Minimum numbers: a consideration

This paper evaluates the various methods used to determine the numbers of individual animals from the numbers of bone fragments found in archaeological sites. It concludes that there is no single “best” method, since the one that is chosen depends upon the result that is desired, and on the particular features of the site and excavation.     

Rome rainfall and sunspot numbers

The accumulated departure from mean (ADM) of the 208 yr Rome rainfall strongly inversely resembles the ADM of sunspot numbers. The ADM for the Bay of Biscay sea surface temperature also strongly resembles sunspot numbers and Rome rainfall. These data suggest that long-term increasing solar radiation warms parts of the North Atlantic Ocean, which in turn affects the fall and winter storm paths resulting in lower rainfall in Rome and conversely, decreasing solar radiation produces the opposite effect. The accumulated departure from mean (ADM) plotting method is used to compare different records of the same length.     

在旅行社和《纵览》之间 以职业的敬意和力量,牵手!

<正>国际上一般认为,旅行社是为旅游者的旅行和游览提供有关服务的企业。在中国,1985年5月11日国务院发布的《旅行社管理暂行条例》第二条中定义:     

Considerations of minimum numbers: a response to Horton

This paper discusses a recent evaluation of bone assemblage quantification methods based in large part upon a critique of our own published work. We aim to show that the critique reveals a misunderstanding of our proposals and of the aims of quantification techniques in this field.     

明清转边手卷镶接工艺探究——以《明仿米芾行书明道观壁记卷》为例

手卷是最早出现的中国传统装裱形式,在历经从晋至清的千余年发展后,形成了撞边手卷、套边手卷和转边手卷三种经典样式,其中转边手卷又可分为挖嵌式与镶接式两种工艺。流传至今的清代至民国时期的转边手卷大多为更节省绢料的镶接式装裱工艺,但此工艺复杂繁琐、技术难度较大,到了当代,有所式微,面临失传的境地。本研究主要以上海博物馆藏《明仿米芾行书明道观壁记卷》转边手卷的修复重裱为例,叙述对原装裱用料、配色、镶接工艺等的研究,以及原尺寸恢复其原本镶接式转边手卷的过程,旨在为古人优秀传统技艺的研究、保护和传承提供一定的参考。     

敦煌、居延汉简中的数词和数量表示法

本文主要以敦煌、居延汉简中的数词和数量表示法为研究对象,归纳分析了敦煌、居延汉简中的数词和数量表示法的种类和各自的使用特点。在敦煌、居延汉简中已经出现了发、下和通三个动量词。这表明动量词出现的时代应是两汉时期,而非传统观点所认为的魏晋南北朝时期。     

The politics of numbers: explaining recent challenges at the Australian Bureau of Statistics

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has experienced several significant challenges in recent years, including a declining operating budget, criticisms of its technical capability and concerns about political interference. In-depth interviews were conducted with senior ABS and Treasury Department officials to obtain their perspectives on the causes of the agency’s difficulties. Interview data were interpreted using frameworks from the political science literature on delegation, including the principal-agent paradigm, models of bureaucratic strategy and the public service bargains approach. The study finds that the principal-agent perspective does not help to explain the ABS’s difficulties, but that problems of administrative strategy and tacit bargains between the government and the ABS have contributed significantly to the agency’s challenges. The findings provide insights into the politics of official statistics, and shed light on the evolving role and status of expertise in Australian politics and government.     

Early fetal maturity assessed from patterns of ossification in the hand and foot

The assessment of fetal age at death is fraught with many complications and often the determination of the maturity of the fetus is a more realistic solution to the question of fetal viability. This study examines the pattern of appearance of primary centres of ossification in the fetal hand and foot, in an attempt to construct a maturity continuum. The results show that completion of ossification in the hand precedes that in the foot and generally occurs in a more regular pattern. The method proves useful at assessing fetal maturity between the third and tenth months of intra-uterine life. In addition, the relationship to other major centres of ossification is considered.     

