Climatic classification of Bangladesh

Using climatological data for 27 years of 16 stations an attempt has been made to classify the climate of Bangladesh by the method of Ivanov (1941. 1956 & 1958). Selianinov (1966). Gorsinkii and Shever (1976). By Ivanov's method it has been established that there are three climatic zones in Bangladesh (i) zone with simple humid climate- western bordering districts of Bangladesh; (ii) zone with sufficient humid climate -areas of Bangladesh mainly to the west of 90. E and (iii) zone with super humid climate areas or Bangladesh mainly to the east of 90"E. Almost analogous climatic zones have been obtained by Selianinov's method. By Gorsinkii's method. it has been shown that there are three climatic zones in Bangladesh' (i) quasi-maritime climate -southeastern and northeastern hilly areas; (ii} climate of the plain land- the central belt of the country. and (iii) quasi-continental clill1ate -western bordering districts. By Shevers method it has been shown that there is only sharp continental type of climate in Bangladesh.

False blister beetles of the genus Oedemera in Scotland

The status and distribution of the Scottish false blister beetles (Oedemeridae) are summarised with particular reference to the genus Oedemera. Within this genus only three species have been reliably recorded in Scotland. Of the two widespread species virtually all the records are post-1990. One species - O. virescens - appears to be very common in the south of Scotland whereas the other species - O. lurida - is recorded mainly north of the central belt. While identification problems may partly account for these differences, they do not appear to provide a complete explanation with other unknown factors influencing their distribution.

CLASSIFYING AND MAPPING OF VEGETATED AREA IN AL- BAHA REGION, SAUDI ARABIA USING REMOTE SENSING. II. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ELEVATION, LAND SURFACE DAY TEMPERATURE, AND VEGETATION DENSITY.

Classifying and mapping of vegetated area in Al- Baha region, Saudi Arabia using remote sensing shows that the medium-high density vegetation is mostly found at the central part of Al-Baha region separating the highlands and the low lands. Results obtained show that only 862.5 km2 (7.7%) Al-Baha region is covered with medium-high density vegetation found mainly at the 6-15km width horizontal central belt (at districts of Al-Mandaq, Al-Baha and south Baljurashi) along high foggy mountainous plateau. Whereas, about 65% of Al-Baha region has very low-none density vegetation mainly occurred extensively at Tihama low plain towards the Red Sea and at the north-eastern desert plain. In addition, study reveals that the highlands of Al-Baha have the most numbers of trees represents the areas of the highest elevations in the region (range between 1940 and 2366 m above sea level. This indicates that there is relationship between this elevation range with medium to high vegetation density. Similarly, the low surface temperatures are mainly located at the central belt across Al-Baha region. When overlaid with medium-high vegetation density zone with the temperature map, it was visually observed that it almost fit with lower temperature zone of less than 15°C. This also indicates that there is relationship between lower temperature with medium-high vegetation density.

Severe Drought in the Spring of 2020 in Poland—More of the Same?

Two consecutive dry years, 2018 and 2019, a warm winter in 2019/20, and a very dry spring in 2020 led to the development of severe drought in Poland. In this paper, changes in the Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) for the interval from 1971 to the end of May 2020 are examined. The values of SPEI (based on 12, 24 and 30 month windows, i.e., SPEI 12, SPEI 24 and SPEI 30) were calculated with the help of the Penman–Monteith equation. Changes in soil moisture contents were also examined from January 2000 to May 2020, based on data from the NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center, presenting increasing water shortages in a central belt of Poland. The study showed that the 2020 spring drought was among the most severe events in the analyzed period and presented decreasing trends of SPEI at most stations located in central Poland. This study also determined changes in soil moisture contents from January 2000 to May 2020 that indicate a decreasing tendency. Cumulative water shortages from year to year led to the development of severe drought in the spring of 2020, as reflected in very low SPEI values and low soil moisture.

‘The skailing of the picters’: The Coming of the Talkies in Small Rural Townships in Northern Scotland

Like that of many other nations, Scotland's film history has been characterised largely by its focus on its great metropolitan centres. The occasional studies which do look outside the ‘Central Belt’ stretching between Scotland's two greatest cities, Glasgow and Edinburgh, are likely to concentrate on two of its other sizeable cities, Aberdeen and Dundee. This article will consider cinemas north of Inverness (Scotland's most northerly city), including those in Wick, Thurso and the islands of Orkney and Shetland. The talkies arrived late to all of the townships considered. Cinema audiences dwindled as silent films fell out of favour with local audiences well aware of the ubiquity of the talkies elsewhere in Britain. When sound finally did arrive, the return of audiences to local picture houses had a great impact on the small rural townships, forcing councils to deal with the ‘problem of the talkie queues’ and the ‘skailing of the picters’ (the audiences spilling out into the town after a film). Using a variety of archival sources – local newspapers, council reports, oral histories and diary entries – this article focuses on the various economic and social impacts resulting from the arrival of sound.

