9,10,11]). However, the tropical environment results in a contradictive requirement between thermal and noise control, which is not much discussed by preceding findings. Therefore, this study aims to examine the traditional lifestyle and its adaptation to the urban environment through the perception evaluation of the occupants.

Research method

The study examined the traditional building occupant’s sensitivity and adaptation to the thermal and noise conditions with lowland Javanese houses (Surabaya, 0-50m above MSL) and in the highland or upland (Malang, 440-667m above MSL). The physical height, and altitude, are the typical setting of the tropical climate in Indonesia. The objects in both lowland and upland areas are 6x7m2 in normal size (Figure 1.). Recently, wood (TLwood = 18 dB) has been used for the walls as acoustic properties. For thermal properties, wood (U-value = 3.19 W/mK, Tlag = 0.3 hours) has been applied for the housing walls and the roofs have been made from the traditional tile (U-value = 0.84 W/mK, Tlag = 1 hour).

As a continuation of the previous study [12], the existence of traditional houses was 19 objects and the 71 respondents of the field study (general note: clothing = 0.16 to 0.57 and metabolic rate = 0.8 to 1.7, indicating “sleeping to working” actions), see Table 1. The thermal instruments-thermometer and the noise measurement tools-sound level meter were set at a reference height of the occupant (1.5 m) and conducted to measure the 24-hour conditions and simultaneously results with an interview in the critical time. Furthermore, the interview schedule was organized at the critical time, the hottest, and the noisiest time (weekday/weekend, around 12:00 to 18:00). In this survey, following the seven scale standards, the thermal vote is set for the temperature poll with a further assessment of noise sensitivity based on the occupant vote on noise (Table 2.).

Result and Discussion

Occupant Response to Their Environment

In general, the hotter atmosphere and more noisy conditions of the lowland than in the upland stimulate the respondents to elect the high part options (Figure 2.). Although the condition is more cooling and lower in noise, psychologically, the environmental settings result in accumulative impacts on their votes. Because of more distance from the noise source, some occupants still feel slightly quiet or quiet in a little percentage. In addition to, Samodra et al [12], the tropical comfort shift has contributed to changing human adaptation.

The colder atmosphere of the upland tropical region is perceived in the distributed votes, which tends to be a neutral choice. The neutral vote still implies a comfort requirement in the general state. Comparable to the thermal, because the objects are located frequently in the settlement zone, which is more detached from the urban road as the location of the primary noise source, the noise in the upland is supposed as scattered polls. The regression (R2) of thermal in the upland is lower than 0.5. It shows that even though it has ascended trend, in general, it is distributed, hot in the afternoon, and cool at night. The noise votes on average for both lowland and highland tend to have neutral feelings. In general, it indicates that in high or little noise, the residents vote for a tolerable noise. Meanwhile, the findings reveal that there less than 50% of respondents vote. That distributed results are affected by the unpredictable noise generator, numerous building locations, and the occupant’s compliance as adaptation.

In the critical time, the hot and noisy results tend to result in high choice (Figure 3.). Meanwhile, different votes are found for some conditions that indicate a similar condition in temperature and noise level. It signifies that the respondents have unique adjustments or adaptations based on their human index as well as on the condition of their local environment and building. The linear trend line also shows that between lowland and upland regions, the perception of thermal comfort results in a neutral vote for the temperature, 29.3°C. Although there is a difference in the climate and comfort zone, the occupants can control the temperature.

Zero votes for the lower section (-3 to 0) show the features of the critical condition in noise, it is dissimilar to the usual condition. The higher noise source does not always result in a higher noisy sensation and vice versa. It may be a different method and capability in noise adaptation. Following to initial study [12], based on equations of trend line linear, if x (vote) is 0, y (temperature) will be 49.9 dBA (in lowland), and in the condition of upland, y (sound pressure level) is 47.8 dBA if x (vote) is zero. It shows that different altitudes with different urban growth result in different building densities and noise preferences. Furthermore, higher noise intensity results in higher adaptation and higher noise thresholds.

Occupant Index and Adaptation Method

The occupant index consists of the type of sex and age. Its elemental breakdown of the hottest time shows that males are the most sensitive in higher conditions, x=3, y=34.2°C, the highest among the others (Figure 4.). They have more massive activities than others. However, the occupant indices are similarly indicated by similar tend-line equations and regression, so they are not significant factors.

In the linear trend line, indicated by the lowest sound pressure level for the highest vote (vote 3), children have the most sensitive to noise perception. In the neutral condition, for children, if x=0, y=48.3 dBA, for females, if x=0, y=47.2 dBA, and for males, if x=0, y=48.6 dBA. It shows that females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. It may be affected by a lower capability in noise adaptation.

The adaptation methods were set as a summary of the occupants’ lifestyle based on characteristics of environmental psychology concepts: Volume adaptation, estimation, and control (Figure 5.). The upland occupants have numerous approaches in medium and self-control or personal adjustment for both passive and active strategies. Individual modification has a correlation with the metabolic rate of occupants. They tend to have light behaviors like sleeping or take resting) if the condition is hot. Lowland occupants perceive the passive technique as being ineffective. A fan is not only cheaper than an air conditioner but also useful for cooling, a significant point for mid-low-income occupants.

The noise estimation as the method of environmental psychology adaptation finds the effort to close the building windows or doors or the “close the opening” method is the best way for higher noise as in lowlands while the self-adjustment is dominantly voted for low noise areas. The occupants are an inability to source interference indicated by no vote for source control (climate and vehicle are the primary sources for thermal and sound problems, respectively). Additionally, closing the opening and self-control are the most straightforward methods. In the lowland, the adaptation method is dominated by closing the opening while in the upland, it has more various ways. All might be affected by direct response to limited or more various aspects of noise.

Table 3. shows that the active method is used all the time in the lowland. Meanwhile, because of security reasons, the passive method is used for a limited time (morning to afternoon) on the weekend when the temperature is high, and they stay at home. Upland is perceived as neutral to slightly warm, so the active method is used in the morning only, and there is no difference between weekdays and weekends. Besides the security motive, the passive method is not used under underheated conditions. Even though it is normal, the requirement of ventilation for air change (health reasons) is not considered as important as thermal comfort.

Although the occupants vote to “close the opening” as the primary system for lifestyle adaptation, the higher source noise does not always cause the reaction to conduct this strategy. The integration response through ventilation needs and house circulation time concerns this situation. The fully opened aperture, window, or door (100%) by the occupant in the morning to afternoon happens when the peak noise is because the prerequisite of heat reduction using ventilation is more vital needs than delivering noise control. Moreover, the total answer to closing the opening at night occurs in the lowland. More than noise control, security reason is the primary justification. It has more critical safety as a larger area of the city than the upland needs.

Conclusion

The result analysis of this research can be summarized as follows: Psychologically, the environmental conditions result in accumulative effects on votes even though the condition may be a lower temperature and noise. Neutral still indicates a comfort condition in the general condition. Different altitudes and urban growth result in different thermal votes and noise preferences. Furthermore, higher sound pressure levels outcomes more excellent adaptation and higher noise limit. The occupant indices are not significant factors. However, males are the most sensitive in higher thermal conditions. Meanwhile, females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. The ‘close the opening’ is the most frequently used as passive method by occupants for adjusting the environmental noise. It is adaptable to merging with the building’s thermal control.

References

1. L. Steg and J. de Groot, Environmental Psychology: An Introduction (British Psychological Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., West Sussex, 2019), pp. 1–11.
2. J-H. Shin, Journal of Environmental Psychology 45, 11–21 (2016).
3. L. Huang, Y. Zhu, Q. Ouyang, and B. Cao, Building and Environment 49, 304–309 (2012).
4. H. Feriadi and N. H. Wong, Energy and Building 36, 614–626 (2004).
5. H. E. Laszlo, E. S. McRobie, S. A. Stansfeld, and A. L. Hansell, Science of the Total Environment 435–436, 551–562 (2012).
6. G. Winkel, S. Saegert, and G. W. Evans, Journal of Environmental Psychology 29, 318–328 (2009).
7. F. X. T. B. Samodra, Journal of Architecture and Urbanism 41(4), 305–315 (2017).
8. M. Caniato, F. Bettarello, C. Schmid, and P. Fausti, Applied Acoustics 113, 22–33 (2016).
9. K. Freihoefer, D. Guerin, C. Martin, H-Y. Kim, and J. K. Brigham, Indoor and Built Environment 24, 457–472 (2015).
10. M. Hodgson and A. A. Khaleghi, Building Acoustics 19, 313–325 (2012).
11. J. A. E. Paris-Newton, E. Prokofieva, and N. Henry, Building Acoustics 23(2),120–128 (2016).
12. F. X. T. B. Samodra, Irvansyah, and C. Erwindi, E3S Web of Conferences 67, 04013 (2018).

