Dauphiné twinning and texture memory in polycrystalline quartz. Part 1: Experimental deformation of novaculite

Mechanical Dauphiné twinning in quartz has been of long-standing interest, both in single crystals and polycrystalline aggregates. This study investigates texture development in fine-grained quartz rock novaculite with no initial texture using compression experiments conducted in the Paterson gas apparatus to explore the influence of stress and temperature. Texture patterns are measured with time-of-flight neutron diffraction and hard synchrotron X-rays, analyzing diffraction data with the Rietveld method. Similar texture patterns are observed as described previously but the new results establish a profound influence of temperature and document that twinning initiates at stresses less than 50 MPa. Possibilities of using Dauphiné twinning as a paleopiezometer in quartz-bearing rocks are discussed.     

The geology and geochronology of the Annandagstoppane granite,Western Dronning Maud Land,Antarctica

The Annandagstoppane Granite is exposed at three nunataks in Western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. It comprises medium- to coarse-grained granite crosscut by veins of pegmatite and graphic granite and has many S-type characteristics such as containing normative corundum greater than 1.1%, molecular Al₂O₃/(CaO+K₂O+Na₂O) greater than 1.1 and very little zircon. Hydrothermal alteration in the Granite is variably developed and has affected only certain minerals in any phase. R-Sr and Pb whole rock and mineral isotopic data suggest: 1) that Sr isotopes within it were nearly homogenized on a whole rock scale about 2823 Ma ago by this hydrothermal alteration; 2) that the Pb isotopic system was also disturbed at that time, and 3) that the Granite may have been was emplaced sometime during the interval 3115 Ma to 2945 Ma ago. The Granite was probably intruded by the Annandagstoppane Gabbro about 1200 Ma ago, resetting the Rb-Sr system in biotite. The Annandagstoppane Granite may form part of a basement complex to the Proterozoic sedimentary, volcanic and mafic igneous rocks exposed to the east in the Ahlmannryggen and the Borgmassivet. Its chemical composition and geologic history appears to be unique in Antarctica and in the Kaapvaal Craton of Southern Africa, consistent with the possibility that the Annandagstoppane Granite is part of a crustal fragment that joined Antarctica relatively late in the history of that continent.     

Transformations in resource peripheries: an analysis of the Chilean experience

Building on Hayter et al.'s (2003 ) characterisation of resource peripheries in terms of four institutional dimensions, this article conceptualises four, similar 'transformations' (political, economic, socio-cultural and environmental) intended to evolve this conceptual framework. The case of Chile is analysed in order to ground the analysis, emphasising the structural aspects of its historical experience as a resource periphery. It is clear that the country's condition as a resource periphery has been central to the transformations that have taken place since the early colonial period. In order to illustrate this, the article briefly explores the links between Latin American structuralist and emerging resource periphery accounts. As such, we discuss some of the policy options that might allow the country to move beyond resource periphery status – a goal which is necessary if uneven development in Chile is to be tackled. We conclude that if even and equitable development are goals of geographical analysis then structuralist-informed political-economic work of this nature warrants renewed emphasis.     

Experimental study on reduction of U (VI) by an anaerobic bacterium, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Shewanella putrefaciens</Emphasis>: Application to sandstone-hosted interlayer oxidation-zone type uranium deposits,China

An experimental study on reduction of U (VI) by anaerobic bacteria, Shewanella putrefaciens, is first reported here in China. The experimental conditions were: 35°C and pH= 7.0-7.4, corresponding to a physicochemical environments in which the sandstone-hosted interlayer oxidation-zone type uranium deposit formed in Northwest China’s Xinjiang. Bacteria adopted in the present experiment, Shewanella putrefaciens, occur extensively in natural environment. Our study shows that nano-crystal precipitates of uraninite quickly occurred on the surface of the cells within one week. It was found that the pitchblende was characterized by a random arrangement of uraninite nanocrystals (2-4 nm) in it, significantly different from natural pitchblende in which uraninite nanocrystals are arranged in order. Finally, a possible mechanism of uranium biomineralization by microorganisms in the deposits is discussed. Our investigation may supply a technical train of thoughts for bioremediation of nuclear-contaminated water environments and for underground dissolving extraction of the sandstone-hosted uranium ores.     

Exploring the Benefits of Field Trips in a Food Geography Course

University students often cite field experiences as some of their most important and memorable. Yet research shows that field trips are on the decline in many colleges and universities; this shift may impact geography courses that are traditionally field based. Often cited is the problem of instructor time, increased enrollment, and concerns over liability. However, field experiences give students opportunities to develop competencies, forge community connections, and provide tangible experiences that encourage deep learning. This project employs survey data from a food geography course to understand how field experiences combined with classroom discussion help students internalize and reexamine course content.     

Holocene environmental changes in Mongolia: A review

Holocene environmental change in Mongolia is reconstructed on the basis of recently published paleoclimate records, including lake levels, pollen assemblages, and eolian sediment records. These data indicate that the early Holocene of Mongolia is characterized by increasing temperature and humidity. Paleosol development, high lake-stands, and a more southward distribution of forest-steppe environments suggest the early-mid Holocene was humid. The mid-Holocene however is characterized by enhanced aridity, even though the onset and termination of the dry interval differs from place to place. Finally, humidity increased again during the late Holocene, as evaporation decreased in concert with dropping temperatures in Mongolia.     

