Social impacts of the climatic shift around the turn of the 19th century on the North China Plain

Historical case studies of climate change impacts and the resulting social responses can provide analogies for better understanding the impacts of current and future climate changes.Around the turn of the 19th century,the climate of the North China Plain experienced a shift from a relatively warm stage in the 18th century to a colder stage in the 19th century,which was characterised by a much colder climate and more frequent and severe floods and droughts.Historical information about refugees,social disorder,grain transportation,and disaster relief on the North China Plain in 1780-1819 is collected from the Veritable Records of the Qing Dynasty(a collection of official records).The mechanism of climate change affecting the food security of the society,as indicated by the development of a refugee problem around the turn of the 19th century,is analyzed by examining the social vulnerability.There are four basic findings:(1) In the 40 years from 1780-1819,the society on the North China Plain was unstable and characterised by a significant deterioration of the refugee situation.The number of refugees increased markedly,and their behaviour became increasingly violent.In the 1780s,most of the disaster victims chose to stay at their residences waiting for relief.From 1790 to 1800,hundreds of thousands of refugees migrated to northeast China.In the 1810s,the frequency of farmer rebellions increased sharply.(2) The increase in instability corresponded to the climatic cooling over the same time period.The increased instability was a result of the negative impacts of climate change accumulating and transmitting to the social level.(3) For food security,a precondition for the negative impacts of climate change on human society was the vulnerability of the regional socioeconomic system,which had a high sensitivity and low capacity to respond.This vulnerability could be described by the following three observations:① The regional balance of supply and demand for food was in a critical state,which led to a high sensitivity and dramatic reduction in yield that was caused by climate change;② the capacity for disaster relief efforts by the government was too low to meet the needs of crisis management;③ the capacity for refugees’ resettlement in eastern Inner Mongolia and northeast China,which both border the North China Plain,was severely restricted by climatic conditions or the quarantine policy.(4) It is estimated that climate change caused the social vulnerability to reach a critical level approximately 20 years earlier on the North China Plain.     

Geological and surfacial processes and major disaster effects in the Yellow River Basin

The Yellow River Basin(YRB) is characterized by active geological and tectonic processes, rapid geomorphological evolution, and distinct climatic diversity. Correspondingly, major disasters in the YRB are characterized by varied types,extensive distributions, and sudden occurrences. In addition, major disasters in the YRB usually evolve into disaster chains that cause severe consequences. Therefore, major disasters in the YRB destroy ecologies and environments and influence geological and ecological safety in the basin. This paper systematically reviews research on geological and surface processes, major disaster effects, and risk mitigation in the YRB, discusses the trends and challenges of relevant research, analyzes the key scientific problems that need to be solved, and suggests prospects for future research based on the earth system science concept. Themes of research that should be focused on include geological, surface and climatic processes in the YRB and their interlinking disaster gestation mechanisms;formation mechanisms and disaster chain evolutions of giant landslides in the upper reach of the YRB;mechanisms and disaster chain effects of loess water-soil disasters in the middle reach of the YRB;occurrence patterns and amplifying effects of giant flood chains in the lower reach of the YRB;and risk mitigations of major disasters in the YRB. Key scientific problems that need to be solved are as follows: how to reveal the geological, surface and climatic processes that are coupled and interlinked with gestation mechanisms of major disasters;how to clarify the mutual feedback effects between major disasters and ecology;and how to develop a human-environmental harmony-based integrated risk mitigation system for major disasters. Prospects for future studies that follow the earth system science concept include the following: highlighting interdisciplinary research to reveal the interlinked disaster gestation mechanisms of the geology, surface and climate in the YRB in the past, present, and future;forming theories to clarify the regional patterns, dynamic mechanisms, and mutual-feedback effects between disaster chains and ecology in the YRB on land and in rivers in the region;solving technological bottlenecks to develop assessment models and mitigation theories for integrated risks in the YRB by following the human-environment harmony concept;and finally, establishing a demonstratable application pattern characterized by "whole-basin coverage" and "zonal controls", thereby guaranteeing ecological and geological safety in the basin and providing scientific support for ecological conservation and high-quality development of the YRB.     

