Spatial patch structure and adaptive strategy for desert shrub of Reaumuria soongorica in arid ecosystem of the Heihe River Basin

In many arid ecosystems, vegetation frequently occurs in high-cover patches interspersed in a matrix of low plant cover. However, theoretical explanations for shrub patch pattern dynamics along climate gradients remain unclear on a large scale. This context aimed to assess the variance of the Reaumuria soongorica patch structure along the precipitation gradient and the factors that affect patch structure formation in the middle and lower Heihe River Basin (HRB). Field investigations on vegetation patterns and heterogeneity in soil properties were conducted during 2014 and 2015. The results showed that patch height, size and plant-to-patch distance were smaller in high precipitation habitats than in low precipitation sites. Climate, soil and vegetation explained 82.5% of the variance in patch structure. Spatially, R. soongorica shifted from a clumped to a random pattern on the landscape towards the MAP gradient, and heterogeneity in the surface soil properties (the ratio of biological soil crust (BSC) to bare gravels (BG)) determined the R. soongorica population distribution pattern in the middle and lower HRB. A conceptual model, which integrated water availability and plant facilitation and competition effects, was revealed that R. soongorica changed from a flexible water use strategy in high precipitation regions to a consistent water use strategy in low precipitation areas. Our study provides a comprehensive quantification of the variance in shrub patch structure along a precipitation gradient and may improve our understanding of vegetation pattern dynamics in the Gobi Desert under future climate change.

     

Revisiting the existence of an effective stress for wet granular soils with micromechanics

A possible effective stress variable for wet granular materials is numerically investigated based on an adapted discrete element method (DEM) model for an ideal three‐phase system. The DEM simulations consider granular materials made of nearly monodisperse spherical particles, in the pendular regime with the pore fluid mixture consisting of distinct water menisci bridging particle pairs. The contact force‐related stress contribution to the total stresses is isolated and tested as the effective stress candidate for dense or loose systems. It is first recalled that this contact stress tensor is indeed an adequate effective stress that describes stress limit states of wet samples with the same Mohr‐Coulomb criterion associated with their dry counterparts. As for constitutive relationships, it is demonstrated that the contact stress tensor used in conjunction with dry constitutive relations does describe the strains of wet samples during an initial strain regime but not beyond. Outside this so‐called quasi‐static strain regime, whose extent is much greater for dense than loose materials, dramatic changes in the contact network prevent macroscale contact stress‐strain relationships to apply in the same manner to dry and unsaturated conditions. The presented numerical results also reveal unexpected constitutive bifurcations for the loose material, related to stick‐slip macrobehavior.     

鄂尔多斯地块周缘垂直形变场负位错反演与应变积累研究

利用鄂尔多斯地块及其周缘1970～2014年的垂直形变速率场资料，借助负位错反演研究该区域长期应变积累。结果表明，地块东北缘山西断陷带中北段年均能量积累增量、剪应力强度都较高，西南缘六盘山断裂与渭河断裂西段次之；山西断陷带中南段至晋陕交界处年均剪应力强度较高且显示一定程度的能量积累；西秦岭构造区尤其西秦岭北缘断裂西段、晋冀蒙交界区也反映一定程度的能量积累特性。     

张力腿平台筋腱支撑浮筒结构设计研究

在张力腿平台筋腱与海底桩基连接后,需要筋腱支撑浮筒为筋腱提供足够的浮力,保证筋腱在平台运抵工作海域之前不会发生倾覆。针对南海油田自主研发的张力腿平台筋腱实际尺寸及设计要求,设计了适用于1 061 mm(40英寸)筋腱、500米水深的张力腿平台筋腱支撑浮筒,并对筋腱支撑浮筒主要受力进行了分析计算,根据所计算的载荷情况对关键部件进行了有限元仿真分析,验证了结构强度的可靠性,并得到了结构的应力集中点与最大变形点,为筋腱支撑浮筒的结构设计提供了参考。     

Determination of subcatchment and watershed boundaries in a complex and highly urbanized landscape