Twenty-Seven Years of Manual Fresh Snowfall Density Measurements on Whistler Mountain,British Columbia

Snow density is important information for a wide range of activities including avalanche control, marketing, building-code development, weather forecasting, and water supply forecasting. Extended recent high-quality datasets from the mountainous regions of the Pacific Northwest coastal area are rare. This paper presents a study of an unusually long and continuous (January 1990 to April 2016) manually collected dataset of fresh snowfall measurements for Whistler Mountain, British Columbia, Canada. The dataset consists of snowboard core measurements that were collected by Whistler–Blackcomb ski patrol staff twice daily for avalanche control and resort-marketing purposes. These records were collated, transcribed, quality controlled, and made computer accessible in this study. A discussion of the characteristics of the data collection site and an assessment of data reliability are presented. Two examples of the many purposes to which this high-quality dataset might be put were studied. Climatic teleconnections to winter (December–February) mean snow density were examined, which revealed a positive relationship to the quadratic form of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation pattern (i.e., PDO²). In addition, an analysis of daily snow density relationships to air mass types was performed, which suggested that higher (lower) densities are associated with maritime inflow (arctic outflow) conditions. Both of these relationships appear to be mediated by the positive correlation between snow density and air temperature.

Based on the full dataset (N?=?1275 individual snow density measurements) for all months with measured snowfall, annual snowfall season (November to May) mean snow densities ranged from 77?kg?m^?3 to 109?kg?m^?3 with an overall mean of 91?kg?m^?3, giving an overall snow-depth to water-depth ratio of 11:1.     

The Continuous Plankton Recorder survey and the North Atlantic Oscillation: Interannual- to Multidecadal-scale patterns of phytoplankton variability in the North Atlantic Ocean

At interannual to multidecadal time scales, much of the oceanographic and climatic variability in the North Atlantic Ocean can be associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). While evidence suggests that there is a relationship between the NAO and zooplankton dynamics in the North Atlantic Ocean, the phytoplankton response to NAO-induced changes in the environment is less clear. Time series of monthly mean phytoplankton colour values, as compiled by the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey, are analysed to infer relationships between the NAO and phytoplankton dynamics throughout the North Atlantic Ocean. While a few areas display highly significant (p < 0.05) trends in the CPR colour time series during the period 1948–2000, nominally significant (p < 0.20) positive trends are widespread across the basin, particularly on the continental shelves and in a transition zone stretching across the Central North Atlantic. When long-term trends are removed from both the NAO index and CPR colour time series, the correlation between them ceases to be significant. Several hypotheses are proposed to explain the observed variability in the CPR colour and its relationship with climate in the North Atlantic.     

Net deficits and the case for aquacultural geography

Summary The crisis in capture fisheries has placed an increased onus on aquaculture to supply the world fish demand. The advancing role of culture relative to capture fisheries has precipitated environmental and socio-economic transformations. Geographers have paid scant attention to these developments. This paper provides a literature review and proffers a research agenda for aquacultural geography.     

Petrology and evolution of transitional alkaline — sub alkaline lavas from Patmos,Dodecanesos, Greece: evidence for fractional crystallization,magma mixing and assimilation

Petrographic, mineral chemical and whole-rock major oxide data are presented for the lavas of the Main Volcanic Series of Patmos, Dodecanesos, Greece. These lavas were erupted about 7 m.y. ago and range in composition from ne-trachybasalts through hy-trachybasalts and trachyandesites to Q-trachytes. To some extent, the ne-trachybasalts are intermediate in composition to the alkaline lavas found on oceanic islands and the calc-alkaline lavas of destructive plate margins. Major oxide variation is largely explicable in terms of fractional crystallization involving removal of the observed phenocryst and microphenocryst phases viz. olivine, plagioclase, clinopyroxene and Ti-magnetite in the mafic lavas, plagioclase, clinopyroxene, mica and Ti-magnetite in the evolved lavas. Apatite, which occurs as an inclusion in other phenocrysts or as microphenocrysts must also have been removed. However, mass balance calculations indicate that the chemistry of the hy-trachybasalts is inconsistent with an origin via fractional crystallization alone and the complex zoning patterns and resorbtion phenomena shown by phenocrysts in these lavas show that they are hybrids formed by the mixing of 80-77% ne-trachybasalt with 20–23% trachyandesite. It is estimated that the mixing event preceded eruption by a period of 12 h-2 weeks suggesting that mixing triggered eruption. Combined fractionation and mixing cannot explain the relatively low MgO contents of the hy-trachybasalts and it is concluded that assimilation also occurred. Assimilation, and especially addition of volatiles to the magmas, may be responsible for the evolutionary trend from ne-normative to hy-normative magmas and was probably facilitated by intensified convection resulting from mixing. A model is presented whereby primitive magma undergoes fractionation in an intracrustal magma chamber to yield more evolved liquids. Influx of hot primitive magma into the base of the chamber facilitates assimilation, but eventually mixing yields the hy-trachybasalts and finally the ne-trachybasalts are erupted.