Introduction

The purpose of this lab report is to reflect on an experiment carried out on 30/01/2020. The experiment’s objective “was to measure the minimum amount of luminance of a test spot required to produce a visual sensation which is the absolute intensity threshold (1/sensitivity) of the visual system to light in dark conditions as a function of time using the standard instrument for this purpose. By viewing the target extra-foveally, using part of the retina containing both cones and rods, both phases of dark adaptation will be measured.” 1

To establish the dark adaptation (DA) mechanism of the eye and to measure an individual dark adaptation capacity, Goldmann-Weekers Adaptometer was used, with the psychophysical method of limits adopted. This instrument shows that rods and cones recover at different rates as shown in the graphs below. The use of this experiment has been proven useful in the clinical diagnosis of various retinal disorders. 2

The ability to adapt to light and dark conditions is a crucial ability of the eye. Dark adaptation is a phenomenon that the eyes adjust to scotopic conditions, for example walking into a cinema and the eyes slowly adjusting to see in the dark. Dark adaptation is not a new concept, it has been the subject of many research studies and towards the end of the 19th century, it was considered a mechanism of the eyes and not the brain. Evidence of DA is that when one eye of a dark-adapted subject to bright light, there is a decrease in sensitivity of the exposed eye but not that of the shielded eye. Suggesting that a dual method of light and dark adaptation is present in the eye. 3

The duplex nature of our visual system is shown by the dark adaptation curve below (image 1). This theory indicates that the retina utilizes two photoreceptors types, rods, and cones. The first part of the curve shows a rapid reduction until 5-10 mins when the curve plateaus (cones), this represents the photopic thresholds. The rod-cone break is where there is an abrupt change in the slope, this is when the rods have become more sensitive than the cones. This is followed by the slow reduction in the second part of the curve which represents the skeptics’ threshold to around 30 mins where the curve again plateaus (rod).2

The spectrum of light adsorbed in rods, peaks about 500nm when light excites the rhodopsin molecule, it’s isomerized and the transduction process occurs. This then splits from rhodopsin to retinal and opsin. The physical effect is that it becomes lighter in color, known as visual pigment bleaching. In a process called visual pigment regeneration, retinal and opsin are converted back to rhodopin. For this process to happen so efficiently there is always a normal level of bleached molecules in the retina. To measure the visual pigment regeneration one must look to William Rushton’s research, who devised a procedure that concluded cones pigment can take 6 minutes to regenerate and rods up to thirty minutes. Rushton’s results also demonstrated that there is an important link between perception and physiology.

Sensitivity to light depends on the concentration of visual pigment

The speed at which sensitivity is adjusted to the dark depends on the regeneration of the visual pigment.4

Results

To create the dark adaptation curve, three individuals are exposed to a pre-adapting light in one eye for different durations, and the intensity of the light was kept constant. Then the light is turned off. The subject, now sitting in the dark, is exposed to a succession of dim light targets approximately 11o below fixation. The intensity of the test light is controlled by a neutral density filter. Pre-adaptation plays an important role in the regulation of the experiment and to verify that a bi-phasic curve is achieved and indicates the Duplex retina theory. (Kolb et al., 2011)6

• Pre- Bleaching times
• Shóna light adapted: 7 mins
• Saroj light adapted: 6mins
• Rita light adapted: 5mins
• Shóna Hendrick
• Blue=cones
• Red= rods

Shóna was bleached for 7 minutes and a rod-cone break is seen at ~7 ½ minutes. This graph shows the rod threshold extending to 17mins. The graph does not start at 0 minutes as an error occurred in recording initially. Due to this, the results are not completely accurate for this trial.

• Saroj Khatri
• Blue=cones
• Red= rods

As seen in the graph for Saroj, the first section(cones) shows a rapid threshold reduction followed by a plateau. Then the Cone-Rod break is noticed at approx 5 minutes and moves on to the second part of the graph(rod) where the reduction in rod thresholds extends to 26mins.

• Rita Jennings
• Blue= Rod
• Red= cones

Rita was bleached for 5 minutes and a rod-cone break is seen at approx. 5 ½-6 minutes, this is the first cure and phase one of the dark adaptation curve. The rod sensitivity increases and can be seen in the second part of the curve, phase 2 of the dark adaptation curve. This graph shows the rod threshold extending to 25mins which means the minimum ( absolute threshold) is at 10−5 cd/m2 after 25 minutes in the dark. (Kolb et al., 2011)

Discussion

The dark adaptation experiment gave insight into the importance of the photoreceptor cells and their regeneration. During this experiment, we learned how to measure a person’s ability to dark adapt. The resulting graphs from our experiment showed a short cone phase, confirming that the cones were not active in scotopic conditions. The rod-cone break is seen at roughly 5,7 ½, and 5 ½ minutes respectively on our graphs, as the rods become more sensitive than the cones.

Factors that affect dark adaptation include:

1. Intensity and duration of the pre-adapting light.

Shóna was bleached for the longest and Saroj and Rita had shorter bleaching times. The graphs prove the duration of the pre-adapting light affects the curve. The weaker the pre-adaptation light, the faster the recovery as seen through Saroj and Rita’s graphs. Weak or short pre-adaptation bleaching, can cause negligible photopigment bleaching and can raise the threshold, therefore decreasing the sensitivity, as per who the law is this?

2. Size and position of the retinal are used in measuring dark adaptation.

A small test spot with an eccentricity of 0o would reveal only a rod curve is obtained versus that of 2o which shows a normal DA curve.

The opposite is true with the size of the spot, as only a single cone break is found because these are the only photoreceptors found at the fovea. Increasing size incorporates the peripheral retina containing rods.

3. Wavelength distribution of the light used. For example, the shorter the wavelength the more obvious the rod-cone break is as rods are much more sensitive to short wavelengths once dark adapted.

In this experiment, only monochromatic light was used. To further investigate the hypothesis that the wavelength of light affects dark adaptation, other wavelengths need to be introduced into this experiment. 5

Both strengths and limitations were noted during this experiment:

• Using and understanding the equipment posed a problem initially and therefore resulted in Shóna’s results being slightly inaccurate. The graph was restarted once we familiarised ourselves with the method. For this reason, we recommend a trial before commencing the real experiment.
• Age must be taken into consideration as rod degeneration occurs in older patients before degeneration cones. This will inevitably affect the result of the curve and make the length of the test longer
• Another restriction to this method of measuring DA is the time it takes. Each patient takes ~30mins and therefore it would not be realistic for this test to be carried out in daily optometric practice.
• One strength is the graphing of the curve by the adaptometer, as immediately after ceasing the experiment it is possible to see results and estimate the rod-cone break.
• Another advantage is that any abnormalities on the graph can be seen promptly and assist in diagnosing/ more accurate referral letters.

