Empirical predictions of plant material C and N mineralization patterns from near infrared spectroscopy, stepwise chemical digestion and C/N ratios

Prediction of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) mineralization patterns of plant litter is desirable for both agronomic and environmental reasons. Near infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy has recently been introduced in decomposition studies to characterize biochemical composition. The purpose of the current study was to use empirical techniques to predict C and N mineralization patterns of a wide range of plant materials incubated under controlled temperature and moisture conditions. We hypothesized that the richness of information in the NIR spectra would considerably improve predictions compared to traditional stepwise chemical digestion (SCD) or C/N ratios. Initially, we fitted a number of empirical functions to the observed C and N mineralization patterns. The best functions fitted with R²=0.990 and 0.949 to C and N, respectively. The fractions of C and N mineralized at different points in time were then either predicted directly with regression functions or indirectly by prediction of the parameters of the empirical functions fitted to incubation data. In both cases, partial least squares (PLS) regressions were used and predictions were validated by cross-validations. We found that the NIR spectra (best R²=0.925) were able to predict C mineralization patterns marginally better than the SCD fractions (best R²=0.911), but considerably better than the C/N ratios (best R²=0.851). In contrast, N mineralization was better predicted by SCD fractions (best R²=0.533) than the C/N ratio (best R²=0.497), which was better than NIR predictions (best R²=0.446). Although the predictions with the NIR spectra were only slightly better for C and worse for N mineralization compared to SCD fractions, NIR spectroscopy still holds advantages, as it is a much less laborious and cheaper analytical method. Furthermore, exploration of the applications of NIR spectroscopy in decomposition studies has only just begun, and offers new ways to gain insights into the decomposition process.     

Glazed lunar rocks: origin by impact

The glassy coating of lunar rock 12017 is enriched in 15 trace elements relative to the crystalline interior. It apparently consists chiefly of shock-melted rock, somewhat richer in rare earth elements and alkali metals than rock 12017 itself. The glass has been contaminated by about 0.5 percent carbonaceous-chondrite-like material or, alternatively, by a mixture of 0.06 to 0.3 percent fractionated meteoritic material and approximately 10 to 15 percent local soil. The glazing seems to represent molten material splashed from a nearby meteorite impact and not in situ melting by a sudden increase in solar luminosity.     

New early Jurassic tetrapod assemblages constrain Triassic-Jurassic tetrapod extinction event

The discovery of the first definitively correlated earliest Jurassic (200 million years before present) tetrapod assemblage (Fundy basin, Newark Supergroup, Nova Scotia) allows reevaluation of the duration of the Triassic-Jurassic tetrapod extinction event. Present are tritheledont and mammal-like reptiles, prosauropod, theropod, and ornithischian dinosaurs, protosuchian and sphenosuchian crocodylomorphs, sphenodontids, and hybodont, semionotid, and palaeonisciform fishes. All of the families are known from Late Triassic and Jurassic strata from elsewhere; however, pollen and spore, radiometric, and geochemical correlation indicate an early Hettangian age for these assemblages. Because all "typical Triassic" forms are absent from these assemblages, most Triassic-Jurassic tetrapod extinctions occurred before this time and without the introduction of new families. As was previously suggested by studies of marine invertebrates, this pattern is consistent with a global extinction event at the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. The Manicouagan impact structure of Quebec provides dates broadly compatible with the Triassic-Jurassic boundary and, following the impact theory of mass extinctions, may be implicated in the cause.     

Exinct superheavy element in meteorites: attempted characterization

If the unexplained fission xenon component in meteorites is due to a volatile superheavy element, this element must have had a heat of vaporization of 54 +/- 3 kilocalories per mole and a normal boiling point of 2500 degrees +/- 400 degrees K. The prime candidates are elements 111 and 115, followed by 113, 114, 112, and 116. Elements 105 to 110 are not volatile enough and can therefore be excluded.     

Apollo 12 lunar samples: trace element analysis of a core and the uniformity of the regolith

Four core and soil samples from Apollo 12 are enriched in a number of trace elements of meteoritic origin to virtually the same degree as Apollo 11 soil. An average meteoritic influx rate of about 4 x 10(-9) gram per square centimeter per year thus seems to be valid for the entire moon. A sample from a light gray, coarse-grained layer in the core resembles lunar basalts in composition, but is enriched by factors of 10(4) to 10(5) in bismuth and cadmium.     

Diverse plant and animal genetic records from Holocene and Pleistocene sediments

Genetic analyses of permafrost and temperate sediments reveal that plant and animal DNA may be preserved for long periods, even in the absence of obvious macrofossils. In Siberia, five permafrost cores ranging from 400,000 to 10,000 years old contained at least 19 different plant taxa, including the oldest authenticated ancient DNA sequences known, and megafaunal sequences including mammoth, bison, and horse. The genetic data record a number of dramatic changes in the taxonomic diversity and composition of Beringian vegetation and fauna. Temperate cave sediments in New Zealand also yielded DNA sequences of extinct biota, including two species of ratite moa, and 29 plant taxa characteristic of the prehuman environment. Therefore, many sedimentary deposits may contain unique, and widespread, genetic records of paleoenvironments.