http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987114000668

Microbial diversity in the hydrate-containing (sites SH3B and SH7B) and-free (sites SH1B, SH5B, SH5C) sediments collected from the Shenhu area of the South China Sea (SCS) was investigated using 16S rR...     

Intergenerational relations and the power of the cell phone: Perspectives on young people’s phone usage in sub-Saharan Africa

Cell phones present new forms of sociality and new possibilities of encounter for young people across the globe. Nowhere is this more evident than in sub-Saharan Africa where the scale of usage, even among the very poor, is remarkable. In this paper we reflect on the inter-generational encounters which are embedded in young people’s cell phone interactions, and consider the wider societal implications, not least the potential for associated shifts in the generational balance of power. An intriguing feature of this changing generational nexus is that while many young people’s phone-based interactions, from their mid-teens onwards, are shifting away from the older generation towards friendship networks in their own age cohort, at the same time they are repositioning themselves – or becoming repositioned – as family information hubs, as a consequence of their phone expertise. The paper draws on mixed-methods research with young people aged c. 9–25 years and in-depth interviews with older age-groups in 24 sites (ranging from high density poor urban to remote rural) across Ghana, Malawi and South Africa.     

Dusty roads and disconnections: Perceptions of dust from unpaved mining roads in Mongolia’s South Gobi province

South Gobi province is at the center of Mongolia’s mining boom, where companies began exporting minerals over dirt-track roads in the early 2000s. This paper examines recent controversies surrounding road dust near the Oyu Tolgoi copper–gold mine, the so-called coal road from Tavan Tolgoi mines, and the Chinese border. At the time of the research, local residents, particularly nomadic herders, were concerned that dust produced from unpaved mining roads was coating the pasture, causing illnesses among livestock, and endangering their livelihoods in the region. The presence of dust rendered mining an uncomfortably intimate experience as state and corporate actors negotiated responsibility for infrastructure development. The paper builds on the concept “technologies of distantiation” to reveal the complex ways that dust from unpaved roads creates distances and disconnections between people, livelihoods, and landscapes, representing an enclosure of the pasture. Methods for the paper include interviews, focus groups, and participant observation conducted in South Gobi province and Ulaanbaatar in 2010, 2011, and 2012 as well as follow-up research carried out in spring 2015.     

2014年5月8—9日引发珠江口区域强降水的两个长生命史MCS特征分析

2014年5月8日上午至9日白天,广东中南部珠江口地区连续受MCS A1、MCS A2两个长生命史中尺度对流系统影响,形成长时间强降水。其中5月8日午后华南内陆地区MCS A1逐步增强,从广西东部向广东珠江口方向移动,陆上活动时间超过11 h; MCS A2从9日凌晨至上午持续影响珠江口沿海地区,维持时间超过9 h,导致珠江口沿海地区出现400 mm 以上单站降水量。过程发生前,8日早上华南南部地区具有弱地面温度梯度,中午MCS A1对流触发与广西南部地面南风增强、华南南部云开大山—云雾山中尺度地形抬升有紧密关系;在弱斜压环境条件下,MCS A1从层云伴随线状对流结构演变为中尺度涡旋组织结构。8日夜间MCS S1入海后,与陆上遗留冷池相关的地面温度边界稳定在珠江口西侧沿海地区;9日凌晨西南低空急流增强后,MCS A2在珠江口沿海残留冷池边界附近开始发展,在向上游迎风方向传播的过程中,逐步形成多条平行β中尺度线状对流组织结构,对流系统整体移动缓慢,造成珠江口沿海地区出现较高的总降水量。计算表明MCS A2冷池边界扩张速度与低层垂直切变相对平衡,有利于形成较为直立的对流单体,增强的边界层水汽输送、更高的对流单体高度有利于产生较高的降水强度。通过总结这两个华南地区长生命史MCS发生发展过程,表明通过分析对流反馈造成的边界层/近地面层热动力特征变化,对于分析MCS发展特征、提高华南前汛期中尺度暴雨预报能力具有重要意义。     

Modeling Study of the Effect of Anthropogenic Aerosols on Late Spring Drought in South China

In this study,the mechanisms underlying the decadal variability of late spring precipitation in South China are investigated by using the latest Community Earth System Model version 1 （CESM1）.We aim to unravel the effects of different climate forcing agents such as aerosols and greenhouse gases （GHGs） on the decadal variation of precipitation,based on transient experiments from pre-industry （for year 1850） to present-day （for year 2000）.Our results reveal that：（1） CESM1 can reproduce the climatological features of atmospheric circulation and precipitation for the late spring in South China; （2） only simulations including the forcing of anthropogenic aerosols can reproduce the observed decreasing trend of late spring precipitation from 1950-2000 in South China; （3） aerosols affect the decadal change of precipitation mainly by altering the large-scale atmospheric circulation,and to a less extent by increasing the lower-tropospheric stability to inhibit the convective precipitation; and （4） in comparison,other climate forcing agents such as GHGs have much smaller effects on the decadal change of spring precipitation in South China.     

