The Mountain Institute

Glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) profoundly influences postglacial tectonics, sea-level change, and geothermal systems; however, its role during the deglaciation of the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth remains poorly constrained. Sheet-crack is one of the diagnostic structures in Marinoan (635 Ma) cap carbonates that overlie glacial tillites. Available geochemical evidence indicates that sheet-crack cements precipitated immediately following crack formation, potentially preserving GIA-driven fluid signatures. This study presents fluid inclusion microthermometric data from sheet-crack quartz and barite cements along shelf-to-slope transects on the Yangtze Block, South China. Fluid inclusion homogenization temperatures (Th) reveal the occurrence of a ubiquitous low-temperature hydrothermal event, with most Th values clustering at ∼145 °C–190 °C and ∼120 °C–180 °C in platform facies and slope facies, respectively. Fluid salinities in platform facies exhibit unimodal distributions and low to moderate (∼2–8 wt % NaCl eq.), while those in slope facies show broadly continuous distributions, with most values concentrated at intermediate-to-high salinities (∼6–15 wt % NaCl eq.) and a subordinate low-salinity tail. These patterns are consistent with varying contributions from recirculated, geothermally heated seawater and basinal brines. We propose a refined model in which GIA-related geothermal anomalies promoted a widespread low-temperature hydrothermal circulation event, responsible for sheet-crack cementation shortly after the Marinoan deglaciation, South China.

Abstract Tsunamis are multiscale phenomena resulting from a water column displacement that may be induced by multiple sources, and range from local scale inundation processes to ocean-wide scale wave propagation. Different strategies may be required to model tsunami evolution at different scales and to characterize various intensity measures. Research in tsunami hazard and risk has focused mostly on the tsunami effects such as the wave heights or flow depths. This chapter reviews the evolution of tsunami hazard and risk assessment methodologies, with particular emphasis on the development of probabilistic approaches. Building on advances in numerical modeling and uncertainty analysis, two main frameworks for Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard and Risk Analysis (PTHA/PTRA) are described. Framework 1 (FW1) focuses on quantitative methods, including fully simulation-based assessments (FW1A), integration of hazard with vulnerability and loss models (FW1B), consideration of dynamic processes such as tidal and sea-level variations (FW1C), and approaches using limited scenario sets (FW1D). Framework 2 (FW2) complements this by incorporating indicator-based vulnerability assessments, both physical (FW2A) and social, multi-dimensional (FW2B).

Dyslipidemia is a major cardiovascular risk factor; however, disease patterns-particularly lipid profiles-remain understudied in high-altitude populations. On the Pamirs Plateau (> 4000m), no relevant epidemiological studies have been conducted to date. This study investigates the disease patterns in this region, with an emphasis on dyslipidemia epidemiology. We conducted a serial cross-sectional study (2021-2024) using annual health examination data from Tashkurgan County, Pamirs Plateau. Adults aged ≥ 18years residing ≥ 1year were included. We first examined the overall disease patterns, with a focus on dyslipidemia. Age-standardized prevalence was calculated and stratified by sex and ethnicity. Subsequently, lipid profile distributions and temporal trends were analyzed. To place these findings in a global context, LDL-C levels were compared with populations from plains and other high-altitude regions. Finally, potential risk factors were identified using multivariate logistic regression and machine learning models. Among a representative subset (24.37%) of the Pamirs Plateau population, dyslipidemia was the most prevalent condition, followed by hypertension, sinus bradycardia, and fatty liver. The prevalence of dyslipidemia ranged from 25.24% to 37.64%. LDL-C levels were lower than those in plains and other high-altitude regions. Ethnic disparities were evident: the minority population (predominantly Tajik) maintained stable, favorable lipid profiles across ages, while non-minorities exhibited pronounced age-related fluctuations. Age 70 emerged as a potential inflection point at which sex-related differences in LDL-C levels reversed. Male, non-minority, older age, diabetes, frequent alcohol consumption, and higher education were significantly associated with dyslipidemia. Unexpectedly, improved living conditions (range hood use [OR: 1.839, 95% CI: 1.673-2.021], natural gas use [OR: 1.273, 95% CI: 1.152-1.406], tap water access [OR: 1.315, 95% CI: 1.204-1.436]) were linked to a higher risk, a "modernization paradox". Additionally, distinct temporal fluctuations were observed: LDL-C levels sharply declined in 2022 before rebounding, coinciding with the COVID-19 lockdown period. This first comprehensive analysis from "the roof of the world" reveals unique lipid patterns, including low LDL-C levels, pandemic-era fluctuations, ethnic disparities, unique age-sex patterns, and a paradoxical association between improved living conditions and increased dyslipidemia risk. These insights should inform context-specific lipid management strategies for this and similar vulnerable high-altitude populations globally.

This study aimed to identify the primary drivers of employee engagement at a State University in the Philippines, focusing on exploring similarities and differences across faculty and staff groups. A quantitative survey was distributed to 232 faculty and staff respondents to collect data on factors influencing their engagement levels. Results revealed distinct engagement drivers for each employee group: Permanent Faculty prioritized employee trust, organizational integrity, inspirational leadership, and career growth opportunities. In contrast, Permanent Staff emphasized recognition through rewards for high performance and managerial support, highlighting the importance of acknowledgment and listening. These findings underscore the need for tailored human resource strategies that address unique engagement factors for each employee group within the university. The study recommends expanding leadership development programs, implementing comprehensive recognition and reward systems, and ensuring ample career advancement opportunities to foster a more engaged workforce. This research offers valuable guidance for improving organizational practices and fostering a more engaged workforce at the university.

