Extraction of spatio‐temporal data about historical events from text documents

Often, we are faced with questions regarding past events and the answers are hidden in the historical text archives. The growing developments in geographic information retrieval and temporal information retrieval techniques have given new ways to explore digital text archives for spatio‐temporal data. The question is how to retrieve the answers from the text documents. This work contributes to a better understanding of spatio‐temporal information extraction from text documents. Natural language processing techniques were used to develop an information extraction approach using the GATE language processing software. The developed framework uses gazetteer matching, spatio‐temporal relationship extraction and pattern‐based rules to recognize and annotate elements in historical text documents. The extracted spatio‐temporal data is used as input for GIS studies on the time–geography context of the German–Herero resistance war of 1904 in Namibia. Related issues when analyzing the historical data in current GIS are discussed. Particularly problematic are movement data in small scale with poor temporal density and trajectories that are short or connect very distant locations.     

Assessment of surface water potential and groundwater recharge in ungauged watersheds: a case study in Tamil Nadu,India

Many of the states in India have been facing water scarcity for more than 2 decades due to increased demand, because of the increase in population and higher living standards. Consequently, many states have almost fully utilized the available surface water resources and are exploiting groundwater to augment water supplies. Investigations were carried out in the upper Thurinjalar watershed of Ponnaiyar basin in Tamil Nadu to determine the availability of surface water and to investigate the potential for enhancing groundwater recharge to support the water demand in the watershed. Increasing the water availability would also enable the community to convert the 46% of the land area in the watershed that is currently underutilised into productive uses. The surface water potential for the upper Thurinjalar watershed was assessed by applying the USDA–NRCS model with daily time steps. This modelling exercise indicated that the annual runoff from the 323 km² area of the watershed is 61 million m³. Groundwater recharge in the watershed was assessed by carrying out daily water balance method and indicated that about 43 million m³ of water from recharge is available on an annual basis or about 14% of annual rainfall. A simple regression model was developed to compute groundwater recharge from rainfall based on water balance computations and this was statistically verified. The modelling indicated that there is sufficient water available in the watershed to support current land uses and to increase the productivity of underutilised land in the area. The study also demonstrates that simple regression models can be used as an effective tool to compute groundwater recharge for ungauged basins with proper calibration.     

The geometry of fan‐deltas and related turbidites in narrow linear basins

The sediment distribution in three narrow, linear basins, two modern and one ancient, in Greece and Italy, was studied and related to changes in basin configuration. The basins are the Plio‐Quaternary Patras–Corinth graben, the Pliocene–Quaternary Reggio–Scilla graben and the middle Tertiary Mesohellenic piggy‐back basin. These basins were formed at different times and under different geodynamic conditions, but in each case, the tectonic evolution produced a narrow area in the basin where the water depth decreased dramatically, forming a strait with a sill. This strait divided the basin into major and minor sub‐basins, and the strait has a similar impact on sedimentary environments in all three basins, even though different depositional environments were formed along the initial basin axis. Predictions for the development of depositional environments in the two modern basins, especially in their straits, are based on the studied ancient basin. In the straits, powerful tidal flows will transport finer sediments to sub‐basins and trapezoidal‐type fan‐deltas will gradually fill up and choke the strait through time. In sub‐basins, according to basin depth, either deltaic (in the shallow minor sub‐basin) or turbiditic (in the deep major sub‐basin) deposits may accumulate. Moreover, an extensive shelf is likely to develop between the strait and major sub‐basin. This shelf will be cross‐cut by canyons and characterized by thin fine‐ to coarse‐grained deposits. These sediment models could be applied to analogous basin geometries around the world. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structure and dynamics of undercurrents in the western boundary current of the Bay of Bengal

Ocean Dynamics - The structure and variability of undercurrents in the East India Coastal Current (EICC), which is the western boundary current system in the Bay of Bengal (BoB), and the mechanisms...     

Towards an accurate real-time locator of infrasonic sources

Infrasonic signals propagate from an atmospheric source via media with stochastic and fast space-varying conditions. Hence, their travel time, the amplitude at sensor recordings and even manifestation in the so-called “shadow zones” are random. Therefore, the traditional least-squares technique for locating infrasonic sources is often not effective, and the problem for the best solution must be formulated in probabilistic terms. Recently, a series of papers has been published about Bayesian Infrasonic Source Localization (BISL) method based on the computation of the posterior probability density function (PPDF) of the source location, as a convolution of a priori probability distribution function (APDF) of the propagation model parameters with likelihood function (LF) of observations. The present study is devoted to the further development of BISL for higher accuracy and stability of the source location results and decreasing of computational load. We critically analyse previous algorithms and propose several new ones. First of all, we describe the general PPDF formulation and demonstrate that this relatively slow algorithm might be among the most accurate algorithms, provided the adequate APDF and LF are used. Then, we suggest using summation instead of integration in a general PPDF calculation for increased robustness, but this leads us to the 3D space-time optimization problem. Two different forms of APDF approximation are considered and applied for the PPDF calculation in our study. One of them is previously suggested, but not yet properly used is the so-called “celerity-range histograms” (CRHs). Another is the outcome from previous findings of linear mean travel time for the four first infrasonic phases in the overlapping consecutive distance ranges. This stochastic model is extended here to the regional distance of 1000 km, and the APDF introduced is the probabilistic form of the junction between this travel time model and range-dependent probability distributions of the phase arrival time picks. To illustrate the improvements in both computation time and location accuracy achieved, we compare location results for the new algorithms, previously published BISL-type algorithms and the least-squares location technique. This comparison is provided via a case study of different typical spatial data distributions and statistical experiment using the database of 36 ground-truth explosions from the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR) recorded during the US summer season at USArray transportable seismic stations when they were near the site between 2006 and 2008.     

