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The article discusses the reactions of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to reports of abuse in interrogation of detainees at the Guantánamo Bay Detention facility. Topics include FBI reports about interrogation practices on detainees, the knowledge of the abuse by government officials of the DOD, and an investigation by Lieutenant General Randall M. Schmidt about torture at the facility.

The article presents information about the detainees of the Guantánamo Bay Detention facility from data of the U.S. Department of Defense. Topics include detainee misconduct, threats of self-harm by the detainees, and suicide attempts of the prisoners. It is suggested that the U.S. government's collection of data does not reveal the full behavior of the detainees.

The article presents a reprint of the article "No-Hearing Hearings: An Analysis of the Proceedings of the Combatant Status Review Tribunals at Guantánamo," published in November of 2006. Topics include the creation Combatant Status Review Tribunals by the U.S. Department of Defense, the legal representation for prisoners at the tribunals, and evidence used in the tribunals.

The article presents a reprint of the "Report on Guantánamo Detainees: A Profile of 517 Detainees Through Analysis of Department of Defense Data," published in February of 2006. Topics include the military tribunals at the camp, the research of the U.S. government about designation of prisoners as "enemy combatants," and classification of prisoners as enemy combatants in relation to terrorism.

We studied the alluvial histories of eight small (<40 km2) watersheds in the uplands of northeastern New Mexico. The data come from radiocarbon-dated sections exposed in the banks of arroyos and permanent-channel streams. Results show that nine periods of valley aggradation separated by incision episodes occurred over the past 12,000 14C yr. These millennial-scale cycles occurred in rough synchrony within different drainages. Parts of some cycles coincided with well-known climatic fluctuations. For example, aggradation occurred during the Younger Dryas chronozone, 11,000–10,000 14C yr B.P., and valley fills persisted in incised states during the early Holocene peak in Milanko-vitch summer insolation. Incision occurred early in the Medieval Warm Period (ca. A. D. 1000–1300), aggradation during the Little Ice Age (A.D. 1300–1880), and incision during the last century. Changes in precipitation tied to the strength of the North American Monsoon system probably drive these cycles of aggradation and incision: when the system is strong, more frequent summer thunderstorms cause increased flooding in these small watersheds. Wetter summers over periods of decades to centuries allow forest vegetation to spread, which reduces sediment input from hillslopes at the same time floods are eroding valley fills. Aggradation of valley fills probably occurs when summer thunderstorms are less frequent, and large floods are correspondingly rare. Prolonged summer drought reduces forest cover, which increases erosion from slopes and causes sediment to accumulate in valleys. In turn, the strength of the North American Monsoon system is probably controlled by fluctuating sea-surface temperatures. The geomorphic cycles we describe may reflect a previously unrecognized, millennial-scale climate oscillation that is important in shaping the landscapes of the southern Great Plains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Oil stranded as a result of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill has persisted for >10years at study sites on Gulf of Alaska shores distant from the spill’s origin. These sites were contaminated by “oil mousse”, which persists in these settings due to armoring of underlying sediments and their included oil beneath boulders. The boulder-armored beaches that we resampled in 1999 showed continued contamination by subsurface oil, despite their exposure to moderate to high wave energies. Significant declines in surface oil cover occurred at all study sites. In contrast, mousse has persisted under boulders in amounts similar to what was present in 1994 and probably in 1989. Especially striking is the general lack of weathering of this subsurface oil over the last decade. Oil at five of the six armored-beach sites 10years after the spill is compositionally similar to 11-day old Exxon Valdez oil. Analysis of movements in the boulder-armor that covers the study beaches reveals that only minor shifts have occurred since 1994, suggesting that over the last five, and probably over the last 10years, boulder-armors have remained largely unmoved at the study sites. These findings emphasize the importance of particular geomorphic parameters in determining stranded oil persistence. Surface armoring, combined with stranding of oil mousse, results in the unexpectedly lengthy persistence of only lightly to moderately weathered oil within otherwise high-energy wave environments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Intensive Paleoindian occupation of the Mesa site occurred between 10,300 and 9700 [sup 14]C yr B.P. Was the timing of this occupation controlled by environmental changes? We investigated stratigraphic records of geomorphology and vegetation to describe how landscapes in the Arctic Foothills changed between 13,000 and 8000 [sup 14]C yr B.P. Paleoindians were present during a time of rapid and sweeping changes in vegetation, slope erosion, floodplain dynamics, permafrost stability, and soil type. We speculate that Paleoindians moved into arctic Alaska to exploit population highs in large ungulates that in turn were triggered by landscape-scale, geomorphic disturbances caused by climate changes. Environmental changes slowed and rising sea levels flooded Alaska's continental shelves during the Early Holocene, causing summer temperatures to fall and precipitation to increase. A more stable climate and the prevalence of maritime air masses allowed the spread of tussock-tundra vegetation, which probably drove both the Paleoindians and their prey species out of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies the holocene geology and climatic history around the Gulf of Alaska. Boundaries of the Gulf; Climatic history; Evidences from palynology, glacial geology and tree rings; Effects of climatic change on salmon; Effect of sea level change; Role of earthquakes on the instantaneous changes in sea level; Occurrence of tsunamis; Volcanoes along the gulf area.

Examines the sea level dynamics, glaciers, and archaeology along the Gulf of Alaska coast. Impact of sea level dynamics and glaciers on the preservation of archaeological records; Implications for modeling the paleodemography of prehistoric hunter-gatherer populations; Studies of cultural and geographical histories within the subregions of the Gulf.