Using a modern analogue to interpret depositional position in ancient fluvial-tidal channels:Example from the McMurray Formation,Canada

The fluvial-tidal transition(FTT)is a complex depositional zone,where fluvial flow is modified by tides as rivers approach a receiving marine basin.Variations in the relative importance of tidal versus fluvial processes lead to a distinctive distribution of sediments that accumulate on channel bars.The FTT generally consists of three broad zones:(1)a freshwater-tidal zone;(2)a tidally influenced freshwater to brackish-water transition:and(3)a zone of relatively sustained brackish-water conditions with stronger tides.A very common type of deposit through the fluvial-tidal transition,especially on the margins of migrating channels,is inclined heterolithic stratification(IHS).At present,a detailed account of changes in the character of IHS across the FIT of a paleo-channel system has not been reported,although a number of modern examples have been documented.To fill this gap,we quantitatively assess the sedimentology and ichnology of IHS from seven cored intervals in three geographic areas situated within the youngest paleovalley("A"Valley)in the Lower Cretaceous McMurray Formation of Alberta.Canada.We compare the data to trends defined along the FTT in the present-day Fraser River in British Columbia.Canada to interpret paleo-depositional position in the ancient fluvial-tidal channels.Analysis determined that the mean mudstone thickness is 8.2 cm in the southern study area(SA).Mean thickness increases to 11 cm in the central study area(CA),and decreases again to 4.4 cm in the northern study area(NA).The proportion of mudstone is 31%in SA,44%in CA,and 27%in NA.Thicknessweighted mean bioturbation intensity in sands varied from 0.29 in SA and CA.to 0.28 in NA.On the other hand,thickness-weighted mean bioturbation intensity(Bl)in mudstone increases from 1.46 in SA.to 1.77 in CA.and is 1.94 in NA.The ichnological diversity also increased from south to north.Sedimentological results show sinilar trends to those of the Fraser River,enabling the identification of a freshwater to brackish-water transition zone with tidal influence.The interpreted position of the transition is underpinned by the bioturbation intensity and trace-fossil diversity trends,indicating periodic brackish-water conditions throughout SA in the McMurray Formation during low river flow conditions.Together,these data suggest that a broad FTT existed in the"A"Valley,with fluvial-dominated channels to the south that experienced seasonal brackish-water inundation during base flow,and channels experiencing increasing brackish-water influence lying further north towards a turbidity maximun zone.The FIT zone appears to have extended for several hundred kilometers fron south to north.Based on the sedimentological and ichnological data,as well as estimations of lateral accretion rates,we refute the colmonly applied Mississippi River depositional analogue for McMurray Formation channels.Rather,we show that while not a perfect fit,the tidally influenced Fraser River shows much greater agreement with the depositional character recorded in McMurray Formation IHS.Future work on the McMurray system should focus on characterizing tide-dominatecl deltaic and estuarine systems,such as the Ganges-Brahmaputra,and on forward-modeling the evolution of tide-dominated and tideinfluenced river systems.

新千年的能源

本文讨论了有关能源的思想观念的演变。20年前当几位作者开始携手合作研究能源时,人们一般是以发展的眼光、从供应方的角度来考虑能源问题,将注意力集中到消费趋势以及如何扩大供给以满足不断增长的需求上。这种方法在能源利用的环境影响、安全性和公平合理性方面的研究局限深深地困扰着他们。例如,大约有20亿人口经济条件有限,买不起现代能源,这严重限制了他们生活水平的提高。此外,能源还是造成环境问题的重要因素,其中包括室内空气污染、城市空气污染、酸化和全球气候变暖等。笔者认为,应当树立新的能源供给观念,使能源的供给方式有助于解决这些严重问题。笔者主张,能源必须成为推进可持续发展——经济上可行、以需要为导向、自力更生的以及无损于环境的发展——的工具,而且,应当将研究重点放在能源的终端用途上和能源供应的服务上。有助于实现可持续发展目标的能源技术方案也在本文进行了讨论。文中强调了制订和运用新型能源技术解决方案的必要性。笔者以巴西乙醇的利用为例,阐述了使发展中国家避免重复工业化国家所犯错误而在技术上实现跨越式发展的可能性。文中还重点介绍了在发展中国家引进先进技术过程中外国直接投资可能起到的作用,阐述了农村能源的近期和远期战略。最后,介绍了促进能源系统的发展,使之与可持续发展的步调一致并且支持可持续发展的相关政策。

Scarcity events analysis in adequacy studies using CN2 rule mining

Dealing with scarcity events is nowadays gaining relevance in electricity market studies, as traditionally predictable generation and consumption patterns are fading. Policymakers and system planners use therefore adequacy studies to a) understand if the current market design will attract sufficient generation capacity to meet electricity demand in the future and b) to comprehend what drives system inadequacy or resource scarcity when future scenarios lack adequate capacity. This work addressed the latter and showcases a first in-its-kind rulebased methodology that filters scarcity events from a large set of electricity market simulations. In this proof-of-concept, a rule-mining algorithm is applied to outputs from ENTSO-E’s Pan-European electricity market model, which is run for 700 model scenarios, each covering 8760 time steps. The developed methodology shows how to unveil potential reasons behind scarcity events in an automated, interpretable, and scalable manner.

Nuclear Assessment

The United States needs a comprehensive policy and market-based solutions to address the challenges and demands of energy provision in President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address in January 2009, he called for the building of "a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants." This was followed by his high- profile speech in Prague in April 2009,