Some considerations in management of computer-processable files of geological data

Many sets of data in the natural sciences have a hierarchical structure that is either inherent in the data or that is imposed on them during collection. These data structures can be defined using mathematical set-theory notation. If data from two or more computer-processable files are accessed simultaneously, the application of operations of set union and intersection leads to emergence of certain criteria which must be adhered to when managing data files using a generalized, database management system. One of the situations in which these principles come into play is illustrated by the merging of two computer-processable files of geotechnical data, the data for both files having been derived from the same source but structured differently.     

An inexpensive sampler for obtaining bulk sediment cores

A large-volume core sampler for sediment—muck substrates is described. The sampler can acquire a discrete sediment core of 10 cm in diameter and up to 1.5 m long. Such samplers are needed to collect the volume necessary for analysis of sediments for contaminants, bulk density, or radioactive dating. The sampler consists of a 1- to 2-m length of PVC pipe mounted below a threaded metal pipe air exhaust—intake assembly. This assembly is quick-connected to standard threaded lengths (300 cm) of water pipe (2 cm diam) or electrical conduit so that bottom sediments in water depths of up to 10 m can be sampled. The core sampler is hand-operated and pushed into bottom sediments from a boat. It does not have to be triggered remotely because of the one-way modified check valve in the air exhaust—intake assembly. After the sampler is extracted from the sediment, the extension handle can be quickly removed for ease of sampler handling, and the core can be extruded from the PVC tube by air pressure.Contribution of the National Sedimentation Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Oxford, Mississippi 38655, U.S.A.     

Sediment accumulation and its effects on a Mississippi River oxbow lake

Recent sediment accumulation rates were measured in Moon Lake, a large (10.1 km²) Mississippi River oxbow lake in northwestern Mississippi. Moon Lake, which receives channeled inflow from an intensively cultivated soybean, rice, and cotton watershed (166 km²) and limited overland flow from surrounding lands, exhibited depositional patterns that were associated with (1) points of inflow, (2) flow patterns, and (3) lake morphology. From 1954 to 1965, 70 percent of the lake bottom experienced accumulation rates greater than 2 cm/yr. Accumulation rates exceeded 4 cm/yr in areas of delta formation. Changes in cropping systems during the 1960s, from cotton to soybeans and rice which require less cultivation, resulted in significantly (a = 0.01) less sediment accumulation during the period 1965- 1982 when 86 percent of the lake averaged less than 2 cm/yr sediment deposition. If current sediment accumulation rates continue, open water habitat in the lake will be reduced by only 3 to 7 percent during the next 50 years.Contribution of the Sedimentation Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Oxford, MS 38655     

The distribution of rare phenolic type compounds in wild and cultivated wheats

In 14 species of Aegilops, four species of Triticum and two species of Hordeum, a complex of rare phenolic compounds was found and showed quantitative differences between the wild and domestic species. There was a dramatic reduction in the cultivars to about 5% of the amount of these phenolic constituents. In the wild species these phenolic compounds may act as important germination regulators, such as water-dissolving germination inhibitors which may act as 'rain gauges'. This is especially important for the germination at the appropriate time in species inhabiting arid regions or deserts.     

HIGH PRECISION PHOTOGRAMMETRIC MONITORING OF THE DEFORMATION OF A STEEL BRIDGE

Site procedures, instrumentation, analytical methods and accuracies achieved are described for the measurement of the deformation of a military steel bridge under load in a test gantry. Some remarks concerning the advantages and disadvantages of photogrammetry as a method of industrial measurement are made.     

Sporormiella as a proxy for non-mammalian herbivores in island ecosystems

Spores of the dung-fungi Sporormiella are routinely used as a proxy for past megaherbivore biomass and to pinpoint the timing of extinctions. Further ecological insight can also be gained into the impacts that followed initial human arrival in a region through correlation of spore abundance with other proxies (e.g. pollen, charcoal). Currently, the use of Sporormiella as a palaeoecological proxy has been restricted to landmasses where large-herbivore guilds are dominated by mammals. Here, we use New Zealand as a case study to show that the method can also be applied effectively to islands dominated by large avian herbivores. We examine 44 dung samples from 7 localities to show that Sporormiella spores were widely distributed in the dung of endemic avian herbivores (South Island takahe (Porphyrio hochstetteri), kakapo (Strigops habroptilus), and several species of extinct moa, identified by ancient DNA analysis). In addition, we show that Sporormiella spores in a forest soil core from the Murchison Mountains, South Island, accurately trace the post-settlement decline of native avian herbivores, and combined with high-resolution radiocarbon dating reveal severely reduced local herbivore populations by the late 17th Century AD. The spores also trace the subsequent spread of Red deer (Cervus elaphus) introduced to the area in the early 20th Century AD. Our results suggest Sporormiella spores may provide a useful new tool for examining extinctions on numerous islands where terrestrial herbivore guilds were dominated by birds or reptiles. Our findings also highlight the need to consider entire herbivore communities (including birds and reptiles) when examining Late Pleistocene continental Sporormiella records, where the focus has often been tracing the decline of populations of large mammals.     

