Compositions of Uranus and Neptune due to Forming at/Past the Carbon monoxide Snow Line

THE MEASURED COMPOSITIONS OF URANUS AND NEPTUNE FROM THEIR FORMATION ON THE CO ICE LINE

Authors:

Ali-Dib et al

Abstract:

The formation mechanisms of the ice giants Uranus and Neptune, and the origin of their elemental and isotopic compositions, have long been debated. The density of solids in the outer protosolar nebula is too low to explain their formation, and spectroscopic observations show that both planets are highly enriched in carbon, very poor in nitrogen, and the ices from which they originally formed might have had deuterium-to-hydrogen ratios lower than the predicted cometary value, unexplained properties that were observed in no other planets. Here, we show that all these properties can be explained naturally if Uranus and Neptune both formed at the carbon monoxide ice line. Due to the diffusive redistribution of vapors, this outer region of the protosolar nebula intrinsically has enough surface density to form both planets from carbon-rich solids but nitrogen-depleted gas, in abundances consistent with their observed values. Water-rich interiors originating mostly from transformed CO ices reconcile the D/H value of Uranus's and Neptune's building blocks with the cometary value. Finally, our scenario generalizes a well known hypothesis that Jupiter formed on an ice line (water snow line) for the two ice giants, and might be a first step toward generalizing this mechanism for other giant planets.

Genetics Unravels the Populating of the North American Arctic

The North American Arctic was one of the last major regions to be settled by modern humans. This happened when people crossed the Bering Strait from Siberia and wandered into a new world. While the area has long been well researched by archaeologists, little is known of its genetic prehistory. In this study, researchers show that the Paleo-Eskimo, who lived in the Arctic from about 5,000 years ago until about 700 years ago, represented a distinct wave of migration, separate from both Native Americans – who crossed the Bering Strait much earlier – and the Inuit, who came from Siberia to the Arctic several thousand years after the Paleo-Eskimos.

- Our genetic studies show that, in reality, the Paleo-Eskimos – representing one single group – were the first people in the Arctic, and they survived without outside contact for over 4,000 years, says Lundbeck Foundation Professor Eske Willerslev from Centre for GeoGenetics at the Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, who headed the study.

- Our study also shows that the Paleo-Eskimos, after surviving in near-isolation in the harsh Arctic environment for more than 4,000 years, disappeared around 700 years ago – about the same time when the ancestors of modern-day Inuit spread eastward from Alaska, adds Dr. Maanasa Raghavan of Centre for GeoGenetics and lead author of the article.

link.

Dreadnoughtus schrani: The new MASSIVE Titanosaur from Campanian/Maastrichtian Cretaceous Patagonia

A Gigantic, Exceptionally Complete Titanosaurian Sauropod Dinosaur from Southern Patagonia, Argentina

Authors:

Lacovara et al

Abstract:

Titanosaurian sauropod dinosaurs were the most diverse and abundant large-bodied herbivores in the southern continents during the final 30 million years of the Mesozoic Era. Several titanosaur species are regarded as the most massive land-living animals yet discovered; nevertheless, nearly all of these giant titanosaurs are known only from very incomplete fossils, hindering a detailed understanding of their anatomy. Here we describe a new and gigantic titanosaur, Dreadnoughtus schrani, from Upper Cretaceous sediments in southern Patagonia, Argentina. Represented by approximately 70% of the postcranial skeleton, plus craniodental remains, Dreadnoughtus is the most complete giant titanosaur yet discovered, and provides new insight into the morphology and evolutionary history of these colossal animals. Furthermore, despite its estimated mass of about 59.3 metric tons, the bone histology of the Dreadnoughtus type specimen reveals that this individual was still growing at the time of death.

Siberian Traps may NOT have Burned Coal

Latest Permian chars may derive from wildfires, not coal combustion

Authors:

Hudspith et al

Abstract:

The Permian-Triassic boundary extinction event was the largest biological crisis of the Phanerozoic. One of the principle triggers for the mass extinction is thought to be greenhouse warming resulting from the release of CH4 from basalt-coal interaction during the extensive Siberian Traps (Russia) eruptions. Observations of organic matter interpreted to be coal combustion products (fly ash) in latest Permian marine sediments have been used to support this hypothesis. However, this interpretation is dependent upon vesicular chars being fly ash (coal combustion derived) and not formed by alternative mechanisms. Here we present reflectance microscopy images of vesicular chars from Russian Permian coals, and chars from modern tundra, peatland, and boreal forest fires, to demonstrate that despite a difference in precursor fuels, wildfires are capable of generating vesicular chars that are morphologically comparable to end-Permian fly ash. These observations, coupled with extensive global evidence of wildfires during this time interval, call into question the contribution of coal combustion to the end-Permian extinction event.

Dendrogramma: Wait! What?! Did They say It Looks Like a Ediacaran Lifeform?

Scientists discovered two new species of sea-dwelling, mushroom-shaped organisms, according to a study published September 3, 2014 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Jean Just from University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and colleagues.

Scientists classify organisms based on shared characteristics using a taxonomic rank, including kingdom, phylum, and species. In 1986, the authors of this study collected organisms at 400 and 1000 meters deep on the south-east Australian continental slope and only just recently isolated two types of mushroom-shaped organisms that they couldn't classify into an existing phylum.

The new organisms are multicellular and mostly non-symmetrical, with a dense layer of gelatinous material between the outer skin cell and inner stomach cell layers. The organisms were classified as two new species in a new genus, Dendrogramma enigmatica and Dendrogramma discoides, in the new family, Dendrogrammatidae. Scientists found similarities between the organisms and members of Ctenophora and Cnidaria and suggest that they may be related to one of these phyla. Scientists also found similarities to 600 million year-old Pre-Cambrian extinct life forms, suggested by some to be early but failed attempts at multi-cellular life.

The authors originally preserved the specimens in neutral formaldehyde and stored them in 80% ethanol, which makes them unsuitable for molecular analysis. However, they suggest attempting to secure new samples for further study, which may provide further insight into their relationship to other organisms.

link.

Unmitigated Global Warming Risks "Irreversible Damage" by end of 21st Century

Humans risk causing irreversible and widespread damage to the planet unless there’s faster action to limit the fossil fuel emissions blamed for climate change, according to a leaked draft United Nations report.

Global warming already is affecting “all continents and across the oceans,” and further pollution from heat-trapping gases will raise the likelihood of “severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems,” according to the document obtained by Bloomberg.

“Without additional mitigation, and even with adaptation, warming by the end of the 21st century will lead to high to very high risk of severe, widespread, and irreversible impacts globally,” the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in the draft.

link.

Indian to Build new Naval Base for Aircraft Carriers, Ballistic Missile Submarines at Rambilli to Counter China

The Indian Navy (IN) is building a new base on India's east coast to further boost force levels in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and to counter China's growing presence.

Senior IN sources told IHS Jane's that the new facility, codenamed Project Varsha, will be located at Rambilli on the Bay of Bengal, about 50 km southwest of Visakhapatnam, headquarters of the Eastern Naval Command and the site of a naval dockyard.

Scheduled for completion by 2021-22, the new base will house INS Vikrant , the 40,642-ton standard load displacement aircraft carrier under construction at Cochin Shipyard that is due for commissioning in 2018; a proposed fleet of 5-6 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs); and other warships.

link.

Ebola Outbreak Crosses 1900 Deaths, Worsening

More than 1,900 people have died in the world's worst outbreak of Ebola in West Africa, the head of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, marking a major acceleration in fatalities from just over 1,500 last week.

Margaret Chan told a news conference in Washington that 3,500 confirmed or probable cases of Ebola have been reported in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia as of this week. The death toll from this outbreak is now higher than in all the previous epidemics since the disease was first detected in 1976.

link.

Ukraine: Croaks Amongst the Splattering Boiling

The devastation of where the Ukrainian army has quit is immense. The picture above is from the Lugansk...airport.

The Ukrainian army is in full retreat.

 The Russians have raised the Soviet flag (!) above the Saur Mogila monument which both sides fought over and destroyed.

