Reappraised list of historical earthquakes that affected Israel and its close surroundings

Numerous historical reports of damaging earthquakes in the Levant have accumulated over the last 3000 years. Here, we screen that information and focus on the damaging earthquakes that affected Israel from the second millennia BCE to the 1927 CE Jericho earthquake and list the earthquakes by date, of major damage, type of sequence, and degree of size. The compilation results in three different lists: (i) 71 reliable earthquakes that in our opinion were most probably associated with the Dead Sea Transform (DST) and affected Israel and its close surroundings; (ii) 41 questionable earthquakes that should be re-evaluated or ignored; and (iii) 46 earthquakes that probably occurred but were erroneously associated with damage in Israel. What emerges from the list of the reliable earthquakes is that (i) Israel and its close surroundings suffered damage about 32 times during the last two millennia, that is, once in about 60 years, although not regularly; (ii) 21 of the earthquakes occurred during the last millennia, i.e., an event every ～45 years; and (iii) three intervals of increased reporting are noticed: between the fourth and the mid-eighth century, from the beginning of the eleventh to the end of the thirteenth century, and from the end of the eighteenth century up to the last entry in 1927, though this period may be extended until today. In-depth evaluation of the changing regimes over time within the study area, the historical reports of earthquake damage outside of Israel, and comparison with physical paleo- and archaeo-seismology evidence, such as the “137–206” and “165–236” paleoseismic earthquakes for which there is no historical match, indicates that the historical list is far from being complete. Thus, we argue that the apparent cycles of historical reporting do not necessarily reflect the actual rate of seismic activity and further investigation is needed to establish a compiled, multi-sourced list to decipher the true nature of cycles of strong earthquakes in this region during historical times.     

雪藻高密度连续培养中生物量和花生四烯酸的高产率

以 1 .4cm和 2 .8cm光径的平板光生物反应器 ,恒定高光强 [2 4 0 0 μE/(m2 ·s) ],通气、无菌高密度连续培养雪地绿藻 (简称雪藻 )。连续采收并补充等量新鲜培养液 ,当藻体生物量(以去灰分干重表示 ,AFDW)达恒态时 ,研究雪藻比生长速率 (SGR)、藻体的生物产量、总脂肪酸 (TFA)和花生四烯酸 (AA)产率。结果表明 ,尽管随着比生长速率增加 ,雪藻高密度连续培养体系的AA/TFA、TFA/AFDW和AA/AFDW三个指标有不同程度的降低 ,但生物产量、总脂肪酸及其花生四烯酸产出都相当高。 2 .8cm光径的平板光生物反应器中 ,雪藻SGR为0 .2d- 1 时 ,每平方米光照面积日获 35 .3gAFDW的高产量 ;SGR 0 .1 35d- 1 时 ,TFA产率最大 ,为7.0g/(m2 ·d) ,此时AA产率也最高 ,达 2 .6g/(m2 ·d)。尽管 1 .4cm光径的反应器的培养体积比前者下降了 5 0 % ,但细胞浓度明显提高 ,单位光照面积的AFDW和TFA最大日产率只下降了37.3%和 1 0 % ,分别为 2 2 .1和 6.3g/(m2 ·d) ,而AA的最大日产率也是 2 .6g/(m2 ·d)。结果还表明 ,氮或磷营养亏缺能明显提高雪藻AA含量的各项指标 ,同时高光强也有利于雪藻累积AA。     

The impact of mobile disarticulated shells ofCerastoderma edulis on the abrasion of a cohesive substrate

An annular laboratory flume was used to investigate the effect of mobile cockle shells on the erosion of a cohesive sediment bed. A standard clay bed was created and shells of differing sizes placed upon it. Flow in the flume was increased in increments and the onset of motion and the transport patterns of the cockles were monitored. The release of bed material to the water column was monitored and compared to controls made in the absence of shells (due only to the flow). The shells moved as bedload; first as surface creep (sliding) and then by rolling. The onset velocity of motion (U_c) of the shells was found to be directly related to the settling rate (W_s) in still water. The fluid-induced stresses did not cause any detectable erosion of the bed. The addition of even a single shell induced significant erosion rates (E). The erosion was found to be the result of abrasion rather than corrasion, as the shells never entered into saltation. There was a linear increase in erosion rate with increasing shell size, and an exponential increase in the suspended sediment concentration with time. The drag coefficients (C_d) for settling in traction were calculated. The ratio of the drag forces acting on the shells when settling and moving as traction was found to equal to 1/tan(ф) where ф is the friction angle.     

