Paleoparasitological results from coprolites dated at the Pleistocene–Holocene transition as source of paleoecological evidence in Patagonia

Coprolites attributable to humans, dated from the Pleistocene–Holocene transition, obtained from the archaeological site Cerro Casa de Piedra, Santa Cruz Province, were examined for parasites. The feces were processed by rehydration and spontaneous sedimentation using conventional parasitic procedures. Helminthic eggs recovered were identified as Trichuris sp., Calodium sp., other capilariids, and ancylostomid (Nematoda), probably Hymenolepis sp. and anoplocephalid (Cestoda); one oocyst attributable to Eimeria macusaniensis (Apicomplexa) was also found. According to the life-cycles and specificity of the parasites found, it is possible to suggest that some species (i.e., E. macusaniensis and Calodium sp.) represent parasites in transit or pseudoparasitism. Paleoparasitological results revealed the existence of an intensive relationship between parasites and humans in the Pleistocene–Holocene transition in Patagonia. Evidence suggests an early association among parasites, rock shelters and hunter–gatherers in the region. It is also postulated that the ancient lifestyles associated with caves and rock shelters were conductive to illness.     

Sovereignty and territoriality in the city–state: A case study from the Amuq Valley,Turkey

This article investigates the relationship of state authority and territory in the city–state, using the Iron Age Syro-Anatolian culture of the ancient Near East as a case-study. Although more sophisticated spatial modeling of political authority has appeared in the past decade, archaeologists are still prone to assume that territoriality in ancient city–states operated according to a “container model” principle in which, like the modern state, political power is evenly distributed across the landscape within clear boundary divisions. The present work examines both the historical record from the Iron Age on the one hand, and regional settlement pattern data on the other, to evaluate the appropriateness of this conception of territory and power in the Syro-Anatolian city–state of Patina, located in southern Turkey. Textual accounts and gravity modeling of settlement distributions point toward a pattern of territoriality in which power was present inconsistently across the geographical extent of the city–state, and in which borderlines as conventionally drawn did not apply. I refer to this flexible relationship of authority and space as malleable territoriality.     

New dinosaur remains from the Late Triassic of southern Brazil (Candelária Sequence,Hyperodapedon Assemblage Zone)

Pretto, F.A., Schultz, C.L., Langer, M.C. 4.02.2015. New dinosaur remains from the Late Triassic of southern Brazil (Candelária Sequence, Hyperodapedon Assemblage Zone). Alcheringa 39, xxx–xxx. ISSN 0311-5518

The oldest unequivocal dinosaurian records come from Upper Triassic strata, mostly from Argentina and Brazil. Recent fieldwork in the Brazilian deposits of Ischigualastian age (late Carnian–earliest Norian) have resulted in the collection of a new specimen (UFRGS-PV-1240-T) identified as dinosaurian by the presence of a concave emargination on the ventral surface of the femoral head and a well-developed deltopectoral crest on the humerus, which extends for ca 40% of its estimated proximodistal length. Although fragmentary, the material increases the dinosaurian record from the Late Triassic of Brazil, which is still modest when compared with coeval Argentine strata. Additionally, UFRGS-PV-1240-T augments the dinosaurian diversity at the ‘Sítio Janner’ site, which was until now restricted to the sauropodomorph Pampadromaeus barberenai. The new specimen is larger than most early dinosaurians (except for herrerasaurids), implying that members of the group were already occupying niches otherwise explored by other larger-bodied taxa in the ‘Sítio Janner’ palaeofauna, and Late Triassic palaeoenvironments in general.

Flávio A. Pretto [flavio_pretto@yahoo.com.br] and Cesar L. Schultz [cesar.schultz@ufrgs.br] Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Instituto de Geociências, Setor de Paleovertebrados, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500—Bloco J, Prédio 43127, Campus do Vale, Agronomia?Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, CEP 91540-000; Max C. Langer [mclanger@ffclrp.usp.br] Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Departamento de Biologia, Av. Bandeirantes, 3900, CEP 14040-901, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil.     

