QUEST on DASI: a South Pole CMB polarization experiment

QUEST on DASI is a ground-based, high-sensitivity, high-resolution (ℓ_max2500) experiment designed to map CMB polarization at 100 and 150 GHz and to measure the power spectra from E-modes, B-modes from lensing of the CMB, and B-modes from primordial gravitational waves. The experiment comprises a 2.6 m Cassegrain optical system, equipped with an array of 62 polarization-sensitive bolometers (PSBs), located at the South Pole. The instrument is designed to minimize systematic effects; features include differencing of pairs of orthogonal PSBs within a single feed, a rotatable achromatic waveplate, and axisymmetric rotatable optics. In addition the South Pole location allows both repeatable and highly controlled observations. QUEST on DASI will commence operation in early 2005.     

Micro-XANES mapping of sulphur and its association with magnesium and phosphorus in the shell of the brachiopod, Terebratulina retusa

Biominerals are natural composite materials comprising organic and inorganic components. Detailed knowledge of the nature and distribution of both components is a crucial requirement in order to advance our understanding of biomineral formation, their material properties and preservation potential as well as the interpretation of environmental data. Detailed chemical data are essential for our understanding of the nature and distribution of such components. Micro-XANES mapping at the sulphur K-edge reveals that, in the brachiopod Terebratulina retusa, the sulphate concentration is higher in the outer (primary) layer than in the calcite fibres of the secondary layer. This is co-incident with a higher magnesium concentration. In contrast, the sheaths surrounding the calcite fibres contain sulphur as thiol, confirming the presence of protein while, the sulphur within the fibres themselves, occurs as sulphate. Micro-XANES analysis of the insoluble organic extract from T. retusa indicates the presence of organic sulphate while Micro-Raman spectroscopy confirms that structurally substituted sulphate (SSS) is also present although semi-quantitative Raman spectroscopy carried out in this spectral region (wavenumbers 900–1200) indicates that the sulphate present is at the threshold of detection by Raman spectroscopy. The distribution of phosphorus in the shell of T. retusa correlates well with that of protein indicating the presence of phosphorylated proteins in the periostracum, the sheaths surrounding the calcite fibres and the interface between the primary and secondary layer.     

Deep tow studies of the Tamayo transform fault

The Tamayo transform fault occurs at the north end of the East Pacific Rise where it enters the Gulf of California. The two deep-tow surveys reported here show that the transform fault zone changes significantly as a function of distance from the spreading center intersections. At site 1, near the intersection, one side of the fault is young and the fault zone is narrow and well-defined. Strike slip occurs in a zone approximately 1-km wide suggesting a correspondingly narrow zone of decoupling between the Pacific and North American plates. On the young side of the strike-slip zone, normal faults occur along shear zones which are 45°–50° oblique to the transform strike. They occur parallel to the short axis of the strain ellipse for transform fault strain here, i.e., perpendicular to the least compressive stress. The transform walls are formed by normal faulting as has been pointed out in previous detailed surveys. Here, however, the age contrast of 2.5 m.y. across the transform valley is apparent in the morphology of the normal fault scarps. While the scarps are steep and well-defined on the young side, the scarps on the older side have gradual 10°–30° slopes and appear to be primarily talus ramps. Apparently, the scarps have been tectonically eroded by continued strike slip activity after the initial stages of normal faulting. Thus, transform valleys should be quite asymmetric in cross-section where there is a significant age contrast and one side is less than approximately 0.5 m.y. old. Also, along older sections of the transform valley walls, normal faulting may not be at all obvious due to degradation of the scarps by tectonic erosion. This phenomenon makes the likelihood of transform faults providing windows into the oceanic crust most unlikely except in special cases.The picture of transform deformation is more complex at site 2 in the central portion of the fault where both sides of the fault are greater than 1 m.y. old. Here the transform valley is wider (25–30 km as opposed to 2–5 km). There is no clear simple zone of strike slip tectonics. In fact, the only clear evidence for deformation is the intrusion of magmatic or serpentinite diapirs through the sediments of the transform valley floor. The diapirs have deformed the turbidite layers flooring the valley and in one carefully studied case the turbidite sequence has been uplifted, perched atop the diapir. The pattern of deformation on this outcropping diapir shows radial and concentric fractures which can be modeled by a vertical intrusion circular in plan view. Magnetic studies limit the possible composition to basalt or serpentinite. A 60-km-long median ridge is also likely to be the product of intrusion along the transform fault. The survey at site 2 pointed out the importance of vertical tectonics in the transform valley floor and in particular the importance of diapiric intrusions of either basaltic or serpentinite composition.Based on initial boundary conditions and present tectonic elements in the Tamayo fault zone, a possible history of the mouth of the Gulf of California is outlined. The median ridge was emplaced starting approximately 0.8 m.y. ago by regional extension across the transform fault, the result of leaky transform faulting. The diapirs occur along a possible relay zone of extension midway along the fault which began approximately 0.15 m.y. ago. The extension in this case is parallel to the trend of the transform fault, is still occurring at present, and may evolve into a true spreading center.Contribution of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, new series.     

