Evidence for early Mesoproterozoic arc magmatism in the Musgrave Block, central Australia: Implications for Proterozoic crustal growth and tectonic reconstructions of Australia

The Musgrave Block in central southern Australia separates the dominantly Paleoproterozoic North Australian Craton from the Late Archean to early Mesoproterozoic Gawler Craton in southern Australia. Geochemical and Nd isotopic data from ∼1.59–1.55-Ga felsic rocks in the Mann Ranges suggest that the early history of the Musgrave Block was linked to the development of subduction along the northern margin of the Gawler Craton. Characteristic geochemical patterns of these felsic rocks include negative anomalies in Nb, Ti, and Y and are accompanied by steep light rare earth element patterns and comparatively juvenile Nd isotopic compositions (εNd(1550) values from -1.2 to 0.9). The geochemical and isotopic signatures of these early Mesoproterozoic felsic rocks have similarities with island arc systems involving residual Ti-bearing minerals and garnet. We propose that the 1.59–1.55-Ga arclike rocks in the Musgrave Block indicate the presence of an active margin between the North Australian Craton and the South Australian Craton, with subsequent suturing of the Australian continent during the early Mesoproterozoic. The existence of arclike magmatism in the Musgrave Block during the early Mesoproterozoic suggests a period of major crustal growth in the Australian Proterozoic that has important implications for current Proterozoic reconstructions of Australia and Australia’s fit within the supercontinent Rodinia.B. P. Wade, K. M. Barovich, M. Hand, I. R. Scrimgeour and D. F. Clos

Evidence for early Mesoproterozoic arc magmatism in the Musgrave Block, central Australia: Implications for Proterozoic crustal growth and tectonic reconstructions of Australia

The Musgrave Block in central southern Australia separates the dominantly Paleoproterozoic North Australian Craton from the Late Archean to early Mesoproterozoic Gawler Craton in southern Australia. Geochemical and Nd isotopic data from ∼1.59–1.55-Ga felsic rocks in the Mann Ranges suggest that the early history of the Musgrave Block was linked to the development of subduction along the northern margin of the Gawler Craton. Characteristic geochemical patterns of these felsic rocks include negative anomalies in Nb, Ti, and Y and are accompanied by steep light rare earth element patterns and comparatively juvenile Nd isotopic compositions (εNd(1550) values from -1.2 to 0.9). The geochemical and isotopic signatures of these early Mesoproterozoic felsic rocks have similarities with island arc systems involving residual Ti-bearing minerals and garnet. We propose that the 1.59–1.55-Ga arclike rocks in the Musgrave Block indicate the presence of an active margin between the North Australian Craton and the South Australian Craton, with subsequent suturing of the Australian continent during the early Mesoproterozoic. The existence of arclike magmatism in the Musgrave Block during the early Mesoproterozoic suggests a period of major crustal growth in the Australian Proterozoic that has important implications for current Proterozoic reconstructions of Australia and Australia’s fit within the supercontinent Rodinia.B. P. Wade, K. M. Barovich, M. Hand, I. R. Scrimgeour and D. F. Clos

Unified analysis of terminal-time control in classical and quantum systems

Many phenomena in physics, chemistry, and biology involve seeking an optimal control to maximize an objective for a classical or quantum system which is open and interacting with its environment. The complexity of finding an optimal control for maximizing an objective is strongly affected by the possible existence of sub-optimal maxima. Within a unified framework under specified conditions, control objectives for maximizing at a terminal time physical observables of open classical and quantum systems are shown to be inherently free of sub-optimal maxima. This attractive feature is of central importance for enabling the discovery of controls in a seamless fashion in a wide range of phenomena transcending the quantum and classical regimes.Comment: 10 page

The WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey: the transition to large-scale cosmic homogeneity

We have made the largest-volume measurement to date of the transition to large-scale homogeneity in the distribution of galaxies. We use the WiggleZ survey, a spectroscopic survey of over 200,000 blue galaxies in a cosmic volume of ~1 (Gpc/h)^3. A new method of defining the 'homogeneity scale' is presented, which is more robust than methods previously used in the literature, and which can be easily compared between different surveys. Due to the large cosmic depth of WiggleZ (up to z=1) we are able to make the first measurement of the transition to homogeneity over a range of cosmic epochs. The mean number of galaxies N(<r) in spheres of comoving radius r is proportional to r^3 within 1%, or equivalently the fractal dimension of the sample is within 1% of D_2=3, at radii larger than 71 \pm 8 Mpc/h at z~0.2, 70 \pm 5 Mpc/h at z~0.4, 81 \pm 5 Mpc/h at z~0.6, and 75 \pm 4 Mpc/h at z~0.8. We demonstrate the robustness of our results against selection function effects, using a LCDM N-body simulation and a suite of inhomogeneous fractal distributions. The results are in excellent agreement with both the LCDM N-body simulation and an analytical LCDM prediction. We can exclude a fractal distribution with fractal dimension below D_2=2.97 on scales from ~80 Mpc/h up to the largest scales probed by our measurement, ~300 Mpc/h, at 99.99% confidence.Comment: 21 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

A new hammer to crack an old nut : interspecific competitive resource capture by plants is regulated by nutrient supply, not climate