Jobs,crime, proximity and boats: explaining Australian public attitudes to immigrant numbers

Despite the importance of immigration to Australia, there is little systematic research on the causes of support among Australian citizens for increased, stable or decreased immigration. This paper advances our understanding of Australian public attitudes to immigration levels in the light of the established international literature on public opinion and immigration. Using 2013 Australian Electoral Study (AES) data, we show that, as in other countries, Australian citizens’ attitudes to immigrant numbers are partly driven by a combination of sociotropic economic considerations and perceptions of the socio-cultural impact of immigrants. In addition, we argue that political mobilisation has an impact on attitudes toward immigration that has not received sufficient attention. We demonstrate that citizens who accepted the Coalition's rhetoric on asylum seeker arrivals were more likely to want overall immigrant numbers reduced. Finally, we combine the individual level AES data with electoral district level data to test the impact of contact with immigrants on attitudes to immigrant numbers. Australians living in electoral districts with higher percentages of non-white immigrants are more likely to want lower immigrant numbers than those living in districts with fewer non-white immigrants.     

从历代目录看《寒山诗》的流传

本主要通过唐、宋、元、明、清的历代目录以及外国目录中的录,探究《寒山诗》版本流传的详细情况。     

The chronology of epiphyseal union in the hand and foot from dry bone observations

Dry bone data for epiphyseal union at the hand and foot are scarce, incomplete or inexistent. This study documents the timing of fusion of secondary ossification centres at the hand and foot in a sample of known‐age human skeletons. The sample comprises 92 individuals (49 females and 43 males), between the ages of 9 and 22 years, from the identified skeletal collection curated at the National Museum of Natural History in Lisbon, Portugal. Epiphyseal union was recorded on the right and left side at the long bones of the hand (metacarpus and phalanges) and foot (metatarsus and phalanges), and also at the talus and calcaneus, using a three stage scheme (non‐fused; partially fused and completely fused). In the hand, intra‐observer agreement was 99% and inter‐observer agreement was 98%. In the foot, both intra‐ and inter‐observer agreement reached 100%. Lateral asymmetry was not significant and only 1.1% of the individuals in the sample were found to be asymmetric in the stage of epiphyseal fusion (1.8% in the hand and 0.3% in the foot). A minimum mean advancement of 1–2 years in females relative to males was observed. In the hand bones, epiphyseal union occurred between 12–18 years in females and 16–18 years in males. Comparatively, in the foot bones, epiphyseal union occurred slightly later, with the exception of the talus and calcaneus, which are the earliest bones to mature. Data in this study can be used to estimate the age of unidentified skeletal remains, either directly or by aiding in the modification of incomplete or imprecise data that have been collected over the years. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Defining maritime boundaries: 'the murky hand of history's oversight' in the Gulf of Maine

In this paper, an unresolved boundary dispute in the Gulf of Maine, between the United States and Canada, in an area known as the Grey Zone is examined. In the context of a juridically weak framework of principles for determining international maritime boundaries, the case of a small fishing community caught between conflicting national interests and a lucrative fishing zone being claimed by both countries is examined. Left unresolved with the 1984 International Court of Justice decision defining the 'Hague Line', this dispute is made more problematic because of ambiguous objectives and conflicting agendas between national governments, between state and community levels and within the community itself.     

The use of large numbers of variables to measure the shape of a restricted area of bone

A series of 28 “depth” measurements, from a fixed plane to a bone surface (the frontal bone of the human skull), is presumed to contain information about shape. Data are presented for three groups of skulls and a few problematic single ones. A simple method for reducing the 28 measurements to a few shape contrasts is described. Reasons why the data are unsuitable for a canonical analysis are discussed and possible problems arising from the uncritical use of canonical analysis in general are pointed out. Some general comments are made as to the relative morphological affinities of the comparative groups selected, and especially the single more controversial specimens.