Solar Astronomy Data Base: Packaged Information on Diskette

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mckinnon, John A.

1990-01-01

In its role as a library, the National Geophysical Data Center has transferred to diskette a collection of small, digital files of routinely measured solar indices for use on an IBM-compatible desktop computer. Recording these observations on diskette allows the distribution of specialized information to researchers with a wide range of expertise in computer science and solar astronomy. Every data set was made self-contained by including formats, extraction utilities, and plain-language descriptive text. Moreover, for several archives, two versions of the observations are provided - one suitable for display, the other for analysis with popular software packages. Since the files contain no control characters, each one can be modified with any text editor.

The occurrence of the Complexiopollis-Atlantopollis zone (Palynomorphs) in the Eagle Ford Group (Upper Cretaceous) of Texas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Christopher, Raymond A.

1982-01-01

The Lower and lower Upper Cretaceous palynological zones defined in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province and which occur in the eastern Gulf Coastal Plain Province are characterized by a paucity of marine invertebrate fossils. As a result, correlation of these zones with European and provincial stages, as well as with other microfossil and megafossil zones is tenuous. However, an examination of a complete section of the Eagle Ford Group and adjacent strata in Texas reveals that: 1) the upper part of the Woodbine Formation and the Tarrant Formation of the overlying Eagle Ford Group represent a biostratigraphic interval that is absent in the Atlantic and eastern Gulf Coastal Plain Provinces; 2) the Complexiopollis-Atlantopollis Zone (zone IV of some authors) occurs within the Britton Formation (Eagle Ford Group), and is equivalent to the upper part of the Rotalipora cushmani-greenhornensis Subzone (planktic foraminifers) and possibly to the Sciponoceras gracile Zone (ammonites); 3) the Arcadia Park Formation (Eagle Ford Group) contains a mixed assemblage of palynomorphs that includes guides to both the Complexiopollis-Atlantopollis and the overlying Complexiopollis exigua-Santalacites minor Zones, suggesting that biostratigraphic equivalents of the Arcadia Park Formation are not represented in the Atlantic and eastern Gulf Coastal Plain Provinces; and 4) in the basal part of the Austin Chalk of Texas, only one guide palynomorph to the Complexiopollis-Atlantopollis Zone was recognized, but guides to the Complexiopollis exigua-Santalacites minor Zone are present. The Tuscaloosa Group of the eastern Gulf Coastal Plain appears to be biostratigraphically equivalent to the Complexiopollis-Atlantopollis Zone, and therefore correlative with the middle to upper part of the Britton Formation of the Eagle Ford Group.

Geomorphic evidence for an eolian contribution to the formation of the Martian northern plains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimbelman, J. R.

1993-01-01

The northern plains of Mars have many morphologic characteristics that are uncommon or absent on the rest of the planet. Mariner 9 and Viking images obtained north of latitude 30 deg N revealed 'smooth' and 'mottled' plains of an uncertain origin. Some or all of the northern plains were interpreted to consist of lava plains intermixed with eolian and volcanic materials thick eolian mantles that buried portions of the mid latitudes periglacial deposits resulting from the presence of ground ice and as water-transported sediments derived from fluvial runoff, lacustrine deposition in standing bodies of water, or glacial runoff. The highest-resolution Viking images show many intriguing details that may provide clues to the origin of this complex and distinctive terrain. Some of the informative features present in the best Viking images, comparing the observations to what may be expected from various hypotheses of formation, are reviewed. While the results are not conclusive for any single hypothesis, eolian processes have played a major role in the erosion (and possibly deposition) of the materials that make up the surface exposures in the Martian northern plains.

The Pliocene Citronelle Formation of the Gulf Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Matson, George Charlton

1916-01-01

In the spring of 1910 the writer, working under the direction of T. Wayland Vaughan, geologist in charge of Coastal Plain investigations, undertook a study of the later Tertiary formations of the Gulf Coastal Plain. According to the plans outlined before the work was begun, the beds that had formerly been grouped under the names Lafayette formation and Grand Gulf formation were to be studied with a view to their possible separation into more satisfactory stratigraphic units that might be correlated with other formations which, on the basis of their fossils, had been assigned to their proper positions in the geologic time scale. The original plan included a study of the post-Vicksburgian Tertiary deposits from western Florida to Mississippi River and correlations with formations previously recognized in Florida, southern Alabama, and Louisiana. This plan was subsequently modified to extend the investigation as far west as Sabine River. The field work was interrupted and the office work was delayed by calls for geologic work in other areas, so that the preparation of the reports could not be begun until the spring of 1914.

Identification of possible recent water/lava source vents in the Cerberus plains: Stratigraphic andcrater count age constraints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Rebecca J.

2013-04-01

In order to investigate sources of lava and water to the Cerberus plains of Mars, geomorphological mapping on High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images was carried out to reveal the history of activity of fissures and pits which lie upstream of channels and deposits associated with a wrinkle ridge near Cerberus Fossae. The fissures and pits are superbly exposed and imaged, and flows and channels emanate directly from them, interpreted as clear evidence that these are vents. The mapping establishes stratigraphic relationships between the plains and the channels and deposits originating from the vents, establishing the vent history. For example, to the south of the wrinkle ridge, both incised channels and leveed flows extend onto the southern plain and are clearly the final phase of plains-forming activity. Conversely, to the north, vent-sourced channels only incise the plain close to the ridge—beyond that, they are overlain by large-scale regional flows that appear to have originated from the direction of Athabasca Valles. In the southeast, there is evidence of contemporaneity between vent-sourced activity and large-scale plains-forming flow that was not sourced from the vents, indicating that activity here was part of a broader process of Cerberus plains formation from multiple sources. Crater counts show all the activity to be Late Amazonian, with the latest activity tentatively dating to circa 11 Ma. Thus, this study implies that very recent outflows from these vents contributed to the formation of the Cerberus plains and constrains the timing and local flow direction of plains-forming deposits from other sources.

Quantifying large-scale historical formation of accommodation in the Mississippi Delta

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, Robert A.; Bernier, Julie C.; Kelso, Kyle W.; Barras, John A.

2010-01-01

Large volumes of new accommodation have formed within the Mississippi Delta plain since the mid-1950s in association with rapid conversion of coastal wetlands to open water. The three-dimensional aspects and processes responsible for accommodation formation were quantified by comparing surface elevations, water depths, and vertical displacements of stratigraphic contacts that were correlated between short sediment cores. Integration of data from remotely sensed images, sediment cores, and water-depth surveys at 10 geologically diverse areas in the delta plain provided a basis for estimating the total volume of accommodation formed by interior-wetland subsidence and subsequent erosion. Results indicate that at most of the study areas subsidence was a greater contributor than erosion to the formation of accommodation associated with wetland loss. Tens of millions of cubic meters of accommodation formed rapidly at each of the large open-water bodies that were formerly continuous interior delta-plain marsh. Together the individual study areas account for more than 440 × 106 × m3 of new accommodation that formed as holes in the Mississippi River delta-plain fabric between 1956 and 2004. This large volume provides an estimate of the new sediment that would be needed just at the study areas to restore the delta-plain wetlands to their pre-1956 areal extent and elevations.

Intercrater Plains and Heavily Cratered Terrain

NASA Image and Video Library

2000-08-05

This image, from NASA Mariner 10 spacecraft which launched in 1974, shows intercrater plains and heavily cratered terrain typical of much of Mercury outside the area affected by the formation of the Caloris basin.

The intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon: Their nature, origin and role in terrestrial planet evolution. Alternative thermal histories. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leake, M. A.

1982-01-01

Interpretations supporting a differentiated, once active Mercury are listed. Alternative scenarios of the planet's thermal history involve: different distributions of accreted materials, including uranium and thorium-rich materials; variations of early melting; and different modes of plains and scarp formation. Arguments are advanced which strongly favor plains formation by volcanism, lack of a primordial surface, and possible identification of remnant tensional features. Studies of remotely sensed data which strongly suggest a modestly homogeneous surface of silicates imply core separation. Reasons for accepting or rejecting various hypotheses for thermal histories of the planet are mentioned.

Plain language: a strategic response to the health literacy challenge.

PubMed

Stableford, Sue; Mettger, Wendy

2007-01-01

Low health literacy is a major challenge confronting American and international health organizations. Research in the past decade has documented the prevalence of limited literacy and limited health literacy skills among adults worldwide. This creates a major policy challenge: how to create text-based health information - a common method of health communication - that is accessible to the public. Plain language is a logical, flexible response. While touted by American, Canadian, and European health policy makers, adoption and promotion of plain language standards and skills in health-focused organizations have lagged. Most text-based health information continues to be too hard for most adults to read. Barriers to more rapid diffusion of plain language are reflected in a set of myths perpetuated by critics. These myths are identified and refuted. While plain language is only one of many broad-based solutions needed to address low health literacy, the benefits to everyone demand increased use by health organizations.

Inhibition of platelet function by low-dose plain and micro-encapsulated acetylsalicylic acid.

PubMed

Waldemar, G; Petersen, P; Boysen, G; Knudsen, J B

1988-04-15

The effect of two acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) formulations, plain (Magnyl) and micro-encapsulated (Globentyl), on platelet aggregation, thromboxane formation, and bleeding time was studied in 12 healthy volunteers in a randomized double-blind cross-over study. All subjects were treated with Magnyl and Globentyl (75 mg daily) in periods of 2 weeks, separated by a wash-out period of 2 weeks. Both drugs significantly depressed platelet aggregation and thromboxane formation and prolonged bleeding time without difference in mode of action of the drugs. It is concluded that significant inhibition of platelet activity may be achieved by low-dose ASA treatment with micro-encapsulated as well as with plain formulations.

Intercrater Plains and Heavily Cratered Terrain - First Encounter

NASA Image and Video Library

2000-01-18

Intercrater plains and heavily cratered terrain typical of much of Mercury outside the area affected by the formation of the Caloris basin are shown in this image taken during the NASA Mariner 10 first encounter with Mercury in 1974.

The Collins Creek and Pleasant Creek Formations: Two new upper cretaceous subsurface units in the Carolina/Georgia Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

,; Prowell, D.C.; Christopher, R.A.

2004-01-01

This paper formally defines two new Upper Cretaceous subsurface units in the southern Atlantic Coastal Plain of North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia: the Collins Creek Formation and the Pleasant Creek Formation. These units are confined to the subsurface of the outer Coastal Plain, and their type sections are established in corehole CHN-820 from Charleston County, S.C. The Collins Creek Formation consists of greenish-gray lignitic sand and dark-greenish-gray sandy clay and is documented in cores from Allendale, Beaufort, Berkeley, Dorchester, Jasper and Marion Counties, South Carolina, and from Screven County, Georgia. Previously, Collins Creek strata had been incorrectly assigned to the Middendorf Formation. These sediments occupy a stratigraphic position between the Turonian/Coniacian Cape Fear Formation (?) below and the proposed upper Coniacian to middle Santonian Pleasant Creek Formation above. The Collins Creek Formation is middle and late Coniacian in age on the basis of calcareous nannofossil and palynomorph analyses. The Pleasant Creek Formation consists of olive-gray sand and dark-greenish-gray silty to sandy clay and is documented in cores from New Hanover County, North Carolina, and Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Horry and Marion Counties, South Carolina. The strata of this unit previously were assigned incorrectly to the Middendorf Formation and (or) the Cape Fear Formation. These sediments occupy a stratigraphic position between the proposed Collins Creek Formation below and the Shepherd Grove Formation above. The Pleasant Creek Formation is late Coniacian and middle Santonian in age, on the basis of its calcareous nannofossil and palynomorph assemblages.

The intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon: Their nature, origin and role in terrestrial planet evolution. Geologic map analyses: Correlation of geologic and cratering histories. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leake, M. A.

1982-01-01

Geologic map analyses are expanded, beginning with a discussion of particular regions which may illustrate volcanic and ballistic plains emplacement on Mercury. Major attention is focused on the surface history of Mercury through discussion of the areal distribution of plains and craters and the paleogeologic maps of the first quadrant. A summary of the lunar intercrater plains formation similarly interrelates the information from the Moon's geologic and cratering histories.

Static Extraction and Conformance Analysis of Hierarchical Runtime Architectural Structure

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-05-14

Example: CryptoDB 253 Architectural Component Java Class Note CustomerManager cryptodb.test.CustomerManager AKA “ crypto consumer” CustomerManager.Receipts...PROVIDERS PLAIN KEYID KEYMANAGEMENT KEYSTORAGE CRYPTO (+) (+) (+) (+) (+) (+) (+)(+) Figure 7.29: CryptoDB: Level-0 OOG with String objects...better understand this communication, we declared different domains for plain-text (PLAIN), encrypted ( CRYPTO ), alias identifier (ALIASID), and key

The Surface of Venus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivanov, M. A.; Head, J. W.

2018-03-01

This chapter reviews the conditions under which the basic landforms of Venus formed, interprets their nature, and analyzes their local, regional, and global age relationships. The strong greenhouse effect on Venus causes hyper-dry, almost stagnant near-surface environments. These conditions preclude water-driven, and suppress wind-related, geological processes; thus, the common Earth-like water-generated geological record of sedimentary materials does not currently form on Venus. Three geological processes are important on the planet: volcanism, tectonics, and impact cratering. The small number of impact craters on Venus ( 1,000) indicates that their contribution to resurfacing is minor. Volcanism and tectonics are the principal geological processes operating on Venus during its observable geologic history. Landforms of the volcanic and tectonic nature have specific morphologies, which indicate different modes of formation, and their relationships permit one to establish their relative ages. Analysis of these relationships at the global scale reveals that three distinct regimes of resurfacing comprise the observable geologic history of Venus: (1) the global tectonic regime, (2) the global volcanic regime, and (3) the network rifting-volcanism regime. During the earlier global tectonic regime, tectonic resurfacing dominated. Tectonic deformation at this time caused formation of strongly tectonized terrains such as tessera, and deformational belts. Exposures of these units comprise 20% of the surface of Venus. The apparent beginning of the global tectonic regime is related to the formation of tessera, which is among the oldest units on Venus. The age relationships among the tessera structures indicate that this terrain is the result of crustal shortening. During the global volcanic regime, volcanism overwhelmed tectonic activity and caused formation of vast volcanic plains that compose 60% of the surface of Venus. The plains show a clear stratigraphic sequence from older shield plains to younger regional plains. The distinctly different morphologies of the plains indicate different volcanic formation styles ranging from eruption through broadly distributed local sources of shield plains to the volcanic flooding of regional plains. The density of impact craters on units of the tectonic and volcanic regimes suggests that these regimes characterized about the first one-third of the visible geologic history of Venus. During this time, 80%–85% of the surface of the planet was renovated. The network rifting-volcanism regime characterized the last two-thirds of the visible geologic history of Venus. The major components of the regime include broadly synchronous lobate plains and rift zones. Although the network rifting-volcanism regime characterized 2/3 of the visible geologic history of Venus, only 15%–20% of the surface was resurfaced during this time. This means that the level of endogenous activity during this time has dropped by about an order of magnitude compared with the earlier regimes.

The effects of link format and screen location on visual search of web pages.

PubMed

Ling, Jonathan; Van Schaik, Paul

2004-06-22

Navigation of web pages is of critical importance to the usability of web-based systems such as the World Wide Web and intranets. The primary means of navigation is through the use of hyperlinks. However, few studies have examined the impact of the presentation format of these links on visual search. The present study used a two-factor mixed measures design to investigate whether there was an effect of link format (plain text, underlined, bold, or bold and underlined) upon speed and accuracy of visual search and subjective measures in both the navigation and content areas of web pages. An effect of link format on speed of visual search for both hits and correct rejections was found. This effect was observed in the navigation and the content areas. Link format did not influence accuracy in either screen location. Participants showed highest preference for links that were in bold and underlined, regardless of screen area. These results are discussed in the context of visual search processes and design recommendations are given.

The intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon: Their nature, origin and role in terrestrial planet evolution. Discussion of the nature, origin and role of the intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leake, M. A.

1982-01-01

The nature and origin of the intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon as determined through geologic mapping, crater statistics, and remotely sensed data are summarized. Implications of these results regarding scarp formation, absolute ages, and terrestrial planet surfaces are included. The role of the intercrater plains is defined and future work which might lead to a better understanding of these units and terrestrial planet evolution is outlined.

Session Initiation Protocol Network Encryption Device Plain Text Domain Discovery Service

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-12-07

MONITOR’S REPORT NUMBER(S) 12. DISTRIBUTION / AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT 15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: a...such as the TACLANE, have developed unique discovery methods to establish Plain Text Domain (PTD) Security Associations (SA). All of these techniques...can include network and host Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, Information System Security Office (ISSO) point of contact information and PTD status

Historical water-quality data for the High Plains Regional Ground-Water Study Area in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming, 1930-98

USGS Publications Warehouse

Litke, David W.

2001-01-01

The High Plains aquifer underlies 174,000 square miles in parts of eight States and includes eight primary hydrogeologic units, including the well-known Ogallala Formation. The High Plains aquifer is an important resource, providing water for 27 percent of the Nation?s irrigated agricultural lands in an otherwise dry landscape. Since the 1980?s there has been concern over the sustainability of the aquifer due to water-level declines caused by substantial pumping. Water quality of the aquifer is a more recent concern. As part of the U.S. Geological Survey?s National Water-Quality Assessment Program, historical water-quality data have been gathered for the High Plains Regional Ground-Water Study Area into a retrospective data base, which can be used to evaluate the occurrence and distribution of water-quality constituents of concern.Data from the retrospective data base verify that nitrate, pesticides, and dissolved solids (salinity) are important water-quality concerns in the High Plains study area. Sixteen percent of all measured nitrate concentrations were larger than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency drinking-water standard of 10 milligrams per liter. In about 70 percent of the counties within the High Plains study area, nitrate concentrations for 1980-98 were significantly larger than for 1930-69. While nitrate concentrations are largest where depth to water is shallow, concentrations also have increased in the Ogallala Formation where depth to water is large. Pesticide data primarily are available only in the northern half of the study area. About 50 pesticides were detected in the High Plains study area, but only four pesticides (atrazine, alachlor, cyanazine, and simazine) had concentrations exceeding a drinking-water standard. The occasional detection of pesticides in deeper parts of the Ogallala Formation indicates that contamination pathways exist. Dissolved solids, which are a direct measure of salinity, had 29 percent of measured concentrations in excess of the secondary drinking-water standard of 500 milligrams per liter. Comparison of dissolved-solids concentrations prior to 1980 to concentrations after 1980 indicates dissolved-solids concentrations have increased in the alluvial valleys of the Platte, the Republican, and the Arkansas Rivers, as well as in the Ogallala Formation?South hydrogeologic unit.Water-quality results indicate that human activities are affecting the water of the High Plains aquifer. Because there is a potential for water quality to become impaired relative to the historical uses of the aquifer, water quality needs to be considered when evaluating the sustainability of the High Plains aquifer. Data collected as part of the High Plains Regional Ground-Water Study will help to fill in gaps in water-quality information and provide additional information for understanding the factors that govern ambient water quality.

Encryption and decryption using FPGA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nayak, Nikhilesh; Chandak, Akshay; Shah, Nisarg; Karthikeyan, B.

2017-11-01

In this paper, we are performing multiple cryptography methods on a set of data and comparing their outputs. Here AES algorithm and RSA algorithm are used. Using AES Algorithm an 8 bit input (plain text) gets encrypted using a cipher key and the result is displayed on tera term (serially). For simulation a 128 bit input is used and operated with a 128 bit cipher key to generate encrypted text. The reverse operations are then performed to get decrypted text. In RSA Algorithm file handling is used to input plain text. This text is then operated on to get the encrypted and decrypted data, which are then stored in a file. Finally the results of both the algorithms are compared.

Unique Microbial Phylotypes in Namib Desert Dune and Gravel Plain Fairy Circle Soils.

PubMed

van der Walt, Andries J; Johnson, Riegardt M; Cowan, Don A; Seely, Mary; Ramond, Jean-Baptiste

2016-08-01

Fairy circles (FCs) are barren circular patches of soil surrounded by grass species. Their origin is poorly understood. FCs feature in both the gravel plains and the dune fields of the Namib Desert. While a substantial number of hypotheses to explain the origin and/or maintenance of fairy circles have been presented, none are completely consistent with either their properties or their distribution. In this study, we investigated the hypothesis that FC formation in dunes and gravel plains is due to microbial phytopathogenesis. Surface soils from five gravel plain and five dune FCs, together with control soil samples, were analyzed using high-throughput sequencing of bacterial/archaeal (16S rRNA gene) and fungal (internal transcribed spacer [ITS] region) phylogenetic markers. Our analyses showed that gravel plain and dune FC microbial communities are phylogenetically distinct and that FC communities differ from those of adjacent vegetated soils. Furthermore, various soil physicochemical properties, particularly the pH, the Ca, P, Na, and SO4 contents, the soil particle size, and the percentage of carbon, significantly influenced the compositions of dune and gravel plain FC microbial communities, but none were found to segregate FC and vegetated soil communities. Nevertheless, 9 bacterial, 1 archaeal, and 57 fungal phylotypes were identified as FC specific, since they were present within the gravel plain and dune FC soils only, not in the vegetated soils. Some of these FC-specific phylotypes were assigned to taxa known to harbor phytopathogenic microorganisms. This suggests that these FC-specific microbial taxa may be involved in the formation and/or maintenance of Namib Desert FCs. Fairy circles (FCs) are mysterious barren circular patches of soil found within a grass matrix in the dune fields and gravel plains of the Namib Desert. Various hypotheses attempting to explain this phenomenon have been proposed. To date, however, none have been successful in fully explaining the etiology of FCs, particularly since gravel plain FCs have been largely ignored. In this study, we investigated the hypothesis that microorganisms could be involved in the FC phenomenon through phytopathogenesis. We show that the microbial communities in FC and control vegetated soil samples were significantly different. Furthermore, we detected 67 FC-specific microbial phylotypes, i.e., phylotypes present solely in both gravel plain and dune FC soils, some of which were closely related to known phytopathogens. Our results, therefore, demonstrate that microorganisms may play a role in the formation and/or maintenance of Namib Desert FCs, possibly via phytopathogenic activities. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Neogene Fallout Tuffs from the Yellowstone Hotspot in the Columbia Plateau Region, Oregon, Washington and Idaho, USA

PubMed Central

Nash, Barbara P.; Perkins, Michael E.

2012-01-01

Sedimentary sequences in the Columbia Plateau region of the Pacific Northwest ranging in age from 16–4 Ma contain fallout tuffs whose origins lie in volcanic centers of the Yellowstone hotspot in northwestern Nevada, eastern Oregon and the Snake River Plain in Idaho. Silicic volcanism began in the region contemporaneously with early eruptions of the Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG), and the abundance of widespread fallout tuffs provides the opportunity to establish a tephrostratigrahic framework for the region. Sedimentary basins with volcaniclastic deposits also contain diverse assemblages of fauna and flora that were preserved during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum, including Sucker Creek, Mascall, Latah, Virgin Valley and Trout Creek. Correlation of ashfall units establish that the lower Bully Creek Formation in eastern Oregon is contemporaneous with the Virgin Valley Formation, the Sucker Creek Formation, Oregon and Idaho, Trout Creek Formation, Oregon, and the Latah Formation in the Clearwater Embayment in Washington and Idaho. In addition, it can be established that the Trout Creek flora are younger than the Mascall and Latah flora. A tentative correlation of a fallout tuff from the Clarkia fossil beds, Idaho, with a pumice bed in the Bully Creek Formation places the remarkably well preserved Clarkia flora assemblage between the Mascall and Trout Creek flora. Large-volume supereruptions that originated between 11.8 and 10.1 Ma from the Bruneau-Jarbidge and Twin Falls volcanic centers of the Yellowstone hotspot in the central Snake River Plain deposited voluminous fallout tuffs in the Ellensberg Formation which forms sedimentary interbeds in the CRBG. These occurrences extend the known distribution of these fallout tuffs 500 km to the northwest of their source in the Snake River Plain. Heretofore, the distal products of these large eruptions had only been recognized to the east of their sources in the High Plains of Nebraska and Kansas. PMID:23071494

Neogene fallout tuffs from the Yellowstone hotspot in the Columbia Plateau region, Oregon, Washington and Idaho, USA.

PubMed

Nash, Barbara P; Perkins, Michael E

2012-01-01

Sedimentary sequences in the Columbia Plateau region of the Pacific Northwest ranging in age from 16-4 Ma contain fallout tuffs whose origins lie in volcanic centers of the Yellowstone hotspot in northwestern Nevada, eastern Oregon and the Snake River Plain in Idaho. Silicic volcanism began in the region contemporaneously with early eruptions of the Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG), and the abundance of widespread fallout tuffs provides the opportunity to establish a tephrostratigrahic framework for the region. Sedimentary basins with volcaniclastic deposits also contain diverse assemblages of fauna and flora that were preserved during the Mid-Miocene Climatic Optimum, including Sucker Creek, Mascall, Latah, Virgin Valley and Trout Creek. Correlation of ashfall units establish that the lower Bully Creek Formation in eastern Oregon is contemporaneous with the Virgin Valley Formation, the Sucker Creek Formation, Oregon and Idaho, Trout Creek Formation, Oregon, and the Latah Formation in the Clearwater Embayment in Washington and Idaho. In addition, it can be established that the Trout Creek flora are younger than the Mascall and Latah flora. A tentative correlation of a fallout tuff from the Clarkia fossil beds, Idaho, with a pumice bed in the Bully Creek Formation places the remarkably well preserved Clarkia flora assemblage between the Mascall and Trout Creek flora. Large-volume supereruptions that originated between 11.8 and 10.1 Ma from the Bruneau-Jarbidge and Twin Falls volcanic centers of the Yellowstone hotspot in the central Snake River Plain deposited voluminous fallout tuffs in the Ellensberg Formation which forms sedimentary interbeds in the CRBG. These occurrences extend the known distribution of these fallout tuffs 500 km to the northwest of their source in the Snake River Plain. Heretofore, the distal products of these large eruptions had only been recognized to the east of their sources in the High Plains of Nebraska and Kansas.

Geologic Map of the Derain (H-10) Quadrangle on Mercury: The Challenges of Consistently Mapping the Intercrater Plains Unit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitten, J. L.; Fassett, C. I.; Ostrach, L. R.

2018-06-01

We present the initial mapping of the H-10 quadrangle on Mercury, a region that was imaged for the first time by MESSENGER. Geologic map with assist with further characterization of the intercrater plains and their possible formation mechanism(s).

High-resolution hydro- and geo-stratigraphy at Atlantic Coastal Plain drillhole CR-622 (Strat 8)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wrege, B.M.; Isely, J.J.

2009-01-01

We interpret borehole geophysical logs in conjunction with lithology developed from continuous core to produce high-resolution hydro- and geo-stratigraphic profiles for the drillhole CR-622 (Strat 8) in the Atlantic Coastal Plain of North Carolina. The resulting hydrologic and stratigraphic columns show a generalized relation between hydrologic and geologic units. Fresh-water aquifers encountered are the surficial, Yorktown, Pungo River and Castle Hayne. Geologic units present are of the middle and upper Tertiary and Quaternary periods, these are the Castle Hayne (Eocene), Pungo River (Miocene), Yorktown (Pliocene), James City and Flanner Beach (Pleistocene), and the topsoil (Holocene). The River Bend Formation (Oligocene) is missing as a distinct unit between the Pungo River Formation and the Castle Hayne Formation. The confining unit underlying the Yorktown Aquifer corresponds to the Yorktown Geologic Unit. The remaining hydrologic units and geologic units are hydrologically transitional and non-coincident. The lower Pungo River Formation serves as the confining unit for the Castle Hayne Aquifer, rather than the River Bend Aquifer, and separates the Pungo River Aquifer from the upper Castle Hayne Aquifer. All geologic formations were bound by unconformities. All aquifers were confined by the anticipated hydrologic units. We conclude that CR-622 (Strat 8) represents a normal sequence in the Atlantic Coastal Plain.

La formation de l'inkisi (Supergroupe ouest-congolien) en Afrique centrale (Congo et Bas-Zaïre): un delta d'âge Paléozoïque comblant un bassin en extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alvarez, Philippe; Maurin, Jean-Christophe; Vicat, Jean-Paul

1995-02-01

The Inkisi Formation (West Congolian Supergroup) corresponds to a large deltaic body, which extends through Congo, Lower Zaire and Angola. In the Congo and Lower Zaire areas, the lower part of this formation is characterized by a fluvial conglomerate with elliptic pebbles. The red arkosic, channelized series from the Brazzaville-Kinshasa area involves delta plain distributary channels and delta front sequences. The transport direction of continental material is from north to south and the source area is the Chaillu basement. Glacial quartzitic pebbles are probably reworked from the fluvio-lacustrine Upper Diamictite Formation. The classical subdivisions of the Inkisi Formation - basal conglomerate (I 0), Lower part (I 1) and Upper part (I 2) - are not used. These subdivisions correspond to a fluvial conglomerate and to delta front and delta plain facies. The coastal onlap progressively covered the conglomerate and the distributary channels in the delta plain was prograding onto the delta front. The prodelta sequence could correspond to the Upper level of the Mpioka molassic Formation. The Inkisi delta was on the northern edge of an extensional basin controlled by NE-SW normal faults. The extension phase is dearly post Pan-African and occurred during the Palaeozoic, probably in relation to the Permian Karoo phase, and is also known in Angola.

Climate analysis of tornadoes in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Yeqing; Yu, Xiaoding; Zhang, Yijun; Zhou, Zijiang; Xie, Wusan; Lu, Yanyu; Yu, Jinlong; Wei, Lingxiang

2015-06-01

Based on analysis of historical tornado observation data provided by the primary network of national weather stations in China for the period from 1960 to 2009, it is found that most tornadoes in China (85%) occurred over plains. Specifically, large numbers of tornado occurrences are found in the Northeast Plain, the North China Plain, the middle-lower Yangtze Plain, and the Pearl River Delta Plain. A flat underlying surface is conducive to tornado occurrence, while the latitudal variation of tornado occurrence in China is not so obvious. Tornadoes mainly occur in summer, and the highest frequency is in July. Note that the beginning and the time span of tornado outbreaks are different in North and South China. Tornadoes occur during May-September in South China (south of 25°N), June-September in Northeast China (north of 40°N), July-September in the middle-lower Yangtze Plain, and July-August in North China (between 25° and 40°N). More than 80% of total tornadoes occurred during the above periods for the specific regions. The 1960s and 1970s have seen about twice the average number of tornadoes (7.5 times per year) compared to the mean for 1960-2009. The most frequent occurrence of tornado was in the early and mid 1960s; there were large fluctuations in the 1970s; and the number of tornadoes in the 1980s approached the 50-yr average. Tornado occurrences gradually decreased in the late 1980s, and an abrupt change with dramatic decrease occurred in 1994. The decrease in the tornado occurrence frequency is consistent with the simultaneous climatic change in the meteorological elements that are favorable for tornado formation. Tornado formation requires large vertical wind shear and sufficient atmospheric moisture content near the ground. Changes in the vertical wind shear at both 0-1 and 0-6 km appear to be one important factor that results in the decrease in tornado formation. The changing tendency of relative humidity also has contributed to the decrease in tornado formation in China.

Final Environmental Assessment for Construction and Operation of the Edgemeade Readiness Center and Tactical Unmanned Aerial System Storage and Maintenance Facility Idaho Army National Guard Elmore County, Idaho

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-07-01

Edgemeade Readiness Center are public lands managed by the BLM. These areas are primarily composed of undeveloped basalt plains dominated by 4.0 Affected...areas where new buildings would be constructed. 4.10.2 Existing Conditions Basaltic formations in the general vicinity are in abundance. The Snake...River has cut down through many of these formations leaving basalt plains and terraces several hundred feet above the valley floor. Subsequently

Late Hesperian plains formation and degradation in a low sedimentation zone of the northern lowlands of Mars

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rodriguez, J.A.P.; Tanaka, K.L.; Berman, D.C.; Kargel, J.S.

2010-01-01

The plains materials that form the martian northern lowlands suggest large-scale sedimentation in this part of the planet. The general view is that these sedimentary materials were transported from zones of highland erosion via outflow channels and other fluvial systems. The study region, the northern circum-polar plains south of Gemini Scopuli on Planum Boreum, comprises the only extensive zone in the martian northern lowlands that does not include sub-basin floors nor is downstream from outflow channel systems. Therefore, within this zone, the ponding of fluids and fluidized sediments associated with outflow channel discharges is less likely to have taken place relative to sub-basin areas that form the other northern circum-polar plains surrounding Planum Boreum. Our findings indicate that during the Late Hesperian sedimentary deposits produced by the erosion of an ancient cratered landscape, as well as via sedimentary volcanism, were regionally emplaced to form extensive plains materials within the study region. The distribution and magnitude of surface degradation suggest that groundwater emergence from an aquifer that extended from the Arabia Terra cratered highlands to the northern lowlands took place non-catastrophically and regionally within the study region through faulted upper crustal materials. In our model the margin of the Utopia basin adjacent to the study region may have acted as a boundary to this aquifer. Partial destruction and dehydration of these Late Hesperian plains, perhaps induced by high thermal anomalies resulting from the low thermal conductivity of these materials, led to the formation of extensive knobby fields and pedestal craters. During the Early Amazonian, the rates of regional resurfacing within the study region decreased significantly; perhaps because the knobby ridges forming the eroded impact crater rims and contractional ridges consisted of thermally conductive indurated materials, thereby inducing freezing of the tectonically controlled waterways associated with these features. This hypothesis would explain why these features were not completely destroyed. During the Late Amazonian, high-obliquity conditions may have led to the removal of large volumes of volatiles and sediments being eroded from Planum Boreum, which then may have been re-deposited as thick, circum-polar plains. Transition into low obliquity ~5. myr ago may have led to progressive destabilization of these materials leading to collapse and pedestal crater formation. Our model does not contraindicate possible large-scale ponding of fluids in the northern lowlands, such as for example the formation of water and/or mud oceans. In fact, it provides a complementary mechanism involving large-scale groundwater discharges within the northern lowlands for the emplacement of fluids and sediments, which could have potentially contributed to the formation of these bodies. Nevertheless, our model would spatially restrict to surrounding parts of the northern plain either the distribution of the oceans or the zones within these where significant sedimentary accumulation would have taken place. ?? 2010 Elsevier Inc.

Hydrochemical facies and ground-water flow patterns in northern part of Atlantic Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Back, William

1966-01-01

Flow patterns of fresh ground water shown on maps and in cross sections have been deduced from available water-level data. These patterns are controlled by the distribution of the higher landmasses and by the depth to either bedrock or to the salt-water interface. The mapping of hydrochemical facies shows that at shallow depths within the Coastal Plain (less than about 200 ft) the calcium-magnesium cation facies generally predominates. The bicarbonate anion facies occurs within more of the shallow Coastal Plain sediments than does the sulfate or the chloride facies. In deeper formations, the sodium chloride character predominates. The lower dissolved-solids content of the ground water in New Jersey indicates less upward vertical leakage than in Maryland and Virginia, where the shallow formations contain solutions of higher concentration.

Deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age in Georgia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cooke, Charles Wythe; Shearer, Harold Kurtz

1919-01-01

In 1911 the Geological Survey of Georgia published as Bulletin 26 a "Preliminary report on the geology of the Coastal Plain of Georgia," by Otto Veatch and Lloyd William Stephenson, prepared in cooperation with the United States Geological Survey under the supervision of T. Wayland Vaughan, a geologist in charge of Coastal Plain investigations, who contributed the determinations of the invertebrate fossils of the Tertiary and Quaternary formations. Although this report constituted a decided advance in our knowledge of the geology of the Coastal Plain of Georgia, it was admittedly of reconnaissance character, and corrections and additions to it were to be expected. During the last few years field work has been prosecuted vigorously in the Coastal Plain of Georgia, and the additional information thus accumulated throws light upon certain problems of stratigraphy left unsolved by Veatch and Stephenson and alters considerably some of their correlations. The object of the present paper is to present the new evidence regarding the age and correlation of the Eocene formations of Georgia and to revise in accordance with present knowledge the descriptions of the deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age.

Plain Language to Communicate Physical Activity Information: A Website Content Analysis.

PubMed

Paige, Samantha R; Black, David R; Mattson, Marifran; Coster, Daniel C; Stellefson, Michael

2018-04-01

Plain language techniques are health literacy universal precautions intended to enhance health care system navigation and health outcomes. Physical activity (PA) is a popular topic on the Internet, yet it is unknown if information is communicated in plain language. This study examined how plain language techniques are included in PA websites, and if the use of plain language techniques varies according to search procedures (keyword, search engine) and website host source (government, commercial, educational/organizational). Three keywords ("physical activity," "fitness," and "exercise") were independently entered into three search engines (Google, Bing, and Yahoo) to locate a nonprobability sample of websites ( N = 61). Fourteen plain language techniques were coded within each website to examine content formatting, clarity and conciseness, and multimedia use. Approximately half ( M = 6.59; SD = 1.68) of the plain language techniques were included in each website. Keyword physical activity resulted in websites with fewer clear and concise plain language techniques ( p < .05), whereas fitness resulted in websites with more clear and concise techniques ( p < .01). Plain language techniques did not vary by search engine or the website host source. Accessing PA information that is easy to understand and behaviorally oriented may remain a challenge for users. Transdisciplinary collaborations are needed to optimize plain language techniques while communicating online PA information.

Geohydrologic units of the Gulf Coastal Plain in Arkansas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Petersen, J.C.; Broom, M.E.; Bush, W.V.

1985-01-01

This report describes geohydrologic units of the Jurassic, Cretaceous, Tertiary and Quaternary Systems and of the Paleozoic Era in the Gulf Coastal Plain in Arkansas. Structure contour maps on top of the Paleozoic rocks, Trinity Group, Tokio Formation, Nacatoch Sand, Midway Group, Wilcox Group, Carrizo Sand, Cane River Formation. Sparta Sand, and the Memphis Sand are included. Thickness maps of the Wilcox Group, Carrizo Sand, Cane River Formation, Sparta Sand, and the Memphis Sand and maps showing lines of equal dissolved-solids concentrations of the Nacatoch Sand, Wilcox Group, Carrizo Sand, Cane River Formation, and Sparta Sand are also included. The dissolved-solids maps are at about a 1:2 million scale. All other maps are at a 1:1 million scale. Brief descriptions of the geohydrologic units mentioned above and of the Cook Mountain and Cockfield Formations and the Jackson Group are also included. (USGS)

Rheological investigation of self-emulsification process: effect of co-surfactant.

PubMed

Biradar, Shailesh V; Dhumal, Ravindra S; Paradkar, Ananat R

2009-01-01

The aim of study is to investigate role of co-surfactant in self-emulsification through rheological analysis of intermediate liquid crystalline (LC) phase formed during self-emulsification. To mixture of Captex 200P (C200) and tween 80 (T80) (SES Plain), either medium hydrocarbon chain co-surfactant (Capmul MCM (CMCM): SES C) or long hydrocarbon chain co-surfactant (Peceol (P): SES P) was added separately at different concentration levels. Self-emulsification was monitored by visual observations, turbidimetric and droplet size measurement. Mesophases were obtained by 30% v/v aqueous hydration of SES and characterized by polarizing microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and rheological studies. SES Plain exhibited 'bad' emulsification owing to instantaneous gel formation in aqueous media. Almost all SES C have shown 'good' emulsification with transparent appearance, very low turbidity value and nano size droplets. All SES P presented 'moderate' emulsification with milky appearance, high turbidity value and coarse droplets. Polarizing microscopy revealed formation of lamellar phase in SES Plain and in all SES P while almost all SES C exhibited formation of micellar cubic phase. In DSC studies, higher extent of LC phase formation was observed in SES C as compared to SES P. Rheological study clearly demonstrated presence of elastic and partially recoverable mesophase in SES Plain, which was transformed into a viscous and non-recovering mesophase with addition of CMCM while there was no change in rheological status of SES Plain after addition of P. The weak and viscous LC phase in SES C must have not presented any resistance to strain induced deformation. Therefore, it might have ruptured easily and quickly, releasing jet of nanosize droplets whereas elastic mesophase in SES P might have ruptured with little resistance resulting in coarse droplets. The ability of co-surfactant to promote self-emulsification was attributed to their influence on viscoelastic properties of intermediate LC phase.

The fretted terrain of the Nilosyrtis Mensae region of Mars: Clues to the timing of dichotomy formation and the emplacement of the northern plains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Detroye, Jeff E.; Williams, Steven H.

1994-01-01

Geologic mapping of the fretted terrain of the Nilosyrtis Mensae region of Mars has revealed geomorphic evidence that the breakup of the plateau units to the south of Nilosyrtis occurred well before the plains units to the north were emplaced in the late Hesperian time. The plains units were deposited against the fretted terrain which has undergone some modification by mass wasting but not significant backwasting. The morphology observed at the contact between plains and the fretted terrain is consistent with that expected where the edge of a pile of sedimentary debris has undergone mass wasting and other erosion.

Nature and origin of the hematite-bearing plains of Terra Meridiani based on analyses of orbital and Mars Exploration rover data sets

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arvidson, R. E.; Poulet, F.; Morris, R.V.; Bibring, J.-P.; Bell, J.F.; Squyres, S. W.; Christensen, P.R.; Bellucci, G.; Gondet, B.; Ehlmann, B.L.; Farrand, W. H.; Fergason, R.L.; Golombeck, M.; Griffes, J.L.; Grotzinger, J.; Guinness, E.A.; Herkenhoff, K. E.; Johnson, J. R.; Klingelhofer, G.; Langevin, Y.; Ming, D.; Seelos, K.; Sullivan, R.J.; Ward, J.G.; Wiseman, S.M.; Wolff, M.J.

2006-01-01

The ???5 km of traverses and observations completed by the Opportunity rover from Endurance crater to the Fruitbasket outcrop show that the Meridiani plains consist of sulfate-rich sedimentary rocks that are largely covered by poorly-sorted basaltic aeolian sands and a lag of granule-sized hematitic concretions. Orbital reflectance spectra obtained by Mars Express OMEGA over this region are dominated by pyroxene, plagioclase feldspar, crystalline hematite (i.e., concretions), and nano-phase iron oxide dust signatures, consistent with Pancam and Mini-TES observations. Mo??ssbauer Spectrometer observations indicate more olivine than observed with the other instruments, consistent with preferential optical obscuration of olivine features in mixtures with pyroxene and dust. Orbital data covering bright plains located several kilometers to the south of the landing site expose a smaller areal abundance of hematite, more dust, and a larger areal extent of outcrop compared to plains proximal to the landing site. Low-albedo, low-thermal-inertia, windswept plains located several hundred kilometers to the south of the landing site are predicted from OMEGA data to have more hematite and fine-grained olivine grains exposed as compared to the landing site. Low calcium pyroxene dominates spectral signatures from the cratered highlands to the south of Opportunity. A regional-scale model is presented for the formation of the plains explored by Opportunity, based on a rising ground water table late in the Noachian Era that trapped and altered local materials and aeolian basaltic sands. Cessation of this aqueous process led to dominance of aeolian processes and formation of the current configuration of the plains. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Microbial acetogenesis as a source of organic acids in ancient Atlantic Coastal Plain sediments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chapelle, F.H.; Bradley, P.M.

1996-01-01

Field and laboratory evidence shows that deeply buried (90-888 m) fine-grained sediments of the Atlantic Coastal Plain contain viable acetogenic microorganisms, and that these microorganisms actively produce organic acids. Concentrations of formate, acetate, and propionate in pore waters extracted from fine-grained sediments ranged from 50 ??M to 5 mM and were much higher than in adjacent pore waters associated with sandy sediments (<2 ??M). Laboratory studies showed that asceptically cored fine-grained sediments incubated under a H2 atmosphere produced formate and acetate, and that H14CO-3 was converted to 14C-acetate and 14C-formate over time. An enrichment culture of these acetogenic microorganisms was recovered from one long-term incubation that showed the presence of several morphologically distinct gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria. These microorganisms were capable of growth under autotrophic (H2 + CO2), heterotrophic (syringate), and mixotrophic (H2 + CO2 + syringate) conditions. These results suggest that microbial acetogenesis, rather than abiotic processes, is the most important organic acid-producing mechanism during low-temperature (???30 ??C) diagenesis of Atlantic Coastal Plain sediments.

Catagenesis of organic matter of oil source rocks in Upper Paleozoic coal formation of the Bohai Gulf basin (eastern China)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, R.X.; Li, Y.Z.; Gao, Y.W.

2007-05-15

The Bohai Gulf basin is the largest petroliferous basin in China. Its Carboniferous-Permian deposits are thick (on the average, ca. 600 m) and occur as deeply as 5000 m. Coal and carbonaceous shale of the Carboniferous Taiyuan Formation formed in inshore plain swamps. Their main hydrocarbon-generating macerals are fluorescent vitrinite, exinite, alginite, etc. Coal and carbonaceous shale of the Permian Shanxi Formation were deposited in delta-alluvial plain. Their main hydrocarbon-generating macerals are vitrinite, exinite, etc. The carbonaceous rocks of these formations are characterized by a high thermal maturity, with the vitrinite reflectance R{sub 0} > 2.0%. The Bohai Gulf basinmore » has been poorly explored so far, but it is highly promising for natural gas.« less

Chapter 16 - conservation and use of coastal wetland forests in Louisiana

Treesearch

Stephen P. Faulkner; Jim L. Chambers; William H. Conner; Richard F. Keim; John W. Day; Emile S. Gardiner; Melinda S. Hughes; Sammy L. King; Kenneth W. McLeod; Craig A. Miller; J. Andrew Nyman; Gary P. Shaffer

2007-01-01

The natural ecosystems of coastal Louisiana reflect the underlying geomorphic processes responsible for their formation. The majority of Louisiana's wetland forests are found in the lower reaches of the Mississipp Alluvial Valley and the Deltaic Plain. The sediments, water, and energy of the Mississippi River have shaped the Deltaic Plain as natural deltas have...

The Sunny Point Formation: a new Upper Cretaceous subsurface unit in the Carolina Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Balson, Audra E.; Self-Trail, Jean; Terry, Dennis O.

2013-01-01

This paper formally defines the Sunny Point Formation, a new Upper Cretaceous subsurface unit confined to the outer Atlantic Coastal Plain of North and South Carolina. Its type section is established in corehole NH-C-1-2001 (Kure Beach) from New Hanover County, North Carolina. The Sunny Point Formation consists of light-olive-gray to greenish-gray, fine to coarse micaceous sands and light-olive-brown and grayish-red silty, sandy clays. The clay-rich sections typically include ironstone, lignitized wood, root traces, hematite concretions, goethite, limonite, and sphaerosiderites. The Sunny Point Formation is also documented in cores from Bladen County, North Carolina, and from Dorchester and Horry Counties, South Carolina. Previously, strata of the Sunny Point Formation had been incorrectly assigned to the Cape Fear and Middendorf Formations. The Sunny Point occupies a stratigraphic position above the Cenomanian marine Clubhouse Formation and below an upper Turonian unnamed marine unit. Contacts between these units are sharp and unconformable. Calcareous nannofossil and palynomorph analyses indicate that the Sunny Point Formation is Turonian.

Potentiometric surfaces, summer 2013 and winter 2015, and select hydrographs for the Southern High Plains aquifer, Cannon Air Force Base, Curry County, New Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Collison, Jake

2016-04-07

Cannon Air Force Base (Cannon AFB) is located in the High Plains physiographic region of east-central New Mexico, about 5 miles west of Clovis, New Mexico. The area surrounding Cannon AFB is primarily used for agriculture, including irrigated cropland and dairies. The Southern High Plains aquifer is the principal source of water for Cannon AFB, for the nearby town of Clovis, and for local agriculture and dairies. The Southern High Plains aquifer in the vicinity of Cannon AFB consists of three subsurface geological formations: the Chinle Formation of Triassic age, the Ogallala Formation of Tertiary age, and the Blackwater Draw Formation of Quaternary age. The Ogallala Formation is the main water-yielding formation of the Southern High Plains aquifer. Groundwater-supplied, center-pivot irrigation dominates pumping from the Southern High Plains aquifer in the area surrounding Cannon AFB, where the irrigation season typically extends from early March through October. The U.S. Geological Survey has been monitoring groundwater levels in the vicinity of Cannon AFB since 1954 and has developed general potentiometric-surface maps that show groundwater flow from northwest to southeast in the study area. While previous potentiometric-surface maps show the general direction of groundwater flow, a denser well network is needed to show details of groundwater flow at a local scale. Groundwater levels were measured in 93 wells during summer 2013 and 100 wells during winter 2015.The summer and winter potentiometric-surface maps display the presence of what is interpreted to be a groundwater trough trending from the northwest to the southeast through the study area. This groundwater trough may be the hydraulic expression of a Tertiary-age paleochannel. Groundwater north of the trough flows in a southerly direction into the trough, and groundwater south of the trough flows in an easterly direction into the trough.During the 18-month period between summer 2013 and winter 2015, changes in groundwater levels ranged from a rise of 10.0 to a decline of 3.8 feet. The regions to the north and south of the groundwater trough contained the majority of the rises in groundwater levels, whereas the regions within the trough contained the majority of the declines in groundwater levels. In contrast, the long-term groundwater-level trend in wells with 20 to 60 years of record is a steady decline in average annual water levels, with declines ranging from 0.41 to 2.81 feet per year. Overall, the northwestern part of the study area exhibits the smallest average annual declines, while the southeastern part of the study area exhibits the largest average annual declines.

A fast image encryption algorithm based on only blocks in cipher text

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xing-Yuan; Wang, Qian

2014-03-01

In this paper, a fast image encryption algorithm is proposed, in which the shuffling and diffusion is performed simultaneously. The cipher-text image is divided into blocks and each block has k ×k pixels, while the pixels of the plain-text are scanned one by one. Four logistic maps are used to generate the encryption key stream and the new place in the cipher image of plain image pixels, including the row and column of the block which the pixel belongs to and the place where the pixel would be placed in the block. After encrypting each pixel, the initial conditions of logistic maps would be changed according to the encrypted pixel's value; after encrypting each row of plain image, the initial condition would also be changed by the skew tent map. At last, it is illustrated that this algorithm has a faster speed, big key space, and better properties in withstanding differential attacks, statistical analysis, known plaintext, and chosen plaintext attacks.

Identification of possible recent water/lava source fissures in the Cerberus Plains: stratigraphic and crater count age constraints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Rebecca J.

2013-04-01

The Cerberus plains are one of the youngest surfaces on Mars. They are thought to have been formed by lava and/or water flows, but there is considerable debate regarding the source of this material. Much of the material forming the western plains, including the Athabasca Valles outflow channels, appears to have flowed from the region of the Cerberus Fossae graben system [1,2,3] and limited areas forming the eastern plains may have been erupted by low shield volcanoes [4,5]. However, flow of material from west to east is obstructed by a ridge centred on 157°E, 7°N and, prior to this study, vents which might be the source of fluid of a low enough viscosity to form the majority of the flat eastern plains had not been identified. We studied new HiRISE (25cm/px, High Resolution Science Imaging Experiment) images of the ridge between the east and west plains and observed possible source vents for this material: the ridge is cut by a series of pits and fissures which lie at the heads of flows and channels extending towards the surrounding plains. In order to establish the stratigraphic relationships between the vents and plains, this study produced large scale geomorphological maps based on the HiRISE images. The mapping showed that both incised channels and leveed flows extend onto the plain to the south of the ridge and that these were the final phase of plains-forming activity in that region. Conversely, to the north, ridge-sourced deposits only form the plains surface close to the ridge - beyond that, they are overlain by large-scale regional flows that appear to have originated from the direction of Athabasca Valles. In the southeast, a large-scale flow which does not emanate from this ridge forms the plains surface, but there is evidence that the youngest outflow activity from the ridge was contemporaneous with emplacement of this unit. We also performed crater counts to age-date the surfaces and these indicate that plains-forming and ridge-sourced units are of a similar Late Amazonian age (<100Ma), with the latest activity tentatively dating to 10Ma. Thus, this study implies that very recent outflows from these vents contributed to the formation of the Cerberus Plains. It also constrains the timing of other large-scale plains-forming flows in the region and suggests that outflows from this ridge were part of a broader process of Cerberus plains formation from multiple sources [6]. References: [1] Plescia, J. B. (1990) Icarus, 88 (2), 465-490. [2] Burr et al. (2002) Geophysical Research Letters, 29, 1013. [3] Berman & Hartmann (2002) Icarus 159, 1-7. [4] Plescia et al. (2003) Icarus, 164, 79-95. [5] Vaucher et al. (2009) Icarus, 204, 418-442. [6] Thomas, R. (2012) JGR Planets (submitted).

Lakshmi Planum, Venus: Assessment of models using observations from geological mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivanov, M. A.; Head, J. W.

