In this paper, first, recent trends of Quaternary studies in New Zealand and their background are briefly reviewed. New Zealand is characterized as a mobile belt since Neogene and the present rugged landscape has been produced under the influence of the active tectonic movements which have continued to the Recent. Volcanic activities and repeated severe glaciations have also produced their peculiar topographies and sediments, and supplied abundant airfall deposits as volcanic ash and loess which were very useful as key beds for Quaternary chronology. Fig. 1 shows the principal influences on sedimentation during the Quaternary, and post-glacial tectonic regimes after SUGGATE, 1973 and LENSEN, 1975. (A: coastline mainly influenced by eustatic sea level changes, B: individual volcanic centres, C: Taupo volcanic zone, D: main areas of early Quaternary subsidence, E: glaciated areas, F: shoreline in the late Otira glacial, G: principal axes of orogenic uplift). Reflecting such an environments, special attention seems to have been paid to studies on the neotectonics, especially on active faults, tephrochronology and paleoenvironments including paleopedology, paleoclimatology, palynology and glacial chronology as represented in Table 1.
The main part of this paper deals with the review of studies of sea-level records during the late Quaternary, with regard to the mode and rate of deformation and sea-level changes. Fig. 2 summarizes the height distribution of the last interglacial shorelines and their tectonic significance, after SCHOFIELD and SUGGATE, 1971, and other data. Figs. 3A-C show detailed data of the former shorelines after CHAPPELL, 1975, OTA, 1977 and SUGGATE, 1973. From these figures, remarkable differential uplift can be recognized, especially in the North Island. In the Bay of Plenty and Wellington areas (Figs. 3A, B-1 and B-2), progressive deformation during the late Quaternary is clearly noticed. Maximum rate of uplift reaches to approximately 1m/1, 000 years. Height data of a series of raised beach ridges on the southern tip of the North Island led to the detection of the rate of uplift and tilting due to active folding in the Holocene as shown in Fig. 4 and Table 2 (WELLMAN, 1967 and others). Maximum uplift rate in the Holocene is 4m/1, 000 years, which suggests an accelerated uplift in the Holocene compared to that in the late Quaternary.
The amount of uplift in the South Island is not so great as in the North Island, and the mode of deformation in the post-glacial seems to be different from that of the older ones.
The New Zealand sea-level curve during the last 10, 000 years is shown in Fig. 5. Maximum post-glacial sea-level of a little over 2m dated at about 4, 000 y. B. P. is inferred by SCHOFIELD and SUGGATE. Some other problems concerning the study of the former shoreline are also reviewed and discussed in this paper.

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Few regions are better suited to glacial chronology and related studies than Southern Chile and New Zealand because of their wealthy occurrence of glacial deposits, marine terraces, tephras, loess deposits and associated materials available for chronological study. This paper gives a short review of problems in these regions that are closely related to the studies of the Japanese Quaternary.
The fluctuations in the Chilean piedmont glaciers during the Last Major Glaciation seem to have kept closely in step with those of the New Zealand glaciers. Two major periods of glacial advance are simultaneously recorded in both regions. In the early stade, glaciers reached their maximum extent mostly before 45, 000 YBP, although the exact ages have not yet been determined. After a long interstade with intercalations representing a minor readvance, the late stade followed, to be ended by a readvance culminating at about 20, 000 YBP. The fact that the maximum advance of glaciers in both regions occurred in the early stade of the last Glaciation probably resulting in maximum lowering of the sea level, should be significant for interpreting the following topics of Late Quaternary in Japan: 1) Occurrence of the older moraines at somewhat lower altitudes than the younger ones at several places in the Japanese high mountains. 2) Formation of a land bridge between the Japanese islands and the continent more than 30, 000 years ago estimated from archeological data.
Climatically-controlled terraces are clearly defined in the high latitudes of each region where fluctuations in the glaciers greatly affected the river regimes. In contrast, it is suggested that river terraces of climatogenic origin decrease in occurrence in the relatively lower latitudes since Japan lacked any extensive cover of glaciers in the Ice Ages.
Tephrochronology plays an important role in Quaternay studies both in the North Island of New Zealand and in Southern Chile. The widespread Late Quaternary tephras of New Zealand are mostly rhyolitic in composition, but those of Chile are less numerous due to the broad development of andesitic or basaltic types.

