2014 Update of the United States National Seismic Hazard Maps
M.D. Petersen, C.S. Mueller, K. M. Haller, M. Moschetti, S. C. Harmsen, E. H. Field, K.S. Rukstales, Y. Zeng, D. M. Perkins, P. Powers, S. Rezaeian, N. Luco, A. Olsen, R. Williams
2012, Conference Paper, Proceedings of the 15th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering (15WCEE), Lisbon, Portugal, September 24-28
The U.S. National Seismic Hazard Maps are revised every six years, corresponding with the update cycle of the International Building Code. These maps cover the conterminous U.S. and will be updated in 2014 using the best-available science that is obtained from colleagues at regional and topical workshops, which are convened...
Physical controls and predictability of stream hyporheic flow evaluated with a multiscale model
Susa H. Stonedahl, Judson W. Harvey, Joel Detty, Antoine Aubeneau, Aaron I. Packman
2012, Water Resources Research (48)
Improved predictions of hyporheic exchange based on easily measured physical variables are needed to improve assessment of solute transport and reaction processes in watersheds. Here we compare physically based model predictions for an Indiana stream with stream tracer results interpreted using the Transient Storage Model (TSM). We parameterized the physically...
A Gibbs sampler for Bayesian analysis of site-occupancy data
Robert M. Dorazio, Daniel Taylor Rodriguez
2012, Methods in Ecology and Evolution (3) 1093-1098
1. A Bayesian analysis of site-occupancy data containing covariates of species occurrence and species detection probabilities is usually completed using Markov chain Monte Carlo methods in conjunction with software programs that can implement those methods for any statistical model, not just site-occupancy models. Although these software programs are quite flexible, considerable...
Glass wool filters for concentrating waterborne viruses and agricultural zoonotic pathogens
Hana T. Millen, Jordan C. Gonnering, Ryan K. Berg, Susan K. Spencer, William E. Jokela, John M. Pearce, Jackson S. Borchardt, Mark A. Borchardt
2012, Journal of Visualized Experiments (61)
The key first step in evaluating pathogen levels in suspected contaminated water is concentration. Concentration methods tend to be specific for a particular pathogen group, for example US Environmental Protection Agency Method 1623 for Giardia and Cryptosporidium1, which means multiple methods are required if the sampling program is targeting more...
Nuclear and mitochondrial markers reveal evidence for genetically segregated cryptic speciation in giant Pacific octopuses from Prince William Sound, Alaska
Rebecca K. Toussaint, David Scheel, G. Kevin Sage, Sandra L. Talbot
2012, Conservation Genetics (13) 1483-1497
Multiple species of large octopus are known from the north Pacific waters around Japan, however only one large species is known in the Gulf of Alaska (the giant Pacific octopus, Enteroctopus dofleini). Current taxonomy of E. dofleini is based on geographic and morphological characteristics, although with advances in genetic technology...
Alaska's rare earth deposits and resource potential
James C. Barker, Bradley S. Van Gosen
2012, Mining Engineering (64) 20-32
Alaska’s known mineral endowment includes some of the largest and highest grade deposits of various metals, including gold, copper and zinc. Recently, Alaska has also been active in the worldwide search for sources of rare earth elements (REE) to replace exports now being limitedby China. Driven by limited supply of...
An exploration hydrogeochemical study at the giant Pebble porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit, Alaska, USA, using high-resolution ICP-MS
Robert G. Eppinger, David L. Fey, Stuart A. Giles, Karen D. Kelley, Steven M. Smith
2012, Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis (12) 211-226
A hydrogeochemical study using high resolution ICP-MS was undertaken at the giant Pebble porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit and surrounding mineral occurrences. Surface water and groundwater samples from regional background and the deposit area were collected at 168 sites. Rigorous quality control reveals impressive results at low nanogram per litre (ng/l) levels....
Kinetics of uncatalyzed thermochemical sulfate reduction by sulfur-free paraffin
Tongwei Zhang, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Qisheng Ma, Alon Amrani, Yongchun Tang
2012, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (96) 1-17
To determine kinetic parameters of sulfate reduction by hydrocarbons (HC) without the initial presence of low valence sulfur, we carried out a series of isothermal gold-tube hydrous-pyrolysis experiments at 320, 340, and 360 °C under a constant confined pressure of 24.1 MPa. The reactants used consisted of saturated HC (sulfur-free)...