2008-09-01

Introduction: Lakshmi Planum is a highstanding plateau (3.5-4.5 km above MPR) surrounded by the highest mountain ranges on Venus [1-6]. Lakshmi represents a unique type of elevated region different from dome-shaped and rifted rises and tessera-bearing plateaus. The unique characteristics of Lakshmi suggest that it formed by an unusual combination of processes. Lakshmi was studied with Venera-15/16 [7-10, 5,11] and Magellan data [12-14], resulting in two classes of models, divergent and convergent, to explain its unusual characteristics. Divergent models explain Lakshmi as a site of mantle upwelling [10,15-18] due to rising and subsequent collapse of a mantle diapir; such models explain emplacement of a lava plateau inside Lakshmi and, in some circumstances, formation of the mountain ranges. The convergent models consider Lakshmi as a locus of mantle downwelling, convergence, underthrusting, and possible subduction [19,11,20-29]. Key features in these models are the mountain ranges, high topography of Lakshmi interior, and the large volcanic centers in the plateau center. These divergent and convergent models entail principally different mechanisms of formation and suggest different geodynamic regimes on Venus. Almost all models make either explicit or implicit predictions about the type and sequence of major events during formation and evolution of Lakshmi and thus detailed geological mapping can be used to test them. Here we present the results of such geological mapping (the V-7 quadrangle, 50- 75N, 300-360E; scale 1:5M) that allows testing the proposed models for Lakshmi. Material units: Eleven material units make up the V-7 quadrangle. (1) Tessera (t), exposed inside and outside Lakshmi appears to be the oldest material. (2) Densely lineated plains (pdl) postdate tessera and form one of the oldest units; patches occur outside Lakshmi Planum. (3) Ridged plains (pr) postdate pdl and occur outside Lakshmi. (4) Shield plains (psh) display abundant small shields (small volcanoes), embay the previous units and occur outside Lakshmi. (5) Pitted and grooved material (pgm) displays small pits and is cut by broad and shallow groove; it occurs inside Lakshmi in association with mountain ranges. (6) Lower unit of regional plains (rp1) has a smooth surface, is cut by wrinkle ridges; this most widespread unit occurs inside and outside of Lakshmi Planum. (7) Upper unit of regional plains (rp2) is also deformed by wrinkle ridges but has lobate boundaries and higher radar albedo than rp1; occurs both inside and outside Lakshmi. (8) Lobate plains (pl) is characterized by lobate flows that embay the most tectonic structures including wrinkle ridges; form fluctuses outside Lakshmi and surround Colette and Sacajawea Paterae inside the plateau. (9) Smooth plains (ps) have uniform and low radar albedo, embay wrinkle ridges; largest occurrence in southern portion of Lakshmi. (10) Impact craters (c) and (11) crater outflow deposits (cf); peppered throughout without preferential concentrations. Structures: Extensional structures. In places, fractures and graben form belts (groove belts, gb) that extend for hundreds of kilometers mostly within the southern regional slope of Lakshmi where they cut pdl and pr and are embayed by psh and rp1. Contractional structures. Wrinkle ridges mildly deform psh and regional plains; broader and more linear ridges dominate ridged plains (pr). The most important occurrences of contractional structures are mountain belts (unit mt) that surround the interior of Lakshmi and consist of densely spaced ridges 5-15 km wide, tens of km long. Regional plains usually embay the ridges. Sequence of major events during evolution of Lakshmi Planum: Various plains units heavily embay fragments of tessera in all localities inside and outside Lakshmi. The consistent relationships of embayment and the complex and unique surface deformational pattern suggest that tessera represents the oldest material. Tessera distribution patterns suggest more extensive presence under younger plains units, forming basement. Densely fractured plains (pdl) appear younger than tessera; the largest massifs of pdl occur in Atropos and Itzpapalotl where plains are further deformed by broad ridges and to some degree resemble the tessera deformation patterns. The ridges are generally conformal to the strike of Akna/Freyja Montes, occur within large areas of pdl adjacent to the mountain ranges, and clearly relate to the orogenic phase of formation of mountain belts [10,16-19,11,20- 23,25,26,29]. Shield plains and regional plains embay mountainous ridges both outside and inside Lakshmi Planum, which implies that the orogenic phase was toward earlier stages of the observable geological history. Shield plains were emplaced after the main phase of mountain belt formation and before regional plains, but exclusively outside of the plateau. The lower unit of regional plains (rp1) postdates shield plains; occurrences are concentrated S of Lakshmi Planum and in the interior of Lakshmi. The thickness of unit rp1 is small because outliers of older units occur within the broad regional plains. Youngest units, smooth/lobate plains, are superposed on regional plains and undeformed by tectonic structures; they were emplaced after cessation of major tectonic activity. Smooth/lobate plains form extensive lava aprons around Colette and Sacajawea Paterae, representing the latest volcanic activity inside Lakshmi Planum. Testing models of Lakshmi Planum formation: Detailed geological analysis thus allows definition of map units, establishing the sequence of major events during formation of Lakshmi, and testing the suite of models proposed to explain the mechanisms of formation of this structure. The interpreted nature of units and the sequence of events strongly contradict the predictions of divergent models: 1) The very likely presence of an ancient (craton-like) tessera massif in the core of Lakshmi; such a core is inconsistent with the rise and collapse of a mantle diapir [10,15,16]. 2) The absence of a rift zone in the interior of Lakshmi; these zones appear to be a natural consequence of growth of surface topography due to diapiric rise [e.g. 30]. 3) The apparent migration of volcanic activity toward the center of Lakshmi; divergent models are consistent with the opposite trend. 4) The abrupt cessation of mountain range ridges at the edge and propagation over hundreds of kilometers outside Lakshmi in Atropos and Itzpapalotl Tesserae. Divergent models predict the opposite progression. Convergent models of formation and evolution of Lakshmi appear to be more consistent with the observations. The pure downwelling models [e.g. 23], however, faces three important difficulties. 1) The possibly unrealistically long time span that seems required to produce the major features of Lakshmi [31]. 2) The strongly asymmetrical N-S topographic profile of Lakshmi and striking difference in the height and thickness of the mountain belts to the NW and N (Akna and Freyja) and to the S of Lakshmi (Danu). The pure downwelling models would require formation of more symmetrical structure. 3) The absence of radial contractional structures (arches and ridges) in the interior of Lakshmi. These structures represent the predicted result of the downwelling models. Convergence models are most consistent with observations and explain the structure by collision and underthrusting/subduction of lower-lying plains with the elevated and rigid block of tessera [20-22]. These models are capable of explaining formation of the major features (e.g., mountain belts), the sequences of events, and principal volcanic and tectonic trends. To explain the N-S asymmetry of Lakshmi, however, these models have to consider major axes of collision to be N and NW of the plateau in Atropos and Itzpapalotl Tesserae. A plausible scenario for formation/evolution of Lakshmi Planum consists of the following stages (Fig. 1). (1) Pre-deformational configuration of western Ishtar; a layered suite of low-lying plains surrounded a tessera craton. (2) Compression from the N led to deformation of plains against the craton foreland and formation of higher mountain ranges; displacement of the craton may have caused formation of Danu Montes. (3) Continued underthrusting finally caused limited uplift of N mountain ranges and the N portion of Lakshmi, creating the plateau asymmetry; two different events may have followed, with or without delamination [33]. (4a) In the beginning of delamination, fertile mantle flowed toward the base of the massif, melted, and led to emplacement of rp1 in the Lakshmi interior. (5a) During mature stages of delamination, the deepest portion of the slab would start to melt to form the youngest lava plains at Colette and Sacajawea Paterae. (4b) If no delamination occurs then formation of unit rp1 could be due to broad melting of the underthrust slab as it crosses the melting isotherm. (5b) As underthrusting proceeded, the relatively colder slab deflected the isotherm downward and new deeper portions of the slab melted, producing the younger lavas near Lakshmi center. When either delamination or continued underthrusting waned, the thicker crust of the northern mountain ranges rose epeirogenically, which led to additional elevation of the ranges and the northern portion of Lakshmi. References: 1) Masursky, H., et al., 1980, JGR, 85, 8232; 2) Pettengill, G.H., et al., 1980, JGR, 85, 8261; 3) Campbell, D.B., et al., 1983, Science, 221 644; 4) Barsukov, V.L., et al., 1986, JGR, 91, D399; 5) Pronin, A.A., et al, 1986, AV, 20, 83 (in Russian); 6) Stofan, E. R., et al, 1987, EMP, 38, 183; 7) Solomon, S.C. and J.W. Head, 1984, JGR, 89, 6885; 8) Solomon, S.C. and J.W. Head, 1990, GRL, 17, 1393; 9) Sjogren W. L., et al., 1997, In: Venus II, 1125; 10) Pronin, A.A., 1986, Geotectonika, 20, 271 (in Russian); 11) Head, J.W. 1990, Geology, 18, 99; 12) Kaula, W.M., et al., 1992, JGR, 97, 16085; 13) Solomon, S.C., et al., 1992, JGR, 97, 13199; 14) Basilevsky, A.T. and J.W. Head, 1995, SSR, 29, 335; 15) Pronin, A.A., 1990, LPSC 21, 987; 16) Pronin, A.A., 1992, In: Venus Geology Geochemistry, and Geophysics, 68; 17) Grimm, R.E. and R.J. Phillips, 1990, GRL, 17, 1349; 18) Grimm, R.E., and R.J. Phillips, 1991, JGR, 96, 8305; 19) Head, J.W., 1986, LPSC 17, 323; 20) Head, J.W., et al., 1990, GRL, 17, 1337; 21) Roberts, K.M. and J.W. Head, 1990a, GRL, 17, 1341; 22) Roberts, K.M. and J.W. Head, 1990b, EMP, 50/51, 193; 23) Bindschadler, D.L., et al, 1990, GRL, 17, 1345; 24) Lenardic, A., et al, 1991, GRL, 18, 2209; 25) Hansen, V.L. and R.J. Phillips, 1993, LPSC 24, 603; 26) Hansen, V.L. and R.J. Phillips, 1995, Geology, 23, 292; 27) Keep, M. and V.L. Hansen, 1994, JGR, 99, 26015; 28) Ansan, V., et al., 1996, PSS, 44, 817; 29) Marinangeli, L., and M.S. Gilmore, 2000, JGR 105, 12053; 30) Condie, K.C., 2001, Mantle plumes and their record in Earth history, p. 306; 31) Kidder, J.G. and R.J. Phillips, 1996, JGR, 101, 23181; 33) Hess, P.C. and J.W. Head, 1990, EMP, 50/51, 57.

Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic framework of the Alabama Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Davis, M.E.

1988-01-01

Tertiary and Cretaceous sand aquifers of the Southeastern United States Coastal Plain comprise a major multlstate aquifer system informally defined as the Southeastern Coastal Plain aquifer system, which is being studied as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's Regional Aquifer System Analysis (RASA) program. The major objectives of each RASA study are to identify, delineate, and map the distribution of permeable clastlc rock, to examine the pattern of ground-water flow within the regional aquifers, and to develop digital computer simulations to understand the flow system. The Coastal Plain aquifers in Alabama are being studied as a part of this system. This report describes the stratlgraphlc framework of the Cretaceous, Tertiary, and Quaternary Systems in Alabama to aid in delineating aquifers and confining units within the thick sequence of sediments that comprises the Southeastern Coastal Plain aquifer system in the State. Stratigraphlc units of Cretaceous and Tertiary age that make up most of the aquifer system in the Coastal Plain of Alabama consist of clastlc deposits of Early Cretaceous age; the Coker and Gordo Formations of the Tuscaloosa Group, Eutaw Formation, and Selma Group of Late Cretaceous age; and the Midway, Wilcox, and Clalborne Groups of Tertiary age. However, stratigraphlc units of late Eocene to Holocene age partially overlie and are hydraulically connected to clastic deposits in southern Alabama. These upper carbonate and clastlc stratlgraphic units also are part of the adjoining Florldan and Gulf Coastal Lowlands aquifer systems. The Coastal Plain aquifer system is underlain by pre-Cretaceous rocks consisting of low-permeabillty sedimentary rocks of Paleozolc, Triassic, and Jurassic age, and a complex of metamorphic and igneous rocks of Precambrian and Paleozolc age similar to those found near the surface in the Piedmont physiographic province. Twelve hydrogeologlc units in the Alabama Coastal Plain are defined--slx aquifers and six confining units. Aquifers of the Coastal Plain aquifer system are composed of fine to coarse sand, gravel, and limestone; confining beds are composed of clay, shale, chalk, marl, and metamorphic and igneous rocks.

Relationship of fluviodeltaic facies to coal deposition in the lower Fort Union formation (Palaeocene), south-western North Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Belt, Edward S.; Flores, Romeo M.; Warwick, Peter D.; Conway, Kevin M.; Johnson, Kirk R.; Waskowitz, Robert S.; Rahmani, R.A.; Flores, Romeo M.

1984-01-01

Facies analysis of the Ludlow and Tongue River Members of the Palaeocene Fort Union Formation provides an understanding of the relationship between fluviodeltaic environments and associated coal deposition in the south-western Williston Basin. The Ludlow Member consists of high-constructive delta facies that interfinger with brackish-water tongues of the Cannonball Member of the Fort Union Formation. The lower part of the Ludlow Member was deposited on a lower delta plain that consisted of interdistributary crevasse and subdelta lobes. The upper part of the Ludlow Member was deposited in meander belts of the upper delta plain. The delta plain facies of the Ludlow Member is overlain by alluvial plain facies consisting of swamp, crevasse-lobe, lacustrine, and trunk meander belt deposits of the Tongue River Member. The Ludlow delta is believed to have been fed by fluvial systems that probably flowed from the Powder River Basin to the Williston Basin undeterred by the Cedar Creek Anticline. However, the evidence indicates that the Cedar Creek Anticline was prominent enough, during early Tongue River Member deposition, to cause the obstruction of the regional fluvial system flowing from the SW, and the formation of local drainage.The Ludlow Member contains 18 coal beds in the area studied, of which the T-Cross and Yule coals are as thick as 4 m (12 ft). Abandoned delta lobes served as platforms where coals formed, which in turn, were drowned by mainly fresh water and subordinate brackish water. Repetition of deltaic sedimentation, abandonment, and occupation by swamp led to preservation of the T-Cross and Oyster coals in areas as extensive as 260 km2 (< 100 miles2).

Basic imaging in congenital heart disease. 3rd Ed

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Swischuk, L.E.; Sapire, D.W.

1986-01-01

The book retains its previous format with chapters on embryology, plain film interpretation, classification of pulmonary vascular patterns, cardiac malpositions and vascular anomalies, and illustrative cases. The book is organized with an abundance of illustrative figures, diagrams, and image reproductions. These include plain chest radiographs, angiograms, echocardiograms, and MR images. The authors present the pathophysiology and imaging of congenital heart lesions.

River flood plains: Some observations on their formation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wolman, M. Gordon; Leopold, Luna Bergere

1957-01-01

On many small rivers and most great rivers, the flood plain consists of channel and overbank deposits. The proportion of the latter is generally very small.Frequency studies indicate that the flood plains of many streams of different sizes flowing in diverse physiographic and climatic regions are subject to flooding about once a year.The uniform frequency of flooding of the flood-plain surface and the small amount of deposition observed in great floods (average 0.07 foot) support the conclusion that overbank deposition contributes only a minor part of the material constituting the flood plain. The relatively high velocities (1 to 4 fps) which can occur in overbank flows and the reduction in sediment concentration which often accompanies large floods may also help account for this. Although lateral migration of channels is important in controlling the elevation of the flood plain, rates of migration are extremely variable and alone cannot account for the uniform relation the flood-plain surface bears to the channel.Detailed studies of flood plains in Maryland and in North Carolina indicate that it is difficult to differentiate between channel and overbank deposits in a stratigraphic section alone.Because deposition on the flood plain does not continue indefinitely, the flood-plain surface can only be transformed into a terrace surface by some tectonic or climatic change which alters the regimen of the river and causes it to entrench itself below its established bed and associated flood plain. A terrace, then, is distinguished from a flood plain by the frequency with which each is overflowed.

Potentiometric-surface map of water in the Judith River Formation in the Northern Great Plains area of Montana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Levings, Gary W.

1982-01-01

The potentiometric surface of the Judith River Formation is mapped at a scale of 1:1,000,000. The map is one of a series produced as part of a regional study of aquifers of Cenozoic and Mesozoic age in the northern Great Plains of Montana. The contour interval is 200 feet. Water in the Judith River Formation occurs under water-table and artesian conditions. The direction of regional ground-water movement is from west to east. Water is discharged from the Judith River Formation to the Milk River from near Havre, Montana, to Malta and to the Missouri River south of the Bearpaw and Little Rocky Mountains. The average discharge from 236 wells is about 10 gallons per minute, and the specific capacity of 186 wells averages 0.66 gallon per minute per foot of drawdown. (USGS)

Coastal geomorphology of the Martian northern plains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parker, Timothy J.; Gorsline, Donn S.; Saunders, Stephen R.; Pieri, David C.; Schneeberger, Dale M.

1993-01-01

The paper considers the question of the formation of the outflow channels and valley networks discovered on the Martian northern plains during the Mariner 9 mission. Parker and Saunders (1987) and Parker et al. (1987, 1989) data are used to describe key features common both in the lower reaches of the outflow channels and within and along the margins of the entire northern plains. It is suggested, that of the geological processes capable of producing similar morphologies on earth, lacustrine or marine deposition and subsequent periglacial modification offer the simplest and most consistent explanation for the suit of features found on Mars.

Biostratigraphic implications of the first Eocene land-mammal fauna from the North American coastal plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Westgate, James W.

1988-11-01

A newly discovered vertebrate fossil assemblage, the Casa Blanca local fauna, comes from the Laredo Formation, Claiborne Group, of Webb County, Texas, and is the first reported Eocene land-mammal fauna from the coastal plain of North America. The mammalian fauna is correlated with the Serendipity and Candelaria local faunas of west Texas, the Uinta C faunas of the Rocky Mountains, the Santiago Formation local fauna of southern California, and the Swift Current Creek local fauna of Saskatchewan. The vertebrate-bearing deposit lies about 32 m above a horizon containing the marine gastropod Turritella cortezi, which ranges from east Texas to northeast Mexico in the lower half of the Cook Mountain and Laredo Formations and is a guide fossil to the Hurricane Lentil in the Cook Mountain Formation. Nannoplankton found in these middle Eocene formations belong to the upper half of Nannoplankton Zone I6 and allow correlation with European beds of late Lutetian to early Bartonian age.

Supergroup stratigraphy of the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains (Middle? Jurassic through holocene, Eastern North America)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Weems, R.E.; ,; Edwards, L.E.

2004-01-01

An inclusive supergroup stratigraphic framework for the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plains is proposed herein. This framework consists of five supergroups that 1) are regionally inclusive and regionally applicable, 2) meaningfully reflect the overall stratigraphic and structural history of the Coastal Plains geologic province of the southeastern United States, and 3) create stratigraphic units that are readily mappable and useful at a regional level. Only the Marquesas Supergroup (Lower Cretaceous to lowest Upper Cretaceous) has been previously established. The Trent Supergroup (middle middle Eocene to basal lower Miocene) is an existing name here raised to supergroup rank. The Minden Supergroup (Middle? through Upper Jurassic), the Ancora Supergroup (Upper Cretaceous to lower middle Eocene), and the Nomini Supergroup (lower Miocene to Recent) are new stratigraphic concepts proposed herein. In order to bring existing groups and formations into accord with the supergroups described here, the following stratigraphic revisions are made. 1) The base of the Shark River Formation (Trent Supergroup) is moved upward. 2) The Old Church Formation is removed from the Chesapeake Group (Nomini Supergroup) and moved to the Trent Supergroup without group placement. 3) The Tiger Leap and Penney Farms formations are removed from the Hawthorn Group (Nomini Supergroup) and moved to the Trent Supergroup without group placement. 4) The Piney Point and Chickahominy formations are removed from the Pamunkey Group (Ancora Supergroup) and moved to the Trent Supergroup without group placement. 5) the Tallahatta Formation is removed from the Claiborne Group (Trent Supergroup) and placed within the Ancora Supergroup without group placement.

Land Use and Family Formation in the Settlement of the U.S. Great Plains

PubMed Central

Gutmann, Myron P.; Pullum-Piñón, Sara M.; Witkowski, Kristine; Deane, Glenn D.; Merchant, Emily

2014-01-01

In agricultural settings, environment shapes patterns of settlement and land use. Using the Great Plains of the United States during the period of its initial Euro-American settlement (1880–1940) as an analytical lens, this article explores whether the same environmental factors that determine settlement timing and land use—those that indicate suitability for crop-based agriculture—also shape initial family formation, resulting in fewer and smaller families in areas that are more conducive to livestock raising than to cropping. The connection between family size and agricultural land availability is now well known, but the role of the environment has not previously been explicitly tested. Descriptive analysis offers initial support for a distinctive pattern of family formation in the western Great Plains, where precipitation is too low to support intensive cropping. However, multivariate analysis using county-level data at 10-year intervals offers only partial support to the hypothesis that environmental characteristics produce these differences. Rather, this analysis has found that the region was also subject to the same long-term social and demographic changes sweeping the rest of the country during this period. PMID:24634550

Tobacco plain packaging: Evidence based policy or public health advocacy?

PubMed

McKeganey, Neil; Russell, Christopher

2015-06-01

In December 2012, Australia became the first country to require all tobacco products be sold solely in standardised or 'plain' packaging, bereft of the manufacturers' trademarked branding and colours, although retaining large graphic and text health warnings. Following the publication of Sir Cyril Chantler's review of the evidence on the effects of plain tobacco packaging, the Ministers of the United Kingdom Parliament voted in March 2015 to implement similar legislation. Support for plain packaging derives from the belief that tobacco products sold in plain packs have reduced appeal and so are more likely to deter young people and non-smokers from starting tobacco use, and more likely to motivate smokers to quit and stay quit. This article considers why support for the plain packaging policy has grown among tobacco control researchers, public health advocates and government ministers, and reviews Australian survey data that speak to the possible introductory effect of plain packaging on smoking prevalence within Australia. The article concludes by emphasising the need for more detailed research to be undertaken before judging the capacity of the plain packaging policy to deliver the multitude of positive effects that have been claimed by its most ardent supporters. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Geothermal alteration of basaltic core from the Snake River Plain, Idaho

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sant, Christopher J.

The Snake River Plain is located in the southern part of the state of Idaho. The eastern plain, on which this study focuses, is a trail of volcanics from the Yellowstone hotspot. Three exploratory geothermal wells were drilled on the Snake River Plain. This project analyzes basaltic core from the first well at Kimama, north of Burley, Idaho. The objectives of this project are to establish zones of geothermal alteration and analyze the potential for geothermal power production using sub-aquifer resources on the axial volcanic zone of the Snake River Plain. Thirty samples from 1,912 m of core were sampled and analyzed for clay content and composition using X-ray diffraction. Observations from core samples and geophysical logs are also used to establish alteration zones. Mineralogical data, geophysical log data and physical characteristics of the core suggest that the base of the Snake River Plain aquifer at the axial zone is located 960 m below the surface, much deeper than previously suspected. Swelling smectite clay clogs pore spaces and reduces porosity and permeability to create a natural base to the aquifer. Increased temperatures favor the formation of smectite clay and other secondary minerals to the bottom of the hole. Below 960 m the core shows signs of alteration including color change, formation of clay, and filling of other secondary minerals in vesicles and fractured zones of the core. The smectite clay observed is Fe-rich clay that is authigenic in some places. Geothermal power generation may be feasible using a low temperature hot water geothermal system if thermal fluids can be attained near the bottom of the Kimama well.

Remote sensing, planform, and facies analysis of the Plain of Tineh, Egypt for the remains of the defunct Pelusiac River

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quintanar, Jessica; Khan, Shuhab D.; Fathy, Mohamed S.; Zalat, Abdel-Fattah A.

2013-11-01

The Pelusiac Branch was a distributary river in the Nile Delta that splits off from the main trunk of the Nile River as it flowed toward the Mediterranean. At approximately 25 A.D., it was chocked by sand and silt deposits from prograding beach accretion processes. The lower course of the river and its bifurcation point from the trunk of the Nile have been hypothesized based on ancient texts and maps, as well as previous research, but results have been inconsistent. Previous studies partly mapped the lower course of the Pelusiac River in the Plain of Tineh, east of the Suez Canal, but rapid urbanization related to the inauguration of the Peace Canal mega-irrigation project has covered any trace of the linear feature reported by these previous studies. The present study used multispectral remote sensing data of GeoEYE-1 and Landsat-TM to locate and accurately map the course of the defunct Pelusiac River within the Plain of Tineh. Remote sensing analysis identified a linear feature that is 135 m wide at its maximum and approximately 13 km long. It extends from the Pelusium ruins to the Suez Canal, just north of the Peace Canal. This remotely located linear feature corresponds to the path of the Pelusiac River during Roman times. Planform geomorphology was applied to determine the hydrological regime and paleodischarge of the river prior to becoming defunct. Planform analysis derived a bankfull paleodischarge value of ~ 5700 m3 s- 1 and an average discharge of 650 m3 s- 1, using the reach average for the interpreted Pelusiac River. The derived values show a river distributary similar in discharge to the modern dammed Damietta river. Field work completed in April of 2012 derived four sedimentary lithofacies of the upper formation on the plain that included pro-delta, delta-front and delta-plain depositional environments. Diatom and fossil mollusk samples were also identified that support coastal beach and lagoonal environments of deposition. Measured section columns and a shoreline parallel transect were also constructed to portray the paleogeography of the Mediterranean coastline in the Plain of Tineh at ~ 25 A.D. and indicate that the sampled study area is the downdrift margin of an asymmetric delta with barrier lagoon systems.

Plains tectonism on Venus: The deformation belts of Lavinia Planitia

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Squyres, Steven W.; Jankowski, David G.; Simons, Mark; Solomon, Sean C.; Hager, Bradford H.; Mcgill, George E.

1993-01-01

High-resolution radar images from the Magellan spacecraft have revealed the first details of the morphology of the Lavinia Planitia region of Venus. A number of geologic units can be distinguished, including volcanic plains units with a range of ages. Transecting these plains over much of the Lavinia region are two types of generally orthogonal features that we interpret to be compressional wrinkle ridges and extensional grooves. The dominant tectonic features of Lavinia are broad elevated belts of intense deformation that transect the plains with complex geometry. They are many tens to a few hundred kilometers wide, as much as 1000 km long, and elevated hundreds of meters above the surrounding plains. Two classes of deformation belts are seen in the Lavinia region. 'Ridge belts' are composed of parallel ridges, each a few hundred meters in elevation, that we interpret to be folds. Typical fold spacings are 5-10 km. 'Fracture belts' are dominated instead by intense faulting, with faults in some instances paired to form narrow grabens. There is also some evidence for modest amounts of horizontal shear distributed across both ridge and fracture belts. Crosscutting relationships among the belts show there to be a range in belt ages. In western Lavinia, in particular, many ridge and fracture belts appear to bear a relationship to the much smaller wrinkle ridges and grooves on the surrounding plains: ridge morphology tends to dominate belts that lie more nearly parallel to local plains wrinkle ridges, and fracture morphology tends to dominate belts that lie more nearly parallel to local plains grooves. We use simple models to explore the formation of ridge and fracture belts. We show that convective motions in the mantle can couple to the crust to cause horizontal stresses of a magnitude sufficient to induce the formation of deformation belts like those observed in Lavinia. We also use the small-scale wavelengths of deformation observed within individual ridge belts to place an approximate lower limit on the venusian thermal gradient in the Lavinia region at the time of deformation.

GFFview: A Web Server for Parsing and Visualizing Annotation Information of Eukaryotic Genome.

PubMed

Deng, Feilong; Chen, Shi-Yi; Wu, Zhou-Lin; Hu, Yongsong; Jia, Xianbo; Lai, Song-Jia

2017-10-01

Owing to wide application of RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) technology, more and more eukaryotic genomes have been extensively annotated, such as the gene structure, alternative splicing, and noncoding loci. Annotation information of genome is prevalently stored as plain text in General Feature Format (GFF), which could be hundreds or thousands Mb in size. Therefore, it is a challenge for manipulating GFF file for biologists who have no bioinformatic skill. In this study, we provide a web server (GFFview) for parsing the annotation information of eukaryotic genome and then generating statistical description of six indices for visualization. GFFview is very useful for investigating quality and difference of the de novo assembled transcriptome in RNA-seq studies.

Loess record of the Pleistocene-Holocene transition on the northern and central Great Plains, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mason, J.A.; Miao, X.; Hanson, P.R.; Johnson, W.C.; Jacobs, P.M.; Goble, R.J.

2008-01-01

Various lines of evidence support conflicting interpretations of the timing, abruptness, and nature of climate change in the Great Plains during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. Loess deposits and paleosols on both the central and northern Great Plains provide a valuable record that can help address these issues. A synthesis of new and previously reported optical and radiocarbon ages indicates that the Brady Soil, which marks the boundary between late Pleistocene Peoria Loess and Holocene Bignell Loess, began forming after a reduction in the rate of Peoria Loess accumulation that most likely occurred between 13.5 and 15 cal ka. Brady Soil formation spanned all or part of the B??lling-Aller??d episode (approximately 14.7-12.9 cal ka) and all of the Younger Dryas episode (12.9-11.5 cal ka) and extended at least 1000 years beyond the end of the Younger Dryas. The Brady Soil was buried by Bignell Loess sedimentation beginning around 10.5-9 cal ka, and continuing episodically through the Holocene. Evidence for a brief increase in loess influx during the Younger Dryas is noteworthy but very limited. Most late Quaternary loess accumulation in the central Great Plains was nonglacigenic and was under relatively direct climatic control. Thus, Brady Soil formation records climatic conditions that minimized eolian activity and allowed effective pedogenesis, probably through relatively high effective moisture. Optical dating of loess in North Dakota supports correlation of the Leonard Paleosol on the northern Great Plains with the Brady Soil. Thick loess in North Dakota was primarily derived from the Missouri River floodplain; thus, its stratigraphy may in part reflect glacial influence on the Missouri River. Nonetheless, the persistence of minimal loess accumulation and soil formation until 10 cal ka at our North Dakota study site is best explained by a prolonged interval of high effective moisture correlative with the conditions that favored Brady Soil formation. Burial of both the Brady Soil and the Leonard Paleosol by renewed loess influx probably represents eolian system response that occurred when gradual change toward a drier climate eventually crossed the threshold for eolian activity. Overall, the loess-paleosol sequences of the central and northern Great Plains record a broad peak of high effective moisture across the late Pleistocene to Holocene boundary, rather than well-defined climatic episodes corresponding to the B??lling-Aller??d and Younger Dryas episodes in the North Atlantic region. ?? 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Geologic history of the Cerberus Plains, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lanagan, Peter Denham

This work examines the relative chronology of geologic units within the Cerberus Plains of Mars with an emphasis on lava flows emplaced after the last Marte Valles fluvial episode. High resolution images show the bulk of the Cerberus Plains is covered by platy-ridged and inflated lavas, which are interpreted as insulated sheet flows. Eastern Cerberus Plains lavas originate at Cerberus Fossae fissures and shields. Some flows extend for >2000 km through Marte Valles into Amazonis Planitia. Athabasca Valles are both incised into pristine lavas and embayed by pristine lavas, indicating that Athabascan fluvial events were contemporaneous with volcanic eruptions. Deposits of the Medusae Fossae Formation lie both over and under lavas, suggesting the deposition of the Medusae Fossae Formation was contemporaneous with volcanism. Statistics of small craters indicate lavas in the Western Cerberus Plains may be less than a million years old, but the model isochrons may be unreliable if the small crater population is dominated by secondary craters. Images showing no large craters with diameters >500 m superimposed on Western Cerberus Plains lavas indicate the same surface is younger than 49 Ma. High resolution Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images have revealed the existence of small cones in the Cerberus Plains, Marte Valles, and Amazonis Planitia. These cones are similar in both morphology and planar dimensions to the larger Icelandic rootless cones, which form due to explosive interactions between surficial lavas and near-surface groundwater. If martian cones form in the same manner as terrestrial rootless cones, then equatorial ground-ice or ground water must have been present near the surface in geologically recent times. Evidence for a shallow lake in the Western Cerberus Plains during the Late Amazonian is also presented. High-resolution images show features interpreted as flood-eroded scarps and fluvial spillways exiting the lake. Based on present-day topography, a lake would have covered an area of 8.4 x 10 4 km 2 , had an average depth of 12 m, and have contained a volume of 1.0 x 10 3 km 3 of water. Lake waters were likely primarily lost to the atmosphere through sublimation, although some quantity of water likely spilled into the Eastern Cerberus Plains or infiltrated into the shallow crust.

Trace fossils of Marnoso-Arenacea Formation (Miocene), northern Italy: preliminary data

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McBride, E.F.; Picard, M.D.

Many horizons in the Marnoso-arenacea Formation contain rare to abundant trace fossils at numerous localities. Slope, fan, and basin-plain deposits have trace fossils dominated by the Nereites ichnofacies but include taxa from the Zoophycos ichnofacies plus Ohphiomorpha and Thalassinoides. Slope deposits contain Chondrites, Cosmorhaphe, Desmograpton, Helminthoida, Neonereites, Paleodictyon, Pelecypodichnus, Planolites, Punctorhaphe, and Scolicia; fan-channel deposits contain Chondrites and Planolites; fan-lobe deposits contain Chondrites, Ophiomorpha, Thalassinoides, Scolicia, and Zoophycos; and basin-plain deposits contain Chondrites, Helminthoida, Planolites, and Zoophycos. The distribution of hypichnial taxa may be in part the result of selective preservation (i.e., dependent on the depth of erosion by turbiditymore » currents).« less

Geology of the Southern Ishtar Terra/Guinevere and Sedna Planitae region on Venus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stofan, E. R.; Head, J. W.; Campbell, D. B.

1987-06-01

High-resolution high-incidence-angle Arecibo images and Pioneer-Venus data of Southern Ishtar Terra and the flanking plains of Guinevere and Sena on Venus are analyzed. The low predominantly volcanic plains of Guinevere and Sedna Planitae are the oldest of the mapped terrains. The complex tectonic deformation in the Southern Ishtar Transition Zone postdates much of the low plains, and delineates the steep-sloped flanks of Ishtar Terra. Lakshmi Planum is found to have a distinctive volcanic style, and to postdate the Southern Ishtar Transition Zone, at least in part. Data show relatively recent plains-style volcanism to have occurred locally in Sedna Planitae, and to embay the Southern Istar Transition Zone. Arecibo data show additional coronae in the lowlands, suggesting that corona formation may be a more widespread process than indicated by Venera 15/16 images.

Novel microsatellites for Calibrachoa heterophylla (Solanaceae) endemic to the South Atlantic Coastal Plain of South America1

PubMed Central

Silva-Arias, Gustavo Adolfo; Mäder, Geraldo; Bonatto, Sandro L.; Freitas, Loreta B.

2015-01-01

Premise of the study: Calibrachoa heterophylla (Solanaceae) is a petunia species restricted to the South Atlantic Coastal Plain of South America and presents a recent history of colonization from continental to coastal environments and diversification following the formation of the Coastal Plain during the Quaternary period. Methods and Results: This study reports a suite of 16 microsatellite loci for C. heterophylla. The applicability of these markers was assessed by genotyping 57 individuals from two natural populations. Of the 16 described loci, 12 were found to be polymorphic. Successful cross-amplification tests were obtained using 12 Calibrachoa species. Conclusions: The development of microsatellite markers will be useful to recover the contemporary history of the colonization of the Coastal Plain and to provide information for the conservation of this endemic species. PMID:26191462

Global Stratigraphy of Venus: Analysis of a Random Sample of Thirty-Six Test Areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Basilevsky, Alexander T.; Head, James W., III

1995-01-01

The age relations between 36 impact craters with dark paraboloids and other geologic units and structures at these localities have been studied through photogeologic analysis of Magellan SAR images of the surface of Venus. Geologic settings in all 36 sites, about 1000 x 1000 km each, could be characterized using only 10 different terrain units and six types of structures. These units and structures form a major stratigraphic and geologic sequence (from oldest to youngest): (1) tessera terrain; (2) densely fractured terrains associated with coronae and in the form of remnants among plains; (3) fractured and ridged plains and ridge belts; (4) plains with wrinkle ridges; (5) ridges associated with coronae annulae and ridges of arachnoid annulae which are contemporary with wrinkle ridges of the ridged plains; (6) smooth and lobate plains; (7) fractures of coronae annulae, and fractures not related to coronae annulae, which disrupt ridged and smooth plains; (8) rift-associated fractures; and (9) craters with associated dark paraboloids, which represent the youngest 1O% of the Venus impact crater population (Campbell et al.), and are on top of all volcanic and tectonic units except the youngest episodes of rift-associated fracturing and volcanism; surficial streaks and patches are approximately contemporary with dark-paraboloid craters. Mapping of such units and structures in 36 randomly distributed large regions (each approximately 10(exp 6) sq km) shows evidence for a distinctive regional and global stratigraphic and geologic sequence. On the basis of this sequence we have developed a model that illustrates several major themes in the history of Venus. Most of the history of Venus (that of its first 80% or so) is not preserved in the surface geomorphological record. The major deformation associated with tessera formation in the period sometime between 0.5-1.0 b.y. ago (Ivanov and Basilevsky) is the earliest event detected. In the terminal stages of tessera fon-nation, extensive parallel linear graben swarms representing a change in the style of deformation from shortening to extension were formed on the tessera and on some volcanic plains that were emplaced just after, and perhaps also during the latter stages of the major compressional phase of tessera emplacement. Our stratigraphic analyses suggest that following tessera formation, extensive volcanic flooding resurfaced at least 85% of the planet in the form of the presently-ridged and fractured plains. Several lines of evidence favor a high flux in the post-tessera period but we have no independent evidence for the absolute duration of ridged plains emplacement. During this time, the net state of stress in the lithosphere apparently changed from extensional to compressional, first in the form of extensive ridge belt development, followed by the formation of extensive wrinkle ridges on the flow units. Subsequently, there occurred local emplacement of smooth and lobate plains units which are presently essentially undefortned. The major events in the latest 10% of the presently preserved history of Venus (less than 50 m.y. ago) are continued rifting and some associated volcanism, and the redistribution of eolian material largely derived from impact crater deposits.

Compressing images for the Internet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beretta, Giordano B.

1998-01-01

The World Wide Web has rapidly become the hot new mass communications medium. Content creators are using similar design and layout styles as in printed magazines, i.e., with many color images and graphics. The information is transmitted over plain telephone lines, where the speed/price trade-off is much more severe than in the case of printed media. The standard design approach is to use palettized color and to limit as much as possible the number of colors used, so that the images can be encoded with a small number of bits per pixel using the Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) file format. The World Wide Web standards contemplate a second data encoding method (JPEG) that allows color fidelity but usually performs poorly on text, which is a critical element of information communicated on this medium. We analyze the spatial compression of color images and describe a methodology for using the JPEG method in a way that allows a compact representation while preserving full color fidelity.

Volatile trace elements and the characterization of the Cayley Formation and the primitive lunar crust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jovanovic, S.; Reed, G. W., Jr.

1973-01-01

Two types of highland terrain appear to be present at the Apollo 16 landing site. The Plains Formation called Cayley is ubiquitous and blankets even those regions that were presumably a part of the mountainous Descartes Formation. The second type of terrain is that associated with the ejectae from North and South Ray craters. The stratigraphy sampled by the ejectae underlays the Cayley layer as characterized above and may permit a redefinition of Descartes Formation as that which underlays the smooth Plains deposits. These conclusions are based on the concentrations and chemical coherence between elements such as Cl-F-P2O5 and Ru-Os. The primitive lunar crust may be characterized by the type of feldspathic rocks which are enriched in trace elements, such as Cl, Br, U, Te, Ru, and Os, as found in 'rusty' rock 66095 and in 61016; other feldspathic rocks are depleted and may be of secondary origin.

Stratigraphy of the Mesaverde Group in the central and eastern greater Green River basin, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah

USGS Publications Warehouse

Roehler, Henry W.

1990-01-01

This paper establishes a stratigraphic framework for the Mesaverde Group, nearly 5,000 ft thick, in the central and eastern greater Green River basin based on data from measured outcrop sections and drill holes. Stratigraphic correlations are supported by ammonite zonation. No new stratigraphic names are introduced, and no nomenclature problems are discussed. Five long measured sections through the Mesaverde Group are described. The lower part of the Mesaverde Group, comprising the Rock Springs, Blair, Haystack Mountains, Allen Ridge, and Iles Formations, was deposited during a major eastward regression of the interior Cretaceous seaway of North America during the late Santonian and early Campanian. This regression was followed by regional uplift of the central Rocky Mountain area during the middle Campanian. The regional uplift was accompanied by widespread nondeposition and erosion, which, in turn, were followed by deposition of the Ericson and Pine Ridge Sandstones. The upper part of the Mesaverde Group, comprising the Almond and Williams Fork Formations, was deposited during a major westward transgression of the interior seaway in the early Maestrichtian. The major marine transgressions and regressions of the interior seaway were caused by eustatic changes of sea level, whereas intervening periods of nondeposition and erosion resulted from tectonism in the Sevier orogenic belt west of the study area. Formations of the Mesaverde Group are composed of sediments deposited in a landward-seaward progression of alluvial-plain, floodplain, coastal-plain, barrier-plain, tidal-flat, delta-plain, marine-shoreline, and marine-shelf and slope depositional environments. Each of these depositional environments is represented by specific lithofacies, sedimentary structures, and fossils, which are characteristic of depositional settings determined by water salinity, water depth, sedimentary and diagenetic processes, and the nature of sediment source terranes. The Mesaverde Group was deposited mainly along the western margins of the interior Cretaceous seaway as marine shorelines that trended north to northeast across the study area. Arcuate deltas, which formed at the mouths of major rivers along these shorelines, spread eastward onto shallow marine shelves. Embayed shoreline areas between the deltas were the sites of barrier-island and tidal-flat deposition. Alluvial-plain, flood-plain, and coastal-plain environments were present inland. The marine shorelines were tidally influenced and wave dominated, and shoreline deposits were mostly thick, linear sheets of quartzose sandstone. Deposition was largely controlled by the emergence or submergence of shoreline areas. Stillstands occurred close to local transgressions and regressions, depending on rates of sedimentation and subsidence.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gustavson, T.C.; Holliday, V.T.

Eolian sediments have accumulated as non-glacigenic loess and thin sand sheets on the Central and Southern High Plains grasslands of Texas and new mexico since the late Miocene. Locally as much as 110 m of eolian sediments with numerous paleosols are preserved in the Quaternary Blackwater Draw formation and the upper part of the Miocene-Pleiocene Ogallala formation. These sediments and paleosols, which cover more than 130,000 km{sup 2}, are similar to recent surface sediments and soils and record a long period of episodic eolian transport and sedimentation, and pedogenesis on a stable low-relief grass-covered landscape. Eolian sections, which comprise themore » fine sand to coarse silt lithofacies of the Ogallala formation, and the very fine to fine sand and sandy mud lithofacies of the Blackwater Draw formation, generally lack primary sedimentary structures. Grain size of Ogallala sediments decreases from west to east and grain size of Blackwater Draw sediments decreases from southwest to northeast. Soil horizonation is well developed in most sections, and buried calcic and argillic horizons are common. Calcic horizons are characterized by sharply increased CaCO{sub 3} content in the form of filaments, nodules, and petrocalcic horizons (calcretes). Argillic horizons are characterized by increased illuvial clay, pedogenic structure, and darker reddish hues. Rhizocretions are common locally. Open root tubules, which are typically less than 1 mm in diameter and characteristic of small plants like grasses, are present in all Ogallala and Blackwater Draw eolian sediments. Paleosols preserved in eolian sediments of the High Plains reflect periods of sedimentation followed by episodes of landscape stability and pedogenesis, and negligible sedimentation. Episodes of sedimentation and soil development likely resulted from cyclic decreases and increases in available moisture and vegetative cover. Eolian sediments were eroded and transported eastward during dry periods when vegetation was sparse in source areas, such as the western High Plains and the Pecos Valley. During humid periods more abundant vegetation probably protected source areas from deflation, and resulted in landscape stability across the High Plains.« less

Preliminary investigation of the formation age and chemical characterization of the tropical peat in the middle Sepik Plain, northern Papua New Guinea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ono, Eisuke; Umemura, Mitsutoshi; Ishida, Takuya; Takenaka, Chisato

2015-12-01

Seven gouge cores in the middle Sepik Plain (northern Papua New Guinea) were bored to clarify the depositional age and the chemical characteristics of the tropical peat. The weakly-acidic peat layer (3-4 m thick) is distributed around the south bank of the Blackwater Lakes. The peat layer consists mainly of sago palm and grass remains within a mineral matrix of very fine sand and clay. Radiocarbon dating indicates that the peat's formation had commenced by 3,710-3,560 cal BP. Nitrogen and exchangeable potassium reach their highest values in the upper 60 cm of the peat column. Conversely, exchangeable sodium, calcium and magnesium, as well as carbon, increase their values with depth in the peat. These differences in the exchangeable cations' contribution suggest changes in the plant species, which were decomposed during the peat's formation.

Recent Results From the Opportunity Rover's Exploration of Endeavour Crater, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arvidson, R. E.; Squyres, S. W.; Gellert, R.; Mittlefehldt, D. W.

2014-01-01

The Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is beginning its 11th year of exploration and as of sol 3535 (1/3/14 UTC) has traversed 38,729 m (based on wheel turns) across the plains of Meridiani and the rim of the approx. 22 km wide Noachian Endeavour Crater. Opportunity has investigated ancient sulfate-rich sand-stones (Burns formation) that dominate the plains and formed in ancient playa and dune environments, characterized impact breccias (Shoemaker formation) and their aqueous alteration on Endeavour's Cape York rim segment, and investigated extensive aqueous alteration of rocks on Cape York's Matijevic Hill that stratigraphically underlie Shoemaker formation and predate the Endeavour-forming event. In this abstract results from Opportunity's recent exploration of Endeavour's rim are covered, focusing on comparing what was found on Matijevic Hill with observations acquired on Murray Ridge, where Opportunity will spend its sixth winter at Cook Haven.

The Neogene Ogallala Formation in Southwestern Kansas and Northeastern New Mexico: Preliminary Magnetostratigraphic Analyses for the High Plains-Ogallala Drilling Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeigler, K. E.; Petronis, M. S.; Smith, J. J.; Ludvigson, G. A.; Doveton, J.

2012-12-01

A better understanding of the Ogallala Formation is critical in terms of refining groundwater flow models and management policies for communities relying on aquifers in heterolithic sequences around the globe. The High Plains aquifer remains under increasing stress with the growth of both urban and agricultural areas and therefore, developing the best groundwater management policies will depend on the most accurate characterization of the aquifer, the aquifer materials and their stratigraphic and geochronologic framework. Although mammalian faunal assemblages and volcanic ash bed tephrochronology provide a basic geochronologic framework for the Ogallala Formation, better precision in terms of correlation is needed in order to understand formative processes and depositional histories for the primary water-bearing units in the High Plains aquifer and confining strata. The High Plains-Ogallala Drilling Program (HPODP) was developed to advance understanding of sedimentary facies, stratigraphic framework, and chronostratigraphy of the Ogallala Formation and overlying units that comprise the central High Plains aquifer. The drilling program began in the early summer of 2011 in Haskell Co., western Kansas. By early fall 2011; the drill crew was at 92 m with about 32 m to go until they expect to hit bedrock. The final 32 meters of core was extracted during the summer 2012. Here we report the preliminary magnetostratigraphic and rock magnetic data from the first section of core. We scanned the entire 92 meters of core using an ASC Core Analysis System with a Bartington Instruments MS2C magnetic susceptibility coil allowing for bulk susceptibility measurements to be obtained along the length of the core. In addition, we collected 40 sub samples for paleomagnetic and rock magnetic. Bulk susceptibility data reveal depth dependent changes in rock magnetic properties that we interpret to reflect either climatic driven variations impacting the depositional system or a change in provenance of the sediments. Bulk susceptibility of the sediments decreases by an order of magnitude from the surface to the base of the measured core suggesting a change in detrital magnetic influx. Curie point estimates indicate that the dominant magnetic mineral in all samples is cubic, titanomagnetite phase of variable composition; whether a systemic change with depth exist is as of yet to be revealed. Preliminary paleomagnetic data are encouraging with many sub samples yielding a single component magnetization that decays near univectorally to the origin during both alternating field and thermal demagnetization.

But What Is There to See? An Exploration of a Great Plains Aesthetic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tangney, ShaunAnne

2004-01-01

In the fall of 2001 I taught a beginning college composition course at Minot State University, a small state university located in the northwestern quadrant of North Dakota. It is typical of such courses to include a fair amount of reading, and one of the texts I assigned was Ian Frazier's "Great Plains". The book is a travelogue that…

Plan of study for the High Plains regional aquifer-system analysis in parts of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming

USGS Publications Warehouse

Weeks, John B.

1978-01-01

The Ogallala Formation and associated Tertiary and Quarternary deposits form the principal aquifers supporting irrigation in the High Plains of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming. The volume of water in storage within the aquifers is declining in most of the High Plains because water is being withdrawn in excess of the rate of replenishment. The U.S. Geological Survey has initiated a 5-year study of the High Plains aquifer system to develop the geohydrologic data base and computer models of the ground-water flow system needed to evaluate the response of the aquifer,system to ground-water management alternatives. This report describes the objectives, plan, and organization of the study and outlines the work to be accomplished in each state in the study area.

The Newly Identified Subsurface Hazlehurst Formation and Implications for the Tectonic Evolution of the South Georgia Rift Basin, Southeastern U.S.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, R.; Knapp, J. H.

2016-12-01

Integration of new 2-D seismic reflection profile with existing wells and potential field data from southeastern Georgia, USA provide exciting discovery of a new stratigraphic unit associated with the post-rift phase of the South Georgia Rift (SGR) basins. These data document an apparent reversal of rift basin asymmetry across the Warner Robins Transfer Zone, and the apparent presence of a new sub-horizontal stratigraphic unit (informally named the Hazlehurst Formation) which overlies with angular unconformity an inferred Triassic rift basin (Valdosta Basin), and sits below the regional Coastal Plain unconformity. Triassic rifting of the supercontinent Pangea left behind numerous extensional basins on what is now the eastern North American margin. The SGR is thought to be the most regionally extensive and best preserved of these basins, which were capped by thick basalt -flows of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP) and later buried beneath the Cretaceous and younger Coastal Plain section. Because it is buried beneath the Coastal Plain, the SGR is only known through relatively sparse drilling and geophysical methods. With these new seismic data acquired in 2013 near Hazlehurst, Georgia, we are able to put more constraints into the tectonic history of the basin. We test several hypotheses related to the SGR: (1) the "Transfer Zone" had to exist to transmit extensional strain between rift sub-basins with reverse polarities; (2) the newly identified sub-horizontal stratigraphic interval ("Hazlehurst Formation"), with a possible Jurassic age may represent a post-rift phase of regional subsidence; (3) the extent of this new unit appears to cover most of the coastal plain from eastern Mississippi to South Carolina. The result of this study suggests the previous inferred extent of the might need revision.

The intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon: Their nature, origin and role in terrestrial planet evolution. Thermal histories of Mercury and the Moon. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leake, M. A.

1982-01-01

To determine a planet's thermal history, a wide range of data is necessary. These data include remote sensing results, photogeologic evidence, magnetic field and remanent magnetization data, composition and ages of samples, and physical parameters of the planet and its orbit. Few of these data form unambiguous constraints for thermal models of Mercury. Igneous Chronology as the time history of the differentiation and igneous activity, is defined. Igneous Chronology is used here in the sense of the apparent igneous or relative chronology of geologic events, such as plains formation (through whatever mechanism) relative to the crater production and tectonic history (lineament and scarp formation).

A two-dimensional, finite-difference model of the high plains aquifer in southern South Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kolm, K.E.; Case, H. L.

1983-01-01

The High Plains aquifer is the principal source of water for irrigation, industry, municipalities, and domestic use in south-central South Dakota. The aquifer, composed of upper sandstone units of the Arikaree Formation, and the overlying Ogallala and Sand Hills Formations, was simulated using a two-dimensional, finite-difference computer model. The maximum difference between simulated and measured potentiometric heads was less than 60 feet (1- to 4-percent error). Two-thirds of the simulated potentiometric heads were within 26 feet of the measured values (3-percent error). The estimated saturated thickness, computed from simulated potentiometric heads, was within 25-percent error of the known saturated thickness for 95 percent of the study area. (USGS)

Plain Language Summary: Adult Sinusitis (Sinus Infection).

PubMed

Caspersen, Leslie A; Walter, Lindsey M; Walsh, Sandra A; Rosenfeld, Richard M; Piccirillo, Jay F

2015-08-01

This plain language summary serves as an overview in explaining sinusitis (pronounced sign-you-side-tis). The purpose of this plain language summary is to provide patients with standard language explaining their condition in an easy-to-read format. This summary applies to those 18 years of age or older with sinusitis. The summary is featured as an FAQ (frequently asked question) format. The summary addresses how to manage and treat sinusitis symptoms. Adult sinusitis is often called a sinus infection. A healthcare provider may refer to a sinus infection as rhinosinusitis (pronounced rhi-no-sign-you-side-tis). This includes the nose as well as the sinuses in the name. A sinus infection is the swelling of the sinuses and nasal cavity.The summary is based on the published 2015 "Clinical Practice Guideline: Adult Sinusitis." The evidence-based guideline includes research to support more effective diagnosis and treatment of adult sinus infections. The guideline was developed as a quality improvement opportunity for managing sinus infections by creating clear recommendations to use in medical practice. © American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation 2015.

Cultural Resources Survey for the Lake Darling-Souris River Project, North Dakota (1982).

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-06-13

order, of the Sentinel Butte, Tongue River, and Cannonball Formations of the Fort Union Group of the Tertiary System, and the Hell Creek and Fox Hills...epoch domi- nated by a general cultural pattern. Unfortunately, American archaeologists have chosen to mix and match their terms for cultural periods...period as defined by Antevs (1955), the Middle Plains Archaic which matched the early Middle Prehistoric Period of Mulloy, the Late Plains Archaic which

Role of ground water in geomorphology, geology, and paleoclimate of the Southern High Plains, USA.

PubMed

Wood, Warren W

2002-01-01

Study of ground water in the Southern High Plains is central to an understanding of the geomorphology, deposition of economic minerals, and climate change record in the area. Ground water has controlled the course of the Canadian and Pecos rivers that isolated the Southern High Plains from the Great Plains and has contributed significantly to the continuing retreat of the westward escarpment. Evaporative and dissolution processes are responsible for current plateau topography and the development of the signature 20,000 small playa basins and 40 to 50 large saline lake basins in the area. In conjunction with eolian processes, ground water transport controls the mineralogy of commercially valuable mineral deposits and sets up the distribution of fine efflorescent salts that adversely affect water quality. As the water table rises and retreats, lunette and tufa formation provides valuable paleoclimate data for the Southern High Plains. In all these cases, an understanding of ground water processes contributes valuable information to a broad range of geological topics, well beyond traditional interest in water supply and environmental issues.

Using Remotely Sensed Observations of Ancient Mare Deposits on the Moon as Possible Analogs to the Intercrater Plains on Mercury

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gillis, J. J.; Robinson, M. S.

2001-01-01

Two commonly held models for the formation of the mercurian intercrater plains are: a global volcanic resurfacing event or basin-ejecta material. Although Mariner 10 images have provided morphologic and limited compositional information of the intercrater plains, the origin of these materials remains ambiguous. We examine whether Mariner 10 image at 355 (UV (ultraviolet)) and 575 nm (orange) can be used to distinguish between these models. Here we use Clementine image data (415 and 750 nm) for ancient lunar mare deposits to evaluate this suggestion. The inventorying of 'hidden' volcanic deposits is important to mercurian studies because they provide evidence of ancient volcanism, which yields clues to the thermal evolution of the planet. The greater abundance of intercrater plains on Mercury, relative to the intercrater plains observed within the lunar highlands, suggests that the resurfacing was comparably more intense. Mercury may represent an intermediate member of planet resurfacing; with the extremes being the Moon (approximately 17% resurfacing) and Venus (global resurfacing). Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Plain words for nurses Alison Turnbull Plain words for nurses The Foundation of Nursing Studies 86 pages £6.50 0 9540091 0 X 095400910X [Formula: see text].

PubMed

2002-03-01

This inspirational publication is one that practises what it preaches. It is about clear writing and provides very useful guidance to the nursing professional who wants to get an unclouded message across. It provides useful examples throughout to guide the reader and highlights how simple interventions can make big improvements.

Trace fossils from storm-influenced, oxygen-deficient outer shelf: lower Mississippian Price Formation of southern West Virginia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bjerstedt, T.W.

The Price Formation in southern West Virginia was deposited dominantly in an oxygen-deficient, outer shelf environment along a siliciclastic profile from the basin plain to the alluvial plain. An overturned section at Bluefield, West Virginia, exposes the following lithofacies and environments in ascending order: laminated black silt-shales from the basin plain; a sand-rich submarine fan; outer shelf tempestites of hummocky, cross-stratified fine sandstone and completely bioturbated grayish-black, silt-shales; and shoreline sands in transition to thin, dirty coals of the coastal plain and Maccrady red beds of the alluvial plain. Trace fossils are abundant and are best preserved on the solesmore » of hummocky, cross-stratified sandstones. The Zoophycos ichnofacies occurs throughout 80 m of outer shelf deposits, which accumulated above storm wave base. The Zoophycos ichnofacies grades into the nearshore Skolithus ichnofacies with no apparent intervening Cruziana ichnofacies. Most ichnotaxa identified from the outer shelf are fodinichnia or pascichnia. Planar and helical Zoophycos, Helminthopsis, Helminthoida, Sclarituba (neonereites form), and Chondrites are characteristics. In most schemes, the Zoophycos ichnofacies occurs below storm wave base. At Bluefield, it has displaced the Cruziana ichnofacies above storm wave base due to the maintenance of a dysaerobic environment. The abundant organic matter preserved in a density-stratified water column was continually replenished during periods of upwelling. Conditions were extremely favorable for deposit feeders, but inhibiting to suspension feeders that were less tolerant of oxygen stress. The absence of distributary channel sands in the vertical sequence also indicates that offshore environments received no influx of oxygenated waters from the Price delta.« less

Ball clay and bentonite deposits of the central and western Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain, United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hosterman, John W.

1984-01-01

The Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain produces approximately 85 percent of the ball clay used in the United States. The best commercial-grade clay deposits are composed of poorly crystalline kaolinite and small amounts of Md illite and (or) smectite. Sand and silt and iron oxide minerals are virtually absent, but quartz is present in the clay-size fraction. The best grade ball clays are found as lenses limited to the Wilcox Group (Paleocene and lower Eocene) and Claiborne Group (middle Eocene). Reserves of ball clay are sufficient for the present, but because of the lenticular nature of the clay bodies, close-spaced drilling, detailed sampling, mineralogic analyses, and ceramic testing are needed to prove future reserves.Approximately 11 percent of the total bentonite produced in the United States comes from the Gulf Coast region. The commercial-grade bentonites are composed primarily of smectite with little or no Md illite and kaolinite. The nonclay impurities are quartz, feldspar, muscovite, biotite, calcite, dolomite, gypsum, and heulandite. Commercial bentonites occur in the Upper Cretaceous formations in Alabama and Mississippi, in Paleocene formations in Mississippi and Tennessee, and in Eocene and Miocene formations in Texas. The demand for low-swelling bentonite of the Gulf Coastal Plain has not increased along with the demand for swelling bentonite; therefore the reserves are adequate.

The intercrater plains of Mercury and the Moon: Their nature, origin and role in terrestrial planet evolution. Constuction of the paleogeologic maps. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leake, M. A.

1982-01-01

The Post Caoris surface was derived from the geologic map by plotting all Class 1 and 2 features. To construct the Caloris surface, Class 3 craters were plotted onto the map, as well as all Class 3 plains. However, if P3 plains were adjacent to P2 units, and appeared continuous with other exposures of P3 material, the P2 unit was assumed to overlie the C3 and P3 material. The younger superposed craters were ignored with respect to the Class 3 surface. The boundaries of P3 materials were then continued under the superposed units, using a minimum of reasonable assumptions. For instance, if P2 and P4 plains were adjacent units, no P3 plains were presumed to lie under the P2 material. Similarly, all C3 craters were considered to have some deposits of impact melt after formation, even if they are mapped containing younger units. C3 craters which were superposed with younger units, C1 or C2 craters, and perhaps P2 plains, were redrawn as if later materials had not been emplaced, i.e., in their post impact, pre-degradation states.

Iceberg Ahead: The Effect of Bands and Ridges During Chaos Formation on Europa.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hedgepeth, J. E.; Schmidt, B. E.

2016-12-01

Europa presents a dynamic and varied surface, but the most enticing component is arguably its chaos structures. With it, the surface and subsurface can interact, but in order to fully understand if this is occurring we have to properly parameterize the surface structural integrity. We consider the Schmidt et al. (2011) method of classifying icebergs by feature type to study what features remained intact in the chaos matrix. In this work we expand on this idea. We hypothesize that the ice that forms ridges and bands exhibit higher structural strengths than plains. Subsequently, this ice is more likely to remain during chaos formation in the form of icebergs. We begin by mapping the surface around Murias chaos and other prominent chaos features. Maps are used to infer what paleo-topographic features existed before chaos formation by using the features surrounding the chaos regions as blueprints for what existed before. We perform a multivariate regression to correlate the amount of icebergs present to the amount of surface that was covered by either bands, plains, or ridges. We find ridges play the biggest role in the production of icebergs with a weighted value of 40%. Bands may play a smaller role (13%), but plains show little to no correlation (5%). Further mapping will better reveal if this trend holds true in other regions. This statistical analysis supports our hypothesis, and further work will better quantify what is occurring. We will address the energy expended in the chaos regions via movement and rotation of icebergs during the formation event and through ice-melt.

Cigarette packaging and health warnings: the impact of plain packaging and message framing on young smokers

PubMed Central

Mays, Darren; Niaura, Raymond S.; Evans, W. Douglas; Hammond, David; Luta, George; Tercyak, Kenneth P.

2014-01-01

Objective This study examined the impact of pictorial cigarette warning labels, warning label message framing, and plain cigarette packaging on young adult smokers’ motivation to quit. Methods Smokers ages 18–30 (n=740) from a consumer research panel were randomized to one of four experimental conditions where they viewed online images of 4 cigarette packs with warnings about lung disease, cancer, stroke/heart disease, and death, respectively. Packs differed across conditions by warning message framing (gain versus loss) and packaging (branded versus plain). Measures captured demographics, smoking behavior, covariates, and motivation to quit in response to cigarette packs. Results Pictorial warnings about lung disease and cancer generated the strongest motivation to quit across conditions. Adjusting for pre-test motivation and covariates, a message framing by packaging interaction revealed gain-framed warnings on plain packs generated greater motivation to quit for lung disease, cancer, and mortality warnings (p < 0.05), compared with loss-framed warnings on plain packs. Conclusions Warnings combining pictorial depictions of smoking-related health risks with text-based messages about how quitting reduces risks may achieve better outcomes among young adults, especially in countries considering or implementing plain packaging regulations. PMID:24420310

Global Volcanism on Mercury at About 3.8 Ga

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byrne, P. K.; Ostrach, L. R.; Denevi, B. W.; Head, J. W., III; Hauck, S. A., II; Murchie, S. L.; Solomon, S. C.

