Enhanced bedrock weathering in association with late-lying snowpatches: Evidence from Livingston Island,Antarctica

An indication of the extent of weathering on different aspects of rock outcrops on Livingston Island, Antarctica, was obtained by means of a Schmidt hammer, a cone indenter and measurement of weathering rind thickness. Results show that weathering, particularly chemical weathering, is enhanced on the lee side of outcrops where snow accumulates as a result of prolonged wetting by the melting snow. Rock moisture and temperature data indicate that the south-facing, snow-accumulation side of obstacles have high rock moisture levels and maintain relatively high temperatures. Whilst chemical weathering is greater on the leeward side of outcrops, mechanical processes are greater on the windward side. The presence of late-lying snow thus appears to exert a strong influence on weathering.     

Linear system response by DFT: Analysis of A recent modified method

An analysis of a recent modified frequency-domain procedure for computing the response of linear systems using the fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm is described. This modified procedure eliminates the appended free-vibration interval that is used in the standard approach. The duration of the period of computation still needs to be longer than that of the response interval of interest, but only slightly. Reducing the period of computation lowers the number of frequencies at which the transfer function needs to be defined. The major drawback of the method is a high sensitivity to errors in the computed values of the transfer function, which reduces the role of interpolation in the transfer function definition. The modified method is related to the discrete Laplace transform.     

The implications of Maori perspectives for the management and promotion of heritage tourism in New Zealand

Maori images have long been a part of the international tourist image of New Zealand. However, Maori people have increasingly been asserting their rights to control and manage their own resources. The purpose of the present paper is to analyse the implications of Maori perspectives on the promotion, interpretation and management of tourism resources and to discuss the potential short and long-term implications of such perspectives on tourism development.The paper discusses the implications of the Waitangi Tribunal hearings and the overall assertion of Maori rights over tourism resources. While the articulation of Maori rights is by no means universal, several case studies illustrate potential implications of Maori control and ownership for the New Zealand tourism industry. The paper concludes that the implementation of the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi provides a basis for reconciling the interpretive and management demands of Maoritanga with the tourism industry in a manner which can have positive outcomes for both.     

Geochemistry of spilites from South-West England: a statistical approach

Summary A suite of spilitic rocks from S.W. England has been analysed for 27 major and trace elements. Factor analysis was used to resolve the effects of primary magmatic variation and secondary spilitic alteration in determining the distribution of each element. The variation of REE, Nb, Zr, Fe, Ti, Sc and V is mainly attributed to igneous fractionation, whereas the variation of the other elements mainly reflects the results of spilitization. Spilitization is considered to be due to reaction between basalts and seawater soon after their original eruption, rather than the result of later regional metamorphism.

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Geochemie von Spiliten aus SW England: Eine statistische Annäherung

Zusammenfassung Spilitische Gesteine aus Südwest-England wurden auf 27 Haupt— und Spurenelemente untersucht.Faktorenanalysen wurden benützt, um zu unterscheiden, inwieweit die Variation einzelner Elemente durch primäre magmatische bzw. sekundäre Spilitisierungsprozesse bedingt ist. Die Verteilung der SEE, Nb, Zr, Fe, Ti, Sc und V wird hautsächlich von der magmatischen Fraktionierung, die der anderen Elemente von der spilitischen Alteration kontrolliert.Die Spilitisierung wird eher auf eine Reaktion der frisch eruptierten Basalte mit dem Meerwasser, als auf spätere regional-metamorphe Prozesse zurückgeführt.

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With 5 Figures     

Behaviour of beach profiles during accretion and erosion dominated periods

Beach profiles have been surveyed at monthly intervals between 1972 and 1988 at Moruya on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia. Four profile sites have been used as a data set to provide an understanding of changes to beach volume, width, and shape. Moruya beach represents a moderately high energy, microtidal environment, which responds in a dramatic way to major storm events such as those experienced in the mid-1970s. This study distinguishes between profile characteristics associated with such a period (erosion-dominated or EDP) compared with periods when accretion dominated (ADP) accompanied by foredune expansion in both height and width.     