Evaluation of otoliths Salt Creek pupfish (Cyprinodon salinus salinus) for use in analyses of age and growth
Maria C. Dzul, D. Bailey Gaines, Jesse R. Fischer, Michael C. Quist, Stephen J. Dinsmore
2012, Southwestern Naturalist (57) 412-416
We collected Salt Creek pupfish (Cyprinodon salinus salinus) from Salt Creek, Death Valley, California, in November 2009 and May 2010. The purpose of our study was to determine whether otoliths displayed interpretable marks that might be used for estimating age and growth. Otoliths exhibited alternating bands of opaque and translucent...
A new basaltic glass microanalytical reference material for multiple techniques
Steve Wilson, Alan Koenig, Heather Lowers
2012, Microscopy Today (20) 12-16
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has been producing reference materials since the 1950s. Over 50 materials have been developed to cover bulk rock, sediment, and soils for the geological community. These materials are used globally in geochemistry, environmental, and analytical laboratories that perform bulk chemistry and/or microanalysis for instrument calibration...
Perlite
W. Bolen
2012, Mining Engineering (64) 80-81
Domestic production, consumption, exports and prices of perlite in the United States were all estimated to have decreased in 2011 compared with 2010, but not significantly. The weak economic conditions that prevailed in the United States for most of the 2011 probably accounted for these decreases. The only statistic that...
Fingerprinting of glacial silt in lake sediments yields continuous records of alpine glaciation (35–15 ka), western USA
Joseph G. Rosenbaum, Richard L. Reynolds, Steven M. Colman
2012, Quaternary Research (78) 333-340
Fingerprinting glacial silt in last glacial-age sediments from Upper Klamath Lake (UKL) and Bear Lake (BL) provides continuous radiocarbon-dated records of glaciation for the southeastern Cascade Range and northwestern Uinta Mountains, respectively. Comparing of these records to cosmogenic exposure ages from moraines suggests that variations in glacial flour largely reflect...
Minimum distribution of subsea ice-bearing permafrost on the US Beaufort Sea continental shelf
Laura L. Brothers, Patrick E. Hart, Carolyn D. Ruppel
2012, Geophysical Research Letters (39)
Starting in Late Pleistocene time (~19 ka), sea level rise inundated coastal zones worldwide. On some parts of the present-day circum-Arctic continental shelf, this led to flooding and thawing of formerly subaerial permafrost and probable dissociation of associated gas hydrates. Relict permafrost has never been systematically mapped along the 700-km-long...
Dinocyst taphonomy, impact craters, cyst ghosts, and the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM)
Lucy E. Edwards
2012, Palynology (36) 80-95
Dinocysts recovered from sediments related to the Chesapeake Bay impact structure in Virginia and the earliest Eocene suboxic environment in Maryland show strange and intriguing details of preservation. Features such as curled processes, opaque debris, breakage, microborings and cyst ghosts, among others, invite speculation about catastrophic depositional processes, rapid burial...
Hotspot: the Snake River Geothermal Drilling Project--initial report
J.W. Shervais, D. Nielson, T. Lachmar, E. H. Christiansen, L. Morgan, Wayne C. Shanks, C. Delahunty, D.R. Schmitt, L.M. Liberty, D.D. Blackwell, J. M. Glen, J.A. Kessler, K.E. Potter, M.M. Jean, C.J. Sant, T. Freeman
2012, Geothermal Resources Council Transactions (36) 767-772
The Snake River volcanic province (SRP) overlies a thermal anomaly that extends deep into the mantle; it represents one of the highest heat flow provinces in North America. The primary goal of this project is to evaluate geothermal potential in three distinct settings: (1) Kimama site: inferred high sub-aquifer geothermal...
A tale of two land uses in the American West: rural residential growth and energy development
Timothy J. Assal, Jessica M. Montag
2012, Journal of Maps (8) 327-333
This paper describes a spatiotemporal land use map for a rural county in the western United States. Sublette County, Wyoming has undergone recent land use change in the form of heightened rural residential development on private land and increased energy development on both public and private land. In this study...
