Progress in the study of the geography of retailing and wholesaling in Britain

Geographers have devoted a considerable amount of attention to the distributive sector. In part this has arisen because this sector provides an excellent testing ground for techniques. Substantive research, despite the needs of decision makers in both the public and private sectors, has been inbalanced. It has tended to focus on shoppers' behaviour and the factors controlling supply, at least equally important, have been relatively neglected. The paper indicates the significance of these factors and demonstrates how they need to be integrated into different modelling and theoretical approaches if research is to provide really useful insights for decision makers. It outlines how the focus of geographical study has shifted from examining the distributive trades as indicators of other facts of urban systems to the examination of spatial variations which are of substantial operational significance. Such studies do, however, fit readily into a wider frame-work of a geographical environment which is continuous but partitioned, limited but expanding and organised but diversified. Fruitful research can thus adopt both a spatial and an ecological perspective. The importance of the sector in the economy is sufficient reason for such research to be conducted.     

Volcan ceboruco: A major composite volcano of the mexican volcanic belt

Ceboruco is a major composite volcano at the western end of the Mexican Volcanic Belt, near the junction between the North American and Pacific plates. The volcano is built from successive eruptions of andesite lavas and pyroclastic rocks, and major eruptions during its history have resulted in the formation of two concentric calderas. The youngest volcanic activity has included the extrusion of dacites within the inner caldera and a voluminous flank eruption of andesite during 1870–72. Fumarolic activity persists to the present day. Chemical analyses show that the lavas are of cale-alkaline type and rangs from andesite (SiO₂=58–61%) to acid dacite (SiO₂=68%) in composition. The rate of increase of K₂O relative to SiO is greater than that in volcanic rocks from the Mexican Volcanic Belt as a whole. This indicates that simple models based on the application of such relationships may not be adequate to explain the petrogenesis of calc-alkaline lavas.     

Viking orbiter observations of the Mars opposition effect

The Viking Extended Mission has experienced two major dust storms that have changed the global photometric properties of Mars. Large quantities of atmospheric dust arising from the June 5, 1977, storm have been observed at very low phase angles to measure the opposition effect. These particles yield only a small increase in brightness at 0° phase angle with the least enhancement seen in violet light. The phase function is well modeled by nonspherical particles with a spectrally dependent single scattering albedo. It is doubtful, therefore, that atmospheric dust plays a significant role in the reported blue light brightness surge. Such particles as surface structure combined with a lunar photometric function could, however, produce the wavelength-dependent backscattering observed during the 1967 and 1969 oppositions under clearer conditions.     

Drifter observations of the Hebrides slope current and nearby circulation patterns

The mean flow at and around the Hebrides and Shetland Shelf slope is measured with ARGOS tracked drifters. Forty-two drifters drogued at 50 m were deployed in three circles over the Hebrides slope at 56.15°N in two releases, one on 5th December, 1995 and the second on 5–9th May, 1996. The circles span a distance of some 20 km from water depths of 200 m to 1200 m. Drifters are initially advected poleward along-slope by the Hebrides slope current at between 0.05 and 0.70 m s^–1 in a laterally constrained (25–50 km wide) jet-like flow. Drifters released in winter remained in the slope current for over 2000 km whilst summer drifters were lost from the slope current beyond the Wyville-Thomson Ridge, a major topographic feature at 60°N. Dispersion from the slope region into deeper waters occurs at bathymetric irregularities, particularly at the Anton Dohrn Seamount close to which the slope current is found to bifurcate, both in summer and winter, and at the Wyville-Thomson Ridge where drifters move into the Faeroe Shetland Channel. Dispersion onto the continental shelf occurs sporadically along the Hebrides slope. The initial dispersion around the Hebrides slope is remarkably sensitive to initial position, most of the drifters released in shallower water moving onto the shelf, whilst those in 1000 m or more are mostly carried away from the slope into deeper water near the Anton Dohrn Seamount. The dispersion coefficients estimated in directions parallel and normal to the local direction of the 500 m contour, approximately the position of the slope current core, are approximately 8.8 × 10³ m² s^–1 and 0.36 × 10³ m² s^–1, respectively, during winter, and 11.4 × 10³ m² s^–1 and 0.36 x 10³ m² s^–1, respectively, during summer. At the slope there is a minimum in across-slope mean velocity, Reynolds stress, and across-slope eddy correlations. The mean across-slope velocity associated with mass flux is about 4 × 10^–3 m s^–1 shelfward across the shelf break during winter and 2 × 10^–3 m s^–1 during summer. The drifters also sampled local patterns of circulation, and indicate that the source of water for the seasonal Fair Isle and East Shetland currents are the same, and drawn from Atlantic overflows at the Hebrides shelf.     

