Merging science into community adaptation planning processes: a cross-site comparison of four distinct areas of the Lower Mekong Basin

Climate change is increasingly affecting rural areas worldwide. The Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) is at particular risk due to heat stress, changing rainfall patterns, rising sea levels, and more frequent and extreme climatic events. It is imperative that local-level adaptation plans are developed in a manner that builds resilience to these growing threats. Strategies for developing adaptation plans tend to comprise predominantly science-led or predominantly community-led processes. This study examines an approach that balances inputs from both processes in characterizing community vulnerability as a component of the adaptation planning workflow. Evaluation sites are located within four distinct sub-regions of the LMB: the Vietnam Mekong Delta, the Annamite Mountains of Lao PDR, the Cambodia central lowlands, and the mid-elevation forests of northern Thailand. Our results indicate that by merging science-based data with community-level perspective, knowledge gaps from both sides are filled and a more comprehensive understanding of vulnerability is factored into adaptation planning.     

The use of carbon and sulfur isotopes as correlation parameters for the source identification of beach tar in the southern California borderland

Carbon and sulfur isotope ratios and total sulfur content are used to correlate beach tars depositing near Los Angeles with their probable sources. Analysis is confined strictly to the asphaltene fraction of petroleum owing to the insensitivity of this fraction to weathering processes.The δ¹³C, δ³⁴S and % S of the asphaltene fraction of natural offshore seep oils range from ?22.51 to ?23.20%., +7.75 to + 15.01%. and 4.45 to 8.27%, respectively. Values for local offshore production wells overlapped those for the natural seepage, ranging from ?22.10 to ?22.85%., ?2.96 to 13.90%., and 0.81 to 8.00%. Analytical values for these parameters show that tanker crudes imported into the area are not similar to the California oils. Analysis of the same parameters in beach tars collected during 1976–1977 indicates a close match with the potential source oils, thus it is concluded that these parameters are useful for identifying petroleum sources, even after 2–4 weeks of weathering. Results indicate that 55% of the tars in Santa Monica Bay are derived from natural oil seepage 150km to the northwest at Coal Oil Point, 26% are derived from natural oil seepage in Santa Monica Bay, and 19% are derived from unknown sources.Models of tar transport are inferred which are consistent with the seasonal deposition pattern. Tar from Coal Oil Point natural oil seeps is transported southward in the southern California gyre during the spring, summer and fall seasons, but probably undergoes northward transport during the winter season due to the surfacing of the Davidson Current. Tar from the Santa Monica Bay natural oil seeps moves onshore, but deposition rate seems to depend on seepage flow rate.     

Aeolian sediment transport on a human‐altered foredune

Changes in wind speed and sediment transport are evaluated at a gap and adjacent crest of a 2 to 3 m high, 40 m wide foredune built by sand fences and vegetation plantings on a wide, nourished fine sand beach at Ocean City, New Jersey. Anemometer masts, cylindrical sand traps and erosion pins were placed on the beach and dune during two obliquely onshore wind events in February and March 2003. Results reveal that: (1) changes in the alongshore continuity of the beach and dune system can act as boundaries to aeolian transport when winds blow at an angle to the shoreline; (2) oblique winds blowing across poorly vegetated patches in the dune increase the potential for creating an irregular crest elevation; (3) transport rates and deflation rates can be greater within the foredune than on the beach, if the dune surface is poorly vegetated and the beach has not had time to dry following tidal inundation; (4) frozen ground does not prevent surface deflation; and (5) remnant sand fences and fresh storm wrack have great local but temporary effect on transport rates. Temporal and spatial differences due to sand fences and wrack, changes in sediment availability due to time‐dependent differences in surface moisture and frozen ground, combined with complex topography and patchy vegetation make it difficult to specify cause–effect relationships. Effects of individual roughness elements on the beach and dune on wind flow and sediment transport can be quantified at specific locations at the event scale, but extrapolation of each event to longer temporal and spatial scales remains qualitative. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adsorption of oxyanions by spent western oil shale: II. selenite

The adsorption and desorption behavior of selenite by processed Green River Formation oil shales were examined. The selenite adsorption data could be quantitatively described by both the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. However, greaterR ² values were obtained for the Freundlich isotherms. Furthermore, selenite adsorption was not a function of the extraction process. The adsorption of selenite by the processed oil shales was irreversible. Upon dilution of the equilibrium systems, additional selenite removal from solution occurred. A thermochemical analysis of the adsorption and desorption equilibrium solutions indicated that the solutions were undersaturated with respect to a number of metal selenite solids. This indicates that precipitation processes are not influencing selenite behavior. However, not all selenite minerals were examined in the evaluation because of the lack of thermochemical data. An insufficient equilibration period for the adsorption study or the alteration of processed oil shale solids as a result of hydration reactions may also have hastened the additional removal of selenite during the desorption studies.     

