Reviews

CUL DE SAC: The Question of New Zealand's Future by H. Franklin. 13 x 19 cm, 184 pages. Allen & Unwin: Sydney 1985 (ISBN 0 86861 514 5) $A12.95 (soft).

SHOPPING CENTRE DEVELOPMENT: Policies and Prospects edited by J. A. Dawson and J. D. Lord. 14 x 22 cm, 269 pages. Croom Helm: London 1985 (ISBN 0 7099 0845 8) $A49.95 (hard).

GENTRIFICATION OF THE CITY edited by N. Smith and P. Williams. 13 x 22 cm, xiii and 257 pages. Allen & Unwin: Boston 1986 (ISBN 0 04 301201 9) $A59.00 (hard); (ISBN 0 04 301202 7) $A26.95 (soft).

EUROPE TODAY: Countries and Issues by D. J. Davis and D. C. Flint. 19 x 27 cm, 256 pages. Bell & Hyman: London 1986 (ISBN 0 7135 2518 5) £5.95 (soft).

THE WORLD NOW (Australian edition) by A. Reed and R. Pask. 21 x 30 cm, 96 pages. Edward Arnold: Melbourne 1986 (ISBN 0 7131 8225 3) $A12.95 (soft).

THE INDO‐PACIFIC LIBRARY: Set Two — Ten Titles (11 Australia, 12 Burma, 13 French Polynesia, 14 India, 15 Laos and Kampuchea, 16 North and South Korea, 17 Pakistan and Bangladesh, 18 Sri Lanka, 19 Thailand, 20 Vietnam) by G. Houghton and J. Wakefield. 19 x 25 cm, 32 pages each. Macmillan: Melbourne 1987 $A9.95 (hard) each title.

THE INDO‐PACIFIC LIBRARY: Set Two — Macmillan Black Line Masters by G. Houghton and J. Wakefield. Macmillan: Melbourne 1987 (ISBN 0 333 43059 X) $A19.95 (soft).

QUEENSLAND: A Geographical Interpretation (Queensland Geographical Journal, 4th Series, Volume 1) edited by J. H. Holmes. 18 x 24 cm, 343 pages. Boolarong Publications: Brisbane 1986 (ISBN 0817 489X) $A25.00 (soft).

THE ROAD TO BOTANY BAY: An Essay in Spatial History by P. Carter. 14 x 22 cm, xv and 384 pages. Faber and Faber: London 1987 (ISBN 0 571 14551 5) $A29.95 (hard).

AN EVALUATION OF LOCAL AREA ECONOMIC STRATEGY STUDIES (Australian Regional Developments, No. 6) edited by J. D. Conroy. 30 x 21 cm, vii and 102 pages. Australian Government Publishing Service: Canberra 1987 (ISBN 0 644 06161 8).

PRODUCTION, WORK, TERRITORY: The Geographical Anatomy of Industrial Capitalism edited by A. J. Scott and M. Storper. 15 x 23 cm, xix and 344 pages. Allen & Unwin Inc: Boston 1986 (ISBN 0 04 338126 X) $A90.00 (hard); (ISBN 0 04 338127 8) $A38.95 (soft).

ANALYTICAL BEHAVIOURAL GEOGRAPHY by R. G. Golledge and R. J. Stimson. 16 x 24 cm, 345 pages. Croom Helm: London 1987 (ISBN 0 7099 3844 6) $A122.95 (hard).

AMBIGUOUS ALTERNATIVE: Tourism in Small Developing Countries edited by S. Britton and W. C. Clarke. 20 x 21 cm, 194 pages. University of the South Pacific: Suva 1987 (ISBN 982 01 0009); available from Geography Department, University of the South Pacific, Box 1168, Suva, Fiji.

AN ATLAS OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND RUMINANT POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS OF JAVA: A Multivariate Analysis Approach by J. M. Perkins, Armiadi Semali, P. W. Orchard and Rach‐met Rachman. 46 x 31 cm, 71 pages. Forage Research Project, University of New England: Armidale 1986 (ISBN 0 85834 691 5) $A50.00 plus postage (developed countries); $A20.00 plus postage (developing countries).

ANTARCTICA: THE NEXT DECADE. Report of a Study Group (Studies in Polar Research) by A. Parsons et al. 15 x 23 cm, xii and 164 pages. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge 1987 (ISBN 0521 331811) $A65.00 (hard).

THE HUMAN IMPACT ON THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT by A. Goudie, 25 x 17 cm, x and 338 pages. Basil Blackwell: Oxford 1986 (ISBN 0 631 13758 0) $A29.50 (soft).

ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION: Causes, Effects and Control Policies by D. Elsom. 15 x 23 cm, x and 319 pages. Basil Blackwell: Oxford 1987 (ISBN 0 631 13813 3) $A122.50 (hard); (ISBN 0 631 15674 7) $A43.95 (soft).

SEA SURFACE STUDIES: A Global View edited by R. J. N. Devoy. 16 x 24 cm, 649 pages. Croom Helm: London 1987 (ISBN 0 7099 0871 7) £55.00 (hard).     

Spatiotemporal variability of methane over the Amazon from satellite observations

The spatiotemporal variability of the greenhouse gas methane(CH_4) in the atmosphere over the Amazon is studied using data from the space-borne measurements of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder on board NASA's AQUA satellite for the period 2003–12. The results show a pronounced variability of this gas over the Amazon Basin lowlands region, where wetland areas occur. CH_4 has a well-defined seasonal behavior, with a progressive increase of its concentration during the dry season, followed by a decrease during the wet season. Concerning this variability, the present study indicates the important role of ENSO in modulating the variability of CH_4 emissions over the northern Amazon, where this association seems to be mostly linked to changes in flooded areas in response to ENSO-related precipitation changes. In this region, a CH_4 decrease(increase) is due to the El Nino-related(La Ni ?na-related) dryness(wetness). On the other hand, an increase(decrease) in the biomass burning over the southeastern Amazon during very dry(wet) years explains the increase(decrease) in CH_4 emissions in this region. The present analysis identifies the two main areas of the Amazon, its northern and southeastern sectors, with remarkable interannual variations of CH_4. This result might be useful for future monitoring of the variations in the concentration of CH_4, the second-most important greenhouse gas, in this area.     

Unraveling Hydrocarbon Microseepages in Onshore Basins Using Spectral–Spatial Processing of Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Data

This study focuses on the spectral characterization of superficial effects caused by natural gaseous hydrocarbon (HC) escapes (microseepages) on onshore basins and means to detect the phenomena using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) imagery. The Northern Tucano basin (NTB) (Brazil) displays archetypal onshore microseepages, and it is used here as a case study area. Regional HC geochemical data yielded from NTB soil samples helped to outline the strategies for imagery processing and assessment of results. We firstly devised a generic detection model for onshore basins in which microseepages indicated by HC geochemistry should spatially match a number of surface expressions with key remote sensing signatures, such as bleached soil and rocks (i.e., reduction in Fe³⁺ to Fe²⁺), concentration of specific clays (kaolinite), and carbonates (siderite) and geobotanical markers. These evidences guided the use of remote sensing data and information extraction techniques to find more sites favorable to host HC microseepages in the NTB. ASTER data processed through spectral mixing analysis and supervised and unsupervised neural network systems highlighted sites where features predicted in the detection model concurred seamlessly with geochemical anomalies. The approach also revealed other sites with similar characteristics, but for which no geochemical data exist. These sites are taken as new potential targets for the presence of microseepages and possibly HC reservoirs. The research demonstrated the potential of remote sensing data and spectral–spatial methodologies for economical, onshore detection of HCs for exploration purposes. Potential ramifications of the study include indirect detection of gaseous HC reservoirs in terrestrial planets (fostering the search for signs of life) and depiction of non-negligible, replenishable continental sources of HC emissions on Earth that may contribute to global warming.     

Modelling-based assessment of suspended sediment dynamics in a hypertidal estuarine channel

We investigate the dynamics of suspended sediment transport in a hypertidal estuarine channel which displays a vertically sheared exchange flow. We apply a three-dimensional process-based model coupling hydrodynamics, turbulence and sediment transport to the Dee Estuary, in the north-west region of the UK. The numerical model is used to reproduce observations of suspended sediment and to assess physical processes responsible for the observed suspended sediment concentration patterns. The study period focuses on a calm period during which wave-current interactions can reasonably be neglected. Good agreement between model and observations has been obtained. A series of numerical experiments aim to isolate specific processes and confirm that the suspended sediment dynamics result primarily from advection of a longitudinal gradient in concentration during our study period, combined with resuspension and vertical exchange processes. Horizontal advection of sediment presents a strong semi-diurnal variability, while vertical exchange processes (including time-varying settling as a proxy for flocculation) exhibit a quarter-diurnal variability. Sediment input from the river is found to have very little importance, and spatial gradients in suspended concentration are generated by spatial heterogeneity in bed sediment characteristics and spatial variations in turbulence and bed shear stress.     

