Western Scandinavia Research Articles

Ground-motion models for earthquakes occurring in the United Kingdom

This article presents models to predict median horizontal elastic response spectral accelerations for 5% damping from earthquakes with moment magnitudes ranging from 3.5 to 7.25 occurring in the United Kingdom. This model was derived using the hybrid stochastic-empirical method based on an existing ground-motion model for California and a stochastic model for the UK that was developed specifically for this purpose. The model is presented in two consistent formats, both for two distance metrics, with different target end-users. Firstly, we provide a complete logic tree with 162 branches, and associated weights, capturing epistemic uncertainties in the depth to the top of rupture, geometric spreading, anelastic path attenuation, site attenuation and stress drop, which is more likely to be used for research. The weights for these branches were derived using Bayesian updating of a priori weights from expert judgment. Secondly, we provide a backbone model with three and five branches corresponding to different percentiles, with corresponding weights, capturing the overall epistemic uncertainty, which is tailored for engineering applications. The derived models are compared with ground-motion observations, both instrumental and macroseismic, from the UK and surrounding region (northern France, Belgium, the Netherlands, western Germany and western Scandinavia). These comparisons show that the model is well-centred (low overall bias and no obvious trends with magnitude or distance) and that the branches capture the body and range of the technically defensible interpretations. In addition, comparisons with ground-motion models that have been previously used within seismic hazard assessments for the UK show that ground-motion predictions from the proposed model match those from previous models quite closely for most magnitudes and distances. The models are available as computer subroutines for ease of use.

Migration patterns and breeding areas of Green Sandpipers Tringa ochropus wintering in southern Britain

ABSTRACT Capsule: Green Sandpipers Tringa ochropus wintering in southern Britain breed in western Scandinavia, from southern Norway to Finland. They leave Britain in late April and return by the end of June/early July. Aims: To determine the breeding areas of Green Sandpipers that spend their winter in southern Britain and to investigate their migration ecology. Methods: Green Sandpipers were fitted with archival tags (light level and GPS) whilst in their wintering area. Location data were collected during their northward migration to the breeding area, the breeding period and their return to southern England. Results: Birds departed from the wintering area in late April (median April 20) and moved rapidly to the breeding areas (median duration two days), a mean distance of 1463 km. Females stayed in the breeding areas for only 42 days and males 60 days. The return migration back to the wintering area took a median of 11.5 days with the first birds back by June 19 and the last by July 6. Conclusions: By spending the winter so far north and close to the breeding areas the birds are balancing the risks of poor survival in extreme cold winters with the benefits of rapid and relatively easy movement to and from their breeding areas.

Sea level response to late Pliocene-Quaternary erosion and deposition in Scandinavia

Erosion and deposition can perturb regional sea level significantly by altering the Earth's surface and by redistributing mass. However, no studies have investigated the importance of these geomorphic processes for glacial settings on glacial-interglacial time scales, despite large erosion rates and the inherent importance of sea-level changes for ice-sheet dynamics and stability. Here we quantify how glacial erosion and depositional processes have affected relative sea level in western Scandinavia where glacial activity has reoccured periodically throughout the late Pliocene-Quaternary. By comparing offshore sediment volumes with onshore topographic relief, we quantify erosion and deposition for the last two glacial cycles as well as the entire late Pliocene-Quaternary. Specifically, we develop a history of erosion and deposition for the last two glacial cycles by scaling the erosion rate with the normalised global ice volume through time. We use the ice model ICE6G_C as a global ice history and calculate sea-level changes through time as a result of ice, water, and sediment loading using a global gravitationally self-consistent sea-level model. Our results show that geomorphic mass redistribution, excluding direct changes in ocean depth owing to erosion and deposition, has caused a sea-level fall of ≈50–100 m along the southern coast of Norway during the last two glacial cycles reaching ≈120 m in the offshore Skagerak region. During the late Pliocene-Quaternary, the total sea-level fall reach as much as ≈ 310 m in Skagerak. These results showcase the importance of erosion and deposition for the relative sea-level history of Scandinavia with implications for studies of ice-sheet history and regional glacial rebound in this region and elsewhere.

