The middle pleistocene deposits of Waverley Wood Pit,Warwickshire, England

A complex of channels underlying the Baginton-Lillington Gravel (Baginton Formation) at Waverley Wood Quarry, Warwickshire is described. Fossil pollen and plant macrofossils, Coleoptera, Ostracoda, Mollusca and Mammalia are described from the channel-fill deposits. Consideration of all the evidence allows the identification of four separate stages of channel fill which largely occurred under a cool temperate climate. At the top of Channel 2 evidence for a cold, continental climatic episode can be recognised, suggesting that the whole complex was deposited under a fluctuating climate at the end of a temperate stage. At two levels in the channels human artefacts were recovered confirming the presence of Palaeolithic people in Warwickshire during the deposition of the sediments. Amino-acid geochronology suggests an age within the ‘Cromerian Complex’ Stage for the channels. The small vertebrate and molluscan faunas indicate that the deposits are no older than the latter part of the ‘Cromerian Complex’ Stage of East Anglia. The regional stratigraphic significance of the Waverley Wood succession is outlined.     

Yeosu dinosaur track sites of Korea: The youngest dinosaur track records in Asia

Eighty two dinosaur trackways were newly discovered in Upper Cretaceous lacustrine deposits on islands in the vicinity of Yeosu, Korea. Most dinosaur tracks occur in marginal lake deposits with polygonal desiccation cracks. The dinosaur tracks at the Yeosu site include 65 ornithopod trackways, 16 theropod trackways and one sauropod trackway. The prevalence of ornithopod tracks and the limited occurrence of sauropod tracks at the Yeosu site evidently reflect decreased sauropod diversity in the Upper Cretaceous. All ornithopod trackways represent bipeds, and most of the ornithopod tracks are similar to Caririchnium from other sites of the Korean peninsula. All fossil wood specimens collected in the study area represent conifers (three species of cupressaceous and two species of taxodiaceous conifers, and a new species) except for one, which is a discotyledon. It is thus inferred that the southwestern part of the Korean Peninsula was primarily covered with mesic forests with taxodiaceous trees during the Late Cretaceous. The K–Ar age of the Yeosu tracksite is determined as 81–65 Ma (Camapnian to Maastrichtian). It indicates that the Yeosu track site contains the last records of dinosaurs living in Asia. Consequently, semi-arid palaeoclimatic conditions, together with a large lake as a persistent water source and rich vegetation of gymnosperm trees as food, resulted in the preservation of abundant dinosaur tracks in the Upper Cretaceous on the Korean Peninsula.     

古果属(Archae fructus)研究进展及其时代的讨论

迄今最早的被子植物—古果属(Archaefructus)，包括“辽宁古果”和“中华古果”，以其对折状心皮在轴上螺旋状排列、雄蕊成对状着生、具单沟状花粉等特征。显示了它们在早期被子植物中的原始性。古果属茎枝细弱、叶子细而深裂、叶柄基部多膨突等特征。反映了该属的水生革本特征。根据对其生殖器官及营养器官等特征研究，推测该属很可能源于现已灭绝的、古老的种子蕨类。结合对其伴生的植物化石及相关地质、地理背景等综合分析，认为古果属及叉县组下部的时代为晚侏罗世，而并非早白垩世。     

从化石记录看古人类起源和演化

古人类的起源及演化是一个极其复杂而远未解决的问题，目前掌握的重要化石材料包括：距今约5600万年的灵长类，约1700万年的人猿超科代表，620万年(?)-440万年的人科动物，以及约350万年(?)-200万年的古人类和人造石器等。中国是世界上古人类及与之演化相关的化石发现最多的国家之一，先后找到已知最早的高级灵长类——约4500万年前的曙猿化石，人猿超科的早期代表——l400万年和800万年前的古猿化石，240万年-200万年前的人造石器，200万年前的能人(?)化石，170万年前的直立人及28万年-20万年前的智人化石等。拟从迄今的化石记录人手勾勒出古人类起源及演化的大致轮廓。     

四川盆地深部地壳结构——深地震反射剖面探测

四川盆地位于扬子地块的西北部,被褶皱构造带所围绕,受周缘构造带的侧向挤压作用,盆地卷入了多期次和多边界的构造变形,为开展盆山耦合作用及多边界、多期次构造叠加与复合关系的研究提供了不可多得的理想野外实验室.为揭示四川盆地地壳结构,本文通过对3条不同时间采集的深地震反射剖面数据进行拼接联线处理,获得跨越四川盆地的330 km深地震反射偏移成果剖面,揭示了四川盆地地壳上地幔细结构：沉积层从西北向东南逐渐变薄,在龙门山前沉积层厚度超过15 km,在华蓥山下沉积层减薄到~8 km,且褶皱变形形成华蓥山薄皮褶皱冲断带;莫霍面出现在13~15 s（双程走时）,埋深约40~45 km;并发现从下地壳延伸至地幔的东南向的倾斜反射,从13 s向下延伸至18 s,结合四川盆地及其周边地区其他地球物理和地球化学花岗岩同位素年龄等资料,我们认为这些倾斜反射层是扬子克拉通地台西北缘发生的新元古代俯冲的遗迹.

