On the electrical conductivity of air inside buildings

Summary Simultaneous measurements of the electrical conductivity of air inside and outside of buildings have been performed with continuously recording electronic instruments of high sensitivity and short time constant. It appears that the electrical conductivity, a measure of the natural ionization of air, is one atmospheric-electric parameter that can manifest itself inside occupied buildings without appreciable difference in physical character from outside values.The probable importance of these experimental results for the field of bioclimatology is pointed out and the possibility is discussed that the electrical conductivity of air might be one of the searched—for parameters in associating physiological phenomena with weather changes.

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Zusammenfassung Gleichzeitige Messungen der luftelektrischen Leitfähigkeit im Freien und innerhalb von Gebäuden wurden mit kontinuierlich registrierenden Röhreninstrumenten von großer Empfindlichkeit und kurzer Zeitkonstante durchgeführt. Es wurde gefunden, daß die Leitfähigkeit als Maß der natürlichen Luftionisierung eine luftelektrische Größe darstellt, die ohne wesentliche physikalische Beeinflussung in bewohnte Gebäude einzudringen vermag.Die mögliche Bedeutung dieser experimentellen Ergebnisse für das Gebiet der Bioklimatologie wird angedeutet und die Wahrscheinlichkeit diskutiert, daß die luftelektrische Leitfähigkeit einen der noch unbestimmten Faktoren des Zusammenhanges physiologischer Erscheinungen mit Wetterveränderungen darstellen könnte.

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Résumé Des instruments électroniques à enregistrement continu de haute fidelité et ayant une constante de courte durée ont permis de prendre des mesures simultanées de la conductivité électrique de l'air à l'intérieur et à l'extérieur de bâtiments. Il semble que la conductivité électrique, mesure de l'ionisation naturelle de l'air, soit un paramètre de l'électricité atmosphérique qui peut se manifester à l'intérieur de bâtiments habités sans différence appréciable de caractéristiques physiques avec celles des valeurs extérieures.L'importance probable de ces résultats expérimentaux dans le champ de la bioclimatologie est indiquée, et la possibilité que la conductivité atmosphérique puisse être un des paramètres recherchés dans l'association des phénomènes physiologiques avec des changements du temps est étudiée.

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With 1 Figure.

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Publication No. 25 of the Institute of Geophysics, University of California at Los Angeles. The research reported in this paper has been sponsored in part by the Geophysics Research Directorate of the Air Force Cambridge Research Center, Air Research and Development Command, under Contract No. AF 19(122)-254.     

Orbital evolution studies of planet-crossing asteroids

Numerical integrations of 26 orbits of planet-crossing astetoids of Apollo-Amor type have been performed, in a solar system model including the perturbations by the planets from Venus to Neptune. The 15:th order RADAU integrator (Everhart, 1985) has been used. Orbits for the asteroids 433 Eros, 887 Alinda, 1036 Ganymed, 1221 Amor, 1580 Betulia, 1627 Ivar, 1685 Toro, 1862 Apollo, 1863 Antinous, 1864 Daedalus, 1865 Cerberus, 1915 Quetzalcoatl and 1916 Boreas have been integrated over 100 000 years forward in time and for 1866 Sisyphus, 2102 Tantalus, 2201 Oljato, 2329 Orthos, 3360 1981 VA, 3552 1983 SA, 1981 EJ30, 1985 PA, 1985 WA, 1986 DA 1986 JK and 1986 RA a period of about 33 000 years has been covered. The orbital evolutions of these asteroids are discussed. This work is part of a larger study of the long-term orbital evolution of planet-crossing asteroids and will be continued within the project SPACEGUARD (Milani et al., 1987).     

Effects of lava flows on lunar crater populations

It is shown that endogenic lava flow processes can be identified by their characteristic effects on lunar crater size distributions without necessarily being able to recognise individual flows on the photographs studied. The thickness of lava flows or a series of flows can be estimated from these crater size distribution characteristics. The lava flow histories of the Apollo landing sites 11, 12 and 15 are discussed in detail. The thicknesses of the most recent (3–3.4 × 10⁹ years ago) flows there and of the youngest flows in an area in south-west Mare Imbrium (3 × 10⁹ years) are found to range between 30 and 60 m. The subsequent flow episodes at the landing sites showing up in the crater size distributions can be related to differences in the radiometric ages of the respective lunar rocks.     

