Scale In Australia Research Articles

Evaluating global paleoshoreline models for the Cretaceous and Cenozoic

Paleoshoreline maps represent the distribution of land and sea through geological time. These compilations provide excellent proxies for evaluating the contributions non-tectonic vertical crustal motions, such as mantle convection-driven dynamic topography, to the flooding histories of continental platforms. Until now, such data have not been available as a globally coherent compilation. Here, we present and evaluate a set of Cretaceous and Cenozoic global shoreline data extracted from two independent published global paleogeographic atlases. We evaluate computed flooding extents derived from the global paleoshoreline models with paleo-environment interpretations from fossils and geological outcrops and compare flooding trends with published eustatic sea-level curves.Although the implied global flooding histories of the two models are similar in the Cenozoic, they differ more substantially in the Cretaceous. This increase in consistency between paleoshoreline maps with the fossil record from the Cretaceous to the Cenozoic likely reflects the increase in the fossil preservation potential in younger geological times. Comparisons between the two models and the Paleogeographic Atlas of Australia on a regional scale in Australia reveal a higher consistency with fossil data for one model over the others in the mid-Cretaceous and suggest that a review of the interpretation of the Late Cretaceous–Cenozoic paleogeography may be necessary. The paleoshoreline maps and associated paleobiology data constraining marine vs terrestrial environments are provided freely as reconstructable GPlates-compatible digital files and form a basis for evaluating the output of geodynamic models predicting regional dynamic surface topography.

Practical Earthquake Location on a Continental Scale in Australia Using the AuSREM 3D Velocity Model

This study explores the full 3D earthquake location for the Australian continent, exploiting the recent 3D Australian Seismological Reference Model (AuSREM). Seismic velocities from AuSREM were used as input to precompute finely spaced P ‐ and S ‐travel‐time grids for each station in the Australian National Seismograph Network using the multistage fast marching method. Travel times from anywhere in the grid to the corresponding station can then be computed by interpolation. The location search using these travel times is based on matching observed and computed arrival times using the neighborhood algorithm. All computations involved can be performed in practical time frames on a single processor computer. The performance of the 3D approach relative to location using the 1D global ak135 velocity model was assessed by locating a set of recent earthquakes. The arrival‐time residuals for P and S arrivals are significantly smaller when using the 3D AuSREM model. The improvements over ak135 are especially large in the 10°–18° distance range, in which a distance bias is strongly reduced and for those paths where the ak135 residuals are large. A small set of six ground‐truth events was used to assess to what extent the reduction in travel‐time residuals leads to better absolute location accuracy. The 3D location offset from the ground‐truth position is typically half that of the ak135 offset. The patterns of offsets suggest that the already fast mantle wavespeeds in western Australia need to be even faster than in AuSREM.

Patterns of variation in Australian alpine soils and their relationships to parent material, vegetation formation, climate and topography

We tested the degree to which parent material, climate, vegetation and topography influenced the characteristics of alpine soils at two scales: across the full range of alpine vegetation in Australia and in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, where geological relationships with soils may be obscured by the aeolian deposition of sediment and there are strong local gradients in climate. We derived eleven soil groups from numerical analysis of the national data, three of which were confined to the island State of Tasmania and ten of which clearly fitted in one of the organosol, dermosol or rudosol soil orders. Linear mixed models indicated that climate, parent material, topographic position, and vegetation type are all important in influencing alpine soil at a national scale in Australia. Parent material was prominent in models for most attributes of the soil. Whilst vegetation formation had only a weak influence on soil characteristics at the national level, in the Snowy Mountains it interacted strongly with geology. The fact that Snowy Mountains short alpine herbfield soils were affected by geology, but tall alpine herbfield and heath soils were not, could reflect differences in accumulation of aeolian material.

