Sourcing Thai geography literature for ASEAN and international education

This study surveys the available English-language literature and learning resources covering the field of Thai geography, and provides historical review of Thai geography education and an inventory of relevant, accessible materials for ASEAN and international undergraduate students, educators and researchers. We note that the discipline and context of Thai geography has shifted toward new technologies, particularly geographic information systems, and this has left a void in practical and accessible text for high school and undergraduate students in gaining broad and traditional knowledge of the field. Our study finds that the accessibility of introductory English-language texts on Thai geography is limited, and that existing texts appear mainly in the grey literature or widely dispersed across various disciplines of study. The paper provides a platform to help future researchers and to facilitate future production of English-language textbooks and other study materials in the field of Thai geography.     

Breccia dikes and crater‐related faults in impact craters on Mars: Erosion and exposure on the floor of a crater 75 km in diameter at the dichotomy boundary

Abstract— Environmental conditions on Mars are conducive to the modification and erosion of impact craters, potentially revealing the nature of their substructure. On Earth, postimpact erosion of complex craters in a wide range of target rocks has revealed the nature and distribution of craterrelated fault structures and a complex array of breccia and pseudotachylyte dikes, which range up to tens of meters in width and tens of kilometers in length. We review the characteristics of fault structures, breccia dikes, and pseudotachylyte dikes on Earth, showing that they occur in complex network‐like patterns and are often offset along late‐stage crater‐related faults. Individual faults and dikes can undulate in width and can branch and bifurcate along strike. Detailed geological analyses of terrestrial craters show that faults and breccia dikes form during each of the major stages of the impact‐cratering process (compression, excavation, and modification). We report here on the discovery of prominent, lattice‐like ridge networks occurring on the floor of a highly modified impact crater 75 km in diameter near the dichotomy boundary of the northern lowland and southern upland. Interior fill and crater‐floor units have been exhumed by fluvial and eolian processes to reveal a unit below the crater floor containing a distinctive set of linear ridges of broadly similar width and forming a lattice‐like pattern. Ridge exposures range from ?1–4 km in length and ?65–120 m in width, are broadly parallel, straight to slightly curving, and are cross‐cut by near‐orthogonal ridges, forming a box or lattice‐like pattern. Ridges are exposed on the exhumed crater floor, extending from the base of the wall toward the center. On the basis of the strong similarities of these features to terrestrial crater‐related fault structures and breccia dikes, we interpret these ridges to be faults and breccia dikes formed below the floor of the crater during the excavation and modification stages of the impact event, and subsequently exhumed by erosion. The recognition of such features on Mars will help in documenting the nature of impact‐cratering processes and aid in assessment of crustal structure. Faults and breccia dikes can also be used as data for the assessment of post‐cratering depths and degrees of landform exhumation.     

Amino acid analyses of Antarctic CM2 meteorites using liquid chromatography‐time of flight‐mass spectrometry

Abstract— Amino acid analyses of the Antarctic CM2 chondrites Allan Hills (ALH) 83100 and Lewis Cliff (LEW) 90500 using liquid chromatography‐time of flight‐mass spectrometry (LC‐ToF‐MS) coupled with UV fluorescence detection revealed that these carbonaceous meteorites contain a suite of indigenous amino acids not present in Antarctic ice. Several amino acids were detected in ALH 83100, including glycine, alanine, β‐alanine, γ‐amino‐n‐butyric acid (γ‐ABA), and α‐aminoisobutyric acid (AIB) with concentrations ranging from 250 to 340 parts per billion (ppb). In contrast to ALH 83100, the CM2 meteorites LEW 90500 and Murchison had a much higher total abundance of these amino acids (440–3200 ppb). In addition, ALH 83100 was found to have lower abundances of the α‐dialkyl amino acids AIB and isovaline than LEW 90500 and Murchison. There are three possible explanations for the depleted amino acid content in ALH 83100: 1) amino acid leaching from ALH 83100 during exposure to Antarctic ice meltwater, 2) a higher degree of aqueous alteration on the ALH 83100 parent body, or 3) ALH 83100 originated on a chemically distinct parent body from the other two CM2 meteorites. The high relative abundance of ?‐amino‐n‐caproic acid (EACA) in the ALH 83100 meteorite as well as the Antarctic ice indicates that Nylon‐6 contamination from the Antarctic sample storage bags may have occurred during collection.     

SLOPE EVOLUTION ON ABANDONED SPOIL BANKS IN EASTERN OKLAHOMA

Unreclaimed strip mine dumps near Henryetta, Oklahoma were employed as a natural laboratory for the study of slope evolution. These dumps were created by similar technologies and from similar materials but at different times. Modern, 30-year-old and 60-year-old slopes were compared through morphometric analysis and by the direct measurement of current rates of denudation. Slope evolution may be generalized as slope decline. This was effected through reduction of the slope crest, burial of the slope foot, and extension of the upper convexity and lower concavity at the expense of the rectilinear main slope of the original mine dump. There was a progressive reduction in rates of surface erosion, and the balance between weathering and suffosion became skewed towards the latter on the oldest dumps.     

