30 research outputs found

    Thermal History of the Ecstall Pluton from \u3csup\u3e40\u3c/sup\u3eAr/\u3csup\u3e39\u3c/sup\u3eAr Geochronology and Thermal Modeling

    Get PDF
    New 40Ar/39Ar thermochronology results and thermal modeling support the hypothesis of Hollister et al. (2004), that reheating of the mid-Cretaceous Ecstall pluton by intrusion of the Coast Mountains Batholith (CMB) was responsible for spatially variable remagnetization of the Ecstall pluton. 40Ar/39Ar ages from hornblende and biotite from 12 locations along the Skeena River across the northern part of the Ecstall pluton decrease with proximity to the Quottoon plutonic complex, the nearest member of the CMB to the Ecstall pluton. The oldest 40Ar/39Ar ages are found farthest from the Quottoon plutonic complex, and are 90 ± 3 Ma for hornblende, and 77.9 ± 1.2 Ma for biotite. The youngest40Ar/39Ar ages are found closest to the Quottoon plutonic complex, and are 51.6 ± 1.2 Ma for hornblende, and 45.3 ± 1.7 Ma for biotite. No obvious relationship between grain size and age is seen in the Ecstall pluton biotites. Spatial trends in 40Ar/39Ar ages are consistent with model results for reheating by a thermal wall at the location of the Quottoon plutonic complex. Although no unique solution is suggested, our results indicate that the most appropriate thermal history for the Ecstall pluton includes both reheating and northeast side up tilting of the Ecstall pluton associated with intrusion of the Quottoon plutonic complex. Estimates of northward translation from shallow paleomagnetic inclinations in the western part of the Ecstall pluton are reduced to ∼3000 km, consistent with the Baja-BC hypothesis, when northeast side up tilting is accounted for

    Direct P-wave anisotropy measurements at Homestake Mine: implications for wave propagation in continental crust

    Get PDF
    We measured anisotropic seismic properties of schists of the Homestake Formation located at a depth of 1478 m in the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in the Black Hills of South Dakota, USA. We deployed a 24-element linear array of three-component geophones in an area in the Homestake Mine called 19-ledge. An airless jackhammer source was used to shoot two profiles: (1) a walkaway survey to appraise any distance dependence and (2) a fan shot profile to measure variations with azimuth. Slowness estimates from the fan shot profile show a statistically significant deviation with azimuth with the expected 180° variation with azimuth. We measured P-wave particle motion deviations from data rotated to ray coordinates using three methods: (1) a conventional principal component method, (2) a novel grid search method that maximized longitudinal motion over a range of search angles and (3) the multiwavelet method. The multiwavelet results were computed in two frequency bands of 200–600 and 100–300 Hz. Results were binned by azimuth and averaged with a robust estimation method with error bars estimated by a bootstrap method. The particle motion results show large, statistically significant variations with azimuth with a 180° cyclicity. We modelled the azimuthal variations in compressional wave speed and angular deviation from purely longitudinal particle motion of P-waves using an elastic tensor method to appraise the relative importance of crystalline fabric relative to fracturing parallel to foliation. The model used bulk averages of crystal fabric measured for an analogous schist sample from southeast Vermont rotated to the Homestake Formation foliation directions supplied by SURF from old mine records. We found with average crustal crack densities crack induced anisotropy had only a small effect on the observables. We found strong agreement in the traveltime data. The observed amplitudes of deviations of P particle motion showed significantly larger variation than the model predictions and a 20° phase shift in azimuth. We attribute the inadequacies of the model fit to the particle motion data to inadequacies in the analogue rock and/or near receiver distortions from smaller scale heterogeneity. We discuss the surprising variability of signals recorded in this experimental data. We show clear examples of unexplained resonances and unexpected variations on a scale much smaller than a wavelength that has broad implications for wave propagation in real rocks

    Seismic anisotropy as a constraint on composition in the lower crust

    Get PDF
    Our current interpretation of the composition of the middle and lower crust comes mainly from seismic observations, yet it remains a challenge to link seismic observations directly to composition. This is because isotropic seismic properties are similar across a range of compositions. Taking anisotropy into account allows for further refinement of our interpretation of composition provided that anisotropy is characterized for candidate rock types. This study uses electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) measurements of crystallographic preferred orientation of minerals to calculate seismic anisotropy in samples of the Pelona-Orocopia-Rand (POR) schist from the Mojave region of southern California. The goals of this work are to characterize the seismic anisotropy of the POR schist and its relationship to observed lower crustal anisotropy in the region, and to refine predictions of lower crustal composition based on seismic anisotropy