Partisan sorting in the United States, 1972–2012: New evidence from a dynamic analysis

Whether Americans have “sorted” into politically like-minded counties and to what extent is hotly debated by academic and journalists. This paper examines whether or not geographic sorting has occurred and why it has occurred using a novel, dynamic analysis. Our findings indicate that geographic sorting is on the rise, but that it is a very recent phenomenon. In the 1970s and 1980s, counties tended to become more competitive, but by 1996 a pattern of partisan sorting had emerged and continued through the present. Results suggest this pattern is driven by Southern re-alignment and voting behavior in partisan stronghold counties. Lastly, we find evidence that migration can drive partisan sorting, but only accounts for a small portion of the change.     

Population–development debate revisited: evidence from Asian countries

This study revisits an on-going debate regarding the nature of relationship between population growth and economic development. It has selected 12 Asian countries as a case study to examine the possible existence of a significant relationship between population expansion and economic development in these countries. Empirical findings indicated that, contrary to popular beliefs, there is a significant positive relationship between the variables. This suggests that population growth has been beneficial to economic development in the region and not detrimental.     

The Prehistory of NW Argentina: the Calchaquí Valley Project, 1977–1981

Abstract

The late pre-Hispanic populations of the Calchaquí Valley of NW Argentina may be seen as typical of the native culture of the south Andes. The developmental sequence for these sedentary village societies, however, has only recently begun to be detailed. Field and lab results pertaining to a survey of 24 sites are summarized, including one of the first ceramic seriations to include the full range of pottery types; ceramic wares and their significance are also identified. Findings further include the first recognition of what are believed to be Middle Period sites for the valley, thus filling an important gap in our understanding of the region's prehistory.     

The existence of open areas during the Mesolithic: evidence from aeolian sediments in the Elbe–Jeetzel area,northern Germany

Traditionally Mesolithic hunter–gatherer cultures are supposed to have lived in a primeval forest environment with a closed vegetation cover during the Early and Mid-Holocene. It is not until the onset of subsequent Neolithic agricultural societies that the development of more expansive open areas is assumed. Therefore our perception of the Mesolithic economy in the European lowlands is highly affected by the idaea of adaptation to dense forest environments and a very stable system of resource exploitation. However, recent palaeoenvironmental studies provide evidence that areas of open landscapes must have existed at least temporarily during the Mesolithic and evoke the question whether human impact may be accountable for this.     

Leaf galls on Dicroidium hughesii (Feistmantel) Lele from the Triassic of India—a new record

Disc-like galls are reported on the Triassic corystosperm leaf Dicroidium hughesii (Feistmantel) Lele from the Parsora Formation of South Rewa Gondwana Basin, central India. Although there have been numerous reports of arthropod–plant interactions from Permian and Lower Cretaceous successions, this is the first unequivocal report of arthropod–plant interactions from the Triassic succession of Peninsular India. The new record adds to global evidence that arthropod herbivory and gall formation, in particular, had rediversified by the Late Triassic in the wake of the end-Permian mass extinction.     

Local labour markets and socio-economic change: evidence from Danish towns, 2008–2013

The recent financial and economic crisis had substantial but spatially differentiated impacts on growth. However, there is still a lot left to be understood about the local aspects of the crisis. One of these aspects is its socio-economic consequences. This paper investigates local socio-economic change to Danish towns from 2008 to 2013, with a focus on the impact of local labour market (LLM) structures on change. Socio-economic change in towns is measured both directly as mean income and employment growth, and indirectly as population and human capital growth. The paper relies on micro-data and uses robust regression to generate results. Several findings are presented, but the two main conclusions are: first, the LLM structures of towns still influence local socio-economic development; and, second, towns experience better socio-economic development if they are in close proximity to a larger labour market and/or have a large ratio of commuters in the working population.     

