Pollen percentages,tree abundances and the Fagerlind effect

Pollen diagrams traditionally are read as if pollen percentages were linearly related to relative tree abundances, although the slopes and intercepts of these relationships are accepted to differ among taxa. Corresponding map patterns of modern pollen and tree percentages support this assumption of linearity, which also underlies the use of linear regression on percentage data for pollen-tree calibration. Fagerlind, however, showed that the theoretical relationship need not be linear and may be confounded by interdependencies among taxa. Regressions and scatter plots of modern pollen and tree percentages are here compared with results of extended R-value (ERV) models, which correct for the ‘Fagerlind effect’. Three data sets from Wisconsin and Michigan, USA illustrate that regression coefficients provide a first approximation to their ERV equivalents, but scatter plots derived from the ERV analyses show reduced scatter about linearised relationships.     

Spatially explicit measures of production of young alewives in Lake Michigan: Linkage between essential fish habitat and recruitment

The identification and protection of essential habitats for early life stages of fishes are necessary to sustain fish stocks. Essential fish habitat for early life stages may be defined as areas where fish densities, growth, survival, or production rates are relatively high. To identify critical habitats for young-of-year (YOY) alewives (Alosa pseud oharengus) in Lake Michigan, we integrated bioenergetics models with GIS (Geographic Information Systems) to generate spatially explicit estimates of potential population production (an index of habitat quality). These estimates were based upon YOY alewife bioenergetic growth rate potential and their salmonine predators’ consumptive demand. We compared estimates of potential population production to YOY alewife yield (an index of habitat importance). Our analysis suggested that during 1994–1995, YOY alewife habitat quality and yield varied widely throughout Lake Michigan. Spatial patterns of alewife yield were not significantly correlated to habitat quality. Various mechanisms (e.g., predator migrations, lake circulation patterns, alternative strategies) may preclude YOY alewives from concentrating in areas of high habitat quality in Lake Michigan.     

Interpolation for geochemical surface reconstruction incorporating topographic catchment definitions

Geochemical surfaces are reconstructed by interpolating geochemical measurements obtained from stream-water and stream-sediment samples. The geographical region that influences (and therefore is represented by) the value of a geochemial sample is its topographic catchment area. However, standard convention is to treat and to record the stream sample in the database as a point location, and to reconstruct geochemical surfaces utilizing conventional point interpolation procedures. These interpolation procedures assume, generally, that a data point exerts geographical influence away from itself in all directions, and that influence declines with distance away from that data point. Conventional interpolation procedures are poorly suited for reconstructing geochemical surfaces from stream samples; they do not take into account the true geographic area that geochemical sample points represent (topographic catchments). In this paper we propose a method of interpolation which assumes that data points are representative of their topographic catchment areas. Experimental data indicates that a surface reconstruction procedure which preserves the areal character of geochemical samples provides results more meaningful than surfaces reconstructed using more conventional interpolation techniques.     

Neural network modeling applications in active slope stability problems

A back propagation artificial neural network approach is applied to three common challenges in engineering geology: (1) characterization of subsurface geometry/position of the slip (or failure surface) of active landslides, (2) assessment of slope displacements based on ground water elevation and climate, and (3) assessment of groundwater elevations based on climate data. Series of neural network models are trained, validated, and applied to a landslide study along Lake Michigan and cases from the literature. The subsurface characterization results are also compared to a limit equilibrium circular failure surface search with specific adopted boundary conditions. It is determined that the neural network models predict slip surfaces better than the limit equilibrium slip surface search using the most conservative criteria. Displacements and groundwater elevations are also predicted fairly well, in real time. The models’ ability to predict displacements and groundwater elevations provides a foundational framework for building future warning systems with additional inputs.     

