Analysis of the 2003 Varunawat Landslide,Uttarkashi, India using Earth Observation data

Mass movements such as landslides in mountainous terrains are natural degradation processes and one of the most important landscape-building factors. Varunawat Parbat overlooking Uttarkashi town witnessed a series of landslides on 23 September 2003 and the debris slides and rock falls continued for 2 weeks. This landslide complex was triggered due to the incessant rainfall prior to the event, and its occurrence led to the blockage of the pilgrim route to Gangotri (source of the Ganges river) and evacuation of thousands of people to safer places. Though there was no loss of lives due to timely evacuation, heavy losses to the property were reported. High-resolution stereoscopic earth observation data were acquired after the incidence to study the landslide in detail with emphasis on the cause of the landslide and mode of failure. Areas along the road and below the Varunawat foothill region are mapped for landslide risk. It was found that the foothill region of the Varunawat Parbat was highly disturbed by man-made activities and houses are dangerously located below steep slopes. The potential zones for landslides along with the existing active and old landslides are mapped. These areas are critical and their treatment with priority is required in order to minimise further landslide occurrences.     

Finite Element Modeling of Swelling Soil Pressures Using Joint/Interface Elements

There could be some discontinuities in a soil media such as layers, earth structures, cracks, and fissures so that estimation of stresses and deformations in these types of soil masses are somewhat different from continuous masses. The discontinuities in a soil mass could be considered as a special link between two blocks. Transmitted swelling pressures affected by the soil properties of the backfill especially at the interface between the backfill and retaining wall. In order to estimate the transmitted swelling pressure distribution behind a retaining wall, using with interface element, a new finite element model and a code (SWELPRES) have been developed. To evaluate the effect of backfill characteristics and interface element from the transmitted lateral swelling pressures, four cases of thickness of backfills with or without interface elements are investigated.     

Monitoring Large-Scale Tests for Nuclear Waste Disposal

Two large-scale “in situ” demonstration experiments and their instrumentation are described. The first test (FEBEX Experiment) involves the hydration of a compacted bentonite barrier under the combined effect of an inner source of heat and an outer water flow from the confining saturated granite rock. In the second case, the progressive de-saturation of Opalinus clay induced by maintained ventilation of an unlined tunnel is analyzed. The paper shows the performance of different sensors (capacitive cells, psychrometers, TDR’s) and a comparison of fill behaviour with modelling results. The long term performance of some instruments could also be evaluated specially in the case of FEBEX test. Capacitive sensors provide relative humidity data during long transient periods characterised by very large variations of suction within the bentonite.     

中国对虾(Penaeus chinensis)四倍体诱导研究

利用光控和行为学原理,控制中国对虾在适当时候产卵,在一定的时刻以温度休克和细胞松弛素的方法诱导受精卵发育成为四倍体。作者发展了对虾染色体制备技术,以中肠和触角腺、精巢为材料,从后期幼体直到8～9cm左右次成虾均获得较好的分裂中相。染色体倍性检测结果表明,最好的四倍体诱导成功率达66.7％。共获得10cm左右的实验对虾几千尾。初步观察表明,四倍体中国对虾具有一定的生长优势。     

Studies on the distribution and antibacterial properties of Streptomyces in the intertidal zone of Southern Fujian

The oceans have rich resources of microbes. In recent years, searching for antibiotic of new structure and special biological activity from marine microbes has received great attention. This paper reports the results of the studies on the distribution and the antibacterial properties of Streptomyces in the intertidal zone of Southern Fujian. These studies have important significance to further investigate     

刀额新对虾幼体的培育及特点

在水温26～28℃,pH8.1～8.3,海水盐度27.6～29.7的条件下,刀额新对虾幼体从无节幼体第一期(N_1)培育至仔虾幼体第一期(P_1),历时10d,成活率81.9%;至仔虾幼体第8～10天(P_(8～10)),成活率为80%。刀额新对虾幼体发育具有许多不同于其他对虾类幼体的发育特点,其糠虾期身体仅稍倾斜而不呈倒悬状态,极少摄食丰年虫无节幼体,直至P_(3～4)摄食丰年虫幼体现象才较多见。     

Application of Monte-Carlo statistical experiments in design of ocean engineering——Estimating the parameters, models and probabilities

Recently, some results have been acquired with the Monte- Carlo statistical experiments in the design of ocean en gineering. The results show that Monte-Carlo statistical experiments can be widely used in estimating the parameters of wave statistical distributions, checking the probability model of the long- term wave extreme value distribution under a typhoon condition and calculating the failure probability of the ocean platforms.     

Competition within the marine microalgae over the polar dark period in the Greenland Sea of high Arctic

Abstract-With the onset of winter, polar marine microalgae would have faced total darkness for aperiod of up to 6 months. A natural autumn community of Arctic sea ice microalgae was collected fordark survival experiments from the Greenland Sea during the ARKTIS-XI/2 Expedition of RV Po-larstern in October 1995. After a dark period of 161 days, species dominance in the algal assemblagehave changed from initially pennate diatoms to small phytoflagellates (<20μm). Over the entire darkperiod, the mean algal growth rate was-0.01 d~(-1). Nearly all diatom species had negative growthrates, while phytoflagellate abundance increased. Resting spore formation during the dark period was ob-served in less than 4.5% of all cells and only for dinoflagellates and the diatom Chaetoceros spp. We as-sume that facultative heterotrophy and energy storage are the main processes enabling survival during thedark Arctic winter. After an increase in light intensity, microalgal cells reacted with fast growth withindays. Phytoffa     

Constraining the origin and evolution of confined turbidite systems: southern Cretan margin,Eastern Mediterranean Sea (34°30–36°N)

Bathymetric, 9.5-kHz long-range sidescan sonar (OKEAN), seismic reflection and sediment-core data are used in the analysis of two tectonic troughs south of Crete, Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Here, up to 1.2 s two-way travel time (TWTT) of strata have accumulated since the Middle Miocene in association with extension in the South Aegean region. The study area comprises >100-km- long by >25-km-wide basins filled by sediments subdivided into two seismic units: (1) an upper Unit 1 deposited in sub-basins which follow the present-day configuration of the southern Cretan margin; (2) a basal Unit 2, more than 500 ms (TWTT) thick, accumulated in deeper half-graben/grabens distinct from the present-day depocentres. Both units overlap a locally stratified Unit 3 comprising the pre-Neogene core complex of Crete and Gavdos. In this work, the interpreted seismic units are correlated with the onshore stratigraphy, demonstrating that denudation processes occurring on Crete and Gavdos in response to major tectonic events have been responsible for high sedimentation rates along the proximal southern Cretan margin. Consequently, topographically confined sedimentary units have been deposited south of Crete in the last 12 Ma, including turbidites and other mass-flow deposits fed by evolving transverse and axial channel systems. Surface processes controlling facies distribution include the direct inflow of sediment from alluvial-fan systems and incising mountain rivers onto the Cretan slope, where significant sediment instability processes occur at present. In this setting, seismic profiles reveal eight different types of stratigraphic contacts on basin-margin highs, and basinal areas show evidence of halokinesis and/or fluid escape. The acquired data also show that significant changes to the margin’s configuration occurred in association with the post-Alpine tectonic and eustatic episodes affecting the Eastern Mediterranean.     

真鲷的营养需要及配合饲料的研究初报

本文综述了真鲷的营养需要，研究了不同植物蛋白源对真鲷生长的影响，并在此基础上设计了三种饲料配方，试验结果表明Ｉ号饲料配方的增长率最高。