2014-12-01

Smooth plains occupy c. 27% of the surface of Mercury. Embayment relations, spectral contrast with surroundings, and morphologic characteristics indicate that the majority of these plains are volcanic. The largest deposits are located in Mercury's northern hemisphere and include the extensive northern plains (NP) and the Caloris interior and exterior plains (with the latter likely including basin material). Both the NP and Caloris deposits are, within statistical error, the same age (~3.8-3.9 Ga). To test whether this age reflects a period of global volcanism on Mercury, we determined crater size-frequency distributions for four smooth plains units in the planet's southern hemisphere interpreted to be volcanic. Two deposits are situated within the Beethoven and Tolstoj impact basins; two are located close to the Debussy and the Alver and Disney basins, respectively. Each deposit hosts two populations of craters, one that postdates plains emplacement and one that consists of partially to nearly filled craters that predate the plains. This latter population indicates that some time elapsed between formation of the underlying basement and plains volcanism, though we cannot statistically resolve this interval at any of the four sites. Nonetheless, we find that the age given by the superposed crater population in each case is ~3.8 Ga, and crater density values are consistent with those for the NP and Caloris plains. This finding supports a global phase of volcanism near the end of the late heavy bombardment of Mercury and may indicate a period of widespread partial melting of Mercury's mantle. Notably, superposition relations between smooth plains, degraded impact structures, and contractional landforms suggest that by this time interior cooling had already placed Mercury's lithosphere in horizontal compression, tending to inhibit voluminous dike-fed volcanism such as that inferred responsible for the NP. Most smooth plains units, including the Caloris plains and our four study sites, are spatially associated with impact structures; even the NP lie in a regional depression that may be impact-related. Because impacts remove overburden, deposit subsurface heat, and relax pre-existing stress, basins and craters may represent preferential sites for volcanic resurfacing on a globally contracting planet.

Evoluton of the Tharsis Region of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, R. C.; Dohm, J. M.; Maruyama, S.

2015-12-01

The evolution of the Tharsis region includes at least five major stages of Tharsis-related activity, which includes the formation of igneous plateaus, canyon and fault systems, volcanoes, and centers of magmatic-driven tectonism. This activity drove major environmental changes that were recorded in the walls of Valles Marineris, the circum-Chryse outflow channel system, the northern plains, and impact basins such as Argyre, among many other Martian features and landscapes. Environmental change included flooding and associated formation of lakes and oceans in basins such as the prominent northern plains and impact basins such as Argyre. This Tharsis-driven activity also included the formation of glaciers in the southern hemisphere and other landscape features (e.g., alluvial fans, periglacial landforms, gelifluction features including mass wasting, fluvial channels) indicative of an active landscape. At this conference, we will present the details of the evolution of Tharsis, as well as discuss contributing factors to its origin, estimated beginning development, and explanations for its longevity.

Spatio-temporal analysis of gyres in oriented lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plain of northern Alaska based on remotely sensed images

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zhan, Shengan; Beck, Richard A.; Hinkel, Kenneth M.; Liu, Hongxing; Jones, Benjamin M.

2014-01-01

The formation of oriented thermokarst lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plain of northern Alaska has been the subject of debate for more than half a century. The striking elongation of the lakes perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction has led to the development of a preferred wind-generated gyre hypothesis, while other hypotheses include a combination of sun angle, topographic aspect, and/or antecedent conditions. A spatio-temporal analysis of oriented thermokarst lake gyres with recent (Landsat 8) and historical (Landsat 4, 5, 7 and ASTER) satellite imagery of the Arctic Coastal Plain of northern Alaska indicates that wind-generated gyres are both frequent and regionally extensive. Gyres are most common in lakes located near the Arctic coast after several days of sustained winds from a single direction, typically the northeast, and decrease in number landward with decreasing wind energy. This analysis indicates that the conditions necessary for the Carson and Hussey (1962) wind-generated gyre for oriented thermokarst lake formation are common temporally and regionally and correspond spatially with the geographic distribution of oriented lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plain. Given an increase in the ice-free season for lakes as well as strengthening of the wind regime, the frequency and distribution of lake gyres may increase. This increase has implications for changes in northern high latitude aquatic ecosystems, particularly if wind-generated gyres promote permafrost degradation and thermokarst lake expansion.

Upper Cenozoic sediments of the lower Delaware Valley and the northern Delmarva Peninsula, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland

USGS Publications Warehouse

Owens, James Patrick; Minard, James Pierson

1979-01-01

The 'yellow gravels' referred to by R. D. Salisbury in 1898 and the 'Trenton gravel,' as defined by H. C. Lewis in 1880, were investigated along the inner edge of the New Jersey Coastal Plain in southern New Jersey and in the northern Delmarva Peninsula. The highest level deposits, the Beacon Hill gravel, are found on only the highest hills in the New Jersey Coastal Plain. Their distribution suggests deposition from north to south across the plain. After deposition of the Beacon Hill, probably in middle or late Miocene time, a narrow valley was formed paralleling the inner edge of the New Jersey Coastal Plain between Raritan Bay and Camden. South of Camden, the valley broadened, covering much of southern New Jersey. The deposits in this valley are largely the Bridgeton Formation as we have redefined it. A second narrow valley was entrenched through the Bridgeton between Trenton and Salem, N.J. This valley broadens and covers much of the northern Delmarva Peninsula west of the Delaware River. The fill in the valley is largely the Pensauken Formation, as we have redefined it in our report. Collectively, the Beacon Hill, the Bridgeton, and the Pensauken were originally the 'yellow gravels' of Salisbury. These deposits are all fluviatile in origin and were largely formed as a series of step like downcutting channels. The Delaware Valley between Trenton and the lower Delaware Bay region is occupied by the 'Trenton gravel,' which is below the average level of the 'yellow gravels.' Two units recognized throughout the area and informally named the Spring Lake beds and the Van Sciver Lake beds are lithologically distinct from the 'yellow gravel' formations. The lithologies of the Spring Lake beds and the Van Sciver Lake beds are much more heterogeneous than those of the older formations. These two units, particularly, contain much greater amounts of silt and clay, often in thick beds. The depositional environments associated with the two units include fluviatile, estuarine, and marginal marine. Both these units are interpreted to be late Pleistocene (Sangamonian) in age.

Availability and quality of ground water, southern Ute Indian Reservation, southwestern Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brogden, Robert E.; Hutchinson, E. Carter; Hillier, Donald E.

1979-01-01

Population growth and the potential development of subsurface mineral resources have increased the need for information on the availability and quality of ground water on the Southern Ute Indian Reservation. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Southern Ute Tribal Council, the Four Corners Regional Planning Commission, and the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, conducted a study during 1974-76 to assess the ground-water resources of the reservation. Water occurs in aquifers in the Dakota Sandstone, Mancos Shale, Mesaverde Group, Lewis Shale, Pictured Cliffs Sandstone, Fruitland Formation, Kirtland Shale, Animas and San Jose Formations, and terrace and flood-plain deposits. Well yields from sandstone and shale aquifers are small, generally in the range from 1 to 10 gallons per minute with maximum reported yields of 75 gallons per minute. Well yields from terrace deposits generally range from 5 to 10 gallons per minute with maximum yields of 50 gallons per minute. Well yields from flood-plain deposits are as much as 25 gallons per minute but average 10 gallons per minute. Water quality in aquifers depends in part on rock type. Water from sandstone, terrace, and flood-plain aquifers is predominantly a calcium bicarbonate type, whereas water from shale aquifers is predominantly a sodium bicarbonate type. Water from rocks containing interbeds of coal or carbonaceous shales may be either a calcium or sodium sulfate type. Dissolved-solids concentrations of ground water ranged from 115 to 7,130 milligrams per liter. Water from bedrock aquifers is the most mineralized, while water from terrace and flood-plain aquifers is the least mineralized. In many water samples collected from bedrock, terrace, and flood-plain aquifers, the concentrations of arsenic, chloride, dissolved solids, fluoride, iron, manganese, nitrate, selenium, and sulfate exceeded U.S. Public Health Service (1962) recommended limits for drinking water. Selenium in the ground water in excess of U.S. Public Health Service (1962) recommended limit of 10 micrograms per liter for drinking water occurs throughout the reservation but principally in the central part. Of the 265 wells and springs sampled, 74 contained water with selenium concentrations in excess of the recommended limit. Selenium concentrations exceeded 10 micrograms per liter principally in water from aquifers in the San Jose and Animas Formations. The maximum selenium concentration determined during the study was 13,000 micrograms per liter in a sample obtained from the San Jose Formation. The only known documented case of human selenium poisoning caused by drinking ground water occurred on the reservation.

FEQinput—An editor for the full equations (FEQ) hydraulic modeling system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ancalle, David S.; Ancalle, Pablo J.; Domanski, Marian M.

2017-10-30

IntroductionThe Full Equations Model (FEQ) is a computer program that solves the full, dynamic equations of motion for one-dimensional unsteady hydraulic flow in open channels and through control structures. As a result, hydrologists have used FEQ to design and operate flood-control structures, delineate inundation maps, and analyze peak-flow impacts. To aid in fighting floods, hydrologists are using the software to develop a system that uses flood-plain models to simulate real-time streamflow.Input files for FEQ are composed of text files that contain large amounts of parameters, data, and instructions that are written in a format exclusive to FEQ. Although documentation exists that can aid in the creation and editing of these input files, new users face a steep learning curve in order to understand the specific format and language of the files.FEQinput provides a set of tools to help a new user overcome the steep learning curve associated with creating and modifying input files for the FEQ hydraulic model and the related utility tool, Full Equations Utilities (FEQUTL).

K-12 Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) in a Rural School District on the High Plains of Texas: Mechanism for Teacher Support of Innovative Formative Assessment and Instruction with Technology (iFAIT)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Talkmitt, Marcia Joy

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the evolution of collaborative practices of PLCs as they emerge when using technology based formative assessment via iFAIT or innovative Formative Assessment with Instruction and Technology developed by the researcher using audience response systems and the online data compiler, Eduphoria!. This study used…

Cerberus Plains: A most excellent Pathfinder landing site

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Plescia, Jeff B.

1994-01-01

The Cerberus Plains in southeastern Elysium and western Amazonis cover greater than 10(exp 5) sq km, extending an east-west distance of approximately 3000 km and a north-south distance of up to 700 km near 195 deg. Crater numbers are 89 plus or minus 15 craters greater than 1 km/10(exp 6) sq km, indicating a stratigraphic age of Upper Amazonian and an absolute age of 200-500 Ma. The material forming the surface is referred to as the Cerberus Formation. The two ideas postulated about the unit's origin are fluvial and volcanic. Regardless of which interpretation is correct, the Cerberus Plains is an important candidate for a pathfinder landing site because it represents the youngest major geologic event (be it fluvial or volcanic) on Mars.

Young adult smokers' perceptions of plain packs, numbered packs and pack inserts in Turkey: a focus group study.

PubMed

Mucan, Burcu; Moodie, Crawford

2017-11-09

The Turkish Government's 'National Tobacco Control Program 2015-2018' included plans to introduce plain packaging and also a ban on brand names on cigarette packs, allowing only assigned numbers on packs. We explored perceptions of these proposed measures, and also pack inserts with cessation messages, another novel way of using the packaging to communicate with consumers. Eight focus groups were conducted with 47 young adult smokers in Manisa and Kutahya (Turkey) in December 2016. Participants were shown three straight-edged plain cigarette packs, as required in Australia, and then three bevelled-edged plain packs, as permitted in the UK. They were then shown plain packs with numbers rather than brand names, and finally three pack inserts with messages encouraging quitting or offering tips on how to do so. Participants were asked about their perceptions of each. Plain packs were considered unappealing and off-putting, although the bevelled-edged packs were viewed more favourably than the straight-edged packs. Numbered packs were thought by some to diminish the appeal created by the brand name and potentially decrease interest among never smokers and newer smokers. Pack inserts were thought to have less of an impact than the on-pack warnings, but could potentially help discourage initiation and encourage cessation. That bevelled-edged plain packs were perceived more positively than straight-edged plain packs is relevant to countries planning to introduce plain packaging. The study provides a first insight into smokers' perceptions of a ban on brand names, which was perceived to reduce appeal among young people. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

FRBCAT: The Fast Radio Burst Catalogue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petroff, E.; Barr, E. D.; Jameson, A.; Keane, E. F.; Bailes, M.; Kramer, M.; Morello, V.; Tabbara, D.; van Straten, W.

2016-09-01

Here, we present a catalogue of known Fast Radio Burst sources in the form of an online catalogue, FRBCAT. The catalogue includes information about the instrumentation used for the observations for each detected burst, the measured quantities from each observation, and model-dependent quantities derived from observed quantities. To aid in consistent comparisons of burst properties such as width and signal-to-noise ratios, we have re-processed all the bursts for which we have access to the raw data, with software which we make available. The originally derived properties are also listed for comparison. The catalogue is hosted online as a Mysql database which can also be downloaded in tabular or plain text format for off-line use. This database will be maintained for use by the community for studies of the Fast Radio Burst population as it grows.

Reconstructing conditions during dolomite formation on a Carnian coastal sabkha/alluvial plain using 87Sr/86Sr isotopes - Travenanzes Formation, northern Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rieder, Maximilian; Wegner, Wencke; Horschinegg, Monika; Preto, Nereo; Breda, Anna; Klötzli, Urs; Peckmann, Jörn; Meister, Patrick

2016-04-01

The study of large amounts of dolomite that formed in the Triassic Tethyan realm is hampered by late diagenetic or hydrothermal overprint. These dolomites are difficult to link to past environmental and early diagenetic conditions, and their correlation to models for dolomite formation in modern environments is problematic. Preto et al. (2015) suggested, based on evidence from nano-scale structure analysis by transmission electron microscopy and petrographic observations, that dolomites in the Carnian Travenanzes Formation of the Southern Alps (Dolomites area) represent a preserved primary phase. The Travenanzes Formation was deposited in an extended alluvial plain or coastal sabkha environment subject to a semi-arid climate. Beds and nodules of nearly stoichiometric dolomite are embedded in large amounts of clay, which shielded early formed dolomite from diagenetic fluids. This finding of penecontemporaneous dolomite provides an ideal model case for reconstructing past environmental conditions at the time of dolomite precipitation. While Preto et al. (2015) argued that dolomite formation was mediated by extracellular polymeric substances produced by sulphate-reducing bacteria, it remains unclear whether precipitation occurred from evaporating seawater or mainly from brine derived from evaporating continental groundwater. Both cases exist in modern environments of dolomite formation. In the coastal sabkhas of Abu Dhabi and Qatar, dolomite precipitates from concentrated brine derived from seawater, either through seepage and reflux or through evaporative pumping (the sabkha model). In the coastal ephemeral lakes of the Coorong Lagoon system (South Australia) dolomite precipitation occurs from evaporating groundwater. The goal of this study is to distinguish marine from continental influence during formation of Carnian dolomite using 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios. Sr isotopes could reveal different origins of ionic solutions for dolomite precipitation, which is not indicated by oxygen isotopes. The marine 87Sr/86Sr values have been reconstructed for most of the Phanerozoic and are nearly constant in the Carnian (McArthur et al., 2012), while the age of the dolomite beds of the Travenanzes Formation is constrained by their stratigraphic position in the measured section (Dibona Section; Preto et al., 2015). The continental Sr isotope signal is governed by weathering rates, especially during silicate weathering of the source rock in the catchment area (McArthur et al., 2012). Through 87Sr/86Sr isotope investigation of primary dolomite in beds and nodules of the coastal sabkha or alluvial plain environment, the influence of marine or continental conditions can be determined. The finding of celestine SrSO4 and Sr-rich barite BaSO4 within the cemented dolomite by SEM indicates enrichment of Sr, possibly during strong evaporative conditions. Hence, the generation of phase-specific Sr-isotope data will allow for a more precise reconstruction of the conditions that led to dolomite formation in the Triassic shallow coastal sabkha/alluvial plain environment. McArthur et al. (2012) Strontium isotope stratigraphy. In: "The geologic time scale" (F.M Gradstein et al., eds.), Elsevier, p. 127-144. Preto et al. (2015) Primary dolomite in the Late Triassic Travenanzes Formation Dolomites, Northern Italy: Facies control and possible bacterial influence. Sedimentology 62, p. 697-716.

Implementation of magnetic, gravity and resistivity data in identifying groundwater occurrences in El Qaa Plain area, Southern Sinai, Egypt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selim, El Sayed; Abdel-Raouf, Osama; Mesalam, Mohamed

2016-10-01

El Qaa plain is one of the areas that have been proved to be promising as to its soil and groundwater resources in the southwestern part of Sinai. This study was carried out to study the lateral and vertical variations in the subsurface lithologic properties in El Qaa plain area and delineating the subsurface structure that affecting El Qaa plain depression. Gravity, magnetic data, fifty-one (51) vertical electrical sounding (Ves's) and Digital Elevation Model (DEM) map were used. Two-dimensional density modeling, analytical signal, tilt derivatives, Euler deconvolution techniques and interpretation of the resistivity data were applied on potential data. This study concluded that, El Qaa plain is a NE-SW depression confined by two normal faults and subdivided into five sedimentary units. Rock fragments and boulders derived to the plain from the surrounding highlands are the main components of the first surface unit that characterized by high resistivity values. This layer is overly another unit composed of gravelly sand with thickness ranging between 10 and 140 m. The third unit is composed mainly of sand with intercalations of clay with thickness ranging from 2 to 152 m. A Reefal limestone unit is a fourth unit interpreted from this study. The fifth unit is composed of clay. The water bearing formations in El Qaa Plain area are located principally in the second and the third layers. Finally, the depth to the basement surface ranges from 400 m to more than 1.5 km below sea level. Also, there are many minor structural trends interpreted from this study and affecting the El Qaa plain are striking in N-S, E-W and NE-SW directions.

Fluvioglacial Formation Scenario for Valleys and Ridges at the Deuteronilus Contact of the Isidis Basin, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erkeling, G.; Reiss, D.; Hiesinger, H.; Ivanov, M. A.; Bernhardt, H.

2012-09-01

Numerous small valleys are incised into the plains of the southern Isidis basin rim between 82˚/90˚E and 3˚/6˚N and trend tens of kilometers to the north following the topographic gradient toward the center of the basin. The valleys originate exclusively north of the mountainous terrain of the Libya Montes (Fig. 1A, red unit) [e.g.,1-4] and are indicative of Late Hesperian fluvial activity [1,4,6], which was spatially and temporarily distinct from intense and repeated Noachian fluvial activity in the Libya Montes [1-4,6]. Most of the valleys terminate on the smooth Isidis exterior plains (hereafter IEP; Fig. 1A, green unit). A few of them continue across the boundary between the IEP and the knobby Isidis interior plains (hereafter IIP; Fig. 1A, blue unit) and occur then as sinuous ridges in the IIP. This boundary has been discussed as a part of the Deuteronilus contact [e.g.,7,8] and is characterised by an onlap of the IIP onto the IEP, i.e., the IIP are superposed on the IEP. Therefore, the ridges occur stratigraphically higher than the valleys. Because the valleys transition to ridges into less-eroded terrain, their formation is difficult to explain by relief inversion scenarios proposed for sinuous ridges common on Mars [e.g.,9-11] and Earth [e.g.,12,13]. Based on our investigations we propose an alternative fluvioglacial formation scenario for the morphologic-geologic setting at the Deuteronilus contact. We suggest that the ridges could be glacial meltwater or subglacial streams (eskers) similar to possible eskers identified elsewhere on Mars and Earth [e.g.,14-17] and that their formation is associated with a stationary ice sheet of a proposed Late Hesperian Isidis sea that readily froze and sublimed and resulted in the formation of the IIP [4,6]. The proposed formation scenario has also implications for the formation of the Isidis thumbprint terrain (hereafter TPT) [e.g.,5,6] that is located in the IIP.

Formation of outflow channels on Mars: Testing the origin of Reull Vallis in Hesperia Planum by large-scale lava-ice interactions and top-down melting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cassanelli, James P.; Head, James W.

2018-05-01

The Reull Vallis outflow channel is a segmented system of fluvial valleys which originates from the volcanic plains of the Hesperia Planum region of Mars. Explanation of the formation of the Reull Vallis outflow channel by canonical catastrophic groundwater release models faces difficulties with generating sufficient hydraulic head, requiring unreasonably high aquifer permeability, and from limited recharge sources. Recent work has proposed that large-scale lava-ice interactions could serve as an alternative mechanism for outflow channel formation on the basis of predictions of regional ice sheet formation in areas that also underwent extensive contemporaneous volcanic resurfacing. Here we assess in detail the potential formation of outflow channels by large-scale lava-ice interactions through an applied case study of the Reull Vallis outflow channel system, selected for its close association with the effusive volcanic plains of the Hesperia Planum region. We first review the geomorphology of the Reull Vallis system to outline criteria that must be met by the proposed formation mechanism. We then assess local and regional lava heating and loading conditions and generate model predictions for the formation of Reull Vallis to test against the outlined geomorphic criteria. We find that successive events of large-scale lava-ice interactions that melt ice deposits, which then undergo re-deposition due to climatic mechanisms, best explains the observed geomorphic criteria, offering improvements over previously proposed formation models, particularly in the ability to supply adequate volumes of water.

[WTP guidance technology: a comparison of payment card, single-bounded and double-bounded dichotomous formats for evaluating non-use values of Sanjiang Plain ecotourism water resources].

PubMed

Chen, Hong-Guang; Wang, Qiu-Dan; Li, Chen-Yang

2014-09-01

Contingent valuation method (CVM) is the most widespread method to assess resources and value of environmental goods and services. The guidance technology of willingness to pay (WTP) is an important means of CVM. Therefore, the study on the WTP guidance technology is an important approach to improve the reliability and validity of CVM. This article conducted comprehensive evaluation on non-use value of eco-tourism water resources in Sanjiang Plain by using payment card, single-bound dichotomous choice and double-bound dichotomous choice. Results showed that the socio-economic attributes were consistent with the willingness to pay in the three formats, and the tender value, age, educational level, annual income and the concern level had significant effect on the willingness to pay, while gender and job did not have significant influence. The WTP value was 112.46 yuan per capita with the payment card, 136.15 with the single-bound dichotomous choice, and 168.74 with the double-bound dichotomous choice. Comprehensive consideration of the nature of the investigation, investigation costs and statistical techniques, the result of double-bound dichotomous choice (47.86 x 10(8) yuan · a(-1)) was best in accordance with the reality, and could be used as non-use value of eco-tourism water resources in Sanjiang Plain. The format of questionnaire was very important to improve its validity, and made a great influence on the WTP.

Topography and Geomorphology of the Interior of Occator Crater on Ceres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaumann, Ralf

2017-04-01

With a diameter of 92km, Occator is one of the most prominent craters on Ceres. Its depth ranges from 4.8km along the crater rim to -1.1km at the crater floor with respect to a reference ellipsoid. Occator shows a set of specific features such as post impact formation crater filling including multiple flow features, a central pit with a dome in its center, extensional tectonics expressed as linear radial and concentric graben, and spectral variations indicating a complex formation process. We processed 550 LAMO stereo images from Cycle01-Cycle11 with a resolution of 35m/pixel to generate a high-resolution digital terrain model (DTM) of the Occator impact structure. Occator crater has mass wasting deposits originating from the crater rims and walls, which extend into the crater for 10 to 20km. However, in the southeast and northeast these mass wasting deposits are completely covered by crater floor plains material that extends from the crater center to the rim, ponding against the crater walls. The flows also superimpose the mass wasting deposits from the rims [1]. Furthermore, crater densities on Occator's interior deposits are slightly lower than on its ejecta blanket, indicating post-impact formation or target parameter variation between consolidated melt and unconsolidated ejecta deposits [2,3,4]. The terrain northwest of the central area is very rough, shows mass wasting deposits and is about 2km thick w.r.t the rim of the central pit. The plains to the southeast are smooth, pond against the crater wall, and are less than 500m thick w.r.t. the rim of the central pit The central pit is about 3.5km wide and 600m deep while the dome rises 250m within the pit [5]. In the northeast, multiple flows approaching the crater rim very closely. These flow plains are also less than 500m thick w.r.t. the rim of the central pit. Some of the flows seem to have been superposed on the lower parts of the crater wall and then flowed back into depressions of the plains. The flows to the northeast appear to originate from the central region and move slightly uphill. This indicates either a feeding zone that pushes the flows forward by supplying low-viscosity material or an extended subsidence of the crater center, possibly after discharging a subsurface reservoir [1,2], or lateral oscillations of an impact melt sheet during emplacement. The plains material covers an area of about 4750km2 with an average depth of about 250m resulting in a body of plains material of about 1200km3. The plains material is slightly younger than the impact event and the bright deposits are even younger than the plains material. Post impact processes might be due to impact melt, hydrothermal alteration, or cryovolcanic crater filling [1] K. Krohn et al, GRL43, 11994, (2016). [2] R. Jaumann et al., LPSC47, 1455 (2016). [3] N. Schmedemann et al, GRL43, 11987. (2016) [4] A. Neesemann, et al., Icarus, in prep. [5] P. Schenk, et al., LPSC47 (2016).

Influences of surface hydrophilicity on frost formation on a vertical cold plate under natural convection conditions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Zhongliang; Zhang, Xinghua; Wang, Hongyan

2007-07-15

Surface hydrophilicity has a strong influence on frost nucleation according to phase transition theory. To study this effect, a close observation of frost formation and deposition processes on a vertical plate was made under free convection conditions. The formation and shape variation of frost crystals during the initial period are described and the frost thickness variation with time on both hydrophobic and plain copper cold surfaces are presented. The various influencing factors are discussed in depth. The mechanism of surface hydrophilicity influence on frost formation was analyzed theoretically. This revealed that increasing the contact angle can increase the potential barriermore » and restrain crystal nucleation and growth and thus frost deposition. The experimental results show that the initial water drops formed on a hydrophobic surface are smaller and remain in the liquid state for a longer time compared with ones formed on a plain copper surface. It is also observed that the frost layer deposited on a hydrophobic surface is loose and weak. Though the hydrophobic surface can retard frost formation to a certain extent and causes a looser frost layer, our experimental results show that it does not depress the growth of the frost layer. (author)« less

Woods from the Miocene Bakate Formation, Ethiopia : anatomical characteristics, estimates of original specific gravity and ecological inferences

Treesearch

E.A. Wheeler; M.C. Wiemann; J.G. Fleagle

2007-01-01

An assemblage of permineralized woods from the Miocene Bakate Formation, Fejej Plain, Ethiopia, is described. This assemblage of twelve wood types differs from other Miocene wood assemblages known from Ethiopia. Cell wall percentages of the woods were determined to estimate the original specific gravities of the woods in order to better understand the Miocene...

The Development of a Food Safety Brochure for Families: The Use of Formative Evaluation and Plain Language Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Christina; Albrecht, Julie; Litchfield, Ruth; Meysenburg, Rebecca L.; Er, Ida NgYin; Lum, Adeline; Beattie, Sam; Larvick, Carol; Schwarz, Carol; Temple, Jan; Meimann, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

Printed materials have been used extensively as an educational tool to increase food safety awareness. Few educational materials have been designed to target families with young children for food safety education. This article reports the use of the formative evaluation process to develop a brochure designed to enhance awareness about food safety…

The prevalence of encoded digital trace evidence in the nonfile space of computer media(,) (.).

PubMed

Garfinkel, Simson L

2014-09-01

Forensically significant digital trace evidence that is frequently present in sectors of digital media not associated with allocated or deleted files. Modern digital forensic tools generally do not decompress such data unless a specific file with a recognized file type is first identified, potentially resulting in missed evidence. Email addresses are encoded differently for different file formats. As a result, trace evidence can be categorized as Plain in File (PF), Encoded in File (EF), Plain Not in File (PNF), or Encoded Not in File (ENF). The tool bulk_extractor finds all of these formats, but other forensic tools do not. A study of 961 storage devices purchased on the secondary market and shows that 474 contained encoded email addresses that were not in files (ENF). Different encoding formats are the result of different application programs that processed different kinds of digital trace evidence. Specific encoding formats explored include BASE64, GZIP, PDF, HIBER, and ZIP. Published 2014. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. Journal of Forensic Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jaramillo, C.A.; Pardo-Trujillo, A.; Rueda, M.

A palynological study of the Cerrejon Formation was conducted in order to date the formation and understand the floristic composition and diversity of a Paleocene tropical site. The Cerrejon Formation outcrops in the Cerrejon Coal Mine, the largest open cast coal mine in the world. Two cores (725 m) were provided by Carbones del Cerrejon LLC for study. Two hundred samples were prepared for palynology, and at least 150 palynomorphs were counted per sample where possible. Several statistical techniques including rarefaction, species accumulation curves, detrended correspondence analysis, and Anosim were used to analyze the floristic composition and diversity of themore » palynofloras. Palynomorph assemblages indicate that the age of the Cerrejon Formation and the overlying Tabaco Formation is Middle to Late Paleocene (ca. 60-58 Ma). Major structural repetitions were not found in the Cerrejon Formation in the Cerrejon coal mine, and there is little floral variation throughout. The floral composition, diversity, and lithofacies do not change significantly. Lithofacies associations and floral composition indicate deposition fluctuating from an estuarine-influenced coastal plain at the base to a fluvial-influenced coastal plain at the top. There are, however, significant differences in the composition and diversity of coal and siliciclastic samples. Coal palynofloras have fewer morphospecies, and a distinct and more homogeneous floral assemblage compared to assemblages from the intervening sisliciclastic strata, suggesting that tropical swampy environments supported fewer plant species and had a distinct vegetation adapted to permanently wet environments.« less

Geohydrology of the Englishtown Formation in the northern Coastal Plain of New Jersey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nichols, W.D.

1977-01-01

The Englishtown Formation of the Matawan Group of Late Cretaceous age is exposed in the western part of the New Jeresy Coastal Plain along a northeast-southwest trending zone extending from Raritan Bay to Delaware Bay. In outcrop, in the northern part of the Coastal Plain, the Englishtown typically consists of a series of thin, cross-stratified, fine- to medium-grained lignitic quartz sand beds intercalated with thin beds of sandy silty clay and clayey silt, ranging in total thickness from about 140 feet (43 meters) near Raritan Bay to about 50 feet (15 meters) near Trenton. In the subsurface of the northern part of the Coastal Plain, the formation retains most of the lithologic characteristics displayed in outcrop. In northern and eastern Ocean County the Englishtown can be subdivided into three distinct lithologic units; upper and lower units of quartz sand with thin interbeds of dark sandy silt, separated by a thick sequence of sandy and clayey lignitic silt. The confined part of the aquifer in the Englishtown Formation is utilized as a source of water over an area of about 1,100 square miles (2,849 square kilometers) of the New Jersey Coastal Plain and is an important source of supply in Monmouth and northern Ocean Counties. The annual average rate of withdrawal from the aquifer in the two-county area increased from 5.5 million gallons per day (0.24 cubic meters per second) in 1959 to 9.5 million gallons per day (0.4 cubic meters per second) in 1970. Water levels in parts of this area were declining 8 to 12 feet (2.4 to 3.6 meters) per year as of 1970 and they declined as much as 140 feet (43 meters) between 1959 and 1970 near pumping centers. The aquifer transmissivity ranges from 2,400 square feet per day to 650 square feet per day (223 square meters per day to 60 square meters per day); the estimated hydraulic conductivity ranges from about 11 feet per day to 20 feet per day (3.3 meters per day to 6.1 meters per day); and the storage coefficient ranges from 8 x 10-5 to 3 x 10-4. The underlying and overlying confining beds, which have an average thickness of 200 feet (61 meters) and 40 feet (12 meters), respectively, have vertical hydraulic conductivities on the order of 1 x 10-5 feet per day (3 x 10-6 meters per day) and specific storage on the order of 8 x 10-5 ft-1 (2.4 x 10-5 m-1). The Englishtown aquifer is an integral part of the complex multi- aquifer system of the New Jersey Coastal Plain. The withdrawal of water from the Englishtown aquifer has had a marked effect on the water level in the overlying Moutn Laurel aquifer, and these effects will continue so long as the water level in the Englishtown continues to decline. Any increase in the development of the Mount Laurel aquifer that reduces the volume of leakage to the Englishtown will cause an increase in the rate of water-level decline in the Englishtown even with no increase in direct withdrawals. The interrelationship and interdependency between pumping stresses in individual aquifers within the complex Coastal Plain aquifer sytem must be recognized and appreciated, and the hydrodynamics of all parts of the system must be considered if reliable predictions of aquifer response to these stresses are to be made. Such predictions generally require a simulation model analysis of the system.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kitada, Toshihiro; Okamura, Kiyoshi; Tanaka, Setsu

Japanese large cities, mostly located in coastal region, have rapidly expanded in the last three decades. People in the region now experience warmer and unpleasant thermal environment in summer season, supposedly because of the extensive urbanization. Especially, under fine weather with light synoptic-scale gradient wind, the highest temperature often appears in rather inland area. An explanation to this phenomenon is horizontal transport of heat by the sea breeze which is strongly heated during its passage over the coastal urban area. This study investigated how and how much urbanization in Nohbi Plain of central Japan influences local wind and temperature distributionmore » over the plain and its surrounding region, Nohbi Plain which faces to the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Japanese Alps, and thus is in a typical topographic situation in Japan. For the study we performed numerical simulations using our meso-scale meteorological model which includes k-c model for turbulence. One of the major results obtained is to have clarified a hierarchy in natural and artificial topography of various scales on their contributions to formation of characteristic diurnal pattern of wind and temperature distributions in the plain area. The Japanese Alps, the largest topographic feature in central Japan and often called the roof of Japan, gave the most important influence on the wind, although the mountains are located quite far, around 200 km, from Nohbi Plain. The way for the influence of the high mountains was to warm air mass in upper layer but below 2 km in altitude, over the Nohbi Plain through heat transport due to a large scale circulation consisting of the {open_quotes}flows from plain to plateau in lower layer and plateau to plain in upper layer{close_quotes}. Urbanization in the coastal Nohbi Plain showed little effect on the flow pattern, but caused large temperature rises at surface level in the inland area because of horizontal heat transfer by the sea breeze.« less

An outer ramp to basin plain transect: Interacting pelagic and calciturbidite deposition in the Eocene-Oligocene of the Tuscan Domain, Adria Microplate (Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ielpi, Alessandro; Cornamusini, Gianluca

2013-08-01

The interaction of ramps, basin plains and turbidite systems on the scale of tens of km has been rarely observed in fossil examples. Deep marine Eocene-Oligocene beds are exposed in the axial zone of the Chianti Mountains, Italy, and compose a regionally continue stratigraphic succession known as the Scaglia Toscana Formation. The formation was deposited in the Tuscan Domain of the Adria Microplate. This research aims at depicting its depositional architecture and evolution in the type area. Stratigraphic and sedimentologic analyses were performed on a ca. 25 km-long transect that includes depositional systems sectioned both in the down- and along-dip directions. Shaly-carbonate deposits compose a complex of interacting ramps, basin plains and turbidite floor fan systems. Ramp deposits accumulated above the lysocline and in oxic conditions. Basin plain beds were deposited below the lysocline and were subject to episodes of oxygen depletion. Turbidity flows fed elongate fan lobes characterized by poor channelisation. The basin palaeogeography hampered the development of slope apron turbidite systems. The Eocene-Oligocene geodynamic setting of the Tuscan Domain was characterized by the evolution of a peripheral bulge and by the early structuring of a foredeep basin. Syn-sedimentary tectonism acted a primary role in the basin-scale arrangement. However other mechanisms also contributed to the local facies distribution, including the disposition of sediment-source areas and intrabasinal confinement morphologies, as well as relative oscillations of the depositional surface with respect to the lysocline and oxycline.

Opportunity Mars Rover mission: Overview and selected results from Purgatory ripple to traverses to Endeavour crater

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arvidson, R. E.; Ashley, James W.; Bell, J.F.; Chojnacki, M.; Cohen, J.; Economou, T.E.; Farrand, W. H.; Fergason, R.; Fleischer, I.; Geissler, P.; Gellert, Ralf; Golombek, M.P.; Grotzinger, J.P.; Guinness, E.A.; Haberle, R.M.; Herkenhoff, K. E.; Herman, J.A.; Iagnemma, K.D.; Jolliff, B.L.; Johnson, J. R.; Klingelhofer, G.; Knoll, A.H.; Knudson, A.T.; Li, R.; McLennan, S.M.; Mittlefehldt, D. W.; Morris, R.V.; Parker, T.J.; Rice, M.S.; Schroder, C.; Soderblom, L.A.; Squyres, S. W.; Sullivan, R.J.; Wolff, M.J.

2011-01-01

Opportunity has been traversing the Meridiani plains since 25 January 2004 (sol 1), acquiring numerous observations of the atmosphere, soils, and rocks. This paper provides an overview of key discoveries between sols 511 and 2300, complementing earlier papers covering results from the initial phases of the mission. Key new results include (1) atmospheric argon measurements that demonstrate the importance of atmospheric transport to and from the winter carbon dioxide polar ice caps; (2) observations showing that aeolian ripples covering the plains were generated by easterly winds during an epoch with enhanced Hadley cell circulation; (3) the discovery and characterization of cobbles and boulders that include iron and stony-iron meteorites and Martian impact ejecta; (4) measurements of wall rock strata within Erebus and Victoria craters that provide compelling evidence of formation by aeolian sand deposition, with local reworking within ephemeral lakes; (5) determination that the stratigraphy exposed in the walls of Victoria and Endurance craters show an enrichment of chlorine and depletion of magnesium and sulfur with increasing depth. This result implies that regional-scale aqueous alteration took place before formation of these craters. Most recently, Opportunity has been traversing toward the ancient Endeavour crater. Orbital data show that clay minerals are exposed on its rim. Hydrated sulfate minerals are exposed in plains rocks adjacent to the rim, unlike the surfaces of plains outcrops observed thus far by Opportunity. With continued mechanical health, Opportunity will reach terrains on and around Endeavour's rim that will be markedly different from anything examined to date.

Opportunity Mars Rover mission: Overview and selected results from Purgatory ripple to traverses to Endeavour crater

USGS Publications Warehouse

Arvidson, R. E.; Ashley, James W.; Bell, J.F.; Chojnacki, M.; Cohen, J.; Economou, T.E.; Farrand, W. H.; Fergason, R.; Fleischer, I.; Geissler, P.; Gellert, Ralf; Golombek, M.P.; Grotzinger, J.P.; Guinness, E.A.; Haberle, R.M.; Herkenhoff, K. E.; Herman, J.A.; Iagnemma, K.D.; Jolliff, B.L.; Johnson, J. R.; Klingelhofer, G.; Knoll, A.H.; Knudson, A.T.; Li, R.; McLennan, S.M.; Mittlefehldt, D. W.; Morris, R.V.; Parker, T.J.; Rice, M.S.; Schroder, C.; Soderblom, L.A.; Squyres, S. W.; Sullivan, R.J.; Wolff, M.J.

2011-01-01

Opportunity has been traversing the Meridiani plains since 25 January 2004 (sol 1), acquiring numerous observations of the atmosphere, soils, and rocks. This paper provides an overview of key discoveries between sols 511 and 2300, complementing earlier papers covering results from the initial phases of the mission. Key new results include (1) atmospheric argon measurements that demonstrate the importance of atmospheric transport to and from the winter carbon dioxide polar ice caps; (2) observations showing that aeolian ripples covering the plains were generated by easterly winds during an epoch with enhanced Hadley cell circulation; (3) the discovery and characterization of cobbles and boulders that include iron and stony-iron meteorites and Martian impact ejecta; (4) measurements of wall rock strata within Erebus and Victoria craters that provide compelling evidence of formation by aeolian sand deposition, with local reworking within ephemeral lakes; (5) determination that the stratigraphy exposed in the walls of Victoria and Endurance craters show an enrichment of chlorine and depletion of magnesium and sulfur with increasing depth. This result implies that regional-scale aqueous alteration took place before formation of these craters. Most recently, Opportunity has been traversing toward the ancient Endeavour crater. Orbital data show that clay minerals are exposed on its rim. Hydrated sulfate minerals are exposed in plains rocks adjacent to the rim, unlike the surfaces of plains outcrops observed thus far by Opportunity. With continued mechanical health, Opportunity will reach terrains on and around Endeavour's rim that will be markedly different from anything examined to date. Copyright 2011 by the American Geophysical Union.

Nature, distribution, and origin of Titan’s Undifferentiated Plains

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lopes, Rosaly; Malaska, M. J.; Solomonidou, A.; Le, Gall A.; Janssen, M.A.; Neish, Catherine D.; Turtle, E.P.; Birch, S. P. D.; Hayes, A.G.; Radebaugh, J.; Coustenis, A.; Schoenfeld, A.; Stiles, B.W.; Kirk, Randolph L.; Mitchell, K.L.; Stofan, E.R.; Lawrence, K. J.; ,

2016-01-01

The Undifferentiated Plains on Titan, first mapped by Lopes et al. (Lopes, R.M.C. et al., 2010. Icarus, 205, 540–588), are vast expanses of terrains that appear radar-dark and fairly uniform in Cassini Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images. As a result, these terrains are often referred to as “blandlands”. While the interpretation of several other geologic units on Titan – such as dunes, lakes, and well-preserved impact craters – has been relatively straightforward, the origin of the Undifferentiated Plains has remained elusive. SAR images show that these “blandlands” are mostly found at mid-latitudes and appear relatively featureless at radar wavelengths, with no major topographic features. Their gradational boundaries and paucity of recognizable features in SAR data make geologic interpretation particularly challenging. We have mapped the distribution of these terrains using SAR swaths up to flyby T92 (July 2013), which cover >50% of Titan’s surface. We compared SAR images with other data sets where available, including topography derived from the SARTopo method and stereo DEMs, the response from RADAR radiometry, hyperspectral imaging data from Cassini’s Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS), and near infrared imaging from the Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS). We examined and evaluated different formation mechanisms, including (i) cryovolcanic origin, consisting of overlapping flows of low relief or (ii) sedimentary origins, resulting from fluvial/lacustrine or aeolian deposition, or accumulation of photolysis products created in the atmosphere. Our analysis indicates that the Undifferentiated Plains unit is consistent with a composition predominantly containing organic rather than icy materials and formed by depositional and/or sedimentary processes. We conclude that aeolian processes played a major part in the formation of the Undifferentiated Plains; however, other processes (fluvial, deposition of photolysis products) are likely to have contributed, possibly in differing proportions depending on location.

Braided fluvial sedimentation in the lower paleozoic cape basin, South Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vos, Richard G.; Tankard, Anthony J.

1981-07-01

Lower Paleozoic braided stream deposits from the Piekenier Formation in the Cape Province, South Africa, provide information on lateral and vertical facies variability in an alluvial plain complex influenced by a moderate to high runoff. Four braided stream facies are recognized on the basis of distinct lithologies and assemblages of sedimentary structures. A lower facies, dominated by upward-fining conglomerate to sandstone and mudstone channel fill sequences, is interpreted as a middle to lower alluvial plain deposit with significant suspended load sedimentation in areas of moderate to low gradients. These deposits are succeeded by longitudinal conglomerate bars which are attributed to middle to upper alluvial plain sedimentation with steeper gradients. This facies is in turn overlain by braid bar complexes of large-scale transverse to linguoid dunes consisting of coarse-grained pebbly sandstones with conglomerate lenses. These bar complexes are compared with environments of the Recent Platte River. They represent a middle to lower alluvial plain facies with moderate gradients and no significant suspended load sedimentation or vegetation to stabilize channels. These bar complexes interfinger basinward with plane bedded medium to coarse-grained sandstones interpreted as sheet flood deposits over the distal portions of an alluvial plain with low gradients and lacking fine-grained detritus or vegetation.

Preliminary map showing freshwater heads for the Red River Formation, Bighorn Dolomite, and equivalent rocks of Ordovician age in the Northern Great Plains of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, W. Roger; Strausz, S.A.

1980-01-01

A map showing freshwater heads for the Ordovician Red River Formation, Bighorn Dolomite, and equivalent rocks has been prepared as part of a study to determine the water-resources potential of the Mississippian Madison Limestone and associated rocks in the Northern Great Plains of Montana, North and South Dakota, and Wyoming. Most of the data used to prepare the map are from drill-stem tests of exploration and development wells drilled by the petroleum industry from 1964 to 1978. A short explanation describes the seven categories of reliability used to evaluate the drill-stem-test data and identifies several factors that might explain the apparent anomalous highs and lows on the potentiometric surface. The map is at a scale of 1:1,000 ,000 and the potentiometric contour interval is 100 feet. (USGS)

Western Ishtar Terra and Lakshmi Planum, Venus - Models of formation and evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roberts, Kari M.; Head, James W.

1990-08-01

Regional geologic mapping and gravity data reveal a variety of characteristics that must be accounted for in models for the formation and evolution of Western Ishtar Terra and Lakshmi Planum, including: (1) high elevation, (2) plateau-shaped profile, (3) abnormally steep bounding slopes, (4) foredeeps, (5) polygonal outline, (6) adjacent orogenic belts, (7) volcanic plains, (8) plains emplaced synchronously with orogenic belts, (9) paterae, (10) variable topography of Lakshmi, (11) tessera-like material underlying Lakshmi, and (12) a large apparent depth of compensation. A tessera/peripheral deformation model, in which a preexisting block of tessera is the locus of convergence of adjacent thinner crust and lithosphere, underthrusting, mountain building, subsurface melting, and plateau uplift, is interpreted to account for most of the characteristics. The aparent depth of compensation is not simply explained by this model and appears to require a second, deeper mantle anomaly component, such as broad mantle upwelling or a hot spot.

National coal resource assessment non-proprietary data: Location, stratigraphy, and coal quality for selected tertiary coal in the Northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region

USGS Publications Warehouse

Flores, Romeo M.; Ochs, A.M.; Stricker, G.D.; Ellis, M.S.; Roberts, S.B.; Keighin, C.W.; Murphy, E.C.; Cavaroc, V.V.; Johnson, R.C.; Wilde, E.M.

1999-01-01

One of the objectives of the National Coal Resource Assessment in the Northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region was to compile stratigraphic and coal quality-trace-element data on selected and potentially minable coal beds and zones of the Fort Union Formation (Paleocene) and equivalent formations. In order to implement this objective, drill-hole information was compiled from hard-copy and digital files of the: (1) U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) offices in Casper, Rawlins, and Rock Springs, Wyoming, and in Billings, Montana, (2) State geological surveys of Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming, (3) Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality in Cheyenne, (4) U.S. Office of Surface Mining in Denver, Colorado, (5) U.S. Geological Survey, National Coal Resource Data System (NCRDS) in Reston, Virginia, (6) U.S. Geological Survey coal publications, (7) university theses, and (8) mining companies.

Descartes Mountains and Cayley Plains - Composition and provenance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, M. J.; Taylor, G. J.; Goles, G. G.

1974-01-01

Trace element compositions of petrographically characterized 2-4 mm lithic fragments from Apollo 16 soil samples are used to calculate initial REE concentrations in liquids in equilibrium with lunar anorthosites and to discuss the provenance of the Cayley Formation. Lithic fragments may be subdivided into four groups: (1) ANT rocks, (2) K- and SiO2-rich mesostasis-bearing rocks, (3) poikiloblastic rocks, and (4) (spinel) troctolites. Model liquids in equilibrium with essentially monominerallic anorthosites have initial REE concentrations 5-8 times those of chondrites. The REE contents of K- and SiO2-rich mesostasis-bearing rocks and poikiloblastic rocks are dominated by the mesostasis phases. ANT rocks appear to be more abundant in the Descartes Mountains, while poikiloblastic rocks appear to be more abundant in the Cayley Plains. Poikiloblastic rocks have intermediate to high LIL-element concentrations yet the low gamma-ray activity of Mare Orientale implies low LIL-element concentrations. Consequently, it is unlikely that the Cayley Formation is Orientale ejecta. A local origin as ejecta from smaller impacts is a more plausible model for the deposition of the Cayley Formation.

Martensite Formation in Partially and Fully Austenitic Plain Carbon Steels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Bohemen, S. M. C.; Sietsma, J.

2009-05-01

The progress of martensite formation in plain carbon steels Fe-0.46C, Fe-0.66C, and Fe-0.80C has been investigated by dilatometry. It is demonstrated that carbon enrichment of the remaining austenite due to intercritical annealing of Fe-0.46C and Fe-0.66C does not only depress the start temperature for martensite, but also slows the progress of the transformation with temperature compared to full austenitization. In contrast, such a change of kinetics is not observed when the remaining austenite of lean-Si steel Fe-0.80C is stabilized due to a partial transformation to bainite, which suggests that the stabilization is not of a chemical but of a mechanical nature. The growth of bainite and martensite is accompanied by a shape change at the microstructural scale, which leads to plastic deformation and thus strengthening of the surrounding austenite. Based on this stabilizing mechanism, the athermal transformation kinetics is rationalized by balancing the increase in driving force corresponding to a temperature decrease with the increase in strain energy required for the formation of martensite in the strengthened remaining austenite.

Quaternary sea level high-stand deposits of the southeast U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain: Age, distribution, and implications.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poirier, R. K.; Cronin, T. M.; Ghaleb, B.; Portell, R.; Hillaire-Marcel, C.; Wehmiller, J. F.; Thompson, W. G.; Oches, E. A.; Willard, D. A.; Katz, M. E.

2015-12-01

Emerged Quaternary paleo-shorelines and marine deposits provide a more direct way to reconstruct and analyze sea-level variability than methods using oxygen isotope analyses of deep ocean benthic foraminifera. New Uranium-series dates on fossil corals (primarily Astrangia spp. and Septastrea spp.) combined with previously published dates have allowed us to constrain the age, elevation, and geographical distribution of marine sediments deposited in the United States Atlantic Coastal Plain (ACP) from Virginia to Florida during periods of past high relative sea level (SL). We present new dates from deposits (VA/NC: Tabb/Norfolk, Nassawadox, & Omar Formations; SC: Wando, Socastee, & Canepatch Formations; FL: Anastasia, Ft. Thompson, & Bermont Formations) representing interglacial high-stands during Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 5, 7, 9, and 11. In addition, we incorporate stratigraphic, marine micropaleontologic, and palynologic records with our SL chronology to reconstruct a more complete history of middle-to-late Pleistocene interglacial climates of the ACP. Ultimately, these results will test modeled sea-level fingerprint studies based on various melting scenarios of the Greenland and/or Antarctic ice sheets.

Ancient oceans and Martian paleohydrology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, Victor R.; Strom, Robert G.; Gulick, Virginia C.; Kargel, Jeffrey S.; Komatsu, Goro; Kale, Vishwas S.

1991-01-01

The global model of ocean formation on Mars is discussed. The studies of impact crater densities on certain Martian landforms show that late in Martian history there could have been coincident formation of: (1) glacial features in the Southern Hemisphere; (2) ponded water and related ice features in the northern plains; (3) fluvial runoff on Martian uplands; and (4) active ice-related mass-movement. This model of transient ocean formation ties these diverse observations together in a long-term cyclic scheme of global planetary operation.

Stratigraphy of the Caloris Basin, Mercury: Implications for Volcanic History and Basin Impact Melt

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ernst, Carolyn M.; Denevi, Brett W.; Barnouin, Olivier S.; Klimczak, Christian; Chabot, Nancy L.; Head, James W.; Murchie, Scott L.; Neumann, Gregory A.; Prockter, Louis M.; Robinson, Mark S.;

The Formation and Evolution of Tessera and Insights into the Beginning of Recorded History on Venus: Geology of the Fortuna Tessera Quadrangle (V-2)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Head, J. W.; Ivanov, M. A.

2010-01-01

Today, and throughout its recorded history, Venus can be classified as a "one-plate planet." The observable geological record of the planet comprises only the last 1/4 or less of its overall geologic history. As shown by many authors, it started with intensive deformation in broad regions to form tessera [1-6] during the Fortunian period of history [7]. The period of tessera formation quickly changed to numerous zonal deformational belts of ridges and grooves that were followed by emplacement of vast volcanic plains (shield plains, regional plains) [7,8]. During the final epoch of the geologic history of Venus, large but isolated centers of volcanism formed extensive fields of lavas, with tectonics concentrated within fewer very prominent rift zones [8,9]. The observable changes in intensity and character of volcanism and tectonics suggest progressive changes from thin lithosphere early in the geologic history to thick lithosphere during later epochs [6,10]. We have little idea of the character of the first 3/4 of Venus' history. So, what does the earliest period of recorded history tell us about the transition from the Pre-Fortunian to the Fortunian period and what insight does this give us into this earlier period?

Optical properties study of silicone polymer PDMS substrate surfaces modified by plasma treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zahid, A.; Dai, B.; Hong, R.; Zhang, D.

2017-10-01

In this study, PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) substrates with a half-plain, half-rough surface were prepared on a plain and rough fused silica glass substrate using a molding technique. The molded PDMS surface morphology was changed into a half-smooth and half-rough surface after peeling. The modified PDMS surfaces’ optical properties were inspected with and without treatment. The treatment is exposed by oxygen plasma (15 W) for 3 min in a vacuum, down to a pressure of six torr, using a vacuum pump. An atomic force microscope (AMF) and interferometer (white light) indicated that the plasma O2 treatment increased the formation of the plain surface and decreased the formation of the rough surface. The optical properties via a spectrophotometer (lambda) show the resonance from 300 nm to 1200 nm on the rough surface, which is considered to be a faithful reproduction for transmittance and reflectance. The Raman spectra and FDTD simulation results are in excellent agreement; not to be confused with metal local surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs). The Raman spectra peaks and hotspot are the results of the PDMS Si-O backbone. The PDMS substrate presented the diversity of the optical properties, which makes the substrate complementary to various optical applications.

Valleys and Ridges at the Deuteronilus Contact in Isidis Planitia, Mars: Implications for an Isidis Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erkeling, G.; Reiss, D.; Hiesinger, H.; Ivanov, M. A.; Bernhardt, H.

2013-09-01

Numerous small valleys are incised into the plains of the southern Isidis basin rim between 82°/90°E and 3°/6°N and trend tens of kilometers to the north following the topographic gradient toward the center of Isidis Planitia. The valleys originate exclusively north of the Libya Montes highlands (Fig. 1) [e.g., 1-4] and are indicative of Late Hesperian fluvial activity [1,4,6], which was spatially and temporarily distinct from intense and repeated Noachian fluvial activity in the Libya Montes [1-4,6]. The majority of the valleys terminate on the smooth Isidis exterior plains (hereafter IEP; Fig. 1). A few of them continue across the boundary between the IEP and the knobby Isidis interior plains (hereafter IIP; Fig. 1) and occur as sinuous ridges in the IIP. This boundary has been discussed as a part of the Deuteronilus contact [e.g., 7,8] and is characterised by an onlap of the IIP onto the IEP, i.e., the IIP are superposed on the IEP. Therefore, the ridges occur stratigraphically higher than the valleys. Because the valleys transition to ridges into less-eroded terrain, their formation is difficult to explain by scenarios based on relief inversion proposed for sinuous ridges on Mars [e.g., 9-11] and Earth [e.g., 12,13]. Based on our investigations we propose an alternative fluvio-glacial formation scenario for the morphologic-geologic setting at the Deuteronilus contact. We suggest that the ridges could be glacial meltwater or subglacial streams (eskers) similar to possible eskers identified elsewhere on Mars and Earth [e.g., 14-17] and that their formation is associated with a stationary ice sheet of a proposed Late Hesperian Isidis Sea that readily froze and sublimated and resulted in the formation of the IIP [4,6]. The proposed formation scenario has also implications for the formation of the Isidis thumbprint terrain (hereafter TPT) [e.g., 5,6] that is located in the IIP.

Altitude and configuration of the 1980 water table in the High Plains regional aquifer, northwestern Oklahoma

USGS Publications Warehouse

Havens, John S.

1982-01-01

The High Plains aquifer in Oklahoma is part of a regional aquifer system extending from South Dakota on the north through Wyoming, Colorado Nebraska Kansas, and Oklahoma to Texas and New Mexico on the south (index map) . The principal aquifer, the Ogallala Formation of Tertiary age, is hydraulically connected with other unconsolidated . deposits, principally of Quaternary age . Alluvium and terrace deposits in hydrologic continuity with the Qgallala are included in the High Plains aquifer in Oklahoma. Parts of the underlying bedrock also are hydraulically connected with the Ogallala. The High Plains aquifer in Oklahoma has been eroded on the west, exposing underlying rocks of Cretaceous age, and on the east, exposing rocks of Permian age.During 1978, the U.S. Geological Survey began a 5-year study of the High Plains regional aquifer system to provide hydrologic information for evaluation of the effects of long-term development of the aquifer and to develop computer models for prediction of aquifer response to alternative changes in ground-water management (Weeks, 1978). This report is one of a series presenting hydrologic information of the High Plains aquifer in Oklahoma. The altitude and configuration of the water table are shown for the eastern area, consisting of Harper, Ellis, Woodward, Dewey, and Roger Mills Counties (sheet 1), and for the Panhandle area, consisting of Cimarron, Texas, and Beaver Counties (sheet 2). Water levels were measured in January, February, and March 1980 by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board.

Cigarette packaging and health warnings: the impact of plain packaging and message framing on young smokers.

