Metals and models: Diagenic modelling in freshwater lacustrine sediments

This review aims to distill and synthesize the existing information on the use of models to describe and predict the distribution and movement of metals in lacustrine sediments. As such it examines the causes of metal diagenesis, the origin and form of the equations that govern these phenomena, and the predictability or measurability of the parameters that appear in the models. The paper concludes by highlighting some seminal results from modelling studies, including the determination of the factors controlling the formation of surficial Mn-Fe-enriched zone or layers, the substantial contribution possible from metal reduction to organic matter regeneration, the calculation of mixing-corrected metal input histories to lakes, and the prediction of growth rates and morphologies for both deep-sea and lacustrine ferromanganese nodules.     

地理学本体论：内涵、性质与理论价值

科学哲学研究表明,本体论问题的探讨对于具体学科的科学哲学研究和理论研究都具有重要意义。本文界定了地理学本体论的内涵,讨论了地理学方法论、本体论和地理学哲学的关系,比较和分析了哲学本体论与地理学本体论之间的联系和区别,阐述了地理学本体论的性质,概括了地理学本体论的理论价值。地理学本体论包括两个层面：地理学家和地理学流派的哲学本体论观念、地理学理论的本体论承诺,地理学家的本体论影响和决定着地理学家的认识论、方法论和价值论选择,而某个地理学理论的本体论承诺则是该理论得以成立的前提和基础。     

The validity and precision of spotlighting for surveying desert mammal communities

We investigated the validity of spotlighting techniques for surveying and monitoring desert mammal populations by determining the effect of repeating spotlight transects on the relative precision of density estimates. Precision was modelled by calculating cumulative mean density and associated coefficient of variation. The effect of moonlight at the time of surveying was also investigated. The results show that spotlighting is a valid technique for monitoring some species, however the number of transects required to obtain pre-defined adequate levels of precision is species-dependent. Reasons for these findings are discussed and recommendations for future spotlight surveys for monitoring desert mammal populations are given.     

中国地理学面临的挑战与发展

中国地理学已经形成了较为合理的研究机构格局和强大的人才队伍。但是无论从学科发展,还是从新经济建设与进步社会的需求角度看,地理学正面临着新的严峻挑战,同时也迎来发展的有利契机。我国地理学在社会经济发展的强大需求中已成为不可缺少的基础科学,多年来的学科建设培育一支强大的专门队伍。中国地理学一直准确的把握着当前国际地理学研究的前沿方向。在某些领域做出了具有国际水平的优秀成果,并积极地指导了区域实践。但是与国际先进水平相比,在综合的研究思路、主要的关注问题、研究的手段方法、人才的知识结构都存在着一定的差距。同时,社会对地理学的作用的认识也存在着误区。     

The role of salt weathering in the origin of the Qattara Depression, Western Desert, Egypt

Field studies and petrographic examinations of core samples and of the bedrock of the floor of the Qattara Depression, Egypt, indicate that salt weathering predominates in its western part in marked contrast to its eastern part. The eastern part of the depression is covered with more than 120-cm-thick, moist sands with sporadic occurrence of halite and gypsum due to the low salinity of the groundwater table. At the western part of the depression, the strongly saline, sodium chloride nature of the groundwater table favors crystallization of halite (and sometimes gypsum) at or near the surface of the outcropping bedrock of the Moghra clastics and/or Dabaa shale. Crystallization of halite and/or gypsum generates increased pressure that leads to mechanical disintegration of the bedrock into fine-grained debris. Features related to disintegration include blistering of the rock surface, splitting, spalling and/or granular disintegration.Alternation of dry and wet cycles favor halite crystallization, mechanical disintegration of the outcropping bedrock and dissolution of the halite cement, which exposes fine-grained debris to wind deflation. Removal of the debris from the floor of the depression leads to the accumulation of lunettes and other dunes in the downwind direction.Therefore, salt weathering provides fine-grained debris that are easily removed by deflation, which accounts for the topographically lower level of the western part of the depression (134 m below sea level (b.s.l.)). In contrast, the presence of moist sediments at the eastern part of the depression inhibits deflation and encourages sedimentation by adhesion of wind-blown sand to the damp surface of the sabkha at an elevation of 45 m below sea level.The disintegration of the bedrock of the Qattara Depression by salt weathering has been in effect since the onset of aridity in northern Egypt in Quaternary time. Whereas the initial excavation of the depression started in Late Miocene or Pliocene time by fluvial erosion, karstic process, mass-wasting and wind deflation.     

