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[Display omitted] • MAO-B was successfully immobilized onto cellulose filter paper for the first time. • A new method for ligand fishing based on CFP-DA-MAO-B was developed. • Natural MAO-B inhibitors, including one never reported before, were isolated and identified from Tibetan strawberry. • Neuroprotective effects of the inhibitors were demonstrated. • Potential of Tibetan strawberry as neuroprotective functional food was suggested. Tibetan strawberry (Fragaria nubicola) is a wild medicinal and edible plant in Tibet possessing various health benefits such as neuroprotection and anti-oxidation. However, there has been little study reported on its chemical constituents. To investigate the inhibitors of monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) in Tibetan strawberry, we immobilized the enzyme onto cellulose filter paper for the first time to develop a new screening method. Two known glycosides (compounds 1 and 2) and one new iridoid glucoside (Compound 3) were fished out by this method, which was found to effectively inhibit MAO-B with IC 50 values of 16.95 ± 0.93, 24.69 ± 0.20, and 46.77 ± 0.78 μM, respectively. Molecular docking and kinetic analysis were performed to reveal the inhibition mechanism of these compounds. Furthermore, compound 1 exhibited neuroprotective effects against 6-OHDA-induced injury on PC12 cells. The developed method exhibits the advantages of rapidness and effectiveness in screening of MAO-B inhibitors from complex herbal extracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The content of potentially toxic metal in KB and PB was low. • Terminal temperature remarkably affected the morphology of potentially toxic metals in biochar. • PB and KB were not hazardous waste with low environmental risk. • PB and KB can fix potentially toxic metal in Tibet soil admirably. This study investigated the morphology and potentially toxic metal concentrations of paper waste-based biochar (PB) and kitchen waste-based biochar (KB) obtained at 500 and 700 °C. The morphology and potentially toxic metals (Cr, Mn, Cu, Cd, Pb, Zn, Ag, and Ba) concentrations in the biochars were determined by SEM and FT-IR analysis. The Cr, Mn, Cu, and Cd concentrations in PB were low, while the Ba content was relatively high at 0.1 mg∙kg−1. An increase in the terminal temperature led to an increase in the concentrations of Fe/Mn oxide-bound potentially toxic metals of PB, and a decrease in the concentrations of organic matter-bound potentially toxic metals. The Fe/Mn oxide-bound Cr, Mn, Cu, Pb, and Zn concentrations of KB decreased with an increase in the terminal temperature. Therefore, increasing the terminal temperature could reduce the bioavailability of potentially toxic metals in PB and KB. The environmental risk of the different biochars when used for soil remediation was assessed by the potential ecological risk index (RI), and a case study of a Tibetan soil was also conducted. The potentially toxic metal concentrations leached from both PB and KB were lower than the relevant standards. The findings showed that both PB and KB can be safely used for soil remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the population of Xizang, the composition of municipal solid waste, and the distribution of municipal solid waste treatment facilities. With the development of Xizang's economy and tourism, the amount of municipal solid waste cleared and transported in Xizang has increased from 380,000 tons in 2003 to 692,200 tons in 2021, with an average annual growth rate of 4.56%. The proportions of kitchen waste, paper waste, and ash waste in the municipal solid waste components in Xizang have significantly decreased over the past 10 years. For example, the proportion of ash decreased from 22.83% in 2012 to 13.04% in 2021. Overall, recyclables such as paper, plastic rubber, textiles, glass, metal and wood and bamboo accounted for between 55.69% and 58.22% of the total municipal solid waste in Lhasa City. The disposal of municipal solid waste in Xizang was mainly through landfill. There are more than 130 landfill sites, 1 incineration plant, 5 pyrolysis pilot sites, 2 kitchen waste treatment plants, and more than 160 waste transfer stations for municipal solid waste disposal in Xizang. The designed daily disposal capacity of municipal solid waste is 3,768.4 tons per day. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing uncertainty of urban security, urban resilience construction with risk awareness and bottom-line thinking has become essential for promoting sustainable urban development. This paper measures China's urban resilience development index (CRDI) based on 284 cities in China (except Tibet) using the entropy method from four dimensions: economic, social, environmental, and infrastructure, and analyzes it by combining coupling coordination degree and barrier factor analysis. We find that: (1) At the national level, CRDI and its sub-dimensions show an increasing trend in time, a decreasing spatial layout from coastal to inland, and a "high-high-low-low" clustering feature in space. (2) At the regional level, the CRDI is from high to low in the east, middle, and west order. The sub-dimensions are from high to low in the order of east, middle, and west for economic, social, and infrastructure resilience and from high to low in the order of east, west, and middle for environmental resilience. (3) To coupling coordination degree, the CRDI index coupling coordination is increasing in time trend but is still on the verge of dissonance. (4) Social resilience is the main obstacle factor. In the indicator layer, human resources, innovation, education, security, living, and environmental protection are the areas where CRDI coordinated development is the key to improvement. Based on the above empirical evidence, this paper proposes countermeasures to optimize urban resilience construction from four perspectives: economic, social, environmental, and infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pemo Highway is a critical transportation road to Medog County in the Tibet Plateau (TP). Since its completion in 2021, the Pemo Highway has been prone to frequent avalanches due to heavy rainfall and snowfall. Despite the lack of monitoring stations along the highway and limited research conducted in this area, remote sensing imagery provides valuable data for investigating avalanche hazards along the highway. In this paper, we first investigated the spatiotemporal characteristics of snow cover along the Pemo Highway over the past two years based on the GEE platform. Second, we integrated snow, topography, meteorology, and vegetation factors to assess avalanche susceptibility in January, February, and March 2023 along the highway using the AHP method. The results reveal that the exit of the Duoshungla Tunnel is particularly susceptible to avalanches during the winter months, specifically from January to March, with a significant risk observed in March. Approximately 3.7 km in the direction of the tunnel exit to Lager is prone to avalanche hazards during this period. The recent "1.17 avalanche" event along the Pemo Highway validates the accuracy of our analysis. The findings of this paper provide timely guidance for implementing effective avalanche prevention measures on the Pemo Highway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper systematically presents the development process of studying ancient Chinese ethnic scripts over the past seven decades since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, including the establishment of related research institutions and academic disciplines. Firstly, it records the establishment of the Chinese Association for Ethnic Paleography, the emergence of ancient scripts of ethnic groups in China as an academic discipline, and the conduction of a comprehensive and in-depth study of ancient Chinese ethnic literature in history. Secondly, this paper outlines the establishment of the National Leading Group for Compilation and Publication Planning of Ancient Ethnic Books, the census of ancient books written in ethnic scripts, the specialized preservation and conservation of ancient ethnic books in Xizang and Xinjiang, the promotion of compiling and publishing ancient ethnic books, and how the promotion further drives the protection of and research on ancient books written in ethnic scripts. Thirdly, the paper lists many innovative outcomes in studying ancient ethnic books. Fourthly, the paper proposes to conduct further censuses and in-depth research in this area, establish a grading system for ancient ethnic books, and utilize the resource of ancient ethnic books written in ethnic scripts in a modern context to further promote the excellent cultural heritages of the Chinese nation and enhancing ethnic unity and national unity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Luojia 1–01 (LJ1-01) night lighting satellite's superior spatial information capture capability provides conditions for accurate assessment of regional wealth distribution inequality (RWDI) at a small scale. This paper evaluated the wealth Gini coefficient (WGC) of 2,853 counties and 31 provinces in mainland China to establish a comprehensive picture of inequalities at county-level regions in China as a whole, using data from LJ1-01 and the Suomi National Polar Orbiter Partnership Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (NPP-VIIRS). The WGC values (LJ-Gini) calculated by the LJ1-01 data