Infrared radiofluorescence (IR-RF) dating of middle pleistocene fluvial archives of the Heidelberg Basin (Southwest Germany)

The infrared radiofluorescence (IR-RF) dating technique was applied to eight fluvial samples that were collected from two sediment cores at the Heidelberg Basin located near Viernheim and Ludwigshafen in southwest Germany. Based on the IR-RF derived ages of the samples it was possible to establish a chronological framework for the Mid-Pleistocene fluvial deposits of the Heidelberg Basin. The results allow us to distinguish between four main periods of aggradation. The lowermost sample taken from 100 m core depth lead to an IR-RF age of 643 ± 28 ka pointing to a Cromerian period of aggradation (OIS 17–16). For the Elsterian it is now possible to distinguish between two aggradation periods, one occurring during the Lower Elsterian period (OIS 15) and a second during the Upper Elsterian period (OIS 12–11). For the so called Upper interlayer (or “Oberer Zwischenhorizont” — a layer of organic-rich and finer-grained deposits), the IR-RF results point to a deposition age of around 300 ka, with samples taken directly on top and out of this layer yielding IR-RF ages of 288 ± 19 ka and 302 ± 19 ka, respectively. Hence, the measured IR-RF ages clearly point to a deposition during the Lower Saalian period (OIS 9–8) whereas earlier studies assumed a Cromerian age for the sediments of the Upper Interlayer based on pollen records and also mollusc fauna. The new IR-RF dataset indicates that significant hiatuses are present within the fluvial sediment successions. In particular the Eemian and Upper Saalian deposits are missing in this part of the northern Upper Rhine Graben, as the 300 ka deposits are directly overlain by Weichselian fluvial sediments. It is obvious that time periods of increased fluvial aggradation were interrupted by time periods of almost no aggradation or erosion which should have been mainly triggered by phases of increased and decreased subsidence of the Heidelberg Basin.     

Jiangzhai: Social and economic organization of a Middle Neolithic Chinese village

The Early Yangshao period (5000–4000 BC) village of Jiangzhai is the most completely excavated and reported of any early agricultural community in the middle reaches of northern China’s Yellow River Valley. This comprehensive dataset can better our understanding of early agricultural village societies and complex society development, especially the emergence of economic inequality. Analyses of Jiangzhai’s architectural remains and their arrangement; estimates of household population, storage capacity, and animal consumption; and analyses of household artifact assemblages are used to reconstruct the social and economic organization of this important Neolithic settlement. Our analyses suggest that differences in economic organization at the household level are responsible for patterns of intra-settlement economic differentiation previously attributed to higher-order “corporate” institutions. Rather than a segmental society composed of redundant homologous units, Jiangzhai displays substantial variability among residential sectors and constituent households in terms of activity emphases and surplus accumulation. Substantial intrasite variation in socioeconomic organization has previously been thought characteristic only of more complex Late Neolithic societies in the middle Yellow River Valley region.     

Chemical characterisation of glass mosaic tesserae from sixth-century Sagalassos (south-west Turkey): chronology and production techniques

Little is known about the origin, supply pattern and production technology of Byzantine glass mosaic tesserae. In this study, we have analysed forty-eight glass tesserae from Sagalassos (Asia Minor) of different colours and from two archaeological contexts that were stratigraphically dated to the sixth century CE. The main aim was to identify the raw materials, colourants and opacifiers as well as secondary working practices that are reflected in the composition (EPMA, LA-ICP-MS analyses) and the microstructure (XRD, SEM-BSE) of the tesserae. The set of samples retrieved from the Roman Baths complex at Sagalassos is compositionally very homogeneous, representing possibly a single commission, and can be tentatively dated to the late Roman period. In contrast, the assemblage associated with the construction of a Byzantine church around the turn of the sixth century CE is more diverse, suggesting that these tesserae were produced from more than one silica source. This highlights a diversification in the supply and manufacture of glass tesserae during the Byzantine period.     

The Tortoise or the Hare? Incrementalism,Punctuations, and Their Consequences

In this article, we contrast the long‐term consequences of incrementalism and punctuated equilibrium. We test what the impact of each of these types of policy change is on long‐term budgetary outcomes for the American states. Policy scholars have applied both theoretical approaches to the study of budgetary spending as an extension of policymaking. Given the two contrasting paradigms of policy change, we develop the following line of inquiry: Does punctuated equilibrium create a different budget in the long term than incrementalism? We address this question through an analysis of American state budgets because the U.S. states provide a rich variation in both budgetary outcomes and political institutions. We use budget data from all American states across all government functions for the period between 1984 and 2009. We find that, first, state budgets and budget functions vary in their degree of punctuation and, second, the degree of punctuation in a state's budget function corresponds to smaller long‐term growth. Additionally, the kind of spending matters: allocational budget categories are more likely to exhibit punctuations.     

Crystallographic and structural transformations of sedimentary chalcedony in flint upon heat treatment

The early occurrence of intentional heat treatment of silica rocks has recently become a key element in the discussion about the cultural modernity of prehistoric populations. Lithic vestiges are the only sources that remain of this process and the understanding of the material’s properties and transformations are essential for reconstructing the conditions and parameters applied during heat treatment. Several models of the structural transformations upon heating have been proposed in the current literature. These models are often contradictory and do not account for the most recent structural and mineralogical data on chalcedony. In order to propose a new model, we elaborated an experimental procedure and applied different techniques involving infrared spectroscopy, solid state NMR, X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. The results show that the major transformation to happen is the loss of silanole (SiOH) and the creation of new Si-O-Si bonds according to the reaction: Si?OH HO-Si → Si-O-Si + H₂O. This reaction starts between 200 °C and 300 °C and causes an increase in the hardness of the rocks. The maximal annealing temperature and the ramp rate are the functions of the ability of the structure to evacuate newly created H₂O and depend on the size of the specimen and the volume of its porosity. These results also show that the annealing duration at maximum temperature can be relatively short (<50 min) for a sufficiently large amount of transformation to be accomplished.     

National separation,controlled co-operation: how state-socialist elites communicated economic openings

This article describes how official journalists in the state-socialist dictatorships communicated economic co-operation with the West to the domestic audience. It discusses the hypothesis of West–East transfers causing a structural differentiation of the official spheres of state socialism regarding the issue of European co-operation and integration. Both a legacy of Stalinist narratives and rigid media control hampered a consistent explanation of East–West co-operation. Ultimately, growing ambivalence in the official public sphere undermined the legitimacy of state-socialist rule.     

Following the Ancestors: Six Moments in a Genealogy of Urban Design and Heritage in the City of Cape Town

In 2014, Cape Town is celebrating its design in all its forms, having been voted the World Design Capital (WDC). The hopeful rhetoric of the city as ultimate holiday destination, African creative metropolis, prime global-events location or city of freedom indicates powerful cultural discourses at work. In this paper, I will give a series of insights into the links between colonial modernity, on the one hand, and the origins of contemporary discourses of urban design and heritage in Cape Town, on the other. I intend to discuss the function of official discourse concerning the design of the city as well as the sudden eruptions that disturb these constructs. I point to the recurrent patterns and moments in which design is made plain and unspoken. I will trace the genealogy of official or top-down design and heritage discourses as well as the moments or movements that are at odds with or embarrass this official discourse.