Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Caribbean sea level change : observational analysis from millennial to decadal timescales

Sea-level rise continues to be an issue of societal concern. It is a fact that millions of people live close to the coast and will be at risk both directly and indirectly from sea-level rise. Understanding the future begins in the past and so this thesis considers Holocene and modern sea-level variations in the Caribbean region, an area particularly at risk from long term sea-level rise. I construct a catalogue of 561 published Holocene sediment ages and depths, primarily fossil corals and mangrove peats. I derive probability distributions of the habitable ranges of corals and peat using modern growth and abundance records. These distributions are used to simulate realisations of sea-level position in the past. The relative sea-level (RSL) position and RSL rate are calculated at 500 year time slices to construct sub-regional sea-level histories. At each time slice, I select the realisations that fall within a 2000 year time window and calculate the least-squares estimate of RSL rate and RSL position. Results show Caribbean wide spatio-temporal RSL changes. From 7000 to 4000 cal yr BP, RSL rates were »2 mm yr−1 in the north (Cuba and Florida), »1 mm yr−1 in the east (Lesser Antilles and US Virgin Islands) and »2.5 mm yr−1 in the south west. From 4000 to 1000 cal yr BP, sea level rose between 3 (US Virgin Islands, Venezuela and Trinidad) and 5 metres (Florida, Belize). During the last 1000 years, RSL rates fell below 1 mm yr−1 and by 500 cal yr BP lay between 0 to 0.5 mm yr−1. The spatial variation between sub-regional RSL histories is also investigated by using a spherically symmetric, rotating numerical model that simulates sea-level change and vertical ground motion (VGM). I derive model RSL histories at the sub-regions in the Caribbean using a single deglaciation model and a range of earth parameters. By minimising the misfit of the model RSL curves to the data driven RSL curves, I find a representative model fit where lithospheric thickness is 71 km, upper and lower mantle viscosities are 0.5 and 10 × 1021 Pa s respectively. To find the change in sea-level rise in modern (1960 to 2012) times compared to the late Holocene, I calculate RSL and absolute sea-level (ASL) rates using 49 tide gauge records and satellite altimetry. I apply three corrections to remove seasonal and regionally coherent noise and calculate a least-squares estimate of sea-level change. Results show that present day RSL rise is up to three times greater than in the late Holocene, though there remains a small (· 1 mm yr−1) long term contribution from the last deglaciation. For individual sites, I found that variations in VGM can exacerbate long term sea-level change enhancing the risk of coastline communities.
Ground-water levels near the top of the water-table mound, western Cape Cod, Massachusetts, 2002-04

Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report. 2. Graphs showing A, manual measurements and hydrographs of continuous water levels recorded in three wells between the Southeast Ranges of Camp Edwards and Snake Multiply By To obtain Length inch (in.) 2.54 centimeter (cm) inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter (mm) foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m) mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km) Pressure pound per square inch (lb/in 2) 6.895 kilopascal (kPa) Hydraulic conductivity foot per day (ft/d) 0.3048 meter per day (m/d)
The Goldstein Peak Formation, central California: Record of a nonmarine intra-arc basin within the Early Cretaceous Sierra Nevada arc

New mapping in the Lake Kaweah pendant of the southwestern Sierra Nevada batholith reveals a previously unrecognized nonmarine sequence of metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic strata, defined herein as the Goldstein Peak Formation. The nonmarine origin distinguishes the Goldstein Peak Formation from all other Sierra Nevada metasedimentary pendants and from virtually all other coeval deposits associated with the Sierra Nevada arc. Basic structural relations, supplemented by new U-Pb zircon ages, suggest an Early Cretaceous depositional age, a time that is poorly represented within the stratigraphic record of California. This unusual age makes the Goldstein Peak Formation the youngest sedimentary deposit preserved within the metamorphic framework of the exhumed batholith, one that was deposited concurrently with some of the earliest deposits in the Great Valley forearc basin and just preceding the mid-Cretaceous Sierra Nevada arc surge. Preserved sedimentary and volcanic structures, along with whole-rock geochemistry, are consistent with deposition of Goldstein Peak conglomerates and sandstones within fluvial and alluvial fan environments, deposition of mud-rich sediments and air-fall tuffs within a lacustrine(? ) environment, and subaqueous to subaerial extrusion of basaltic to dacitic arc volcanic rocks. This volcano-sedimentary section was intruded soon after deposition, with peak hornblende hornfels to low-pressure amphibolite facies metamorphism ultimately driven by intrusion of the surrounding Early Cretaceous Stokes Mountain ring dike complexes. Deposition of the nonmarine Goldstein Peak Formation within a fault-bounded, possibly transtensional, intra-arc basin during the transition from the low-standing, moderately extensional, Late Jurassic fringing arc to the high-standing, compressional mid- to Late Cretaceous arc indicates that at least one section of the Sierra Nevada arc was a fully emergent continental margin arc by the Early Cretaceous Epoch.
Social Dimensions of Disaster Recovery