Recent studies have shown that the AdaptDx dark adaptometer is a more accurate and efficient way of measuring DA. AdaptDx is used more widely now as test time is < 6.5mins rather than >30mins when using Goldmann-Weekers. 7

Measuring and recording the DA curve has proven to be a diagnosing instrument for AMD, slow adaptation can indicate subclinical AMD at least 3 years before drusen are visible on the retina. 8

In conclusion, the DA curve recorded by Goldmann-Weekers Dark Adaptometer can be used to evaluate how a patient’s photoreceptors are functioning. It assesses night blindness, degenerative retinal diseases (eg: retinitis pigmentosa), hereditary cone degeneration, and rod monochromats. It is also frequently used to test for and diagnose AMD. 7

1. Grainne Scanlon, Physiology of Vision 1 Lab Manual, 2019/20; Pg3-6.
2. Chapter 3, Dark Adaptation(pg 37-43),Visual Perception, A Clinical Orientation, 4th edition,Steven H. Schwartz, ISBN: 978-0-07-160462-8
3. Reuter, T. (2011). Fifty years of dark adaptation 1961-2011. Vision Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2011.08.021
4. Goldstein, E. Bruce. The Blackwell Handbook Of Sensation And Perception. 1st ed. John Wiley & Sons, 2008.
5. M. Kalloniatis and C. Luu, Light and Dark Adaptation; 2007
6. Light and Dark Adaptation by Michael Kalloniatis and Charles Luu Kolb, et al. 2011
7. Jackson GR, Scott IU, Kim IK, Quillen DA, Iannaccone A, Edwards JG. Diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of dark adaptometry for detection of age-related macular degeneration. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2014;55(3):1427–1431. Published 2014 Mar 10. doi:10.1167/iovs.13-13745
8. AdaptDx Dark Adaptometer, 2019: AdaptDx® Dark Adaptometer

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are on the front line of climate change-related perturbations due to their small land masses located in areas prone to natural disasters and extreme weather events. Their exposure is exacerbated still further by factors such as a reliance on natural resources for subsistence and livelihoods, inadequate infrastructure, high population growth, and limited health, education, disaster response systems, and adaptive capacity. This entails challenges regarding freshwater availability, agricultural production, safe housing conditions, food security, and health.

Due to their vulnerability, SIDS is front and center of climate change adaptation projects. However, in the context of top-down approaches, a lot of the development gains from foreign aid fail to reach the communities that need it the most. In the field of adaptation, this observation has resulted in the advance of bottom-up approaches, such as community-based adaptation (CBA). The central tenet of CBA is that local communities should be the main actors in determining and prioritizing responses to climate change. Under the CBA framework, local individuals and community organizations take charge of their own adaptation processes, facilitated (but not directed) by donors and project implementers.

The dual aim of CBA is to empower communities to make their own adaptation decisions regarding their lives or their livelihoods, while also addressing underlying social, cultural, and political challenges. In theory, CBA accommodates the local knowledge, capabilities, priorities, and context of the community.

The community approach is increasingly touted as the panacea for climate change adaptation, particularly in SIDS. However, ‘community’ is too often posited as a homogenous, unified entity that is able and willing to take the lead in combatting a labyrinth of environmental problems. The reality is far more complex and it is important to be aware of the potential pitfalls of the community approach. This paper will examine three key factors that can influence the success or failure of community-based adaptation:

• Power imbalances
• Community ownership
• Continuity beyond the project lifecycle

1. Power imbalances

1.1 The problem

It is well-documented that in the context of CBA in SIDS, human dimensions such as social dynamics and power imbalances within communities are the most common causes of project failure. Many are concerned that CBA tends to romanticize and oversimplify the concept of ‘community’, thereby not taking into account power imbalances and marginalization issues based on age, gender, and socio-economic position. The misconception of ‘community’ as a unified and harmonious whole ignores the fact that certain individuals or groups have different socio-political characteristics, including different degrees of control over (or access to) resources, decision-making, influence, and services such as education. This complex matrix of inequality means that some actors will be less articulate, outspoken, and influential in the context of adaptation projects. Their concerns are therefore less likely to be integrated into the project design if inclusion measures are not taken.

Political and social influence within a community is rarely distributed uniformly. If CBA does not actively seek to engineer equal representation, it can result in just a few elite or powerful members of the community having decision-making power within the project. This in turn can limit the number of people involved in and benefit from projects, and can also exclude women from information and decision-making due to traditional gender roles. If these dynamics are not given due consideration in CBA design, inequalities can often be exacerbated and elitism entrenched, thereby undermining two of the cornerstone principles of CBA: democracy and fairness.

In their study of CBA in Vanuatu, Buggy, and McNamara pointed to the rise of ‘elite capture’, whereby project benefits were ‘captured’ by certain people or groups in the community to the disadvantage of others. This phenomenon can be exacerbated by the influence of Western capitalist systems, for example when CBA projects offer financial rewards and individual economic gain.

In the context of adaptation projects, the poor management of intra-communal relations translates into disputes and a lack of community support and appreciation of adaptation projects.

1.2 The countermeasures

a. Understanding the community

First and foremost, it is recommended for CBA planners conduct a preliminary analysis of the socio-cultural-political dynamics of the community in question. Practitioners should avoid conceptualizing ‘community’ in a way that ignores the diversity of actors. Analysis should strive to identify not only sources of unity but also of division and intra-communal differences arising from gender, class, ethnicity, and resources. Recognizing difference also entails recognizing power. Existing social configurations cannot be wished away and so should instead be built into projects, to ensure that all those concerned can contribute to the formulation of adaptation strategies, while at the same time avoiding reinforcing existing inequalities. Once planners have established an understanding of local social dynamics, they can also use that knowledge to instigate change around governance and power, particularly in terms of land tenure, gender, control of natural resources, and representation within community forums.

b. Ensuring an inclusive approach

Enhanced inclusiveness and democracy are key to CBA approaches, supporting equal access both to decision-making forums and the benefits of projects. Planners must use mechanisms that facilitate the expression of multiple (and possibly divergent) perspectives, ensuring that participation is not limited to the inputs of a few ‘elites’. Indeed, the World Bank encourages participatory approaches to adapt existing power structures to ensure that the most disadvantaged are in fact, central contributors.

CBA projects, therefore, require adequate consultation with all community members, improved gender equality in decision-making, and the establishment of a project committee. Structures such as committees should be open to all and representative of all community groups, rather than just the individuals that traditionally yield power. In her study of CBA in the Pacific Islands, McNamara highlights the importance of equitable modes of information transfer for those with low literacy and disabilities, including the use of video, images, and presentations.

c. Implementing conflict resolution mechanisms

Given the disparate actors involved in CBA approaches, projects require the integration of conflict resolution and mediation processes that actively facilitate an open process of debate in which any conflicting claims are subject to critical review.

External actors can also create opportunities for introspection and critical analysis by community members, through surveys or consultation, for example. Carefully considered engagement may help diffuse social frustrations and identify the need for change. Such processes may help empower local people to deal with challenging situations, conflicts, or injustices by encouraging them to articulate problems and reflect on their causes.

2. Community ownership

2.1 The problem

a. Persistence of top-down mechanisms

The fundamental principle of CBA is that projects are fully owned by the community. This means that initiatives should be based on communities’ priorities, needs, knowledge, and capacities, empowering them to cope independently with the impacts of climate change. CBA goes beyond simply being rolled out at the community level, and must instead be defined and driven by the community itself. However, there are numerous cases where initiatives under the guise of CBA are still inherently top-down, in that communities are consulted but projects are nonetheless formulated by externally-defined priorities and objectives. McNamara theorizes that such approaches create a fundamental barrier to local approval and ownership in CBA because they disregard contextual factors and result in poor alignment with community desires and cultural norms. For example, a project for self-composting toilets and using human waste as fertilizer failed to garner community support in Vanuatu because the ‘idea was not welcome’ and ‘people were not comfortable’. Community members ended up resenting the project, resulting in a lack of motivation to implement and maintain the initiative.

b. Poor communication

Lack of ownership is also associated with information flow. In the absence of regular meetings to report on progress, respect for projects declines. Likewise, failure to adapt communication language and style to the communities in question also tends to result in poor ownership.

c. Religious and spiritual factors

As Smith revealed in her study of adaptive responses in St. Vincent, religious values can also present a barrier to community ownership. This can be due to a sense of powerlessness in the face of God and the belief that God will protect them. Many interventions do not account for such views when planning activities, even though spiritual and religious factors often hold much sway over local decision-making processes.

d. Insufficient or slow generation of results

The insufficient or slow generation of results can also impede community ownership and may result in people returning to previous practices. Similarly, if results fail to cater to both climatic pressures and other more immediate needs, such as health, safety, or access to markets, it can be difficult for communities to prioritize adaptation projects. After all, climate change is often perceived as just one of many adversities.

e. Resistance to unfamiliar tools and techniques

Finally, there can be a reluctance to make use of new unknown technology or methods in the context of adaptation projects. Community members may feel skeptical of new techniques, or even unqualified to implement them. This requires project staff to work with community members to build the capacity and skills required for the project tasks. However, this has pitfalls of its own, because often project staff are unable to carry out tasks themselves, or are not available to support community members. This can result in a failure to promote self-sufficiency and a dependence on external skills.

