武威市初、终霜日气候特征

为了因地制宜,合理调整种植结构和布局,有效利用农业气候资源。利用1961—2014年武威市4个气象站点初、终霜日(最低地温≤0℃)观测资料,采用现代气候诊断分析方法,系统分析了该市年初、终霜日的时空变化特征。结果表明:受海拔高度、地形地势以及植被覆盖情况的影响,在空间分布上,武威市初霜日为山区早于荒漠区早于绿洲平原区,终霜日为山区晚于荒漠区晚于绿洲平原区,各地初、终霜日存在一定的异常性,正常初、终霜日均在60%左右,对农业生产造成危害的偏早和特早初霜日、偏晚和特晚终霜日的概率均在20%左右。在时间变化上,武威市初霜日呈显著推迟趋势,终霜日呈显著提早趋势,霜期呈显著缩短趋势,终霜日提早的幅度比初霜日推迟的幅度更大。初霜日和终霜日的时间序列均分别存在着8~10年和9~11年的准周期变化。初霜日在1998年发生了气候突变,终霜日在1996年发生了气候突变。     

Synthesis of biochar from sugarcane filter-cake and its impacts on physiological performance of lettuce (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lettuce sativa</Emphasis>) grown on cadmium contaminated soil

Soil contamination with cadmium has become major concern all over the world because of its adverse impacts on ecosystem health and agricultural land. Soil amendment with biochar may have varied effects on physical and chemical properties of soil. The objective of the study was to explore the impact of sugarcane filter-cake biochar on physiological performance and growth of lettuce in an aged soil. Four different doses (0, 1.5%, 3%, and 5%) of biochar were used in the soil and conditioned for 1 month. After this, lettuce seedlings were grown in the soil. The results showed that the biochar treatment improved the fresh and dry biomass of leaves and roots as well as plant height while diminished the bioavailability of cadmium from the soil. As compared to control, biochar significantly enhanced the chlorophyll content in lettuce leaves. Due to the biochar amendment, the oxidative stress decreased in lettuce shoots over the control. As compared to control, concentration of cadmium in lettuce significantly decreased after the application of biochar. It was concluded that biochar could mitigate the toxicity of cadmium in lettuce by altering the biochemical and physiological processes in cadmium contaminated soil.     

A structural synthesis of the Proterozoic Arabian-Nubian Shield in Egypt

Detailed structural geological and related studies were carried out in a number of critical areas in the Proterozoic basement of eastern Egypt to resolve the structural pattern at a regional scale and to assess the general characteristics of tectonic evolution, orogeny and terrane boundaries. Following a brief account of the tectonostratigraphy and timing of the orogenic evolution, the major structural characteristics of the critical areas are presented. Collisional deformation of the terranes ended about 615-600 Ma ago. Subsequent extensional collapse probably occurred within a relatively narrow time span of about 20 Ma (575 – 595 Ma ago) over the Eastern Desert and was followed by a further period of about 50 Ma of late to post-tectonic activity. The regional structures originated mainly during post-collisional events, starting with those related to extensional collapse (molasse basin formation, normal faulting, generation of metamorphic core complexes). Subsequent NNW-SSE shortening is documented by large-scale thrusting (towards the NNW) and folding, distributed over the Eastern Desert, although with variable intensity. Thrusts are overprinted by transpression, which was localized to particular shear zones. Early transpression produced, for example, the Allaqi shear zone and final transpression is documented in the Najd and Wadi Kharit-Wadi Hodein zones. Two terrane boundaries can be defined, the Allaqi and South Hafafit Sutures, which are apparently linked by the high angle sinistral strike-slip Wadi Kharit-Wadi Hodein shear zone with a tectonic transport of about 300 km towards the W/NW. In general, the tectonic evolution shows that extensional collapse is not necessarily the final stage of orogeny, but may be followed by further compressional and transpressional tectonism. The late Pan-African high angle faults were reactivated during Red Sea tectonics both as Riedel shears and normal faults, where they were oriented favourably with respect to the actual stress regime.     

Accumulation of heavy metals by cultured oysters from Merbok Estuary, Malaysia

The Merbok Estuary in Malaysia has a good potential of developing into a rich bivalve culture area. However, there is some concern on the likelihood of bio-accumulation of heavy metals by the oysters cultured there, since Merbok River is classified as very polluted. The accumulation of Cu and Zn in oysters (Crassostrea iredalei and Crassostrea belcheri) cultured at two locations in the estuary was studied. The results indicated that the Cu levels in oysters reaching marketable size are within the limit of 40 ppm specified in the Malaysian Food Regulations 1985, whereas Zn levels exceeded the limit of 100 ppm. The metal concentration data were fitted to a first-order kinetic model, and good agreement was found between the predicted and observed Cu concentrations using the x² test. The Zn data, however, did not fit the model. The Cu bioconcentration factors (BCF) for C. belcheri cultured at the two locations were found to be about 4.5 × 10³, which is close to that for C. iredalei. The results suggests that BCF value is site-specific.     

