Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The distribution of heavy minerals and their hydraulic equivalents in sediments of the Mediterranean continental shelf of Israel

ABSTRACT The heavy mineral assemblage in sediments of the Mediterranean continental shelf of Israel is rather homogeneous and is dominated by hornblende-augite-mica. Size analyses of quartz and hornblende (which represent the light and heavy minerals respectively) furnish indicators for recognizing different sedimentary environments: 1) Beach and dune sands, where quartz is notably larger than hornblende; 2) A sandy belt from the shoreline down to 37 m depth, where the sizes of these minerals do not differ significantly from each other; and 3) A mud belt from 37 m down to 110 m (and probably even further down) where hornblende is consistently and significantly larger than quartz. Deposition of mica flakes is controlled mainly by the degree of turbulence. Mica occurs mostly in mud association and is therefore more abundant west of the littoral sandy belt. Several indications point to the Nile as the source of the sediments: 1) the similarity between the heavy mineral suites of the Nile and shelf sediments; 2) the distribution pattern along the shelf which is related to the direction of currents and to the quantities of sediment brought by the Nile to the Mediterranean mainly during flood time; 3) the absence of any other important potential source. Shallow-water samples from the southern profiles show enrichment in zircon and an increase in the total weight percentage of heavy minerals, probably caused by mechanical concentration.
The salinity: δ18O water relationship in Kongsfjorden, western Spitsbergen

We present the first oxygen isotope measurements from Kongsfjorden in north-west Spitsbergen, and use the isotopic composition and hydrographic data to provide a detailed assessment of the mixing between freshwater and oceanic waters. Temperature, salinity(s) and oxygen isotope profiles are used to describe the seasonal evolution of hydrography in the inner part of the fjord, and to infer the dominant mixing and exchange processes. Data from atmospheric, glacial and marine sources throughout Kongsfjorden are used to construct a salinity: δ18O mixing line in a region that receives inputs of freshwater and marine Atlantic water. The dominant source of freshwater is glacial melt from a tidewater glacier complex at the head of the fjord, resulting in a seawater salinity: δ18O relationship where δ18O =0.43S - 14.65. The Kongsfjorden data provides a northern latitudinal limit for mixing lines in the northwestern European coastal system.
A lithospheric seismic refraction profile in the western North Atlantic Ocean

Summary. A study of the seismic velocity structure of the subcrustal oceanic lithosphere was conducted in the western North Atlantic north of the Lesser Antilles, where the age of the lithosphere is 80-95 Ma. A 1000km long north-south array of 18 ocean-bottom seismographs (OBS), spaced at 60 km intervals, recorded arrivals from explosions at ranges up to 800km and arrivals from earthquakes in the northern Caribbean region at ranges up to 1400 km. Analysis of the travel-time and amplitude data from the explosions provided the velocity structure down to about 65 km below sea-level. The earthquake data were intended to extend the travel times to ranges over 1100 km, and thus sample the deeper part of the lithosphere. However, the geometry and velocity structure of the downdipping slab beneath the Puerto Rico Trench deflected the ray paths between the Caribbean hypocentres and the OBS array such that no rays travelling through the lower lithosphere were detected by the array. Only rays through the upper lithosphere reached the OBS array. The results show that the subcrustal oceanic lithosphere consists of two main regions. The uppermost region starts just below the M discontinuity and exhibits velocities of 8.2-8.4 km s-1. This region is characterized by three alternating zones of low (8.2 km s-1), high (8.4 km s-1) and low (8.2 km s-1) velocity. The second region lies below 53 km and exhibits high velocities of 8.5-8.6 km s-1. A sharp boundary separates these two regions, suggesting that a major change in composition or phase occurs there. The velocity structure within the upper region shows broad agreement with petrological models for the generation of oceanic lithosphere starting from a pyrolite composition. The alternating zones of low and high velocity correspond to zones depleted of, and enriched in, the basaltic fraction of the primary mantle material, respectively. This is a consequence of the processes of migration and differentiation of the upwelling asthenosphere near the mid-ocean ridge axis. However, none of the petrological models based on a pyrolite or peridotite initial composition can easily explain the high velocities of over 8.5 km s-1 observed for the lower region of the seismic velocity model. We speculate that this region may consist instead primarily of eclogite which is acceted from the asthenosphere as the lithosphere cools and ages. The results do not permit definition of the lower boundary of the lithosphere which probably lies below the 65 km maximum depth resolved in this study. S-wave observations were less reliable than the P-wave data, but generally support the P-wave velocity model. No evidence was found for azimuthal anisotropy within the upper region of the subcrustal lithosphere. However, the existence in the western North Atlantic of a weakly anisotropic, or even isotropic, lower lithosphere with a significant component of eclogite requires verification by future experiments.
A 800 year record of nitrate from the Lomonosovfonna ice core, Svalbard

