Palaeo-sea-level and palaeo-ice-sheet databases: problems, strategies, and perspectives

Sea-level and ice-sheet databases have driven numerous advances in understanding the Earth system. We describe the challenges and offer best strategies that can be adopted to build self-consistent and standardised databases of geological and geochemical information used to archive palaeo-sea-levels and palaeo-ice-sheets. There are three phases in the development of a database: (i) measurement, (ii) interpretation, and (iii) database creation. Measurement should include the objective description of the position and age of a sample, description of associated geological features, and quantification of uncertainties Interpretation of the sample may have a subjective component, but it should always include uncertainties and alternative or contrasting interpretations, with any exclusion of existing interpretations requiring a full justification. During the creation of a database, an approach based on accessibility, transparency, trust, availability, continuity, completeness, and communication of content (ATTAC³) must be adopted. It is essential to consider the community that creates and benefits from a database. We conclude that funding agencies should not only consider the creation of original data in specific research question-oriented projects, but also include the possibility of using part of the funding for IT -related and database creation tasks, which are essential to guarantee accessibility and maintenance of the collected data

Orally Administrated Cinnamon Extract Reduces β-Amyloid Oligomerization and Corrects Cognitive Impairment in Alzheimer's Disease Animal Models

An increasing body of evidence indicates that accumulation of soluble oligomeric assemblies of β-amyloid polypeptide (Aβ) play a key role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. Specifically, 56 kDa oligomeric species were shown to be correlated with impaired cognitive function in AD model mice. Several reports have documented the inhibition of Aβ plaque formation by compounds from natural sources. Yet, evidence for the ability of common edible elements to modulate Aβ oligomerization remains an unmet challenge. Here we identify a natural substance, based on cinnamon extract (CEppt), which markedly inhibits the formation of toxic Aβ oligomers and prevents the toxicity of Aβ on neuronal PC12 cells. When administered to an AD fly model, CEppt rectified their reduced longevity, fully recovered their locomotion defects and totally abolished tetrameric species of Aβ in their brain. Furthermore, oral administration of CEppt to an aggressive AD transgenic mice model led to marked decrease in 56 kDa Aβ oligomers, reduction of plaques and improvement in cognitive behavior. Our results present a novel prophylactic approach for inhibition of toxic oligomeric Aβ species formation in AD through the utilization of a compound that is currently in use in human diet

Paleo-Urban Development and Late Quaternary Environmental Change in the Akko Area

Holocene sea level changes as well as regional and local tectonic movements determined the configuration of the Mediterranean coast of northern Israel. This, in turn, influenced the location and type of settlements, in particular of Akko. The paleoenvironment and paleogeography of Akko bay are tentatively reconstructed here through the study of the stratigraphy and nature of the deposits.Des changements de niveau à l'holocène aussi bien que des mouvements régionaux et locaux déterminèrent la configuration de la côte nord d'Israël. Ces modifications influencèrent à leur tour l'emplacement et le type des établissements, en particulier d'Akko. Un essai de reconstruction du paléoenvironnement et de la paléogéographie est tenté ici à travers l'étude de la stratigraphie et de la nature des dépôts.Inbar Moshe, Sivan Dorit. Paleo-Urban Development and Late Quaternary Environmental Change in the Akko Area. In: Paléorient, 1983, vol. 9, n°2. pp. 85-91

Timing of the last Mediterranean Sea - Black Sea connection from isostatic models and regional sea-level data

Water levels in the Mediterranean and Black Seas since the Last Glacial Maximum have varied substantially across the region because of the influence of the melting of the last great ice sheets in redistributing ice and water over the Earth's surface. Thi

Holocene sea-level changes along the Mediterranean coast of Israel, based on archaeological observations and numerical model