Estimating suspended sediment concentrations in areas with limited hydrological data using a mixed‐effects model

Sediment rating curves are commonly used to estimate the suspended sediment load in rivers and streams under the assumption of a constant relation between discharge (Q) and suspended sediment concentrations (SSC) over time. However, temporal variation in the sediment supply of a watershed results in shifts in this relation by increasing variability and by introducing nonlinearities in the form of hysteresis or a path‐dependent relation. In this study, we used a mixed‐effects linear model to estimate an average SSC–Q relation for different periods of time within the hydrologic cycle while accounting for seasonality and hysteresis. We tested the performance of the mixed‐effects model against the standard rating curve, represented by a generalized least squares regression, by comparing observed and predicted sediment loads for a test case on the Chilliwack River, British Columbia, Canada. In our analyses, the mixed‐effects model reflected more accurate patterns of interpolated SSC from Q data than the rating curve, especially for the low‐flow summer months when the SSC–Q relation is less clear. Akaike information criterion scores were lower for the mixed‐effects model than for the standard model, and the mixed‐effects model explained nearly twice as much variance as the standard model (52% vs 27%). The improved performance was achieved by accounting for variability in the SSC–Q relation within each month and across years for the same month using fixed and random effects, respectively, a characteristic disregarded in the sediment rating curve. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sources of the transuranic elements plutonium and neptunium in arctic marine sediments

We report here thermal ionization mass spectrometry measurements of ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu, ²⁴¹Pu, ²⁴²Pu, and ²³⁷Np isolated from oceanic, estuarine, and riverine sediments from the Arctic Ocean Basin. ²³⁸Pu/^239+240Pu activity ratios are also reported for alpha spectrometric analyses undertaken on a subset of these samples. Our results indicate that the Pu in sediments on the Alaskan shelf and slope, as well as that in the deep basins (Amerasian and Eurasian) of the Arctic Ocean, has its origin in stratospheric and tropospheric fallout. Sediments from the Ob and Yenisei Rivers show isotopic Pu signatures that are distinctly different from those of northern-hemisphere stratospheric fallout and indicate the presence of weapons-grade Pu originating from nuclear fuel reprocessing wastes generated at Russian facilities within these river catchments. Consequently, sediments of the Eurasian Arctic Ocean, particularly those in the Barents and Kara Seas, probably contain a mixture of Pu from stratospheric fallout, tropospheric fallout, and fuel-reprocessing wastes of riverine origin. In particular, the ²⁴¹Pu/²³⁹Pu ratios observed in these sediments are inconsistent with significant contributions of Pu to the arctic sediments studied from western European reprocessing facilities, principally Sellafield in the UK. Several other potential sources of Pu to arctic sediments can also be excluded as significant based upon the transuranic isotope ratios presented.     

Variability of shallow overland flow velocity and soil aggregate transport observed with digital videography

Field experiments at Tiramoana station 30 km north of Christchurch, New Zealand using an erosion plot 16·5 m long, 0·6 m wide, and with a slope of 14–14·5° on rendzina soil aimed to measure the variability of flow velocity and of soil aggregates transport rate in shallow overland flow. Discharge/cross‐section area ratio was used to estimate mean velocity, and high‐speed digital video camera and image analysis provided information about flow and sediment transport variability. Six flow runs with 0·5–3·0 L s^?1 discharges were supercritical with Froude numbers close to or more than 1. Mean flow velocity followed Poiseuille law, float numbers were more than 1·5 and hydraulic resistance was an inverse proportional function of the Reynolds number, which is typical for laminar flows. Hence actual velocity varied through time significantly and the power spectrum was of ‘red‐noise’, which is typical for turbulent flow. Sediment transport rates had even higher variability, and soil aggregates transport was a compound Poisson process. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.