     

松辽盆地深层侏罗系-下白垩统生物组合和沉积环境

本文描述了松辽盆地探井揭露的深层地层序列及其所产的5个牛物门类化石组合特征.9个孢粉组合是Monosulcites-Cyathidites组合、Pinaceae-Cyathidites-Osmundaeidites组合、Classopollis-Piceites组合、Lophotriletes-Cicatricosisporites组合、Paleoconiferus-Lygodiumsporites组合、Cyathidites-Leiotriletes-Clavatipollenites组合、Cicatricosisporites-Leiotriletes-Polyporopollenites组合、Leiotriletes-Schizaeoisporites-Classopollis组合和Trilobosporites-Cyathidites-Tricolpollenites组合.3个藻类组合是Vesperopsis-Australisphaera组合、Balmula granorugosa组合和Vesperopsis zhaodongensis组合.2个介形类组合是Cypridea unicostata-Limnocypridesadscondida组合和Mongolocypris limpida-Paracandona planiuscula组合.4个植物组合是Elatocladus submanchurica-Ginkgoites orientalis组合、Acanthopteris gothani-Pterophyllum组合、Sphenopteris johnstrupii-Coniopteris nympharum组合和Platanus septentrionalis-Protophyllum undulaturn组合.3个大孢子组合是Minerisporites sp.组合、Ricinospora leavigata-Galamospora sp.组合和Arcellites组合.还介绍了叶肢介、轮藻、双壳类和鱼类化石的产出情况.结合同位素资料认为：大庆群时代为中侏罗世,火石岭组可能为贝里阿斯期,沙河子组为凡兰吟期-欧特里夫期,营城组为欧特里夫期-巴列姆期,登娄库组为巴列姆期-阿普第期早期,泉头组一-二段为阿普第-阿尔卑期,并对各组沉积环境进行了初步分析.     

New polymorphic psyllipsocids from Burmese amber (Psocodea: Psyllipsocidae)

Annulipsyllipsocus andreneli gen. et sp. nov. and A. inexspectatus gen. et sp. nov., the first records of the Psyllipsocidae from the Cretaceous amber of Myanmar are described, illustrated and their taxonomic position discussed. The new genus is characterized by antennae with 16 segments; flagellomeres with secondary annulations; radial cell closed, five-angled, bulged on its R1 border; triangular pterostigma. Species belonging to Annulipsyllipsocus gen. nov. are polymorphic. The described taxa represent the earliest evidence for polymorphism in Psocodea. A checklist of all known species of Psyllipsocidae is given.     

Mid-Cretaceous Hothouse Climate and the Expansion of Early Angiosperms

The remarkable transition of early angiosperms from a small to a dominant group characterized the terrestrial ecosystem of the Cretaceous. This transition was instigated and promoted by environmental changes. Mid-Cretaceous is characterized by major geological events that affected the global environment. δ18O, palaeothermometer TEX86, and other climatic indices from marine sediments suggest rapid temperature increase during mid-Cretaceous despite occasional short cooling events. Simultaneously, terrestrial deposits in East Asia changed from coal-bearing to shale, then to red beds and evaporites. Plant assemblages and other paleoclimate indicators point to rapid aridification for mid-Cretaceous terrestrial environments. In addition, the wildfires were frequently spread all over the earth by the numerous charcoal evidence during the Mid-Cretaceous. Thus, we speculate that the seasonally dry and hot conditions of mid-Cretaceous created a fiery hothouse world. Early angiosperms increased in abundance and diversity and evolved from a few aquatic species to terrestrial herbaceous and then to the diversified flora of today. Angiosperms showed rapid physiological evolution in vein density and leaf area that improved photosynthesis and water absorption. These ecophysiological changes made early angiosperms well adapted to the hot and dry environment in mid-Cretaceous. Moreover, these physiological changes facilitated the fire–angiosperm cycles in mid-Cretaceous that likely further stimulated the early angiosperm evolution.     

Assessing New England's waterborne energy imports (1995–2004)

This paper tests four hypotheses relating to the waterborne commerce of New England's imported energy, by port of entry, from 1995 through 2004. It concludes that the region's ports engaged in this fossil fuel traffic are part of a hierarchical system of large, medium, and small ports; that such energy flows have increased over the study period; that localized demand for energy is the principal component leading to growth; and that regional inter-port competition was not stable.     

鄂尔多斯盆地南部昆虫化石

鄂尔多斯盆地南部下白垩统环河－华池组昆虫化石，共有９个属种，其中有３个新属５个新种，包括未正式发表的１个属种的模式标本。这些昆虫化石在鄂尔多斯盆地是首次发现与公布的，不但丰富了该盆地的化石门类，也为地层划分与对比提供了新资料。