THE UTILITY OF SOIL SURVEYS TO ASSESS FLOODPLAIN SEDIMENT STORAGE IN SOUTHEASTERN MINNESOTA*

How useful are county soil surveys for estimating floodplain storage in fluvial sediment budgets? This paper compares data about accelerated sedimentation collected from field corings with information derived from three county soil surveys in southeastern Minnesota. Two soil surveys proved to be unsatisfactory data sources about historical alluvium, but another survey was a more accurate source for one drainage basin. Even this third soil survey would require calibration for use in a geographic information system, because it was only the survey's maximum estimate that agreed with the field data.     

Environmental Impacts of Illegal Immigration on the Cleveland National Forest in California

Historical geographic information systems (GIS) scholarship has provided important insights into a broad spectrum of historical questions in recent years. This article contributes to the emerging field of historical GIS by employing map algebra and transect analysis to quantitatively assess topographical change resulting from rapid urban growth in New York City since the first quarter of the nineteenth century. These methodological techniques enable a systematic comparison of Manhattan's historical and contemporary topography through a spatial analysis of various topographic metrics, including the extent of positive and negative elevation change, shifts in elevation range, the percentage of geographic area that experienced elevation changes, and the estimated volume of Earth added to and removed from particular areas within the study site. The results indicate that there were more valleys filled than hills leveled on Manhattan's East Side, whereas the reverse was the case on the West Side. The West Side, however, experienced considerably more topographic changes than its eastern counterpart, in large part due to the former's more rugged terrain. Overall, the evidence suggests that although Manhattan's topography has been radically transformed in certain respects, the broader spatial pattern of topographic variation has remained largely constant. These findings, therefore, can be used to support competing narrative claims concerning the significance of the topographical transformations that resulted from the urbanization process in New York City.     

Landscape persistence and stakeholder perspectives: The case of Romania's Carpathians

The traditional use of land for food, fuel and wood created cultural landscapes, which are threatened across Europe. The factors which contributed to their endangerment need to be identified to achieve effective preservation of such landscapes. The aim of our study was to identify landscapes with historical persistence in a GIS-based comparative analysis of historical and contemporary maps and the most prominent causes of the past landscape changes, based on stakeholders' perspective. We considered a case study in Romania's Carpathians. Three major land cover types were extracted from maps dating from 1912, 1980 and 2009: built-up, pastures and forests. The historical persistence of all land cover types was poor (<20%) and profound changes were quantitatively confirmed. Large, compact patches of unchanged forests were located in the neighbourhood of a national park. The persistent pastures were situated close to human settlements, and their preservation can be related to local traditional agro-silvo-pastoral management. Although the built-up area has increased over time, the corresponding surfaces are small and consist of scattered patches located around historical monuments. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to investigate stakeholders' perspective. Using cluster analysis five prominent causes of past landscape changes are identified: 'increasing tourism', 'land tenure and social changes', 'land-use intensification', 'post-communist transition', and 'foreign investments'. We join the results of the GIS analysis with those from stakeholders' perspective to gain more insights into the landscape changes. This research offers important information that could be used for the further planning of these valuable cultural landscapes in order to avoid potential conflicts and degradation.     

A review of historical reconstruction methods of land use/land cover

Understanding long-term human-environment interactions requires historical reconstruction of past land-use and land-cover changes. Most reconstructions have been based primarily on consistently available and relatively standardized information from historical sources. Based on available data sources and a retrospective research, in this paper we review the approaches and methods of the digital reconstruction and analyze their advantages and possible constraints in the following aspects: (1) Historical documents contain qualitative or semi-quantitative information about past land use, which also usually include land-cover data, but preparation of archival documents is very time-consuming. (2) Historical maps and pictures offer visual and spatial quantitative land-cover information. (3) Natural archive has significant advantages as a method for reconstructing past vegetation and has its unique possibilities especially when historical records are missing or lacking, but it has great limits of rebuilding certain land-cover types. (4) Historical reconstruction models have been gradually developed from empirical models to mechanistic ones. The method does not only reconstruct the quantity of land use/cover in historical periods, but it also reproduces the spatial distribution. Yet there are still few historical land-cover datasets with high spatial resolution. (5) Reconstruction method based on multiple-source data and multidisciplinary research could build historical land-cover from multiple perspectives, complement the missing data, verify reconstruction results and thus improve reconstruction accuracy. However, there are challenges that make the method still in the exploratory stage. This method can be a long-term development goal for the historical land-cover reconstruction. Researchers should focus on rebuilding historical land-cover dataset with high spatial resolution by developing new models so that the study results could be effectively applied in simulations of climatic and ecological effects.     

