Spatial probabilistic modeling of slope failure using an integrated GIS Monte Carlo simulation approach

Spatial probabilistic modeling of slope failure using a combined Geographic Information System (GIS), infinite-slope stability model and Monte Carlo simulation approach is proposed and applied in the landslide-prone area of Sasebo city, southern Japan. A digital elevation model (DEM) for the study area has been created at a scale of 1/2500. Calculated results of slope angle and slope aspect derived from the DEM are discussed. Through the spatial interpolation of the identified stream network, the thickness distribution of the colluvium above Tertiary strata is determined with precision. Finally, by integrating an infinite-slope stability model and Monte Carlo simulation with GIS, and applying spatial processing, a slope failure probability distribution map is obtained for the case of both low and high water levels.     

Caledonian Low-Temperature Granulite-Facies Metamorphism in the West Kunlun Orogenic Belt—SHRIMP Chronological Evidence from Zircon

The West Kunlun orogenic belt is located at the conjunction of the paleo-Asian tectonic system and the Tethys tectonic system. Petrological and mineralogical studies of the Early Cambrian metamorphic surface crust in this region have shown that in case the metamorphism reached low-temperature granulate facies, the typical mineral assemblage is biotite-garnet-silimanite-K feldspar-plagioclase-quartz. The peak metamorphic temperatures are within the range of 720–740°C and the pressure is 0.6 GPa ±. Three types of metamorphic zircon have been detected in the metamorphic rocks: the complex inclusion-bearing type ; the early relic zircon inclusion-bearing type; and the inclusion-free type. SHRIMP age determination of these three types of metamorphic zircon have revealed that these zircons were formed principally during 400–460 Ma, indicating that pre-Cambrian metamorphic surface crust rocks underwent low-temperature granulite facies metamorphism during the Caledonian. In combination with the geological characteristics of this region, it is considered that when the oceanic basin was closed, there occurred intense intracontinental subduction (type A), bringing part of the Early Cambrian metamorphic basement in this region downwards to the lower crust. Meanwhile, there were accompanied with tectonic deformation at deep levels and medium- to high-grade metamorphism. This study provided important chronological and mineralogical evidence for the exploration of the evolutionary mechanism and process of the West Kunlun Early Paleozoic. Part of the results from the research project “ Research on the West Kunlun pre-Cambrian tectonic events” under the program “ Research on the important geological problems of China’ s pre-Cambrian” (No. 200113900070) sponsored by the China National Geological Surveying Bureau.     

Reliability based risk index for the design of reinforced earth structures

The design methods currently used for earth reinforcement are mostly based on deterministic properties of both the soil and the construction materials used. Nowadays, however, the general trend is designing at a specific degree of reliability. This is even more true where the raw data such as soil properties exhibit significant variation. Deterministic solutions, in this case, may not suffice. Therefore, this paper will attempt to use probabilistic formulations thereby modifying the existing design procedure of reinforced earth retaining walls to account for uncertainties and variabilities. Through a first order Taylor's series expansion about the mean, the mean and variance of the strip reinforcing components, namely width and length, are derived in terms of the variations in the soil properties. Design charts that enable estimation of both mean and variance are developed to avoid extensive partial differentiation involved in the computations. Using appropriate probability distributions along with the mean and variance, the final design outputs are determined for a selected failure probability by introducing what is refered to as 'risk index'. The results indicate that the risk index increases with an increase in the coefficient of variations and a decrease in failure probability. Furthermore, it is shown that in some cases, depending on the variabilities of the soil properties, the classical design technique produced a relatively high failure probability. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Origin and tectonic significance of a Mesozoic multi-layer over-thrust system within the Yangtze Block (South China)

In the Yangtze Block (South China), a well-developed Mesozoic thrust system extends through the Xuefeng and Wuling mountains in the southeast to the Sichuan basin in the northwest. The system comprises both thin- and thick-skinned thrust units separated by a boundary detachment fault, the Dayin fault. To the northwest, the thin-skinned belt is characterized by either chevron anticlines and box synclines to the northwest or chevron synclines to the southeast. The former structural style displays narrow exposures for the cores of anticlines and wider exposures for the cores of synclines. Thrust detachments occur along Silurian (Fs) and Lower Cambrian (Fc) strata and are dominantly associated with the anticlines. To the southeast, this style of deformation passes gradually into one characterized by chevron synclines with associated principal detachment faults along Silurian (Fs), Cambrian (Fc) and Lower Sinian (Fz) strata. There are, however, numerous secondary back thrusts. Therefore, the thin-skinned belt is like the Valley and Ridge Province of the North American Applachian Mountains. The thick-skinned belt structurally overlies the thin-skinned belt and is characterized by a number of klippen including the Xuefeng and Wuling nappes. It is thus comparable to the Blue Ridge Province of Appalachia.The structural pattern of this thrust system in South China can be explained by a model involving detachment faulting along various stratigraphic layers at different stages of its evolution. The system was developed through a northwest stepwise progression of deformation with the earliest delamination along Lower Sinian strata (Fz). Analyses of balanced geological cross-sections yield about 18.1–21% (total 88 km) shortening for the thin-skinned unit and at least this amount of shortening for the thick-skinned unit. The compressional deformation from southeast to northwest during Late Jurassic to Cretaceous time occurred after the westward progressive collision of the Yangtze Block with the North China Block and suggests that the orogenic event was intracontinental in nature.     