Countermeasures for and Experiences in Seismic Hazard Mitigation in Uganda

For earthquake-prone countries of the world, it is crucial to develop countermeasures and to share experiences in seismic hazard mitigation. The measures for seismic hazard mitigation are related to many factors, e.g., social, economic, and political. Research focused on modern science and technology paves the way for a better understanding of the earthquake phenomenon and helps to plan against its effects in seismically active areas.In this paper, we consider some of the events that occurred in earthquake-prone countries, both developing and developed, which caused devastation to the society and economy. These are mainly major events that have affected a considerable portion of the gross domestic product of these economies.Measures to mitigate seismic hazard are stressed and suggested. In addition, experiences in seismic hazard mitigation in Uganda and the rest of the world are discussed in general terms. Attention is given to geotectonic settings as well as the work of seismic hazard and disaster mana     

The down-faulted basin zone and high disaster risk zone in Shanxi Province, China

Introduction Since 1920s, with increasing awareness of disaster prevention and reduction in various as-pects and gradually deepened development of International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR) activities in China, the role and position of disaster risk analysis and risk management work are increasingly prominent. In the final report of the IDNDR activities in 1999, the Science and Technology Committee of IDNDR had presented 5 challenge fields, which the international dis…     

Review of the 2018 Palu Tsunami:Disaster Behavior and Reflections on Disaster Management

The 2018 Palu M_W7.5 earthquake and tsunami attracted geophysicists'' attention for its strike slip focal mechanism and magnitude. We inspected the details of this disaster and discussed its particularity and possible causations. The submarine landslide and special terrain conditions could have contributed to the unusual size of the tsunami. The early warning system and the post disaster response is also reviewed. Efficient social warnings and broadcast systems along with good maintenance is essential. We also found that enhancing publics scientific literacy is the most important way to reduce disaster damage and casualties. Moreover, social conditions and rebuilding difficulties post tsunami are related as reference resources for future disaster management strategies.     

Reduction of earthquake disasters

The article summarizes the researches on mitigating earthquake disasters of the past four years in China. The studyof earthquake disasters′ quantification shows that the losses increase remarkably when population concentrates inurban area and social wealth increase. The article also summarizes some new trends of studying earthquake disas-ters′ mitigation, which are from seismic hazard to seismic risk, from engineering disaster to social disaster andintroduces the community-centered approach.     

Progress in Earthquake Science and Technology in China: Review and Prospects (Ⅰ)

In the article the author looks back the hard development course and great progress in earth quake science and technology in China during the last near a half of century and expounds the following 3 aspects: (1) The strong desire of the whole society to mitigate seismic disasters and reduce the effect of earthquakes on social-economic live is a great driving force to push forward the development of earthquake science and technology in China; (2) To better ensure people‘ s life and property, sustainable economic development, and social stability is an essential purpose to drive the development of earthquake science and technology in China; and (3) To insist on the dialectical connection of setup of technical system for seismic monitoring with the scientific research of earthquakes and to better handle the relation between crucial task, current scientif ic level, and the feasibility are the important principles to advance the earthquake science and technology in China. Some success and many setbacks in earthquake disaster mitigation consistently enrich our knowledge regarding the complexity of the conditions for earthquake occurrence and the process of earthquake preparation, promote the reconstruction and modernization of technical system for earthquake monitoring, and deepen the scientific research of earthquakes. During the last 5 years, the improvement and modernization of technical system for earthquake monitoring have clearly provided the technical support to study and practice of earthquake prediction and pre caution, give prominence to key problems and broaden the field of scientific research of earth quakes. These have enabled us to get some new recognition of the conditions for earthquake oc currence and process of earthquake preparation, characteristics of seismic disaster, and mecha nism for earthquake generation in China‘s continent. The progress we have made not only en courages us to enhance the effectiveness of earthquake disaster mitigation, but also provides a basis for accelerating further development of earthquake science and technology in China in the new century, especially in the 10th five-year plan. Based on the history reviewed, the author sets forth a general requirement for develop ment of earthquake science and technology in China and brings out 10 aspects to be stressed and strengthened at present and in the future. These are: upgrade and setup of the network of digitized seismic observation; upgrade and setup of the network for observation of seismic pre cursors; setup of the network for observation of strong motion; setup of the laboratories for ex periment on seismic regime; establishment of technical system for seismic information, emer gency command and urgent rescue; research on short-term and imminent earthquake predic tion; research on intermediate- and long-term earthquake prediction; research on attenuation of seismic ground motion, mechanism for seismic disaster, and control on seismic disaster; ba sic research fields related to seismology and geoscience. We expect that these efforts will signifi cantly elevate the level of earthquake science and technology in China to the advanced interna tional level, improve theories, techniques, and methods for earthquake precaution and predic tion, and enhance the effectiveness of earthquake disaster mitigation.     

