Seeing financialization? Stylized facts and the economy multiple

One of the most prominent stylized facts about contemporary capitalism concerns its “financialization.” Like all economic stylized facts, however, facts about financialization are recognized by some commentators and not by others. This article offers one explanation why. It argues that the claims we can make about “the economy” depend upon how we envision that economy in the first place. The economy can be pictured in myriad ways – it is multiple, not singular – and different pictures of it enable the identification of different stylized facts about it. So it is with financialization. The article illustrates this by examining the history of two different traditions of picturing the economy. One – national accounting – increasingly has enabled financialization to be seen; the other – mainstream economics – generally has not.     

Recognition of geochemical footprints of mineral systems in the regolith at regional to continental scales

Understanding the character of Australia's extensive regolith cover is crucial to the continuing success of mineral exploration. We hypothesise that the regolith contains geochemical fingerprints of processes related to the development and preservation of mineral systems at a range of scales. We test this hypothesis by analysing the composition of surface sediments within greenfield regional-scale (southern Thomson Orogen) and continental-scale (Australia) study areas. In the southern Thomson Orogen area, the first principal component (PC1) derived in our study [Ca, Sr, Cu, Mg, Au and Mo at one end; rare earth elements (REEs) and Th at the other] is very similar to the empirical vector used by a local company (enrichment in Sr, Ca and Au concomitant with depletion in REEs) to successfully site exploration drill holes for Cu–Au mineralisation. Mapping of the spatial distribution of PC1 in the region reveals several areas of elevated values and possible mineralisation potential. One of the strongest targets in the PC1 map is located between Brewarrina and Bourke in northern New South Wales. Here, exploration drilling has intersected porphyry Cu–Au mineralisation with up to 1 wt% Cu, 0.1 g/t Au, and 717 ppm Zn. The analysis of a comparable geochemical dataset at the continental scale yields a compositionally similar PC1 (Ca, Sr, Mg, Cu, Au and Mo at one end; REEs and Th at the other) to that of the regional study. Mapping PC1 at the continental scale shows patterns that (1) are spatially compatible with the regional study and (2) reveal several geological regions of elevated values, possibly suggesting an enhanced potential for porphyry Cu–Au mineralisation. These include well-endowed mineral provinces such as the Curnamona and Capricorn regions, but also some greenfield regions such as the Albany-Fraser/western Eucla, western Murray and Eromanga geological regions. We conclude that the geochemical composition of Australia's regolith may hold critical information pertaining to mineralisation within/beneath it.     

国家重点研发计划“水资源高效开发利用”重点专项解析

国家重点研发计划"水资源高效开发利用"重点专项是国家科技计划管理改革后首批启动的重点专项之一。该专项立足中国水资源安全形势和国内外科技发展现状及趋势,以提升国家水资源安全保障的科技支撑能力为目标,通过全链条创新和全景式布局,凝练了现阶段中国水资源安全领域亟需解决的重点研究任务。深入分析了"水资源高效开发利用"重点专项的总体布局、科学目标、主要任务和立项情况,剖析了2016年和2017年项目立项和申报中存在的现象和问题,讨论了下一步支持的重点任务方向,对于加强重点专项项目的立项、申报和管理,保障总体目标实现具有积极的指导作用。     

大运河环境景观与变化分析

基于第一次地理国情普查成果,结合高分辨率遥感影像、遗产保护区划图、遗产要素统计信息,获取、分析了大运河申遗之前(2009年为主)、申遗成功当年(2014年)、申遗成功一年之后(2015年)三个时点的环境景观及变化信息,为大运河调查、评估、规划、管理、监测提供理论和地理信息支撑.通过本研究探索,对地理国情普查成果有效转化应用起到很好的示范作用,并为其他世界文化遗产和不可移动文物监测提供了有效借鉴.     

地理国情辅助决策综合分析专题图:概念框架、设计理念与表达模式

提出了地理国情辅助决策分析专题图的概念框架和设计理念,详细介绍了符合地理国情数据特点及辅助决策分析目标的专题图主题选取、表示方法以及符号和色彩设计。以武汉市为例,编制了相关辅助决策分析专题图。     

Toxic cyanobacteria at Nakuru sewage oxidation ponds - A potential threat to wildlife

Phytoplankton composition and biomass, and microcystin content were determined on diverse dates between November 2001 and June 2006 in the final oxidation pond of the Nakuru town sewage treatment plant. The oxidation ponds as well as the rivulet that drains the same are important water sources for some wildlife in the park. The phytoplankton composition of the pond studied mostly comprised coccoid green alga species. However, occasionally cyanobacteria or euglenoids were dominant. Among the cyanobacteria, Microcystis sp. made periodic appearance in the phytoplankton, and was the dominant species on some occasions. Total phytoplankton biomass varied widely from 48 to 135 mg L⁻¹ (wet weight) while cyanobacteria biomass ranged from undetectable levels to 130 mg L⁻¹. Most phytoplankton biomass was due to one or a few species. Detectable cyanotoxin concentrations (sum of microcystins) of up to 551.08 μg mg⁻¹ dry weight (DW) of cyanobacteria biomass or 0.28 μg mg⁻¹ DW of total phytoplankton biomass were recorded in samples collected on different dates. Microcystin content did not appear to correspond to the biomass of cyanobacteria suggesting that toxin production is possibly triggered by environmental changes or changes in the proportion of toxic strains. An occasional presence of microcystins in the pond water suggests that the wildlife species, which regularly use the ponds as drinking water sources are potentially exposed to intoxication. A close monitoring of pond water phytoplankton composition is necessary to accurately quantify the potential impact of cyanotoxins on these wildlife species.     

