Surface Water And Groundwater

Surface Water And Groundwater The hydrological cycle describes the continuous movement of water above, on, and below the surface of the earth. The water on the Earths surface surface water occurs as streams, lakes, rivers as well as bays and wetlands. The water below the surface of the Earth primarily is ground water, but it also includes soil water (Sphocleous, 2000). Interactions between groundwater and surface water play a critical role in the functioning of riparian ecosystems. These interactions can have significant implications for both water quantity and quality. Identifying potential exchange of water between the aquifer and stream channel has therefore been investigated by many researchers using a variety of methods (USGS Ground Water Information, 2008). Assessing groundwater-surface water interactions is often complex and difficult. There are many factors which influence groundwater-surface water interactions such as river bed characteristics, geology, geomorphology and climate. In general a number of methods have been used to ascertain the nature of groundwater surface water interactions across different catchments. These methods include several tracers used to identify the exchange of surface and groundwater, such as heat, ion chemistry, isotopes and viruses. Potential surface aquifer interactions have also been quantified using remote sensing and models (USGS, 2008; Kalbus et al, 2006). The purpose of this essay is to review the various techniques used to determine groundwater and surface water interactions and their importance whilst encompassing significant case studies from around the world and within Australia. Discussion Surface water and groundwater (GW-SW) have long been considered separate entities, and have been investigated individually. Although chemical, biological and physical properties of surface water and groundwater are indeed different, they are not isolated components of the hydrologic system, but instead interact in a variety of physiographic and climatic landscapes. Therefore development or contamination of one commonly affects the other (Kalbus et al, 2006). To understand GW-SW interactions, it is necessary to understand the effects of the hydrogeological environment on GW flow systems, that is the effects of topography, geology, and climate as these factors are the major influences on the type of techniques use to determine GW-SW interactions (see figures 1, 2 3) (USGS, 2008). Figure 1. Groundwater seepage into surface water Figure 2. Subaqueous springs resulting from ground water flow through highly permeable sediments (USGS, 2008) (USGS, 2008) Figure 3. Ground-water flow paths vary greatly in length, depth and travel time from points of recharge to points of discharge in the ground-water system (USGS, 2008) Many studies of GW-SW interactions involve the use of more than one technique in attempting to determine nature of exchanges. Environmental tracers are naturally occurring dissolved constituents, or physical properties of water that can be used to track water movement through water sheds. Often tracers such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), conservative and non-conservative ions, stable and radio-isotopes can be coupled with piezometric monitoring and computer modelling to aid in determining the movement and character of GW or SW (Hohener et al, 2003). CFCs are synthetic halogenated volatile organic compounds that have been manufactured since 1930 and can be detected analytically in water in small concentrations. Previous review articles have occasionally summarised the use of CFCs as tracers for dating pristine groundwater as a failure due to local CFC contamination in excess of the equilibrium with modern air. However, CFCs do provide hydrogeological tracers and dating tools for young groundwater on a time-scale of 50 years (Hohener et al, 2003). Since the mid 1970s, CFCs have been used routinely by hydrologists and various disciplines, for dating and tracing water masses. Using gas chromatographs and electron capture detectors, analytical methods for CFCs in water with detection limits for some particular CFCs, have been developed. Generally, the presence of detectable concentrations of CFCs in groundwater indicates recharge after the late 1940s, or mixing of older water with younger water. Groundwater samples with CFC concentrations between the analytical detection limit and the equilibrium with atmospheric concentrations at recharge temperature can potentially be used for age-dating. The use of CFCs dating techniques allows hydrologists and scientists alike to determine groundwater recharge and mixing aiding in detecting GW-SW interactions (Hohener et al, 2003; Schilling et al, 2010). Researchers utilize a wide variety of conservative and non-conservative tracers for hydrological studies. In addition, stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen, which are part of the water molecule, are used to determine the mixing of waters from different sources (USGS, 2008; Rodgers et al, 2004). This is successful because of the differences in the isotopic composition of precipitation among recharge areas, the changes in the isotoic composition of shallow subsurface water caused by evaporation and temporal variability in the isotopic composition of precipitation relative to groundwater. For example, 87Sr/86Sr ratios can be used to distinguish between groundwater discharge and surface mixing. Strontium isotopes used in combination with more conventional tracers such as deuterium and 18O have helped to establish the sources of differing groundwater types entering lakes (Rodgers et al, 2004). Radioactive isotopes are useful indicators for the amount of time that water has spent in the groundwater system. Deuterium and 18O have been used together with both radioactive tracers (3H/3He) and other non-conventional tracers like rare earth elements (REEs) to determine groundwater inflow and outflow from large lakes such as East African Rift Valley lakes (Ojiambo et al., in review). Lyons et al. (1998) also have used sources of both radioactive (36Cl) and non-radioactive (37Cl) tracers to ascertain sources of solutes for Antarctic lake systems (Lyons et al, 1998). Another useful indicator is 222Radon which is a chemically inert radioactive gas that has a half-life of only 3-4 days. It is produced naturally in groundwater as a product of the radioactive decay of 226radium in uranium-bearing rocks and sediments (Lyons et al, 1998). Several studies have documented that radon can be used to identify locations of significant groundwater input into a stream, such as from springs. In France a study was conducted where radon was used to determine stream-water loss to groundwater as a result of ground-water withdrawals (USGS, 2008). As shown in figure 4, sharp changes in chemical concentrations were detected over short distances as water from the Lot River in France moved into its contiguous alluvial aquifer in response to pumping from a well. An environmental tracer was used to determine the extent of mixing of surface water with ground water, and radon was used to determine the inflow rate of stream water. Then the rate at which dissolved metals reacted to form solid phase during movement of stream water toward the pumping well could be calculated (USGS, 2008). Conservative and non-conservative ions as tracers can also be used to parameterize groundwater models as well as to calculate the age and recharge location of ground waters. This can be done by directly introducing 3H in a groundwater system to determine groundwater flow paths which assists in the model parameterization coupled with the use of deuterium, 18O, 3H/3He ratios, and the recently developed 4He in-growth technique to guide parameterization of a groundwater model of a regional aquifer (Sophocleous, 2000). Familiarity with the use and limitations of numerous conservative and non-conservative tracers to ground water and surface water environments is an important component with potential applications of these techniques, GW-SW interactions can be inferred (Sphocleous, 2000; Schilling et al, 2010). In Australia, the transport of saline groundwater from local and regional aquifers to the lower River Murray is thought to be influenced by lagoons and wetlands present in adjacent floodplains. In the study by Banks et al, (2009), interactions between a saline lagoon and semi-confined aquifer at a floodplain on the River Murray were studied using hydrogeological techniques and environmental tracers (Cl-, ÃŽÂ ´2H and ÃŽÂ ´18O) (Banks et al, 2009). The results showed using piezometric surface monitoring that the lagoon acted as a flow-through system intercepting local and regional groundwater flow. The mass balance was determined using chloride, and showed that approximately 70% of the lagoons winter volume was lost due to evaporation. Next a stable isotope mass balance was used to estimate leakage from the lagoon to the underlying aquifer. This showed that approximately 0-38% of the total groundwater inflow into the lagoon was lost to leakage, as opposed to 62-100% groundwater inflow which was lost to evaporation (Banks et al, 2009). Through the use of piezometric surface monitoring and tracers, Banks et al, (2009), were able to determine GW-SW interactions. This allowed them to conclude that the floodplain wetland behaved as groundwater flow-through systems, intercepting groundwater discharge, concentrating it and eventually recharging more saline water to the floodplain aquifer. Being able to trace, determine and understand GW-SW interactions such as those presented here, ultimately benefits effective management of salinity in Australia (Banks et al, 2005). Further studies of the Murray River and the Murray Basin have concluded that salinity could also be contributed to by flow regulation and water diversion for irrigation as this could considerably impact the exchange of surface water between the Murray River and its floodplains (Allison et al, 1990; Lamontage et al, 2005). Through use of piezometric surface monitoring and environmental tracers (Cl-, ÃŽÂ ´2H and ÃŽÂ ´18O), Lamontagne et al, was able to conclude that Murray River was losing under low flow conditions. Environmental tracer data suggested that the origin of groundwater is principally bank recharge in the riparian zone and a combination of diffuse rainfall recharge elsewhere on the flood plain. This information was critical in deciphering that bank discharge occurred during some flood recession periods and understanding that the way in which the water table responded to changes in river level was a function of the type of stream bank present (Lamontage et al, 2005). In the Western Murray basin, the clearing of native vegetation in a semi-arid region of southern Australia is thought to have lead to increases in Groundwater recharge. Unsaturated zone chloride and matric suction profile estimates suggest there is a significant time delay in aquifer response to pre and post clearing recharge (Allison et al, 1990). Predictions of the time delay lag in aquifer response have been verified using bore hydrographs. The results show that in some areas of light soil and shallow water table the water is now rising, however in other areas of heavy soil the water is not yet beginning to rise. The effects of increased recharge on the salinity of the River Murray, a major water resource, have been predicted that the salinity of the river will increase about 1Â µS cm -1 year -1 over the next 50 years. These results show the crucial role hydrological analysis and environmental tracers play in major resource management throughout Australia and potentially the worl d (Allison et al, 1990). Conclusion Groundwater and Surface water are not isolated components of the hydrological system and therefore should not be studied or managed as such. There are many factors which influence and control both GW and SW flow paths and interactions within the hydrological cycle. Through use of monitoring systems, modelling, and environmental tracers a better understanding of the complex interactions between GW-SW can be gained. Although further study is needed and techniques can be improved upon, it is through a better understand of the hydrological cycle and its complex interactions that more appropriate management plans can be made to ensure the resource is available to all in the future.