Echoing Retorts in Hárbarðsljóð and Lokasenna

Echoing Retorts in <i>Hárbarðsljóð</i> and <i>Lokasenna</i>

Роговые навершия в виде фантастических зверей в мезолите Волго-Окского междуречья

Three antler staff heads in the shape of fantastic beasts are known in the Mesolithic of Eastern Europe. A sharp nose resembling a point of a pick-axe, an effective weapon known in the Mesolithic of the Volga-Oka interfluve, is their main feature. The article presents a description and new interpretation of these objects as heads of ritual weapons combining a real weapon (pick-axe) with superficial forces personified in the images of fantastic beasts. These artefacts find no direct analogies. Pick-axe heads are known in the late Mesolithic of Western Scandinavia where they are interpreted as ritual weapons connected with superficial forces. An antler staff head from the Shigir peat bog in the Tans-Urals is shaped as a fantastic beast with bare teeth. Its nose is flat and not pointed. Shaman’s staffs which are considered the most ancient shaman’s attributes can be used as ethnographic parallels to the described artefacts. Staffs endowed with superficial force were used during shaman’s travels between different worlds. The described staff heads in the shape of fantastic beasts are likely to have belonged to outstanding shamans or chiefs-shamans who used them in similar rituals.

Analysis of factors influencing pedestrians’ safety in the road traffic

The article presents analysis of pedestrian safety in the national road traffic. Factors influencing the safety of pedestrians in the road traffic are discussed. In terms of the regulations governing the relations of drivers and pedestrians, we significantly differ from the countries of Western Europe or Scandinavia, where the level of road safety is much higher than in our country. The situation in this country has probably matured to change it, give it the proper rank and improve the unfavourable statistics of pedestrian safety in the road traffic.

Psoriasis: can a systemic disease become a way of life?

According to the literature, about 3% of the world's population suffers from psoriasis; the highest prevalence is observed in the countries of Western Europe and Scandinavia, while this disease is less common among representatives of the Mongoloid and Negroid races. In different countries, the proportion of psoriasis is from 10 to 40% in the total structure of skin diseases. This pathological process has a multifactorial nature; it is based on hyperproliferation of keratinocytes with impaired differentiation, which clinically manifests itself in the form of damage to the skin, nails and joints. Psoriasis is one of the most common dermatoses; men and women suffer from it equally often. The triggering factor for the development of psoriasis can be a psychoemotional stressful situation, as well as the impact of other environmental factors, including hypothermia, trauma, infections, and taking certain medications. As a result of exposure to provoking endogenous and exogenous factors, autoimmune mechanisms, which are based on increased activity of T cells, are triggered. About 70% of psoriasis patients have mild to moderate severity of the disease. Despite the wide range of drugs used to treat psoriasis, they do not demonstrate high efficiency, and the prevalence of this pathology is growing every year. The existing methods of treatment help to cope with exacerbations and relieve inflammation, however, it is impossible to completely cure this disease, and the risk of relapse always remains. One of the tasks of doctors involved in the treatment of psoriasis is not only to reduce the severity of symptoms, but also to teach a patient suffering from psoriasis to live a full life and not depend to a large extent on the manifestations of the disease and the opinions of others.

Assembling the Full Cast: Ritual Performance, Gender Transgression and Iconographic Innovation in Viking-Age Ribe

VIKING-AGE ICONOGRAPHY is mostly studied through stone sculpture and carvings and through metal dress accessories, which are often poorly contextualised finds. Here we present a new approach by studying an assemblage of casting moulds for figurative dress accessories from an early 9th-century workshop context in Ribe (Jutland, Denmark). We provide digital reconstructions of the fragmented moulds, including ‘Valkyrie’ pendants showing female figures bearing weapons. Comparable finds are mainly found in western Scandinavia, and the motifs demonstrate familiarity with images from Classical Antiquity and the Carolingian Renaissance. By highlighting iconographic and stylistic parallels with the tapestries of the Oseberg ship burial, we apply a novel perspective to the discussion of the armed woman motif and other Viking-Age figurative art. We argue that the common theme of the images is not the portrayal of heroic or mythological beings, but is instead ritual performance, in which women played a central role. We also consider the implications of the urban production context for this group of objects.

