Neogene plate tectonic reconstructions and geodynamics of North Island sedimentary basins: Implications for the petroleum systems

Although the modern Australia-Pacific plate boundary through New Zealand is relatively straight, there have been significant changes in its geometry during the Neogene. Within the North Island sector there has been a fundamental transition from an Alpine Fault translation/transpression regime to a Hikurangi margin subduction regime. This transition has been accompanied by the southward encroachment of the edge of the Pacific plate oceanic slab into Australia lithosphere, shortened and thickened along its eastern margin as a consequence of the prior Alpine Fault transpression, the process now operating in South Island. The response of the Australia lithosphere at the surface to the emplacement of the subducted slab at depth, has differed in the East Coast forearc region versus the foreland in western North Island, where the depth to the slab is greater and there has been a characteristic southward migration of depocentres pinned to the leading edge of the slab. The recent publication of new rotation parameters for relative motion of the Australia, Antarctic and Pacific plates, have provided key new data from which to plot the successive emplacement history of the Pacific slab beneath North Island, thus enabling the comparisons to be made with basin stratigraphy and geohistory. These data also constrain the age of subduction initiation at various points along the present trend of the Hikurangi Trough, identifying a younging of subduction initiation to the southwest. An implication of this younging direction is that the modern accretion¬ary prism south of Cape Kidnappers can be no older than late Miocene (c. 11 Ma). The focus of this paper is on new ideas about the tectonic development of North Island and its basins, which have implications for hydrocarbon exploration

A Project-Based Learning Approach to Applied Craft Calculations Within Apprenticeship Education: An Action Research Study

Using an Action Research methodology, this study was based in Technologicl University Dublin and conducted with the cooperation of three groups of Phase Six Plumbing apprentices over a ten-month period (three cycles). The main aim of the research project was to establish if a deeper understanding and application of Building Services Applied Calculations could be achieved through the implementation of Project-Based Learning within Apprenticeship Education? Research literature shows that not only in Ireland but also abroad, third level education is experiencing what is described as a ‘maths problem’. With applied calculations and mathematics being a fundamental and essential part of Building Services Engineering in general, and also the FÁS phase six plumbing curriculum, many students are failing module examinations because of an inadequate understanding of basic mathematical principles. The question was examined through the design, implementation and evaluation of real world plumbing mathematical tasks and problems applied within a project dwelling. The mathematical calculations also followed closely, the level of mathematical competency required within the FÁS phase six plumbing curriculum for compulsory end of term summative assessments. The research was underpinned by a genuine commitment to enhance the learning experience of my students and also for personal professional improvement and self-development. The qualitative data gathered and analysed from questionnaires, focus groups, observational diaries and reflective diaries culminated in findings to show that this learning paradigm significantly improved the mathematical competence, understanding, motivation and confidence of those participating in the research. Noticeable improvements in other key skills such as group participation, reflective learning, and self-assessment also emerged through this pedagogical implementation. The main recommendations arising from the study are that a form of student-centred learning such as project-based learning aligned to continuous and formative assessments could be used to better reflect projects and problems typical of those found in real life craft working situations. This allows students to work on and understand meaningful issues and topics where they find real solutions to real problem

Effect of Preventive Primary Care Outreach on Health Related Quality of Life Among Older Adults at Risk of Functional Decline: Randomised Controlled Trial

