The Néel transition and magnetic properties of terrestrial,synthetic, and lunar ilmenites

The magnetic susceptibility of a terrestrial, synthetic and lunar ilmenite specimen has been measured from 4 to 300 K. All specimens had a single Néel temperature transition which ranged from 56 to 57.7 K. In one case the powdered specimen was partially aligned in the magnetic field prior to the susceptibility measurements and the Néel transition was observed to shift to 60 K indicating magnetic anisotropy. A study of several magnetic parameters calculated from the experimental data showed gross impurities in the terrestrial specimen, single-domain to multi-domain metallic iron in the synthetic specimen, and a small amount of superparamagnetic metallic iron in the lunar sample. No multidomain iron was observed in the lunar ilmenite. The results of electron spin resonance measurements were also in general agreement with these findings. Because of the absence of Fe³⁺ compared to most terrestrial samples it is suggested that the anisotropic magnetic parameters be determined on lunar ilmenite when a large enough single crystal becomes available.     

Adapting science to a warming world

Climate change is complicating the variables that Alaskans consider when planning for the future. Communities, agencies and other entities have begun to grapple with both the information that they need to adapt to a changing climate and how the processes and practices of science should change to make science more useful. We reviewed sixty-three documents that expressed practical research needs related to climate change in Alaska. Documents nearly unanimously expressed that science, as it is currently practiced, is inadequate to meet the challenges of climate change. They call for processes that are more transparent, collaborative, and accessible. They recommend changed practices including maintaining accessible data-sharing archives, building networks for knowledge sharing, and creating place-based long-term partnerships with communities. They advocate integrating local knowledge, but infrequently address the complexities of how this is best accomplished. They also suggest the need for improved training in interdisciplinary research and changes in the incentive structure of research institutions. This review complements the climate-change literature by providing concrete suggestions about how to increase the utility of science from a region that is experiencing some of the most dramatic climatic change on the planet.     

Subsidence and strike-slip tectonism of the upper continental slope off Manzanillo, Mexico

The direction of convergence between the Rivera and North American plates becomes progressively more oblique (in a counter-clockwise sense as measured relative to the trench-normal direction) northwestward along the Jalisco subduction zone. By analogy to other subduction zones, the forces resulting from this distribution of convergence directions are expected to produce a NW moving, fore-arc sliver and a NW–SE stretching of the fore-arc area. Also, a series of roughly arc parallel strike-slip faults may form in the fore-arc area, both onshore and offshore, as is observed in the Aleutian arc.In the Jalisco subduction zone, the Jalisco block has been proposed to represent such a fore-arc sliver. However, this proposal has encountered one major problem. Namely, right-lateral strike-slip faulting within the fore-arc sliver, and between the fore-arc sliver and the North American plate, should be observed. However, evidence for the expected right-lateral strike-slip faulting is sparse. Some evidence for right-lateral strike-slip faulting along the Jalisco block–North American plate boundary (the Tepic–Zacoalco rift system) has been reported, although some disagreement exists. Right-lateral strike-slip faulting has also been reported within the interior of the Jalisco block and in the southern Colima rift, which forms the SE boundary of the Jalisco block.Threefold, multi-channel seismic reflection data were collected in the offshore area of the Jalisco subduction zone off Manzanillo in April 2002 during the FAMEX campaign of the N/O L'Atalante. These data provide additional evidence for recent strike-slip motion within the fore-arc region of the Jalisco subduction zone. This faulting offsets right-laterally a prominent horst block within the southern Colima rift, from which we conclude that the sense of motion along the faulting is dextral. These data also provide additional evidence for recent subsidence within the area offshore of Manzanillo, as has been proposed.     

Co-management of sea turtle fisheries: Biogeography versus geopolitics

Co-management between local communities and government agencies is promoted as a strategy to improve fisheries management. This paper considers the potential for co-management of sea turtle fisheries within four UK Overseas Territories (OTs) in the Caribbean, and for co-ordinated management among those territories. We focus on fisher incentives for engaging in co-management and on the potential to scale up co-management to a regional level. This paper presents data from Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Montserrat, and Turks and Caicos Islands, where 110 turtle fishers participated in a socio-economic survey undertaken as part of the ‘Turtles in the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean’ project. Based on three established criteria for co-management (perceived crisis in stock, willingness to participate and community cohesion), results suggest that fisher support for co-management exists within each OT, but the extent of support for and views of specific management interventions varies among OTs. The implications of results for co-management in each territory, and for establishing co-ordinated management regimes in the region, are discussed in the context of current debates about the nature of resources and scalar (mis)matches between resource and management regimes.