A Statistical Method for Analyzing the Relative Location of Points in a Bounded Region

This paper develops a statistical method for analyzing the relative location of points in a bounded region. The location of points in relation to the center of the region in which they are located is discussed. Four spatial objects called reference objects are defined to represent the relative location: (1) the boundary, (2) skeleton, (3) nucleus, and (4) global center. The distribution of distance between points and a reference object yields a cumulative distribution function (CDF). Comparison of CDFs for a reference object allows us to analyze whether the points tend to be located close to the reference object or, for instance, whether the points are clustered around the center of the region. The significance of the CDF is statistically tested by Monte Carlo simulation. The method proposed is applied to the distribution of restaurants in retail clusters.     

Rocking Behavior of Irregular Free-Standing Objects Subjected to Earthquake Motion

Free-standing rigid objects and structures are dominantly found to exhibit rocking behavior and can be vulnerable to overturning during an earthquake as demonstrated by numerous past earthquake events. Such objects are typically considered to be displacement sensitive with their rocking response being well presented by the Peak Displacement Demand (PDD) parameter of the supporting floor’s motion. This in turn can be directly related to an object’s width (along the direction of motion) for assessing its vulnerability to overturn. Such findings have been sufficiently justified by refined dynamic analysis supported by experimental evaluations which were based on rigid blocks with uniform geometric format (i.e., regular in their mass distribution). However, vulnerable rocking objects can be asymmetric and accordingly their sensitivity to floor displacement cannot be directly related to their width. The key parameter which defines irregular objects’ response to rocking motion is represented by the degree of eccentricity of their center of mass. In this study, the well-known rocking equation of motion is reconfigured and devised to model the rocking responses for 280 irregular objects undergoing eight earthquake motions which included artificial and recorded earthquakes. Analytical results obtained from solving the adjusted equation of motion were evaluated with sophisticated finite element (FE) models simulating the 280 irregular cases. This experimentally validated FE modeling approach was found to be time- and cost-effective for understating the rocking behavior of asymmetric objects as well as clarifying an interesting relationship between the object’s damping level and the condition of the supporting base (i.e., whether being provided with supports at the points of rotation or not). The rocking response of irregular objects was found to be highly influenced by the level of eccentricity of the object when excited by motions with high displacement amplitudes, while such influence was not found noticeable by wider objects. Based on the developed trends between the maximum top displacement of irregular objects and the PDD, an expression for estimating the rocking amplitudes is proposed which is a function of the object’s eccentricity.     

Bronze alloy production during the Iron Age of Luristan: a multianalytical study on recently discovered bronze objects

Application of bronze alloy to produce artistic and religious artefacts was commonplace during the Iron Age in western Iran (1500–550 BC). These bronze artefacts are the so-called Luristan bronzes and have been found often from excavated graves and sanctuaries. The aim of this paper is to study on alloy composition and manufacturing process in some recently excavated objects from the Iron Age cemetery of Baba Jilan, northern Luristan. For this purpose, some objects were analysed by quantitative ICP-MS as well as microscopic studies by scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and metallography methods. Also, some comparisons were carried out between Baba Jilan and other analysed bronze objects from Luristan in order to identify the metalworking process in bronze objects from the Iron Age of western Iran. The results showed that all Baba Jilan samples are made of binary copper-tin alloy. Tin content was variable in the composition of the samples. The variety of tin constituents proved that alloying has been performed by an uncontrolled process to produce bronze. The microscopic studies also showed that the manufacturing operations are similar in the Luristan bronzes. It was carried out to identify probable similarities in the bronze alloy production in the Iron Age of the Luristan region.     

Contentious Realities: Politics of Creating an Image Archive with the Negev Bedouin in Southern Israel

This paper discusses the politics of creating an image archive amidst local Bedouin historicity in Southern Israel. To do so, it summarizes an archival initiative conducted during my fieldwork in Rāha?, Israel between 2011 and 2013, which broadly examined the presence and values of images in their society. I suggest that members compete over historical resources in attempts to augment limited cultural capital in the Negev, making efforts to collect and exhibit ‘shared’ histories contentious. This is particularly the case when local societies consider archival images rare artefacts and thus objects to be owned and protected. This paper concludes that control over archives and image objects, and the past, present, and future ideals to which they are used, is far from uniform amongst peripheral peoples in the Middle East. Visual evidence and the histories and presents it serves are indelibly localized within the prevailing status negotiations and current spatial divisions between Bedouin members in the Negev.     