are always higher than those (NPP-Gini) based on NPP-VIIRS, and the mean of the ratio between them is 1.7. Compared with NPP-Gini, LJ-Gini showed sensitivity to low RWDI areas. The average county and provincial LJ-Gini are statistically consistent, 0.77 and 0.78; County LJ-Gini's volatility is significantly higher than that of the provincial LJ-Gini, with standard deviations (SD) 0.13 and 0.096. The differences of RWDI in the regions within some provinces are more significant than in other provinces. For example, the SD of Tibet is 0.31, while all provinces' average SD is 0.13. In addition, this paper establishes a grading criterion based on the normal distribution abstracted from provincial LJ-Gini to reflect the corresponding relationship between the LJ-Gini value and the five inequality ranks. Totally, RWDI demonstrates heterogeneity at various spatial scales and regions, and it correlates negatively with economic development. The superior performance of LJ1-01 data in evaluating county-level RWDI demonstrates its potential to evaluate RWDI on a smaller scale, such as communities and streets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slope stability estimation is an engineering problem that involves several parameters. The problems of low accuracy of the model and blind data preprocessing are commonly existent in slope stability prediction research. To address these problems, 10 quantitative indicators are selected from 135 field cases to improve the accuracy of the model. These indicators were analyzed and visualized to examine their reliabilities after preprocessing. Combined with random forest (RF), particle swarm optimization (PSO), and least squares support vector machine (LSSVM) algorithms, a hybrid prediction model that the RF–PSO–LSSVM model is proposed for identifying slope stability, and its reliability is verified by other prediction models that SVM, logistic regression, decision trees, k-nearest neighbor, naive Bayes, and linear discriminant analysis. Besides, the importance score of each indicator in the prediction of slope stability is discussed by employing the RF algorithm. The research results show that the proposed hybrid model exhibits the best accuracy and superiority in slope stability prediction than other models in this paper, which its values of the best fitness, area under the curve, T-measure, and accuracy are 98.15%, 96.4%, 96.55%, and 95.82%, respectively. The most influential factors affecting slope stability are precipitation and gravity, and the slope type and pore water ratio are identified as the least significant factors in this paper. The results provide a novel approach toward slope stability prediction in the field of geotechnical engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

State‐promoted and market‐oriented horticultural production has fundamentally reshaped land use and agricultural economy in peri‐urban Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China. This paper examines two scenarios amidst this transformation. In the first, peri‐urban land has been valorised for vegetable production through the erection of greenhouses and the introduction of agronomic science. However, Tibetans refrain from participating directly, preferring to lease the land to Han migrants, and citing structural inequalities between Han and Tibetans and Tibetan work ethic as explanation. In the second, the municipal government is more proactive in introducing agro‐science and providing technical training to enrol Tibetans. However, the participation of Tibetans is selective and partial, contingent on the same non‐market rationalities that Tibetans invoke to justify non‐participation in the first scenario. This paper explicates the diverging modes of participation for Tibetans by engaging with the Callonian approach on economisation and marketisation, and interrogating how socio‐technical relations established among humans, material infrastructure and agro‐science culminate in variegated calculative and non‐calculative agencies. Focusing in particular on the structural relations and cultural conventions that frustrate the unilinear enactment of a market order, this study contributes to the geographies of marketisation in two ways. First, it works with an analytical framework centred on the ongoing dynamic of framing, overflowing and reframing to argue that the marketisation approach can be expanded to account for the encounters between market agencements and local socio‐cultural contingencies. Geographically, second, it also contributes to the agenda of interrogating diverse market variants and the richness of economic differences in real space‐times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking document analysis as its method, this paper examines the Tibetans' response to the Chinese state nationalism. Due to the fear of political secession, the Chinese government has stayed silent about the Tibetans' right to self‐determination and subjected regional ethnic autonomy to the centralised political system. The Chinese authorities continue to dismiss the Tibetans' nationalist struggles as an imported foreign design and warn the international community not to sympathise with the Dalai Lama and his supporters. Amidst an adverse national and international political environment, the Tibetans have managed to sustain their nationalist wishes and obtain substantive international attention. Taking this background into account, this paper explores how the Tibetans have succeeded to resist China's state nationalism and position themselves as a champion of inclusion, justice, and minority rights. It argues that the Tibetans recognise the Chinese government's fear of secession and utilise that fear to forward their nationalist aspirations. The Tibetans shift their demand from independence to autonomy and highlight their own desire for recognition as a distinct community within the Chinese state. This strategy has helped them to claim that they are against the violations of autonomy but not against the Chinese state's territorial norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking the data of 30 provinces (excluding Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan regions and Tibet) at the provincial level from 2010 to 2019 as the research object, this paper analyzes the current situation and characteristics of China's agricultural modernization and response to carbon emissions. Agricultural modernization is decomposed into production modernization, management modernization, and ecological modernization. This study uses the spatial Dobbin model to demonstrate the impact of agricultural modernization on carbon emissions and analyzes the impact of agricultural modernization on carbon emissions in the East. The direct effect and spatial spillover effect of the three western regions are to different degrees. The results show that agricultural carbon emissions are spatially dependent. The development of agricultural modernization and transportation of neighboring provinces and cities will have an impact on agricultural carbon emissions in this region. Therefore, under the background of rural revitalization and low-carbon agriculture, this paper further analyzes the impact of agricultural modernization on the spatial distribution of carbon emissions in the eastern, central, and western regions. Recommendations are proposed with a view to giving better play to the process of agricultural modernization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Northwest Yunnan is nested in the border areas of Tibet, Myanmar, and Southwest China. The religiously and ethnically diverse region has astonishingly seen a lack of "conflict", as is often assumed in regions of ethnic and religious differences. This paper argues that there is an organic form of pluralism through frequent inter-ethnic and inter-religious marriages, multi-lingual daily interactions, and strategic ethnicity registrations. Ethnic and religious boundaries are made permanently or temporarily permeable through the celebration of boundary-crossing rituals such as weddings and funerals and other shared experiences such as collective labor and migrant work. Despite an increasingly strong push to be integrated into the state power through various top-down developmental projects, minority peoples here still use kinship, collective rituals, and other shared experiences to foster group formation that is fluid, porous, and malleable, instilling empathy and obligation as the basis of this pluralistic borderland society. This organic form of pluralism presents an alternative to the nation as the standard modern form of community. This paper ultimately argues that this specific type of plurality requires us to think beyond the normative liberal notions of religious tolerance and diversity that are still promoted within the frame of the exclusivist nation-state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are the richest collections of palm leaf manuscripts in Potala Palace of Tibet in China; they represent very precious cultural heritage with both literature and research value. The study reported in this paper has selected the original palm leaf manuscripts and the photocopies of palm leaf manuscripts in Potala Palace as investigation objects randomly. The investigation of damage status focuses on both media (palm leaves) and handwriting. Results show 11 kinds of deterioration of palm leaf manuscripts. They can be divided into three categories based on the frequency and