It may be the Russian army has halted in Lugansk and Donetsk.  It might also be they are pausing to disentangle themselves from their big push forward.  Units get lost.  Units need to be replenished, etc.  Or it might be the intent was to prevent DNR/LNR from losing (which they were going to) rather than push on.  That would be the best case scenario, but I doubt it.

Putin has stated he has requested the 'rebels' to halt their advances and claims he had a ceasefire agreement set with Poroshenko.  Poroshenko denied it.

Putin's plan, as I understand it is:

1. Militias should cease military advances in the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions.
2. Pro-Kiev armed forces should withdraw to a distance that excludes the possibility of shelling settlements.
   
3. Implement full and objective international control over ceasefire observation and monitoring.
   
4. Exclude the use of combat aircraft against civilians and villages.
   
5. Prisoner/captive-exchange via an ‘all-in-all’ formula, without preconditions.
   
6. Humanitarian corridors for refugees movement and delivery of humanitarian aid across Donetsk and Lugansk Regions.
   
7. Direct repair-crew access to destroyed social and transit infrastructure with supportive aid.

 This would create Transdniestra Mk II.  Another frozen conflict.  Kiev will not accept that.

A number of Russian paratroopers now in Ukraine or wounded and returned to Russia were IDed on social media sites as having been dressed in Berkut uniforms during the Euromaidan and when Crimea was taken.  If true, Russia's been deeper involved than previously realized.

France has decided NOT to transfer the first Mistral to Russia, nor the second when its ready in October.  They have stated because of Russia's actions in Ukraine, they are delaying the completion of the sale until Russia's behavior changes.  I suspect France just got a couple more amphibious warships courtesy of Russia.  or they might sell it elsewhere.  Oh no though!  The idea of perfidious France having more power projection ability!  

Europe is looking to start slamming more doors shut to Russia in the form of sanctions.  European financial services and markets are likely to be closed to Russia, especially to their financial and defense sectors.  More specific sanctions are going to be rolled out too for individuals.  The finance moves will hurt the most.  Russia will have to turn to China more.  I'd say India, but India's getting a little pissed at the Russians over their behavior (re aircraft carrier they bought and the PAK-FA problems amongst others).

The US will be slamming more doors shut as well.  I am interested to see what they are.

The heads of NATO will meet with Poroshenko before the NATO summit.

Tesla Picks Reno for 'Gigafactory'

Tesla has finally decided that it will build its $5 billion lithium-ion battery plant—dubbed the gigafactory—in Nevada, sources say.

"That's a go, but they are still negotiating the specifics of the contract," a source within the Nevada's governor's office told CNBC Wednesday afternoon. The source noted that it could be a week before the deal is official.

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval will hold a news conference on Thursday in Carson City, Nevada to make a "major economic development announcement,'' according to a media advisory from the state. Tesla spokesman Simon Sproule declined to give details but confirmed Tesla officials would be at the event.

In July, the automaker announced that it had partnered with Japanese electronics firm Panasonic to build the 35 GWh cell factory. It also said it would announce additional partnerships in the coming months.

Analysts at Lux Research expect the "gigafactory" to reduce the cost of the Tesla Model 3 by $2,800, which it says is "not enough to sway the success of the planned lower-cost EV."

link.

Has Agora Replaced Silk Road as the new Dark Net Bitcoin Market?

For two and a half years, the Dread Pirate Roberts and his Silk Road black market ruled the Dark Web. But last year’s FBI’s takedown of that narcotics smorgasbord opened the underground trade to competitors. Now those sites have a new leader, one that’s bigger than the Silk Road ever was and continues to grow explosively.

The online bazaar for contraband known as “Agora” now has more product listings than any other online black market, according to a report released last week by the Digital Citizens Alliance, a nonprofit focused on internet safety. The analysis counts 16,137 products for sale on the site, which is protected by the anonymity software Tor and accepts only bitcoin. That’s about 200 more listings than Silk Road 2.0, a reincarnation of the original Silk Road launched earlier this year by several of the same administrators. It’s also several thousand more than were offered on the first Silk Road before its seizure in October of last year.

“Just as on the rest of the internet, users on the dark net are very quick to move on to new things and move away from those products and websites that seem stale and old,” says Adam Benson, communications director at Digital Citizens Alliance. “Maybe that time has come for Silk Road.”

The latest numbers for Agora, whose name alludes to an ancient Greek meeting place or market, represent a dramatic shift from just four months ago, when it had only 7,400 product listings. That’s half as many as Silk Road 2.0 hosted at the time. The biggest factor explaining the shift, perhaps, has been the misfortune of Agora’s competitors. In February, Silk Road 2.0 claimed to have been hacked and lost about $2.7 million worth of users’ bitcoins. The market since says it’s repaid 83 percent of the victims of that hack, which affected 40 percent of the site’s active users.

link.

Steps to the Robopocalypse: NHTSA Moving Forward With Vehicle-To-Vehicle Communication

NHTSA has released an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking into the technology, alongside a report detailing comprehensive research into the subject. It includes analysis of the agency's research findings in areas including technical feasibility, privacy and security, as well as preliminary estimates on costs and safety benefits. Privacy and security issues will be of concern to many—particularly unease over how far vehicle data might be shared—but the agency's main concern is safety.

"Safety is our top priority," explains U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, "and V2V technology represents the next great advance in saving lives." The technology isn't about helping people survive accidents, an area which automakers continually strive to improve, but helping them avoid crashes altogether. Cars using vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology can be in constant communication with those nearby, sharing data on vehicle position and speed, proximity and whether any other obstacles in the nearby area pose a threat.

link.

Google Attempting to Build Quantum Computers With UC Santa Barbara Team

Google Inc. (GOOG:US) is broadening efforts to create its own cutting-edge computer technology, seeking to use more artificial intelligence in designs that could someday speed up its services.

The company yesterday unveiled a hardware initiative to develop and build processors for its Quantum Artificial Intelligence group, which focuses on technology capable of super-fast calculations based on principles of quantum mechanics. A research team from the University of California at Santa Barbara is joining the initiative, Mountain View, California-based Google said on its research blog.

Google, which spent (GOOGL:US) almost $8 billion on research and development last year, is investing in fresh computing ideas as it looks to keep the lead in markets such as Internet search and online advertising. Quantum technology is seen by some in the technology industry as a transformative way for computers to analyze vast amounts of data. Such advances would be especially useful in Google’s main businesses, as well as newer projects like Web-connected devices and cars.
Story: Defending Against Hackers of the Future

“With an integrated hardware group, the Quantum AI team will now be able to implement and test new designs,” the company said on its blog.

link.

Lockheed Offers Frigate Derived from USS Freedom class LCS (Corvette)

Lockheed Martin is offering the Navy a slightly heavier, technologically re-configured multi-warfare variant of the Littoral Combat Ship that has added survivability features such as built in vertical launch tubes and a stronger radar.

It is part of Lockheed’s submission to the Navy’s Small Surface Combatant Task Force’s, or SSCTF, solicitation asking industry to come up with specs and designs for a new multi-mission surface ship engineered to address and correct some of the problems with the LCS.

Lockheed’s offering, which is based on their international variant of the LCS, is designed to engineer certain technologies into the hull itself, such as sonar. This approach is intended to prevent the need to swap out “mission packages” or sets of technologies as is currently the case with the LCS.

“We took the 118-meter hull and turned it into more of a multi-warfare platform. Multi-warfare means you have anti-submarine warfare capability built into the hull along with surface and anti-air capability,” said Joe North, vice president of Littoral Ship Systems, Lockheed Martin. “It is basically putting everything in the hull that allows you to not have to swap out mission packages – and perform those missions with a single ship.”

The new ship design weighs 3,600 tons which is slightly more than the current LCS weight of 3,400 tons, North said.

Other technological adaptations include the use of a sophisticated anti-air radar than the one used by the LCS that allows for greater distance with air coverage, North added.

