78 research outputs found
Humans as the third evolutionary stage of biosphere engineering of rivers
We examine three fundamental changes in river systems induced by innovations of the biosphere, these being: (1) the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis; (2) the development of vascular plants with root systems; and (3) the evolution of humans. The first two innovations provide context for the degree of human-induced river change. Early river systems of the Precambrian Archean Eon developed in an atmosphere with no free oxygen, and fluvial sediments accumulated âreduced detritalâ minerals. By 2.4 Ga the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis produced an oxygenated atmosphere and âreduced detritalâ minerals mostly disappeared from rivers, affording a distinct mineralogical difference from subsequent fluvial deposits. Rivers of the Precambrian and early Phanerozoic were dominantly braided, but from 0.416 Ga, the evolution of vascular plants with roots bound floodplain sediments and fostered fine-grained meandering rivers. Early meandering river deposits show extensive animal activity including fish and arthropod tracks and burrows. Homo sapiens, appearing about 150 ka BP, has, in recent millennia, profoundly modified river systems, altering their mineralogical, morphological and sedimentary state. Changes in sediment fluxes caused by human âreverse engineeringâ of the terrestrial biosphere include deforestation, irrigation and agriculture. Sediment retention has been encouraged by the construction of dams. Modern river systems are associated with extensive human trace fossils that show a developing complexity from ancient civilizations through to megacities. Changes induced by humans rank in scale with those caused by earlier biosphere innovations at 2.4 and 0.416 Ga, but would geologically soon revert to a âpre-humanâ state were humans to become extinct.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213305415000089
Temperature-dependent magnetospectroscopy of HgTe quantum wells
We report on magnetospectroscopy of HgTe quantum wells in magnetic fields up
to 45 T in temperature range from 4.2 K up to 185 K. We observe intra- and
inter-band transitions from zero-mode Landau levels, which split from the
bottom conduction and upper valence subbands, and merge under the applied
magnetic field. To describe experimental results, realistic
temperature-dependent calculations of Landau levels have been performed. We
show that although our samples are topological insulators at low temperatures
only, the signature of such phase persists in optical transitions at high
temperatures and high magnetic fields. Our results demonstrate that
temperature-dependent magnetospectroscopy is a powerful tool to discriminate
trivial and topological insulator phases in HgTe quantum wells
Antiferromagnetic Dimers of Ni(II) in the S=1 Spin-Ladder Na_2Ni_2(C_2O_4)_3(H_2O)_2
We report the synthesis, crystal structure and magnetic properties of the S=1
2-leg spin-ladder compound Na_2Ni_2(C_2O_4)_3(H_2O)_2. The magnetic properties
were examined by magnetic susceptibility and pulsed high field magnetization
measurements. The magnetic excitations have been measured in high field high
frequency ESR. Although the Ni(II) ions form structurally a 2-leg ladder, an
isolated dimer model consistently describes the observations very well. The
analysis of the temperature dependent magnetization data leads to a magnetic
exchange constant of J=43 K along the rungs of the ladder and an average value
of the g-factor of 2.25. From the ESR measurements, we determined the single
ion anisotropy to D=11.5 K. The validity of the isolated dimer model is
supported by Quantum Monte Carlo calculations, performed for several ratios of
interdimer and intradimer magnetic exchange and taking into account the
experimentally determined single ion anisotropy. The results can be understood
in terms of the different coordination and superexchange angles of the oxalate
ligands along the rungs and legs of the 2-leg spin ladder.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figure
Quantum Size Effect transition in percolating nanocomposite films
We report on unique electronic properties in Fe-SiO2 nanocomposite thin films
in the vicinity of the percolation threshold. The electronic transport is
dominated by quantum corrections to the metallic conduction of the Infinite
Cluster (IC). At low temperature, mesoscopic effects revealed on the
conductivity, Hall effect experiments and low frequency electrical noise
(random telegraph noise and 1/f noise) strongly support the existence of a
temperature-induced Quantum Size Effect (QSE) transition in the metallic
conduction path. Below a critical temperature related to the geometrical
constriction sizes of the IC, the electronic conductivity is mainly governed by
active tunnel conductance across barriers in the metallic network. The high 1/f
noise level and the random telegraph noise are consistently explained by random
potential modulation of the barriers transmittance due to local Coulomb
charges. Our results provide evidence that a lowering of the temperature is
somehow equivalent to a decrease of the metal fraction in the vicinity of the
percolation limit.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figure
Analyse ĂŠcorĂŠgionale marine de Nouvelle-CalĂŠdonie : atelier d'identification des aires de conservation prioritaires
Dans le cadre de l'initiative pour les rÊcifs coralliens du Pacifique sud (CRISP), le WWF-France a souhaitÊ dÊvelopper un projet pour la protection des rÊcifs et des lagons nÊo-calÊdoniens. L'atelier, qui s'est dÊroulÊ les 10 et 11 aoÝt à NoumÊa, avait pour objectif de rassembler les scientifiques et les experts du lagon nÊocalÊdonien pour identifier, sur la base de leur connaissance experte, les zones les plus remarquables du lagon (richesse, endÊmisme, originalitÊ des faunes et flores, espèces emblÊmatiques, zones d'intÊrêt fonctionnel) sur lesquelles doivent porter en prioritÊ les efforts de conservation. Il a permis d'identifier 20 aires prioritaires pour la conservation, parmi lesquelles 6 ont un intÊrêt mondial, 4 ont un intÊrêt sur le plan rÊgional, les autres ayant un intÊrêt local