destructiveness of deterioration: major, minor and occasional deterioration. The purpose of grading is to take targeted measures according to the degree of damage. Restoration and preservation of palm leaf manuscripts in the Potala Palace are relatively complicated because of minimal research on the restoration of palm leaf manuscripts. There are few stable and mature restoration methods that would be used for damaged manuscripts. It is very important to find out the most suitable method for seriously damaged palm leaves before making a restoration plan in order to prioritize appropriately and facilitate long-term preservation and utilization. This study analyzes and demonstrates the feasibility of the restoration techniques for the most damaged, thus laying a foundation for comprehensive practices of the preservation and restoration of the palm leaves in the Potala Palace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landslides are one of the most dangerous natural disasters, which have affected national economic development and social stability. This paper proposes a method to indirectly monitor the deformation characteristics of landslides by extracting the abnormal vegetation information, especially for the inaccessible high-mountain landslides in southwestern China. This paper extracts the vegetation anomaly information in the Jizong Shed-Tunnel landslide which is located on the main traffic road to Tibet by the optical remote sensing Gaofen-1 (GF-1) data, and analyzes the temporal and spatial characteristics of the vegetation anomaly information through a time series. Then, we use the small baseline subsets interferometry synthetic aperture radar (SBAS-InSAR) technology to process Sentinel-1 data to obtain the time-series surface deformation information. Finally, we analyze and verify the results of the two methods. The results show that there is obvious vegetation coverage (VC) decline, with a maximum increasing percentage of 8.77% for the low and medium VC, and obvious surface deformation around the landslide, with the highest settlement rate of between 0 mm/year and 30 mm/year. Through the time-series analysis, we find that the change trends of the two methods are basically the same. This paper shows that the method of using abnormal vegetation information to monitor the Jizong Shed-Tunnel landslide has a certain degree of reliability and practicability. It can provide a new idea and effective supplement for landslide monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emissions trading system, a crucial and fundamental system reform in the environmental resources field of China, was established to promote the continuous and effective reduction of total emissions of major pollutants. In this context, based on the panel data of 285 Chinese cities (except Tibet) from 2004 to 2018, this paper uses the quasi-experimental method of Difference in Difference to assess the effect of the emissions trading system introduced on sulfur dioxide emissions of China and the transmission mechanism. The article generates several intriguing findings. (1) The emissions trading system has a significant suppressive effect on sulfur dioxide emissions. (2) Mechanistic tests show that the emissions trading system can effectively suppress sulfur dioxide emissions by reducing government intervention, stimulating green patent innovation, and improving resource use efficiency, in which green utility patents have a masking effect. (3) From the east, central and west divisions, the emissions trading system has a significant suppression effect on sulfur dioxide emission in the eastern and central regions, and the eastern region is better than the central region. (4) In terms of factor endowment, the emissions trading system has a significant suppression effect on sulfur dioxide emissions in both resource-based and non-resource-based cities, with non-resource-based cities outperforming resource-based cities; while within resource-based effect exists only in regenerative cities. (5) The emissions trading system has a significant suppression effect on sulfur dioxide emissions in old and non-old industrial base cities in industrial base zoning. The suppression effect in non-old industrial base cities is better than that in old industrial base cities. This paper provides empirical evidence for evaluating the emissions trading system at the provincial level in China and suggests policy recommendations for selecting government tools to effectively curb sulfur dioxide emissions. Although the emissions trading system has made an outstanding contribution to sulfur dioxide emissions reduction, there is still much space for further development of potential emission reductions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we present a brief introduction to the procedure, methods and results of the collection and summarization of an updated detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology database for the Qilian‐Qaidam‐Kunlun collage in northern Tibet. A total of 620 samples with 59,830 raw data were compiled from 121 published papers, including 70 samples with in‐situ detrital zircon Lu–Hf isotopes. Samples from seven different geologic subunits are categorized. For sediments with different ages of deposition, we highlight the characteristics of age spans, probability density distributions, major peaks and εHf(t) values. Further syntheses of this metadata collection, the detailed raw data of which will be periodically accessible in the Deep‐Time Digital Earth repository, would be effectively applied to a variety of scientific attempts concerning the geologic history of the Qilian‐Qaidam‐Kunlun collage, in particular, provenance analyses, crustal evolution studies and supercontinent reconstructions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The warming trend presents a significant threat to the underlying permafrost. Talik formation is widely recognized as a significant mechanism of permafrost degradation. Our research indicates that the term talik has undergone a long period of development and gradually formed, referring to unfrozen layers in permafrost. The talik has already resulted in extensive damage to the infrastructure built in permafrost areas. Here, we provide a brief overview of the current research status of talik. Accurately identifying talik presents a significant challenge. However, by integrating multiple identification tools with technology, the precision of talik detection can be enhanced, resulting in more accurate results. This paper discusses the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. While numerical simulations can enhance our understanding of the development mechanism and evolution process of taliks, most simulations focus on the evolution of taliks beneath lakes. These simulations emphasize the impact of subpermafrost groundwater flow on the development of lake taliks and the surrounding permafrost thickness. Today, there is a scarcity of relevant studies about taliks in cold zone engineering. The presence of talik exacerbates the occurrence of permafrost-related subgrade diseases, which are chronic and irreversible. Additionally, it poses a threat to the stability of the subgrades and worsens settlement issues. Therefore, we have analyzed the causes and distribution characteristics of talik beneath the subgrade and proposed a novel measure for preventing and controlling it. This measure aims to enhance the long-term service performance of subgrade in permafrost regions. The modified polyurethane material is injected into the talik through grouting technology as a replacement. This material has low thermal conductivity, strong water resistance, and certain strength. It effectively improves the hydrothermal environment conditions necessary for talik formation, preventing the formation of new taliks or impeding their development. As a result, the subgrade performance is enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alluvial fans have been proven to have great utilisation potential in QTP, but to what extent they are suitable for agricultural development is unknown. Therefore, using the alluvial fan in the Lhasa River Basin (LRB) as a case study, this paper established an evaluation system of land suitability for agriculture (LSA). Principal component analysis (PCA) and the exhaustive method (EM) were used to define the minimum dataset (MDS) and then the LSA of the alluvial fan in the LRB was evaluated using a comprehensive index of LSA. Two scientific approaches were implemented to improve the LSA using a scenario simulation. The results showed that the MDS assessed by the EA was more representative compared to the PCA. Alluvial fans with suitable grades are mainly distributed in the Lhasa River's middle and lower reaches. Developing facility agriculture and repairing roads accessing the alluvial fans are effective approaches to improve the LSA, which can increase the suitable-grade area from 58.62% to 97.82% and 63.85%, respectively. Therefore, most alluvial fans in the LRB are suitable for developing agriculture, and under the influence of human activities, there will be more alluvial fans suitable for developing agriculture. Our research provides scientific methods for the sustainable development of land in alpine regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The digital economy is crucial to promoting green technology innovation and development. However, there needs to be more research on the relationship between the