Global Boundaries Research Articles

The Ordovician of Scandinavia: a revised regional stage classification

Abstract The Ordovician of Scandinavia (i.e. Denmark, Norway and Sweden) has been investigated for over two centuries and, through time, various chronostratigraphic schemes have been introduced, facilitating regional correlation. However, a modern chronostratigraphy has never been proposed. Here, we delineate ten regional stages for the Ordovician of Scandinavia, comprising, in ascending order, the Slemmestadian, Ottenbyan, Billingenian, Volkhovian, Kundan, Segerstadian, Dalbyan, Moldåan, Jerrestadian and Tommarpian. We propose to discontinue the use of the term Hunnebergian Regional Stage despite its Scandinavian origin; this interval is included in the new Ottenbyan Stage. The base of each stage, as (re)defined here, is selected to coincide with the appearance of a characteristic fossil taxon and delimited at the top by the base of the overlying stage. The stage boundaries generally coincide with or approximate to significant changes in the depositional environment that are recognizable across Scandinavia from the carbonate platform to the foreland basin. Local efficacy has been the primary criterion for the recognition of Scandinavian stage boundaries rather than approximating to the global or East Baltic stage boundaries. It is proposed to abolish the Baltoscandian regional series and subseries, as correlation with the global series is sufficiently precise to make these higher rank regional schemes redundant.

Late Albian ammonites from northwest Algeria: Biostratigraphic, paleobiogeographic and paleoenvironmental inferences

Albian rocks of northwest Algeria are commonly clastic deposits with poor dating markers. This study records two late Albian ammonites from northwest Algeria for the first time. They are Elobiceras (Elobiceras) sp. and Pervinquieria (Pervinquieria) pricei (Spath). These ammonites are collected from the Mcharref Formation interpreted here to be deposited south of Tiaret city under a lagoonal carbonate ramp setting based on facies analysis. The recognition of the well-known early late Albian ammonite Pervinquieria (Pervinquieria) pricei biozone from the study area highly improves the assigned age for the studied sections. The unconformity surface separates the lower and upper members of the Mcharref Formation coincides with the upper boundary of this biozone. The correlation of this boundary with the global sequence boundaries in the frame of ammonite biozones reveals that it equivalent to the SB KAl 6 (∼103.8 my ago) that marks the end of the identified biozone everywhere. Therefore, the recorded biozone shows an excellent correlation between the study area and that of Tethyan, European, American, and Asian biozones. Paleobiogeography of the recognized biozone indicates a cosmopolitan distribution that is interpreted here as a response to the widespread distribution of the Tethyan shallow water that reached to form a connection with the northern and southern Atlantic oceans during the late Albian time.

In the Making and Unmaking of Statehood. An Exploration of how the State and Petroleum Corporations Negotiate over the Generation of Socio-economic Development in Tanzania

This article explores how the state and transnational oil and gas corporations negotiate over socio-economic development in Tanzania. It focuses on how public–private and local–global boundaries are in constant reconfiguration between the actors. The article responds to two shortcomings in previous literature on corporate social responsibility, governments and development. First, state agency and power in the global South have been overlooked when the prevailing focus of research has been on community–business relations. Secondly, when states have been addressed, they have commonly been understood either as deviations from a Weberian, ‘modern’ state or as allied with corporate interests. This article departs from these approaches and analyses state–business relations through a focus on discourses and practices that make and unmake statehood. Building on the ‘negotiating statehood’ framework, the analysis focuses on the actors, repertoires, resources and modes of governance in the negotiation over development. The analysis shows how corporate-driven development becomes deeply entangled in the making of statehood, even if the corporate approach revolves around unmaking and improving statehood.

Global and regional ecological boundaries explain abrupt spatial discontinuities in avian frugivory interactions

Species interactions can propagate disturbances across space via direct and indirect effects, potentially connecting species at a global scale. However, ecological and biogeographic boundaries may mitigate this spread by demarcating the limits of ecological networks. We tested whether large-scale ecological boundaries (ecoregions and biomes) and human disturbance gradients increase dissimilarity among plant-frugivore networks, while accounting for background spatial and elevational gradients and differences in network sampling. We assessed network dissimilarity patterns over a broad spatial scale, using 196 quantitative avian frugivory networks (encompassing 1496 plant and 1004 bird species) distributed across 67 ecoregions, 11 biomes, and 6 continents. We show that dissimilarities in species and interaction composition, but not network structure, are greater across ecoregion and biome boundaries and along different levels of human disturbance. Our findings indicate that biogeographic boundaries delineate the world’s biodiversity of interactions and likely contribute to mitigating the propagation of disturbances at large spatial scales.