Objective: To evaluate the impact of a provider initiated primary care outreach intervention compared with usual care among older adults at risk of functional decline. Design: Randomised controlled trial. Setting: Patients enrolled with 35 family physicians in five primary care networks in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Participants: Patients were eligible if they were 75 years of age or older and were not receiving home care services. Of 3166 potentially eligible patients, 2662 (84%) completed the validated postal questionnaire used to determine risk of functional decline. Of 1724 patients who met the risk criteria, 769 (45%) agreed to participate and 719 were randomised. Intervention: The 12 month intervention, provided by experienced home care nurses in 2004-6, consisted of a comprehensive initial assessment using the resident assessment instrument for home care; collaborative care planning with patients, their families, and family physicians; health promotion; and referral to community health and social support services. Main outcome measures: Quality adjusted life years (QALYs), use and costs of health and social services, functional status, self rated health, and mortality. Results: The mean difference in QALYs between intervention and control patients during the study period was not statistically significant (0.017, 95% confidence interval ?0.022 to 0.056; P=0.388). The mean difference in overall cost of prescription drugs and services between the intervention and control groups was not statistically significant, (-$C165 (£107; 118;$162), 95% confidence interval -$C16 545 to$$16 214; P=0.984). Changes over 12 months in functional status and self rated health were not significantly different between the intervention and control groups. Ten patients died in each group. Conclusions: The results of this study do not support adoption of this preventive primary care intervention for this target population of high risk older adults

Is composting worm availability the main barrier to large-scale adoption of worm-based organic waste processing technologies?

Organic waste is the largest typology of waste generated globally, which if untreated, can causes environmental pollution and be a public health risk. The worm-based processing of organic waste is known as vermicomposting and is recognized as a sustainable approach for the management of organic waste streams. Although this technology has been around since the 1970s and many different organic wastes have been successfully processed via vermicomposting, this technology has not been widely adopted at national or international levels. This paper explores the hypothesis that the availability of composting worms is the reason for low uptake of this technology. A market analysis of composting worm farm (vermiculture) businesses in two countries (South Africa and India) was undertaken to explore the hypothesis. It was found that the Indian market had the capacity to supply over 70,000 kg of worms per month, whilst for the South Africa market this was 3000 kg. Both markets have the capability to increase production by two-fold or more. Overall, the study concludes that worm supply is not a barrier to the scaling-up of worm-based technologies in either country. Additionally, these countries show the potential to assist development of worm-based systems in neighboring countries through export of composting worms

Collaborative Assessment and Survey Administration: A MISO Survey Case Study

The Managing Information Services Outcomes (MISO) Survey was originally developed in 2005 at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, USA by staff from a consortium of higher education institutions to assess library and technology services using a single instrument. Since then, the survey has grown and changed under the collaborative management of an all-volunteer team of library and IT professionals from various participating institutions throughout the United States. The survey has been implemented at 171 institutions. This chapter reviews the guiding principles, ongoing partnerships, and the value of working across departments, across campuses, and across cohorts of participating institutions to leverage local expertise, reduce costs, and create a culture of collaboration and assessment. In an environment where libraries are increasingly dependent on information technology, assessing library services in the context of IT brings layered intelligence to data-informed decision making. -- Chapter 9, p. 17

Lymphocytic Hypophysitis

A 59 year-old female presented with visual problems in 2006, and was initially diagnosed with a pituitary macroadenoma on MRI (Figure 1). Preoperatively, the pituitary lesion decreased in size after the patient was started on steroids, raising the possibility of lymphoma and inflammatory conditions. Ultimately, endoscopic trans-nasal biopsy of the pituitary lesion revealed lymphocytic hypophysitis. She was treated with steroids for two years and developed several side effects from chronic steroid use, including Cushingoid features, diabetes, cataracts, weight-gain and osteopenia. As a result, she was subsequently treated with methotrexate and gradual weaning of the steroids