Developing spatially explicit footprints of plausible land-use scenarios in the Santa Cruz Watershed, Arizona and Sonora
Laura M. Norman, Mark Feller, Miguel L. Villarreal
2012, Landscape and Urban Planning (107) 225-235
The SLEUTH urban growth model is applied to a binational dryland watershed to envision and evaluate plausible future scenarios of land use change into the year 2050. Our objective was to create a suite of geospatial footprints portraying potential land use change that can be used to aid binational decision-makers...
Estimating discharge measurement uncertainty using the interpolated variance estimator
T. Cohn, J. Kiang, R. Mason Jr.
2012, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering (139) 502-510
Methods for quantifying the uncertainty in discharge measurements typically identify various sources of uncertainty and then estimate the uncertainty from each of these sources by applying the results of empirical or laboratory studies. If actual measurement conditions are not consistent with those encountered in the empirical or laboratory studies, these...
Downscaling future climate projections to the watershed scale: A north San Francisco Bay estuary case study
Elisabeth Micheli, Lorraine Flint, Alan Flint, Stuart Weiss, Morgan Kennedy
2012, San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science (10)
We modeled the hydrology of basins draining into the northern portion of the San Francisco Bay Estuary (North San Pablo Bay) using a regional water balance model (Basin Characterization Model; BCM) to estimate potential effects of climate change at the watershed scale. The BCM calculates water balance components, including runoff,...
The resilience and functional role of moss in boreal and arctic ecosystems
M. Turetsky, B. Bond-Lamberty, E.S. Euskirchen, J. J. Talbot, S. Frolking, A. D. McGuire, E.S. Tuittila
2012, New Phytologist (196) 49-67
Mosses in northern ecosystems are ubiquitous components of plant communities, and strongly influence nutrient, carbon and water cycling. We use literature review, synthesis and model simulations to explore the role of mosses in ecological stability and resilience. Moss community responses to disturbance showed all possible responses (increases, decreases, no change)...
Fluid‐driven seismicity response of the Rinconada fault near Paso Robles, California, to the 2003 M 6.5 San Simeon earthquake
Jeanne L. Hardebeck
2012, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (102) 377-390
The 2003 M 6.5 San Simeon, California, earthquake caused significant damage in the city of Paso Robles and a persistent cluster of aftershocks close to Paso Robles near the Rinconada fault. Given the importance of secondary aftershock triggering in sequences of large events, a concern is whether this cluster of...
Constraints on the timing of Co-Cu ± Au mineralization in the Blackbird district, Idaho, using SHRIMP U-Pb ages of monazite and xenotime plus zircon ages of related Mesoproterozoic orthogneisses and metasedimentary rocks
John N. Aleinikoff, John F. Slack, Karen Lund, Karl V. Evans, C. Mark Fanning, Frank K. Mazdab, Joseph L. Wooden, Renee M. Pillers
2012, Economic Geology (107) 1143-1175
The Blackbird district, east-central Idaho, contains the largest known Co reserves in the United States. The origin of strata-hosted Co-Cu ± Au mineralization at Blackbird has been a matter of controversy for decades. In order to differentiate among possible genetic models for the deposits, including various combinations of volcanic, sedimentary,...
A prototype splitter apparatus for dividing large catches of small fish
Martin A. Stapanian, William H. Edwards
2012, North American Journal of Fisheries Management (32) 1033-1038
Due to financial and time constraints, it is often necessary in fisheries studies to divide large samples of fish and estimate total catch from the subsample. The subsampling procedure may involve potential human biases or may be difficult to perform in rough conditions. We present a prototype gravity-fed splitter apparatus...
Enterococci in the environment
Muruleedhara N. Byappanahalli, Meredith B. Nevers, Asja Korajkic, Zachery R. Staley, Valerie J. Harwood
2012, Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews (76) 685-706
Enterococci are common, commensal members of gut communities in mammals and birds, yet they are also opportunistic pathogens that cause millions of human and animal infections annually. Because they are shed in human and animal feces, are readily culturable, and predict human health risks from exposure to polluted recreational waters,...
High-frequency remote monitoring of large lakes with MODIS 500 m imagery
Ian M. McCullough, Cynthia S. Loftin, Steven A. Sader
2012, Remote Sensing of Environment (124) 234-241
Satellite-based remote monitoring programs of regional lake water quality largely have relied on Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) owing to its long image archive, moderate spatial resolution (30 m), and wide sensitivity in the visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, despite some notable limitations such as temporal resolution (i.e., 16 days), data pre-processing...
