Modal Choice in the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area: An Exploratory Data Analysis

Journey-to-work mode choice is intertwined with ideological and pragmatic issues. This article reexamines such issues using socioeconomic data from the decennial census and American Community Survey (ACS). It investigates the structure of variables with exploratory data analysis (EDA) because this technique advises the formation of hypotheses and the specification of cause and effect. Traditional EDA reveals the nonnormal structure of raw data, mapping illustrates associations between transit and income, and both methods suggest the presence of a transit-by-choice population among affluent metropolitan residents. The results yield three hypotheses concerning propensity to use transit that have previously received little attention.     

Using isotopes to understand the evolution of water ages in disturbed mixed land-use catchments

Tracer studies have been key to unravelling catchment hydrological processes, yet most insights have been gained in environments with relatively low human impact. We investigated the spatial variability of stream isotopes and water ages to infer dominant flow paths in a ~10-km² nested catchment in a disturbed, predominantly agricultural environment in Scotland. We collected long-term (>5 years) stable isotope data of precipitation, artificial drainage, and four streams with varying soil and land use types in their catchment areas. Using a gamma model, Mean Transit Times (MTTs) were then estimated in order to understand the spatial variability of controls on water ages. Despite contrasting catchment characteristics, we found that MTTs in the streams were generally very similar and short (<1 year). MTTs of water in artificial drains were even shorter, ranging between 1 to 10 months for a typical field drain and <0.5 to 1 month for a country road drain. At the catchment scale, lack of heterogeneity in the response could be explained by the extensive artificial surface and subsurface drainage, “short-circuiting” younger water to the streams during storms. Under such conditions, additional intense disturbance associated with highway construction during the study period had no major effect on the stream isotope dynamics. Supplementary short-term (~14 months) sampling of mobile soil water in dominant soil-land use units also revealed that agricultural practices (ploughing of poorly draining soils and soil compaction due to grazing on freely draining soils) resulted in subtle MTT variations in soil water in the upper profile. Overall, the isotope dynamics and inferred MTTs suggest that the evolution of stream water ages in such a complex human-influenced environment are largely related to near-surface soil processes and the dominant soil management practices. This has direct implications for understanding and managing flood risk and contaminant transport in such environments.     

Preliminary evaluation of the runoff processes in a remote montane cloud forest basin using Mixing Model Analysis and Mean Transit Time

In this study, the Mean Transit Time and Mixing Model Analysis methods are combined to unravel the runoff generation process of the San Francisco River basin (73.5 km²) situated on the Amazonian side of the Cordillera Real in the southernmost Andes of Ecuador. The montane basin is covered with cloud forest, sub‐páramo, pasture and ferns. Nested sampling was applied for the collection of streamwater samples and discharge measurements in the main tributaries and outlet of the basin, and for the collection of soil and rock water samples. Weekly to biweekly water grab samples were taken at all stations in the period April 2007–November 2008. Hydrometric data, Mean Transit Time and Mixing Model Analysis allowed preliminary evaluation of the processes controlling the runoff in the San Francisco River basin. Results suggest that flow during dry conditions mainly consists of lateral flow through the C‐horizon and cracks in the top weathered bedrock layer, and that all subcatchments have an important contribution of this deep water to runoff, no matter whether pristine or deforested. During normal to low precipitation intensities, when antecedent soil moisture conditions favour water infiltration, vertical flow paths to deeper soil horizons with subsequent lateral subsurface flow contribute most to streamflow. Under wet conditions in forested catchments, streamflow is controlled by near surface lateral flow through the organic horizon. Exceptionally, saturation excess overland flow occurs. By absence of the litter layer in pasture, streamflow under wet conditions originates from the A horizon, and overland flow. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A comment on the use of spectral characteristics of teleseismic body waves to evaluate fine crustal structure

An investigation of the crustal response in the time and frequency domains is presented to show that for models with similar crustal transit times of P and S waves, any important changes in the internal configuration of the crust such as layering, layer thickness and velocity contrast only influence the amplitudes of the transfer function ratio. Frequency positions of peaks and troughs remain unperturbed unless the total transit time of P and/or S waves through the crust are varied. This would imply that fine crustal structure derived from a matching of peak positions of observed spectral ratios with theoretical transfer function ratios, as is commonly practiced, is not very meaningful. This limitation in the application of the spectral ratio method for detailed crustal structure is demonstrated using two recent applications of this technique.     