“You basically would integrate the radar with guns that you have on the ship, whether that be a 57mm or 76mm gun. You would put in a vertical launch capability which allows it to bring aboard missiles and address threats from over the horizon and for ASW (anti-submarine warfare) you would add sonar to the ship,” he explained.

link.

1.  I think this sucker is going to be considerably heavier than 400 tons more.

2.  If the navy accepts anything less than 32 VLS cells on the LCS deriv frigate, then they ought to get slapped upside the head.  It would be better if the LCS+ had 40 to 48 cells: minimum of 8 ASROC, 16 SM, 8 ASM, and 32 EESM as a probable loadout for 40 cells and add 8 ASM if 48 cells.

3.  For that matter, they had better drop in a towed sonar array, too.

4.  Torpedo launcher.

5.  Provisioning for advanced upgrades like lasers and railguns since they are getting close to deployment. 

6.  Consider the Aegis F variant, but that would work better with the Independence class.

Tibetan Plataeu Zanda Basin was Significantly Lower in the Early Plioecene Neogene

Early Pliocene paleo-altimetry of the Zanda Basin indicated by a sporopollen record

Authors:

Wu et al

Abstract:

Whether the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau (TP) led to the origin and development of the Indian monsoon is still in dispute. A helpful indicator would be greater knowledge about the chronological development of paleo-altimetry. The Zanda Basin, located on the SW margin of the TP, forms one of the most extensive Cenozoic sedimentary basins in Tibet. The modern climate of this area is controlled by the Indian Monsoon circulation system. It is thus an appropriate region for the study of paleo-altimetry, in addition to research into the relation between the TP and the Indian Monsoon. Sporopollen analyses of early Pliocene lacustrine strata in the Zanda Basin show that gymnosperm pollen is dominant (av. 77%) and mainly composed of Picea (av. 27.2%) and Abies (av. 24.2%); fern spores occupy a lesser proportion (av. 17.6%), while angiosperm pollen including temperate, sub-tropical broadleaved trees, shrubs and herbs, accounts for only a small proportion of the assemblage. This sporopollen assemblage suggests that sub-alpine dark coniferous forests were distributed around the basin and grow in a cool and wet climate, rather than in a modern alpine steppe environment. These characteristics indicate that the Zanda Basin's altitude throughout the early Pliocene was most probably lower than it is at present.

How Much Methane is in Titan's Atmosphere at Different Heights?

The methane mole fraction in Titan’s stratosphere from DISR measurements during the Huygens probe’s descent

Author:

Bezard

Abstract:

We present a determination of the methane mole fraction in Titan’s stratosphere using spectral measurements by the Upward Looking Infrared Spectrometer (ULIS) of the Descent Imager/Spectral Radiometer (DISR) aboard the Huygens probe. We analyzed the 1.4-μm band of methane for which a complete linelist, down to very low intensities, was recently made available. The DISR/ULIS measurements were used to derive the methane transmittance along the path from the probe to the Sun during the descent from 135 to 29 km. Fitting the transmittance ratios to remove residual instrumental effects, we derived a stratospheric methane mole fraction of 1.44 (+0.27/−0.11)%, taking into account random errors and uncertainties in the spectroscopic parameters. This value is fully consistent with the simultaneous measurement of the methane profile by the Huygens Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrometer (GCMS). It disagrees with the ∼1% mixing ratio recently inferred from Cassini/CIRS spectra at low latitudes near 85 km. Possible reasons for the discrepancy and uncertainties in the methane spectroscopic parameters are discussed.

Stone Tipped Spears are More Deadly Than Sharped Poles

Attaching a stone tip on to a wooden spear shaft was a significant innovation for early modern humans living around 500,000 years ago. However, it was also a costly behavior in terms of time and effort to collect, prepare and assemble the spear. Stone tips break more frequently than wooden spears, requiring more frequent replacement and upkeep, and the fragility of a broken point could necessitate multiple thrusts to an angry animal. So, why did early hunters begin to use stone-tipped spears?

To learn if there was a "wounding" advantage between using a wooden spear or a stone-tipped spear, ASU postdoctoral researcher Jayne Wilkins, doctoral student Benjamin Schoville and coauthor Kyle Brown from the University of Cape Town, conducted controlled experiments using tipped and untipped spear replications, a calibrated crossbow and ballistics gelatin. The experiments looked at the size and shape of the "wound," penetration depth and damage done by extraction of the spear. Wilkins and Schoville are affiliated with the Institute of Human Origins, a research center of the ASU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change.

link.

How Does Dinosaur Soft Tissue get Preserved?

Researchers studying organic material from dinosaur bones have been able to show that the organic material in the samples contained original soft tissue material from Mesozoic dinosaurs. The x-ray techniques at the ALS were key to showing a possible mechanism for this unexpected preservation—iron nanoparticles associated with dinosaur blood vessels were identified at the ALS. Researchers hypothesized that the iron had come from dinosaurs’ blood and muscle cells during decay, and were able to identify iron-facilitated reactions that contribute to preservation. If these reactions occur in other organisms that end in the fossil record, similar preservation may allow the identification of molecular evolutionary relationships, rates and direction of evolutionary change, and eventually the characterization of other traits that have, until now, remained beyond scientists’ grasp.

link.

Being Nocturnal Predates Mammals: Synapsids Were Nocturnal During the Late Carboniferous

Nocturnality in synapsids predates the origin of mammals by over 100 million years

Authors:

Angielczyk et al

Abstract:

Nocturnality is widespread among extant mammals and often considered the ancestral behavioural pattern for all mammals. However, mammals are nested within a larger clade, Synapsida, and non-mammalian synapsids comprise a rich phylogenetic, morphological and ecological diversity. Even though non-mammalian synapsids potentially could elucidate the early evolution of diel activity patterns and enrich the understanding of synapsid palaeobiology, data on their diel activity are currently unavailable. Using scleral ring and orbit dimensions, we demonstrate that nocturnal activity was not an innovation unique to mammals but a character that appeared much earlier in synapsid history, possibly several times independently. The 24 Carboniferous to Jurassic non-mammalian synapsid species in our sample featured eye morphologies consistent with all major diel activity patterns, with examples of nocturnality as old as the Late Carboniferous (ca 300 Ma). Carnivores such as Sphenacodon ferox and Dimetrodon milleri, but also the herbivorous cynodont Tritylodon longaevus were likely nocturnal, whereas most of the anomodont herbivores are reconstructed as diurnal. Recognizing the complexity of diel activity patterns in non-mammalian synapsids is an important step towards a more nuanced picture of the evolutionary history of behaviour in the synapsid clade.

WHOA! First Direct Brain to Brain Communication Demonstrated Over the Internet

In a first-of-its-kind study, an international team of neuroscientists and robotics engineers have demonstrated the viability of direct brain-to-brain communication in humans. Recently published in PLOS ONE the highly novel findings describe the successful transmission of information via the internet between the intact scalps of two human subjects – located 5,000 miles apart.

"We wanted to find out if one could communicate directly between two people by reading out the brain activity from one person and injecting brain activity into the second person, and do so across great physical distances by leveraging existing communication pathways," explains coauthor Alvaro Pascual-Leone, MD, PhD, Director of the Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. "One such pathway is, of course, the internet, so our question became, 'Could we develop an experiment that would bypass the talking or typing part of internet and establish direct brain-to-brain communication between subjects located far away from each other in India and France ?'"

It turned out the answer was "yes."

link.

