World cities and international organizations: Political global-city status of Chinese cities

In this study, the authors use a political perspective to explore the relative global status of cities in China. Two questions are addressed. Firstly, by using international organizations as the subjects and quantitative analysis of the spatial distribution of their offices, the overall position of Chinese cities in the global distribution of international organizations is estimated. The results show that 22 Chi- nese cities are involved in international political affairs. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou dominate these activities and have high po- litical global-city status. Secondly, through qualitative analysis of Guangzhou City, the authors explore how its status as a center for intemational organizations has been shaped in recent years. The locational decision-making process is analyzed and the factors are demonstrated at both national and city scales. The definition of international organizations as used in this study refers not only to those supranational bodies that have the ability to manage relations across states （such as the European Union）, but also those in- ter-governmental organizations （IGOs）, international non-governmental organizations （INGOs） and diplomatic representatives and delegations that today also manage and regulate relations between and among states.     

内蒙古航空气象预报服务业务系统

利用数值预报技术开发了包括背景资料自动采集传输、航空气象业务产品预报模块、产品后处理、产品的采集传输和内蒙古航空气象服务网站五个部分的内蒙古自治区航空气象预报服务业务系统。通过业务系统的开发达到给内蒙古气象部门内部承担航空气象服务的民航气象台提供技术指导和预报指导产品,提升为航空气象预报服务的能力和科技水平。     

Plant growth and the performance of mangrove wetland microcosms for mariculture effluent depuration

This study established wetland microcosms that were either unplanted or planted in monoculture with native mangrove species in Taiwan (Avicennia marina, Rhizophora stylosa, and Lumnitzera racemosa) for the purpose of receiving high-salinity mariculture effluents; additionally, the microcosms operated at different hydraulic retention times (HRTs). Plant growth and the performance of the microcosms with respect to pollutant removal were investigated. The results showed that seedlings of all three mangrove species survived and grew sufficiently well under continuous flooding. The presence of mangroves consistently improved SS, BOD₅, and TP removal, particularly under short HRT conditions. The mangrove microcosms removed pollutants from the mariculture effluents with efficiencies of 5.7-27.1% (SS), 4.9-36.3% (BOD₅), 18.7-29.9% (TP), 21.2-49.8% (NH₄-N), and 5.4-37.7% (NO_x-N). A. marina and L. racemosa were more tolerant of continuous flooding than R. stylosa. However, no species displayed consistently superior performance in decreasing all pollutant-related parameters investigated. For all pollutants, microcosms operating at a 2-d HRT exhibited a higher removal efficiency than those operating at a 0.5-d HRT.     

Assessing land ecological security in Shanghai (China) based on catastrophe theory

Given the important role of land ecosystem in social-economic progress at regional, national, and international scale and concurrent degradation of land ecosystems under rapid urbanization, a systematic diagnosis of land ecological security (eco-security) for sustainable development is needed. A catastrophe model for land ecological security assessment was developed in order to overcome the disadvantages in subjectivity and complexity of the currently used assessment methods. The catastrophe assessment index system was divided into hierarchical sub-systems under the pressure-state-response framework. The catastrophe model integrated multiple assessment indices of land eco-security according to the inherent contradictions and relative importance of indices without calculating weights. Specifically, membership degree of higher level index was calculated based on the membership degrees of lower level indices that were subjective to suitable model, such as cusp, fold, swallowtail and butterfly model. This model was applied to evaluate the state of land eco-security in Shanghai. Mann–Kendall’s test was utilized to characterize its temporal trend between 1999 and 2008. Significant downward trend was identified for land eco-security, in terms of pressure sub-index, state sub-index, response sub-index and synthetic index. All these implied that land ecosystem conditions were not optimistic for Shanghai and such situation should draw the attention of policy makers. The calculation procedure presented in this paper does not require a high level of technical expertise to determine the membership degree, making it simple and operational. Being applicable to similar land ecosystems, the catastrophe model is thus believed to provide an alternative approach to land eco-security assessment.     

The sources of geogenic arsenic in aquifers at Datong basin,northern China: Constraints from isotopic and geochemical data

Mineralogical, geochemical and zircon U–Pb dating studies were carried out to identify the sources of arsenic in the shallow aquifers of Datong Basin in northern China. A sediment sample from 18 m depth containing 10.3 mg/kg arsenic showed a Zircon U–Pb concordant age of 2528 ± 20 to 271 ± 4 Ma that can be divided into two groups (2528 ± 20 to 1628 ± 21 Ma and 327 ± 4 to 271 ± 4 Ma) and is comparable to that of the sedimentary rocks of Taiyuan (upper Carboniferous) and Shanxi Formation (lower Permian) outcropping to the west of Datong Basin. In contrast, a sediment sample from 22.5 m depth containing 5.7 mg/kg arsenic displayed a Zircon U–Pb concordant age ranging from 2561 ± 21 to 1824 ± 26 Ma that is comparable to that of the Hengshan Complex (Ne-Archaean Precambrian) outcropping to the east of .     