Vasilikos Valley Project: Fourth Preliminary Report, 1979–1980

Abstract

During the fourth season of the Vasilikos Valley Project in the Larnaca District of southern Cyprus, excavations were continued at the Aceramic and Ceramic Neolithic site of Kalavasos-Tenta. Excavation on the west side of the top of the site revealed more of the plan of the earliest curvilinear building that underlies the stone complex. Elsewhere on the top of the site, further mud-brick and stone structures were uncovered, and a unique wall painting was found on the central pier of one building. Excavations in the Lower South Slope area confirmed the existence of a deep ditch outside the outer settlement wall. Five Aceramic phase burials were excavated in different parts of the site. Investigation of the Ceramic phase deposits on the eastern flanks of the site revealed a series of pits, but no standing architectural remains.

Excavations at the Chalcolithic site of Kalavasos-Ayious on the east side of the valley were also continued. A series of pits of widely varying size was brought to light in several different areas of the site. The largest pits contained numerous artifacts, sometimes in situ on distinct surfaces. At the north end of the site three pits were found connected by subterranean tunnels.

Rescue excavations, lasting from July 1979 through February 1980. were also undertaken at the Late Bronze Age site of A. Dhimitrios, a short distance to the south of Tenta. An extensive architectural complex of finely built stone structures was uncovered within the line of the new Nicosia-Limassol highway. The quality of the building, and the clear degree of planning that underlies the whole architectural layout, betoken a site of considerable importance. The architectural levels on the site may be dated to a late phase of Late Cypriote II, but one of the tombs also contains material of Late Cypriote I or early Late Cypriote II date.

A systematic field survey of the southern half of the Vasilikos valley, employing a regularly spaced series of transects, revealed a number of additional sites of varying type and period. A chronological outline of prehistoric Cyprus is provided in Table 1. Specialist reports on geographical, fluvial geomorphological, faunal, and conservation studies are also included.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant no. BNS77–07685 A02.     

Mapping the Niger, 1798–1832: Trust,Testimony and ‘Ocular Demonstration’ in the Late Enlightenment

This paper is about the role of trust, testimony and direct observation in the making of maps and about the ways in which these issues were apparent in the mapping of the Niger River. By the late eighteenth century, the Niger River was a two‐thousand‐year‐old geographical problem. Although classical writers, Arab geographers and French authorities had produced maps of the river, its direction of flow was not confirmed by direct observation until 1796 when the explorer Mungo Park did so. Yet Park solved only one part of the problem, and he died in 1805 while attempting to solve the remaining question: where did the river end? This question was not answered by direct observation until 1830. By then, however, the ‘Niger problem’ had been resolved, and the solution mapped, by two early nineteenth‐century geographers who had charted the river's course without travelling to Africa. Attention is also paid to the maps that first presented the Niger's termination on the basis of field observation. What all this evidence raises is the question of trust in others' testimony and the role of travel and direct observation in the production of maps as ‘truthful’ documents in the late Enlightenment.

Cet article concerne le rôle de la confiance, du témoignage et de l'observation directe dans l'établissement des cartes ainsi que la manière dont ces questions se manifestaient dans la cartographie du fleuve Niger. A la fin du XVIIIe siècle, le Niger était un problème géographique vieux de 2000 ans. Bien que les auteurs antiques, les géographes arabes et les autorités françaises aient produit des cartes de ce fleuve, la direction de son cours ne fut confirmée par l'observation directe qu'en 1796 grâce à l'explorateur Mungo Park. Encore Park ne résolut‐il qu'une partie du problème et mourut en 1805 alors qu'il tentait de résoudre la question restante: o[ugrave] le fleuve finissait‐il? On ne répondit à cette question par l'observation directe qu'en 1830. Dès lors, cependant, le ‘problème du Niger’ était résolu et sa solution cartographiée par deux géographes du début du XIXe siècle qui avaient dressé la carte du cours du fleuve sans voyager en Afrique. Nous prêtons également attention aux premières cartes qui ont montré le cours inférieur du Niger sur la base d'observation de terrain. Tout ceci met en évidence la question de la confiance dans le témoignage d'autrui et le rôle du voyage et de l'observation directe dans la production des cartes comme documents fidèles à la fin du siècle des Lumières.