Countering right-wing extremism: lessons from Germany and Norway

ABSTRACTThe growing threat of right-wing extremism (RWE) creates challenges for countering violent extremism (CVE) strategies. For countries like Australia with little historical background in countering RWE, there is a need to update and adapt CVE programs that were developed in response to homegrown Islamist extremism. In Western Europe and Scandinavia, the reverse is often true: a longer history of addressing the threat from neo-Nazi and ethno-nationalist groups means their CVE programs were designed originally for RWE, and have only since been adapted in response to the Islamist threat. Knowledge about what constitutes effective CVE remains scarce, but there is sufficient evidence to suggest that these different historical contexts impact on the design and success of contemporary CVE efforts. Given this, the paper asks what researchers and policymakers might learn from comparative experiences with countering RWE. It conducts case studies of CVE efforts in Germany and Norway, which both have a longer history of countering RWE. Each case study examines these countries’ CVE efforts in historical context. The paper concludes by offering some lessons and principles that may be useful for other countries seeking to counter RWE.

EVALUATION OF THE LATVIAN STOCK MARKET AS AN INVESTMENT OBJECT

Development of the securities market in Latvia compared with the countries of Western Europe, Scandinavia, and North America has started much later and has been slow; therefore, the interest of individuals and companies to actively participate in the capital market can be assessed as low. The stock market that is considered as one of the types of the securities market is an unstructured environment where every investor has to decide on how to invest. The potential investor interested in stocks as an investment object can buy shares of the companies and potentially earn money despite the fact that investments in stocks are considered as a very high-risk investment. The research aim: to evaluate the Latvian stock market as one of the investment objects. The scope of the research determines the topics covered: investment opportunities in the stocks of the regulated Latvian stock exchange. The research findings point out that the performance of the Nasdaq Riga stock exchange despite its relatively small number of the issuers of shares is effective. The author concludes that use of the investment accounts is not sufficiently promoted for private individuals, consequently, the culture of savings lags behind in Latvia. In order to educate the private investors and promote decision-making on the purchase of shares, it would be advisable for the Nasdaq Riga to provide the investors with concise information on the shares of the companies and their characteristics. The quantitative and qualitative methods of economics research, including the method of comparative analysis and synthesis, as well as statistical and graphical analysis methods are used in the research.

The Mantle Transition Zone in Fennoscandia: Enigmatic High Topography Without Deep Mantle Thermal Anomaly

AbstractSeismological data acquired by dense receiver networks in Fennoscandia enable imaging of Earth's upper mantle structure at unprecedented resolution and provide critical observations for resolving the ongoing debate on the cause of enigmatic high topography in Norway. Proposed mechanisms for the high topography include impact of a mantle plume, as supported by the observation of low seismic velocities in the uppermost mantle in southern Norway in contrast to high velocities in Sweden. We image the mantle transition zone (MTZ) in Fennoscandia by common conversion point stacking of 14,873 receiver functions from 14 networks including the recently deployed ScanArray. We find both MTZ discontinuities at their expected depths of 410 and 660 km within an uncertainty of 5–15 km and the thickness of the MTZ similar to the global average. These observations show that the high topography in western Scandinavia cannot be caused by thermal influence from the deep mantle.

Predicting wintertime windy days in Beijing with the preceding autumn sea surface temperature and large-scale circulation patterns

In this study, we investigate the role of sea surface temperature and large-scale circulation patterns in the preceding autumn for the prediction of wintertime windy days in Beijing during the period of 1979–2016, based on a time-scale decomposition approach. A windy day is defined according to the threshold of 2 m·s−1, which can effectively remove or reduce air pollution of Beijing. Wintertime windy days in Beijing, preceding autumn sea surface temperature and large-scale climate indices are separated into the interannual and interdecadal components. For the interannual component, the preceding autumn sea surface temperature in central western Pacific Ocean, Polar/Eurasia pattern, and Scandinavia pattern are identified as predictors of wintertime windy days in Beijing. For the interdecadal component, the identified predictors include the preceding autumn sea surface temperature in northeastern part of North Atlantic Ocean, Arctic Oscillation, and North Atlantic Oscillation. We develop statistical models for the interannual and interdecadal components based on these preceding autumn predictors, and take them together to predict wintertime windy days in Beijing. The leave-one-out cross-validation for 1979–2016 time series shows that 76% of the total variance of observed wintertime windy days in Beijing can be predicted. Hindcast experiments for the period of 1999–2016 also yield the high prediction skills. The physical mechanisms responsible for links between these predictors and wintertime windy days in Beijing are also discussed. The statistical models proposed herein are expected to be applied to and aid to improve seasonal forecasting of wintertime windy days in Beijing.

Are diversity trends in western Scandinavia influenced by post‐glacial dispersal limitation?

