Land use change modeling and the effect of compact city paradigms: integration of GIS-based cellular automata and weights-of-evidence techniques

In recent decades, attaining urban sustainability is the primary goal for urban planners and decision makers. Among various aspects of urban sustainability, environmental protection such as agricultural and forest conservations is very important in tropical countries like Malaysia. In this regard, compact urban development due to high density, rural development containment is known as the most sustainable urban forms. This paper attempts to propose an integrated modeling approach to predict the future land use changes by considering city compactness paradigms. First, the cellular automata (CA) were applied for calculating land use conversion. Next, weights-of-evidence (WoE) which is based on Bayes theory was utilized to calibrate CA model and to support the transitional rule assessment. Several urban-related parameters as well as compact city indicators were utilized to estimate the future land use maps. The results showed how compact development parameters and site characteristics can be combined using the WoE model to predict the probability of land use changes. The modeling approach supports the essential logic of probabilistic methods and indicates that spatial autocorrelation of various land use types and accessibility is the main drivers of urban land use changes.     

Late Cretaceous–Early Paleogene tectonic events at Farafra-Abu Minqar Stretch,Western Desert,Egypt: results from calcareous plankton

This work depends on integrated high-resolution calcareous plankton nannofossil and foraminiferal biostratigraphic analyses for three Upper Cretaceous-Lower Paleogene successions at Farafra-Abu Minqar area, Western Desert, Egypt. These sections are distributed in a north-south geologic profile as follows: El Aqabat, North Gunna, and Abu Minqar. Lithostratigraphically, four formations are recorded in the study area, namely, Khoman (at base), Dakhla, Tarawan, and Esna (at top). In the north at El Aqabat section, Khoman Formation (carbonate facies) is only represented which changes partially toward the south to Dakhla Formation (siliciclastic facies). In the extreme south at Abu Minqar section, it changes completely into siliciclastic facies of Dakhla Formation. Biostratigraphically, seven calcareous nannofossil and eleven planktonic foraminiferal zones represent the Late Cretaceous-Early Paleogene are identified. Based on the occurrence or missing of these zones accompanied with the field criteria resulted in detecting four tectonic events. These tectonic events took place at the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg), the Danian/Selandian (D/S), the Selandian/Thanetian (S/T), and the Paleocene/Eocene (P/E) boundaries. These tectonic events are related to the impact of the Syrian Arc System. Four sequence boundaries (SB1, SB2, SB3, and SB4) are defined in the Late Cretaceous-Early Paleogene sequence in the Farafra-Abu Minqar area.     

Analysis of physical factors of climate and bioclimate and their effects on almonds production to increase the economy in Hebron area of Palestine

For the 1993–2009 period, we analyzed the relationship between almond yield and three climatic variables (mean annual temperature, soil water reserve, and precipitation), and four bioclimatic variables (annual ombrothermic index, water deficit, simple continentality index, and compensated thermicity index), for one major Hebron crop (soft and hard almonds). Moreover, we obtained data almond production from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, while the climate data from the Palestinian meteorological station during the study period from 1993 to 2009, and analysis is it by using bioclimatic classification of the Earth of Salvador Rivas-Martinez to study the relationship between the almond yield and climate and bioclimate factors (variables). The climatic and bioclimate variables of greatest importance to almond were used to develop regressions analysis relating yield to climatic conditions. Hebron was positively affected by annual ombrothermic index, simple continentality index, precipitation, water soil reserve, and mean annual temperature, but negatively affected by water deficit, with a large proportion of the variance explained by axis F1 (72.48%), F2 (22.38%), and axes F1and F2 (94. 86%). However, in order to produce a high amount of almonds and quality, it can be grown in the regions of the mesomediterranean region, with the value of annual ombrothemic index more than 3, compensated thermicity index between 220/220 to 350/350, simple continentality index between 14 and 20, and in areas where the average annual temperature is between 15 and 20 °C.     

Provenance,weathering, and paleoenvironment of the Upper Cretaceous Duwi black shales,Aswan Governorate,Egypt

The mineralogy and geochemistry of the Upper Cretaceous Duwi black shales of Nile Valley district, Aswan Governorate, Egypt, have been investigated to identify the source rock characteristics, paleoweathering, and paleoenvironment of the source area. The Duwi Formation consists mainly of phosphorite and black shales and is subdivided into three members. The lower and upper members composed mainly of phosphorite beds intercalated with thin lenses of gray shales, while the middle member is mainly composed of gray shale, cracked, and filled with gypsum. Mineralogically, the Duwi black shales consist mainly of smectite and kaolinite. The non-clay minerals are dominated by quartz, calcite, phosphate, dolomite, feldspar, with little gypsum, anhydrite, iron oxides, and pyrite. Based on the CIA, PIA, and CIW values (average?=?84, 94, 95, respectively), it can be concluded that the litho-components of the studied shales were subjected to intense chemical weathering and reflect warm/humid climatic conditions in the depositional basin. The provenance discrimination diagram indicates that the nature of the source rocks probably was mainly intermediate and mafic igneous sources with subordinate recycled sedimentary rocks (Nubia Formation). Geochemical characteristics indicate that the Duwi black shales in Nile Valley district were deposited under anoxic reducing marine environments.     