Subduction beneath western South America: evidence from converted phases

Summary. There are two conflicting models for the dip of the subduction zone beneath central Peru and beneath central Chile. One model, based primarily on the distribution of hypocentres thought to be most reliably located, postulates a shallow (∼ 10°) dip for the downgoing plate. The second model, re-examined in this paper and based chiefly on an analysis of ScSp converted phases, postulates a normal (∼ 30°) dip for the subduction.
A detailed examination of ScSp data for central Peru and central Chile shows that ScSp arrivals can be identified on all seismograms on which the predicted signal/noise ratio is greater than 1, and the measured amplitude ratios of ScSp to ScS imply a normal dip for the conversion interfaces. The characteristics of the ScSp arrivals in these regions are virtually identical to those for ScSp arrivals in southern Peru, where a well-defined Benioff zone and the calculated ScSp -conversion region both imply a normal dip for the subduction. Hence ScSp observations in South America support the model of an approximately constant dip of subduction from central Peru to central Chile to a depth of at least 120 km, and impose a constraint that must be satisfied by any satisfactory tectonic model for these regions.     

Temporal stability of apparent soil electrical conductivity measured by electromagnetic induction techniques

Assessing and managing the spatial variability of hydropedological properties are important in environmental,agricultural,and geological sciences.The spatial variability of soil apparent electrical conductivity（ECa） measured by electromagnetic induction（EMI） techniques has been widely used to infer the spatial variability of hydrological and pedological properties.In this study,temporal stability analysis was conducted for measuring repeatedly soil ECa in an agricultural landscape in 2008.Such temporal stability was statistically compared with the soil moisture,terrain indices（slope,topographic wetness index（TWI）,and profile curvature）,and soil properties（particle size distribution,depth to bedrock,Mn mottle content,and soil type）.Locations with great and temporally unstable soil ECa were also associated with great and unstable soil moisture,respectively.Soil ECa were greater and more unstable in the areas with great TWI（TWI 〉 8）,gentle and concave slope（slope 〈 3%; profile curvature 〉 0.2）.Soil ECa exponentially increased with depth to bedrock,and soil profile silt and Mn mottle contents（R2= 0.57）,quadratically（R2 = 0.47）,and linearly（R 2 = 0.47）,respectively.Soil ECa was greater and more unstable in Gleysol and Nitosol soils,which were distributed in areas with low elevation（〈 380 m）,thick soil solum（〉 3 m）,and fluctuated water table（shallow in winter and spring but deep in summer and fall）.In contrast,Acrisol,Luvisol,and Cambisol soils,which are distributed in the upper slope areas,had lower and more stable soil ECa.Through these observations,we concluded that the temporal stability of soil ECa can be used to interpret the spatial and temporal variability of these hydropedological properties.     

The Relationship between Narratives,Wildlife Value Orientations,Attitudes, and Policy Preferences

Overabundance of white-tailed deer is a pervasive problem across the United States. Deer are blamed for increased risk of auto accidents, tick-borne diseases, and overbrowsing of native species. Lethal management techniques, cited as cost-effective and humane, are commonly employed for herd management. However, the approach frequently sparks outrage among various stakeholders who feel killing of animals is unjustified and prefer nonlethal measures. Wildlife managers then face the challenge of communicating with the public to build policy support for lethal management. The Narrative Policy Framework was used to test the effects of differing narratives on public opinion for lethal deer management. Results indicated narratives were influential in shifting attitudes toward and support for a proposed sharpshooting policy even in some cases where respondents were already familiar with the issue and held a previous opinion. This study also supported the utility of the Narrative Policy Framework for examining human dimensions of wildlife issues.     

Flood tide circulation near beaufort inlet, North Carolina: Implications for larval recruitment

Drifter tracks and shipboard CTD observations have revealed a number of distinct features of the flood tide circulation carrying water through Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. One of the most noteworthy of these features is a nearshore jet in the flow carrying water to the inlet on a flood tide. Characterized by a shoreward increase in longshore flow, the jet produces a narrow coastal zone over which water is carried into the inlet. The jet appears to be principally a tidal phenomenon, as it is closely reproduced by a tidally-driven barotropic numerical model. The model results also indicate the jet may be a near-inlet feature. Model simulations of spring tide conditions show the jet confined to within 4 km of the inlet mouth. Another observed phenomenon, which is reproduced by the tidal model, is a distinct splitting of the flow entering the inlet, in which water passing through a particular inlet segment tends to move up-estuary along a well-defined path. An observed flow feature not reproduced by the tidal model is an eastward skew of the region over which water is drawn into the inlet on a flood tide. This asymmetry is unrelated to the local wind. Modeling results from a previous study suggest it may be due to convergent flow at the edge of the low salinity plume issuing from the inlet. Taken together, the results of this and other recent studies in the Beaufort Inlet region reveal the importance of nearshore currents on the eastern side of the inlet in delivering oceanic-spawned larvae to the estuarine system connected to the inlet.