Approximating the Length of Vehicle Routing Problem Solutions Using Complementary Spatial Information

Accurately estimating the length of Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) distances can inform transportation planning in a wide variety of delivery and service provision contexts. This study extends the work of previous research where multiple linear regression models were used to estimate the average distance of VRP solutions with various customer demands and capacity constraints. This research expands on that approach in two ways: first, the point patterns used in estimation have a wider range of customer clustering or dispersion values as measured by the Average Nearest Neighbor Index (ANNI) as opposed to just using a Poisson or random point process; second, the tour coefficient adjusted by this complementary spatial information is shown to exhibit statistically more accurate estimations. To generate a full range of ANNI values, point patterns were simulated using a Poisson process, a Matern clustering process, and a simple sequential inhibition process to obtain random, clustered, and dispersed point patterns, respectively. The coefficients of independent variables in the models were used to explain how the spatial distributions of customers influence the VRP distances. These results demonstrate that complementary spatial data can be used to improve operational results, a concept that could be applied more broadly.     

Historicizing the present: Brussels attacks and heritagization of spontaneous memorials

This research article traces the process of transition from spontaneous to ‘official’ memorialisation of the 2016 Brussels terrorist attack by questioning which factors trigger the heritagization process of spontaneous memorials and their contents. With a view to critically assess the significance of heritage values in relation to terrorism, this article scrutinises how these values are grasped, narrated and articulated by the local authorities, government and archival institutions in the preservation, conservation and heritagization of spontaneous memorials. There is an emphasis on the two facets of heritagization: how meanings attached to a memorial and its objects are created and expressed by the community of bereavement, and how the transformation of places, practices, objects into diverse forms of ‘heritage’ evolves. This article brings a new perspective on the heritagization of spontaneous memorials, seen as important in determining how a traumatic event such is a terrorist attack will settle in the collective memory on the long term, by becoming historicized.     

Beyond the Learning Region: A New Direction for Conceptualizing the Relation between Space and Learning

The learning region has been unsuccessful in delivering its main ambition of conceptualizing the relation between space and learning. Taking the region as the level of analysis biased the learning region towards learning in regional networks up to the point where it conflates regions with networks. As learning is a process of social interaction between individuals, innovation networks of individuals are suggested as the alternate level of analysis. The spatial dimension of innovation networks is two-fold. Their reach may vary between the local and the global. Second, regional social capital and norms and values affect learning as they are brought into the networks by spatially sticky individuals.     

Fractal analysis of veins in Permian carbonate rocks in the Lingtanchang anticline,western China

Statistical analysis of the thickness distribution of veins in the Lingtanchang structure, southern Sichuan basin, western China, indicates that vein thickness conforms to fractal character and a power‐law distribution, whereas various distributions of veins are indicated by both the spacing distribution and the C_v values. According to geometry and structure, the veins in the Lingtanchang structure can be divided into confined and through‐going veins. The statistical analyses show that confined intralayer veins are consistent with a power‐law distribution in thickness, with D_t values of 1.1–1.7 and a log‐normal distribution in spacing with C_v values of 0.8–0.9. The confined intra‐ to interlayer veins show D_t values of 1.0–1.3 and an exponential distribution in spacing, with C_v values of 0.9–1.0, indicating an unconnected vein network with weak ability for paleofluid flow. However, the through‐going veins show the lowest D_t values of 0.6–0.8 with a power‐law distribution in thickness and power‐law to exponential distribution in spacing with C_v values of 1.5–3.2. Differences in spacing distribution and in the thickness of veins can be explained by different stages of vein growth from confined to through‐going veins. Such processes are dominant with percolating cluster models, which significantly controls spatial distribution of veins and paleofluid flow, and therefore the reservoir conditions in the southern Sichuan basin.     

Skates and Prickers from the Circular Fortress of Oost-Souburg,The Netherlands (AD 900–975)

Abstract

During the excavation of the circular fortress of Oost-Souburg, the Netherlands, objects of bone and antler were found: combs, needles, spindles, three-pronged objects, bone skates and points. The finds are dated between AD 900 and 975. In this contribution the objects which belong to the winter season, the bone skates and the points, are discussed. The skates occur in various types and are made of a variety of bones. Certain types of skate were used without bindings, others were either designed to be fastened to the feet or possibly were tied only at the heels. The roughly-made points that were found may be the points of the prickers used to propel the skater forward on his skates.     