Hydrogeomorphological mapping in assessing ground water by using remote sensing data — A case study in lehra gaga block, sangrur district, Punjab

The paper presents the results of hydrogeomorphological mapping using IRS-IB LISS II data and evaluation of ground water prospects of each hydrogeomorphological unit in the Lehra Gaga block of Sangrur district, Punjab. The major geomorphic units identified in the area are, alluvial plain, sand dunes, palaeo channels and the Ghagar flood plain. The study area being part of alluvial plain has good to excellent ground water prospects. Field observations showed that ground water occurs under both confined and unconfined conditions with water table at shallow depth. The area on either side of the Ghagar river and along the major canals (about 46% of the total geographical area in the block) have good quality of ground water and is suitable for irrigation, whereas the water quality is marginal (sodic) in 52 per cent area of the block..     

The evolution of barred spiral galaxies in the Hubble Deep Fields North and South

The frequency of barred spiral galaxies as a function of redshift contains important information on the gravitational influence of stellar discs in their dark matter haloes and may also distinguish between contemporary theories for the origin of galactic bulges. In this paper we present a new quantitative method for determining the strength of barred spiral structure, and verify its robustness to redshift-dependent effects. By combining galaxy samples from the Hubble Deep Field North with newly available data from the Hubble Deep Field South, we are able to define a statistical sample of 46 low-inclination spiral systems with I _814 W<23.2 mag. Analysing the proportion of barred spiral galaxies seen as a function of redshift, we find a significant decline in the fraction of barred spirals with redshift. The redshift distribution of 22 barred and 24 non-barred spirals with suitable inclinations is inconsistent with their being drawn from the same distribution at the 99 per cent confidence level. The physical significance of this effect remains unclear, but several possibilities include dynamically hotter (or increasingly dark-matter-dominated) high-redshift discs, or an enhanced efficiency in bar destruction at high redshifts. By investigating the formation of the 'orthogonal' axis of Hubble's classification tuning fork, our result complements studies of evolution in the early–late sequence, and pushes to later epochs the redshift at which the Hubble classification sequence is observed to be in place.     

Hydrocarbon potential of the middle Eocene-middle Miocene Mesohellenic piggy-back basin (central Greece): A case study

Two depocentres, >4200 m and >3200 m thick, have been recognized in the Mesohellenic piggy-back basin of middle Eocene to middle Miocene age, where submarine fans have accumulated unconformably over an ophiolite complex. The hydrocarbon potential is indicated by the presence of kerogen types II/III with minor amounts of type I; the evidence is mostly for wet gas and gas, with minor oil. Source rocks are the middle Eocene to lower Oligocene Krania and Eptachori formations, of up to 2000 m total thickness, reaching maturation during the early Miocene. The source rocks consist of outer fan and basin plain deposits. They are conformably overlain by the lower member (late Oligocene) of the up to 2600 m thick Pentalophos Formation, which consists mostly of thick submarine sandstone lobes. Possible stratigraphically trapped reservoirs include the lower member of the Pentalophos Formation, which overlies source rocks, as well as limestones tectonically intercalated within the ophiolite complex, underlying the source rocks. Traps may have formed also on the western side of an internal thrust (Theotokos Thrust), which influenced the evolution of the depocentres.     

Spatial distribution of major and trace elements in shallow reservoir sediments: an example from Lake Waco, Texas

 Sediment geochemistry of a shallow (6-m average) reservoir (Lake Waco) was evaluated for the spatial distribution of major and trace elements. Sixty bottom and core samples along a 21-km transect within the reservoir, 18 overbank sediment samples, and 8 rock types in the drainage area were collected and analyzed for major (Al, Ca, Fe) and trace elements (As, Ba, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sr, V, Zn). Elemental concentrations in the reservoir sediments closely correspond to concentrations in the regional rocks and represent a mixture of overbank sediment composition of the tributaries. Elemental concentrations were statistically regressed against Al concentrations in order to establish regional baseline levels and thereby distinguish natural from anthropogenic sources. Spatial geochemical trends, considered in terms of element-to-Al ratio versus V-to-Al ratio, relate to the natural and anthropogenic sources contributing to the elemental concentrations. The spatial elemental distribution in the reservoir, which receive sediments from two mineralogically contrasting basins, reflect textural and mineralogical transition within the reservoir and suggest a progressive mixing of sediment from the tributaries. The spatial elemental distribution and sediment texture suggest that the sediment-source, which determines the sediment-type, has a greater influence on the major- and trace-element distributions in shallow reservoir sediments than bathymetry. Received: 25 September 1997 · Accepted: 3 February 1998