    Sixty years of Sverdrup : a retrospective of progress in the study of phytoplankton blooms

    Get PDF
    Author Posting. © The Oceanography Society, 2014. This article is posted here by permission of The Oceanography Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Oceanography 27, no. 1 (2014): 222–235, doi:10.5670/oceanog.2014.26.One of the most dramatic large-scale features in the ocean is the seasonal greening of the North Atlantic in spring and summer due to the accumulation of phytoplankton biomass in the surface layer. In 1953, Harald Ulrik Sverdrup hypothesized a now canonical mechanism for the development and timing of phytoplankton blooms in the North Atlantic. Over the next 60 years, Sverdrup's Critical Depth Hypothesis spurred progress in understanding of bloom dynamics and offered a valuable theoretical framework on which to build. In reviewing 60 years of literature, the authors trace the development of modern bloom initiation hypotheses, highlighting three case studies that illuminate the complexity, including both catalysts and impediments, of scientific progress in the wake of Sverdrup's hypothesis. Most notably, these cases demonstrate that the evolution of our understanding of phytoplankton blooms was paced by access not only to technology but also to concurrent insights from several disciplines. This exploration of the trajectories and successes in bloom studies highlights the need for expanding interdisciplinary collaborations to address the complexity of phytoplankton bloom dynamics

    Magnetic properties of ilmenite-hematite single crystals from the Ecstall pluton near Prince Rupert, British Columbia

    Get PDF
    Paleomagnetic studies of the 91 Ma Ecstall pluton and other Cretaceous plutons of British Columbia imply large northward tectonic movements (>2000 km) may have occurred during the tectonic evolution of western North America. However, more recent studies have shown that the eastern edge of the Ecstall pluton experienced considerable mineralogical changes as younger Eocene plutons, such as the ∼58 Ma Quottoon Pluton, were emplaced along its margins. We investigated changes in the rock magnetic properties associated with this reheating event by examining isolated grains of intergrown ilmenite and hematite, the primary paleomagnetic recorder in the Ecstall pluton. Measurements of hysteresis properties, low-temperature remanence, and room temperature isothermal remanent magnetization acquisition and observations from magnetic force microscopy and off-axis electron holography indicate that samples fall into three groups. The groups are defined by the presence of mineral microstructures that are related to distance from the Quotoon plutonic complex. The two groups closest to the Quottoon Pluton contain magnetite within hematite and ilmenite lamellae. Reheating of the Ecstall pluton led to an increase in coercivity and magnetization, as well as to development of mixed phase hysteresis. These results indicate that shallow paleomagnetic directions from the western Ecstall pluton are not affected by reheating and are therefore likely to record original field conditions at the time of pluton emplacement. In the absence of structural deformation, these shallow inclinations are consistent with large-scale northward translation suggested by the Baja–British Columbia hypothesis

    The top 10 research priorities in cystic fibrosis developed by a partnership between people with CF and healthcare providers

    Get PDF
    There remain many treatment uncertainties in cystic fibrosis (CF). With limited resources, research should focus on questions which are most important to the CF community. We conducted a James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnership in CF. Research questions were elicited and then prioritised in successive surveys. A workshop agreed the final top 10. Online methods avoided cross infection and widened participation. The elicitation survey had 482 respondents (1080 questions) and prioritisation survey 677 respondents. Participants were drawn equally from the patient and clinical communities globally. We have achieved a consensus on 10 research priorities which will be attractive to funders

    The dead shall be raised : Multidisciplinary analysis of human skeletons reveals complexity in 19th century immigrant socioeconomic history and identity in New Haven, Connecticut

