D’Arcy Thompson’s Legacy in Contemporary Studies of Patterns and Morphology

Abstract

D’Arcy Thompson’s views on the forms of biomaterials are assessed in the light of current thinking on biomorphology in selected areas of biology. It is clear that his guiding concepts — that biological materials are structured in response to physical forces, and that the biological and abiotic realms share many common features — remain valid. Advances in the physical and biological sciences are discussed, from quantum mechanics and molecular biology to liquid crystalline materials and macroscopic forms. These reveal Thompson’s clear-sighted view of the role of physical and mathematical sciences in biology, as well as his blind-spots.     

Relationship of brines in the Kinnarot Basin,Jordan‐Dead Sea Rift Valley

Element ratios and water stable isotopes reveal the presence of only two independent deep brines in the Kinnarot Basin, Israel: the evaporite dissolution brine of Zemah‐1 and the inferred Ha’on mother brine (HMB) with low and high Br/Cl ratios, respectively. HMB is considered to be a representative of the Late Pliocene evaporated Sedom Sea. The freshwater‐diluted evaporation brine emerges as Ha’on brine on the eastern shore of Lake Tiberias and is also identified in the pore water of lake sediments. HMB is converted into Tiberias mother brine (TMB) by dolomitization of limestones and alteration of abundant volcanic rocks occurring along the western side of the lake. The Ha’on and Tiberias brines, both characterized by high δD and δ¹⁸O values, are similar in Na/Cl and Br/Cl ratios but are dissimilar in Br/K ratios because these brines were subjected to different degrees of interactions with rocks and sediments. Excepting the brine from KIN 8, all brines from the Tabigha area including the nearby off‐shore Barbutim brine are related to the TMB. The brine KIN 8 and all brines from the Fuliya and Hammat Gader areas are related to the HMB. The brine encountered in wildcat borehole Zemah‐1 is generated by halite‐anhydrite/gypsum dissolution and is independent from the HMB system.     

Walter Moxon and His Thoughts About Language and the Brain

Walter Moxon wrote a well-timed paper in 1866 on aphemia with accompanying right sided hemiplegia. Like many other investigators of this apparent lopsidedness of the articulatory system for human speech, Moxon had to reconcile left hemisphere specialization for this function with the overriding law of symmetry, which for a large sector of the scientific community was a sine qua non of the anatomy and function of high level animal cognition. His reasoning was essentially that since the right dominant hand (and hence the left hemisphere) in some sense led overall bilateral limb movement patterns, that the right side of the tongue would lead whole tongue movement for articulation, the left side following in some mechanical sense. Thus, Moxon could link left hemisphere dominance for handedness as well as for speech. His theory was that “attention” was focused on the left hemisphere during limb movement development, under his assumption that the articulators were limbs as well as the arms and hands. The present paper will examine the professional life of Moxon and his 1866 paper, as well as the scant commentary that it has elicited in the literature on the history of left hemisphere dominance for the human articulatory function.     

The impact of playground design on play choices and behaviors of pre-school children

The purpose of this study was to examine where and how children choose to play in four Australian pre-school centers with very different outdoor playgrounds. Using a momentary time sampling direct observation instrument, a total of 960 scans were taken of pre-determined target areas (paths, paved expanses, grass, softfall, sand feature, manufactured functional, manufactured constructive and natural) within four playgrounds over a 30-day period. During each scan, we recorded the number of boys and girls observed in each target area as well as the dominant type of play (functional, constructive, symbolic, self-focused, talking). A total of 2361 observations of children occurred across the four centers. The results revealed the children were using the four playgrounds differently. At the diverse and natural Center A, the most popular space was the natural area and the least popular space was the sandpit. At the small, compact and diverse Center B, children were fairly evenly dispersed, with the most popular areas being the softfall and paved expanse. At the hard and barren Center C, almost half the children were found on the pavement, but the sandpits and natural areas were also popular. Finally, at the large, sparse and old Center D, children were fairly evenly dispersed, but most were observed playing on the softfall. Across all centers, irrespective of target area, the dominant play activity was functional play followed by self-focused play. This article discusses these findings and asks important questions about the design of pre-school playgrounds. In doing so, this study has begun to explain the relationship between the design of outdoor play spaces, children's choices of play locations and their play behaviors.     

安徽历史气候变迁的初步研究

本文通过对安徽省近300年资料的统计和分析,发现历史上因气候的不断变化和异常,给安徽地区造成了众多的水旱灾害,其中水灾又多于旱灾,并呈现出增多期与减少期交替向前发展的规律,而在时间上则显示出夏季最为集中、秋季次之的高度季节性特点.经与太阳活动的历史资料相比较,又发现安徽水旱灾害与太阳活动有密切关系,在太阳活动世纪周期增强期前提下,水旱灾害多发生在太阳活动11年周期的极值附近.     

