The Use of Storytelling for Understanding Women's Desires to Tan: Lessons from the Field

This paper presents reflections on a research project in women's health, providing both substantive findings surrounding tanning and social status and methodological recommendations for future research. The project under review utilized a picture-elicited storytelling method to: a) understand how women link tanned, bronzed skin to health, status, and attractiveness; and b) test the effectiveness of picture-elicited storytelling as a research method. The project found that, when tanning, women use their bodies to inscribe the social norm of the bronzed aesthetic. While women indicate considerable knowledge of the health dangers of tanning, they continue to link tanned skin to beauty, status, and attractiveness. Further, the research project found that the use of picture-elicited storytelling as a method is potentially powerful but requires considerable attention to concerns of power and representation on the part of the research team.     

Geomorphic controls on the physical and hydrologic properties of soils in a valley floor

The distribution of soil hydraulic and physical properties strongly influences runoff processes in landscapes. Although much work has been done to quantify and predict the properties of hillslope soils, far less is known about the distribution of soil properties in valley floors. A technique that links the estimation and distribution of soil hydraulic properties in valleys, with easily identified geomorphic features, was developed along a 2 km length of a valley at Brooks Creek in New South Wales, Australia. Soil physical and hydraulic property data were collected across a set of floodplain and fan features within the valley and analysed statistically to determine if soil properties varied significantly between geomorphic features and stratigraphic layers. The results show that the depth‐averaged saturated hydraulic conductivity, K_s, of the soil varies significantly with landform: fan units have K_g values that are twice that of floodplains and colluvial toeslope deposits have K_s values four times higher than floodplains. Given the notorious variability of K_s values in space, the strong statistical separation of soil properties by landform, backed up by strong separation of soil particle size by landform, suggests a way forward in understanding the distribution of soil properties in valleys and their influence on catchment hydrology. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An Alternative Eddy-Viscosity Model for the Horizontally Uniform Atmospheric Boundary Layer

This paper explores the utility of specifying the eddy viscosity for the horizontally uniform boundary layer as the product of the variance of vertical velocity and an empirical time scale τ _w , as opposed to the more usual formulation where k is the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), λ _k is a length scale and α is a dimensionless coefficient. Simulations were compared with the observations on Day 33 of the Wangara experiment, and with a plausible specification of τ _w (or λ _k ) each model simulated convective boundary-layer development reasonably well, although the closure produced a more realistic width for the entrainment layer. Under the light winds of Day 33, and with the onset of evening cooling, an excessively shallow and strongly-stratified nocturnal inversion developed, and limited its own further deepening. Boundary-layer models that neglect radiative heat transport and parametrize convective transport by eddy viscosity closure are prone to this runaway (unstable) feedback when forced by a negative (i.e. downward) surface flux of sensible heat.     

An Idealized Mean Wind Profile for the Atmospheric Boundary Layer

We test a flexible, idealized mean wind profile for the loweratmosphere that can easily be matched to whatever windobservations may be available. Its intended function is to providea `best guess' wind profile from limited observations, e.g., foruse in dispersion models, and to this end, following earlierauthors, we have matched a Monin–Obukhov layer to a baroclinic Ekman layer.To demonstrate the flexibility of the two-layer wind profile, weoptimize its free parameters to provide best interpolative fits toa sample of multi-level wind profiles. These include model windprofiles extracted from the Canadian Global EnvironmentalMulti-scale weather model (GEM), as well as experimental profilesfrom the Wangara experiment, and from an over-ocean dispersionexperiment (LROD). In most cases the two-layer profile fit issatisfactory.     