PHYSIOLOGICAL INHIBITORY EFFECT OF OCS IN ARACHIDONIC ACID-RICH PARIETOCHLORIS INCISA （TREBOUXIOPHYCEAE, CHLOROPHYTA）

Parietochloris incisa is an arachidonic acid-rich snow green alga. The main physiological profiles, such as ash free dry weight (AFDW), chlorophyll, carotenoid, protein and total fatty acids (TFA), in this alga exposed to old culture supernatant (OCS) at the decline phase or its crude ethyl acetate extracts (CEAE) were investigated by using tubular photobioreactors of different diameters. Results showed that both OCS and CEAE had strong inhibitory effect on the above physiological parameters. The longer the culture was exposed to OCS and the more CEAE were added into the algal culture, the more the above physiological properties were inhibited. Arachidonic acid (AA), the dominant component of fatty acids in this alga, was also seriously inhibited with respect to total TFA, AFDW of cell mass, or culture volume, due to a prebable reduction of enzymes activities catalyzing chain elongation from C18:1ω9 to AA. These results incontestably evidenced that some CEAE dissolving substances existing in OCS, like auto-inhibitors, inhibited P. incisa growth through feedback. Hence, any efficient removal of auto-inhibitors from algal culture to decrease their bioactivity could be good for maximal production of desired products like AA.     

The measurement of sand transport in two inlets of Venice lagoon,Italy

Sand transport in Lido and Chioggia inlets was measured using modified Helley–Smith sand traps equipped with 60-micron nets. The traps had an efficiency of about 4% only but provided enough material for analysis. Very fine sand (0.07 < d < 0.11 mm) only was collected in the traps. Transport of sand was greatest in the bottom 10% of the water column and followed a Rouse profile. Sand extended to a height of about 4 m above the bed during peak flows corresponding to the estimated thickness of the boundary layer; and observed in synoptic ADCP profiles. The sand in the benthic boundary layer was largely inorganic (>95%); above this layer, organic content varied widely and was greatest near the surface. The movability number Ws/U_∗$W_s/U_{\ast }$ showed a linear relationship to dimensionless grain diameter (D_*): (Ws/U_∗)=(D_∗/10)$\left(W_s/U_{\ast }\right)=\left(D_{\ast }/10\right)$; D_* < 10. Sand concentration in suspension was simulated by a mean Rouse parameter of −2.01 ± 0.66 (Lido inlet) and −0.82 ± 0.27 (Chioggia inlet). The β parameter ( Hill et al., 1988) was correlated with D_* and movability number in the form: β=2.07−2.03D_∗+59(Ws/U_∗)²$\beta =2.07-2.03D_{\ast }+59{\left(W_s/U_{\ast }\right)}^2$ (r² = 0.42). Von Karman's constant was back-calculated from a Law of the Wall relationship as a test on the accuracy of U_* estimates; a mean value of 0.37 ± 0.1 (compared to the accepted value of 0.41) suggest U_* was accurate to within 10%. The constant of proportionality (γ = 3.54 × 10⁻⁴) between reference concentration (C_a) and normalized excess bed shear stress was in line with the published literature.     

Use of a high-resolution profiling sonar and a towed video camera to map a Zostera marina bed,Solent, UK

Seagrasses are flowering plants that develop into extensive underwater meadows and play a key role in the coastal ecosystem. In the last few years, several techniques have been developed to map and monitor seagrass beds in order to protect them. Here, we present the results of a survey using a profiling sonar, the Sediment Imager Sonar (SIS) and a towed video sledge to study a Zostera marina bed in the Solent, southern UK. The survey aimed to test the instruments for seagrass detection and to describe the area for the first time.     

