Advances in the archaeology of the Pampa and Patagonia

Archaeological data reveal two distinctive cultural adaptations on the Pampa and Patagonia of Argentina: terrestrial hunter-gatherers in the former and most of the latter region and maritime hunter-gatherers along the southern extreme. Both adaptations were achieved by the end of the fifth millennium B.C. Thereafter, a stable equilibrium was maintained, with a slow drift toward greater emphasis on resources providing the maximum return for the least effort. The high productivity of the Fuegian environment sustained a population 30 times greater than occupied the Pampa and continental Patagonia prior to Araucanian penetration in the sixteenth century A.D. The long-term stability is attributable to the absence of environmental or demographic pressures or encroachments by neighboring groups, which might have made more intensive exploitation of the environment necessary.     

Landscape interpretation with augmented reality and maps to improve spatial orientation skill

Landscape interpretation is needed for navigating and determining an orientation: with traditional cartography, interpreting 3D topographic information from 2D landform representations to get self-location requires spatial orientation skill. Augmented reality technology allows a new way to interact with 3D landscape representation and thereby facilitate the orientation of oneself in respect to the environment to determine goal location. This paper analyses if AR spatial landform improves the learner’s spatial orientation skill measured with the perspective taking/spatial orientation test by paired sampled t-tests. A workshop was conducted with 123 university students (63 treatment group, 60 control group) in which students had to identify locations and routes based on the interpretation of the relief, represented by AR. Results of the workshop showed an improvement in spatial orientation skill of 20.14 degrees average gain in the treatment group. Students who were not subject to the workshop (control group) did not improve their spatial orientation skill. The possibility of using free AR three-dimensional applications and exploit the potential of tablets and smart phones, which are widespread today, makes it possible to design and implement strategies for the development of spatial skills in formal teaching in the scope of Geography in higher education.     

SEM,EPR and ToF-SIMS analyses applied to unravel the technology employed for pottery-making by pre-colonial Indian tribes from Pantanal,Brazil

The present work aims at elucidating the technology applied in the fabrication of ceramic objects by the ancient ceramists that inhabited the western border of Pantanal, Mato-Grosso do Sul, with the help of a multidisciplinary approach making use of chemical and physical methods of analysis. The potshards under study show the presence of different types of additives, as determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS). The dispersion of the additives within the ceramic matrix was also addressed by SEM, which shed light on the mounting technique used by the potters to assemble the ceramic vessels. Moreover, the tensile strength conferred to the pottery by the use of a specific type of additive was evaluated by applying a mechanical test. These results were correlated with the firing temperature of the potshards, determined by means of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR).     

Anthropologie, psychhanalyse et «civilisation» du brésil dans l'entre-deux-guerres

This study concerns the moral regulation of the Person in Brazil from the twenties to the end of the forties, from the point of view of the intense academic relationship between anthropology and psychoanalysis. It deals with the conditions under which that dialogue took place: the general crusade for the «civilization» of the country, between the central State initiatives in the promotion of hygiene and education and the medical, intellectual debates about the «African» heritage and the possibility of surmounting cultural «backwardness».     

THE FOOD VALUE CHAIN AS A LOCUS FOR (DIS)AGREEMENT: CONVENTIONS AND QUALITIES IN THE SPANISH WINE AND NORWEGIAN SALTED COD INDUSTRIES

According to the theory of conventions, food value chains (FVCs) involve a complex array of actors who share an agreement about the qualities embodied in their particular foodstuff. Nevertheless, that agreement is continuously challenged by changes in consumer markets. Therefore, I argue that FVCs able to adapt those qualities to new trends will perform better than FVCs whose commitment to certain qualities leads to a misunderstanding between producers and consumers. The organization of the chain itself, the values of national regulatory frameworks, and the goals of the national innovation system are discussed as factors that shape an FVCs' ability to re‐arrange that core agreement. By using professional reports, statistical records and personal interviews, this article focuses on two FVCs that have experienced contrasting trajectories in recent decades in the Spanish market: the wine industry located in the region of Castile and Leon (Spain) and the Norwegian salted cod industry. The growing wine FVC has achieved a successful agreement about a set of qualities linked to nature, tradition, and place, all of them guaranteed by the reputation of the Designation of Origin (DO) system. In contrast, the salted cod FVC is losing its market share because its main actors are failing to properly communicate the key qualities of environmental sustainability and artisanal cod production to concerned Spanish consumers, as well as in the adoption of the place‐related attributes that still shape consumer preferences in Spain.     

Intervention publique sur le développement de grappes industrielles au Québec

This article describes the conditions for the development of four industrial clusters and the mechanisms of their integration in the regional economy. The case studies are the aerospace and apparel clusters in Montreal, and the agri‐food and marine science and technology clusters in the Lower St. Lawrence region. Clusters are defined as arrangements of businesses, government actors, public authorities, and local intermediary organizations in a local area. However, the study shows that clusters are based on actors and processes operating at different scales, from the local to the global. It also shows the importance of the sectoral leadership acknowledged by the different stakeholders.     

What makes people stay in or leave shrinking cities? An empirical study from Portugal

The attractiveness of cities as places to live determines population movements into or out of them. Understanding the appealing features is fundamental to local governments, particularly for cities facing population decline. Pull and push attributes can include economic aspects, the availability of amenities and psychological constructs, initiating a discussion around which factors are more relevant for migration. However, such discussion has been underexplored in studies of shrinking cities. In the present study, we contribute to the discussion by identifying pull and push factors in Portuguese shrinking cities. Data were collected using a face-to-face questionnaire of 701 residents in four shrinking cities: Oporto, Barreiro, Peso da Régua and Moura. Factor analysis and automatic linear modelling were used to analyse the data. Our results show that the economic activity is the most relevant feature for retaining residents. However, characteristics specific to each city, related to heritage and natural beauty, are also shown to influence a city’s attractiveness. The cause of population shrinkage was also found to influence residents’ assessments of the pull and push attributes of each city. Furthermore, the results show the relevance of social ties and of place attachment to inhabitants’ intention to continue living in their city of residence.