Temporal changes of diatoms in marine biofilm developed on acrylic panels submerged in a tropical coast

The colonization of diatom groups on the acrylic panels submerged in Kudankulam coastal waters, east coast of India, was studied for one year from October 2004 to August 2005. Results showed temporal variability in the abundance of dominant diatom groups. Diatoms belonging to 19 genera colonized the panels. Navicula and Nitzschia were the dominant diatoms observed throughout the present study. The abundance of diatoms on test panels increased with the length of exposure. Significant variations in the abundance of Navicula and Nitzschia were observed between the sampling months. Temporal changes in biofilm diatom community composition in this study attain significance from the view point of macrofouling community recruitment on marine structures.     

Crystallization history of Obsidian Dome,Inyo Domes,California

Samples obtained by U.S. Department of Energy research drilling at the 600-year-old Obsidian Dome volcano provide the rare opportunity to examine the transition from volcanic (dome) to plutonic (intrusion) textures in a silicic magma system. Textures in the lavas from Obsidian Dome record multiple periods of crystallization initiated in response to changes in undercooling (T) related to variable degassing in the mag-ma. Phenocr)ysts formed first at low T. A drastic increase in T, related to loss of a vapor phase during initial stages of eruption, caused nucleation of microlites. All of the lavas thus contain phenocrysts and microlites. Extrusion and subsequent devitrification of the dry (0.1 wt% H₂O) magma crystallized spherulites and fine-grained rhyolite at high T. A granophyric texture, representing crystallization at a moderate T, formed in the intrusions beneath Obsidian Dome. Textures in the intrusion apparently represent crystallization of hydrous (1–2 wt% H₂O) rhyolitic magma at shallow depths.     

THERMALLY DRIVEN SORPTION,DESORPTION, AND MOISTURE MIGRATION IN THE ACTIVE LAYER IN CENTRAL ALASKA

Combined observations of hourly soil temperature and electric potential, the latter converted to a relative index of soil-water solute concentration, yield information on the physical chemistry of near-surface frost effects. Solute concentration near the descending 0° C isotherm in the refreezing active layer above permafrost is divided into three distinct zones: (1) an ion-enriched zone in the unfrozen active layer that precedes the penetrating freezing front; (2) an ion-purified desorbed zone at the freezing front that is the source region of the downward-expelled ions and water; and (3) a hydrologically isolated subfreezing zone of enhanced solute concentration located above the freezing isotherm. High-frequency fluctuations superimposed on these general patterns are traceable to vapor migration driven by surface thermal fluctuations. These effects diminish at temperatures below about -0.4° C, as permeability decreases with soil-ice formation. The combined temperature-solute concentration time series is used to develop sorption curves for the frozen organic and mineral soils, and indicates that approximately half of the pore water present in the mineral soil at -0.4° C had not been converted to ice at -6° C. Gradual soil desiccation over winter appears to result from outward vapor diffusion, possibly through soil cracks. [Key words: Alaska, active layer, frozen ground, soil temperature, soil water, permafrost.]     

Australian east coast rainfall decline related to large scale climate drivers

Rainfall on the subtropical east coast of Australia has declined at up to 50?mm per decade since 1970. Wavelet analysis is used to investigate eight station and four station-averaged rainfall distributions along Australia??s subtropical east coast with respect to the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the inter-decadal Pacific oscillation (IPO) and the southern annular mode (SAM). The relationships are examined further using composite atmospheric circulation anomalies. Here we show that the greatest rainfall variability occurs in the 15?C30?year periodicity of the 1948?C1975 or ??cool?? phase of the IPO when the subtropical ridge is located sufficiently poleward for anomalous moist onshore airflow to occur together with high ENSO rainfall variability and high, negative phase, SAM variability. Thus, the mid-latitude westerlies are located at their most equatorward position in the Australian region. This maximizes tropospheric interaction of warm, moist tropical air with enhanced local baroclinicity over the east coast, and hence rainfall.     

Anticipating ubiquitous computing: Logics to forecast technological futures

Visions of the future predict spaces apparently teaming with ever more novel and pervasive technologies. Significant amongst such forecasts is the notion of ‘ubiquitous computing’ (ubicomp), understood as an affordance or capacity tied (in)to people, places and things. This article stages an encounter between the futurity of ubicomp and recent debates in geography around anticipation. So, first, the future orientation in ubicomp research and development (R&D) is investigated as a mode of anticipation. ‘Knowledges’, and ‘logics’ of anticipation are subsequently, and second, discussed as the conceptual apparatus that constructs and perpetuates the ‘proximate future’ of ubicomp. This analysis connects recent discussion about ‘anticipation’ in social sciences research with the methods of ubicomp research, which fits with an emergent agenda around futurity in human geography. Third, the conceptual articulation of ‘anticipatory logic’ is applied to the analysis of empirical investigations of ubicomp R&D to identify the specific logics of anticipation at play. This article accordingly examines the logics of anticipation that both support and destabilise the certainty with which the future is imagined within ubicomp. In conclusion, the multiple ways of anticipating a future world and the ways in which they discipline understandings of futurity are framed as a politics of anticipation.     