A seismic reconnaissance survey of the northern Congo Fan

To study the time-varying influence of the Congo River and the Benguela Current on the deposition at the Angola Continental Margin, a high-resolution reflection seismic survey was carried out on the northern Congo Fan. Four seismostratigraphic units have been defined for the upper 800 m (1000 ms TWT) of the data. The units record different depositional environments, ranging from pre-establishment of the Congo River drainage system to the influence of the Benguela Current. An indication of a general change in the turbidite system is provided by a shift in channel distribution and a relocation of the depocentre of coarse material. The ascent of salt is recorded up to the Pliocene. Gas that has migrated out of Lower Cretaceous shales and that was produced from large quantities of organic matter in the younger sediments can be found on the flanks and on top of the salt domes. In a few places, this gas even ascends to the ocean floor along structural pathways through the topmost unit.     

The 3-D Sun and heliosphere at solar maximum

Bob Forsyth and Andy Breen report from the RAS G Discussion Meeting at the Geological Society on 11 January 2002. Presentations came from both the solar and heliospheric communities, on the 3-D structure and dynamics of the solar corona and heliosphere and their inter-relation during the present maximum in the solar activity cycle.     

新形势下林区的就业机会与渠道

我国实施“天然林保护工程”以来,林区人民积极转产分流,寻找新的就业门路和生计,为走出困境、改善生活做出了不懈的努力。为了进一步开阔视野,拓展思路,借鉴他国的经验,我们选刊了“国际森林趋势组织”的几篇关于寻找新的林区就业渠道和森林环境服务市场开发方面的研究文章,以期对我国的林业改革与建设有所启示。(注:这些文章已经“森林趋势组织”的执行主管Mivhael Jenkins先生同意译成中文在本刊刊登,本刊作了部分删节和改动。原文及参考文献请参阅森林趋势组织的网页:http://www. forest-trends. org)     

Lipid distribution in a subtropical southern China stalagmite as a record of soil ecosystem response to paleoclimate change

Lipid extracts from a 61.7-cm-long subtropical stalagmite in southern China, spanning the period of ca. 10,000–21,000 yr ago as constrained by U–Th dating, were analyzed using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The higher plants and microorganisms in the overlying soils contribute a proportion of n-alkanes identified in the stalagmite. The occurrence of LMW (lower molecular weight) n-alkanols and n-alkan-2-ones in the stalagmite was mainly related to the soil microorganisms. We suggest that HMW (higher molecular weight) n-alkanols and n-alkan-2-ones identified in the stalagmite originate from soil organics and reflect input from contemporary vegetation. Shifts in the ratio of LMW to HMW n-alkanols or n-alkan-2-ones indicative of the variation of soil ecosystems (e.g., microbial degradation of organic matter and/or the relative abundance of soil microorganisms to higher plants) are comparable with the subtropical alkenone-SST (sea surface temperature) record of the same period. The similar trends seen in the δ¹³C data and the lipid parameters in this stalagmite imply that the overlying soil ecosystem response to climate might be responsible for the variation of δ¹³C values.     