Urban development significantly alters the landscape by introducing widespread impervious surfaces, which quickly convey surface run‐off to streams via stormwater sewer networks, resulting in “flashy” hydrological responses. Here, we present the inadequacies of using raster‐based digital elevation models and flow‐direction algorithms to delineate large and highly urbanized watersheds and propose an alternative approach that accounts for the influence of anthropogenically modified land cover. We use a semi‐automated approach that incorporates conventional drainage networks into overland flow paths and define the maximal run‐off contributing area. In this approach, stormwater pipes are clustered according to their slope attributes, which define flow direction. Land areas drained by each cluster and contributing (or exporting) flow to a topographically delineated catchment were determined. These land masses were subsequently added or removed from the catchment, modifying both the shape and the size. Our results in a highly urbanized Toronto, Canada, area watershed indicate a moderate net increase in the directly connected watershed area by 3% relative to a topographically forced method; however, differences across three smaller scale subcatchments are greater. Compared to topographic delineation, the directly connected watershed areas of both the upper and middle subcatchments decrease by 5% and 8%, respectively, whereas the lower subcatchment area increases by 15%. This is directly related to subsurface storm sewer pipes that cross topographic boundaries. When directly connected subcatchment area is plotted against total streamflow and flashiness indices using this method, the coefficients of variation are greater (0.93 to 0.97) compared to the use of digital elevation model‐derived subcatchment areas (0.78 to 0.85). The accurate identification of watershed and subcatchment boundaries should incorporate ancillary data such as stormwater sewer networks and retention basin drainage areas to reduce water budget errors in urban systems.     

Geography Deserts: State and Regional Variation in the Formal Opportunity to Learn Geography in the United States, 2005–2015

The formal opportunity to learn geography in the United States is unevenly distributed across space, creating possible geography deserts. Data on the number of exams taken in Advanced Placement Human Geography (APHG) and bachelor’s degrees earned in geography are mapped at the state and regional scales. Normalized rates are ranked and grouped into quintiles. For APHG exams, states in the southeastern region of the United States are in the uppermost quintiles while states in the northeastern region are in the lowermost quintiles. The pattern for bachelor’s degrees in geography is somewhat the spatial inverse of that for APHG.     

海岸破波带内悬沙空间分布试验研究和解析表达式

关于海岸破波带内悬沙浓度水平和垂向分布的研究对于计算海岸输沙率和地形演变具有重要意义。本研究进行了规则波、波群和不规则波三种波浪情况破波带内悬沙浓度的水平和垂向分布的试验测量。试验在大尺度波浪水槽进行,接近实际海岸波况尺度。给出了破波带内多断面悬沙垂向分布的细致测量结果,并以此为基础给出了预报实际海岸破波带内悬沙浓度水平和垂向分布解析表达式,讨论了形成这些分布的物理原因和不同波况、不同破波带区域对分布的影响。     

300 BC-1900 AD无定河流域城镇时空格局演变

通过分析和整理从战国中晚期（约300 BC）至清末（约1900 AD）无定河流域历代县级及以上城址的位置、兴废年代数据,结合行政区划沿革、经济社会发展、政权更迭等资料,分析流域城镇格局的时空演变过程。研究表明：① 受气候周期性波动影响,无定河流域城镇的兴起与衰废具有明显的周期性特征,城镇几何中心的移动轨迹具有明显的“西北—东南”向潮汐性运动特征;② 城址存续年限普遍较短,具有明显的阶段性特征,流域内曾存在过4个阶段性中心城镇,中心城镇移动的方向和过程与城镇几何中心的潮汐性移动过程趋势一致;③ 流域城镇空间格局可分为3种类型,即秦汉与隋唐时期的沿河流谷地分布,宋、明两代的沿边境线与长城分布,以及元、清两代集中于流域下游分布。流域城镇未来的发展布局应重视气候变化对城镇分布的长期影响,关注区域环境的脆弱性,合理安排城镇体系发展规模与布局。     

京津冀协同发展重要地理国情监测研究与应用

文章阐述了开展京津冀协同发展重要地理国情监测的现实背景和意义,依托地理国情普查和常态化监测,结合京津冀一体化发展需求,提出了京津冀协同发展重要地理国情监测的总体思路、研究内容、关键技术和研究方法等,并开展了京津冀地区自然生态空间变化监测、高等级公路和铁路交通网络变化监测、重点大气颗粒物污染源空间分布监测等重要地理国情信息监测研究,成果已经在京津冀地区可持续发展评价、京津冀生态文明建设、空间规划管理等工作中得到了广泛应用。     

Otolith microchemistry indicates regional phylopatry in the larval phase of an amphidromous fish (Gobiomorphus hubbsi)

Knowledge of stock structure is key for the effective management of any fish species. Amphidromous fish, which live and spawn in freshwater but spend a pelagic larval period at sea, have typically been assumed to disperse widely during their larval phase, resulting in populations being sourced from a single unstructured larval pool. We used otolith microchemical analysis to examine the stock structure of bluegill bully (Gobiomorphus hubbsi), a declining amphidromous eleotrid endemic to New Zealand, along the west coast of South Island, New Zealand. Some drainages – even those in close proximity (c. 20?km) – were readily distinguishable based on otolith trace element concentrations, while little structure was evident between other geographically disparate locations. These results indicate that, at least in some cases, locally retained larvae, rather than a single unstructured larval pool, dominates recruitment. Management of bluegill bully and other amphidromous species must therefore consider the possibility of regionally distinct populations.