Bank Accounts, Joint or Separate? :: essays research papers

Introduction The topic I chose to discuss is if couples have separate bank accounts and if they have arrived at this solution after trying to use a single account or if this was their first attempt at martial checking. I chose this topic because I always had the notion that a married couple should have a joint bank account, meaning that their finances just like them were intertwined and inseparable. After I was married to the love of my life, I noticed the concepts and methods we practiced regarding the monthly budget and our finances were vastly different and at times conflicting. She was brought up in a household where her parents never discussed budgets or savings, they just spent their money on whatever they wanted and when the money ran out, they would barrow to continue spending. I was brought up in a poor household where we had to scrimp and save to make ends meat. I’m sure you can figure that this was the source of a lot of conflict and hard ship in the first years of our marriage. We had tried many different techniques to settle things, but no matter what we tried conflict still arose on how the money was spent and when it was spent. Finally after researching the topic and talking to mother married couples who I knew and respected, I came to the conclusion that no matter what my personal opinion on how the finances should be, my wife and I were never going to agree on this and that I should look for another solution instead of trying to indoctrinate her with my philosophy. One of piece of advice I was given was to split up the family budget in whatever ratio is necessary and allocate the money accordingly. This resulted in my wife being put over the groceries, clothing, and school needs for the family and I was put over the rest of the bills (mortgage, insurance, phone, etc.). I also tried to find a way to tuck a little money away each month into a savings account. Since the inception of this solution we had two separate bank accounts which has resulted in my less conflict and we have been able to put money away for the future for the first time in our marital history. I wanted to research if this problem was common or not given the diversity of financial backgrounds now in society.

