Lake bank filtration at Nainital,India: water-quality evaluation

There are different water-supply schemes in Uttarakhand, India to tap the water from streams, rivers and lakes. At Nainital, seven tube-wells (depths 22.6–36.7 m), located at a distance of <100 m from the lake, are being used to abstract (1) lake water after passage through the soil and (2) subsurface water/groundwater flowing towards the lake. Water samples from the lake and tube-wells were analyzed in monsoon and non-monsoon periods from 1997 to 2006. Total dissolved solids, EC, alkalinity and hardness were found to be marginally greater in tube-well waters. The difference in hydrochemistry of tube-well water was mainly due to variation in flow regimes during monsoon and non-monsoon periods. Results clearly indicate that lake water as such is not potable as it contains unacceptable levels of organic matter in terms of COD (~44 mg/L), coliforms (~15.6 × 10⁴ MPN/100 mL) and nutrients. Coliform bacteria and COD have not been detected in any of the tube-well water samples over the years. Lake water, treated by sand filters did not conform to drinking water standards. These investigations have led to the closure of the treatment facility and installation of two tube-wells in addition to the existing five tube-wells.

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Résumé  Il existe divers projets d’alimentation en eau dans l’état d’Uttarakhand, Inde, afin de capter l’eau de ruisseaux, de rivières et de lacs. A Nainital, sept puits tubés (profondeur de 22.6–36.7 m), situés à une distance < à 100 m du lac, sont utilisés pour prélever (1) de l’eau du lac après transit à travers le sol et (2) de l’eau de sub-surface/eau souterraine s’écoulant vers le lac. Des échantillons d’eau du lac et des puits tubés ont été analysés en périodes de mousson et de celles sans mousson 1997 à 2006. Résidu sec, C.E., alcalinité et dureté ont été trouvés marginalement supérieurs dans l’eau des puits tubés. La différence d’hydrochimie de l’eau des puits tubés était surtout due à la variation des régimes d’écoulement pendant les périodes de mousson et de celles sans mousson. Les résultats indiquent clairement que l’eau du lac en tant que telle n’est pas potable car elle contient des teneurs inacceptables de matière organique en termes de COD (~44 mg/L), de coliformes (~15.6 × 10⁴ MPN/100 mL) et d’éléments nutritifs. Des bactéries coliformes et du COD n’ont été détectés dans aucun des échantillons d’eau de puits tubés au fil des années. L’eau du lac traitée par des filtres à sable ne se conformait pas aux normes de l’eau potable. Ces recherches ont conduit à la fermeture de l’installation de traitement et à l’implantation de deux puits tubés en plus des cinq puits existants.

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Resumen  En el estado de Uttarakhand, India, existen diferentes esquemas de abastecimiento de agua que explotan agua de arroyos, ríos y lagos. En Nainital, siete pozos (profundidades entre 22.6–36.7 m), ubicados a una distancia de <100 m del lago, se usan para extraer (1) agua del lago luego de su pasaje a través del suelo y (2) agua superficial y subterránea que fluye hacia el lago. En períodos de monzón y de no monzón de 1997 a 2006 se han analizado muestras de agua del lago y de las captaciones. Se halló que el agua de los pozos es ligeramente mayor en términos del total de sólidos disueltos, la conductividad eléctrica, la alcalinidad y la dureza. La diferencia en la hidroquímica del agua de las perforaciones se debe principalmente a la variación de los regímenes de flujo durante los períodos de monzón y de no monzón. Los resultados claramente indican que el agua del lago no es potable por su contenido inaceptable de materia orgánica medida como demanda de carbono orgánico/oxígeno –DCO- (~44 mg/L), coliformes (~15.6 × 10⁴ NMP/100 mL) y nutrientes. En el período, no se han detectado bacterias coliformes ni DCO en las muestras de agua de las captaciones. El agua del lago, tratada con filtros de arena, no conformó los estándares de agua para bebida. Estas investigaciones han demostrado la necesidad de clausurar las instalaciones de tratamiento y la adición de dos captaciones a las cinco ya existentes.