不同环境风场条件下两次华南西部低涡暴雨个例对比分析

利用常规观测资料、FY 2C卫星TBB资料、自动站降水量以及NCEP/NCAR再分析资料,对2009年7月3-4日(简称“09.7”)和2008年6月1 6 1 7日(简称“08.6”)两次发生在华南西部的低涡暴雨过程进行对比分析,结果表明:(1)低涡是两次暴雨过程的直接影响系统,“09.7”过程伴随西南低空急流,“08.6”过程无低空急流配合,中尺度辐合可能在两次强降水过程中有着直接的触发作用.(2)“09.7”过程的低层辐合强度及上升运动强度明显强于“08.6”过程.“09.7”过程较“08.6”过程,暖平流强度明显偏强,等温度平流线也较密集.(3)相比“08.6”过程,“09.7”过程水汽净流量更大,这是西南低空急流将充足水汽往暴雨区输送的结果.(4)“09.7”和“08.6”两次暴雨过程均与高空西风急流南侧的垂直环流圈密切相关,“09.7”过程由于低空有急流存在,上升运动维持时间长,降水强度大,历时长,“08.6”过程广西境内低空无急流,上升运动维持时间短,降水强度偏弱,历时短.     

夏季索马里越赤道气流垂直结构特征及其与南亚夏季风的关系

采用1950-2009年NCEP/NCAR月平均再分析风场资料,对夏季低空索马里越赤道气流的垂直结构及其与南亚夏季风的关系进行研究.结果表明:夏季索马里越赤道气流在垂直方向上从低层至高层先增强,在925 hPa高度上达到最大值后逐渐减弱.某些年份索马里越赤道气流核心可向上延伸至850 hPa高度,而某些年份则维持在925 hPa高度上.索马里越赤道气流垂直结构不同时,其对应的南亚夏季风也有所不同,这种差异主要体现在对流层低层风场的变化,以及南亚夏季风的强弱差异方面.总体来说,索马里急流核心高度延伸至850 hPa时,对应的南亚夏季风偏强;急流核心高度维持在925 hPa时,南亚夏季风偏弱.     

Model Evidence for Interdecadal Pathway Changes in the Subtropics and Tropics of the South Pacific Ocean

Numerical simulations using a version of the GFDL/NOAA Modular Ocean Model(MOM 3) are analyzed to demonstrate interdecadal pathway changes from the subtropics to the tropics in the South Pacific Ocean.After the 1976-77 climate shift,the subtropical gyre of the South Pacific underwent significant changes,characterized by a slowing down in its circulation and a southward displacement of its center by about 5-10 latitude on the western side.The associated circulation altered its flow path in the northwestern part of the subtropical gyre,changing from a direct pathway connecting the subtropics to the tropics before the shift to a more zonal one after.This effectively prevented some subtropical waters from directly entering into the western equatorial Pacific.Since waters transported onto the equator around the subtropical gyre are saline and warm,such changes in the direct pathway and the associated reduction in equatorward exchange from the subtropics to the tropics affected water mass properties downstream in the western equatorial Pacific,causing persisted freshening and cooling of subsurface water as observed after the late 1970s.Previously,changes in gyre strength and advection of temperature anomalies have been invoked as mechanisms for linking the subtropics and tropics on interdecadal time scales.Here we present an additional hypothesis in which geographic shifts in the gyre structure and location(a pathway change) could play a similar role.     

Reflections on the current state of global climate response

What is the significance of the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali? The formal outcomes, especially the ‘Bali Action Plan’, are described and commented on, along with the challenges for negotiating a post-2012 agreement in Copenhagen during 2008 and 2009. The article concludes that the outcome of the Bali meeting is insufficient when compared to the nature of the challenge posed by climate change. However, it can nevertheless be considered a success in terms of ‘Realpolitik’ in paving the way for the negotiations ahead, because some real changes have been discerned in the political landscape. The challenges for the road towards Copenhagen are manifold: the sheer volume and complexity of the issues and the far-reaching nature of decisions such as differentiation between non- Annex I countries pose significant challenges in themselves, while the dependency on the electoral process in the USA introduces a high element of risk into the whole process. The emergence of social justice as an issue turns climate policy into an endeavour to improve the world at large—thereby adding to the complexity. And, finally, the biggest challenge is the recognition that the climate problem requires a global solution, that Annex I and non-Annex I countries are mutually dependent on each other and that only cooperation regarding technology in combination with significant financial support will provide the chance to successfully tackle climate change.     

Sustainable development policies and measures: institutional issues and electrical efficiency in South Africa

An innovative approach is introduced for helping developing countries to make their development more sustainable, and also to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as a co-benefit. Such an approach is proposed as part of the multilateral framework on climate change. The concept of sustainable development policies and measures (SD-PAMs) is outlined, making clear that it is distinct from many other approaches in starting from development rather than explicit climate targets. The potential of SD-PAMs is illustrated with a case-study of energy efficiency in South Africa, drawing on energy modelling for the use of electricity in industry. The results show multiple benefits both for local sustainable development and for mitigating global climate change. The benefits of industrial energy efficiency in South Africa include significant reductions in local air pollutants; improved environmental health; creation of additional jobs; reduced electricity demand; and delays in new investments in electricity generation. The co-benefit of reducing GHG emissions could result in a reduction of as much as 5% of SA's total projected energy CO₂ emissions by 2020. Institutional support and policy guidance is needed at both the international and national level to realize the potential of SD-PAMs. This analysis demonstrates that if countries begin to act early to move towards greater sustainability, they will also start to bend the curve of their emissions path.