Robust estimation based on energy minimization principles

 It is argued that the tendency of nature to minimize energy may be used as a unifying basis for all robust estimators. Robustness is defined and discussed based on mechanical rather than empirical and abstract tools. This mechanical view of robustness is then extended to design new and useful robust data editors that suppress the outlying content of the contaminated observations. These editors are applied to edit samples of sea-surface heights, gravity observations and reduced global positioning system baselines. Received: 12 July 1997 / Accepted: 8 June 1999     

Jewish settlement and its economic impact on the West Bank, 1967–1987

This paper focuses on the process of Jewish settlement in the West Bank and its economic consequences in the period from 1967 to the outbreak of the Intifada late in 1987. It attempts to show that this process is the practical application of Israeli objectives which are based on expansion and occupation of neighbouring Arab lands, facilitated by the fashioning of a dual or bifurcate economy there.After the war of June 1967, Israeli occupation authorities started to draw up plans with a view to settling Jews in the West Bank. There has been an increase in the numbers of settlements and settlers, estimated at 122 and 52,000 respectively in 1987. The pattern of settlement distribution is randomly dispersed, although it is concentrated in a region located to the NW of Jerusalem. The settlement began in the Jordan valley and extended gradually westward in the highlands.Jewish settlement has affected economic development of the West Bank, where there were many constraints on Arab agriculture and industry. Inequality is evident between settlers and Palestinians in an economy that has been structurally bifurcated: although settlers represent about 3% of total population of the West Bank, their economic activity constitutes at least 35% of the GDP of the West Bank.     

Using time-lapse 4D seismic to monitor saturation changes in carbonate reservoirs

In the past ten years, time-lapse (4D) seismic has evolved as a standard way of monitoring reservoir performance. The method is now being used as good reservoir management practice to provide evidence of saturation changes within the reservoir at field scale. 4D provides a new piece of data describing the dynamic behavior of the reservoir fluids between the wells, often limited to small scale monitoring at the borehole scale. Thus, it provides sophisticated techniques for reservoir monitoring and management relying on the integration of geological models, static and dynamic properties of the reservoir rock, and detailed production and pressure field data.While 4D seismic data has been very successful in monitoring hydrocarbon production from clastic reservoirs, this work has focused on implementing 4D time lapse to monitor saturation changes in carbonate reservoirs and it’s capability to be used as enhanced oil recovery (EOR) tool that can help in enhancing the recovery factor for the filed and help to locate new drilling to sweep more oil out of the reservoir and locate the by-pass oil.The principal goal of this research was to detect the maximum change in seismic attributes (amplitude, acoustic impedance, travel time) that could occur as a result of oil production, water and gas injection in carbonate reservoirs by using time-lapse 4D seismic.     

Suspended sediment dynamics in the meltwater of Chhota Shigri glacier,Chandra basin,Lahaul-Spiti valley,India

Present study shows suspended sediment dynamics in the meltwater of Chhota Shigri glacier, Himachal Pradesh, India for different melt seasons during the period 2011-2014. Maximum suspended sediment concentration in the meltwater was found during the month of July 2011, 2012 and 2014 constituting to 55.2%, 48.3% and 46.9%, respectively. Whereas in 2013, maximum suspended sediment concentration was observed in August accounting for 46.1% of the total. On the other hand, maximum suspended sediment load was monitored in the month of July 2011, 2012 and 2014 constituting 59.5%, 63% and 55.7% of the total, respectively. Whereas in 2013, maximum suspended sediment load was observed in the month of August accounting for 49.8% of the total suspended sediment load. Annual distribution of suspended sediment concentration (SSC) and suspended sediment load (SSL) in the Chhota Shigri glacier shows higher value of SSC and SSL during the study period 2012 and 2013, which may be due to the presence of high glacial runoff and negative mass balance of the studied area during these time periods. Marked diurnal variation has been observed in the SSC of meltwater. Strong correlation was observed between SSC and SSL with discharge. On the other hand, SSC and SSL also showed strong exponential correlation with air temperature of the studied area. Sediment yield from the catchment of Chhota Shigri glacier is high during the peak melt season (July and August) and low during the late melt season (September and October). The average value of erosion rate for Chhota Shigri glacier basin during the study period 2011-2014 was calculated to be 1.1 mm/yr, which is lower than the average erosion rate of other Himalayan glaciers such as Rakiot, Chorabari and Gangotri glaciers, which may be caused by its geological setting containing high erosion resistant rocks such as granite, granite gneiss and porphyritic granite.     

