Critical Assessment of Intensity Measures for Seismic Response of Italian RC Bridge Portfolios

The seismic assessment of a road network depends largely on the characterization of the fragility of its bridge components. The accuracy of bridge seismic demand estimates and the use of proper intensity measures (IM) will significantly influence such task. The available literature has mainly focused on buildings or a limited number of bridge configurations and IMs, which may not be representative for bridge portfolio assessment studies. In this paper, the correlation quality between a larger pool of traditional and innovative IMs and the nonlinear dynamic response of typical Italian RC bridges is investigated to identify the best-performing IMs.     

An Economy of Country Houses

This paper presents an economy of country houses with the ultimate aim of generating a framework for the evolution of country house management theory for the development of management practice and education. Whereas traditional management theory (for large entities) has evolved from the modern and narrow interpretation of economy, this paper employs the old but broader archaic form (oeconomy). This is a device that has previously been used both to generate an alternative understanding of organisations in general as well as for specific types of organisation. When combined with empirical data collected from a range of different country houses, an economy of country houses has emerged. This oeconomy is based on a number of core concepts, each of which has a number of key issues associated with it. The results show that this economy is quite unique, although there are some similarities with the economy of small businesses and the conflict approach of business management theory.     

Ceramic diversity,random copying,and tests for selectivity in ceramic production

This paper examines the evidence for selective reproduction of ceramic types based on their evolving frequency distribution, and on correlations of the abundance of types with underlying functional characteristics. How can we tell if a variant has been preferentially selected or discriminated against, and become more or less frequent than would be expected under pure drift (i.e. random copying, with the compounding over time of proportionate sampling error)? We examined a database of Hittite ceramic bowl types from two successive Phases of occupation of the Upper City of Bo?azköy–Hattusa, capital of the Hittite empire and the largest Bronze Age settlement in Turkey. We applied two tests used in genetics to assess departures from neutrality, to assess selectivity in rates of reproduction of ceramic bowl types (the Ewens-Watterson and Slatkin's Exact tests). We also examined the effects of ceramic fabric and vessel dimensions on changes in vessel abundance between the two Phases, using regression analysis. We found that while the frequency distribution of rim sherds did not in itself enable us to reject the null hypothesis of random copying, closer examination of the characteristics of these types enabled us to recognize latent dimensions of functional variability (including ware type and bowl diameter) that had demonstrably been the subject of selective decision-making by the potters. The present case study suggests that we should be wary of applying the neutral model from genetics uncritically in archaeology, because it is much harder to prove that the cultural traits whose frequencies are being modelled are genuinely functionally equivalent (as that model requires).     

Physiological optics, cognition and emotion: a novel look at the early work of Wilhelm Wundt

The German physiologist Wilhelm Wundt, who later founded experimental psychology, arguably developed the first modern scientific conception of emotion. In the first edition of Vorlesungen über die Menschen- und Thierseele (Lectures on human and animal psychology), which was published in 1863, Wundt tried to establish that emotions were essential parts of rational thought. In fact, he considered them unconscious steps of decision-making that were implied in all processes of conscious thought. His early work deserves attention not only because it is the attempt to conceptualize cognition and emotion strictly from a neural point of view but also because it represents the very foundation of the debate about the nature of emotion that revolved around William James' theory of emotion during the 1890s. However, this aspect of his work is little known because scholars who have analyzed Wundt's work focused on his late career. Furthermore, historical analysis interpreted Wundt's work within a philosophical framework, rather than placing it in the context of German medical and physiological research in which it belongs. In addition, Wundt's early works are hardly available to an English speaking audience because they were never translated.     

Sensitivity of bulk sedimentary stable carbon isotopes to prehistoric forest clearance and maize agriculture

The stable carbon isotope compositions (δ¹³C) of tropical lake sediments and soils have been used to reconstruct the occurrence of prehistoric maize cultivation and its relative importance through time. This study assesses some of the possible variables affecting the response of lake sediment bulk organic carbon isotope (δ¹³C_TOC) values to variations in the scale of prehistoric maize cultivation and the potential of this proxy to yield quantitative estimates of the scale of prehistoric maize agriculture in small tropical watersheds. High resolution analyses of δ¹³C_TOC values, maize pollen concentrations, and mineral influx were conducted on sediments deposited during a ∼220 year period of prehistoric maize agriculture in the watershed of Laguna Castilla, a small lake in the mid-elevations of the Cordillera Central, Dominican Republic. Close correspondence between δ¹³C_TOC values and maize pollen concentrations in the Laguna Castilla sediment record indicates a close relationship between the isotopic values and the scale of prehistoric maize cultivation. Correlations between the δ¹³C_TOC signature and mineral influx indicate that the isotope record is also sensitive to variations in allochthonous carbon delivery. This study establishes that sedimentary δ¹³C_TOC values can provide a highly sensitive proxy of the spatial scale of prehistoric maize agriculture in small tropical watersheds, but emphasizes the need for a better understanding of sediment dynamics and carbon cycling in anthropogenically modified landscapes before this proxy can be widely employed in diverse archaeological settings.     

Towards a Living Archive: Making Multi Layered Research Data and Knowledge Generation Transparent

ABSTRACT

Çatalhöyük was first discovered as one of the earliest urban settlements in the late 1950s and excavated by James Mellaart between 1961 and 1965. The 9000-year-old town in central Turkey rapidly became famous internationally due to the large size and dense occupation of the settlement, as well as the spectacular wall paintings and other art that were uncovered inside the houses. Since 1993, under the direction of Ian Hodder, research at Çatalhöyük has pioneered a reflexive approach to archaeological practice, in which information is permanently open to reinterpretation by both scholars and the public. This approach acknowledges the mutual dependence of knowledge and the underlying research, to which end the Çatalhöyük Project decided to make its records available via the Web and to invite public comment since its onset. After 25 years of excavation, the project’s digital assets now amount to close to 5TB, including formal textual and numeric records, freetext documents, audiovisual materials, and a comprehensive collection of spatial data. The reflexive method, or ‘documentation of the documentation process,’ adds a separate layer of information that specifies how data have been gathered, and facilitates critique, understanding, and the evolution of knowledge.

In this paper we lay out our vision of an interactive archive that provides access to the multi layered information contained in this massive amount of data and how web technological advances have been incorporated into the digital data management at Çatalhöyük. Ultimately, the goal is to support an interdisciplinary process of assembling data into arguments on the basis of multiple lines of evidence. The ‘Living Archive’ will enable intuitive engagement across the entire variety of research, making use of the rich reflexive information stored with the data. The results of new analyses can in turn be reintegrated with the already existing data. The application will use open standards so that the knowledge gathered at Çatalhöyük can be linked with other projects that follow similar publication procedures based on the semantic web approach.