Coral Uptake of Inorganic Phosphorus and Nitrogen Negatively Affected by Simultaneous Changes in Temperature and pH
The effects of ocean acidification and elevated seawater temperature on coral calcification and photosynthesis have been extensively investigated over the last two decades, whereas they are still unknown on nutrient uptake, despite their importance for coral energetics. We therefore studied the separate and combined impacts of increases in temperature and pCO2 on phosphate, ammonium, and nitrate uptake rates by the scleractinian coral S. pistillata. Three experiments were performed, during 10 days i) at three pHT conditions (8.1, 7.8, and 7.5) and normal temperature (26°C), ii) at three temperature conditions (26°, 29°C, and 33°C) and normal pHT (8.1), and iii) at three pHT conditions (8.1, 7.8, and 7.5) and elevated temperature (33°C). After 10 days of incubation, corals had not bleached, as protein, chlorophyll, and zooxanthellae contents were the same in all treatments. However, photosynthetic rates significantly decreased at 33°C, and were further reduced for the pHT 7.5. The photosynthetic efficiency of PSII was only decreased by elevated temperature. Nutrient uptake rates were not affected by a change in pH alone. Conversely, elevated temperature (33°C) alone induced an increase in phosphate uptake but a severe decrease in nitrate and ammonium uptake rates, even leading to a release of nitrogen into seawater. Combination of high temperature (33°C) and low pHT (7.5) resulted in a significant decrease in phosphate and nitrate uptake rates compared to control corals (26°C, pHTâ=â8.1). These results indicate that both inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism may be negatively affected by the cumulative effects of ocean warming and acidification
Socialâenvironmental drivers inform strategic management of coral reefs in the Anthropocene
Without drastic efforts to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate globalized stressors, tropical coral reefs are in jeopardy. Strategic conservation and management requires identification of the environmental and socioeconomic factors driving the persistence of scleractinian coral assemblagesâthe foundation species of coral reef ecosystems. Here, we compiled coral abundance data from 2,584 Indo-Pacific reefs to evaluate the influence of 21 climate, social and environmental drivers on the ecology of reef coral assemblages. Higher abundances of framework-building corals were typically associated with: weaker thermal disturbances and longer intervals for potential recovery; slower human population growth; reduced access by human settlements and markets; and less nearby agriculture. We therefore propose a framework of three management strategies (protect, recover or transform) by considering: (1) if reefs were above or below a proposed threshold of >10% cover of the coral taxa important for structural complexity and carbonate production; and (2) reef exposure to severe thermal stress during the 2014â2017 global coral bleaching event. Our findings can guide urgent management efforts for coral reefs, by identifying key threats across multiple scales and strategic policy priorities that might sustain a network of functioning reefs in the Indo-Pacific to avoid ecosystem collapse
Late Quaternary sea-level change and early human societies in the central and eastern Mediterranean Basin : an interdisciplinary review
This article reviews key data and debates focused on relative sea-level changes since the Last Interglacial (approximately the last 132,000 years) in the Mediterranean Basin, and their implications for past human populations. Geological and geomorphological landscape studies are critical to archaeology. Coastal regions provide a wide range of resources to the populations that inhabit them. Coastal landscapes are increasingly the focus of scholarly discussions from the earliest exploitation of littoral resources and early hominin cognition, to the inundation of the earliest permanently settled fishing villages and eventually, formative centres of urbanisation. In the Mediterranean, these would become hubs of maritime transportation that gave rise to the roots of modern seaborne trade. As such, this article represents an original review of both the geo-scientific and archaeological data that specifically relate to sea-level changes and resulting impacts on both physical and cultural landscapes from the Palaeolithic until the emergence of the Classical periods. Our review highlights that the interdisciplinary links between coastal archaeology, geomorphology and sea-level changes are important to explain environmental impacts on coastal human societies and human migration. We review geological indicators of sea level and outline how archaeological features are commonly used as proxies for measuring past sea levels, both gradual changes and catastrophic events. We argue that coastal archaeologists should, as a part of their analyses, incorporate important sea-level concepts, such as indicative meaning. The interpretation of the indicative meaning of Roman fishtanks, for example, plays a critical role in reconstructions of late Holocene Mediterranean sea levels. We identify avenues for future work, which include the consideration of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) in addition to coastal tectonics to explain vertical movements of coastlines, more research on Palaeolithic island colonisation, broadening of Palaeolithic studies to include materials from the entire coastal landscape and not just coastal resources, a focus on rescue of archaeological sites under threat by coastal change, and expansion of underwater archaeological explorations in combination with submarine geomorphology. This article presents a collaborative synthesis of data, some of which have been collected and analysed by the authors, as the MEDFLOOD (MEDiterranean sea-level change and projection for future FLOODing) community, and highlights key sites, data, concepts and ongoing debates
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