Theodore August Link (1897-1980)

This biography honours the achievements of Theordore August Link, the petroleum geologist responsible for discovering the Norman Wells oil field, pioneering the use of cross-section models in geological work, the commercial use of airplanes in the North and the use of aerial photography in geological surveying, and serving as chief geologist of the CANOL Project. His many additional contributions to the field of geology are enumerated

The Naming of Kazan River, Nunavut, Canada

The Kazan River in Nunavut was designated as a Canadian National Heritage river in 1990, but the reasons for its naming and the meaning of its name are unclear. The Canadian Geographical Names Data Base gives a different definition for another Kazan River and lake located near Île-à-la-Crosse, Saskatchewan. There is also a Mont de Kazan, Quebec, named for the Kazan Cathedral in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia. After examining the records of the Roman Catholic missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) and the autobiographical notes and journals of J.B. Tyrrell, who first mapped the Kazan River in 1894, I conclude that “Kazan” was intended to mean “kasba” (‘white partridge’ in the Dene/Chipewyan language). Kasba is also the name of the lake at the river’s headwaters. The reasons for the river name change from Kasba (on an 1892 Dene sketch map labeled by Tyrrell) to Kazan (on other Dene sketch maps labeled by Tyrrell in 1894) may be linked to the ministrations of OMI members who set up missions at Île-à-la-Crosse and Brochet in the mid-19th century. They likely named features near their missions to honour their faith and further their baptizing efforts. The similar sounds of Kasba and Kazan may have encouraged the naming. It is certain, however, that J.B. Tyrrell gave a new name to the river, and so changed the map of Canada.La rivière Kazan, au Nunavut, fait partie du Réseau des rivières du patrimoine canadien depuis 1990, mais les origines et la signification de son nom ne sont pas claires. La Base de données toponymiques du Canada confère une définition différente à une autre rivière Kazan et à un lac situés près d’Île-à-la-Crosse, en Saskatchewan. Il existe également un mont de Kazan, au Québec, nommé ainsi en l’honneur de la cathédrale de Kazan à Kazan, dans le Tatarstan, en Russie. Après avoir étudié les dossiers des missionnaires catholiques romains des Oblats de Marie Immaculée (OMI) de même que les notes et journaux autobiographiques de J.B. Tyrrell, qui a été le premier à cartographier le rivière Kazan en 1894, j’en conclus que le terme « Kazan » voulait dire « kasba » (« perdrix blanche » en langue dénée et chippewyan). Kasba est également le nom que porte le lac tributaire de la rivière. Les raisons expliquant le changement de nom de la rivière, qui est passé de Kasba (sur une carte des Dénés dessinée en 1892 et marquée par J.B. Tyrrell) à Kazan (sur d’autres cartes des Dénés marquées par J.B. Tyrrell en 1894) pourraient être attribuables aux ministères des membres de l’OMI qui établissaient des missions à l’Île-à-la-Crosse et à Brochet au milieu du XIXe siècle. Ils nommaient vraisemblablement les caractéristiques géographiques situées dans les environs de leurs missions pour honorer leur foi et donner de l’ampleur à l’acte du baptême. La similarité entre les sons Kasba et Kazan pourrait avoir incité les membres de l’OMI à choisir ce nom. Il est toutefois certain que J.B. Tyrrell a donné un nouveau nom à la rivière, ce qui a eu pour effet de changer la carte du Canada

Failure to detect mismatches between intention and outcome in a simple decision task

A fundamental assumption of theories of decision-making is that we detect mismatches between intention and outcome, adjust our behavior in the face of error, and adapt to changing circumstances. Is this always the case? We investigated the relation between intention, choice, and introspection. Participants made choices between presented face pairs on the basis of attractiveness, while we covertly manipulated the relationship between choice and outcome that they experienced. Participants failed to notice conspicuous mismatches between their intended choice and the outcome they were presented with, while nevertheless offering introspectively derived reasons for why they chose the way they did. We call this effect choice blindness

Lifetime measurements in CeI, CeII, and CeIII using time-resolved laser spectroscopy with application to stellar abundance determinations of cerium

Radiative lifetimes of two levels in Ce I, eight levels in Ce rr, and nine levels in Ce III have been measured using the time-resolved laser-induced fluorescence technique. Free cerium atoms and singly and doubly ionized ions were obtained in a laser-produced plasma. A narrow bandwidth UV laser pulse was employed to selectively populate the short-lived upper levels and the lifetime values were evaluated from the time-resolved fluorescence signals recorded by a fast detection system. Transition probabilities for Ce III were obtained from branching fractions calculated by the Cowan code and the experimental lifetimes. The results are compared with previous measurements and calculations. Spectral Lines of Ce III were identified in the spectrum of the magnetic chemically peculiar star alpha(2)CVn and the abundance of cerium was determined from synthetic spectrum fitting to be 800 times greater than the solar abundance

Initial effects of post-harvest ditch cleaning on greenhouse gas fluxes in a hemiboreal peatland forest

Ditch cleaning (DC) is a well-established forestry practice across Fennoscandia to lower water table levels (WTL) and thereby facilitate the establishment of tree seedlings following clear-cutting. However, the implications from these activities for ecosystem-atmosphere greenhouse gas (GHG) exchanges are poorly understood at present. We assessed the initial DC effects on the GHG fluxes in a forest clear-cut on a drained fertile peatland in hemiboreal Sweden, by comparing chamber measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes from soil and ditches in DC and uncleaned (UC) areas over the first two post-harvest years. We also evaluated spatial effects by comparing fluxes at 4 m and 40 m from ditches. We found that 2 years after DC, mean (+/- standard error) WTL of-65 +/- 2 cm was significantly lower in the DC area compared to-56 +/- 2 cm in the UC area. We further observed lower gross primary production and ecosystem respiration in the first year after DC which coincided with delayed development of herbaceous ground vegetation. We also found higher CH4 uptake but no difference in N2O fluxes after DC. Greater CH4 uptake occurred at 4 m compared to 40 m away from both cleaned and uncleaned ditches. Model extrapolation suggests that total annual GHG emissions in the second year were reduced from 49.4 +/- 17.0 t-CO2-eq-ha(-1) -year(-1) in the UC area to 27.8 +/- 10.3 t-CO2-eq-ha(-1) -year(-1) in the DC area. A flux partitioning approach suggested that this was likely caused by decreased heterotrophic respiration, possibly because of enhanced soil dryness following DC during the dry meteorological conditions. CH(4 )and N2O fluxes from clear-cut areas contributed < 2 % to the total (soil, ditches) GHG budget. Similarly the area -weighted contributions by CO2 and CH4 emissions from both cleaned and uncleaned ditches were < 2 %. Thus, our study highlights that DC may considerably alter the post-harvest GHG fluxes of drained peatland forests. However, long-term observations under various site conditions and forest rotation stages are warranted to better understand DC effects on the forest GHG balance