Hook it up to a radio or cell phone and you have telepathy, albeit artificial.

heh.  The Next Big Thing is a thinking cap.  ;)

Plate Tectonics did NOT Shutdown During the Siderian PaleoProterozoic

Paleoproterozoic arc magmatism in the North China Craton: No Siderian global plate tectonics shutdown

Authors:

Yang et al

Abstract:

Arc magmatism in convergent plate margins has been a major contributor to continental growth. Following arc-arc and arc-continent collision in the Archean leading to the amalgamation of micro-blocks, the North China Craton (NCC) witnessed major pulses of continental arc magmatism during the Paleoproterozoic. In this study, we present geochemistry, zircon U-Pb geochronology and Lu-Hf isotope data from a suite of magmatic rocks sampled from the region of confluence of two major Paleoproterozoic suture zones in the NCC – the Inner Mongolia Suture Zone (IMSZ) and the Trans-North China Orogen (TNCO). Our zircon U-Pb geochronological data indicate new zircon growth during multiple tectonothermal events as displayed in the 207Pb/206Pb weighted mean ages of 2410 ± 41 Ma for metagranite, 2480 ± 12 Ma, 2125 ± 18 Ma, 1946 ± 8 Ma, 1900 ± 15 Ma and 1879 ± 12 Ma from metagabbros, 2446 ± 11 Ma from charnockite, and 1904 ± 6 Ma and 1901 ± 9 Ma from metatuffs. The 207Pb/206Pb upper intercept age of zircons in the khondalite shows 2102 ± 76 Ma which is identical to the age obtained from the magmatic zircons in one of the metagabbros. The khondalites also carry a group of concordant metamorphic zircons with 207Pb/206Pb mean age of 1881 ± 20 Ma. Metamorphic zircons in the gabbros and charnockites also yield similar ages of 1890 ± 14 Ma and 1852 ± 19 Ma respectively. The age data suggest prolonged arc magmatism in a convergent margin setting during ca. 2.48 to 1.9 Ga, followed by metamorphism at ca. 1.89-1.85 Ga associated with the final collision. Lu-Hf analyses reveal that the dominant populations of zircons from all the rock types are characterized by dominantly positive εHf values (-1.9 to 6.8; mean 1.8). The εHf and TDMC data suggest that the magmas were mostly derived from Neoarchean and Paleoproterozoic juvenile components. The salient geochemical features of these rocks attest to magma generation from heterogeneous source involving subduction–derived arc components with minor input from continental crust. The results presented in this study, together with those from previous investigations in different domains of the IMSZ and TNCO suggest major Paleoproterozoic arc magmatic events in the NCC lasting for nearly 600 million years associated with the final assembly of the crustal blocks into a coherent craton. Construction of the final cratonic architecture of the NCC thus witnessed not only the arc-continent amalgamations at 2.7-2.5 Ga, but also major crust building events in the Paleoproterozoic through melts generated from juvenile and recycled components in continental magmatic arc systems along active convergent margin, followed by intense deformation and metamorphism during the final collision at 1.85–1.80 Ga. The prominent Paleoproterozoic magmatic records in the NCC do not support the proposal of global plate tectonics shut down in the Siderian and confirm vigorous convergent margin magmatism and crust building processes throughout the Paleoproterozoic.

Less Often, but More Catastrophic Snow Falls Under Global Warming

If ever there were a silver lining to global warming, it might be the prospect of milder winters. After all, it stands to reason that a warmer climate would generate less snow.

But a new MIT study suggests that you shouldn't put your shovels away just yet. While most areas in the Northern Hemisphere will likely experience less snowfall throughout a season, the study concludes that extreme snow events will still occur, even in a future with significant warming. That means that, for example, places like Boston may see less snowy winters overall, punctuated in some years by blizzards that drop a foot or two of snow.

"Many studies have looked at average snowfall over a season in climate models, but there's less known about these very heavy snowfalls," says study author Paul O'Gorman, an associate professor in MIT's Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences. "In some regions, it is possible for average snowfall to decrease, but the snowfall extremes actually intensify."

O'Gorman studied daily snowfall across the Northern Hemisphere using 20 different climate models, each of which projected climate change over a 100-year period, given certain levels of greenhouse gas emissions. He looked at both average seasonal snowfall and extreme snowfall events under current climate conditions, and also following projected future warming.

Not surprisingly, O'Gorman found that under relatively high warming scenarios, low-elevation regions with winter temperatures initially just below freezing experienced about a 65 percent reduction in average winter snowfall. However, in these same regions, the heaviest snowstorms became only 8 percent less intense. In some higher-latitude regions, extreme snow events became more intense, depositing 10 percent more snow, even under scenarios of relatively high global warming.

link.

India Increasingly Unhappy, Worried About PAK-FA Program With Russia

New Delhi is increasingly concerned about the sluggish progress in the fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) project, a joint endeavour between India and Russia.

Driving India's worries is the fact that the Russians are neither explaining why a prototype aircraft caught fire during a technology demonstration earlier this year nor addressing other technical doubts expressed by India. In fact, the defence ministry is quite sceptical about reports from Russia that a final design contract for the next generation combat jet is on the cards.

New Delhi is particularly miffed with the fact that despite being an equal partner in the FGFA project in terms of financial contribution, Moscow is not keen to share technical details about its next generation stealth fighter PAK-FA, on which the Indian version of the combat jet will be based.

The Indian version, called the Prospective Multi-Role Fighter (PMF), is almost exactly the same as PAK-FA but with some variations. In fact, Indian money is key to keeping Russia's PAKFA programme alive. Russia has built six prototypes of PAK-FA and, after repeated requests from India, it agreed to hold a demonstration flight earlier this year for technical evaluation. The flight ended in a fire that embarrassed the Russians.

link.

heh.  Sounds a great way to cripple Russia by convincing the Indians to buy F-35s instead.  They might be able to order as many as 100 F-35s for what they are going to pay the Russians for the T-50s/PAK-FAs/PMF.  That's assuming the cost of the PAK-FA doesn't grow, but then again the Russians NEVER jack the price up after you've bought into one of their programs.  uh uh no.

Google's VirusTotal Being Used by Chinese Cyberwarfare Units to Test Malware

Before companies like Microsoft and Apple release new software, the code is reviewed and tested to ensure it works as planned and to find any bugs.

Hackers and cybercrooks do the same. The last thing you want if you’re a cyberthug is for your banking Trojan to crash a victim’s system and be exposed. More importantly, you don’t want your victim’s antivirus engine to detect the malicious tool.

So how do you maintain your stealth? You submit your code to Google’s VirusTotal site and let it do the testing for you.

It’s long been suspected that hackers and nation-state spies are using Google’s antivirus site to test their tools before unleashing them on victims. Now Brandon Dixon, an independent security researcher, has caught them in the act, tracking several high-profile hacking groups—including, surprisingly, two well-known nation-state teams—as they used VirusTotal to hone their code and develop their tradecraft.

“There’s certainly irony” in their use of the site, Dixon says. “I wouldn’t have expected a nation state to use a public system to do their testing.”

link.

Ukraine: Hard Boiled Frog

Events have been rapidly degrading in Donbass for Ukraine.

The Ukrainian army appears to be retreating before a more Russian style comprehensive artillery barrage.  The Ukrianians have all but abandoned Lugansk.  They still hold the Donetsk airport.  For now.  Several Ukrainian boats were destroyed.

The Russians have been pushing on from Telmanove to Volnovakha.  They have pushed up the H15 highway to Kurakhove.  The Russians are pushing their way up the coast towards Mariupol to Shyrokyne from Novoazovsk.  They are likewise pushing from the Russian border to Shchastya in the Lugansk Oblast.

The Russians have been suffering heavy casualties, supposedly. A couple companies worth of paratroopers have been buried already. Some back in Pskov and some in Krasny Luch.

A massive armored column in Krasnodon.  Its flying russian colors and is acting as a cohesive unit.

Putin has been stating Ukraine needs to start talks with the rebels for the formation of the independent state of Novorussiya.  He has also stated he could take Kiev in two weeks and told the West not to mess with Russia because its a nuclear armed state.

The EU has threatened crippling sanctions.  Maybe.  Putin seems very unconcerned.

In the interesting development side, Rapid Trident, the military exercise between NATO and Ukraine is back on.  The United States will have a heavy battalion with 600 troops in Western Ukraine, replacing the planned airborne troops.  The Brits are sending paratroopers.  etc,  Yes, folks, NATO will be on Ukrainian territory in two weeks.