Rapid and punctuated Late Holocene recession of Siling Co, central Tibet

This work was supported by a National Science Foundation grant from the Tectonics program (EAR-0911587) to E.K. and K.P.F. Additional support to E.W. was provided by grants from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB03010500). X.S. also thanks the support from the Earth Observatory of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University through its funding from the National Research Foundation Singapore and the Singapore Ministry of Education under the Research Centers of Excellence initiative.Variations in the strength of the Asian monsoon during Holocene time are thought to have been associated with widespread changes in precipitation across much of Tibet. Local records of monsoon strength from cave deposits, ice cores, and lake sediments typically rely on proxy data that relate isotopic variations to changes in precipitation. Lake expansion and contraction in response to changing water balance are likewise inferred from sedimentologic, isotopic and paleobiologic proxies, but relatively few direct records of changes in lake volume from preserved shorelines exist. Here we utilize relict shoreline deposits and associated alluvial fan features around Siling Co, the largest lake in central Tibet, to reconstruct centennial-to-millennial-scale variations in lake area and volume over the Holocene. Mapping and surveying of lacustrine shorelines coupled with optically stimulated luminescence dating of associated deposits indicate protracted occupation of a highstand elevation from >8 ka to 4 ka, followed by rapid recession that was likely punctuated by several stillstands of centennial-scale duration. Calculation of the changes in lake surface area and past hydrologic indices of the Siling Co basin suggests the effective moisture during the early Holocene highstand was approximately three times greater than today. In contrast to other lakes in central and western Tibet, our results suggest that Siling Co did not begin to recede synchronously with decreasing solar insolation at ca. 9–8 ka. Rather, initial recession of Siling Co appears to correspond to a time period of enhanced aridity and weakened monsoon in both Africa and Asia at ca. 4.2 ka. Our results add to a growing body of literature that suggest a period of relatively severe aridity on the Tibetan Plateau at this time. We suggest that subsequent punctuated recession of Siling Co was punctuated by similar periods of abrupt climate change during the Late Holocene.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Late Miocene surface heat flow and thermal modelling of Murchison and southern Taranaki basins, New Zealand

Numerical thermal modelling of the successions interescted in Fresne-1, North Tasman-1 and Surville-1, southern Taranaki Basin, establishes a Late Miocene surface heat flow value of 77 ± 6 mWm-2 compared with a present-day value of 70 ± 12 mWm-2. This analysis relies upon 2700 m of Late Miocene – Pliocene erosion at Fresne-1, established by seismic reflection mapping. The use of this Late Miocene surface heat flow value in thermal modelling of the succession in Bounty-1 together with apatite fission track data, establishes a 10 Ma timing for the start of uplift and an c. 8 Ma timing for the start of erosion of the 2700 m of the sedimentary section that formerly overlay the top of the Bounty-1 succession. Murchison and southern Taranaki basins had similar timing (Late Miocene) and duration of hydrocarbon maturation prior to the start of Basin inversion

Effect of preventive primary care outreach on health related quality of life among older adults at risk of functional decline: randomised controlled trial

Objective To evaluate the impact of a provider initiated primary care outreach intervention compared with usual care among older adults at risk of functional decline

Seismic cycle and rheological effects on estimation of present-day slip rates for the Agua Blanca and San Miguel-Vallecitos faults, northern Baja California, Mexico

Geodesy can be used to infer long-term fault slip rates, assuming a model for crust and upper mantle rheology. We examine the sensitivity of fault slip rate estimates to assumed rheology for the Agua Blanca and San Miguel-Vallecitos faults in northern Baja California, Mexico, part of the Pacific–North America plate boundary zone. The Agua Blanca fault is seismically quiet, but offset alluvial fans indicate young activity. Current seismicity is confined to the nearby San Miguel-Vallecitos fault, a small offset fault better aligned with plate motion. GPS measurements between 1993 and 1998 suggest that both faults are active, with a combined slip rate of 4–8 mm yr. regardless of rheological model. However, slip rate estimates for the individual faults are sensitive to assumed rheology. Elastic half-space models yield 2–3 mm yr. for the Agua Blanca fault, and somewhat faster rates for the San Miguel-Vallecitos fault, 2–4 mm yr., with uncertainties of about 1 mm yr. Models incorporating viscoelastic rheology and seismic cycle effects suggest a faster slip rate for the Agua Blanca fault, 6 ± 1 mm yr, and a slower rate for the San Miguel-Vallecitos fault, 1 ± 1 mm yr, in better agreement with geological data, but these rates are sensitive to assumed rheology. Numerical simulations with a finite element model suggest that for similar rheological and friction conditions, slip on the San Miguel-Vallecitos fault should be favored due to better alignment with plate motion. Long-term faulting processes in the larger offset Agua Blanca fault may have lowered slip resistance, allowing accommodation of motion despite misalignment with plate motion