Glacial change in the vicinity of Mt. Qomolangma (Everest), central high Himalayas since 1976

Glaciers are one of the most important land covers in alpine regions and especially sensitive to global climate change. Remote sensing has proved to be the best method of investigating the extent of glacial variations in remote mountainous areas. Using Landsat thematic mapping (TM) and multi-spectral-scanner (MSS) images from Mt. Qomolangma (Everest) National Nature Preserve (QNNP), central high Himalayas for 1976, 1988 and 2006, we derived glacial extent for these three periods. A combination of object-oriented image interpretation methods, expert knowledge rules and field surveys were employed. Results showed that (1) the glacial area in 2006 was 2710.17 ± 0.011 km2 (about 7.41% of the whole study area), and located mainly to the south and between 4700 m to 6800 m above sea level; (2) from 1976 to 2006, glaciers reduced by 501.91 ± 0.035 km2 and glacial lakes expanded by 36.88 ± 0.035 km2; the rate of glacier retreat was higher in sub-basins on the southern slopes (16.79%) of the Himalayas than on the northern slopes (14.40%); most glaciers retreated, and mainly occurred at an elevation of 4700–6400 m, and the estimated upper limit of the retreat zone is between 6600 m and 6700 m; (3) increase in temperature and decrease in precipitation over the study period are the key factors driving retreat.     

Estimation on Aesthetic Value of Tourist Landscapes in a Natural Heritage Site： Kanas National Nature Reserve, Xinjiang, China

Most world natural heritage sites are designated partly by reason of their prominent aesthetic values in accordance with Article Ⅶ of World Natural Heritage Convention.In this paper, the aesthetic values of Kanas National Nature Reserve, which has potential for such designation, was analyzed quantitatively using scenic beauty estimation(SBE).The landscapes of 19 representative scenic spots in the Kanas National Nature Reserve in summer and autumn were selected as the objects of evaluation.The contributions of different landscape factors to the aesthetic value of the Kanas National Nature Reserve were revealed using a multivariate quantitative model.The main factors affecting the aesthetic value were waterscapes, vegetation, mountains, folk culture and the tourist environment.The t-test and F-test results are extremely significant.According to the results, some suggestions were given for conserving the landscapes in the Kanas National Nature Reserve.     

面向对象的极高海拔区水体及冰川信息提取——以珠穆朗玛峰国家级自然保护区核心区为例

极高海拔地区多为河流发源、冰川发育地,由于地形起伏强烈,且野外考察验证工作困难,传统的遥感信息提取方法很难保证该地区水体及冰川的提取精度。本文基于ASTER影像,运用面向对象的图像信息自动分析方法,对珠穆朗玛峰国家级自然保护区核心区的水体及冰川信息进行了提取研究。为保证信息提取的准确度,将数字高程模型(DEM)及其衍生数据(坡度、坡向),归一化植被指数(NDVI)数据,及有助于区分水体、冰川与其他地物的相关指数(冰雪指数NDSII)及波段运算结果(b1-b3)、(b3/b4)等,分别作为一个波段叠加到原始图像中,使之成为对目标地物光谱特征的有益补充。并对不同类型的水体及冰川进行多级、多尺度分割,以满足其对分割尺度的不同要求。分割完成后,综合考虑目标地物的光谱特征、纹理特征、空间结构特征,根据各特征指数的直方图信息,设定合适的阈值,建立了各水体及冰川类型信息提取的知识规则,并结合实地调查对信息提取的精度进行验证,改进了ASTER遥感影像自动快速提取极高海拔区水体及冰川信息的实用模型。     

美国国家公园志愿者服务及机制——以海峡群岛国家公园为例

具有百余年历史的美国国家公园志愿者服务已成为美国国家公园管理的重要部分,志愿者服务有效实现了美国国家公园的全民管理思路。通过实地考察和访谈记录梳理,就国家公园志愿者服务的相关概念、服务动机、服务决策、服务内容、服务支持和服务机制深入剖析,从庞大有序的服务系统、管理与运行、功能实现三方面分析国家公园志愿者服务机制;提炼出美国国家公园志愿者服务的四个支持：宣传支持、技术支持、学习支持和立法支持。并以美国海峡群岛国家公园为例进行论证。最后提出国家公园志愿者服务和中国国家公园志愿服务尚需研究的诸多内容,任重而道远。