The formation of flocculated clay laminae in the sediments of a meromictic lake

Sediments of Lake Fidler, a meromictic lake in south-west Tasmania, contain distinctive laminae. In order to determine their composition and formation, these laminae were studied using a combination of X- ray analysis, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and vibrational spectrometry. Results indicated that the laminae were composed of clay originating from the adjacent Gordon River estuary. The clay was also found as part of the general sediment matrix of the core. The evidence indicates that the laminae are formed during incursions of brackish water from the adjacent Gordon River estuary into Lake Fidler which cause the flocculation of clay minerals in the water column. These clay minerals then sink rapidly to the sediments to form laminae. Although the formation of these laminae pre-dates meromixis, their mode of formation corroborates the theory that meromixis is maintained ectogenically by periodic inflows of brackish water replenishing monimolimnetic salts.     

近60年来西南地区旱涝变化及极端和持续性特征认识

利用1953~2012年中国西南地区44个气象台站的逐日降水、温度资料,通过降水和潜在蒸发均一化旱涝指数,从旱涝的年代际、年际、季节内变化以及极端和持续性特征等方面进行了分析,结果表明：从旱涝的空间趋势变化来看,西南近60 a来秋季和年变化呈显著的一致变旱趋势,而春、夏、冬3季旱涝变化趋势表现出一定的区域性特征;从旱涝的时间演变来看,在温度与降水双重因子驱动下春、夏、秋、冬均表现为干旱化趋势,相比较秋季的干旱化程度最强,而春季的最弱,夏、冬两季相当,而全年的干旱程度比四季的程度更强;从极端旱涝的多时间尺度来看,在年代际和年际尺度上,极端洪涝发生频次逐渐减少,而极端干旱发生频次逐渐增多,从季节尺度看,春、冬两季极端干旱发生频次较多,而夏季最少,极端洪涝发生频次夏季最多,春季次之,秋季最少。从旱涝的持续性特征来看,持续性干旱事件的持续时间有增长趋势,发生频率有增多趋势,发生强度有增强趋势,并且主要发生在冬春两季,而持续性洪涝事件的持续时间、发生强度没明显变化趋势,发生频率有减少趋势,发生的季节也没明显差异。     

Elementary forms for land surface segmentation: The theoretical basis of terrain analysis and geomorphological mapping

Land surface morphology is fundamental to geomorphological mapping and many GIS applications. Review and comparison of various approaches to segmentation of the land surface reveals common features, and permits development of a broad theoretical basis for segmentation and for characterization of segments and their boundaries. Within the context of defining landform units that maximise internal homogeneity and external differences, this paper introduces the concept of elementary forms (segments, units) defined by constant values of fundamental morphometric properties and limited by discontinuities of the properties. The basic system of form-defining properties represents altitude and its derivatives, constant values of which provide elementary forms with various types of homogeneity. Every geometric type of elementary form can be characterized by a defining function, which is a specific case of the general polynomial fitted function. Various types of boundary discontinuity and their connections and transformations into other types of morphological unit boundaries are analysed.The wealth of types of elementary forms and their boundaries is potentially unbounded and thus is sufficient to cover the real variety of landforms. Elementary forms in the basic set proposed here have clear potential for genetic and dynamic interpretation. A brief worked example documents the possibility of analytical computation of various models of ideal elementary forms for particular segments of landform. Ideal elementary forms can be considered as attractors, to which the affinity of surface segments can be measured by multivariate statistical methods. The use of the concept of elementary forms in landscape segmentation is promising and it could be adapted for elementary segmentation of various other spatial fields.     

Observations on a solar saltworks near Burgas, Bulgaria

Data on biota and nutrients in solar ponds of a saltworks near Burgas, Bulgaria, were obtained. Surveys of the biota were undertaken, and records from management officials gave information on biological and physical conditions related to salt production. The decrease in the quality and quantity of sodium chloride harvested that began 10 to 15 years before the study, may be related to the high levels of plankton, combined nitrogen and phosphate, and the large accretion of bottom sediments and density of benthic communities. Biological management can improve the quality and quantity of the sodium chloride produced by the saltworks.     