Dieser Beitrag beschäftigt sich mit der Bedeutung von Vertrauen in vorliegende Informationen, die Rolle von Beweisen und von unmittelbarer Beobachtung bei der Kartenherstellung und damit, wie sich diese Aspekte in der Kartierung des Nigerflusses niederschlagen. Am Ende des 18. Jahrhunderts war die Frage nach der geographischen Lage des Nigerflusses schon zweitausend Jahre alt. Auch wenn klassische Autoren, arabische Geographen und französische Autoritäten Karten des Flusses hergestellt hatten, so konnte seine Fließrichtung doch erst 1796 durch die persönliche Beobachtung des Entdeckers Mungo Park bestimmt werden. Allerdings löste Park nur den ersten Teil des Problems und starb 1805 bei der Suche nach dem Mündungsgebiet des Flusses. Diese Frage konnte nicht vor 1830 durch unmittelbare Beobachtung geklärt werden. Dann allerdings war das Niger‐Problem gelöst und das Ergebnis in Karten niedergelegt. Dies gelang zwei Geographen des frühen 19. Jahrhunderts, die den Verlauf des Niger zeichneten ohne nach Afrika zu reisen. Zusätzlich werden in diesem Beitrag die Karten behandelt, die später die Nigermündung erstmals auf der Grundlage von Feldarbeit darstellten. Was alle diese Zeugnisse nahelegen, ist die Frage nach dem Vertrauen in anderer Leute Aussagen und die Bedeutung von Reisen sowie von unmittelbarer Beobachtung bei der Herstellung von wirklichkeitsnahen Karten in der späten Aufklärung.

El artículo trata sobre el papel de la veracidad, del testimonio y del reconocimiento sobre el terreno en la construcción de mapas y sobre las vías en las que estas cuestiones fueron evidentes en los mapas del río Níger. Al final del siglo XVIII, el río Níger constituía un problema geográfico que se remontaba a 2000 años. Aunque los escritores clásicos, geógrafos árabes y autoridades francesas habían hecho mapas del río, la dirección de su corriente no fue confirmada hasta el reconocimiento del explorador Mungo Park en 1796. Pero Park resolvió sólo una parte del problema y murió en 1805 cuando trataba de resolver el resto, es decir, donde terminaba el río. Esta cuestión no fue resuelta por reconocimientos sobre el terreno hasta 1830. Sin embargo, para entonces ‘el problema del Níger’ había sido solucionado sobre un mapa por dos geógrafos de principios del siglo XIX que cartografiaron el curso del río sin viajar a África. Se señalan también los primeros mapas que presentaron el diseño completo del Níger, basados en observaciones sobre el terreno. Todas estas evidencias plantean la cuestión de la veracidad del testimonio de los otros y del papel del viaje y del reconocimiento sobre el terreno, en la producción de los mapas en tanto que documentos ‘verdaderos’ a finales del siglo XVIII.     

Examinations,access, and inequity within the empire: Britain,Australia and India, 1890–1910

Recent scholarship on transnational immigration restriction have tended to frame British policies in opposition to those of white settler colonies, emphasising the frustration of British officialdom at the explicitly racist exclusions in South Africa, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. While acknowledging these, this paper interrogates the British position, by locating synergies between the deployment of examinations as a form of racial gatekeeping at the height of the empire, with reference to discourses of equity and access emanating from Britain, Australia and India. It reads British attempts to ameliorate the harsh exclusions of the White Australia policy – administered through the apparently neutral device of the Dictation Test – alongside remarkably similar constraints embedded in the exams for the Indian Civil Service that were designed to limit the numbers of Indians in the ICS. Race-based immigration restriction was consistent with – not repugnant to – imperial sensibilities, contrary to so many protestations. The prevalence of racially discriminatory immigration legislation in settler societies had the effect of projecting the worst forms of racism to the peripheries of empire, exposing the contradictions of the colonial project in India.