Miralinidae (Marsupialia: Phalangeroidea) from northern Australia,including the youngest occurrence of the family

Five isolated molars from two localities in the Northern Territory, the middle Miocene Bullock Creek and late Oligocene Kangaroo Well sites, are assigned to the new miralinid genus Barguru, which includes the three new species: Barguru kayir, Barguru maru and Barguru kula. The Miralinidae was previously thought to be restricted to the late Oligocene and early Miocene, but the occurrence at Bullock Creek extends the time range of this family into the middle Miocene. Analysis of metaloph development in the Miralinidae suggests that loph formation in this family followed a different trajectory to that of phalangerids.     

Object-based landform delineation and classification from DEMs for archaeological predictive mapping

In this paper we report the results of an experiment with automated landform delineation and classification from digital elevation models (DEMs) using object-based image analysis (OBIA). Archaeologists rely on accurate and detailed geomorphological maps to predict and interpret the location of archaeological sites. However, they have been using high-resolution DEMs primarily for visual interpretation and expert-judgement classification of landform. OBIA can perform these classifications much faster and in a more objective fashion. The method was tested on a study area in the south east of the Netherlands. It is concluded that OBIA is a suitable technique for quick and objective delineation of landform, but needs an improved conceptual framework adapted to the local situation and archaeological questions to better identify and interpret the derived landform objects.     

Italy at War 1935–2005: Report on the 2005 ASMI Annual Conference,Edinburgh, 25–26 November

‘Addiopizzo’ (Goodbye protection money) is a grassroots anti-mafia movement based in Palermo that stresses the individual consumer's responsibility for maintaining the Sicilian mafia's pizzo system. If you purchase products from a business that pays the pizzo you are indirectly supporting the mafia. By encouraging Palermitans to buy from ‘pizzo-free’ businesses, Addiopizzo uses the purchasing power of the consumer to fight organised crime. The community of ‘pizzo-free’ businesses is small but steadily growing whilst the number of critical consumers pledging to buy their products appears to have peaked. This article aims to investigate the reasons why consumers may be reluctant to support ‘pizzo-free’ businesses by asking those who have already made public their decision to do so. Whilst critical consumers cannot fully explain why the majority of Palermo's citizens continue to tolerate the pizzo system their attitudes towards them do highlight differences that may help to account for wider non-participation in Addiopizzo's campaign.     

The astrolabe: Its uses and derivatives

Despite the technical means available for its diffusion, the information explosion is such that a diminishing proportion of geographical literature achieves the circulation that it deserves. The problem is illustrated by reference to a single country — Finland. In the case of such a country, even assuming familiarity with its languages, access to significant publication often proves impossible save on its home ground. Examples of three types of geographical literature are reviewed — 1) literature from the past which merits wider acquaintance because of its enduring value; 2) literature from the present which, on the score of methodology or theory independently of content, deserves attention, but which — not appearing in internationally familiar outlets — is unlikely to gain recognition; 3) similar literature directly relevant to the geography of Finland in the publications of cognate disciplines. The rate of change in the geographical scene and the volume of publication generated make it increasingly difficult for the would‐be specialist in even a relatively narrow field to keep up‐to‐date and to speed the circulation of information.     

Geographie und Naturschutz—politisches Handlungsfeld mit räumlichen Implikationen

Wird Geographie als das definiert, was Geographinnen und Geographen tun, kann Naturschutz bislang nur mit Abstrichen dem Themenfeld der Geographie zugerechnet werden. Dies verwundert, da die Geographie in doppelter Hinsicht prädestiniert wäre, Naturschutz als ihr Arbeitsfeld zu reklamieren: Einerseits ist Naturschutz raumbezogen, das heißt Naturschutz findet fast ausnahmslos flächengebunden statt. Andererseits sind beim Schutz der Natur neben ökologischen in gleicher Weise auch humane Aspekte zu berücksichtigen, also muß Naturschutz immer diejenigen, die etwas schützen sollen ebenso berücksichtigen wie diejenigen, vor denen etwas geschützt werden soll. Die Geschichte des Naturschutzes belegt, daß ein Großteil konkreter Naturschutzmaßnahmen sogar nur unter Beachtung geographischer Aspekte erfolgreich durchzuführen war. Zu erwähnen sind in diesem Kontext beispielsweise die Planung von Schutzgebieten, die Etablierung von Konzepten einer naturverträglichen Regionalentwicklung sowie das flächenbezogene Monitoring der Häufigkeiten (bzw. Seltenheiten) von Pflanzen, Tieren und Landschaften oder Landschaftsmerkmalen. Der nachfolgende Artikel zielt—vor dem Hintergrund historischer und disziplinärer Aspekte—darauf ab, die Bedeutung geographischer Bezüge des Naturschutzes herauszuarbeiten und für ein stärkeres Engagement von Geographinnen und Geographen im Naturschutz zu werben.     

Moderner Naturschutz heute

Ebenso wie die ganze Gesellschaft wandeln sich auch die Ziele des Naturschutzes und das Verständnis seiner Umsetzung. Zum reinen Artenschutzgedanken haben sich längst weitere Aufgaben und Probleme hinzugesellt. Mit dem Präsidenten des Bundesamtes für Naturschutz (BfN) in Bonn, PROF. DR. HARTMUT VOGTMANN , sprach DIPL.-GEOGR. UTE C. BAUER über seine Auffassungen zum modernen Naturschutz