Probabilistic stability analyses of undrained slopes by 3D random fields and finite element methods

A long slope consisting of spatially random soils is a common geographical feature. This paper examined the necessity of three-dimensional(3 D) analysis when dealing with slope with full randomness in soil properties. Although 3 D random finite element analysis can well reflect the spatial variability of soil properties, it is often time-consuming for probabilistic stability analysis. For this reason, we also examined the least advantageous(or most pessimistic) cross-section of the studied slope. The concept of"most pessimistic" refers to the minimal cross-sectional average of undrained shear strength. The selection of the most pessimistic section is achievable by simulating the undrained shear strength as a 3 D random field. Random finite element analysis results suggest that two-dimensional(2 D) plane strain analysis based the most pessimistic cross-section generally provides a more conservative result than the corresponding full 3 D analysis. The level of conservativeness is around 15% on average. This result may have engineering implications for slope design where computationally tractable 2 D analyses based on the procedure proposed in this study could ensure conservative results.     

东北多年冻土退化及环境效应研究现状与展望

东北多年冻土属中高纬度多年冻土,对气候变化非常敏感。数据模型模拟表明,21世纪东北多年冻土区气温会持续上升,显著的变暖将导致多年冻土退化。东北多年冻土呈现自南向北的区域性退化趋势,多年冻土区南部表现为南界的北移、融区的扩大和多年冻土的消失,而北部表现为多年冻土下限的上移、活动层厚度增大及地温升高等。多年冻土的退化会导致寒区生态环境的恶化,如兴安落叶松占绝对优势的天然林带锐减,林带北移,沼泽湿地萎缩等。随着多年冻土的迅速退缩和变薄,原多年冻土中蕴藏的碳将释放出来,对气候变化产生积极的正反馈,加速变暖,并影响全球碳循环。多年冻土退化导致其热状态失稳而造成寒区基础设施损坏,并且影响冻土微生物、碳循环、寒区生态和水文等,而它们是区域气候变化的重要因子,也将成为未来多年冻土研究的重点。而这些研究都需要长期的基础数据作支撑,因此需要进一步完善冻土参数监测网络,用模型厘清气候变化与多年冻土退化及其环境效应之间的关系。     

基于Hyperion高光谱数据和随机森林方法的岩性分类与分析

探索利用高光谱数据的岩性填图新方法是遥感地质应用领域的重要需求之一。本文运用随机森林方法和EO-1Hyperion高光谱数据,对新疆塔里木西北部柯坪地区的局部区域进行岩性分类,并对相关问题进行分析。分别利用光谱特征以及加入光谱一阶导数特征进行岩性分类,并对不同特征对岩性分类的重要性进行分析,同时与现有的基于光谱角制图方法(SAM)进行比较。结果表明,与SAM方法相比,随机森林方法得到了更高精度的岩性分类结果,是一种有效可行的岩性分类方法。根据特征重要性的排序,蓝绿光波段、短波红外波段以及相应的一阶导数特征对研究区Hyperion数据的沉积岩岩性分类贡献更大。     

随机森林模型预测岩溶区酸性煤矿井水锰污染

酸性煤矿井水严重威胁地下水的水质。如何更有效对受影响区域的地下水源进行动态监测是当前的一个关键问题。采用随机森林中的回归模型,利用自变量(采空区水位、岩溶水位、pH值、泉水流量、电导率)和因变量(污染离子浓度)的相关性,建立回归模型;使用测试数据进行误差分析,结果证明模型准度较高,所得预测值具有参考价值;得出各自变量对因变量影响的重要程度,分析结果与实际情况相符合。试验表明,随机森林回归模型在酸性煤矿井水污染预测方面具有适用性,可作为辅助手段监测水质污染情况,对今后工作有一定的指导意义和经济价值。     

The Extra-Area Effect in 71 Cloud Seeding Operations during Winters of 2008–14 over Jiangxi Province,East China

Effects of weather modification operations on precipitation in target areas have been widely reported, but little is specifically known about the downwind (extra-area) effects in China. We estimated the extra-area effect of an operational winter (November-February) aircraft cloud-seeding project in northern Jiangxi Province in eastern China by using a revised historical target/control regression analysis method based on the precipitation data in winter. The results showed that the overall seasonal average rainfall at the downwind stations increased by 21.67%(p=0.0013). This enhancement effect was detected as far as 120 km away from the target area. Physical testing was used to compare the cloud characteristics before and after seeding on 29 November 2014. A posteriori analysis with respect to the characteristics of cloud units derived from operational weather radar data in Jiangxi was performed by tracking cloud units. Radar features in the target unit were enhanced relative to the control unit for more than two hours after the operational cloud seeding, which is indicative of the extra-area seeding effect. The findings could be used to help relieve water shortages in China.     