The source area influencing a measurement in the Planetary Boundary Layer: The “footprint” and the “distribution of contact distance”

This paper considers the ground area which affects the properties of fluid parcels observed at a given spot in the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL). We examine two source-area functions; the footprint, giving the source area for a measurement of vertical flux: and the distribution of contact distance, the distance since a particle observed aloft last made contact with the surface. We explain why the distribution of contact distance extends vastly farther upwind than the footprint, and suggest for the extent of the footprint the inequalities: % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafeart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqaqpepeea0xe9qqVa0l% b9peea0lb9Lq-JfrVkFHe9peea0dXdarVe0Fb9pgea0xa9W8qr0-vr% 0-viWZqaceaabiGaciaacaqabeaadaqaaqaaaOabaeqabaGaamyvam% aalaaabaGaamiAaaqaaiabeo8aZnaaBaaaleaacaWGxbaabeaakiaa% cIcacaWGObGaaiykaaaacqGH8aapcaWG4bGaeyipaWJaamyvaKazaa% iadaGabaqaamaaDaaajqwaacqaaiaadIgacaGGVaGabmOEayaacaGa% aiilaiaabccacaGGVbGaaiiDaiaacIgacaGGLbGaaiOCaiaacEhaca% GGPbGaai4CaiaacwgaaeaacaWGubWaaSbaaKazcaiabaGaamitaaqa% baqcKfaGaiaacIcacaWGObGaaiykaiaabYcacaqGGaGaaeiAaiaabc% cacaGGHbGaaiOyaiaac+gacaGG2bGaaiyzaiaabccacaGGZbGaaiyD% aiaackhacaGGMbGaaiyyaiaacogacaGGLbGaeyOeI0IaaiiBaiaacg% gacaGG5bGaaiyzaiaackhaaaaajqgaacGaay5EaaaakeaaaeaacaGG% 8bGaamyEaiaacYhacqGH8aapcqaHdpWCdaWgaaWcbaGaamODaaqaba% GccaGGOaGaamiAaiaacMcadaWcaaqaaiaadIhaaeaacaWGvbaaaaaa% aa!7877!\[\begin{array}{l} U\frac{h}{{\sigma _W (h)}} < x < U\left\{ {_{h/\dot z,{\rm{ }}otherwise}^{T_L (h){\rm{, h }}above{\rm{ }}surface - layer} } \right. \\ \\ |y| < \sigma _v (h)\frac{x}{U} \\ \end{array}\] where U is the mean streamwise (x) velocity, h is the observation height, _L is the Lagrangian timescale, _v and _w are the standard deviations of the cross-stream horizontal (y) and vertical (z) velocity fluctuations, and is the Lagrangian Similarity prediction for the rate of rise of the centre of gravity of a puff released at ground.Simple analytical solutions for the contact-time and the footprint are derived, by treating the PBL as consisting of two sub-layers. The contact-time solutions agree very well with the predictions of a Lagrangian stochastic model, which we adopt in the absence of measurements as our best estimate of reality, but the footprint solution offers no improvement over the above inequality.     

Lithic types in ignimbrites as a guide to the evolution of a caldera complex, Taupo volcanic centre, New Zealand

Taupo volcanic centre is one of two active rhyolite centres in the Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ), and has been sporadically active over the past ca. 300 ka. At least four large-scale ignimbrites have erupted from the centre, including the well documented 26.5 ka Oruanui ignimbrite and 1.8 ka Taupo ignimbrite. Because stratigraphy of earlier ignimbrites and their sources are masked by later volcanism, disrupted by regional tectonics and obscured by poor exposure, indirect methods must be applied in order to determine their source regions. In this paper detailed componentry, density and petrology of lithic fragments from three ignimbrites (Rangatira Point, Oruanui, Taupo) are used to reveal aspects of the sub-Taupo caldera geology, including the evolution of the Taupo volcanic centre, to assist in ignimbrite correlation and to evaluate structures within the Taupo caldera complex. Lithic fragments identify a complex subsurface geology. The Rangatira Point ignimbrite sampled dominantly rhyolite lavas, plus a variety of welded ignimbrites, rare high-silica dacites and a single dolerite. Most lithic fragments in the Oruanui ignimbrite are andesite with minor rhyolite, welded ignimbrite, dacite and rounded greywacke, while in the Taupo ignimbrite, rhyolite is again the dominant lithic component with subordinate welded ignimbrites, andesite, and greywacke. The densities of lithic fragments indicate similar ranges of values for all lava types, and thus density is a poor indicator of lithology. Care must, therefore, be taken before interpreting subcrustal stratigraphy using density as the sole criterion. The petrography and geochemistry of lithic types are more specific, and the variation can be used to identify sources for the ignimbrites. Both pumice chemistry and rhyolite lithic fragments from the Rangatira Point ignimbrite are comparable to domes exposed at the southern end of the Western Dome Complex and, combined with limited outcrop information, suggest the most likely source for this unit is in the northern part of the Taupo caldera complex. The dominance of andesite lithic fragments in the Oruanui ignimbrite suggests a major andesite cone existed beneath the source area, and the different lithic suites between Oruanui and Taupo ignimbrites suggest these ignimbrites came, at least in part, from mutually exclusive collapse structures. We believe that the Oruanui caldera is sited principally in the northwestern part of present-day Lake Taupo and the Taupo caldera in the northeastern part. Identification of abundant ignimbrite lithics in the Taupo ignimbrite, which are considered to represent an intracaldera facies of an earlier ignimbrite, that is not exposed at the surface, suggest there was a further (pre-Oruanui) ignimbrite caldera in the Taupo ignimbrite eruptive vent region.     