PubMed

Mays, Darren; Niaura, Raymond S; Evans, W Douglas; Hammond, David; Luta, George; Tercyak, Kenneth P

2015-03-01

This study examined the impact of pictorial cigarette-warning labels, warning-label message framing and plain cigarette packaging, on young adult smokers' motivation to quit. Smokers aged 18-30 years (n=740) from a consumer research panel were randomised to one of four experimental conditions where they viewed online images of four cigarette packs with warnings about lung disease, cancer, stroke/heart disease and death, respectively. Packs differed across conditions by warning-message framing (gain vs loss) and packaging (branded vs plain). Measures captured demographics, smoking behaviour, covariates and motivation to quit in response to cigarette packs. Pictorial warnings about lung disease and cancer generated the strongest motivation to quit across conditions. Adjusting for pretest motivation and covariates, a message framing by packaging interaction revealed gain-framed warnings on plain packs generated greater motivation to quit for lung disease, cancer and mortality warnings (p<0.05), compared with loss-framed warnings on plain packs. Warnings combining pictorial depictions of smoking-related health risks with text-based messages about how quitting reduces risks, may achieve better outcomes among young adults, especially in countries considering or implementing plain packaging regulations. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

The geomorphology of the Mississippi River chenier plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Penland, S.; Suter, J.R.

1989-01-01

The chenier plain of the Mississippi River is a shore-parallel zone of alternating transgressive clastic ridges separated by progradational mudflats. The term chenier is derived from the cajun term chene for oak, the tree species that colonizes the crests of the higher ridges. The Mississippi River chenier plain stretches 200 km from Sabine Pass, Texas, to Southwest Point, Louisiana and ranges between 20 and 30 km wide, with elevations of 2-6 m. The timing and the process of formation could be re-evaluated in the light of new chronostratigraphic findings in the Mississippi River delta plain. The stratigraphic relationship between the Teche and Lafourche delta complexes and Ship Shoal offshore indicates that these delta complexes belong to different delta plains that developed at different sealevels. It appears that the Teche delta complex is associated with the late Holocene delta plain which developed 7000 to 3000 yrs B.P. when sealevel stood 5-6 m lower than present. A regional transgression occurred between approximately 3000 BP and 2500 yrs B.P., leading to the transgressive submergence of the late Holocene delta plain, producing the regional Teche shoreline. The timing of this transgression conforms to the age of the most landward ridge in the chenier plain, the Little Chenier-Little Pecan Island trend, which dates at about 2500 yrs B.P. This ridge trend was originally interpreted as representing the Teche delta complex switching event with the landward Holocene/Pleistocene contact representing the high stand shoreline. The implication of this new interpretation is that the Little Chenier-Little Pecan Island trend represents the high stand shoreline, a continuation of the Teche shoreline separating the late Holocene and Recent delta plains, and that the Holocene/Pleistocene contact represents the leading edge of the marshes transgressing onto the Prairie Terrace. Significant mudflat progradation seems to require a westerly position of the Mississippi River, but the numerous different forms and ages of cheniers do not correspond well to the timing of major delta complex switching. Progradation of the chenier plain appears to be associated with building of the Recent delta plain and not the Teche complex of the late Holocene delta plain. The occurrence of individual ridges appears to be primarily tied to delta lobe switching within the Lafourche complex and variations in sediment supply from local rivers. The recent development of the Atchafalaya delta complex to the west is the closest position of an active distributary to the chenier plain since sealevel stabilization; a new episode of rapid mudflat progradation is thus taking place. ?? 1989.

Topography of the Deuteronilus contact on Mars: Evidence for an ancient water/mud ocean and long-wavelength topographic readjustments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivanov, M. A.; Erkeling, G.; Hiesinger, H.; Bernhardt, H.; Reiss, D.

2017-09-01

In this paper, we present the results of our detailed study of morphology, topography, and age of the Deuteronilus contact that outlines Vastitas Borealis Formation (VBF) in the northern plains and the Isidis Planitia unit. The Deuteronilus contact represents a sharp and distinct geological boundary that can be traced continuously for many hundreds to thousands of kilometers. In the northern plains, segments of the Deuteronilus contact occur at two distinct topographic levels. In the northern plains, the long-wavelength topography of the Deuteronilus contact occur at two distinct topographic levels. In the Tempe, Chryse, Acidalia, and Cydonia-Deuteronilus regions (the total length is ∼14,000 km), the contact is at the mean elevation of about -3.92 km (the decile range is 180 m, from -4.01 km to -3.83 km). In the Pyramus-Astapus, Utopia, and Western Elysium regions (the total length is ∼7700 km), the mean elevation of the contact is about -3.58 km (the decile range is 270 m, from -3.73 km to -3.46 km). These levels to large extent (but not completely) correspond to the model geoids that may have been characterized the shape of Mars at the time of the VBF emplacement. Largest deviations of the actual topographic position of the contact from the model geoids occur in the Tantalus and Phlegra regions where the deviations are due to the post-VBF changes of the regional topography. The fact that the model geoids satisfactory describe the shape of the largest portion of the contact provides additional evidence for both the emplacement of the VBF edges near an equipotential surface and for relative stability of the shape of Mars during a long time interval of about 3.6 Ga. Within the northern plains in the Tempe Terra, Acidalia Planitia, Cydonia-Deuteronilus, Pyramus-Astapus, and the southern Utopia regions, the absolute model ages of the VBF surface near the Deuteronilus contact are tightly clustered around the age of ∼3.6 Ga, which we interpret as the age of the VBF emplacement. The surface of the VBF-like Isidis Planitia unit is distinctly younger, ∼3.50 ± 0.01 Ga, which suggests that this unit formed independently. Neither volcanic nor glacial modes of emplacement are consistent with the topographic configuration and the shape of the Deuteronilus contact within both the northern plains and in Isidis Planitia. The broad flooding and formation of extensive water/mud reservoirs remains to be the most plausible mode of formation of the VBF in the northern plains and the VBF-like unit on the floor of the Isidis basin.

Efficient processing of MPEG-21 metadata in the binary domain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Timmerer, Christian; Frank, Thomas; Hellwagner, Hermann; Heuer, Jörg; Hutter, Andreas

2005-10-01

XML-based metadata is widely adopted across the different communities and plenty of commercial and open source tools for processing and transforming are available on the market. However, all of these tools have one thing in common: they operate on plain text encoded metadata which may become a burden in constrained and streaming environments, i.e., when metadata needs to be processed together with multimedia content on the fly. In this paper we present an efficient approach for transforming such kind of metadata which are encoded using MPEG's Binary Format for Metadata (BiM) without additional en-/decoding overheads, i.e., within the binary domain. Therefore, we have developed an event-based push parser for BiM encoded metadata which transforms the metadata by a limited set of processing instructions - based on traditional XML transformation techniques - operating on bit patterns instead of cost-intensive string comparisons.

Venus: Dating Post-Regional-Plains Formations Through Analysis of Preservation of Crater-Associated Radar-Dark Deposits

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Basilevsky, A. T.; Head, J. W., III

2002-01-01

The degree of preservation of crater-associated radar-dark deposits is used to estimate the age of the crater and adjacent deposits. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

29 CFR 98.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier for the general... Labor. (c) The “Covered Transactions” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers...

22 CFR 1006.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (NONPROCUREMENT) § 1006.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it... part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the Inter-American Foundation enforces an exclusion under...

22 CFR 1508.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (NONPROCUREMENT) § 1508.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it... this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the African Development Foundation enforces an exclusion...

Medusae Fossae #2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

Extensive wind-swept plains of the Medusae Fossae formation on Mars. This southern subframe image, frame 3104, is of a 3.0 x 4.7 km area centered near 2.0 degrees north, 163.8 degrees west.

Figure caption from Science Magazine

Medusae Fossae #1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

Extensive wind-swept plains of the Medusae Fossae formation on Mars. This northern subframe image, frame 3104, is of a 3.0 x 4.7 km area centered near 2.4 degrees north, 163.8 degrees west.

Figure caption from Science Magazine

Age and correlation of tertiary sediments in the western South Carolina Coastal Plain

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Laws, R.A.; Harris, W.B.; Zullo, V.A.

1987-01-01

Integration of coastal onlap stratigraphy, calcareous nannofossil, dinoflagellate, and megafossil biostratigraphy provide new data for interpretation of age and interregional correlation of Paleocene to Oligocene deposits of the western South Carolina Coastal Plain. Clastic and calcareous sediments examined in cores and outcrops in the vicinity of the Savannah River Plant record at least seven coastal onlap cycles. Basal Tertiary sediments of the Ellenton Formation represent cycles TA1.1 - 1.3 and contain dinoflagellates of Midwayan to Sabinian age. The overlying Williamsburg Formation probably represents deposits of cycle TA2.1. The superjacent siliciclastics of the Congaree Formation contain few fossils, but may preservemore » transgressive and highstand deposits of cycles TA2.4 - 3.3. The overlying unit is commonly calcareous, contains nannofossils indicative of zones NP16-17 (Upper Claibornian), and marks a significant change in depositional style subsequent to the 49.5 Ma eustatic fall. ''Marls'' of the overlying Griffins Landing Member of the Dry Branch Formation contain micro- and megafossils of Late Eocene (Jacksonian) age and represent transgressive deposits of cycle TA4.1. The discontinuous lateral distribution of these calcareous units and overlying clastics of the Dry Branch and Tobacco Road Formations results largely from erosion and deep incision during the mid-Oligocene eustatic fall (30 Ma). The ''Upland'' unit is interpreted as being deposited on this erosional surface.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Deino, A.; Potts, R.

Single-crystal laser fusion {sup 40}Ar/{sup 39}Ar analyses and several conventional bulk fusion {sup 40}K- {sup 40}Ar dates have been used to determine the age of volcaniclastic strata within the Olorgesailie Formation and of associated volcanic and sedimentary units of the southern Kenya rift. In the principal exposures along the southern edge of the Legemunge Plain, the formation spans the interval from approximately 500 to 1,000 ka. Deposition continued to the east along the Ol Keju Nyiro river where a tuff near the top of the formation has been dated at 215 ka. In these exposures, the formation is unconformably overlainmore » by sediments dated at 49 ka. A possible source for the Olorgesailie tephra, the Ol Doinyo Nyokie volcanic complex, contains as ash flow dated at {approximately} 1 Ma, extending the known age range of this complex to encompass that of virtually the entire Olorgesailie Formation in the Legemunge Plain. These geologic examples illustrate the importance of the single-crystal {sup 40}Ar/{sup 39}Ar dating technique whereby contaminant, altered, or otherwise aberrant grains can be identified and eliminated from the determination of eruptive ages for reworked or altered pyroclastic deposits. The authors have presented a computer-modeling procedure based on an inverse-isochron analysis that promotes a more objective approach to trimming {sup 40}Ar/{sup 39}Ar isotope data sets of this type.« less

The chrono- and lithostratigraphic significance of the type section of the Middendorf Formation, Chesterfield County, South Carolina

USGS Publications Warehouse

Prowell, D.C.; Christopher, R.A.; Waters, K.E.; Nix, S.K.

2003-01-01

The name Middendorf Formation has been widely used in the Coastal Plain of South Carolina, eastern Georgia, and southern North Carolina since 1904, despite conflicting interpretations of the age and stratigraphic relations of the unit at its type locality. Between 1995 and 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, drilled three continuously cored holes to the south and to the east of the type section of the Middendorf Formation, which is located in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. In addition, two outcrops to the northeast of the type section were sampled for biostratigraphic control. The litho- and biostratigraphic relations of the units in these cores and outcrops provide significant insights into the age of the Middendorf Formation at its type locality, and how this age impacts regional correlations of the formation. A projection of formational contacts and thicknesses from downdip areas into the type locality of the Middendorf Formation indicates that the type section is most likely a facies of either the uppermost Bladen Formation (of the Black Creek Group), or the uppermost Bladen and the lowermost part of the Peedee Formations. This report documents the evidence that support this interpretation. The implication of this interpretation is that the name "Middendorf" has been applied to a variety of units throughout the southeastern United States, all of which display a similar lithology, but differ significantly in stratigraphic position and age. For these reasons, we recommend that the name Middendorf be restricted for use with strata that occur only in the vicinity of the type locality, and use of the name "Middendorf" for units elsewhere in the Coastal Plain be reconsidered.

Geomorphic evidence for ancient seas on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parker, Timothy J.; Schneeberger, Dale M.; Pieri, David C.; Saunders, R. Stephen

1987-01-01

Geomorphic evidence is presented for ancient seas on Mars. Several features, similar to terrestrial lacustrine and coastal features, were identified along the northern plains periphery from Viking images. The nature of these features argues for formation in a predominantly liquid, shallow body of standing water. Such a shallow sea would require either relatively rapid development of shoreline morphologies or a warmer than present climate at the time of outflow channel formation.

Geologic Mapping of the Medusae Fossae Formation, Mars, and the Northern Lowland Plains, Venus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimbelman, J. R.

2010-01-01

This report summarizes the status of mapping projects supported by NASA grant NNX07AP42G, through the Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PGG) program. The PGG grant is focused on 1:2M-scale mapping of portions of the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) on Mars. Also described below is the current status of two Venus geologic maps, generated under an earlier PGG mapping grant.

Small Smooth Units ('Young' Lavas?) Abutting Lobate Scarps on Mercury

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malliband, C. C.; Rothery, D. A.; Balme, M. R.; Conway, S. J.

2018-05-01

We have identified small units abutting, and so stratigraphy younger than, lobate scarps. This post dates the end of large scale smooth plains formation at the onset of global contraction. This elaborates the history of volcanism on Mercury.

34 CFR 85.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) § 85.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier for... Department of Education. (c) The “Covered Transactions” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels...

21 CFR 1404.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (NONPROCUREMENT) § 1404.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it... appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the Office of National Drug Control Policy...

5 CFR 919.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

...) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier for the general public and business...” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the OPM enforces an exclusion...

41 CFR 105-68.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier for the general public and business.... (c) The “Covered Transactions” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at...

Work More? The 8.2 kaBP Abrupt Climate Change Event and the Origins of Irrigation Agriculture and Surplus Agro-Production in Mesopotamia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiss, H.

2003-12-01

The West Asian archaeological record is of sufficient transparency and resolution to permit observation of the social responses to the major Holocene abrupt climate change events at 8.2, 5.2 and 4.2 kaBP. The 8.2kaBP abrupt climate change event in West Asia was a three hundred year aridification and cooling episode. During this period rain-fed agriculture, established for over a millennium in northern Mesopotamia, suddenly collapsed. Irrigation agriculture, pastoral nomadism, or migration were the only subsistence alternatives for populations previously supported by cereal dry-farming. Irrigation agriculture was not, however, possible along the northern alluvial plains of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, where incised riverbeds were several meters below plain level. Exploitable plain-level levees were only accessible in southern-most alluvial plain, at the head of the present-day Persian Gulf. The archaeological data from this region documents the first irrigation agriculture settlement of the plain during the 8.2 kaBP event. Irrigation agriculture provides about twice the yield of dry-farming in Mesopotamia, but at considerable labor costs relative to dry-farming. With irrigation agriculture surplus production was now available for deployment. But why work more? The 8.2 kaBP event provided the natural force for Mesopotamian irrigation agriculture and surplus production that were essential for the earliest class-formation and urban life.

Ice-walled-lake plains: Implications for the origin of hummocky glacial topography in middle North America

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clayton, L.; Attig, J.W.; Ham, N.R.; Johnson, M.D.; Jennings, C.E.; Syverson, K.M.

2008-01-01

Ice-walled-lake plains are prominent in many areas of hummocky-till topography left behind as the Laurentide Ice Sheet melted from middle North America. The formation of the hummocky-till topography has been explained by: (1) erosion by subglacial floods; (2) squeezing of subglacial till up into holes in stagnant glacial ice; or (3) slumping of supraglacial till. The geomorphology and stratigraphy of ice-walled-lake plains provide evidence that neither the lake plains nor the adjacent hummocks are of subglacial origin. These flat lake plains, up to a few kilometers in diameter, are perched as much as a few tens of meters above surrounding depressions. They typically are underlain by laminated, fine-grained suspended-load lake sediment. Many ice-walled-lake plains are surrounded by a low rim ridge of coarser-grained shore sediment or by a steeper rim ridge of debris that slumped off the surrounding ice slopes. The ice-walled lakes persisted for hundreds to thousands of years following glacial stagnation. Shells of aquatic molluscs from several deposits of ice-walled-lake sediment in south-central North Dakota have been dated from about 13 500 to 10 500??B.P. (calibrated radiocarbon ages), indicating a climate only slightly cooler than present. This is confirmed by recent palaeoecological studies in nearby non-glacial sites. To survive so long, the stagnant glacial ice had to be well-insulated by a thick cover of supraglacial sediment, and the associated till hummocks must be composed primarily of collapsed supraglacial till. ?? 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Water resources of Randolph and Lawrence Counties, Arkansas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lamonds, A.G.; Hines, Marion S.; Plebuch, Raymond O.

1969-01-01

Water is used at an average rate of almost 27 million gallons per day in Randolph and Lawrence Counties, and quantities sufficient for any foreseeable use are available. Supplies for the large uses--municipal, industrial, and irrigation--can best be obtained from wells in .he Coastal Plain part of the counties and from streams in the Interior Highlands part. The counties have abundant supplies of hard but otherwise good-quality surface water, particularly in the Interior Highlands and along the western boundary of the Coastal Plain. Minimum recorded flows of four streams (Black, Current, Eleven Point, and Spring Rivers) exceeded 200 cubic feet per second, or 129 million gallons per day. Five other streams have flows in excess of 13 cubic feet per second 95 percent of the time. Water supplies can be obtained without storage from the larger streams in the area. Many of the smaller streams in the Interior Highlands also have large water-supply potential because of the excellent impoundment possibilities. Most of the water used in the .two counties is obtained from ground-water reservoirs in the Coastal Plain. Wells that tap alluvial deposits of Quaternary age commonly yield 1,000 gallons per minute. However, the water often is unsuitable for many uses unless treated to remove hardness, iron, and manganese. Water possibly may be obtained in the southeastern part of the area from the Wilcox Group of Tertiary age and the Nacatoch Sand of Cretaceous age, but these formations have not been explored in the report area. Wells in the Interior Highlands generally are less than 200 feet deep and yield 10 gallons per minute, or less. It may be possible to obtain greater amounts of ground water from two unexplored formations, the Roubidox and the Gunter Sandstone Member of the Van Buren Formation, in the Interior Highlands. Ground water in the Interior Highlands is very hard and is more susceptible to local bacterial contamination than is ground water in the Coastal Plain. However, with proper sanitary safeguards against contamination and with treatment for reduction of hardness, ground water in the Interior Highlands is suitable for most uses.

Recent coastal evolution in a carbonate sandy environments and relation to beach ridge formation: the case of Anegada, British Virgin Islands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cescon, Anna Lisa; Cooper, J. Andrew G.; Jackson, Derek W. T.

2014-05-01

In a changing climate context coastal areas will be affected by more frequent extreme events. Understanding the relationship between extreme events and coastal geomorphic response is critical to future adaptation plans. Beach ridge landforms commonly identified as hurricane deposits along tropical coasts in Australia and in the Caribbean Sea. However their formative processes in such environments are still not well understood. In particular, the role of different extreme wave events (storm waves, tsunami waves and extreme swell), in generating beach ridges is critical to their use as palaeotempestology archives. Anegada Island is a carbonate platform situated in the British Virgin Island between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Pleistocene in age, Anegada is surrounded by the Horseshoe fringing coral reef. Two Holocene sandy beach ridge plains are present on the western part of the island. The north beach ridge plain is Atlantic facing and has at least 30 ridges; the south beach ridge plain is Caribbean Sea facing and contains 10 ridges. Historical aerial photos enabled the shoreline evolution from 1953 to 2012 to be studied. Three different coastal domains are associate with the beach ridge plains: strong east-west longshore transport affects the north coastline, the south-west coastline from West End to Pomato Point represents an export corridor for these sediments and finally, along the southern coastline, from Pomato Point to Settling Point the area presents a depositional zone with little to no change in the last 70 years. The link between the extreme wave events that have affected Anegada Island in the last 70 years and beach ridge creation is discussed. Hurricane Donna crossed over Anegada Island in 1960: its geomorphological signature is tracked in the shoreline change analysis and its implication in beach ridge formation is discussed. Anegada Island has also been impacted by tsunami waves (Atwater et al., 2012) and a comparative discussion of the effects of hurricane and tsunami on the island will be presented. Atwater, B. et al., 2012. Geomorphic and stratigraphic evidence for an unusual tsunami or storm a few centuries ago at Anegada, British Virgin Islands. Natural Hazards, 63, pp. 51-84.

Challenges to Standardization: A Case Study Using Coastal and Deep-Ocean Water Level Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sweeney, A. D.; Stroker, K. J.; Mungov, G.; McLean, S. J.

2015-12-01

Sea levels recorded at coastal stations and inferred from deep-ocean pressure observations at the seafloor are submitted for archive in multiple data and metadata formats. These formats include two forms of schema-less XML and a custom binary format accompanied by metadata in a spreadsheet. The authors report on efforts to use existing standards to make this data more discoverable and more useful beyond their initial use in detecting tsunamis. An initial review of data formats for sea level data around the globe revealed heterogeneity in presentation and content. In the absence of a widely-used domain-specific format, we adopted the general model for structuring data and metadata expressed by the Network Common Data Form (netCDF). netCDF has been endorsed by the Open Geospatial Consortium and has the advantages of small size when compared to equivalent plain text representation and provides a standard way of embedding metadata in the same file. We followed the orthogonal time-series profile of the Climate and Forecast discrete sampling geometries as the convention for structuring the data and describing metadata relevant for use. We adhered to the Attribute Convention for Data Discovery for capturing metadata to support user search. Beyond making it possible to structure data and metadata in a standard way, netCDF is supported by multiple software tools in providing programmatic cataloging, access, subsetting, and transformation to other formats. We will describe our successes and failures in adhering to existing standards and provide requirements for either augmenting existing conventions or developing new ones. Some of these enhancements are specific to sea level data, while others are applicable to time-series data in general.

Age and correlation of emerged pliocene and pleistocene deposits, U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cronin, T. M.; Bybell, L.M.; Poore, R.Z.; Blackwelder, B. W.; Liddicoat, J.C.; Hazel, J.E.

1984-01-01

Paleontologic and paleomagnetic investigations were conducted on several hundred Pliocene and Pleistocene marine samples from five regions of the emerged Atlantic Coastal Plain: (1) the Delmarva Peninsula, (2) eastern Virginia, (3) central and northern North Carolina, (4) southern North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina, and (5) the Charleston area, South Carolina. Molluscan and ostracode interval and assemblage zonations, which are the primary means of regional correlation, have been calibrated using planktic biochronologic, paleomagnetic, radiometric and amino-acid recemization data. These multiple dating criteria were used to determine the age and, where possible, the duration of marine transgressive/regressive sequences. A correlation chart illustrates the age relationships of 27 formations from five regions. One important conclusion is some of the Yorktown Formation of Virginia and North Carolina (including the "Duplin" Formation), and some of the Raysor of South Carolina are late Pliocene in age. The late Pliocene Chowan River Formation of North Carolina is older than the early Pleistocene Waccamaw Formation of South Carolina, which in turn may be older than the James City Formation of North Carolina. During the last 1.0 million years, multiple marine transgressions occurred in each region, but the age of these middle and late Pleistocene formations often may differ from one area to the next. A significant result of the study is the evidence for the lack of time equivalence of formations in the five different regions; that is, the sequence of marine transgressions in one region does not necessarily correspond to that in another. This appears to be the result of differing subsidence and uplift histories, the patchiness of the depositional record, and the limitations of the dating techniques in light of the rapidity and frequency of sea-level fluctuations. ?? 1984.

38 CFR 75.115 - Risk analysis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... preparation of the risk analysis may include data mining if necessary for the development of relevant... degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text; (6) Time the data has been out of VA...

2 CFR 180.105 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

...) General § 180.105 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier... Transactions” diagram in the appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which a Federal agency may...

22 CFR 208.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (NONPROCUREMENT) § 208.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it easier... appendix to this part shows the levels or “tiers” at which the U.S. Agency for International Development...

Geology of -30247, -35247, and -40247 Quadrangles, Southern Hesperia Planum, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mest, S. C.; Crown, D. A.

2010-01-01

Geologic mapping of MTM -30247, -35247, and -40247 quadrangles is being used to characterize Reull Vallis (RV) and examine the roles and timing of volatile-driven erosional and depositional processes. This study complements earlier investigations of the eastern Hellas region, including regional analyses [1-6], mapping studies of circum-Hellas canyons [7-10], and volcanic studies of Hadriaca and Tyrrhena Paterae [11-13]. Key scientific objectives include 1) characterizing RV in its "fluvial zone," and evaluating its history of formation, 2) analyzing channels in the surrounding plains and potential connections to RV, and 3) examining young, possibly sedimentary plains along RV.

COMPASS: a suite of pre- and post-search proteomics software tools for OMSSA

PubMed Central

Wenger, Craig D.; Phanstiel, Douglas H.; Lee, M. Violet; Bailey, Derek J.; Coon, Joshua J.

2011-01-01

Here we present the Coon OMSSA Proteomic Analysis Software Suite (COMPASS): a free and open-source software pipeline for high-throughput analysis of proteomics data, designed around the Open Mass Spectrometry Search Algorithm. We detail a synergistic set of tools for protein database generation, spectral reduction, peptide false discovery rate analysis, peptide quantitation via isobaric labeling, protein parsimony and protein false discovery rate analysis, and protein quantitation. We strive for maximum ease of use, utilizing graphical user interfaces and working with data files in the original instrument vendor format. Results are stored in plain text comma-separated values files, which are easy to view and manipulate with a text editor or spreadsheet program. We illustrate the operation and efficacy of COMPASS through the use of two LC–MS/MS datasets. The first is a dataset of a highly annotated mixture of standard proteins and manually validated contaminants that exhibits the identification workflow. The second is a dataset of yeast peptides, labeled with isobaric stable isotope tags and mixed in known ratios, to demonstrate the quantitative workflow. For these two datasets, COMPASS performs equivalently or better than the current de facto standard, the Trans-Proteomic Pipeline. PMID:21298793

The Readability of Online Patient Information About Mohs Micrographic Surgery.

PubMed

Vargas, Christina R; DePry, Jennifer; Lee, Bernard T; Bordeaux, Jeremy S

2016-10-01

Mohs micrographic surgery has become increasingly used in the treatment of cutaneous malignancies over the past decade. Concurrently, more patients are using the Internet as a resource for medical information than ever before. The average American adult reads at an eighth grade level. The American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health have recommended a sixth grade target reading level for patient health materials. This study evaluates the readability of currently available online information about Mohs micrographic surgery in the context of these recommendations. An Internet search for the term "Mohs surgery" was performed and the first 10 results were identified. Patient information from each primary site was downloaded and formatted into plain text. Readability was assessed using 9 established tests; text was analyzed both overall and by Web site for comparison. A total of 101 articles were collected from the first 10 Web site search results; the overall average reading level was 14.4. All articles exceeded the recommended sixth grade reading level. Online resources about Mohs micrographic surgery are too difficult for many patients to read. The paucity of appropriately written patient information available on the Internet may hinder informed decision-making, participation, and subsequent postoperative satisfaction.

Geologic Mapping of the Medusae Fossae Formation on Mars and the Northern Lowland Plains of Venus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimbelman, J. R.

2009-01-01

This report summarizes the status of mapping projects supported by NASA grant NNX07AP42G, through the Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PGG) program. The PGG grant is focused on 1:2M-scale mapping of portions of the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) on Mars. Also described below is the current status of two Venus geo-logic maps, generated under an earlier PGG mapping grant.

A Climatology of Nocturnal-Convection Initiation Over the Central Great Plains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reif, D. W.; Bluestein, H. B.

2015-12-01

A nocturnal maximum in rainfall and thunderstorm activity over the central Great Plains is widely documented, but the mechanisms for understanding the development of thunderstorms over the region at night are still not well understood. Elevated convection, defined by Colman (1990) as storms formed through ascent above frontal surfaces, is one explanation, but our study shows that many thunderstorms can initiate at night without the presence of an elevated frontal inversion or nearby surface boundary. We address the following questions: Of all the events documented, what percentage fall under this definition of elevated convection, and what percentage fall outside of that definition? How do characteristics differ among the events that fall under that definition and the events that fall outside that definition? This study documents convection initiation (CI) events occurring at night over the central Great Plains from 1996 through 2014 during the months of April through July. Storm characteristics such as storm type (defined as linear, areal, or single cell), storm motion, initiation time and location, and others were documented. Once all of the cases were documented, surface data were examined to locate any nearby surface boundaries. The event's location relative to these boundaries (if they existed) was documented. Three main modes of CI were identified: formation on a surface boundary, formation on the cold side of a surface boundary, and formation without the presence of a surface boundary. A climatology of these events will be presented. There are many differences among the different modes of CI at night. One result is that there appears to be two main peaks of CI time at night: one early at night and one later at night. The later peak is likely due to the events that form in the absence of a nearby surface boundary.

The Plains of Venus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharpton, V. L.

2013-12-01

Volcanic plains units of various types comprise at least 80% of the surface of Venus. Though devoid of topographic splendor and, therefore often overlooked, these plains units house a spectacular array of volcanic, tectonic, and impact features. Here I propose that the plains hold the keys to understanding the resurfacing history of Venus and resolving the global stratigraphy debate. The quasi-random distribution of impact craters and the small number that have been conspicuously modified from the outside by plains-forming volcanism have led some to propose that Venus was catastrophically resurfaced around 725×375 Ma with little volcanism since. Challenges, however, hinge on interpretations of certain morphological characteristics of impact craters: For instance, Venusian impact craters exhibit either radar dark (smooth) floor deposits or bright, blocky floors. Bright floor craters (BFC) are typically 100-400 m deeper than dark floor craters (DFC). Furthermore, all 58 impact craters with ephemeral bright ejecta rays and/or distal parabolic ejecta patterns have bright floor deposits. This suggests that BFCs are younger, on average, than DFCs. These observations suggest that DFCs could be partially filled with lava during plains emplacement and, therefore, are not strictly younger than the plains units as widely held. Because the DFC group comprises ~80% of the total crater population on Venus the recalculated emplacement age of the plains would be ~145 Ma if DFCs are indeed volcanically modified during plains formation. Improved image and topographic data are required to measure stratigraphic and morphometric relationships and resolve this issue. Plains units are also home to an abundant and diverse set of volcanic features including steep-sided domes, shield fields, isolated volcanoes, collapse features and lava channels, some of which extend for 1000s of kilometers. The inferred viscosity range of plains-forming lavas, therefore, is immense, ranging from the extremely fluid flows (i.e., channel formers), to viscous, possibly felsic lavas of steep-sided domes. Wrinkle ridges deform many plains units and this has been taken to indicate that these ridges essentially form an early stratigraphic marker that limits subsequent volcanism to a minimum. However, subtle backscatter variations within many ridged plains units suggest (but do not prove) that some plains volcanism continued well after local ridge deformation ended. Furthermore, many of volcanic sources show little, if any, indications of tectonic modification and detailed analyses have concluded that resurfacing rates could be similar to those on Earth. Improving constraints on the rates and styles of volcanism within the plains could lend valuable insights into the evolution of Venus's internal heat budget and the transition from thin-lid to thick-lid tectonic regimes. Improved spatial and radiometric resolution of radar images would greatly improve abilities to construct the complex local stratigraphy of ridged plains. Constraining the resurfacing history of Venus is central to understanding how Earth-sized planets evolve and whether or not their evolutionary pathways lead to habitability. This goal can only be adequately addressed if broad coverage is added to the implementation strategies of any future mapping missions to Venus.

Alluvial lithofacies recognition in a humid-tropical setting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darby, Dennis A.; Whittecar, G. Richard; Barringer, Richard A.; Garrett, Jim R.

1990-05-01

Cobble gravel deposits in the Antigua Formation accumulated on a large alluvial fan or braid-plain west of the Cordillera Occidental in southwest Colombia. This formation was probably deposited during the Pleistocene in a very wet tropical climate (> 500 cm/yr rainfall). Fining-upwards sequences of clast-supported, imbricated boulders and cobbles dominate with maximum clast sizes between 30 and 300 cm. The sand matrix in the Antigua gravels and the minor (⩽ 10%) sand facies are weathered to clay at depths of up to 20 m. The sand facies contains abundant drift logs and leaf mats. Except for the absence of debris flows and the very coarse nature of the gravel, the Antigua gravels have lithofacies similar to the glacial outwash braid-plain in the proximal area of the Scott type model. Gravels and sands of the younger Panambi Formation were deposited by a braided stream that was smaller, confined by valley walls, and flowing at a lower gradient than the river that deposited the Antigua gravels. We recognize no sedimentologic characteristics of these deposits as diagnostic of a humid-tropical environment except for textural and compositional changes in matrix sediments caused by deep and rapid chemical weathering.

New data on stratigraphy (palynomorphs, ostracods, paleomagnetism) of Cenozoic continental deposits of the Ishim plain, Western Siberia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuzmina, O. B.; Gnibidenko, Z. N.; Khazin, L. B.; Khazina, I. V.

2017-05-01

New micropaleontological and paleomagnetic data were obtained by studying core samples of Cenozoic continental deposits from two boreholes drilled in the south of Tyumen oblast (Western Siberia). Palynological assemblages in deposits of the Tavda (upper part), Novomikhailovka, Turtas, Abrosimovka, Tobolsk, Smirnovka, and Suzgun formations were described. Deposits of these formations are enriched in spore-pollen assemblages, which can be correlated with assemblages of regional palynozones of the West Siberian Plain. Ostracods were described in Quaternary deposits. On the basis of biostratigraphic and paleomagnetic data, the Late Eocene (Priabonian)-Holocene age of deposits was substantiated. For the first time, beds with dinocysts of genus Pseudokomewuia were identified in deposits of the Turtas Formation (Upper Oligocene) of the Ishim lithofacial area. In total, nine regional magnetozones were distinguished in the paleomagnetic section. On the basis of palynological and paleomagnetic data, sections of two boreholes were correlated, and hiatuses in sedimentation were revealed. A large hiatus is at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary (Western Siberia): the Lower Oligocene Atlym Horizon and Miocene-Pliocene and Eopleistocene sediments are missing. The Oligocene interval of the section is represented in a reduced volume.

Geologic mapping of Northern Atla Regio on Venus: Preliminary data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nikishin, A. M.; Burba, G. A.

1993-01-01

The Northern part of Atla Regio within the frame of C1-formate Magellan photo map 15N197 was mapped geologically at scale 1:8,000,000. This is a part of Russia's contribution into C1 geologic mapping efforts. The map is reproduced here being reduced about twice. The map shows that the Northern Atla area is predominantly a volcanic plain with numerous volcanic features: shield volcanoes, domes and hills with various morphology, corona-like constructions, radar bright and dark spots often with flow-like outlines. Relatively small areas of tessera occurred in the area are mainly semi-flooded with the plain material. Tesserae are considered to be the oldest terrains within the map sheet. There are many lineated terrains in the region. They are interpreted as the old, almost-buried tesserae (those with crossed lineaments) or partly buried ridge belts (those with parallel lineaments). These lineated terrains have an intermediate age between the young volcanic plains and the old tessera areas. Two prominent high volcanic shields are located within the region - Ozza Mons and Sapas Mona. The most prominent structure in Northern Atla is Ganis Chasma rift. The rift cuts volcanic plain and is considered to be under formation during approximately the same time with Ozza Mons shield. Ganis Chasma rift valley is highly fractured and bounded with fault scarps. Rift shoulder uplifts are typical for Ganis Chasma. There are few relatively young volcanic features inside the rift valley. The analysis of fracturing and rift valley geometry shows the rift originated due to 5-10 percent crustal extention followed by the crustal subsidence. The age sequence summary for the main terrain types in the region is (from older to younger ones): tesserae; lineated terrains with crossed lineaments; lineated terrains with parallel lineaments; volcanic plains; and prominent volcanic shields and Ganis Chasma rift valley. The geologic structure of Atla Regio as it appeared now with the Magellan high resolution images is very close to that of Beta Regio. Such conclusion coincide with the earlier ones based on the coarser data.

Geology and ground-water resources of Washington County, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

McGovern, Harold E.

1964-01-01

Washington County, in northeastern Colorado, has an area of 2,520 square miles. The eastern two-thirds of the county, part of the High Plains physiographic section, is relatively flat and has been moderately altered by the deposition of loess and dune sand, and by stream erosion. The western one-third is a part of the South Platte River basin and has been deeply dissected by tributary streams. The soils and climate of the county are generally suited for agriculture, which is the principal industry. The rocks that crop out in the county influence the availability of ground water. The Pierre Shale, of Late Cretaceous age, underlies the entire area and ranges in thickness from 2,000 to 4,500 feet. This dense shale is a barrier to the downward movement of water and yields little or no water to wells. The Chadron Formation, of Oligocene age, overlies the Pierre Shale in the northern and central parts of the area. The thickness of the formation ranges from a few feet to about 300 feet. Small to moderate quantities of water are available from the scattered sand lenses and from the highly fractured zones of the siltstone. The Ogallala Formation, of Pliocene age, overlies the Chadron Formation and in Washington County forms the High Plains section of the Great Plains province. The thickness of the Ogallala Formation ranges from 0 to about 400 feet, and the yield from wells ranges from a few gallons per hour to about 1,500 gpm. Peorian loess, of Pleistocene age, and dune sand, of Pleistocene to Recent age, mantle a large pan of the county and range in thickness from a few inches to about 120 feet Although the loess and dune sand yield little water to wells, they absorb much of the precipitation and conduct the water to underlying formations. Alluvium, of Pleistocene and Recent age, occupies most of the major stream valleys in thicknesses of a few feet to about 250 feet. The yield of wells tapping the alluvium ranges from a few gallons per minute to about 3,000 gpm, according to the thickness of saturated material. Development of ground water for irrigation has been generally restricted to the South Platte, Arikaree, and Beaver valleys. There were 134 irrigation wells, 3 industrial wells, and 10 municipal wells in the county in 1959. The annual ground-water pumpage from Washington County is estimated to be 18,000 acre-ft; about 10,000 acre-ft is from the High Plains ground-water province. Although some ground water enters the county as underflow, most of the recharge to ground-water reservoirs is from precipitation on the land surface. Recharge to the Ogallala Formation in the county is assumed to be approximately equal to the natural discharge from the county by underflow because ground-water withdrawals are from storage, and no other significant amount of natural discharge is apparent. Undertow in the Ogallala was calculated to be 83,000 acre-ft per year and the rate of recharge from precipitation to be about 0.95 inch per year. Neither recharge nor discharge was calculated for that part of the county in the South Platte River basin. All ground water in Washington County has a high proportion of carbonate and is classed as hard to very hard. The sodium-adsorption-ratio for all samples analyzed was below the limit recommended for irrigation water. All the water from the Ogallala Formation and most of the water from the Chadron Formation is suitable for domestic use. Some water from the alluvial deposits overlying the Pierre Shale was exceptionally high in calcium, magnesium, and sodium sulfates. Ground water has been heavily developed for irrigation in the South Platte valley and in some parts of the Beaver and Arikaree valleys. Some additional areas, however, could be developed in the latter two valleys. Large quantities of ground water in the Ogallala Formation are available for future development. The quantity of water in storage in the High Plains ground-water province in Washington County is about 6.5 million acre-f

Fabrication of broadband quasi-omnidirectional antireflective surface on glass for photovoltaic application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Arvind; Kumar, Praveen; Srinivas, G.; Jakeer Khan G., H.; Siju, Barshilia, Harish C.

2016-05-01

In this paper, we have demonstrated a simple and cost effective HF-vapor phase etching method to fabricate the broadband quasi-omnidirectional antireflective surface on glass substrate. Both-sides etched sodalime glass substrates under optimized conditions showed a broadband enhancement in the transmittance spectra with maximum transmittance as high as ~97% at 598 nm. FESEM results confirmed the formation of a graded nanoporous surface, which lowers it refractive index. The etched surface exhibited excellent AR property over a wide range of incidence angles (8°-48°), which is attributed due to the formation of graded porosity. Silicon solar cell covered with plain glass showed Isc of 0.123A and efficiency of 8.76%, while it showed Isc of 0.130A and efficiency of 9.2% when it was covered by etched glass. Furthermore, it exhibited an excellent anti-soiling property as compared to plain glass. All these results show its strong potential in the photovoltaic application.

Depositional environments of the uranium-bearing Cutler Formations, Lisbon Valley, Utah

USGS Publications Warehouse

Campbell, John A.; Steele-Mallory, Brenda A.

1979-01-01

The Cutler Formation in Lisbon Valley, San Juan County, Utah, is composed predominantly of fluvial arkosic sandstones, siltstones, shales, and mudstones that were deposited by meandering streams that flowed across a flood plain and tidal flat close to sea level. Two types of channel deposits are recognized from their sedimentary structures: meandering and distributary. The flood plain was occasionally transgressed by a shallow sea from the west, resulting in the deposition of several thin limestones and marine sandstones. The marine sandstones were deposited as longshore bars. Wind transported sand along the shoreline of the shallow sea, forming a coastal dune field. Marine sandstones and eolian sandstones are more common in the upper Cutler in the southern part of the area, whereas in the central and northern part of the area the formation is predominantly fluvial. Crossbed orientation indicates that Cutler streams flowed S. 67? W. on the the average, whereas marine currents moved sediment S. 36? E. and N. 24? W., and wind transported sand S. 800 E. The uranium in the Cutler is found in the central and northern part of the area, in the upper part of the formation, in small fluvial sandstone bodies that were deposited predominantly in a distributary environment. No uranium is known in the marine or eolian sandstones. Petrographically, the uranium-bearing sandstones are identical to other Cutler fluvial sandstones except that they contain less calcite and more clay and are slightly coarser grained. Ore formation has modified the host sandstones very little.

A proposed-standard format to represent and distribute tomographic models and other earth spatial data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Postpischl, L.; Morelli, A.; Danecek, P.

2009-04-01

Formats used to represent (and distribute) tomographic earth models differ considerably and are rarely self-consistent. In fact, each earth scientist, or research group, uses specific conventions to encode the various parameterizations used to describe, e.g., seismic wave speed or density in three dimensions, and complete information is often found in related documents or publications (if available at all) only. As a consequence, use of various tomographic models from different authors requires considerable effort, is more cumbersome than it should be and prevents widespread exchange and circulation within the community. We propose a format, based on modern web standards, able to represent different (grid-based) model parameterizations within the same simple text-based environment, easy to write, to parse, and to visualise. The aim is the creation of self-describing data-structures, both human and machine readable, that are automatically recognised by general-purpose software agents, and easily imported in the scientific programming environment. We think that the adoption of such a representation as a standard for the exchange and distribution of earth models can greatly ease their usage and enhance their circulation, both among fellow seismologists and among a broader non-specialist community. The proposed solution uses semantic web technologies, fully fitting the current trends in data accessibility. It is based on Json (JavaScript Object Notation), a plain-text, human-readable lightweight computer data interchange format, which adopts a hierarchical name-value model for representing simple data structures and associative arrays (called objects). Our implementation allows integration of large datasets with metadata (authors, affiliations, bibliographic references, units of measure etc.) into a single resource. It is equally suited to represent other geo-referenced volumetric quantities — beyond tomographic models — as well as (structured and unstructured) computational meshes. This approach can exploit the capabilities of the web browser as a computing platform: a series of in-page quick tools for comparative analysis between models will be presented, as well as visualisation techniques for tomographic layers in Google Maps and Google Earth. We are working on tools for conversion into common scientific format like netCDF, to allow easy visualisation in GEON-IDV or gmt.

Geologic columns for the ICDP-USGS Eyreville A and C cores, Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Postimpact sediments, 444 to 0 m depth

USGS Publications Warehouse

Edwards, L.E.; Powars, D.S.; Browning, J.V.; McLaughlin, P.P.; Miller, K.G.; ,; Kulpecz, A.A.; Elbra, T.

2009-01-01

A 443.9-m-thick, virtually undisturbed section of postimpact deposits in the Chesapeake Bay impact structure was recovered in the Eyreville A and C cores, Northampton County, Virginia, within the "moat" of the structure's central crater. Recovered sediments are mainly fine-grained marine siliciclastics, with the exception of Pleistocene sand, clay, and gravel. The lowest postimpact unit is the upper Eocene Chickahominy Formation (443.9-350.1 m). At 93.8 m, this is the maximum thickness yet recovered for deposits that represent the return to "normal marine" sedimentation. The Drummonds Corner beds (informal) and the Old Church Formation are thin Oligocene units present between 350.1 and 344.7 m. Above the Oligocene, there is a more typical Virginia coastal plain succession. The Calvert Formation (344.7-225.4 m) includes a thin lower Miocene part overlain by a much thicker middle Miocene part. From 225.4 to 206.0 m, sediments of the middle Miocene Choptank Formation, rarely reported in the Virginia coastal plain, are present. The thick upper Miocene St. Marys and Eastover Formations (206.0-57.8 m) appear to represent a more complete succession than in the type localities. Correlation with the nearby Kiptopeke core indicates that two Pliocene units are present: Yorktown (57.8-32.2 m) and Chowan River Formations (32.2-18.3 m). Sediments at the top of the section represent an upper Pleistocene channel-fill and are assigned to the Butlers Bluff and Occohannock Members of the Nassawadox Formation (18.3-0.6 m). ?? 2009 The Geological Society of America.

Doing Quantitative Research in Education with SPSS Second edition Daniel Muijs Doing Quantitative Research in Education with SPSS Second edition £24.99 264pp 9781849203241 1849203245 [Formula: see text].

PubMed

2012-07-19

THIS TEXT is a straightforward, no nonsense guide for novice researchers venturing into research involving quantitative methodologies. It is also an excellent resource to refresh more experienced researchers. It is well written in plain English and encourages researchers to carry out their own analyses.

Resurfacing history of the northern plains of Mars based on geologic mapping of Mars Global Surveyor data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tanaka, K.L.; Skinner, J.A.; Hare, T.M.; Joyal, T.; Wenker, A.

2003-01-01

Geologic mapping of the northern plains of Mars, based on Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter topography and Viking and Mars Orbiter Camera images, reveals new insights into geologic processes and events in this region during the Hesperian and Amazonian Periods. We propose four successive stages of lowland resurfacing likely related to the activity of near-surface volatiles commencing at the highland-lowland boundary (HLB) and progressing to lower topographic levels as follows (highest elevations indicated): Stage 1, upper boundary plains, Early Hesperian, <-2.0 to -2.9 km; Stage 2, lower boundary plains and outflow channel dissection, Late Hesperian, <-2.7 to -4.0 km; Stage 3, Vastitas Borealis Formation (VBF) surface, Late Hesperian to Early Amazonian, <-3.1 to -4.1 km; and Stage 4, local chaos zones, Early Amazonian, <-3.8 to -5.0 km. At Acidalia Mensa, Stage 2 and 3 levels may be lower (<-4.4 and -4.8 km, respectively). Contractional ridges form the dominant structure in the plains and developed from near the end of the Early Hesperian to the Early Amazonian. Geomorphic evidence for a northern-plains-filling ocean during Stage 2 is absent because one did not form or its evidence was destroyed by Stage 3 resurfacing. Remnants of possible Amazonian dust mantles occur on top of the VBF. The north polar layered deposits appear to be made up of an up to kilometer-thick lower sequence of sandy layers Early to Middle Amazonian in age overlain by Late Amazonian ice-rich dust layers; both units appear to have outliers, suggesting that they once were more extensive.

Characterization of isoprene-derived secondary organic aerosols at a rural site in North China Plain with implications for anthropogenic pollution effects.

PubMed

Li, Jianjun; Wang, Gehui; Wu, Can; Cao, Cong; Ren, Yanqin; Wang, Jiayuan; Li, Jin; Cao, Junji; Zeng, Limin; Zhu, Tong

2018-01-11

Isoprene is the most abundant non-methane volatile organic compound (VOC) and the largest contributor to secondary organic aerosol (SOA) burden on a global scale. In order to examine the influence of high concentrations of anthropogenic pollutants on isoprene-derived SOA (SOA i ) formation, summertime PM 2.5 filter samples were collected with a three-hour sampling interval at a rural site in the North China Plain (NCP), and determined for SOA i tracers and other chemical species. RO 2 +NO pathway derived 2-methylglyceric acid presented a relatively higher contribution to the SOA i due to the high-NOx (~20 ppb) conditions in the NCP that suppressed the reactive uptake of RO 2 +HO 2 reaction derived isoprene epoxydiols. Compared to particle acidity and water content, sulfate plays a dominant role in the heterogeneous formation process of SOA i . Diurnal variation and correlation of 2-methyltetrols with ozone suggested an important effect of isoprene ozonolysis on SOA i formation. SOA i increased linearly with levoglucosan during June 10-18, which can be attributed to an increasing emission of isoprene caused by the field burning of wheat straw and a favorable aqueous SOA formation during the aging process of the biomass burning plume. Our results suggested that isoprene oxidation is highly influenced by intensive anthropogenic activities in the NCP.

Translating medical documents into plain language enhances communication skills in medical students--A pilot study.

PubMed

Bittner, Anja; Jonietz, Ansgar; Bittner, Johannes; Beickert, Luise; Harendza, Sigrid

2015-09-01

To train and assess undergraduate medical students' written communication skills by exercises in translating medical reports into plain language for real patients. 27 medical students participated in a newly developed communication course. They attended a 3-h seminar including a briefing on patient-centered communication and an introduction to working with the internet platform http://washabich.de. In the following ten weeks, participants "translated" one medical report every fortnight on this platform receiving feedback by a near-peer supervisor. A pre- and post-course assignment consisted of a self-assessment questionnaire on communication skills, analysis of a medical text with respect to medical jargon, and the translation of a medical report into plain language. In the self-assessment, students rated themselves in most aspects of patient-centered communication significantly higher after attending the course. After the course they marked significantly more medical jargon terms correctly than before (p<0.001). In a written plain language translation of a medical report they scored significantly higher with respect to communicative aspects (p<0.05) and medical correctness (p<0.001). Translating medical reports into plain language under near-peer supervision is associated with improved communication skills and medical knowledge in undergraduate medical students. To include translation exercises in the undergraduate medical curriculum. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Geologic Mapping in the Hesperia Planum Region of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregg, Tracy K. P.; Crown, David A.

2010-01-01

Hesperia Planum, characterized by a high concentration of mare-type wrinkle ridges and ridge rings, encompasses > 2 million square km in the southern highlands of Mars. The most common interpretation is that the plains were emplaced as "flood" lavas with total thicknesses of <3 km [4-10]. The wrinkle ridges on its surface make Hesperia Planum the type locale for "Hesperian-aged ridged plains" on Mars, and wrinkle-ridge formation occurred in more than one episode. Hesperia Planum s stratigraphic position and crater-retention age define the base of the Hesperian System. However, preliminary results of geologic mapping reveal that the whole of Hesperia Planum is unlikely to be composed of the same materials, emplaced at the same geologic time. To unravel these complexities, we are generating a 1:1.5M-scale geologic map of Hesperia Planum and its surroundings. To date, we have identified 4 distinct plains units within Hesperia Planum and are attempting to determine the nature and relative ages of these materials.

Rate estimates for lateral bedrock erosion based on radiocarbon ages, Duck River, Tennessee

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brakenridge, G.R.

Rates of bedrock erosion in ingrown meandering rivers can be inferred from the location of buried relict flood-plain and river-bank surfaces, associated paleosols, and radiocarbon dates. Two independent methods are used to evaluate the long-term rates of limestone bedrock erosion by the Duck River. Radiocarbon dates on samples retrieved from buried Holocene flood-plain and bank surfaces indicate lateral migration of the river bank at average rates of 0.6-1.9 m/100 yr. Such rates agree with lateral bedrock cliff erosion rates of 0.5-1.4 m/100 yr, as determined from a comparison of late Pleistocene and modern bedrock cliff and terrace scarp positions. Thesemore » results show that lateral bedrock erosion by this river could have occurred coevally with flood-plain and terrace formation and that the resulting evolution of valley meander bends carved into bedrock is similar in many respects to that of channel meanders cut into alluvium. 11 references, 5 figures.« less

Rapid Recharge of Parts of the High Plains Aquifer Indicated by a Reconnaissance Study in Oklahoma, 1999

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andrews, William J.; Osborn, Noel I.; Luckey, Richard R.

2000-01-01

The High Plains aquifer underlies about 174,000 square miles in parts of eight states, including about 7,100 square miles in northwestern Oklahoma (fig. 1). This aquifer consists of the saturated part of the Ogallala Formation and saturated materials of Quaternary Age that are hydraulically connected to the Ogallala. The High Plains aquifer in northwestern Oklahoma is the primary source of water to an important agricultural region. Most water is withdrawn from the aquifer for irrigating wheat and other grain crops, with the remainder used for livestock (primarily cattle and swine), municipal, and domestic needs. Historically, water from precipitation was thought to take hundreds or thousands of years to reach the water table because the depth of the water table is greater than 100 feet over most of the aquifer and the low-permeability beds in the Ogallala would impede downward flow. It also was thought that land uses would take a similar period of time to affect water quality in the aquifer.

Preparing PNNL Reports with LaTeX

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Waichler, Scott R.

2005-06-01

LaTeX is a mature document preparation system that is the standard in many scientific and academic workplaces. It has been used extensively by scattered individuals and research groups within PNNL for years, but until now there have been no centralized or lab-focused resources to help authors and editors. PNNL authors and editors can produce correctly formatted PNNL or PNWD reports using the LaTeX document preparation system and the available template files. Please visit the PNNL-LaTeX Project (http://stidev.pnl.gov/resources/latex/, inside the PNNL firewall) for additional information and files. In LaTeX, document content is maintained separately from document structure for the most part.more » This means that the author can easily produce the same content in different formats and, more importantly, can focus on the content and write it in a plain text file that doesn't go awry, is easily transferable, and won't become obsolete due to software changes. LaTeX produces the finest print quality output; its typesetting is noticeably better than that of MS Word. This is particularly true for mathematics, tables, and other types of special text. Other benefits of LaTeX: easy handling of large numbers of figures and tables; automatic and error-free captioning, citation, cross-referencing, hyperlinking, and indexing; excellent published and online documentation; free or low-cost distributions for Windows/Linux/Unix/Mac OS X. This document serves two purposes: (1) it provides instructions to produce reports formatted to PNNL requirements using LaTeX, and (2) the document itself is in the form of a PNNL report, providing examples of many solved formatting challenges. Authors can use this document or its skeleton version (with formatting examples removed) as the starting point for their own reports. The pnnreport.cls class file and pnnl.bst bibliography style file contain the required formatting specifications for reports to the Department of Energy. Options are also provided for formatting PNWD (non-1830) reports. This documentation and the referenced files are meant to provide a complete package of PNNL particulars for authors and editors who wish to prepare technical reports using LaTeX. The example material in this document was borrowed from real reports and edited for demonstration purposes. The subject matter content of the example material is not relevant here and generally does not make literal sense in the context of this document. Brackets ''[]'' are used to denote large blocks of example text. The PDF file for this report contains hyperlinks to facilitate navigation. Hyperlinks are provided for all cross-referenced material, including section headings, figures, tables, and references. Not all hyperlinks are colored but will be obvious when you move your mouse over them.« less

17 CFR 229.1001 - (Item 1001) Summary term sheet.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... sheet that is written in plain English. The summary term sheet must briefly describe in bullet point format the most material terms of the proposed transaction. The summary term sheet must provide security... transaction. The bullet points must cross-reference a more detailed discussion contained in the disclosure...

Stratigraphy and characteristic mollusks of the Pamunkey Group (lower Tertiary) and the Old Church Formation of the Chesapeake Group; Virginia Coastal Plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ward, Lauck W.

1985-01-01

Along the Pamunkey River and its tributaries can be found a very complete, well-preserved, Tertiary stratigraphic record that reflects the sea-level changes as well as the local tectonic history of the central Virginia Coastal Plain. Using this record, I have described the lower Tertiary units and proposed a sequential model for their occurrence. Sediments examined in this study range in age from early Paleocene to latest Oligocene or earliest Miocene. Upper Tertiary units are described where they occur in the same sections with the lower Tertiary beds. The Brightseat Formation (lower Paleocene), Aquia Formation (upper Paleocene), Marlboro Clay (upper Paleocene), Nanjemoy Formation (lower Eocene), Piney Point Formation (middle Eocene) and Old Church Formation (new unit, upper Oligocene and lower Miocene) were studied. The definitions of the Piscataway and Paspotansa Members of the Aquia are amended, and a lectostratotype (principal reference section) is designated for those units as well as the Aquia on the Potomac River just below the mouth of Aquia Creek. A lectostratotype section is also designated for the Nanjemoy and its two members, the Potapaco and the Woodstock. That section is on the Potomac above Popes Creek. Beds assigned to the Piney Point and Old Church Formations, previously known only in the subsurface, crop out extensively on the Pamunkey River. A hypostratotype (reference section) is selected for the Piney Point Formation on the Pamunkey River at Horseshoe. The Old Church Formation (named herein) is included in the Chesapeake Group. Areal extent of the stratigraphic units was determined by correlation of outcropping beds on the Pamunkey, Patuxent, Potomac, Rappahannock, Mattaponi, Chickahominy, and James Rivers supplemented by well data. Comparisons of the onlap histories of the Salisbury, Albemarle, and Charleston Embayments indicate a number of simultaneous transgressive events implying global sea-level rises. More restricted transgressions appear to be the result of local downwarping.

Future changes in the climatology of the Great Plains low-level jet derived from fine resolution multi-model simulations.