Emended Sandbian (Ordovician) conodont biostratigraphy in Baltoscandia and a new species ofAmorphognathus

AbstractConodonts are an important biostratigraphic tool for many Phanerozoic stages. Along with graptolites, they define all global Ordovician Stage boundaries. Within the Upper Ordovician interval, a known species ofAmorphognathus tvaerensis(Bergström) is present in both Sandbian and Katian stratotype sections. Study of changes in the succession ofA. tvaerensisrevealed that elements in the upper part of its range differ morphologically quite distinctly from those in its lower part. Here, they are described as a new conodont species,A. viiraesp. nov. This new species is recognized in several Estonian and Swedish sections, with apparent occurrence also in Mójcza Quarry, Holy Cross Mountains, Poland and Black Knob Ridge, Oklahoma, USA. Detailed analysis of earlyAmorphognathuselements from Estonian and Swedish sections revealed the absence ofA. inaequalis(Rhodes) in both regions, although a conodont subzone based on this species was identified earlier by some authors. Both the absence ofA. inaequalis(Rhodes) and recognition of the new speciesA. viiraesp. nov. resulted in the revision of the conodont zonation, and a new version of it is proposed for the Sandbian Stage in the Atlantic Realm. The new zonation includes (from below)Pygodus anserinus,Baltoniodus variabilis,A. tvaerensis,B. gerdae,A. viiraeandB. alobatusConodont zones.

Understanding the transgression of global and regional freshwater planetary boundaries

Freshwater ecosystems have been degraded due to intensive freshwater abstraction. Therefore, environmental flow requirements (EFRs) methods have been proposed to maintain healthy rivers and/or restore river flows. In this study, we used the Variable Monthly Flow (VMF) method to calculate the transgression of freshwater planetary boundaries: (1) natural deficits in which flow does not meet EFRs due to climate variability, and (2) anthropogenic deficits caused by water abstractions. The novelty is that we calculated spatially and cumulative monthly water deficits by river types including the frequency, magnitude and causes of environmental flow (EF) deficits (climatic and/or anthropogenic). Water deficit was found to be a regional rather than a global concern (less than 5% of total discharge). The results show that, from 1960 to 2000, perennial rivers with low flow alteration, such as the Amazon, had an EF deficit of 2–12% of the total discharge, and that the climate deficit was responsible for up to 75% of the total deficit. In rivers with high seasonality and high water abstractions such as the Indus, the total deficit represents up to 130% of its total discharge, 85% of which is due to withdrawals. We highlight the need to allocate water to humans and ecosystems sustainably. This article is part of the Royal Society Science+ meeting issue ‘Drought risk in the Anthropocene’.

A wavelet-based VCG QRS loop boundaries and isoelectric coordinates detector.

This paper deals with a wavelet-based algorithm for automatic detection of isoelectric coordinates of individual QRS loops of VCG record. Fiducial time instants of QRS peak, QRS onset, QRS end, and isoelectric PQ interval are evaluated on three VCG leads together with global QRS boundaries of a record to spatiotemporal QRS loops alignment. The algorithm was developed and optimized on 161 VCG records of PTB diagnostic database of healthy control subjects (HC), patients with myocardial infarction (MI) and patients with bundle branch block (BBB) and validated on CSE multilead measurement database of 124 records of the same diagnostic groups. The QRS peak was evaluated correctly for all of 1,467 beats. QRS onset, QRS end were detected with standard deviation of 5,5ms and 7,8ms respectively from the referee annotation. The isoelectric 20ms length PQ interval window was detected correctly between the P end and QRS onset for all the cases. The proposed algorithm complies the limits for the QRS onset and QRS end detection and provides comparable or better results to other well-known algorithms. The algorithm evaluates well a wide QRS based on automated wavelet scale switching. The designed multi-lead approach QRS loop detector accomplishes diagnostic VCG processing, aligned QRS loops imaging and it is suitable for beat-to-beat variability assessment and further automatic VCG classification.

