The Muralla Pircada—an ancient Andean debris flow retention dam, Santa Rita B archaeological site, Chao Valley, Northern Perú

Debris flows caused by El Niño events, earthquakes, and glacial releases have affected northern Perú for centuries. The Muralla Pircada, a northeast-trending, 2.5 km long stone wall east of the Santa Rita B archaeological site (Moche-Chimú) in the Chao Valley, is field evidence that ancient Andeans recognized and, more importantly, attempted to mitigate the effects of debris flows. The Muralla is upstream from the site and is perpendicular to local drainages. It is 1–2 m high, up to 5 m wide, and is comprised of intentionally-placed, well-sorted, well-rounded, 20–30 cm cobbles and boulders from nearby streams. Long axes of the stones are gently inclined and parallel local drainage. Case-and-fill construction was used with smaller cobbles and pebbles used as fill. Pre-Muralla debris flows are indicated by meter-sized, angular boulders that were incorporated in-place into construction of the dam and are now exposed in breeches in the dam. Post-Muralla debris flows in the Chao Valley are indicated by meter-sized, angular boulders that now abut the retention dam.     

Building stone employed in the historical monuments of Eastern Sicily (Italy). An example: the ancient city centre of Catania

An archaeometric study of the stone materials employed in the Late Baroque historical monuments of the ancient city centre of Catania was carried out. Lithological maps of a selection of monuments, transferred to a digital format, revealed that the stone materials are both magmatic and sedimentary rocks, the colours of which are matched in a peculiar type of bichromy. Particular attention focused on sedimentary rocks, which consist of various types of limestone quarried near the city of Syracuse (Hyblean Plateau, south-eastern Sicily). Carbonate rocks were characterised in terms of mineralogy, petrography and geochemistry, by studying rock samples from both monuments and historical extraction sites. Results showed that, although only one name was historically attributed to the above lithotypes (i.e. “Pietra di Siracusa‘’), they were quarried from many locations and, as they belong to various geological formations, they therefore exhibit great variety. In order to examine the durability of Hyblean limestones employed in works of cultural heritage interest, salt crystallisation tests were carried out according to standard procedure norms (UNI EN 12370 (1999) Determination of resistance to crystallisation of salts, 6p). Results are consistent with the forms of deterioration observed in the monuments, and highlight the close relationship between textural characteristics and damage. Our purpose is to provide a basic tool, which may be useful both for conserving monuments of cultural heritage and for their restoration.     

根据冲积物孢粉恢复冀北山地古植被的意义

冲积物是第四纪孢粉分析经常遇到的研究对象。冲积物孢粉研究表明,晚全新世以来,人类活动是影响冀北山地植被演变的主要因素。人类活动对白河流域森林植被的破坏可能较早;对潮河流域森林植被的破坏较晚。     

攀枝花-西昌古裂谷与“活化”的地球物理特征

本文对近年来在攀枝花-西昌（攀西）构造带所做的重力、地磁、航磁、古地磁、遥感、天然地震、大地电磁测深、地热和爆炸地震探测资料,进行了综合分析和研究,得出了该构造带的深部结构和地球物理场的特征。基于此,提出了攀西吉裂谷存在的地球物理标志,论述了该裂谷带与现代强烈活动的裂谷带和已消亡的古裂谷的差异与其“活化”的证据。本文最后提出,这是一个被动“活化”的古裂谷的论点。     

晚第三纪以前形成古土壤的鉴别、分类及其在古环境研究中的应用

晚第三纪以前形成的古土壤可以揭示地质时期的古环境。辨识古土壤的主要标志包括野外形态特征、微形态特征、地球化学特征等。当前古土壤分类一般基于现代土壤的系统分类体系,即采用诊断层和诊断特征,辅之以古土壤总体的化学性质等指标划分古土壤类型。形成于晚第三纪以前的古土壤可以重建全球范围的古气候变化历史,同时揭示前寒武纪时期古大气O2分压以及后寒武纪时期古大气CO2浓度水平的演化过程;古土壤具有空间和时间等多重信息,能反映流域或区域的古景观、古地貌、古水文特征。但目前缺乏一个广为接受的古土壤分类系统,成岩作用对古土壤特征的影响以及古土壤记录的古环境信息机制与解译等方面也还需要深入探讨。今后必须加强成岩作用对古土壤特性的影响以及现代土壤与其环境的对应关系的研究。     