Decline of Pseudodiaptomus hessei (Copepoda, Calanoida) in two water bodies located in the Senegal River hydrosystem (West Africa): Hypotheses and perspectives

Pseudodiaptomus hessei is a key species in many water bodies in the Senegal River hydrosystem but it became rare or completely disappeared from two ecosystems (Lake Guiers and Dakar Bango Reservoir; Senegal, West Africa) after major hydrological changes caused by human action, mainly impoundments on the river in 1985, and the opening of a new estuary mouth in 2003. Kâ et al. [Kâ, S., Pagano, M., Ba, N., Bouvy, M., Leboulanger, C., Arfi, R., Thiaw, O.T., Ndour, E.H.M., Corbin, D., Defaye, D., Cuoc, C., Kouassi, E., 2006. Zooplankton distribution related to environmental factors and phytoplankton in a shallow tropical lake (Lake Guiers, Senegal, West Africa). International Review of Hydrobiology 91(5), 389–405] put forward several hypotheses to explain the reasons for this decline: salinity and chemical changes in the water, predation by a cyclopid predator Mesocyclops ogunnus and/or the inhibiting effects of cyanobacteria and/or diatoms (allelopathy). This study assessed these hypotheses by studying the distribution of P. hessei in 13 stations (including the Dakar Bango reservoir and Lake Guiers) in relation to physical, chemical and biological (phyto- and zooplanktons) factors at each station. We produced a distribution pattern for this species in the Senegal River hydrosystem. Rank correlations and principal component analysis showed that P. hessei was not correlated with conductivity but was positively correlated with pH and alkalinity, suggesting chemical effects. The clear association with two filamentous cyanobacteria (Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii and Anabaena sp.) did not appear to support the hypothesis of cyanobacteria inhibition but blooming conditions were never encountered during the study. Negative correlation with diatoms (especially with Fragilaria sp.) suggested that aldehyde producing diatoms had a negative effect. Negative correlations with cyclopids such as Mesocyclops supported the hypothesis of cyclopid predation to explain the decline of P. hessei. This study proposes several lines of research for future studies to test these hypotheses.     

Tectonic Movement and Global Climate Change

Glaciation between northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere were synchronous, the ice age occurred not in high but in low value of the eccentricity of the earth's orbit. Such facts went against the precession principle of the astronomical theory of ice age. The inhomogeneous distribution of climate consisted with the inhomogeneous distribution of ocean and continent. The north/south antisymmetry may be attributed to southward deviation of the thermal center and northward deviation of the mass center within the mantle demonstrated by seismic tomography. The core - mantle angular momentum makes rotational energy into thermal energy and mantle plumes erupt in the ocean bottom. The earth's deformation by tidal force makes the eruption of mantle plumes strong. They are the reason that glaciation between the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere are synchronous and the ice age occurred in low value of the eccentricity of the earth' s orbit. The tectonic movement is playing a most important part in global climate change.     

信息化对旅游产业发展的空间溢出效应

信息化将重塑区域间旅游产业的互动和关联。既有研究虽然对信息化与旅游产业发展之关系有所探讨,但多数研究忽视了信息化对旅游产业发展的空间溢出效应,因而难以准确测量信息化对旅游产业发展的贡献。采用中国大陆31个省份2001-2014年的面板数据,从区域关联的视角构建空间计量模型,测算信息化对旅游产业发展的直接影响和空间溢出影响。结果表明：① 信息化与旅游产业发展均具有显著的空间关联性,传统的计量模型因未考虑个体间的空间交互作用而误估了信息化对旅游产业发展的产出弹性;② 信息化基础设施和信息技术消费对旅游产业发展的作用路径存在差异,单纯的信息化基础设施建设并不一定能促进旅游产业的发展,过度的规模竞争反而会陷入“索洛生产率悖论”;而信息技术消费的提升虽有助于正向的空间溢出,但其空间重构的潜力仍有待释放;③ 固定资产投入、劳动力和旅游接待规模等都是推进旅游产业发展的多维要素,但在信息化的交互影响下,资本和劳动力的空间溢出均不明显,而资源禀赋、环境质量、服务经济占比和产业集聚呈现出显著的负向外溢效应。     

Farmland Abandonment Research Progress: Influencing Factors and Simulation Model

Farmland abandonment is a global problem and considered one of the most important areas in land use change research. Farmland abandonment research currently focuses on understanding the factors that affect farmland abandonment and developing scientific models to simulate farmland abandonment. The study reviewed the natural and political factors driving farmland abandonment and summarized the main models for farmland abandonment simulation together with their advantages and disadvantages. We discuss the main ecological effects of farmland abandonment and propose farmland abandonment research directions. The study found that: (1) the influence of labor cost change and ageing labor force on farmland abandonment needs further investigation, (2) simulation models for farmland abandonment must include the decision-making mechanism of individual farmers and focus on macro large-scale abandonment prediction models, and (3) the influence of farmland abandonment on landscape culture must be investigated in detail.     

Effects of installation on the cyclic axial behaviour of suction buckets in sandy soils

Suction buckets differ with their easy and cost-efficient installation technique from other foundation types for offshore wind turbines. For successful completion of their installation process, suction is essential, but the imposed seepage leads to the changes in states of the soil in and around the bucket. Especially, a loosening of soil inside the bucket affects the load carrying behaviour of bucket subjected to repetitive loading resulting from environmental conditions. In this study, the behaviour of buckets under cyclic axial compressive loads with considering a possible loosening and related changes in permeability of soil inside the bucket is investigated numerically. In the framework of finite element analysis, a fully coupled two-phase model and a hypoplastic constitutive model are used to describe the saturated sandy soil behaviour under repetitive loading. The porosity-permeability variation is taken into account by Kozeny–Carman relationship. Special attention is dedicated to load carrying behaviour of bucket top plate, inner and outer skirt as well as base and their changes resulting from a loosening of soil inside the bucket with variable aspect ratio. For this purpose, cyclic axial compressive loads which cause an attenuation and progressive failure of soil-bucket system response are considered. The main findings on the changes in load carrying behaviour of bucket are presented and discussed.