High-precision chaotic radial basis function neural network model:Data forecasting for the Earth electromagnetic signal before a strong earthquake

The Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic field data consists typically of an underlying variation tendency of intensity and irregularities.The change tendency may be related to the occurrence of earthquake disasters.Forecasting of the underlying intensity trend plays an important role in the analysis of data and disaster monitoring.Combining chaos theory and the radial basis function neural network,this paper proposes a forecasting model of the chaotic radial basis function neural network to conduct underlying intensity trend forecasting by the Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic field signal.The main strategy of this forecasting model is to obtain parameters as the basis for optimizing the radial basis function neural network and to forecast the reconstructed Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic field data.In verification experiments,we employ the 3 and 6 days’data of two channels as training samples to forecast the 14 and 21-day Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic field data respectively.According to the forecasting results and absolute error results,the chaotic radial basis function forecasting model can fit the fluctuation trend of the actual signal strength,effectively reduce the forecasting error compared with the traditional radial basis function model.Hence,this network may be useful for studying the characteristics of the Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic field signal before a strong earthquake and we hope it can contribute to the electromagnetic anomaly monitoring before the earthquake.     

Shake table tests on RC frame infilled by slitted masonry panels

Unreinforced masonry infill walls are widely used as non-structural partitions in RC frames. The effects of infills on the structural responses are often ignored in the design process since they are generally considered as expendable elements. However, recent studies have shown that not only shear damage can be inflicted to the columns braced by the infill walls, but also that the structural stability can be jeopardised by the fall-off of the infills. This paper presents the development of new detailing methods for the infill walls, which features slit panels, isolation gaps between the infills and columns, and anchorage of the infills. The proposed detailing methods were tested and verified experimentally using shake-table tests on five 1/3-scale infilled RC frame specimens with different combinations of the features stated above. The design and construction of the shake-table test specimens have taken into account the similitude requirements. The test results indicate that the proposed detailing method effectively reduced the undesirable interaction between column and infill walls. And the use of proper anchorage could prevent the fall off of infills from the bounding frame. Furthermore, the specimens with slit infill walls displayed better seismic performances, which could be attributed to the rocking behaviour of the sub-panels with increased aspect ratios.     

Low‐seismic damage strategies for infilled RC frames: shake‐table tests

Unreinforced masonry (URM) infill panels are widely used as partitions in RC frames and typically considered as non‐structural elements in the design process. However, observations from recent major earthquakes have shown that under seismic excitation, the structural interaction between columns and infill walls can significantly alter the structural behaviour, thus causing catastrophic consequences. The purpose of this research was to propose and test an innovative low seismic damage detailing method, which isolates the infill panel from bounding columns with finite width vertical gaps during the infill panel construction phase and deploys steel wire connections in mortar layers anchored to columns. Taking into account the similitude requirements, a total of six one‐third scale, single‐storey single‐bay RC frames with different infill configurations and flexible connection details were carefully designed and tested on a shake‐table. Three real earthquake records were selected and scaled to ascending intensity levels and used as input signals. A series of thorough investigations including dynamic characteristics, hysteretic behaviour, failure mechanisms, out‐of‐plane vulnerabilities and the effect of different gap filling materials and load transfer mechanisms were rigorously studied. The experimental results indicate that the undesirable interaction between infill panels and bounding frame is significantly reduced using the proposed low seismic damage detailing concept. Direct shear failure of columns at an early stage is prevented, and structural redundancy at high levels of excitation can be provided. In general, the structural stability and integrity, and displacement ductility of infilled RC frames can remarkably be improved. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Remote data analysis, visualization and problem solving environment (PSE) based on wavelets in the geosciences

We discuss here the issues faced by earth scientists in analyzing and visualizing large datasets over a GRID-like setup from a client-server perspective. We approach this problem by using a remote, web-based visualization and data analysis framework, called WEB-IS, and by employing second-generation wavelets as a means for reducing the amount of data transferred and for extracting coherent features in complex geophysical flows and surface faulting patterns. As an example, we describe how onboard processors on satellites can function as a server for beaming down extracted information to the client computer on the ground, thus exemplifying WEB-IS as a viable middleware on a GRID network for geosciences.Reviewed by: Prof. I.D. Clemens, Prof. L. Hanyk     