A new record and a new ichnospecies of Arachnostega from the Middle Miocene of Egypt

The ichnogenus Arachnostega Bertling, 1992 is recorded for the first time from a bioeroded, coral-rich, Middle Miocene limestone bed in the middle Siwa Escarpment Member (Marmarica Formation) at Siwa Oasis, northern Western Desert of Egypt. These burrowing traces are preserved on the surface of a few internal moulds of bivalves and gastropods. Until now, the ichnogenus Arachnostega included a single ichnospecies, A. gastrochaenae Bertling, 1992. In the material studied herein, two ichnospecies are identified, described, illustrated and compared with other, similar traces. One of these is a new ichnospecies of Arachnostega; this is here named A. siwaensis ichnosp. nov. It is distinguished from A. gastrochaenae in the possession of tunnels that usually branch in a V-pattern; intervals of ramification are longest in the main branch and decrease in second- and third-order branches. Arachnostega traces were produced in a warm, low-energy, shallow-marine (<10?m water depth) environment. Polychaetes are the most likely producers of marine Arachnostega, which are commonly occurred in the same studied bed. This new occurrence is significant in extending the known stratigraphical and geographical ranges of Arachnostega into the Middle Miocene of Egypt.     

Selecting Equivalent Strength for Intact Rocks in Heterogeneous Rock Masses

Many surface and underground structures are constructed in heterogeneous rock formations. These formations have a combination of weak and strong rock layers. Due to the alternation of the weak and strong layers, selecting the equivalent and appropriate geomechanical parameters for these formations is challenging. One of these problems is choosing the equivalent strength (i.e., uniaxial compressive strength) of intact rock for a group of rocks. Based on the volume of weak and strong parts and their strength, the equivalent strength of heterogeneous rocks changes. Marinos and Hoek (Bull Eng Geol Environ 60(2):85–92, 2001) presented the “weighted average method” for defining the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) of heterogeneous rock masses based on the volume of weak and strong parts. Laubscher (1977) used the volume ratio of the strength of a weak part to a strong part (UCS weak/UCS strong) to determine the equivalent strength. In this study, the two methods are compared and their validity is evaluated by experimental data and numerical analyses. The geomechanical parameters of two heterogeneous formations (Aghajari and Lahbari) in the west of Iran were estimated using these methods. The results of the present study obtained through numerical analyses using particle flow code are compared with those of previous studies and discussed. Laboratory and numerical results show UCS decrease and approach to weak strength with an increasing in volume of weak part. When strength ratio of strong to weak rock increase, equivalent strength decrease more severely. The findings show that Laubscher’s method gives more appropriate results than the weighted average method.     

Life-cycle cost and sustainability analysis of light-frame wood residential communities exposed to tornados

Natural Hazards - Tornadoes pose a significant threat to residential communities, causing enormous physical damage and losses to their social fabric. The dominant type of single-family residential...     

Red Sea faulting and salt diapirism as a potential geotechnical hazard in Jazan,southwest Saudi Arabia: inferences from gravity data

Natural Hazards - The main objective of this study is to detect the subsurface extension of salt diapirs and structural deformations in the city of Jazan and its suburbs using gravity data. Salt...     

Epi- and endobiont faunal communities on an Egyptian Mediterranean rocky shore: species composition and their competition for space

The exposed calcareous rocky area of the Abu Qir Headland,east of Alexandria,Egypt which range from coarse grains,through pebbles,cobbles,and boulders to rocky platforms,was signifi cantly colonized by sclerobionts(epibionts and endobionts).The epibiont species diversity was comparatively higher than that of endobionts.Epibiont communities included bryozoans(the anascan-grade cheilostome Bifl ustra savartii),serpulid(Hydroides elegans,Spirobranchus cf.tetraceros,Vermiliopsis striaticeps and Protula or Apomatus)and spirorbid(Spirorbis)wormtubes,and balanoid barnacles(Amphibalanus amphitrite,Balanus trigonus,and Perforatus perforatus).The cheilostome bryozoan colonies,which developed extensive sheets,proliferated on the study rocky shore either encrusting the bioeroded basement directly,or encrusting other epilithic taxa,particularly balanoid barnacles and serpulid worms.Encrusters displayed a remarkable marginal competitive interaction(overgrowth and stand-off)for space on the study rocky shore.On the other hand,endobionts were not well represented on the studied rocky shore exposure.It was possible to identify three ichnotaxa:Gastrochaenolites,Maeandropolydora,and Finichnus.The fi ndings documented represent a signifi cant contribution to our knowledge of sclerobionts composition,sequence of their colonization and/or bioerosion,and their mutual relationships on the intertidal rocky shore of the Abu Qir Headland.