Application of new thermodynamic data to grossular phase relations

Recent low temperature, adiabatic calorimetric heat capacity measurements for grossular have been combined with DSC measurements to give entropies up to 1000 K. In conjunction with enthalpy of solution values for grossular, these data have yielded H _f ^o (298.15K) and G _f ^o (298.15K) values of –1583.2 ± 3.5 and –1496.74 ± 3.7 kcal mol^–1 respectively. For 15 reactions in the CaO-Al₂O₃-SiO₂-H₂O system, thermodynamically calculated P-T curves have been compared with experimental reversals and have shown good agreement in most cases. Calculations indicate that gehlenite is probably totally disordered. Estimates of zoisite and lawsonite entropies are consistent with the phase equilibrium and grossular data, but estimates of the entropies of pyrope and andradite show large discrepancies when compared with experimental reversals.Contribution no. 600 from the Mineralogical Laboratory, The Department of Geology and Mineralogy, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA     

Orthogonal polynomial trend surfaces for irregularly spaced data

The advantages of using orthogonal rather than nonorthogonal polynomials for trend-surface analysis are discussed briefly. A method for calculating orthogonal polynomial trend surfaces of any degree on the basis of irregularly spaced data is described. The method is illustrated with subsurface data for the elevation on top of the Devonian Dundee Limestone, Michigan.     

Paleohydrological implications of Holocene peatland development in northern Michigan

Sediment, pollen, and plant macrofossil stratigraphies from two small oligotrophic Chamaedaphne-Sphagnum peatlands provide data about local hydrologic changes in northern Michigan during the Holocene. Gleason Bog started about 8000 yr B.P. as a shallow pond that supported rich fen vegetation. After it was partly filled with peat and sand (about 4000 yr B.P.), the vegetation changed to oligotrophic bog. At Gates Bog paludification starting about 3800 yr B.P. caused peat accumulation over sand without an initial pond phase. The onset of peat accumulation at both sites is attributed to a rise in the water table resulting from the onset of cool and moist late Holocene climates. The water table of Gleason Bog is linked to the water level of adjacent Douglas Lake, which may have undergone a simultaneous rise. The results emphasize the individuality of hydrological conditions and hydroseral development in northern Michigan peatlands.     

Evaluation of distortion of residuals in trend surface analysis by clustered data

Distortion is induced in multiple linear regression by clusters of data. The magnitude of this distortion is a function of the magnitude of the mean of the clustered data. The location and estimated amount of maximum induced distortion can be obtained by evaluating the surface in question with and without clusters. The difference between these surfaces is the induced distortion. Clustering of data points is common in map data and especially in subsurface information. The Albion-Scipio Trend, an oil and gas field in Southern Michigan, has 82 percent of the available data in clusters. Evaluation of the distortion indicates that the analysis contains a measureable amount of distortion but its small magnitude does not alter the structural interpretation of the area.     

Facies and Depositional Sequences of the Asmari Formation,Shajabil Anticline,North of the Izeh Zone,Zagros Basin,Iran

Outcrop and microscopic studies have been applied in this research paper in order to find out the Asmari Formation depositional sequences in the Shajabil Anticline section located at the north of the Izeh Zone,Zagros Basin,Iran.Five depositional sequences were identified based on 11 facies types （bioclast Nummulitidae Lepidocyclinidae packstone,bioclast perforate foraminifera Nephrolepidina Miogypsinoides wackestone-packstone,bioclast perforate foraminifera Corallinacea wackestone-packstone,bioclast echinoid Neorotalia Brachiopoda wackestone-packstone,coral floatstone-rudstone,bioclast Corallinacea imperforate foraminifera wackestone-packstone,bioclast imperforate foraminifera Archaias wackestone-packstone,bioclast imperforate foraminifera Dendritina wackestone-packstone-grainstone,bioclast imperforate foraminifera Borelis wackestonepackstone and very fine sandy mudstone） corresponding to the tidal flat,restricted and semirestricted lagoon and open marine environments of an inner and middle shelf areas.Well-exposed outcrop horizons of Thalassinoides at the study section are a favorable tool for the regional outcrop sequence stratigraphy.Thalassinoides is considered as an outcrop key-bed for recognition of the Rupelian-Chattian maximum flooding depositional sequence.Coral remnants （small colonies） in outcrop exposures also are associated with the HST depositional sequence （Chattian） for the Asmari Formation.The most important achievement of this research is use of associated maximum flooding surfaces （Pg30,Pg40,Pg50,Ngl0 and Ng20） in the Arabian plate.These maximum flooding surfaces could be recorded as an isochrones surface.     