PubMed

Tang, Ying; Winkler, Julie; Zhong, Shiyuan; Bian, Xindi; Doubler, Dana; Yu, Lejiang; Walters, Claudia

2017-07-10

The southerly Great Plains low-level jet (GPLLJ) is one of the most significant circulation features of the central U.S. linking large-scale atmospheric circulation with the regional climate. GPLLJs transport heat and moisture, contribute to thunderstorm and severe weather formation, provide a corridor for the springtime migration of birds and insects, enhance wind energy availability, and disperse air pollution. We assess future changes in GPLLJ frequency using an eight member ensemble of dynamically-downscaled climate simulations for the mid-21st century. Nocturnal GPLLJ frequency is projected to increase in the southern plains in spring and in the central plains in summer, whereas current climatological patterns persist into the future for daytime and cool season GPLLJs. The relationship between future GPLLJ frequency and the extent and strength of anticyclonic airflow over eastern North America varies with season. Most simulations project a westward shift of anticyclonic airflow in summer, but uncertainty is larger for spring with only half of the simulations suggesting a westward expansion. The choice of regional climate model and the driving lateral boundary conditions have a large influence on the projected future changes in GPLLJ frequency and highlight the importance of multi-model ensembles to estimate the uncertainty surrounding the future GPLLJ climatology.

Review: groundwater management practices, challenges, and innovations in the High Plains aquifer, USA—lessons and recommended actions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sophocleous, Marios

2010-05-01

The US High Plains aquifer, one of the largest freshwater aquifer systems in the world, continues to decline, threatening the long-term viability of the region’s irrigation-based economy. The eight High Plains States take different approaches to the development and management of the aquifer based on each state’s body of water laws that abide by different legal doctrines, on which Federal laws are superposed, thus creating difficulties in integrated regional water-management efforts. Although accumulating hydrologic stresses and competing demands on groundwater resources are making groundwater management increasingly complex, they are also leading to innovative management approaches, which are highlighted in this paper as good examples for emulation in managing groundwater resources. It is concluded that the fragmented and piecemeal institutional arrangements for managing the supplies and quality of water are inadequate to meet the water challenges of the future. A number of recommendations for enhancing the sustainability of the aquifer are presented, including the formation of an interstate groundwater commission for the High Plains aquifer along the lines of the Delaware and Susquehanna River Basins Commissions in the US. Finally, some lessons on groundwater management that other countries can learn from the US experience are outlined.

Geology and ground water resources of Montgomery County, Alabama

USGS Publications Warehouse

Knowles, Doyle Blewer; Reade, H.L.; Scott, J.C.

1963-01-01

Montgomery County includes an area of 790 square miles in east-central Alabama. The economy of Montgomery County is related primarily to the growing and processing of agricultural products. The county is in the northern part of the Coastal Plain. It consists of parts of four divisions of the Coastal Plain: the terraces, the Black Prairie, the Chunnennuggee Hills, and the flood plains. The county drains north and northwest into the Alabama and Tallapoosa Rivers, except for a small area in the southern part of the county that is drained by tributaries of the Conecuh River. Sedimentary rocks of Late Cretaceous age underlie Montgomery County. They are divided, in ascending order, into the following: Coker and Gordo formations of the Tuscaloosa group; Eutaw formation; and Mooreville and Demopolis chalks, Ripley formation, Prairie Bluff chalk, and Providence sand of the Selma group. The Clayton formation of Tertiary age crops out in a small area in the southern part of the county. Pleistocene terrace deposits of the ancestral Alabama River overlie the older rocks in the northern part of the county. Recent alluvium underlies the flood plains of the larger streams. The Cretaceous and younger rocks consist chiefly of clay, chalk, sandstone, sand, and gravel, and a few thin beds of limestone. These deposits are underlain by a basement complex of pre-Cretaceous crystalline rocks. Large-scale withdrawals of water began in the Montgomery area about 1885. Pumpage by the city of Montgomery in 1958 averaged about 15 million gallons per day. It is estimated that an additional 10 to 15 million gallons per day was pumped in the county for industrial, irrigation, domestic, and stock use. The principal aquifer in the country is,the Eutaw formation. It supplies water to the city of Montgomery municipal wells, to industrial wells in the Montgomery area, and to most domestic and stock wells in the northern two-thirds of the county. Irrigation wells also tap the Eutaw. Yields from wells range from 350 to 600 gallons per minute. The Gordo formation, the upper part of the Coker formation, and the Pleistocene terrace deposits in the Montgomery area also yield moderate to large quantities of water to municipal and industrial wells. The lower part of the Coker formation is not developed as a source of water supply, but information obtained during the investigation rthat led to this report indicates that it may be a potential source of water to wells of large capacity. Sand beds in the Ripley formation, Providence sand, and Recent alluvium in -the southern part of the county yield adequate amounts of water to domestic and stock wells.Most of the ground water used in Montgomery County occurs under artesian conditions, although water-table conditions occur in the Pleistocene terrace deposits and Recent alluvium, and in the outcrop areas of the Eutaw and Eipley formations and the Providence sand. Most of the water recharging the Ooker, Gordo, and Eutaw formations in their areas of outcrop also is discharged in these areas; only a small quantity of water moves downdip beneath the overlying chalk beds. The natural discharge, and hence the natural recharge, is estimated to be 0.2 to 0.3 million gallons per day per square mile of outcrop. All ground water in the county is of chemical quality that is satisfactory for most uses, although locally it is high in iron or chloride content and is hard. Water from the Eutaw formation a few miles southwest of Montgomery's West well field is very high in chloride content. This water moves toward the cone of depression in the piezometric surface produced by pumping in the West well field. Much additional ground water could be pumped from the Eutaw formation, especially south of Montgomery's West well field. Additional water also is available from the upper part of the Coker formation. Before large groundwater developments are planned, however, the problems of well spacing and pumping rates should be studied in order to determine the maximum development permitted by the supply. Observation wells should be installed in the Eutaw formation southwest of Montgomery's West well field to detect encroachment of water of high chloride content from adjacent Lowndes County.

Bone Formation in a Rat Tibial Defect Model Using Carboxymethyl Cellulose/BioC/Bone Morphogenic Protein-2 Hybrid Materials

PubMed Central

Kim, Hak-Jun; Park, Kyeongsoon; Kim, Sung Eun; Song, Hae-Ryong

2014-01-01

The objective of this study was to assess whether carboxymethyl cellulose- (CMC-) based hydrogel containing BioC (biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP); tricalcium phosphate (TCP) : hydroxyapatite (Hap) = 70 : 30) and bone morphogenic protein-2 (BMP-2) led to greater bone formation than CMC-based hydrogel containing BioC without BMP-2. In order to demonstrate bone formation at 4 and 8 weeks, plain radiographs, microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) evaluation, and histological studies were performed after implantation of all hybrid materials on an 8 mm defect of the right tibia in rats. The plain radiographs and micro-CT analyses revealed that CMC/BioC/BMP-2 (0.5 mg) led to much greater mineralization at 4 and 8 weeks than did CMC/BioC or CMC/Bio/BMP-2 (0.1 mg). Likewise, bone formation and bone remodeling studies revealed that CMC/BioC/BMP-2 (0.5 mg) led to a significantly greater amount of bone formation and bone remodeling at 4 and 8 weeks than did CMC/BioC or CMC/BioC/BMP-2 (0.1 mg). Histological studies revealed that mineralized bone tissue was present around the whole circumference of the defect site with CMC/BioC/BMP-2 (0.5 mg) but not with CMC/BioC or CMC/BioC/BMP-2 (0.1 mg) at 4 and 8 weeks. These results suggest that CMC/BioC/BMP-2 hybrid materials induced greater bone formation than CMC/BioC hybrid materials. Thus, CMC/BioC/BMP-2 hybrid materials may be used as an injectable substrate to regenerate bone defects. PMID:24804202

Hydrology of Area 61, Northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountain Coal Provinces, Colorado and New Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Abbott, P.O.; Geldon, Arthur L.; Cain, Doug; Hall, Alan P.; Edelmann, Patrick

1983-01-01

Area 61 is located on the Colorado-New Mexico boundary in Huerfano and Las Animas Counties, Colorado, and Colfax County, New Mexico, and includes the Raton Mesa coal region. The 5 ,900-square-mile area is an asymmetrical structural trough bounded by the Rocky Mountains on the west and the Great Plains on the east. The area is drained by the Huerfano, Apishapa, Purgatoire, and Canadian Rivers (and their tributaries), all tributary to the Arkansas River. The principal coal-bearing formations are the Vermejo Formation of Late Cretaceous age and the Raton Formation of Late Cretaceous and Paleocene age. Much of the coal in the area is of coking quality, important to the metallurgical industry. Topographic relief in the area is greater than 8,700 feet, and this influences the climate which in turn affects the runoff pattern of area streams. Summer thunderstorms often result in flash floods. Virtually all geologic units in the region yield water. Depth to ground water ranges from land surface to 400 feet. Surface and ground water in the area contain mostly bicarbonate and sulfate ions; locally in the ground water, chloride ions predominate. Potential hydrologic problems associated with surface coal mining in the area are water-quality degradation, water-table decline, and increased erosion and sedimentation.

Fast in-situ measurements of glyoxal (CHOCHO) and nitrous acid (HONO) in northern Chinese plane during CAREBEIJING - NCP2014

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Min, K. E.; Dube, W. P.; Washenfelder, R. A.; Langford, A. O.; Brown, S. S.; Broch, S.; Fuchs, H.; Gomm, S.; Hofzumahaus, A.; Holland, F.; Hu, M.; Huey, L. G.; Kubik, K.; Li, X.; Liu, X.; Lu, K.; Rohrer, F.; Shao, M.; Sjostedt, S. J.; Tan, Z.; Zhu, T.; Wahner, A.; Wang, B.; Wang, M.; Wang, Y.; Zeng, L.; Zhang, Y.

2014-12-01

The Northern China Plain has experienced visibility degradation and detrimental health impacts due to aerosol and photochemical pollution. To examine these air quality issues, CAREBEIJING-NCP2014 (Care Beijing - Northern China Plain 2014) was held in WangDu, Hebei province, China from 6 June to 15 July 2014. We deployed our newly developed instrument, ACES (Airborne Cavity Enhanced Spectrometer), for high time resolution in-situ measurement of glyoxal (CHOCHO), nitrous acid (HONO) and other trace gases (NO2, H2O) to investigate mechanisms of oxidation processes and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. The in situ measurements of CHOCHO provide observational constraints on secondary organic aerosol formation and oxidation processes, since this molecule has been proposed to play a crucial role in forming aerosol due to its high water solubility, isomerization, and abundant production from the oxidation of many different volatile organic compounds (VOCs). A box model analysis incorporating secondary glyoxal sources from VOC oxidation and sinks to OH reaction, photolysis and heterogeneous uptake will be used to determine a budget and potential for SOA formation. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21190052), the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB05010500) and the U.S. National Science Foundation Atmospheric (AGS-1405805).

The formation and evolution of the barrier islands of Inhaca and Bazaruto, Mozambique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Armitage, S. J.; Botha, G. A.; Duller, G. A. T.; Wintle, A. G.; Rebêlo, L. P.; Momade, F. J.

2006-12-01

The barrier islands of Inhaca and Bazaruto are related to the extensive coastal dune system of the Mozambican coastal plain, south-east Africa. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of key stratigraphic units indicates that accretion of sediment within these systems is episodic. Both islands appear to have been initiated as spits extending from structural offsets in the coastline. Superposition of significant quantities of sediment upon these spits during subsequent sea-level highstands formed the core of the islands, which were anchored and protected by beachrock and aeolianite formation. At least two distinct dune-building phases occurred during Marine Oxygen Isotope Stage (MIS) 5, tentatively attributed to marine transgressions during sub-stages 5e and 5c. Although some localized reactivation of dune surfaces occurred prior to the Holocene, large quantities of sediment were not deposited on either island during the low sea-levels associated with MIS 2. Significant dune-building and sediment reworking occurred immediately prior to and during the Holocene, though it is not clear whether these processes were continuous or episodic. Significant erosion of the eastern shoreline of Bazaruto suggests that it is far less stable than Inhaca and may suffer further large-scale erosion. A model is presented for the formation of barrier islands along the Mozambican coastal plain.

The Belterra Clay: The Last Terrestrial Connection Between the Brazilian Shield and the Guiana Shield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campbell, K.

2016-12-01

The Belterra Clay is a sedimentary deposit that covers much of the eastern Amazon Basin in Brazil. It is notable in forming a very flat plain that occurs on both sides of the Amazon River, the Tapajos River, the Xingu River, and many smaller, tributary rivers east of 56° 32' W. The origin of the Belterra Clay is very controversial, with proponents of both allochthonous and autochthonous means of formation. There is little agreement as to its age. The fact that it occurs on both sides of the Amazon River indicates that its origin predates the formation of the modern Amazon River system, the timing of origin of which is itself highly controversial, with age estimates given for the river system formation that extend from the late Miocene, or 10 mya, to the late Pleistocene. From the time of origin of the Belterra Clay deposit until the modern Amazon River evolved, it formed an unbroken, terrestrial connection between the Brazilian Shield to the south and the Guiana Shield to the north, as well as east-west connections across what are today major river valleys, such as the Tapajos River and Xingu River. The formation and later severing of this once unbroken plain are predicted to have had major impacts on the distribution and evolutionary pathways of biotas inhabiting the region as once disparate communities were joined and later separated once again. Molecular clock ages for sister taxa north and south of the Amazon River have the potential of dating the time of formation of the Amazon River.

Chronostratigraphic and depositional sequences of the Fort Union formation (Paleocene), Williston Basin, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Warwick, Peter D.; Flores, Romeo M.; Nichols, Douglas J.; Murphy, Edward C.; Pashin, Jack C.; Gastaldo, Robert A.

2004-01-01

The Fort Union Formation in the Williston Basin of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana comprises chronostratigraphic and depositional sequences of Paleocene age. Individual chronostratigraphic sequences are defined by palynostratigraphic (pollen and spore) biozones and radiometric (40Ar/39Ar) ages obtained from tonsteins or volcanic ash layers. Analyses of depositional sequences are based on lithofacies constrained by the radiometric ages and biozones.The lower Paleocene (biozones P1-P3) contains three marine parasequences (landward stepping) in southwestern North Dakota that sequentially onlapped westward between 65 and 61 Ma (lower Ludlow and Cannonball Members). Maximum flooding (transgressive systems tract) occurred during an approximate 1-m.y. interval from 65 to 64 Ma, which regionally is correlated biostratigraphically to a tidally influenced, distributary-shoreface, and fluvial-channel complex in the Cave Hills, northwestern South Dakota, and to channel-dominated fluvial (low-stand incised paleovalley systems) and tidally influenced, flood-plain-deltaic transition facies in the Ekalaka area of southeastern Montana.The progradational parasequences in the Cannonball Member consist of shore-face sandstone beds (with ravinement lag deposits) deposited by strand-plain barrier systems. Landward of the barrier systems, tidal-estuarine and mire deposits included thick but laterally discontinuous peat accumulations (e.g., Beta and Yule coal beds in the Ludlow Member, southwestern North Dakota). However, landward of the coastal deposits, the laterally equivalent T-Cross-Big Dirty coal zone (dated 64.78 Ma) in southeastern Montana formed as thick, laterally extensive peat accumulations in mires in a fluvial setting. In the flood-plain-deltaic, tidal transition zone near Ekalaka, Montana, the Ludlow Member consists of flood-plain facies, discontinuous coal beds, and rooted and burrowed horizons that contain the marine or brackish trace fossil Skolithos. The flood-plain-deltaic tidal transition zone facies are incised by a massive, agglomerated channel sandstone complex (paleovalley fill) that is exposed along the modern Snow Creek drainage south of Mill Iron, Montana. The flood-plain-tidal transition zone was reworked during the maximum sea level highstand during the early Paleocene. This event was followed by a fall of sea level and deposition of the paleovalley fill.Sea level fall during the mid-Paleocene (biozones P3 and P4) produced a regressive shallow-marine and lower deltaic tidal system (seaward stepping) that deposited strata that thin toward the east. These strata are overlain by a widespread paleosol (Rhame bed) and, in turn, a lignite-bearing fluvial facies (Tongue River Member) containing the laterally persistent Harmon-Hanson coal zone (61.23 Ma). Upper Paleocene biozone P5 is represented by fluvial, coal-bearing strata that contain several economically minable coal beds (HT Butte, Hagel, and Beulah-Zap zones, Sentinel Butte Member).The Fort Union Formation of the Williston Basin contains significant coal resources. These coal deposits are now being explored for their potential coal-bed gas resources. A better understanding of the depositional setting for these deposits can lead to improved exploration and exploitation practices and a better understanding of regional paleogeography and paleoclimate during the Paleocene.

New Chronologies of Dune Activation Extracted from the Central Great Plains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, W. C.; Halfen, A. F.

2011-12-01

Recent investigations of dunefield activation histories in the Great Plains of North America have documented many long-duration, spatially-extensive, Holocene droughts. These "megadroughts" have been documented mostly in the larger dunefields of the Great Plains, e.g., the Nebraska Sand Hills, making it difficult for researchers to characterize these events region-wide. Several studies being conducted by the authors aim to extract a better spatial and temporal representation of megadroughts across the region by investigating smaller, less known dunefields of the Central Great Plains. Thus far, these studies have yielded new activation histories from three dunefields, the Kansas River, Hutchinson, and Arkansas Valley dunefields, which together span the precipitation gradient from eastern Kansas to eastern Colorado. While each of these dunefields have a unique history, collectively their activation chronologies yield new and important information on Holocene megadrought activity in the Great Plains, which may have been more spatially diverse and complex than previously thought. The Kansas River dunefield mantles a remnant high terrace of the lower Kansas River valley in the east-Central Great Plains and is one of the most easterly dunefields in the Great Plains. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages indicate dune activation last occurred ~36-31 ka, i.e., during MIS 3 between Heinrich Events 4 and 3 and was coincidental with loess deposition (Gillman Canyon Formation). The Kansas River dunefield also shows some evidence of minor activation during the middle Holocene, however this activity was likely limited to erosion of the dune surface and not full activation. About 200 km southwest of the Kansas River dunefield is the Hutchinson dunefield (HD), located immediately northeast of the Big Bend of the Arkansas River. OSL ages document dunefield-wide activity in the HD between ~1200 and 120 years ago, with peaks of activity centered after the Medieval Climatic Anomaly (MCA) at ~1000 years ago and the Little Ice Age (LIA) at ~300 years ago. Lastly, 100 km west of the HD is the Arkansas Valley dunefield (AVD), which, like the HD, shows dunefield-wide activity from ~1000 until the 1930s. Also similar to the HD is the increased dune activity in the AVD following the MCA and LIA. These dunefields provide a new, rich history of dune activity and megadroughts within the Great Plains. It was once thought that Great Plains dunefields were only a Holocene feature, though our data from the Kansas River dunefield suggests that this assumption should be re-evaluated. In addition, our spatially dense chronologies from the HD and ARV have provided new insights into the character of Great Plains Holocene megadroughts. For example, our data, together with that published from other Great Plains dunefields, suggests that megadrought activity following the MCA was region-wide, while that which followed the LIA was more geographically restricted to the Central Great Plains.

Sedimentology of the Simmler and Vaqueros formations in the Caliente Range-Carrizo Plain area, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bartow, J. Alan

1974-01-01

The Simmler and Vaqueros Formations in the Caliente Range-Carrizo Plain area make up a large part of the thick Tertiary sedimentary sequence that was .deposited in a basin which lay along the southwest side of the present-day San Andreas fault. The evolution of this basin during Oligocene and early Miocene time and the relationship of its sedimentary record to the tectonic history is an important chapter in the Tertiary history of California. The Simmler Formation, of provincial Oligocene to early Miocene age, unconformably overlies basement rocks and an Upper Cretaceous-lower Tertiary marine sequence. It consists of a sandstone facies, which is mostly a variegated sequence of sandstone and mudstone occurring in fining-upward cycles, and a conglomerate facies, which occurs around the southwest and southeast margins of the basin. The conformably overlying Vaqueros Formation, of provincial early to middle Miocene age, is subdivided from base upward ,into the Quail Canyon Sandstone, Soda Lake Shale, and Painted Rock Sandstone Members. The Vaqueros intertongues eastward, southeastward, and northward with the continental Caliente Formation and is conformably overlain by the Monterey Shale. In the Caliente Range, northeast of major thrust faults, the Vaqueros may reach a thickness of 8,700 feet (2,650 m). Around the margin of the basin, the formation is much thinner--locally only 200 feet (60 m) thick--and is generally undivided. The Quail Canyon Sandstone Member is composed of cross-bedded or planar-stratified sandstone. The Soda Lake Shale Member consists mostly of siltstone and platy shale with a few thin sandstone interbeds. The Painted Rock Sandstone Member, the thickest and coarsest member, consists mostly of large lenticular bodies of thick-bedded coarse-grained sandstone and thinner units of siltstone. Petrology and paleocurrent studies indicate that, in a given subarea, the Simmler and Vaqueros Formations were derived from the same source terrane and that the sediments were usually transported in the same general direction. Crystalline basement terranes to the north and south were the primary sources, but the Upper Cretaceous-lower Tertiary marine sequence made substantial contributions along the southwest side of the basin. The sandstone facies of the Simmler Formation is interpreted as an alluvial plain depositional complex formed by through-flowing low-sinuosity streams, and the conglomerate facies is interpreted as alluvial fan deposits. The Vaqueros Formation in the Caliente Range forms a transgressive-regressive sequence. The Quail Canyon Sandstone and lowermost Soda Lake Shale Members represent the transgressive phase, are interpreted as beach-nearshore and offshore deposits, and are locally the marine equivalents of the upper part of the Simmler conglomerate facies. The remainder of the Soda Lake Shale Member and the Painted Rock Sandstone Member represent the regressive phase and are interpreted as a complex of deltaic and shelf-slope deposits that prograded over basinal shales and turbidites. The reconstructed basin history began in the Oligocene with alluvial plain sedimentation in an area of relatively low relief. This was interrupted in the early Miocene (ca. 25 m.y. B.P.) by the beginning of a period of crustal extension, probably related to the first interaction of the Pacific and North American plates, resulting in the formation of a rapidly subsiding marine basin. This crustal extension was followed by a period of north-south compression in the Pliocene and Pleistocene, which caused the thick accumulation of sediments in the basin to be folded and thrust over the thinner basin-margin section. The Red Hills-Chimineas-Russell fault trend, along which Cretaceous granitic and Precambrian(?) gneissic rocks had been juxtaposed in Cretaceous time, was reactivated in the Pliocene, when 8 to 9 miles (13-14.5 km) of additional right-lateral slip occurred, The pattern of north-south thrusting and rig

Enhancement of absorption and hepatoprotective potential through soya-phosphatidylcholine-andrographolide vesicular system.

PubMed

Jain, Pushpendra Kumar; Khurana, Navneet; Pounikar, Yogesh; Gajbhiye, Asmita; Kharya, Murli Dhar

2013-06-01

Andrographis paniculata is a medicinal herb used extensively for various ailments and contains therapeutically active phytoconstituent, andrographolide (AN). Although hepatoprotective activity of AN is established, but their bioavailability is restricted due to its rapid clearance. The aim of this study, therefore, was to formulate AN herbosomes (ANH) through complexation with naturally occurring soya-phosphatidylcholine (SPC), in order to enhance absorption. Prepared andrographolide-soy phosphatidylcholine (AN-SPC) complex prepared was subjected for characterisation of complex and formation of vesicular system known as ANH using rotary evaporation techniques. This complex was subjected to in vitro study using everted small intestine sac technique which showed significantly increased absorption of AN from the ANH as compared to the plain AN. The hepatoprotective potential of ANH and plain AN was evaluated using carbon tetrachloride inducing hepatotoxicity rat model and compared, in which ANH equivalent to 50 mg/kg of plain AN significantly restore serum glutamate oxalacetate transaminase (112.4 ± 9.67 for AN whereas 90.2 ± 4.23 for ANH) and serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (109.3 ± 7.89 for AN whereas 90.6 ± 4.34 for ANH) level as compared to control group. The ANH showed significantly better absorption than plain AN and this effect of ANH was also comparable to the standard drug (Silymarin). The findings of present study reveal that ANH has better bioavailability as shown by in vitro absorption study and hence improved hepatoprotection as compared to plain AN at equivalent dose.

Late Cenozoic fluvial successions in northern and western India: an overview and synthesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sinha, R.; Kumar, R.; Sinha, S.; Tandon, S. K.; Gibling, M. R.

2007-11-01

Late Cenozoic fluvial successions are widespread in India. They include the deposits of the Siwalik basin which represent the accumulations of the ancient river systems of the Himalayan foreland basin. Palaeomagnetic studies reveal that fluvial architecture and styles of deposition were controlled by Himalayan tectonics as well as by major climatic fluctuations during the long (∼13 Ma) span of formation. The Indo-Gangetic plains form the world's most extensive Quaternary alluvial plains, and display spatially variable controls on sedimentation: Himalayan tectonics in the frontal parts, climate in the middle reaches, and eustasy in the lower reaches close to the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta. Climatic effects were mediated by strong fluctuations in the SW Indian Monsoon, and Himalayan rivers occupy deep valleys in the western Ganga plains where stream power is high, cut in part during early Holocene monsoon intensification; the broad interfluves record the simultaneous aggradation of plains-fed rivers since ∼100 ka. The eastward increase in precipitation across the Ganga Plains results in rivers with low stream power and a very high sediment flux, resulting in an aggradational mode and little incision. The river deposits of semi-arid to arid western India form important archives of Quaternary climate change through their intercalation with the eolian deposits of the Thar Desert. Although the synthesis documents strong variability-both spatial and temporal-in fluvial stratigraphy, climatic events such as the decline in precipitation during the Last Glacial Maximum and monsoon intensification in the early Holocene have influenced fluvial dynamics throughout the region.

22 CFR 1006.50 - How is this part written?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 2 2013-04-01 2009-04-01 true How is this part written? 1006.50 Section 1006.50 Foreign Relations INTER-AMERICAN FOUNDATION GOVERNMENTWIDE DEBARMENT AND SUSPENSION (NONPROCUREMENT) § 1006.50 How is this part written? (a) This part uses a “plain language” format to make it...

Carbonyl compounds at Mount Tai in the North China Plain: Characteristics, sources, and effects on ozone formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Xue; Xue, Likun; Yao, Lan; Li, Qinyi; Wen, Liang; Zhu, Yanhong; Chen, Tianshu; Wang, Xinfeng; Yang, Lingxiao; Wang, Tao; Lee, Shuncheng; Chen, Jianmin; Wang, Wenxing

2017-11-01

Carbonyl compounds, an important category of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), play important roles in ozone (O3) formation and atmospheric chemistry. To better understand the characteristics and sources of carbonyl compounds and their effects on O3 formation, C1-C8 carbonyls were measured at Mount Tai, the highest mountain in the North China Plain (NCP), in summer 2014. Acetone (3.57 ± 0.55 ppbv), formaldehyde (3.48 ± 0.98 ppbv) and acetaldehyde (1.27 ± 0.78 ppbv) are the three most abundant species, comprising as high as 90% of the total observed compounds. Isovaleraldehyde (0.37 ± 0.17 ppbv) presents another important carbonyl compound despite its high reactivity. Comparison with the observations available in China highlights the serious situation of carbonyls pollution in the NCP region. The sources of carbonyls are dominated by photo-oxidation of VOCs during the daytime and regional transport at night. Secondary sources from oxidation of hydrocarbons contribute on average 44% of formaldehyde, 31% of acetone, 85% of acetaldehyde, 78% of benzaldehyde, and 84% of isovaleraldehyde, demonstrating the dominant role of secondary formation in the ambient carbonyl levels. Formaldehyde, acetaldehyde and isovaleraldehyde are the most important contributors to the OH reactivity and O3 production among the measured carbonyls. This study shows that carbonyl compounds contribute significantly to the photochemical pollution in the NCP region and hence understanding their sources and characteristics is essential for developing the science-based O3 pollution control strategies.

Pattern of large raised bog formation in the South-Eastern Baltic Region during the Holocene: the case of Kaliningrad oblast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Napreenko-Dorokhova, T. V.; Napreenko, M. G.; Lisitzin, A. P.

2017-08-01

The results of complex investigations that have been carried out since 2007 in large bog ecosystems (Zehlau, Bolshoe Mokhovoe, and Koz'e) located in Kaliningrad oblast in two largest landscape areas, glaciolacustrine plains in the central part of the region and coastal lowlands of the southern coast of Curonian Lagoon and the delta of the Neman River, are presented. It is established that the intensive development of mires and their transition to the raised bog stage occurred in the territory of Kaliningrad oblast later than in most of the forest zone in European Russia, where this process was noted as early as during the Atlantic. On the glaciolacustrine flat plains in the central part of Kaliningrad oblast, where there were no deep depressions, the mire formation process was manifested weakly for a long time. A colder and more humid climate, which is a condition necessary for the raised bog peat accumulation and rapid expansion of bogs to the adjacent forest area, occurred only in the Subatlantic.

Geomorphology Classification of Shandong Province Based on Digital Elevation Model in the 1 Arc-second Format of Shuttle Radar Topography Mission Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Jundong; Zhang, Guangcheng; Wang, Lei; Xia, Nuan

2018-01-01

Based on gigital elevation model in the 1 arc-second format of shuttle radar topography mission data, using the window analysis and mean change point analysis of geographic information system (GIS) technology, programmed with python modules this, automatically extracted and calculated geomorphic elements of Shandong province. The best access to quantitatively study area relief amplitude of statistical area. According to Chinese landscape classification standard, the landscape type in Shandong province was divided into 8 types: low altitude plain, medium altitude plain, low altitude platform, medium altitude platform, low altitude hills, medium altitude hills, low relief mountain, medium relief mountain and the percentages of Shandong province’s total area are as follows: 12.72%, 0.01%, 36.38%, 0.24%, 17.26%, 15.64%, 11.1%, 6.65%. The results of landforms are basically the same as the overall terrain of Shandong Province, Shandong province’s total area, and the study can quantitatively and scientifically provide reference for the classification of landforms in Shandong province.

Depositional and diagenetic history and petroleum geology of the Jurassic Norphlet Formation of the Alabama coastal waters area and adjacent federal waters area

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kugler, R.L.; Mink, R.M.

1999-01-01

The discovery of deep (>20,000 ft) gas reservoirs in eolian sandstone of the Upper Jurassic Norphlet Formation in Mobile Bay and offshore Alabama in the late 1970s represents one of the most significant hydrocarbon discoveries in the nation during the past several decades. Estimated original proved gas from Norphlet reservoirs in the Alabama coastal waters and adjacent federal waters is 7.462 trillion ft3 (Tcf) (75% recovery factor). Fifteen fields have been established in the offshore Alabama area. Norphlet sediment was deposited in an arid environment in alluvial fans, alluvial plains, and wadis in updip areas. In downdip areas, the Norphlet was deposited in a broad desert plain, with erg development in some areas. Marine transgression, near the end of Norphlet deposition, resulted in reworking of the upper part of the Norphlet Formation. Norphlet reservoir sandstone is arkose and subarkose, consisting of a simple assemblage of three minerals, quartz, albite, and K-feldspar. The present framework grain assemblage of the Norphlet is dominantly diagenetic, owing to albitization and dissolution of feldspar. Despite the simple framework composition, the diagenetic character of the Norphlet is complex. Important authigenic minerals include carbonate phases (calcite, dolomite, Fe-dolomite, and breunnerite), feldspar (albite and K-feldspar), evaporite minerals (anhydrite and halite), clay minerals (illite and chlorite), quartz, and pyrobitumen. The abundance and distribution of these minerals varies significantly between onshore and offshore regions of Norphlet production. The lack of sufficient internal sources of components for authigenic minerals, combined with unusual chemical compositions of chloride (Mg-rich), breunnerite, and some minor authigenic minerals, suggests that Louann-derived fluids influenced Norphlet diagenesis. In offshore Alabama reservoirs, porosity is dominantly modified primary porosity. Preservation of porosity in deep Norphlet reservoirs is due to a combination of factors, including a lack of sources of cement components and lack of pervasive early cement, so that fluid-flow pathways remained open during burial. Below the dominantly quartz-cemented tight zone near the top of the Norphlet, pyrobitumen is a major contributor to reduction in reservoir quality in offshore Alabama. The highest reservoir quality occurs in those wells where the present gas-water contact is below the paleohydrocarbon-water contact. Thiz zone of highest reservoir quality is between the lowermost occurrence of pyrobitumen and the present gas-water contact.The Upper Jurassic Norphlet Formation sediment was deposited in an arid environment in alluvial fans, alluvial plains, and wadis in undip areas. In downdip areas, the Norphlet was deposited in a broad desert plain, with erg development in some areas. Marine transgression, near the end of Norphlet deposition resulted in reworking of the upper part of the formation. he present framework grain assemblage of the Norphlet is dominantly diagenetic, owing to albitization and dissolution of feldspar. Despite the simple framework composition, the diagenetic character of the Norphlet is complex.

Decryption-decompression of AES protected ZIP files on GPUs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duong, Tan Nhat; Pham, Phong Hong; Nguyen, Duc Huu; Nguyen, Thuy Thanh; Le, Hung Duc

2011-10-01

AES is a strong encryption system, so decryption-decompression of AES encrypted ZIP files requires very large computing power and techniques of reducing the password space. This makes implementations of techniques on common computing system not practical. In [1], we reduced the original very large password search space to a much smaller one which surely containing the correct password. Based on reduced set of passwords, in this paper, we parallel decryption, decompression and plain text recognition for encrypted ZIP files by using CUDA computing technology on graphics cards GeForce GTX295 of NVIDIA, to find out the correct password. The experimental results have shown that the speed of decrypting, decompressing, recognizing plain text and finding out the original password increases about from 45 to 180 times (depends on the number of GPUs) compared to sequential execution on the Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 2.66 GHz. These results have demonstrated the potential applicability of GPUs in this cryptanalysis field.

Geomorphic Units on Titan: constraints on the origin of Undifferentiated Plains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopes, R. M. C.; Malaska, M. J.; Solomonidou, A.; LeGall, A.; Janssen, M. A.; Neish, C.; Turtle, E. P.; Birch, S. P. D.; Hayes, A. G.; Radebaugh, J.; Coustenis, A.

2015-10-01

We present the global distribution of the major classes of units and, where there are direct morphological contacts, describe how these classes of units relate to each other in terms of setting and emplacement history (Fig. 1). In particular, we focus on constraining the origin of the Undifferentiated Plains, which cover large expanses of Titan's surface (Fig. 2). We examined and evaluated different formation mechanisms, including (i) cryovolcanic origin, consisting of overlapping flows of low relief or (ii) sedimentary origins, resulting from fluvial/lacustrine or aeolian deposition, or accumulation of photolysis products created in the atmosphere. The results from our analysis suggest that a sedimentary origin is the most likely, with all the aforementioned processes possibly contributing.

Ground-water hydrology and water quality of the southern high plains aquifer, Melrose Air Force Range, Cannon Air Force Base, Curry and Roosevelt Counties, New Mexico, 2002-03

USGS Publications Warehouse

Langman, Jeff B.; Gebhardt, Fredrick E.; Falk, Sarah E.

2004-01-01

In cooperation with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Geological Survey characterized the ground-water hydrology and water quality at Melrose Air Force Range in east-central New Mexico. The purpose of the study was to provide baseline data to Cannon Air Force Base resource managers to make informed decisions concerning actions that may affect the ground-water system. Five periods of water-level measurements and four periods of water-quality sample collection were completed at Melrose Air Force Range during 2002 and 2003. The water-level measurements and water-quality samples were collected from a 29-well monitoring network that included wells in the Impact Area and leased lands of Melrose Air Force Range managed by Cannon Air Force Base personnel. The purpose of this report is to provide a broad overview of ground-water flow and ground-water quality in the Southern High Plains aquifer in the Ogallala Formation at Melrose Air Force Range. Results of the ground-water characterization of the Southern High Plains aquifer indicated a local flow system in the unconfined aquifer flowing northeastward from a topographic high, the Mesa (located in the southwestern part of the Range), toward a regional flow system in the unconfined aquifer that flows southeastward through the Portales Valley. Ground water was less than 55 years old across the Range; ground water was younger (less than 25 years) near the Mesa and ephemeral channels and older (25 years to 55 years) in the Portales Valley. Results of water-quality analysis indicated three areas of different water types: near the Mesa and ephemeral channels, in the Impact Area of the Range, and in the Portales Valley. Within the Southern High Plains aquifer, a sodium/chloride-dominated ground water was found in the center of the Impact Area of the Range with water-quality characteristics similar to ground water from the underlying Chinle Formation. This sodium/chloride-dominated ground water of the unconfined aquifer in the Impact Area indicates a likely connection with the deeper water-producing zone. No pesticides, explosives, volatile organic compounds, semivolatile organic compounds, organic halogens, or perchlorate were found in water samples from the Southern High Plains aquifer at the Range.

Sr-87/Sr-86 isotopic age determination of upper Cretaceous Santonian, Campanian and Maastrichtian chondrichthyan teeth of the Atlantic and Eastern Gulf Coastal Plains: Implications for sea level cyclicity and macrofossil time-averaging in depositional sequence lag deposits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becker, Martin Andrew

1997-11-01

Unconformities and fossil rich layers are common elements in the stratigraphic architecture of upper Cretaceous sediments exposed on both the Atlantic and Eastern Gulf Coastal Plains. Contacts between the Eutaw Formation and Tombigbee Sands Member in Alabama, the Blufftown Formation and Cusseta Sands in Georgia and the Wenonah- Mt. Laurel and Navesink Formations in New Jersey are marked by erosional surfaces with overlying blankets and lenses of macrofossil residuum. These contacts correspond to bounding unconformities and transgressive lags separating Santonian-Campanian, lower Campanian-upper Campanian and Campanian-Maastrichtian depositional sequences. Regression and subsequent transgression of sea level at the top of these depositional sequences resulted in hydrodynamic sorting of sediments and fossils that had previously accumulated in shelf and lower shoreface paleoenvironments. Remobilization of sediments by shoreface retreat reworked fossil hard-parts which became concentrated above erosional surfaces as sea level rose. Because of the abundance of chondrichthyan, pelecypod and ammonite fossils, these lags have great biostratigraphic significance and provide a basis for examining time averaging in macrofossil zonation. Chondrichthyan teeth are composed of extremely durable and highly insoluble, biogenic apatite. This tooth apatite accurately records the Sr87/Sr86 isotopic signature of seawater, from which the numerical age of the teeth can be calculated using published age/concentration data. Teeth (e.g. Squalicorax kaupi, Scapanorhynchus texanus) from Santonian-Campanian lag deposits at the contact of the Eutaw Formation and Tombigbee Sands Member in Alabama yield approximate ages of 85-81 Ma. Teeth from lower-upper Campanian lag deposits at the contact of the Blufftown Formation and Cusseta Sands in Georgia yield approximate ages of 83-75 Ma. Teeth from Campanian-Maastrichtian lag deposits at the contact of the Wenonah-Mt. Laurel and Navesink Formations in New Jersey yield approximate ages of 80-76 Ma. Isotopic age determination from these chondrichthyan teeth indicate average hiatus of approximately 3-7 million years occur during the development of lag accumulations and transgressive unconformities. Santonian, Campanian and Maastrichtian macrofossils analyzed in this study are hydrodynamically stable components representing time-averaged fossil assemblages sorted together by physical processes and are not life cohorts. Abrupt appearance and disappearance of organisms found in upper Cretaceous lag deposits of the Atlantic and Eastern Gulf Coastal Plains are artifacts of a physical sorting processes associated with sea-level cyclicity.

Global stratigraphy of Venus: Analysis of a random sample of thirty-six test areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Basilevsky, Alexander T.; Head, James W., III

1995-01-01

The age relations between 36 impact craters with dark paraboloids and other geologic units and structures at these localities have been studied through photogeologic analysis of Magellan SAR images of the surface of Venus. Geologic settings in all 36 sites, about 1000 x 1000 km each, could be characterized using only 10 different terrain units and six types of structures. Mapping of such units and structures in 36 randomly distributed large regions shows evidence for a distinctive regional and global stratigraphic and geologic sequence. On the basis of this sequence we have developed a model that illustrates several major themes in the history of Venus. Most of the history of Venus (that of its first 80% or so) is not preserved in the surface geomorphological record. The major deformation associated with tessera formation in the period sometime between 0.5-1.0 b.y. ago (Ivanov and Basilevsky, 1993) is the earliest event detected. Our stratigraphic analyses suggest that following tessera formation, extensive volcanic flooding resurfaced at least 85% of the planet in the form of the presently-ridged and fractured plains. Several lines of evidence favor a high flux in the post-tessera period but we have no independent evidence for the absolute duration of ridged plains emplacement. During this time, the net state of stress in the lithosphere apparently changed from extensional to compressional, first in the form of extensive ridge belt development, followed by the formation of extensive wrinkle ridges on the flow units. Subsequently, there occurred local emplacement of smooth and lobate plains units which are presently essentially undeformed. The major events in the latest 10% of the presently preserved history of Venus are continued rifting and some associated volcanism, and the redistribution of eolian material largely derived from impact crater deposits. Detailed geologic mapping and stratigraphic synthesis are necessary to test this sequence and to address many of the outstanding problems raised by this analysis.

Geology of Libya Montes and the Interbasin Plains of Northern Tyrrhena Terra, Mars: First Year Results and Second Year Work Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Skinner, J. A., Jr.; Rogers, A. D.; Seelos, K. D.

2010-01-01

The Libya Montes-Tyrrhena Terra highland-lowland transitional zone of Mars is a complex tectonic and erosional region that contains some of the oldest exposed materials on the Martian surface as well as aqueous mineral signatures that may be potential chemical artifacts of early highland formational processes. Our 1:1M scale mapping project includes the geologic materials and landforms contained within MTMs 00282, -05282, -10282, 00277, - 05277, and -10277, which cover the highland portion of the transitional zone. The map region extends from the Libya Montes southward into Tyrrhena Terra and to the northern rim of Hellas basin and includes volcanic rocks of Syrtis Major Planum and a broad lowlying plain (palus) that forms a topographic divide between Isidis and Hellas basins. The objective of this project is to describe the geologic history of regional massif and plains materials by combining geomorphological and compositional mapping observations. This abstract summarizes the technical approaches and interim scientific results of Year 1 efforts and the expected work plan for Year 2 efforts.

A field trip guide to the petrology of Quaternary volcanism on the Yellowstone Plateau

USGS Publications Warehouse

Vazquez, Jorge A.; Stelten, Mark; Bindeman, Ilya N.; Cooper, Kari

2017-12-19

The Yellowstone Plateau is one of the largest manifestations of silicic volcanism on Earth, and marks the youngest focus of magmatism associated with the Yellowstone Hot Spot. The earliest products of Yellowstone Hot Spot volcanism are from ~17 million years ago, but may be as old as ~32 Ma, and include contemporaneous eruption of voluminous mafic and silicic magmas, which are mostly located in the region of northwestern Nevada and southeastern Oregon. Since 17 Ma, the main locus of Yellowstone Hot Spot volcanism has migrated northeastward producing numerous silicic caldera complexes that generally remain active for ~2–4 million years, with the present-day focus being the Yellowstone Plateau. Northeastward migration of volcanism associated with the Yellowstone Hot Spot resulted in the formation of the Snake River Plain, a low relief physiographic feature extending ~750 kilometers from northern Nevada to eastern Idaho. Most of the silicic volcanic centers along the Snake River Plain have been inundated by younger basalt volcanism, but many of their ignimbrites and lava flows are exposed in the extended regions at the margins of the Snake River Plain. 

Determination of the 100-year flood plain on Upper Three Runs and selected tributaries, and the Savannah River at the Savannah River site, South Carolina, 1995

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lanier, T.H.

1996-01-01

The 100-year flood plain was determined for Upper Three Runs, its tributaries, and the part of the Savannah River that borders the Savannah River Site. The results are provided in tabular and graphical formats. The 100-year flood-plain maps and flood profiles provide water-resource managers of the Savannah River Site with a technical basis for making flood-plain management decisions that could minimize future flood problems and provide a basis for designing and constructing drainage structures along roadways. A hydrologic analysis was made to estimate the 100-year recurrence- interval flow for Upper Three Runs and its tributaries. The analysis showed that the well-drained, sandy soils in the head waters of Upper Three Runs reduce the high flows in the stream; therefore, the South Carolina upper Coastal Plain regional-rural-regression equation does not apply for Upper Three Runs. Conse- quently, a relation was established for 100-year recurrence-interval flow and drainage area using streamflow data from U.S. Geological Survey gaging stations on Upper Three Runs. This relation was used to compute 100-year recurrence-interval flows at selected points along the stream. The regional regression equations were applicable for the tributaries to Upper Three Runs, because the soil types in the drainage basins of the tributaries resemble those normally occurring in upper Coastal Plain basins. This was verified by analysis of the flood-frequency data collected from U.S. Geological Survey gaging station 02197342 on Fourmile Branch. Cross sections were surveyed throughout each reach, and other pertinent data such as flow resistance and land-use were col- lected. The surveyed cross sections and computed 100-year recurrence-interval flows were used in a step-backwater model to compute the 100-year flood profile for Upper Three Runs and its tributaries. The profiles were used to delineate the 100-year flood plain on topographic maps. The Savannah River forms the southwestern border of the Savannah River Site. Data from previously published reports were used to delineate the 100-year flood plain for the Savannah River from the downstream site boundary at the mouth of Lower Three Runs at river mile 125 to the upstream site boundary at river mile 163.

Future changes in the climatology of the Great Plains low-level jet derived from fine resolution multi-model simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tang, Ying; Winkler, Julie; Zhong, Shiyuan

The southerly Great Plains low-level jet (GPLLJ) is one of the most significant circulation features of the central U.S. linking large-scale atmospheric circulation with the regional climate. GPLLJs transport heat and moisture, contribute to thunderstorm and severe weather formation, provide a corridor for the springtime migration of birds and insects, enhance wind energy availability, and disperse air pollution. We also assess future changes in GPLLJ frequency using an eight member ensemble of dynamically-downscaled climate simulations for the mid-21st century. Nocturnal GPLLJ frequency is projected to increase in the southern plains in spring and in the central plains in summer, whereasmore » current climatological patterns persist into the future for daytime and cool season GPLLJs. The relationship between future GPLLJ frequency and the extent and strength of anticyclonic airflow over eastern North America varies with season. Most simulations project a westward shift of anticyclonic airflow in summer, but uncertainty is larger for spring with only half of the simulations suggesting a westward expansion. Furthemore, the choice of regional climate model and the driving lateral boundary conditions have a large influence on the projected future changes in GPLLJ frequency and highlight the importance of multi-model ensembles to estimate the uncertainty surrounding the future GPLLJ climatology.« less

Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV: Mars Volcanology and Tectonics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2004-01-01

Reports from the session, "Mars Volcanology and Tectonics" include:Martian Shield Volcanoes; Estimating the Rheology of Basaltic Lava Flows; A Model for Variable Levee Formation Rates in an Active Lava Flow; Deflections in Lava Flow Directions Relative to Topography in the Tharsis Region: Indicators of Post-Flow Tectonic Motion; Fractal Variation with Changing Line Length: A Potential Problem for Planetary Lava Flow Identification; Burfellshraun:A Terrestrial Analogue to Recent Volcanism on Mars; Lava Domes of the Arcadia Region of Mars; Comparison of Plains Volcanism in the Tempe Terra Region of Mars to the Eastern Snake River Plains, Idaho with Implications for Geochemical Constraints; Vent Geology of Low-Shield Volcanoes from the Central Snake River Plain, Idaho: Lessons for Mars and the Moon; Field and Geochemical Study of Table Legs Butte and Quaking Aspen Butte, Eastern Snake River Plain, Idaho: An Analog to the Morphology of Small Shield Volcanoes on Mars; Variability in Morphology and Thermophysical Properties of Pitted Cones in Acidalia Planitia and Cydonia Mensae; A Volcano Composed of Light-colored Layered Deposits on the Floor of Valles Marineris; Analysis of Alba Patera Flows: A Comparison of Similarities and Differences Geomorphologic Studies of a Very Long Lava Flow in Tharsis, Mars; Radar Backscatter Characteristics of Basaltic Flow Fields: Results for Mauna Ulu, Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii;and Preliminary Lava Tube-fed Flow Abundance Mapping on Olympus Mons.

Future changes in the climatology of the Great Plains low-level jet derived from fine resolution multi-model simulations

DOE PAGES

Tang, Ying; Winkler, Julie; Zhong, Shiyuan; ...

2017-07-10

The southerly Great Plains low-level jet (GPLLJ) is one of the most significant circulation features of the central U.S. linking large-scale atmospheric circulation with the regional climate. GPLLJs transport heat and moisture, contribute to thunderstorm and severe weather formation, provide a corridor for the springtime migration of birds and insects, enhance wind energy availability, and disperse air pollution. We also assess future changes in GPLLJ frequency using an eight member ensemble of dynamically-downscaled climate simulations for the mid-21st century. Nocturnal GPLLJ frequency is projected to increase in the southern plains in spring and in the central plains in summer, whereasmore » current climatological patterns persist into the future for daytime and cool season GPLLJs. The relationship between future GPLLJ frequency and the extent and strength of anticyclonic airflow over eastern North America varies with season. Most simulations project a westward shift of anticyclonic airflow in summer, but uncertainty is larger for spring with only half of the simulations suggesting a westward expansion. Furthemore, the choice of regional climate model and the driving lateral boundary conditions have a large influence on the projected future changes in GPLLJ frequency and highlight the importance of multi-model ensembles to estimate the uncertainty surrounding the future GPLLJ climatology.« less

Lithofacies control of lignite distribution and ground-water quality, Wilcox group (Eocene), east-central Texas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ayers, W.B. Jr.; Lewis, A.H.

1984-04-01

Deep lignite resources (200-2000 ft; 61-610 m) were evaluated regionally using 1470 geophysical well logs to interpret lithofacies, lignite occurrence, and resistivity (water quality). The regional distribution of lithofacies indicates that in the region, the Wilcox Group is a fluvial-deltaic system. The primary fluvial system entered the Wilcox coastal plain west of Waco, Texas, trended southeast, and supplied a 75-mi (120-km) wide fluvial-deltaic system comparable in size to the Mississippi system. Lignites are most abundant in the Calvert Bluff Formation (upper Wilcox). Lower Calvert Bluff lignites are thickest and most extensive southwest of the Navasota River, whereas those of themore » upper Calvert Bluff are thickest northeast of the Brazos River. In the shallow subsurface, Calvert Bluff lignites are found in dip-elongate low-sand areas (flood plains) between channel-sand belts. Basinward, laterally continuous lignites coincide with high net sand areas comprise of distributary channel sands indicative of a delta-plain setting. The wilcox Group is a major aquifer. Maps of resistivity values show that Wilcox channel sands are conduits for ground-water flow. High values of formation resistivity (low total dissolved solids) exist in recharge areas at outcrop and around salt domes. Elongate trends of high resistivity values extend tens of miles basinward and coincide with axes of major sands. Resistivity values decrease basinward and the 20 ohm-m contour delineates the downdip limit of fresh water. Lithofacies and lignite occurrence maps are guides to exploration for deep lignite. Resistivity maps can be used to explore for ground-water resources.« less

High-Resolution Topography and its Implications for the Formation of Europa's Ridged Plains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leonard, E. J.; Pappalardo, R. T.; Yin, A.; Patthoff, D. A.; Schenk, P.

2015-12-01

The Galileo Solid State Imager (SSI) recorded nine very high-resolution frames—eight at 12 m/pixel and one at 6 m/pixel—during the E12 flyby of Europa in Dec. 1997. To understand the implications for the small-scale structure and evolution of Europa, we mosaicked these frames (observations 12ESMOTTLE01 and 02, incidence ≈18°, emission ≈77°) into their regional context (part of observation 11ESREGMAP01, 220 m/pixel, incidence ≈74°, emission ≈23°). The topography data, which was created from the image mosaic overlaps, is sparse and segmented over the high-resolution images but connected by the underlying regional resolution topography. The high-resolution topography (24 m/pixel) is among the best for the current Europan dataset. From this dataset we ascertain the root mean square, or RMS, slope for some of the most common Europan surface features in a new region. We also employ a Fourier Transform method previously used on Ganymede and on other areas of Europa (Patel et al., 1999 JGR), to derive common wavelengths for the subunits of the ubiquitous ridged plains terrain. These results have important implications for differentiating between possible formation mechanisms—extensional tilt blocks (Pappalardo et al., 1995 JGR) or folds (Leonard et al., 2015 LPSC Abstract)—and for potential future missions. We continue this method for another high-resolution region taken in the E12 orbit, WEDGES01 and 02, with the specific goal of investigating how the variations in ridged plains morphologies relate across the surface of Europa.

An Invisible Text Watermarking Algorithm using Image Watermark

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jalil, Zunera; Mirza, Anwar M.

Copyright protection of digital contents is very necessary in today's digital world with efficient communication mediums as internet. Text is the dominant part of the internet contents and there are very limited techniques available for text protection. This paper presents a novel algorithm for protection of plain text, which embeds the logo image of the copyright owner in the text and this logo can be extracted from the text later to prove ownership. The algorithm is robust against content-preserving modifications and at the same time, is capable of detecting malicious tampering. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm against tampering attacks by calculating normalized hamming distances. The results are also compared with a recent work in this domain

Depositional environments of the Rock Springs Formation, southwest flank of the Rock Springs Uplift, Wyoming.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kirschbaum, M.A.

1986-01-01

This deltaic Upper Cretaceous Rock Springs Formation of the Mesaverde Group was deposited during early Campanian time near the end of the regressive phase of the Niobrara cyclothem. On the southwest end of the Uplift, part of the delta system is exposed near the seaward edge of a series of transgressive/regressive sequences, which consist of intertonguing prodelta, delta-front, and delta-plain deposits. Eight major delta-front sandstones are vertically stacked and laterally continuous throughout the main study area.-from Author

Phyllosilcates in the Knob Fields around Ariadnes Colles on Mars: Stratigraphy, Mineralogy and Morphology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wendt, L.; Bishop, J. L.; Neukum, G.

2012-04-01

The region between Terra Cimmeria and Terra Sirenum contains several fields of enigmatic knobs, in-cluding Ariadnes Colles, Atlantis Chaos and Gorgo-num Chaos. They have been mapped as Hesperian or Amazonian units [1,2] and are located within the shoreline of the Eridania Lake, which might have formed Ma'adim Vallis [3]. The knob fields contain Mg/Fe-rich and locally Al-rich phyllosilicates [5,6, this study]. Following the stratigraphic placement by [1,2], the knobs are younger than the Noachian, in a possible disagreement to [4]. The region also features chloride deposits [7] and valley networks younger than the Hesperian ridged plains (Hr unit [1,2]), named Mid-Latitude Valleys (MLV) by [8], and has been proposed as an MSL landing site by [9]. The knob fields have been mapped by [10] as "surface type 4" of a possible airfall deposit informally named "Electris deposit", which covers the Hesperian ridged plains and cratered uplands. A recent study by [6], suggested that the knob fields are not part of, but postdate the "Electris deposit", yet possibly contain reworked "Electris" material. Our geological mapping shows that the knob fields are indeed one morphological expression consistent with the "Electris deposit" model [10]. However, the "Electris" deposit does not stratigraphically overlay the Hesperian ridged plains (Hr unit) and is eroded back to the level of the ridged plains, as proposed by [6,10]. Instead, the "Electris" deposit, including the knob fields, is covered or embayed by the ridged plains, and thus is older. This results in a late Noachian age for the "Electris deposit", in agreement with [11]. This also reconciles the apparent contradiction of the stratigraphy suggested by [1,2,6,10] to [4], as the clays would then indeed have formed in the "phyllosian" period, as "sedimentary clays" of [12]. Wide valley networks cut into the "Electris" deposit and may have filled the Eridania lake. The knob fields and clays within are observed at varying total eleva-tions, suggesting separated local basins rather than a single large lake at the time of their formation. A second generation of valley networks crosscut the light-toned mounds, knobs and patches as well as the ridged plains. They correspond to the MLV described in the Gorgonum and nearby Newton basins [8]. The water locally ponded and formed chlorides. In all knob fields except Gorgonum, the aqueous activities predate the formation of Sirenum Fossae. In the Gorgonum basin, valleys fed a lake [8], which post-dates Sirenum Fossae. Acknowledgment: This work has been supported by the German Space Agency (DLR Bonn) grant 50QM1001 HRSC on Mars Express on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

RADIUM IN MARYLAND COASTAL PLAIN GROUND WATER: AN EMERGING ISSUE RESULTING FROM A MULTI-AGENCY STUDY OF CARCINGENS IN WELL WATER

EPA Science Inventory

In 1997, radium-226 plus radium-228 concentrations as high as 66 picocuries per liter were detected in domestic well-water samples from the (Cretaceous) Potomac Group and Magothy Formation in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. Furthermore, radium-224 was found to be a major component...

Geologic mapping of Europa

USGS Publications Warehouse

Greeley, R.; Figueredo, P.H.; Williams, D.A.; Chuang, F.C.; Klemaszewski, J.E.; Kadel, S.D.; Prockter, L.M.; Pappalardo, R.T.; Head, J. W.; Collins, G.C.; Spaun, N.A.; Sullivan, R.J.; Moore, Johnnie N.; Senske, D.A.; Tufts, B.R.; Johnson, T.V.; Belton, M.J.S.; Tanaka, K.L.