AbstractQuestionsWhat are the latitudinal diversity patterns in Scandinavia over the last 8 ka? Have they been consistent over time? What are the long‐term diversity trends at different sites? Is there a consistent rate‐of‐change between sites?LocationThirty sites in Norway, two sites in north‐west Sweden.MethodsPollen data from these 32 lakes. The sites lie within six of the vegetation zones of Moen (1998). The data are used to estimate pollen diversity using Hill′s effective species numbers N0, N1 and N2. Diversity relationships in time and along latitude are assessed using ANCOVA. Linear regression is used to investigate site‐independent long‐term trends. Patterns in the regression slopes are investigated between vegetation zones and along the latitudinal gradient.ResultsThe latitudinal pattern of decreasing diversity with increasing latitude existed over the last 8 ka, although for the number of effectively common (N1) and abundant (N2) pollen taxa the relationship was slightly weaker between 8–6 ka. Long‐term trends show that diversity increases at most sites over time. However, the magnitude and rate‐of‐change vary between sites. Highest rate‐of‐change in N0 over time is observed in southern sites, although the spatial relationship of rate‐of‐change is not statistically significant.ConclusionsThe constant increase in diversity over time may reflect additional taxa arriving and changes in abundances. Most sites change in the same direction, but at different rates and magnitudes. There is no clear spatial pattern in rate‐of‐change, and the general patterns of increasing diversity over time are consistent with the hypothesis of post‐glacial (Holocene) dispersal limitation. Drivers of these changes have not been rigorously investigated, but our results suggest that environmental and historical processes are not mutually exclusive. During the last 2–1 ka BP diversity patterns have probably been increasingly affected by human land use.

Monetary Practices in Early Medieval Western Scandinavia (5th–10th Centuries ad)

A SOCIAL APPROACH TO MONETISATION shifts the attention from the classic money media — gold and silver — to the dissemination of two social practices: valuing and paying. When these two monetary practices first became widespread in western Scandinavia during the gold rich migration period (in the 5th to 6th centuries ad), they were not introduced in the sphere of trade, but instead were features of traditional or customary payments, such as weregeld (atonements for murder or offences against the person) or marriage dowries. By the Viking Age, in the late 8th to 10th centuries ad, despite flourishing commodity production, precious metals were used as payment in trade solely in towns. Even in towns, this commercial use seems to have been adopted late, and was employed only occasionally. This paper reviews the changing approaches to money and monetisation, and draws attention to the potential for regarding monetisation as the spread of a set of social practices.

The inheritance of a Mesozoic landscape in western Scandinavia

In-situ weathered bedrock, saprolite, is locally found in Scandinavia, where it is commonly thought to represent pre-Pleistocene weathering possibly associated with landscape formation. The age of weathering, however, remains loosely constrained, which has an impact on existing geological and landscape evolution models and morphotectonic correlations. Here we provide new geochronological evidence that some of the low-altitude basement landforms on- and offshore southwestern Scandinavia are a rejuvenated geomorphological relic from Mesozoic times. K-Ar dating of authigenic, syn-weathering illite from saprolitic remnants constrains original basement exposure in the Late Triassic (221.3±7.0–206.2±4.2 Ma) through deep weathering in a warm climate and subsequent partial mobilization of the saprolitic mantle into the overlying sediment cascade system. The data support the bulk geomorphological development of west Scandinavia coastal basement rocks during the Mesozoic and later, long-lasting relative tectonic stability. Pleistocene glaciations played an additional geomorphological role, selectively stripping the landscape from the Mesozoic overburden and carving glacial landforms down to Plio–Pleistocene times. Saprolite K-Ar dating offers unprecedented possibilities to study past weathering and landscape evolution processes.

Climate variability and lake ecosystem responses in western Scandinavia (Norway) during the last Millennium

This paper provides a high-resolution temperature reconstruction for the last Millennium from Lake Atnsjøen, SE Norway (61°52′31″N, 10°10′37″E). The sedimentary record reveals strong influence of the large-scale global climate patterns on the local climate in southern part of Eastern Norway. We reconstructed mean July air temperature using Chironomidae-based transfer function and fossil Chironomidae assemblages. The reconstruction was supported by a selection of climate-sensitive geochemical and paleoecological sedimentary proxies of terrestrial and aquatic origin, including Cladocera, pollen and macrofossils. Presented results revealed that summer temperatures were 1–2°C warmer than the mean Millennial temperatures during the 11th, 13th, 15th and 20th centuries and 1–2°C lower during the 12th, 14th, 17th–18th centuries. A persistent cold period, the Little Ice Age (LIA), occurred between 1550 and 1800CE, was interrupted by a short warming at 1650CE. The recognized regional climate fluctuations during the last Millennium affected the lake and its catchment, of which the strongest impact was caused by the LIA cooling. During the LIA the catchment vegetation was impacted by climate deterioration and the lake productivity reached its lowest level during the last Millennium. The current temperature reconstruction is in agreement with a previous continental scale temperature reconstruction for Europe. From obtained results it emerges that during the LIA the climate of western Scandinavia has been dictated by the atmospheric patterns originating from the North Atlantic.

