The effect of non-gravitational forces on the median inclination of short-period comets

The numbered Jupiter family comets (orbital periods   P < 20 yr  ) have a median orbital inclination of about     . In this paper, we integrate the orbits of these comets into the future, under the influence of both typical non-gravitational forces and planetary perturbation, using a Bulirsch–Stoer integrator. In the case where non-gravitational forces were not acting, the median inclination of those comets that remained on   P < 20 yr  orbits increased at the rate of  (1.92 ± 0.12) × 10⁻³ deg yr⁻¹  for the first 3600 yr of the integration. During this time the population of the original family decreases, such that the half-life is about 13 200 ± 800 yr. The introduction of non-gravitational forces slows down the rate of increase in inclination to a value of around  (1.23 ± 0.16) × 10⁻³ deg yr⁻¹  . This rate of increase in inclination was found to be only weakly dependent on the non-gravitational parameters used during the integration. After a few thousand years, the rate of change in inclination decreases, and after 20 000 yr the inclinations of those initial Jupiter family members that still have orbits with   P < 20 yr  become constant at about     , independent of whether non-gravitational forces are acting or not. The presently known Jupiter family of comets is losing members at the rate of one in every 67 yr. To maintain the family in equilibrium, Jupiter has to capture comets at a similar rate, and these captured comets have to be of low inclination to compensate for the pumping up of inclinations by gravitational perturbation.     

Collective responsibility amplifies mitigation behaviors

How can individuals be convinced to act on climate change? It is widely assumed that emphasizing personal responsibility for climate change is effective at increasing pro-climate behavior whereas collectively framing the causes of climate change diffuses responsibility and dampens the incentive for individual action. We observe the opposite result. Here we find, across three experiments, that emphasizing collective responsibility for the causes of climate change increases pro-climate monetary donations by approximately 7 % in environmental group members and by 50 % in the general public. Further, highlighting collective responsibility amplifies intent to reduce future carbon emissions. In contrast, focusing on personal responsibility for climate change does not significantly alter donations to climate change advocacy or the intent for future pro-climate behavior. These effects replicate and persist multiple days after treatment.     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987114001583

Detrital zircons from modern sediments display an episodic temporal distribution of U-Pb crystallization ages forming a series of 'peaks' and 'troughs'.The peaks are interpreted to represent either periods of enhanced generation of granitic magma perhaps associated with mantle overturn and superplume events,or preferential preservation of continental crust during global collisional orogenesis.The close association of those peaks with the assembly of supercontinents implies a causal relationship between collisional orogenesis and the presence of zircon age peaks.Here these two end-member models(episodic periodicity of increased magmatism versus selective preservation during collisional orogenesis) are assessed using U-Pb,Hf,and O analysis of detrital zircons from sedimentary successions deposited during the ~ 1.3-1.1Ca accretionary.~1.1-0.9 Ga collisional,and 0.9 Ga extensional collapse phases of the Grenville orogenic cycle in Labrador and Scotland.The pre-collisional,accretionary stage provides a baseline of continental crust present prior to orogenesis and is dominated by Archean and Paleoproterozoic age peaks associated with pre-1300 Ma Laurentian geology.Strata deposited during the Grenville Orogeny display similar Archean and Paleoproterozoic detrital populations along with a series of broad muted peaks from~ 1500 to 1100 Ma.However,post-collisional sedimentary successions display a dominant age peak between 1085 and 985 Ma,similar to that observed in modern North American river sediments.Zircons within the post-orogenic sedimentary successions have progressively lower εHf and higherδ~(18)O values from ~ 1800 to ~ 1200 Ma whereupon they have higher εHf and δ~(18) within the dominant1085-985 Ma age peak.Furthermore,the Lu-Hf isotopic profile of the Grenville-related age peak is consistent with significant assimilation and contamination by older crustal material.The timing of this dominant age peak coincides with the peak of metamorphism and magmatism associated with the Crenville Orogeny,which is a typical collisional orogenic belt.The change from broad muted age peaks in the syn-orogenic strata to a single peak in the post-orogenic sedimentary successions and in the modern river sediments implies a significant shift in provenance following continental collision.This temporal change in provenance highlights that the source(s),from which detrital zircons within syn-orogenic strata were derived,was no longer available during the later stages of the accretionary and collisional stages of the orogenic cycle.This may reflect some combination of tectonic burial,erosion,or possibly recycling into the mantle by tectonic erosion of the source(s).During continental collision,the incorporated continental crust is isolated from crustal recycling processes operative at subduction margins.This tectonic isolation combined with sedimentaiy recycling likely controls the presence of the isotopic signature associated with the Grenville Orogeny in the modern Mississippi and Appalachian river sediments.These results imply that zircon age peaks,which developed in conjunction with supercontinents,are the product of selective crustal preservation resulting from collisional orogenesis.     