My speculation is Putin will push to take the whole of the Donetsk and Lugansk Oblasts.  If Ukraine accepts the formation of Novorussiya (and/or annexation of the Donbass by Russia), the whole affair will stop there.  If they do not, we're likely to see the Russians push into and take the Kharkov, Zaporizka, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odessa Oblasts.  There might be a few more Oblasts eaten up, but I suspect not too many more.  Then he'll declare peace.

Swiss University Testing Student Designed, Touchless Bitcoin Payment System in Cafeteria

Switzerland’s University of Zurich is integrating a student-made bitcoin payments solution into one of its cafeterias as part of a two-week trial.

Called CoinBlesk, the mobile payments platform uses two-way near-field communication (NFC) technology and was developed as part of a student project to create an open-source bitcoin spending tool.

Students will be able to load their CoinBlesk wallets online or at a new bitcoin ATM that will be installed at the university.

link.

Robo Brain: the Cloud Machine Learning for the Robopocalypse

Robo Brain – a large-scale computational system that learns from publicly available Internet resources – is currently downloading and processing about 1 billion images, 120,000 YouTube videos, and 100 million how-to documents and appliance manuals. The information is being translated and stored in a robot-friendly format that robots will be able to draw on when they need it.

To serve as helpers in our homes, offices and factories, robots will need to understand how the world works and how the humans around them behave. Robotics researchers have been teaching them these things one at a time: How to find your keys, pour a drink, put away dishes, and when not to interrupt two people having a conversation. This will all come in one package with Robo Brain.

"Our laptops and cell phones have access to all the information we want. If a robot encounters a situation it hasn't seen before it can query Robo Brain in the cloud," said Ashutosh Saxena, assistant professor of computer science at Cornell University. Saxena and colleagues at Cornell, Stanford and Brown universities and the University of California, Berkeley, say Robo Brain will process images to pick out the objects in them, and by connecting images and video with text, it will learn to recognize objects and how they are used, along with human language and behavior.

If a robot sees a coffee mug, it can learn from Robo Brain not only that it's a coffee mug, but also that liquids can be poured into or out of it, that it can be grasped by the handle, and that it must be carried upright when it is full, as opposed to when it is being carried from the dishwasher to the cupboard.

Saxena described the project at the 2014 Robotics: Science and Systems Conference, July 12-16 in Berkeley, and has launched a website for the project at http://robobrain.me

link.

China Confirms CH-4 Reaper-equivalent UCAV now in Service

The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) showcased a CH-4 unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) during the multilateral 'Peace Mission 2014' exercise featuring Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) members in Inner Mongolia in late August.

In a rare move, and indicating strong confidence in the platform, state media showed footage of a missile hitting a simulated enemy vehicle.

Feng Aiwang, commander of the exercise's PLAAF battlegroup, said the CH-4 hit every target in several missile firings. The CH-4 (Cai Hong 4 or Rainbow 4), which has been characterised as China's answer to the United States' General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper, operated alongside Z-10 and Z-19 attack helicopters, which also made their 'Peace Mission' debuts.

In a TV interview, Li Pingkun, head of the CH-4 project, said the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) could hit targets with a margin of error of less than 1.5 m. Without giving details, he revealed the CH-4 "used several methods to guide missiles or smart bombs onto targets".

China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics (CAAA) technical staff have previously told IHS Jane's that the CH-4 has four hard points capable of carrying two AR-1 laser-guided missiles and two FT-5 small guided bombs.

link.

US Air Force Presses Ahead with Sixth Generation Fighter, LRS-B Engines

The US Air Force is moving ahead with plans to develop a sixth-generation fighter jet engine based on technological improvements achieved through an ongoing effort to produce a power plant for a future long-range bomber.

In a request for information released 19 August, the air force said it plans to release a final request for proposals for the adaptive engine transfer programme (AETP) in the first quarter of fiscal year 2015, “notionally December 2014.”

AETP is aimed at finding mature engine technologies that will feed into an engineering and manufacturing development program, according to Pentagon documents. The eventual goal is to design, build and test a 45,000lb-thrust-class fighter engine “suitable for further development and ultimate installation into combat aircraft.”

The programme is a direct follow-on to the Air Force Research Laboratory’s adaptive versatile engine technology (ADVENT) programme. General Electric and Rolls-Royce North America developed engines that meet the 25 percent efficiency metric under ADVENT.

GE currently has a full ADVENT engine in testing that is designed for a “bomber application,” says spokesman Matt Benvie. Northrop and a Boeing-Lockheed Martin team are expected to compete for the LRS-B contract that will be awarded in spring 2015.

GE and Pratt & Whitney in 2012 scored contracts under the follow-on adaptive engine technology development (AETD) programme. AETD will produce a fighter engine core based on ADVENT technologies by 2016 that incorporates ceramic matrix composite material to improve heat tolerance and acceleration.

AETP will further mature the core’s heat tolerance and mate the core with an adaptive fan. The effort will conclude with a full-engine test either on a ground test bed, aboard a Lockheed Martin F-35 or in an “unnamed flight test application,” Benvie says.

link.

A Freshwater Oasis Existed in the Nefud Desert at the Pleistocene/Holocene Boundary

Epipalaeolithic occupation and palaeoenvironments of the southern Nefud desert, Saudi Arabia, during the Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene

Authors:

Hilbert et al

Abstract:

The transition from the Terminal Pleistocene to the Early Holocene is poorly represented in the geological and archaeological records of northern Arabia, and the climatic conditions that prevailed in the region during that period are unclear. Here, we present a new record from the site of Al-Rabyah, in the Jubbah basin (southern Nefud desert, Saudi Arabia), where a sequence of fossiliferous lacustrine and palustrine deposits containing an archaeological assemblage is preserved. Sedimentological and palaeoenvironmental investigations, both at Al-Rabyah and elsewhere in the Jubbah area, indicate phases of humid conditions, during which shallow lakes developed in the basin, separated by drier periods. At Al-Rabyah, the end of a Terminal Pleistocene phase of lake expansion has been dated to ∼12.2 ka using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), with a mid-Holocene humid phase dated to after ∼6.6 ka. Palaeoecological reconstructions based primarily on non-marine molluscs and ostracods from the younger lacustrine deposits indicate a relatively shallow body of freshwater surrounded by moist, well-vegetated environments. A lithic assemblage characterized by bladelets and geometric microliths was excavated from sediments attributed to a drier climatic phase dated to ∼10.1 ka. The lithic artefact types exhibit similarities to Epipalaeolithic industries of the Levant, and their occurrence well beyond the ‘core region’ of such assemblages (and at a significantly later date) has important implications for understanding interactions between Levantine and Arabian populations during the Terminal Pleistocene–Early Holocene. We suggest that the presence of foraging populations in the southern Nefud during periods of drier climate is due to the prolonged presence of a freshwater oasis in the Jubbah Basin during the Terminal Pleistocene–Early Holocene, which enabled them to subsist in the region when neighbouring areas of northern Arabia and the Levant were increasingly hostile.

The Science Case for an Uranus Orbiter

The science case for an orbital mission to Uranus: Exploring the origins and evolution of ice giant planets

Authors:

Arridge et al

Abstract:

Giant planets helped to shape the conditions we see in the Solar System today and they account for more than 99% of the mass of the Sun's planetary system. They can be subdivided into the Ice Giants (Uranus and Neptune) and the Gas Giants (Jupiter and Saturn), which differ from each other in a number of fundamental ways. Uranus, in particular is the most challenging to our understanding of planetary formation and evolution, with its large obliquity, low self-luminosity, highly asymmetrical internal field, and puzzling internal structure. Uranus also has a rich planetary system consisting of a system of inner natural satellites and complex ring system, five major natural icy satellites, a system of irregular moons with varied dynamical histories, and a highly asymmetrical magnetosphere. Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to have explored Uranus, with a flyby in 1986, and no mission is currently planned to this enigmatic system. However, a mission to the uranian system would open a new window on the origin and evolution of the Solar System and would provide crucial information on a wide variety of physicochemical processes in our Solar System. These have clear implications for understanding exoplanetary systems. In this paper we describe the science case for an orbital mission to Uranus with an atmospheric entry probe to sample the composition and atmospheric physics in Uranus’ atmosphere. The characteristics of such an orbiter and a strawman scientific payload are described and we discuss the technical challenges for such a mission. This paper is based on a white paper submitted to the European Space Agency's call for science themes for its large-class mission programme in 2013.