2.1 The countermeasures

a. Creating structures for ongoing participation and information flow

There is widespread recognition of the importance of maintaining participatory processes throughout the project lifecycle. Local ownership is enhanced by project committees, regular meetings, reporting, and informing, all of which allow community members to provide input, ideas, and feedback. Projects should also allow all community members to provide hands-on support and assistance.

Furthermore, successful projects tend to be those that respond to direct requests from communities and that integrate local environmental knowledge.

b. Integrating local beliefs and cultural norms in project design

The integration of local realities and socio-cultural norms increases the likelihood of success. It is therefore crucial for planners to understand local culture, priorities, resources, knowledge, and livelihoods to ensure that activities are compatible, thereby helping avoid local resistance.

Regarding religious and spiritual barriers, project planners might consider working with spiritual leaders to disseminate information and mobilize community members.

c. Making capacity-building a central focus

The main aim of CBA is to prepare and support communities to lead their own adaptation and resilience strategies. A crucial enabling factor for success, therefore, is the integration of capacity-building and technical learning as a primary objective. To be able to manage environmental problems effectively, significant collective learning at the local level is required to develop new knowledge, insights, perspectives, and capacities. For example, building climate change awareness and knowledge tends to enhance the ability of community members to interpret the changes they experience in their daily lives, thereby fostering proactive responses and supporting disaster preparedness. Similarly, developing local management capacity and providing skills training have been linked to community mobilization.

However, to truly ensure ownership, it is essential that training be relevant to the culture and society in which projects are implemented, building on the capacities that already exist within communities.

d. Using systems-thinking

Projects should produce co-benefits beyond reducing exposure to climate risks, such as the protection and enhancement of livelihoods, income, and food security. Indeed, overlooking parallel vulnerabilities in adaptation can in fact perpetuate overall vulnerability, irrespective of the climate scenario. Therefore, CBA is far more likely to generate community ownership if activities are perceived as addressing other, more immediate problems, as well as climate-related concerns. Systems thinking also helps foresee any externalities to adaptation projects and can encourage recipients to act of their own volition due to the multiple perceived benefits.

3. Continuity beyond the project lifecycle

3.1 The problem

a. Poor future planning

Poor forward planning fails to factor in the intensification of climate impacts and population growth. This can result in adaptation initiatives focusing on reducing short-term vulnerability, but overlooking the potential for change; an issue that has been identified across most documented adaptation initiatives in SIDS. The lack of ‘future-proofing’ has been found to result in maladaptation, thereby jeopardizing long-term resilience and creating new vulnerabilities.

However, even for adaptation initiatives that do factor in the future, climate change impacts are unpredictable and therefore present a fundamental challenge for planning.

b. Reliance on external resources and skills

CBA is ‘based on the premise that local communities have the skills, experience, local knowledge, and networks to increase resilience and reduce vulnerability’. However, adaptation projects can often feature a built-in dependence on external resources and skills that compromise the sustainability of adaptation beyond the project lifecycle. The reliance on non-local materials and expertise undermines the community’s ability to deal with any emerging difficulties, due to the lack of local technical capacity and funds for costly imported equipment. This means that communities are unable to achieve self-sufficiency in the long run, particularly once funding and external support desist.

Project inadequacies such as this seem to be correlated with the top-down tendencies of CBA, where initiatives are designed and implemented by external actors (using external resources), rather than developed by the community.

c. Path dependency

The risk of path dependency is particularly associated with infrastructural developments, such as sea walls. Path-dependent trajectories are difficult to undo once implemented and tend to ignore the need for flexibility and adaptiveness in the context of an unpredictable climate future.

3.2 The countermeasures

a. Equipping community for self-sufficiency

Ensuring self-sufficiency is fundamental to forward planning and project continuity. Projects should seek to draw primarily upon existing local resources, knowledge, and skills, with donors and implementers acting as facilitators. Planners should ensure that communities are equipped with any additional skills, resources, and knowledge required for long-term self-sufficiency.

b. Integrating flexibility

Due to the unpredictable character of ecosystems in the context of climate change, CBA must be flexible and adaptive to surprise events and shifts. Furthermore, planners must understand that adaptive interventions are themselves potential drivers of unpredictable ecological change. Enhanced flexibility and adaptability can be achieved by establishing more diverse methodologies and goals for adaptation, as well as laying greater emphasis on monitoring ecological change in response to planned interventions.

Conclusion

Community-based approaches have the potential to deal with adaptation in an agile and holistic manner, empowering local communities in SIDS to take the lead in building up their resilience to climate change. However, ‘community’ is no panacea and project planners must factor potential pitfalls into the project design. Primary sources of project failure in SIDS are power imbalances, a lack of community ownership, and poor levels of continuity beyond the project lifespan. Planners can pre-empt these issues by designing projects in a way that

• a). ensures the interests of all are represented and accounted for in project management structures;
• b). fosters participation and information flow, responding directly to community requests, priorities, and contexts;
• c). equips communities for self-sufficiency and allows for flexibility in case of unexpected changes.

Bibliography

1. Berger, R., and J. Ensor. Introduction: Progress in Adaptation. 2014. In Community-based Adaptation to Climate Change: Emerging Lessons, 1-13. Rugby, UK: Practical Action Publisher
2. Buggy, L., McNamara, K.E., The need to reinterpret ‘community’ for climate change adaptation: a case study of Pele Island, Vanuatu. 2016. Climate and Development, 8:3, 270-280, DOI: 10.108017565529.2015.1041445
3. Catalano, A.S., Lyons-White, J., Mills, M.M., Knight, A.T., Learning from published project failures in conservation. 2019. Journal of Biological Conservation, 10.1016j.biocon.2019.108223
4. Dodman, D., Mitlin, D., Challenges for community-based adaptation: discovering the potential for transformation. 2013. Journal of International Development, 25, 640-659 DOI: 10.1002jid.1772

Adaptation

Is a change or the process of change by which an organism or species becomes better suited to its environment. In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the population during that process. Thirdly, it is a phenotypic trait or adaptive trait, with a functional role in each individual organism, that is maintained and has evolved through natural selection.

Fish adaptation

Many structures in fish are adaptations for their aquatic lifestyle. For example, fish have a stream-lined body that reduces water resistance while swimming. Fish have gills for “breathing” oxygen in water and fins for propelling and steering their body through water.

Flight adaptation

Flight is birds’ most important adaptation. It takes them into an environment that most other animals can’t reach: the air. Their lives depend upon this special skill. It allows them to catch food, avoid enemies, find each other, and travel huge distances in super-quick time.

Adaptation of aquatic plants

-For example seaweed, an aquatic plant. It is adapted for underwater life. This plant has its own air bubble in each leaf that provides the necessary space for the exchange of oxygen from the water to the plant. It also helps keep the seaweed upright. The leaves of underwater aquatic plants are also softer than those of ground plants. This softness allows the plant to move easily with the waves without breaking.

Adaptation of desert plants

-The Cactus. These are plants adapted for the desert. There are many varieties of cacti. You will see that all of them have very thin leaves. In fact, they aren’t called needles anymore; they are called thorns. Look at this barrel cactus and you will see its many leaves in the form of thorns all over its stem. The stem is very thick, and this is where the plant stores its water. Because water is scarce in the desert, the plant soaks up and stores whatever water it can when it rains and then uses its water reserve when there is no water.

Adaptation of snake

-Snakes adapt to their environments in a variety of ways, including growing longer, relying on their sense of smell rather than sight, or adopting coloring that mimics that of more venomous snakes. Snakes also adapt physical characteristics that allow them to quickly move through their natural habit. Some snake adaptations took place relatively early in the snake’s evolution, but other adaptations are continuing to take place. One of a snake’s most useful abilities is the ability to smell with its tongue. Relying on its forked tongue, a snake can easily tell which direction their prey is in. This adaptation occurred to allow snakes to hunt during dusk and dawn when visibility is low.

Frog and adaptation

– include specialized legs, feet, skin, eyes, and body shape. Frogs primarily live in water, so many of their adaptations enhance their ability to live effectively in an aquatic environment. Frogs have long and powerful legs that allow them to jump and swim for long distances.