2000-01-01

Galileo data enable the major geological units, structures, and surface features to be identified on Europa. These include five primary units (plains, chaos, band, ridge, and crater materials) and their subunits, along with various tectonic structures such as faults. Plains units are the most widespread. Ridged plains material spans a wide range of geological ages, including the oldest recognizable features on Europa, and appears to represent a style of tectonic resurfacing, rather than cryovolcanism. Smooth plains material typically embays other terrains and units, possibly as a type of fluid emplacement, and is among the youngest material units observed. At global scales, plains are typically mapped as undifferentiated plains material, although in some areas differences can be discerned in the near infrared which might be related to differences in ice grain size. Chaos material is composed of plains and other preexisting materials that have been severely disrupted by inferred internal activity; chaos is characterized by blocks of icy material set in a hummocky matrix. Band material is arrayed in linear, curvilinear, wedge-shaped, or cuspate zones with contrasting albedo and surface textures with respect to the surrounding terrain. Bilateral symmetry observed in some bands and the relationships with the surrounding units suggest that band material forms by the lithosphere fracturing, spreading apart, and infilling with material derived from the subsurface. Ridge material is mapped as a unit on local and some regional maps but shown with symbols at global scales. Ridge material includes single ridges, doublet ridges, and ridge complexes. Ridge materials are considered to represent tectonic processes, possibly accompanied by the extrusion or intrusion of subsurface materials, such as diapirs. The tectonic processes might be related to tidal flexing of the icy lithosphere on diurnal or longer timescales. Crater materials include various interior (smooth central, rough inner, and annular massif) and exterior (continuous ejecta) subunits. Structural features and landforms are shown with conventional symbols. Type localities for the units are identified, along with suggestions for portraying the features on geological maps, including colors and letter abbreviations for material units. Implementing these suggestions by the planetary mapping community would facilitate comparisons of maps for different parts of Europa and contribute to an eventual global synthesis of its complex geology. On the basis of initial mapping results, a stratigraphic sequence is suggested in which ridged plains form the oldest unit on Europa, followed by development of band material and individual ridges. Band materials tend to be somewhat older than ridges, but in many areas the two units formed simultaneously. Similarly, the formation of most chaos follows the development of ridged plains; although chaos is among the youngest materials on Europa, some chaos units might have formed contemporaneously with ridged plains. Smooth plains generally embay all other units and are late-stage in the evolution of the surface. C1 craters are superposed on ridged plains but are crosscut by other materials, including bands and ridges. Most c2 craters postdate all other units, but a few c2 craters are cut by ridge material. C3 craters constitute the youngest recognizable material on Europa. Copyright 2000 by the American Geophysical Union.

Connecting Indigenous Knowledge to Thaw Lake Cycle Research on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eisner, W. R.; Cuomo, C. J.; Hinkel, K. M.; Jones, B. M.; Hurd, J.

2005-12-01

Thaw lakes cover about 20% of the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska. Another 26% is scarred by basins that form when lakes drain, and these drained thaw-lake basins are sites for preferential carbon accumulation as plant biomass. Recent studies in the continuous permafrost zone of Western Siberia suggest that lakes have been expanding in the past several decades in response to regional warming. Anticipated regional warming would likely mobilize sequestered soil organic carbon, resulting in the emission of CO2 and CH4. Our understanding of the processes leading to thaw lake formation, expansion, and drainage in northern Alaska has been limited because models are specific to the flat, young Outer (seaward) Coastal Plain comprising 1/3 of the region. Furthermore, spatial and temporal analysis of lake dynamics is largely restricted to the period since 1948, when aerial photographs first became available across large regions of the Coastal Plain. In order to fill these gaps, we have been interviewing Iñupiaq elders, hunters, and berry pickers from the villages of Atqasuk and Barrow. The objective of these interviews is to obtain accounts of lake formation, expansion and drainage that have occurred within living or oral memory, and extend the record back several generations. To date, we have interviewed fifteen Iñupiat; most of these are people who travel the tundra frequently and have done so for decades. They have first-hand experience of lake drainage, sea cliff and river bank erosion, permafrost degradation, and other landscape changes. Many informants expressed concern that landscape changes are occurring at an increasingly rapid rate. They have identified lakes that have drained, areas where the permafrost is thawing, and places where the sea and river coastline is eroding. We have been able to corroborate reports of lake drainage from our informants with a series of aerial photographs, satellite images, and radiocarbon dates. In many instances, the elders have pinpointed the year of drainage where we previously had only bracketed a 5-10 year period in which drainage must have occurred. Our informants were also often able to identify the cause of the drainage event, the process by which it occurred, and the aftermath of the event (i.e. overflow into other lakes, changes in stream hydrology, changes in fish species, etc.). We have also noted a difference in the reports of lake drainage and other landscape changes between the people who have more knowledge of the Inner (Atqasuk residents) and Outer (Barrow residents) Coastal Plain. Travelers of the Outer Coastal Plain have identified more lake drainage events. The people of the Inner Coastal Plain, conversely, speak of lower water levels in lakes and overall drier conditions in recent years. The quantity of information from the Barrow and Atqasuk elders and the precision of their observations is impressive. We will be analyzing, by both quantitative and qualitative methods, this information in conjunction with our ongoing studies of thaw-lake processes on the Arctic Coastal Plain. In addition to discussing specific knowledge about thaw-lake processes, we are archiving the range of knowledge and stories that elders, hunters, and other users of the tundra introduce to the interviews. We believe the traditional knowledge and ongoing observations of the Iñupiat are highly valuable to scientists and society in general, and we strongly advocate further cooperation between traditional and scientific "ways of knowing."

Action Research Methods: Plain and Simple

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klein, Sheri R., Ed.

2012-01-01

Among the plethora of action research books on the market, there is no one text exclusively devoted to understanding how to acquire and interpret research data. Action Research Methods provides a balanced overview of the quantitative and qualitative methodologies and methods for conducting action research within a variety of educational…

Reading, Writing, and Rhetoric: An Inquiry into the Art of Legal Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ranney, Frances J.

1999-01-01

Describes research creating a feminist, rhetorical analysis of legal language by examining in detail both the "Plain English" and the "Law and Literature" movements. Examines legal texts that construct the "reasonable woman," asking how that hypothetical legal subject is construed by judicial discourse and what its…

Comparisons of PBDE composition and concentration in fish collected from the Detroit River, MI and Des Plaines River, IL

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rice, C.P.; Chernyak, S.M.; Begnoche, L.; Quintal, R.; Hickey, J.

2002-01-01

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were identified in fish collected from the Detroit River, MI and Des Plaines Rivers, IL. In the Detroit River fish, carp and large mouth bass, the congener patterns were dominated by the 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromo (BDE-47) congener; however, in Des Plaines River carp the dominant isomers were the heptabromo congeners BDE-181 and BDE-183 and lesser amounts of another heptabromo congener, BDE-190, and two hexabromo congeners, BDE-154 and BDE-153. Three possible sources exist for these less-commonly identified PBDE congeners: (a) waste discharge from manufacturing or discarded products near the river, (b) public owned treatment work (POTW) effluents which constitute more than 75% of the flow in the Des Plaines River, (c) or formation of these congeners by debromination of in-place deposits of decabromodiphenyl ether. Average concentration totals (sum of concentrations for seven of the dominant PBDE congeners) were similar on a wet weight bases for the carp (5.39 ng/g wet weight) and large mouth bass (5.25 ng/g) in the Detroit River samples; however, the bass were significantly higher, ρ=0.01, when compared on a lipid basis (bass-163 ng/g vs. carp-40.5 ng/g lipid weight). Some of the PBDE congeners were positively correlated with increasing lipid levels in both fish species. Average total PBDE concentrations in the carp from the Des Plaines River (12.48 ng/g wet weight) were significantly higher, ρ=0.01, than in carp from the Detroit River. The residues were isolated using standard organochlorine methods for fish and analyzed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry-negative chemical ionization methods.

Influence of hydrological, biogeochemical and temperature transients on subsurface carbon fluxes in a flood plain environment

DOE PAGES

Arora, Bhavna; Spycher, Nicolas F.; Steefel, Carl I.; ...

2016-02-12

Flood plains play a potentially important role in the global carbon cycle. The accumulation of organic matter in flood plains often induces the formation of chemically reduced groundwater and sediments along riverbanks. In this study, our objective is to evaluate the cumulative impact of such reduced zones, water table fluctuations, and temperature gradients on subsurface carbon fluxes in a flood plain at Rifle, Colorado located along the Colorado River. 2-D coupled variably-saturated, non-isothermal flow and biogeochemical reactive transport modeling was applied to improve our understanding of the abiotic and microbially mediated reactions controlling carbon dynamics at the Rifle site. Modelmore » simulations considering only abiotic reactions (thus ignoring microbial reactions) underestimated CO 2 partial pressures observed in the unsaturated zone and severely underestimated inorganic (and overestimated organic) carbon fluxes to the river compared to simulations with biotic pathways. Both model simulations and field observations highlighted the need to include microbial contributions from chemolithoautotrophic processes (e.g., Fe +2 and S -2 oxidation) to match locally-observed high CO 2 concentrations above reduced zones. Observed seasonal variations in CO 2 concentrations in the unsaturated zone could not be reproduced without incorporating temperature gradients in the simulations. Incorporating temperature fluctuations resulted in an increase in the annual groundwater carbon fluxes to the river by 170 % to 3.3 g m -2 d -1, while including water table variations resulted in an overall decrease in the simulated fluxes. We thus conclude that spatial microbial and redox zonation as well as temporal fluctuations of temperature and water table depth contribute significantly to subsurface carbon fluxes in flood plains and need to be represented appropriately in model simulations.« less

Digital radiographic imaging transfer: comparison with plain radiographs.

PubMed

Averch, T D; O'Sullivan, D; Breitenbach, C; Beser, N; Schulam, P G; Moore, R G; Kavoussi, L R

1997-04-01

Advances in digital imaging and computer display technology have allowed development of clinical teleradiographic systems. There are limited data assessing the effectiveness of such systems when applied to urologic pathology. In an effort to appraise the effectiveness of teleradiology in identifying renal calculi, the accuracy of findings on transmitted radiographic images were compared with those made when viewing the actual plain film. Plain films (KUB) were obtained from 26 patients who presented to the radiology department to rule out urinary calculous disease. The films were digitalized by a radiograph scanner into ARCNEMA-2 file format, compressed by a NASA algorithm, and transferred via a 28.8-kbps modern over standard telephone lines to a remote section 25 miles away, where they were decompressed and viewed on a 1600 x 1200-pixel monitor. Two attending urologists and two endourologic fellows were randomized to read either the transmitted image or the original radiograph with minimal clinical history provided. Of the 26 plain radiographic films, 24 were correctly interpreted by the fellows and 25 by the attending physicians (92% and 96% accuracy, respectively) for a total accuracy of 94% with no statistical difference (p = 0.16). After compression, all but one of the digital images were transferred successfully. The attending physicians correctly interpreted 24 of the 25 digital images (96%), whereas the fellows were correct on 21 interpretations (84%), resulting in a total 90% accuracy with a significant difference between the groups (p < or = 0.04). Overall, no statistical difference between the interpretations of the plain film and the digital image was revealed (p = 0.21). Using available technology, KUB images can be transmitted to a remote site, and the location of a stone can be determined correctly. Higher accuracy is demonstrated by experienced surgeons.

Influence of hydrological, biogeochemical and temperature transients on subsurface carbon fluxes in a flood plain environment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Arora, Bhavna; Spycher, Nicolas F.; Steefel, Carl I.

2016-02-01

Flood plains play a potentially important role in the global carbon cycle. The accumulation of organic matter in flood plains often induces the formation of chemically reduced groundwater and sediments along riverbanks. In this study, our objective is to evaluate the cumulative impact of such reduced zones, water table fluctuations, and temperature gradients on subsurface carbon fluxes in a flood plain at Rifle, Colorado located along the Colorado River. 2-D coupled variably-saturated, non-isothermal flow and biogeochemical reactive transport modeling was applied to improve our understanding of the abiotic and microbially mediated reactions controlling carbon dynamics at the Rifle site. Modelmore » simulations considering only abiotic reactions (thus ignoring microbial reactions) underestimated CO2 partial pressures observed in the unsaturated zone and severely underestimated inorganic (and overestimated organic) carbon fluxes to the river compared to simulations with biotic pathways. Both model simulations and field observations highlighted the need to include microbial contributions from chemolithoautotrophic processes (e.g., Fe?2 and S-2 oxidation) to match locally-observed high CO2 concentrations above reduced zones. Observed seasonal variations in CO2 concentrations in the unsaturated zone could not be reproduced without incorporating temperature gradients in the simulations. Incorporating temperature fluctuations resulted in an increase in the annual groundwater carbon fluxes to the river by 170 % to 3.3 g m-2 d-1, while including water table variations resulted in an overall decrease in the simulated fluxes. We conclude that spatial microbial and redox zonation as well as temporal fluctuations of temperature and water table depth contribute significantly to subsurface carbon fluxes in flood plains and need to be represented appropriately in model simulations.« less

Geologic Map of the Santa Barbara Coastal Plain Area, Santa Barbara County, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Minor, Scott A.; Kellogg, Karl S.; Stanley, Richard G.; Gurrola, Larry D.; Keller, Edward A.; Brandt, Theodore R.

2009-01-01

This report presents a newly revised and expanded digital geologic map of the Santa Barbara coastal plain area at a compilation scale of 1:24,000 (one inch on the map to 2,000 feet on the ground)1 and with a horizontal positional accuracy of at least 20 m. The map depicts the distribution of bedrock units and surficial deposits and associated deformation underlying and adjacent to the coastal plain within the contiguous Dos Pueblos Canyon, Goleta, Santa Barbara, and Carpinteria 7.5' quadrangles. The new map supersedes an earlier preliminary geologic map of the central part of the coastal plain (Minor and others, 2002; revised 2006) that provided coastal coverage only within the Goleta and Santa Barbara quadrangles. In addition to new mapping to the west and east, geologic mapping in parts of the central map area has been significantly revised from the preliminary map compilation - especially north of downtown Santa Barbara in the Mission Ridge area - based on new structural interpretations supplemented by new biostratigraphic data. All surficial and bedrock map units, including several new units recognized in the areas of expanded mapping, are described in detail in the accompanying pamphlet. Abundant new biostratigraphic and biochronologic data based on microfossil identifications are presented in expanded unit descriptions of the marine Neogene Monterey and Sisquoc Formations. Site-specific fault kinematic observations embedded in the digital map database are more complete owing to the addition of slip-sense determinations. Finally, the pamphlet accompanying the present report includes an expanded and refined summary of stratigraphic and structural observations and interpretations that are based on the composite geologic data contained in the new map compilation. The Santa Barbara coastal plain is located in the western Transverse Ranges physiographic province along an east-west-trending segment of the southern California coastline about 100 km (62 mi) northwest of Los Angeles. The coastal plain surface includes several mesas and hills that are geomorphic expressions of potentially active folds and partly buried oblique and reverse faults of the Santa Barbara fold and fault belt (SBFFB) that transects the coastal plain. Strong earthquakes have occurred offshore within 10 km of the Santa Barbara coastal plain in 1925 (6.3 magnitude), 1941 (5.5 magnitude), and 1978 (5.1 magnitude). These and numerous smaller seismic events located beneath and offshore of the coastal plain, likely occurred on reverse-oblique-slip faults that are similar to, or continuous with, Quaternary reverse faults crossing the coastal plain. Thus, faults of the SBFFB pose a significant earthquake hazard to the approximately 200,000 people living within the major coastal population centers of Santa Barbara, Goleta, and Carpinteria. In addition, numerous Quaternary landslide deposits along the steep southern flank of the Santa Ynez Mountains indicate the potential for continued slope failures and mass movements in developed areas. Folded, faulted, and fractured sedimentary rocks in the subsurface of the coastal plain and adjacent Santa Barbara Channel are sources and form reservoirs for economic deposits of oil and gas, some of which are currently being extracted offshore. Shallow, localized sedimentary aquifers underlying the coastal plain provide limited amounts of water for the urban areas, but the quality of some of this groundwater is compromised by coastal salt-water contamination. The present map compilation provides a set of uniform geologic digital coverages that can be used for analysis and interpretation of these and other geologic hazards and resources in the coastal plain region.

The origin of polygonal troughs on the northern plains of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pechmann, J. C.

1980-05-01

The morphology, distribution, geologic environment and relative age of large-scale polygonal trough systems on Mars are examined. The troughs are steep-walled, flat-floored, sinuous depressions typically 200-800 m wide, 20-120 m deep and spaced 5-10 km apart. The mechanics of formation of tension cracks is reviewed to identify the factors controlling the scale of tension crack systems; special emphasis is placed on thermal cracking in permafrost. It is shown that because of the extremely large scale of the Martian fracture systems, they could not have formed by thermal cracking in permafrost, dessication cracking in sediments or contraction cracking in cooling lava. On the basis of photogeologic evidence and analog studies, it is proposed that polygonal troughs on the northern plains of Mars are grabens.

Evidence for young volcanism on Mercury from the third MESSENGER flyby.

PubMed

Prockter, Louise M; Ernst, Carolyn M; Denevi, Brett W; Chapman, Clark R; Head, James W; Fassett, Caleb I; Merline, William J; Solomon, Sean C; Watters, Thomas R; Strom, Robert G; Cremonese, Gabriele; Marchi, Simone; Massironi, Matteo

2010-08-06

During its first two flybys of Mercury, the MESSENGER spacecraft acquired images confirming that pervasive volcanism occurred early in the planet's history. MESSENGER's third Mercury flyby revealed a 290-kilometer-diameter peak-ring impact basin, among the youngest basins yet seen, having an inner floor filled with spectrally distinct smooth plains. These plains are sparsely cratered, postdate the formation of the basin, apparently formed from material that once flowed across the surface, and are therefore interpreted to be volcanic in origin. An irregular depression surrounded by a halo of bright deposits northeast of the basin marks a candidate explosive volcanic vent larger than any previously identified on Mercury. Volcanism on the planet thus spanned a considerable duration, perhaps extending well into the second half of solar system history.

Impact origin of the Avak Structure, Arctic Alaska, and genesis of the Barrow gas fields

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kirschner, C.E.; Grantz, A.; Mullen, M.W.

1992-01-01

Geophysical and subsurface geologic data suggest that the Avak structure, which underlies the Arctic Coastal Plain 12 km southeast of Barrow, Alaska, is a hypervelocity meteorite or comet impact structure. The structure is a roughly circular area of uplifted, chaotically deformed Upper Triassic to Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rocks 8 km in diameter that is bounded by a ring of anastomosing, inwardly dipping, listric normal faults 12 km in diameter. Examination of cores from the Barrow gas fields and data concerning the age of the Avak structure suggest that the Avak meteorite struck a Late Cretaceous or Tertiary marine shelf or coastal plain between the Cenomanian (ca. 95 Ma), and deposition of the basal beds of the overlying late Pliocene and Quaternary Gubik Formation (ca. 3 Ma). -from Authors

Soil catenas on denudation plains in the forest-tundra and northern taiga zones of the Kola Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urusevskaya, I. S.

2017-07-01

Morphogenetic features of soils of two catenas developed on sandy to loamy sandy moraine deposits in the forest-tundra and northern taiga zones on denudation plains of the Kola Peninsula are discussed. It is shown that these catenas are similar with respect to the major directions of soil formation, regularities of soil distribution by the elements of mesotopography, and the factors of the soil cover differentiation. The differences between the catenas are of quantitative character and are related to the intensities of manifestation of the particular processes and features. Both catenas are characterized by the pronounced differentiation of soils with respect to their moistening with hydromorphic peat bog soils in the subordinate positions and Al-Fe-humus podzols in the automorphic positions.

Permian-Early Triassic tectonics and stratigraphy of the Karoo Supergroup in northwestern Mozambique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bicca, Marcos Müller; Philipp, Ruy Paulo; Jelinek, Andrea Ritter; Ketzer, João Marcelo Medina; dos Santos Scherer, Claiton Marlon; Jamal, Daúd Liace; dos Reis, Adriano Domingos

2017-06-01

The Gondwana continent was the base of great basin inception, sedimentation and magmatism throughout the Cambrian to Middle Jurassic periods. The northwestern Mozambique igneous and metamorphic basement assemblages host the NW-trending Moatize Minjova Basin, which has great economic potential for coal and gas mining. This rift basin was activated by an S-SW stress field during the Early Permian period, as constrained by regional and field scale structural data. Tectonically induced subsidence in the basin, from the reactivation of NW-SE and NNE-SSW regional structures is well recorded by faults, folds and synsedimentary fractures within the Early Late Permian Moatize Formation. NW-SE, N-S and NE-SW field structures consist of post-Karoo reactivation patterns related to a NNE-SSW extension produced by the Pangea breakup and early inception stages of the Great East African Rift System. The Early Late Permian sequences of the Moatize-Minjova Basin are composed of fluvial meandering, coal-bearing beds of the Moatize Formation, which comprises mostly floodplain, crevasse splay and fluvial channel lithofacies associations, deposited in a cyclic pattern. This sequence was overlapped by a multiple-story, braided fluvial plain sequence of the Matinde Formation (Late Permian - Early Triassic). Lithofacies associations in the Matinde Formation and its internal relationships suggest deposition of poorly channelized braided alluvial plain in which downstream and probably lateral accretion macroforms alternate with gravity flow deposits. NW paleoflow measurements suggest that Permian fluvial headwaters were located somewhere southeast of the study area, possibly between the African and Antarctic Precambrian highlands.

Finding Related Entities by Retrieving Relations: UIUC at TREC 2009 Entity Track

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-11-01

classes, depending on the categories they belong to. A music album could have any generic name, whereas a laptop model has a more generalizable name. A...names of music albums are simply plain text often capitalized, and so on. Thus, we feel that a better ap- proach would be to first identify the...origin domain of the text to be tagged (e.g., pharmaceutical, music , journal, etc.), and then apply tagging rules that are specific to that domain

Paleobiological implications of dinosaur egg-bearing deposits in the Cretaceous Gyeongsang Supergroup of Korea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paik, In Sung; Kim, Hyun Joo; Huh, Min

2010-05-01

Dinosaur egg-bearing deposits in the Cretaceous Gyeongsang Basin in Korea is described in taphonomic aspect, their paleoenvironments are interpreted, and geobiological implications of dinosaur egg-bearing deposits in the world and Korea are analyzed in geographic occurrences, geological ages, paleoenvironments, and lithology. Dinosaur eggs with spheroolithids, faveoloolithid, and elongatoolithid structural types occur in several stratigraphic formations of the Cretaceous Gyeongsang Basin in South Korea, and most of the egg-bearing formations are the Late Cretaceous. The dinosaur eggs usually occur as clutches in purple sandy mudstone of floodplain deposits preserved as calcic paleosol with association of vertic paleosol features in places. Most of the eggs are top-broken and filled with surrounding sediments. The general depositional environment of dinosaur egg deposits in the Gyeongsang Supergroup are interpreted as a dried floodplain where volcanic activity occurred intermittently in the vicinity of the nesting sites. Their depositional settings on which floodplains developed are diverse from fluvial plain with meandering rivers to alluvial plain with episodic sheet flooding. The nesting areas in the Gyeongsang Basin are deemed to have been under semi-arid climate, which resulted in formation of calcic soils facilitating preservation of the dinosaur eggs. The geochronologic occurrences of dinosaur egg-bearing deposits are mostly restricted to the Late Cretaceous in the world as well as in Korea. If it has not been resulted from biased discoveries and reports of dinosaur eggs, biological rather than physical and chemical conditions for preservation of dinosaur eggs might be related with the restricted occurrences in the Late Cretaceous. Two hypotheses are suggested for probable biological causes to the geochronologically restricted occurrences of dinosaur egg-bearing deposits. One is related with the appearance of angiosperms in the Late Jurassic and the spreading of angiosperm trees in ecological range through swamps and floodplains during the Late Cretaceous and subsequent change of herbivorous dinosaurs' dietary habit and the increase of volcanic activity in the Cretaceous. The other is related with the nesting behaviour in the Cretaceous. By contrast to the geochronologically restricted occurrence of dinosaur eggs, paleoenvironments of nesting areas of dinosaurs are varying from inland areas (alluvial fan, fluvial plain, desert, lake, etc.) to coastal areas (coastal plain, beach, lagoon), suggesting that dinosaurs avoided competition in sharing nesting areas. Little change in lithology from nested deposits to subsequent burying sediments indicates that dinosaurs preferred stable environment in terms of sedimentation as nesting sites. Key words: Dinosaur eggs, Cretaceous, Paleobiological occurrence, Korea

Discriminability measures for predicting readability of text on textured backgrounds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scharff, L. F.; Hill, A. L.; Ahumada, A. J. Jr; Watson, A. B. (Principal Investigator)

2000-01-01

Several discriminability measures were examined for their ability to predict reading search times for three levels of text contrast and a range of backgrounds (plain, a periodic texture, and four spatial-frequency-filtered textures created from the periodic texture). Search times indicate that these background variations only affect readability when the text contrast is low, and that spatial frequency content of the background affects readability. These results were not well predicted by the single variables of text contrast (Spearman rank correlation = -0.64) and background RMS contrast (0.08), but a global masking index and a spatial-frequency-selective masking index led to better predictions (-0.84 and -0.81, respectively). c2000 Optical Society of America.

Effects of plain packaging, warning labels, and taxes on young people's predicted sugar-sweetened beverage preferences: an experimental study.

PubMed

Bollard, Tessa; Maubach, Ninya; Walker, Natalie; Ni Mhurchu, Cliona

2016-09-01

Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is associated with increased risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and dental caries. Our aim was to assess the effects of plain packaging, warning labels, and a 20 % tax on predicted SSB preferences, beliefs and purchase probabilities amongst young people. A 2 × 3 × 2 between-group experimental study was conducted over a one-week period in August 2014. Intervention scenarios were delivered, and outcome data collected, via an anonymous online survey. Participants were 604 New Zealand young people aged 13-24 years who consumed soft drinks regularly. Participants were randomly allocated using a computer-generated algorithm to view one of 12 experimental conditions, specifically images of branded versus plain packaged SSBs, with either no warning, a text warning, or a graphic warning, and with or without a 20 % tax. Participant perceptions of the allocated SSB product and of those who might consume the product were measured using seven-point Likert scales. Purchase probabilities were measured using 11-point Juster scales. Six hundred and four young people completed the survey (51 % female, mean age 18 (SD 3.4) years). All three intervention scenarios had a significant negative effect on preferences for SSBs (plain packaging: F (6, 587) = 54.4, p <0.001; warning label: F (6, 588) = 19.8, p <0.001; 20 % tax: F (6, 587) = 11.3, p <0.001). Plain packaging and warning labels also had a significant negative impact on reported likelihood of purchasing SSB's (p = <0.001). A 20 % tax reduced participants' purchase probability but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.2). Plain packaging and warning labels significantly reduce young people's predicted preferences for, and reported probability of purchasing, SSBs.

Sandstone-body and shale-body dimensions in a braided fluvial system: Salt wash sandstone member (Morrison formation), Garfield County, Utah

USGS Publications Warehouse

Robinson, J.W.; McCabea, P.J.

1997-01-01

Excellent three-dimensional exposures of the Upper Jurassic Salt Wash Sandstone Member of the Morrison Formation in the Henry Mountains area of southern Utah allow measurement of the thickness and width of fluvial sandstone and shale bodies from extensive photomosaics. The Salt Wash Sandstone Member is composed of fluvial channel fill, abandoned channel fill, and overbank/flood-plain strata that were deposited on a broad alluvial plain of low-sinuosity, sandy, braided streams flowing northeast. A hierarchy of sandstone and shale bodies in the Salt Wash Sandstone Member includes, in ascending order, trough cross-bedding, fining-upward units/mudstone intraclast conglomerates, singlestory sandstone bodies/basal conglomerate, abandoned channel fill, multistory sandstone bodies, and overbank/flood-plain heterolithic strata. Trough cross-beds have an average width:thickness ratio (W:T) of 8.5:1 in the lower interval of the Salt Wash Sandstone Member and 10.4:1 in the upper interval. Fining-upward units are 0.5-3.0 m thick and 3-11 m wide. Single-story sandstone bodies in the upper interval are wider and thicker than their counterparts in the lower interval, based on average W:T, linear regression analysis, and cumulative relative frequency graphs. Multistory sandstone bodies are composed of two to eight stories, range up to 30 m thick and over 1500 m wide (W:T > 50:1), and are also larger in the upper interval. Heterolithic units between sandstone bodies include abandoned channel fill (W:T = 33:1) and overbank/flood-plain deposits (W:T = 70:1). Understanding W:T ratios from the component parts of an ancient, sandy, braided stream deposit can be applied in several ways to similar strata in other basins; for example, to (1) determine the width of a unit when only the thickness is known, (2) create correlation guidelines and maximum correlation lengths, (3) aid in interpreting the controls on fluvial architecture, and (4) place additional constraints on input variables to stratigraphie and fluid-flow modeling. The usefulness of these types of data demonstrates the need to develop more data sets from other depositional environments.

Antioxidant-Based Eutectics of Irbesartan: Viable Multicomponent Forms for the Management of Hypertension.

PubMed

Haneef, Jamshed; Chadha, Renu

2018-04-01

The present research work highlights the development of multicomponent solid form of the antihypertensive drug irbesartan (IRB) to improve its biopharmaceutical attributes. Mechanochemical synthesis of a new solid form of IRB with coformers having antioxidant properties (syringic acid, nicotinic acid, and ascorbic acid) resulted into three eutectic mixtures (EMs). Formation of eutectic was ascertained by differential scanning calorimetry whereas exact stoichiometry (50/50% w/w) was established by phase diagram and Tamman's triangle. The strong homomeric interaction between individual components and steric hindrances is responsible for the eutectic formation. EMs exhibited superior apparent solubility (five- to nine fold) and significant enhancement in intrinsic dissolution rate (two- to three fold) as compared to the plain drug. In vivo pharmacokinetic and in vivo pharmacodynamic studies revealed a significant improvement in the biopharmaceutical performance of EMs. Marked protection against oxidative stress was observed in EMs over plain drug by controlling the level/activity of plasma H 2 O 2 and antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase and catalase) in the kidney matrix of dexamethasone (Dexa)-induced hypertensive rats. Thus, these solid forms of IRB can serve as viable multicomponent forms to be translated into product development for better therapeutic efficacy in the management of hypertension.

Geologic map of the west half of the Blythe 30' by 60' quadrangle, Riverside County, California and La Paz County, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, Paul

2006-01-01

The Blythe 30' by 60' quadrangle is located along the Colorado River between southeastern California and western Arizona. This map depicts the geology of the west half of the Blythe quadrangle, which is mostly in California. The map area is a desert terrain consisting of mountain ranges surrounded by extensive alluvial fans and plains, including the flood plain of the Colorado River which covers the easternmost part of the area. Mountainous parts of the area, including the Big Maria, Little Maria, Riverside, McCoy, and Mule Mountains, consist of structurally complex rocks that range in age from Proterozoic to Miocene. Proterozoic gneiss and granite are overlain by Paleozoic to Early Jurassic metasedimentary rocks (mostly marble, quartzite, and schist) that are lithostratigraphically similar to coeval formations of the Colorado Plateau region to the east. The Paleozoic to Jurassic strata were deposited on the tectonically stable North American craton. These rocks are overlain by metamorphosed Jurassic volcanic rocks and are intruded by Jurassic plutonic rocks that represent part of a regionally extensive, northwest-trending magmatic arc. The overlying McCoy Mountains Formation, a very thick sequence of weakly metamorphosed sandstone and conglomerate of Jurassic(?) and Cretaceous age, accumulated in a rapidly subsiding depositional basin south of an east-trending belt of deformation and east of the north-trending Cretaceous Cordilleran magmatic arc. The McCoy Mountains Formation and older rocks were deformed, metamorphosed, and locally intruded by plutonic rocks in the Late Cretaceous. In Oligocene(?) to Miocene time, sedimentary and minor volcanic deposits accumulated locally, and the area was deformed by faulting. Tertiary rocks and their Proterozoic basement in the Riverside and northeastern Big Maria Mountains are in the upper plate of a low-angle normal (detachment) fault that lies within a region of major Early to Middle Miocene crustal extension. Surficial deposits of the flanking alluvial fans and plains range in age from late Miocene to Holocene. Among the oldest of these deposits are limestone and fine-grained clastic sediments of the late Miocene and (or) Pliocene Bouse Formation, which is commonly interpreted to represent an estuary or marine embayment connected to the proto-Gulf of California. Most of the surficial deposits younger than the Bouse Formation are composed of alluvium either derived from local mountain ranges or transported into the area by the Colorado River. Large parts of the area, particularly near the northern margin, are covered by eolian sand, and small parts are covered by playa sediments.

Geology and hydrology of the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Montana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alverson, Douglas C.

1965-01-01

The Fort Belknap Indian Reservation includes an area of 970 square miles in north-central Montana. At its north edge is the Milk River valley, which is underlain by Recent alluvium of the Milk River, glacial deposits, and alluvial deposits of the preglacial Missouri River, which carved and occupied this valley before the Pleistocene Epoch. Rising gently to the south is an undulating glaciated plain broken only by three small syenite porphyry intrusions. Underlying the glacial till of the plain are Upper Cretaceous shale and sandstone of the Bearpaw and Judith River Formations. At the south end of the reservation, 40 miles from the Milk River, an intrusion of syenite porphyry in Tertiary time uplifted, tilted, and exposed the succession of sedimentary rocks overlying the Precambrian metamorphic basement. The sedimentary rocks include 1,000 feet of sandstone and shale of Cambrian age; 2,000 feet of limestone and dolomite of Ordovician, Devonian, and Mississippian age; 400 feet of shale and limestone of Jurassic age; and 3,500 feet of sandstone, siltstone, and shale of Cretaceous age. Extensive gravel terraces of Tertiary and Quaternary age bevel the upturned bedrock formations exposed around the Little Rocky Mountains. Ground water under water-table conditions is obtained at present from alluvium, glaciofluvial deposits, and the Judith River Formation. The water table ranges in depth from a few feet beneath the surface in the Milk River valley alluvium to more than 100 feet deep in the Judith River Formation. Yields to wells are generally low but adequate for domestic and stock-watering use. Quality of the water ranges from highly mineralized and unusable to excellent; many wells in the Milk River valley have been abandoned because of the alkalinity of their water. Potential sources of additional ground-water supplies are the alluvial gravel of creeks issuing from the Little Rocky Mountains and some extensive areas of terrace gravel. The uplift and tilting of the sedimentary sequence around the Little Rocky Mountains and the minor intrusions in the central plain have created artesian conditions within aquifers. Wells obtain artesian water from sandstone aquifers in the Judith River, Eagle, and Kootenai Formations. Other potential aquifers, near their outcrop areas, are the Ellis Group and the Mission Canyon Limestone. Most wells that flow at the surface have small yields, but discharges of as much as 150 gallons per minute have been noted. Quality of artesian water ranges from poor to good. Well depths range from less than 50 to more than 300 feet.

A Comparison of the Use of Text Summaries, Plain Thumbnails, and Enhanced Thumbnails for Web Search Tasks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woodruff, Allison; Rosenholtz, Ruth; Morrison, Julie B.; Faulring, Andrew; Pirolli, Peter

2002-01-01

Discussion of Web search strategies focuses on a comparative study of textual and graphical summarization mechanisms applied to search engine results. Suggests that thumbnail images (graphical summaries) can increase efficiency in processing results, and that enhanced thumbnails (augmented with readable textual elements) had more consistent…

Late Pleistocene glacial stratigraphy of the Kumara-Moana region, West Coast of South Island, New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barrows, Timothy T.; Almond, Peter; Rose, Robert; Keith Fifield, L.; Mills, Stephanie C.; Tims, Stephen G.

2013-08-01

On the South Island of New Zealand, large piedmont glaciers descended from an ice cap on the Southern Alps onto the coastal plain of the West Coast during the late Pleistocene. The series of moraine belts and outwash plains left by the Taramakau glacier are used as a type section for interpreting the glacial geology and timing of major climatic events of New Zealand and also as a benchmark for comparison with the wider Southern Hemisphere. In this paper we review the chronology of advances by the Taramakau glacier during the last or Otira Glaciation using a combination of exposure dating using the cosmogenic nuclides 10Be and 36Cl, and tephrochronology. We document three distinct glacial maxima, represented by the Loopline, Larrikins and Moana Formations, separated by brief interstadials. We find that the Loopline Formation, originally attributed to Oxygen Isotope Chronozone 4, is much younger than previously thought, with an advance culminating around 24,900 ± 800 yr. The widespread late Pleistocene Kawakawa/Oruanui tephra stratigraphically lies immediately above it. This Formation has the same age previously attributed to the older part of the Larrikins Formation. Dating of the Larrikins Formation demonstrates there is no longer a basis for subdividing it into older and younger phases with an advance lasting about 1000 years between 20,800 ± 500 to 20,000 ± 400 yr. The Moana Formation represents the deposits of the last major advance of ice at 17,300 ± 500 yr and is younger than expected based on limited previous dating. The timing of major piedmont glaciation is restricted to between ˜25,000 and 17,000 yr and this interval corresponds to a time of regionally cold sea surface temperatures, expansion of grasslands at the expense of forest on South Island, and hemisphere wide glaciation.

The volcanic and tectonic history of Enceladus

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kargel, J.S.; Pozio, S.

1996-01-01

Enceladus has a protracted history of impact cratering, cryo-volcanism, and extensional, compressional, and probable strike-slip faulting. It is unique in having some of the outer Solar System's least and most heavily cratered surfaces. Enceladus' cratering record, tectonic features, and relief elements have been analyzed more comprehensively than done previously. Like few other icy satellites, Enceladus seems to have experienced major lateral lithospheric motions; it may be the only icy satellite with global features indicating probable lithospheric convergence and folding. Ridged plains, 500 km across, consist of a central labyrinthine ridge complex atop a broad dome surrounded by smooth plains and peripheral sinuous ridge belts. The ridged plains have few if any signs of extension, almost no craters, and an average age of just 107 to 108 years. Ridge belts have local relief ranging from 500 to 2000 m and tend to occur near the bottoms of broad regional troughs between swells. Our reanalysis of Peter Thomas' (Dermott, S. F., and P. C. Thomas, 1994, The determination of the mass and mean density of Enceladus from its observed shape, Icarus, 109, 241-257) limb profiles indicates that high peaks, probably ridge belts, also occur in unmapped areas. Sinuous ridges appear foldlike and are similar to terrestrial fold belts such as the Appalachians. If they are indeed folds, it may require that the ridged plains are mechanically (perhaps volcanically) layered. Regional topography suggests that folding may have occurred along zones of convective downwelling. The cratered plains, in contrast to the ridged plains, are heavily cratered and exhibit extensional structures but no obvious signs of compression. Cratered plains contain a possible strike-slip fault (Isbanir Fossa), along which two pairs of fractures seem to have 15 km of right-lateral offset. The oldest cratered plains might date from shortly after the formation of the saturnian system or the impact disruption and reaccretion of Enceladus. Another area of cratered plains has modified craters (e.g., Ali Baba and Aladdin), which some workers have explained by anomalous heat flow and viscous relaxation; lateral shear and shield-building volcanism also may have been important. A young rift-like structure (northern Samarkand Sulci) has few craters and a concentration of cracks or grabens and flattened, flooded, and rifted craters. Pit chains and cratered domes suggest explosive volcanism. Smooth plains may have formed by cryovolcanic equivalents of flood-basalt volcanism. Pure H2O would be difficult to extrude through an icy crust and is cosmochemically improbable as a cryovolcanic agent. Density relations rule out eutectic brine lavas on Enceladus, but NH3-H2O volcanism is possible. Current steady-state tidal dissipation may cause melting of ammonia hydrate at a depth of ???25 km if the crust is made of ammonia hydrate or ???100 km if it is made of water ice. ?? 1996 Academic Press, Inc.

Hydrology of area 59, northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountain coal provinces, Colorado and Wyoming

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gaggiani, Neville G.; Britton, Linda J.; Minges, Donald R.; Kilpatrick, F.A.; Parker, Randolph S.; Kircher, James E.

1987-01-01

Hydrologic information and analysis aid in decisions to lease federally owned coal and to prepare necessary Environmental Assessments and Impact Study reports. This need has become even more critical with the enactment of Public Law 95-87, the "Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977." This act requires an appropriate regulatory agency to issue permits, based on the review of permit-application data to assess hydrologic impacts. This report, which partially fulfills this requirement, is one in a series of nationwide coal province reports that present information thematically, through the use of a brief text and accompanying maps, graphs, charts, or other illustrations for single hydrologic topics. The report broadly characterizes the hydrology of Area 59 in north-central Colorado and southeastern Wyoming.The report area, located within the South Platte River basin, covers a 16,000-square-mile area of diverse geology, topography, and climate. This diversity results in contrasting hydrologic characteristics.The South Platte River, the major stream in the area, and most of its tributaries originate in granitic mountains and flow into and through the sedimentary rocks of the Great Plains. Altitudes range from less than 5,000 feet to more than 14,000 feet above sea level. Precipitation in the mountains may exceed 40 inches annually, much of it during the winter, and produces deep snowpacks. Snowmelt during the spring and summer produces most streamflow. Transmountain diversion of water from the streams on the western slope of the mountains also adds to the streamflow. Precipitation in the plains is as little as 10 inches annually. Streams that originate in the plains are ephemeral.Streamflow quality is best in the mountains, where dissolved-solids concentrations are generally small. Concentrations increase in the plains as streams flow through sedimentary basins, and as urbanization and irrigation increase. The quality of some mountain streams is affected by drainage from previous metalmining areas, as indicated by greater trace-element concentrations and smaller pH values. However, the large trace-element concentrations decrease rapidly downstream from the metal-mining areas. Because the climate is semiarid in most of the area, the soils are not adequately leached; therefore, flows in ephemeral streams usually have larger concentrations of dissolved solids than flows in perennial streams.Ground water is available throughout the area; yields range from less than 0.1 gallons per minute in the fractured granite aquifer in the mountains to more than 2,000 gallons per minute in the alluvial aquifer of the South Platte River valley. Major bedrock aquifers in order of decreasing age are the Laramie-Fox Hills, Arapahoe, Denver, and Dawson; these aquifers are used for municipal, domestic, and livestock supplies. Alluvial aquifers supply the high-yield irrigation wells.The best quality ground water is found at the center of the major bedrock aquifers, where dissolved-solids concentrations are less than 200 milligrams per liter. The poorest-quality water is usually found near the edges of these aquifers. Water in the coal-bearing Laramie and Denver Formations is locally affected by coal deposits, causing dissolved-solids concentrations to be relatively large.Only one coal mine is now operating in Area 59, the Coors Energy Company surface coal mine, which produced 100,000 short tons of subbituminous coal from the Upper Cretaceous Laramie Formation in 1982. Past coal-mining operations removed more than 130 million tons of coal and lignite from Area 59,99 percent of which came from underground mines. The largest coal production was in Weld and Boulder Counties, Colorado.Hydrologic problems related to surface mining are erosion, sedimentation, decline in water levels, disruption of aquifers, and degradation of water quality. Because the semiarid mine areas have very little runoff, and the major streams have large buffer and dilution capacities, the effects of mining on surface water is minimal. However, effects on ground water may be much more severe and long-lasting.

A study of building the hydrogeological apparent model with geoelectrical measurements for the Chia-Nan Coastal Plain of SW Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, P. Y.; Tsai, J. P.; Chang, L. C.

2016-12-01

In the study we used the resistivity measurements collected in the Chia-Nan coastal plain of SW Taiwan to establish a three-dimensional (3D) hydrogeological apparent model. The resistivity measurements include data from half-Schlumberger surveys conducted during the year of 1990-2000 across the entire area and from the recent two-dimensional resistivity surveys for characterizing the recharge zone boundaries. Core records from monitoring wells in the area were used for the training data to help determining the resistivity ranges of the gavel, sand, and muddy sediments in the coastal plain. These resistivity measurements were inverted and converted into 1-D data form and interpolated for rendering a three dimensional resistivity volume that represents the general resistivity distribution in the coastal-plain systems. In addition we used water resistivity data from the observation wells to calculating the formation factors (FI) and to render the FI model. We then compared the FIs with indexed core records near some of the resistivity surveys sites, and concluded the range of the FIs for different materials in a statistical sense. Lastly we transfer the FI model into the gravel-sand-clay apparent model with the classification criteria from previous petrophysical analysis. Because there are more resistivity measurements than the limited geological boreholes, the apparent model is better to represent the detailed sedimentary structures than the traditional over-simplified conceptual models.

Chemical evolution of groundwater in the Wilcox aquifer of the northern Gulf Coastal Plain, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haile, Estifanos; Fryar, Alan E.

2017-12-01

The Wilcox aquifer is a major groundwater resource in the northern Gulf Coastal Plain (lower Mississippi Valley) of the USA, yet the processes controlling water chemistry in this clastic aquifer have received relatively little attention. The current study combines analyses of solutes and stable isotopes in groundwater, petrography of core samples, and geochemical modeling to identify plausible reactions along a regional flow path ˜300 km long. The hydrochemical facies evolves from Ca-HCO3 upgradient to Na-HCO3 downgradient, with a sequential zonation of terminal electron-accepting processes from Fe(III) reduction through SO4 2- reduction to methanogenesis. In particular, decreasing SO4 2- and increasing δ34S of SO4 2- along the flow path, as well as observations of authigenic pyrite in core samples, provide evidence of SO4 2- reduction. Values of δ13C in groundwater suggest that dissolved inorganic carbon is contributed both by oxidation of sedimentary organic matter and calcite dissolution. Inverse modeling identified multiple plausible sets of reactions between sampled wells, which typically involved cation exchange, pyrite precipitation, CH2O oxidation, and dissolution of amorphous Fe(OH)3, calcite, or siderite. These reactions are consistent with processes identified in previous studies of Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifers. Contrasts in groundwater chemistry between the Wilcox and the underlying McNairy and overlying Claiborne aquifers indicate that confining units are relatively effective in limiting cross-formational flow, but localized cross-formational mixing could occur via fault zones. Consequently, increased pumping in the vicinity of fault zones could facilitate upward movement of saline water into the Wilcox.

Geomorphology of Titan's polar terrains: Using the landscape's topographic form to constrain surface processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birch, S. P.; Hayes, A. G., Jr.; Dietrich, W. E.; Howard, A. D.; Malaska, M. J.; Moore, J. M.; Mastrogiuseppe, M.; White, O. L.; Hofgartner, J. D.; Soderblom, J. M.; Barnes, J. W.; Bristow, C.; Kirk, R. L.; Turtle, E. P.; Wood, C. A.; Stofan, E. R.

2015-12-01

Driven by an expansive atmosphere, Titan's lakes, seas and accompanied hydrological cycle hold vast amounts of information regarding the history and evolution of Titan. To understand these features, we constructed a geomorphologic map of Titan's polar terrains using a combination of the Cassini SAR, ISS, VIMS, and topographic datasets. In combining SAR, ISS, and VIMS imagery with topographic data, our geomorphic map reveals a stratigraphic sequence from which we infer formation processes. In mapping both the South and North poles with the same morphologic units, we conclude that processes that dominated the North Pole also operated in the South. Large seas, which are currently methane/ethane filled in the North and dry in the South, characterize both poles. The current day dichotomy may result only from differing initial conditions. Regions removed from the mare are dominated by smooth, undulating plains, bounded by moderately dissected uplands that are discretized into observable drainage basins. These plains contain the highest density of filled and empty lake depressions, which appear morphologically distinct from the larger mare. The thicknesses of these undulating plains are retrieved from the depths of the embedded empty depressions that are up to 800 m deep. The development of such large deposits and the surrounding hillslopes can be explained by the presence of previously vast polar oceans. Larger liquid bodies would have allowed for a sustained accumulation of soluble and insoluble sediments from Titan's lower latitudes. Two plausible evolutionary scenarios include seas that were slightly larger, followed by tectonic uplift, or oceans that were much larger, that have since lost most of their volume over time to methane photolysis. In either scenario, thick sedimentary deposits of soluble materials are required to have been emplaced prior to the formation of the small lake depressions.

In-Situ Pumping Test for Multilayer Hydrogeological Site in Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, S.; Tan, Y.; Lien, I.; Hsu, G.; Bao, K.

2010-12-01

Pingtung plain is located the in the southwestern Taiwan, and rainfall concentrated from May to October with the average annual precipitation of 2000 mm. However, topographic steepest rushing stream lead to most of the precipitation becomes runoff and drains to the ocean in short time. Due to the shortage of surface water, the groundwater is an important one of much water recourses. Additionally, the government will be set up artificial lakes in proximal-fan of pingtung plain, which increases recharge and supply to usage of the agricultural and aquaculture. However, the locations of pumping wells are decided not only affecting the developmental quantity of the groundwater but economic growth serious limited. Therefore, MODFLOW-96 was used to simulate the groundwater distribution and optimal the better recharge zone in the regional scale. Based on the model calibration and verification results, the tuku farm of the kaoping lake study is better recharged from Laonong Stream and the northeast, and the safe yield is much than other study zone. Additionally, directional variations in permeability anisotropic formations have important effects on velocities and storage of the groundwater recourses. We have further utilized modifying ANN (artificial neural networks) approach, as well as incorporating the Papadopoulos analytical solution [Lin et al, 2010], to estimate the directional and magnitude of the permeability parameters for pumping test at the tuku farm of the kaoping lake study, which the methodology will be improve accuracy of the estimation parameter. According to drawdown record data of six observation wells, results suggest that the locations of the pumping wells are set up in the northeast and northwest which since sedimentary formations are more permeable along the major direction from the northeast and northwest. Hence, the information can be helpful the groundwater management and supply in the Pingtung plain.

The complex Chukchi Borderland region as part of the Arctic Alaska extended margin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saltus, R.; Hutchinson, D. R.; Miller, E. L.

2017-12-01

The Chukchi Borderland region (CBR; includes the Chukchi Plateau and its surrounding component elevations) is a physiographically complex and somewhat enigmatic seafloor high adjacent to the broad Chukchi Shelf in the Alaska/Chukotka quadrant of the Amerasian Basin beneath the Arctic Ocean. The CBR includes several physiographic sub-components including the relatively high-standing Northwind Ridge and Northwind Plain as well as a lower-standing northern region (here called the North Chukchi Component Elevation or NCCE) that consists of several un-named knolls, ramps, and benches. The CBR shows numerous N-S physiographic features including ridges and escarpments related to extension. The CBR adjoins the Chukchi Shelf to the south, abuts the Canada Basin to the east, and is separated on the west and north from the Mendeleev and Alpha Ridges by the Chukchi Plain, the Mendeleev Plain, and the Nautilus Basin. Available geophysical data, comparative physiography/geomorphology, and geologic analysis show that the CBR is continuous with Arctic Alaska and the adjoining Chukchi Shelf. CBR, Arctic Alaska, and the Chukchi Shelf share common early Paleozoic basement elements as well as Ellesmerian and younger cover sequences. The CBR owes its complex physiographic and structural character to its central location relative to the multiple extensional domains associated with the multi-stage rift formation of the Amerasian Basin, large igneous province-influenced volcanism associated with the Alpha and Mendeleev regions on the north and west, and hyper-extension of continental crust to the east in the deep Canada Basin. The CBR is often portrayed as an independent tectonic element within Arctic tectonic reconstructions, but we argue that models for the formation of the Amerasian Basin should include the CBR as an integral component of the Arctic Alaska microplate.

The Role of Cooling in Pahohoe Emplacement on Planetary Surfaces.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glaze, L. S.; Baloga, S. M.

2015-01-01

Abundant evidence is emerging that many lavas on Mars were emplaced as slow-moving pahoehoe flows. Models for such scenarios contrast sharply with those for steep-sloped applications where gravity is the dominant force. The mode of flow emplacement on low slopes is characterized by toe formation and inflation. In the latter phase of pahoehoe flow emplacement, stagnation, inflation, and toe formation are most closely tied to the final topography, dimensions, and morphologic features. This mode of emplacement is particularly relevant to the low slopes of planetary surfaces such as the plains of Mars, Io and the Moon.

Radial Features around Irnini Mons, Venus: Implications for Timing of Regional Compression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buczkowski, D. L.; McGill, G. E.; Cooke, M. L.

2003-12-01

Flows and other deposits from Irnini Mons are superimposed on an older, regional plains material. Wrinkle ridges are generally abundant on this regional plains material and are present in at least two sets: one trending east-west and another concentric to Irnini Mons. Radial features on top of the Irnini flows are mapped as lineations or grabens, as resolution allows. High resolution mapping at 75 m/pixel also reveals ridges radial to Irnini Mons on top of the Irnini flows. These radial ridges are located from approximately N60E to N75E. Radial grabens around a volcano have been explained mathematically, with the magma chamber of a volcano simplistically described as a pressurized hole in an elastic plate. However, magma pressure alone can not explain the presence of radial ridges. The regional east-west trending wrinkle ridges imply a regional north-south compression affecting the Irnini Mons area. The regional stress field around an empty hole in an elastic plate is perturbed close to the hole, although it remains unperturbed at infinity; the change in material properties from the surrounding rock to a magma-filled chamber allows us to consider the chamber as "soft" and thus effectively empty. The perturbation of a uniaxial regional compressive stress around a pressurized hole is such that at angles of 90 and 270 degrees (east-west) the maximum principal stresses close to the hole are compressive, while at angles 0 and 180 degrees (north-south) the maximum principal stresses are tensile. The angle at which maximum principal stresses change from tension to compression depends upon the distance from the hole and the relative magnitudes of magma pressure and the regional compression. While in the simple model resultant stresses would be symmetric around the hole, structural complexities to the south and west of Irnini Mons restrict the predicted pattern of radial ridges as well as grabens to the region northeast of the volcano. Thus, the existence of radial ridges on the Irnini flows implies that the regional north-south compression that caused the east-west trending wrinkle ridges was still active during the formation of Irnini Mons. A rough timeline for events in the region could be: 1) formation of east-west wrinkle ridges on regional plains, 2) formation of graben radial to Irnini due to magma pressure coeval with formation of radial ridges due to a combination of magma pressure and ongoing regional compression, 3) cessation of magma pressure and formation of concentric grabens, and 4) formation of concentric wrinkle ridges, perhaps due to gravitational relaxation of the topographic rise.

Sequential deformation of plains along Tessera boundaries on Venus: Evidence from Alpha Regio

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilmore, M. S.; Head, James W., III

1992-01-01

Tesserae are regions of elevated terrain characterized by two or more sets of ridges and grooves that intersect orthogonally. Tesserae comprise 15-20 percent of the surface of Venus, but the nature of their formation and evolution is not well understood; processes proposed to account for their characteristics are many and varied. Two types of tessera boundaries have been described: type 1 are generally embayed by plains; and type 2 boundaries are characterized by being linear at the 100-km scale and often associated with steep scarps or tectonic features. Margins such as the western edge of Alpha have been described as type 2. Some of the tessera have boundaries that display deformation of both the edge of the tessera and the adjoining plains. This study focuses on the western edge of Alpha Regio in an effort to characterize on occurrence of this type of boundary and assess the implications of the style in general. Using Magellan SAR imagery, lineament lengths, orientations, and spacing were measured for ten 50 x 60 km areas spanning 500 km of the western boundary. Structural characteristics and orientations were compared to stratigraphic units in order to assess the sequence and style of deformation.

Flood-plain areas of the Mississippi River, mile 866.8 to mile 888.0, Minnesota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Carlson, George H.; Gue, Lowell C.

1980-01-01

Profiles of the regional flood, 500-year flood, and flood-protection elevation have been developed for a 21-mile reach of the Mississippi River. Areas flooded by the regional flood and by the 500-year flood were delineated by photogrammetric mapping techniques and are shown on seven large-scale map sheets. Over 1,300 acres of flood plain are included in the cities of Anoka, Champlin, Coon Rapids, Dayton, Ramsey and Elk River, and in unincorporated areas of Wright County. The flood-outline maps and flood profiles comprise data needed by local units of government to adopt, enforce, and administer flood-plain management regulations along the Mississippi River throughout the study reach. Streamflow data from two gaging stations provided the basis for definition of the regional and 500-year floods. Cross-section data obtained at 83 locations were used to develop a digital computer model of the river. Flood elevation and discharge data from the 1965 flood provided a basis for adjusting the computer model. Information relating the history of floods, formation of ice jams, and duration of flood elevations at Anoka and at Elk River are included.

BatMass: a Java Software Platform for LC-MS Data Visualization in Proteomics and Metabolomics.

PubMed

Avtonomov, Dmitry M; Raskind, Alexander; Nesvizhskii, Alexey I

2016-08-05

Mass spectrometry (MS) coupled to liquid chromatography (LC) is a commonly used technique in metabolomic and proteomic research. As the size and complexity of LC-MS-based experiments grow, it becomes increasingly more difficult to perform quality control of both raw data and processing results. In a practical setting, quality control steps for raw LC-MS data are often overlooked, and assessment of an experiment's success is based on some derived metrics such as "the number of identified compounds". The human brain interprets visual data much better than plain text, hence the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words". Here, we present the BatMass software package, which allows for performing quick quality control of raw LC-MS data through its fast visualization capabilities. It also serves as a testbed for developers of LC-MS data processing algorithms by providing a data access library for open mass spectrometry file formats and a means of visually mapping processing results back to the original data. We illustrate the utility of BatMass with several use cases of quality control and data exploration.

A Customizable Importer for the Clinical Data Warehouses PaDaWaN and I2B2.

PubMed

Fette, Georg; Kaspar, Mathias; Dietrich, Georg; Ertl, Maximilian; Krebs, Jonathan; Stoerk, Stefan; Puppe, Frank

2017-01-01

In recent years, clinical data warehouses (CDW) storing routine patient data have become more and more popular to support scientific work in the medical domain. Although CDW systems provide interfaces to import new data, these interfaces have to be used by processing tools that are often not included in the systems themselves. In order to establish an extraction-transformation-load (ETL) workflow, already existing components have to be taken or new components have to be developed to perform the load part of the ETL. We present a customizable importer for the two CDW systems PaDaWaN and I2B2, which is able to import the most common import formats (plain text, CSV and XML files). In order to be run, the importer only needs a configuration file with the user credentials for the target CDW and a list of XML import configuration files, which determine how already exported data is indented to be imported. The importer is provided as a Java program, which has no further software requirements.

BatMass: a Java software platform for LC/MS data visualization in proteomics and metabolomics

PubMed Central

Avtonomov, Dmitry; Raskind, Alexander; Nesvizhskii, Alexey I.

