The last glaciation in the Western Mourne Mountains,Northern Ireland

During the late‐Midlandian (25–13 ¹⁴C ka BP), the last Irish Ice Sheet was thicker in the Western Mourne Mountains than previously argued. Geomorphological and sedimento‐logical analysis shows that regional ice from the Irish Ice Sheet spilled over the mountains, reaching a major limit 5 km along Pigeon Rock Valley. These findings differ from the previous view that a local valley glacier occupied the valley during this period. The pattern of deglaciation was reconstructed using glacial and periglacial evidence. A complex topographic environment in the upper reaches of the valley suggests that regional ice stagnated as it wasted away. During the Nahanagan Stadial (Younger Dryas, ca. 11–10 ka ¹⁴C BP) an arcuate ridge was formed on the western flank of the valley. Calculations suggest that the Equilibrium Line Altitude, influenced by topographic conditions favourable for snow accumulation, was approximately between 1736 m and 1386 m lower during the Nahanagan Stadial than at present.     

Parallel Lives – An Interview with Ruth Tringham

Ruth Tringham is a Professor of Anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley. She is one of the founders and a director of the UC Berkeley Multimedia Authoring Center for Teaching in Anthropology (MACTiA). Her research has focused on the transformation of early agricultural (Neolithic) societies. Tringham has directed and published archaeological excavations in South‐east Europe and Turkey, at the site of Çatalhöyük. Current research focuses on the life‐histories of buildings and the construction of place. Much of her recent practice of archaeology incorporates digital, especially multimedia, technology in the presentation of the process of archaeological interpretation, Since 1998 Tringham has incorporated multimedia authoring and digital technology into teaching inquiry‐based hybrid courses. From 1998 to 2001 she held the UCB Presidential Chair in Undergraduate Education. Tringham is now recognized internationally as one of the leaders of digital education, media literacy, and digital publishing in archaeology. This interest in multimedia grows out of a lifelong passion for music, puppets and cultivating illusions of reality.

The interview was conducted in Cambridge on 23 October 2007, the day after Ruth Tringham's participation in a personal history retrospective at the Department of Archaeology together with Meg Conkey, Henrietta Moore and Alison Wylie, and organized by Pamela Smith. The retrospective aimed to reflect on the transformation of archaeological theory and method during the 1970s and early 1980s (an audio recording is at http://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/podcast/rss.xml). The interview was transcribed by the interviewees together with Dr Katharina Rebay, University of Cambridge.     

Recent Norwegian archaeological publications

The part of the Helg?y Project presented here deals with the Norwegian and Sami populations in Helg?y from their supposed immigration to the Region about 13/1400 AD to approximately 1700. Some findings and the methods developed by the project to establish them will be presented, the question of how to distinguish Sami from Norwegian settlements in historical and pre‐historical times being central in the study of North Norway.     

Re-erecting Houses in Shropshire in the Late Seventeenth Century

Literary evidence for moved houses in seventeenth-century Shropshire as chronicled by Richard Gough in his ‘History of Myddle’ is checked by site surveys, and the results are analysed. Examination of the relevant buildings points to the need for re-assessment of the theory that such structures were flimsy and had earth-fast posts. Comparisons are included, one of which concerns the re-cycling of a ‘ffat-oxe-house’ for which a building contract survives.     

Confiscated commerce: American importers of German synthetic organic chemicals, 1914–1929

Prior to World War I, the United States possessed virtually no synthetic organic chemicals industry, relying instead on importations of dyes and pharmaceuticals from Germany. For decades, the German companies had representatives in the United States that employed personnel who were skilled in the technical and sales aspects of synthetic organic chemicals. The war brought a steep decline in the importing business and also an outburst of anti‐German hysteria that directly affected the importers, many of whom were of German descent. As a result, many of the skilled employees found employment in the nascent domestic industry, providing an unusual case study in technology transfer.     

Settlement studies and the archaeological survey of North Norway — A discussion based on the survey of North Troms

By the end of the 1984 field season a systematic archaeological survey of the county of Troms was completed. At the same time a revision of the survey was started. The survey of Troms is part of a nation‐wide archaeological survey, connected with the production of an Economic Map of Norway. Though the validity of the methods and the results of this survey have been questioned, few attempts have been made at evaluating the archaeological data base produced by the survey. The current total revision of the survey makes this task even more urgent. The aim of this paper is to contribute towards such an evaluation, by utilizing the survey data from six North Troms municipalities in an attempt at constructing a history of settlement for this area.