Teaching ethics when working with geocoded data: a novel experiential learning approach

Research ethics are not the favourite subject of most undergraduate geography students. However, in the light of increasing mixed-methods research, as well as research using geocodes, it is necessary to train students in the field of ethics. Experiential learning is an approach to teaching that is potentially suitable for teaching ethics. The aim of this article is to discuss how the experiential learning process in a course on Ethics & GPS-tracking contributed to the ethical awareness of third-year undergraduate geography students. We conducted a qualitative study in which we held four focus group discussions with two cohorts of students (2016 and 2017). We explored the students’ views on the learning environment in relation to ethics in GPS-based and mixed-methods research. Our findings show how an informal learning environment and collaborative learning in a small group contributed to deep understanding of research ethics. These aspects of the learning environment are tied to an ethical framework that consists of three dimensions: (1) the ethics of collaborative research between staff and students; (2) the ethics of privacy raised by the geo-technology adopted in this research case study; and (3) the ethics of the research process with respect to informed consent and data storage.     

Route persistence. Modelling and quantifying historical route-network stability from the Roman period to early-modern times (AD 100–1600): a case study from the Netherlands

Research on route-network stability is rare. In time, due to cultural and/or natural causes, settlement locations and route orientation shift. The nature of these spatial changes sheds light on the complex interaction between settlements and surrounding natural landscape conditions. This study investigates the stability of route networks in the Netherlands during the past two millennia by determining their persistence through time. Environmental, archaeological and historical data are used to reconstruct and compare route networks. By using network friction, archaeological data on settlement patterns and route networks in combination with historical data (e.g. old maps), we were able to model route-network persistence (not necessarily continuity) from the Roman to early medieval periods (AD 100–800) and from the Early Middle Ages to the Early Modern Times (AD 800–1600). Results show that around 67.6% of the modelled early-medieval routes in the Netherlands are persistent with routes in the Roman period. Covering a much larger surface area of the Netherlands, 24.5% of the early-modern routes show a clear persistence with their early-medieval counterparts. Besides the differences in surface area, this downfall can largely be explained by cultural dynamics, with 71.4% of the early-modern route network following modelled movement corridors already in existence during the Early Middle Ages.     

Maori Socio-Political Organization in Pre- and Proto-History

At present it is widely assumed that the socio-political organisation of Maori society is made up of four structural levels: the ‘extended family’, the ‘sub-tribe’, the ‘tribe’ and the ‘super-tribe’, each of which, in turn, corresponds with a certain type of Maori leader. It is rarely realised that a consensus about this framework for understanding Maori socio-political organisation did not emerge until the 1930s, approximately 150 years after colonial contact had begun. This raises the question to what extent the standard model of Maori socio-political organisation is based on the same a-historic and objectivist assumptions that were held around the turn of the century when it was developed. The extent to which these assumptions may have influenced the ethnohistorical and ethnographic analysis of Maori society in past and present also requires examination. It is argued that an essentialist model of Maori tribal organisation hampers the understanding of the dynamics of socio-political practices in Maori society.     

Adding Hydrogen to the Isotopic Inventory—Combining δ13C, δ15N and δ2H Stable Isotope Analysis for Palaeodietary Purposes on Archaeological Bone

Few papers using hydrogen stable isotope analysis for human palaeodietary reconstruction purposes have been published and the usefulness of this additional dietary indicator is highlighted here. The hydrogen stable isotope results provide evidence for the continued exploitation of aquatic resources throughout the prehistory of the Limfjord area in Denmark, which is supported by FRUITS estimates using three (CNH) isotopic proxies. While aquatic dietary input has been identified in Mesolithic and Viking Age individuals before, our results show that, in fact, this continued throughout the periods in between (Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Age), albeit on a small scale.     

Place‐based policies,firm productivity,and displacement effects: Evidence from Shenzhen,China

Developing and transitional countries devote considerable funds to selected areas to stimulate local growth and firm productivity. We examine the impact of place‐based interventions due to the opening of science parks in Shenzhen, China, on firm productivity and factor use. Our identification strategy, exploiting spatial and temporal differencing in firm‐level data, addresses the issues that (a) the selection of science park locations is not random and (b) high‐productivity firms sort themselves into science parks. Firm productivity is approximately 15–25% higher due to the science park policy. The policy also increases local wages and leads to distortions due to job displacement.