A comparative evaluation of groundwater suitability for irrigation and drinking purposes in two intensively cultivated districts of Punjab, India

Punjab is the most cultivated state in India with the highest consumption of fertilizers. Patiala and Muktsar districts are two agricultural dominated districts of Punjab located in extreme south-east and south-west of the state. This paper highlights temporal variations of the groundwater quality and compares its suitability for irrigation and drinking purpose in these two districts. Water samples were collected in March and September 2003, representing the pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons, respectively. Water samples were analysed for almost all major cations, anions, dissolved heavy metals and turbidity. Parameters like sodium adsorption ratio, % sodium, residual sodium carbonate, total hardness, potential salinity, Kelley’s ratio, magnesium ratio, index of base exchange and permeability index were calculated on the basis of chemical data. A questionnaire was also used to investigate perception of villagers on taste and odour. Comparison of the concentration of the chemical constituents with WHO (world health organization) drinking water standards of 2004 and various classifications show that present status of groundwater in Patiala is better for irrigation and drinking purposes except for a few locations with a caution that it may deteriorate in near future. In Muktsar, groundwater is not suitable for drinking. Higher total hardness (TH) and total dissolved solids at numerous places indicate the unsuitability of groundwater for drinking and irrigation. Results obtained in this forms baseline data for the utility of groundwater. In terms of monsoon impact, Patiala groundwater shows dilution and flushing but Muktsar samples show excessive leaching of different chemical components into the groundwater leading to the enrichment of different anions and cations indicating pollution from extraneous sources. No clear correlation between the quality parameters studied here and perceived quality in terms of satisfactory taste response were obtained at electrical conductivity values higher than the threshold minimum acceptable value.     

Application of Remotely-Sensed Data to Estimate a Water Budget for Data-Scarce Endorheic Basins: A Case Study of Lake Urmia basin,Iran

Estimating the water budgets of large basins is a challenge because of the lack of data and information. It becomes more complicated in endorheic basins that consist of separate land and water phases. The application of remotely-sensed data is one solution in this regard. The present study addresses this issue and develops a modeling framework to evaluate a water budget based on remotely-sensed data for endorheic basins. To explore the methodology, Lake Urmia basin was selected as a case study. The lake water level has declined steeply since 1995 and stakeholders have agreed to allocate 3100 MCM of water per year to the lake. This makes it necessary to monitor river inflow into the lake to fulfill the agreement. Gauging stations have been employed around the lake, but they could not account for shortages such as water uptake below the stations. To do this, separate water budgets for the water body and the land were required. More specifically, it was necessary to estimate actual evapotranspiration (ET _a ) from freshwater (E _f ) and saltwater (E _s ) estimated using the SEBAL model. Different methods were applied to estimate soil moisture, groundwater exploitation, and surface-groundwater inflow into the lake. A comparison of the observed and estimated amounts showed good agreement. For instance, the coefficient of determination for the observed/reported and estimated ET _a and E _f were 0.83 and 0.84, respectively. The average annual inflow was estimated to be 2.2 BCM/year for 2002–2008 using the RS model, which is about 84 % of the total inflow from the last recording stations before the lake and shows influence of water exploitation after these stations. Future study should focus on increasing temporal and spatial resolution of the method     

A classification of galactic collisions for galaxies of unequal dimensions

The earlier work on classification of galactic collisions for identical galaxies is extended to the situations where the two colliding galaxies differ in mass and dimension. We consider collisions between galaxies of masses 10⁷, 10⁹, 10¹¹ and 10¹³ M and let their radii be 0.1, 1, 10 and 100 kpc, respectively. The density distribution in both galaxies is represented by that of a polytrope of indexn=4. The type of collision is determined for head-on collisions for initial relative velocities 500, 1000, 2000 and 3000 km s^–1. The corresponding final velocities are also indicated.     

Petrochemical and Tectonogenesis of Granitoids in the Wuyo-Gubrunde Horst,Northeastern Nigeria: Implication for Uranium Enrichment

The Wuyo-Gubrunde Horst in the northeastern Nigeria consists of migmatite gneiss, unaltered, altered, and sheared porphyritic granites, pegmatites, aplites, basalts, and sandstone. Uranium has been reported in rhyolite, sheared rocks, and sandstone within the area. The petrogenesis of the granitoids and associated rocks in the area was evaluated in the light of new geochemical data, which showed that the U content of altered porphyritic granite is highest and hydrothermal-related. The granitoids are metaluminous, sub-alkaline, and S-type granite, and have evolved by partial melting of crustal material emplaced at moderate depth of 20–30 km in a syn-to late-collisional within-plate tectonic setting. The negative Eu/Eu* anomaly and high (La/Yb)_N ratio of the granitoids indicate magma fractionation. The low SiO₂ (<53%) and high Fe₂O₃ (10%) of the altered porphyritic granite compared to other similar rock units suggest pervasive alteration. The associated basalts are tholeiitic, emplaced within continental plate tectonic setting, and enriched in Ni, V, Nb, Sr, and light rare earth elements, and they have SiO₂, Fe₂O₃, V, Th, and Co contents that are similar to those of the altered porphyritic granites. The U occurrence in the Wuyo-Gubrunde Horst is believed to be sourced from the adjoining Bima sandstone in the Benue Trough, which locally contains carbonaceous zones with anomalously high concentrations of U. The Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺ redox fronts formed by alteration of the iron-rich basalts provided the requisite geochemical barrier for U-bearing hydrothermal fluid, causing enrichment of U leached and mobilized from the sandstone through fractures in the rocks.