Low temperature (LT) combustion of sediments does not necessarily provide accurate radiocarbon ages for site chronology

Radiocarbon dating of soils and sediments is notoriously problematic for the purposes of dating a specific event due to their heterogeneous mix of multiple organic fractions, each of which may have a different radiocarbon age. Numerous studies have failed to agree on which sedimentary fraction or radiocarbon pre-treatment method, if any, provides the closest agreement between the age of a sedimentary fraction and that of associated plant macrofossils or charcoal. We tested the stepped-combustion method of McGeehin et al. (2001), as well as standard radiocarbon humin and humic extraction techniques, using samples from a chronologically well-constrained perennially-frozen site at Quartz Creek, Yukon Territory, Canada. The ages in closest agreement with associated radiocarbon-dated plant macrofossils and with the overlying Dawson tephra were given by the humic and humin fractions, but even these were still older than the macrofossil ages by up to 4195 ± 260 radiocarbon years. The low temperature (LT) humin method recommended by McGeehin et al. (2001) yielded ages older than the macrofossils by up to nearly 4425 ± 240 radiocarbon years. These fractions, while still providing information on the mobility and potential residence times of carbon in soils and sediments, should not be relied upon to provide consistently accurate site chronologies.     

Fisheries mismanagement

We analysed the extent to which European politicians have adhered to scientific recommendations on annual total allowable catches (TACs) from 1987 to 2011, covering most of the period of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). For the 11 stocks examined, TACs were set higher than scientific recommendations in 68% of decisions. Politically-adjusted TACs averaged 33% above scientifically recommended levels. There was no evidence that the 2002 reform of the CFP improved decision-making, as was claimed at the time. We modelled the effects of such politically-driven decision-making on stock sustainability. Our results suggest that political adjustment of scientific recommendations dramatically increases the probability of a stock collapsing within 40 years.In 2012 European fisheries policy will undergo a once-a-decade reform. Ten years ago radical reforms were promised but the changes failed to improve sustainability. It is likely that the 2012 reform will be similarly ineffective unless decision-making is changed so that catch allocations are based on science rather than politics.     

Comparison of nitrate attenuation characterization methods at the Uranium mill tailing site in Monument Valley, Arizona

Several methods for characterizing the occurrence and rate of nitrate attenuation were tested at a field site near Monument Valley, Arizona. Spatial and temporal nitrate concentration data collected from a transect of monitoring wells located along the plume centerline were analyzed to evaluate the overall rates of natural attenuation. The occurrence and rate of denitrification was evaluated through microcosm experiments, nitrogen isotopic fractionation analysis, and solute-transport modeling. First-order denitrification-rate coefficients calculated with each method were comparable. In addition, the composite natural attenuation rate coefficient was similar to the denitrification-rate coefficients, which suggests that microbially induced decay primarily controls nitrate attenuation at the site. This research highlights the benefits associated with a multiple-method approach for the characterization of natural attenuation.     

Galaxy groups at 0.3 ≤z≤ 0.55 – II. Evolution to z∼ 0

We compare deep Magellan spectroscopy of 26 groups at  0.3 ≤ z ≤ 0.55  , selected from the Canadian Network for Observational Cosmology 2 field survey, with a large sample of nearby groups from the 2PIGG catalogue. We find that the fraction of group galaxies with significant [O  ii ]λ3727 emission (≥5 Å) increases strongly with redshift, from ∼29 per cent in 2dFGRS to ∼58 per cent in CNOC2, for all galaxies brighter than  ∼ M _*+ 1.75  . This trend is parallel to the evolution of field galaxies, where the equivalent fraction of emission-line galaxies increases from ∼53 to ∼75 per cent. The fraction of emission-line galaxies in groups is lower than in the field, across the full redshift range, indicating that the history of star formation in groups is influenced by their environment. We show that the evolution required to explain the data is inconsistent with a quiescent model of galaxy evolution; instead, discrete events in which galaxies cease forming stars (truncation events) are required. We constrain the probability of truncation ( P _trunc) and find that a high value is required in a simple evolutionary scenario neglecting galaxy mergers  ( P _trunc≳ 0.3 Gyr⁻¹)  . However, without assuming significant density evolution, P _trunc is not required to be larger in groups than in the field, suggesting that the environmental dependence of star formation was embedded at redshifts   z ≳ 0.45  .     

Collating Historic Weather Observations for the East Asian Region:Challenges,Solutions,and Reanalyses

正1.Introduction Historic instrumental weather observations,made on land or at sea from as early as the 17th century(e.g.,Camuffo et al.,2010),are integral to extending our understanding of the decadal and centennial variations of Earth’s climate and for comparison with paleo-proxy data.The potential of such data is shown to best effect when used in dynamical 4D global     

Contested geographical imaginings of reunification: A case study of urban change in Leipzig

Geopolitics and city restructuring are typically regarded as separate scales and processes: the international and national versus the local. The local politics of urban change in an east German city in the period after reunification question this divide. The ‘pathways’ approach to post-socialist transitions is utilized to illustrate how reunification is contested as much in neighbourhood restructuring and actions in response to incoming capital and the dominance of western legalpolitical norms as it is in national or international discourses and practices. Assumed divisions between East and West, professional and lay, and local and national are questioned.