Consumption of Ecosystem Services in Laos

The exponential increase of ecosystem utilization has instigated a serious conflict between ecosystem services and residents’ needs. The Belt and Road Initiative has greatly influenced Laotian production and living, and the scientific assessment of the consumption of ecosystem services in Laos is important for exploring residents’ influence on the ecosystem. Based on data for the Laotian consumption of agricultural products, fruits and livestock products during 1961-2013, normalized by either harvest index or feed conversion ratio, this study draws three main conclusions. 1) Ecosystem service consumption in Laos is centered on the consumption of farmland, forestry and grassland ecosystem services, which account for over 80%, over 10% and under 2%, showing downward, upward and constant trends, respectively. The consumption of these ecosystem services shows a trend of increasing first, then fluctuating, and finally increasing. 2) The consumption of ecosystem services in Laos was characterized by the mode of “dominance of consumption of the farmland ecosystem services” from 1961 to 2008, and the mode of “balanced development of consumption of farmland, forest and grassland ecosystem services” from 2008 to 2013, with a trend of transformation from the former into the latter. 3) The formation and change in the consumption mode of Laotian ecosystem services have been affected by both supply and trade. Laos developed agriculture mainly during the period from 1961 to 2008, forming the mode of “dominance of consumption of the farmland ecosystem services”. This development benefited from the enriched varieties of imports as well as the increased value of trade and import volume. However, the consumption of ecosystem services in Laos after 2008 changed from the mode of “dominance of consumption of the farmland ecosystem services” to one of “balanced development of consumption of farmland, forest and grassland ecosystem services”. This study provides an empirical reference for research on the consumption of ecosystem services.     

Mass Spectrometry and reverse phase HPLC techniques for the identification of degraded fossil pigments in lake sediments and their application in palaeolimnology

Accurate identification of fossil pigments is essential if they are to be used as biomarker compounds in palaeolimnological studies. In recent years High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) has greatly enhanced the efficiency with which fossil pigments can be characterised and quantified. Using HPLC, undegraded pigments are typically identified through retention times, absorbance spectra and co-chromatography with authentic reference standards. However, lake sediments may also contain degraded pigments for which there are often no standards, and which may be difficult to identify using HPLC alone. In this study, we submitted HPLC fractions of fossil pigments and pigment derivatives collected from a meromictic lake in south west Tasmania, to a combination of Mass Spectrometry (MS) techniques including Electron Impact (EI) and static Liquid Secondary Ion MS (LSIMS) to identify their molecular ion characteristics and organic chemical composition. Mass Spectrometry permitted the detection of specific mass ions which were used to verify the identity of pigments and their derivatives. These included five carotenoids, chlorophyll a and derivatives, three previously described bacteriochlorophyll c derivatives with molecular weights of 770, 784, and 802, and two undescribed derivatives of bacteriochlorophyll c with molecular weights of 766 and 788. With these improved identifications we speculate on the pathways and modes of pigment degradation in the lake and asses the value of the degraded pigments as biomarkers. The use of MS permitted the identification of a greater number of signature pigments of algal and bacterial communities thus increasing the palaeolimnological value of the sediments. These methods are best applied in fossil pigment studies where there are a large number of unknown pigments and pigment degradation products, and where there are no authentic standards for co-chromatography. Practical suggestions for pigment MS are included in the discussion.     

基于文化经济共同演化视角的区域发展模式比较研究——以江苏省丰县、昆山为例

在构建文化经济共同演化模型的基础上,对江苏省丰县、昆山的共同演化类型进行判定,进而从共同演化路径、共同演化亚型、共同演化大类、共同演化亚类、共同演化过程等方面对丰县模式、昆山模式解读和比较,研究发现：（1）区域发展模式是文化经济共同演化的结果,而区域文化是文化经济共同演化和区域发展模式形成创新的能动因素;（2）区域发展...     

福建森林植被景观空间格局分异研究

本文从景观的概念出发，以地理信息系统为支撑手段，开发了空间信息数据库以记录分析福建森林植被景观的块斑，不规划性及景观总体特征，通过定量分析福森林植被的空间格局，说明福建森林植被景观受物理，生物以及社会和经济参数的制约情况，空间数据的对比序列表明，参数中某些参数值存在着空间差异，会导致福建森林景观的变化。     