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The Quaternary researches in the Antarctic region are reviewed, not critically but rather introductorily, with emphasis on the fluctuation of the ice sheet. In the McMurdo Sound region, where the largest ice-free area in Antarctica offers an important field to students of earth sciences, the chronology of interaction among the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, the Ross Ice Shelf and independent alpine glaciers seems to have been established. However, recently distinguished marine sediments in the dry valleys would open the new stage for the re-evaluation of glacial events in the region. On the other hand, glacial history in other regions of Antarctica was based on relative chronology. Almost all the correlations are tentative. The problem of disintegration of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet during the interglacials and the post glacial of the Northern Hemisphere is probably another focus of discussion. The Hollin's hypothesis that the waxing and waning of the ice sheet is controlled primarily by the eustatic change in sea level should be prudently applied to the East Antarctic Ice Sheet.

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In and around the Kendeng Hills, Central and East Java, many sites of hominid-fossils have been found since the discovery of Pithecanthropus erectus by DUBOIS (Fig. 1, 2). Among these, the sites in Trinil, Modjokerto and Sangiran areas are very famous as representative ones.
1. The Pliocene-Pleistocene sediments in the afore-said areas are divided into Kalibeng Formation, Putjangan Formation, Kabuh Formation and Notopuro Formation in ascending order. However, the hominid-fossils have occurred only in Putjangan Formation (early Pleistocene) and Kabuh Formation (middle Pleistocene) (Fig. 3-5).
2. These hominid-fossils can be subdivided into the newer and smaller type (Pithecanthropus erectus) and the older and larger type. The former includes P. a and P. I-III, while the latter, which includes Homo modjokertensis, P. b, P. IV, P. dubius and Meganthropus palaeojavanicus, is similar to Homo habilis found from Africa.
3. K-Ar ages of Putjangan Formation and Kabu Formation show 1.9±0.4m.y. and 0.7 to 0.5m.y. respectively.
4. The Indonesian-Japanese cooperative project on hominid-fossil beds in Central and East Java was started in 1976. The result of this project will be published by Geological Survey of Indonesia.

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In this article, the recent investigations on the Siwaliks are briefly reviewed. As to the Plio-Pleistocene boundary in the Siwaliks, especially the stratigraphical and paleontological relations between the Pinjor and Tatrot, is discussed. On the basis of geological and paleontological survey in the area of East of Chandigarh, Punjab, N. W. India, the author correlated Pinjor with Upper Villafranchian of southern Europe, and set the base of Pleistocene to the lowermost red clay of Pinjor. In this connection, some works on the Karewas of Kashimir are referred. From this view point, it may be possible to say that the zone 1 of the Lower Karewas is equivalent to the Pinjor of the Siwaliks. In order to promote the study on the Siwaliks, the author emphasizes that the synthetic study by stratigraphy, sedimentology, paleontology, geomorphology, paleomagnetism, anthropology, archeology and biology is very important and is requested.

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The recommendations of the commission appointed to advice on the definition on the Pliocene- Pleistocene boundary at the 18th International Geological Congress held in London, 1949, are thought to have been accepted generally as a current resolution of the problem. However, some revision shall be made on the recommendations on account of progress in stratigraphy. Among the significant knowledges obtained after the 18th IGC, 1948, are as follows.
1) The Calabrian formation is much older than the glacial Pleistocene. 2) The Villafranchian is lower than the Calabrian. 3) No remarkable world-wide change in evolution, climate, water temperature, or vegetation occurred at the beginning of the Pleistocene as compared with other events during the Pliocene and Pleistocene. 4) Many fossil hominids have been found from the Lower Pleistocene and below at various localities including the Olduvai Gorge, where the lowest horizon of hominid corresponds to the Olduvai Event in magnetic polarity chronology. 5) Combined bio- and magnetostratigraphic method is widely applied to sedimentary sections, in which the evolutional appearance of Globorotalia truncatulinoidesfrom G. tosaensis was found in or near the correlative with the Olduvai Event, though the horizon varies locally.
On the other hand, in the stratigraphic classification, more importance has been attached to the boundaries than the characteristics of the main part of the unit, and distinction of the Pleistocene from the Pliocene implies to define the boundary between them at the type locality. Perhaps the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary stratotype finds universal approval when it is designated in the classical area of Calabria, southern Italy. If the stratotype is appropriately designated in a well studied section, precise correlation of the boundary is possible applying the modern methods of stratigraphy. Early designation of the boundary between the Pliocene and Pleistocene is desirable. Of the present state of the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary problem it may be said that the designation of the stratotype has been long awaited.

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