Climate change signal analysis for Northeast Asian surface temperature

Climate change detection, attribution, and prediction were studied for the surface temperature in the Northeast Asian region using NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data and three coupled-model simulations from ECHAM4/OPYC3, HadCM3, and CCCma GCMs (Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis general circulation model). The Bayesian fingerprint approach was used to perform the detection and attribution test for the anthropogenic climate change signal associated with changes in anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) and sulfate aerosol (SO42-) concentrations for the Northeast Asian temperature. It was shown that there was a weak anthropogenic climate change signal in the Northeast Asian temperature change. The relative contribution of CO2 and SO42- effects to total temperature change in Northeast Asia was quantified from ECHAM4/OPYC3 and CCCma GCM simulations using analysis of variance. For the observed temperature change for the period of 1959-1998, the CO2 effect contributed 10%-21% of the total variance and the di     

Geoarchaeological investigation of lithic resources in the central Mesa Verde region,Colorado, USA

An important question in Southwestern archaeological research is how social and economic ties between prehistoric groups changed through time. The chemical and mineralogical matching of stone tools and ceramics to source areas is one approach to addressing this question. Here we challenge the assumption that igneous rocks used for manufacturing stone tools and ceramics in the Mesa Verde region of Colorado were originally derived from the Chuska Mountains of New Mexico. Recent geological surveys suggest that small igneous features present in and around Mesa Verde National Park and Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park contain similar lithologies and may represent a local source. We systematically visited seven of these igneous exposures and nine downstream gravel deposits, looking for geological sources and quarry sites matching the lithology of analyzed debitage from this region. Our results suggest that the ancestral Puebloans could have procured such igneous rocks as aphanitic minette and trachybasalt pottery temper from local areas. Because the trachybasalt is usually thought to have been imported from the Chuska Mountains, this discovery may require a revision of interpreted trade networks based on pottery temper and lithic raw material distinctions. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

What is responsible for increasing flood risks? The case of Gangwon Province,Korea

We examined the anthropogenic and natural causes of flood risks in six representative cities in the Gangwon Province of Korea. Flood damage per capita is mostly explained by cumulative upper 5% summer precipitation amount and the year. The increasing flood damage is also associated with deforestation in upstream areas and intensive land use in lowlands. Human encroachment on floodplains made these urban communities more vulnerable to floods. Without changes in the current flood management systems of these cities, their vulnerability to flood risks will remain and may even increase under changing climate conditions.