Age and significance of slope deposits, Black Mountain, Canberra

Extensive slope deposits are described from Black Mountain, Canberra, with particular reference to a profile exposed in an excavation at 590 m on the lower eastern slopes of the mountain. Buried organomineral soil materials near the base of the slope deposits contain fragments of carbonized wood with an average age of 27,800 (+2500, - 1900) years B.P. This age is not significantly different from the mean age of 26,790 � 810 years B.P. for carbonized wood in slope deposits near Lake George, and is close to the mean age of 31,500 � 1000 years B.P. for slope deposits above 1000 m in the Snowy Mountains. A method for comparing the results of carbon-14 determinations is described. The Snowy Mountains deposits indicated a periglacial climate with mean annual temperatures at least 8-10�C lower than at present. On the basis of their similar appearance and age, it is suggested that the Black Mountain deposits were also formed under cold-climate conditions. If this were so, the synchronous slope deposits near Lake George (and river terraces and slope deposits in an upland tributary of the Shoalhaven River) must also have developed during a colder climate. The climatic and associated soil conditions considered necessary for the formation of periglacial deposits at Black Mountain are discussed. Estimates of the lowering in temperature (compared with present-day temperature) which would have been involved vary from a crude estimate of about 14�C (annual) with relatively high precipitations and prolonged snow cover, to a more conservative estimate of 9�C (winter), 11�C (summer), and 10�C (annual) if the winter precipitations and snow cover were light. Even under the latter conditions, tree cover would have been minimal or absent from the tableland environment.

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PERSIAN GARDENS IN COLD AND DRY CLIMATE: A CASE STUDY OF TABRIZ’S HISTORICAL GARDENS

International Journal of Architectural Research Archnet-IJAR ◽

10.26687/archnet-ijar.v10i3.925 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 193

Author(s):

Ahad Nejad Ebrahimi ◽

Farnaz Nazarzadeh ◽

Elnaz Nazarzadeh

Keyword(s):

Comparative Study ◽

Water Supply ◽

Field Study ◽

Cold Climate ◽

Natural Substrate ◽

Garden Design ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

North West ◽

Special Expertise

Throughout history, gardens and garden designing has been in the attention of Persian architects who had special expertise in the construction of gardens. The appearance of Islam and allegories of paradise taken from that in Koran and Saints’ sayings gave spirituality to garden construction. Climate conditions have also had an important role in this respect but little research has been done about it and most of the investigations have referred to spiritual aspects and forms of garden. The cold and dry climate that has enveloped parts of West and North West of Iran has many gardens with different forms and functions, which have not been paid much attention to by studies done so far. The aim of this paper is to identify the features and specifications of cold and dry climate gardens with an emphasis on Tabriz’s Gardens. Due to its natural and strategic situation, Tabriz has always been in the attention of governments throughout history; travellers and tourists have mentioned Tabriz as a city that has beautiful gardens. But, the earthquakes and wars have left no remains of those beautiful gardens. This investigation, by a comparative study of the climates in Iran and the effect of those climates on the formation of gardens and garden design, tries to identify the features and characteristics of gardens in cold and dry climate. The method of study is interpretive-historical on the basis of written documents and historic features and field study of existing gardens in this climate. The results show that, with respect to natural substrate, vegetation, the form of water supply, and the general form of the garden; gardens in dry and cold climate are different from gardens in other climates.

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Application of Three Deep Machine-Learning Algorithms in a Construction Assessment Model of Farmland Quality at the County Scale: Case Study of Xiangzhou, Hubei Province, China

Agriculture ◽

10.3390/agriculture11010072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 72

Author(s):