Dating Palaeolithic sites in southwestern Crete,Greece

Discussions of dispersals of early hominins from Africa assume that Southwest Asia and the Arabian Peninsula were the primary passageways for migrations to Eurasia. The Mediterranean is usually viewed as a barrier to early hominin movements because pre‐sapiens hominins were thought to lack the technical means or the cognitive skills to construct boats. The discovery of early Palaeolithic artefacts in an archaeological survey on the Greek island of Crete challenges this view. Here we show that Palaeolithic artefacts in the Plakias region in southwestern Crete are associated with geological contexts that can be dated to the late Middle or early Late Pleistocene. Because Crete has been separated from the mainland throughout the Pleistocene, the presence of Pleistocene age artefacts there suggests that early hominins were able to cross open water. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mapping the human record in the British early Palaeolithic: evidence from the Solent River system

The lithic record from the Solent River and its tributaries is re‐examined in the light of recent interpretations about the changing demography of Britain during the Lower and early Middle Palaeolithic. Existing models of the terrace stratigraphies in the Solent and its tributary areas are reviewed and the corresponding archaeological record (specifically handaxes) for each terrace is assessed to provide models for the relative changes in human occupation through time. The Bournemouth area is studied in detail to examine the effects of quarrying and urbanisation on collection history and on the biases it introduces to the record. In addition, the effects of reworking of artefacts from higher into lower terraces are assessed, and shown to be a significant problem. Although there is very little absolute dating available for the Solent area, a cautious interpretation of the results from these analyses would suggest a pre‐Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 12 date for the first appearance of humans, a peak in population between MIS 12 and 10, and a decline in population during MIS 9 and 8. Owing to poor contextual data and small sample sizes, it is not clear when Levallois technology was introduced. This record is compared and contrasted to that from the Thames Valley. It is suggested that changes in the palaeogeography of Britain, in particular land connections to the continent, might have contributed to differences in the archaeological records from the Solent and Thames regions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Feasibility of age determination of deep-water bamboo corals (Gorgonacea; Isididae) from annual cycles in skeletal composition

We test two hypotheses, that annual environmental cycles produce periodic variability in the skeletal composition of deep-water gorgonians, and that these cycles can be counted to determine the coral's age. Annual periodicity of deposition was tested by comparing the internode composition of bamboo corals live-collected 10 years apart in the Southern Ocean. The validity of the comparison was substantiated by growth rates for the 10-year interval (77–121 μm/yr) that were confirmed by radiocarbon analysis. Variability in Mg/Ca and possibly S/Ca, but not Sr/Ca or P/Ca, was consistent with annual cycles of deposition. However, spectral analysis of Mg/Ca data for a larger coral showed little or no spectral peak associated with an annual cycle of deposition (though there were peaks at periods of 4–5 and 11–15 years). The absence of an annual peak is likely to reflect growth rates that vary over time, coral cross-sections that change shape over time, and interannual differences in the seasonal range of environmental variability. The resulting subjectivity in what defines an annulus, along with evidence that the nature and extent of annual periodicity differs among sites, means that the technique is likely to be inherently imprecise and to require independent validation for each site and taxon before it can be applied.     

Identifying step changes in single streamflow and evaporation records due to forest cover change

Techniques that identify forestry‐induced changes to streamflow or evaporation are needed to assess available water resources. Equally, there is a growing appreciation that climate cycles may be having a profound impact on the land‐surface hydrology. The ability to see forestry‐induced change above the effects of climate dynamics, therefore, becomes a critical issue. Paired‐catchment analyses have proved very valuable in identifying change, but cannot quantify the relative impacts of climate and land‐cover change, and data from adjacent reference basins are not always available. Within this study, we examined whether step changes within single time‐series of streamflow or evaporation (P‐Q) could be identified without reference to those of a control catchment. The UC‐DHR method was used for this analysis, and included a special routine to allow a known change‐point (e.g. start of logging) to be specified or alternatively identified by the model. Data from three experimental catchments important for their seminal forestry impact studies were selected for the analyses. The study demonstrated that clear‐cutting 29% of the Hore catchment and 40% selective felling of the Berembun basin produced a step change in the discharge trend that was clearly observable above the climate‐related dynamics and uncertainty. In contrast, step changes in P‐Q following the same selective felling event or following 22% afforestation of the Upper Hodder basin were not larger than the uncertainty bands or magnitude of the inter‐annual cycles produced by the climate dynamics, respectively. This demonstrates that while step changes can be observed in single hydrological time‐series, errors within the observations can sometimes mask the identification of change. This masking of change is also possible where the longer‐term cyclical behaviour in Q or P‐Q from natural climate dynamics is large, while the spatial extent of forestry change is small. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.