Abstract Detailed chemical analysis of the 122 m, relatively high-altitude and low-melt Lomonosovfonna ice core provides the best-dated record of nitrate from Svalbard. A very significant non-linear trend present in the record shows: (a) a rise in concentrations from the 12th to the mid-16th century, (b) reasonably stable concentrations until the mid-19th century, (c) a rise in concentrations into the 20th century, with (d) a rapid rise in the 1950s and (e) a decrease after the mid-1980s. Nitrate is well correlated with ammonium before 1920 and after 1960 but not in the intervening period. the correlation between ammonium and nitrate concentrations indicates that ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) has been common at Lomonosovfonna. There are also places in the core where nitrate is very closely associated with calcium.
Are There Gender-specific Preferences for Location Factors? a Grouped Conditional Logit-model of Interregional Migration Flows in Germany Are There Gender-specific Preferences for Location Factors? a Grouped Conditional Logit-model of Interregional Migration Flows in Germany

Many European regions show large imbalances in terms of sex ratios of young adults. Gender-specific valuations of regional characteristics might be one explanation for this phenomenon. Our empirical study analyzes the question whether women and men differ in their tastes for location factors. The question is answered by quantifying the impact of location characteristics on interregional migration behaviour. Our main interest lies on four dimensions which – as prior research has shown – determine migration decisions: labour market, education, family and amenities. The analysis is based on the micro-econometric concept of a conditional logit model which can be derived from a standard random utility framework. The model estimates the probability of choosing a certain destination, conditional only on choice characteristics , i.e. regional endowment. Furthermore, we augment the framework by controlling for violation of the independence of irrelevant alternatives assumption (IIA) and for overdispersion. Migration data stem from a comprehensive migration statistics for Ger-man NUTS-3 regions covering the age-and gender-specific migration flows for 2005. As basic result of our gender-specific regressions we find no general differences in terms of direction, i.e. location factors that attract young men also attract their female counterparts. However, a closer look reveals gender differences in terms of intensity. Women seem to appreciate regional characteristics typically located in agglomerations. Particularly the educational institutions and cultural offerings play an essential role in explaining women's migration behaviour. Men's migration activities are primarily determined by job related issues. But even after controlling for regional endowment men seem to show lower probabilities to migrate than women.
Optimal Estimation in Networked Control Systems Subject to Random Delay and Packet Drop

In this paper we study optimal estimation design for sampled linear systems where the sensors measurements are transmitted to the estimator site via a generic digital communication networks. Sensor measurements are subject to random delay or might even be completely lost. We show that the minimum error covariance estimator is time-varying, stochastic, and it does not converge to a steady state. Moreover, this estimator is independent of the communication protocol and can be implemented using a finite memory buffer if and only if the delivered packets have a finite maximum delay. We also present two alternative time-invariant estimator architectures and, surprisingly, we show that stability does not depend on packet delay but only on the packet loss probability. Finally, algorithms to compute critical packet loss probability and estimators performance in terms of error covariance are given and applied to some numerical examples. I. INTRODUCTION Recent technological advances in MEMS, DSP capabilities, computing, and communication technology are revolutionizing our ability to build massively distributed networked control systems (NCS) [1]. These networks can offer access to an unprecedented quality and quantity of information which can revolutionize our ability in controlling of the environment, such as fine grane building environmental control [2], vehicular networks and traffic control [3], surveillance and coordinated robotics [4]. However, they also pose challenging problems arising from the fact that sensors, actuators and controllers are not physically co-located and need to exchange information via a digital communication network. In particular, measurement and control packets are subject to random delay and loss. These problems are particularly evident in wireless communication networks which are rapidly replacing wired communication infrastructures in many engineering areas [5]. This is happening because wireless systems are easier and cheaper to deploy and avoid cumbersome cabling and device positioning. Besides, new technologies like wireless sensor networks (WSNs), which are large networks of spatially distributed electronic devices – called nodes – capable of sensing, computation and wireless communication, will enable the development of applications previously unfeasible [6] [7]. For example, WSN has been used for animal habitat monitoring in inhospitable regions [8] and microclimate monitoring in forests [9]. These are typical example of large scale fine grain sensor data-collection applications where information is collected and then analyzed off-line. However, WSN are going to be employed also for real-time applications. For example consider a WSN deployed in a forest whose nodes are equipped with temperature and humidity sensors, as …
Saffman-taylor Finger