Research on disaster recovery has moved beyond earlier uni-dimensional, stage-oriented, and linear conceptualizations and toward approaches that recognize variability, social inequality and diversity, and disparities in recovery processes and outcomes. Theory development has been hampered by the lack of a systematic comparative focus and a failure to contextualize recovery within broader global and societal conditions and trends. Recovery theories should take into account a range of factors that include (1) pre-disaster factors that shape vulnerabilities and exposures at multiple scales, such as indicators of social and economic well-being and governmental capacity; (2) disaster impacts and their implications for recovery; (3) immediate post-impact responses; and (4) post-disaster variables such as the quality of governance systems; institutional capacity; civil society-state relationships; systems of social provision; the appropriateness, coverage, and equity of recovery aid; and post-disaster conditions, trends and events that occur independently of disasters but that also shape recovery processes and outcomes.
Effects of water level fluctuations on the early life stages of fish in the littoral zone of lakes

In a mesocosm study, somatic and otolith growth of common dace (Leuciscus leuciscus) and bream (Abramis brama) differing in body size and body shape were studied in a wave and a no-wave control regime. A low-intensity wave treatment, causing hydrodynamic stress comparable to that resulting from distant ship traffic or moderate wind, caused significant changes in somatic growth and otolith daily increment width (ODIW) of the experimental fish. Three different reaction types could be distinguished, correlating with the body morphology of the six fish groups investigated in this study. Small and fusiform dace and bream benefited from low-intensity waves, showing higher somatic growth rates and greater ODIW in the wave treatment. In small, deep-bodied bream, growth and ODIW were reduced by waves. Finally, in larger fusiform dace and deep-bodied bream, ODIW was decoupled from somatic growth, with larger ODIW in waves, but reduced somatic growth, suggesting that these fish were obliged to allocate considerably more energy to activity when exposed to the wave treatment. The results show that even moderate hydrodynamic stress from low-intensity waves has a serious impact on lake habitat quality and the competitive fitness of littoral fish species in lakes.
A Reconstruction of Snow-Avalanche Characteristics in Montana, U.S.A., Using Vegetative Indicators

Abstract Widespread wet-snow avalanches were observed on the southern boundary of Glacier National Park, Montana, in February 1979. Severe tilting, scarring, and breakage of trees were observed along a transverse trim-line of one path, 70 m from a wet-snow deposit. Tree-ring data were used to establish the date of occurrence, and the nature of damage was used to characterize the avalanche event. The event probably included a previously unrecognized dry-snow avalanche and associated wind blast. Such events present different problems for natural-hazard planning. The nature of vegetative damage along the margins of avalanche paths is shown to be a useful indicator of the characteristics of past unobserved avalanche events.
Latitudinal variation of aerosol properties from Indo‐Gangetic Plain to central Himalayan foothills during TIGERZ campaign

