Tele-connecting local consumption to global land use

Globalization increases the interconnectedness of people and places around the world. In a connected world, goods and services consumed in one country are often produced in other countries and exchanged via international trade. Thus, local consumption is increasingly met by global supply chains oftentimes involving large geographical distances and leading to global environmental change. In this study, we connect local consumption to global land use through tracking global commodity and value chains via international trade flows. Using a global multiregional input–output model with sectoral detail allows for the accounting of land use attributed to “unusual” sectors – from a land use perspective – including services, machinery and equipment, and construction. Our results show how developed countries consume a large amount of goods and services from both domestic and international markets, and thus impose pressure not only on their domestic land resources, but also displace land in other countries, thus displacing other uses. For example, 33% of total U.S. land use for consumption purposes is displaced from other countries. This ratio becomes much larger for the EU (more than 50%) and Japan (92%). Our analysis shows that 47% of Brazilian and 88% of Argentinean cropland is used for consumption purposes outside of their territories, mainly in EU countries and China. In addition, consumers in rich countries tend to displace land by consuming non-agricultural products, such as services, clothing and household appliances, which account for more than 50% of their total land displacement. By contrast, for developing economies, such as African countries, the share of land use for non-agricultural products is much lower, with an average of 7%. The emerging economies and population giants, China and India, are likely to further increase their appetite for land from other countries, such as Africa, Russia and Latin America, to satisfy their own land needs driven by their fast economic growth and the needs and lifestyles of their growing populations.     

Masses of the local group and of the M81 group estimated from distortions in the local velocity field

Based on high precision measurements of the distances to nearby galaxies with the Hubble telescope, we have determined the radii of the zero velocity spheres for the local group, R₀ = 0.96±0.03Mpc, and for the group of galaxies around M 81/M 82, 0.89±0.05Mpc. These yield estimates of M_T = (1.29±0.14)· 10¹² M_⊙ and (1.03±0.17)· 10¹² M_⊙, respectively, for the total masses of these groups. The R₀ method allows us to determine the mass ratios for the two brightest members in both groups, as well. By varying the position of the center of mass between the two principal members of a group to obtain minimal scatter in the galaxies on a Hubble diagram, we find mass ratios of 0.8:1.0 for our galaxy and Andromeda and 0.54:1.00 for the M82 and M81 galaxies, in good agreement with the observed ratios of the luminosities of these galaxies. __________ Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 49, No. 1, pp. 5–22 (February 2006).     

SPLITTING OF CALIBRATION DATA BY CLUSTER ANALYSIS

from eorresponding valuesof x.The most eommon aPProaeh to this Problem 15 linear regression(or ealibration),but1 inear methods are usually best suited for quite limited regions alld are not generallyaPPlieable.If a linear fit 15 not satisfactory,alternative aPProaehes are non一linear regression,non一Parametrie regression,transformations and sPlitting of the data into subgrouPs     

Tracing the star stream through M31 using planetary nebula kinematics

We present a possible orbit for the Southern Stream of stars in M31, which connects it to the Northern Spur. Support for this model comes from the dynamics of planetary nebulae (PNe) in the disc of M31: analysis of a new sample of 2611 PNe obtained using the Planetary Nebula Spectrograph reveals ∼20 objects with kinematics inconsistent with the normal components of the galaxy, but which lie at the right positions and velocities to connect the two photometric features via this orbit. The satellite galaxy M32 is coincident with the stream both in position and velocity, adding weight to the hypothesis that the stream comprises its tidal debris.     

Surveying co-located space-geodetic instruments for ITRF computation

A new and comprehensive method is presented that can be used for estimating eccentricity vectors between global positioning system (GPS) antennas, doppler orbitography and radiopositioning integrated by satellites (DORIS) antennas, azimuth-elevation (AZ-EL) very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) telescopes, and satellite laser ranging (SLR) and lunar laser ranging (LLR) telescopes. The problem of reference point (RP) definition for these space-geodetic instruments is addressed and computed using terrestrial triangulation and electronic distance measurement (EDM) trilateration. The practical ground operations, the surveying approach and the terrestrial data processing are briefly illustrated, and the post-processing procedure is discussed. It is a geometrically based analytical approach that allows computation of RPs along with a rigorous statistical treatment of measurements. The tight connection between the geometrical model and the surveying procedure is emphasized. The computation of the eccentricity vector and the associated variance–covariance matrix between an AZ-EL VLBI telescope (with or without intersecting axes) and a GPS choke ring antenna is concentrated upon, since these are fundamental for computing the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF). An extension to RP computation and eccentricity vectors involving DORIS, SLR and LLR techniques is also presented. Numerical examples of the quality that can be reached using the authors approach are given. Working data sets were acquired in the years 2001 and 2002 at the radioastronomical observatory of Medicina (Italy), and have been used to estimate two VLBI-GPS eccentricity vectors and the corresponding SINEX files.     

Calibration of Local Magnitude M<Subscript>L</Subscript> in the Azores Archipelago Based on Recent Digital Recordings

—The development of the digital seismic network in the Azores Archipelago during recent years made it possible to obtain the amplitudes (waveform) of recorded motion in a large set of stations. With this new data, maximum amplitudes of the Wood Anderson seismograph are computed, for each station/component, which, together with epicentral distances, allows for the estimation of local magnitude M _L . We used data recorded in 8 digital permanent three-component stations, with inter-stations distances up to 300 km, in the period June 1998 – June 2000, corresponding to a set of 1315 events with magnitude (M _L or M _D ) 2<M<5.8 and epicenters located in the Azores region, to estimate the coefficients of the equation to compute M _L , as well as to determine the corrections to be applied to each station. The new set of parameters, formed by attenuation coefficients and station corrections, were introduced in the calculations of the M _L , leading to smaller dispersions in the analyzed dataset. We also conclude that the attenuation in the first 150 km is similar to the California values, although higher for longer distances.     

A geographic perspective on intra-urban racial/ethnic diversity, segregation, and clustering in Knoxville, Tennessee: 1990-2000

Racial/ethnic diversity in the United States has increased significantly in recent decades, with minority groups now accounting for almost one-third of the total population. At the same time, growing diversity has spread into rural and non-metropolitan areas. Research suggests that changing diversity in the ‘New South’ has seen growth of non-Black communities. The question, however, is the degree to which increasing diversity equates with increasing intermixing or, alternatively, whether racial/ethnic clusters retain their prominence. This paper examines the geographic manifestations of growing racial/ethnic diversity within intra-urban context, using census-tracts as scale of analysis in the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) of Knoxville in Tennessee. The statistics used for analyzing intra-urban variations include Diversity Score, Theil Entropy Index, and Location Quotient. Tract and Block-group data for White, Black, American Indian, Asian, All Others and Hispanic are used for computing these indices. This paper concludes that diversity has increased during 1990-2000, and has dispersed into suburban counties. However, segregation and clustering for certain minority groups has also increased, in particular African-Americans still remain the most segregated and most clustered community confined to specific geographic locations. This research holds significance as local economic development patterns are very much guided by the geographic variability of human and social capital. Applied research can suggest avenues for growth and can help rebuild local communities. This paper will also contribute to literature focusing on methodological challenges in measuring diversity and its geographic manifestations.