GEZA‘

Abstract

Through a material and exegetical analysis of the texts in question (Isa 11, 1; 40, 24; Job 14, 8) the thesis demonstrates that from a horticulotural point of view, gz‘ displays the characteristics of a cutting (contextually perhaps a root sucker): gz‘ is a shoot taken from a tree (though its being cut off is not explicitly stated), planted in the soil where it takes root, it grows up, and in the religious imagery it is watered by the gardener who decides its fate.     

Making Better Use of Monitoring Data

This paper addresses the knowledge gap that exists in relation to understanding and quantifying the sensitivity of organic-rich archaeological deposits with respect to changes in the soil environment. Based on two case studies we demonstrate that it is possible to quantify the current decay rate in unsaturated archaeological deposits by combining decay rates measured in the laboratory with on-site monitoring data in a simple decay model. The decay of organic archaeological deposits is highly sensitive to variations in soil temperatures and soil water content. Measurements of soil water content cannot always stand alone as a representative measurement of oxygen availability; which suggests that in situ measurements of oxygen content or redox potential are needed in order to understand the preservation conditions at a site. The results of this study emphasize the advantage of combining monitoring data with laboratory studies, in order to document in more detail where and when degradation takes place.     

Rushing for Gold: Mobility and Small‐Scale Mining in East Africa

African rural dwellers have faced depressed economic prospects for several decades. Now, in a number of mineral‐rich countries, multiple discoveries of gold and precious stones have attracted large numbers of prospective small‐scale miners. While their ‘rush’ to, and activities within, mining sites are increasingly being noted, there is little analysis of miners' mobility patterns and material outcomes. In this article, on the basis of a sample survey and interviews at two gold‐mining sites in Tanzania, we probe when and why miners leave one site in favour of another. Our findings indicate that movement is often ‘rushed’ but rarely rash. Whereas movement to the first site may be an adventure, movement to subsequent sites is calculated with knowledge of the many risks entailed. Miners spend considerable time at each site before migrating onwards. Those with the highest site mobility tend to be more affluent than the others, suggesting that movement can be rewarding for those willing to ‘try their luck’ with the hard work and social networking demands of mining another site.     

Mission Impossible: UN Special Representative Gunnar Jarring and His Quest for Peace in the Middle East

On 23 November 1967, Gunnar Jarring, a Swedish diplomat, was appointed the United Nations Special Representative to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Security Council had decided to launch a peace effort in the Middle East following the Six-Day War in June 1967. Israel had won a sweeping victory, and the Arab states had suffered a devastating loss. After the war, Israel controlled a territory almost three and a half times the size of the country itself. But what should be done with these newly conquered territories? Should Israel be allowed to keep them? Over the course of some three and a quarter years, Jarring shuttled between the representatives from the three countries involved in the peace endeavour: Israel, Egypt, and Jordan. (Syria refused to participate.) Despite his arduous efforts, he failed miserably to produce viable progress in the Arab-Israeli conflict.     

Shellfish exploitation in Stone Age Arctic Norway: procurement patterns and household activities

Archaeological evidence for coastal shellfish exploitation in Arctic Norway mostly dates from 5300 to 1500 BC, encompassing the terminal Mesolithic, the Late Stone Age, and the beginning of the Early Metal Period. Shell middens are generally associated with semi-subterranean houses, but may also occur as free-standing deposits. The primary shellfish taxa exploited were Littorina littorea, Arctica islandica and Mytilus edulis. Most of the species utilized were available in the littoral zone and were easily procured in the course of daily household activities, but sub-littoral A. islandica would have required greater investment in procurement technology and time, as well as labor cooperation. Shellfish were an occasional dietary supplement and could also serve as fishing bait. Spatial and temporal variation in shellfish assemblages reflects local marine ecology, sea-level changes, household dynamics, and perhaps field processing. Interpretation of the existing data is constrained by inadequate midden sampling and documentation methods.     

Dressed for Ritual,Dressed for Life. A Migration-Period Grave from Sande in Norway

A RICHLY FURNISHED GRAVE from the migration period in Norway is our starting point for a discussion of the impact of dress in life and death. The Sande farm is situated on the southern tip of Norway on the Lista peninsula, an area renowned for its many rich finds from the migration period.⁴⁴ Helliksen 2006 Helliksen, W 2006, ‘Rik kvinnegrav og naust fra folkevandringstid på Sande i Herad’, Listamuseet Årbok 2006, 7–9. [Google Scholar], 7; Lund 2008 Lund, W H 2008, ‘Grav, kult og hall i folkevandringstid og merovingertid på Sande i Farsund k, Vest-Agder’, Primitive Tider 10, 7–19. [Google Scholar], 8–10. A high-status grave from Sande in Vest-Agder was excavated in 2005 and was found to be lavishly equipped, not least in terms of jewellery items and dress fittings. Some remarkable textile remains were also preserved. The types of adornment and their position in the grave strongly suggest this was the burial of a woman, while the jewellery and textiles and their composition, style and appearance, all offer valuable information on the story of the individual and the dress code of the time. This article offers the first detailed exploration of this burial and its assemblage and an in-depth discussion of the surviving textile fragments and dress equipment as evidence of a form of dress and display that may have operated in life and death.     

Differentiated regional entrepreneurial discovery processes. A conceptual discussion and empirical illustration from three emergent clusters

ABSTRACT

The paper aims to contribute to better understanding of entrepreneurial discovery processes and regional industrial growth by examining (1) how different regional contexts affect entrepreneurial discoveries, and (2) how entrepreneurial discoveries support specific types of industrial path development in different regions. The paper includes empirical studies of the formation and growth of three ‘official’ regional clusters supported by Innovation Norway’s programme for immature clusters. The paper argues that entrepreneurial discoveries should be institutionalized (by system level entrepreneurs) to achieve considerable regional industrial effects. In our cases institutionalization occurs through the creation of cluster organizations and development of the knowledge infrastructure.