Li Wang ◽

Yong Zhou ◽

Qing Li ◽

Tao Xu ◽

Zhengxiang Wu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Assessment ◽

Index System ◽

Quality Index ◽

Hubei Province ◽

Machine Learning Algorithms ◽

Assessment Model ◽

Soil Conditions ◽

The Mean ◽

County Scale ◽

Assessment Results

Constructing a scientific and quantitative quality-assessment model for farmland is important for understanding farmland quality, and can provide a theoretical basis and technical support for formulating rational and effective management policies and realizing the sustainable use of farmland resources. To more accurately reflect the systematic, complex, and differential characteristics of farmland quality, this study aimed to explore an intelligent farmland quality-assessment method that avoids the subjectivity of determining indicator weights while improving assessment accuracy. Taking Xiangzhou in Hubei Province, China, as the study area, 14 indicators were selected from four dimensions—terrain, soil conditions, socioeconomics, and ecological environment—to build a comprehensive assessment index system for farmland quality applicable to the region. A total of 1590 representative samples in Xiangzhou were selected, of which 1110 were used as training samples, 320 as test samples, and 160 as validation samples. Three models of entropy weight (EW), backpropagation neural network (BPNN), and random forest (RF) were selected for training, and the assessment results of farmland quality were output through simulations to compare their assessment accuracy and analyze the distribution pattern of farmland quality grades in Xiangzhou in 2018. The results showed the following: (1) The RF model for farmland quality assessment required fewer parameters, and could simulate the complex relationships between indicators more accurately and analyze each indicator’s contribution to farmland quality scientifically. (2) In terms of the average quality index of farmland, RF > BPNN > EW. The spatial patterns of the quality index from RF and BPNN were similar, and both were significantly different from EW. (3) In terms of the assessment results and precision characterization indicators, the assessment results of RF were more in line with realities of natural and socioeconomic development, with higher applicability and reliability. (4) Compared to BPNN and EW, RF had a higher data mining ability and training accuracy, and its assessment result was the best. The coefficient of determination (R2) was 0.8145, the mean absolute error (MAE) was 0.009, and the mean squared error (MSE) was 0.012. (5) The overall quality of farmland in Xiangzhou was higher, with a larger area of second- and third-grade farmland, accounting for 54.63%, and the grade basically conformed to the trend of positive distribution, showing an obvious pattern of geographical distribution, with overall high performance in the north-central part and low in the south. The distribution of farmland quality grades also varied widely among regions. This showed that RF was more suitable for the quality assessment of farmland with complex nonlinear characteristics. This study enriches and improves the index system and methodological research of farmland quality assessment at the county scale, and provides a basis for achieving a threefold production pattern of farmland quantity, quality, and ecology in Xiangzhou, while also serving as a reference for similar regions and countries.

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Experimental comparison of two methods to study barley responses to partial submergence

Plant Methods ◽

10.1186/s13007-021-00742-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Alexandra Miricescu ◽

Tomás Byrne ◽

Catherine M. Doorly ◽

Carl K. Y. Ng ◽

Susanne Barth ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Global Climate ◽

Experimental Comparison ◽

Soil Conditions ◽

Early Developmental Stage ◽

Starch Solution ◽

Waterlogging Tolerance ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Flooding Events ◽

Staple Crop ◽

Early Developmental

Abstract Background Crop yield is dependent on climate conditions, which are becoming both more variable and extreme in some areas of the world as a consequence of global climate change. Increased precipitation and flooding events are the cause of important yield losses due to waterlogging or (partial) submergence of crops in the field. Our ability to screen efficiently and quickly for varieties that have increased tolerance to waterlogging or (partial) submergence is important. Barley, a staple crop worldwide, is particularly sensitive to waterlogging. Screening for waterlogging tolerant barley varieties has been ongoing for many years, but methods used to screen vary greatly, from the type of soil used to the time at which the treatment is applied. This variation makes it difficult to cross-compare results. Results Here, we have devised a scoring system to assess barley tolerance to waterlogging and compare two different methods when partial submergence is applied with either water or a starch solution at an early developmental stage, which is particularly sensitive to waterlogging or partial submergence. The use of a starch solution has been previously shown to result in more reducing soil conditions and has been used to screen for waterlogging tolerance. Conclusions Our results show that the two methods provide similar results to qualitatively rank varieties as tolerant or sensitive, while also affecting plants differently, in that application of a starch solution results in stronger and earlier symptoms than applying partial submergence with water.

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Agrometeorological models for estimating sweet cassava yield

Pesquisa Agropecuária Tropical ◽

10.1590/1983-40632018v4850451 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 48 (1) ◽

pp. 43-51

Author(s):

Victor Brunini Moreto ◽

Lucas Eduardo de Oliveira Aparecido ◽

Glauco de Souza Rolim ◽

José Reinaldo da Silva Cabral de Moraes

Keyword(s):

Great Influence ◽

Soil Water Storage ◽

Percentage Error ◽

P Value ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Paulo State ◽

State Water ◽

The Mean ◽

Sweet Cassava ◽

Main Factor

ABSTRACT Brazil is the fourth largest producer of cassava in the world, with climate conditions being the main factor regulating its production. This study aimed to develop agrometeorological models to estimate the sweet cassava yield for the São Paulo state, as well as to identify which climatic variables have more influence on yield. The models were built with multiple linear regression and classified by the following statistical indexes: lower mean absolute percentage error, higher adjusted determination coefficient and significance (p-value < 0.05). It was observed that the mean air temperature has a great influence on the sweet cassava yield during the whole cycle for all regions in the state. Water deficit and soil water storage were the most influential variables at the beginning and final stages. The models accuracy ranged in 3.11 %, 6.40 %, 6.77 % and 7.15 %, respectively for Registro, Mogi Mirim, Assis and Jaboticabal.

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Catchment-scale evaluation of pollution potential of urban snow at two residential catchments in southern Finland

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.2013.466 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 68 (10) ◽

pp. 2164-2170 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Nora Sillanpää ◽

Harri Koivusalo

Keyword(s):

Snow Water Equivalent ◽

Hydrological Cycle ◽

Cold Climate ◽

Road Maintenance ◽

Catchment Scale ◽

Small Surface ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Snow Water ◽

High Level ◽

Mass Loads

Despite the crucial role of snow in the hydrological cycle in cold climate conditions, monitoring studies of urban snow quality often lack discussions about the relevance of snow in the catchment-scale runoff management. In this study, measurements of snow quality were conducted at two residential catchments in Espoo, Finland, simultaneously with continuous runoff measurements. The results of the snow quality were used to produce catchment-scale estimates of areal snow mass loads (SML). Based on the results, urbanization reduced areal snow water equivalent but increased pollutant accumulation in snow: SMLs in a medium-density residential catchment were two- to four-fold higher in comparison with a low-density residential catchment. The main sources of pollutants were related to vehicular traffic and road maintenance, but also pet excrement increased concentrations to a high level. Ploughed snow can contain 50% of the areal pollutant mass stored in snow despite its small surface area within a catchment.