Hydrological implications of desertification: Degradation of South African semi-arid subtropical thicket

Almost half of the 16,942 km² of South Africa's subtropical thicket with a substantial Portulacaria afra (spekboom) component has been heavily degraded by domestic herbivores. The subtropical thicket biome is a drought-prone and water-stressed area, and many of the region's watersheds comprise of eroded landscapes clothed in degraded spekboom thicket. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of degradation of spekboom thicket on hydrological processes. We hypothesised that degradation of spekboom thicket would reduce infiltration and, hence, reduce soil moisture retention and increase run-off and erosion. We tested this hypothesis by collecting data on rainfall, infiltration, soil moisture retention and run-off in degraded thicket, and – as a reference site – in an adjacent stand of relatively intact thicket. The results showed clear trends in the impacts of spekboom thicket degradation on hydrological processes. The more than hundred-fold lower infiltration in soils associated with degraded thicket relative to the soils beneath the intact, spekboom canopy, resulted in lower levels and less retention of soil moisture, almost double the amount of runoff, and an almost six-fold increase in sediment load. Thus, restoring degraded thicket will reduce erosion and likely improve baseflows, in addition to sequestering carbon.     

EXPRESSING “LOCAL CULTURE” IN HAWAI'I*

ABSTRACT. Detached from the mainland and with a distinct historical ethnic geography, the conquered kingdom of Hawai'i, now the fiftieth state, is the only U.S. state with an Asian and Pacific Islander majority as well as the highest percentage of racial and ethnic intermarriage. Hawai'i's population reflects the tensions between the culturally pluralistic “spirit of aloha” and the ethnic‐cum‐social stratification that has evolved from its historical economic geographies. In this article I focus on one of these strata—what is referred to as “local” culture—discussing its ethnogenesis and contemporary manifestations, and I apply Jonathan Okamura's 1981 model of situational ethnicity to examine how locals and new immigrants negotiate the ethnic dynamics and social expectations of their daily lives. I also discuss various ways in which “localness” is represented on O'ahu's economic landscape, with an analysis of the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet, as a holistic expression of local culture.     

土地利用/覆被历史重建方法(英文)

Understanding long-term human-environment interactions requires historical reconstruction of past land-use and land-cover changes. Most reconstructions have been based primarily on consistently available and relatively standardized information from historical sources. Based on available data sources and a retrospective research, in this paper we review the approaches and methods of the digital reconstruction and analyze their advantages and possible constraints in the following aspects:(1) Historical documents contain qualitative or semi-quantitative information about past land use, which also usually include land-cover data, but preparation of archival documents is very time-consuming.(2) Historical maps and pictures offer visual and spatial quantitative land-cover information.(3) Natural archive has significant advantages as a method for reconstructing past vegetation and has its unique possibilities especially when historical records are missing or lacking, but it has great limits of rebuilding certain land-cover types.(4) Historical reconstruction models have been gradually developed from empirical models to mechanistic ones. The method does not only reconstruct the quantity of land use/cover in historical periods, but it also reproduces the spatial distribution. Yet there are still few historical land-cover datasets with high spatial resolution.(5) Reconstruction method based on multiple-source data and multidisciplinary research could build historical land-cover from multiple perspectives, complement the missing data, verify reconstruction results and thus improve reconstruction accuracy. However, there are challenges that make the method still in the exploratory stage. This method can be a long-term development goal for the historical land-cover reconstruction. Researchers should focus on rebuilding historical land-cover dataset with high spatial resolution by developing new models so that the study results could be effectively applied in simulations of climatic and ecological effects.     

