Confirmation of an Early Cretaceous age for the Qihulin Formation in eastern Heilongjiang Province, China: constraints from a new discovery of radiolarians

The coal-bearing, alternating marine and non-marine Longzhaogou Group in eastern Heilongjiang, northeastern China, has long been considered as Jurassic, or mainly Jurassic, in age. However, recent studies have demonstrated that the ammonites and dinoflagellate cysts are of Early Cretaceous age. This has now been confirmed by new radiolarian evidence. The radiolarian fauna recovered from the upper Qihulin Formation of the Longzhaogou Group consists of nine poorly preserved species referable to nine genera. Novixitus is a Cretaceous genus, and the specimens of Archaeodictyomitra sp. and Xitus sp. recovered resemble A. vulgaris Pessagno and X. spicularius (Aliev), respectively.     

A methane fuse for the Cambrian explosion: carbon cycles and true polar wander

The dramatic diversification of animal groups known as the Cambrian Explosion (evolution's ‘Big Bang’) remains an unsolved puzzle in Earth Science. The Vendian–Cambrian interval is characterized by anomalously high rates of apparent plate motion, interpreted as True Polar Wander (TPW), and by more than a dozen large, high-frequency perturbations in carbon isotopes that dwarf all others observed through the past 65 million years. We suggest that these biological, tectonic, and geochemical events are intimately related in the following fashion. First, tropical continental margins and shelf-slopes which formed during fragmentation of the supercontinent Rodinia accumulated massive quantities of isotopically-light organic carbon during Late Neoproterozoic time, as indicated by strikingly heavy isotope ratios in inorganic carbon during interglacial intervals. Second, an initial phase of Vendian TPW moved these organic-rich deposits to high latitude, where conditions favored trapping biogenic methane in layers of gas hydrate and perhaps permafrost. Continued sedimentation during Late Vendian time added additional hydrate/gas storage volume and stabilized underlying units until the geothermal gradient moved them out of the clathrate stability field, building up deep reservoirs of highly pressurized methane. Finally, a burst of TPW brought these deposits back to the Tropics, where they gradually warmed and were subjected to regional-scale thermohaline eddy variation and related sedimentation regime changes. Responding to the stochastic character of such changes, each reservoir reached a critical failure point independently at times throughout the Cambrian. By analogy with the Late Paleocene Thermal Maximum event, these methane deposits yield transient, greenhouse-induced pulses of global warming when they erupt. Temperature correlates powerfully with biodiversity; the biochemical kinetics of metabolism at higher temperature decrease generation time and maintain relatively rich and dense invertebrate populations. Repeated thermal pulses along with progressive disruption and alteration of global ocean circulation patterns by TPW could cause the increase in diversity that accompanied the radiation of metazoans. We suggest that a methane ‘fuse’ ignited the Cambrian Evolutionary Explosion.     

震后震型早期判定的人工神经网络方法

应用人工神经网络的方法，利用３０次强震震后１天和２天内的地震资料作为学习样本，对广西及其邻区发生的４次地震的震型作了早期预测判定，结果表明应用效果较好，正确率达７５％。该方法值得进一步研究。     

Palynological dating of infra- and intertrappean sediments in the Mesozoic succession of Borehole PGD-6, Domra Sub-basin, West Bengal, India

Palynofloras have been examined from infra- and intertrappean sediments of the Panchet and Rajmahal Formations in the Domra Sub-basin of the Damodar Basin, West Bengal, India. Three distinct palynological assemblages are identified and referred to the following palynozones: (i)Lundbladispora–Verrucosisporites(506.60–505.00 m, late Early Triassic, (ii)Murospora florida(501.65–422.20 m. Late Jurassic, Kimmeridgian–Tithonian), and (iii)Cicatricosisporites australiensis(342.00–229.6 m. Early Cretaceous, Tithonian–Berriasian). The first occurrences ofCallialasporites turbatusandC. dampieriare at 501.65 m.Callialasporitesis a dominant element of the succeeding assemblages from the Panchet Formation and indicates a Jurassic age. The FAD ofCicatricosisporites australiensisandC. augustusat 342.00 m, and inconsistent occurrences ofAequitriradites spinulosus,Crybelosporites stylosusin the overlying sediments indicate Jurassic–Cretaceous transition.     