Adaptation of turtles

-Turtles spend most of their lives in water. They are adapted for aquatic life, with webbed feet or flippers and streamlined bodies. Sea turtles rarely leave the ocean, except to lay eggs in the sand. Freshwater turtles live in ponds and lakes, and they climb out of the water onto logs or rocks to bask in the warm sun.

Tortoises are land animals. Their feet are round and stumpy, adapted for walking on land. They also dig burrows with their strong forelimbs and slip underground when the sun gets too hot.

Adaptation of salmon

-The other highly notable adaptation in salmon is their gills. Atlantic Salmon have four sets of gills with specialized cells that allow them to migrate between salt and fresh water. The four sets also allow for the efficient dissolving of oxygen.

Adaptation of bat

-Bats have amazing adaptations, including being nocturnal to avoid predators and competition for food. To find food and fly safely, bats use echolocation where sound waves bounce off of objects. Bats have light bones and webbing that allows them to fly and cover during sleep

Adaptation of monkey

-Despite its lush vegetation and abundance of life, a jungle can be a harsh and inhospitable environment. Monkeys have adapted to thrive in jungles, developing physical characteristics, skill sets, and behavioral patterns designed specifically to help them survive in these dangerous habitats. Jungle monkeys have evolved structures and systems that allow them to conserve energy, locate food and locate each other in the jungle canopy.

Nowadays, the amount of adaptations such as films, TV programs, or TV series is increasing dramatically. To a certain degree, many classic movies or interactive works are based on nice novels or real events. ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ is adapted from Stephen King’s classic novel (Different Seasons) and it can be seen how successful it is in being adapted into a meaningful movie. However, adaptations are neither simply adding a new ending to the story nor altering the name of the protagonist or the place where the stories happened. Adaptations sometimes are more likely an X-RAY which could help us know clearly about the character relationship, story structure, and plot development in some cases and comprehend a story on an even pro-founder level. Recent phenomenon demonstrates that “the definition and practice of adaptation are changing with the evolution of new forms.”( [1] Philip Pullman, (The Golden Compass), film, radio and stage plays, board and computer games for the Wii, Play Station 3, and NintendoDS) Different directions of the adaptations, for instance, how the story is presented, the process of one story as well as the reproduction of the ending could change the meaning of the story.

A dilapidated boat, the vast, endless sea with beating spindrift, storms accompanied by the thunders…that’s what first heaved in my sight when I open the web of an adaptation of a short novel called “Boat” (Nam Le, 2008）which is adapted by Matt Huynh. In “Boat”, the writer, Nam Le, described a 13-day tragedy of a Vietnamese refugee ship in a detailed, news-reported language. To avoid political scams, Juan took her only son, the illegitimate child, to the refugee ship. Unexpectedly, the ship lost its way because of the storm. Her son did not suffer in the country. On the other hand, in the journey of fleeing and searching for hope, he died of a lack of water and medicine. In the end, the people on the boat saw the other side, but Juan had no soul.

Differing from Nam Le, Matt Huynh didn’t merely change the process or the ending of that story, what he has done is altering the presented form of that short novel an interactive graphic novel. Adding moving text, sound, graphics, and hyperlinks, makes the original novel more interactive. The engagement between the producer Matt Huynh and the participants is getting stronger and closer. Firstly, when you see these moving texts, it feels like you are in that shaking boat, swinging in that rough sea, with that vivid sound, what you feel is ethereal and helpless. Nothing is left on the sea, only yourself and the boat, which better embodies the hard background of this novel. Then, when you scroll the mouse according to the prompts on the web, you could see this novel is divided into several chapters which makes the linear story more layered. Adding to those graphic paintings, what impressed me most was her skinny father who was lying on the bed. The “black and white” images of ink paintings reflect the hardship of the environment at that time. From my perspective, it can be hardly illustrated just by words. It is these things: the moving texts, sound graphics, and hyperlinks that give our participants deeper feelings as well as change the meaning of the story. If we say that the original novel just shows the readers a sad story and feel guilty about the author’s life experience, however, this brand new presentation by Matt Huynh leads his follower: us, to feel the helplessness of the author. In this way, we realize that it is not easy to survive in a generation bombarded with wars. Surprisingly, he did not portray much about the war or something like that, but through the despair of people living at the bottom of society under the turbulent situation. Furthermore, what we have seen, is not only the suffering itself but also the endless sorrow, like a sorrowful pause. Therefore, this neoteric adaptation of the novel the interactive graphic novel endows the novel ”Boat” with a brand new soul, makes the novel less boring, gives readers interest, and changes the meaning of the story.

If we say that the interactive graphic novel is a new form adaptation in the information explosion era, then the adaptation of the film is the form we are most familiar with. The movie ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, directed by Robert Mulligan, was adapted based on Harper Lee’s book of the same name. Another movie is called but how do these classic adaptation movies being so successful and so impressive until nowadays? How do these adaptions change the meaning of the story? The former makes some subtraction based on the novel:(1)In time, the movie adjust the timeline into a few days before and after the trial; (2)In the plot handling, to highlight the theme of the novel, the director change the main line into Tom Robinson’s trial.in some cases, this film maintains a much higher degree of drama which make some aspects more powerful and also changes the meaning of the story: “To punish evil and promote good should be one of the moral functions of the film. To oppose racial discrimination is an idea of social progress.” [2]’Horton Furt Film Drama Collection’United States Grove Publishing House, 1989.）It also reminds me of one most persuasive Korean movies SILENCE.

This Korean adaptation film (SILENCED) really changes the meaning of the story even the law of Korea. SILENCED was adapted from a novel based on a real event in Korea： an incident that happened in a school in Gwangju, a deaf-mute obstacle school, depicting a tragedy caused by sexual violence. According to the real event, more than a dozen people from the principal to the teacher participated in the sexual violence. Since 2000, they have sexually invaded more than 30 deaf children, who are only 7 to 20 years old. A lawyer accidentally learned about this from his friend who is a teacher at this deaf school. His friend was assassinated by the school during the process of collecting evidence. For the next seven years, the lawyer suffered from cancer but he took 3 deaf children and appealed countless times. In the end, although they found evidence, the principal was too powerful and did not receive the punishment they deserved. The true event was definitely a cothurnus because of the useless progress.

What’s more, the adaptation film changed the ending of the story based on the real event, bringing a ray of light and hope to the audiences, and changing the meaning of the original story. In the adaptation, the children who were sexually assaulted were two girls(which is totally different from the real event of 30 children), and a brother, and the younger brother finally committed suicide. The atrocities of these deaf and dumb children are the principal and the vice principal, and another teacher. At the end of this adaptation, it added a brand new ending: the lawyer who deteriorated cancer was finally shot by a high-pressure water gun because of the protest, and the body and mind had reached the limit and fell to the ground. The perverted male teacher was pressed by the little boy on the track of his brother’s death, then died together. Compared with the real event, the ending of the adaptation gives the audience some spiritual comfort.

After this adaptation was shown to the public, this movie and the event behind have got the attention of the Korean people and leaders.“ SILENCED” has set off a “melting furnace heat” in South Korea, and then fermented into a” melting furnace effect”.After that, the case was re-examined and the people involved were re-sue. Additionally, the South Korean parliament has specifically passed the Furnace Law to strengthen the punishment for cases of sexual assault and minor sexual assault. I still remember that there was one touching line in the movie: “We fight all the way, not to change the world, but to prevent the world from changing us.”

This adaptation to a large extent changed the meaning of the story. From doing nothing because of the strong power of the principle, to revising and passing a series of bills, among which the ‘Special Law on Sexual Violence Crime Punishment Partially Amends the Law’That is one of the shallow aspects the movie would like to tell us. The reform of the judiciary, driven by the enthusiasm of a movie, sounds like a fantasy, but it has become a reality in South Korea. It can be seen how successful the adaptation is to change the meaning of the story even the world.

Above all, both new forms of adaptation and expansion of adaptation are acceptable, many adaptations have changed the meaning of the story through different means, sublimating the content and the theme of the original story. The former adaptation “Boat” helped the author create a new form of the interactive graphic novel from a first-person perspective making participants more immersive; The latter adaptation altered the data and ending based on a real event which brought several comforts to the public and promoted the codex of South Korea. These adaptations have changed the meaning of the story in two totally different ways.“A novel thus conceals an original core, a kernel of meaning or nucleus of events that can be delivered by an adaptation” [3]Nassim Winnie Balestrini, Adaptation, and American Studies: Designing for The Interactant: How Interactivity Impacts On Adaptation, Heidelberg, DE: Universitätsverlag Winter, 2011 Furthermore, adaptation should base on its intrinsic work, by expanding, adjusting， creating or breaking into a completely new expression type, that’s what the adaptation really wants to convey!