Deep structure and kinematics of the Northern Calcareous Alps (TRANSALP Profile)

The Northern Calcareous Alps (NCA) of southern Bavaria and northern Tyrol constitute a carbonate-dominated polyphase fold-thrust wedge; together with its Grauwacken Zone Basement, it is the northernmost part of the far-travelled Upper Austroalpine thrust complex of the Eastern Alps. The present geometry developed in several kinematic stages. Jurassic extensional faults that affected large parts of the NCA and their basement originated when the main part of the NCA was still located southeast of the Central Alpine Ötztal-Silvretta complex. These faults and related facies transitions influenced the later style of detachment of the NCA thrust sheets. Mid to Late Cretaceous detachment, thrust-sheet stacking and motion over the Central Alpine complex are registered in clastic deposits of syntectonic basins. The latest Cretaceous to Cenozoic NNE- to N-directed motion of the NCA towards Europe in front of the Central Alpine complex created another set of significant contraction structures, which at depth overprinted all previous structures. During Cretaceous to Cenozoic deformation, the NCA experienced about 80 km of shortening, i.e., about 73% along the TRANSALP Profile. The European basement and autochthonous Mesozoic cover beneath the allochthonous NCA thrust sheets and flysch complexes seem to have remained relatively undeformed.     

Paleoenvironmental evolution of the Paratethys in the Slovenian Basin during the Late Paleogene

Several sections from the uppermost Eocene and Oligocene of northern Slovenia have been investigated with respect to sedimentary facies, foraminiferal assemblages, stable isotopes, carbonate microfacies, and palynology. The main objective was to reconstruct the paleoenvironmental history of the Paleogene Paratethys in this region of the eastern Alpine realm. The sediments exhibit a transgressive succession beginning with conglomerates, sandstones, and mudstones of fluvial and lacustrine origin followed by carbonates and muddy marls indicating marine conditions. The foraminiferal faunal changes from brackish to shallow marine to deeper marine assemblages and the distribution of the palynofloras corroborate the sedimentological results. Microfacies analysis of the limestones shows a wide variation of shallow water, generally mud-rich facies dominated by coralline algae, foraminifera, and corals. Microfaunas adapted to low-oxygen conditions indicate temporal sluggish bottom-water circulation which can be associated with high fresh-water fluxes. These results are discussed as reflecting both the global sea-level rise during the Early Oligocene and the regional tectonic and climatic evolution.     

A Discussion of IGS Solutions and Their Impact on Geodetic and Geophysical Applications

The International Association of Geodesy officially established the International GPS Service (IGS) on Janaury 1, 1994. Its prime objective is to provide support and a rerefence system for a wide variety of scientific and practical applications involving GPS. To fulfill its role the IGS also generates, in addition to its fundamental products (orbital/staion positions and consistent Earth orientation parameters), additional reference-system products providing the necessary infrastructure, standards, and means of calibrations for timing and various atmospheric applications of GPS. The generation and efficient application of IGS products and their impact on a number of positioning and atmospheric applications, including low earth orbit satellites, is reviewed and discussed. @ 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Strain determination from the measurement of pebble shapes

Cross-sections of pebbles or other near-ellipsoidal bodies in rocks can be measured in three planes, conveniently chosen orthogonal to each other, but otherwise oriented arbitrarily. The three sets of measurements, referred to a single Cartesian coordinate system, can in principle be used to calculate the average pebble shape. Some of these measurements, however, are necessarily redundant and, generally, not compatible without adjustments for the distribution of an error. The calculation of the average ellipsoid is developed, as is that of the strain which transforms an original sphere into such an ellipsoid. This calculation involves the distribution by a weighted least-squares method of the error due to redundancy and leads to the assignment of an estimated error to each of the second-rank tensor components of the strain. The assumption is made that, after being referred to the common coordinate system, the measured values for each tensor component have a normal distribution. This assumption may not always be correct but could be tested before this method is used.     

Eodiagenetische Vorgänge bei der Bildung von Salinargesteinen

Zusammenfassung Chemische Präzipitate bleiben als Sedimente nur so lange erhalten, als sie mit der darüberstehenden Lösung, dem Bodenwasser des Salinarbeckens, im chemischen Gleichgewicht stehen. Die in dem Laugenkörper solcher Meeresbecken bestehenden, horizontalen Dichtegrenzen, die auf Konzentrationsunterschieden beruhen, können sich durch klimatische, meeresgeographische u. a. Veränderungen vertikal verschieben. Dadurch ist das Sediment (der Bodenkörper) Umbildungen ausgesetzt. Verdünnung der Lauge bringt entweder totale Wiederauflösung oder selektive Rücklösung der leichtestlöslichen Sediment-Anteile mit sich: durch NaCl-Auflösung bei Haliten ein tonig-anhydritisches Residuum (hardground), Sylvinitisierung (bis Halitisierung) durch Ent-Carnallitisierung (MgCl₂-Wegführung) bei Kalisalzen. Tiefgreifende Umkristallisationen und Entstehung von polygonalen Pfeilern erheblicher Tiefenerstreckung sprechen für Stillstand der Sedimentation und für subaquatische Verkarstung. Auf mechanische Umformungen durch Wellenschlag gehen wohl Augensalze und Knollenanhydrite zurück (Tempestite). An paläogeographisch geeigneten Positionen entstanden durch Gleitbewegungen (slumping) Breccienbänke und Falten erheblichen Ausmaßes in Anhydriten und Kalisalzen. Alle diese Vorgänge werden in das früheste Stadium der Diagenese eingeordnet.Zur Vermeidung der aus zwei verschiedenen Sprachen zusammengesetzten Wortkombination Frühdiagenese wird die BezeichnungEodiagense hiermit in Vorschlag gebracht.

