Lateral response of dams in semi-elliptical rigid canyons

An analytical closed-form solution is developed for the lateral response of earth and rockfill dams built in semi-elliptical canyons. The dam is idealized as a linearly hysteretic elastic body deforming only in shear, whereas the canyon is assumed to be rigid. The solution for the dam response is given in terms of prolate spheroidal radial and angular functions of the first kind and zero order. Results are presented for natural frequencies, modal displacement shapes, participation factors, and response to transient and steady-state harmonic base excitation for various dam length-to-height ratios. Comparisons are made of the effects of the length-to-height ratio and the canyon shape on the response of dams built in semi-elliptical and rectangular canyons. A subsequent study (Dakoulas, P. & Hsu, C.H., Response of earth dams in semi-elliptical flexible canyons to oblique SH waves, Report, Rice University, Houston, Texas, 1993) extends this model to a semi-elliptical canyon consisting of flexible elastic rock, subjected to obliquely incident harmonic SH waves.     

A new family of orthonormal wavelet bases

In this contribution we introduce the concept of multiresolution analysis (MRA) and give an explanation of the relationship between MRA and orthonormal wavelet basis. The construction of the orthonormal B-spline wavelet bases is described in detail. We extend the B-splines to `non-integral order' cases and thus obtain a new family of orthonormal wavelet bases for the space L ²(R). Some good properties of the new wavelets are demonstrated. The new wavelet family gives satisfactory performances in our research projects including seismic signal compression and gravity tide data processing. Received: 19 July 1996 / Accepted: 17 November 1997     

Spatial variation of abundant picoeukaryotes in the subtropical Kuroshio Current in winter

To understand the importance of picoeukaryotes in the biogeochemical cycle in the subtropical Kuroshio Current, a year-round survey of the hydrography and the distribution of picoeukaryotes were conducted in four oceanographic cruises from October 2012 to July 2013. In comparison with other seasons, the highest abundancy of photosynthetic picoeukaryotes, with concentrations >10⁴ cells/ml, was observed around the eastern boundary of the Kuroshio in the winter. Accordingly, the composition of picoeukaryotes in this cold season was further studied by a metabarcoding analysis of the 18S rRNA gene. The majority of picoeukaryotes comprised Alveolata, followed by Haptophyta and Stramenopiles. Their composition was diverse in the waters affected by the Kuroshio and in the offshore province. For Haptophyta, in contrast to clade A prevailing in the Kuroshio waters, clade B1, which was considered the host of uncultivated diazotrophic cyanobacterium group A (UCYN-A), appeared only in the offshore area. Similarly, in Stramenopiles, Pseudo-nitzschia spp. and MAST-1D, respectively, dominated in the Kuroshio-influenced and offshore areas. While Alveolata was the most abundant group, the distributions of all lineages were similar. The association between picoeukaryote succession and hydrographic change is yet to be fully understood. Our results will assist future studies on the community composition of picoplankton and their relationship with marine ecology in the region.     

Marine 3D seismic volumes from 2D seismic survey with large streamer feathering

Marine Geophysical Research - Strong ocean current influences a marine seismic survey and forces the streamer off-course from the survey line. The sideway drift of the streamer results in that the...     

The effect of bathymetric filtering on nearshore process model results

Nearshore wave and flow model results are shown to exhibit a strong sensitivity to the resolution of the input bathymetry. In this analysis, bathymetric resolution was varied by applying smoothing filters to high-resolution survey data to produce a number of bathymetric grid surfaces. We demonstrate that the sensitivity of model-predicted wave height and flow to variations in bathymetric resolution had different characteristics. Wave height predictions were most sensitive to resolution of cross-shore variability associated with the structure of nearshore sandbars. Flow predictions were most sensitive to the resolution of intermediate scale alongshore variability associated with the prominent sandbar rhythmicity. Flow sensitivity increased in cases where a sandbar was closer to shore and shallower. Perhaps the most surprising implication of these results is that the interpolation and smoothing of bathymetric data could be optimized differently for the wave and flow models. We show that errors between observed and modeled flow and wave heights are well predicted by comparing model simulation results using progressively filtered bathymetry to results from the highest resolution simulation. The damage done by over smoothing or inadequate sampling can therefore be estimated using model simulations. We conclude that the ability to quantify prediction errors will be useful for supporting future data assimilation efforts that require this information.     

On estimating the earthquake-induced changes in hydrogeological properties of the Choshuishi Alluvial Fan, Taiwan

The hydrological response of the Choshuishi alluvial fan to the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake shows that the earthquake did impact the aquifer. The possible earthquake-induced changes in hydrogeological properties were investigated in this study. First, contour maps of the hydrologic anomaly, seismic factors, and vertical ground-surface displacement were compared qualitatively. Bulls eye patterns were found on the contour maps of hydraulic conductivity, coseismic groundwater-level change and vertical ground-surface displacement but did not occur with other seismic factors. The more permeable zones of the aquifer were found to coincide with the locations of greater vertical ground-surface displacement and coseismic groundwater-level change in the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake. This indicates that the change of the hydrogeologic properties of Choshuishi alluvial fan due to the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake may have mainly occurred in the highly permeable zones. Fractal, cross semivariogram and cross correlogram analyses were performed to quantitatively measure the persistency, variability and similarity, respectively, of spatial hydrologic response, seismic factors and hydraulic conductivity. The groundwater-level change, earthquake intensity, and vertical ground-surface displacement were found to show antipersistent tendencies while other factors showed the opposite. Higher correlations were found between hydraulic conductivity and groundwater-level change in aquifers 2–1 and 2–2, and between hydraulic conductivity and vertical ground-surface displacement in aquifer 3. Changes in porosities and hydraulic conductivity were evaluated in the main aquifers of the Choshuishi alluvial fan based on the data of hydrologic anomaly and the vertical ground-surface displacement. While both approaches show that the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake has impacted the Choshuishi alluvial fan by reducing its porosity and hydraulic conductivity, these changes were not significant relative to natural variation in hydraulic conductivity.This revised version was published in May 2005 with correction to the rubric.     

Prediction of hydraulically transmissive fractures using geological and geophysical attributes: a case history from the mid Jhuoshuei River basin, Taiwan

The feasibility of using geological and geophysical well-log and borehole-televiewer data for the identification of hydraulically transmissive fractures is evaluated. Twenty-nine boreholes were drilled to a depth of 100?m in the middle-stream basin of Jhuoshuei River, Taiwan. Four criteria that assist in indicating the potential presence of permeable zones are proposed, including: lower gamma-ray response compared with the average response, divergence of the short normal-resistivity log relative to that of the long one, longer sonic travel time, and the appearance of discernible openings detected with the televiewer. With these, the transmissivities at the predetermined depths were estimated and verified by an in-situ hydraulic test. The statistical results indicate that, particularly in the mountainous area where a complex folded structure with a succession of synclines and anticlines is shown, the interpretation of lithologic conditions is not necessary to identify the presence of a relatively higher-permeability zone. Comparatively, the estimates of porosity and fracture aperture are the necessary premises to the prediction of hydraulically transmissive fractures. A joint consideration of all four criteria is found, allowing a less biased evaluation of the fracture transmissivity.