从北京,上海,广州等大城市形态转变的模式和过程中看中国的城市转变

新的城市和经济的发展正在改变着中国城市基本的自然形态和结构。在城市发展的过程当中,能折射出国家动态的经济,社会和政策条件的新的模式正逐渐取代了由浓厚的意识形态所形成的带有鉴别性的模式。论文提供了北京,上海和广州等大城市形态转变的模式和过程的分析。重点谈到了土地使用的专业化,交通循环和建筑的高度,规划的过程,城市的更新及房地产市场的私有化等问题。20世纪见证了,中国大城市外形和构造的戏剧性改变。中国城市国际化的趋势日趋明朗化。中国文化的独特性以及中国社会主义制度的独特性,表明了中国城市的将来仍然与众不同。     

中国女性农民工务工活跃度研究——基于全国29省份调查数据与陕西省实证研究

基于全国范围内(除京沪港澳台地区)女性农民工外出务工调查数据,提出女性农民工务工活跃度新概念,并将该概念分解为四个活跃度因子:务工距离、务工时间、务工地点数以及务工频数,用层次分析法得出各因子的权重并计算各省市区的活跃度。引入对应各省市区农民人均纯收入进行回归分析,与多项式模型拟合较好,活跃度随农民人均纯收入的减小而有增大的趋势。分别对四个活跃度因子的地理空间分布进行研究,运用聚类分析法进一步探究务工活跃度结合农民人均纯收入在地理空间上的分布特征,并在全国范围内划分出7个区域类型。最后以陕西省为例,用Logistic回归模型得出女性农民工的个人、家庭及其他因素对务工活跃度有较大影响。     

南京农事节庆活动与旅游业发展的时空耦合研究

运用耦合指数和ESDA方法,从时空维度动态分析2002-2013年南京农事节庆活动与旅游业发展的耦合状况,得到以下结论:①在年际尺度上两者存在明显正向相关关系,农事节庆活动呈现"协调发展、效益提升、快速发展、优化调整"阶段性波动特征;在季节变化上则呈现整体相似特征,3-4月和9-11月出现较明显的峰值期,但农事节庆活动表现出更强的季节性。②2002-2013年农事节庆活动空间耦合差异较明显,耦合指数稳定变化的有主城区、高淳区和六合区,偏离1的有江宁区,波动变化的有溧水区和浦口区;农事节庆活动空间耦合整体存在南北方向上以主城区为中心自北向南,东西方向上由偏西部向偏东部演化的特征。最后,提出南京今后农事节庆活动与旅游业发展的建议。     

广州市中产阶层日常活动的时空间特征

本文在对广州36个中产阶层聚居区881个中产阶层工作日与休息日活动日志问卷调查的基础上,运用时间地理学相关方法,探讨中产阶层日常活动的时间分配、空间分布和移动性特征。研究发现中产阶层工作日活动节奏清晰,休息日活动破碎化,工作日工作和休闲时间居多,休息日休闲和社交时间为主,不同属性的中产阶层工作日与休息日时间分配存在差异;此外,中产阶层"近家型"非工作空间特征明显,工作日与休息日活动空间分布集聚度最高的是核心商业区;以私家车和步行为主要的日常出行方式,"少次、多目的"的出行结构突出,日常活动空间移动能力较强。上述中产阶层的时空间特征与中低收入者存在明显不同。研究有助于揭示中产阶层的日常生活规律,为提高城市社会经济活力和完善城市精细化管理提供参考。     

基于生活空间与活动空间视角的郊区空间研究框架

郊区空间已成为城市空间的重要组成部分,其研究意义逐渐凸显,需要学者立足郊区,关注郊区空间及其与城市空间的关系。本文从行为主义地理学和时间地理学的理论和方法论出发,对行为空间、生活空间、活动空间的概念进行辨析,提出了基于空间范式下的生活空间研究和基于人范式下的活动空间研究两方面研究内容。立足于郊区空间,面向居民日常生活,构建基于时空间行为研究方法论的郊区空间研究框架,基于此框架对郊区生活空间、郊区活动空间以及郊区空间的动态性进行解读和分析,试图为空间-行为互动理论的构建提供研究基础,为基于行为视角的郊区研究提供研究框架,为更好的理解郊区空间、解决郊区中存在的问题提供有效途径。