Mary Anning,Alfred Nicholson Leeds and Steve Etches. Comparing the three most important UK ‘amateur’ fossil collectors and their collections

Mary Anning, Alfred Nicholson Leeds and Steve Etches form part of a long line of individuals who furnished a substantial addition to our understanding of marine and terrestrial ecosystems through collecting significant numbers of superb fossils. For all three collectors, fossils became a factor that dominated their lives, and their fossil collecting led to the discovery of numerous taxa new to science. Extensive collecting was made possible by the fortunate circumstances of living ‘in the right place at the right time’, close to fine-grained UK Jurassic deposits (Lagerstätten) with well-preserved large Jurassic marine reptiles. All three were highly-motivated and developed a considerable skill sets for discovering, collecting, preparing, conserving and displaying fossils. They developed personal and professional interactions with family and friends, and university and museum professionals, although their collecting resulted in variable recognition of their work. Each collector can be considered a complex mix of amateur and professional: Mary Anning, a professional fossil collector and amateur palaeontologist; Alfred Leeds transitioned from amateur to professional fossil collector, but remained an amateur palaeontologist; and Steve Etches has remained an amateur fossil collector and palaeontologist. However, all three exhibited an entirely professional outlook to collecting, and should be considered professionals of the highest degree. The impact of Mary Anning, Alfred Nicholson Leeds and Steve Etches has been critical for the development of Palaeontology as a science, and without whom palaeontology, with all its associated benefits to a wide scientific and non-scientific audience, would not be as rich as we currently know it.     

贵阳乌当下奥陶统湄潭组遗迹化石及其古环境意义

本文系统研究了贵阳乌当下奥陶统湄潭组遗迹化石,认为这些遗迹化石系风暴沉积前后的产物,并首次在我国发现cruzianc furcifera 遗迹组合,这对于地层对比,遗迹组合的地理分布均有重要意义.     

四川盆地深部地壳结构——深地震反射剖面探测

四川盆地位于扬子地块的西北部,被褶皱构造带所围绕,受周缘构造带的侧向挤压作用,盆地卷入了多期次和多边界的构造变形,为开展盆山耦合作用及多边界、多期次构造叠加与复合关系的研究提供了不可多得的理想野外实验室.为揭示四川盆地地壳结构,本文通过对3条不同时间采集的深地震反射剖面数据进行拼接联线处理,获得跨越四川盆地的330 km深地震反射偏移成果剖面,揭示了四川盆地地壳上地幔细结构:沉积层从西北向东南逐渐变薄,在龙门山前沉积层厚度超过15 km,在华蓥山下沉积层减薄到~8 km,且褶皱变形形成华蓥山薄皮褶皱冲断带;莫霍面出现在13~15 s(双程走时),埋深约40~45 km;并发现从下地壳延伸至地幔的东南向的倾斜反射,从13 s向下延伸至18 s,结合四川盆地及其周边地区其他地球物理和地球化学花岗岩同位素年龄等资料,我们认为这些倾斜反射层是扬子克拉通地台西北缘发生的新元古代俯冲的遗迹.     

Experimental Investigation and Numerical Analysis to Develop Low-Energy Large-Midwater Trawls

Fuel consumption in fisheries is a primary concern because of its effects on the environment and the costs incurred by fishermen. Many studies have been conducted to reduce the fuel consumption in fishing operations. Fuel consumption due to fishing gear during a fishing operation is generally related to the hydrodynamic resistance on the gear. This means that fuel consumption is proportional to the drag created by the towing speed. Based on numerical methods, this study suggests a new approach to reduce fuel consumption in fisheries. The results of the simulation are in good agreement with those of model experiments. The total as well as partial resistance forces on the gear are calculated by simulation. The simulation results suggest improved materials and gear structure for reducing the hydrodynamic forces on the gear while maintaining gear performance. The method for assessing the gear performance involves measuring the height and width of the net mouth. Furthermore, this study investigates the efficiency of a low-energy trawl from an economic point of view. The findings of this study will be useful in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in fishing operations, and thereby contribute toward lowering fishing costs by saving fuel.     