In daily life, human beings meet different people every day so there is a need for individuals to identify and make a judgment of the people they encountered to interact with them. Much research suggested that faces are a major source of information about individuals and function as crucial communication cues for people to interact with others (Rhodes et al., 2015; Todorov, Mandisodza, Goren, & Hall, 2005). Faces also play a crucial role in shaping the way people perceive others (Little, Debruine, & Jones, 2005; Perrett et al., 2002; Rhodes, Jeffery, Watson, Clifford, & Nakayama, 2003; Webster, Kaping, Mizokami, & Duhamel, 2004).

Faces provide two different types of information which help the perceptions and judgments of people. The first type of information is stable across changes in appearance, which is the identity of a person. Faces provide cues for judgments of stable characteristics and thus identification of a person even though their expression changes or seeing them from different viewpoints. Webster and colleagues (2004) indicated that face perception is a fundamental process for determining the features of others, such as age, gender, and ethnicity. Thus, faces serve as a crucial cue for people to identify different people and interact with them. The second type of information provides cues for judgments of characteristics that vary over time, such as emotion and facial expression. People can make inferences about others’ traits and underlying characteristics from their facial features and emotion shown (Olivola & Todorov, 2010; Todorov et al., 2005; Webster et al., 2004).

Many studies have suggested that people draw trait inferences from the facial appearance of others quickly and spontaneously (Bar, Neta, & Linz, 2006; Rhodes et al., 2015; Todorov, Pakrashi, & Oosterhof, 2009). For example, Bar and colleagues (2006) suggested that trait inferences could be drawn rapidly within the first 39 milliseconds based on the available information shown on the faces. Also, Todorov and colleagues (2009) demonstrated that 33 milliseconds of exposure to faces is enough for people to draw a specific trait inference and make a snap judgment from a stranger’s face. Thus, it is believed that people can extract important facial features effectively and draw inferences from an unknown face within a short period of time. However, it is suggested that the automatically formed inferences leave little room for conscious judgmental processes to occur or change the already made inferences (Kahneman, 2003). According to Willis and Todorov (2006), there was a large correlation between the trait judgments made after 100 milliseconds of exposures of faces and those made when time constraints were absent. Therefore, people hardly change their impressions towards others once they are formed.

The attributions made by people from facial features may not always be correct (Olivola & Todorov, 2010; Rhodes et al., 2015), yet, they still influence people’s judgments and decisions. Todorov and colleagues (2005) suggested that people may go beyond the inferences provided by the facial features of a person and make a direct judgment of the characteristics of that person even though it may not be true. Some researchers have suggested that people tend to associate traits with underlying characteristics. For example, competence is related to the possession of skills and capabilities that enable one’s own goals to be achieved (Castelli, Carraro, Ghitti, & Pastore, 2009) while baby facades are perceived as kind and warm (McArthur & Apatow, 1984). Besides, inferences of trustworthiness could be derived from judging whether the expressions of faces are happy or angry (Oosterhof & Todorov, 2008). Happy faces are generally perceived to be more trustworthy while angry faces are normally perceived as untrustworthy. Nevertheless, it is noteworthy that these inferences made may not always be accurate (Olivola & Todorov, 2010; Rhodes et al., 2015). Olivola and Todorov (2010) proposed that the inferences formed from the emotional cues on a face may not be able to generalize properly to the personality dispositions of that person.

With regard to the spontaneous essence of the inferences made from the facial appearances, the inferences have a compelling influence on the social judgments and decisions that individuals make in daily life situations, such as hiring decisions (Langlois, et al., 2000), voting in political elections (Martin, 1978; Miller, Wattenberg, & Malanchuck, 1986) and finding romantic partners (Olivola et al., 2009). Martin (1978) suggested that the results of polling could be predicted from the competence judgments of the candidates. Miller and colleagues (1986) also proposed that competence is seen as a crucial characteristic of a political candidate. Moreover, it is found that people with a competent face have a higher chance to be elected in a poll than people who are baby-faced since the former are perceived to be more capable (Castelli et al., 2009; Olivola & Todorov, 2010; Todorov et al., 2005). For finding partners, Olivola and colleagues (2009) argued that the trait inferences drawn from the facial appearances of others exert influences on the choices of speed-dating participants. It was found that male users of an online dating site who seemed to be extraverted and open to new experiences were more likely to date successfully. As a result, even the inferences drawn are single-glance judgments since they can be made within a brief period of exposure, their impacts on the decisions of people in daily life are crucial and influential.

Although facial features may help people make quick judgments of others and the impacts are compelling, other mechanisms may influence the process of perceptions and judgments. One possible mechanism is that human visual perception is greatly influenced by visual adaptation. In fact, the appearance-based inferences drawn can be influenced strongly by the features of the faces encountered before because of the adaptation effect (Leopold, O’Toole, Vetter, & Blanz, 2001; Leopold, Rhodes, Müller, & Jeffery, 2005; Little et al., 2005; Webster & MacLeod, 2011). An adaptation effect occurs when individuals are first adapted to a face of a particular identity and then asked to judge another face of that characteristic; the new face will be seen as occurring in the opposite direction to the initial, adaptor face (Leopold, et al., 2001; Little et al., 2005; Loffler, Yourganov, Wilkinson, & Wilson, 2005). Thus, it is suggested that adaptation provides a method of testing perceptual processing, that is to study how people make perceptual judgments of others.

Adaptation effects have been found in the perceptions of different information about faces. For example, the perceptions of age (Schweinberger et al., 2010), gender (Bestelmeyer et al., 2008; Kovács, Zimmer, Harza, & Vidnyánszky, 2007; Webster et al., 2004), ethnicity (Jaquet, Rhodes, & Hayward, 2008; Ng, Boynton, & Fine, 2008; Rhodes, Watson, Jeffery, & Clifford, 2010), identity (Leopold et al., 2001; Jiang, Blanz, & O’Toole, 2006), eye spacing and gazing (Jenkins, Beaver, & Calder, 2006), and facial expression and emotion (Adams, Gray, Gerner, & Graf, 2010; Leopold et al., 2005; Little et al., 2005; Ng et al., 2008; Webster et al., 2004). Schweinberger and colleagues (2010) conducted a study that investigated the adaptation effects on age, the results indicated that adapting to a young or old face would make the test face appear older or younger respectively. In the research conducted by Webster and his colleagues (2004), the results showed that adapting to a male face makes an androgynous face (i.e., having both male and female features) appear more female-like while adapting to a female face makes an androgynous face appear more male-like. The findings of Rhodes and others (2010) showed that the adaptation effect could be found in judgments of ethnicity, suggesting that the thresholds for identifying the ethnicity of the faces that were adapted and unadapted were reduced by adapting to an average Asian or Caucasian face. Furthermore, in the study conducted by Leopold and others (2001) using a neutral face, which is generated by averaging a sample of faces, and an anti-face, which is a face having the appearance of a completely dissimilar human being, with negative values of identity strength of the original face, the results indicated that adaptation to an anti-face made the perception more biased toward the original face. These results thus suggested that adaptation to a previously seen face influences the judgment that people make when encountering a new face.

Additionally, it is suggested that the size of the adaptation effect depends on the perceptual dissimilarity between adaptors and test faces (Leopold et al., 2001). The larger the difference between the adaptors and the test faces, the more pronounced the adaption effect will be. Furthermore, the sustainability and vigorousness of adaptation effects are affected by the delay, which is the time period between an adaptation phase and a test phase (Strobach & Carbon, 2013). The differences in the period of delay can be large, delays can range from milliseconds (Leopold et al., 2001) to minutes (Kloth & Schweinberger, 2008), and some may even extend to days and weeks in specific laboratory research (Carbon & Ditye, 2011). According to Carbon and Ditye (2011), the study of the effects of delay in adaptation allows the experimenters to understand more about the delay features of adaptation effects. It also presents practical data concerning the decay of adaptation effects and hence the capabilities of the visual system in recalibration and readaptation. Other than the delay in adaptation, the time period during the adaptation phase, or adaptation duration, which represents the duration of time during which the adaptor is presented, also influences the degree of adaptation effects (Strobach, Ditye, & Carbon, 2011). The adaptation duration can moderate the robustness of the adaptation effects. It is suggested that a very brief exposure of 5 seconds to an adaptor is already enough to produce an adaptation effect (Leopold et al., 2001). Although a short period of time of exposure to the adaptor can cause the adaptation effect, it is suggested that a longer adaptation time would result in a slower decay of the effect, thus, a longer sustainability of the adaptation effect (Leopold et al., 2005; Strobach et al., 2011; Strobach & Carbon, 2013).