digital economy, digital talent aggregation (DTA), and green technology innovation (GTI). Therefore, based on the data from 30 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions in mainland China (excluding Tibet) from 2011 to 2020, this paper uses fixed effect, threshold effect, moderating effect model, and spatial econometric model to make an empirical analysis of this research direction. The results show that (1) there is a nonlinear relationship between the digital economy and green technology innovation (GTI). This effect has regional heterogeneity effects. In the central and western regions, the digital economy is more prominent in promoting green technology innovation (GTI). (2) Digital talent aggregation (DTA) has a negative moderating effect on the influence of the digital economy on promoting green technology innovation (GTI). (3) The negative spillover effect of the digital economy on local green technology innovation (GTI) will be intensified at the spatial level due to the accumulation of digital talents. Therefore, this paper suggests that the government should actively and reasonably develop the digital economy to promote green technology innovation (GTI). In addition, the government can implement a flexible talent introduction policy, strengthen talent quality education and talent service station construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on the statistical yearbook data of 30 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in China (excluding Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and Tibet Autonomous Region) from 2000 to 2017, a total of 18 years of statistical yearbook data was used to conduct in-depth research on the reduction of CO2 emissions from the development of new energy in the region. First, it is proposed that the regional new energy development has a significant negative effect on CO2 emissions. Meanwhile, this impact has a significant time lag effect, and the development of new energy cannot be quickly and effectively applied in the short term to replace traditional fossil energy in the dynamic model. Therefore, there is a significant positive impact in the short term, but the significant negative effect of new energy development on CO2 emission can be shown in the long run. Secondly, the new energy development has a significant non-linear impact on CO2 emissions, showing an inverted U-shaped relationship, which confirms the existence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) of CO2 emissions based on new energy development. Finally, in order to alleviate the continuous impact of national economic development on CO2 emissions, the DID model is used to prove that the level of technological innovation has a significant moderating effect on the CO2 emission reduction effect of new energy development, which confirms theoretically the importance of technological innovation in accelerating new energy substitution and improving energy efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Snow Cover Service Value (SCSV) is an important component of the ecological assets of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP). Exploring the SCSVs on the QTP is the key to maintaining the functions of climate regulators and Asian water towers, and it is also an important theoretical basis for maintaining the ecological security of ecological barrier areas. Using multi-source data such as daily and monthly observation data sets and related statistical yearbooks, an evaluation framework for the SCSVs on the QTP was constructed for the first time. The results showed that the average annual SCSV of the QTP from 2001 to 2020 was 6.99 trillion yuan, and the average annual climate regulation value was 5.81 trillion yuan, which was the most important SCSV. The Inner Plateau Basin, the Brahmaputra Basin, and the Yangtze Basin had the highest SCSVs, while the Yellow Basin had the lowest unit SCSV, where it was the most vulnerable area of snow cover resources on the QTP, and the SCSV of the Yellow Basin was significantly correlated with rainfall. The correlation between the SCSV and the temperature in the Indus and Ganges Basins was significant. The freshwater supply value of the snow in the Indus Basin and Tarim Basin was found to be able to reach 30% of the whole year in June, where it would be necessary to pay attention to the risk of flooding caused by snowmelt during the melting period. Finally, this paper discussed the strategies for the protection and development of snow resources in each basin based on the spatial distribution characteristics, seasonal variation characteristics, and influencing factors of the SCSVs. The research can provide reference for the rational allocation of snow resources and ecological protection on the QTP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With escalating human activities and the substantial emissions of greenhouse gases, global warming intensifies. This phenomenon has led to increased occurrences of various extreme hydrological events, precipitating significant changes in lakes and rivers across the Qinghai Tibet Plateau. Therefore, accurate information extraction about and delineation of water bodies are crucial for lake monitoring. This paper proposes a methodology based on the Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) and Gumbel distribution to determine optimal segmentation thresholds. Focusing on Qinghai Lake, this study utilizes multispectral characteristics from the US Landsat satellite for analysis. Comparative assessments with seven alternative methods are conducted to evaluate accuracy. Employing the proposed approach, information about water bodies in Qinghai Lake is extracted over 38 years, from 1986 to 2023, revealing trends in area variation. Analysis indicates a rising trend in Qinghai Lake's area following a turning point in 2004. To investigate this phenomenon, Pearson correlation analysis of temperature and precipitation over the past 38 years is used and unveils the fact that slight precipitation impacts on area and that there is a positive correlation between temperature and area. In conclusion, this study employs remote sensing data and statistical analysis to comprehensively investigate mechanisms driving changes in Qinghai Lake's water surface area, providing insights into ecological shifts in lake systems against the backdrop of global warming, thereby offering valuable references for understanding and addressing these changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The yak (Poephagus grunniens) has evolved unique adaptations to survive the harsh environment of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, while their gut microorganisms play a crucial role in maintaining the health of the animal. Gut microbes spread through the animal population not only by horizontal transmission but also vertically, which enhances microbial stability and inheritance between generations of the population. Homogenization of gut microbes in different animal species occurs in the same habitat, promoting interspecies coexistence. Using the yak as a model animal, this paper discusses the adaptive strategies under extreme environments, and how the gut microbes of the yak circulate throughout the Tibetan Plateau system, which not only affects other plateau animals such as plateau pikas, but can also have a profound impact on the health of people. By examining the relationships between yaks and their gut microbiota, this review offers new insights into the adaptation of yaks and their ecological niche on the Qinghai–Tibetan plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The Woka-Cuona rift zone on the southeastern side of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is characterized by complex geological background conditions, comprising three independent or semi-grabens that traverse from south to north across the Himalayan and Gangdise terranes. Conducting research on the distribution patterns and genesis mechanisms of geothermal resources within the Woka-Cuona rift zone has certain guiding significance for understanding the genesis mechanisms of the geothermal system in the southern Tibetan rift and its exploitation. This paper utilized methods such as data collection, ground investigations, and geochemical analyses to analyze the distribution characteristics and evolutionary processes of geothermal waters in the Cuona rift area based on the geological background conditions of the study area. The research findings demonstrate a significant correlation between the occurrence of geothermal waters in the Cuona rift zone and geological structures, with most geothermal waters primarily distributed near intersections of graben boundary faults and east–west-trending faults. Different regions exhibit variations in the intensity of geothermal activity and geochemical characteristics, with the genesis of geothermal waters associated with deep magmatic activity, characterized by Na+ and K+ as the primary cations and Cl− as the primary anions. Geothermal waters mainly originate from atmospheric precipitation and snowmelt water from surrounding mountainous areas, with recharge elevations ranging from 4500 to 6200 m and an average elevation of 5400 m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to update our understanding of the carbon cycle in the Himalayas, the most intense collisional orogeny globally, by providing new insight into its impact on Cenozoic climate cooling through the use of isotopic variations in both