Ultrastructural and geochemical characterization of Archean-Paleoproterozoic graphite particles: implications for recognizing traces of life in highly metamorphosed rocks

Abundant graphite particles occur in amphibolite-grade quartzite of the Archean-Paleoproterozoic Wutai Metamorphic Complex in the Wutaishan area of North China. Petrographic thin section observations suggest that the graphite particles occur within and between quartzite clasts and are heterogeneous in origin. Using HF maceration techniques, the Wutai graphite particles were extracted for further investigation. Laser Raman spectroscopic analysis of a population of extracted graphite discs indicated that they experienced a maximum metamorphic temperature of 513 +/- 50 degrees C, which is consistent with the metamorphic grade of the host rock and supports their indigenicity. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the particles bear morphological features (such as hexagonal sheets of graphite crystals) related to metamorphism and crystal growth, but a small fraction of them (graphite discs) are characterized by a circular morphology, distinct marginal concentric folds, surficial wrinkles, and complex nanostructures. Ion microprobe analysis of individual graphite discs showed that their carbon isotope compositions range from -7.4 per thousand to -35.9 per thousand V-PDB (Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite), with an average of -20.3 per thousand, which is comparable to bulk analysis of extracted carbonaceous material. The range of their size, ultrastructures, and isotopic signatures suggests that the morphology and geochemistry of the Wutai graphite discs were overprinted by metamorphism and their ultimate carbon source probably had diverse origins that included abiotic processes. We considered both biotic and abiotic origins of the carbon source and graphite disc morphologies and cannot falsify the possibility that some circular graphite discs characterized by marginal folds and surficial wrinkles represent deflated, compressed, and subsequently graphitized organic-walled vesicles. Together with reports by other authors of acanthomorphic acritarchs from greenschist-amphibolite-grade metamorphic rocks, this study suggests that it is worthwhile to examine carbonaceous materials preserved in highly metamorphosed rocks for possible evidence of ancient life.     

正交试验法在空间自由漂浮机械臂控制参数寻优中的应用

摘要： 针对空间自由漂浮机器人自适应控制参数的寻优问题,引入正交试验设计方法.综合考虑了各因素对试验结果的影响,通过较少的试验仿真次数即可快速获得较为理想的控制器参数,因此该方法对复杂系统控制器参数寻优具有较为实用的借鉴意义.实例证明,采用L81(340)正交表能较好地完成两自由度自由漂浮空间机械臂的14个控制参数寻优.     

Implications of an anthropic model of evolution for emergence of complex life and intelligence

Structurally complex life and intelligence evolved late on Earth; models for the evolution of global temperature suggest that, due to the increasing solar luminosity, the future life span of the (eukaryote) biosphere will be "only" about another billion years, a short time compared to the approximately 4 Ga since life began. A simple stochastic model (Carter, 1983) suggests that this timing might be governed by the necessity to pass a small number, n, of very difficult evolutionary steps, with n < 10 and a best guess of n = 4, in order for intelligent observers like ourselves to evolve. Here I extend the model analysis to derive probability distributions for each step. Past steps should tend to be evenly spaced through Earth's history, and this is consistent with identification of the steps with some of the major transitions in the evolution of life on Earth. A complementary approach, identifying the critical steps with major reorganizations in Earth's biogeochemical cycles, suggests that the Archean-Proterozoic and Proterozoic-Phanerozoic transitions might be identified with critical steps. The success of the model lends support to a "Rare Earth" hypothesis (Ward and Brownlee, 2000): structurally complex life is separated from prokaryotes by several very unlikely steps and, hence, will be much less common than prokaryotes. Intelligence is one further unlikely step, so it is much less common still.     

1999年《EI》收录中国科技论文数排名前20位的期刊

据中国科学技术信息研究所出版的《1999年度中国科技论文统计与分析》一书公布，《推进技术》在1999年《EI》(美国工程索引)收录中国科技论文数较多的100种期刊中名列第六，以下为1999年《EI》收录论文数量排前20名的期刊。 1.清华大学学报；2.电子学报；3.光学学报；4.北京航空航天大学学报；5.软件学报；6.推进技术；7.International Conference on Signal;8.功能材料Processing Proceedings；9.西安交通大学学报；10.Transoctions of Nonferrous Metals Society of China(英文版)；11.钢铁；12.Proceedings.of SPIE-The International Society for Optical Engineering;13.中国激光；14.半导体学报；15.光电子激光；16.强激光与粒子束；17.光学技术；18.核动力工程；19.自动化学报；20.化工学报。 (本刊通讯员)