Using dissolved gas analysis to investigate the performance of an organic carbon permeable reactive barrier for the treatment of mine drainage

The strongly reducing nature of permeable reactive barrier (PRB) treatment materials can lead to gas production, potentially resulting in the formation of gas bubbles and ebullition. Degassing in organic C based PRB systems due to the production of gases (primarily CO₂ and CH₄) is investigated using the depletion of naturally occurring non-reactive gases Ar and N₂, to identify, confirm, and quantify chemical and physical processes. Sampling and analysis of dissolved gases were performed at the Nickel Rim Mine Organic Carbon PRB, which was designed for the treatment of groundwater contaminated by low quality mine drainage characterized by slightly acidic pH, and elevated Fe(II) and SO₄ concentrations. A simple 4-gas degassing model was used to analyze the dissolved gas data, and the results indicate that SO₄ reduction is by far the dominant process of organic C consumption within the barrier. The data provided additional information to delineate rates of microbially mediated SO₄ reduction and confirm the presence of slow and fast flow zones within the barrier. Degassing was incorporated into multicomponent reactive transport simulations for the barrier and the simulations were successful in reproducing observed dissolved gas trends.     

Sedimentology,depositional environments and significance of an Ediacaran salt‐withdrawal minibasin,Billy Springs Formation,Flinders Ranges,South Australia

The late Ediacaran Billy Springs Formation is a little‐studied, mudstone‐dominated unit deposited in the Adelaide Rift Complex of South Australia. Sediments are exposed in an approximately 11 km × 15 km synclinal structure interpreted as a salt‐withdrawal minibasin. The stratigraphic succession is characterized by convolute‐laminated slump deposits, rhythmically laminated silty mudstones, rare diamictites and fining‐upward turbidite lithofacies. Lithofacies are the product of deposition in a deepwater slope or shelf setting, representing one of the few such examples preserved within the larger basin. Although exact correlations with other formations are unclear, the Billy Springs Formation probably represents the distal portion of a highstand systems tract, and is overlain by coarser sediments of the upper Pound Subgroup. Diamictite intervals are interpreted to be the product of mass flow processes originating from nearby emergent diapirs, in contrast to previous studies that suggest a glacial origin for extrabasinal clasts. Within the spectrum of outcropping minibasins around the world, the sediments described here are unique in their dominantly fine‐grained nature and overall lithological homogeneity. Exposures such as these provide an opportunity to better understand the sedimentological processes that operate in these environments, and provide an analogue for similar settings in the subsurface that act as hydrocarbon reservoir‐trap systems.     

Integrated cave drip monitoring for epikarst recharge estimation in a dry Mediterranean area,Sif Cave,Israel

Understanding recharge mechanisms and controls in karst regions is extremely important for managing water resources because of the dynamic nature of the system. The objective of this study was to evaluate water percolation through epikarst by monitoring water flow into a cave and conducting artificial irrigation and tracer experiments, at Sif Cave in Wadi Sussi, Israel from 2005 through 2007. The research is based on continuous high‐resolution direct measurements of both rainfall and water percolation in the cave chamber collected by three large PVC sheets which integrate drips from three different areas (17, 46, and 52 m²). Barrels equipped with pressure transducers record drip rate and volume for each of the three areas. The combined measured rainfall and cave data enables estimation of recharge into the epikarst and to better understand the relationship of rainfall‐recharge. Three distinct types of flow regimes were identified: (1) ‘Quick flow’ through preferential flow paths (large fractures and conduits); (2) ‘Intermediate flow’ through a secondary crack system; and (3) ‘Slow flow’ through the matrix. A threshold of ～100 mm of rain at the beginning of the rainy season is required to increase soil water content allowing later rainfall events to percolate deeper through the soil and to initiate dripping in the cave. During winter, as the soil water content rises, the lag time between a rain event and cave drip response decreases. Annual recharge (140–160 mm in different areas in the cave) measured represents 30–35% of annual rainfall (460 mm). Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.