organic and inorganic carbon and an isotopic mass balance model. Our results from 20 selected hot springs show that the relative contributions of dissolved carbon from the mantle, metamorphic decarbonization, aqueous dissolution, and soil organic matter are approximately 2%, 82%, 6%, and 10%, respectively. Approximately 87% ± 5% of CO2 generated in the deep crust precipitates as calcite, while approximately 5.5% ± 1% of this carbon is converted to biomass through microbial chemosynthesis at depths less than 2 km. Our random forests approach yielded a metamorphic carbon flux from the entire Himalayan orogenic belt of approximately 2.7 ∼ 4.5 × 1012 mol/yr. The minor CO2 released into the atmosphere (2.5 ∼ 4.2 × 1011 mol/yr) is comparable to the carbon consumption driven by Himalayan weathering. This paper provides new insights into deep carbon cycling, notably that approximately 93% of deeply sourced carbon is trapped in the shallow crust, rendering orogenic processes carbon neutral and possibly acting as one of the major triggers of long‐term climate cooling in the Cenozoic. Plain Language Summary: Large‐scale deep metamorphic decarbonization and CO2 release into the atmosphere during continental collision orogenesis worldwide have had significant impacts on Cenozoic global climate change. However, the carbon sources and sinks and the mechanisms underlying their impacts on climate change are not fully understood. This paper reports the chemistry of aqueous solutions, carbon isotopic compositions of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and helium and carbon isotopic compositions of free gases from hot springs in southern Tibet. The carbon isotope fractionation model between gas and aqueous solutions revealed that the carbon released from depth underwent six different stages. Based on the random forests machine learning algorithm, we estimated the metamorphic carbon flux across the Himalayan orogenic belt. Furthermore, only a small fraction (7%) of deep carbon is eventually released into the atmosphere, and this volume is the same magnitude as the amount of carbon absorbed by silicate weathering on the Tibetan Plateau. This paper emphasizes that the carbon sequestration process in the upper crust may have resulted in nearly carbon‐neutral geological bodies in the Himalayan orogenic belt, thus playing a critical role in Cenozoic climate cooling. Key Points: Approximately 87% of deeply sourced carbon precipitates as calcite, while approximately 5.5% is sequestered as biomass in the shallow crustThe carbon flux across the Himalayan orogenic belt was estimated by the random forests approachCrustal thickening has attenuated long‐term deep carbon emissions from the Himalayas [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the harmonic characteristics of electric locomotives connected to a photovoltaic (PV) power grid based on the actual parameters of a region in Tibet, this paper establishes a simulation model of an electric power grid, including PV and electric locomotive. First, theoretical analysis is conducted to study the harmonic characteristics of electric locomotives and PV power stations. On this basis, we built the MATLAB model to analyze the influence of dynamic working conditions on the locomotive and PV sides on the harmonic characteristics of the power grid. Through the first, second, and third working conditions, a simulation analysis is performed to examine the harmonic characteristics of an electric locomotive when connected to the grid, which includes a PV power source. The results show that the grid side current, including PV and electric locomotive, has a three-phase equilibrium phenomenon, and at the same time, the grid side current harmonic characteristics, including PV and electric locomotive, are mainly reflected in the 17, 19, 21, 23, and 25 frequency odd harmonics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During comprehensive regional prospecting evaluation and delineation of a prospecting target area, various types of data, including geological, geophysical, geochemical, and remote sensing, are usually integrated and visualized in a unified spatial environment, making it convenient for researchers to identify mineralization. To maximize the precision of spatial boundaries, the maps traditionally used in prospecting are predominantly in vector formats. However, with the rapid development of modern real-time 3D graphics and computer cartography technology, raster maps can now provide richer detail representation compared to traditional vector maps while still meeting the precision requirements. In this paper, we present a new GPU-based 3D visualization method for spatial data, specifically, two types of bitmap-based maps called dynamic geochemical maps (DGMs) and interactive geological maps (IGMs). A novel software system implementing this method was developed and has been applied in the exploration of the Zhunuo ore district, Tibet, showing large advantages over traditional vector maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tibetan Buddhism has an inseparable connection with the spatial characteristics, development process, and human-natural environment of the Tibetan Plateau. This paper takes monasteries as carriers of Tibetan Buddhist culture in U-Tsang region which is one of the traditional geographical units of Tibet. Using geospatial analysis methods, this study explores the spatial quantification characteristics of Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and qualitatively and quantitatively analyzes the factors that influence the spatial distribution of monasteries. The results indicate that: (1) Political activities of human society influence the pattern of political power. Under the unique context of Tibetan theocracy system, the scope of political authority has a significant influence and affects the religious spatial pattern in the U-Tsang region throughout history. The distribution of monasteries in the U-Tsang region shows significant spatial differences at three sub-regional scales. (2) The religious spatial pattern in the U-Tsang is the result of the diverse interaction of human-natural factors. The results indirectly endorse that religious space is an inevitable product of the interaction between humans and the environment. (3) The religious spatial distribution patterns in the three major Tibetan regions have distinct characteristics, closely related to the superior conditions of their respective historical and geographical environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shoshonitic rocks are widely distributed in post-collisional settings and provide key information on deep geodynamic mechanisms and magmatic evolution. In this paper, we present petrographic, zircon U-Pb age-related, trace elemental, Hf isotopic, bulk-rock elemental, and Sr-Nd isotopic data of the Dalongtan shoshonitic syenite porphyries (DSSPs) in central Yunnan, southeastern Tibet. The DSSPs formed at 33.2 ± 0.3 Ma in a post-collisional setting. They define linear trends on Harker diagrams, and they display similar trace element patterns and enriched bulk-rock Sr-Nd isotopes [(87Sr/86Sr)i = 0.70964–0.70968, εNd(t) = −12.9 to −12.7] and zircon Hf isotopes (εHf(t) = −15.7 to −13.1) to the coeval mantle-derived potassic mafic rocks. This suggests that the DSSPs were fractionated from the lithospheric mantle-derived mafic magmas. The DSSPs, along with the coeval felsic and mafic magmatic rocks (37.2–32.3 Ma), exhibit a planar distribution on the SE Tibet and predate the left-lateral shearing of the Ailaoshan–Red River shear zone (ARSZ) (32–22 Ma), suggesting that there are no genetic relationships between them. The DSSPs have geochemical characteristics similar to those of A-type granites, with high total alkalinity (10.39–11.17 wt.%), HFSE concentrations (Zr + Nb + Ce + Y = 890.2–1054.3 ppm), Ga/Al ratios (10,000 × Ga/Al = 2.95–3.46), whole-rock zircon saturation temperatures (906–947 °C), and oxygen fugacity (ΔFMQ = +3.30–+4.65), indicating that they are products of the high-temperature melting of the lithosphere as a result of asthenosphere upwelling in extensional settings. Based on our data and regional observations, it is proposed that the generation of the DSSPs may be linked to the convective thinning of the thickened lithospheric mantle following the India–Asia collision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports lithium concentrations and isotopic compositions of olivines in the oceanized subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) peridotites of the Tibetan Yunzhug ophiolite. The results show systematic Li isotope changes with distance from the rim of olivine grains. δ7Li values of olivine in dunites decrease from + 10.46 to + 1.33‰ with increasing distance to olivine rim from 26.15 to 124.71 μm. A negative correlation of δ7Li and Li content in olivine from dunite and harzburgite indicates recent diffusive ingress of Li into the peridotites. The extremely heavy Li isotopic composition requires the seawater or seawater alteration endmember in the mixing model, and reveals Li diffusion from seawater into olivine. As in dunites, olivines in a harzburgite sample show similar variations in δ7Li as a function of distance from the grain rim (e.g., 6.01 to 1.73 in sample 14YZ13). We suggest that the behavior of Li in the oceanized SCLM peridotites may be controlled by Li diffusion from seawater, as Li activity in the liquid state is higher than the solid state in transporting Li through