     

Springs of Great Britain

Predictably, in a country such as Britain, with its preponderance of consolidated, sedimentary, mainly fissure-flow aquifers, there is a very large number of springs, many of which are, or have been, used for public supply. Migratory springs are a feature of the British (Ur. Cretaceous) Chalk, the most important British aquifer. The Chalk's low specific yield and high capillary moisture retention together give rise to very considerable fluctuations (more than 33 m in some areas) of the unconfined water table. Along the gentle dip slopes of the Chalk (North and South Downs of southern and southeastern England) springs may migrate laterally for several miles, giving rise to seasonal streams locally known as bournes or lavants. However, springs such as at Duncton, West Sussex, at the base of the much steeper scarp slopes of the Chalk, form point sources, the flows from which tend to be relatively steady; such springs commonly supply and are the original reason for the existence of many of the small towns and villages which nestle along the bases of the chalk scarps of Sussex and Kent.Where the Chalk forms coastal cliffs, a number of springs break out at the base of the cliff between high and low tide levels; there are major chalk coastal springs, for instance, at St. Margaret's Bay (Kent) and at Arish Mells, east of Lulworth Cove, Dorset. Such springs are not used for direct supply (their salinity is usually too high) but are indicators of the presence of local reserves of groundwater for possible future development.     

An integrable case of a rotational motion analogous to that of Lagrange and Poisson for a gyrostat in a Newtonian force field

The scope of the present paper is to provide analytic solutions to the problem of the attitude evolution of a symmetric gyrostat about a fixed point in a central Newtonian force field when the potential function isV ⁽²⁾.We assume that the center of mass and the gyrostatic moment are on the axis of symmetry and that the initial conditions are the following: (t ₀)=₀, (t ₀)=₀, (t ₀)=(t ₀)=₀, ₁(t ₀)=0, ₂(t ₀)=0 and ₃(t ₀)= ₃ ⁰ .The problem is integrated when the third component of the total angular momentum is different from zero (B ₁ 0). There now appear equilibrium solutions that did not exist in the caseB ₁=0, which can be determined in function of the value ofl ₃ ^r (the third component of the gyrostatic momentum).The possible types of solutions (elliptic, trigonometric, stationary) depend upon the nature of the roots of the functiong(u). The solutions for Euler angles are given in terms of functions of the timet. If we cancel the third component of the gyrostatic momentum (l ₃ ^r =0), the obtained solutions are valid for rigid bodies.     

随钻测录井地质导向二维分解实时绘图方法

根据随钻测录井实时地质导向和大斜度、水平井评价成图技术需求，针对传统绘图方法存在的弊端，提出了将测录井信息、井眼轨迹和地质模型进行二维分解的实时绘图方法。针对二维分解绘图方法绘图时空复杂度较高的问题，给出了不同事件驱动下的局部实时计算和拷屏重绘算法，控制了对CPU和内存的消耗、提高了绘图效率，消除了实时绘图的闪烁和卡顿现象。应用实例表明，二维分解实时绘图方法能够实现大尺度随钻测录井地质导向图形的流畅、无卡顿实时绘图，可提高大斜度、水平井储层模型评价的刻画精度和时效。     

Geochronology and geochemistry of eclogites from the Mariánské Lázně Complex,Czech Republic: Implications for Variscan orogenesis

The Mariánské Lázn complex (MLC) is located in the Bohemian Massif along the north-western margin of the Teplá-Barrandian microplate and consists of metagabbro, amphibolite and eclogite, with subordinate amounts of serpentinite, felsic gneiss and calcsilicate rocks. The MLC is interpreted as a metaophiolite complex that marks the suture zone between the Saxothuringian rocks to the north-west and the Teplá-Barrandian microplate to the south-east. Sm-Nd geochronology of garnet-omphacite pairs from two eclogite samples yields ages of 377±7, and 367±4 Ma. Samples of eclogite and amphibolite do not define a whole rock Sm-Nd isochron, even though there is a large range in Sm/Nd ratio, implying that the suite of samples may not be cogenetic. Eclogites do not have correlated _Nd values and initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios. Five of the eight eclogite samples have high _Nd values (+10.2 to +7.1) consistent with derivation from a MORB-like source, but variable ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (0.7033 to 0.7059) which probably reflect hydrothermal seawater alteration. Three other eclogite samples have lower _Nd values (+ 5.4 to –0.8) and widely variable ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (0.7033 to 0.7096). Such low _Nd values are inconsistent with derivation from a MORB, source and may reflect a subduction or oceanic island basalt component in their source. The MLC is an important petrotectonic element in the Bohemian Massif, providing evidence for Cambro-Ordovician formation of oceanic crust and interaction with seawater, Late Devonian (Frasnian-Famennian) high- and medium-pressure metamorphism related to closure of a Saxothuringian ocean basin, Early Carboniferous (Viséan) thrusting of the Teplá terrane over Saxothuringian rocks and Late Viséan extension.     

