This thesis presents a comprehensive analysis of the global health impacts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in ambient air, conducted on the basis of a high-resolution emission inventory, global chemical transport modeling, and probabilistic risk assessment. One of the main strengths of the thesis is the concentration downscaling process, which provides a linkage between emissions and exposure concentrations at a comparatively high resolution. Moreover, by focusing on individual susceptibility, the thesis proposes an instrumental revision of current risk assessment methodology and argues that, if individual susceptibility were not taken into consideration, the overall risk would be underestimated by 55% and the proportion of highly vulnerable populations would be underestimated by more than 90%. From the Back Cover This thesis presents a comprehensive analysis of the global health impacts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in ambient air, conducted on the basis of a high-resolution emission inventory, global chemical transport modeling, and probabilistic risk assessment. One of the main strengths of the thesis is the concentration downscaling process, which provides a linkage between emissions and exposure concentrations at a comparatively high resolution. Moreover, by focusing on individual susceptibility, the thesis proposes an instrumental revision of current risk assessment methodology and argues that, if individual susceptibility were not taken into consideration, the overall risk would be underestimated by 55% and the proportion of highly vulnerable populations would be underestimated by more than 90%. About the Author Honors Best Student Presentation Award, International Symposium on Environment & Health, 2014 Tiehan Scholarship, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, 2014 Merit student, Peking University, 2013. Unilever-CAS Research Award, for outstanding research in risk assessment of chemicals, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2012. Wusi Scholarship, for scientific research, Peking University, 2010. Junzheng Scholar, for scientific study as an undergraduate student by Nobel Prize winner, Prof. Tsung-Dao Lee, 2008. Publications (As the first author) Shen, H.Z., Tao, S., Liu, J., Huang, Y., Chen, H., Li, W., Zhang, Y., Chen, Y., Su, S., Lin, N., Xu, Y., Li, B., Wang, X., Liu, W. Global lung cancer risk from PAH exposure highly depends on emission sources and individual susceptibility. Sci. Rep. 2014, DOI: 10.1038/srep06561. Shen, H.Z., Huang, Y., Wang, R., Zhu, D., Li, W., Shen, G.F., Wang, B., Zhang, Y.Y., Chen, Y.C., Lu, Y., Chen, H., Li, T.C., Sun, K., Li, B.G., Liu, W.X., Liu, J.F., Tao, S. Global atmospheric emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from 1960 to 2008 and future predictions. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2013, 47: 6415-6424. Shen, H.Z., Tao, S., Wang, R., Wang, B., Shen, G.F., Li, W., Su, S.S., Huang, Y., Wang, X.L., Liu, W.X., Li, B.G., Sun, K. Global time trends in PAH emissions from motor vehicles. Atmos. Environ. 2011, 45: 2067-2073. (Others) Zhang, Y.X., Tao, S., Shen, H.Z., Ma, J.M. Inhalation exposure to ambient polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and lung cancer risk of Chinese population. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2009, 106: 21063-21067. Wang, R., Tao, S., Balkanski, Y., Ciais, P., Boucher, O., Liu, J.F., Piao, S.L., Shen, H.Z., Vuolo, M.R., Valari, M., Chen, H., Chen, Y.C., Cozic, A., Huang, Y., Li, B.G., Li, W., Shen, G.F., Wang, B., Zhang, Y.Y. Exposure to ambient black carbon derived from a unique inventory and high-resolution model. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2014, doi:10.1073/pnas.1318763111. Huang, Y., Shen, H.Z., Chen, H., Wang, R., Zhang, Y.Y., Su, S., Chen, Y., Lin, N., Zhuo, S., Zhong, Q., Wang, X., Liu, J., Li, B., Liu, W., Tao, S. Quantification of Global Primary Emissions of PM2.5, PM10, and TSP from Combustion and Industrial Process Sources. Accepted by Environ. Sci. Technol. Zhang,
