Coupled and complex: Human-environment interaction in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, USA     

David Bennett  David McGinnis 《Geoforum》2008,39(2):833-845

Complexity theory has received considerable attention over the past decade from a wide variety of disciplines. Some who write on this topic suggest that complexity theory will lead to a unifying understanding of complex phenomena; others dismiss it as a passing and disruptive fad. We suggest that for the analysis of coupled natural/human systems, the truth emerges from the middle ground. As an approach focused as much on the connections among system elements as the elements themselves, we argue that complexity theory provides a useful conceptual framework for the study of coupled natural/human systems. It is, if nothing else, a framework that leads us to ask interesting questions about, for example, sustainability, resilience, threshold events, and predictability.In this paper we attempt to demystify the ongoing discussions on complexity theory by linking its evocative and overloaded terminology to real-world processes. We illustrate how a shift in focus from system elements to connections among elements can lead to meaningful insight into human-environment interactions that might otherwise be overlooked. We ground our discussion in ongoing interdisciplinary research surrounding Yellowstone National Park’s northern elk winter range; a tightly coupled natural/human system that has been the center of debate, conflict, and compromise for more than 135 years.  相似文献   

Depths of Partial Crystallization of H2O-bearing MORB: Phase Equilibria Simulations of Basalts at the MAR near Ascension Island (7 11{degrees}S)     

Almeev  Renat; Holtz  Francois; Koepke  Jurgen; Haase  Karsten; Devey  Colin 《Journal of Petrology》2008,49(1):25-45

Phase equilibria simulations were performed on naturally quenchedbasaltic glasses to determine crystallization conditions priorto eruption of magmas at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) east ofAscension Island (7–11°S). The results indicate thatmid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) magmas beneath different segmentsof the MAR have crystallized over a wide range of pressures(100–900 MPa). However, each segment seems to have a specificcrystallization history. Nearly isobaric crystallization conditions(100–300 MPa) were obtained for the geochemically enrichedMORB magmas of the central segments, whereas normal (N)-MORBmagmas of the bounding segments are characterized by polybariccrystallization conditions (200–900 MPa). In addition,our results demonstrate close to anhydrous crystallization conditionsof N-MORBs, whereas geochemically enriched MORBs were successfullymodeled in the presence of 0·4–1 wt% H₂O in theparental melts. These estimates are in agreement with direct(Fourier transform IR) measurements of H₂O abundances in basalticglasses and melt inclusions for selected samples. Water contentsdetermined in the parental melts are in the range 0·04–0·09and 0·30–0·55 wt% H₂O for depleted and enrichedMORBs, respectively. Our results are in general agreement (within±200 MPa) with previous approaches used to evaluate pressureestimates in MORB. However, the determination of pre-eruptiveconditions of MORBs, including temperature and water contentin addition to pressure, requires the improvement of magma crystallizationmodels to simulate liquid lines of descent in the presence ofsmall amounts of water. KEY WORDS: MORB; Mid-Atlantic Ridge; depth of crystallization; water abundances; phase equilibria calculations; cotectic crystallization; pressure estimates; polybaric fractionation  相似文献   

Geochronology of Pliocene volcanism in the Dzhavakheti Highland (the Lesser Caucasus). Part 1: Western part of the Dzhavakheti Highland     

V. A. Lebedev  S. N. Bubnov  O. Z. Dudauri  G. T. Vashakidze 《Stratigraphy and Geological Correlation》2008,16(2):204-224

Isotopic-geochronological study of the Pliocene magmatic activity in western part of the Dzhavakheti Highland (northwestern region of the Lesser Caucasus) is carried out. The results obtained imply that the Pliocene magmatic activity lasted in this part of the highland approximately 2 million years from 3.75 to 1.75–1.55 Ma. As is established, the studied volcanic rocks correspond in composition mostly to K-Na subalkaline and more abundant normal basalts. Time constraints of main phases in development of basic volcanism within the study region are figured out. We assume that individual pulses of silicic to moderately silicic volcanism presumably took place in the Dzhavakheti Highland about 3.2 and 2.5 Ma ago.  相似文献   