Theoretical Study on Stochastic Modeling of Combined Gravity-Magnetic-Electric-Seismic Inversion and Its Application

As gravity field,magnetic field,electric field and seismic wave field are all physical fields,their object function,reverse function and compound function are certainly infinite contiuously differentiable func-tions which can be expanded into Taylor (Fourier) series within domain of definition and be further reduced in-to solving stochastic distribution function of series and statistic inference of optimal approximation,This is the basis of combined gravity-magnetic-electric-seismic inversion built on the basis of separation of field and source gravity-magnetic difference-value(D-value)trend surface,taking distribution-independent fault sys-tem as its unit,depths of seismic and electric interfaces of interests as its corresponding bivariate compound re-verse function of gravity-magnetic anomalies and using high order polynomial(high order trigonometric func-tion)approximating to its series distribution,The difference from current dominant inversion techniques is that,first,it does not respectively create gravity-seismic,magnetic-seismic deterministic inversion model from theoretical model,but combines gravity-magnetic-electric-seismic stochastic inversion model from stochastic model;second,after the concept of equivalent geological body being introduced,using feature of independent variable of gravity-magnetic field functions,taking density and susceptibility related to gravity-magnetic func-tion as default parameters of model,the deterministic model is established owing to better solution to the con-tradictioc of difficulty in identifying strata and less test analytical data for density and susceptibility in newly explored area;third,under assumption of independent parent distribution,a real modeling by strata,the prob-lem of difficult plane closure arising in profile modeling is avoided,This technology has richer and more detailed fault and strata information than sparse pattern seismic data in newly explored area,successfully inverses and plots structural map of Indosinian discontinuty in Hefei basin with combined gravity-magnetic-electric-seismic inversion,With development of high precision gravity-magnetic and overall geophysical technology,it is certain for introducing new methods of stochastic modeling and computational intelligence and promoting the develop-ment of combined gravity-magnetic-electric-seismic inversion to open a new substantial and promoting the develop-ment of combined gravity-magnetic-electric-seismic inversion to open a new substantial path.     

广西异常暴雨天气事件之异常指数初探

对广西异常暴雨天气事件之“异常指数”的设置进行了初步探讨，提出暴雨天气事件中过程日最大暴雨范围，过程持续时间，过程强降雨，特强降雨发生范围等四项异常分指数，然后统计同一过程分指数之和，得总指数，在此基础上分别选出了4－10月各月广西异常暴雨天气事件。     

2002年北半球大气环流特征及其对中国气候异常的影响

2002年春末夏初一次新的厄尔尼诺事件形成；1～12月北半球大气环流的主要特征表现为：中纬度地区纬向环流盛行，西太平洋副热带高压持续偏强偏西，我国大部地区气温偏高，降水呈南多北少分布；欧亚地区夏季500hPa位势高度距平场上，中高纬从西到东呈现为“ - ”分布形式，贝加尔湖地区为正距平中心，7月在贝加尔湖地区出现典型阻高；东亚夏季风偏强，南亚夏季风及热带对流指数偏弱；夏季赤道辐合带偏弱等。在上述大气环流的影响下，我国的天气气候发生了异常。     

用非线性多因子动态组合方法作降水概率预报

将逐时段定点降水预报这个以往一般作为非连续量处理的预报问题转化为对一个连续的降水可能函数的预报问题。降水可能函数为一由实况值确定的函数。因为现在模式变化较快，且许多因子和降水可能函数为非线性关系，文章采用一种新的非线性多因子动态组合方法，通过对降水可能函数的预报，作客观分站降水概率预报。     

太平洋混合层厚度(dml)年际异常的初步分析

用太平洋区域30a逐月混合层厚度(dml)及浅层海温(Ts)距平资料,分析了20°S以北太平洋区域dml年际变率的地理分布和季节变化,得到两个纬向dml高变率带,它们分别位于北太平洋(45°N附近)和赤道中、西太平洋.重点分析了赤道太平洋dml高变率带,并对其上混合层气候位置、dml年际异常与El Nino事件关系及伴随强El Nino事件的dml正异常东传等作了初步分析.     

地震预测的构造物理模型研究

在系统收集和分析中国大陆的活动构造、地震活动和地球物理场资料的基础上，初步圈定出769个构造物理潜在震源，并对其中477个位于主要强震区、带内的潜在震源进行了空间几何定量描述和基本震源参数的系统分析，在GIS平台上开发了分析系统，逐一计算了每一潜在震源的十年发震概率，圈定了1999～2008年的强震危险区，根据发震概率的大小对危险区的危险性进行分类。近几年发生的强震与预测结果的对比检验结果表明，用构造物理模型确定的十年地震危险区具有较好的预测效果。