Controls on large‐scale patterns of fluvial sandbody distribution in alluvial to coastal plain strata: Upper Cretaceous Blackhawk Formation,Wasatch Plateau,Central Utah,USA

Current models of alluvial to coastal plain stratigraphy are concept‐driven and focus on relative sea‐level as an allogenic control. These models are tested herein using data from a large (ca 100 km long and 300 m thick), continuous outcrop belt (Upper Cretaceous Blackhawk Formation, central Utah, USA). Many channelized fluvial sandbodies in the Blackhawk Formation have a multilateral and multistorey internal character, and they generally increase in size and abundance (from ca 10% to ca 30% of the strata) from base to top of the formation. These regional, low‐resolution trends exhibit much local variation, but are interpreted to reflect progressively decreasing tectonic subsidence in the upper Blackhawk Formation and overlying Castlegate Sandstone. The trend may also incorporate progressively more frequent channel avulsion during deposition of the lower Blackhawk Formation. Laterally extensive coal zones formed on the coastal plain during shallow‐marine transgressions, and define the high‐resolution stratigraphic framework of the lower Blackhawk Formation. Large (up to 25 m thick and 1 to 6 km wide), multistorey, multilateral, fluvial channel‐complex sandbodies that overlie composite erosion surfaces occur at distinct stratigraphic levels, and are interpreted as fluvial incised valley fills. Low amplitude (<30 m) relative sea‐level variations are interpreted as the dominant control on stratigraphic architecture in the lower Blackhawk Formation, which was deposited up to 50 km inland from the coeval shoreline. In contrast, the high‐resolution stratigraphy of the upper Blackhawk Formation is poorly defined, and channelized fluvial sandbodies are poorly organized. Vertical and laterally offset stacking of a small proportion (<10%) of sandbodies produced ‘clusters’ that are not confined by ‘master’ erosion surfaces. Avulsion is interpreted to dominate the stratigraphic architecture of the upper Blackhawk Formation. This data‐driven analysis indicates that alluvial to coastal plain stratigraphic architecture reflects a combination of various allogenic controls and autogenic behaviours. The relative sea‐level control emphasized in sequence stratigraphic models is only rarely dominant.     

The mineralogy and petrology of manganese-rich rocks from St. Marcel,Piedmont, Italy

Manganese-rich metamorphic rocks containing violan from St. Marcel, Piedmont, Italy formed under blueschist facies conditions, yielding an unusual suite of minerals including omphacite-albite-quartz, braunite, microcline, hollandite, piedmontite, and strontian calcite. Violan, a violet-colored pyroxene, is shown to be a manganoan omphacite having a primitive unit cell, and is found in the same sample as diopside, possibly indicating a solvus relation. A manganoan phlogopite and a celadonitic muscovite coexist in one sample with microcline. The occurrence of celadonite and phlogopite is the first from the blueschist facies and the celadonite component in the dioctahedral mica is buffered at a maximum by coexistence with phlogopite, microcline, and quartz. Various phase relations are used to establish the P and T of equilibration at 8±1 kbar and 300±50 °C, respectively, while the oxygen fugacity is shown to have been very high, for these temperatures, as consistent with braunite+quartz and the presence of piedmontite. Contribution No. 343, from the Mineralogical Laboratory, Department of Geology and Mineralogy, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA     

Lemniscate representation for inversion of gravity and magnetic data through nonlocal optimization

A method of representing surfaces and volumes by a set of geometric points and a small set of auxiliary parameters, based on generalization of Bernoulli’s notion of lemniscates is introduced. It provides for easy generation and modification of surfaces and volumes, which could be connected, disjoint or even with very irregular boundaries. This allows solving geophysical inversion problems, without constraining the anomalous volumes to some ideal or simple forms. This is illustrated by the example of joint inversion of gravity and magnetic data sets attributable to two-dimensional anomalous bodies. A nonlocal optimization algorithm calledsegmented Hamming scan is used for inversion. Comparison with nonlinear least-squares algorithm shows the advantages of the chosen approach. The concepts ofdesideratal andprocedural detours are illustrated.     

