Sedimentary processes on the continental slope off New England

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution August, 1973A detailed study of a small (5000 km2) area of the continental slope south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, was conducted. Bathymetry, 3.5 kHz profiles, seismic profiles, suspended sediment analysis, bottom photographs, television laboratory flume experiments, studies of surface sediments, and piston cores were combined to form the basis for understanding the sedimentary processes which control transportation, deposition, and erosion of sediments, and the geomorphic features of the continental slope. Gravitational processes (slumping, creep, and turbidity currents) are apparently the most effective erosional processes on the continental slope. Massive large-scale failure occurs where the slope steepens from a gradient of 1.50 to 7.60, producing scarps hundreds of meters in height. Upslope propagation of slumping on the upper continental slope has formed steep-sided gullies with layers of disturbed residual material and humocky floors. On the steep lower continental slope small slump scars on the order of 100 m in horizontal extent and several meters high are common. Material removed by slumping is emplaced at the foot of the continental slope as intact and disrupted blocks 1 to 100 m thick. Turbidity currents generated by slumping have apparently eroded V-shaped gullies in the lower continental slope. Bottom currents are most influential at the shelfbreak, where they produce sorting of surface sediments and suspension of fine material by erosion of the bottom. Internal waves may be a significant source of high velocity bottom currents and turbulence. Laboratory flume experiments and observation of the bottom indicate that the sediments of most of the continental slope are not normally affected by bottom currents. Sediments at the foot of the continental slope on the upper continental rise are reworked by bottom currents. Biological activity causes both roughening and smoothing of the sediment surface. Tracking of the bottom produces small-scale roughness, and reworking of the bottom reduces larger roughness elements. Biological production of fibrous structures helps render the sediment surface extremely resistant to erosion by bottom currents. Biological eros ion of rock outcrops produces rubble slopes locally at the bases of scarps. Conditions have varied markedly during the Pleistocene and Holocene. During glacial periods rapid deposition increased the activity of gravitational processes, while during interglacial periods of slow deposition biological and hydrodynamic processes became relatively more important.Prepared for the Office of Navai Research under Contract N00014-66-C0241; NR 083-004

Religiosity and meditation practice: exploring their explanatory power on psychological adjustment

There has been increased interest in the relationships between religiosity, meditation practice and well-being, but there is lack of understanding as to how specific religious components and distinct meditation practices could influence different positive and negative psychological adjustment outcomes. The aim of this study was to assess the explanatory power of religious beliefs and the practice of prayer, focused attention (FA), open monitoring (OM), and compassion meditation (CM) on psychological adjustment, taking into consideration a number of practice-related variables such as session length, frequency of practice and lifetime practice. Psychological adjustment was assessed by means of happiness, positive affect, depression, negative affect, and emotional overproduction. A cross-sectional design was used, with a final sample comprising 210 Spanish participants who completed an online assessment protocol. Hierarchical regressions were performed, including age, sex and psychotropic medication use in the first step as possible confounders, with the addition of religious beliefs and the practice of prayer, FA, OM, and CM in the second step. FA session length was related to all psychological adjustment outcomes: happiness (ΔR 2 = 0.09, p = 0.002; β = 0.25, p = 0.001), positive affect (ΔR 2 = 0.09, p = 0.002; β = 0.18, p = 0.014), depression (ΔR2 = 0.07, p = 0.004; β = -0.27, p < 0.001), negative affect (ΔR 2 = 0.08, p = 0.007; β = -0.27, p < 0.001) and emotional overproduction (ΔR 2 = 0.07, p = 0.013; β = -0.23, p = 0.001). CM session length was related to positive affect (β = 0.18, p = 0.011). CM practice frequency was associated with happiness (ΔR 2 = 0.06, p = 0.038; β = 0.16, p = 0.041). Lifetime practice of FA was related to happiness (ΔR 2 = 0.08, p = 0.007; β = 0.21, p = 0.030) and OM to emotional overproduction (ΔR 2 = 0.08, p = 0.037; β = -0.19, p = 0.047). Religious beliefs and prayer seemed to be less relevant than meditation practices such as FA, OM, and CM in explaining psychological adjustment. The distinct meditation practices might be differentially related to distinct psychological adjustment outcomes through different practice-related variables. However, research into other forms of institutional religiosity integrating social aspects of religion is required