南海北部陆坡天然气水合物成藏特征研究进展分析

南海北部陆坡区域构造地质控制着气源、流体疏导体系、富集空间及储层物性特征,因此,东沙海域、神狐海域、西沙海槽和琼东南盆地的水合物成藏条件及控制因素具有明显差异性。东沙海域深部气体可沿断层、裂缝、不整合面、砂岩疏导层和气烟囱等通道向上运移,并形成天然气水合物,具有渗漏型水合物产出特征;神狐海域水合物成藏与规模巨大的泥底辟活动相关,并与布莱克海台天然气水合物产出特征具有相似性;琼东南盆地中央坳陷带内为天然气水合物发育的重点区,底辟、泥火山或麻坑构造与天然气水合物发育密切相关。     

Fermented and malted millet products in Africa: Expedition from traditional/ethnic foods to industrial value-added products

With the prevalent food insecurity in Africa, there is a growing need to utilize the available crops to develop nutritious, affordable and palatable food for the populace. Millet is critical in this role, relative to its abundance in the continent and good nutritional composition. For ages, fermentation and malting have been traditionally used to transform millet into variety of produce. A paradigm shift has however occurred over the years, giving birth to new commercially available products. This review thus appraises and gives an overview of traditional and modern fermented and malted products. Although, millet has been diversified to several products, its major food uses are still restrained to traditional consumers and largely remains underutilized. Considering the potential embedded in this grain, it is important to explore this crop through the application of appropriate modern fermentation and malting technologies. This will ensure the availability of ready to eat (RTE) and ready to use (RTU) food products and to a large extent address the incessant food security challenges plaguing Africa.     

Experiences with Jatropha cultivation in sub-Saharan Africa: Implications for biofuels policies

Jatropha curcas L. has emerged in recent times as a leading energy crop in sub-Saharan Africa with over 32 countries in the region involved in its cultivation. By 2008, five countries in the region (Senegal, Nigeria, Mali, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe) had policies promoting Jatropha cultivation. These policies were not informed by empirical evidence arising from the performance of Jatropha in the region. This paper analyses performance data of Jatropha in the region with a view to synthesizing information that is useful for evidence-based policy formulation. Production data in terms of agronomic issues and seed yields are analyzed. The results show that most of the attributes generically associated with Jatropha have not been achieved in the region and there has been inadequate research to support Jatropha cultivation. Policies supporting cultivation of Jatropha need to be informed by these observations in order to promote viable cultivation of the crop.     

A tale of two Great Lakes conferences: Urging global collaboration on our largest freshwater resources

Scientific meetings and conferences are a part of the scientific process, and can facilitate collaboration, idea-sharing, and harmonization of research and management. The success of a conference can be measured using many criteria, including consistency and reoccurrence of the meetings, credibility by participation of reputable professionals, and attendance by a diverse community. In the interest of increasing the success of large-lake, freshwater science, policy, and management, this comment focuses on two recent conferences attended by the authors: the 60th annual meeting of the International Association for Great Lakes Research, in Detroit, U.S.A., and the African Great Lakes Conference, in Entebbe, Uganda. By our measures of success, we suggest that to make a larger impact on research, policy, and management of global, large, freshwater lakes that each conference can improve, either through greater diversity of experts from the global freshwater research community, or by consistently reoccurring on a regular basis.     

Urbanisation and energy consumption in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest access to modern energy and highest urbanisation and population growth rates in the world. The increasing population and its move towards urban areas are expected to exert pressure on existing energy infrastructures and government budgets, introducing uncertainty in the path that future resource consumption might take. Research on the effects of demographic changes on energy use in Sub-Saharan Africa is scarce, with a few studies that only look at this issue tangentially. This research investigates the effect of urbanisation on total energy consumption and electricity consumption in Sub-Saharan Africa. The study estimates this effect using panel data for 49 Sub-Saharan African countries for the period 1980–2014. The size and significance of the urbanisation variable, measured as the total number of people living in urban areas, is estimated for total energy consumption, total electricity consumption and electricity consumption per capita. To isolate the effect of the urbanisation variable, the analysis controls for several demographic and socio-economic variables. Recognising the political aspects of energy infrastructures and investment, the analysis control for governance, a novel addition in these types of studies. There are two main findings: urbanisation has a positive and significant effect on total energy consumption, the size and significance of this effect varies across country income groups; urbanisation has a negative effect on total electricity consumption and electricity consumption per capita, the size and significance of which varies across country income groups.     