    Get PDF
    In July 2011, renovations to Yale-New Haven Hospital inadvertently exposed the cemetery of Christ Church, New Haven, Connecticut’s first Catholic cemetery. While this cemetery was active between 1833 and 1851, both the church and its cemetery disappeared from public records, making the discovery serendipitous. Four relatively well-preserved adult skeletons were recovered with few artifacts. All four individuals show indicators of manual labor, health and disease stressors, and dental health issues. Two show indicators of trauma, with the possibility of judicial hanging in one individual. Musculoskeletal markings are consistent with physical stress, and two individuals have arthritic indicators of repetitive movement/specialized activities. Radiographic analyses show osteopenia, healed trauma, and other pathologies in several individuals. Dental calculus analysis did not identify any tuberculosis indicators, despite osteological markers. Isotopic analyses of teeth indicate that all four were likely recent immigrants to the Northeastern United States. Nuclear and mitochondrial DNA were recovered from three individuals, and these analyses identified ancestry, hair/eye color, and relatedness. Genetic and isotopic results upended our initial ancestry assessment based on burial context alone. These individuals provide biocultural evidence of New Haven’s Industrial Revolution and the plasticity of ethnic and religious identity in the immigrant experience. Their recovery and the multifaceted analyses described here illuminate a previously undescribed part of the city’s rich history. The collective expertise of biological, geochemical, archaeological, and historical researchers interprets socioeconomic and cultural identity better than any one could alone. Our combined efforts changed our initial assumptions of a poor urban Catholic cemetery’s membership, and provide a template for future discoveries and analyses

    Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

    Get PDF
    SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

    Direct P-wave anisotropy measurements at Homestake Mine: implications for wave propagation in continental crust

    Get PDF
    We measured anisotropic seismic properties of schists of the Homestake Formation located at a depth of 1478 m in the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in the Black Hills of South Dakota, USA. We deployed a 24-element linear array of three-component geophones in an area in the Homestake Mine called 19-ledge. An airless jackhammer source was used to shoot two profiles: (1) a walkaway survey to appraise any distance dependence and (2) a fan shot profile to measure variations with azimuth. Slowness estimates from the fan shot profile show a statistically significant deviation with azimuth with the expected 180° variation with azimuth. We measured P-wave particle motion deviations from data rotated to ray coordinates using three methods: (1) a conventional principal component method, (2) a novel grid search method that maximized longitudinal motion over a range of search angles and (3) the multiwavelet method. The multiwavelet results were computed in two frequency bands of 200–600 and 100–300 Hz. Results were binned by azimuth and averaged with a robust estimation method with error bars estimated by a bootstrap method. The particle motion results show large, statistically significant variations with azimuth with a 180° cyclicity. We modelled the azimuthal variations in compressional wave speed and angular deviation from purely longitudinal particle motion of P-waves using an elastic tensor method to appraise the relative importance of crystalline fabric relative to fracturing parallel to foliation. The model used bulk averages of crystal fabric measured for an analogous schist sample from southeast Vermont rotated to the Homestake Formation foliation directions supplied by SURF from old mine records. We found with average crustal crack densities crack induced anisotropy had only a small effect on the observables. We found strong agreement in the traveltime data. The observed amplitudes of deviations of P particle motion showed significantly larger variation than the model predictions and a 20° phase shift in azimuth. We attribute the inadequacies of the model fit to the particle motion data to inadequacies in the analogue rock and/or near receiver distortions from smaller scale heterogeneity. We discuss the surprising variability of signals recorded in this experimental data. We show clear examples of unexplained resonances and unexpected variations on a scale much smaller than a wavelength that has broad implications for wave propagation in real rocks

    Predicted Velocity and Density Structure of the Exhuming Papua New Guinea Ultrahigh‐Pressure Terrane

    Get PDF
    New electron backscatter diffraction measurements show that the Papua New Guinea (PNG) ultrahigh‐pressure (UHP) terrane is dominated by rocks with weakly oriented quartz and feldspar and less abundant strongly oriented hornblende, clinopyroxene, and mica. Velocities measured at high pressures (600 MPa) show that VP is 5.8–6.3 km/s for gneiss samples, 6.5–7.7 km/s for amphibolite, and 7.7–8.2 km/s for eclogite and VS is 3.4–3.9 km/s for gneiss, 4.0–4.4 km/s for amphibolite, and 4.5–4.6 km/s for eclogite. Velocities and anisotropies calculated from mineral crystal preferred orientations (CPOs) are equivalent to within 5% of the measured values. The highest seismic anisotropy for the PNG terrane is in amphibolite at 8% and 7% for VP and VS, respectively. Calculations of seismic velocities at depth based on predicted mineral assemblages indicate that the exhuming UHP terrane is of dominantly mafic composition below ∼20 km depth. Anisotropy in the PNG terrane is expected to be quite low and is controlled by the orientation of the foliation. If observable, changes in anisotropy across the exhuming body may be used to differentiate among the different proposed mechanisms of UHP exhumation
    corecore