A Late Cretaceous theropod caudal vertebra from the Sultanate of Oman

A caudal vertebra collected from conglomerates of the Al-Khod Formation (Late Cretaceous) in the Al-Khod area, Sultanate of Oman, is assigned to a medium-sized theropod dinosaur. The Al-Khod discovery represents one of the very few dinosaur records from the Middle East.     

Measurement of dissolved oxygen using optodes in a FerryBox system

Optode sensors can provide detailed information on concentrations of dissolved oxygen, which in turn may be used to quantify variations in net primary productivity. Throughout 2005 and 2006 the performance of commercially available oxygen optodes was examined, one in each year. The optode was part of an autonomous measurement system (FerryBox) on a ferry operating between Portsmouth (UK) and Bilbao (Spain). On crossings during which water samples were collected manually, the optode outputs were compared to measurements of dissolved oxygen made by Winkler titrations. The optodes maintained good stability with no evidence of instrumental drift during the course of a year. Over the observed concentration range (230–330 mM m⁻³) the optode data were approximately 2% low in both years. By fitting the optode data to the Winkler data the median difference between the optode and Winkler measurements is reduced to less than 1 mM m⁻³ (0.3%) in both years. The most appropriate calibration factor for 2005 was corrected O₂ = Optode O₂ × 1.018 and for 2006 the corresponding equation is corrected O₂ = Optode O₂ × 0.884 + 36.8. The standard deviation (95%) of the difference between the individual Winkler measurements was 5 mM m⁻³ and 3 mM m⁻³ in 2005 and 2006 respectively.Calculation of the oxygen saturation anomaly is required for calculation of the air sea exchange of oxygen and net biological production. This calculation requires the use of both salinity and temperature data. Salinity is measured to better than 0.1 so the corresponding error in anomaly is less than 0.2 mM m⁻³. Distortion of the temperature data is present due to warming of the water pumped to the optode. In winter this warming at the optode may be as great as 0.4 °C. The difference in the pumped water temperature can be corrected for by reference to other measurements of sea surface temperature reducing the error to less than 1 mM m⁻³.     

Religious Diversity and Religious Participation in U.S. Jewish Communities

This article examines variations in Jewish denominational identification (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Just Jewish) among fifty-five U.S. Jewish communities completing local Jewish community studies from 1993 through 2011. We relate these variations to levels of religious and ethnic participation, contributing to the literature on how and whether religious pluralism relates to religious and ethnic participation. First, five denominational clusters are created via k-means cluster analysis (high Orthodox; equal, except Orthodox; high Reform; high Reform/low Just Jewish; and high Just Jewish). We then examine differences in geographic and demographic factors and in levels of religious participation among these denominational clusters. Second, various indexes of Jewish denominational diversity (index of dissimilarity, Shannon Index, Simpson Index, and largest group) are developed. The relationship of the level of Jewish denominational diversity to religious and ethnic participation is explored. The basic finding is that more Jewish denominational diversity does result in higher levels of religious participation but not ethnic participation.     

Spatial and temporal variability in nutrient concentrations in Liverpool Bay,a temperate latitude region of freshwater influence

This paper presents data for the temporal and spatial distribution of nutrients in Liverpool Bay between 2003 and 2009 and an analysis of inputs of nutrients from the major rivers. The spatial distribution of winter nutrient concentrations are controlled by the region of freshwater influence (ROFI) in Liverpool Bay through the mixing of riverine freshwater and Irish Sea water, with strong linear relationships between nutrient concentration and salinity between December and February. The location of highest spring and summer phytoplankton biomass reflects the nutrient distributions as controlled by the ROFI. Analysis of 7 years of data showed that the seasonal cycle of winter maximum nutrient concentrations in February and drawdown in April/May is a recurrent feature of this location, with the timing of the drawdown varying by several weeks between years. A comparison of observed nutrient concentrations in Liverpool Bay with those predicted from inputs from rivers has been presented. Nutrient concentrations in the rivers flowing into Liverpool Bay were highly variable and there was reasonable agreement between predicted freshwater nutrient concentrations using data from this study and riverine nutrient concentrations weighted on the basis of river flow, although the exact nature of mixing between the rivers could not be determined. Predicted Irish Sea nutrient concentrations in the winter were lower than those reported for the input waters of the North Atlantic, supporting findings from previous work that nitrogen is lost through denitrification in the Irish Sea.