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High-quality eddy-covariance CO2budgets under cold climate conditions

Journal of Geophysical Research Biogeosciences ◽

10.1002/2017jg003830 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 122 (8) ◽

pp. 2064-2084 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Fanny Kittler ◽

Werner Eugster ◽

Thomas Foken ◽

Martin Heimann ◽

Olaf Kolle ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Eddy Covariance ◽

Cold Climate ◽

High Quality ◽

Climate Conditions

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Numerical Climatic Analysis of Soybean Development in Sowing Dates in Humid Subtropical Climate

Revista Brasileira de Meteorologia ◽

10.1590/0102-77863620131 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mateus Possebon Bortoluzzi ◽

Arno Bernardo Heldwein ◽

Roberto Trentin ◽

Ivan Carlos Maldaner ◽

Jocélia Rosa da Silva ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Meteorological Data ◽

Sowing Date ◽

Cycle Duration ◽

Subtropical Climate ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Development Cycle ◽

Sowing Dates ◽

Climatological Station ◽

The Mean ◽

Santa Maria

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the mean duration and the interannual variability of phenological subperiods and total soybean development cycle for 11 sowing dates in the humid subtropical climate conditions of the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Daily meteorological data were used from 1971 to 2017 obtained from the Pelotas agroclimatological station and from 1968 to 2017 from the main climatological station of Santa Maria. The soybean development simulation was performed considering three sets of cultivars of relative maturity groups between 5.9-6.8, 6.9-7.3 and 7.4-8.0, with intervals between the sowing dates of approximately 10 days, comprising September, 21 to December, 31. The data of phenological subperiods duration and total development cycle were subjected to the exploratory analysis BoxPlot, analysis of variance and mean comparison by the Scott-Knott test, with 5% of probability. The development cycle duration is greater in Pelotas than in Santa Maria. There was a decrease in soybean cycle duration from the first to the last sowing date for both locations. The R1-R5 subperiod duration is decreasing from October to December due to photoperiod reduction.

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New insights into Viticulture, Enology and Vitivinicultural Economy: Ciência e Técnica Vitivinícola 2021

Ciência e Técnica Vitivinícola ◽

10.1051/ctv/ctv20213602173 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 36 (2) ◽

pp. 173-175

Author(s):

Jorge Cunha ◽

Ilda Caldeira ◽

Sara Canas

Keyword(s):

Foliar Application ◽

Cold Climate ◽

Management Technique ◽

Grape Seeds ◽

Biotic And Abiotic Stresses ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Anatomical Features ◽

Wide Range ◽

Water Constraint

New insights into Viticulture, Enology and Vitivinicultural Economy arise from the fourteen articles published by the Ciência e Técnica Vitivinícola in 2021. Research carried out by several international teams covered a wide range of topics that seek to respond to current main challenges: chemical, morphological and anatomical features of the grapevine cultivars explored to withstand biotic and abiotic stresses; seaweed foliar application to grapevines as an innovative and integrated vineyard management technique; nutritional management of grapevine cultivars under cold climate conditions and under water constraint scenarios; viability and cost-effectiveness of photovoltaic solar energy for wineries; viticultural technologies and the food safety of wine; characterization of grapes and methods for juice production; chemical composition of grape seeds; development of analytical and sensory methodologies; portrait of the wine spirits sector in Portugal and its recent evolution.

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A climatic thermostat making Earth habitable

International Journal of Astrobiology ◽

10.1017/s1473550405002302 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 3-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Peter D. Ditlevsen

Keyword(s):

Surface Temperature ◽

Temperature Control ◽

Black Body ◽

Black Body Radiation ◽

Cold Climate ◽

Snowball Earth ◽

Greenhouse Warming ◽

Radiative Balance ◽

The Mean ◽

Warm State

The mean surface temperature on Earth and other planets with atmospheres is determined by the radiative balance between the non-reflected incoming solar radiation and the outgoing long-wave black-body radiation from the atmosphere. The surface temperature is higher than the black-body temperature due to the greenhouse warming. Balancing the ice-albedo cooling and the greenhouse warming gives rise to two stable climate states. A cold climate state with a completely ice-covered planet, called Snowball Earth, and a warm state similar to our present climate where greenhouse warming prevents the total glaciation. The warm state has dominated Earth in most of its geological history despite a 30% fainter young Sun. The warming could have been controlled by a greenhouse thermostat operating by the temperature control of the weathering process depleting CO2 from the atmosphere. This temperature control has permitted life to evolve as early as the end of the heavy bombardment 4 billion years ago.

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