A nonlinear differential equation of third order in space and first order in time, for the Hele-Shaw, Saffman-Taylor, finger is derived. The stream function of the displaced fluid is calculated using an expansion in terms of the rescaled width of the cell. The stream function provides a potential term for the nonlinear equation. The limits for the finger widths derived from the potential and boundary conditions are 1 > λ > 1 √ 5 , in units of half the width of the Hele-Shaw cell. Stationary solutions are found numerically and compare well with the observed profiles. The time-dependent equation is appropriate for the investigation of finger development from initial perturbations.
(coarse Coding of Shape Fragments) + (retinotopy) = Representation of Structure

Intelligent processing of visual shapes implies the ability to solve the following core problems: Recognition: how to deal with novel views of shapes (generalization across viewpoint changes). Categorization: how to deal with novel instances of shape categories (generalization across shape changes). Meta-categorization: how to deal with radically novel inputs which may belong to none of the familiar categories. Representation of structure: how to encode and refer to (i) the arrangement of parts in an object, and (ii) the arrangement of objects in a scene. Some theorists claim that the only computational approach to object vision that is capable of addressing all four of these problems is structural decomposition (Biederman, 1987; Hummel, 1999). In structural models, object shapes are described in terms of relatively few generic components, joined by categorical spatial relationships chosen from an equally small xed set. The discrete, symbolic nature of the resulting representation can, in principle, achieve invariance with respect to viewpoint by abstracting away the unnecessary details of the shape. Likewise, the representation of novel instances of familiar categories may be possible through the standardization of the primitives (components and their relationships). Finally, if these primitives are suuciently varied, a great many arbitrary shapes and scenes can be described, just as tens of thousands of spoken words can be generated using a small number of phonemes as components (Biederman, 1987). The symbolic/structural approach to representation can be challenged as a model of human performance , which falls short of viewpoint invariance and is limited in other ways (Edelman, 1999). So far, it also proved to be a poor blueprint for computer vision, where no full-edged system based on structural representations was ever implemented. This short note outlines an alternative to conventional structural representations, based on an established model of recognition and categorization: the Chorus of Prototypes (Edelman, 1998). The extended model, which I call the Chorus of Fragments (CoF), is based on the idea of combining \what" and \where" information within the same computational units. CoF aims at supporting all four core recognition-related tasks listed above, without recourse to problematic symbol-and-structure techniques.
The input/removal rates of size-fractionated 210Po in the Jiulongjiang estuary and its implications

The geochemical behaviors of dissolved (< 0.4 μm), low molecular weight (< 10 kDa) and colloidal (10 kDa-0.4 μm) 210Po in surface waters from the Jiulongjiang estuary were examined and the input/removal rates of different 210Po species were estimated. Both dissolved and low molecular weight 210Po were considerably removed during estuarine mixing. However, colloidal 210Po was removed only at low salinity regions (S < 15) but had input behavior at high salinity surface waters (S > 15). The input/removal rates of three species indicate that 210Po was removed rapidly in the Jiulongjiang estuary. The discrepancy of input/removal rates between 210Po species suggests different geochemical behavior and a dynamic transformation between 210Po species. Low molecular weight 210Po may be more appropriate for characterizing the 210Po behavior in estuary zone than the traditional dissolved 210Po.
Aerodynamic structures and processes in rotationally augmented flow fields

Rotational augmentation of horizontal axis wind turbine blade aerodynamics currently remains incompletely characterized and understood. To address this, the present study concurrently analysed experimental measurements and computational predictions, both of which were unique and of high quality. Experimental measurements consisted of surface pressure data statistics used to infer sectional boundary layer state and to quantify normal force levels. Computed predictions included high-resolution boundary layer topologies and detailed above-surface flow field structures. This synergy was exploited to reliably identify and track pertinent features in the rotating blade boundary layer topology as they evolved in response to varying wind speed. Subsequently, boundary layer state was linked to above-surface flow field structure and used to deduce mechanisms underlying augmented aerodynamic force production during rotating conditions. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley &Sons, Ltd.
Valley incision and the uplift of mountain peaks

Simple end-member models describe the effect of isostatically compensated valley incision on the elevation of mountain peaks. These models allow calculation of the maximum portion of mountain peak elevations attributable to the development of observed relief and predict general downstream patterns of ridgetop uplift in response to erosion by fluvial processes. Analyses of topographic profiles across major drainages of the central Sierra Nevada and the Tibetan Plateau indicate that isostatically compensated valley incision could account for at most 5–10% of the present elevation of mountain peaks. In contrast, analyses of topographic profiles across the Himalaya show that as much as 20–30% of the present elevation of Himalayan peaks could be explained by isostatically compensated valley incision. The degree to which valley incision is compensated locally, however, depends on the flexural rigidity of the lithosphere, the size of the range, and its tectonic boundary conditions. These results show that while a tectonic control is required for late Cenozoic surface uplift of the Sierra Nevada, a significant portion of the elevation of Himalayan peaks may reflect late Cenozoic valley incision on the margin of the Tibetan Plateau.
Charles University in Prague Faculty of Social Sciences Institute of Economic Studies

