The Middle Neolithic of Morocco’s North-Western Atlantic Strip: New Evidence from the El-Khil Caves (Tangier)

The period comprising the end of the Early Neolithic and the Middle Neolithic, dated broadly within the fifth millennium cal BC, corresponds to an interval that remains largely unknown in the extreme north-western tip of Africa. This situation contrasts with that of the Early Neolithic, a period characterised by the earliest evidence of the diffusion of a productive economy, cultivated plants and domestic animals. The paucity of data for these later phases can be explained in part by the lack of secure contexts and sequences based on radiocarbon datings of short-lived samples. The current study presents the results of the excavations of El-Khil Caves B and C that yield materials allowing re-evaluation of the chronology of a type of ceramic known as Ashakar ware. The study also identifies two traditions in the northern Moroccan Middle Neolithic. The first is heir to the so-called Impressa Mediterranean ware and rooted in the Cardial Neolithic, while the second is characterised by roulette cord impressions, red slip and tunnel lugs and probably rooted in the region of the Sahara, and has no technological precedents in the study area.     

Making waves: the valuation of innovations in San Sebastian’s surf economy

This study takes a valuation perspective to study how and where products and innovations are gaining ‘economic significance’ in the contemporary economy. Building on a recent research stream in economic geography and urban and regional studies, it highlights that the economic value of many products is not formed within production systems alone, but relies on co-constructed connections between production and consumption systems, playing out across multiple geographies. It distinguishes between three types of economic valuation pathways – namely technical, experiential and identity-based – which although analytically distinct may actually build and reinforce one another. This approach is empirically illustrated with the case of the surf-related economy in the city of San Sebastian (Basque Country, Spain), which is used to make a broader point about the growing relevance of a valuation approach to understand competitive advantage and economic renewal in localized production systems.     

An analysis of the Spanish ceramic tile industry research contracts and patents

In this work, we apply a systemic approach to the analysis of a particular geographic territory, the industrial district. We are particularly interested in analysing the interaction between the productive-technological environment and the scientific environment by an examination of research contracts and patents. Our analysis shows that R&D activity in the Spanish ceramic tile District Innovation System was mainly conducted by suppliers. Final producers’ innovation efforts were related to non-technological aspects and differentiation.     

Internal borders and external factors in outermost island regions. The case of the Canary Islands

The defining element of island regions is their isolation, the separation of the islands from the mainland; there is an inherent notion of natural border. This condition has preserved ecosystems and protected against outside threats, stimulating ‘coevolution’ between man and the environment, a fundamental ingredient of sustainability. But insularity also means the evident added costs of access to markets which, together with territorial limits and the scarcity of basic resources, especially on small islands, hinders their socioeconomic development. These costs are even greater in the case of outlying islands, which suffer from a ‘double insularity’ in the form of both external and internal borders. For this reason, it is common for governments to establish various forms of support, from tax exemptions to the creation of permanent aid funds, like those implemented by the European Union for the outermost regions. This article discusses these aspects in the case of the Canary Islands, an example of a European outermost island region. The findings show that the support measures have not always been favourable for all the islands.     

Assessment of Effects of Reductions of Lateral Stiffness along Height on Buildings Modeled as Elastic Cantilever Shear Beams

A simplified model useful for assessing economic losses due to moderate seismicity events in urban areas has been developed by studying the behavior of buildings before yielding their structural system, allowing for nonuniform stiffness along their height. In particular, buildings are modeled as cantilever shear beams with uniform mass and parabolic reduction of lateral stiffness. This particular stiffness distribution is relevant, as it could be expected to occur in buildings where earthquake action is a critical structural design criterion. The equation of motion governing the dynamic behavior of the proposed model is solved analytically, finding mode shapes in terms of first and second zero-order Legendre functions. The solution is verified by comparing it with results obtained from fine mesh finite element models. The effect of reducing the lateral stiffness is then studied in the first five modes of vibration. Results include modal periods, mode shapes, modal participation factors, and derivatives of mode shapes. In general, it is found that effects of reduction of lateral stiffness in mode shapes are moderate when the lateral stiffness in the free end is smaller than about seventy percent of the lateral stiffness at the fixed end, but become significant for larger reductions. Effects are particularly important for the derivative of the mode shapes, which could play a significant role in estimating interstory drift demands in buildings. Model usefulness is showcased by analyzing a test case where both acceleration and drift demands are assessed by considering uniform beams and beams with parabolic stiffness variation, finding notable improvements by considering the latter.     

A Cost-Based Ripley’s <Emphasis Type="Italic">K</Emphasis> Function to Assess Social Strategies in Settlement Patterning

Most quantitative approaches to distributional analysis in archaeology assume a homogeneous study surface that is amenable to easy generalisations. This framework has been widely used to describe settlement processes, disregarding the spatial heterogeneity inherent to geographic reality. In other words, researchers have often assumed that the correlation between the elements of a spatial distribution is a function of the Euclidean distance (i.e. straight line distance) between them. Other archaeological studies have tested alternative measures to Euclidean distances, such as cost-based ones, both to describe optimal routes and to assess spatial autocorrelation in a point pattern. Nevertheless, until now there has been no suitable model to introduce these measures into spatial statistical equations. In order to overcome this obstacle, we approach the implementation problem inversely by embedding the spatial pattern under study into a Euclidean frame of reference based on its cost-distance pairwise matrix. This paper describes the application of this methodology on one of the main tools used by archaeologists to assess settlement patterns: Ripley’s K function. We present two case studies, covering both macroscale and mesoscale, with significant variations in the results depending on the use of the Euclidean or cost-based approach. Data, functions and results have been R-packaged for the sake of reproducibility and reusability, allowing other researchers to build upon our methods.     

Culture-led urban regeneration policies in the Ibero-American space

ABSTRACT

This article examines cultural policy strategies supporting urban regeneration, focusing on its particular characteristics in the Ibero-American context. We start by developing a systematic contrast between the different circumstances that have led to the emergence of these strategies in the Ibero-American sphere and in other parts of the world. Our examination of the Ibero-American regenerative experience also includes a consideration of the paradigmatic cases that arose initially in the Iberian Peninsula and the typological analysis of subsequent Latin American experiences. The consideration of all these different elements ends up providing a global vision of the specificity of the phenomenon in its Ibero-American context.