Changes in the transcriptional expression of oxidative stress response genes in Akoya pearl oysters (Pinctada fucata) exposed to air and mechanical agitation

The Akoya pearl oyster is an economically important species farmed throughout Japan and China, and on a small scale in Australia. Recent proliferation of Akoya viral disease (AVD) has dramatically reduced both wild and farmed populations in Asia. It is thought that AVD is exacerbated by anthropogenic pressures associated with over-crowding and stress caused by fluctuations in the environment, as well as by husbandry and handling. To test the effects of these stressors, the differential expression of genes encoding three antioxidant enzymes (peroxiredoxin, PRx; glutathione-S-transferase, GST; glutathione peroxidase, GPx) and the generic stress biomarker heat shock protein 70 (HSP-70) was investigated using quantitative real-time PCR on mRNA extracted from gill tissues of Pinctada fucata that had been exposed to either mechanical agitation (MA, a combination of air exposure and shaking) or air alone for 1h and 6h. We observed a significant decline (up to 50%; p<0.05) in the expression of both GST and PRx 60min after oysters were exposed to air and MA. GPx transcription declined significantly 60min after exposure to MA. Hierarchical cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling (MDS) demonstrated that, even though no significant differences were identified in the expression of these genes 6h after exposure to stress, there was still a clear differentiation between controls and the two stress treatments. After 6h, the MDS analysis showed that antioxidant enzyme expression was intermediate between the 60min time point and the non-stressed controls. The MDS plot also demonstrated that there was no clear distinction between exposure to air and MA, suggesting that air exposure (which was a component of both treatments) is the main causative agent of transcriptional stress responses. HSP-70 expression also declined when oysters were exposed to both stressors, but these decreases were not statistically significant. Overall, the data suggest that the antioxidant systems of oysters are affected by exposure to air. This contributes to a growing understanding of short-term stress responses in bivalve molluscs and their potential effects on cellular homeostasis.

Labour productivity measurement with variable returns to scale in Australia's construction industry

As an important productivity indicator, the change of labour productivity is one indispensable marker in determining the rise or fall of overall industrial performance. This study aims to address whether the labour productivity level of the Australian construction industry has, in fact, shown a huge improvement during the last few decades. This article constructs a measuring method estimating labour productivity changes based on the data envelopment analysis technique with variable returns to scale. By adopting a production frontier approach, the labour productivity index can be broken down into components attributable to efficiency change, technological progress and capital accumulation. The numerical results exemplified by a single-input and single-output system indicate that the average annual labour productivity levels of the construction industry are slowly growing in all the Australian states and territories. However, the year-on-year change in the overall labour productivity performance does not maintain a long-term increase over the period 1990–2008. The study forms the basis for further industrial productivity research. Proposals and recommendations are expected to be beneficial for making policy and strategic decisions to improve the performance of the construction industry.

Rejoinder to commentary on Chien, Cornwell, and Pappu (2010): Advancing research on sponsorship portfolio effects

This article responds to the issues Bibby (2010) raises in his recent commentary essay on Chien, Cornwell, and Pappu (2010). The rejoinder focuses on brand meaning's definition, measurement, construct delineation and operationalization, and cautions against outright rejection of Aaker's (1997) brand personality scale applied to the sponsorship context. Further, criticism by Bibby of employing Aaker's scale in Australia seems unwarranted given similarities in cultural values between Australia and the United States. Bibby (2010) also questions the legitimacy of event personality fit effects but the questions potentially misinterpret the construct used by Chien et al. (2010). While this rejoinder admits to the challenges of brand personality measurement, theory-testing goals of Chien et al.'s (2010) research are not compromised by the measures employed.

To retire or expand? A fuzzy GIS‐based spatial multi‐criteria evaluation framework for irrigated agriculture

AbstractThis paper presents a GIS framework for multi‐criteria evaluation of land suitability for the expansion or retirement of irrigated cropland at a catchment scale in Australia. This framework is based on the fuzzy linguistic ordered weighted averaging (FLOWA) approach which integrates the analytical hierarchy procedure (AHP) and quantifier‐guided OWA operators in an ArcGIS 9.2 environment. The FLOWA module proved to be highly flexible and efficient in generating and visualising a wide range of different multi‐criteria decision strategies. Several scenarios were derived to show how the uncertainties involved in the suitability decision‐making process can influence the outcomes. This framework has helped us understand the need for retirement as well as the potential for expanding irrigation in suitable areas of the catchment if water is available. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Climate change and winegrape quality in Australia