the olivines in the peridotites. This study supports that seawater Li diffusion is one of the important factors for the heterogeneity of mantle Li isotopes in ophiolites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The study of how soil fauna interact with soil ecosystems is an important research field. At present, there has been little research on the diversity and distribution patterns of soil macroarthropods and on the relationship between soil fauna and environmental factors in Tibet. Methods: The data collection for soil macroarthropods and soil samples was conducted using the plum blossom five-point sampling method. Subsequently, the gathered data were meticulously organized and analyzed through a blend of ecological and statistical approaches. Results: In total, 2880 soil macroarthropods were captured from 19 plots in the Nianchu River Basin, and the soil macroarthropod Hill numbers was at its lowest in spring. Sea buckthorn forest habitats had the highest Hill numbers. We found that Carabidae, Lycosidae, and Formicidae were always dominant species during seasonal changes in the Nianchu River Basin. Among the four different habitat types studied, Carabidae always appeared across the four studied habitat types and was one of the most significant taxa. The niche range of soil macroarthropods was wetland habitat > farmland habitat > sea buckthorn forest habitat > grassland habitat, and their community within sea buckthorn forest habitats was stable. The niche breadth of soil macroarthropods was the largest in summer, and the community was stable. Soil temperature and soil water content were themost important factors affecting the alpha diversity of soil macroarthropods, while altitude and soil temperature were the most important factors affecting their beta diversity. Discussion: In summary, the results provide a comprehensive overview of the seasonal and habitat dynamics of soil macroarthropods in the Nianchu River Basin; it is strongly believed that the research carried out in this paper can contribute valuable information toward further research on the soil fauna diversity and ecological functions in this area and provide a strong scientific basis for the protection and sustainable development of the Nianchu River Basin ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although celestial sources emitting in the few tens of GeV up to a few TeV are being investigated by imaging atmospheric Čerenkov telescope arrays such as H.E.S.S., MAGIC, and VERITAS, at higher energies, up to PeV, more suitable instrumentation is required to detect ultra-high-energy photons, such as extensive air shower arrays, as HAWC, LHAASO, Tibet AS- γ. The Italian National Institute for Astrophysics has recently become the leader of an international project, the ASTRI Mini-Array, with the aim of installing and operating an array of nine dual-mirror Čerenkov telescopes at the Observatorio del Teide in Spain starting in 2025. The ASTRI Mini-Array is expected to span a wide range of energies (1–200 TeV), with a large field of view (about 10 degrees) and an angular and energy resolution of ∼3 arcmin and ∼10 %, respectively. The first four years of operations will be dedicated to the exploitation of Core Science, with a small and selected number of pointings with the goal of addressing some of the fundamental questions on the origin of cosmic rays, cosmology, and fundamental physics, the time-domain astrophysics and non γ -ray studies (e.g., stellar intensity interferometry and direct measurements of cosmic rays). Subsequently, four more years will be dedicated to Observatory Science, open to the scientific community through the submission of observational proposals selected on a competitive basis. In this paper, I will review the Core Science topics and provide examples of possible Observatory Science cases, taking into account the synergies with current and upcoming observational facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the reform and opening-up, China has developed into the world's number one manufacturing country. Meanwhile, China's environmental protection efforts continue to strengthen. So, will changes in the intensity of environmental regulatory policies have an impact on the technological development level and international competitiveness of China's high-tech manufacturing industries? In response to this issue, we have reviewed relevant research in the field of environmental regulation and export technology complexity, and then selected appropriate indicators to quantify the environmental regulation and export technology complexity of high-tech manufacturing industries in different regions of China. Furthermore, the entropy method was used to calculate the intensity of environmental regulations in different regions of China. In the subsequent empirical analysis, based on relevant indicator data from 30 provinces in China, excluding Tibet, from 2006 to 2021, we quantitatively analyzed the impact of China's environmental regulations on the complex export technology of high-tech manufacturing industries. The degree of influence and the robustness of the benchmark regression results was proved through endogeneity testing and robustness testing. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) from 2006 to 2021, China's environmental regulation intensity and the technological complexity of high-tech industry exports have shown an upward trend. (2) The empirical analysis results show that the increase in intensity has a significant "U-shaped" impact on the technological complexity of exports of high-tech manufacturing industries. (3) The "U-shaped" impact of environmental regulation on the technological complexity of exports of high-tech manufacturing industries has regional differences. However, the high-tech manufacturing industry does not show obvious industry differences. (4) Environmental regulations will affect the level of export technology complexity of the high-tech manufacturing industry through foreign direct investment, human capital, and innovative R D investment, which cause indirect effects. Based on those conclusions, this paper has suggested corresponding policy measures and future research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Piper motuoense X.W.Qin, F.Su & C.Y.Hao, a new species of Piperaceae from Xizang, China, is described and illustrated in this paper. The new species resembles P. yinkiangense and P. anisotis, but it can be readily distinguished from the compared species by several characteristics. Gonophyll leaves are chartaceous and the leaf secondary vein count is 7–9, with the outermost pair being very weak when there are nine veins. Additionally, the apical pair arises 2–4 cm above the base and the leaf base is asymmetrical, with bilateral petioles that cling and heal together. Pistillate floral bracts are sessile, with 3, 4 or 5 stigmas. The description of the new species includes photographs, detailed descriptions, notes on etymology, distribution and habitat, as well as comparisons with morphologically similar species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In several rural areas of China, ecological public welfare work is an effective way to improve farmers' social participation. This job does not only increase farmers' income but also greatly improves their enthusiasm for ecological environment protection. Under the goal of carbon neutrality in peak carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, it is necessary to explore the impact of ecological public welfare jobs on the usage of Clean Energy (CE) in rural areas. Based on the data of 1100 farmers from Tibet areas in China, this paper applied the Ordered Probit model to explore the impact of ecological public welfare jobs on farmers' use of CE. The results are as follows: (1) Holding ecological public welfare jobs can raise farmers' willingness to use CE; (2) Holding ecological public welfare jobs can also promote farmers' use of CE by enhancing their ecological environment cognition and influencing their social behavior; (3) The impact of ecological public welfare work on CE use has regional and income heterogeneities. Firstly, this effect is smaller in mixed pastoral-farming areas than in agricultural and pastoral areas. Secondly, this effect is more obvious in low-income groups. Our study provided several policies aimed at improving rural and environmental development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents two dimensions of a bodhisattva, the ideal of Maha-ya-na Buddhism. One dimension involves contemplative practices that disclose a pure nature that is always already present; this reality is unveiled after the obscurations that cloud it are removed. I refer to this as a "top-down" approach because it is based on qualities of awakening that are already there, yet lie beyond an ordinary being's comprehension. The second dimension, which I refer to as a "bottom-up" approach, involves directed training and discipline. Unlike the top-down approach, this is not about "going with the flow" or simply letting the innate qualities of mind express themselves. In contrast, the bottom-up approach is better described as "breaking the cycle" of suffering. That is to say, this orientation toward a bodhisattva's practice involves restraint and discipline to train the mind by turning it away from habitual, destructive patterns to shape it into spontaneous and skillful responses and expressions. This paper will discuss both of these orientations