寒武纪早期澄江生物群小细丝海绵属新材料

文章描述了云南寒武纪早期澄江生物群小细丝海绵属一新种——螺旋小细丝海绵（Leptomitella spiralis sp. nov.）。新种 具有横向骨针束围绕海绵体呈螺旋状排列的典型特征，明显区别于属内其他种；此外，在外部形态和骨针类型上与属内其他种 也存在较大差异。新种的发现增加了Leptomitella种间形态结构的多样性，也为海绵动物的早期演化及寒武纪海绵动物辐射演 化研究提供新的化石资料。     

华北板块寒武系开腔骨类（Chancelloriids）化石新材料

文章对采自华北板块山东潍坊、河北唐山和辽宁大连的寒武系开腔骨类化石的新材料进行了研究，这些化石鉴定为 Chancelloria 属。辽宁大连地区的Chancelloria 产自寒武系第二统第四阶馒头组下部的黄绿色页岩；山东潍坊地区的 Chancelloria 产自苗岭统乌溜阶馒头组上部的黄绿色页岩和鼓山阶张夏组的深灰色中厚层灰岩；河北唐山地区的Chancelloria 产于芙蓉统江山阶长山组的薄层灰岩，该层位是目前Chancelloria 属在中国产出的最高层位，也是全球的最高层位之一。这 些来自华北寒武系第二统—芙蓉统的Chancelloria 骨片与早期的骨片相比，展现出骨片形态趋于规则、基面从浑圆趋于平 整、骨片整合度提升的特点，进一步印证了之前关于此类问题的研究结论。     

吉林东南部早寒武含铜层及其形成的古地理分析

吉林省东南部早寒武世晚期地层中含有数层含铜层，它们主要赋存在红色岩层所夹的灰绿黄绿色岩层之中。本区含铜层的形成与当时富氧阶段中的缺氧时期息息相关；而且该类型含铜层主要产自滨海或滨浅海地带，受当时古地理严格控制     

南天山北缘麻粒岩残迹与辉石相韧性变形研究

对新疆北部南天山北缘蛇绿混杂岩带中麻粒岩的岩石学、矿物学、岩石化学、矿物化学、稀土元素地球化学特征及辉石相韧性变形构造的研究表明,榆树沟麻粒岩的共生矿物组合为透辉石-次透辉石-紫苏辉石-石榴石-斜长石,属基性岩类暗色麻粒岩,以低硅高钙为特征,稀土总量低,轻稀土与铕弱亏损,反映高温高压熔融环境和岩浆分异差的特点。麻粒岩及超镁铁岩中的辉石经历了强烈的韧性剪切变形作用,不对称辉石残斑系、动态重结晶辉石亚颗粒集合体、辉石变形双晶纹、鱼尾构造、核幔构造等显微韧变构造广泛发育。宏观和微观运动学分析揭示了一期从南向北的推覆构造。麻粒岩的形成与早古生代大陆地壳拉伸作用有关,辉石相韧性变形则与早古生代末南天山边缘海的挤压关闭和推覆逆冲有关。     

陕西岚皋地区早志留世滔河口组的厘定及其意义

陕西南部北大巴山地区早志留世滔河口组碱基性火山岩，分布层位稳定，岩性标志特征。根据火山岩岩石类型和地层学以及古生物组合特征对其岩石地层单位重新进行了厘定，研究了火山岩的成因，探讨了火山岩形成的机制和构造环境。     

兴蒙—新疆北部及邻区早石炭世古生物地理区系

中国兴蒙—新疆北部及邻区早石炭世地层十分发育，动植物化石丰富。根据生物群综合分析，将该研究区归入哈萨克斯坦—西伯利亚域和特提斯域，并进一步划分为３个省，８个亚省。西伯利业省以管孔贝大量发育为特征，缺少大长身贝类，珊瑚不甚发育，植物少见，为安加拉植物群；哈萨克斯坦—蒙古—兴安省以管孔贝类和大长身贝类共同发育为突出特征，珊瑚较发育，但分区特征不明显，并有大量异珊瑚类，植物为安加拉植物群；塔里木北缘—西秦岭省以南方型生物群大量发育为主要特征，大长身贝类最为发育，缺少管孔贝类，珊瑚数量十分丰富，并有假乌拉珊瑚大量发育，植物以华夏植物群为主。早石炭世古生物地理分区与板块关系密切，晚泥盆世末，西伯利亚板块南移，与哈萨克斯坦板块汇聚，到早石炭世早、中期，两大板块基本上处于相近似的古生物地理环境，与此同时，塔里木板块逐渐北移，与哈萨克斯坦板块海水相通，致使哈萨克斯坦板块广大海域出现南、北动物群混生现象。早石炭世末，三大板块海域相连，除各地沉积和构造古地理环境尚有差异外，中石炭世开始，腕足类，类及珊瑚等动物群均显示出明显的一致性。