Thermoregulation and Physiological Performance

就热量获得或损失的平衡而言，飞行能力强的小昆虫不需要在高温、狭窄的体温下飞行。但事实上，它们确实这样做了，甚至有各种复杂的适应能力，可以主动地将体温调节到高和窄的范围。我们将完成这种热调节在飞行过程中如何工作，以及体温变化如何影响实际飞行性能的研究。要做到这一点，我们将首先完成一个计算机化风洞的建设，在其中进行我们的实验。接下来将通过实验使用该工具来检查热传递生物物理学中的各种具体问题，以及飞行升力和推力的温度依赖关系。我们还将测试一个全新的概念，解释为什么剧烈的动物活动，如昆虫飞行，总是在其有效温度范围内受到限制。这项工作对基础生物学中的一些问题将是重要的，所有这些问题都围绕着动物调节体温的原因、它们可以做到这一点的一系列方式，以及它们使艰苦和繁重的活动更有效率的适应。考虑到全球气候变化可能产生的破坏性影响，特别是全球变暖，也可能是极其重要的，因为全球变暖可能会改变这种敏感动物的热环境，其时间尺度远远短于它们的适应能力。

Small strongly flying insects need not fly at high, narrow body temperatures, in terms of the balance of their heat gain or loss. Yet in fact they do so, and even have a variety of complex adaptations for actively regulating body temperature to high and narrow ranges. We will complete the study of how this thermal regulation works during flight itself, and how body temperature variation affects actual flight performance. To do this, we will first complete the construction of a computerized wind tunnel in which to carry out our experiments. Experimental use of this tool to examine a variety of specific issues in the heat-transfer biophysics and the temperature-dependence of flight lift and thrust will follow. We will also test an entirely new concept of why it is that intense animal activity, such as insect flight, is so invariably limited in its range of effective temperatures. This work will be important to a number of issues in basic biology, all revolving around the reasons why animals regulate their body temperatures, the range of ways in which they can do so, and their adaptations for making strenuous and demanding activity more efficient. It may also be extremely important to considering the possible damaging effects of global climate change, especially global warming, which may alter the thermal environments of such sensitive animals on a time scale much shorter than that of their ability to adjust.