2017-01-01

Mass spectrometry (MS) coupled to liquid chromatography (LC) is a commonly used technique in metabolomic and proteomic research. As the size and complexity of LC/MS based experiments grow, it becomes increasingly more difficult to perform quality control of both raw data and processing results. In a practical setting, quality control steps for raw LC/MS data are often overlooked and assessment of an experiment's success is based on some derived metrics such as “the number of identified compounds”. Human brain interprets visual data much better than plain text, hence the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words”. Here we present BatMass software package which allows to perform quick quality control of raw LC/MS data through its fast visualization capabilities. It also serves as a testbed for developers of LC/MS data processing algorithms by providing a data access library for open mass spectrometry file formats and a means of visually mapping processing results back to the original data. We illustrate the utility of BatMass with several use cases of quality control and data exploration. PMID:27306858

Influence of point-of-sale tobacco displays and plain black and white cigarette packaging and advertisements on adults: Evidence from a virtual store experimental study.

PubMed

Nonnemaker, James; Kim, Annice; Shafer, Paul; Loomis, Brett; Hill, Edward; Holloway, John; Farrelly, Matthew

2016-05-01

We examined the potential impact of banning tobacco displays and mandating plain packaging and cigarette advertisements at the point of sale (POS) on adult outcomes. A virtual convenience store was created with scenarios in which the tobacco product display was either fully visible (status quo) or enclosed behind a cabinet (display ban), and cigarette packs and advertisements were either in full color (status quo) or black and white, text only (plain). A national convenience sample of 1313 adult current smokers and recent quitters was randomized to 1 of 4 conditions and given a shopping task to complete in the virtual store. Main outcomes were participants' self-reported urge to smoke and tobacco purchase attempts in the virtual store. Compared with recent quitters in the status quo conditions, recent quitters in the display ban condition had lower urges to smoke (β=-4.82, 95% CI=-8.16--1.49, p<0.01). Compared with current smokers in the status quo conditions, smokers in the display ban conditions were less likely to attempt to purchase cigarettes in the virtual store (OR=0.05, 95% CI=0.03-0.08, P<0.01). Smokers exposed to plain packs and ads were significantly less likely to attempt to purchase cigarettes (OR=0.31, 95% CI=0.20-0.47, P<0.01) than those exposed to color packs and ads. Policies that ban the display of tobacco products or require plain packaging and advertising at the POS may help reduce adult smoking. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Surface-compositional Properties of Lava Plains in Syria-Thaumasia Block, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, J.; Xiao, L.; Kraft, M. D.; Christensen, P. R.; Edwards, C. S.; Ruff, S. W.; Dohm, J.

2012-12-01

Mars has a long and complex volcanic history (Greeley and Spudis, 1981; Carr, 2006). Among abundant plain-style volcanism and various edifices, Tharsis bulge is a prominent and long-lasting (Werner, 2009) volcanic province. However, there is little report about compositional variations before and after Tharsis uplift. The Syria- Thaumasia block (STB) is a complex tectono-volcanic province related to the Tharsis bulge. Understanding its formation is critical to characterizing the early history and planetary evolution of Mars. The STB lies at the southern edge of Tharsis bulge. It consists of lava plains (Syria, Solis, Sinai and Thaumasia Plana) bounded by an arcuate region of higher topography (Thaumasia Highlands, Melas Dorsa and Coprates Rise) and Valles Marineris to the north. Previous work on surface thermophysical properties (Christensen, 1988; Jakosky et al., 2000; Putzig and Mellon, 2007) and visible/near infrared and thermal infrared remote sensing spectroscopic compositional analysis (Bandfield, 2000; Bibring et al., 2006; Rogers and Christensen, 2007) had been done only in a global scale, but regional study of both surface thermophysical properties and compositions for each of the distinct lava plains in STB is lacking. In this study, we characterize a variety of volcanic features, including lava tubes, channels and their relationships with wrinkle ridges within lava plains using THEMIS infrared data (100 m/pixel: Christensen et al., 2004), CTX data (6 m/pixel: Malin et al., 2007) and HiRISE data (25 cm/pixel: McEwen et al., 2007). We assessed the surface thermophysical properties and compositions of lava plains using TES data (Christensen et al., 2001). The geomorphic features imply the lava emplacement mechanisms, while their relationships indicate the chronologic relationships between Tharsis uplift and lava emplacement. The compositional results show variations within the lava plains (Table 1), while the thermophysical results show the compositional variations are due to different compositions of in place materials. The modeled high-calcium pyroxene and high-silica phases within Hsl unit are different from those of other units. The compositional variations may imply changes in magmatism (source and/or mechanism) before and after the uplift of Tharsis.Table 1. TES Derived modal mineralogy; a. Values are percent. b. Results of Hsl unit from Rogers and Christensen (2007)

The Observation of Bahasa Indonesia Official Computer Terms Implementation in Scientific Publication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunawan, D.; Amalia, A.; Lydia, M. S.; Muthaqin, M. I.

2018-03-01

The government of the Republic of Indonesia had issued a regulation to substitute computer terms in foreign language that have been used earlier into official computer terms in Bahasa Indonesia. This regulation was stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 2 of 2001 concerning the introduction of official computer terms in Bahasa Indonesia (known as Senarai Padanan Istilah/SPI). After sixteen years, people of Indonesia, particularly for academics, should have implemented the official computer terms in their official publications. This observation is conducted to discover the implementation of official computer terms usage in scientific publications which are written in Bahasa Indonesia. The data source used in this observation are the publications by the academics, particularly in computer science field. The method used in the observation is divided into four stages. The first stage is metadata harvesting by using Open Archive Initiative - Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH). Second, converting the harvested document (in pdf format) to plain text. The third stage is text-preprocessing as the preparation of string matching. Then the final stage is searching the official computer terms based on 629 SPI terms by using Boyer-Moore algorithm. We observed that there are 240,781 foreign computer terms in 1,156 scientific publications from six universities. This result shows that the foreign computer terms are still widely used by the academics.

The origin and development of plains-type folds during the cretaceous in Central and western Kansas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Merriam, D.F.; Forster, A.

2000-01-01

Kansas is part of the Central Stable Region of North America. Structural movement on this part of the craton has been mainly the result of tectonism in nearby areas. Response to the outside tectonic forces, transmitted through the rigid Precambrian basement, has been vertical adjustment. Differential movement along an indigenous fault/fracture pattern in the basement created displaced blocks over which the later sediments were draped by differential compaction. After initial formation of this structural regimen in late Mississippian-early Pennsylvanian time, continued movement of the basement blocks gave rise to the plains-type folds so prevalent in the U.S. Midcontinent. The incremental movement continues through the late Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Tertiary until today. This paper demonstrates the Cretaceous development of some of these structures in central and western Kansas.

Review of taxonomy, geographic distribution, and paleoenvironments of Azhdarchidae (Pterosauria)

PubMed Central

Averianov, Alexander

2014-01-01

Abstract The taxonomy, geographic distribution, and paleoenvironmental context of azhdarchid pterosaurs are reviewed. All purported pteranodontid, tapejarid, and azhdarchid specimens from the Cenomanian Kem Kem beds of Morocco are referred to a single azhdarchid taxon, Alanqa saharica. The four proposed autapomorphies of Eurazhdarcho langendorfensis from the lower Maastrichtian Sebeş Formation of Romania are based on misinterpretations of material and this taxon is likely a subjective junior synonym of Hatzegopteryx thambema. Among 54 currently reported azhdarchid occurrences (51 skeletal remains and 3 tracks) 13% are from lacustrine deposits, 17% from fluvial plain deposits, 17% from coastal plain deposits, 18% from estuarine and lagoonal deposits, and 35% from costal marine deposits. Azhdarchids likely inhabited a variety of environments, but were abundant near large lakes and rivers and most common in nearshore marine paleoenvironments. PMID:25152671

Sources of secondary organic aerosols over North China Plain in winter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xing, L.; Li, G.; Tie, X.; Junji, C.; Long, X.

2017-12-01

Organic aerosol (OA) concentrations are simulated over the North China Plain (NCP) from 10th to 26th January, 2014 using the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled to chemistry (WRF-CHEM), with the goal of examining the impact of heterogeneous HONO sources on atmospheric oxidation capacity and consequently on SOA formation and SOA formation from different pathways in winter. Generally, the model well reproduced the spatial and temporal distribution of PM2.5, SO2, NO2, and O3 concentrations. The heterogeneous HONO formation contributed a major part of atmospheric HONO concentrations in Beijing. The heterogeneous HONO sources significantly increased the daily maximum OH concentrations by 260% on average in Beijing, which enhanced the atmospheric oxidation capacity and consequently SOA concentrations by 80% in Beijing on average. Under severe haze pollution on January 16th 2014, the regional average HONO concentration over NCP was 0.86 ppb, which increased SOA concentration by 68% on average. The average mass fractions of ASOA (SOA from oxidation of anthropogenic VOCs), BSOA (SOA from oxidation of biogenic VOCs), PSOA (SOA from oxidation of evaporated POA), and GSOA (SOA from irreversible uptake of glyoxal and methylglyoxal) during the simulation period over NCP were 24%, 5%, 26% and 45%, respectively. GSOA contributed most to the total SOA mass over NCP in winter. The model sensitivity simulation revealed that GSOA in winter was mainly from primary residential sources. The regional average of GSOA from primary residential sources constituted 87% of total GSOA mass.

Digital data sets that describe aquifer characteristics of the High Plains Aquifer in western Oklahoma

USGS Publications Warehouse

Becker, C.J.; Runkle, D.L.; Rea, Alan

1997-01-01

ARC/INFO export files This diskette contains digitized aquifer boundaries and maps of hydraulic conductivity, recharge, and ground-water level elevation contours for the High Plains aquifer in western Oklahoma. This area encompasses the panhandle counties of Cimarron, Texas, and Beaver, and the western counties of Harper, Ellis, Woodward, Dewey, and Roger Mills. The High Plains aquifer underlies approximately 7,000 square miles of Oklahoma and is used extensively for irrigation. The High Plains aquifer is a water-table aquifer and consists predominately of the Tertiary-age Ogallala Formation and overlying Quaternary-age alluvial and terrace deposits. In some areas the aquifer is absent and the underlying Triassic, Jurassic, or Cretaceous-age rocks are exposed at the surface. These rocks are hydraulically connected with the aquifer in some areas. The High Plains aquifer is composed of interbedded sand, siltstone, clay, gravel, thin limestones, and caliche. The proportion of various lithological materials changes rapidly from place to place, but poorly sorted sand and gravel predominate. The rocks are poorly to moderately well cemented by calcium carbonate. The aquifer boundaries, hydraulic conductivity, and recharge data sets were created by extracting geologic contact lines from published digital surficial geology maps based on a scale of 1:125,000 for the panhandle counties and 1:250,000 for the western counties. The water-level elevation contours and some boundary lines were digitized from maps in a published water-level elevation map for 1980 based on a scale of 1:250,000. The hydraulic conductivity and recharge values in this report were used as input to the ground-water flow model on the High Plains aquifer. Ground-water flow models are numerical representations that simplify and aggregate natural systems. Models are not unique; different combinations of aquifer characteristics may produce similar results. Therefore, values of hydraulic conductivity and recharge used in the model and presented in this data set are not precise, but are within a reasonable range when compared to independently collected data.

Characteristics and formation mechanism of continuous hazes in China: a case study during the autumn of 2014 in the North China Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Y. R.; Liu, X. G.; Qu, Y.; An, J. L.; Jiang, R.; Zhang, Y. H.; Sun, Y. L.; Wu, Z. J.; Zhang, F.; Xu, W. Q.; Ma, Q. X.

2015-07-01

Four extreme haze episodes occurred in October 2014 in the North China Plain (NCP). To clarify the formation mechanism of hazes in autumn, strengthened observations were conducted in Beijing from 5 October to 2 November. The meteorological parameters, satellite data, chemical compositions and optical properties of aerosols were obtained. The hazes originated from the NCP, developing in the southwest and northeast directions, with the highest concentration of PM2.5 of 469 μg m-3 in Beijing. The NCP was dominated by a weak high pressure system during the haze episode, which resulted in low surface wind speed and relatively stagnant weather. Moreover, the wind slowed down around Beijing city. The secondary aerosols NO3- was always higher than that of SO42-, which indicated the motor vehicles played a more important part in the hazes in October 2014, even though the oxidation rate from SO2 to SO42- was faster than that of NOx to NO3-. Sudden increases of the concentrations of organic matter, Cl- and BC (black carbon) before each haze episode implied that regional transport of pollutants by biomass burning was important for haze formation during autumn. A satellite map of fire points and the backward trajectories of the air masses also indicated this pollution source. The distinct decrease in the PBL (planetary boundary layer) height during four haze episodes restrained the vertical dispersion of the air pollutants. Water vapor also played a vital role in the formation of hazes by accelerating the chemical transformation of secondary pollutants, leading to hygroscopic growth of aerosols and altering the thermal balance of the atmosphere.

Characteristics and formation mechanism of continuous extreme hazes in China: a case study in autumn of 2014 in the North China Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Y. R.; Liu, X. G.; Qu, Y.; An, J. L.; Jiang, R.; Zhang, Y. H.; Sun, Y. L.; Wu, Z. J.; Zhang, F.; Xu, W. Q.; Ma, X. Q.

2015-04-01

Four extreme haze episodes occurred in October 2014 in the North China Plain (NCP). To clarify the formation mechanism of hazes in the autumn, strengthened observations were conducted in Beijing from 5 October to 2 November. The meteorological parameters, satellite data, chemical compositions and optical properties of aerosols were obtained. The hazes originated from NCP, developing in the southwest and northeast directions, with the highest concentration of PM2.5 of 469 μg m-3 in Beijing. NCP was dominated by a weak high pressure system during the haze episode, which resulted in low surface wind speed and relatively stagnant weather. Moreover, the wind slowed down around Beijing city. The secondary aerosols NO3- was always higher than that of SO42-, which indicated the motor vehicles played a more important part in the hazes in October 2014, even though the oxidation rate from SO2 to SO42- was faster than that of NOx to NO3-. Sudden increases of the concentrations of organic matter, Cl- and BC (Black carbon) before each haze episode implied that regional transport of pollutants by biomass burning was important for haze formation during the autumn. A satellite map of fire points and the backward trajectories of the air masses also indicated this pollution source. The distinct decrease in the PBL (planetary boundary layer) height during four haze episodes restrained the vertical dispersion of the air pollutants. Water vapor also played a vital role in the formation of hazes by accelerating the chemical transformation of secondary pollutants, leading to hygroscopic growth of aerosols and altering the thermal balance of the atmosphere.

The Toolbox for Local and Global Plagiarism Detection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butakov, Sergey; Scherbinin, Vladislav

2009-01-01

Digital plagiarism is a problem for educators all over the world. There are many software tools on the market for uncovering digital plagiarism. Most of them can work only with text submissions. In this paper, we present a new architecture for a plagiarism detection tool that can work with many different kinds of digital submissions, from plain or…

Before Smith’s Mill: Archaeological and Geological Investigations, Smithville Lake, Missouri. Volume 1. Text.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-06-01

undecorated, plain surfaced utilitarian vessel, with loop handles on some specimens. The exceptions to this stereotype are few. A rare example of lip...latter. All are mammalian remains but none are classifiable as to family or genus . Falk describes the samples from both 23 CL 274 and 276 as consisting

Country School Legacy: Music on the Frontier. Country School School Legacy: Humanities on the Frontier.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haack, Paul A.

An overview of early country school music and music education in the Mountain Plains region of America provides impresssions gained from texts, journals, official records, and personal interviews. Music is portrayed as a socializer to engender community spirit, an enhancement of patriotism, a means to enculturate to the "American way of…

Cretaceous sedimentation and tectonism in the southeastern Kaiparowits region, Utah

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peterson, Fred

1969-01-01

Upper Cretaceous strata in the southeastern Kaiparowits region of south-central Utah consist of approximately 3,500 feet of interfingering sandstone, mudstone, shale, and coal in the Dakota Formation (oldest), Tropic Shale, Straight Cliffs Formation, and Wahweap Formation (youngest). The formations consist of several depositional facies that can be recognized by characteristic lithologies bedding structures, and fossils; these are the alluvial plain, deltaic plain, lagoonal-paludal, barrier sandstone, and offshore marine facies. The distribution of facies clearly defines the paleogeography of the region during several cycles of marine transgression and regression. The nonmarine beds were deposited on a broad alluvial coastal plain that was bordered on the west and southwest by highlands and on the east and northeast by the Western Interior seaway. The marine beds were deposited whenever the seaway advanced into or across the region. The Dakota Formation and the lower part of the Tropic Shale were deposited in nonmarine and marine environments, while the shoreline advanced generally westward across the region. The middle and upper part of the Tropic Shale and the Tibbet Canyon and Smoky Hollow Members of the Straight Cliffs Formation were deposited in marine and nonmarine environments when the seaway had reached its greatest areal extent and began a gradual northeastward withdrawal. An unconformity at the top of the Smoky Hollow represents a period of erosion and possibly nondeposition before deposition of the John Henry Member of the Straight Cliffs. The John Henry Member grades from nonmarine in the southwest to predominantly marine in the northeast, and was deposited during two relatively minor cycles of transgression and regression. The Drip Tank Member at the top of the Straight Cliffs Formation is a widespread sandstone unit deposited mainly in fluvial environments. Some of the beds in the northeastern part of the region were probably deposited in marine waters during the final incursion of the seaway into the Kaiparowits region. The overlying Wahweap Formation was deposited in nonmarine environments. Slight but continued tectonism during Late Cretaceous time is indicated by lateral changes of facies and thickness variations that coincide at least partly with present structures. These criteria indicate that Laramide tectonism consisted of two phases. An early phase that lasted from about late Albian to late Campanian time included regional subsidence, basin downwarping, and movement on local folds and faults. A later phase that lasted from late Campanian to about late Paleocene time included regional uplift, monoclinal flexing, and probable new faulting, as well as continued basin downwarping and movement on local folds and probably on the older faults. The principal economic resource in the Kaiparowits region is bituminous or subbituminous coal in the john Henry Member. Because basin downwarping and movement on local folds occurred during deposition, the thicker and more continuous coal beds are in the ancestral synclines and tile deeper part of the structural basin. Presently indicated resources total 7.3 billion tons, but considerably larger quantities are probably present in the unexplored parts of the region. Several potential resources include ground water, titaniferous sandstone, and possibly oil and gas.

Spatial distribution and occurrence probability of regional new particle formation events in eastern China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Xiaojing; Sun, Junying; Kivekäs, Niku; Kristensson, Adam; Zhang, Xiaoye; Zhang, Yangmei; Zhang, Lu; Fan, Ruxia; Qi, Xuefei; Ma, Qianli; Zhou, Huaigang

2018-01-01

In this work, the spatial extent of new particle formation (NPF) events and the relative probability of observing particles originating from different spatial origins around three rural sites in eastern China were investigated using the NanoMap method, using particle number size distribution (PNSD) data and air mass back trajectories. The length of the datasets used were 7, 1.5, and 3 years at rural sites Shangdianzi (SDZ) in the North China Plain (NCP), Mt. Tai (TS) in central eastern China, and Lin'an (LAN) in the Yangtze River Delta region in eastern China, respectively. Regional NPF events were observed to occur with the horizontal extent larger than 500 km at SDZ and TS, favoured by the fast transport of northwesterly air masses. At LAN, however, the spatial footprint of NPF events was mostly observed around the site within 100-200 km. Difference in the horizontal spatial distribution of new particle source areas at different sites was connected to typical meteorological conditions at the sites. Consecutive large-scale regional NPF events were observed at SDZ and TS simultaneously and were associated with a high surface pressure system dominating over this area. Simultaneous NPF events at SDZ and LAN were seldom observed. At SDZ the polluted air masses arriving over the NCP were associated with higher particle growth rate (GR) and new particle formation rate (J) than air masses from Inner Mongolia (IM). At TS the same phenomenon was observed for J, but GR was somewhat lower in air masses arriving over the NCP compared to those arriving from IM. The capability of NanoMap to capture the NPF occurrence probability depends on the length of the dataset of PNSD measurement but also on topography around the measurement site and typical air mass advection speed during NPF events. Thus the long-term measurements of PNSD in the planetary boundary layer are necessary in the further study of spatial extent and the probability of NPF events. The spatial extent, relative probability of occurrence, and typical evolution of PNSD during NPF events presented in this study provide valuable information to further understand the climate and air quality effects of new particle formation.

Stratigraphy and depositional environments of the upper Pleistocene Chemehuevi Formation along the lower Colorado River

USGS Publications Warehouse

Malmon, Daniel V.; Howard, Keith A.; House, P. Kyle; Lundstrom, Scott C.; Pearthree, Philip A.; Sarna-Wojcicki, Andrei M.; Wan, Elmira; Wahl, David B.

2011-01-01

The Chemehuevi Formation forms a conspicuous, widespread, and correlative set of nonmarine sediments lining the valleys of the Colorado River and several of its larger tributaries in the Basin and Range geologic province. These sediments have been examined by geologists since J. S. Newberry visited the region in 1857 and are widely cited in the geologic literature; however their origin remains unresolved and their stratigraphic context has been confused by inconsistent nomenclature and by conflicting interpretations of their origin. This is one of the most prominent stratigraphic units along the river below the Grand Canyon, and the formation records an important event or set of events in the history of the Colorado River. Here we summarize what is known about these deposits throughout their range, present new stratigraphic, sedimentologic, topographic, and tephrochronologic data, and formally define them as a lithostratigraphic unit. The Chemehuevi Formation consists primarily of a bluff-forming mud facies, consisting of gypsum-bearing, horizontally bedded sand, silt, and clay, and a slope-forming sand facies containing poorly bedded, well sorted, quartz rich sand and scattered gravel. The sedimentary characteristics and fossil assemblages of the two facies types suggest that they were deposited in flood plain and channel environments, respectively. In addition to these two primary facies, we identify three other mappable facies in the formation: a thick-bedded rhythmite facies, now drowned by Lake Mead; a valley-margin facies containing abundant locally derived sediment; and several tributary facies consisting of mixed fluvial and lacustrine deposits in the lower parts of major tributary valleys. Observations from the subsurface and at outcrops near the elevation of the modern flood plain suggest that the formation also contains a regional basal gravel member. Surveys of numerous outcrops using high-precision GPS demonstrate that although the sand facies commonly overlies the mud facies where the two are found together, contacts between the two occur over a range in elevation, and as a consequence, the sand and mud facies are similarly distributed both horizontally and vertically throughout the valley. Collectively, the outcrops of the formation lie below a smooth elevation envelope that slopes 50 percent more steeply than the historic (pre-Hoover Dam) valley, from nearly 150 m above the historic flood plain near the mouth of the Grand Canyon to less than 30 m above the flood plain at the head of the flood plain near Yuma, Arizona. The steepness of the valley at the peak of aggradation probably represents a depositional slope. Layers of fine grained volcanic tephra have been found below and within the Chemehuevi Formation at five widely separated sites, one of which is now submerged beneath Lake Mead. Major element geochemistry of glass shards from the four accessible tephra sites were analyzed. Three of the sampled tephra layers are interbedded within the Chemehuevi Formation, and a fourth tephra conformably underlies the formation. The three interbedded tephra layers are similar enough to one another that they are probably from the same eruptive unit, hereafter referred to as the Monkey Rock tephra bed. The other sample, which locally underlies the formation, is similar enough to the Monkey Rock tephra bed to suggest it is from the same volcanic source area; however, it may not be from the same eruption, and thus may not be the same age. On the basis of the stratigraphic contexts of chemically similar tephra layers found elsewhere in the Basin and Range, we suspect that the source area is the Mammoth Mountain dome complex in Long Valley, east-central California. Two samples of proximal Mammoth Mountain pumice were analyzed and produced geochemical signatures similar to all four of the Chemehuevi Formation tephra, supporting Mammoth Mountain as a possible source area. The Mammoth Mountain volcanic center produced eruptions between about 111±2 and 57±2 ka and was most active in the later part of this time interval, during Marine Oxygen Isotope (MOI) stage 4 (between 74 and 59 ka ago). Chemically similar tephra in cores from Owens Lake and Walker Lake are approximately 70 and 74 ky old, based on age models of those cores. Other lines of stratigraphic evidence from nine tephra-containing sections in the Basin and Range are also consistent with an age assignment for the Monkey Rock tephra of ~72 ky, near the beginning of MOI stage 4. We propose to designate the Chemehuevi Formation as a formal lithostratigraphic unit, and propose as the type section a well exposed outcrop near the ranger station at Katherine Landing, Arizona, in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This exposure shows the two dominant facies, an example of one of the four known tephra layers, and interbedded lenses of locally derived gravel. In the type section, as in many of the other examples of the formation, the sand facies overlies the mud facies on a conspicuous, abrupt erosional surface; however, nearby is a contiguous section demonstrating that the mud and sand facies interfinger. In addition to the type section, measured reference sections compiled here illustrate other important lithologic and stratigraphic features of the formation. Our preferred interpretation of the Chemehuevi Formation is that it contains the remnants of deposits formed during a single major episode of fluvial aggradation, during which the Colorado River filled its valley with a great volume of dominantly sand-size sediment. This would reflect an increase in the supply of sand-size sediment, and(or) a reduction in transport capacity below the mouth of Grand Canyon. The most likely cause for the aggradation is an extraordinary increase in sand supply, likely due to widespread climatic change. However, other explanations have not been ruled out. Other aggradation events predated the Chemehuevi Formation, and some smaller events may have postdated the formation. However, the Chemehuevi Formation contains the remnants of the most recent large magnitude (>100 m) aggradation of the Colorado River.

Tobacco product developments in the Australian market in the 4 years following plain packaging.

PubMed

Scollo, Michelle; Bayly, Megan; White, Sarah; Lindorff, Kylie; Wakefield, Melanie

2017-10-09

This paper aimed to identify continued and emerging trends in the Australian tobacco market following plain packaging implementation, over a period of substantial increases in tobacco taxes. Since 2012, our surveillance activities (including review of trade product and price lists, ingredient reports submitted by tobacco companies to government and monitoring of the retail environment) found several trends in the factory-made cigarette market. These include the continued release of extra-long and slim cigarettes and packs with bonus cigarettes, particularly in the mainstream and premium market segments; new menthol capsule products; other novel flavourings in cigarettes; filter innovations including recessed and firm filters; continued use of evocative and descriptive product names; the proliferation of the new super-value market segment; and umbrella branding, where new products are introduced within established brand families. Several similar trends were also observed within the smoking tobacco market. While not all of these trends were new to the Australian market at the time of plain packaging implementation, their continued and increased use is notable. Plain packaging legislation could be strengthened to standardise cigarette and pack size, restrict brand and variant names, and ban features such as menthol capsules and filters innovations that provide novelty value or that may provide false reassurance to smokers. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Cenozoic sedimentary dynamics of the Ouarzazate foreland basin (Central High Atlas Mountains, Morocco)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

El Harfi, A.; Lang, J.; Salomon, J.; Chellai, E. H.

2001-06-01

Cenozoic continental sedimentary deposits of the Southern Atlas named "Imerhane Group" crop out (a) in the Ouarzazate foreland basin between the Precambrian basement of the Anti Atlas and the uplifted limestone dominated High Atlas, and (b) in the Aït Kandoula and Aït Seddrat nappes where Jurassic strata detached from the basement have been thrust southwards over the Ouarzazate Basin. New biostratigraphic and geochronological data constraining the final Eocene marine regression, the characterization of the new "Aït Ouglif Detrital Formation" presumed to be of Oligocene age, and the new stratigraphic division proposed for the Continental Imerhane Group clarify the major tectonogenetic alpidic movements of the Central High Atlas Range. Four continental formations are identified at regional scale. Their emplacement was governed principally by tectonic but also by eustatic controls. The Hadida and Aït Arbi formations (Upper Eocene) record the major Paleogene regression. They are composed of margino-littoral facies (coastal sabkhas and fluviatile systems) and reflect incipient erosion of the underlying strata and renewed fluvial drainage. The Aït Ouglif Formation (presumed Oligocene) had not been characterized before. It frequently overlies all earlier formations with an angular unconformity. It includes siliciclastic alluvial deposits and is composed predominantly of numerous thin fining-upward cycles. The Aït Kandoula Formation (Miocene-Pliocene) is discordant, extensive, and represents a thick coarsening-upward megasequence. It is composed of palustro-lacustrine deposits in a context of alluvial plain with localized sabkhas, giving way to alluvial fans and fluviatile environments. The Upper Conglomeratic Formation (Quaternary) is the trace of a vast conglomeratic pediment, forming an alluvial plain and terraces. The second and third formations correspond to two megasequences engendered by the uplift of the Central High Atlas in two major compressive phases during late Oligocene and Miocene-Pliocene times. These two geodynamic events were separated by a tectonically calm phase, materialized by palustro-lacustrine sedimentation (Görler et al. 1988). Tectono-sedimentary analysis of the two megasequences shows that the basin structure and depositional processes were controlled by the compressive tectonic context generated by the collision of North Africa and Iberia in Tertiary times (Jacobshagen et al. 1988). The Quaternary Formation was apparently controlled by a tectonic continuum and by climatic variations.

Preliminary Stratigraphic Basis for Geologic Mapping of Venus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Basilevsky, A. T.; Head, J. W.

1993-01-01

The age relations between geologic formations have been studied at 36 1000x1000 km areas centered at the dark paraboloid craters. The geologic setting in all these sites could be characterized using only 16 types of features and terrains (units). These units form a basic stratigraphic sequence (from older to younger: (1) Tessera (Tt); (2-3) Densely fractured terrains associated with coronae (COdf) and in the form of remnants among plains (Pdf); (4) Fractured and ridged plains (Pfr); (5) Plains with wrinkle ridges (Pwr); (6-7) Smooth and lobate plains (Ps/Pl); and (8) Rift-associated fractures (Fra). The stratigraphic position of the other units is determined by their relation with the units of the basic sequence: (9) Ridge bells (RB), contemporary with Pfr; (10-11) Ridges of coronae and arachnoids annuli (COar/Aar), contemporary with wrinkle ridges of Pwr; (12) Fractures of coronae annuli (COaf) disrupt Pwr and Ps/Pl; (13) Fractures (F) disrupt Pwr or younger units; (14) Craters with associated dark paraboloids (Cdp), which are on top of all volcanic and tectonic units except the youngest episodes of rift-associated fracturing and volcanism; (15-16) Surficial streaks (Ss) and surficial patches (Sp) are approximately contemporary with Cdp. These units may be used as a tentative basis for the geologic mapping of Venus including VMAP. This mapping should test the stratigraphy and answer the question of whether this stratigraphic sequence corresponds to geologic events which were generally synchronous all around the planet or whether the sequence is simply a typical sequence of events which occurred in different places at diffferent times.

A Detailed Geomorphological Sketch Map of Titan's Afekan Crater Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schoenfeld, A.; Malaska, M. J.; Lopes, R. M. C.; Le Gall, A. A.; Birch, S. P.; Hayes, A.

2014-12-01

Due to Titan's uniquely thick atmosphere and organic haze layers, the most detailed images (with resolution of 300 meters per pixel) of the Saturnian moon's surface exist as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images taken by Cassini's RADAR instrument. Using the SAR data, we have been putting together detailed geomorphological sketch maps of various Titan regions in an effort to piece together its geologic history. We initially examined the Afekan region of Titan due to extensive SAR coverage. Features described on Afekan fall under the categories (in order of geologic age, extrapolated from their relative emplacement) of hummocky, labyrinthic, plains, and dunes. During our mapping effort, we also divided each terrain category into several different subclasses on a local level. Our map offers a chance to present and analyze the distribution, relationship, and potential formation hypotheses of the different terrains. In bulk, we find evidence for both Aeolian and fluvial processes. A particularly important unit found in the Afekan region is the unit designated "undifferentiated plains", or the "Blandlands" of Titan, a mid-latitude terrain unit comprising 25% of the moon's surface. Undifferentiated plains are notable for its relative featurelessness in radar and infrared. Our interpretation is that it is a fill unit in and around Afekan crater and other hummocky/mountainous units. The plains suggest that the nature of Titan's geomorphology seems to be tied to ongoing erosional forces and sediment deposition. Other datasets used in characterizing Titan's various geomorphological units include information obtained from radiometry, infrared (ISS), and spectrometry (VIMS). We will present the detailed geomorphological sketch map with all the terrain units assigned and labeled.

Mid Pliocene sea levels along the southeast US coastal plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rovere, A.; Hearty, P. J.; Raymo, M. E.; Mitrovica, J. X.; Inglis, J.

2012-12-01

Proxy data suggest that during the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period (MPWP) atmospheric CO2 levels were roughly similar to today (between 350 and 450 ppmv) and that global average temperature was elevated by as much as 3°C with respect to preindustrial values. Estimates of sea level (SL) during the MPWP range from +10 m to >+40 m relative to present, reflecting uncertainties in our knowledge of the sensitivity to modest climate warming of the East Antarctic, West Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets. A primary objective of the PLIOMAX project (www.pliomax.org) is to combine models of paleosea-level signals with geological observations to significantly improve constraints on eustatic sea level during the MPWP. In this regard, the southeast US coastal plain is of strategic importance in MPWP sea level studies (Dowsett and Cronin, Geology, 1990). In fact, it is one of the few places where predicted glacio-isostatic effects are expected to exhibit a significant geographic variation (in this case, north-to-south). The coastal plain may also be influenced by dynamic topography driven by mantle convective flow. In this area, two factors drive the up-to-the-west dynamic tilting of the coast. The first is the descent of the Farallon slab, now located under the mid-part of the North American continent. The other is upwelling return flow under the east coast (Moucha et al., Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 2008). That is, over the last few million years, dynamic topography is responsible for potentially tens of meters of uplift (sea-level fall) of the Pliocene shoreline along the southeast US coastal plain. We have mapped an almost continuous MPWP shoreline cut into Miocene and older formations. However, as a result of multiple inter-state investigations extending over the last century, both the geomorphic escarpment and the associated deposits have been named differently across the region. In Virginia, the Chippenham Thornburg scarp is associated with the Moore House formation; in North and South Carolina, the Orangeburg Scarp can be regarded as the shoreline of the Duplin formation. Southwards, in Georgia and north Florida, the Trail Ridge is associated with the Wicomico Formation, and continues in South Florida with the Haines City Ridge. All these morphological features, associated with formations composed by marine shells and gravels, have been attributed Plio-Pleistocene ages. Though their geological characteristics have been described in detail by several authors (e.g. Winker and Howard, Geology, 1977), their elevation, age and lateral continuity have been poorly constrained. Using LIDAR data and Digital Elevation Models from different state and federal sources we defined the main geomorphological features of MPWP shorelines from Virginia to Florida. Combining the information obtained by literature, elevation datasets, and aerial imagery we identified sites where field surveys have been carried out. During the field surveys, both the elevation and geomorphological features associated to sea level have been mapped and sampled. This combination of GIS methods and field techniques allowed us to map the extent, constrain the elevation, and correlate marine deposits related to MPWP shorelines along the east coast of the US. We will discuss these results, as well as the new insights they provide on glacial isostasy, dynamic topography and tectonic processes occurring within this region.

Tectonic Tilting and Reorganization of an Aluvial Fan to a Dendritic, Erosional River Network: the Example of the Ogallala Gravels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Willett, S.; McCoy, S. W.; Beeson, H. W.

2016-12-01

Deposition of the Mio-Pliocene Ogallala gravels in the foreland of the Rocky Mountains represents a great natural experiment in landscape evolution. Starting about 20 million years ago the flux of sediment shed off the Rocky Mountains increased, likely in response to dynamic uplift of the Rockies and tilting of the High Plains. This event shifted the high plains from a state of erosion to deposition. The flux of sediment formed huge alluvial megafans, burying the pre-existing river network and effectively "repaving" the western High Plains. Today we are witnessing the re-establishment of a new river network that is dissecting, capturing and eroding these sediment fans. By mapping the modern drainage basins and noting the channel gradient with respect to the normalized length parameter, χ, we identify two types of basins in the high plains. The remnants of the alluvial megafans are drained by long narrow basins with low normalized steepness and nearly no concavity, reflecting little incision since formation. In contrast, the fan remnants are surrounded by basins with a dendritic structure and efficient water and sediment routing, resulting in low values of chi and correspondingly low elevation. The boundary between these two basin types is commonly an erosional escarpment, demonstrating that the trellis basins are consuming the fan deposits by lateral divide migration and successive river capture. We present scaling arguments that show that lateral escarpment advance is nearly an order of magnitude faster than the upstream (knickpoint) propagation of channel entrenchment. This process of landscape evolution has important implications for water in the high plains. Deprived of an efficient channel network, fan surfaces remain uneroded, preserving the Ogallala sediments, and the poorly-drained, poorly integrated surface retains ephemeral water for wetland habitat and aquifer recharge, illustrating how the surface hydrology reflects landscape evolution on million year timescales.

Structural Maps of the V-17 Beta Regio Quadrangle, Venus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Basilevsky, A. t.; Head, James W.

2008-01-01

These represent slices of the geologic map into 7 time-stratigraphic levels whose descriptions are found in [3-6]. From older to younger they are: 1) Tessera material unit (t), 2) Densely fractured plains material unit (pdf), 3) Fractured and ridged plains material unit (pfr), 4) Tessera transitional terrain structural unit (tt), 5) Fracture belts structural unit (fb), 6) Shield plains (psh) and plains with wrinkle ridges (pwr) material units combined, and 7) Lobate (pl) and smooth (ps) plains material units combined and, approximately contemporaneous with them, the structural unit of rifted terrain (rt). Each slice shows the generalized pattern of structures typical of these units. Figures 1-7 show the seven maps and Figure 8 shows the combined map illustrating what is shown in the seven maps. To visualize the Beta Regio uplift outlines, the major structure of this area, we show the +0.5 km and +2.5 km contour lines, corresponding respectively to the base and the mid-height of the uplift. It is seen in Figures 1-2 and 4 the trends of t, pdf and tt occupy relatively small areas and their structures seen in these small windows appear rather variable and with almost no orientation heritage with time. Figure 3 shows that swarms of ridge belts trend mostly NW and go through the Beta structure with no alignment with it, suggesting that this structure did not yet exist at this time. Figure 5 shows that fracture belts align along the northern base of the Beta uplift suggesting onset of the formation of this structure. Figure 6 shows that wrinkle ridges do not show alignment with the Beta uplift suggesting that this already forming structure was not high enough to exert topographic stress in its vicinity. Figure 7 shows that the Beta uplift has Devana Chasma as an axial rift zone, suggesting a genetic link between the uplift and rifting. Figure 8 shows that structural trends in this area significantly changed with time.

Groundwater Management Innovations in the High Plains Aquifer, USA: A possible path towards sustainability? (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sophocleous, M. A.

2009-12-01

The U.S. High Plains aquifer, one of the largest freshwater aquifer systems in the world covering parts of eight US states, continues to decline, threatening the long-term viability of the region’s irrigation-based economy. The theory of the commons has meaningful messages for High-Plains jurisdictions as no private incentive exists to save for tomorrow, and agricultural prosperity depends on mining water from large portions of the aquifer. The eight High Plains states take different approaches to the development and management of the aquifer based on each state’s body of water laws that abide by different legal doctrines, on which Federal laws are superposed, thus creating difficulties in integrated regional water management efforts. Although accumulating hydrologic stresses and competing demands on groundwater resources are making groundwater management increasingly complex, they are also leading to innovative approaches to the management of groundwater supplies, and those are highlighted in this presentation as good examples for emulation in managing groundwater resources. The highlighted innovations include (1) the Texas Groundwater Availability Modeling program, (2) Colorado’s water-augmentation program, (3) Kansas’ Intensive Groundwater Use Control Area policy, (4) the Kansas Groundwater Management Districts’ “safe yield” policies, (5) the water-use reporting program in Kansas, (6) the Aquifer Storage and Recovery program of the City of Wichita, Kansas, and (7) Nebraska’s Natural Resources Districts. It is concluded that the fragmented and piecemeal institutional arrangements for managing the supplies and quality of water are unlikely to be sufficient to meet the water challenges of the future. A number of recommendations for enhancing the sustainability of the aquifer are presented, including the formation of an interstate groundwater commission for the High Plains aquifer along the lines of the Delaware and Susquehanna River Basins Commissions in the US. Finally, some lessons on groundwater management that other countries can learn from the US experience are outlined.

Mapping the northern plains of Mars: origins, evolution and response to climate change - a new overview of the recent ice-related landforms in Utopia Planitia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costard, Francois; Sejourne, Antoine; Losiak, Ania; Swirad, Zusanna; Balm, Matthew; Conway, Susan; Gallagher, Colman; van-Gassel, Stephan; Hauber, Ernst; Johnsson, Andreas; Kereszturi, Akos; Platz, Thomas; Ramsdale, Jason; Reiss, Dennis; Skinner, James

2015-04-01

An ISSI (International Space Science Institute) international team has been convened to study the Northern Plain of Mars. The northern plains of Mars are extensive, geologically young, low-lying areas that contrast in age and relief to Mars' older, heavily cratered, southern highlands. Mars' northern plains are characterised by a wealth of landforms and landscapes that have been inferred to be related to the presence of ice or ice-rich material. Such landforms include 'scalloped' pits and depressions, polygonally-patterned grounds, and viscous flow features similar in form to terrestrial glacial or ice-sheet landforms. Furthermore, new (within the last few years) impact craters have exposed ice in the northern plains, and spectral data from orbiting instruments have revealed the presence of tens of percent by weight of water within the upper most ~50 cm of the martian surface at high latitudes. The western Utopia Planitia contains numerous relatively young ice-related landforms (< 10 Ma). Among them, there are scalloped depressions, spatially-associated polygons and polygon-junction pits. There is an agreement within the community that they are periglacial in origin and, derivatively, indicate the presence of an ice-rich permafrost. However, these landforms were studied individually and, many questions remain about their formation-evolution and climatic significance. In contrast, we conducted a geomorphological study of all landforms in Utopia Planitia along a long strip from ~30N to ~80N latitude and about 250km wide. The goals are to: (i) map the geographical distribution of the ice-related landforms; (ii) identify their association with subtly-expressed geological units and; (iii) discuss the climatic modifications of the ice-rich permafrost in UP. Our work combines a study with CTX (5-6 m/pixel) and HRSC (~12.5-50 m/pixel) images, supported by higher resolution HiRISE (25 cm/pixel) and MOC (~2 m/pixel) and a comparison with analogous landforms on Earth.

An Integrated Geophysical and Tectonic Study of the Structure and Evolution of the Crust in the Snake River Plain Region, Pacific Northwest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keller, G. R.; Khatiwada, M.

2016-12-01

The Snake River Plain region in the Pacific Northwest of North America has been the target of a number of recent studies that have revealed further complexities in its structure and tectonic evolution. Based on surface morphology and Late Cenozoic volcanic activity, the Snake River Plain consists of an eastern and western arm (ESRP and WSRP) that are similar in many respects but also quite different in other respects. Thus, its origin, evolution, structural complexities, the role of extension and magmatism in its formation, and the tectonic drivers are still subjects of debate. Numerous seismic studies have specifically focused on the structure of the ESRP and Yellowstone area. However, crustal-scale studies of the WSRP are limited. We added new gravity data to the existing coverage in the WSRP region and undertook a regional, integrated analysis approach that included magnetic, seismic reflection and refraction profiling, receiver function results, geological and geospatial data, and interpreted well logs. Our integrated geophysical modeling focused on the structure of the WSRP. We generated two crustal models across it at locations where the most existing geophysical and geological constraints were available. We observed both differences and similarities in the structure of the WSRP and ESRP. Although, the shallow crustal structures are different, a mid-crustal mafic intrusion is a major source of the high gravity anomaly values. Within the context of recent studies in the surrounding region, the intersection of the two arms of the Snake River Plain emerges as a major element of a complex tectonic intersection that includes the High Lava Plains of eastern Oregon, the Northern Nevada Rift, a southwestern extension of the ESRP into northern Nevada, as well as, faulting and volcanism extending northwestward to connect with the Columbia River Basalts region.

The influence of sea-level changes on tropical coastal lowlands; the Pleistocene Coropina Formation, Suriname

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, Th. E.; de Kramer, R.; de Boer, P. L.; Langereis, C.; Sew-A-Tjon, J.

2009-04-01

The Pleistocene Coropina Formation largely constitutes the Old Coastal Plain of Suriname. It is exposed fully only in open-pit bauxite mines in the central coastal plain as part of the unconsolidated overburden of Paleocene-Eocene bauxites. This study deals with the stratigraphy, sedimentology and chronology of this formation, and is based on a study in the recently closed Lelydorp-III bauxite mine operated by N.V. BHP Billiton Maatschappij Suriname. The Coropina Formation consists of the Para and Lelydorp Members. We present a detailed lithological subdivision of these members. In the Para Member, four units are discerned which are grouped in two transgressive cycles, both ranging upward from terrestrial towards chenier and coastal mudflat deposits reflecting glacio-eustatic sea-level changes. The sandy sediments represent fluviatile and beach-bar (chenier) deposits, and were supplied by rivers from the Precambrian basement and to a lesser extent by westward longshore coastal drift. Clays, largely derived from the Amazon River and transported alongshore over the shelf, were deposited in extensive coastal mudflats. The Lelydorp Member, also comprising four units, represents a depositional system that is closely comparable to the recent Suriname coastal setting, i.e., a lateral and vertical alternation of mudflat and chenier deposits formed over a period characterised by more or less constant sea level. Palaeomagnetic data indicate a dominantly reversed magnetic polarity in the Para Member, whereas the Lelydorp Member shows a normal magnetic polarity with a minor reversed polarity overprint. The reversed polarities of the Para Member exclude a Brunhes Chron (0.78-0.0 Ma) age, and thus assign it to the Matuyama Chron (2.58-0.78 Ma). This implies that the Coropina Formation is much older than hitherto assumed, and that one or more (long-term) hiatuses are not recognizable in the lithological succession.

Northern Peatland Shifts Under Changing Climate and Their Impact on Permafrost

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shur, Y.; Jorgenson, T.; Kanevskiy, M. Z.

2014-12-01

Formation of peatlands depends primarily on climate and its interactions with hydrology, soil thermal regimes, plant composition, and nutrients. A water balance with precipitation exceeding evaporation is necessary for their formation. The rate of peat accumulation also greatly depends on thermal resources. The prominent impact of the water balance and temperature on peatland formation is evident in the West Siberia Lowland. The rate of peat accumulation steadily increases from arctic tundra to moss tundra, to forest tundra, to northern taiga, and to southern taiga. This increase is a result in increase in air temperature and length of the growing season because all of these zones have water balance favorable for peat formation. Further to south, evaporation prevails over precipitation and peat formation occurs only in isolated areas. Climate change will redefine geographical distribution of climatic and vegetation zones. It is predicted that in arctic and subarctic regions the difference between precipitation and evaporation will increase and as a result these regions will remain favorable to peat accumulation. With increase of thermal resources, the rate of peat accumulation will also increase. The Alaska Arctic Coastal Plain is of a special interest because it has thousands of shallow lakes, which due to warming climate would shift from open waterbodies to peatlands through shoreline paludification and infilling. The accumulation of organic matter will likely turn open water into shore fens and bogs, and eventually to peat plateaus, as is occurring in many boreal landscapes. Expected impact on permafrost in arctic and subarctic regions will include rise of the permafrost table, thickening of the ice-rich intermediate layer with ataxitic (suspended) cryostructure, and replacement of frost boils with earth hummocks. In the contemporary continuous permafrost zone, permafrost formed as climate-driven will be transformed into climate-driven ecosystem protected. Sphagnum mosses, which grow better under warm climates, is a dominant factor in this transformation. Terrestrialization of numerous shallow lakes on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska will lower permafrost temperatures beneath them and in surrounding areas.

Comment on "Eliminating the major tornado threat in Tornado Alley"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dahl, Johannes M. L.; Markowski, Paul M.

2014-11-01

The authors draw from half a century of meteorological research to expose flaws in a recent proposal to build 300-m-tall tornado-prevention walls across the U.S. Great Plains. The idea behind the walls is that they would prevent cold and warm air masses from clashing and would therefore suppress tornadoes. The problem with this proposal, however, is that atmospheric fronts ("airmass clashes") are neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for tornadoes and that the proposed walls would not prevent the formation of fronts in the first place. Additional misconceptions about supercells thunderstorms and tornado formation also are identified.

Fuel-air mixing apparatus for reducing gas turbine combustor exhaust emissions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zupanc, Frank J. (Inventor); Yankowich, Paul R. (Inventor)

2006-01-01

A fuel-air mixer for use in a combustion chamber of a gas turbine engine is provided. The fuel air mixing apparatus comprises an annular fuel injector having a plurality of discrete plain jet orifices, a first swirler wherein the first swirler is located upstream from the fuel injector and a second swirler wherein the second swirler is located downstream from the fuel injector. The plurality of discrete plain jet orifices are situated between the highly swirling airstreams generated by the two radial swirlers. The distributed injection of the fuel between two highly swirling airstreams results in rapid and effective mixing to the desired fuel-air ratio and prevents the formation of local hot spots in the combustor primary zone. A combustor and a gas turbine engine comprising the fuel-air mixer of the present invention are also provided as well as a method using the fuel-air mixer of the present invention.

Geologic controls on the formation and evolution of quaternary coastal deposits of the northern Gulf of Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Williams, S.J.; Penland, S.; Sallenger, A.H.; McBride, R.A.; Kindlinger, J.L.

1991-01-01

A study of the barrier islands and wetlands in the deltaic plain of Louisiana is presented. Its purpose was to document rapid changes and to learn more about the processes responsible and the geologic framework within which they operate. It included systematic collection and analysis of precision nearshore hydrographic data, high resolution seismic profiles, surface sediment samples, continuous vibracores, digital shoreline plots, records of storm overwash events, and analysis of tide gage records to quantify the rise in relative sea level. Results from these studies demonstrate that deltaic progradation, river channel switching, and subsequent rapid erosion accompanying the marine transgression are regular and predictable events along the Mississippi River delta plain and will likely continue in the future. Mitigation measures, such as shoreline nourishment and barrier restoration, that mimic the natural processes may slow the land loss.

A summary of the U.S. Geological Survey 1999 resource assessment of selected coal zones in the Northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region, Wyoming, Montana, and North Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ellis, M.S.; Nichols, D.J.

2002-01-01

In 1999, 1,100 million short tons of coal were produced in the United States, 38 percent from the Northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains region. This coal has low ash content, and sulfur content is in compliance with Clean Air Act standards (U.S. Statutes at Large, 1990).The National Coal Resource Assessment for this region includes geologic, stratigraphic, palynologic, and geochemical studies and resource calculations for 18 major coal zones in the Powder River, Williston, Green River, Hanna, and Carbon Basins. Calculated resources are 660,000 million short tons. Results of the study are available in U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1625?A (Fort Union Coal Assess-ment Team, 1999) and Open-File Report 99-376 (Flores and others, 1999) in CD-ROM format.

Ultrastructure of cuticle deposited inPlodia interpunctella wing discs after variousβ-ecdysone treatments in vitro.

PubMed

Dutkowski, A B; Oberlander, H; Leach, C E

1977-06-01

Wing discs of the Indian meal moth may be cultured for extended periods in vitro. The discs produced a tanned cuticle after continuous incubation with β-ecdysone in medium conditioned with fat body or after a 24-h pulse incubation with β-ecdysone in plain medium. We investigated the ultrastructure of the cuticle deposited by such discs. We found that the treatment that produced the most complete cuticle in vitro was the 24-h pulse of hormone. We observed that cuticle formation in vitro was not "all-or-none." Depending on culture conditions, discs produced cuticulin only, complete epicuticle, epicuticle plus diffuse endocuticle, epicuticle plus lamellate endocuticle, or even multiple layers of cuticle. The ultrastructural evidence suggests that continuous incubation with β-ecdysone in plain medium does not always inhibit cuticle formationper se, but does prevent tanning of the partially formed cuticle.

Phyllosilicate and sulfate-hematite deposits within Miyamoto crater in Southern Sinus Meridiani, Mars

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wiseman, S.M.; Arvidson, R. E.; Andrews-Hanna, J. C.; Clark, R.N.; Lanza, N.L.; des Marais, D.; Marzo, G.A.; Morris, R.V.; Murchie, S.L.; Newsom, Horton E.; Noe Dobrea, E.Z.; Ollila, A.M.; Poulet, F.; Roush, T.L.; Seelos, F.P.; Swayze, G.A.

2008-01-01

Orbital topographic, image, and spectral data show that sulfate- and hematite-bearing plains deposits similar to those explored by the MER rover Opportunity unconformably overlie the northeastern portion of the 160 km in diameter Miyamoto crater. Crater floor materials exhumed to the west of the contact exhibit CRISM and OMEGA NIR spectral signatures consistent with the presence of Fe/Mg-rich smectite phyllosilicates. Based on superposition relationships, the phyllosilicate-bearing deposits formed either in-situ or were deposited on the floor of Miyamoto crater prior to the formation of the sulfate-rich plains unit. These findings support the hypothesis that neutral pH aqueous conditions transitioned to a ground-water driven acid sulfate system in the Sinus Meridiani region. The presence of both phyllosilicate and sulfate- and hematite-bearing deposits within Miyamoto crater make it an attractive site for exploration by future rover missions. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

Digital geospatial presentation of geoelectrical and geotechnical data for the lower American River and flood plain, east Sacramento, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ball, Lyndsay B.; Burton, Bethany L.; Powers, Michael H.; Asch, Theodore H.

2015-01-01

To characterize the extent and thickness of lithologic units that may have differing scour potential, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, has performed several geoelectrical surveys of the lower American River channel and flood plain between Cal Expo and the Rio Americano High School in east Sacramento, California. Additional geotechnical data have been collected by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its contractors. Data resulting from these surveys have been compiled into similar database formats and converted to uniform geospatial datums and projections. These data have been visualized in a digital three-dimensional framework project that can be viewed using freely available software. These data facilitate a comprehensive analysis of the resistivity structure underlying the lower American River corridor and assist in levee system management.

Relationships between acid deposition, watershed characteristics, and stream chemistry in Maryland's coastal plain. Final report. Volume 1. Text. Report for May 1984-June 1985

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Campbell, S.; Bartoshesky, J.; Heimbuch, D.

1987-06-01

Precipitation and stream-water chemistry data were collected from three watersheds in the Coastal Plain region of Maryland during the period May 1984 through June 1985 in an attempt to determine the potential effects of acidic deposition on the chemistry of these streams. The study streams included Lyons Creek, Morgan Creek, and Granny Finley Branch; these streams were chosen based on their differential responses to storm events observed in a survey of Coastal Plain streams in the spring of 1983. Lyons Creek typically exhibited lower pH, acid-neutralizing capacity, and concentrations of base cations than observed in the other streams. Sulfate massmore » balances suggest that the soils in the Lyons Creek watershed also have less affinity for sulfur retention than do soils of the other watersheds. Acidic pulses were observed in all three streams during the spring months; however, the magnitude of these pulses was less than that observed in 1983. Modeling of the relationships between precipitation chemistry, watershed interactions, and stream chemistry suggests that precipitation acidity can influence stream-water acidity, depending upon hydrological conditions and availabiility of acid-neutralizing materials in the watersheds.« less

Genetic and grade and tonnage models for sandstone-hosted roll-type uranium deposits, Texas Coastal Plain, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hall, Susan M.; Mihalasky, Mark J.; Tureck, Kathleen; Hammarstrom, Jane M.; Hannon, Mark

2017-01-01

The coincidence of a number of geologic and climatic factors combined to create conditions favorable for the development of mineable concentrations of uranium hosted by Eocene through Pliocene sandstones in the Texas Coastal Plain. Here 254 uranium occurrences, including 169 deposits, 73 prospects, 6 showings and 4 anomalies, have been identified. About 80 million pounds of U3O8 have been produced and about 60 million pounds of identified producible U3O8 remain in place. The development of economic roll-type uranium deposits requires a source, large-scale transport of uranium in groundwater, and deposition in reducing zones within a sedimentary sequence. The weight of the evidence supports a source from thick sequences of volcanic ash and volcaniclastic sediment derived mostly from the Trans-Pecos volcanic field and Sierra Madre Occidental that lie west of the region. The thickest accumulations of source material were deposited and preserved south and west of the San Marcos arch in the Catahoula Formation. By the early Oligocene, a formerly uniformly subtropical climate along the Gulf Coast transitioned to a zoned climate in which the southwestern portion of Texas Coastal Plain was dry, and the eastern portion humid. The more arid climate in the southwestern area supported weathering of volcanic ash source rocks during pedogenesis and early diagenesis, concentration of uranium in groundwater and movement through host sediments. During the middle Tertiary Era, abundant clastic sediments were deposited in thick sequences by bed-load dominated fluvial systems in long-lived channel complexes that provided transmissive conduits favoring transport of uranium-rich groundwater. Groundwater transported uranium through permeable sandstones that were hydrologically connected with source rocks, commonly across formation boundaries driven by isostatic loading and eustatic sea level changes. Uranium roll fronts formed as a result of the interaction of uranium-rich groundwater with either (1) organic-rich debris adjacent to large long-lived fluvial channels and barrier–bar sequences or (2) extrinsic reductants entrained in formation water or discrete gas that migrated into host units via faults and along the flanks of salt domes and shale diapirs. The southwestern portion of the region, the Rio Grande embayment, contains all the necessary factors required for roll-type uranium deposits. However, the eastern portion of the region, the Houston embayment, is challenged by a humid environment and a lack of source rock and transmissive units, which may combine to preclude the deposition of economic deposits. A grade and tonnage model for the Texas Coastal Plain shows that the Texas deposits represent a lower tonnage subset of roll-type deposits that occur around the world, and required aggregation of production centers into deposits based on geologic interpretation for the purpose of conducting a quantitative mineral resource assessment.

Integration of Geophysical and Geochemical Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamagishi, Y.; Suzuki, K.; Tamura, H.; Nagao, H.; Yanaka, H.; Tsuboi, S.