Other than studying the effects of delay and duration on adaptation effects, it is also important to study the transfer of adaptation effects. The study of adaptation transfer effects allows researchers to make deductions about the property of visual perception that is associated with particularly adapted stimuli (Strobach & Carbon, 2013). By studying adaptation transfer effects, inferences concerning the plasticity of the neuron coding system during visual processing may be drawn (Webster, 2011; Webster & MacLeod, 2011). It is proposed that the investigation of adaptation transfer effects can be done on gender, identity, and ethnicity (Strobach & Carbon, 2013).

More important, it is suggested that the adaptation effects of face, or face aftereffects (Leopold et al., 2001; Little et al., 2005; Webster et al., 2004), reflect changes in the feedbacks of neurons that are responsible for coding faces (Loffler et al., 2005; Winston et al., 2004). Face aftereffect cannot be illustrated by retinal adaptation, which is a low-level coding mechanism (Rhodes et al., 2015), since retinal adaptation is insensitive to the changes in the retinal location and the size of the stimuli between the adaptation stages and the test stages (Leopold et al., 2001, 2005; Rhodes et al., 2003). On the other hand, face aftereffect is sensitive to the variations in the retinal location and the size of the stimuli before and after adaptation (Leopold et al., 2001; Webster & MacLeod, 2011). Therefore, it is indicated that face aftereffect is a high-level perceptual judgment and reflects face-specific representation.

Adaptation effects are found for natural variations in faces and natural categorical judgments about faces (Webster et al., 2004; Webster & MacLeod, 2011). According to Webster and MacLeod (2011), the adaptation effect is essential for revealing the way that human perceptions of faces are influenced by the facial features that individuals encounter in their daily lives. Since adaptation to a previous face biases the perception of a new face by making the latter one perceived as less similar to the former one, it is believed that the adaptation effect may influence normal perceptions of faces and hence social judgments. To be specific, the social judgments of one’s characteristics such as expressions and attractiveness are determined by the faces that each encountered before (Webster & MacLeod, 2011). Consequently, face perceptions and thereby social judgments are profoundly influenced by the viewing context so that the same face can be interpreted differently depending on the previous face an individual has been exposed to.

“Sensory adaptation refers to the fact that sensitivity to pro-longed stimulation tends to decline over time. According to the theory of natural selection, inherited characteristics that provide a survival advantage tend to spread throughout the population across generations. Why might sensory adaptation have evolved? What survival benefits might it confer to a small animal trying to avoid predators? To a predator trying to hunt prey?” What even is Sensory adaptation? “Sensation = bottom-up process (the output) brings information from the outside world into the body.” (Flowers, 2019) Let’s use this example. For this example, you walk into your room and notice a foul-smelling lunch pack you left the night before. If you don’t pick it up, it will be there the next day with the same strong smell. This is continuing until one day, you realize “hey this thing doesn’t smell so bad anymore’.

Sensory adaptation has occurred. More specifically, Smell Sensory Adaptation. Sensory adaptation occurs when you become used to the intensity and presence of a particular stimulus, that it Falls below the threshold for it to be felt anymore. Or Given in the article, “Sensory Adaptation”, Sensory adaptation is, “the process in which changes in the sensitivity of sensory receptors occur in relation to the stimulus.” (Sincero, 2013) You only feel changes when the intensity increases or decreases proportionately to the initial stimuli. For example, if 100 light bulbs are on, it takes about ten tonight’s out before you notice the difference. Sensory adaptation is important for life as we know it. You would constantly be irritated by the influx of new stimuli such as light, sound, and tactile pressure, if not for sensory adaptation, you would very well be dead by now. The Sensory has 2 types: Absolute threshold and Difference threshold.

The absolute threshold is the smallest level of energy required by an external stimulus to be detectable by the human senses, including vision, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. It is more precisely defined as the degree of intensity of a stimulus necessary to correctly detect that stimulus 50% of the time. Stimuli at or above the absolute threshold – those which can be detected – are called supraliminal. With sensory adaptation, we have 5 senses: Vision, Hearing, Taste, Smell, And Touch. Each one is used for a different purpose. Hearing Sensory Adaptation “Our ears adapt to the loud sound when it hits the small bones in the inner ear. The loud sound leads to the contraction of the inner ear marrow. This downturn causes the transmission of sound vibrations in the inner ear to be reduced or delayed. And with this, the audio vibrations follow. This auditory adaptation process, however, usually does not work very well with sudden or immediate loud sounds.” (Sincero,2013) For example, with shooting a shotgun without ear protection, or hearing will suddenly go faint. With the loud ringing from the gun taking over. Or with tv shows. At first, we will notice the sounds there, but every so slowly, our minds begin to get used to the sounds.

The only time we will notice the tv being on is when someone turns the tv off. Vision Sensory Adaptation The best way to describe the adaptation is with a person who has been in a dark room comes out into a brightly-lit area. Initially, the brightness might feel discomforting, but with time, the eyes adapt to changes in the size of the pupil, and the bright light does not hurt the eyes anymore despite the brightness being of the same intensity. Touch Sensory Adaptation Initially, if a person wears a watch or some necklaces, he will feel the skin accessory. However, within a few moments, the individual will not notice this sensation, as the skin begins sensory adaptation. Although, If the person were to change the position on the necklace very slightly, the touch sensation is activated again for a short time before the sensory adaptation is refuted. Taste Sensory Adaptation A meal is good or great only when the flavors are of different kinds. This kind of food excites the nerve cells and gets a strong response from the brain. However, if a person eats some food that is monotone in flavor, in a few minutes, the sense of taste loses its sensitivity, and the person may find it difficult to recognize the flavor even if it is strong, making the food unappetizing.

We mentioned Smell Sensory Adaptation above. But here is another example of it. Smell Sensory Adaptation People who are regular smokers do not seem to notice the odor of cigarette smoke, because constant exposure to this stimulus makes them get used to it. This odor can be quite distracting to any non-smoker in the vicinity. These are all considered Absolute thresholds. Whereas the Difference threshold is the smallest amount by which two sensory stimuli can differ for an individual to perceive them as different. So, how does this draw into the survival benefits of animals or even their prey? With hunting for animals, all of the senses are in action. They use hearing to tell how far or close an animal is. Their vision is used to help see how far an animal is as well as what they are (rabbit, mouse, snake, etc.)

Abstract.

Under the settings of the occupant population growth, higher building, and transportation masses, traditional houses in a tropical climate are not designed as a consequence of the optimal model in rural environments with improved air circulation and lower noise sources as original types in the past. Those conditions take consequences on occupational adaptation, physically and psychologically. The study intended to analyze the occupant’s sensitivity and adaptation to heat and noise environments. The tropical environment, which is represented by geographical altitude, lowland, and upland, was taken as the study location. The number of surviving traditional houses was 19 houses as the representative numbers, both lowland and upland areas, with 71 occupants as the respondents. The thermometer and sound level meter instruments were set at occupant reference height and used to obtain simultaneous results with an interview. The result emphasized that psychologically, the environmental settings result in accumulative effects on votes, different altitudes, and urban growth results in different thermal votes and noise preferences. The occupant indices are not significant factors. However, males are the most sensitive in higher conditions, and females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. The close-the-building aperture is the most frequently used as passive method for noise regulation, while it is also flexible in combining with heat control.

Introduction

The interaction between individuals and their built and physical setting generates environmental psychology [1]. It examines the effect on human understandings by their existence and behavior, as well as the effect of personalities on the location, that is, factors inducing environmental presentation and conduct to encourage pro-environmental performance. Most of the individuals within the background optimize their association with the given atmosphere over environmental adjustment, behavioral, and normative adaptation, and such optimization procedures are constantly transformed by the objectives and determinations of their activities concerning the social and physical background [2].