and will show how they are complementary aspects of a bodhisattva's practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Architectural Journal / Jian Zhu Xue Bao is the property of Architectural Journal Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Tibetan Plateau is a driver and amplifier of global climate change. The increased frequency and scale of landslides in this area are one of the manifestations of extreme climate change. Studying the trigger of landslides is of great value to the research, protection, and management of engineering geology and climatic environmental changes. However, to our knowledge, there is no efficient, convenient and intelligent method to recognize the trigger of landslides in the Tibetan Plateau. Therefore, a new high-efficiency and high-precision deep learning algorithm has been proposed in this study to analyze the landslides triggers. Specifically, this paper proposes a novel lightweight neural network landslide classification method (MNTL) based on MobileNet-V2 and transfer learning. Mobilenet-V2 requires few parameters and few floating-point operations per second. Furthermore, it is integrated with transfer learning to improve the representation learning ability of the model. The proposed method was applied to classify landslides induced by rainfall and thawing effect. The method required only 30 samples of each class, and it converged quickly in just 3 min and achieved a 94% forecast accuracy. Compared with six state-of-the-art deep learning classification methods—specifically, VGG-16, VGG-19, ResNet-50, ResNet-101, Inception, and MobileNet-V2, the proposed method exhibited competitive advantages in terms of convergence speed and generalization capability. MNTL can be embedded into the mobile terminal, which is conducive to the rapid application of landslide-related research results at a small cost. More importantly, the work in this paper could serve as a potential basis for advancing research on the correlation between landslide hazards and climate change in southeast Tibet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With rapid economic growth in the twenty-first century, innovation has become an essential component of national development, and industry-university-research regional collaborative innovation is the key to implementing China's innovation plan. Using panel data from 30 provinces and cities in China (excluding Tibet Autonomous Region) from 2011 to 2018, this paper employs the two-stage dynamic DEA model to develop a rating index system of regional collaborative innovation performance, which is divided into knowledge innovation stage and technology innovation stage, and measures the collaborative innovation efficiency of 30 provinces in China. The environmental regulation score is then determined by using the entropy method. Finally, an experimental application of the panel Tobit model is conducted to investigate the impact mechanism of environmental regulation on regional collaborative innovation. The results reveal that the collaborative innovation efficiency values of the majority of provinces are between 0.5 and 0.7, leaving ample room for growth. When the efficiency value of collaborative innovation is broken down by region, the eastern, central, and western regions show a pattern of "rising in the east, stable in the center, and falling in the west." The findings of the Tobit regression reveal that the effect of environmental regulation on regional collaborative innovation performance follows a "U"-shaped distribution, confirming the "Porter Hypothesis." This study proposes remedies and proposals to enhance regional collaborative innovation performance from the perspective of environmental regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's economy has shifted from the stage of high-speed growth to the stage of high-quality development. This paper selects panel data of 30 provinces, municipalities directly under the Central Government and autonomous regions (except Tibet) in mainland China with the time dimension of 2006–2016, selects indicators from five dimensions of innovation, coordination, greenness, openness and sharing, uses principal component analysis to construct a system of indicators of high-quality economic development, and uses the spatial Durbin model to empirically the impact of government investment behavior in the three industries on the regional economic high-quality development was studied. The results show that: first, there is a significant positive spatial correlation between China's economic quality development. Second, government investment in different industries has different effects on the quality development of the economy. Investment in the tertiary industry can boost employment, raise income level, promote economic quality development, and enhance sharing, coordination and innovation; investment in the secondary industry can enhance innovation, but because of the "crowding-out effect", it will reduce openness and sharing, and is not conducive to promoting economic quality development; investment in the primary industry can Investment in the primary industry can significantly improve coordination, but it will reduce innovation, greenness, openness and sharing, which will also have a negative impact on the overall high-quality economic development. Third, there is a significant spatial spillover effect of government investment behavior on regional economic quality development, and the economic quality development of this region will have an impact on neighboring regions. Finally, based on the research results, this paper puts forward countermeasure suggestions for promoting high-quality economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Solar radiative heating andmelting of lake and sea ice is a geophysical problem that has attracted the attention of researchers for many years. This problem is important in connection with the current global change of the climate. Physical and computational models of the process are suggested in the paper. Analytical solutions for the transfer of solar radiation in lightscattering snow cover and ice are combined with numerical calculations of heat transfer in amultilayer system. The thermal boundary conditions take into account convective heat losses to the ambient air and radiative cooling in the mid-infrared window of transparency of the cloudless atmosphere. The study begins with an anomalous spring melting of ice on the large high-mountain lakes of Tibet. It was found that a thick ice layer not covered with snow starts to melt at the ice-water interface due to volumetric solar heating of ice. The results of the calculations are in good agreement with the field observations. The computational analysis showed a dramatic change in the process when the ice is covered with snow. A qualitative change in the physical picture of the process occurs when the snow cover thickness increases to 20-30 cm. In this case, the snow melting precedes ice melting and water ponds are formed on the ice surface. This is typical for the Arctic Sea in polar summer. Known experimental data are used to estimate the melting of sea ice under the melt pond. Positive or negative feedback related to the specific optical and thermal properties of snow, ice, and water are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the field of rock engineering, complexity of stress environment is an important factor affecting its stability. Thus, in view of fracture mechanism of rock under different loading rates within the scope of quasi-static strain rate, four groups of uniaxial compression tests with different strain rates were carried out on sandstone specimens, and strength, deformation, failure modes and acoustic emission characteristics of specimens were compared and analyzed. Furthermore, the fracture mechanism was discussed from the perspective of fracture characteristics based on fractal dimension, crack propagation law inverted through acoustic emission b-value, and micro fracture morphology. The results showed that as the strain rate increased from 10 to 5 s-1 to 10-2 s-1, the fractal dimension of rock fragments increased, and the fractal dimension of rock fragments increased by 9.66%, 7.32%, and 3.77% successively for every 10 times increase in strain rate, which means that the equivalent size of fragments was getting smaller, and the fragmentation feature was becoming increasingly prominent. The crack propagation process based on acoustic emission b-value showed that with the increase of loading rate, the specimen entered the rapid crack propagation stage earlier, in order of 68%, 66%, 29%, and 22% of peak stress. Moreover, the microscopic fracture morphology showed that with the increase of loading rate, transgranular phenomenon was clear, and the fracture morphology changed from smooth to rough. That meant that the fracture of sandstone rock at high loading rates was mainly caused by the propagation of large cracks, which was different from the slow process of initiation, convergence and re-propagation of small cracks at low strain rates. Due to warm and humid air currents of the Indian Ocean and the southwest monsoon, the Palong Zangbo catchment in southeastern Tibet has developed oceanic glaciers in the valley, and the activity of glacial debris flows has been gradually intensified under neotectonic activity, frequent earthquakes, climate change, and extreme rainfall. In this paper, the topographic and morphological data of the debris flow basin, the