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Epidemiology of Coxiella burnetii infection in Africa: a OneHealth systematic review

Background: Q fever is a common cause of febrile illness and community-acquired pneumonia in resource-limited settings. Coxiella burnetii, the causative pathogen, is transmitted among varied host species, but the epidemiology of the organism in Africa is poorly understood. We conducted a systematic review of C. burnetii epidemiology in Africa from a “One Health” perspective to synthesize the published data and identify knowledge gaps.&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt; Methods/Principal Findings: We searched nine databases to identify articles relevant to four key aspects of C. burnetii epidemiology in human and animal populations in Africa: infection prevalence; disease incidence; transmission risk factors; and infection control efforts. We identified 929 unique articles, 100 of which remained after full-text review. Of these, 41 articles describing 51 studies qualified for data extraction. Animal seroprevalence studies revealed infection by C. burnetii (&#8804;13%) among cattle except for studies in Western and Middle Africa (18–55%). Small ruminant seroprevalence ranged from 11–33%. Human seroprevalence was &#60;8% with the exception of studies among children and in Egypt (10–32%). Close contact with camels and rural residence were associated with increased seropositivity among humans. C. burnetii infection has been associated with livestock abortion. In human cohort studies, Q fever accounted for 2–9% of febrile illness hospitalizations and 1–3% of infective endocarditis cases. We found no studies of disease incidence estimates or disease control efforts.&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt; Conclusions/Significance: C. burnetii infection is detected in humans and in a wide range of animal species across Africa, but seroprevalence varies widely by species and location. Risk factors underlying this variability are poorly understood as is the role of C. burnetii in livestock abortion. Q fever consistently accounts for a notable proportion of undifferentiated human febrile illness and infective endocarditis in cohort studies, but incidence estimates are lacking. C. burnetii presents a real yet underappreciated threat to human and animal health throughout Africa.&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt

Prediction of success at UK Specialty Board Examinations using the mandatory postgraduate UK surgical examination

Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge I. Targett from the Royal College of Surgeons of England and J. Wylie from the Joint Committee on Intercollegiate Examinations for their help with data collection, and both L. Smith and G. Ayre from the Intercollegiate Committee for Basic Surgical Examinations for their support during this project. This study was funded by the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of England, Ireland and Edinburgh, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. Disclosure: The authors declare no conflict of interest..Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Provenance of the Early Mesoproterozoic Radium Creek Group in the northern Mount Painter Inlier: Correlating isotopic signatures to inform tectonic reconstructions

New in situ zircon LA-ICPMS geochronologic and Hf-isotope data from the Radium Creek Group within the Mount Painter Inlier provide important temporal constraints on the Early Mesoproterozoic palaeogeography of eastern Proterozoic Australia. The entire Radium Creek Group was deposited in a single basin forming phase, and has a maximum depositional age of 1595. ±. 3.7. Ma. Detrital zircon from these metasedimentary rocks have U-Pb age populations at ca. 1595. Ma, 1660-1680. Ma, 1710-1780. Ma, ca. 1850. Ma and ca. 2500. Ma. These grains are characterised by isotopically diverse and evolved sources, and have crystallised within predominantly felsic igneous host-rocks. The relative age spectra and isotopic character has more similarity with the Gawler Craton than the Arunta Block, Curnamona Province or the Mount Isa Inlier. These observations suggest that the Mount Painter Province was adjacent to the Gawler Craton in the Early Mesoproterozoic. Our data supports a coherent South Australian Craton at ca. 1595. Ma and a contiguous continental mass that included the North and South Australian cratons. The Mount Painter Inlier occupied a complex plate tectonic setting in the overriding plate of two convergent margins. © 2014 Elsevier B.V

The WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey: the transition to large-scale cosmic homogeneity

We have made the largest volume measurement to date of the transition to large-scale homogeneity in the distribution of galaxies. We use the WiggleZ survey, a spectroscopic survey of over 200 000 blue galaxies in a cosmic volume of ∼1 h^(−3) Gpc^3. A new method of defining the ‘homogeneity scale' is presented, which is more robust than methods previously used in the literature, and which can be easily compared between different surveys. Due to the large cosmic depth of WiggleZ (up to z = 1), we are able to make the first measurement of the transition to homogeneity over a range of cosmic epochs. The mean number of galaxies N(< r) in spheres of comoving radius r is proportional to r^3 within 1 per cent, or equivalently the fractal dimension of the sample is within 1 per cent of D_2 = 3, at radii larger than 71 ± 8 h^(−1) Mpc at z ∼ 0.2, 70 ± 5 h^(−1) Mpc at z ∼ 0.4, 81 ± 5 h^(−1)  Mpc at z ∼ 0.6 and 75 ± 4 h^(−1) Mpc at z ∼ 0.8. We demonstrate the robustness of our results against selection function effects, using a Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) N-body simulation and a suite of inhomogeneous fractal distributions. The results are in excellent agreement with both the ΛCDM N-body simulation and an analytical ΛCDM prediction. We can exclude a fractal distribution with fractal dimension below D_2 = 2.97 on scales from ∼80 h^(−1) Mpc up to the largest scales probed by our measurement, ∼300 h^(−1) Mpc, at 99.99 per cent confidence