Spatial pattern recognition by decomposition

The decomposition problem—the assignment of sample observations to component populations—is studied in a spatial context. The observations are spatially located and the assignment to component populations takes into account the value of each observation as well as the values of neighboring observations. Both parameter estimation and assignment rules use a new method that integrates a standard multivariate decomposition algorithm with nonlinear regression. The method is illustrated and tested with artificial data. The distribution of the trace component Cr₂O₃ in recent Lake Michigan sediments is, then, analyzed by the method. It yields a pattern of component populations that is correlated with the Lake's bottom structure and depositional environments. Study carried out as visiting scholar at the Department of Geological Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois U.S.A.     

Slump blocks, intraformational conglomerates and associated erosional structures in Pennsylvanian fluvial strata of eastern Canada

Pennsylvanian fluvial channel sandstones in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia contain numerous examples of eroded mudstone surfaces, including in situ mudstone beds, boulders and slumped blocks. The eroded surfaces bear a variety of structures including linear scours, flutes, longitudinal furrows and rill marks. A block of interchannel mudstone up to 40 m in extent, displays a basal slip-plane, slump-related deformation and evidence of intense corrasion on a channel floor. Mudstone clasts from small pebbles to boulders over 4 m long are common immediately above channel-base erosion surfaces and represent a lag. Clasts over 20 cm diameter are commonly fluted, occasionally on all sides, suggesting clast rotation. Rill marks occur on large mudclasts and in situ mudstone surfaces and indicate emergence and erosion by surging water or surface runoff. Preservation of the delicate erosional structures depended on a highly cohesive mud substrate and subsequent rapid burial. A previous interpretation of the mud blocks and their surficial features as the result of mud intrusion is inconsistent with the field evidence.     

Three-dimensional bounding surface architecture and lateral facies heterogeneity of a wet aeolian system: Entrada Sandstone,Utah

Aeolian deposits form noteworthy reservoirs (for example, Norphlet Formation and Rotliegend Group) in hydrocarbon extraction and carbon capture and storage contexts, but stratigraphic architecture imparts significant heterogeneity. Bounding surfaces result from autogenic and allogenic controls and can represent important changes in dune-field dynamics. To further evaluate the impacts of facies heterogeneity and flow-inhibiting bounding surfaces on reservoir performance and reconstruct ancient erg evolution, the stratigraphic architecture of aeolian systems must continue to be studied at multiple scales. This study pairs traditional methods (for example, measured stratigraphic sections) with advanced technologies (for example, drone-derived outcrop models) to precisely resolve the metre to kilometre-scale three-dimensional stratigraphic architecture of wet aeolian Middle Jurassic Entrada Sandstone outcrops located at Rone Bailey Mesa near Moab, Utah, USA. Five facies are identified, primarily based on sedimentary fabrics, and are grouped into three associations named dune, sabkha and sand sheet. Statistical analyses of gamma-ray spectrometer and automated mineralogy data indicate a distinct mineralogical difference between dune (quartz-rich) and sabkha (more feldspathic) packages, suggesting that gamma-ray logs may be used to better predict facies distribution in the subsurface. Seven modelled super bounding surfaces are planar to undulatory, with no perceived spatial trends. Five modelled interdune migration surfaces are undulatory but exhibit an average 0.09° angle of climb roughly parallel to the palaeocurrent direction. Two modelled superposition surfaces are linear to sinuous in plan-view. Laterally discontinuous sabkha packages observed are interpreted to be remnants of closed, damp, interdune flats located between ca 8.5 to 17.0 m tall, sinuous, transverse bedforms or patches of such bedforms. Based on stratigraphic architecture interpretations, the Entrada Sandstone preserves signals of allogenic forcing and localized autogenic bedform cannibalization of the substrate. The findings of this study, some of which are not commonly recognized in wet aeolian facies models, enhance the understanding of erg evolution and can parameterize static models of aeolian reservoirs.     