Impact of Crisis on Sustainable Business Model Innovation—The Role of Technology Innovation

The transformation of old and new technologies, the normalized crisis situation, and global economic integration blur industrial boundaries and cause the business pattern to fluctuate and become unsustainable, especially when considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study focuses on crisis situations and combines the types of technology innovation (introduction, socialization, and differentiation) and sustainable business model innovation (efficiency, novelty, and co-benefit innovations) to theoretically analyze the dynamic impact of technology innovation on different types of sustainable business model innovations. Using a multi-case comparative analysis method, typical enterprises are selected as the sample cases. This study discusses the influences of different technology innovation schemes on sustainable business model innovation in different crisis situations. Enterprises should consider introducing technology for rapid value updates to maintain an efficient business model in an urgent production factor crisis, search for valuable and scarce technical components or introduce other entities to facilitate technical cooperation and form a novel business model in a market environment crisis, and use big data, artificial intelligence, and other technologies to create co-benefit business model innovation in a business ethics crisis. The conclusion guides enterprises and provides a framework for the optimal technical scheme under the corresponding crisis.

A planetary boundary-based method to assess freshwater use at the global and local scales

Many studies have attempted to evaluate the transgression of the water planetary boundary at sub-global levels. Typically, this has been done by assessing water consumption in a country/city or sector against the assigned share of the global limit. Such an approach enables evaluating whether a sub-global unit operates within the safe global limits. However, it ignores spatial water availability and thus may provide an incomplete image of water-related environmental impacts and thus local boundaries. This study demonstrates how the water planetary boundary concept can be integrated within the Environmentally Extended Multi-Region Input-Output (EEMRIO) framework to assess global and local (watershed level) boundaries. Our results demonstrate that even though most countries operate within globally safe limits, for several countries, a large share of water comes from watersheds that have reached unsafe water consumption levels. This highlights the importance of combining local and global level assessments to design more accurate and tailored policy responses targeting specific watersheds that are most at risk.

Effective Dead Time of Two Non-Paralyzable Detector Components in Series

Detector dead time losses, caused by both physical components in the detection system and the electronic data acquisition system, are perhaps the most prominent effect in non-ideal detector behavior. Most mathematical modeling methods consider the detector as a single unit with a single dead time parameter, while a true physical detector is often comprised of several serially connected components, each suffering from independent dead time losses. In this study, we develop new formulas for evaluating the dead time losses in a detection system with two serially connected components, each component with a non paralyzing dead time, while assuming that the original count rate has a Poisson distribution. The analytic results obtained are first compared with numeric simulations (showing a very good correspondence) and are then used for numeric investigation of global boundaries of the dead time effect in serially connected systems.

Physical Security Design Process Applicable to Chinese Border Entry Ports by IoT for 5G

Actual security ensures individuals, information, frameworks, and gear of a country. It additionally gets worldwide boundaries. Political obstruction and infringement of boundary arrangements can make line security issues. Mechanical headways in actual security diminish the weight of line security work force. On the off chance that the boundary of a nation is not all around ensured, then, at that point, it would confront a progression of illicit movement. Boundaries can be emphatically ensured by utilizing actual obstructions, observation, biomeasurements, light, security faculty, caution frameworks, sensors, radars, access control frameworks, distinguishing proof frameworks, and PC design. This paper talks about certain difficulties and their potential arrangements utilizing different actual security components at global boundaries. This paper likewise indicates the possible changes in genuine which nations’ security can consider for their lines the bosses in a common manner.