Implications for anomalous mantle pressure and dynamic topography from lithospheric stress patterns in the North Atlantic Realm

With convergent plate boundaries at some distance, the sources of the lithospheric stress field of the North Atlantic Realm are mainly mantle tractions at the base of the lithosphere, lithospheric density structure and topography. Given this, we estimate horizontal deviatoric stresses using a well-established thin sheet model in a global finite element representation. We adjust the lithospheric thickness and the sub-lithospheric pressure iteratively, comparing modelled in plane stress with the observations of the World Stress Map. We find that an anomalous mantle pressure associated with the Iceland and Azores melt anomalies, as well as topography are able to explain the general pattern of the principle horizontal stress directions. The Iceland melt anomaly overprints the classic ridge push perpendicular to the Mid Atlantic ridge and affects the conjugate passive margins in East Greenland more than in western Scandinavia. The dynamic support of topography shows a distinct maximum of c. 1000m in Iceland and amounts <150m along the coast of south-western Norway and 250–350m along the coast of East Greenland. Considering that large areas of the North Atlantic Realm have been estimated to be sub-aerial during the time of break-up, two components of dynamic topography seem to have affected the area: a short-lived, which affected a wider area along the rift system and quickly dissipated after break-up, and a more durable in the close vicinity of Iceland. This is consistent with the appearance of a buoyancy anomaly at the base of the North Atlantic lithosphere at or slightly before continental breakup, relatively fast dissipation of the fringes of this, and continued melt generation below Iceland.

Plankboat skeuomorphs in Bronze Age logboats: a Scandinavian perspective

Abstract

COSC-1 – drilling of a subduction-related allochthon in the Palaeozoic Caledonide orogen of Scandinavia

Abstract. The Collisional Orogeny in the Scandinavian Caledonides (COSC) scientific drilling project focuses on mountain building processes in a major mid-Palaeozoic orogen in western Scandinavia and its comparison with modern analogues. The project investigates the subduction-generated Seve Nape Complex. These in part under ultra-high-pressure conditions metamorphosed outer continental margin and continent–ocean transition zone assemblages were emplaced onto the Baltoscandian platform and there influenced the underlying allochthons and the basement. COSC-1 is the first of two ca. 2.5 km deep, fully cored drill holes located in the vicinity of the abandoned Fröå mine, close to the town of Åre in Jämtland, central Sweden. It sampled a thick section of the lower part of the Seve Complex and was planned to penetrate its basal thrust zone into the underlying lower-grade metamorphosed allochthon. The drill hole reached a depth of 2495.8 m and nearly 100 % core recovery was achieved. Although planning was based on existing geological mapping and new high-resolution seismic surveys, the drilling resulted in some surprises: the Lower Seve Nappe proved to be composed of rather homogenous gneisses, with only subordinate mafic bodies, and its basal thrust zone was unexpectedly thick (&gt; 800 m). The drill hole did not penetrate the bottom of the thrust zone. However, lower-grade metasedimentary rocks were encountered in the lowermost part of the drill hole together with garnetiferous mylonites tens of metres thick. The tectonostratigraphic position is still unclear, and geological and geophysical interpretations are under revision. The compact gneisses host only eight fluid conducting zones of limited transmissivity between 300 m and total depth. Downhole measurements suggest an uncorrected average geothermal gradient of ~ 20 °C km−1. This paper summarizes the operations and preliminary results from COSC-1 (ICDP 5054-1-A), drilled from early May to late August 2014, and is complemented by a detailed operational report and the data repository.

Radicalized Europeans?

Based on an original survey, the author examines the values of participants in the Euromaidan protest. He finds that the protestors’ values are much more comparable to those of the population of Western Europe and Scandinavia than to the general population of Ukraine. The protestors placed relatively high value on the common good and cared relatively little for personal achievement.