Anticipated mobility and its archaeological signature: A case study of Folsom retooling strategies

This essay highlights the value of anticipated mobility for untangling variability in prehistoric stone tool manufacture. To do so, it explores the organization of weaponry production at a series of Folsom campsites via the highly visible archaeological signature of Folsom fluting. A model of weaponry replacement based on deep planning and anticipation of needs is proposed, according to which Folsom hunters commonly replace their projectile points as they wear down, break or are lost, but on fewer occasions engage in the mass production of fluted points. This technological organization is consistent with a highly mobile way of life in which advanced planning buffers the risk associated with limited or stochastic access to good quality lithic raw materials. The model is then put to the test at the Lindenmeier site in northern Colorado. The spatial patterning of fluting activities in two discrete areas of the site demonstrates contrasting strategies of point manufacture: conservation versus gearing up (creation of a surplus). It is argued that these patterns represent distinct facets of a single technological organization.     

Discerning geological and geographical sources of Belgian Upper Paleolithic fluorites by rare earth elements and Sr-isotopic geochemistry

Fragments of fluorite (CaF₂) have been found at five Belgian Upper Paleolithic sites (Spy, Chaleux, Trou Magritte, Trou du Frontal and Verlaine caves), primarily of Magdalenian age. These sites are located in a large geographical area. The aim of this study is to isolate one or more primary sources where the mineral could have been quarried prehistorically, and hence try to deduce if time and effort were put into obtaining it, or if it was simply a useful nearby raw material. In order to achieve this objective, isotopic ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and REE ratios are used. A total of four archaeological samples from the Chaleux, Spy and Trou Magritte sites along with geological samples were analyzed (new results and data from the literature), obtained from two distinct stratigraphical units in Belgium: the Givetian limestones (mainly from the Calestian Band), and the Dinantian limestones.     

Specula

Sans résumé éric Brian (mars 2001). Charles Alunni (février 2001). Laurent Nottale (19 février 2001).     

Towards New Paths for Regional and Territorial Development in Rural Areas

Abstract

The aim of this article is to shed some light on issues of territorial development and of rural development and to identify what links and opposes them. Indeed, everything pushes towards joining these two dimensions, which for a long time seemed disconnected. On the one hand, the policies targeting rural areas explicitly include the territorial dimension, while the distinction between rural and urban is getting blurred. In the meantime, decentralization, subsidiarity, the regionalization of agriculture, short circuits and local foods take place in parallel with the generalization of an urban model. Finally, we find that regional sciences are paying increasing attention to rural and agricultural dimensions, while studies concerning rural questions are starting to consider territorial issues. The first section of the article provides a critical presentation and attempts to define and distinguish the notions of development, territory and the rural. The second section addresses questions of regional and territorial development by presenting the main theories and public policies and concludes with a discussion about the possibilities of reconciling the theories and the policies. The third section follows the same structure, applied to the question of rural development, from analyses to grass-roots policies.