Generation of high-silica rhyolite: A Nd,Sr, and O isotopic study of Sierra La Primavera,Mexican Neovolcanic Belt

High-silica rhyolites of the Sierra La Primavera, a late Pleistocene center near Guadalajara, are extremely Sr-poor (0.3–1.3 ppm), yet (with one exception) values of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i are relatively low at 0.7041–0.7048. Values of ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd for all the rhyolites are (within errors) identical to a basalt at 0.5129. These surprisingly primitive values, along with feldspar ¹⁸O of +6.6, are consistent with an origin by fractional crystallization of mantle-derived basalt. However, absence of the large volume of associated intermediate rocks that would be expected if the 40 km³ of erupted rhyolite were produced mainly by fractional crystallization suggests alternative processes involving partial melting of Mesozoic or Tertiary mafic intrusive rocks (or lower-crustal metamorphic equivalents). The latter interpretation is preferred, especially in light of comparative data for other North American, Cenozoic, high-silica rhyolites. Isotopic compositions correlate with basement age, but generally lie between values for associated basalts and the underlying crust. Nearly all can be interpreted as containing both a young mantle-derived component and a crustal component, probably derived by partial melting at intermediate to deep levels of the crust. No matter what the proportions of mantle- and crust-derived material in parental magmas, the extremely low concentrations of Sr and Ba in the high-silica rhyolites require extensive fractional crystallization of feldspar-rich assemblages after parental liquids attain rhyolitic compositions.At La Primavera, contamination by shallow roof rocks probably led to the 0.708 ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i ratio of the earliest postcaldera lava dome, which is thought to have erupted through the same vent as the caldera-forming pyroclastic flows. Contamination associated with collapse apparently affected only a small volume of magma in contact with brecciated wall rocks close to the vent, as nearby lavas that erupted during the same episode about 95 ky ago are unaffected. No identifiable lowering of ¹⁸O took place on caldera collapse. Rhyolitic lavas that erupted 75, 60, and 30 ky ago document postcaldera chemical recovery of the chamber to progressively more evolved compositions in its upper reaches, but show little variation in ¹⁸O, ⁸⁷Sr/ ⁸⁶Sr_i, or ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd with time, suggesting that the bulk of the rhyolitic magma within the chamber was isolated from significant wall-rock contamination. Most of the small range of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i among the rhyolites can be attributed to pre-eruptive, in situ decay of ⁸⁷Rb, resulting in a measurable secular increase of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in these Sr-poor magmas. The ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i of the youngest rhyolite, however, is somewhat lower than predicted, suggesting that the silicic magma chamber was at times open to interaction with more-mafic magmas from below.     

Stable carbon isotope ratios from archaeological charcoal as palaeoenvironmental indicators

The potential to provide environmental proxies using stable carbon isotopes from modern and archaeological charcoal is explored. Experiments on modern Podocarpus (Yellowwoods) show that δ¹³C values of stems, branches and charcoal preserve proxy environmental conditions, including rainfall, humidity and temperature. An additional experiment showed that combustion temperature affects the carbon isotope signature of charcoal. Burning at 450 °C to 500 °C depletes δ¹³C values with respect to the original wood, but the charcoal retains the seasonal and inter-annual isotopic trends recorded during the growth of the tree.The δ¹³C of Podocarpus charcoal from three levels from the Middle Stone Age site of Sibudu Cave, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, was compared with modern analogues from two different environments, Seaton Park (KwaZulu-Natal) and the Baviaans Kloof (Eastern Cape). Other environmental proxies from levels dated from > 70 ka and ~ 48 ka, show that environmental conditions changed from warmer and wetter to colder and drier and finally becoming warmer and drier. The isotope data is consistent with this reconstruction. The results from this series of experiments indicate that it is possible to obtain meaningful palaeoenvironmental information from δ¹³C values of archaeological charcoal.