Calc-Alkaline Magmatism at the Archean Proterozoic Transition: the Caico Complex Basement (NE Brazil)

The Paleoproterozoic metaplutonic rocks of the CaicóComplex Basement (Seridó region, NE Brazil) provide importantand crucial insights into the petrogenetic processes governingcrustal growth and may potentially be a proxy for understandingthe Archean–Proterozoic transition. These rocks consistof high-K calc-alkaline diorite to granite, with Rb–Sr,U–Pb, Pb–Pb and Sm–Nd ages of c. 2·25–2·15Ga. They are metaluminous, with high Yb_N, K₂O/Na₂O and Rb/Sr,low I_Sr ratios, and are large ion lithophile elements (LILE)enriched. Petrographic and geochemical data demonstrate thatthey belong to differentiated series that evolved by low-pressurefractionation, thus resulting in granodioritic liquids. We proposea model in which the petrogenesis of the Caicó Complexorthogneisses begins with partial melting of a metasomaticallyenriched spinel- to garnet-bearing lherzolite (with high-silicaadakite melt as the metasomatic agent), generating a basic magmathat subsequently evolved at depth through fractional crystallizationof olivine, followed by low-pressure intracrustal fractionation.A subduction zone setting is proposed for this magmatism, toaccount for both negative anomalies in high field strength elements(HFSE) and LILE enrichment. Mantle-derived juvenile magmatismwith the same age is also known in the São Franciscoand West Africa cratons, as well as in French Guyana, and thusthe Archean–Proterozoic transition marks a very importantcontinental accretion event. It also represents a transitionfrom slab-dominated (in the Archean) to wedge-dominated post-Archeanmagmatism. KEY WORDS: calc-alkaline; magmatism; NE Brazil; Paleoproterozoic; petrogenesis     

GIS-based environmental risk assessment in the Ribeira Valley,São Paulo,Brazil

The Ribeira Valley region (State of Sao Paulo, Brazil) hosts the largest Brazilian Atlantic forest reserve. The region was an important mineral district during the ‘60s, from where several tons of lead and other metals were exploited. Residual materials produced by the mining are diffused in the environment until today. The area also encompasses a regional arsenium anomaly associated with unexplored gold deposits. The population presently living in this region performs basic farming activities, from which most of their food is yielded. These features coupled together imply in a complex relationship between natural and anthropogenic factors that are likely to affect the life and health of the local communities. The aim of this paper is to apply digital data integration techniques for environmental risk assessment in the Ribeira Valley using environmental geochemistry. Geochemical, digital elevation and remote sensing data (Landsat Thematic Mapper) were merged and analyzed using a geographical information system. The assumed model considered environmental mobilization through erosion and anomalous As–Pb areas. Data were analyzed through Boolean and fuzzy logic techniques. Fuzzy logic proved superior in this case study as it allowed not only the detection but also the distinction between low, moderate and high environmental risk areas.     

An integrative approach toward biosensing and bioremediation of metals and metalloids

The contamination of harmful metals and metalloids has emerged as a major issue of concern with the industrial and agricultural progress and increase in human population in the last century. Natural biogeochemical activities are also responsible for increase in the level of elements. Metal(loid)s reach to humans either directly through contaminated drinking water or through the food when crop is cultivated in contaminated areas. Metal(loid)s have carcinogenic, mutagenic, and toxicological properties and hence are a burden to body and the cause of a number of health problems. To combat the menace of metal(loid)s contamination, there is a need to not only precisely monitor their levels in the environment but also to remove them efficiently. In addition, these two basis processes require being a low-cost affair to be affordable for routine operation and for most of the areas and people. Biosensors and bioremediation are two important areas, which offer hope to achieve the goals by allowing sensing of metal(loid)s precisely and removing them at a low cost and in easily operable manner. The present article reviews progress of biosensor and bioremediation approaches and proposes prospective feasible strategies for future.     

Improving the descendant relationship of cluster galaxies at z < 1

In this work, we study how to improve well-known techniques for detecting progenitors/descendants of galaxies, such as the NDpredict program, when applied to galaxies in clusters. The improvement of this particular method is based on the use of the red sequence of galaxies in those environments. Objects close to the red sequence in the color and magnitude diagram are more likely to belong to the cluster. This defines a probability scale which is then combined with the one generated by NDpredict. This procedure is optimized for the study of galaxies in clusters over different epochs. Our main result is that, for a sample composed of $120$ clusters, with masses greater than ${10}^{13.25}{M}_{\odot }$, selected from the IllustrisTNG simulations (namely, the TNG100 runs). In $99\%$ of the cases (i.e., $119$ systems), we obtain better performance with the red sequence method in comparison to the original NDpredict, and the average gain obtained is $28\%$ in the identification of descendants for this sample of cluster galaxies.