Various agricultural sectors are likely to be sensitive to projected climate change. Wine- grapes are particularly sensitive to climate change because of the intrinsic link between the climate and the characteristic and often unique quality of the resulting wine. Here we present results from a study exploring the impact of projected climate change on the Australian wine industry. In the pre- sent study, impact models based upon existing viticultural and winegrape market data are used to estimate how projected regional temperature increases might affect the winegrape and wine indus- try throughout Australia by 2030 and 2050. The effect on winegrape quality is determined for differ- ent premium winegrape varieties separately. Differential impacts were determined across a range of base-climates, climate change regimes and varietal crush profiles. This represents the first national study of the impact of climate change on winegrape quality that is regionally specific, and that inte- grates varietal differences in temperature sensitivity. The impact of warming was found to be nega- tive overall, assuming no adaptation is implemented, for all Australian winegrowing regions. It is found that the reduction to winegrape quality varied regionally, with greater quality reductions cal- culated for the inland regions. Without adaptation, winegrape quality may be reduced at a national scale in Australia from 7% with lower warming to 39% with higher future warming by the year 2030, and from 9% with lower warming to 76% with higher warming by the year 2050 (all uncertainties considered).

The relationship between place attachment and landscape values: Toward mapping place attachment

This paper examines the relationships between place attachment and landscape values using two measures of place attachment—a psychometric, scale-based measure [Williams, D. R., & Vaske, J. J. (2003). The measurement of place attachment: Validity and generalisability of a psychometric approach. Forest Science, 49(6), 830–840] and a map-based measure derived from mapped special places [Brown, G. (2005). Mapping spatial attributes in survey research for natural resource management: Methods and applications. Society and Natural Resources, 18(1), 17–39]. We first examine the external validity of a two-dimensional, psychometric place attachment scale in Australia and its relationship with place-based landscape values. The place attachment scale and landscape value measures were included in a mail survey of residents and visitors to the Otways region (Victoria, Australia). Exploratory factor analysis of resident subgroups and visitors demonstrate the place attachment scale consists of two dimensions with high reliability. We use regression analysis to show that landscape importance values, especially spiritual and wilderness values, are significant predictors of the scale-based measure of place attachment. We then examine the relationship between a map-based measure of place attachment and landscape values. We use spatial cross-correlation and regression analyses to show that aesthetic, recreation, economic, spiritual, and therapeutic values spatially co-locate with special places and thus likely contribute to place attachment. We argue that survey mapping of landscape values and special places provides a reasonable proxy for scale-based measures of place attachment while providing richer, place-based information for land use planning. We conclude by introducing the concept of a map-based place attachment index and suggest that survey-based measures of landscape values and special places can be used to assess the risk associated with landscape modification. We provide a map showing one possible place attachment index for the Otways region and discuss its potential application.

Airborne electromagnetics supporting salinity and natural resource management decisions at the field scale in Australia

Airborne geophysics has been used at the catchment scale to map salt stores, conduits and soil variability, but few studies have evaluated its usefulness as a land management tool at the field scale. We respond to questions posed by land managers with: (1) comparison of airborne and ground-based electromagnetic surveys in the Lower Balonne catchment, Queensland, and (2) comparison with historical and anecdotal knowledge of landscape response in the country around Jamestown in mid-South Australia.In the Lower Balonne, direct comparison between ground electromagnetic survey (EM) and airborne electromagnetics (AEM) showed a strong relationship for both the absolute values and spatial patterns of conductivity. The penetration of AEM to greater than 100m is valuable in defining hydrological barriers. In the Jamestown area, AEM conductivity corresponded well with specific outbreaks of salinity and observed variability in crop response; local inconsistencies at the ground surface could be resolved when sub-surface data were considered. AEM can provide valuable information at the field scale that is relevant to salinity management. Farmers can have confidence in any of these techniques (historical information, EM and AEM) and they may directly compare or integrate the results.