Evolution of seismic risk management for insurance over the past 30 years

During the past 30 years, there has been spectacular growth in the use of risk analysis and risk management tools developed by engineers in the financial and insurance sectors. The insurance, the reinsurance, and the investment banking sectors have enthusiastically adopted loss estimation tools developed by engineers in developing their business strategies and for managing their financial risks. As a result, insurance/reinsurance strategy has evolved as a major risk mitigation tool in managing catastrophe risk at the individual, corporate, and government level. This is particularly true in developed countries such as US, Western Europe, and Japan. Unfortunately, it has not received the needed attention in developing countries, where such a strategy for risk management is most needed. Fortunately, in the last five years, there has been excellent focus in developing "Insur Tech" tools to address the much needed "Insurance for the Masses", especially for the Asian Markets. In the earlier years of catastrophe model development, risk analysts were mainly concerned with risk reduction options through engineering strategies, and relatively little attention was given to financial and economic strategies. Such state-of-affairs still exists in many developing countries. The new developments in the science and technologies of loss estimation due to natural catastrophes have made it possible for financial sectors to model their business strategies such as peril and geographic diversification, premium calculations, reserve strategies, reinsurance contracts, and other underwriting tools. These developments have not only changed the way in which financial sectors assess and manage their risks, but have also changed the domain of opportunities for engineers and scientists.This paper will address the issues related to developing insurance/reinsurance strategies to mitigate catastrophe risks and describe the role catastrophe risk insurance and reinsurance has played in managing financial risk due to natural catastrophes. Historical losses and the share of those losses covered by insurance will be presented. How such risk sharing can help the nation share the burden of losses between tax paying public, the "at risk" property owners, the insurers and the reinsurers will be discussed. The paper will summarize the tools that are used by the insurance and reinsurance companies for estimating their future losses due to catastrophic natural events. The paper will also show how the results of loss estimation technologies developed by engineers are communicated to the business flow of insurance/reinsurance companies. Finally, to make it possible to grow "Insurance for the Masses – IFM", the role played by parametric insurance products and Insur Tech tools will be discussed.     

The Characteristics of Earthquake Disasters and Countermeasures for Their Mitigation in Metropolitans

Metropolitans are a result of fast economic development in China. Many metropolitans have emerged in the eastern part of China. Earthquake disasters in metropolitans are more complicated and serious than those in a smaller city, and the impact of earthquake disaster on the economy and society is large. The characteristics of earthquake disasters and countermeasures to protect against and mitigate disaster in the metropolitan, as well as some key research fields in the earthquake disaster protection and mitigation, are discussed.     

琼中地震台重力仪记录同震响应特征分析

2013年2月6-8日圣克鲁斯群岛发生6次强震,琼中地震台的重力仪记录都有同震响应出现。本文从重力仪记录的面波的延迟时间、最大变形幅度、同震持续时间3个方面研究了6次强震的同震响应特征。     

Contribution to the knowledge of the magmatic evolution by the study of the variation of the coefficient of viscosity

The determination of the coefficient of viscosity of eruptive products gives useful elements to the knowledge of possible variations of composition and physical conditions of the magmas.     

On the Mechanism of the Secular Tidal Acceleration of the Solid Inner Core and the Viscosity of the Liquid Core

As is known, the secular deceleration of the Earth's diurnal rotation is explained mainly by the tidal friction in the ocean. Below we consider this mechanism in some detail, taking into account also elastic deformations of the mantle under the action of ocean loading and the interaction between the tide-generating body, ocean tidal wave, liquid outer core, and solid inner core. It is shown that elastic displacements of the core-mantle boundary under the action of ocean loading are of about the same amplitude and phase as the elastic loading displacements of the Earth's outer surface. As a result, side by side with the mechanism of secular deceleration of diurnal rotation of the mantle, there are also (1) the opposite mechanism of secular acceleration of diurnal rotation of the outer liquid core and of the solid inner core and (2) the mechanism of excitation of differential rotation in the liquid core. Taking these effects into account, we compare theoretical and modern observed data on the eastward drift of the solid inner core. It is shown that the best agreement may be obtained if the turbulent viscosity of the liquid core is about 2 × 10 ³ Poise     

