Cambrian explosion: Birth of tree of animals

Excluding the sponges the Kingdom Animalia is usually divided into three subkingdoms: Diploblasta, Protostomia and Deuterostomia. The Cambrian Explosion consists of three major episodes, two of which were in the early Early Cambrian (one represented by the small skeletal fossils “SSFs” at the base of the Cambrian and the other represented by the succeeding Chengjiang faunas “CFs”), and the other episode as their prelude took place in the “Eocambrian” (i.e. the latest Precambrian), represented by the Ediacaran faunas. This unique Big Bang of life has been recognized as giving birth to the entire morphological Tree Of Animals (or metazoans), in short the TOA. Its “seed” in the deep Precambrian, represented by some sort of protist from which the complete TOA must have grown, remains unknown paleontologically. However, the fossil evidence suggests that the three major episodes of the Cambrian Explosion are responsible for the earliest radiations of the three subkingdoms of animals respectively. While the observed Ediacaran fauna might constitute only a small part of the whole Ediacaran biota, our evidence supports that it was dominated by diploblasts (the “trunk” of the TOA) with only a few possible stem-group triploblasts. The Early Cambrian in turn in two phases explosively yielded almost all the major triploblastic crown-branches (Bilateria: the huge “crown” of the TOA), which include the other two subkingdoms: first the extremely diverse protostomes in the Meishucunian Age and then followed by a nearly entire lineage of early deuterostomes from the Chengjiang, including even its most derived member – the earliest true vertebrates. Among the four most significant milestones of morphological origins and radiations in animal history, the first one (i.e. appearance of metazoans) took place in the Ediacaran Period or earlier times, and the other three can be seen in the windows available from the Chengjiang and the Meishucunian fossil assemblages. The newly discovered extinct Phylum Vetulicolia, which has primitively segmented body with simple gill slits in its anterior division, most probably represents one of the roots of the deuterostome subkingdom. Showing a mosaic of basic features possessed in both the bilateral vetulicolians and some primitive echinoderms, the soft-bodied vetulocystids are best regarded as one of the roots of the extant pentamerous echinoderms. Standing on the “top” of the deuterostome super-branch in the early Cambrian TOA are the “the first fish” Myllokunmingia and Haikouichthys, which bear paired eyes and salient proto-vertebrae. These animals represent the real root of the remainder of the vertebrates or craniates. On the contrary, yunnanozoans, including Yunnanozoon and Haikouella, possess neither eyes nor unequivocal vertebrae, and may have nothing to do with the craniates, let alone the vertebrates. Those enigmatic creatures share a similar body-plan with vetulicolians and should be treated as a side-branch within the lower deuterostomes.     

河流附近非水平初始面潜水渗流分析

考虑初始面非水平条件,建立河流边界控制下的半无限含水层渗流模型,提出非水平初始面及其相关参数（a、t_N）的简易计算方法,并探讨模型的适用条件。分析表明,该法适用于观测数据较少、地下水水位变幅相对于潜水含水层厚度较小、且观测孔距河岸较近条件下河流附近潜水含水层渗流计算。结合实例,采用查表法和配线法求解模型。计算结果表明:参数a和t_N的计算值不同,水位计算误差在0.02 m以内,较原公式精度有明显提高。新模型为初始面非水平条件下的潜水渗流计算提供一种简易方法。     

Tectonics of the Dabieshan (eastern China) and possible exhumation mechanism of ultra high-pressure rocks

The Dabieshan is divided into three tectonic domains. The Southern Dabieshan is a stack of allochtons, from top to bottom: (i) unmetamorphosed Cambrian–Early Triassic series unconformably covered by Jurassic sandstone; (ii) weakly metamorphosed Proterozoic slate; (iii) HP rocks mostly retrogressed into greenschist facies; (iv) UHP allochton; (v) UHP-free gneisses. These units exhibit a NW–SE lineation and top-to-the-NW shearing reworked by S-verging folds. The Central Dabieshan is a migmatitic dome superimposed on UHP metamorphism and bounded by a detachement fault responsible for the exhumation of the UHP unit during its retrogression into amphibolite facies. In the Northern Dabieshan, early foliation and N–S trending compressional lineation are deformed by N-verging folds coeval to the syn-exhumation ductile structures of the Central Dabieshan. A geodynamic model involving coeval thrusting and normal faulting is discussed.     