As part of TIGERZ campaign, latitudinal variation of aerosol optical properties was analyzed over Indo‐Gangetic Plains (IGP) to central Himalayas during premonsoon of 2008 and 2009. Measurements of aerosol optical depth (AOD) were performed using Aerosol Robotic Network Sun photometer at four sites with different aerosol environments. The AOD increases from Nainital located in central Himalayas to Kanpur located in IGP region. Further, aerosol size varies spatially with dominance of coarse‐mode aerosols at Kanpur compared to fine‐mode aerosols dominated at Nainital. Spectral variation of single‐scattering albedo suggests that during premonsoon, dust is the dominant species in the IGP with exception of Pantnagar, where absorbing aerosols are dominant. The optical properties of aerosols are calculated, and shortwave clear‐sky aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) is estimated. An insignificant difference is found in columnar ARF and columnar heating rate (HR) when vertical profiles of aerosols are included in radiative transfer models. Over Nainital, average ARF is estimated to be −7.61, −45.75, and 38.14 W m−2 at top of atmosphere (TOA), surface (SUR), and in the atmosphere (ATM), respectively. Average ARF is less negative at Kanpur compared to Pantnagar and Bareilly with values −17.63, −73.06, and 55.43 W m−2 at TOA, SUR, and ATM, respectively. ARF shows positive gradient from the highlands to the IGP sites; larger TOA and SUR cooling were observed at the three sites compared to the highland site. This translates into large columnar HR with estimated average values as 1.07, 1.41, 1.58, and 1.56 K d−1 for Nainital, Pantnagar, Bareilly, and Kanpur, respectively.
Seismic evidence for a slab tear at the Puerto Rico Trench

The fore‐arc region of the northeast Caribbean plate north of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands has been the site of numerous seismic swarms since at least 1976. A 6 month deployment of five ocean bottom seismographs recorded two such tightly clustered swarms, along with additional events. Joint analyses of the ocean bottom seismographs and land‐based seismic data reveal that the swarms are located at depths of 50–150 km. Focal mechanism solutions, found by jointly fitting P wave first‐motion polarities and S/P amplitude ratios, indicate that the broadly distributed events outside the swarm generally have strike‐ and dip‐slip mechanisms at depths of 50–100 km, while events at depths of 100–150 km have oblique mechanisms. A stress inversion reveals two distinct stress regimes: The slab segment east of 65°W longitude is dominated by trench‐normal tensile stresses at shallower depths (50–100 km) and by trench‐parallel tensile stresses at deeper depths (100–150 km), whereas the slab segment west of 65°W longitude has tensile stresses that are consistently trench normal throughout the depth range at which events were observed (50–100 km). The simple stress pattern in the western segment implies relatively straightforward subduction of an unimpeded slab, while the stress pattern observed in the eastern segment, shallow trench‐normal tension and deeper trench‐normal compression, is consistent with flexure of the slab due to rollback. These results support the hypothesis that the subducting North American plate is tearing at or near these swarms. The 35 year record of seismic swarms at this location and the recent increase in seismicity suggest that the tear is still propagating.
Recharge and source‐water insights from the Galapagos Islands using noble gases and stable isotopes

Through a combined noble gas and stable isotope study carried out in the Galapagos Islands of Santa Cruz and San Cristobal, we demonstrate the utility of atmospheric noble gases in identifying recharge areas and timing of recharge in fractured, basaltic systems. Timing of recharge obtained through noble gas temperatures (NGTs) for all samples is corroborated by stable isotopes. Except for one sample, combined NGTs and stable isotope analyses point to recharge during the hot season for all low‐altitude (<∼420 m) spring samples from San Cristobal and all basal aquifer samples in Santa Cruz. Stable isotope comparisons also indicate that San Cristobal springs located at high altitudes (>420 m above sea level) are recharged during both the “garúa” and hot seasons. Preservation of seasonality independently recorded by NGTs and stable isotopes is further reinforced by estimated young water ages. Samples located at high‐altitude display systematic deviations of dissolved noble gases from expected air saturated water values and lead to inconsistent recharge altitudes and temperatures using standard NGT models. Existing degassing models are unable to account for the observed noble gas pattern for most samples. We explore various mechanisms to assess their potential at reproducing the observed noble gas signature. In particular, the potential impact of fog droplets during the cooler “garúa” season on dissolved noble gas concentrations in groundwater and the effect of mixing high‐altitude (≥1500 m) rainwater with low‐altitude (∼400 m) fog droplets is explored. This mixing hypothesis is capable of explaining Ne and Xe concentrations for most high‐altitude samples.
Assessment of hydrological droughts for the Yellow River, China, using copulas