Production Networks and Consumer Choice in the Earliest Metal of Western Europe

The earliest metal objects and metal production practices appeared in Western Europe during the fourth and third millennia BC. The presence of earlier dates for copper, gold, silver, and lead, as well as arsenical copper and tin-bronze alloys in Central and Eastern Europe implies that there is no evidence for the independent invention of metallurgy in Western Europe. Instead, the acquisition of metal objects as exotica by communities appears to have led eventually to the movement of people possessing metallurgical expertise. However, the metals, production techniques and object forms used in each region reflect local standards seen in other materials. This implies a process of incorporation and innovation by the communities involved rather than a straightforward or inevitable adoption. The presence of metal may have created new networks of communication and exchange but, due to its small scale, there is no evidence for any metallurgical revolution.     

Pseudosaturation of gravity waves in the middle atmosphere: an interpretation of certain lidar observations

Irregular winds of the middle atmosphere, commonly attributed to gravity waves, often exhibit a vertical-wavenumber (m) spectral form approximating to Km⁻³ at sufficiently large m, with K a constant found to be relatively unvarying with time, location and even height. This behavior is widely believed to result from some saturation process, but the physical mechanism remains a matter for debate. There now exist three theories:

• 1.(a) linear instability,
• 2.(b) nonlinear wave-induced diffusion, and
• 3.(c) nonlinear waveinduced Doppler spreading. Each has produced the Km⁻³ form (but only as an approximation in the case of Doppler spreading) and values of K within a factor of three of one another and of observed values.

New data have revealed circumstances in which an approximation to the form Km⁻³ is again found, suggestive of saturation, but with values of K that increase by a factor of 5 or 10 on moving from the stratopause to the mesopause region. This height variation is incompatible with theories (a) and (b) if the m⁻³ form is taken to be induced by the corresponding saturation process (rather than by source spectra), but is shown here to be compatible with the Doppler-spread theory. Because of the continued growth of K with height, which must ultimately cease, the observations and corresponding theory are taken to represent pseudosaturation rather than fully developed saturation per se.     

Stable isotopic analysis of human bones from Jiahu site,Henan, China: implications for the transition to agriculture

We have investigated change in subsistence during the transition to agriculture in the site of Jiahu, Henan Province, China, using stable isotopic analysis of collagen and apatite in human bones. Millet agriculture is well documented at drier high latitudes of the Yellow River Valley, while rice agriculture predominated at wetter lower latitudes of the Yangtze Valley region. The early Neolithic site of Jiahu lies near the boundary between the drier north and wetter south. Archaeobotanical evidence shows that rice was a significant component of diet at Jiahu, but its δ¹³C value is similar to that of other foods, and therefore cannot be conclusively identified by carbon isotope analysis. Foxtail and broomcorn millets are the only C₄ crops known for the Chinese Neolithic. Because of their high δ¹³C values, their consumption can be evaluated by stable carbon isotope analysis of human bone. Collagen reflects mainly the δ¹³C value of dietary protein, and apatite accurately records that of the whole diet. Isotopic analysis of 15 well-preserved samples from three periods shows that collagen δ¹³C values were very low for almost all individuals, suggesting C₃-based foods dominated their diets. However, apatite carbonate δ¹³C values and δ¹³C spacing between collagen and apatite (Δ¹³C_ap-co) indicate that millet may have been a minor component of the diet in this region. Individuals, who consumed the smallest amounts of animal protein, as indicated by low δ¹⁵N, generally had the highest apatite δ¹³C values. Archaeobotanical evidence for millet at Jiahu is needed to support this interpretation.     

The Information—Gradient Method in Geographical Regionalization

In terms of information theory, homogeneous regions are viewed as areas in which an observer is likely to gain little new information in terms of a selected parameter or set of parameters as he moves about the region. The values of the parameter would be significantly different in an adjoining region. Adjoining points with significantly different parametric values would lie in different regions. The boundary between regions would be drawn in places where the observer would gain a maximum of new information within a unit distance. A mathematical procedure is developed to measure the gain of information along a set of profile lines drawn through a study area. A maximum information increment within a given interval is interpreted as marking a regional boundary. A minimum gain is interpreted as designating the regional core. The technique is illustrated with particular reference to the delimitation of landscape regions. Landscape boundaries identified by the information—gradient technique are found to come close to boundaries delimited by conventional means on the basis of photo interpretation.     

