Social Boundaries and Networks in the Diffusion of Innovations: a Short Introduction

This short introduction briefly recalls how sociological theories and formal methods for social networks can help to interpret diffusion processes of ancient cultural traits. It also provides a presentation of the selected papers. These papers focus not on the ways archaeological data can be represented in a relational format, but on the potential of specific sociological network-related models to gain insights into the underlying mechanisms of diffusion processes. The necessity to develop more fine-grained information to reconstruct ancient local social networks is underlined while three aspects of the diffusion process are explored: (a) situations in which cultural practices are not borrowed in spite of contact between groups; (b) situations in which cultural practices are adopted; and (c) situations in which cultural practices in one group are copied by people from another group. All of them take inspiration from sociological studies of diffusion processes through networks, although to different extents.     

移民外来文化的土著化过程--以西南三线厂的"厂文化"为例

由于三线工厂的建设而产生的以人口大规模迁移为基本特征的化传播与化改造,是移民外来化逐步土化过程的一个重要例证。“厂化”具有以下三个方面的特点：化孤岛特征;厂际化差异;厂内化差异。从“厂化”的特点可以看出“厂化”的发展趋势必然是最终完成土化。虽然“化惯性”的存在在一定程度上延缓了土化的过程,但代际之间的寅化遗失和在交流中出现的化趋同所形成的合力决定了这一结果不可逆转。     

Diversity in hunter–gatherer technological traditions: Mapping trajectories of cultural ‘descent with modification’ in northeast California

Recent work has demonstrated that technological traditions can be considered as systems of information transmission that operate on the principle of ‘descent with modification’. In this paper we present an ethno-historical case-study of northeast Californian hunter–fisher–gatherers. Our goal is to understand the factors generating long-term diversity in local material culture, and we begin by investigating the extent to which branching and reticulation explain variation in four distinct technological traditions – basketry, cradles, ceremonial dress and earth-lodges. We then examine whether these four traditions have been transmitted in tandem, or are characterized by entirely different descent histories. The results for this particular case-study suggest that the first three traditions have been closely associated during branching descent, while the earth-lodges appear to have entirely distinct transmission histories. The general analytical framework presented in this paper is readily exportable to other world regions, where local case-studies may generate contrasting insights into historically-contingent patterns of cultural inheritance. Further studies examining potential co-transmission of technological traditions are strongly encouraged as a welcome addition to the cultural transmission literature.     

Design Space and Cultural Transmission: Case Studies from Paleoindian Eastern North America

Tool design is a cultural trait—a term long used in anthropology as a unit of transmittable information that encodes particular behavioral characteristics of individuals or groups. After they are transmitted, cultural traits serve as units of replication in that they can be modified as part of a cultural repertoire through processes such as recombination, loss, or partial alteration. Artifacts and other components of the archaeological record serve as proxies for studying the transmission (and modification) of cultural traits, provided there is analytical clarity in defining and measuring whatever it is that is being transmitted. Our interest here is in tool design, and we illustrate how to create analytical units that allow us to map tool-design space and to begin to understand how that space was used at different points in time. We first introduce the concept of fitness landscape and impose a model of cultural learning over it, then turn to four methods that are useful for the analysis of design space: paradigmatic classification, phylogenetic analysis, distance graphs, and geometric morphometrics. Each method builds on the others in logical fashion, which allows creation of testable hypotheses concerning cultural transmission and the evolutionary processes that shape it, including invention (mutation), selection, and drift. For examples, we turn to several case studies that focus on Early Paleoindian–period projectile points from eastern North America, the earliest widespread and currently recognizable remains of hunter–gatherers in late Pleistocene North America.     

关于青铜文物深层有害锈形成与转化的分析研究

为了长久保存馆藏青铜文物,有效转化深层有害锈氯化亚铜,以仿古青铜试样为对象,应用循环伏安法、恒电位极化法等电化学实验来研究青铜在模拟中性土壤介质溶液中的电化学行为,应用X-射线衍射(XRD)、共聚焦激光Raman显微分析检测其腐蚀产物的主要物相。结果表明,氧化过程是生成有害锈氯化亚铜的反应,还原过程是氯化亚铜还原成铜的反应。运用扫描电子显微镜和能谱仪(SEM-EDS)进行形貌观察和微区腐蚀产物成分分析。对氯化亚铜在不同湿度环境下的变化进行了跟踪观察。由此,为除去青铜文物深层有害锈氯化亚铜所做的一系列探讨将在博物馆藏品保护方面具有一定应用价值。     