Bayesian Rayleigh wave inversion with an unknown number of layers

Surface wave methods have received much attention due to their efficient, flexible and convenient characteristics. However, there are still critical issues regarding a key step in surface wave inversion. In most existing methods, the number of layers is assumed to be known prior to the process of inversion. However, improper assignment of this parameter leads to erroneous inversion results. A Bayesian nonparametric method for Rayleigh wave inversion is proposed herein to address this problem. In this method, each model class represents a particular number of layers with unknown S-wave velocity and thickness of each layer. As a result, determination of the number of layers is equivalent to selection of the most applicable model class. Regarding each model class, the optimization search of S-wave velocity and thickness of each layer is implemented by using a genetic algorithm. Then, each model class is assessed in view of its efficiency under the Bayesian framework and the most efficient class is selected. Simulated and actual examples verify that the proposed Bayesian nonparametric approach is reliable and efficient for Rayleigh wave inversion, especially for its capability to determine the number of layers.

     

气候变化及人类活动对中国北方岩溶泉的影响——以山西柳林泉为例

中国是岩溶最发育的国家之一,全球岩溶面积的1/4分布在中国.由于岩溶含水层对环境变化非常敏感,岩溶泉已经成为人们研究气候变化与人类活动对环境影响的重要信息载体.本文以中国北方具有代表性的柳林泉为研究对象,经过分析认为1957～1973年泉水流量基本上处于自然状态,因此,我们利用1973年前的泉水流量,建立了气候变化条件下泉水流量的灰色系统模型,将该模型外推,获得了1974～2005年气候变化条件下的泉水流量,与同期实测流量相比较,得到了人类活动对泉水流量衰减的贡献.结果表明,1974～2005年,气候变化对泉水流量衰减的贡献仅为人类活动对泉水流量衰减贡献量的8.1%～8.6%,人类活动对泉水流量的衰减起着主要作用.在人类活动对泉水流量的影响中,地下水开采量仅占到其中的20%～35%;其他因素包括水库的修建、跨区域地下水袭夺、矿坑排水、泉域内森林植被的破坏等等,他们对泉水流量衰减的贡献占到65%～80%.因此,传统的单纯以地下水开采量作为人类活动对泉水的影响是不合理的.     

Nature and the Singapore resident

Singapore has witnessed rapid urban development in the last thirty years. Its landscape has changed from one of slums and squatters in the immediate post-war years to a city of gardens and high-rise high-density housing. The concept of a `garden city' was introduced to guide the development of a city-state with abundant greenery. In the process, many parks and gardens were created including park connectors which are green linkages between parks and other land uses. This paper presents the findings of an ongoing research into park connectors. It reports on that part of the survey results which examine the views of residents towards nature provision in park connectors and suggest some design options to enhance the planning of park connectors. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Ice Storm ’98 in Southcentral Canada and Northeastern United States: A Climatological Perspective

Summary Dubbed Ice Storm ’98, an extreme weather event characterized by two synoptic systems in succession dropped about 70–100 mm (in terms of water equivalent) of freezing precipitation over southeastern Ontario, southwestern Quebec and northeastern New York during a 6-day period from January 5 to 10 in 1998. Individually, the two synoptic systems were not dramatically more extreme in freezing precipitation than other major freezing rain events (4 since 1961) which occurred in the past over the affected area. Some regions in the target area, however, were impacted more by the second system. Based on an analysis of the 500 hPa vorticity field during the ’98 event, we suggest that the 1997/98 El Ni?o had a role in creating a flow environment conducive to the rapid formation of the second synoptic system. In contrast, other major freezing rain events in the last 30 years involved only one synoptic system per event lasting no more than 3 days, and producing 20–50 mm of precipitation. We have also found that, 3 out of 4 past major freezing rain events since 1958 were associated with the positive phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Consistent with this usual past association between the NAO and a major freezing rain event, Ice Storm ’98 also occurred when the phase of the NAO was positive. Analysis of these 3 past and the ’98 events also indicates an apparent connection between the positive phase of the NAO and the northern Quebec high pressure system, which is an essential synoptic feature of a major freezing rain occurrence over the southcentral region of Canada. As measured by their respective indices, the maximum positive NAO state leads the maximum northern Quebec high by about 2 days (5 days in the ’98 event). There is some suggestive evidence to indicate that the persistence of the northern Quebec high pressure system is connected to the persistence of the positive phase of the NAO. Received January 17, 2000     

蘑菇湖水库富营养化发生机制和治理途径的探讨

通过对蘑菇湖水库的水质、底质和水生生物等的调查,分析了该水库富营养化的发生机理,并对恢复生态平衡、防治富营养化的途径进行了探讨。