Wild or domesticated: DNA analysis of ancient water buffalo remains from north China

Recent zooarchaeological studies on water buffalo (Bubalus sp.) remains from China and south Asia question the traditional view that water buffalo were first domesticated in Neolithic China over 7000 years ago. The results from several recent population genetic studies of modern domesticated buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) are not consistent with each other, placing the original center of buffalo's domestication in south Asia, southeast Asia, or China. This paper reports a study using an ancient DNA approach to analyze water buffalo remains from Neolithic sites in north China to investigate their affinities with modern domesticated water buffalo, and to shed light on the origin of modern domesticated water buffalo in China.A 169 bp fragment of D-loop mitochondrial DNA was successfully amplified and verified for 13 of 24 bone samples obtained from seven archaeological sites along the Wei River valley in Shaanxi Province, China. The bone samples which yielded positive DNA can be dated to 8000–3600 cal. BP. The phylogenetic analysis of the obtained DNA sequences along with modern water buffalo sequences indicated that the ancient water buffalos were not the direct ancestor of modern domesticated water buffalo. However, the phylogenetic analysis, along with BLAST searches of these ancient DNA sequences, did demonstrate their relatedness to water buffalo more so than to any other bovid species, confirming the existence of indigenous wild (but now extinct) water buffalo species (B. mephistopheles) in ancient China.The DNA analysis of these ancient remains failed to establish direct links between modern domesticated water buffalo (B. bubalis) and indigenous water buffalo (B. mephistopheles) from ancient China. If further DNA studies of more ancient remains from other regions of China confirm the observation of solely indigenous water buffalo species in ancient China, it would suggest modern water buffalo might not have been first domesticated in China.     

从居室墓和石雕像看兴隆洼文化的祖先崇拜

祖先崇拜,是一种以祭祀死去祖先的亡灵而祈求庇护为核心内容,由图腾崇拜、生殖崇拜、灵魂崇拜复合而成的原始宗教1,是人们意识发展到一定阶段的产物.恩格斯论及原始宗教信仰产生的社会历史根源时指出:"宗教是在最原始的时代从人们关于自己本身的自然和周围的外部自然的错误的、是原始的观念中产生的"2."在原始人看来,自然力是某种异己的神秘的超越一切的东西,在所有文明民族所经历的一定阶段上,他们用人格化的方法同化自然力,从而创造了许多神"3.原始人们在创造神的时候,更广泛的是把祖先崇拜这种意识渗入其中,从而强化原始宗教的地位.尤其在古代中国更为突出,正如陈梦家先生所说:"祖先崇拜与天神崇拜逐渐接近、混合,已为殷以后的中国宗教树立了楷模,即祖先崇拜压倒了天神崇拜"4.     

翁方纲及其经学思想

在清代乾嘉学者群体中,翁方纲是一个很有成就的人物。他生平精心汲古,宏览多闻,既能诗文,又擅书法,更精鉴赏。他对诗歌、书画、谱录、金石学等都有很深的研究,而且著作等身,仅流传下来的著作就有《两汉金石记》、 《汉石经残字考》、《焦山鼎铭考》、《苏米斋兰亭考》、《复初斋文集》、《复初斋诗集》、《石洲诗话》、《经义考补正》、《礼经目次》、《苏诗补注》、《苏斋笔记》等数十种。而长期以来,学术界对翁方纲的研究却付诸阙如。本文仅就其生平及经学思想略加论述,以期引起学界同仁的重视。     

沈既济父子、曾祖籍贯事略考

吴兴武康(今浙江湖州德清)之沈氏,在我国历史上曾显耀一时,以武将望族和文化大族彪炳史册.自汉以来,沈氏代有将才、帅才,军功显赫,封侯拜爵,为王朝、为民族、为国家立下了汗马功劳.     

Reconstructing subsistence at the Yingpanshan and Gaoshan sites in Sichuan province,China: Insights from isotope analysis on bone samples and charred crop remains

During the Neolithic period, the Chengdu Plain was a key region where two important crops, rice and millet, were cultivated together. Millet was probably introduced from north-western China c.3500–3300 cal. bce , and rice came from the Middle Yangtze River c.2600 cal. bce . In this study, human and faunal remains, as well as charred crop grains, were collected from the Yingpanshan (3300–2600 cal. bce ) and Gaoshan (2500–2000 cal. bce ) sites where the dominant crop was millet and rice, respectively. Carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses were conducted on human bones and the ecofact samples in order to reconstruct the subsistence at the sites. The results indicate that the diets of two individuals recovered from the Yingpanshan site consisted of both C₃- and C₄-based foods, predominantly the former. By contrast, Yingpanshan pigs consumed a large quantity of C₄ fodder. This result, combined with the ecofact evidence, suggests that millet was the main crop at the Yingpanshan site. It also highlights the fact that the two Yingpanshan individuals might be non-locals and/or belonged to later periods. On the other hand, the diet of the Gaoshan community was dominated by C₃-based foods. When considering the archaeobotanical evidence at Baodun, a site contemporaneous with and near to the Gaoshan site, it can be stated that rice was an important food resource for the Gaoshan community. This study also suggests how crops were managed at the two sites. The Yingpanshan people might have used manure for growing millet. Both manuring and irrigation might have also been practised by Gaoshan's rice farmers. However, more studies are required to understand the extent of manuring and irrigation in their agricultural economies.     

评《汉唐方志辑佚》

方志之修，始于东汉。至隋唐间，天下州郡修图经已渐成制度。德宗建中前，各州图三年一送职方司，建中元年，改为五年一造送（见《唐会要》卷五九）。五代乱世，仍相沿不改，要求逢闰年州县各进图经，“古今事迹，地里山川，土地所宜，风俗所尚，皆须备载，不得漏略”（《五代会要》卷一五）。可以毫不夸张地说，自汉魏至五代近千年间，地记图经之，当不少于数千种，见于载录的仅是其中一小部分，流传至今，相对完整的仅有《华阳国志》、《吴地记》等几种，     

《商颂》为商诗补证

《商颂》究竟是商人诗歌还是春秋宋人作品,这是《诗经》研究中聚讼两千多年的学案.     

论康有为对近代博物馆的认知和宣传

康有为是中国近代史上提倡向西方学习的文化先驱,是最早明确提出建立博物馆的有识之士,是积极倡导建立博物馆的领袖人物。康有为对近代博物馆的认知和宣传,以其1898年逃亡海外为界,分为两个时期。第一个时期,他通过大量阅读西书,知道了近代博物馆及其功能;第二个时期,他流亡海外,仍向国人介绍众多亲历的博物馆,并提出建立博物馆的理论和建议。     

试析土地有偿使用与城市空间扩展

城市土地有偿使用为城市空间扩展提供了新的机遇并带来新的问题。本文首先阐述了租值理论与城市经济效益,然后着重论述了土地有偿使用对城市空间扩展的影响,最后明确土地有偿使用与城市空间扩展中的规划控制问题。