A case study of socio-cultural and technical factors in automobile design: Discourses between designers and potential users on a new electric vehicle in Africa

Technological artifacts emerge and develop within social contexts, inextricably interconnecting technology and society. This article addresses this interconnection empirically, analyzing the implementation of an electric vehicle designed and built by students of automotive engineering at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in Germany. The students created this vehicle to address problems of mobility for rural populations in Africa, aiming to provide local residents with better access to necessities of life such as healthcare, education, and transportation. The article examines African perceptions of and responses to the vehicle, as well as specific suggestions for future improvement. It discusses not only African reactions to the vehicle and its potential social impact on African societies, but also the concepts and ideas of the designers behind this automotive construction. It also acknowledges the ways in which the engineers based their work on assumptions about African needs rather than on substantial ethnographic research, which diminished their ability to succeed.     

The impact of weather fluctuations and climate shocks on farmers’ welfare: insights from rural Ethiopia

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the welfare effect of inter- and intra-seasonal weather shocks using a nationally representative dataset. Results show that both rainfall and maximum temperature variability appear to exert a negative impact on the considered outcomes. Higher between-years average of rainfall implies an increase in income. This impact is nonlinear when the shock is computed over shorter reference periods and is higher in the upper tail of the income distribution. Moreover, small levels of rainfall variability have a positive effect on income, but only up to a certain threshold, after which the effect becomes negative. There is a nonlinear relationship between welfare outcomes and the first two moments of the maximum temperature distribution. Agricultural extension services, access to rural credit and use of sustainable land management practices (SLM) are crucial to mitigating the negative welfare effects.     

南海珊瑚岛礁水域浅层地震反射波勘探

在南海某珊瑚岛礁的工程勘察中，采用快速高效的浅层水域地震反射波勘探方法配合钻探进行联合勘察，将钻孔的“点”与物探的“线”结合起来，相互对比、佐证，进行综合解释，查明了岛礁珊瑚松散沉积物的厚度、基岩起伏形态及大范围内的连续地质剖面。勘探结果为岛礁岩土工程性状调查、水文地质调查以及工程建设提供了可靠的地质依据和设计参数，取得了理想的效果。水域地震反射波对岛礁的不同地貌单元内礁坪、向海坡、潟湖、外海的沉积层界面反映清晰，但在外礁坪区域由于现代海滩岩的发育，声波较难穿透。     

A study on typology of areas densely populated with foreigners in Seoul,South Korea

This study identifies the types of areas in Seoul where foreigners are concentrated by reflecting the characteristics of their region of origin and residence in Seoul. Lack of cultural understanding and uniform policies for various immigrant communities are causing some social issues. Hence, this study aims to prepare the basic data from which the government can predict changes in ethnic areas and prepare policies suitable for each derived type. The 14 most populous immigrant communities in Seoul were investigated, and cluster analysis and ANOVA test were performed. This examination resulted in four immigrant community types. Each type has specific characteristics, which have influenced the creation and change of the built environment. Types 1 and 4 are collectivistic. These types gradually tend to change urban environments to emulate the environment in their region of origin. In addition, they make little effort to improve their degraded environments, and such areas become increasingly backward. In contrast, types 2 and 3 are individualistic and prefer to assimilate into a migrant region. The formation and change of the urban environment for each type can be predicted on the basis of these characteristics. From this information, the government can prepare an appropriate urban architecture policy for each type.     

Commercial farmers’ strategies to control water resources in South Africa: an empirical view of reform

This article shows how large-scale commercial farmers, individually and collectively, are responding to land and water reform processes in the Thukela River basin, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. With a high degree of innovative agency, commercial farmers have effectively executed four strategies, enabling them to adapt and use their access to resources to neutralize multiple water reform efforts that once promised to be catalysts for inclusive change in the post-apartheid era. It is likely that policy alone will not facilitate the envisioned transformation, if local practices are not sufficiently understood and anticipated by the governmental officials charged with the implementation of water reform processes.