博物馆经典藏品资源的文创产品开发——以曾侯乙编钟文创系列产品的开发为例

对博物馆经典藏品进行复制,或者萃取其文化元素开发衍生产品,一直为博物馆所重视。这类复制品从传播效应、经济效应、市场价值、文化价值和创意内涵诸方面都体现出"文创产品"的性质,应该纳入"文创产品"市场予以定位、规划。湖北省博物馆对馆藏经典藏品曾侯乙编钟开发了七大类百余个品种的文创系列产品,它们既体现了藏品原型的价值和精髓,也具有保护、研究和实用价值。目前我国博物馆文创事业还需要在经典藏品资源的研究、市场研发人才的培养、衍生品系列的完善、跨界同质资源的整合以及复制品制作单位资质的把控等方面加大推进的步伐。     

多元场和集群创新：河南省神垕钧瓷文化创意产业的案例分析

通过考察多元场对钧瓷文化创意产业知识创造、流动及学习创新的影响发现：①场为主体的地理、社会及文化认知等临近等提供了条件,有助于经验意会及符号知识的获得、共享与传播,有利于思想的交流碰撞及创意萌生;②生产现场、地方关系场、地方社会场与临时性场在钧瓷的学习创新中发挥着不同而又相互补充的作用。生产场推动着集群知识积累和增进,地方关系场促进了行业知识、生产经验及家族核心知识的传播传承,地方社会场形成了地方共享知识信息,而临时场建立起外部通道联系,发挥着更新地方知识库的作用;③地方性的历史文化资源与传统以及地理-社会-文化等临近造就了外围地区文化创意经济的动力,但若未来本地知识更新的机制不够强大,则易产生发展锁定,这是需要未来引起关注的问题。     

新津观音寺明代壁画图像的计算机自动虚拟修复研究

文物领域利用数字化文物通过网络媒介传播文物信息已经成为一种文物交流的新趋势。如何更好地利用采集的文物数字化档案,发挥数字文物的作用是进行文物数字化的最终目的。为此,针对新津观音寺明代壁画各种病害造成的不同程度的缺损状况,利用数字图像修复技术对其进行了计算机自动虚拟修复研究。研究表明,Criminisi基于样本的图像修复算法可利用图像小波域的小波系数优化因子,保证算法对不同纹理程度的图像采用适当的优化因子值以实现修复策略的调整,其采样的"素材"同实际壁画修复一样来自于画面已知区域,在观音寺壁画数字图像上有较好的虚拟修复效果。     

旅游客体真实性与主体真实性集合式关系探讨——以文化遗产故宫为例

本文基于旅游真实性学说并借鉴数学集合思想构建文化遗产旅游客体真实性与主体真实性的集合式关系。文章首先基于研究载体将传统真实性学说纳入三种类别,在此基础上抽离出"主体真实性"和"客体真实性"并构建两者的集合式关系。为论证理论假设内容本文对故宫游客进行了问卷调查。结论如下:运用集合式关系揭示主、客体真实性的内在联系具有合理性;集合式关系存在逐级演进的五种类型并进一步分为主要关系和次要关系;游客真实体验度处于较高层次并与集合式关系相契合;最后基于集合式关系提出文化遗产新的开发思路。     

The Role of Nondeclarative Memory Systems in the Inference of Long-Term Population Continuity

Recent theoretical work on the transmission of cultural behavior has focused on how and why information is transmitted. Less work has been done on the particular behaviors being transmitted. Here, I argue that the kind of behavior being transmitted can have a greater effect on the conservation of behavior than how or why the behavior was transmitted. Specifically, behaviors such as motor skills and habits, which are stored in nondeclarative memory, are more likely to be conservatively maintained over longer periods of time than declarative memories, which include easily changeable ideas and plans. Thus, behaviors, as manifested in artifact traits, are more or less likely to be maintained over time depending on where in the memory systems they are remembered. In sum, not all artifact traits have equivalent value when interpreting the spatial and temporal distribution of artifact traits.     