Neandertal Rock Art Found in Gibraltar Caves

A rock engraving made by Neanderthals in Gibraltar

Authors:

Rodríguez-Vidal et al

Abstract:

The production of purposely made painted or engraved designs on cave walls—a means of recording and transmitting symbolic codes in a durable manner—is recognized as a major cognitive step in human evolution. Considered exclusive to modern humans, this behavior has been used to argue in favor of significant cognitive differences between our direct ancestors and contemporary archaic hominins, including the Neanderthals. Here we present the first known example of an abstract pattern engraved by Neanderthals, from Gorham’s Cave in Gibraltar. It consists of a deeply impressed cross-hatching carved into the bedrock of the cave that has remained covered by an undisturbed archaeological level containing Mousterian artifacts made by Neanderthals and is older than 39 cal kyr BP. Geochemical analysis of the epigenetic coating over the engravings and experimental replication show that the engraving was made before accumulation of the archaeological layers, and that most of the lines composing the design were made by repeatedly and carefully passing a pointed lithic tool into the grooves, excluding the possibility of an unintentional or utilitarian origin (e.g., food or fur processing). This discovery demonstrates the capacity of the Neanderthals for abstract thought and expression through the use of geometric forms.

Datanglong guangxiensis: a new Carcharodontosaur Theropod From Lower Cretaceous China

A New Carcharodontosauria (Theropoda) from the Early Cretaceous of Guangxi, Southern China

Authors:

Mo et al

Abstract:

A new large-bodied theropod dinosaur, Datanglong guangxiensis gen. et sp. nov., was recovered from the Lower Cretaceous Xinlong Formation of the Datang Basin, Guangxi. It is unique in several features including: posteriormost dorsal vertebra with teardrop-shaped pneumatic foramen confined by enlarged pcdl, acpl and the centrum; posteriormost dorsal with well-developed, horizontal prpl; posteriormost dorsal with a parapophysis projecting more laterally than the diapophysis; brevis fossa shallow with short, ridge-like medial blade; and iliac pubic peduncle with posteroventrally expanded margin. Cladistic analysis supports the idea that this new taxon Datanglong guangxiensis is a primitive member of the Carcharodontosauria in possessing two unambiguous synapomorphies: large external pneumatic foramina and internal spaces present in the lateral surface of ilium, and a peg-and-socket ischiac articulation with the ilium. The presence of the new taxon from Guangxi further confirms that Carcharodontosauria were cosmopolitan large-bodied predators during the Early-mid Cretaceous.

Evidence Ocean Acidification was Important to the Triassic-Jurassic Mass Extinction

The end-Triassic negative δ13C excursion: A lithologic test

Authors:

Bachan et al

Abstract:

The end-Triassic mass extinction is associated with a large negative carbon isotope excursion, which has been interpreted as reflecting the rapid injection of 13C depleted CO2 or methane associated with the emplacement of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. However, in a number of sections in central Europe, the negative excursion is associated with a carbonate-poor lithology, and the most isotopically depleted values are associated with the lowest percent carbonate, raising the possibility of a lithologic control on δ13Ccarb.

Here we test the uniqueness of the relationship between the carbonate-poor lithology and the δ13C signal by comparing the geochemistry of the extinction marl with two Upper Triassic carbonate-poor beds from lower positions within the same stratigraphic sections. We find that the extinction and non-extinction marls overlap nearly completely in terms of their carbonate content, but differ substantially in their isotopic trends. The extinction marl sections show strong depletions in the δ13C and δ18O of carbonate, and enrichment in δ13C of bulk organic carbon, while the non-extinction marls show almost no change in these metrics. Accordingly, the difference in isotopic content must lie in differences inherent to the beds themselves and the circumstances of their deposition and early diagenesis. Although a range of primary drivers for the isotopic trends is possible, an acidification origin for the marl, and oceanic origin for the carbon isotope excursion in carbonate are compatible with our data and supported by the broader context of the extinction.

Was There a Great Oxidation Event (or two) During the MesoArchean?

Oxygenation of the Archean atmosphere: New paleosol constraints from eastern India

Authors:

Mukhopadhyay et al

Abstract:

It is widely believed that atmospheric oxygen saturation rose from less than 10–5 present atmospheric level (PAL) in the Archean to greater than 10–2 PAL at the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) at ca. 2.4 Ga, but it is unclear if any earlier oxygenation events occurred. Here we report U-Pb zircon data indicating that a pyrophyllite-bearing paleosol, from Keonjhar in the Precambrian Singhbhum Craton of eastern India, formed between 3.29 and 3.02 Ga, making it one of very few known Archean paleosols globally. Field and geochemical evidence suggests that the upper part of the paleosol was eroded prior to unconformable deposition of an overlying sequence of shallow-marine siliciclastic sediments. A negative cerium anomaly within the currently preserved level of the paleosol indicates that ancient oxidative weathering occurred in the original upper soil profile. The presence of redox-sensitive detrital uraninite and pyrite together with a complete absence of pyrophyllite in the overlying sediments indicate that the mineralogical and geochemical features of the paleosol were established prior to the unconformable deposition of the sediments and are not related to subsequent diagenetic or hydrothermal effects. We suggest that a transient atmospheric oxygenation event occurred at least 600 m.y. prior to the GOE and ∼60 m.y. prior to a previously documented Archean oxygenation event. We propose that several pulsed and short-lived oxygenation events are likely to have occurred prior to the GOE, and that these changes to atmospheric composition arose due to the presence of organisms capable of oxygenic photosynthesis.

MegaDrought Almost Certain for American Southwest With Global Warming

Due to global warming, scientists say, the chances of the southwestern United States experiencing a decade long drought is at least 50 percent, and the chances of a "megadrought" – one that lasts over 30 years – ranges from 20 to 50 percent over the next century.

The study by Cornell University, University of Arizona and U.S. Geological Survey researchers will be published in a forthcoming issue of the American Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate.

"For the southwestern U.S., I'm not optimistic about avoiding real megadroughts," said Toby Ault, Cornell assistant professor of earth and atmospheric sciences and lead author of the paper. "As we add greenhouse gases into the atmosphere – and we haven't put the brakes on stopping this – we are weighting the dice for megadrought conditions."

As of mid-August, most of California sits in a D4 "exceptional drought," which is in the most severe category. Oregon, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas also loiter between moderate and exceptional drought. Ault says climatologists don't know whether the severe western and southwestern drought will continue, but he said, "With ongoing climate change, this is a glimpse of things to come. It's a preview of our future."

Ault said that the West and Southwest must look for mitigation strategies to cope with looming long-drought scenarios. "This will be worse than anything seen during the last 2,000 years and would pose unprecedented challenges to water resources in the region," he said.

In computer models, while California, Arizona and New Mexico will likely face drought, the researchers show the chances for drought in parts of Washington, Montana and Idaho may decrease.

link.

Ghana Halves Poverty by 50% Since 1992

The number of people living in poverty in Ghana halved between 1992 and 2013, the government said Friday, with the country meeting a key developmental benchmark even as its economy struggles.

Just under a quarter, or 24.2 percent, of Ghanaians were living in poverty in 2013 compared to 51.7 percent in 1992, new data from the national statistics body showed.

The figures were based on Ghana's own measure of poverty which for 2013 counted individuals living on less than 3.60 cedis -- equivalent last year to an average of $2.34 or 2.21 euros -- a day.

The UN measure for poverty counts those living on an even smaller amount, of less than $1.25 per day.

By halving the poverty rate, Ghana becomes one of the few African countries to achieve the first of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, a set of benchmarks that developing countries are aiming to meet by next year.

link.

India Seeking Closer Ties to Other Nationalist Governments in Asia?