Analysis of nonlinear associations between prenatal methylmercury exposure from fish consumption and neurodevelopmental outcomes in the Seychelles Main Cohort at 17 years

The Seychelles Child Development Study has been examining the relationship between prenatal methylmercury (MeHg) exposure from consuming fish during pregnancy and child development. This study re-analyzes seven outcomes in the 17 year Main Cohort data to determine if there are nonlinear or non-homogeneous (subgroup) associations that were not identified in the linear analysis. We adopted two statistical approaches. First, we carried out an additive nonlinear analysis assuming homogeneous prenatal MeHg-outcome relationships to explore overall associations. Second, we applied the regression tree to the Woodcock–Johnson Calculation subtest (it was significantly associated in earlier analyses) and identified 4 clusters based on covariates. Then we used additive models to assess the prenatal MeHg association in each of the four clusters for all seven outcomes. This approach assumes nonlinear associations in each cluster and non-homogeneous associations between clusters. The additive nonlinear analysis yielded prenatal MeHg curves similar to the linear analysis. For the regression tree analysis, the curves relating prenatal MeHg to outcomes between the 4 clusters differed and some crossed at higher prenatal MeHg levels, suggesting non-homogeneity in the upper range of exposure. Additionally, some of the curves suggested a possible non-linear relationship within the range of exposure we studied. This non-linear analysis supports the findings from the linear analysis. It shows little evidence to support an adverse association of prenatal MeHg exposure through maternal consumption of fish contaminated with natural background levels. However, the tree analysis suggests that the prenatal exposure/outcome relationship may not be homogeneous across all individuals and that some subpopulations may have an adverse association in the upper range of the exposures studied. More robust data in the higher levels of exposure in this cohort are needed to confirm this finding.     

Fisheries and failing states: The case of Sierra Leone

Marine fisheries play an important role in the economy of Sierra Leone, supporting livelihoods and contributing significantly to food security. This paper looks in detail at how the performance of fisheries was impacted by the ten year civil war, an event which contributed to the country's reputation for being a “failed state”. The paper focuses mainly on the artisanal fisheries sector, which employs the majority of the country's coastal population, and demonstrates how the conflict caused major social dislocation to fishing communities as well as reducing the productive capacity of the fleet. The paper concludes with a discussion of the policy challenges now facing Sierra Leone, particularly the prevention of resource looting through illegal fishing of the offshore stocks and the development of strategies to enable the potential wealth of these fisheries to be captured.     

Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Network

Information included in this summary is based on more detailed reports published in the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 32, no. 7, July 2007 (on the Internet at ). Edited by scientists at the Smithsonian, this bulletin includes reports provided by a worldwide network of correspondents. The reports contain the names and contact information for all sources. Please note that these reports are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail. The Global Volcanism Program welcomes further reports of current volcanism, seismic unrest, monitoring data, and field observations.     

Reports from the Smithsonian’s Global Volcanism Network,June 2008

Information included in this summary is based on more detailed reports published in the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 33, no. 6, June 2008 (on the Internet at ). Edited by scientists at the Smithsonian, this bulletin includes reports provided by a worldwide network of correspondents. The reports contain the names and contact information for all sources. Please note that these reports are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail. The Global Volcanism Program welcomes further reports of current volcanism, seismic unrest, monitoring data, and field observations.