Measuring Urban Sustainability: the potential and pitfalls of city rankings

Measuring the sustainability of a city, and ranking the city against other cities, is increasingly seen as a way to achieve urban sustainability. A number of studies have highlighted how Sydney is unsustainable, with two recent ranking exercises appearing to confirm these findings by placing Sydney below many other Australian cities for urban sustainability. These two exercises are situated within international moves towards ranking cities. The article explores the assumptions and criteria used by Mercer in its Eco-City Index and the Australian Conservation Foundation in its Sustainable Cities Index. The conclusion discusses how Sydney could become more sustainable, and identifies why normative urban sustainability rankings should be recognised for their potential while simultaneously being treated with caution.     

广东湛江红树林国家级自然保护区资源管理策略

阐述了广东湛江红树林国家级自然保护区的资源管理现状,分析了资源管理方面存在的问题,探讨积极的保护策略和自然保护新思维。     

A geographic perspective on intra-urban racial/ethnic diversity, segregation, and clustering in Knoxville, Tennessee: 1990-2000

Racial/ethnic diversity in the United States has increased significantly in recent decades, with minority groups now accounting for almost one-third of the total population. At the same time, growing diversity has spread into rural and non-metropolitan areas. Research suggests that changing diversity in the ‘New South’ has seen growth of non-Black communities. The question, however, is the degree to which increasing diversity equates with increasing intermixing or, alternatively, whether racial/ethnic clusters retain their prominence. This paper examines the geographic manifestations of growing racial/ethnic diversity within intra-urban context, using census-tracts as scale of analysis in the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) of Knoxville in Tennessee. The statistics used for analyzing intra-urban variations include Diversity Score, Theil Entropy Index, and Location Quotient. Tract and Block-group data for White, Black, American Indian, Asian, All Others and Hispanic are used for computing these indices. This paper concludes that diversity has increased during 1990-2000, and has dispersed into suburban counties. However, segregation and clustering for certain minority groups has also increased, in particular African-Americans still remain the most segregated and most clustered community confined to specific geographic locations. This research holds significance as local economic development patterns are very much guided by the geographic variability of human and social capital. Applied research can suggest avenues for growth and can help rebuild local communities. This paper will also contribute to literature focusing on methodological challenges in measuring diversity and its geographic manifestations.     

江苏省连阴雨过程时空分布特征分析

通过综合各地连阴雨指标因子, 确定了江苏省连阴雨过程的标准, 根据指标体系, 对其时空分布特征进行了分析, 得出江苏省年均连阴雨次数为12.3次, 连阴雨的空间分布存在着明显的北少南多的特征, 可见沿江苏南地区为连阴雨的频发地区。其中从对农作物危害程度来看, 主要是春季连阴雨(3—5月)和秋季连阴雨(9—11月)影响较大, 这两个时段连阴雨过程发生次数较多, 分别为年均3.1和2.7次, 其中春季3月和秋季9月的连阴雨出现次数最多。为了进一步定量评估连阴雨的强度, 我们设计了连阴雨强度指数模型, 对强度指数M_LYY进行了分级, 实施了对连阴雨强度的进一步把握, 更好地为决策部门提供了服务。     

纬向平均的风向改变指数与季节转换

通过定义一个能客观定量描述大气环流四维时空变化的风向改变指数WI,用以研究大气环流的时空演变规律和季节转换。在对纬向平均的WI做了经验正交函数(EOF)分析后,得到了其前四个模态。第一模态揭示的是全年平均的WI空间分布的基态。第二模态反映的是WI场的偏差中呈现准调和变化的部分,热带、副热带、温寒带季风区在该模态中均有明显体现。第三模态反映的是WI场的偏差中呈现非调和变化的部分,该部分揭示了因南北半球海陆分布的差异和因大气、海洋流体的非线性效应,其所造成的从春到秋与从秋到春的季节变化的不对称性以及平流层的二月突变现象。第四模态反映的是全球各层盛行风反向区域从春到夏的北进和从夏到秋南撤的现象。     

陕西果业基地伏旱指数及其预报方法

选取陕西苹果(梨)生产基地县中生态环境、气候特点与苹果(梨)产业发展水平具有代表性的10个台站,近40 a(1969—2008年)伏期降水量和无降水日数资料,设计并计算其伏旱指数。将伏旱指数分成强、偏强、中等、偏弱和弱五个等级,并用典型k阶自回归AR(k)预测模式进行独立样本预测试验。结果表明:伏旱指数能够较客观地反映基地县的伏旱强度,且伏旱指数的时空分布特征差异较大。这与这些基地县所处纬度、海拔高度、生态环境和气候背景的差异有关。典型k阶自回归预测模式预测准确及基本准确率在70%左右,预报效果尚好,具有实用价值。     