多样性视角下的城市复合功能特征及成因探测——以长春市为例

多功能要素的复合化已成为信息时代城市空间发展的重要趋势,而复合功能开发亦被认为是解决城市交通拥堵、低效能源消耗及职住不平衡等问题的重要手段,对促进有活力的、宜居的及可持续的城市环境建设具有重要意义。基于城市多样性的理论框架,在界定城市功能复合内涵的基础上,以长春市中心城区城市功能兴趣点（POI）数据为基础,采用区位熵指数、信息熵指数及地理探测器模型,分析城市居住、办公、商业、休闲四类功能要素的复合特征,并探讨城市功能复合空间分异的驱动因素。结果表明：① 城市功能要素集中度特征显著,各类型功能要素均形成了专业化的功能集聚区,但各区块间功能要素的专业化程度存在较大差异。② 城市功能要素复合度整体表现出核心—边缘的空间差异,核心区街道复合度整体高于外围开发区,办公、商业、休闲三种功能要素间的复合度要整体强于其各自与居住功能的复合。③ 以单一功能为主、多功能兼容的综合型复合是街道尺度功能复合的主要表现形式;各功能要素中,休闲、商业功能具有较强的兼容性。④ 城市功能复合的空间异质性特征显著,土地价格、休闲要素数量是造成多功能复合分异的主要原因;分类型复合中,各解释因子影响力度表现各异。     

蒙古中部地区植被覆盖衰退问题案例研究（英文）

本文选择蒙古中部地区的两个模型多边形对植被多样性进行调查研究。它们都位于干旱、半干旱少雨地区。基于Landsat TM影像,本文研究了多边形区域的NDVI随时间变化的多时相NDVI值制图,得到所选择的具备不同值NDVI区域的全尺度景观特征。这一特征在对耐旱环境组的植被分析中得到了证实。该过程中将近整个实验多边形区域的植被偏离得到了追踪。NDVI的时间分布分析呈现出数值的降低,这说明了在戈壁,稀疏植被存在耐旱趋势。在半干旱气候区域中偏离植被趋势与牧草地的重载负直接相关。     

Temporal and spatial response of vegetation NDVI to temperature and precipitation in eastern China

Temporal and spatial response characteristics of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature and precipitation in the whole year, spring, summer and autumn was analyzed from April 1998 to March 2008 based on the SPOT VGT–NDVI data and daily temperature and precipitation data from 205 meteorological stations in eastern China. The results indicate that as a whole, the response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature is more pronounced than that of precipitation in eastern China. Vegetation NDVI maximally responds to the variation of temperature with a lag of about 10 days, and it maximally responds to the variation of precipitation with a lag of about 30 days. The response of vegetation NDVI to temperature and precipitation is most pronounced in autumn, and has the longest lag in summer. Spatially, the maximum response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature is more pronounced in the northern and middle parts than in the southern part of eastern China. The maximum response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of precipitation is more pronounced in the northern part than in the middle and southern parts of eastern China. The response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature has longer lag in the northern and southern parts than in the middle part of eastern China. The response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of precipitation has the longest lag in the southern part, and the shortest lag in the northern part of eastern China. The response of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature and precipitation in eastern China is mainly consistent with other results, but the lag time of vegetation NDVI to the variation of temperature and precipitation has some differences with those results of the monsoon region of eastern China.     

A History of Regression and Related Model-Fitting in the Earth Sciences (1636?-2000)