Hydromechanical properties and alteration of natural fracture surfaces in the Soultz granite (Bas-Rhin, France)

Natural fractures are characterized by rough surfaces and complex fluid flows. A large distribution of apertures (residual voids) within their walls and the presence of contact points (in situ normal loads) produce heterogeneous flows (channeling). The resulting permeabilities, porosities or fluid–rock exchange surfaces cannot be realistically modeled by parallel and smooth plate models. Four natural fractures are sampled at different depths and degrees of alteration in the Soultz sandstone and granite (EPS1 drillhole, Soultz-sous-Forêts, Bas-Rhin, France). The fracture surfaces are measured with mechanical profilometry and maps of asperity heights (XYZ). Resulting local apertures (XYe) are then calculated. A statistical study of the surface profiles (XZ) show that the fractures are more or less rough and tortuous according to the types of alteration. Altered samples are characterized by smoother surfaces of fractures. Such differences imply that (i) the average fracture aperture is not representative for the whole fracture and that (ii) the different local apertures should be integrated in hydraulic and mechanical models. A hydraulic model (finite difference calculations) of fluid flow, taking into account the elastic closure (Hertz contact theory) of fractures with depth, is used. Maps of contact points and relative local loads within the fracture planes are compared to flow maps. They show different channeling of fluid flows. Strongly altered fractures are characterized by homogeneous fluxes despite the presence of numerous contact zones during the closure of fracture. By contrast, fresh fractures develop, increasing fluid flow channels with depth.Fracture closure (increasing normal stress) does not systematically increase the channeling of fluid flow. There is evidence for a general smoothing out of the irregularities of the fracture walls due to precipitation of secondary minerals, indicating that the cubic law can be commonly valid, also at great crustal depth but this validity depends on the degree of fracture alteration. Mineralogical and geochemical observations, thus, should be taken into account to perform more accurate permeability calculations and models of fluid circulation in fracture networks.     

Non-cylindrical, flexural slip folding in the Ardwell flags—a statistical approach

Non-cylindrical, flexural slip folding is described from the well-known coastal section between Ardwell Bay and Kennedy's Pass, near Girvan, southwest Scotland. Bedding plane slip is recognised by the ubiquitous slickenside striations on bedding surfaces, and these linear elements define the ac kinematic plane of fold formation. This intersects the axial surfaces of folds (ab) in the common direction a which is the movement direction during fold propagation. Statistical treatment of the orientation of structural and kinematic elements yields important conclusions concerning fold formation: the Ardwell folds are markedly non-cylindrical and this is a primary feature amplified during the Ardwell Fold Phase.     

Shelf construction in a foreland basin: storm beds, shelf sandbodies, and shelf-slope depositional sequences in the Upper Cretaceous Mesaverde Group, Book Cliffs, Utah

The Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) Kenilworth Member of the Blackhawk Formation (Mesaverde Group) is part of a series of strand plain sandstones that intertongue with and overstep the shelfal shales of the western interior basin of North America. Analysis of this section at a combination of small (sedimentological) and large (stratigraphical) scales reveals the dynamics of progradation of a shelf-slope sequence into a subsiding foreland basin. Four major lithofacies are present in the upper Mancos and Kenilworth beds of the Book Cliffs. A lag sandstone and channel-fill shale lithofacies constitutes the thin, basal, transgressive sequence, which rests on a marine erosion surface. It was deposited in an outer shelf environment. Shale, interbedded sandstone and shale, and amalgamated sandstone lithofacies were deposited over the transgressive lag sandstone lithofacies as a wave-dominated delta and its flanking strand plains prograded seaward. Analysis of grain size and primary structures in Kenilworth beds indicates that there are four basic strata types which combine to build the observed lithofacies. The fine- to very fine-grained graded strata of the interbedded facies are tempestites, deposited out of suspension by alongshelf storm flows (geostrophic flows). There is no need to call on cross-shelf turbidity currents (density underflows) to explain their presence. Very fine- to fine-grained hummocky strata are likewise suspension deposits created by waning storm flows, but were deposited under conditions of more intense wave agitation on the middle shoreface. Cross-strata sets in this region are bed-load deposits that accumulated on the upper shore-face, in the surf zone. Lag strata are multi-event, bed-load deposits that are the product of prolonged storm winnowing. They occur on transgressive surfaces. While the graded beds are tempestites in the strict sense, all four classes of strata are storm deposits. The distribution of strata types and their palaeocurrent orientations suggests a model of the Kenilworth transport system driven by downwelling coastal storm flows, and probably by a northeasterly alongshore pressure gradient. The stratification patterns shift systematically from upper shoreface to lower shoreface and inner shelf lithofacies partly because of a reduction in fluid power expenditure with increasing water depth, but also because of progressive sorting, which resulted in a decrease in grain size in the sediment load delivered to successive downstream environments. The Kenilworth Member and an isolated outlier, the Hatch Mesa lentil, constitute a delta-prodelta shelf depositional system. Their rhythmically bedded, lenticular, sandstone and shale successions are a prodelta shelf facies, and may be prodelta plume deposits. Major Upper Cretaceous sandstone tongues in the Book Cliffs are underlain by erosional surfaces like that beneath the Blackhawk Formation, which extend for many tens of kilometres into the Mancos shale. These surfaces are the boundaries of Upper Cretaceous depositional sequences. The sequences are large-scale genetic stratigraphic units. They result from the arranging of facies into depositional systems; the depositional systems are in turn stacked in repeating arrays, which constitute the depositional sequences. The anatomy of these foreland basin sequences differs     

