Multivariate discriminant analysis distinguishes metal- from non metal-related biomarker responses in the clam Chamaelea gallina

Molecular biomarkers are among the most sensitive and earliest responses to pollutants. However, lack of detailed knowledge on variability of responses and their possible seasonal variation limit their use. In addition, the seasonality of biological processes modulates the response of organisms to pollutant stressors. Using multivariate statistics, we have studied the influence of environmental and biological factors on the response of a battery of molecular biomarkers in the clam Chamaelea gallina collected along the South-Spanish littoral. Multivariate discriminant analysis clearly distinguished biomarker response between clean and polluted areas, using heavy metals as indicator of pollution. Such differences disappeared when the dataset was normalised for metal content, thus indicating that pollution was the main significant cause of the changes observed between clean and polluted sites. In conclusion, this work shows that, when applying a complete biomarker panel, multivariate statistical tools can be used to discern pollutant- from non pollutant-related responses.     

由区域震及远震波形得到中国溧阳1974和1979年地震的断裂机制——在以断层为界的盆地下构造逆转的证据

中国东部1974年和1979年溧阳地震是两次中强地震,但属破坏性地震。第一次地震(M_s=5.5)于1974年4月22日发生在人口密集的地区。第二次地震(M_s=5.7)于1979年7月9日几乎在同一地区发生。两次地震震中位于两断层的交汇附近,在晚中生代到晚第三纪的沉积拉张盆地内。本文利用2°和90°之间的长周期P波、SH波及短周期远震PD波波形,确定两次地震具有逆冲分量的走滑震源机制。这一机制与较早用P波初动解得到的结果有明显不同。后者得到两次地震的走滑分量和正滑分量。本次研究的结果是,1974年地震机制是走向126°,倾角71°,滑动角33°。震源深度、地震矩和应力降分别为12km,8.4×10~(23)dyne-cm(1dyne=10~(-5)N)和41bar。1979年地震机制是走向41°,倾角64°,滑动角147°。震源深度、地震矩和应力降分别为7.5km,1.6×10~(24)dyne-cm和152bar。地震学资料与实地调查表明,1974年地震是WNW走向断层破裂所致。1979年地震的断层面很难求解。溧阳地震的逆冲断裂,在中国东部的较大地震中是很少见的。这可能表明在现代的E-W到ENE-WSW向压应力场作用下,构造盆地下方断层重新被激活,而且发生逆转。     

Using analytic element models to delineate drinking water source protection areas

Since 1999, Ohio EPA hydrogeologists have used two analytic element models (AEMs), the proprietary software GFLOW and U.S. EPA's WhAEM, to delineate protection areas for 535 public water systems. Both models now use the GFLOW2001 solution engine, integrate well with Geographic Information System (GIS) technology, have a user-friendly graphical interface, are capable of simulating a variety of complex hydrogeologic settings, and do not rely upon a model grid. These features simplify the modeling process and enable AEMs to bridge the gap between existing simplistic delineation methods and more complex numerical models. Ohio EPA hydrogeologists demonstrated that WhAEM2000 and GFLOW2000 were capable of producing capture zones similar to more widely accepted models by applying the AEMs to eight sites that had been previously delineated using other methods. After the Ohio EPA delineated protection areas using AEMs, more simplistic delineation methods used by other states (volumetric equation and arbitrary fixed radii) were applied to the same water systems to compare the differences between various methods. GIS software and two-tailed paired t-tests were used to quantify the differences in protection areas and analyze the data. The results of this analysis demonstrate that AEMs typically produce significantly different protection areas than the most simplistic delineation methods, in terms of total area and shape. If the volumetric equation had been used instead of AEMs, Ohio would not have protected 265 km2 of critical upgradient area and would have overprotected 269 km2 of primarily downgradient land. Since an increasing number of land-use restrictions are being tied to drinking water protection areas, this analysis has broad policy implications.     

Effects of the closure of a major sewage outfall on sublittoral, soft sediment benthic communities

The present study examines the benthos within western inner Swansea Bay (Wales, UK), for the period before, during and immediately after the cessation of a major, sewage discharge from Mumbles Head. There have been significant improvements in seawater quality and changes in the species composition of the benthic communities following the cessation of the sewage discharge. There has been an increase in the diversity of deposit feeders, especially the amphipods, and a decrease in the diversity of the filter feeders, especially the polychaetes. Changes are not attributable either to sediment organic matter content or to gross changes in sediment type, but are related to the significant reduction in suspended particulate organic material and sewage contaminants discharged to the Bay. A recovery model has been proposed to describe how soft sediment benthic communities in a shallow, sublittoral, high tidal energy environment respond to the abrupt cessation of a major sewage discharge.     

2008年5月12日汶川地震谱震级及相关问题研究

基于P波和S波的谱震级特征对汶川地震进行了定量研究,可以看出P波和S波的最大谱震级出现在不同的周期上。对这一现象的构造物理意义进行了讨论,推测相对于P波而言,地震发生期间辐射的S波能量来自异常大的震源体积。选择部分全球地震的谱特征为背景,对汶川地震的体波谱震级特征进行了分析,结论是汶川地震的特征与其所处的周边环境是一致的。     

Regional estimation of base recharge to ground water using water balance and a base-flow index

Naturally occurring long-term mean annual base recharge to ground water in Nebraska was estimated with the help of a water-balance approach and an objective automated technique for base-flow separation involving minimal parameter-optimization requirements. Base recharge is equal to total recharge minus the amount of evapotranspiration coming directly from ground water. The estimation of evapotranspiration in the water-balance equation avoids the need to specify a contributing drainage area for ground water, which in certain cases may be considerably different from the drainage area for surface runoff. Evapotranspiration was calculated by the WREVAP model at the Solar and Meteorological Surface Observation Network (SAMSON) sites. Long-term mean annual base recharge was derived by determining the product of estimated long-term mean annual runoff (the difference between precipitation and evapotranspiration) and the base-flow index (BFI). The BFI was calculated from discharge data obtained from the U.S. Geological Survey's gauging stations in Nebraska. Mapping was achieved by using geographic information systems (GIS) and geostatistics. This approach is best suited for regional-scale applications. It does not require complex hydrogeologic modeling nor detailed knowledge of soil characteristics, vegetation cover, or land-use practices. Long-term mean annual base recharge rates in excess of 110 mm/year resulted in the extreme eastern part of Nebraska. The western portion of the state expressed rates of only 15 to 20 mm annually, while the Sandhills region of north-central Nebraska was estimated to receive twice as much base recharge (40 to 50 mm/year) as areas south of it.     

A description of how metal pollution occurs in the Tinto-Odiel rias (Huelva-Spain) through the application of cluster analysis

In the last few decades, the study of space-time distribution and variations of heavy metals in estuaries has been extensively studied as an environmental indicator. In the case described here, the combination of acid water from mines, industrial effluents and sea water plays a determining role in the evolutionary process of the chemical makeup of the water in the estuary of the Tinto and Odiel Rivers, located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula.Based on the statistical treatment of the data from the analysis of the water samples from this system, which has been affected by processes of industrial and mining pollution, the 16 variables analyzed can be grouped into two large families. Each family presents high, positive Pearson r values that suggest common origins (fluvial or sea) for the pollutants present in the water analyzed and allow their subsequent contrast through cluster analysis.