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Chemical deposits are only preserved as sediments when they are in chemical equilibrium with the lowermost part of the brine basin. The brine bedding, caused by density, or concentration respectively, can be disturbed by changes of climate, by currents a. s. o. When the brine boundaries are shifted in vertical direction the bottom sediment may be transformed. A thinning of the brine will give rise either to total re-dissolution or to any selective removal of the highest soluble substance, f. i. NaCl from rock salt, by leaving anhydritic or marly residuals (hardground), or MgCl₂ from Carnallite, by leaving Sylvite etc. Breaks within the progressive sedimentation produce polygonal structures reaching several meters down into the pre-existing halite sediment. And thatone may be recrystallized in big scale. Physical influence, as movement in the waterbody by wind and waves, gave rise to so-called augensalz, fragmental anhydrites a. s. o. Brecciated anhydrites as well as huge creeping folds in anhydrites and in potash beds have to be explaned by slumping.All these transformations are caused by early diagenesis. For avoiding the term early diagenesis≓ which is composed by 2 words of different languages, the wordEodiagenesis is proposed herewith.

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Résumé Les sédiments chimiques ne sont conservés qu'aussi longtemps qu'ils sont en équilibre chimique avec la partie basale de la saumure qui se trouve au-dessus d'eux. Les plans de stratification, dûs aux différences de densité liées à la concentration en sels dans la saumure peuvent se déplacer verticalement sous l'action d'influences climatiques, océaniques, tectoniques etc., ce qui expose le sédiment déposé à des transformations. Une dilution de la saumure peut provoquer une redissolution totale ou une dissolution sélective des sels suivant leur solubilité. Par example: dans les halites normales, la solubilisation du NaCl laissera comme résidu un »hardground« composé d'une substance argiloanhydritique; dans les sels potassique, par la dissolution sélective du MgCl₂, la carnallitite sera transformée en sylvinite. — Dans nombre de gisements de halite des structures en pilliers polygonaux de quelques mètres de puissance, où la halite peut Être complètement récrystallisée sont probablement à attribuer à un arrÊt de la sédimentation et à une karstification.Des textures »conglomératiques« observées dans les anhydrites et dans les halites (»Knollenanhydrit«, »Augensalz«), sont à rapporter à l'action des vagues et pourraient donc Être des »tempestites«. Des bancs bréchoides et les plis d'ampleur considérable dans les anhydrites et les sels potassiques ne peuvent Être expliqués que par des glissements subaquatiques.Tous ces événements sont à classer dans un stade très précoce de la diagénèse. Pour éviter le terme de »Frühdiagenese« qui provient de deux langues différentes, il est proposé ici, de désigner ces changements diagénétique précoces sous le nom de »éodiagénèse«.

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, . , . — « » — . , , , - — hardground —, — — . . . . . , , « » «».

     

Thermal metamorphism of primitive meteorites—IX. On the mechanism of trace element loss from Allende heated up to 1400° C

We report data for Ag, Bi, Cd, Co, Cs, Ga, In, Se, Te, Tl and Zn determined by neutron activation in Allende samples heated for one week at 100° increments in the 1000–1400°C range in a low pressure (initially 10^?5atmH₂) environment using an apparatus of novel design. In the extremes, concentrations of these trace elements—initially present at ppm-ppb levels—in unheated material are lowered even farther by factors of 10^?4–10^?5 over a broad temperature span. Loss of some elements above 1000°C extends trends evident below 1000°C; loss of others is even more extreme. On Arrhenius diagrams some elements exhibit but one apparent activation energy over the entire temperature span of loss while others exhibit 2 or 3, each operative in a particular temperature region. These discontinuities seem related to mineralogic/petrologic alteration and probably reflect differences in diffusion mechanism rather than siting differences. The extension of previous experiments into the temperature regime postulated for chondritic differentiation should lead to a better understanding of the evolution of meteoritic parent bodies.