Local sea-level curves reflect global eustatic changes, regional isostatic adjustments of the crust to changing ice and ocean volumes and tectonically controlled crustal movements. In this study, we evaluate the relative contribution of each of these factors to the Holocene sea-level curve of the Mediterranean coast of Israel. We use archaeological data as constraints on palaeo sea levels and we then compare the observational limits with isostatic models for sea-level change across the region. The isostatic model includes the contribution arising from the relative minor increase in ocean volumes for the past 6000 years due to residual melting of ice sheets, the effect of the changing shape of the ocean basin, the time dependence of shorelines as sea-level changes and the changing surface area occupied by ice sheets. Differences, if significant, between the observed and predicted change are interpreted as being of tectonic origin. The archaeological observations and the model sea-level curve, along the Mediterranean coast of Israel were found to be generally consistent and any discrepancies lie within the uncertainties of both values. Our model predicted that 8000 years ago sea level at the Israel coast was at about -13.5 ± 2 m, whereas the archaeological data place it at -16.5 ± 1 m. By 7000 BP the predicted level has risen to about -7 ± 1 m consistent with the archaeological evidences. According to both observations and predictions sea level was still lower than -3 to -4.5 m at 6000 BP and remained below its present level until about 3000-2000 BP. The comparison between the model sea-level curve and the archaeological observations also enable to conclude that the average rate of vertical tectonic movement for the last 8000 years, at the Carmel coast, Israel, has been less than 0.2 mm/year

Late-Pleistocene evolution of the continental shelf of central Israel, a case study from Hadera

Sea-level fluctuations are a dominant mechanism that control coastal environmental changes through time. This is especially the case for the successive regressions and transgressions over the last interglacial cycle, which have shaped the deposition, preservation and erosion patterns of unconsolidated sediments currently submerged on continental shelves. The current study focuses on creating an integrated marine and terrestrial geophysical and litho-stratigraphic framework of the coastal zone of Hadera, north-central Israel. This research presents a case study, investigating the changing sedimentological units in the study area. Analysis suggest these represent various coastal environments and were deposited during times of lower than present sea level and during the later stages of the Holocene transgression.A multi-disciplinary approach was applied by compiling existing elevation raster grids, bathymetric charts, one hundred lithological borehole data-sets, and a 110 km-long sub-bottom geophysical survey. Based on seismic stratigraphic analysis, observed geometries, and reflective appearances, six bounding surfaces and seven seismic units were identified and characterized. These seismic units have been correlated with the available borehole data to produce a chronologically constrained lithostratigraphy for the area. This approach allowed us to propose a relationship between the lithological units and sea-level change and thus enable the reconstruction of Hadera coastal evolution over the last ~ 100 ka. This reconstruction suggests that the stratigraphy is dominated by lowstand aeolian and fluvial terrestrial environments, subsequently transgressed during the Holocene. The results of this study provide a valuable framework for future national strategic shallow-water infrastructure construction and also for the possible locations of past human settlements in relation to coastal evolution through time

Ancient coastal wells of Caesarea Maritima, Israel, an indicator for relative sea level changes during the last 2000 years.

During the detailed excavations of ancient Caesarea, Israel, East Mediterranean, 64 coastal water wells have been examined that date from the early Roman period (with the oldest occurring in the 1st century AD), up to the end of the Crusader period (mid-13th century AD). The depths of these coastal water wells establish the position of the ancient water table and therefore the position of sea level for the first century AD up to 1300 AD. The connection between the coastal water table and changes in sea level has been established from modern observations in several wells on time scales of days and months and this is used to reconstruct sea level during historical time. The results indicate that during the Byzantine period, sea level at Caesarea was higher by about 30 cm than today. The Late Moslem and Crusader data shows greater fluctuations but the data sets are also much smaller than for the earlier periods. The consistency of the data indicates that the near-coastal well data from Caesarea provides a reliable indicator of sea-level change, with an accuracy of about 10-15 cm. These results are consistent with observations for earlier periods and, with comparisons to model-predicted glacio-hydro isostatic sea-level change, indicate that ocean volumes have been constant for much of the past 2000 years. The well data is also consistent with an absence of significant vertical tectonic movement of the coast at Caesarea over about 2000 years

Can we detect centennial sea-level variations over the last three thousand years in Israeli archaeological records?

