The Australia Telescope 20-GHz (AT20G) Survey: the Bright Source Sample

The Australia Telescope 20-GHz (AT20G) Survey is a blind survey of the whole southern sky at 20 GHz (with follow-up observations at 4.8 and 8.6 GHz) carried out with the Australia Telescope Compact Array from 2004 to 2007.
The Bright Source Sample (BSS) is a complete flux-limited subsample of the AT20G Survey catalogue comprising 320 extragalactic     ) radio sources south of  δ=−15°  with      Jy. Of these, 218 have near simultaneous observations at 8 and 5 GHz.
In this paper we present an analysis of radio spectral properties in total intensity and polarization, size, optical identifications and redshift distribution of the BSS sources. The analysis of the spectral behaviour shows spectral curvature in most sources with spectral steepening that increases at higher frequencies (the median spectral index α, assuming   S ∝ν^α  , decreases from  α^8.6_4.8= 0.11  between 4.8 and 8.6 GHz to  α²⁰_8.6=−0.16  between 8.6 and 20 GHz), even if the sample is dominated by flat spectra sources (85 per cent of the sample has  α²⁰_8.6 > −0.5)  . The almost simultaneous spectra in total intensity and polarization allowed us a comparison of the polarized and total intensity spectra: polarized fraction slightly increases with frequency, but the shapes of the spectra have little correlation. Optical identifications provided an estimation of redshift for 186 sources with a median value of 1.20 and 0.13, respectively, for QSO and galaxies.     

X-ray studies of flaring plasma

We present some methods of X-ray data analysis employed in our laboratory for deducing the physical parameters of flaring plasma. For example, we have used a flare well observed with Polish instrument RESIK aboard Russian CORONAS-F satellite. Based on a careful instrument calibration, the absolute fluxes in a number of individual spectral lines have been obtained. The analysis of these lines allows us to follow the evolution of important thermodynamic parameters characterizing the emitting plasma throughout this flare evolution.     

Break through the limits of vibroseis data quality

The vibroseis method has become the principal data acquisition method in land seismic exploration. It seems that this method has been extended to its limits as the search for energy resources continues. Many practical issues arising from field operations have remained theoretically unexplained, for example, variations in wavelet arrival time, inaccurate wavelet estimation and harmonics in the wavelet itself. The focus of this paper is the proposal of a new model, which is referred to as the vibrator‐coupled ground model, to simulate the filtering effects of a complex coupling system consisting of the coupling between the baseplate and the ground as well as the coupling between the captured ground mass near the vibrator baseplate and the surrounding earth. With this vibrator‐coupled ground model many of the practical issues mentioned above were reasonably addressed. Furthermore, it was demonstrated from experimental tests that both the pilot sweep and the weighted‐sum groundforce, when filtered by the vibrator‐coupled ground model, are proportional to the far‐field particle velocity whereas the unfiltered signals are not. The harmonics on the filtered weighted‐sum groundforce successfully maintain a proportional relationship with the harmonics seen in the far‐field signal.     

Geophysical benefits from an improved seismic vibrator

The seismic vibrator has become a very important source for land data acquisition and there have been dramatic improvements in recent times in the application of the vibroseis technique. These improvements have led to much increased productivity and in many cases much denser source sampling. At the same time, the vibrator itself has seen little improvement over the last couple of decades. There are needs in a few areas where an improvement in the vibrator itself can bring benefits to the quality of the seismic data acquired. This paper describes progress in four such areas, low‐frequency performance, high‐frequency performance, an improved estimate of the vibrator groundforce and source signature consistency over variable ground conditions. Each of these vibrator characteristics will be discussed in turn. Meanwhile, two field test results in which the performance of two different vibrators in these four areas are compared.     

Perspectives for implementing fisheries certification in developing countries

This paper discusses the future of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a market-based certification program, in developing countries and exposes the challenges and opportunities for fish producers. The MSC needs to attract the interest of more fishing enterprises from these regions to increase its global presence. Because most fisheries in developing countries cannot meet the MSC standards, or afford the certification process costs, it is suggested that there is a need for developing different levels within the MSC system and additional third-party assessing organizations. MSC certification may mean adoption of improvements in fisheries management and approving fishing regimes in developing countries. However, post-certification benefits may decrease as more fisheries become certified.     

From SARS to pandemic influenza: the framing of high-risk populations

Natural Hazards - The 2003 global outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was a wake-up call for health systems in Canada, with realization of occupational health risks faced by health...     

Attenuation Tomography of the Yellow Sea/Korean Peninsula from Coda-source normalized and direct Lg Amplitudes

We invert for regional attenuation of the crustal phase Lg in the Yellow Sea/Korean Peninsula (YSKP) using three different amplitude attenuation tomography methods. The first method solves for source, site, and path attenuation. The second method uses a scaling relationship to set the initial source amplitude and interpret the source term after inversion. The third method implements a coda-derived source spectral correction. By comparing methods with slightly different assumptions we are able to make a more realistic assessment of the uncertainties in the resulting attenuation maps than is obtainable through formal error analysis alone. We compare the site, source and path-terms produced by each method and comment on attenuation, which correlates well with tectonic and topographic features in the region. Source terms correlate well with each other and with magnitude. Site terms are similar except for two stations that are located in a region that has the greatest difference in path term, which demonstrates the site/path trade-off. Another region of path term difference has the fewest crossing paths, where the tomography method employing the coda-derived spectral correction may perform more accurately since it is not as susceptible to the source/path trade-off. The Bohai Bay basin, an area of extension, is a region of high attenuation, and regions of low attenuation occur along topographic highs located in the Da-xin-an-ling and Changbai Mountains and Mount Taishan.     

The job of the river

Earth scientists have traditionally conceptualized rivers and streams as geomorphic machines, whose role is to transfer sediment and to sculpt the landscape. Steady‐state relationships between sediment supply and transport capacity have traditionally been considered normative in fluvial systems. Rivers are hydrological entities, however, whose function is to redistribute excess moisture on land. The geomorphic work of the river – erosion, transport, deposition, etc. – is a byproduct of the hydrological job of the river. There is therefore no reason to expect any particular relationship between sediment supply and transport capacity to develop as a normative condition in fluvial systems. The apparent steady‐state equilibrium slope adjustments of rivers are a byproduct of four basic phenomena: (1) hydraulic selection, which favors channels and branching networks over other flux patterns; (2) water flows along the available path of least resistance; (3) energy dissipation; and (4) finite relaxation times. Recognizing converging trends of stream power or slope and sediment supply as common (but far from inevitable) side effects rather than self‐regulation has important implications for interpreting and predicting fluvial systems, and for river management and restoration. Such trends are variable, transient, contingent, and far from universal. Where they occur, they are an emergent byproduct of fundamental physical mechanisms, not a goal function or attractor state. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.