基于统计动力反演的东亚亚热带季风变化驱动机制研究

利用观测数据,运用非线性统计-动力学方法,反演系统各因子之间的相互关系,建立了东亚亚热带季风变化的动力方程,为研究东亚亚热带季风的驱动机制提供了量化参考。研究发现：过去2 000 a东亚亚热带季风是多因子通过反馈机制相互作用影响且具有耦合效应的复杂非线性动力系统,其驱动力主要来源于普若岗日冰芯δ¹⁸О代表的青藏高原热力作用强迫、太阳黑子活动、ENSO、温室气体单因子CO₂和CH₄浓度、北极温度和CH₄及北极温度与7月太阳辐射的耦合作用机制;反馈调节作用主要源于7月太阳辐射与太阳黑子活动、CH₄浓度、中国陆地地表温、CH₄与7月太阳辐射以及CO₂和CH₄的耦合调节作用。并通过动力反演机制推论热带西太平洋对亚热带季风有一定驱动作用,但并不是主要驱动力,即驱动亚热带季风变化的主源地并不在热带西太平洋海区,石笋δ¹⁸О指代的也主要是夏季风信息。     

1951—2009年东亚副热带夏季风北边缘位置的地域特征

利用1951—2009年中国662个气象台站逐日降水资料和NCEP/NCAR逐日再分析资料,分析了东亚副热带夏季风北边缘地理位置的年际、年代际变化以及夏季风影响北边缘的时间演变特征。结果表明:基于过程透雨量定义的夏季风北边缘能很好地反映边缘带降水特点,东亚副热带夏季风北边缘带大致呈东北-西南走向,在110°E处,北边缘带南界大致位于36°N,北界大致位于41°N。边缘带宽度与其南界纬度具有很好的负相关,且有逐年变宽的趋势。边缘带存在显著的准3年和9年的周期特征。夏季风平均在6月28日开始影响北边缘带,9月21日南撤离开北边缘带。110°E是夏季风边缘带中南风分量最大的经度,与偏南年相比,偏北年夏季风影响边缘带时间开始早,结束迟。     

长江口水域多光谱遥感水深反演模型研究

利用Landsat-7 ETM 遥感影像反射率和实测水深值之间的相关性可以探测水深。该文介绍单波段、双波段比值和多波段3种线性回归模型以及动量BP人工神经网络水深反演模型。选择长江口北港河道上段作为研究区,利用上述模型,分两种情况进行水深反演:一是以河道全部历史样本建模;二是将河道按自然水深划分为浅水区和深水区分别建模。结果表明:神经网络模型预测精度高于线性回归模型;水深分区后线性回归和神经网络模型预测误差均有所减小。     

Definition and characteristics of the south edge of the subtropical winter monsoon in East Asian

Based on observational daily data of 730 meteorological stations in China, the south edge of the subtropical winter monsoon is defined according to relevant criterion and its variation characteristics are analyzed. Results show that this south edge has obvious inter-annual variation characteristics and shows a northward moving tendency as a whole, but since the 21st century it has moved southwards and date of the south edge entering winter becomes earlier. Wind fields of the anomalously northward south edge of the subtropical winter monsoon in East Asia has an obvious southerly wind component which prevents cold air from moving southward. The index of this south edge and winter temperature has a positive correlation. Climate warming might be the main reason for the northward movement of the south edge of the subtropical winter monsoon.     

SUSTAINING THE STEPPES: A GEOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF PASTORAL LAND USE IN MONGOLIA*

ABSTRACT. Recent shifts in Mongolia's politics and economy have changed pastoral land-use patterns and charged debate over how pasturelands are allocated and regulated in a market economy. Absent has been any detailed understanding of the historical geography of pastoral tenure and land-use patterns in Mongolia prior to the socialist era and the collectivization of livestock husbandry. An overview and case study of changing tenures and land-use patterns suggests that in prerevolutionary Mongolia wealth and poverty determined herders' mobility and access to pasture resources; no less is true today. Historical data also reveal dual formal and informal regulatory institutions extant in the past that coordinated patterns of seasonal movement. This amounted to an unofficial tenure system and has contributed to Mongolia's legacy of ecologically and socially sustainable pastoralism.     