On the Assessment of Failure in Slope Stability Analysis by the Finite Element Method   总被引：3，自引：0，他引：3  

H. Zheng  D. F. Liu  C. G. Li 《Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering》2008,41(4):629-639

  相似文献   

Quantitative sinkhole hazard assessment. A case study from the Ebro Valley evaporite alluvial karst (NE Spain)     

Francisco Gutiérrez  Jesús Guerrero  Pedro Lucha 《Natural Hazards》2008,45(2):211-233

Quantitative sinkhole hazard assessments in karst areas allow calculation of the potential sinkhole risk and the performance of cost-benefit analyses. These estimations are of practical interest for planning, engineering, and insurance purposes. The sinkhole hazard assessments should include two components: the probability of occurrence of sinkholes (sinkholes/km² year) and the severity of the sinkholes, which mainly refers to the subsidence mechanisms (progressive passive bending or catastrophic collapse) and the size of the sinkholes at the time of formation; a critical engineering design parameter. This requires the compilation of an exhaustive database on recent sinkholes, including information on the: (1) location, (2) chronology (precise date or age range), (3) size, and (4) subsidence mechanisms and rate. This work presents a hazard assessment from an alluvial evaporite karst area (0.81 km²) located in the periphery of the city of Zaragoza (Ebro River valley, NE Spain). Five sinkholes and four locations with features attributable to karstic subsidence where identified in an initial investigation phase providing a preliminary probability of occurrence of 0.14 sinkholes/km² year (11.34% in annual probability). A trenching program conducted in a subsequent investigation phase allowed us to rule out the four probable sinkholes, reducing the probability of occurrence to 0.079 sinkholes/km² year (6.4% in annual probability). The information on the severity indicates that collapse sinkholes 10–15 m in diameter may occur in the area. A detailed study of the deposits and deformational structures exposed by trenching in one of the sinkholes allowed us to infer a modern collapse sinkhole approximately 12 m in diameter and with a vertical throw of 8 m. This collapse structure is superimposed on a subsidence sinkhole around 80 m across that records at least 1.7 m of synsedimentary subsidence. Trenching, in combination with dating techniques, is proposed as a useful methodology to elucidate the origin of depressions with uncertain diagnosis and to gather practical information with predictive utility about particular sinkholes in alluvial karst settings: precise location, subsidence mechanisms and magnitude, and timing and rate of the subsidence episodes.  相似文献   

Drought and institutional adaptation in the Great Plains of Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1914–1939     

Gregory P. Marchildon  Suren Kulshreshtha  Elaine Wheaton  Dave Sauchyn 《Natural Hazards》2008,45(3):391-411

Agriculture in the southern Great Plains of Canada has been particularly vulnerable to prolonged episodes of drought. Using climate data and a precipitation minus potential evapotranspiration index, the extent of the region’s exposure to drought is examined. Between 1914 and 1917, the Dry Belt was particularly vulnerable to drought, whereas after 1928, a much larger region known as the Palliser Triangle covering most of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan was much more exposed to drought. These droughts provoked major institutional adaptation, in particular the establishment of the Special Areas Board by the Government of Alberta, and the creation of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration by the Government of Canada. Both organizations have proved to be relatively permanent public adaptations to the natural hazard of drought in the region. Moreover, these earlier experiences with prolonged drought as well as institution-building may be of value in helping the residents of the Palliser Triangle adapt to predicted climate changes in the future as well as anticipate some of the barriers to effective institutional adaptation.  相似文献   

Modeling households’ decisions on reconstruction of houses damaged by earthquakes––Japanese case study     

H. Sakakibara  H. Murakami  S. Esaki  D. Mori  H. Nakata 《Natural Hazards》2008,44(2):293-303

In this study, households’ decisions on reconstruction of damaged houses were modeled, using questionnaire data in Japan. Characteristics of households’ decisions were investigated using parameter estimation results. The effects of subsidizing policy were evaluated as follows. First, subsidy for rebuilding may be effective for the households whose houses were heavily damaged. Second, there is a possibility that subsidy accelerated rebuilding of houses by the households having children. Third, subsidy for rebuilding may not be effective for elderly people’s households and households in depopulated areas.  相似文献   