Response of juvenile lemon sharks, Negaprion brevirostris, to a magnetic barrier simulating a beach net

Beach nets are preventative devices used to minimize interactions between potentially harmful sharks and unsuspecting swimmers. Quantitative studies demonstrated that beach nets drastically reduced local elasmobranch populations, as well as caused considerable bycatch mortality. For this experiment, a beach net-like device was constructed and the behaviors of six juvenile lemon sharks (Negaprion brevirostris) were analyzed. Induced by olfactory and gustatory cues, sharks were given the choice to swim through a magnetic or control opening in the net. In the first trial, all six sharks avoided the magnetic region and significantly preferred to swim through the control region of the fence. The magnetic stimulus no longer affected the swimming behavior of three sharks retested after resting 24 h. Results from the retested sharks were correlated with those from repeated tonic immobility trials, which demonstrated a linear decrease in sensitivity to repeated magnetic stimulation. This study serves as a baseline experiment demonstrating that permanent magnets may substantially decrease elasmobranch mortality within beach nets.     

Examining locally driven climate change policy efforts in three Pacific states

Local jurisdictions play a critical role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. This study analyzes the theoretical framework of locally driven climate change actions and uses geographic information system (GIS) to map local jurisdictions’ climate change policy efforts in three Pacific states - California, Oregon, and Washington. The results of our study indicate statistically significant differences in geographic clusters and variations across jurisdictions. An Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model was used to examine climate risk, emission stress, and socioeconomic context variables to detect influence on local climate change policy efforts. The explanatory results indicate that coastal proximity, population density, vehicles emission, and education variables significantly influence local jurisdictions’ climate change actions. The findings contribute to local organizational decision model research and can help local communities to develop more effective climate change policies.     

Nearshore Carbonate Dissolution in the Hawaiian Archipelago?

Inorganic carbon measurements made in the late 1980s suggest that alkalinity in the waters surrounding the Hawaiian Archipelago is elevated relative to the oligotrophic waters of the North Pacific. These observations have been interpreted as evidence for a “halo” of elevated carbonate saturation state produced by the dissolution of highly soluble magnesium calcites and aragonite on the island platform or in the water column surrounding the islands. If present, this “halo” has implications for air–sea carbon dioxide exchange in Hawaiian waters and may impact the response of coral reef communities to the acidification of the surface waters of the global ocean. The purpose of this study was to assess the magnitude and extent of the elevated calcium carbonate saturation state observed on previous expeditions to this region. Transects were conducted near several atolls in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands from shallow water adjacent to the forereef to the open ocean 15 km from the island. Hydrographic profiles were collected at each station, and discrete water samples were collected for the measurement of carbon system parameters necessary to compute calcium carbonate saturation state. Our data were compared with observations made at the Hawaii Ocean Time-series site at Station ALOHA and with hydrographic data collected on the WOCE lines in the North Pacific around the archipelago. We did not detect a carbonate dissolution halo around the islands. We conclude that the previously observed halo was probably an analytical artifact, or possibly a result of extreme variability in carbon chemistry surrounding the islands.     

Physical universals in problem of precursor soliton generation

Six physical universals and two general relations in the problem of locally forced precursor soliton generation are found thcoretically in terms of the AfKdV equation derived by authors. These six universals and two general relations are examined by experiment and numerical calculation of two-layer flow based on the canonical character of the coefficients of tlie fKdV equations. From comparisons among the theoretical, numerical and experimental results, it is shown that they are in good agreement. There is not any free parameter in this theory, so the theory of the present paper can be used to predict thc wave properties of locally forced precursor soliton generation. Project supported hy Foundation of the State Education Commission for The Dynamics of Upper Ocean and grants of Physical Oceanography Laboratory of Ocean University of Qingdao.     

Soil erosion and sediment transport in Tanzania: Part I – sediment source tracing in three neighbouring river catchments

Water bodies in Tanzania are experiencing increased siltation, which is threatening water quality, ecosystem health, and livelihood security in the region. This phenomenon is caused by increasing rates of upstream soil erosion and downstream sediment transport. However, a lack of knowledge on the contributions from different catchment zones, land-use types, and dominant erosion processes, to the transported sediment is undermining the mitigation of soil degradation at the source of the problem. In this context, complementary sediment source tracing techniques were applied in three Tanzanian river systems to further the understanding of the complex dynamics of soil erosion and sediment transport in the region. Analysis of the geochemical and biochemical fingerprints revealed a highly complex and variable soil system that could be grouped in distinct classes. These soil classes were unmixed against riverine sediment fingerprints using the Bayesian MixSIAR model, yielding proportionate source contributions for each catchment. This sediment source tracing indicated that hillslope erosion on the open rangelands and maize croplands in the mid-zone contributed over 75% of the transported sediment load in all three river systems during the sampling time-period. By integrating geochemical and biochemical fingerprints in sediment source tracing techniques, this study demonstrated links between land use, soil erosion and downstream sediment transport in Tanzania. This evidence can guide land managers in designing targeted interventions that safeguard both soil health and water quality.