Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Thermal time constant estimation in warming and cooling ectotherms.

E M. Dzialowski1, M P. O'Connor

  • 1Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Drexel University, PA 19104, Philadelphia, USA

Journal of Thermal Biology
|March 10, 2001
PubMed
Summary

This study introduces a new heat transfer model for accurately measuring reptile thermal time constants (tau). The improved method is robust against common experimental errors, enhancing physiological studies of thermoregulation.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same journal

Agreement between automated ThermoHuman® and manual thermographic analyses for assessing lower-limb skin temperatures before and after running.

Journal of thermal biology·2026
Same journal

Calorimetry analysis of two dipteran species, Tetanops myopaeformis and Drosophila melanogaster over an ecologically relevant low temperature range.

Journal of thermal biology·2026
Same journal

Upper thermal tolerance of the euryhaline fish Fundulus heteroclitus is lower in freshwater and shaped by environmental salinity-acclimation time interaction.

Journal of thermal biology·2026
Same journal

Thermal stress differentially regulates eicosanoid and fatty acid metabolism in gills of the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis).

Journal of thermal biology·2026
Same journal

Temporal analysis of pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) under heat stress: an integrated study from histological, physiological and transcriptomic perspectives.

Journal of thermal biology·2026
Same journal

Coping near thermal maximum: Demographic responses of the common frog species, Eleutherodactylus coqui, to experimental climate warming.

Journal of thermal biology·2026

Area of Science:

  • Physiology
  • Biophysics
  • Herpetology

Background:

  • Accurate measurement of reptile thermoregulation requires calculating the thermal time constant (tau).
  • Existing methods for estimating tau are prone to significant experimental errors and limitations.
  • These limitations include sensitivity to environmental temperature fluctuations and equilibrium body temperature measurement errors.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a more robust and accurate method for estimating the thermal time constant (tau) in reptiles.
  • To overcome the limitations of previous techniques used in thermoregulation studies.
  • To provide a physiologically meaningful estimation of time constants under various experimental conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a physiologically based heat transfer model.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Application of the model to estimate thermal time constants (tau).
  • Validation of the model against traditional step-change experiments and shorter warming/cooling periods.

    • Main Results:

    • The proposed model demonstrates reduced sensitivity to common experimental errors.
    • The new method is more numerically robust than previous techniques.
    • Physiologically meaningful estimates of time constants were obtained, even with shorter experimental durations.

    Conclusions:

    • The novel heat transfer model offers a superior approach to measuring reptile thermal time constants (tau).
    • This method enhances the reliability of thermoregulation research by minimizing experimental error.
    • The technique is versatile, applicable to both traditional and novel experimental designs in reptile physiology.