Rabpro: global watershed boundaries, river elevation profiles, and catchment statistics

rabpro: global watershed boundaries, river elevation profiles, and catchment statistics

Synchronizing rock clocks in the late Cambrian

The Cambrian is the most poorly dated period of the past 541 million years. This hampers analysis of profound environmental and biological changes that took place during this period. Astronomically forced climate cycles recognized in sediments and anchored to radioisotopic ages provide a powerful geochronometer that has fundamentally refined Mesozoic–Cenozoic time scales but not yet the Palaeozoic. Here we report a continuous astronomical signal detected as geochemical variations (1 mm resolution) in the late Cambrian Alum Shale Formation that is used to establish a 16-Myr-long astronomical time scale, anchored by radioisotopic dates. The resulting time scale is biostratigraphically well-constrained, allowing correlation of the late Cambrian global stage boundaries with the 405-kyr astrochronological framework. This enables a first assessment, in numerical time, of the evolution of major biotic and abiotic changes, including the end-Marjuman extinctions and the Steptoean Positive Carbon Isotope Excursion, that characterized the late Cambrian Earth.

Toys in Trade: Playfully Poetic Technology in Qing Dynasty Canton

Abstract The article explores how an artisan community in Canton adapted European clock-making technology to the making of automata in a Chinese aesthetic style. Moreover, it positions a unique automaton from the National Museum of Denmark in relation to a Chinese story and connected drinking game. Approaching the mechanical tableau as continuously in the process of being cocreated across social and global boundaries, it points to how new technology impacted ways of trading in the international community in Canton. When the elites in Canton set the mechanical tableau drumming, chiming, and spinning; gulped their wine, and passed each other flowering branches, they cocreated and performed a social ritual that traversed boundaries. Ultimately, a close reading of the sculpture reveals an often invisible aspect of international trade: that negotiations could rely on play as much as power, capital, and influence.

High-resolution carbon isotope chemostratigraphy of the middle Cambrian to lowermost Ordovician in southern Scandinavia: Implications for global correlation

Continuous and biostratigraphically well-constrained carbon isotope (δ13Corg) profiles through the upper Miaolingian (middle Cambrian) to Tremadocian (Lower Ordovician) part of the Alum Shale Formation in four drill cores from southernmost Scandinavia are described. The sections record seven Furongian (upper Cambrian) excursions/spikes, of which three appear valuable as auxiliary markers for identifying global stage boundaries. The Steptoean Positive Carbon Isotope Excursion (SPICE) event with a magnitude of up to 2.8‰ is located mainly within the Olenus Superzone. The onset, as specified here, coincides with the end-Marjuman extinction and is marked by a minor negative excursion (up to −1.6‰) right below the Miaolingian–Furongian boundary. The end of the SPICE event approximates the upper boundary of the Olenus Superzone and has potential for correlation of the Paibian–Jiangshanian boundary. The Top of Cambrian Excursion (TOCE) with a magnitude of about −1.6‰ straddles the Parabolina lobata–Parabolina heres megalops zonal boundary in Baltoscandia. This chemostratigraphic excursion, considered as a synonym of the Hellnmaria-Red Tops Boundary excursion (HERB), represents a secondary marker for correlating the base of Stage 10, if defined by the FAD of Eoconodontus notchpeakensis. A positive spike at the Cambrian–Ordovician boundary, here named COBS, recognized in the stratotype section at Green Point (Canada; δ13Ccarb magnitude +5.3‰), Scandinavia (δ13Corg magnitude up to +2.2‰) and elsewhere, appears as a valuable supplementary marker for recognizing this important boundary. The described δ13Corg profile from the Albjära-1 core provides a standard reference for Furongian carbon isotope chemostratigraphy in Baltica, refines the correlation between Baltica and other palaeocontinents, and indicates new possibilities for pinpointing international stage boundaries within the Furongian based on carbon isotope records.

Depositional environment and sequence stratigraphy of the Upper Cretaceous Aruma Formation, NE Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