芦潮港车客渡码头水域近期强势淤涨原因辨析

叙述了１９９３年前的芦潮港车客渡码头水域自然水深条件和１９９３年后强烈淤涨的态势,从诸事件的时间之窗及水下滩坡适应性调整、长丁坝促淤效应等方面讨论了该水域强势淤涨的原因,提供了一个海岸工程产生淤积响应的典型实例。海岸带（尤其在沉积环境响应敏感的区域）开发必须注重社会经济效益与环境效益的统一。     

中国古建筑的防震措施探讨

中国的古建筑早在汉代就基本定型,到唐、宋时期已有明确规制,而梁思成先生在《图像中国建筑史》中提及到了一些“不守常规”的建筑,本文调查发现它们分别是1303年洪洞8级地震和1695年临汾7?级地震之后重建的产物。进一步分析发现,依现代防震理念,先人“不守常规”的做法其实是按震害经验采取了有效防震措施。这些防震措施虽然使建筑外观不够美观,但却增强了建筑物的防震性能。     

Charcoal chronology of the Amazon forest: A record of biodiversity preserved by ancient fires

The Amazon region holds a wide variety of ethnic groups and microclimates, enabling different interactions between humans and environment. To better understand the evolution of this region, ancient remains need to be analysed by all possible means. In this context, the study of natural and/or anthropogenic fires through the analysis of carbonized remains can give information on past climate, species diversity, and human intervention in forests and landscapes. In the present work, we undertook an anthracological analysis along with the ¹⁴C dating of charcoal fragments using accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). Charcoal samples from forest soils collected from seven different locations in the Amazon Basin were taxonomically classified and dated. Out of the 16 groups of charcoal fragments identified, five contained more than one taxonomic type, with the Fabaceae, Combretaceae and Sapotaceae families having the highest frequencies. ¹⁴C charcoal dates span ∼6000 years (from 6876 to 365 yr BP) among different families, with the most significant variation observed for two fragments from the same sampling location (spanning 4000 ¹⁴C yr). Some sample sets resulted in up to five different families. These findings demonstrate the importance of the association between anthracological identification and radiocarbon dating in the reconstruction of paleo-forest composition and fire history.     

龙游牛场古地下洞室群岩柱的长期抗拉强度反演

在龙游县上畈村附近的牛场有一处由2个洞室组成的古地下洞室群。现场调查发现,在其中1号洞的岩柱1上出现了一条竖直的张开裂缝。据分析,这是上覆岩层对该岩柱施加过大荷载的结果,这一发现为本文研究岩体长期抗拉强度提供了条件。作者即以根据牛场古地下洞室群1号洞内岩柱1的拉裂现象为研究对象,根据最大拉应力论来反演岩体的长期抗拉强度。这不仅对长期强度研究具有理论意义,而且在古工程保护方面也具有应用价值。     

3D hydrodynamic characterisation of a meso-tidal harbour: The case of Bilbao (northern Spain)

A background knowledge of marine dynamics helps harbour managers to control pollution and to manage dredging and traffic operations. This contribution studies the hydrodynamic conditions within Bilbao Harbour, which is enclosed by the Nervión Estuary (in the Basque Country, Spain). The results obtained from hydrographical surveys are compared with numerical simulations obtained using the Regional Ocean Modelling System (ROMS). Hydrodynamic modelling was carried out to determine the inner harbour currents for a specific period in which data were available. Then, numerical experiments were designed in order to quantify the importance of different driving mechanisms in the harbour hydrodynamics. The results show that, in addition to the strong tidal influence on water circulation, the wind forcing and freshwater discharge also have a non-negligible influence on the currents. The computational domain is complex due to the presence of harbour infrastructures (i.e. breakwaters and piers). As a result, topographic eddies are therefore observed in the results. The freshwater influence of the Nervión river can also be observed in residual currents. This paper presents an improvement to the application of numerical modelling to a complex geometry domain, contributing to our understanding of the behaviour of the marine systems in meso-tidal harbours. This can be used to deal with harbour engineering and management problems.