2006-12-01

Integration of geochemical and geophysical data would give us a new insight to the nature of the Earth. It should advance our understanding for the dynamics of the Earth's interior and surface processes. Today various geochemical and geophysical data are available on Internet. These data are stored in various database systems. Each system is isolated and provides own format data. The goal of this study is to display both the geochemical and geophysical data obtained from such databases together visually. We adopt Google Earth as the presentation tool. Google Earth is virtual globe software and is provided free of charge by Google, Inc. Google Earth displays the Earth's surface using satellite images with mean resolution of ~15m. We display any graphical features on Google Earth by KML format file. We have developed softwares to convert geochemical and geophysical data to KML file. First of all, we tried to overlay data from Georoc and PetDB and seismic tomography data on Google Earth. Georoc and PetDB are both online database systems for geochemical data. The data format of Georoc is CSV and that of PetDB is Microsoft Excel. The format of tomography data we used is plain text. The conversion software can process these different file formats. The geochemical data (e. g. compositional abundance) is displayed as a three-dimensional column on the Earth's surface. The shape and color of the column mean the element type. The size and color tone vary according to the abundance of the element. The tomography data can be converted into a KML file for each depth. This overlay plot of geochemical data and tomography data should help us to correlate internal temperature anomalies to geochemical anomalies, which are observed at the surface of the Earth. Our tool can convert any geophysical and geochemical data to a KML as long as the data is associated with longitude and latitude. We are going to support more geophysical data formats. In addition, we are currently trying to obtain scientific insights for the Earth's interior based on the view of both geophysical and geochemical data on Google Earth.

Relationships between solar activity and climate change

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roberts, W. O.

1975-01-01

The relationship between recurrent droughts in the High Plains of the United States and the double sunspot cycle is discussed in detail. It is suggested that high solar activity is generally related to an increase in meridional circulation and blocking patterns at high and intermediate latitudes, especially in winter, and the effect is related to the sudden formation of cirrus clouds during strong geomagnetic activity that originates in the solar corpuscular emission.

Upper Cretaceous bituminous coal deposits of the Olmos Formation, Maverick County, Texas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hook, Robert W.; Warwick, Peter D.; SanFilipo, John R.; Warwick, Peter D.; Karlsen, Alexander K.; Merrill, Matthew D.; Valentine, Brett J.

2011-01-01

This report describes the bituminous coal deposits of the Olmos Formation (Navarro Group, Upper Cretaceous; Figures 1, 2) of Maverick County in south Texas. Although these were not evaluated quantitatively as part of the current Gulf Coastal Plain coal-resource assessment, a detailed review is presented in this chapter.Prior to the late 1920s, these coal beds were mined underground on a large scale in the vicinity of Eagle Pass, Texas (Figure 1). Since the 1970s, Olmos Formation coals have been mined extensively in both underground and surface mines in nearby Coahuila, Mexico, to supply mine-mouth fuel for power generation at a plant nearby. A tract northeast of Eagle Pass was permitted in the late 1990s for surface mining. In east-central Maverick County, a coalbed methane field is being developed in coal beds of the lower part of the Olmos Formation (Barker et al., 2002; Scott, 2003).

The Carolina Sandhills: Quaternary eolian sand sheets and dunes along the updip margin of the Atlantic Coastal Plain province, southeastern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Swezey, Christopher; Fitzwater, Bradley A.; Whittecar, G. Richard; Mahan, Shannon; Garrity, Christopher P.; Aleman Gonzalez, Wilma B.; Dobbs, Kerby M.

2016-01-01

The Carolina Sandhills is a physiographic region of the Atlantic Coastal Plain province in the southeastern United States. In Chesterfield County (South Carolina), the surficial sand of this region is the Pinehurst Formation, which is interpreted as eolian sand derived from the underlying Cretaceous Middendorf Formation. This sand has yielded three clusters of optically stimulated luminescence ages: (1) 75 to 37 thousand years ago (ka), coincident with growth of the Laurentide Ice Sheet; (2) 28 to 18 ka, coincident with the last glacial maximum (LGM); and (3) 12 to 6 ka, mostly coincident with the Younger Dryas through final collapse of the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Relict dune morphologies are consistent with winds from the west or northwest, coincident with modern and inferred LGM January wind directions. Sand sheets are more common than dunes because of effects of coarse grain size (mean range: 0.35–0.59 mm) and vegetation. The coarse grain size would have required LGM wind velocities of at least 4–6 m/sec, accounting for effects of colder air temperatures on eolian sand transport. The eolian interpretation of the Carolina Sandhills is consistent with other evidence for eolian activity in the southeastern United States during the last glaciation.

Taphonomy of Isisfordia duncani specimens from the Lower Cretaceous (upper Albian) portion of the Winton Formation, Isisford, central-west Queensland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Syme, Caitlin E.; Salisbury, Steven W.

2018-03-01

Taphonomic analysis of fossil material can benefit from including the results of actualistic decay experiments. This is crucial in determining the autochthony or allochthony of fossils of juvenile and adult Isisfordia duncani, a basal eusuchian from the Lower Cretaceous (upper Albian) distal-fluvial-deltaic lower Winton Formation near Isisford. The taphonomic characteristics of the I. duncani fossils were documented using a combination of traditional taphonomic analysis alongside already published actualistic decay data from juvenile Crocodylus porosus carcasses. We found that the I. duncani holotype, paratypes and referred specimens show little signs of weathering and no signs of abrasion. Disarticulated skeletal elements are often found in close proximity to the rest of the otherwise articulated skeleton. The isolated and disarticulated skeletal elements identified, commonly cranial, maxillary and mandibular elements, are typical of lag deposits. The holotype QM F36211 and paratype QM F34642 were classified as autochthonous, and the remaining I. duncani paratypes and referred specimens are parautochthonous. We propose that I. duncani inhabited upper and lower delta plains near the Eromanga Sea in life. Their carcasses were buried in sediment-laden floodwaters in delta plain overbank and distributary channel deposits. Future studies should refer to I. duncani as a brackish water tolerant species.

Pliocene and early Pleistocene environments and climates of the western Snake River Plain, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thompson, R.S.

1996-01-01

Sedimentological, palynological, and magnetic susceptibility data provide paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic information from a 989 ft (301 m) core of sediments from the upper Glenns Ferry and Bruneau Formations from near the town of Bruneau, Idaho. Chronology is based on stratigraphic position, paleomagnetism, and biostratigraphic data. Palynological data from the Glenns Ferry sediments reveal a pollen flora similar to the modern regional pollen flora, with very rare occurrences of now-extirpated taxa common earlier in the Tertiary. Palynological data from the Pliocene portion of this core indicate conditions more moist than today, with cooler summers and perhaps warmer winters. The pollen spectra from the Bruneau Formation sediments resemble those of the Wisconsinan glacial period on the Snake River Plain, and hence indicate cold and dry conditions during some portion of the early Pleistocene. The deep-water Glenns Ferry lacustrine episode appears to date between approximately 3.5 to 3.3 and 2.5 Ma, and thus occurred during the middle Pliocene period of warmer-than-modern global temperatures. Similar sustained wetter-than-present conditions occurred in the same age range at sites across the western USA. This moist period was apparently followed by an interval of regional arid conditions that persisted for several hundred thousand years. -from Author

Taphonomy of Isisfordia duncani specimens from the Lower Cretaceous (upper Albian) portion of the Winton Formation, Isisford, central-west Queensland

PubMed Central

Salisbury, Steven W.

2018-01-01

Taphonomic analysis of fossil material can benefit from including the results of actualistic decay experiments. This is crucial in determining the autochthony or allochthony of fossils of juvenile and adult Isisfordia duncani, a basal eusuchian from the Lower Cretaceous (upper Albian) distal-fluvial-deltaic lower Winton Formation near Isisford. The taphonomic characteristics of the I. duncani fossils were documented using a combination of traditional taphonomic analysis alongside already published actualistic decay data from juvenile Crocodylus porosus carcasses. We found that the I. duncani holotype, paratypes and referred specimens show little signs of weathering and no signs of abrasion. Disarticulated skeletal elements are often found in close proximity to the rest of the otherwise articulated skeleton. The isolated and disarticulated skeletal elements identified, commonly cranial, maxillary and mandibular elements, are typical of lag deposits. The holotype QM F36211 and paratype QM F34642 were classified as autochthonous, and the remaining I. duncani paratypes and referred specimens are parautochthonous. We propose that I. duncani inhabited upper and lower delta plains near the Eromanga Sea in life. Their carcasses were buried in sediment-laden floodwaters in delta plain overbank and distributary channel deposits. Future studies should refer to I. duncani as a brackish water tolerant species. PMID:29657771

Deformation at longyao ground fissure and its surroundings, north China plain, revealed by ALOS PALSAR PS-InSAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Chengsheng; Lu, Zhong; Zhang, Qin; Zhao, Chaoying; Peng, Jianbing; Ji, Lingyun

2018-05-01

The Longyao ground fissure (LGF) is the longest and most active among more than 1000 ground fissures on the North China Plain. There have been many studies on the formation mechanism of the LGF, due to its scientific importance and its potential for damage to the environment. These studies have been based on both regional tectonic analysis and numerical simulations. In order to provide a better understanding of the formation mechanism, the deformation of the crack and its surrounding environment should be taken into consideration. In this paper, PS-InSAR technology was employed to assess the ground deformation of LGF and its surrounding area, using L-band ALOS-1 PALSAR images from 2007 to 2011. The characteristics of ground deformation, relationships between fissure activity and surrounding faults and groundwater exploitation were analyzed. This study shows that the north side of Longyao fault (LF) is uplifting while the south side is subsiding. This provides the tectonic conditions responsible for the activity of the ground fissure. Local groundwater exploitation also plays an important role in the development of ground fissures. InSAR observations were modeled to infer the loading depth (-2.8 km) and the slip rate (31.1 mm/yr) of LF.

New, Late Miocene mammalian assemblage from the Palo Pintado Formation (Northwestern Argentina)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zimicz, Natalia; Payrola, Patricio; del Papa, Cecilia

2018-01-01

A new mammalian assemblage from the Late Miocene Palo Pintado Formation in Northwestern Argentina is described. Specimens were exhumed from the lower levels of the unit cropping out at Tonco Valley, Salta Province. The association includes representatives of seven families and three orders: Cingulata (Macrochorobates, Vetelia, Euphractini gen et sp. indet. a and b), Notoungulata (Paedotherium, Protypotherium, Typotheriopsis), and Rodentia (Caviidae gen et sp. indet. a and b, Procardiomys, Protabrocoma, Prolagostomus, Lagostomus). This assemblage, together with stratigraphical information, suggests a Late Miocene age, probably intermediate between Chasicoan and Huayquerian SALMAs for the fossiliferous levels of the Palo Pintado Formation in Tonco Valley. Paleoecological data discernible from the faunal association suggest grassland and marsh communities that developed in the flood-plain setting under a seasonal climate with a conspicuous dry season.

On-call x-rays made easy AN Au-Yong On-call x-rays made easy , Amy Au-Yong and Nigel Broderick Churchill Livingstone Elsevier £21.99 304pp 9780702034459 0702034452 [Formula: see text].

PubMed

2011-02-10

DesigneD for clinicians involved in the management of acutely ill patients, this book enables them to recognise quickly the appearance of life-threatening conditions. It also concentrates on the interpretation of plain chest and abdominal images.

Plain Speaking: A Theory and Grammar of Spontaneous Discourse.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-06-01

reveals surface linguistic phenomena that contradict traditional theories based on single sentence studies and longer texts artificially constructed...Excerpt 1 , Chapter 1, to illustrate the importance of functional development and discernment. In the midst of discussing the case of two twins under study ...his social interactive behavior in kindergarten. Authority: Source: Study Method : Investigative filming of kids over time. Credentials: Excellent

Late Albian dinosaur tracks from the cratonic (eastern) margin of the Western Interior Seaway, Nebraska, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Joeckel, R.M.; Cunningham, J.M.; Corner, R.G.; Brown, G.W.; Phillips, P.L.; Ludvigson, Greg A.

2004-01-01

At least 22 tridactyl dinosaur tracks, poorly preserved in various degrees of expression, have recently been found at an exposure in the Dakota Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Albian) in Jefferson County, Nebraska. These tracks generally have broad, blunt digits and a broad posterior margin. The largest of the tracks measures 57 cm in length and 58 cm in width. All of the tracks lie within a stratigraphic horizon of 40 cm or less, but they do not form a single trackway. We interpret the trackmakers to have been ornithopods.The Jefferson County tracks are in a well-cemented sandstone with oscillation ripples, at a stratigraphic level between two well-established sequence boundaries. Channel forms and lateral accretion units are common in the stratigraphic interval enclosing the tracks, and the site is interpreted as a bar or sand flat in a tidally influenced river.The Jefferson County tracks are only the second known occurrence of large Mesozoic tetrapod tracks east of the Rocky Mountain Front-High Plains Margin, including the Black Hills of South Dakota, west of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, and north of the Gulf Coastal Plain. Further, this paper is the first documentation of in situdinosaur fossils from the Nebraska-Iowa area.

A Hydrological Tomography Collocated with Time-varying Gravimetry for Hydrogeology -An Example in Yun-Lin Alluvial Plain and Ming-Ju Basin in Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, K. H.; Cheng, C. C.; Hwang, C.

2016-12-01

A new inversion technique featured by the collocation of hydrological modeling and gravimetry observation is presented in this report. Initially this study started from a project attempting to build a sequence of hydrodynamic models of ground water system, which was applied to identify the supplement areas of alluvial plains and basins along the west coast of Taiwan. To calibrate the decent hydro-geological parameters for the modeling, geological evolution were carefully investigated and absolute gravity observations, along with other on-site hydrological monitoring data were specially introduced. It was discovered in the data processing that the time-varying gravimetrical data are highly sensitive to certain boundary conditions in the hydrodynamic model, which are correspondent with respective geological features. A new inversion technique coined by the term "hydrological tomography" is therefore developed by reversing the boundary condition into the unknowns to be solved. An example of accurate estimate for water storage and precipitation infiltration of a costal alluvial plain Yun-Lin is presented. In the mean time, the study of an anticline structure of the upstream basin Ming-Ju is also presented to demonstrate how a geological formation is outlined when the gravimetrical data and hydrodynamic model are re-directed into an inversion.

Using CRISM and THEMIS to characterize high thermal inertia terrains in the northern Hellas region of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McBeck, J.; Seelos, K. D.; Ackiss, S. E.; Buczkowski, D.

2014-12-01

Previous analyses of Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) data indicate that high thermal inertia (TI) materials within the cratered highlands north of Hellas are in situ bedrock units enriched in olivine. The high TI materials occur in both ~3.5 Ga infilled, flat-floored craters as well as ~3.8-4.0 Ga expanses of intercrater plains. A spatial association of the intercrater plains units with the Hellas ring structures suggests that they may have resulted from magma ascension and eruption via crustal fractures. Infilled craters may have formed after individual impact events triggered decompressional melting and effusive volcanism. Here we examine the mineralogy of both the high TI intercrater plains materials and high TI crater floor materials to the north of Hellas (30°E to 85°E and 7°S to 27°S) using Vis/NIR spectral data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM). We report on the spatial distribution and variability of observed mafic minerals (olivine, low-calcium pyroxene, and high-calcium pyroxene) to constrain whether the formation of these outcrops were caused or influenced by a single event (e.g., the Hellas impact), multiple individual events, or by some other means, and to provide overall insight into Noachian/Hesperian crustal evolution of Mars.

Impact of permafrost development on groundwater flow patterns: a numerical study considering freezing cycles on a two-dimensional vertical cut through a generic river-plain system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grenier, Christophe; Régnier, Damien; Mouche, Emmanuel; Benabderrahmane, Hakim; Costard, François; Davy, Philippe

2013-02-01

The impact of glaciation cycles on groundwater flow was studied within the framework of nuclear waste storage in underground geological formations. The eastern section of the Paris Basin (a layered aquifer with impervious/pervious alternations) in France was considered for the last 120 ka. Cold periods corresponded with arid climates. The issue of talik development below water bodies was addressed. These unfrozen zones can maintain open pathways for aquifer recharge. Transient thermal evolution was simulated on a small-scale generic unit of the landscape including a "river" and "plain". Coupled thermo-hydraulic modeling and simplified conductive heat transfer were considered for a broad range of scenarios. The results showed that when considering the current limited river dimensions and purely conductive heat transfer, taliks are expected to close within a few centuries. However, including coupled advection for flows from the river to the plain (probably pertinent for the eastern Paris Basin aquifer recharge zones) strongly delays talik closure (millennium scale). The impact on regional underground flows is expected to vary from a complete stop of recharge to a reduced recharge, corresponding to the talik zones. Consequences for future modeling approaches of the Paris Basin are discussed.

DISTRIBUTION OF RADIOACTIVITY IN AUTOLYZED CELL WALL OF BACILLUS CEREUS DURING SPHEROPLAST FORMATION1

PubMed Central

Kronish, Donald P.; Mohan, Raam R.; Schwartz, Benjamin S.

1964-01-01

Kronish, Donald P. (Warner-Lambert Research Institute, Morris Plains, N.J.), Raam R. Mohan, and Benjamin S. Schwartz. Distribution of radioactivity in autolyzed cell wall of Bacillus cereus during spheroplast formation. J. Bacteriol. 87:581–587. 1964.—Spheroplasts of Bacillus cereus strain T were produced from cells grown in the presence of uniformly labeled C14-glucose. At regular intervals during spheroplast formation, enzymatically degraded cell wall was isolated by a new procedure. Radioactivity of solubilized cell wall in cell-free material increased from 2.5 to 42% of the total incorporated label during spheroplast formation. The rate of cell-wall degradation as measured by increase in radioactivity was biphasic with relative slopes of 2.0 and 5.0. During autolytic depolymerization of B. cereus cell wall, two major components were solubilized at different rates. Chemical fractionation revealed these to be a peptide and a mucopeptide. The possibility of two enzymes being involved in spheroplast formation and cell-wall degradation is discussed. Images PMID:14127573

Beach- ridge internal architecture and use for Holocene sea-level reconstruction: A case study from the Miquelon-Langlade Isthmus (NW Atlantic)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hein, C. J.; Billy, J.; Robin, N.; FitzGerald, D.; Certain, R.

2017-12-01

The internal architecture of beach-ridge systems can provide insight into processes ongoing during its period of formation, such as changing relative sea-level (RSL). The paraglacial beach-ridge plain at Miquelon-Langlade (south of Newfoundland - NW Atlantic) is an example of a well-preserved regressive barrier. Initiation of this plain correlates with a decrease in the rate of RSL rise (from +4.4 mm/yr to 1.3 mm/yr) at around 3000 years ago. The combination of stratigraphic (ground-penetrating radar and sediment cores), topographic (RTK-GPS) and chronologic (optically stimulated luminescence, OSL) data provide a detailed understanding of the constructional history of the plain. The internal architecture of individual beach ridges are characterized by sigmoidal configurations with seaward-dipping (2.3-4.7°) beds. Field mapping data reveal the processes associated with development of individual ridges in relation to sea level elevation. First, wave-built facies (sand-and-gravel) are deposited as beach berms, likely by fair-weather waves, with their elevations controlled by sea level and the swash height of constructive waves. This is followed by the accretion of aeolian sand deposits (foredunes) on the previous relict ridge, and then colonization by pioneer grasses. The well-defined contact between coarse-grained, wave-built facies and overlying aeolian deposits is used to demonstrate the dominant influence of RSL change in the development of the barrier system and, with chronology provided by OSL dating, produce a RSL curve for the 2500-year period of its formation. A net increase of 2.4 m in the surface elevation of wave-built facies is observed across the plain, corresponding to an overall increase in mean sea level through time. Three distinct periods can be distinguished: (1) an increase from 2.4 to 1 m below modern MSL between 2400 and 1500 years (rate: +1.3 mm/yr); (2) relatively stable or slowly rising RSL (<+0.2 mm/yr) from 1400 to 700 years; and (3) a rise of ca. 0.7 m during the past 700 years (+1.1 mm/yr). This study presents a moderate-resolution RSL curve for southern Newfoundland over the last 2500 years and a field demonstration of the utility of wave-built/aeolian stratigraphic contacts in beach ridges for sea-level reconstructions in mixed clastic systems.

Hydrogeochemical and mineralogical investigations of arsenic- and humic substance-enriched aquifers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Chen-Wuing; Lai, Chih-Chieh; Chen, Yen-Yu; Lu, Kuang-Liang

2013-08-01

This study investigated the hydrogeochemical and mineralogical characteristics of arsenic-contaminated and humic-substance-enriched aquifers in the Chianan Plain, Taiwan, which is an endemic area for blackfoot disease (BFD). Factorial analysis (FA) was used to evaluate the hydrochemical characteristics of 83 groundwater samples in the Chianan Plain, and 462 geological core samples obtained from 9 drilling wells were collected to analyze their arsenic and iron contents. The major mineral phases and chemical components were determined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS). Partition of arsenic among various hosting solids in sediments was determined by sequential extraction. The results of FA showed that the hydrochemical characteristics of the groundwater samples could be grouped by 4 factors: salinization, arsenic, sulfide, and iron. Arsenic was positively correlated with alkalinity, dissolved organic/inorganic carbon, and fluorescence intensity [humic acids, (HAs)]. As(V) has a higher chelating affinity with HAs than does As(III), resulting in higher As(V) concentrations distributed throughout the reducing environment. High levels and correlations of As and HAs may cause BFD in the Chianan Plain. No correlation was found between the measured and calculated redox potentials of the various redox couples. The As(III)/As(V) was under a chemical non-equilibrium condition. The vertical distribution of the sedimentary As (solid phase) typically increased with depth, but the aqueous As concentrations were higher in the second aquifer (depth of 80-120 m). Arsenic content (solid phase) was higher in the clay/silt sediments and marine formations. The major minerals identified by XPS and SEM-EDS were goethite, hematite, magnetite, pyrite, and siderite, agreeing with the SI values calculated by PHREEQC. Arsenic content was strongly correlated with sulfur (weight%; R2 = 0.76, p < 0.05), but was weakly correlated with iron (weight%). However, a moderate correlation (R2 = 0.44-0.75; p < 0.001) between As(s) and Fe(s) in the sediments was found in the transitions in the marine and non-marine formations, especially in the fine grains. The chelation of humic complex, competition for sorption sites of organic carbon, reduction dissolution of Fe oxides are mainly responsible for the groundwater As mobility in the Chianan Plain, especially for the marine sequence.

Water quality of the Ogallala Formation, central High Plains aquifer within the North Plains Groundwater Conservation District, Texas Panhandle, 2012-13

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baldys, Stanley; Haynie, Monti M.; Beussink, Amy M.

2014-01-01

In cooperation with the North Plains Groundwater Conservation District (NPGCD), the U.S. Geological Survey collected and analyzed water-quality samples at 30 groundwater monitor wells in the NPGCD in the Texas Panhandle. All of the wells were completed in the Ogallala Formation of the central High Plains aquifer. Samples from each well were collected during February–March 2012 and in March 2013. Depth to groundwater in feet below land surface was measured at each well before sampling to determine the water-quality sampling depths. Water-quality samples were analyzed for physical properties, major ions, nutrients, and trace metals, and 6 of the 30 samples were analyzed for pesticides. There was a strong relation between specific conductance and dissolved solids as evidenced by a coefficient of determination (R2) value of 0.98. The dissolved-solids concentration in water from five wells exceeded the secondary drinking-water standard of 500 milligrams per liter set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Water from 3 of these 5 wells was near the north central part of the NPGCD. Nitrate values exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level of 10 milligrams per liter in 2 of the 30 wells. A sodium-adsorption ratio of 23.4 was measured in the sample collected from well Da-3589 in Dallam County, with the next largest sodium-adsorption ratio measured in the sample collected from well Da-3588 (12.5), also in Dallum County. The sodium-adsorption ratios measured in all other samples were less than 10. The groundwater was generally a mixed cation-bicarbonate plus carbonate type. Twenty-three trace elements were analyzed, and no concentrations exceeded the secondary drinking-water standard or maximum contaminant level set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for water supplies. In 2012, 6 of the 30 wells were sampled for commonly used pesticides. Atrazine and its degradate 2-Chloro-4-isopropylamino-6-amino-s-triazine were detected in two samples. Tebuthiuron was detected in one sample at a detection level below the reporting level but above the long-term method detection level. There were no detections of the glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), or glufosinate.

Ground water resources of southeastern Oakland County, Michigan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ferris, J.G.; Burt, E.M.; Stramel, G.J.; Crosthwaite, E.G.

1954-01-01

The area covered by this report comprises a square which measures three townships on a side and enclose 318 square miles in southeastern Oakland County. The investigation of the ground-water resources of this area was made by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Detroit Metropolitan Area Regional Planning Commission, the Michigan Department of Conservation, and the Michigan Water Resources Commission.In 1950 the population of this nine-township area exceeded 341,000, or more than 86 percent of the total population of Oakland County. This county ranks third in the state in number of industrial establishments and workers and is fifteenth in agricultural importance. Its numerous lakes and rolling uplands contribute to its top rank in the state in the number of recreational enterprises in rural or suburban areas.The climate is moderately humid. The average annual precipitation is 30 inches and the mean air temperature is 47.2° F. Snowfall averages 38 inches in the November-April interval. The growing season averages 151 days.The regional land surface slopes from northwest to southeast and has a total relief of 360 feet. Pitted outwash plains and morainal hills that are more than 1,000 feet above sea level in the northwest corner of the area give way southeastward to a sequence of terminal moraines and intervening till plains in the middle part. These give way to the broad lake plains that cover the southeastern third of the area.The area lies on the southeast edge of the Michigan Basin and the bedrock is composed of northwest dipping strata of the Devonian and Mississippian systems. The Antrim shale, of Lake Devonian and early Mississippian age, is the oldest formation cropping out beneath the mantle of glacial Berea sandstone, and Sunbury shale overlie the Antrim and are overlain by the Coldwater shale, their areas of outcrop beneath the drift lying successively farther northwest. These formations are of early Mississippian age.Throughout the area the bedrock is covered by glacial drift which ranges in thickness from 25 to more than 350 feet. The drift increases in thickness from southeast to northwest, but considerable relief on the underlying bedrock surface greatly modifies this trend. Extensive moraines, till plains, lake plains, and gravel outwash plains cover the area. In the northwestern third of the area an extensive upland of gravel plains is dotted with lakes ranging from a few feet to more than 100 feet in depth.Precipitation is the perennial source of all water in this area, whether on the surface of underground. The average annual rainfall on the nine-townships is equivalent to a continuous supply of 450 m.g.d. or  9 times the combined annual withdrawal from all wells in the area.About 53 percent of the area is drained by the Clinton River, 44 percent by the River Rouge, and the remaining 3 percent by the Huron River. Less than one-third of the annual precipitation reappears as surface discharge from the watersheds of this area.About two-thirds of the annual precipitation on the area is lost by evaporation from water and land surfaces and by transpirations from vegetative cover. A substantial part of this large annual water loss is from the many lakes and other exposed water surfaces and from contiguous lands where the depth to the water table is slight. Average annual water losses by evapotranspiration are equivalent to about 280 m.g.d. or nearly 6 times the combined withdrawal from all ground-water supplies in the area.The principal aquifers are the alluvial deposits bordering streams and the buried outwash deposits which represent alluvial fills in preglacial or interglacial stream channels. Intensive well developments in the urban areas have greatly lowered ground-water levels in the buried outwash deposits, have brought localized problems of declining well yield, and have induced migration of mineralized waters from the underlying consolidated formations. During 1952, withdrawals of ground water in the nine township area averages about 50 m.g.d., most of this quantity being pumped from municipal wells. This annual pumpage was distributed as follows: 60 percent in Pontiac and environs; 20 percent in Birmingham, Royal Oak and Troy Township; and the remaining 20 percent throughout the suburban and rural areas.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

May, R.T.; Strand, J.R.; Reid, B.E.

Uranium favorability of the Sangre de Cristo Formation (Pennsylvanian-Permian) in the Las Vegas basin has been evaluated. The Las Vegas basin project area, located in Colfax, Mora, and San Miguel Counties, New Mexico, comprises about 3,489 sq mi. The formation contains sedimentologic and stratigraphic characteristics that are considered favorable for uranium deposition. Field investigations consisted of section measuring, rock sampling, and ground radiometric reconnaissance. North-south and east-west cross sections of the basin were prepared from well logs and measured sections. Petrographic, chemical, and spectrographic analyses were conducted on selected samples. Stratigraphic and sedimentologic information were used to determine depositional environments.more » The most favorable potential host rocks include red to pink, coarse-grained, poorly sorted, feldspathic to arkosic lenticular sandstones with stacked sandstone thicknesses of more than 20 ft and sandstone-to-shale ratios between 1:1 and 2:1. The sandstone is interbedded with mudstone and contains carbonaceous debris and anomalous concentrations of uranium locally. Areas of maximum favorability are found in a braided-stream, alluvial-plain depositional environment in the north-central part of the Las Vegas basin. There, carbonaceous material is well preserved, probably due to rapid subsidence and burial. Furthermore, uranium favorability is highest in the lower half of the formation because carbonaceous wood and plant fragments, as well as known uranium deposits, are concentrated in this zone. Piedmont deposits in the north and east, and meander-belt, alluvial-plain deposits in the south, are not considered favorable because of the paucity of uranium deposits and a minimum of carbonaceous material.« less

Sedimentology of paleochannels on foreland coastal plain, Judith River Formation (upper Cretaceous), southeast Alberta

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Koster, E.H.

1984-04-01

The upper 90 m (295 ft) of the sub-Bearpaw Judith River Formation, continuously exposed in the badlands along the Red Deer River 185 km (115 mi) east of Calgary, is famous for the unrivaled assemblage of dinosaur fossils. Dinosaur Provincial Park presents are a rare opportunity to view the architecture of a foreland coastal-plain sequence as well as to clarify the origin and distribution of subbituminous coal zones and gas reservoirs associated with this formation across southeast Alberta. The distal reaches of paleodrainage from the developing Cordillera to the Western Interior seaway are being examined by north-south traversed across themore » badlands. Sharp-based paleochannel units, enclosed by rooted, olive-gray mudstone sequences that are commonly 4-6 m (13-20 ft) thick, vary between 2 end members. The first contains laterally accreted sand-mud couplets with abundant macrofloral debris, and represents cyclical, low-energy growth of point bars, possible with an estuarine influence. The second, mainly comprising cosets of large trough cross-beds with mudstone intraclasts, was formed by episodic aggradation of high-energy systems. An intermediate composite type displays evidence for an energy increase as channel sinuosity decreased. This variation in paleochannel type is attributed to alternating alluviation/rejuvenation associated with an unstable base level. Coal zones and potential reservoirs appear to be associated with the transgressive and regressive phases, respectively, of the Bearpaw coast. Amalgamation of paleochannels - marked by laterally extensive horizons of bone fragments, lithic and intraclastic gravel - is more common seaward over the axial region of the Sweetgrass arch.« less

Geology and ground-water features of salt springs, seeps, and plains in the Arkansas and Red River basins of western Oklahoma and adjacent parts of Kansas and Texas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ward, P.E.

1963-01-01

The salt springs, seeps, and plains described in this report are in the Arkansas and Red River basins in western Oklahoma and adjacent areas in Kansas and Texas. The springs and seeps contribute significantly to the generally poor water quality of the rivers by bringing salt (HaCI) to the surface at an estimated daily rate of more than 8,000 tons. The region investigated is characterized by low hills and rolling plains. Many of the rivers are eroded 100 feet or more below the .surrounding upland surface and in places the valleys are bordered by steep bluffs. The alluvial plains of the major rivers are wide and the river channels are shallow and unstable. The flow of many surface streams is intermittent, especially in the western part of the area. All the natural salt-contributing areas studied are within the outcrop area of rocks of Permian age. The Permian rocks, commonly termed red beds, are composed principally of red and gray gypsiferous shale, siltstone, sandstone, gypsum, anhydrite, and dolomite. Many of the formations contain halite in the subsurface. The halite occurs mostly as discontinuous lenses in shale, although some of the thicker, more massive beds are extensive. It underlies the entire region studied at depths ranging from about 30 feet to more than 2,000 feet. The salt and associated strata show evidence of extensive removal of salt through solution by ground water. Although the salt generally occurs in relatively impervious shale small joints and fractures ,allow the passage of small quantities of water which dissolves the salt. Salt water occurs in the report area at depths ranging from less than 100 feet to more than 1,000 feet. Salt water occurs both as meteoric and connate, but the water emerging as salt springs is meteoric. Tritium analyses show that the age of the water from several springs is less than 20 years. The salt springs, seeps, and plains are confined to 13 local areas. The flow of the springs and seeps is small, but the chloride concentration in the water ranges from a few hundred parts per million to about 190,000 ppm. The wide range of concentration is believed to be due, in part, to differential dilution by fresh water. Alluvium in the vicinity of the salt springs remains saturated with salt water and evaporation from the alluvial surface causes the formation of a salt crust during dry weather. Those areas appear as salt plains that range in size from less than an acre to as much as 60 square miles. The rocks exposed at the surface in the vicinity of the salt springs are permeable enough to allow the infiltration of some precipitation. Under certain geologic and hydrologic conditions ground water percolates down and through salt-bearing rocks where it dissolves the .salt. Hydrostatic pressure of ground water at higher elevations forces the salt water to emerge as salt springs at lower elevations.

Geology and ground-water resources of Washington, D.C., and vicinity

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnston, Paul McKelvey

1964-01-01

The area of this report includes 436 square miles centered about the District of Columbia. The area contains parts of two distinctly different physiographic provinces-the Piedmont and the Coastal Plain. The Fall Line, which separates the Piedmont province on the west from the Coastal Plain Province on the east, bisects the area diagonally from northeast to southwest. Northwest of the Fall Line, deeply weathered igneous and metamorphic rocks are exposed ; to the southeast, these rocks are covered by Coastal Plain sediments; the nonconformity between crystalline rock and sediments dips southeast at an average rate of about 125 feet per mile. The rocks of the Piedmont include: (1) schist, phyllite, and quartzite of the Wissahickon Formation; (2) altered mafic rocks such as greenstone and serpentine; (3) the Laurel Gneiss of Chapman, 1942, and the Sykesville Formation of Jonas, 1928--both probably derived from the Wissahickon ; and (4) later granitic intrusive rocks. Lying upon this basement of hard rocks east of the Fall Line are the generally unconsolidated sediments of the Coastal Plain, which include gravel, sand, and clay, ranging in age from Cretaceous to Recent. These sediments measure only a few inches at their western extremity but thicken to 1,800 feet at the southeast corner of the mapped area. Owing to the great diversity in the geology of the two provinces, the waterbearing characteristics of the rocks also vary greatly. In the Piedmont, ground water occurs under unconfined or water-table conditions in openings and fissures in the hard rocks or in the residual weathered blanket that overlies them. In the Coastal Plain, the shallow wells tap unconfined water, but beneath the upper clay layers the water is contained in the sand and gravel under artesian pressure and must be recovered by deep drilled wells. Wells are of three types--drilled, bored, and dug. Drilled wells furnish a permanent water supply and are the least subject to pollution when properly constructed. Bored or dug wells allow greater storage capacity and are satisfactory for domestic supplies in some locations, but they are polluted easily. If not properly constructed or of sufficient depth, they may fail in dry weather. Ground-water supplies for domestic use, 5 to 10 gpm (gallons per minute), are obtainable in most places. In the Piedmont, recorded yields in drilled wells range from 0.2 to 212 gpm. In the Coastal Plain, wells yield from 1 to 800 gpm. The quality of the ground water in the report area is generally satisfactory for domestic, industrial, and irrigation use. High iron content and corrosiveness are troublesome in places. The water is soft to moderately hard--2 to 175 ppm (parts per million). Water in the Piedmont province is. dominantly the calcium and bicarbonate type; in the Coastal Plain most water is of calcium-magnesium bicarbonate type. In the Piedmont, careful location of wells with respect to the geology (rock type and structure) and to topography usually results in higher yields and may mean the difference between success and failure. In the Coastal Plain, drilled artesian wells are not affected by topography, but the yield obtained depends upon the penetration of a water-bearing sand or gravel bed at sufficient depth. The early settlers obtained water from the springs and streams, and later from dug wells. After Washington was established as the Capital in 1800, water was obtained from public and privately owned wells. Water was piped from some of the springs to government buildings and to private homes and business houses. In 1863 a diversion dam was completed in the Potomac above Great Falls and a conduit was built into the city to furnish a public water supply. This system with modifications has been in use ever since. A new diversion dam and pumping station at Little Falls was put into service in the summer of 1959. In 1961 the total pumpage from Coastal Plain aquifers in the report area was estimate

Geology, water resources and usable ground-water storage capacity of part of Solano County, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thomasson, H.G.; Olmsted, F.H.; LeRoux, E.F.

1960-01-01

The area described is confined largely to the valley-floor and foothill lands of Solano County, which lies directly between Sacramento, the State capital, and San Francisco. The area is considered in two subareas: The Putah area, which extends from Putah Creek southward to the Montezuma Hills and from the foothills of the Coast Ranges eastward to the west edge of the Yolo Bypass; and the Suisun-Fairfield area, which is to the southwest in the notch in the Coast Ranges through which the waters of the Great Central Valley of California reach San Francisco Bay. There are no known hydrologic interconnections between the two subareas, through either surface streams or underground aquifers. The climate of the area is characterized by warm, rainless summers and by cool winters in which temperatures seldom drop much below freezing. The rainfall ranges from about 17 inches per year along the east side to perhaps 24 inches in the foothills to the west, and irrigation is necessary for all crops except dry-farmed grains, pastures, and some orchards. PUTAH AREA The Putah area occupies the southwestern corner of the Sacramento Valley, a topographic and structural basin underlain by a thick accumulation of sediments eroded from the surrounding hills and mountains by the Sacramento River and its tributaries. The eastern Coast Ranges and foothills lying west of the Sacramento Valley are a generally northward-trending belt of eastward-dipping sedimentary rocks that range in age from Cretaceous to Pleistocene. Successively younger strata are exposed eastward, and the essentially undeformed deposits of late Pleistocene and Recent age that immediately underlie the valley lap onto the tilted sediments of the foothills. Most of the streams of the Putah area rise east of the high ridge of Cretaceous rocks marking the western boundaries of Solano and Yolo Counties, but Putah Creek, the largest stream in the area, rises far west of that ridge and flows across it in a deep, narrow canyon. Putah Creek and the smaller streams have constructed an alluvial plain, herein designated the Putah plain, which slopes eastward and southeastward from the foothills toward the Sacramento River. A large part of the Putah plain is traversed by a branching set of distributary channel ridges or natural levees formed at times of overflow of Putah Creek. The rocks in the Putah area range in age from Cretaceous to Recent. For the purposes of this investigation they are divided into eight geologic or stratigraphic units, from youngest to oldest: (1) Stream-channel deposits, (2) younger alluvium, (3) older alluvium, (4) Tehama formation and related continental sediments, (5) volcanic sedimentary rocks, (6) basalt, (7) undifferentiated sedimentary rocks of Paleocene(?) and Eocene age, and (8) undifferentiated rocks of Cretaceous age. The stream-channel deposits are predominantly loose sand and gravel along the channel of Putah Creek. In part they are actively moving downstream and shifting. The younger alluvium, of Recent age, consists of flood-plain deposits underlying the Putah plain, Vaca Valley, Pleasants Valley, and the small valleys in the foothills north of Putah Creek and in the English Hills. Exposures of younger alluvium are characterized by soils lacking significant profile development and in many places by channel-ridge topography. The older alluvium occupies the stratigraphic interval between the younger alluvium and the Tehama formation and related continental sediments and is probably of late Pleistocene age. Its contact with the underlying Tehama formation and related continental sediments is unconformable near the foothills, but it may be gradational beneath much of the Putah plain. The base of the older alluvium is not well defined at many places but is inferred to be at the bottom of an irregular and ill-defined zone of coarse deposits, which ranges from about 50 feet to more than 150 feet below the land surface. Exposures of the older

Medusae Fossae #1

NASA Image and Video Library

1998-03-13

Extensive wind-swept plains of the Medusae Fossae formation on Mars. This northern subframe image, frame 3104, is of a 3.0 x 4.7 km area centered near 2.4 degrees north, 163.8 degrees west. Science Magazine, Volume 279, Number 5357, 13 March 1998, M. C. Malin, et. al., "Early Views of the Martian Surface from the Mars Orbiter Camera of Mars Global Surveyor", pp. 1681-1685 (Fig. 1A) http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00800

Practical strategies for effective lectures.

PubMed

Lenz, Peter H; McCallister, Jennifer W; Luks, Andrew M; Le, Tao T; Fessler, Henry E

2015-04-01

Lecturing is an essential teaching skill for scientists and health care professionals in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. However, few medical or scientific educators have received training in contemporary techniques or technology for large audience presentation. Interactive lecturing outperforms traditional, passive-style lecturing in educational outcomes, and is being increasingly incorporated into large group presentations. Evidence-based techniques range from the very simple, such as inserting pauses for audience discussion, to more technologically advanced approaches such as electronic audience response systems. Alternative software platforms such as Prezi can overcome some of the visual limits that the ubiquitous PowerPoint imposes on complex scientific narratives, and newer technology formats can help foster the interactive learning environment. Regardless of the technology, adherence to good principles of instructional design, multimedia learning, visualization of quantitative data, and informational public speaking can improve any lecture. The storyline must be clear, logical, and simplified compared with how it might be prepared for scientific publication. Succinct outline and summary slides can provide a roadmap for the audience. Changes of pace, and summaries or other cognitive breaks inserted every 15-20 minutes can renew attention. Graphics that emphasize clear, digestible data graphs or images over tables, and simple, focused tables over text slides, are more readily absorbed. Text slides should minimize words, using simple fonts in colors that contrast to a plain background. Adherence to these well-established principles and addition of some new approaches and technologies will yield an engaging lecture worth attending.

Resources for comparing the speed and performance of medical autocoders.

PubMed

Berman, Jules J

2004-06-15

Concept indexing is a popular method for characterizing medical text, and is one of the most important early steps in many data mining efforts. Concept indexing differs from simple word or phrase indexing because concepts are typically represented by a nomenclature code that binds a medical concept to all equivalent representations. A concept search on the term renal cell carcinoma would be expected to find occurrences of hypernephroma, and renal carcinoma (concept equivalents). The purpose of this study is to provide freely available resources to compare speed and performance among different autocoders. These tools consist of: 1) a public domain autocoder written in Perl (a free and open source programming language that installs on any operating system); 2) a nomenclature database derived from the unencumbered subset of the publicly available Unified Medical Language System; 3) a large corpus of autocoded output derived from a publicly available medical text. A simple lexical autocoder was written that parses plain-text into a listing of all 1,2,3, and 4-word strings contained in text, assigning a nomenclature code for text strings that match terms in the nomenclature. The nomenclature used is the unencumbered subset of the 2003 Unified Medical Language System (UMLS). The unencumbered subset of UMLS was reduced to exclude homonymous one-word terms and proper names, resulting in a term/code data dictionary containing about a half million medical terms. The Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), a 92+ Megabyte publicly available medical opus, was used as sample medical text for the autocoder. The autocoding Perl script is remarkably short, consisting of just 38 command lines. The 92+ Megabyte OMIM file was completely autocoded in 869 seconds on a 2.4 GHz processor (less than 10 seconds per Megabyte of text). The autocoded output file (9,540,442 bytes) contains 367,963 coded terms from OMIM and is distributed with this manuscript. A public domain Perl script is provided that can parse through plain-text files of any length, matching concepts against an external nomenclature. The script and associated files can be used freely to compare the speed and performance of autocoding software.

Imaging of plantar fascia disorders: findings on plain radiography, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging.

PubMed

Draghi, Ferdinando; Gitto, Salvatore; Bortolotto, Chandra; Draghi, Anna Guja; Ori Belometti, Gioia

2017-02-01

Plantar fascia (PF) disorders commonly cause heel pain and disability in the general population. Imaging is often required to confirm diagnosis. This review article aims to provide simple and systematic guidelines for imaging assessment of PF disease, focussing on key findings detectable on plain radiography, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Sonographic characteristics of plantar fasciitis include PF thickening, loss of fibrillar structure, perifascial collections, calcifications and hyperaemia on Doppler imaging. Thickening and signal changes in the PF as well as oedema of adjacent soft tissues and bone marrow can be assessed on MRI. Radiographic findings of plantar fasciitis include PF thickening, cortical irregularities and abnormalities in the fat pad located deep below the PF. Plantar fibromatosis appears as well-demarcated, nodular thickenings that are iso-hypoechoic on ultrasound and show low-signal intensity on MRI. PF tears present with partial or complete fibre interruption on both ultrasound and MRI. Imaging description of further PF disorders, including xanthoma, diabetic fascial disease, foreign-body reactions and plantar infections, is detailed in the main text. Ultrasound and MRI should be considered as first- and second-line modalities for assessment of PF disorders, respectively. Indirect findings of PF disease can be ruled out on plain radiography. Teaching Points • PF disorders commonly cause heel pain and disability in the general population.• Imaging is often required to confirm diagnosis or reveal concomitant injuries.• Ultrasound and MRI respectively represent the first- and second-line modalities for diagnosis.• Indirect findings of PF disease can be ruled out on plain radiography.

Impact of smokeless tobacco packaging on perceptions and beliefs among youth, young adults, and adults in the U.S: findings from an internet-based cross-sectional survey

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Research demonstrates that tobacco packaging elements (including health warning labels, descriptive characteristics, and corporate branding) are associated with knowledge of health risks and product appeal with cigarettes. Yet, little research has assessed this with smokeless tobacco (SLT) packaging. This study evaluates the association between three SLT packaging elements with knowledge of health risks and perceptions of novelty and appeal. Additionally, we assess how effects of these messages may differ across age groups, including youth (14-17 years), young adults (18-25 years), and older adults (26-65 years). Methods 1000 participants were administered a web-based survey in 2010 and shown three sets of SLT packs in random order, varied by descriptor (flavor descriptor vs. none), warning label format (graphic vs. text), and corporate branding (branded vs. plain packaging). Participants rated the packs compared with “no difference” on appeal, novelty, and risk perceptions associated with product use. Chi-square tests were used to test for significant differences in pack selections. Multinomial regression was employed to evaluate the association between effects of packaging elements and participant age. Results More respondents selected the pack with the graphic warning label as the pack to make them consider the health risks associated with SLT use, attract their attention, and be least attractive to a smoker. The product with the text warning label was the product someone their age would want to be seen using and would appeal to peers. The SLT pack with the flavor descriptor was not associated with health risks associated with product use. The pack with corporate branding was selected as more appealing, to attract attention, and one they would want to be seen using; the plain pack was less attractive to smokers. Youth and young adults were more likely to indicate that pack elements affected their perceptions of appeal and risk associated with SLT products. Conclusion These results suggest that SLT pack characteristics have a measurable effect on perceptions of health risk and product appeal. Future research should assess these findings in the context of harm reduction. Specifically, research is needed to determine whether pack elements on SLT products can effectively convey risk and harm. PMID:24433301

Impact of smokeless tobacco packaging on perceptions and beliefs among youth, young adults, and adults in the U.S: findings from an internet-based cross-sectional survey.

PubMed

Adkison, Sarah E; Bansal-Travers, Maansi; Smith, Danielle M; O'Connor, Richard J; Hyland, Andrew J

2014-01-17

Research demonstrates that tobacco packaging elements (including health warning labels, descriptive characteristics, and corporate branding) are associated with knowledge of health risks and product appeal with cigarettes. Yet, little research has assessed this with smokeless tobacco (SLT) packaging. This study evaluates the association between three SLT packaging elements with knowledge of health risks and perceptions of novelty and appeal. Additionally, we assess how effects of these messages may differ across age groups, including youth (14-17 years), young adults (18-25 years), and older adults (26-65 years). 1000 participants were administered a web-based survey in 2010 and shown three sets of SLT packs in random order, varied by descriptor (flavor descriptor vs. none), warning label format (graphic vs. text), and corporate branding (branded vs. plain packaging). Participants rated the packs compared with "no difference" on appeal, novelty, and risk perceptions associated with product use. Chi-square tests were used to test for significant differences in pack selections. Multinomial regression was employed to evaluate the association between effects of packaging elements and participant age. More respondents selected the pack with the graphic warning label as the pack to make them consider the health risks associated with SLT use, attract their attention, and be least attractive to a smoker. The product with the text warning label was the product someone their age would want to be seen using and would appeal to peers. The SLT pack with the flavor descriptor was not associated with health risks associated with product use. The pack with corporate branding was selected as more appealing, to attract attention, and one they would want to be seen using; the plain pack was less attractive to smokers. Youth and young adults were more likely to indicate that pack elements affected their perceptions of appeal and risk associated with SLT products. These results suggest that SLT pack characteristics have a measurable effect on perceptions of health risk and product appeal. Future research should assess these findings in the context of harm reduction. Specifically, research is needed to determine whether pack elements on SLT products can effectively convey risk and harm.

Geologic map of the Barrymore Quadrangle (V-59), Venus

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Jeffrey R.; Komatsu, Goro; Baker, Victor R.

1999-01-01

The Barrymore quadrangle (V–59) is a predominantly ridged plains region south of Imdr Regio, incorporating portions of Helen, Nuptadi, and Nsomeka Planitiae. The map area extends from lat 50°–75° S. and long 180°–240°, with nearly 70% coverage by cycle 1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images (left-look, incidence angles 16°–23°) and complete coverage by cycle 2 images (right-look, incidence angles 20°–25°) (fig. 1). The majority of the map area is covered by regional plains material that may either be smooth or deformed by wrinkle ridges or ridge belts of variable spacing. The difference in elevation between highest and lowest points in the map area is about 2.3 km. A north-south-oriented, 1,375-km linear ridge belt named “Saule Dorsa” is in the center of the region. The southern tip of this belt is intersected by a stratigraphically complicated, east-west-trending intermittent series of disrupted material, arcuate depressions and rises, regional plains, and volcanic centers. This region (hereafter referred to as the “east-west disrupted zone”) lies within a belt between 63°–67° S. extending from Kadlu Dorsa to Moombi Corona. A high concentration of canali-type channels (long sinuous lava channels that may contain subsidiary channels that branch off from the main channel [Baker and others, 1992; Komatsu and others, 1992]) occurs in Nsomeka Planitia. This includes Xulab Vallis and Citlalpul Valles, which form the eastern extent of a 3,000-km-long canali system (Komatsu and others, 1993). Three instances of canali bifurcation from north-south to east-west orientations occur in this region (fig. 2). Several large impact craters with fluidized ejecta blanket (FEB) outflows occur in the map area, along with some impact crater extended deposits (parabolas). The latter are mapped as surficial material using stipple patterns over the plains materials. These surficial deposits show variations in radar backscatter properties between cycle 1 and cycle 2 images related to orientation of aeolian dune or ripple faces (for example, Weitz and others, 1994; table 1). This region provides an interesting geologic setting for interpreting the history of regional and local plains formation and evolution, mainly due to development and subsequent deformation of the areally extensive plains units and accompanying canali (Komatsu and Baker, 1994).

Diverse Early Paleocene Fossil Floras from the San Juan Basin (New Mexico, USA) Linked to Warm and Wet Climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flynn, A. G.; Peppe, D. J.

2017-12-01

Early Paleocene floras from the Northern Great Plains of North America are typically far less diverse than floras from the latest Cretaceous, and are commonly dominated by long-ranging, cosmopolitan taxa. Additionally, there is pattern of decreasing species richness from the early to the middle Paleocene concurrent with a decrease in mean annual temperature (MAT). However, a diverse rainforest flora from the Denver Basin, Colorado 1.5 Myr after the K-Pg boundary run contrary to these trends. Whether this flora represents an isolated response to the extinction and climate change or regional differences between floras in the Northern Great Plains and southern North America is unclear. The majority of early Paleocene floras from North America are derived from the Northern Great Plains inhibiting regional comparisons of floral diversity, paleoclimate, and floral response to climate change or north-gradients in diversity and species richness. The San Juan Basin (SJB), located in northwest New Mexico, preserves a continuous sequence of early Paleocene terrestrial deposits making it an ideal area to study early Paleocene fossil floras from southern North America. Here we present an assessment of floral diversity and terrestrial paleoclimate reconstruction using leaf physiognomy during the first 2.6 Myrs of the early Paleocene from the SJB. Fossil plants were collected from the early Paleocene Ojo Alamo Sandstone and lower Nacimiento Formation corresponding to magnetic polarity chrons 29r - 28n ( 66.0 - 63.5 Mya). The SJB flora is more diverse than contemporaneous floras from the Northern Great Plains. The majority of SJB taxa are endemic, while taxa common in the Northern Great Plains are absent. Paleoclimate estimates using leaf physiognomy indicate high MAT ( 22-28 oC) and relatively high mean annual precipitation ( 1400-2000 mm/yr). These paleoclimate estimates are significantly warmer and wetter than previously studied localities in the Northern Great Plains. A decrease in floral diversity was also observed in the SJB 64.5 Mya, which corresponds to a decrease in MAT. We hypothesize the warmer and wetter climate in the SJB led to higher rates of speciation and greater diversity during the early Paleocene suggesting that climatic conditions played an important role in the floral response to the K-Pg extinction.

The Sylview graphical interface to the SYLVAN STAND STRUCTURE model with examples from southern bottomland hardwood forests

Treesearch

David R. Larsen; Ian Scott

2010-01-01

In the field of forestry, the output of forest growth models provide a wealth of detailed information that can often be difficult to analyze and perceive due to presentation either as plain text summary tables or static stand visualizations. This paper describes the design and implementation of a cross-platform computer application for dynamic and interactive forest...

Water-Quality Constituents, Dissolved-Organic-Carbon Fractions, and Disinfection By-Product Formation in Water from Community Water-Supply Wells in New Jersey, 1998-99

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hopple, Jessica A.; Barringer, Julia L.; Koleis, Janece

2007-01-01

Water samples were collected from 20 community water-supply wells in New Jersey to assess the chemical quality of the water before and after chlorination, to characterize the types of organic carbon present, and to determine the disinfection by-product formation potential. Water from the selected wells previously had been shown to contain concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) that were greater than 0.2 mg/L. Of the selected wells, five are completed in unconfined (or semi-confined) glacial-sediment aquifers of the Piedmont and Highlands (New England) Physiographic Provinces, five are completed in unconfined bedrock aquifers of the Piedmont Physiographic Province, and ten are completed in unconsolidated sediments of the Coastal Plain Physiographic Province. Four of the ten wells in the Coastal Plain are completed in confined parts of the aquifers; the other six are in unconfined aquifers. One or more volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were detected in untreated water from all of the 16 wells in unconfined aquifers, some at concentrations greater than maximum contaminant levels. Those compounds detected included aliphatic compounds such as trichloroethylene and 1,1,1-trichloroethane, aromatic compounds such as benzene, the trihalomethane compound, chloroform, and the gasoline additive methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE). Concentrations of sodium and chloride in water from one well in a bedrock aquifer and sulfate in water from another exceeded New Jersey secondary standards for drinking water. The source of the sulfate was geologic materials, but the sodium and chloride probably were derived from human inputs. DOC fractions were separated by passing water samples through XAD resin columns to determine hydrophobic fractions from hydrophilic fractions. Concentrations of hydrophobic acids were slightly lower than those of combined hydrophilic acids, neutral compounds, and low molecular weight compounds in most samples. Water samples from the 20 wells were adjusted to a pH of 7, dosed with sodium hypochlorite, and incubated for 168 hours (seven days) at 25 ?C to form disinfection by-products (DBPs). Concentrations of the DBPs-trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, haloacetonitriles, and chlorate-were measured. Concentrations of these compounds, with few exceptions, were higher in water from Coastal Plain wells than from wells in glacial and bedrock aquifers. The organic-carbon fractions were dosed with sodium hypochlorite, incubated for 168 hours at 25 ?C, and analyzed for trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, haloacetonitriles, and chlorate. Concentrations of trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids were higher in most of the hydrophobic organic-acid fractions than in the hydrophilic fractions, with the highest concentrations in samples from Coastal Plain aquifers. Traces of haloacetonitriles were measured, mostly in the hydrophilic fraction. The aromaticity of the precursor DOC, as estimated by measurements of the absorbance of ultraviolet light at 254 nanometers, apparently is a factor in the DBP formation potentials determined, as aromaticity was greater in the samples that developed high concentrations of DBPs. VOCs may have contributed to the organic carbon present in some of the samples, but much of the DOC present in water from the 20 wells appeared to be natural in origin. The sediments of the Coastal Plain aquifers, in particular, contain substantial amounts of organic matter, which contribute ammonia, organic nitrogen, and aromatic DOC compounds to the ground water. Thus, the geologic characteristics of the aquifers appear to be a major factor in the potential for ground water to form DBPs when chlorinated.

Evidence for rapid topographic evolution and crater degradation on Mercury from simple crater morphometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fassett, Caleb I.; Crowley, Malinda C.; Leight, Clarissa; Dyar, M. Darby; Minton, David A.; Hirabayashi, Masatoshi; Thomson, Bradley J.; Watters, Wesley A.

2017-06-01

Examining the topography of impact craters and their evolution with time is useful for assessing how fast planetary surfaces evolve. Here, new measurements of depth/diameter (d/D) ratios for 204 craters of 2.5 to 5 km in diameter superposed on Mercury's smooth plains are reported. The median d/D is 0.13, much lower than expected for newly formed simple craters ( 0.21). In comparison, lunar craters that postdate the maria are much less modified, and the median crater in the same size range has a d/D ratio that is nearly indistinguishable from the fresh value. This difference in crater degradation is remarkable given that Mercury's smooth plains and the lunar maria likely have ages that are comparable, if not identical. Applying a topographic diffusion model, these results imply that crater degradation is faster by a factor of approximately two on Mercury than on the Moon, suggesting more rapid landform evolution on Mercury at all scales.