北京永定河谷中元古界雾迷山组软沉积物变形与古地震发生频率

北京地区中元古界雾迷山组是太古界至中生界中出露面积最广、沉积厚度最大的地层单元,岩性以白云岩为主,其次为硅化白云岩。雾迷山组层序稳定,形成于相对广阔、持续且稳定沉降的浅水沉积环境。在永定河流域自庄户洼村溯河而上直至珍珠湖景区,在不同层位的雾迷山组露头中集中发现了多个期次、不同规模、由古地震引发的软沉积物变形构造,包括液化变形（液化混插、底辟、液化脉及液化卷曲层理等）、挤压变形（紧密褶皱、板刺状角砾和丘—槽构造等）、拉伸变形（环状层、拉伸布丁）以及脆性变形（地裂缝、层间断层和震裂岩）。文中对这些软沉积物变形的分布和表面特征做了系统描述,对典型的液化变形、挤压变形及拉伸变形的形成机制从形态学上进行了计算机模拟。结合该区的构造背景和前人研究资料,认为该区雾迷山组沉积期古地震系沿中元古代燕辽裂陷槽轴部的断裂活动触发的;根据软沉积物变形的出现频率,对古地震发生频率（地震周期）进行了初步估算,约为3.2至2万年。     

冲绳海槽中部距今近70ka以来的孢粉记录及物源探讨

研究钻孔DGKS-9602位于冲绳海槽中部,岩芯长度为931 cm,钻孔年代覆盖了氧同位素1～4阶段,年代可追溯至距今73 ka.孢粉分析结果证明,孢粉带与氧同位素阶段有较好的对应关系,其中松属花粉与蒿属花粉比值(P/A)与海平面变化曲线相互吻合.应用非相似性类比法将钻孔孢粉样品与陆地表土孢粉样品进行欧氏距离计算,从而...     

Typhoon-induced precipitation impact on nutrient and suspended matter dynamics of a tropical estuary affected by human activities in Hainan,China

Typhoons regularly hit the coasts along the northern South China Sea during summer monsoon. However, little is known on the effects of typhoon-related heavy precipitation on estuarine dynamics and coastal ecosystems. We analyzed physico-chemical characteristics, and concentrations and composition of dissolved and suspended matter in the Wenchang/Wenjiao Estuary (WWE) on the tropical island of Hainan, China, prior to and after typhoon Kammuri in August 2008. Before the typhoon, the estuary displayed vertical and horizontal gradients. High nutrient inputs from agriculture and widespread aquaculture were to a large extent converted into biomass inside the estuarine lagoon resulting in low export of nutrients to coastal waters and a mainly autochthonous origin of total suspended matter (TSM). Heavy typhoon-associated precipitation increased river runoff, which moved the location of the estuarine salinity gradient seaward. It resulted in an export of dissolved and particulate matter to coastal waters one day after the typhoon. Dissolved nutrients increased by up to an order of magnitude and TSM increased approximately twofold compared to pre-typhoon values. Lower δ¹³C_org and δ¹⁵N and elevated C/N ratios of TSM together with lower chlorophyll a (chl a) concentrations indicated an increased contribution of terrestrial material originating from typhoon-induced soil erosion. Local uptake of excess nutrients inside the lagoon was inhibited because of reduced water transparency and the lack of phytoplankton, which had been washed out by the initial freshwater pulse. Two weeks after the typhoon, TSM concentration and composition had almost returned to pre-typhoon conditions. However, physico-chemical properties and nutrients were still different from pre-typhoon conditions indicating that the estuarine system had not fully recovered. Unusually high chl a concentrations in the coastal zone indicated a phytoplankton bloom resulting from the typhoon-induced nutrient export. The typhoon-induced flushing of the WWE resulted in hyposalinity, reduced water transparency, siltation, as well as temporary eutrophication of coastal waters. These are physiological stressors, which are known to impair the performance of adjacent seagrass meadows and coral reefs. The predicted increase in typhoon frequency and intensity will lead to a frequently recurring exposure of coastal ecosystems to these threats, particularly in the South China Sea region where aquaculture is widespread and tropical cyclone frequency is at a maximum.     

Modeling of nonlinear wave propagation over fringing reefs

The applicability of existing nonlinear (triad) spectral models for steep slopes (0.1–0.2) characteristic of reef environments was investigated, using both deterministic (phase-resolving) and stochastic (phased-averaged) formulations. Model performance was tested using laboratory observations of unidirectional wave transformation over steep and smooth bathymetry profiles. The models, developed for mild slopes, were implemented with minimal modifications (the inclusion of breaking parametrizations and linear steep-slope corrections) required by laboratory data. The deterministic model produced typically more accurate predictions than the stochastic one, but the phase averaged formulation proved fast enough to allow for an inverse modeling search for the optimal breaking parametrization. The effects of the additional assumptions of the stochastic approach resulted in a slower than observed evolution of the infragravity band. Despite the challenge posed by the fast wave evolution and energetic breaking characteristic to the steep reef slopes, both formulations performed overall well, and should be considered as good provisional candidates for use in numerical investigation of wave–current interaction processes on steep reefs.