Attachment describes how people use relationships to cope with exposure to danger. That function is central to psychotherapy. This study used the Adult Attachment Interview (DMM-AAI) to compare psychotherapists’ attachment strategies to those of patients in psychotherapy and adults drawn from the normative non-patient population. The central variables were attachment strategies (treated as dismissing of relationships Type A1-8, secure/balanced in relationships B1-5, and preoccupied with relationships Type C1-8, plus A/C combinations), psychological trauma and unresolved loss, extremes of arousal, and reorganization toward psychological balance and integration (i.e., conscious change toward B strategies). Differences based on professional training (psychodynamic, cognitive, and family systems) were explored for psychotherapists. The results indicated that non-patients demonstrated the lowest risk attachment strategies (i.e., A1-2, B1-5, and C1-2), whereas patients exhibited the highest risk and most extreme attachment strategies (i.e., A5-8, C5-8, and A5-8/C5-8), and the most psychological trauma, unresolved loss, and extreme arousal. Psychotherapists were not a homogeneous group: approximately 40% showed extreme attachment strategies, whereas the remainder demonstrated low-risk strategies. A higher proportion of psychotherapists (24.6%) showed reorganization toward B strategies than patients (6.8%); this replicates earlier work on British psychotherapy students and patients. Trauma and loss were significantly more frequent in both patients and psychotherapists than in non-patients. No differences were identified based on psychotherapists’ theory training. These findings suggest that more than half of Italian psychotherapists have the potential to establish intersubjectivity with their patients whereas almost half might face problems reaching beyond their personal perspective. Suggestions for improving training and supervision of psychotherapists are offered.

Facing worsening housing affordability, policymakers in a growing number of jurisdictions have heeded economists’ calls for increases in supply through relaxing land use restrictions, particularly on maximum allowed density and increases in the number of units allowed on a single lot. While floor space or floor area ratios (FSR or FAR) and unit count per lot are indicators of the potential for density, local governments have many levers to control the volume, type, and pace of new construction. In this paper, we compare changes in land prices and the pace of redevelopment following two similar, moderate density upzonings (up to four units per lot) of single family neighborhoods in the province of British Columbia (Canada). The upzoning in the City of Kelowna resulted in considerable new construction of higher density residential units as well as a significant increase in lot prices in the upzoned area relative to nearby areas with status quo zoning. In contrast, though the changes in allowed density were nearly identical, in Coquitlam there has been minimal uptake of new multiplex options and no discernible land lift in response to upzoning. We highlight the importance of other regulatory levers that are easy for analysts to miss in contributing to these different outcomes. The Kelowna upzoning was matched with an expedited development permit process for as-of-right fourplexes. In contrast, the Coquitlam rezoning did not alter the city’s lengthy development permit process required to build beyond the baseline duplex. Kelowna’s upzoning also required less parking than Coquitlam’s. An assessment of the regulatory environment relying on the presence of the upzoning alone would miss the alteration to process (or absence thereof) that appear to have had a significant effect across the two municipalities in whether zoning changes led to actual new construction. • Case study approach comparing two different multiplex upzonings. • Large difference in uptake. • Price effects of higher allowed density are small. • Role of regulatory process in undermining upzoning success.

The question of whether a God is needed to justify or ground moral facts is mooted by the fact that true moral facts exist in all possible universes that contain rational agents. This can be demonstrated in three stages. First, it is necessarily the case that true moral facts can only be described as the imperatives that supersede all other imperatives. Second, it is necessarily the case that for any rational agent there will always be true hypothetical imperatives that supersede all other imperatives. And third, if there are true hypothetical imperatives that supersede all other imperatives, they are then, necessarily, the only true moral facts. As this follows for any rational agent in any possible universe, the presence of God is irrelevant to the existence of moral facts. God could be more capable of identifying those true moral facts, but he cannot author or ground them. And though a God could casuistically alter moral imperatives by altering the corresponding physics, he is constrained in what he can make true this way by moral fundamentals that are always necessarily true. God is therefore not necessary for there to be moral facts.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) impact urban air quality and human health. Soil represents a potentially important source of VOCs. However, the VOC emission characteristics of soils from different urban and natural environments remain unclear. In this study, the composition and flux of VOCs emitted from various soil types were examined. Results reveal significantly elevated VOC emissions from polluted soils, with levels 2 orders of magnitude higher than those from their natural counterparts. Influences of light, soil water content, and temperature on VOC emissions were explored. Light exposure notably enhanced the emissions of certain VOCs, such as acetonitrile, from highly polluted industrial soils. Simultaneously, reductions in VOCs such as terpenes were observed, possibly driven by photochemical degradation processes. By comparison, soils from less polluted environments exhibited minimal changes in VOC emissions under light exposure, emphasizing the distinct behaviors of different soil types. Soil water content was inversely correlated with VOC emission rates, likely due to reduced soil porosity and permeability at higher moisture levels, whereas temperature exhibited intricate effects on soil emissions that varied with VOC species. Factors such as soil VOC storage, VOC “affinity” to soil, and microbial activities may play roles and warrant future investigation. Results from this study highlight soil emissions as non-negligible contributors to ambient VOC levels and underscore the crucial impacts of environmental factors in modulating these emissions.

Aging is a crucial process in fruit wine production, which refers to the storage and fermentation of fruit wine in a bottle or wooden barrel for a period of time to make its taste and flavor more mellow and complex. In traditional fruit wine production, aging usually takes several years. However, with the continuous development of technology, more and more artificial methods for accelerating aging have been developed, allowing fruit wine to achieve the desired aging effect faster. This article introduces some of the main artificial methods for accelerating aging, including traditional oak aging, ultra high-pressure aging, magnetic aging, ultrasonic aging, microwave aging, electron beam irradiation stimulation, micro-oxygen aging, and microbial aging. The advantages and disadvantages of these methods will be discussed, to promote the development of the fruit wine industry.