广州旅游业可持续发展的旅游形象思考

一个城市只有树立良好的旅游形象,才能有效地吸引游客,促进旅游业发展和可持续发展。文中提出可持续发展思想是城市旅游业可持续发展的理论基础。从可持续发展的角度,广州市的旅游形象宜定位为：南国商都—南亚热带生态园—历史文化名城。并围绕旅游形象建设问题,提出一些方向性、可操作性的方案和建议。     

Paraguay's Atlantic Forest cover loss – Satellite-based change detection and fragmentation analysis between 2003 and 2013

The subtropical Atlantic Forest is a highly diverse ecosystem in South America and one of the most endangered rain forests in the world. The present study focuses specifically on the Paraguayan part of the tri-national Atlantic Forest. Over the last decades, the Paraguayan Atlantic Forest presented one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, and today, only a small share remains. Hence, forest loss in Paraguay's Atlantic Forest was detected and analysed through remote sensing and GIS methodologies based on Landsat images obtained in 2003 and 2013. The objective of this study was to examine the spatial impact of forest loss in Paraguay's Atlantic Forest over the past decade with a special focus on biodiversity conservation. Classifications results obtained overall accuracies above 83% and revealed that over 6000 km² of forest was cleared during the study period. The forest landscape and its fragmentation level were characterised through a set of landscape metrics, in particular the proximity analysis which support the identification of forest priority areas for nature conservation and potential biological corridors. In summary, the study revealed that deforestation and fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest area continued, but at a slower pace than that in the previous decade. Protected areas were conserved very effectively; however, forest core areas without any protection status require further attention. Intact forest patches and their connectivity are a crucial prerequisite to biodiversity conservation in a highly fragmented forest area. The combination of different remote sensing and GIS methods provides valuable information for sustainable forest management in the region.     

基于MODIS数据网格化重建历史耕地空间分布的方法——以清代云南省为例

建立具有准确空间属性的历史时期土地覆被数据集有助于更好地模拟土地覆被变化的过程及其效应。本文基于我国过去300年耕地面积总体呈持续增加的特点,提出了历史时期耕地分布范围未超出现代耕地范围的合理假设,并以地表高程和坡度为影响土地宜垦程度的主导因子,评估了MODIS土地覆被产品中现代耕地分布区域的宜垦程度,再按宜垦程度从高...     

历史地理学信息化若干问题的探讨

信息技术应用的日益普及为中国历史地理学发展提供了可选择的途径。在社会需要、信息源、技术方法等因素的支持下 ,开展历史地理学信息化已具备了可行性 ,应结合具体实例在历史政区、气候、人口、土地等专题开展 GIS技术应用 ,以及推广数字地图、图像处理技术应用。在实践中不断解决历史文献的信息精度等问题 ,推动学科方法论的进步。     

Landscape Change and Environmental Histories

Historical geography was once a popular element of university curricula in New Zealand. It was also a conspicuous focus of research. Today however there is only one identifiable course in historical geography in New Zealand's university calendars – at Massey – and few writers have maintained an active research interest rooted in the sub‐discipline. This Comment suggests some reasons why now is a good time for New Zealand's geographers to reassess this state of affairs, and outlines five themes that might be pursued in the construction of more explicit historical geographies at the start of the third millennium.     

RESURGENT MEXICAN PHOENIX*

ABSTRACT. Popular impressions of Phoenix, Arizona perpetuate the notion that this metropolitan area is an overwhelmingly Anglo place. We challenge this assertion and demonstrate that the city has substantial Mexican roots and is presently being shaped by a vibrant, resurgent Mexican population. Employing historical records, surveys, and landscape data, we articulate the Mexican character of early Phoenix and highlight how the revival of Mexican Phoenix has transformed the urban landscape. We then relate how Phoenix's Mexican population is a more nuanced regional subculture formed through both historical and contemporary connections with specific Mexican states. We conclude with a call for greater understanding of the internal heterogeneity of Mexicans in the United States and how this can inform our geographical interpretations of the growing Latinization of American cities.