dynamic evolution characteristics of glaciers and glacial lakes were analyzed by using multisource long-term series of remote sensing images. Simultaneously, the distribution of moraines and landslide sources were extracted based on satellite image. In addition, climate change in the study area was analysed using temperature and rainfall data from the last 40 years, revealing that the average temperature in the study area from May to October presented a fluctuating tendency as a whole, especially after 2013, when the temperature gradually increased. As these temperature changes led to continuous melting of the glaciers in the study area, the glacier area decreased from 8,300 km2 in 1988-4,584 km2 in 2019, which decreased nearly 45%. However, the number and area of glacial lakes in the study area gradually increased under a power-law trend, which further led to a significant increase on the possibility of glacial lake rupture in the study area. Due to the joint effects of earthquakes, glacier melting and glacial lake collapse, the debris flows in the study area were well developed, and a total of 122 debris flows were found with varying channel lengths, areas and material sources. Importantly, the characteristics of the glaciers, glacial lakes and climate change in the study area have indicated that the glaciers have retreated, the number of glacial lakes has increased, and the risk of debris flow in this basin will increase in the future. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen monitoring and early warnings on floods due to glacial lake collapses and debris flows in the study area to improve the risk management of debris flows and floods and the prevention and mitigation of disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to warm and humid air currents of the Indian Ocean and the southwest monsoon, the Palong Zangbo catchment in southeastern Tibet has developed oceanic glaciers in the valley, and the activity of glacial debris flows has been gradually intensified under neotectonic activity, frequent earthquakes, climate change, and extreme rainfall. In this paper, the topographic and morphological data of the debris flow basin, the dynamic evolution characteristics of glaciers and glacial lakes were analyzed by using multisource long-term series of remote sensing images. Simultaneously, the distribution of moraines and landslide sources were extracted based on satellite image. In addition, climate change in the study area was analysed using temperature and rainfall data from the last 40 years, revealing that the average temperature in the study area from May to October presented a fluctuating tendency as a whole, especially after 2013, when the temperature gradually increased. As these temperature changes led to continuous melting of the glaciers in the study area, the glacier area decreased from 8,300 km[sup 2] in 1988-4,584 km[sup 2] in 2019, which decreased nearly 45%. However, the number and area of glacial lakes in the study area gradually increased under a power-law trend, which further led to a significant increase on the possibility of glacial lake rupture in the study area. Due to the joint effects of earthquakes, glacier melting and glacial lake collapse, the debris flows in the study area were well developed, and a total of 122 debris flows were found with varying channel lengths, areas and material sources. Importantly, the characteristics of the glaciers, glacial lakes and climate change in the study area have indicated that the glaciers have retreated, the number of glacial lakes has increased, and the risk of debris flow in this basin will increase in the future. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen monitoring and early warnings on floods due to glacial lake collapses and debris flows in the study area to improve the risk management of debris flows and floods and the prevention and mitigation of disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The historical origins of the Tibet issue in Sino-Indian relations remain understudied. Most diplomatic histories on this subject focus on the highest levels of government, glossing over the immense role of domestic actors in shaping the Tibet question in the India-China relationship. This paper aims to address this gap by studying the domestic response to Dalai Lama's flight to India. Specifically, it analyses the domestic and international advocacy of the noted freedom fighter Jayaprakash Narayan. The paper highlights how Narayan's advocacy was critical in building global and public opinion on the Tibet question, culminating in the passage of Resolution 1723 at the United Nations. It argues that understanding his actions on Tibet is critical because of its negative impact on the Indian government's policy of preventing the issue from gaining international recognition – a gesture aimed at steadying the declining relationship with China. By hindering the government's efforts at damage control, the paper demonstrates how Jayaprakash Narayan's advocacy was a key factor explaining why Sino-Indian ties precipitously declined over the Tibet issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On October 11 and November 3, 2018, two large landslides occurred at the same location in Baige Village, eastern Tibet, China. These landslides pose a serious threat to both upstream and downstream areas, raising great concerns in China and worldwide. Currently, the influencing factors and fundamental mechanism of the Baige landslide are questioned, and further research is needed. Multiple methods, including comprehensive field investigation, satellite remote sensing, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 3D imaging, and geographical information systems, are used to analyze the main characteristics, influencing factors, and fundamental mechanism of the Baige landslide. The results reveal that the occurrence of the Baige landslide is closely related to deep-seated gravitational slope deformations (DSGSDs); tectonic activity, river incision, earthquakes, and rainfall are also responsible for the formation of the event. From a long-term perspective, DSGSDs, active tectonic deformation, repetitive seismic activities, rapid river incision, and sustained rainfall infiltration all interact with each other and finally trigger catastrophic landslides. The damage deformation process of the Baige landslide can be divided into three stages: epigenetic deformation, time-dependent deformation, and failure. Some unstable rock masses still exist in the source area, and thus, successive deformation monitoring and timely mitigation measures should be implemented to reduce the residual risks. The research in this paper is meaningful for further research on such large-scale landslides along the Jinsha River. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In the past 20 years, Lebai gully (Linzhi, Tibet, China) has been affected by several debris flow events. These debris flow events caused the blockage of three-quarters of the river channel at the mouth of the Lebai gully, threatening thousands of acres of cultivated land, houses, and residents' property in the upper reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo River. However, few investigations have been carried out on the debris flows in the Lebai gully, and the triggering mechanism of Lebai debris flows remains elusive. In this paper, we presented a detailed demonstration of the geological environment and geomorphological features of the Lebai Basin, and a detailed geohazard history of the Lebai gully was collected and presented based on interviews with local villagers. To provide information on the lithological, hydrological, and geotechnical characteristics of the terrain in Lebai gully, the electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) method was carried out to research the subsurface characteristics of debris flow fans. The ERT results illustrated the two-layered vertical strata of the debris fan, and the shallow layer of relatively low resistivity, which has thicknesses of 5–18 m, could be described as Quaternary colluvial deposits, while the deep layer of relatively high resistivity could be considered Precambrian bedrock. Taking a relatively large-scale debris flow on August 20, 2003, as an example, a detailed discussion was carried out on the possible factors triggering this event, and it was found that the Lebai debris flows were closely related to pre-event rainfall, air temperature, and antecedent earthquakes. Moreover, with the intention of evaluating the future risk of river blockage and helping to make rational decisions on developing suitable mitigation measures, the unstable deposits found in field investigations were generalized to geometric models according to their geometric characteristics, and the volumes of these unstable materials in each location were estimated using digital elevation models and geometric spatial analysis methods. A dynamic model named RAMMS was used to predict these unstable materials' dynamic processes and final deposit characteristics. The simulation results revealed a great possibility that the Yarlung Tsangpo River will be blocked at the mouth of Lebai gully in the future, and it is necessary to take further mitigation measures. The research in this paper contributes to a better understanding of the debris flows in the Lebai Basin and provides meaningful and valuable information for debris flow hazard mitigation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]