Upper Cretaceous bottom current deposits,north-east Greenland

Reported ancient bottom current deposits in deep marine settings are scarce and most of them remain contentious. This study describes sedimentological, ichnological and petrographical characteristics of a drill core that covers ca 10 Myr of Upper Cretaceous stratigraphy at Hold with Hope, north-east Greenland. The core is divided into four facies associations, which are interpreted to reflect deposition from bottom currents, turbidity flows and hemipelagic settling in slope and/or near slope environments. The evidence for bottom current influence is three-fold. Firstly, pervasive indications of winnowing such as marine bioclast-rich lags and outsized clasts on ‘mud on mud’ contacts are suggestive of low-sediment concentration flows capable of transporting up to pebble-sized clasts. Common Mn–Fe–Mg rich carbonate matrix cements and various types of hiatal chemogenic lag deposits showing glauconite, apatite and carbonate clasts also point to condensation, prolonged exposure at the sediment–water interface and recurrent phases of sea-floor erosion. Secondly, such deposits can show indicators for tidal processes such as double mud-drapes, tangential bottom sets in dune-scale cross-bedding and cyclic rhythmites. Thirdly, inverse to normal grading at various scales is common in fully marine, commonly seafloor-derived sediments. Ichnological data indicate considerable taxonomic variability in the bottom current deposits, but recurrent fabrics are characteristically dominated by morphologically simple burrows such as Thalassinoides and Planolites, with secondary Phycosiphon, Nereites, Zoophycos and/or Chondrites. In general, opportunistic taxa are common whereas mature composite ichnofabrics are rare. The omission surfaces are locally burrowed with stiffground to firmground trace fossil suites. The results contribute to establishing sedimentological, ichnological and mineralogical criteria for recognition of bottom current deposits as well as to the understanding of the Late Cretaceous palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Arctic region.     

Quantification of Natural Fracture Surfaces Using Fractal Geometry

The purpose of this paper is to present an extensive evaluation of the methods to calculate the fractal dimension of natural fracture surfaces. Three methods; variogram analysis (VA), power spectral density (PSD), and roughness-length method (RMS) are applied to 2-D surface data (PSD) and 1-D profiles (VA and RMS) extracted from the surface data of 54 mm diameter crystallized limestone samples. Surface topography of the samples is quantified through a newly designed fully automated device. Before the application, self-affinity of the surface roughness and the applicability of these methods are validated using synthetically generated fractal surfaces. Fractal dimension values of the profiles are obtained as between 1 and 1.5 with a few exceptions. VA and RMS methods yield consistent fractal dimensions while the PSD values are lower than those of the other two methods. In terms of practical applicability, the VA is found more convenient than other two methods because there still exists shortcomings with the PSD and RMS methods due to difficulties in the mathematical analysis of the plots whose slopes are used in the computation of fractal dimension. However, it is observed that the data of limited size fracture surfaces are convenient for fractal analysis and the results are promising for further applications if the fracture surface size is restricted like cores recovered from deep boreholes.