Are Babies Prewired For Survival Essay

Are babies prewired for survival? This is a question that has been researched and debated in the psychological world for decades. Standing on the side of nature in the ever going battle of nature vs. nurture, we will discover that babies possess cognitive skill, biological abilities, and physical characteristics that not only allow them to live but to survive in the world as we know it. Answering such questions as: Are newborns able to swim and why do newborns smile back at their parents or react to their mothers’ voice? Babies are born with exactly what it takes to live and communicate their various needs. Beginning with cognitive skill, babies have an innate ability to not only make facial expressions of their desires but also their needs of sustenance. But how is this possible? Using the study of Infant Intersubjectivity, researchers have discovered that â€Å"the infants need for communication animates the initial ‘self-other’ awareness and reception of motiv es and emotions in the intersubjective messages that underlie all languages.† â€Å"Human sense† as (Donaldson 1978) called it (Infant Intersubjectivity: Research, Theory, and Clinical Applications. Colwyn Trevarthen and Kenneth J. Aitken. Article first published online: 7 OCT 2003). Just by watching infants and newborns one can easily see the way these miniature people communicate. By observing the different tones in a cry, the facial expressions changes and or the rhythmic movements used to ask for or repel contact; these are all profound forms of infant communication. When I personally think of this form of communication the term body language come to mind. We are observing and essentially talking to infants through an intrinsic form of body language and the babes self-other awareness. Next, when thinking about the idea of self-other awareness in infants we only need to examine a few things. When you smile at a baby and they smile back, or even when you play peek-a-boo with an infant to watch their face light up with excitement. How about even when the baby gets tired of playing and their expression becomes somber and they eventually cry or become very agitated. These are all examples of self-other awareness. â€Å"†¦long before birth, along with essential peripheral organs of perception and motor expression that will serve in communication by rhythmic facial, vocal, gestural, and body movement signal† (http://www.journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid  =43493&fileId=S0954579497001387. Development and Psychopathology. volume / Issue 04 / December 1997, pp 653-677. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/ (About DOI), Published online: 08 September 2000). Effectively, the stages of infant cognitive development can be viewed and explained simply. According to Piaget there are four stages of cognitive development that range from the ages of birth through adulthood. Today we will only focus on two of these stages as they pertain to the ages of birth through the ages of 24 months or two years old. The first stage is the sensorimotor stage which includes and defines the ages from birth to about 18 months of age. This stage is quickly described and defined by the infant only being aware of what’s immediately in front of them, and only interacting with those people, objects or sounds (http://www.webmd.com/children/piaget-stages-of-development Piaget Stages of Development.  ©2005-2015 WebMD, LLC). Looking at Piaget’s studies even at the earliest moments of life an infant utilizes the power of their brains in the forms of basic awareness’s and communication attempts. The second stage of cognitive development is also important to our question of babies being able to survive. Before babies can reach the age of 24 months of age they begin to undergo the second stage known as pre-operational. During this stage the baby has already found object permanence and begins symbolic thought, memory and imagination (Piaget Stages of Development.  ©2005-2015 WebMD, LLC). They also begin to form basic verbal language which may vary according to their environmental factors and parental languages Conclusion References http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1469-7610.00701/abstract;jsessionid=F5BDCE7E9FE5CCB25A2E9FBF4755177E.f03t03 Infant Intersubjectivity: Research, Theory, and Clinical Applications. Colwyn Trevarthen and Kenneth J. Aitken. Article first published online: 7 OCT 2003 http://www.webmd.com/children/piaget-stages-of-development Piaget Stages of Development.  ©2005-2015 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364661303001918 On being the object of attention: implications for self–other consciousness. Vasudevi Reddy. TRENDS ON COGNITIVE SCIENCES .Volume 7, Issue 9, September 2003,

Essay on Shakespeare Authorship Controversy - 1504 Words

Shakespeare, the man who wrote 37 plays and more than a hundred sonnets, is known throughout the world. Many people consider him one of the best English playwrights of our time, others say that he was a genius. William Shakspere was born in Stratford-upon Avon in 1564 and died in 1616 at the age of 52. In the mid-19th century, questions had arisen about the Shakespeare authorship controversy, and many scholars wondered whether Shakspere, the man from Stratford, wrote the plays. Ralph W. Emerson once said, ?I can not ?marry? Shakspere?s life to Shakespeare?s work? (qtd. in Bethell 48). In many ways, he was right, some things just did not link up. Many people started noticing this thus two opposing sides were formed. Those who believed†¦show more content†¦Others also say that there was little evidence left behind about his childhood and later his career as a playwright and poet in London (Goode 9-10). Many scholars that studied Shakespeare?s plays found evidence that whoever wrote the plays must have been the best educated man of his time with knowledge on horsemanship, biology, falconry, astronomy, law, botany, several languages like Italian, French, and Latin, and many other subje cts that a common man without much formal education would not poses (Lardner 7). Furthermore, experts say that whoever wrote Shakespeare?s sonnets seemed to be high-class. In addition, many of the plays included a political element. How did Shakspere get extremely detailed information about Queen Elizabeth?s court when the queen?s inner circle was guarded carefully (Valeo 2). Another reason against Shakspere is that he would have to have been to Italy since many of his plays are set there, but there are no records of his travels. Foreign travel was also expensive and often dangerous back in those days (Valeo 2). Could a glove-maker?s son afford such an expensive trip? Many agree that there was a man from Stratford by the name of Shakspere, but they say that he had nothing to do with the plays. Others say that he lent his name to be used on the 37 plays. Ogburn describes him as ?a small town, avaricious businessman more interested in money thanShow MoreRelatedEssay about The Shakespeare Authorship Debate1632 Words   |  7 PagesThe Shakespeare Authorship Debate Although William Shakespeare is considered to be one of the most revered and well-renowned authors of all time, controversy surrounds the belief that he actually produced his own literary works. Some rumors even go so far as to question the reality of such a one, William Shakespeare, brought on by paralleling the quality of his pieces with his personal background and education. 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