华北断块区地震幕与气温异常

本文利用1951-1980年期间中国气温资料研究了1966-1976年间华北断块区地震幕活动与1960年2月-1977年1月气温异常之间的关系。主要结论如下:1.华北断块及其邻近地区1960年2月天气异常增温到1977年1月天气异常降温过程与地震幕活动开始和结束的时间相关联;1967年5月、1973年1月、1975年9月和1976年2月的气温异常与该地震幕中1969年7月18日渤海7.4、1975年2月4日海城7.3和1976年7月28日唐山7.8级三次地震密切相关。2.气温异常时问和异常范围之间以及它们与地震能量之间都有较高的可信度,表明气温异常与地震幕之间有成因上的联系。3.从1960年2月气温异常开始到1976年7月28日唐山7.8级地震发生时的16.5年可按0.618~N划分为18个时段,4次7.0级以上地震和5次气温异常发生的时间恰好位于某几个时间段上。     

Fractionation of sulfur isotopes by the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Growing and resting cell suspensions of Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) were permitted to metabolize sulfite and sulfate under a variety of environmental conditions. Enrichment of S³² in the H₂S released during reduction of sulfate under growing conditions was consistently lower (δS³⁴ < ?25%.) than enrichment during reduction of sulfite under similar conditions (δS³⁴ ~ ?30 to ?50%.). Yeast cells harvested from a sulfite medium released small quantities of H₂S when suspended in glucose-sulfate solution; cells from a sulfate growth medium did not. The enrichment of H₂S in S³² by sulfite-grown resting cells suspended in either SO^2?₄ or SO^2?₃ solutions was about 10%.in less than the maximum obtained during growth on sulfite. Isotopic fractionation was always significantly less in assimilated, than in dissimilated sulfur.     

Astronomical research activities with the 74 inch telescope at Kottamia observatory

Two topics of research, namely extragalactic and variable star studies represent the main attitudes of astronomical work at the Helwan Observatory.The 74 inch telescope at Kottamia (476 m, 2^h.12, 29^°.93 N) some 60 km to the east of Cairo is the main instrument. Some other auxiliary equipment (Cassegrain and echelle spectrographs, Westinghouse and Japanese cameras and photoelectric photometer) can be attached at both Cassegrain and Newtonian foci.Paper presented at the IAU Third Asian-Pacific Regional Meeting, held in Kyoto, Japan, between 30 September–6 October, 1984.     

Detailed isophotometry of some galaxies,I

Results from a detailed isophotometric survey of NGC 5595, NGC 5597, NGC 5605, and NGC 7769 are given. It includes isophotic maps, luminosity profiles and ellipticity curves as well. Scanning of these galaxies was done in theB andV colours.     

Evaluation of the physico-mechanical parameters affecting the deterioration rate of Ahlat ignimbrites (Bitlis,Turkey)

The paper principally focuses on the durability assessment of various stratigraphic levels of Ahlat ignimbrites collected from the eastern region of Turkey. A total of four different ignimbrite types with dissimilar color, texture and particularly welding degree were tested in laboratory. The laboratory tests performed on the ignimbrite specimens indicate that the welding degree as well as the lithic material content mainly controls the strength and capillarity properties of the ignimbrites. In addition, the durability of highly porous ignimbrites strongly depends upon the degree of welding. The effect of several weathering agents on the ignimbrites was evaluated on the basis of decay constant parameter. Accordingly, salt and ice crystallization pressures are a couple of major destructive agents acting within the micropores of the ignimbrites. Conversely, the investigated specimens are relatively durable against cyclic wetting–drying. Statistical evaluations reveal that the pore diameter is the major controlling factor on the deterioration rate of the ignimbrites after specifically recurrent freeze–thaw cycles. Moreover, the dry unit weight of the ignimbrites is more significant than the uniaxial compressive strength considering the deterioration rates during wetting–drying and salt crystallization. A less significant relationship was obtained between pore diameter and salt crystallization decay constant.     

On possible influence of space weather on agricultural markets: Necessary conditions and probable scenarios

We present the results of study of a possible relationship between the space weather and terrestrial markets of agricultural products. It is shown that to implement the possible effect of space weather on the terrestrial harvests and prices, a simultaneous fulfillment of three conditions is required: 1) sensitivity of local weather (cloud cover, atmospheric circulation) to the state of space weather; 2) sensitivity of the area-specific agricultural crops to the weather anomalies (belonging to the area of risk farming); 3) relative isolation of the market, making it difficult to damp the price hikes by the external food supplies. Four possible scenarios of the market response to the modulations of local terrestrial weather via the solar activity are described. The data sources and analysismethods applied to detect this relationship are characterized. We describe the behavior of 22 European markets during the medieval period, in particular, during the Maunder minimum (1650–1715). We demonstrate a reliable manifestation of the influence of space weather on prices, discovered in the statistics of intervals between the price hikes and phase price asymmetry. We show that the effects of phase price asymmetry persist even during the early modern period in the U.S. in the production of the durum wheat. Within the proposed approach, we analyze the statistics of depopulation in the eighteenth and nineteenth century Iceland, induced by the famine due to a sharp livestock reduction owing to, in its turn, the lack of foodstuff due to the local weather anomalies. A high statistical significance of temporal matching of these events with the periods of extreme solar activity is demonstrated. We discuss the possible consequences of the observed global climate change in the formation of new areas of risk farming, sensitive to space weather.