On the swelling potential of compacted high plasticity clays

We conducted a study of the spatial distributions of seismicity and earthquake hazard parameters for Turkey and the adjacent areas, applying the maximum likelihood method. The procedure allows for the use of either historical or instrumental data, or even a combination of the two. By using this method, we can estimate the earthquake hazard parameters, which include the maximum regional magnitude Mˆ_max, the activity rate of seismic events and the well-known bˆ value, which is the slope of the frequency-magnitude Gutenberg-Richter relationship. These three parameters are determined simultaneously using an iterative scheme. The uncertainty in the determination of the magnitudes was also taken into consideration. The return periods (RP) of earthquakes with a magnitude M ≥ m are also evaluated. The whole examined area is divided into 24 seismic regions based on their seismotectonic regime. The homogeneity of the magnitudes is an essential factor in such studies. In order to achieve homogeneity of the magnitudes, formulas that convert any magnitude to an M_S-surface scale are developed. New completeness cutoffs and their corresponding time intervals are also assessed for each of the 24 seismic regions. Each of the obtained parameters is distributed into its respective seismic region, allowing for an analysis of the localized seismicity parameters and a representation of their regional variation on a map. The earthquake hazard level is also calculated as a function of the form Θ = (Mˆ_max,RP_6.0), and a relative hazard scale (defined as the index K) is defined for each seismic region. The investigated regions are then classified into five groups using these parameters. This classification is useful for theoretical and practical reasons and provides a picture of quantitative seismicity. An attempt is then made to relate these values to the local tectonics.     

Confocal laser scanning microscopy and Raman imagery of ancient microscopic fossils

Among all problems confronting the study of ancient permineralized (petrified) microscopic fossils, two stand out, the need for (1) accurate documentation of their three-dimensional morphology, and (2) direct analysis of their chemical composition and that of their surrounding mineral matrices. To address these problems we demonstrate the use of two techniques that we have recently introduced to Precambrian paleobiology: confocal laser scanning microscopy and Raman imagery. These techniques, both of which are non-intrusive and non-destructive, can provide data by which to characterize, in situ and at micron-scale resolution, the cellular and organismal morphology of thin section-embedded organic-walled fossils. In addition, Raman imagery provides direct analyses of the molecular–structural composition of the kerogenous components of such fossils and of their surrounding matrices, and a means to assess quantitatively the geochemical maturity of the preserved organics. Use of these techniques for studies of ancient microscopic fossils can provide information in three dimensions at high spatial resolution about their morphology and cellular anatomy, taphonomy and fidelity of preservation, composition and mode of preservation, and their biogenicity and syngenetic origin with the rocks in which they occur.     

城乡结合部土地利用变化的信息提取技术与分析--以无锡市为例

作为两种截然不同的生态系统过渡区,城乡结合部是土地利用/土地覆被变化最激烈地区之一,城乡结合部的土地利用情况日益受到人们重视.本文以无锡市为例,利用3S技术提取城乡结合部的范围和土地利用/土地覆被状况信息,提出了确定无锡市城乡结合部范围边界的半自动提取模型和结合部土地利用类型半自动提取模型,并对无锡市城乡结合部土地利用结构及其变化进行分析,揭示了无锡市城乡结合部土地利用/土地覆被变化特征,据此提出城乡结合部土地合理利用的建议.     

黄河中游砒砂岩地区长川流域土地利用变化分析

根据1976年的Landsat-MSS影像数据以及1987年和2000年的Landsat-TM影像数据,应用遥感和地理信息系统手段以及转移矩阵和景观空间格局指数分析方法,对地处黄河中游砒砂岩地区的内蒙古准格尔旗长川流域土地利用及其变化进行研究。结果表明：1)研究区内分布最多的土地利用类型是灌木林地、草地和难利用地,该三个土地利用类型的面积占研究区域总面积75％;2)从1976～2000年期间,虽然乔木和灌木林地的面积明显增加,但同时也存在林地和草地向难利用土地、沙地和农地的转变过程。与此同时水域亦明显减少;3)水土保持生物措施的实施、农田开垦和降雨量偏少可能是导致研究区土地利用变化的主要原因。