The (statistical) modeling of the behavior of a dependent variate as a function of one or more predictors provides examples of model-fitting which span the development of the earth sciences from the 17th Century to the present. The historical development of these methods and their subsequent application is reviewed. Bond's predictions (c. 1636 and 1668) of change in the magnetic declination at London may be the earliest attempt to fit such models to geophysical data. Following publication of Newton's theory of gravitation in 1726, analysis of data on the length of a 1° meridian arc, and the length of a pendulum beating seconds, as a function of sin²(latitude), was used to determine the ellipticity of the oblate spheroid defining the Figure of the Earth. The pioneering computational methods of Mayer in 1750, Boscovich in 1755, and Lambert in 1765, and the subsequent independent discoveries of the principle of least squares by Gauss in 1799, Legendre in 1805, and Adrain in 1808, and its later substantiation on the basis of probability theory by Gauss in 1809 were all applied to the analysis of such geodetic and geophysical data. Notable later applications include: the geomagnetic survey of Ireland by Lloyd, Sabine, and Ross in 1836, Gauss's model of the terrestrial magnetic field in 1838, and Airy's 1845 analysis of the residuals from a fit to pendulum lengths, from which he recognized the anomalous character of measurements of gravitational force which had been made on islands. In the early 20th Century applications to geological topics proliferated, but the computational burden effectively held back applications of multivariate analysis. Following World War II, the arrival of digital computers in universities in the 1950s facilitated computation, and fitting linear or polynomial models as a function of geographic coordinates, trend surface analysis, became popular during the 1950–60s. The inception of geostatistics in France at this time by Matheron had its roots in meeting the evident need for improved estimators in spatial interpolation. Technical advances in regression analysis during the 1970s embraced the development of regression diagnostics and consequent attention to outliers; the recognition of problems caused by correlated predictors, and the subsequent introduction of ridge regression to overcome them; and techniques for fitting errors-in-variables and mixture models. Improvements in computational power have enabled ever more computer-intensive methods to be applied. These include algorithms which are robust in the presence of outliers, for example Rousseeuw's 1984 Least Median Squares; nonparametric smoothing methods, such as kernel-functions, splines and Cleveland's 1979 LOcally WEighted Scatterplot Smoother (LOWESS); and the Classification and Regression Tree (CART) technique of Breiman and others in 1984. Despite a continuing improvement in the rate of technology-transfer from the statistical to the earth-science community, despite an abrupt drop to a time-lag of about 10 years following the introduction of digital computers, these more recent developments are only just beginning to penetrate beyond the research community of earth scientists. Examples of applications to problem-solving in the earth sciences are given.     

新疆荒漠类型特征及其保护利用

新疆荒漠具有分布广泛、成因复杂、类型多样等特点。利用新疆数字地貌图结合Landsat卫星TM数据与GIS制图技术,通过长期野外调查结合有关资料编制荒漠类型图,获得荒漠类型面积数据,据此探讨荒漠分布规律、结构特征、形成演变,并提出利用和保护荒漠的建议。主要结果和结论如下：（1）新疆荒漠具有水平地带性分布与垂直地带性分布的规律及非地带性分布特点,荒漠多分布于干旱程度较高的南疆和东部吐鲁番及哈密地区,东部荒漠占新疆面积的45.86 %,占东部区域面积的91.77 %。（2）荒漠分布广,面积大,总面积达1 31.3 ?104 km2,占新疆面积的80.55 %。荒漠类型面积最大的是沙漠为42.7?104 km2,占荒漠面积32.49 %,泥漠面积仅10 638.5?104 km2,占0.81 %。（3）荒漠类型复杂多样,成因各异,有沙漠、砾漠、盐漠等11种类型,分别主要由气候、地貌、地表物质组成、人为作用等因素单独或共同作用所形成。（4）受自然环境变化与人为作用,荒漠类型之间、荒漠类型与其它地物之间可发生演变。（5）各种荒漠类型的要素特征不同,宜合理利用荒漠资源,划分荒漠环境退化敏感区,保护荒漠环境,针对不同荒漠类型采取适应保护措施,以保障区域可持续发展。     

Quantitative Study on the Evolution of Ecotourism Policy Development in China

It is widely recognized that the complexity of ecotourism development requires understanding of interrelated factors that influence outcomes and achievements. For this reason, public sectors are increasingly interested in designing policies as driving forces of ecotourism development and exploring policy effectiveness. The purpose of this study is to describe evolutionary characteristics of Chinese ecotourism development and reveal the relationship between policy evolution and ecotourism development. A series of statistical analyses is conducted to explore evolvement characteristics and prospects of Chinese ecotourism policies. Ninety-one sample documents issued by the central government and its departments from 1994 to 2016 are obtained to analyze policy number and content structure, policy intensity, policy tools, and participation of department in policy making. Results show: (1) policy evolution reflects the change of objectives, contents and patterns in Chinese ecotourism development; (2) ecotourism policies stably evolved and adjusted to environmental change, and ecological conservation was core content in policies under a growing number and breadth of policies; (3) ecotourism policy tools transformed from micro-regulation to macro-control, but are not yet systematic; (4) the number of departments involved in policy design continues to increase and the value of policy intensity is rising. In the context of ecological civilization construction and implementation of Tourism Law, macro-control and micro-autonomy is the trend of future ecotourism policies; criteria system improvement may be important tools to regulate ecotourism development; cross-department coordination will act as a guarantee for designing and implementing policies; and welfare of stakeholders, behavioral regulation of tourists and business, and patterns of ecotourism development will be the subject of future policy.