Water quality early warning system

In a method of monitoring water quality in a selected water system, the steps of:

• exposing a plurality of living organisms to water from said selected water system;
• simultaneously visually monitoring the movements of a plurality of said organisms;
• measuring selected characteristics of said organisms' environment including the temperature of said water;
• providing a behavioral model for defining a set of expected statistical distributions for a multiplicity of preselected movement parameters, wherein said expected statistical distribution for parameters is a function of one or more measurements of said selected characteristics of said organisms' environment;
• and for automatically, periodically performing the steps of:
• gnerating a set of observed statistical distributions for said multiplicity of preselected movement parameters based on said movements of said plurality of visually monitored organisms;
• in response to measurements by said sensor means, generating a set of prediction parameters corresponding to said set of expected statistical distributions;
• analyzing said movements, including comparing said observed statistical distributions with said set of prediction parameters;
• and
• generating a warning message when said movements do not correspond to said prediction parameters.

In a system for monitoring environmental quality in a selected environmental system;

• (a) tank means for exposing a plurality of living organisms to an environmental medium from said selected environmental system;
• (b) video means for simultaneously visually monitoring the movements of a plurality of said organisms in said tank means;
• (c) sensor means for measuring selected characteristics of said organisms' environment including the temperature of said environmental medium;
• (d) warning means for generating a warning message;
• and
• (e) computer means, coupled to said video means, sensor means and warning means, for automatically, periodically evaluating the quality of the environmental medium in said environmental system, including
• video analysis means for generating a set of observed statistical distributions for a multiplicity of preselected movement parameters based on said movements of said plurality of organisms monitored by said video means;
• predictor means, responsive to measurements by said sensor means, for generating a set of prediction parameters, including
• behavioral model means for defining a set of expected statistical distributions for said multiplicity of preselected movement parameters,
• wherein each of a plurality of said expected statistical distributions defined by said behavioral model means is a function of one or more measurements by said sensor means, and said set of prediction parameters corresponds to said set of expected statistical distributions;
• and
• analysis means for analyzing said movements of said organisms monitored by said video means, including means for comparing said set of observed statistical distributions with said set of prediction parameters and for activating said warning means when said movements do not correspond to said prediction parameters.

In a method of monitoring environmental quality in a selected environmental system, the steps of:

• exposing a plurality of living organisms to an environmental medium of said selected environmental system;
• simultaneously visually monitoring the movements of a plurality of said organisms;
• measuring selected characteristics of said organisms' environment including the temperature of said environmental medium;
• providing a behavioral model for defining a set of expected statistical distributions for a multiplicity of preselected movement parameters, wherein said expected statistical distribution for parameters is a function of one or more measurements of said selected characteristics of said organisms' environment;
• and for automatically, periodically performing the steps of:
• generating a set of observed statistical distributions for said multiplicity of preselected movement parameters based on said movements of said plurality of visually monitored organisms;
• in response to measurements by said sensor means, generating a set of prediction parameters corresponding to said set of expected statistical distributions;
• analyzing said movements, including comparing said observed statistical distributions with said set of prediction parameters;
• and
• generating a warning message when said movements do not correspond to said prediction parameters.