Comparison Between the Nutations of the Planet Mars and the Nutations of the Earth

The nutations of the planets Mars andEarth are investigated and compared. Alarge number of interior structureparameters are involved in the nutationcomputations. The comparison between the observations and the computationsprovides several constraints on these parmeters andtherefore allows a better understanding of the physics of the interior of theplanet. For the Earth, the high precision of the observations of the nutationshas led to a very good determination of interior properties of the planet. ForMars, observations of nutations are not yet available, and we review how theamplitude of the Martian nutations depends on the hypotheses consideredfor its interior. Although Mars is very similar to the Earth, its interior is not well known;for example, we don't knowif its core is liquid or solid. Only if the core is liquid,the Free Core Nutation (FCN) normal mode exists and can alter the nutationswhich are close to the resonance. From the observed geoids, it is known thatboth planets are not in hydrostatic equilibrium. The departure is larger forMars than for the Earth, and consequently, the implication of considering a convective mantle instead of a mantle in hydrostatic equilibrium described byClairaut's equation for the initial equilibrium state of the planet is largeron the Martian nutations than on the Earth nutations. The consequences of theuncertainty in the core dimensions are also examined and shown to be of a veryhigh influence for Mars if the core is liquid, due to the potential changes inthe FCN resonance. The influence of the presence of an inner core, which isknown to exist for the Earth, could be more important for Mars than for theEarth if the inner core is large. Due to the presence of Tharsis on Mars, thetriaxiality of this planet has, additionally, larger effects than on Earth.     

Pictorial Series of the Manifestations of the Dynamics of the Earth

Studia Geophysica et Geodaetica -     

动水压力对深水桥墩地震响应影响的研究综述

地震激励下处于深水中的桥墩和周围水体的相互作用将对桥梁结构的动力响应产生较大影响。首先对地震作用下水-桥墩的相互作用理论做了概括,给出了动水压力对桥墩的作用效应及各自的适用范围;对主要的三种考虑流固耦合效应的分析方法做了对比,探讨了地震作用下影响水-结构相互作用的主要因素,并对今后的研究提出了建议。     

Evolution of the Source of the Active Region of the Sun

Geomagnetism and Aeronomy - The magnetic evolution of the active region of the Sun at the level of the photosphere has been studied. Magnetic synoptic maps of the 2007 Kitt Peak Observatory were...     

Magnetic stratigraphy of the Ordovician in the lower reach of the Kotuy River: the age of the Bysy-Yuryakh stratum and the rate of geomagnetic reversals on the eve of the superchron

Until recently, the existing data prevented the geophysicists from accurately dating the Bysy-Yuryakh stratum, which outcrops in the middle reach of the Kotuy River, constraining the time of its formation to a wide interval from the end of the Late Cambrian to the beginning of the Silurian. The obtained paleomagnetic data unambiguously correlate the Bysy-Yuryakh stratum to the Nyaian regional stage and constrain its formation, at least a considerable part of it, by the Tremadocian. This result perfectly agrees with the data on the Bysy-Yuryakh conodonts studied in this work and yields a spectacular example of the successful application of paleomagnetic studies in solving important tasks of stratigraphy and, correspondingly, petroleum geology. Within the Bysy-Yuryakh stratum, we revealed a large normal-polarity interval corresponding to the long (>1 Ma) period when the geomagnetic reversals were absent. This result, in combination with the data for the Tremadocian and Middle–Upper Cambrian sequences of the other regions, indicates that (1) the rate of occurrence of the geomagnetic reversals on the eve of the Ordovician Moyero superchron of reversed polarity was at most one reversal per Ma; (2) the superchron does not switch on instantaneously but is preceded by a certain gradual change in the operation conditions of the dynamo mechanism which, inter alia, manifests itself by the reduction of the frequency of geomagnetic reversals with the approach of the superchron. This finding supports the views according to which a process preparing the establishment of the superchrons takes place at the core–mantle boundary.     

On the determination of the non-linearity of the gravimeter scale

Summary The results of two different methods of the determination of the non-linearity of the gravimeter scale are compared; the economy is discussed as well.