The thesis investigates the linkages between macroeconomic performance and banks loans portfolio quality represented by the non-performing loans ratio in the Czech banking system in years 2003–2013. The empirical analysis evaluates how banks non-performing loans are influenced by several macroeconomic indicators such as GDP, inflation, interest rate, unemployment rate and exchange rate. First we investigate loans quality on the aggregate level, next we analyze the quality of loans of households and non-financial corporations sector separately as the macroeconomic variables may affect these two sectors of borrowers differently. Finally the analysis of mutual links is done for different loan categories according to the level of failure also. The empirical results from vector autoregression model and impulse response analysis generally suggest that favorable macroeconomic conditions improve banks loans quality by lowering the non-performing loans ratio and vice versa. The thesis also identifies the feedback effect of increasing nonperforming loans ratio on economic performance.
Newtoning financial development with heterogeneous firms

(english) This article theoretically and empirically tests the link between financial constraints and the extensive (proportion of exporters) and intensive (volume of exports) margins of international trade. The article's main contribution is its macroeconomic analysis of this relationship, which is further reaching than the sector-based focus found in the current literature. It also presents new information on firm behavior under financial constraints. The paper develops a trade model with heterogeneous firms and shows that countries with a high level of financial development have a lower productivity cut-off above which firms export and a higher proportion of exporting firms. Nevertheless, financial development is not correlated with firms' export volumes once they become exporters. An empirical analysis is developed on the basis of an international trade database on 135 countries between 1994 and 2007. The empirical analysis estimates a two-step gravity equation using panel data and confirms the first theoretical proposition that finance has a positive impact on the extensive margin. However, the intensive margin results are striking. They find a negative relationship between financial development and trade flows, confirmed by all the sensitivity tests. Despite the positive effect of financial development found by the literature in some economic sectors, the macroeconomic impact on overall exports was negative during the analyzed period. _________________________________ (francais) Cet article teste theoriquement et empiriquement le lien entre la contrainte financiere et les marges extensive (la proportion de firmes exportatrices) et intensive (le volume des exportations) du commerce international. Sa principale contribution porte sur une analyse macroeconomique de la relation, malgre le focus sectoriel donne par la litterature. Il present egalement des nouvelles informations sur le comportement des firmes sous contrainte financiere. L'article developpe un modele de commerce international avec des firmes heterogenes et demontre que les pays les plus developpes financierement possedent un seuil de productivite a partir duquel les firmes exportent inferieur et une proportion plus elevee de firmes exportatrices. Neanmoins le developpement financier n'est pas correle avec le volume exporte par les firmes une fois qu'elles sont devenues exportatrices. Une analyse empirique teste le modele en utilisant une base de donnees du commerce de 135 pays entre 1994 et 2007. L'analyse empirique estime une equation de gravite en deux stages avec des donnees de panel et confirme la premiere proposition theorique. Cependant les resultats concernant la marge intensive sont frappants. Ils montrent une relation negative entre le developpement financier et les flux de commerce, confirmee par tous les tests de robustesse. Malgre l'effet positif du developpement financier sur quelques secteurs economiques indique par la litterature, l'impact macroeconomique sur les exportations totales a ete negatif pendant la periode analysee.
On the Origin and Occurrence of Basic Bodies Associated with Discordant Bathyliths

Abstract It is suggested that the rock-suite, characteristic of the discordant bathyliths and ranging in composition from ultrabasic to ultra-acid, is formed from two magmas, a basaltic and a granodioritic, that the basic rocks are emplaced among the geosynclinal sediments before the introduction of the acid magma, and that intermediate rocks are hybrids. Further, it is suggested that hybridization takes place in two stages: first, by reaction between basic rocks and water and carbon dioxide, released from sediments as a result of deep-seated metamorphism, and rising in advance of the acid magma; and secondly, by the magma itself. The first intrusions carry shattered country rocks and are stock-like bodies, and these are followed by successive emplacements of granodiorite, the earliest of which envelop most of the stocks and are, thereby hybridized to form tonalites. Only those stocks near the margins of the later intrusions are preserved, and hence occur as satellites about the larger more acid bodies. The order of intrusion, the grainsize of the basic hybrids, and the occurrence of hornblende is discussed and it is concluded that dioritic rocks and dioritic magmas originate at a high level in the geosynclinal pile.