The Campanian to Maastrichtian Aruma Formation represents a distinctive depositional system of the carbonate-dominated ramp along the Arabian plate. Sedimentologic characteristics and stratigraphic relations are integrated with carbon and oxygen stable-isotope data to interpret the depositional environments in a sequence stratigraphic framework. One siliciclastic facies association (FA1) and eight carbonate microfacies (MF 1–8) belonging to four facies belts (FB1–4) were identified. Facies characteristics support accumulations on a carbonate ramp environment that extends from offshore/outer ramp to middle and inner ramp settings. Stable-isotope data are correlated to the oscillating global sea-level curve and global excursions’ events in order to refine the sequence stratigraphy of the Aruma Formation. Carbon-isotope chemostratigraphy shows remarkable long-time excursions, which are correlated to the two global negative excursions (Late Campanian event “LCE” and Campanian–Maastrichtian boundary event “CMBE”) as well as the positive δ13 C excursion of Middle Maastrichtian event “MME” and the uppermost negative δ13 C excursion toward the K–Pg boundary. The negative shift in the δ13 C values associated with relatively positive values in the δ18 O herald three marked sea-level falls, which can be coincided with global sequence boundaries. The merged surfaces TS1/SB1 and TS2/SB2 can be correlated to the Campanian events KCa3 (80 Ma) and KCa6 (75.4 Ma), respectively. The coplanar surface TS3/SB3 matches well with the Maastrichtian event KMa3 (69.4 Ma). The positive values of δ13 C and/or negative values of δ18 O coincide with periods of maximum transgressions. The minor pulses are mostly attributed to cyclic fourth-order sequences. The established sequence stratigraphic architecture and depositional model of the outcrop data herein will be useful in regional correlations with analogous subsurface successions along the Arabian plate and enhancement of potential petroleum explorations.

Remote triggering of high magnitude earthquakes along plate boundaries

It has been shown that large magnitude earthquakes can remotely trigger other large magnitude earthquakes within three days. Such triggering of high magnitude earthquakes is potentially indicative of fault systems at the end of their seismic cycles. Here a method is developed to examine local earthquake history to determine how susceptible a given area is to remote triggering of high magnitude earthquakes. The method is applied to all plate boundaries. Only 14% of global tectonic boundaries are not susceptible to remote triggering, while 86% show susceptibility to varying degrees. The most highly susceptible locations begin triggering at lower magnitudes, dependent on the type of plate boundary. Varying patterns in susceptibility to remote triggering are observed around individual plates. Finite element modeling of the Cocos Plate reveals normal modes which appear consistent with its spatial patterns of high susceptibility. Many of the natural frequencies of the Cocos Plate are closely associated with the frequencies of free oscillations of the earth and could be induced by large earthquakes. Analysis of the stress tensors generated by the normal modes supports a delayed triggering mechanism involving one-sided negative (compressive) stress normal to the plane of the fault.

Quantum Technologies in Manufacturing Systems: Perspectives for Application and Sustainable Development

In the medium- and long-term future, quantum technologies will become a megatrend shaping global industrial value creation. Quantum technologies will open novel pathways for manufacturing systems innovations, while also providing new opportunities for Sustainable Development. Manufacturing companies must already strive for a better understanding of quantum technologies and their potential applications if they are to maintain and improve their competitive advantage in the future. An overview of the theoretical background and state-of-the-art for quantum technologies and manufacturing systems is presented. Fields of application for quantum technologies are explored in the context of relevant manufacturing systems domains. Potential applications are proposed based on an analysis and synthesis of relevant literature, industrial case studies, as well as the authors’ ideations. A case is laid out for how quantum technologies can potentially facilitate industrial symbiosis within limited global ecological boundaries. In other words, the case study describes how Sustainable Development can be potentially facilitated using quantum computing and quantum AI.

Cultures of Fermentation

Cultures of Fermentation

Selection of Output Voltage Compensators Gains in Two Cascaded Boost Converters with Input Filters by Means of the \({\mathfrak{D}}\)-Decomposition Technique

In this paper, the D-decomposition technique is investigated as an intuitive method for finding the non-linear trajectories of PI-compensator gains. The trajectories reflect the desired dynamic properties at a system level specified by the gain and the phase margin (GMPM) in the frequency domain. They are presented as parametric curves in the proportional and the integral gains coordinates in form of KI=f(KP) functions. The curves are inscribed into global stability boundaries (GSB). The corresponding Nyquist plots are included for comparison. The analysis is based on a system consisting of two serial-connected boost converters. Each converter has its input filter. The major parasitic components of the system are taken into account during the mathematical and simulation modelling. The control circuit time delays and non-linear semiconductors characteristics are also included. A complete set of practically useful system-level transfer functions in form of mathematical formulas is included. Selected aspects, such as the control-to-output voltage and the control-to-input current of one sub-system of the simulation model, have been verified experimentally. The presented results clearly indicate the need for interactions between the sub-systems of a system to be taken into account during controller gains selection.