Numerical modeling of tide-surge interaction along Orissa coast of India     

Prakash C. Sinha  Indu Jain  Neetu Bhardwaj  Ambarukhana D. Rao  Shishir K. Dube 《Natural Hazards》2008,45(3):413-427

The Orissa coast of India is one of the most vulnerable regions of extreme sea levels associated with severe tropical cyclones. There was extensive loss of life and property due to the October 1999 super cyclone, which devastated large part of the Orissa coast. The shallow nature of the head bay, presence of a large number of deltas formed by major rivers of Orissa such as Mahanadi and Dhamra, and high tidal range are responsible for storm surge flooding in the region. Specifically, rising and falling tidal phases influence the height, duration, and arrival time of peak surge along the coast. The objective of the present study is to evaluate the tide-surge interaction during the 1999 Orissa cyclone by using nonlinear vertically integrated numerical models. The pure tidal solution for the head bay region of the Bay of Bengal provides the initial condition for the fine resolution nested grid Orissa model. However, the feedback from the Orissa model does not affect the head bay model as the study provides a one-way interaction. Numerical experiments are performed to study the tide-surge interaction by considering various relative phases of the tidal waves with the surge-wave produced by 1999 Orissa cyclone. The comparison, although utilizing only the limited estimates of tidal data, appears adequate to assert that the principal features are reproduced correctly.  相似文献   

Room-temperature equation of state of Li<Subscript>2</Subscript>VOSiO<Subscript>4</Subscript> up to 8.5 GPa     

Serena C. Tarantino  Michele Zema  Tiziana Boffa Ballaran  Paolo Ghigna 《Physics and Chemistry of Minerals》2008,35(2):71-76

High-pressure single-crystal X-ray diffraction measurements of lattice parameters of the compound Li₂VOSiO₄, which crystallises with a natisite-type structure, has been carried out to a pressure of 8.54(5) GPa at room temperature. Unit-cell volume data were fitted with a second-order Birch-Murnaghan EoS (BM-EoS), simultaneously refining V ₀ and K ₀ using the data weighted by the uncertainties in V. The bulk modulus is K ₀ = 99(1) GPa, with K′ fixed to 4. Refinements of third order equations-of-state yielded values of K′ that did not differ significantly from 4. The compressibility of the unit-cell is strongly anisotropic with the c axis (K ₀(c) = 49.7 ± 0.5 GPa) approximately four times more compressible than the a axis (K ₀(a) = 195 ± 3 GPa).  相似文献   

湖南石门杨家坪下寒武统杷榔组三段混合沉积研究   总被引：5，自引：1，他引：4  

董桂玉  何幼斌  陈洪德  罗进雄  秦志勇 《地质论评》2008,54(5):593-601

湖南石门杨家坪下寒武统杷榔组三段发育陆源碎屑与海相碳酸盐的混合沉积。综合前人研究成果,通过对研究区野外露头资料的详细观测和室内样品分析及数据统计等工作,对研究区杷榔组三段混合沉积进行了详细的研究。研究区混合沉积特征宏观上表现为由陆源碎屑与混积物交互沉积、碳酸盐与混积物交互沉积和不同类型混积物本身的交互沉积构成的混积层系,微观上表现为陆源碎屑组分与碳酸盐组分混合沉积所形成混积岩;混合沉积类型主要为内潮汐沉积作用和浊流沉积作用形成的复合式混合沉积Ⅱ,次为深水原地沉积作用形成的渐变式混合沉积,但是不同成因的沉积作用形成的混合沉积类型往往叠加在一起,形成复合式混合沉积Ⅱ+渐变式混合沉积的混合沉积复合体;混合沉积环境为深水斜坡,发育内波、内潮汐混合沉积微相、深水原地混合沉积微相和远源浊流混合沉积微相等类型;在沉积环境分析的基础上,根据内波、内潮汐沉积特征,剖析了混合沉积的沉积机理;结合混合沉积的成因、沉积机理、产出部位及沉积环境等因素,以沉积学原理为指导,建立了研究区杷榔组三段的混合沉积模式。  相似文献