INDIA’S restless prime minister, Narendra Modi, likes to brag that he sleeps for only three or four hours a night and replenishes his energy with yoga. He will need all the vigour he can muster in the coming month, during a punishing diplomatic tour to the rest of Asia. By the end, if he keeps up the pace, Mr Modi may have clarified what sort of policy he intends for India in a region where it punches below its weight.

The marathon begins in Japan on August 30th, where India’s leader travels with a delegation of billionaires and industrialists for a five-day trip. Mr Modi is close to Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, a fellow nationalist with whom he shares suspicions of China. He gratefully visited Mr Abe in 2007 and 2012 as chief minister for Gujarat, even as Western politicians shunned him after Hindu-Muslim riots in his state in 2002. Gleeful Indian pundits note that social media give a clue to their friendship. Mr Abe follows only three people on Twitter; one of them is his eager fellow tweeter, Mr Modi.

link.

India to Increase Rare Earth Element/Metal Supply by 5%

India is commissioning a plant to produce up to 5,000 tonnes of rare earths a year, a state company official told Reuters, which could help it contribute about 5 percent to the global supply of the metals used in cameras, cars, iPhones and wind turbines.

India's emergence as a supplier, albeit a small one, would be good news for countries like Japan, which up to now have had to rely mostly on China for rare earths production.

The plant in the state of Odisha would produce rare earth oxides by processing monazite from beach sand, said S. Surya Kumar, head of the Rare Earths Division for state-owned Indian Rare Earths, part of the Department of Atomic Energy.

Up to half of the output would be processed into products like lanthanum and cerium, which are used in camera lenses and glass polishing agents, Kumar said.

Kumar did not give a timeline for when rare earth oxides will start flowing from the Odisha plant.

link.

Australian Tax Comissioner: Legal Money Requires National Backing, can Change for Bitcoin

The Australian tax commissioner has left open the possibility that the digital payment system bitcoin could be considered legal tender in Australia.

Bitcoin has been described as a type of “virtual currency” where users can pay for goods and services, and can even create their own bitcoins to generate more currency.

But countries around the world have continued to grapple with whether bitcoin could be considered currency or some other form of personal property.

How bitcoin – and other cryptocurrencies – are defined will have broad ramifications for how they are handled by consumers and governments, including how they are dealt with under national taxation systems.

At an inquiry on Wednesday the Australian tax commissioner, Chris Jordan, conceded there was a push by some proponents to have bitcoin treated like money, but added it did not meet the current definition of legal tender. However he left open the possibility that this could be changed in the future.

“There’s a definition in the Tax Act of money. It’s got to be the legal tender of a country. We can’t say it’s money. If this grows more and more maybe the definition needs to change,” he said.

A change to the definition of legal tender would require amendments to the Tax Act by the federal parliament.

link.

My Son the Athlete

US Air Force Interested in, but not yet Commiting to Replacing Russian RD-180 Rocket Engine

When the Air Force issued a Request for Information about an engine to replace the RD-180 it began to look as if they were serious about committing to build the first new rocket engine in decades.

But we also received two new RD-180 engines from Russia the same day as the RFI went out, the United Launch Alliance announced. That bolstered those who argue that Russia needs the revenue so much and is so committed to space cooperation that our sanctions against Russia to punish them for Ukraine will not stop the flow of the cheap, highly reliable engines. Three more engines are due to arrive this fall, and I’m betting they arrive.

Just to make sure the Air Force or OSD hadn’t snuck something past us, I checked to see if any policy decisions had been made or memos approved to allow spending for a new engine.

Here are the responses to my questions about whether a policy decision has been made to proceed with a new engine or to create a budget line to find one from Maj. Eric Badger, Air Force spokesman:

“No, there has not been a policy decision made to buy a new engine.”

link.

China's Aircraft Carrier Liaoning's Airwing Will Have 12 Helicopters and 24 Fighters

According to this report from Xinhua, China’s sole aircraft carrier Liaoning is capable of carrying up to 36 aircraft.

The ship’s air wing is made up of four Z-18J airborne early warning helicopters, six Z-18F antisubmarine warfare helicopters, two Z-9C search-and-rescue helicopters and 24 J-15 fighter jets.

The same article said the Z-18F has a 4 by 8 sonobuoy rack on the aft of the cabin. The helicopter is also capable of being armed with four Yu-7K lightweight torpedos.

link.

Last Glacial Maximum CLiamte Fluctuations in Antarctica

Glacial–interglacial climatic variations at the Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica: The first report from environmental magnetism

Authors:

Kumar Warrier et al

Abstract:

We discuss in this paper the first detailed environmental magnetic record of glacial–interglacial climatic variations in the Schirmacher Oasis, East Antarctica. We determined environmental magnetic properties and inter-parametric ratios (χlf, χfd %, χARM, SIRM, χARM/SIRM, χARM/χlf, χARM/χfd, SIRM/χlf, S-ratio and HIRM) for sediment samples of a core from the Sandy Lake. Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) 14C dates were obtained on the organic matter from bulk sediment samples. The sediment core spans the past ~ 42.5 cal. ka B.P. The magnetic minerals are mainly detrital and catchment-derived, as there is no evidence for the presence of authigenic greigite, bacterial magnetite or diagenetic dissolution. The last glacial period is characterized by a high concentration of ferrimagnetic minerals such as titanomagnetite (high values of χlf, SIRM etc.) and coarse magnetic grain size (low χARM/SIRM and χARM/χlf values and high S-ratio values). Deglaciation in the Schirmacher Oasis began around 21 cal. ka B.P. as suggested by the low magnetic mineral concentration. The Holocene period is characterized by relatively warm climatic events as seen in the low values of magnetic susceptibility which is primarily contributed by fine-grained titanomagnetite resulting from pedogenesis (high χfd % values). Several of the relatively warm and cold events that we deciphered from the environmental magnetic data are correlatable with lake sediments from the Schirmacher Oasis and other ice-free areas in East Antarctica and from ice-core records on the Antarctic Plateau.

Exploring Europa on a Budget

Three factors make exploring Europa hard. First, we want to explore an entire complex world, and mapping its features requires acquiring vast amounts of data. Second, Europa lies far from the Earth, which necessitates capable communications and power systems (read, “expensive”) to return the data to Earth. Third, Europa lies well within the harsh radiation fields surrounding Europa, which both requires significant radiation hardening (again, read, “expensive”) and limits the life of any spacecraft that explores this world. These factors can make a mission concept that seems like less actually be more.

The limiting factor on science for most planetary orbiters is not the time the instruments can make observations. Rather it is the time available to return data to Earth because many instruments can gather data far faster than the communications system can transmit it to antennas on Earth. (There also are a limited number of antennas to listen to planetary spacecraft, so few missions receive continuous coverage, and spacecraft often cannot continuously transmit either because they must turn to observe the planet or the planet itself blocks communication.)

link.

Dating the Rock Art of the Colorado Plateau

Age of Barrier Canyon-style rock art constrained by cross-cutting relations and luminescence dating techniques

Authors:

Pederson et al

Abstract:

Rock art compels interest from both researchers and a broader public, inspiring many hypotheses about its cultural origin and meaning, but it is notoriously difficult to date numerically. Barrier Canyon-style (BCS) pictographs of the Colorado Plateau are among the most debated examples; hypotheses about its age span the entire Holocene epoch and previous attempts at direct radiocarbon dating have failed. We provide multiple age constraints through the use of cross-cutting relations and new and broadly applicable approaches in optically stimulated luminescence dating at the Great Gallery panel, the type section of BCS art in Canyonlands National Park, southeastern Utah. Alluvial chronostratigraphy constrains the burial and exhumation of the alcove containing the panel, and limits are also set by our related research dating both a rockfall that removed some figures and the rock’s exposure duration before that time. Results provide a maximum possible age, a minimum age, and an exposure time window for the creation of the Great Gallery panel, respectively. The only prior hypothesis not disproven is a late Archaic origin for BCS rock art, although our age result of A.D. ∼1–1100 coincides better with the transition to and rise of the subsequent Fremont culture. This chronology is for the type locality only, and variability in the age of other sites is likely. Nevertheless, results suggest that BCS rock art represents an artistic tradition that spanned cultures and the transition from foraging to farming in the region.

