Comparative analysis of bacterial contamination in tap and groundwater: A case study on water quality of Quetta City,an arid zone in Pakistan

Water is an essential element on earth, which provides human a variety of services in domestic use, agriculture, or industries. However, some serious health risks of drinking water are associated with microbial contamination, particularly with fecal matter. Therefore, microbial quality assessment is considered to be a necessary component of water quality assessment. This study investigates microbial contamination of water distributary system around the city by comparing groundwater (GW) and tap water (TW) quality in Quetta city. 31 GW samples and 31 TW samples were collected in the study area during the months of September, October, and November. Fecal coliform test was carried out in laboratory and their average total coliform contamination was computed. Results showed that the TW sample were all contaminated by coliform except for Chiltan town, hence are not considered suitable for drinking without any treatment according to WHO drinking water quality standards. The average coliform concentrations were 12 in Quetta main city, 11.6 in Jinnah town, 5.3 in Satallite town, 10 in Shahbaz town and 5 in Brewery town (0/100 mL CFU) and the TW samples from the three towns were even more contaminated with E.coli. Whereas among the GW, average microbial concentrations were 1.8 in Quetta main city, 2 in Satallite town, 1.4 in Shahbaz town, and 0.4 in Chiltan town (0/100 mL CFU), respectively, which shows that the contamination is occurring within the water distributary pipeline system when the water flows through the pipelines. Moreover, this research will be valuable for researchers and administrative authorities to conduct elaborative studies, and develop new policies to prevent further deterioration of drinking water in the water distribution system by pathogenic microorganisms and ensure safe drinking water to the public of Quetta city.     

基于热模拟实验的富有机质泥页岩成岩作用及演化特征

富有机质泥页岩蕴含丰富的油气资源,但成岩研究基础薄弱,已成为制约页岩油气勘探开发进程的重要因素。通过开展成岩热模拟实验,结合扫描电镜观察、流体成分测试及有机酸测试等实验测试手段,全面描述实验过程中所发生的水-岩化学反应,试图揭示泥页岩成岩过程及成岩演化规律。研究结果显示,有机质热演化过程中存在一个较宽的有机酸生成窗口,对孔隙流体性质具有重要影响;长石和方解石存在接力溶蚀现象,长石溶蚀高峰过后紧接着出现方解石溶蚀高峰,但方解石溶蚀窗较窄,此后出现方解石重新沉淀结晶;黏土矿物转化及长石的溶蚀过程中会产生大量自生微晶石英,成链状或簇状胶结泥页岩骨架。泥页岩地层作为一个相对封闭体系,各类成岩作用之间相互关联,相互影响,构成错综复杂的成岩体系,进一步增加其成岩作用研究难度。     

辽东半岛复州湾剖面寒武系第二统光合作用生物膜建造的核形石

作为一种经常大于鲕粒的包覆颗粒类型,核形石以其不平滑的圈层被解释为微生物成因,区别于成因存在较大争议的鲕粒,而且常与鲕粒和其他类型的碳酸盐颗粒相互共生;作为一种在围绕着生物碎屑和非生物碎屑核心的序列式纹层化作用过程中形成的球形或假球型生物沉积构造,核形石还常常单独产出和分布,所以又被解释为微生物碳酸盐岩,或者被归为球状叠层石。在辽东半岛寒武系第二统碱厂组和馒头组之中,厘米级别大小的核形石密集发育在三级层序的顶部,成为一种时间特化的相。另外,以下重要特征将辽东半岛寒武系第二统的核形石特征化,包括:(1)与凝块和微凝块共生;(2)多为球状和椭球状;(3)由不均一的非纹层状致密泥晶和微亮晶构成;(4)核形石皮层以及核形石间凝块中发育特别的蓝细菌鞘钙化化石等。尽管穿越成岩作用过滤器去解释古代核形石复杂的形成机理存在着巨大的挑战,也尽管形成这些核形石的复杂生物膜钙化作用细节需要更加深入地研究才能得到更好地了解,但是,辽东半岛第二统碱厂组和馒头组核形石中直接的微生物化石证据,尤其是核形石内较为丰富的钙化蓝细菌鞘化石,使其成为一个了解光合作用生物膜建造核形石的典型实例。     

A geocomputational analysis of Twitter activity around different world cities

The penetration and use of social media services differs from city to city. This paper is aimed to provide a comparison of the use of Twitter between different cities of the world. We present a temporal analysis of activity on Twitter in 15 cities. Our study consists of two parts: First, we created temporal graphs of the activity in the 15 cities, through which hours of high and low activity could be identified. Second, we created heat map visualizations of the Twitter activities during the period of 19 September 2012–25 September 2013. The heat map visualizations make the periods of intense and sparse activity apparent and provide a snapshot of the activity during the whole year.     

Identification and delineation of saline soils using aerial photographs in Yamuna Alluvial plain,Haryana

Salinity is creating great problems in the Yamuna Alluvial Plain. State Government is taking steps for reclaiming these lands to increase agricultural production. Impeded drainage, excess canal irrigation, topography parent material, shallow depth and bad quality of ground water are the main factors which are responsible for the genesis of saline soils in the alluvial plains of Haryana. On the arial photographs tonal differences on account of salt concentration in the soil are clearly seen. These differences are aslo associated with physiography and soil conditions which can be easily delineated. The information thus; collected can be used for reclamation of saline soils.     

Correction to: Flood hazard assessment and mapping of River Swat using HEC-RAS 2D model and high-resolution 12-m TanDEM-X DEM (WorldDEM)

Natural Hazards - The original article was updated and corrected due to numbering errors in Figure 8’s subfigures and the placement of some of the article’s other figures. Additional...     

Precipitation variability assessment of northeast China: Songhua River basin

Variability in precipitation is critical for the management of water resources. In this study, the research entropy base concept was applied to investigate spatial and temporal variability of the precipitation during 1964–2013 in the Songhua River basin of Heilongjiang Province in China. Sample entropy was applied on precipitation data on a monthly, seasonally, annually, decade scale and the number of rainy days for each selected station. Intensity entropy and apportionment entropy were used to calculate the variability over individual year and decade, respectively. Subsequently, Spearman’s Rho and Mann–Kendall tests were applied to observe for trends in the precipitation time series. The statistics of sample disorder index showed that the precipitation during February (mean 1.09, max. 1.26 and min. 0.80), April (mean 1.12, max. 1.29 and min. 0.99) and July (mean 1.10, max. 1.20 and min. 0.98) contributed significantly higher than those of other months. Overall, the contribution of the winter season was considerably high with a standard deviation of 0.10. The precipitation variability on decade basis was observed to increase from decade 1964–1973 and 1994–2003 with a mean value of decadal apportionment disorder index 0.023 and 0.053, respectively. In addition, the Mann–Kendall test value (1.90) showed a significant positive trend only at the Shangzhi station.