Archaeological remains are valuable relative sea-level (RSL) indicators in Israel, a tectonically stable coast with minor isostatic inputs. Previous research has used archaeological indicators to argue for centennial sea-level fluctuations. Here, we place archaeological indicators in a quality-controlled dataset where all indicators have consistently calculated vertical and chronological uncertainties, and we subject the data to statistical analysis. We combine the archaeological data with bio-construction data from Dendropoma petraeum colonial vermetids. The final dataset consists of 99 relative sea-level index points and 12 limiting points from the last 4000 a. The temporal distribution of the index points is uneven; Israel has only four index points before 2000 a BP. We apply an Errors-In-Variables Integrated Gaussian Process (EIV IGP) to the index points to model the evolution of RSL. Results show RSL in Israel rose from −0.8 ± 0.5 m at ∼2750 a BP (Iron Age) to 0.0 ± 0.1 m by ∼1850 a BP (Roman period) at 0.8 mm/a, and continued rising to 0.1 ± 0.1 m until ∼1600 a BP (Byzantine Period). RSL then fell to −0.3 ± 0.1 m by 0.5 mm/a until ∼650 a BP (Late Arab period), before returning to present levels at a rate of 0.4 mm/a. The re-assessed Israeli record supports centennial-scale RSL fluctuations during the last 3000 a BP, although the magnitude of the RSL fall during the last 2000 a BP is 50% less. The new Israel RSL record demonstrates correspondence with regional climate proxies. This quality-controlled Israeli RSL dataset can serve as a reference for comparisons with other sea-level records from the Eastern Mediterranean

Sea level change and vertical land movements since the last two millennia along the coasts of southwestern Turkey and Israel

This paper provides new relative sea level data inferred from coastal archaeological sites located along the Turkish coasts of the Gulf of Fethye (8 sites), and Israel, between Akziv and Caesarea (5 sites). The structures selected are those that, for effective functioning, can be accurately related to sea level at the time of their construction. Thus their positions with respect to present sea level provide a measure of the relative sea level change since their time of construction. Useful information was obtained from the investigated sites spanning an age range of ~2.3-~1.6 ka BP. The inferred changes in relative sea level for the two areas are distinctly different, from a rise of 2.41 to 4.50 m in Turkey and from 0 to 0.18 m in Israel. Sea level change is the combination of several processes, including vertical tectonics, glacio-hydro-isostatic signals associated with the last glacial cycle, and changes in ocean volume. For the Israel section, the present elevations of the MIS-5.5 Tyrrhenian terraces occur at a few meters above present sea level and vertical tectonic displacements are small. Data from GPS and tide gauge measurements also indicate that any recent vertical movements are small. The MIS-5.5 shorelines are absent from the investigated section of the Turkish coast, consistent with crustal subsidence associated with the Hellenic Arc. The isostatic signals for the Israel section of the coast are also small (ranging from -0.11 mm/yr to 0.14 mm/yr, depending on site and earth model) and the observed (eustatic) average sea level change, corrected for this contribution, is a rise of 13.5 ± 2.6 cm during the past ~2 ka. This is attributed to the time-integrated contribution to sea level from a combination of thermal expansion and other increases in ocean volume. The observed sea levels from the Turkish sites, in contrast, indicate a much greater rise of up to 2.2 mm/yr since 2.3 ka BP occurring in a wide area between Knidos and Kekova. The isostatic signal here is also one of a rising sea level (of up to ~1 mm/yr and site and earth-model dependent) and the corrected tectonic rate of land subsidence is ~1.48 mm/yr. This is the primary cause of dramatic relative sea level rise for this part of the coast