Assessing mussel shell diagenesis in the modern vadose zone at Lyon's Bluff (22OK520), Northeast Mississippi

This study considers the chemical alteration of archaeological freshwater shell above the water table at the Lyon's Bluff site (22OK520), a single-mound and village complex located in east-central Mississippi, and the changes in trace element concentrations between unfired and fired shell. Thin-section petrography, X-ray diffraction, cathodoluminescence, and scanning electron microscopy analyses were conducted on archaeological shell from four natural layers from Unit 20N20W, over a depth of 80 cm and spanning 450 years. ICP–MS analysis also was conducted on a modern freshwater shell subjected to kiln firing. Microscopy results indicate a pristine aragonite crystal structure in the archaeological samples. ICP–MS data show that certain trace elements within the modern shell maintain their concentration after firing at 500 °C. The broader implications are: 1) that diagenetic alteration does not hinder chemical sourcing of shell at Lyon's Bluff, and 2) that certain trace elements are more reliable than others, namely Sr²⁺, Al²⁺, Ba²⁺, and Mn²⁺, when conducting trace element provenance studies on fired-shell temper.     

The vague nouvelle and the Nouvelle Vague: The Critical Construction of le jeune cinéma français

One of the commonplaces in critical writing on the 1990s movement known as le jeune cinéma français is the idea that it constituted a new ‘New Wave’. At the same time, the critical reception of the 1990s and 1960s ‘new waves’ could not be more different, with le jeune cinéma français being seen invariably as aesthetically inferior to its 1960s ‘antecedent’. This article examines the two key discursive mechanisms used to link le jeune cinéma français to the Nouvelle Vague, those of political commitment and ‘auteur’ cinema. It is argued that the mechanisms used to construct le jeune cinéma français as a distinct cinematic category become increasingly divorced from the kinds of films actually being made and that it is this discursive disjuncture which is, in part, responsible for its negative critical reception.     

ON THE IMPACT OF LABOR MARKET MATCHING ON REGIONAL DISPARITIES*

ABSTRACT We propose a model where imperfect matching between firms and workers on local labor markets leads to incentives for spatial agglomeration. We show that the occurrence of spatial agglomeration depends on initial size differences in terms of both number of workers and firms. Allowing for dynamics of workers' and firms' location choices, we show that the spatial outcome depends crucially on different dimensions of agents' mobility. The effect of a higher level of human capital on regional disparities depends on whether it makes workers more mobile or more specialized on the labor market.     

Community consultation in public policy: The case of the Murray-Darling Basin of Australia

Community consultation is widely employed in contemporary Australia as a means of improving the formulation and implementation of public policy. However, little is known about the optimal expenditure of effort required for any given consultation. This article develops a rational choice model of community consultation that seeks to encapsulate the major elements involved in optimising consultation effort. The framework is particularly useful for understanding and explaining why actual community consultation processes may be sub-optimal. The rational choice model is then applied to the Living Murray debate over water resources in the Murray-Darling Basin of Australia.     

Individual Accessibility Revisited: Implications for Geographical Analysis in the Twenty‐first Century

Analytical methods for evaluating accessibility have been based on a spatial logic through which the impedance of distance shapes mobility and urban form through processes of locational and travel decision making. These methods are not suitable for understanding individual experiences because of recent changes in the processes underlying contemporary urbanism and the increasing importance of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in people's daily lives. In this paper we argue that analysis of individual accessibility can no longer ignore the complexities and opportunities brought forth by these changes. Further, we argue that the effect of distance on the spatial structure of contemporary cities and human spatial behavior has become much more complicated than what has been conceived in conventional urban models and concepts of accessibility. We suggest that the methods and measures formulated around the mid‐twentieth century are becoming increasingly inadequate for grappling with the complex relationships among urban form, mobility, and individual accessibility. We consider some new possibilities for modeling individual accessibility and their implications for geographical analysis in the twenty‐first century.     

The EU habitats directive: Making the article 6 assessments,the case of Ballyseedy Wood

The Habitats Directive requires that projects likely to have a detrimental impact upon a protected habitat must be subject to an assessment of that impact. If that assessment is negative the project may only proceed if there is an absence of alternative solutions and, if there are no alternatives, where there are imperative reasons of overriding public interest. This article looks at the interpretation of those assessments and their practical implications for a road improvement project in County Kerry in the west of Ireland. The Ballyseedy Wood case demonstrates the level of protection from development now afforded to designated wildlife sites by the European Union.