Plant-food preparation area on an Upper Paleolithic brush hut floor at Ohalo II,Israel

While a division of domestic space into separate sectors dedicated to different activities has been suggested for a number of Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherer sites, it has never been demonstrated based on plant remains from this period. Moreover, due to the usual scarcity of plant macrofossils in archaeological deposits, only animal food preparation activities associated with hearths have been reported in the literature on Near Eastern prehistory. Ohalo II (Israel) is the first Upper Paleolithic site where such a patterned use of interior space and plant processing are evidenced by the distribution of plant remains on a sealed floor of a brush hut. This paper describes and interprets the distribution of almost 60,000 identified seeds and other plant remains on that floor, proposing a reconstruction of three activity areas in the interior of the 12-m² hut: processing of food centered on a grinding stone; a flint knapping area; and an access area in between. Finally, it is suggested that these activity areas might represent male-female division of labor.     

Die Petrografie himyarischer Keramik vom Jabal al ‘Awd,Jemen

Early Himyarite ceramics (first century BC–third century AD) from the Jabal al ‘Awd in Yemen are classified by visual criteria into a number of ware groups. Following classification the ceramics were investigated with petrologic methods (porosity and density). Mineralogical and physical properties were determined from thin sections according to cathodo‐luminescence spectra. The ceramics are divided into six ware groups, each of which has distinctive material properties and mineralogy.     

Public Health: Neue Perspektiven für Geographinnen und Geographen

Gesundheitswesen und Gesundheitspolitik stehen vor neuen Herausforderungen und Problemen, deren L?sung der Entwicklung innovativer Konzepte bedarf. Der Wandel des Krankheitspanoramas, der Anstieg von Durchschnittsalter und Lebenserwartung, die rasante Neu- und Weiterentwicklung diagnostischer und therapeutischer Methoden und die nicht zuletzt damit in Zusammenhang stehende Kostenentwicklung im Gesundheitswesen sind wesentliche Aspekte dieser komplexen Problematik.     

Economic and Social Thinking at the UN in Historical Perspective

This article begins to examine the history of economic and social ideas launched or nurtured by the United Nations (UN). In 1999, the United Nations Intellectual History Project was initiated, to analyse the UN as an intellectual actor, and to shed light on the role of the UN system in creating knowledge and in influencing international policy‐making: this article is based on the first five books and the oral histories from that Project. The starting point is that ideas may be the most important legacy of the UN for human rights, economic and social development, as well as for peace and security. For the authors, this ‘intellectual history’ provides a way to explore the origins of particular ideas; trace their course within institutions, scholarship, and discourse; and in some cases evaluate the impact of ideas on policy and action.     

The Garrison Revisited: Gibraltar in the Eighteenth Century

In the 1940s, scholars across a variety of disciplines started using phrases such as ‘garrison state’ and ‘garrison mentality’ to describe societies where military imperatives predominated. They frequently argued that a perpetual sense of threat and a profound feeling of isolation shaped the outlook of residents in these communities. Such terms continue to surface in contemporary scholarship and popular media, where ‘the garrison’ often remains a stock image. Evidence from eighteenth-century Gibraltar, however, suggests that traditional readings of the garrison as an insulated fortress should be reconsidered. The survival of this strategic outpost actually required that colonial administrators rely on an array of foreigners to keep it supplied during times of both war and peace. At Gibraltar, the garrison was neither isolated from its surrounding environment nor perpetually threatened by its cosmopolitan residents—instead, inescapable dependence on a motley local population often rendered administrators willing to accommodate the alien in their midst and to acknowledge the interconnections between military and civilian.     

Science and Technology at the World Bank, 1968–83

The World Bank was an important supporter of science and technology during the period 1968–83. President Robert McNamara’s poverty oriented strategy created challenges that led to technological research, technology assessment and technological innovation in agriculture, forestry, civil works construction, sanitation, and many other fields of development. The Bank also pioneered in financing governmental mechanisms to stimulate industrial innovation. On the other hand, its support to science and technology was limited by lack of an overall policy and systematic support from top management, as well as by cumbersome procedures designed for large infrastructural projects. Even so, its financial independence, its strong leadership, its experienced and non‐political technical staff, and its ability to scale up successful innovations through its project lending, made it an important promoter of appropriate technology in the developing world.     

Survive and Thrive: Field Research in Authoritarian Southeast Asia

The literature on field research methods has focused almost exclusively on the strategies available to scholars working in democracies. By comparison, there has been scant guidance for those working in authoritarian regimes. This is despite the distinct set of challenges that arise where civil liberties and political rights are not consistently or well protected. The purpose of this article is to address this deficit. Drawing on the region of Southeast Asia as a natural laboratory for comparative analysis, it offers guidance on how to successfully conduct archival research, carry out interviews and undertake participant observation under authoritarianism. The resulting conclusions are applicable to the pursuit of primary research by scholars at all career levels and in other regions of the world.     

Osteoarthritis revisited: a contemporary review of aetiology

Osteoarthritis is among the most common pathological conditions in skeletal collections and is the most frequent musculoskeletal disorder in contemporary populations. Jurmain ( 1991 ) has previously published in this journal a brief review of skeletal perspectives on osteoarthritis. Subsequent studies by osteologists and medical researchers have added considerably to understanding of the aetiology and patterning of osteoarthritis. Thus, it is timely to present an updated review that expands and supports conclusions discussed in the earlier review. In short, osteoarthritis aetiology is multifactorial, with age being the main influence on the onset and severity of osteoarthritis. Genetic influences also play a large role in the severity of osteoarthritis, especially in the lower limbs. Weight, although playing a significant role for modern populations, seems to have had very minimal effects on prehistoric populations. Sex differences may often be a consequence of hormones, body size and anatomy, rather than activity related. Finally, intense activity starting at a young age still may influence osteoarthritis, especially in the upper limbs. Future directions discussed include within‐body comparisons, animal studies, and examining patterns in large populations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.