Effects of low- to high-angle normal faults on sedimentary architectures in the Eocene Wenchang Formation,Enping Sag,Pearl River Mouth Basin,South China Sea

The effects of low- to high-angle (>30°) normal faults on sedimentary architectural units in the Eocene Wenchang Formation, Enping Sag, Pearl River Mouth Basin (PRMB), South China Sea were investigated utilising a high-quality 3D seismic data set and restored paleogeomorphology. It has been shown that sequence stratigraphic units and sedimentary architecture are significantly controlled by the low- to high-angle normal faults. The Wenchang Formation, a second-order sequence, can be subdivided into two para-second-sequences (the Lower and Upper Wenchang sequences, E₂W^L and E₂W^U) and seven third-order sequences (from base to top: SQ1～SQ7). The low-angle fault confined sequence architecture of the Wenchang Formation is mainly characterised by lateral stacking with the ratio of the vertical subsidence (V) to horizontal slip (H) being reduced from 1/2 for E₂W^L to 1/6 for E₂W^U. In contrast, the high-angle fault confined sequence is characterised by vertical stacking with the ratio of V/H close to 1 for sequences SQ1 to SQ7. In the 3D seismic area, the features of sediment-dispersal pattern were interpreted based on an integrated analysis of paleogeomorphology, seismic reflection characteristics, stratal thickness distribution and multiple attribute clustering. The results show that the large-scale fan delta, belt-shape lacustrine deposit and bird-foot braided delta systems mainly developed in the low-angle fault confined sequences, whereas small-scale fan delta, rhombus-shaped lacustrine deposit and lobe-shaped braided delta systems inherited tectono-sedimentary architectures in the high-angle fault confined sequences.     

Environmental impact assessment of risk associated with groundwater overdraft remediation in cone of depression,Jining, China

In this paper, a simple scenario and probabilistic approach is used to assess the potential groundwater risk due to proposed overdraft remedial actions in cone of depression, Jining City, China. Focusing on the concentrations of Chloride ions (Cl⁻) and total hardness (TH), the impact of artificial recharge and reduced pumping on groundwater quality and quantity is analysed by using the three-dimensional finite difference groundwater flow and transport model, Visual MODFLOW, to simulate groundwater flow and transport within the study area based on scenarios, and utilizes SURFER software to map risk levels. Although 5, 10 or 15% reduced pumping with artificial recharge leads to more decrease in Cl⁻ and TH concentrations than the 25%, less volume increase is achieved for the remediation of land subsidence and other environmental problems in the cone of depression. The Cl⁻ concentrations in recovered groundwater are within the desired concentration of 200 mg/l; however, TH in some cases are above the maximum permissible limit of 500 mg/l, with an exceedence probability of about 0.67 for recharge and recharge with reduced pumping at 25%. The presence of fractures and hydrogeological complexity greatly determines impacts of remediation, and the 22% reduced pumping with artificial recharge offers an optimum strategy for overdraft remediation in the Jining cone of depression.     

地下水化学组成的时空聚类分析与多级嵌套水流系统识别

水文地球化学是识别地下水流系统的重要方法,然而区域尺度上多级嵌套地下水流系统的复杂性使地下水化学组成的分析和解释难度增加.以鄂尔多斯北部盆地湖泊集中区典型的胡同察汗淖地下水流系统为例,基于丰水期和枯水期3个期次不同深度地下水样品的物理化学数据,应用时空聚类与主成分分析方法,揭示地下水化学组成的空间分布特征、变化规律及其...     

Single-crystal x-ray diffraction of brucite to 14 GPa

Single-crystal brucite, Mg(OH)₂, was studied to 14 GPa in a quasi-hydrostatic pressure medium using a diamond anvil cell and energy-dispersive synchrotron x-ray diffraction. The parameters of a third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state fit to the data are: K _OT=42(2) GPa, and (?K _OT/?P)_T= 5.7(5). The bulk modulus is significantly lower than that obtained in recent shock compression and powder x-ray diffraction experiments under non-hydrostatic conditions. No evidence was found for a transition involving the Mg -O sub-structure over the pressure range of these experiments. This implies that the structural change previously identified at high pressure by Raman spectroscopy probably involves rearrangement of hydrogen atoms, leaving the Mg — O substructure largely unaffected.     

Geochemical Features and Tectonic Settings of Upper Ordovician Marine Volcanic Rocks on North Margin of Qaidam

ＩＮＴＲＯＤＵＣＴＩＯＮＡＮＤＢＲＩＥＦＧＥＯＬＯＧＩＣＡＬＤＥＳＣＲＩＰ┐ＴＩＯＮＳＴｈｅＵｐｐｅｒＯｒｄｏｖｉｃｉａｎｍａｒｉｎｅｖｏｌｃａｎｉｃｒｏｃｋｓｏｎｔｈｅｎｏｒｔｈｍａｒｇｉｎｏｆＱａｉｄａｍｈａｖｅｂｅｅｎｒｅｐｅａｔｅｄｌｙｄｉｓ...     

南沙北部伸展构造的基本特征及其动力学意义

南沙地块辫啊以中南－美洲断裂为分界,其东、西两侧伸展构造的几何学与运动学表明,晚白垩世至早渐新世,其伸展作用以纯剪切为主;中渐新世至早中新世,伸展带东段转换为简单剪切,西段剪切渐停。伸展作用的主要动力来源于陆缘俯冲板片的拆沉、软流圈地幔热物质乘隙上拱和部分熔融作用及周边板块的相互作用。