Optical Coherence Tomography for the non-invasive investigation of the microstructure of ancient Egyptian faience

Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive subsurface 3D imaging technique based on the Michelson interferometer. The non-invasive nature of OCT and its speed of acquisition makes it possible to image large volumes of intact objects to yield a complete overview of the microstructure. The production methods for ancient Egyptian faience were first investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging of the microstructure in polished sections and microprobe analysis of the composition of the glass phases. These studies were based on original Egyptian faience objects and laboratory reproductions of faience beads made using three different production methods. The microstructure of the same laboratory samples and the Egyptian faience objects from the British Museum Research Laboratory Collection are re-examined using OCT. It is found that OCT virtual cross-section images can be used to group ancient faience objects into three categories on the basis of the morphology of the surface glaze layer and the glaze/core interaction layer. The OCT images correspond well with SEM images of polished sections of ancient faience objects and laboratory reproductions. The virtual cross-sections produced by OCT are somewhat limited by the penetration depth, which is affected by the high absorption coefficient of the material and, therefore, cannot always provide information on the presence or absence of interparticle glass that binds together the quartz particles in the core. Nevertheless, the top two layers are well imaged and since OCT images can be obtained rapidly and without the necessity of removing a sample, the method can be applied to a very much wider range of ancient faience objects than is possible by SEM examination of polished cross-sections. In summary, this paper examines to what extent OCT can assist the investigation of the production techniques of ancient Egyptian faience.     

Understanding ethnic differences in perceptions,attitudes, and behaviours: a study of domestic water use in Sydney

There is growing realisation among environmental and social studies researchers that people's decision‐making about water use conforms to their internal norms and beliefs, which are developed in social and cultural contexts. Little research, however, has addressed the possible impacts that ethnic and cultural diversity may have on domestic water use and management. This paper presents the results of a study conducted in Sydney, with specific reference to questionnaire findings. Among respondents from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, significant differences were observed in terms of perceptions, specific knowledge, attitudes, and self‐reported behaviours in relation to water use and conservation. The disparities identified were not masking socio‐demographic and economic characteristics but were the result of a series of constructs closely tied to ethnicity, including cultural value, environmental experience, language preference, and information access. As a factor explaining variation in the engagement of pro‐conservation behaviour, ethnic status was found to be more useful than some socio‐economic factors. The study highlights the importance of including ethnicity and cultural sensitivity issues in the decision‐making process of environmental management.     

新型文物封护保护材料氟橡胶耐紫外性能研究

封护措施对文物保护修复具有重要的意义,封护保护能有效阻隔环境因素(水分、氧气、空气污染物)对文物的影响,提高文物的耐腐蚀性。目前丙烯酸树脂B72和有机硅在文物封护领域应用较多,它们对于馆藏文物的保护有显著的效果,但它们的耐紫外性能不佳,不能很好地满足户外文物长期保护的要求。近年来氟碳材料由于具有优异的耐候性和耐老化性,已逐渐受到文物保护工作者的重视,本工作选择了一种新型氟碳材料F2311型氟橡胶作为研究对象,近年来已有将氟橡胶应用于金属文物、陶器、彩绘、壁画等文物封护保护的报道,但报道多侧重于应用,未见从理论方面验证或考察氟橡胶保护效果的研究。为了研究氟橡胶的耐老化性和在文物封护领域的适用性,本工作选用了丙烯酸树脂B72和2种有机硅涂料(分别为正硅酸乙酯和工业成品KSE-OH300)作为性能对比研究,通过紫外加速老化实验对它们进行了长期老化测试,利用红外、接触角、色差仪进行了结构和性能表征。结果表明:1)新型氟碳材料氟橡胶具有较优的紫外线耐受性,其在长期的紫外照射作用下颜色、结构和疏水性能均未发生明显变化,推测氟橡胶能够长期用于文物户外或户内封护保护,特别是针对处于复杂存储环境的文物保护有广阔的应用前景;2)B72在紫外照射下会发生氧化降解行为,红外证明这种降解反应在紫外照射初期就开始发生了,B72在紫外光下氧化降解导致封护膜发生黄变,在文物表面造成色差,推测B72不适用于户外文物的长期封护保护;3)2种有机硅类材料成膜后疏水性能一般,且在紫外辐射下结构趋于不稳定,外观也会发生黄变,推测这2种有机硅同样不适用于户外文物的长期封护保护。本工作通过评估材料的耐紫外性能来考察它们的耐老化性和在文物封护领域的适用性,研究结果表明新型氟碳材料氟橡胶与B72和2种有机硅相比,具有更优的紫外线耐受性,该考察结果可为文物封护材料的选择提供参考。     

CULTURAL IDENTITY AND KNOWLEDGE CREATION IN COSMOPOLITAN CITIES*

ABSTRACT We study how the city system is affected by the possibility for the members of the same cultural diaspora to interact across different cities. In so doing, we propose a simple two‐city model with two mobile cultural groups. A localized externality fosters the productivity of individuals when groups interact in a city. At the same time, such interaction dilutes cultural identities and reduces the consumption of culture‐specific goods and services. We show that the two groups segregate in different cities when diaspora members find it hard to communicate at distance whereas they integrate in multicultural cities when communication is easy. The model generates situations in which segregation is an equilibrium but is Pareto dominated by integration.     

CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS OF SPONSORSHIP IN THE ARTS

This article investigates consumers’ perceptions of three types of sponsors that play a role in backing financially Canadian artistic and cultural organisations: government ministries (or departments), Crown corporations and private companies. In addition to the type of sponsor and the nature of the sponsorship (philanthropic or commercial), the perceived congruence between the sponsor and the sponsored event (strong as opposed to weak), and the form of arts and cultural events (high art versus popular art and performing arts versus heritage arts) are explored in an experimental setting combining within‐subjects and between‐subjects factors. The main hypothesis of this research was that consumers’ perceptions are not the same when it comes to the different kinds of sponsors that evolve in the cultural and art fields. As the researchers explored this issue, they observed that significant differences do exist. It is believed that the rich findings of this study will be useful to civil servants.     

Dia Shoma (Mali), a medieval cemetery in the inner Niger delta

The aim of this paper is to compare burial typology from Dia Shoma medieval cemetery (Mali) with previously documented funerary practices of the inner Niger delta in order to expand our knowledge of the mortuary rituals once practised in this region. Considering archaeological resources from an anthropological viewpoint provides us with new information about human migration, settlement, cultural affiliation and way of life. From this point of view, especially for the period between 800 and 1000 AD, Dia Shoma offers much insight into the history of this cultural melting pot. Dia Shoma is of particular interest in regards to migration in the Western Sahara region. The burials of Dia Shoma have been characterized by morphometrical features as well as associated funeral practices. The different types of burials that coexist at Dia Shoma indicate a region of cultural diversity. Along with the existence of different kinds of tombs, an increase in various archaeological remains lends evidence towards a community co‐occupied by herders, fishermen and farmers. The change in the association of funerary practices around 1000 AD could be interpreted as an indirect disturbance to the former socio‐economic trade and cultural exchange, possibly triggered by the fall of the Empire of Ghana under the influence of the Almoravides. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Found in translation

This review considers new work on translation, cultural interpretation, and cross-cultural comparison, all three terms suggesting different but related approaches to the central problem of sociocultural anthropology, that of understanding human meaning-making. Translating Worlds brings together ten authors who take language translation as a paradigmatic example of cultural translation within and across different kinds of linguistic and social boundaries. The Chimera Principle is a historically and ethnographically grounded study of Amerindian pictographies, focusing on cultural translation across media and on the uses of different media in ritual.     

Information obtained from the microscopic examination of cultural striations in human dentition

The surfaces of teeth from some fossil remains and archaeological samples have been examined by SEM, in order to study different types of cultural striations and to determine the archaeological information that these striations can provide. Different patterns of cultural striations are present in human samples from different sites and periods. Similar cultural striations can be interpreted in different ways, depending on the tooth in which they are present, their location in the tooth and their direction, regularity, number and width. The study of cultural striations can yield valuable information about different aspects of feeding behaviour, oral hygiene, patterns of cultural diffusion and manipulative work with teeth of past human groups. A close integration with other anthropological and archaeological data is needed and specific interpretations should be made in each case.     

透光摄影在古书画修复与研究中的应用

透光摄影由常规可见光摄影发展而来，是针对中国古书画等能被可见光穿透的文物开发的一项无损摄影检测技术。通过实践发现透光摄影在古书画的修复与研究领域具有多项作用：观察书画命纸、背纸拼接等装裱情况；发现前人加固、补缀等修复痕迹；获取画面底稿内容；强化伤况视觉效果以便于分析文物伤况病害。透光摄影能够提供直观可靠的深层视觉信息，辅助修复人员了解文物内部状态，在古书画的修复与研究中发挥重要作用。     

一个展览和一个时代——“明永乐宣德文物特展”设计综述

"明永乐宣德文物特展"是一个全面展现明早期艺术的综合性文物大展。展览的最终目的是要激发大众对传统艺术的兴趣,令其得到文化的熏陶与艺术的启迪,因此,展览陈列设计所要考虑的是一个多层次的体系。首先提炼装饰元素作为视觉主题,将艺术品的美感尽可能展现给观众,同时还要向观者传递时代背景、皇帝的思想境界等信息。此外,设计者还精心挑选不同的装饰材料以营造新颖的展示环境,达到衬托文物高超工艺水平的目的。