Droughts are one of the normal and recurrent climatic phenomena on Earth. However, recurring prolonged droughts have caused far‐reaching and diverse impacts because of water deficits. This study aims to investigate the hydrological droughts of the Yellow River in northern China. Since drought duration and drought severity exhibit significant correlation, a bivariate distribution is used to model the drought duration and severity jointly. However, drought duration and drought severity are often modelled by different distributions; the commonly used bivariate distributions cannot be applied. In this study, a copula is employed to construct the bivariate drought distribution. The copula is a function that links the univariate marginal distributions to form the bivariate distribution. The bivariate return periods are also established to explore the drought characteristics of the historically noticeable droughts. The results show that the return period of the drought that occurred in late 1920s to early 1930s is 105 years. The significant 1997 dry‐up phenomenon that occurred in the downstream Yellow River (resulting from the 1997–1998 drought) only has a return period of 4·4 years and is probably induced by two successive droughts and deteriorated by other factors, such as human activities. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The influence of vegetation composition on peat humification: implications for palaeoclimatic studies

Peat humification analysis is a widely used palaeoclimate proxy. However, recent studies combining humification with other proxies of mire surface wetness have identified inconsistencies between the records. We illustrate this inconsistency by comparing humification records with plant macrofossil profiles in three ombrotrophic bogs. Peat humification is a measure for organic decay and reflects changing palaeohydrological conditions and former vegetation composition. The resulting signal is considered to be a derived response to climate. However, even minor changes in the botanical composition of the peat may have a significant influence on humification measurements. The implications of this for palaeoclimate studies are discussed. The assumption that climate has been the major influence on variations in humification rests on the botanical composition being relatively homogeneous throughout the peat profile, and is therefore questionable. Consideration should be given to developing species‐specific measures of humification and to testing the assumption that the major influence on peat humification is the surface wetness of the bog (and therefore climate).
Characteristics of Heat Sources and Clouds over Eastern China and the Tibetan Plateau in Boreal Summer

AbstractIn this study, the summer clouds and precipitation over eastern China and the Tibetan Plateau (TP) are examined by analyzing the satellite observations and the apparent heat source Q1 and moisture sink Q2 computed from the NCEP–NCAR reanalysis. The vertically integrated [Q1] and [Q2] and precipitation have similar interannual variations in eastern China, revealing the important contribution from the condensation process. This relationship is weakened in east TP (ETP) because of the contribution of the surface sensible heat flux. In west TP (WTP), [Q1] is negatively correlated with precipitation because the surface sensible heat flux can be sharply weakened by the decrease of ground–air temperature difference due to rainfall. High clouds and deep convection are closely related with [Q1] and [Q2] over eastern China and ETP, while middle clouds and nimbostratus are responsible for the condensation over WTP. During the rainy summer, more convective rains and stronger upward motion appear in eastern Ch.
Emergent topological and dynamical properties of a real inter-municipal commuting network - perspectives for policy-making and planning

A variety of phenomena can be explained by means of a description of the features of their underlying network structure. In addition, a large number of scientists (see the reviews, eg. Barabasi, 2002; Watts, 2003) demonstrated the emergence of large-scale properties common to many different systems. These various results and studies led to what can be termed as the Â“new science of complex networksÂ” and to emergence of the new Â“age of connectivityÂ”. In the realms of urban and environmental planning, spatial analysis and regional science, many scientists have shown in the past years an increasing interest for the research developments on complex networks. Their studies range from theoretical statements on the need to apply complex network analysis to spatial phenomena (Salingaros, 2001) to empirical studies on quantitative research about urban space syntax (Jiang and Claramunt, 2004). Concerning transportation systems analysis, interesting results have been recently obtained on subway networks (Latora and Marchiori, 2002; Gastner and Newman, 2004) and airports (Barrat et al, 2004). In this paper, we study the inter-municipal commuting network of Sardinia (Italy). In this complex weighted network, the nodes correspond to urban centres while the weight of the links between two municipalities represents the flow of individuals between them. Following the analysis developed by Barrat et al. (2004), we investigate the topological and dynamical properties of this complex weighted network. The topology of this network can be accurately described by a regular small-world network while the traffic structure is very rich and reveals highly complex traffic patterns. Finally, in the perspective of policy-making and planning, we compare the emerging network behaviors with the geographical, social and demographical aspects of the transportation system.
RFI mitigation methods in radio astronomy