The Youth Carnival for Peace and Friendship, March 1952

There is a tendency in writing on the Australian peace movement to assume that widespread participation of youth in that movement began with the Vietnam War.1 It is true that the Anti-Vietnam War, Anti-Conscription Movement marked the peace movement's first mobilisation of middle-class youth on a mass scale in Australia.2 Nevertheless, working-class and radical young people had been vitally involved in the anti-war movement in earlier periods, including the anti-conscription campaigns of World War I and the mobilisations against war and fascism of the 1930s.3 This type of involvement extended into the post-war years, and continued to comprise a significant organisational nucleus around which young peace activists could cohere. One manifestation of this was the important coalescence of the youth, peace and labour movements which occurred in 1952, around the Youth Carnival for Peace and Friendship (YCPF). It was, indeed, at this stage that the broad cultural foundations were laid, and crucial links and social networks developed, upon which the later mass movement was built when the historical circumstances made this possible in the period of the Vietnam War. This article examines the struggle by radical youth and peace movements, with the support of the labour movement, to organise what became a massive, broadly-based, counter-hegemonic gathering in the midst of the Cold War and in the face of concerted conservative attacks. The success of this initiative stands

Use of the Peer Attitudes Toward the Handicapped Scale in Australia: Grade Differences in the Scores of Primary School Students

The Peer Attitudes Toward the Handicapped Scale was administered to 368 students in Grades 4 to 6 in order to (a) examine the use of the scale with Australian primary school children, (b) compare the scores of the Australian group with the American standardization sample, and (c) investigate grade and sex differences in performance on the scale. It was found that approximately 50% of the fourth grade Ss needed help to decode items on the scale: the scores obtained by the Grade 6Ss matched closely those of the U.S. sample: and grade, but not sex. differences were evident, particularly when Grade 6 was compared with the other two grades. It was concluded that the scale is suitable for use in its present form (including the U.S. norms) with Australian sixth grade children. Separate norms would need to be created for children at other grade levels.

Prenatal influences on Aboriginal-white Australian differences in neonatal irritability

Recent research with the Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale in Australia has shown significant Aboriginal-white Australian group differences in neonatal irritability. These differences are best accounted for by individual differences in maternal age and maternal blood pressure during pregnancy. These data do not support the theory that ethnic/racial differences in neonatal behavior are due to gene pool differences but argue instead for a more complex model of gene-environment interaction during pregnancy.

Does authoritarianism of personality go with conservatism?

Existing scales of authoritarianism are generally lacking in validity. Their correlations with conservatism are therefore uninformative. A new scale of authoritarianism in personality scale format has been devised and shown to be valid. Various correlates of this scale in Australia suggest that it is not related to conservatism. Two general population studies in England and Scotland found that there were no correlations between the new scale and various conservatism attitude items. It was concluded that authoritarianism of personality is equally likely to be found on either side of the political divide even if admiration of traditional authority is generally associated with conservatism only.

DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT: NASOTRACHEAL INTUBATION AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR TRACHEOSTOMY

THE OBVIOUS advantages of tracheostomy must always be weighed against the hazards and complications with which it may be associated. The initial performance of the operation may entail complete airway occlusion, hemorrhage, or cardiac arrest secondary to sudden reduction of carbon dioxide concentration. Maintenance of the tracheostomy may involve pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, sepsis, and occlusion or dislocation of the tube, and final removal can be followed by such problems as tracheal collapse or stenosis. To avoid some of these difficulties a new concept has been introduced whereby a smooth, sterile endotracheal tube is introduced through the nose and maintained in place for several days, or even weeks. Undoubtedly the method had been used in many individual situations throughout the world, but the idea was first tried on a large scale in Australia. In the Adelaide Children's Hospital and in The Royal Children's Hospital of Melbourne tracheostomy has been largely abandoned and only endotracheal intubation has been used for the past two years in children with laryngotracheitis, croup, and various other types of reversible respiratory inadequacy. In these hospitals tracheostomy is reserved for inindividual situations where secretions are especially heavy or in some patients with severe laryngotracheitis. Nasotracheal intubation has been adopted throughout many parts of the British empire and has recently been employed widely throughout the United States. The indications for nasotracheal intubation are similar to those for tracheostomy. Children in whom airway obstruction results in retraction, stridor and, finally, increasing pulse rate constitute one group of patients who require such assistance.