Comparison of structural and least-squares lines for estimating geologic relations

Two different goals in fitting straight lines to data are to estimate a true linear relation (physical law) and to predict values of the dependent variable with the smallest possible error. Regarding the first goal, a Monte Carlo study indicated that the structural-analysis (SA) method of fitting straight lines to data is superior to the ordinary least-squares (OLS) method for estimating true straight-line relations. Number of data points, slope and intercept of the true relation, and variances of the errors associated with the independent (X) and dependent (Y) variables influence the degree of agreement. For example, differences between the two line-fitting methods decrease as error in X becomes small relative to error in Y. Regarding the second goal—predicting the dependent variable—OLS is better than SA. Again, the difference diminishes as X takes on less error relative to Y. With respect to estimation of slope and intercept and prediction of Y, agreement between Monte Carlo results and large-sample theory was very good for sample sizes of 100, and fair to good for sample sizes of 20. The procedures and error measures are illustrated with two geologic examples.     

Testing earthquake prediction methods: «The West Pacific short-term forecast of earthquakes with magnitude MwHRV ≥ 5.8»

Analyzing the tables and probability maps posted by Yan Y. Kagan and David D. Jackson in April 2002–September 2004 at http://scec.ess.ucla.edu/~ykagan/predictions_index.html and the catalog of earthquakes for the same period, the conclusion is drawn that the underlying method could be used for prediction of aftershocks, while it does not outscore random guessing when main shocks are considered.     

Rock fracturing by explosive energy: review of state-of-the-art

A study of the dynamic rock fracture initiation and propagation due to explosive energy is presented through a detailed state-of-the-art review. Explosive energy dissipation in crushing and fracturing is examined and the various means to enhance the explosive energy utilization for dynamic rock fracturing are reviewed. The study highlights the need for a better understanding of the dynamic fracturing process particularly in the presence of in situ stresses in the rock mass.     

The changing role of hydrogeology in semi-arid southern and eastern Africa

Much of southern and eastern Africa is semi-arid and heavily groundwater dependent. Borehole drilling commenced over a hundred years ago with magnetic and electrical resistivity surveys for borehole siting being introduced from 1936. Formalised training of hydrogeologists led in the 1970s to an almost standard approach to hydrogeological investigation and a period of stability followed, during which some major investigations were carried out. A period of decentralisation and fragmentation has since taken place in many parts of southern and eastern Africa, and groundwater monitoring and management are inadequate in many countries. All but six of the 14 SADC (Southern African Development Community) member states reportedly have an adequate monitoring network in place. However, groundwater demand is increasing and hydrogeologists need to promote the use of appropriate methodologies as an essential part of tackling the severe issues now facing the water sector in the region.     

The geography of suicide terrorism in Israel

Palestinian suicide terrorism has been a key feature in the latest phase of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. During the past decade, and particularly since September 2000, there has been a substantial increase in the use of this type of warfare. Recent studies suggest that, contrary to common belief, suicide terrorism is highly rational and driven by strategic considerations. This article explores the rationality of Palestinian suicide terrorism from a geographical perspective. It is argued that suicide terrorism works along two parallel paths: rationality and randomness. It complies with geographical fundamentals, and target selection is highly rational, subject to spatial considerations such as distance, agglomeration, and accessibility. As the permeability to Israel became more difficult, suicide bombers and their organizers had to adopt more flexible practices which emphasized other spatial considerations. Timing is of importance both for strategic and tactical reasoning. Obstructing negotiations and peace talks has been a salient objective, but the exact timing of suicide bombings has been influenced by tactical considerations, which aim at maximizing casualties.