As pro-environmental actions, which have been well-defined as personal behaviors affecting the sustainability of the environment, in the high compactness of urban environment in the tropical region, thermal and noise have concurrent consequences on the enclosed atmosphere in addition to the whole environmental issues. The indoor comfort requirement determines the different environmental considerations, such as indoor air quality (IAQ), thermal, luminous, and sonic environments standards [3]. It has both physical and psychological effects on occupant adaptation, especially for traditional buildings that have experienced changing environments. In free-running tropical buildings as in traditional housing, when the temperature and air humidity might be modified difficulty without artificial resources, their occupants request a higher wind speed [4].

In a noisy environment, annoyance as a reaction indicator should be evaluated with caution for non-acoustical reasons, such as economic, cultural, and social situations ([5,6]). As Samodra [7] explained, the effect of one factor on the others only or partial argument has been resulted by related research ([8,9,10,11]). However, the tropical environment results in a contradictive requirement between thermal and noise control, which is not much discussed by preceding findings. Therefore, this study aims to examine the traditional lifestyle and its adaptation to the urban environment through the perception evaluation of the occupants.

Research method

The study examined the traditional building occupant’s sensitivity and adaptation to the thermal and noise conditions with lowland Javanese houses (Surabaya, 0-50m above MSL) and in the highland or upland (Malang, 440-667m above MSL). The physical height, and altitude, are the typical setting of the tropical climate in Indonesia. The objects in both lowland and upland areas are 6x7m2 in normal size (Figure 1.). Recently, wood (TLwood = 18 dB) has been used for the walls as acoustic properties. For thermal properties, wood (U-value = 3.19 W/mK, Tlag = 0.3 hours) has been applied for the housing walls and the roofs have been made from the traditional tile (U-value = 0.84 W/mK, Tlag = 1 hour).

As a continuation of the previous study [12], the existence of traditional houses was 19 objects and the 71 respondents of the field study (general note: clothing = 0.16 to 0.57 and metabolic rate = 0.8 to 1.7, indicating “sleeping to working” actions), see Table 1. The thermal instruments-thermometer and the noise measurement tools-sound level meter were set at a reference height of the occupant (1.5 m) and conducted to measure the 24-hour conditions and simultaneously results with an interview in the critical time. Furthermore, the interview schedule was organized at the critical time, the hottest, and the noisiest time (weekday/weekend, around 12:00 to 18:00). In this survey, following the seven scale standards, the thermal vote is set for the temperature poll with a further assessment of noise sensitivity based on the occupant vote on noise (Table 2.).

Result and Discussion

Occupant Response to Their Environment

In general, the hotter atmosphere and more noisy conditions of the lowland than in the upland stimulate the respondents to elect the high part options (Figure 2.). Although the condition is more cooling and lower in noise, psychologically, the environmental settings result in accumulative impacts on their votes. Because of more distance from the noise source, some occupants still feel slightly quiet or quiet in a little percentage. In addition to, Samodra et al [12], the tropical comfort shift has contributed to changing human adaptation.

The colder atmosphere of the upland tropical region is perceived in the distributed votes, which tends to be a neutral choice. The neutral vote still implies a comfort requirement in the general state. Comparable to the thermal, because the objects are located frequently in the settlement zone, which is more detached from the urban road as the location of the primary noise source, the noise in the upland is supposed as scattered polls. The regression (R2) of thermal in the upland is lower than 0.5. It shows that even though it has ascended trend, in general, it is distributed, hot in the afternoon, and cool at night. The noise votes on average for both lowland and highland tend to have neutral feelings. In general, it indicates that in high or little noise, the residents vote for a tolerable noise. Meanwhile, the findings reveal that there less than 50% of respondents vote. That distributed results are affected by the unpredictable noise generator, numerous building locations, and the occupant’s compliance as adaptation.

In the critical time, the hot and noisy results tend to result in high choice (Figure 3.). Meanwhile, different votes are found for some conditions that indicate a similar condition in temperature and noise level. It signifies that the respondents have unique adjustments or adaptations based on their human index as well as on the condition of their local environment and building. The linear trend line also shows that between lowland and upland regions, the perception of thermal comfort results in a neutral vote for the temperature, 29.3°C. Although there is a difference in the climate and comfort zone, the occupants can control the temperature.

Zero votes for the lower section (-3 to 0) show the features of the critical condition in noise, it is dissimilar to the usual condition. The higher noise source does not always result in a higher noisy sensation and vice versa. It may be a different method and capability in noise adaptation. Following to initial study [12], based on equations of trend line linear, if x (vote) is 0, y (temperature) will be 49.9 dBA (in lowland), and in the condition of upland, y (sound pressure level) is 47.8 dBA if x (vote) is zero. It shows that different altitudes with different urban growth result in different building densities and noise preferences. Furthermore, higher noise intensity results in higher adaptation and higher noise thresholds.

Occupant Index and Adaptation Method

The occupant index consists of the type of sex and age. Its elemental breakdown of the hottest time shows that males are the most sensitive in higher conditions, x=3, y=34.2°C, the highest among the others (Figure 4.). They have more massive activities than others. However, the occupant indices are similarly indicated by similar tend-line equations and regression, so they are not significant factors.

In the linear trend line, indicated by the lowest sound pressure level for the highest vote (vote 3), children have the most sensitive to noise perception. In the neutral condition, for children, if x=0, y=48.3 dBA, for females, if x=0, y=47.2 dBA, and for males, if x=0, y=48.6 dBA. It shows that females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. It may be affected by a lower capability in noise adaptation.

The adaptation methods were set as a summary of the occupants’ lifestyle based on characteristics of environmental psychology concepts: Volume adaptation, estimation, and control (Figure 5.). The upland occupants have numerous approaches in medium and self-control or personal adjustment for both passive and active strategies. Individual modification has a correlation with the metabolic rate of occupants. They tend to have light behaviors like sleeping or take resting) if the condition is hot. Lowland occupants perceive the passive technique as being ineffective. A fan is not only cheaper than an air conditioner but also useful for cooling, a significant point for mid-low-income occupants.

The noise estimation as the method of environmental psychology adaptation finds the effort to close the building windows or doors or the “close the opening” method is the best way for higher noise as in lowlands while the self-adjustment is dominantly voted for low noise areas. The occupants are an inability to source interference indicated by no vote for source control (climate and vehicle are the primary sources for thermal and sound problems, respectively). Additionally, closing the opening and self-control are the most straightforward methods. In the lowland, the adaptation method is dominated by closing the opening while in the upland, it has more various ways. All might be affected by direct response to limited or more various aspects of noise.

Table 3. shows that the active method is used all the time in the lowland. Meanwhile, because of security reasons, the passive method is used for a limited time (morning to afternoon) on the weekend when the temperature is high, and they stay at home. Upland is perceived as neutral to slightly warm, so the active method is used in the morning only, and there is no difference between weekdays and weekends. Besides the security motive, the passive method is not used under underheated conditions. Even though it is normal, the requirement of ventilation for air change (health reasons) is not considered as important as thermal comfort.

Although the occupants vote to “close the opening” as the primary system for lifestyle adaptation, the higher source noise does not always cause the reaction to conduct this strategy. The integration response through ventilation needs and house circulation time concerns this situation. The fully opened aperture, window, or door (100%) by the occupant in the morning to afternoon happens when the peak noise is because the prerequisite of heat reduction using ventilation is more vital needs than delivering noise control. Moreover, the total answer to closing the opening at night occurs in the lowland. More than noise control, security reason is the primary justification. It has more critical safety as a larger area of the city than the upland needs.

Conclusion

The result analysis of this research can be summarized as follows: Psychologically, the environmental conditions result in accumulative effects on votes even though the condition may be a lower temperature and noise. Neutral still indicates a comfort condition in the general condition. Different altitudes and urban growth result in different thermal votes and noise preferences. Furthermore, higher sound pressure levels outcomes more excellent adaptation and higher noise limit. The occupant indices are not significant factors. However, males are the most sensitive in higher thermal conditions. Meanwhile, females have the lowest noise preference for comfort. The ‘close the opening’ is the most frequently used as passive method by occupants for adjusting the environmental noise. It is adaptable to merging with the building’s thermal control.

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