Various methods of radio frequency interference (RFI) mitigation methods at radio astronomy tele- scopes are being considered. Special attention is given to real-time processing algorithms. Computer simulations and observational results are used to describe the applicability of these methods. Best results can be achieved when the RFI mitigation procedures are adapted to the particular radio telescope, the type of observations, and the peculiarities of the RFI environment. A combination of dierent linear and non-linear methods in the tem- poral and frequency domains, with and without the use of reference antennas, may give considerable suppression of strong RFI.
Modeling the landmark navigation behavior of the desert ant Cataglyphis

Thesnapshotmodelpresentedby CartwrightandCollett (1987,1983)fails to explain the searchingbehavior of thedesertantCataglyphisin asymmetricalandmarkconfigurations. Whereasaccordingto thesnapshot modeltheantsshouldonly searchin thevicinity of the expectednestposition,thereareotherpronouncedpeaksin thesearchdensityhistograms atpositionswheretheview resemblesthesnapshot, althoughtheexternalorientationof the view in thesepositionsdiffers from the orientationof the snapshot.This reportpresents an extensionof the original snapshotmodel that reproducesthis searchingbehavior of Cataglyphisqualitati vely. Themodelis derived in threesteps:First, theexternalcompass informationis excludedfrom thesnapshotmodelandreplacedby a deterministicsearch, wherethe currentview is rotateduntil it optimally matchesthe snapshot.As a resultof this modification,the singleconvergencepoint of the homingtrajectoriesbreaksup into multiplepointsat thelocationsalsovisitedby theants.Sincethetrajectories,dependingon thestartingpoint,alwaysconvergeto only oneof theseconvergencepointswhereasasingle antsearchesin all of them,thesecondstepexpandsthemodelwith astochasticsearchthat variestherotationof thecurrentview overtime. Thisstepyieldsmultiplesearchpeakswith equalheight. In orderto reproducethe observed preferenceof the antsfor the right nest location,thethird stepreintroducesthecompassinto themodel: thestochasticsearchnow operateson a weightedsuperpositionof thematchingquality in dependenceof thecurrent view rotationandameasuredescribingtheangularpreferencefor thecompassdirection. 1 Original form of the snapshotmodel Themodelof landmarknavigationin beespresentedby CartwrightandCollett (1987,1983)is basedon theassumption, that the insect,beforestartingto forage,takesa snapshotof thesurroundingsat thenest— apanoramicview of thehorizonthatis storedrelatively unprocessed in form of darkandbright sectors.Returningfrom theexcursion,theinsectcontinuouslymatches thecurrentpanoramicview with thestoredsnapshoto deriveavectorpointingtowardsthenest. This is achievedby a simpledisparitymatching:For each(dark) landmarksectorand(bright) gapsectorin thesnapshot, thenearestcorrespondingsectorin thecurrentview is determined.
Visual Comparison of Rotated and Reflected Random-Dot Patterns as a Function of Their Positional Symmetry and Separation in the Field*

Subjects viewed pairs of random-dot patterns which were presented in a number of arrangements varying in the transformations applied to the patterns, in the distance between the patterns, and in the symmetry of the pattern positions with respect to the point of fixation. The task was to judge whether the patterns were “the same” taking into account possible rotations or reflections, or “different”. It was found that correct judgements for identical patterns were most affected by the distance between the two patterns, whereas correct judgements for patterns where one had been rotated through 180° or reflected were most affected by the symmetry of the pattern positions. A scheme modelling the visual recognition of transformed patterns, sufficient to explain the results, is presented.