TEMPORAL TRENDS IN SOIL PRODUCTIVITY EVALUATIONS*

Studies of soil productivity must compensate for the effects of temporal trends in order to examine the pattern of crop yields along spatial gradients. An analysis of the published yield estimates for 30 soils in 233 counties, however, did not find consistent yield increases over the past three decades. On the contrary, the yield estimates for many soils were markedly uniform since 1972. The uniformity appears to have two causes: the acknowledged difficulty of making yield estimates in a time of increasing variability in soil and crop management, both within and between regions, and surveyors' awareness of data stored in a national soils data base. The effect is to cast doubt on soil productivity data reported in county soil surveys published between 1973 and 1988.     

Readout Techniques for Drift and Low Frequency Noise Rejection in Infrared Arrays

Three different methods are presented to subtract thermal drifts and low-frequency noise from the signal of infrared array. The first is dead pixels with open Indium bumps, the second is reference output as implemented on the Hawaii2 multiplexer, and the third is dark pixels to emulate reference cells having a capacity connected to the gate of the unit cell field-effect transistor (FET). The third method is the most effective and yields a reduction in readout noise from15.4–9.4 erms. A novel method will be described to extend this readout technique to the Aladdin 1 K × 1 K InSb array. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Muon flux at the geographical South Pole

The muon flux at the South Pole was measured for five zenith angles, 0°, 15°, 35°, 82.13° and 85.15° with a scintillator muon telescope incorporating ice Cherenkov tank detectors as the absorber. We compare the measurements with other data and with calculations.     

Framing in geographical analysis of environmental conflicts: Theory, methodology and three case studies

When applied to environmental concerns, framing offers a rigorous conceptual and analytic approach with potentially practical significance for dealing with complex issues relevant to geography. The purpose of this article is to introduce framing concepts, typology and modes of analysis to address issues which geographers commonly treat: disputes over land ownership and uses, competition for water resources, cultural clashes over control of territory and resources and the impact of spatial patterns and structures when siting noxious sites. Framing analysis is applied to three cases of environmental conflict in Israel and, more generally, for understanding conflicts revolving around the management of human habitats in relation to the physical environment.     

Sensitivity to stress of the estuarine bivalve Macoma balthica from areas between the Netherlands and its southern limits (Gironde)

Variation in the sensitivity to stress of Macoma balthica was measured in several French and Dutch estuaries. For adult and juvenile Macoma balthica exposed to copper under conditions of starvation, differences in mortality rate, condition, glycogen, burrowing rate and copper content were assessed. No significant differences were observed between adults and juveniles; the influence of treatment and origin was always evident. Animals from the most southern estuaries, Loire and Gironde, near to the species's southern limit of distribution, showed, in the field, the strongest deviations for the ecophysiological traits measured, and were in the experiments the most sensitive to stress.     

地球信息科学的研究与发展

信息时代的召唤,地球信息科学应运而生.经过10a左右的发展,地理信息科学已见雏形.总结了10a来地球信息科学的研究结果,并介绍了地球信息科学的研究内容和发展前景.     

CC区多金属结核分布特征及其与地质地理环境因素之间的关系

根据１９８７、１９８８、１９９０年东北赤道太平洋ＣＣ区的３个航次多金属结核调查资料的统计分析，结果表明，ＣＣ区自西向东，从北向南，多金属结核丰度，覆盖率、形态、粒径和化学组分等具明显的区域分布规律，但在这一区域性分布背景上，结核的局部分布很复杂。     

陀螺经纬仪的读数方法比较研究

介绍了陀螺定向测量中三种不同的数据采集方法，分析了各种方法的优缺点。作者认为传感器采集数据自动化程度高，精度高，特别是运用位置敏感探测器（PSD）采样数据量大，具有一定的抗干扰能力，但在运用传感器采样时必须注意克服非线性误差。     

渤海区域地质信息管理系统数据库设计方案

数据库是GIS的基础。以渤海区域地质信息管理系统数据库为例，阐述了基于GIS的海洋地学管理信息系统中数据库的组织方法，及所包括空间数据库与属性数据库数据分类、分层方案，命名及编码规则，以及二者之间的联接。