武汉市轨道交通一号线一期工程测量保障体系的研究与建立

论述了武汉市轨道交通一号线一期工程测量保障体系的组成和建立情况，介绍了测量保障体系的建立过程和所达到的精度，对其他工程测量保障体系的建立具有参考意义。     

轨道交通中线测设统一数学模型的建立

根据对常用的两种中线测设数学模型的分析，从线路中线曲率半径的特点出发，提出了中线整体积分数学模型，并导出其计算公式。为了实现整体积分模型的计算，对龙贝格积分算法进行了改进，并用于武汉市轨道交通一号线一期工程的中线测设。比较和分析表明，从实用性和精度等方面来说，整体积分模型是目前轨道交通最优的中线测设模型。     

基于公交大数据的满载率推算方法 ——以深圳市为例

城市可持续发展需要提升公共交通的供给能力。公汽满载率是公交规划、调度和服务评价等方面的重要参数。在公交信息化水平不断提升的背景下,由公交IC卡数据和公共汽车GPS数据等构成的公交大数据为获得相对精确的客流提供了可能。虽然已有相对稳定的OD推算方法,但对于公汽满载率的研究尚不够充分。本文提出基于历史公交大数据的大规模公交出行链搜素算法,在此基础上构建公共汽车满载率数据库,并以深圳市为例揭示了高满载率线路段的时空分布特征。本文研究对于揭示公汽服务整体水平和探测关键公交廊道具有较大价值。     

轨道交通典型隔振屏障隔振效果模型试验研究

为了研究轨道交通中几种典型隔振屏障的隔振效果,本文通过室外模型试验,以振动加速度级作为振动评价标准,对其做出分析并给出相应评价。结果表明:(1)土体振动主要是由中低频振动波引起的;(2)对比分析几种典型连续隔振屏障的隔振效果:空沟>地下连续墙>碎石填充沟>橡胶填充沟;综合考察几种非连续隔振屏障得出:混凝土桩的隔振效果优于隔振井;隔振效果优劣比较为:混凝土实心桩>混凝土空心桩>PVC空井>碎石填充井>橡胶填充井;(3)对于单排混凝土空心桩,空心率越大,隔振效果相对越差;空心桩内部形状的改变对隔振效果影响不大,外部形状的改变对隔振效果有一定程度影响,但效果不显著,且桩体外截面为方形时的隔振效果较圆形差。     

Bedrock geology controls on catchment storage,mixing, and release: A comparative analysis of 16 nested catchments

The bedrock controls on catchment mixing, storage, and release have been actively studied in recent years. However, it has been difficult to find neighbouring catchments with sufficiently different and clean expressions of geology to do comparative analysis. Here, we present new data for 16 nested catchments (0.45 to 410 km²) in the Alzette River basin (Luxembourg) that span a range of clean and mixed expressions of schists, phyllites, sandstones, and quartzites to quantify the relationships between bedrock permeability and metrics of water storage and release. We examined 9 years' worth of precipitation and discharge data, and 6 years of fortnightly stable isotope data in streamflow, to explore how bedrock permeability controls (a) streamflow regime metrics, (b) catchment storage, and (c) isotope response and catchment mean transit time (MTT). We used annual and winter precipitation–run‐off ratios, as well as average summer and winter precipitation–run‐off ratios to characterise the streamflow regime in our 16 study catchments. Catchment storage was then used as a metric for catchment comparison. Water mixing potential of 11 catchments was quantified via the standard deviation in streamflow δD (σδD) and the amplitude ratio (A_S/A_P) of annual cycles of δ¹⁸O in streamflow and precipitation. Catchment MTT values were estimated via both stable isotope signature damping and hydraulic turnover calculations. In our 16 nested catchments, the variance in ratios of summer versus winter average run‐off was best explained by bedrock permeability. Whereas active storage (defined here as a measure of the observed maximum interannual variability in catchment storage) ranged from 107 to 373 mm, total catchment storage (defined as the maximum catchment storage connected to the stream network) extended up to ~1700 mm (±200 mm). Catchment bedrock permeability was strongly correlated with mixing proxies of σδD in streamflow and δ¹⁸O A_S/A_P ratios. Catchment MTT values ranged from 0.5 to 2 years, based on stable isotope signature damping, and from 0.5 to 10 years, based on hydraulic turnover.