古热液生物群的研究进展及意义

随着现代海底热液生物群研究工作的深入,开展地质历史时期的古热液生物群研究的必要性也日益凸现。近年来古热液生物群研究已取得一定的进展,结合前人的工作,总结了所发现的古热液生物群的时空分布、产出地质背景、化石壳体保存特征、化石组合特征等内容。简述了开展古热液生物群研究工作的一般方法有:描述法、比较法与地球化学方法。最后,从现代热液生物群研究意义的角度出发,讨论了古热液生物群研究在生物起源、热液活动和板块构造、环境治理以及生物成矿等方面的重要意义,并提出当前古热液生物群研究存在的问题及今后的工作重点。     

燃烧加热污染空气对超燃冲压发动机性能影响研究

针对燃烧加热地面试验设备存在的工质污染问题,采用数值模拟方法研究了燃烧加热污染空气对氢燃料超燃冲压发动机性能的影响。以飞行马赫数Ma=6.5,当量油气比ER=0.6为计算基准状态,分别对纯净空气和污染空气来流下氢燃料超燃冲压发动机的整机流场和性能进行了对比计算分析。燃烧化学反应模拟采用了改进的H₂/O₂七组分八方程模型,湍流模型为标准的 k-ε模型,并采用直连式燃烧室试验数据进行了数值方法的验证。研究结果表明:(1)相对于纯净空气来流,污染空气来流下的超燃冲压发动机推力和比冲均有所下降。(2)采用酒精燃烧加热器的前提下,来流参数匹配静温、静压、马赫数时,发动机性能与纯净空气来流下的结果最为接近,而匹配总温、总压、马赫数时相差最大。(3)来流参数匹配总焓、静压、马赫数的前提下,采用氢燃烧加热器时发动机性能与纯净空气来流下的结果最为接近,而采用甲烷燃烧加热器时相差最大。      

用于PB-HTGR燃料球运动规律研究的钴-60螺旋CT系统研发

在球床式高温气冷堆(PB-HTGR)中,球形燃料元件在堆芯中的流动特性是堆芯物理设计和几何设计的基础,球流运动规律的研究在发展球床式高温气冷堆技术中具有基础性的作用。目前还没有一种有效的手段检测燃料球在堆芯中的运动轨迹,有关球流运动规律的理论和实验研究尚不够完善。为了对燃料球在堆芯中的运动规律进行三维实验研究,清华大学核研院按实际堆芯结构等比例缩小设计了实验模型,通过检测目标球在模型中的运动轨迹,可以对不同工况下燃料球的运动规律进行模拟研究。为了满足目标球的检测要求,我们设计了钴-60多层螺旋CT检测方案,可以进行目标球的识别和轨迹追踪,验证实验结果表明该方案可以满足实验系统对目标球检测的要求。      

Testing mathematical uranium migration models in combined ESR/U-series dating of fossil teeth from open-air sites

Several mathematical models have been suggested to describe uranium migration kinetics for ESR dating of fossil tooth. In the present study, different U-uptake models were used to calculate ages for fossil teeth from two open-air Paleolithic sites in Nihewan Basin – Donggutuo and Hougou and compared with independent age control of the sites. For Donggutuo site, the results show that the ages of three teeth calculated by EU and AU models were much younger than magnetostratigraphic age. At Hougou site, two teeth from the top of Nihewan lacustrine deposits give the consistent EU and AU ages within errors but younger than sediment OSL age. This study indicates that mathematical modeling could not always give convincing results for the open-air sites, which may experience dramatic hydrological variations and high erosion rates.     

New Early Cretaceous shrimp (Decapoda) from the Sidi Aïch Formation of the Northern Chotts Range,southern Tunisia: Taxonomy,biostratigraphy, and palaeoenvironmental implications

The fossil dendrobranchiate shrimp Macropenaeus was originally described from the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian) limestones of Hadjoula, northwest Lebanon. A new species, M. sidiaichensis sp. nov., was recovered from the Sidi Aïch Formation in the Northern Chotts Range, southern Tunisia. The Barremian occurrence of the genus in Tunisia suggests that Macropenaeus most likely originated in northern Africa and then migrated to Arabia in the Cenomanian. The association of the fossil shrimp with conchostracans, plant fragments, and fish indicates the interaction of freshwater and marine conditions that characterized the northern African margin as part of widespread coastal complex, paralic environments during the Barremian.     

Cretocrenis burmanicus,the first Mesozoic amber inclusion of a water scavenger beetle (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae)

Cretocrenis burmanicus, gen. et sp. nov. is described from Burmese amber and represents the oldest known amber inclusion of the family Hydrophilidae (Coleoptera: Polyphaga). The new genus resembles the small-bodied modern genera of the tribe Anacaenini and the subfamily Acidocerinae, and the morphology of the venter and male genitalia suggest that it belongs to the Horelophus+Crenitis clade of the tribe Anacaenini. The fossil is described in detail, illustrated, and compared with extant hydrophilid genera.