International Association of Geoanalysts'Protocol for the Certification of Geological and Environmental Reference Materials

This protocol has been developed by the International Association of Geoanalysts to demonstrate procedures for the certification of geological and environmental reference materials to comply to the fullest extent possible with recommendations of the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO Guide 35). A practical approach is described on the assumption that certifications will be normally be based on collaborative analysis programmes in which participating laboratories are preselected on the basis of performance in a proficiency testing programme or on the basis of other criteria of merit.     

On the ‘Divergence Problem’ in Northern Forests: A review of the tree-ring evidence and possible causes

An anomalous reduction in forest growth indices and temperature sensitivity has been detected in tree-ring width and density records from many circumpolar northern latitude sites since around the middle 20th century. This phenomenon, also known as the “divergence problem”, is expressed as an offset between warmer instrumental temperatures and their underestimation in reconstruction models based on tree rings. The divergence problem has potentially significant implications for large-scale patterns of forest growth, the development of paleoclimatic reconstructions based on tree-ring records from northern forests, and the global carbon cycle. Herein we review the current literature published on the divergence problem to date, and assess its possible causes and implications. The causes, however, are not well understood and are difficult to test due to the existence of a number of covarying environmental factors that may potentially impact recent tree growth. These possible causes include temperature-induced drought stress, nonlinear thresholds or time-dependent responses to recent warming, delayed snowmelt and related changes in seasonality, and differential growth/climate relationships inferred for maximum, minimum and mean temperatures. Another possible cause of the divergence described briefly herein is ‘global dimming’, a phenomenon that has appeared, in recent decades, to decrease the amount of solar radiation available for photosynthesis and plant growth on a large scale. It is theorized that the dimming phenomenon should have a relatively greater impact on tree growth at higher northern latitudes, consistent with what has been observed from the tree-ring record. Additional potential causes include “end effects” and other methodological issues that can emerge in standardization and chronology development, and biases in instrumental target data and its modeling. Although limited evidence suggests that the divergence may be anthropogenic in nature and restricted to the recent decades of the 20th century, more research is needed to confirm these observations.     

The use of oxygen isotope geothermometry on the granulites and related intrusives,Musgrave Ranges,central Australia

Oxygen isotope equilibration involving quartz, feldspar and magnetite has taken place within the granulites of the metamorphic aureole of the intrusive charnockitic Ernabella Adamellite, and a temperature of approximately 550° C is indicated by ¹⁸O/¹⁶O values from quartz-magnetite and plagioclase-magnetite pairs. Pyroxene-magnetite fractionations are larger than equilibrium fractionations at this temperature, and demonstrate that caution is necessary in assigning estimates of temperature to highly metamorphosed rocks.The intrusive adamellite and related fine-grained and pegmatitic phases appear to have attained oxygen isotope equilibrium with the granulites at a similar temperature (approx. 550° C) which is here regarded as a late metamorphic equilibration temperature rather than the maximum temperature (estimated to be about 780° C) reached within the aureole.Oxygen was extracted from the minerals by means of bromine pentafluoride, and the isotopes were successfully measured without the normal prior conversion of oxygen to carbon dioxide.