Petrology of granitic rocks in Dan Chang District, Suphan Buri Province, Thailand

<p>Granitic rocks in Thailand and South East Asia have been divided into Eastern belt granite, Central belt granite, and Western belt granite.The Central belt granite widely expose in Thailand including Dan Chang area. According to the field investigation, there are two granitic bodies in Dan Chang area. The main granitic body is composed of mainly K-feldspar, plagioclase, quartz, and biotite with some accessory minerals of opaque mineral and zircon. The granitic rocks are obviously characterized by porphyritic texture of coarse-grain K-feldspar.Another granitic body is small body which is similar mineral assemblage to those granite in the main body with different proportion of K-feldspar. The amount of K-feldspar in the small body granite is less than the main body granite. However, both granitic bodies are generally characterized by porphyritic texture of K-feldspar. Moreover, aplite and pegmatite are associated with both of them. The results of field investigation and petrographic study of the granitic rocks in Dan Chang District, Suphan Buri Province, Thailand can be compared with the Central belt granite which may be resulted from the Sibumasu and Indochina collision in Late Triassic.</p>

Nigeria: A Country Profile

Nigeria is a sovereign country located in the area of West Africa bordering on the Gulf of Guinea. The country has a total area of 923, 769sq km (a little more than twice the size of California). Its physical size makes Nigeria the third largest country in Sub-Saharan Africa. The country’s terrain consists of the lowlands in the South with mountainous formations in the South-east, which merge into the hills and plateaus of the Central belt and the plains of the far north. The climate varies from the largely equatorial climates in the South to the tropical climates in the centre and the North (Ekoko, 1990). It is also the most populous country in Africa, with a population of about 160 million (2006 census), and a population growth rate estimate of 3%. The country is bordered on the west by the Republic of Benin and the Republic of Cameroon, on the south by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the north by Niger Republic and the Republic of Chad. Nigeria is endowed with numerous natural resources, the most important being petroleum and natural gas, found in the Niger Delta areas of the country. Coal, iron ore, tin, limestone, zinc, lead, gold, precious stones, and uranium are found across the country.There are many ethnic groups, roughly categorized into the majority ethnic groups and the minority ethnic groups. The majority groups are namely, the Hausa-Fulani of the North, the Yoruba of the South-west, and the Igbo of the South-east. The hundreds of so-called minority ethnic groups include the Igala, Tiv, Idoma, Junkun, Angas, Birom and others in the Central-belt, the Edo, Urhobo and Itshekiri in the Mid-west, the Ijaw, Efik, Ibibio and Ogoni in the South-south, and the Kanuri, Gwari and Kataf of the far-North. On the whole, it is estimated that the country has more than 250 ethnic groups (Osaghae, 1998). English is the official language in Nigeria, by virtue of the country being a former colony of Britain. Christianity, Islam and traditional beliefs are the religions in the country, and although there is no state religion, the various tiers of government in the country are often involved in aspects of some of these religions, including state sponsorships of annual Muslim and Christian pilgrimages to the Holy lands.

In-Situ Observation of Adhesion Behavior During Ultrasonic Al Ribbon Bonding

In-situ observation was performed on a transparent silica substrate during ultrasonic Al ribbon bonding, using a high-speed video camera with differing frame rates, 104 fps and 103 fps, to clarify the adhesion behavior. The bonding process was observed as follows. Initially, friction slip occurred, producing multiple island streaks in the direction parallel to the ultrasonic vibration. The island streaks were formed as a scratch, due to surface waviness of the Al ribbon. Momentarily, a belt-shaped bond zone was formed at the center, normally due to the ultrasonic vibration. The island streaks could be clearly observed at 104 fps. However, the central belt zone was unclear and appeared translucent at 104 fps; although it was clear when observed at 103 fps. The island streaks were unclear at 103 fps. The positional relation of the island streaks and the central belt zone was confirmed from in-situ observation results of a twist and peel test of Al ribbon bonded to silica substrate. The central belt zone was between the island streaks and the silica substrate.