Thalassodromeus sebesensis Wasn't a Pterosaur...It was a Turtle

Thalassodromeus sebesensis - a new name for an old turtle. Comment on “Thalassodromeus sebesensis, an out of place and out of time Gondwanan tapejarid pterosaur”, Grellet-Tinner and Codrea

Authors:

Dyke et al

Abstract:

In a recent Gondwana Research article Grellet-Tinner and Codrea (2014) (hereafter “GTC”) describe a single bone (UBB ODA-28, collections of Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj Napoca, Romania) from the Upper Cretaceous Şard Formation (= middle section of the Sebeş Formation) (Transylvanian Basin, Romania) as a pterosaur premaxillary cranial crest. They assign this fossil to a new species of small pterosaur, Thalassodromeus sebesensis (a name first coined in a conference abstract published in 2013; Grellet-Tinner et al., 2013). GTC build a taxonomic argument on the basis of this single incomplete specimen that posits the presence of a major group of pterosaurs hitherto entirely restricted to the Early Cretaceous of South America - thalassodromines (Kellner and Campos, 2007) or thalassodromids (Witton, 2009) - in the European Late Cretaceous. GTC note that “this important discovery doubles the thalassadromine fossil record and demonstrates a 42 million years temporal displacement between the Romanian species and its older Aptian Gondwanan congener Thalassodromeus sethi”. If GTC are correct, this new fossil represents a remarkably unexpected and potentially very important discovery that could rewrite aspects of pterosaur evolutionary history.

We have assembled a large international team who disagree with the arguments presented by GTC. As we demonstrate, the fossil fragment they describe is misidentified; it is, firstly, not from a pterosaur but is clearly a piece of the shell of the turtle Kallokibotion Nopcsa, 1923 and, secondly, is therefore not the groundbreaking discovery of an ‘anachronistic’ Gondwanan pterosaur in Europe as claimed. Because ODA-28 is not a pterosaur, yet alone a Thalassodromeus, GTC’s conclusions on migration routes and insular dwarfism are also unsupported.

 Original authors stick to their guns, but not nicely.

Evidence of a Global Warming Spike at the Carboniferous-Permian Boundary From Russia

Discovery of shallow-marine biofacies conodonts in a bioherm within the Carboniferous-Permian transition in the Omalon Massif, NE Russia near the North paleo-pole: Correlation with a warming spike in the southern Hemisphere

Authors:

Davydov et al

Abstract:

The conodont genera Hindeodus and Streptognathodus are reported for the first time within the Carboniferous-Permian transition in the northern high latitudes of the Paren’ River, Omolon Massif, NE Russia. Several fossil groups, including brachiopods, bivalves, scaphopods and microgastropods were found to be prolific in the invertebrate-dominated bioherms. These bioherms occur within predominantly siliciclastic sequences with extremely poor fauna, whereas in the studied bioherms the diversity of the bivalves and brachiopods exceeded observed diversity elsewhere in coeval facies in NE Russia. The bioherms are biostratigraphically constrained as uppermost Pennsylvanian to lowermost Cisuralian based on ammonoids. The very unusual peak of bivalve and brachiopod diversity and the occurrence of conodonts that require minimum sea water temperatures of at least 10-12 °C indicate a short lived, but significant warming event at that time, at least of provincial significance. This event most likely corresponds with a short-lived warming event recently discovered in the east of the southern hemisphere, in Timor and Australia. Thus, the event is possibly of global significance.

Indo-Madagascar Connectivity in the PreCambrian From the Western Dharwar Craton

Tectonic restoration of the Precambrian crystalline rocks along the west coast of India: Correlation with eastern Madagascar in East Gondwana

Authors:

Rekha et al

Abstract:

New structural–mineralogical data and U–Th-total Pb monazite chemical ages in 27 samples in a 430 km long corridor along the west coast of India are combined with existing data to reconstruct the tectonic set up of the Meso/Neoarchean crystalline rocks in the Western Dharwar Craton (WDC). The data helps to delineate two NW-trending Paleoproterozoic ductile shear zones that limit the southern and the northern margins of the WDC. The southern shear zone (metamorphic age: 2.3–2.4 Ga) separates the greenschist facies supracrustal belts (2.5 and 3.3 Ga), foliated granitoids (2.5 and 2.9 Ga) and amphibolite facies anatectic gneisses ( greater than 3.0 Ga) of the WDC from the greater than 2.9 Ga granulite facies ortho/para-gneisses of the Coorg Block. This shear zone is correlated with the ∼2.4 Ga Betsimisaraka suture zone in east-central Madagascar that demarcates the accretion zone between the Antongil Block (≈WDC) and the granulite facies lithologies of the Antananarivo domain (≈Coorg Block). The northern shear zone system (metamorphic age: 2.2–1.8 Ga) extending NW into Madagascar possibly exists as a hitherto undiscovered tectonic zone forming the basement of the Mesoproterozoic Sahantaha Formation underlying the Neoproterozoic Bemarivo Belt supracrustals in NE Madagascar.

Within the WDC, the Meso/Neoproterozoic ages retrieved from poorly-defined margins in monazite are uncommon, dispersed within the craton, and do not define localized zones within the craton. The chemical ages of metamorphic monazites formed at greenschist/amphibolite facies conditions preclude metamorphism–deformation associated with accretion of crustal blocks within the WDC during the Rodinia assembly.

How Will Global Warming Impact Common Pest Insects?

Researchers from North Carolina State University have found that century-old museum specimens hold clues to how global climate change will affect a common insect pest that can weaken and kill trees – and the news is not good.

"Recent studies found that scale insect populations increase on oak and maple trees in warmer urban areas, which raises the possibility that these pests may also increase with global warming," says Dr. Elsa Youngsteadt, a research associate at NC State and lead author of a paper on the work.

"More scale insects would be a problem, since scales can weaken or kill the trees they live on," Youngsteadt says. "But cities are unique, so we wanted to know whether warming causes scale insect population explosions in rural forests, the way it does in cities."

link.

Little Scotlanders Gaining Ground in Polls?

Support for Scottish independence appears to be gaining ground three weeks ahead of the historic referendum, according to a poll published on Friday.

The Survation survey found 47 percent of respondents would vote "Yes" to independence, compared to 53 percent who would vote "No", excluding people who were undecided.

This was a considerable narrowing of the gap between the two sides in a Survation poll three weeks earlier, in which 43 percent said they would vote "Yes", versus 57 percent who would vote to remain in the union.

The poll was commissioned by the Scottish Daily Mail newspaper to assess reaction to the final public debate between the leaders of the pro and anti-independence campaigns.

"Yes" campaign leader and Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond was widely seen to have won the debate against "No" campaign leader Alistair Darling.

The survey was of 1,001 people of voting age, and found 11 percent of respondents said they remained undecided, a drop of 2 percent from the previous poll.

link.

Fixing China's State Capitalism

JIN JIANG is one of the world’s biggest hotel groups, managing five-star properties across China, a budget motel chain and a travel agency. It is also a state-owned enterprise (SOE), controlled by the Shanghai government. It has seen better days. The company’s best hotels played host to hundreds of foreign leaders in the past century, including Richard Nixon in 1972, when America and China began their historic rapprochement. But in recent years visiting dignitaries have opted for newer hotels over Jin Jiang’s musty rooms and tired furnishings.

When people think of Chinese state companies, they often have its giant banks or oil companies in mind. But most of the 155,000 enterprises still owned by the central and local governments are more akin to Jin Jiang: they are businesses that have little to do with the country’s economic or political priorities, and they have had a run of bad years, losing ground to private-sector rivals. That may be about to change. China is in the midst of the biggest attempt in more than a decade to fix the country’s brand of state capitalism, attempting to breathe new life into Jin Jiang and dozens, if not hundreds or even thousands, more like it.

link.