Soil microbiome science, rapidly evolving, predominantly focuses on field crop soils. However, understanding garden soil microbiomes is essential for enhancing food production sustainability in garden environments. This study aimed to unveil the bacteriome diversity and composition in rooftop garden soils (RGS) and surface garden soils (SGS) across urban (Dhaka North and Dhaka South City Corporations) and peri-urban (Gazipur City Corporation) areas of Dhaka Division, Bangladesh. We analyzed 11 samples, including six RGS and five SGS samples from 11 individual gardens using 16S rRNA (V3-V4 region) gene-based amplicon sequencing. A total of 977 operational taxonomic units (OTUs), including 270 and 707 in RGS and SGS samples, respectively, were identified. The observed OTUs were represented by 21 phyla, 45 classes, 84 orders, 173 families, and 293 genera of bacteria. Alpha diversity indices revealed significantly higher bacterial diversity in SGS samples (p = 0.01), while beta diversity analyses indicated distinct bacteriome compositions between RGS and SGS samples (p = 0.028, PERMANOVA). Despite substantial taxonomic variability between sample categories, there was also a considerable presence of shared bacterial taxa. At the phylum level, Bacilliota (61.14%), Pseudomonadota (23.42%), Actinobacteria (6.33%), and Bacteroidota (3.32%) were the predominant bacterial phyla (comprising > 94.0% of the total abundances) in both types of garden soil samples. Of the identified genera, Bacillus (69.73%) and Brevibacillus (18.81%) in RGS and Bacillus (19.22%), Methylophaga (19.21%), Acinetobacter (6.27%), Corynebacterium (5.06%), Burkholderia (4.78%), Paracoccus (3.98%) and Lysobacter (2.07%) in SGS were the major bacterial genera. Importantly, we detected that 52.90% of genera were shared between RGS and SGS soil samples. Our data reveal unique and shared bacteriomes with probiotic potential in soil samples from both rooftop and surface gardens. Further studies should explore the functional roles of shared bacterial taxa in garden soils and how urban environmental factors affect microbiome composition to optimize soil health and sustainable food production.

The Canada goose (Branta canadensis) population has radically changed over the past 60 years-from once being extirpated in the state of Indiana to the current level of approximately 113,000. High urban densities have resulted in persistent human-wildlife conflicts and novel interactions between geese and their physical environment. Canada geese typically choose nest sites that are on the ground or slightly elevated sites such as muskrat lodge, but we report observations of Canada geese nesting on rooftops 2.6-12.2 m above ground level in central Indiana. These observations suggest that alternative, unpredicted nesting sites are being chosen over more traditional sites, in a likely attempt to reduce risks of disturbance and predation. This atypical nest-site selection may pose new management challenges, but further research is needed.

When the photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal energy (STE) systems, which share the rooftop area, are installed in the same building, a trade-off problem occurs in terms of the energy, economic, and environmental aspects, and thus, steps need to solve this problem. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a multi-criteria decision support system of the PV and STE systems using the multi-objective optimization algorithm. This system was developed in the following six steps: (i) database establishment; (ii) designing the variables of the PV and STE systems; (iii) development of the analysis engine of the PV and STE systems; (iv) environmental and economic assessment from the life cycle perspective; (v) integrated multi-objective optimization (iMOO) with a genetic algorithm; and (vi) establishment of a multi-criteria decision support system. To verify the robustness and reliability of the developed model, an analysis of \"D\" City Hall and \"I\" Airport as target facilities was performed. The optimal PV and STE systems that consider the energy, economic, and environmental aspects at the same time were determined with respect to the 1.23 × 1015 and 1.05 × 1016 installation scenarios, respectively, in terms of effectiveness. The iMOO scores of the existing PV and STE systems installed in \"D\" City Hall and \"I\" Airport were 0.358 and 0.346, respectively, whereas those of the optimal solutions were 0.249 and 0.280, showing score improvements. In terms of efficiency, the times required for determining the optimal solutions were 20 and 30 min, respectively. The developed model makes the final decision-maker to find the optimal solution in introducing the PV and STE systems in the early design phase at the same time.

The purpose of this study is to describe our experience with patients who fell from rooftops while clearing snow. The falls occurred in rural areas that receive heavy snowfall and are undergoing depopulation and an increasing proportion of elderly residents.
A retrospective observational chart review was carried out at the sole hospital providing emergency services in a rural heavy snow area in Japan.
A total of 70 patients were enrolled during four winter seasons between December 2009 and March 2013. Their mean age was 61 years, and 90% were male. The mean vertical height of falls was 4.1 m. A total of 174 injuries was observed, averaging 2.5 injuries per patient. Fractures accounted for 78% of all injuries, and main fractures included vertebra with lower extremities or rib fractures; 86% of patients sustained a maximum abbreviated injury scale score of 2-3.
In a rural heavy snow area in Japan, the incidence of accidental falls related to clearing snow was high, and the victims were elderly. Fractures accounted for 78% of all injuries, and most patients suffered from moderate to serious injuries.

Clearing snow from roofs causes serious injuries annually. The aim of this study was to describe injury mechanisms, injury panorama, and injury incidence in connection to this activity. A specific aim was to study the association between snow depth and injury incidence. A total of 95 people were injured during four study periods. The risk of injury is strongly associated with snow depth, and the incidence varied up to 10-fold between the studied winter seasons. The majority of injuries (91; 96%) occurred during leisure time and only four people were injured in the occupational setting. The most common injury mechanism was falling off roofs or ladders of residential homes. Nearly 60% sustained moderate or serious injuries (Maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale [MAIS] 2-3), and fractures accounted for almost half of all injuries. Because roofs of single-family homes in Sweden usually do not require snow removal for heavy snow loads, these injuries may have been both unnecessary and avoidable. Further education is required to advise the public on the risks associated with snow removal from roofs.