Physical aspects of the hartley transform

The close links between Fourier analysis and physics are shared by the Hartley transform which, as its implications are worked out, will offer alternative approaches. A distinguishing feature is that the Hartley transform represents real data by real transform values, rather than complex, a feature that carries over into optical interferometry. Some objects however are characterized by phase as well as brightness. In such cases the Hartley transform acquires an imaginary part while the Fourier transform loses its Hermitian property. The interrelation between the two complex planes suggests an instrumental means for object phase determination starting from only amplitude information in the transform domain.     

Potter’s Wheel in the Iron Age in Central Europe: Process or Product Innovation?

The use of a rotational device for forming ceramic objects represents a fundamental innovation in pottery technology. This work addresses aspects of the transmission of this technological innovation on the basis of technological and provenance analysis of Iron Age pottery in a selected region of Eastern Bohemia. The possible trajectories of the innovative process are approximated specifically through the polarities between product and process innovation and transmission of cultural traits in open and closed learning networks. Apart from standard methods of petrographic and geochemical analysis, this analysis employs innovative methodology for identification of pottery-forming techniques. The results indicate the effects of various mechanisms of cultural transmission which shaped the evolution of techniques in the Iron Age society. The technological changes can be explained by shifting accents on product and process performance characteristics in changing selective environments.     

Continuous Characterization of the Planform Geometry and Curvature of Meandering Rivers

The complex feedback between process and form that governs planform migration of meandering rivers is still incompletely understood. Current theoretical models aimed at predicting planform migration relate the rate of meander migration at a particular location to the channel curvature at and upstream of that location. However, these models are still incapable of reproducing complex forms of bend development, such as compound loops. Evaluation of such models requires a representation of planform curvature better than that provided by traditional methods where the curvature is calculated from directional change between the successive digitized points—an approach that provides a discrete representation of curvature dependent on the density of the digitized points used to characterize the channel planform. This article presents and evaluates a methodology that provides a continuous functional representation of the planform geometry and curvature of meandering rivers. The method involves the fitting of splines, specifically parametric cubic splines (PCSs), to discrete digitization data of the channel centerline (CL) and the arc-length parameterization of the resulting composite curve. The arc-length parameterized PCS-interpolated curve is then used to compute analytically the channel CL location and curvature for any value of the streamwise axis. Evaluation of the method involves examination of the effects of digitization interval size and digitization error on the characterization of the planform geometry and curvature using PCS fitting. The derivation of curvature values from continuous planform function for any location and any spatial interval overcomes the reliance either on average bend curvature values or on discrete curvature values based on digitized points.     

城市形态分维测算和分析的若干问题

本文讨论了城市形态分维测算和分形分析的几个常见问题,这些问题常使初学者感到困惑。主要论述如下内容:分维的性质、特征和基本含义,无标度区的城市地理学意义、判断和界定方法以及城市演化分析中的作用,城市形态分维分析的一般步骤,分维与其他参量的关系,等等。作者强调,要想避免研究中出现的伪分形现象导致的错误结论,必须有效利用双对数坐标图识别反映自相似性尺度范围的无标度区。     

Technological,Functional and Contextual Aspects of the K2 and Mapungubwe Worked Bone Industries

Mapungubwe (AD 1220–1290) is generally regarded as the first urban centre in southern Africa, functioning as the seat of power for an extensive but short-lived polity. More than 80 years of excavations here, and at its nearby predecessor K2 (c. AD 1000–1220), resulted in a substantial assemblage of material remains from elite and commoner contexts. This assemblage includes a large collection of worked bone objects, such as needles, awls, tubes and objects of personal adornment. Of particular interest are the bone arrowheads and link-shafts, of which a significant number of specimens were found complete and intact. Such quantities of well-preserved worked bone objects are unique in the archaeological record of the region. The worked bone assemblages from these two sites provide a rare opportunity to study multiple components of the production process as well as the use context of bone objects. In this paper, we characterise the K2 and Mapungubwe worked bone industries through various morphological, technological, use-trace and contextual approaches and discuss the significance of these aspects in terms of raw material selection and manufacture and archaeological use context. In particular, this study shows the complexity of these worked bone industries over time.     

金玉同盟——东周金器和玉器之装饰风格与角色演变

除了延续自前代的风格传统与工艺技术外,东周玉器与源自于他类材质器物的启发关系尤其密切,其中金器扮演了关键性的角色。东周金器对玉器装饰风格的影响,主要表现在纹饰布局、纹饰母题以及追求浮雕的空间表现等几个方面。此时玉器和金器在风格上的相互转换与兴替消长,不仅导致金玉材质间的相互置换,更重要的是,它们的装饰形式也因应被模仿对象的材质特性而改头换面,并且发展出新的审美价值和象征意蕴。