Devolution, the governance of regional development and the Trade Union Congress in the North East region of England

The devolution and regionalisation of political and administrative structures following the election of New Labour in 1997 have changed the nature of the state and territorial development and governance in the UK. A regional and sub-national tier has opened up within the existing multi-layered governance system operating at the supra-national, national and local scales. This ‘new institutional space’ is increasingly open to the participation of social institutions--including trade unions--in economic and social governance. Drawing upon empirical analysis of the experience of the Northern Trade Union Congress (NTUC) in the North East region of England, the paper argues that the NTUC--in contrast to its national organisation--is beginning to engage with the emergent institutional structures but its role is inhibited by the centralised strategy and structure of the TUC nationally, its own need for upgrading, capacity building and greater financial resources and the interaction between the North East’s particular legacy of tripartite corporatism and the more pluralist modes of regional development governance emerging in the English regions. Unless such issues are addressed regional trade union centres--such as the NTUC--risk remaining relatively junior partners in the emergent regional governance structures.     

A 2000‐year lipid biomarker record preserved in a stalagmite from north‐west Scotland

Previous studies on lipid biomarkers preserved in Chinese stalagmites have indicated that ratios of low‐molecular‐weight (LMW) to high‐molecular‐weight (HMW) n‐alkanes, n‐alkan‐2‐ones, n‐alkanols and n‐alkanoic acids can be used as an index of vegetation versus microbial organic matter input to the system and, by extension, a marker of climatic changes, with increases in the proportion of LMW compounds coinciding with colder periods. Here we test whether this hypothesis is equally applicable to a different geographical region (north‐west Scotland), by examining a stalagmite record of the past 200 years, and a wider range of lipid markers. We also test the applicability of other lipid proxies in this context, including the use of n‐alkane ratios, to interpret vegetation changes, and unsaturated alkanoic acid ratios as climatic indicators. The results show that lipid proxies preserved in stalagmites, and especially those related to vegetation, are potentially extremely useful in palaeoenvironmental research. Of particular value is the use of C₂₇/C₃₁ n‐alkane ratios as a proxy for vegetation change, clearly indicating variations between herbaceous and arboreal cover. This proxy has now been successfully applied to samples from diverse environments, and can be considered sufficiently robust to be of use in analysing future stalagmite records. It will be of particular value in areas where reliable pollen records are not available, as is often the case with deeper cave deposits. However, the division between LMW and HMW aliphatic compounds is not a clear‐cut case of microbial versus plant activity, with the changes in LMW compounds relating more closely to those in their HMW analogues than in specific bacterial biomarkers. The use of unsaturated alkanoic acid ratios here gives conflicting results, with the observed variation through time depending on the isomer measured. The discrepancies between the findings of this study and previous work are likely to be due to the varying controls on the lipids (original organic matter input, and compound degradation), which in turn will be affected by whether the main climatic limiting factor on the soil is temperature or precipitation. This suggests that lipid proxies preserved in stalagmites must be interpreted with care, particularly in the case of bacterial compounds which may be derived from within the cave or from the soil. However, many of these issues can be resolved by the use of multi‐proxy studies. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Supraglacial weathering crust dynamics inferred from cryoconite hole hydrology

Water levels in cryoconite holes were monitored at high resolution over a 3‐week period on Austre Brøggerbreen (Svalbard). These data were combined with melt and energy balance modelling, providing insights into the evolution of the glacier's near‐surface hydrology and confirming that the hydrology of the near‐surface, porous ice known as the ‘weathering crust’ is dynamic and analogous to a shallow‐perched aquifer. A positive correlation between radiative forcing of melt and drainage efficiency was found within the weathering crust. This likely resulted from diurnal contraction and dilation of interstitial pore spaces driven by variations in radiative and turbulent fluxes in the surface energy balance, occasionally causing ‘sudden drainage events’. A linear decrease in water levels in cryoconite holes was also observed and attributed to cumulative increases in near‐surface ice porosity over the measurement period. The transport of particulate matter and microbes between cryoconite holes through the porous weathering crust is shown to be dependent upon weathering crust hydraulics and particle size. Cryoconite holes therefore yield an indication of the hydrological dynamics of the weathering crust and provide long‐term storage loci for cryoconite at the glacier surface. This study highlights the importance of the weathering crust as a crucial component of the hydrology, ecology and biogeochemistry of the glacier ecosystem and glacierized regions and demonstrates the utility of cryoconite holes as natural piezometers on glacier surfaces. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.