Boiled versus unboiled: a study on Neolithic and contemporary human bones

Bones treated at low temperature do not present major modifications although, macroscopically, boiled bones may be distinguished from unboiled ones as they are smoother, lighter and more transparent. Such observations should correspond to textural modifications at a nanometric level and should depend on boiling time. In this study, contemporary human bones, boiled during various time intervals, were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and nitrogen adsorption (BET). The results were used to estimate the boiling time in four archaeological samples (Neolithic bones from Malalmuerzo cave, Spain). It is concluded, comparing Neolithic bones to contemporary ones and from the textural characterization at a nanometrical level, that two of the archaeological bones were boiled and that they were boiled for less than 6 hours.     

The origin of black pigmentation in a sample of Mexican prehispanic human bones

The study of black patches and spots in prehispanic bones of Tlatelolco and Tlapacoya is presented. The chosen characterization techniques, X-ray Fluorescence, X-ray Diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy, Infrared Spectroscopy and Gas Chromatography are complementary and they all conclude that the bone black pigment is constituted, mainly, by amorphous carbon and some mineral inclusions. Gas Chromatography and Infrared Spectroscopy show that the pigment is constituted by organic compounds as aromatic hydrocarbons, mainly bitumen. An explanation on how the spots were formed is proposed.     

Source Modeling of the Kozani and Arnea 1995 Events with Strong Motion Estimates for the City of Thessaloniki

In Turkey, with the occurrence of almost every strong and even moderate earthquake, damage to masonry minarets is observed. In the present work, efficiency of vertical post-tensioning application to reinforce masonry minarets against earthquakes has been investigated. Considering a representative minaret and its post-tensioned counterpart, and performing spectral and time-history analyses, the effects of post-tensioning on the axial stresses, top lateral displacements and overturning safety have been determined. Obtained results have shown that vertical post-tensioning application is a very efficient method to reduce axial tensile stresses and lateral displacements, and to assure the overturning safety of masonry minarets against earthquakes.     

Critical Issues in Earthquake Scenario Loss Modeling

The assessment of human or economic losses due to single events (scenario) may effectively support decision makers in the development of important risk mitigation actions. The study presented herein sheds light on several problems and limitations in the current practice of scenario loss modeling, such as: the number of simulations required to achieve convergence; epistemic and aleatory uncertainty in the ground motion prediction and vulnerability models; and consideration of the earthquake rupture geometry. These issues are investigated using the Metropolitan Area of Lisbon (Portugal), and it has been observed that distinct assumptions in the loss modeling can lead to considerably different results. The findings of this study are also pertinent for probabilistic seismic risk analyses in which a large number of stochastically generated events are employed to assess probabilistic losses.     

Eating Hawai'i: local foods and place-making in Hawai'i Regional Cuisine

In this paper, we look at what it means to ‘eat Hawai'i’ and examine how Hawai'i Regional Cuisine (HRC) imagines, produces, and consumes place through particular constructions of local foods. The term ‘local’ attaches to foods as a marker of numerous positive attributes such as seasonal, sustainable, and community-based. Drawing upon ongoing ethnographic research on Hawai'i Island, we examine spatial and discursive constructions of local and how this particular cuisine places itself in local food networks while simultaneously using place to localize itself within the Island's food networks. Using a case study approach to carefully contextualize localness, we show how Merriman's Restaurant and HRC complicate notions of alternative and local food systems in its discursive and material production and reproduction of Local food and locally grown food.     

Urban Centrality: A Simple Index

This study introduces a new measure of urban centrality. The proposed urban centrality index (UCI) constitutes an extension to the spatial separation index. Urban structure should be more accurately analyzed when considering a centrality scale (varying from extreme monocentricity to extreme polycentricity) than when considering a binary variable (monocentric or polycentric). The proposed index controls for differences in size and shape of the geographic areas for which data are available, and can be calculated using different variables such as employment and population densities, or trip generation rates. The properties of the index are illustrated with simulated artificial data sets and are compared with other similar measures proposed in the existing literature. The index is then applied to the urban structure of four metropolitan areas: Pittsburgh and Los Angeles in the United States; São Paulo, Brazil; and Paris, France. The index is compared with other traditional spatial agglomeration measures, such as global and local Moran's I, and density gradient estimations. El presente estudio introduce una nueva medida de centralidad. El índice de centralidad urbana propuesto (UCI, por sus siglas en inglés) es una extensión al índice de separación espacial (spatial separation index)(Midelfart‐Knarvik et al. 2000). El análisis de la estructura urbana resulta más preciso al usar el índice cuando se toma en cuenta una escala de continua de centralidad (que puede variar de un monocentrismo extremo a un policentrismo extremo) que cuando se considera una variable binaria (monocéntrica o policéntrica). El índex propuesto controla las diferencias de tamaño y forma de las áreas geográficas de las que se tienen datos, y puede ser calculada utilizando diferentes variables, como empleo y densidad poblacional, o tasas de generación de viajes. Las propiedades del índice se ilustran con conjuntos de datos artificiales simulados, y se comparan con otras mediciones similares en la literatura ya existente. Posteriormente, el índice es aplicado a la estructura urbana de cuatro áreas metropolitanas: Pittsburgh y Los Ángeles, en EEUU; San Pablo, en Brasil; y París, Francia. Finalmente, se compara el índice con otras mediciones tradicionales de aglomeración espacial, como el índice de Moran local y global, y estimaciones de gradiente de densidad. 本文介绍了一种度量城市中心性的新方法,提出的城市中心性指数（UCI）是对空间分离指数的扩展。当涉及到中心性规模（从极单中心到极多中心）,不仅仅是二元变量（单中心或多中心）,城市结构则需更加精确的测度。本文构建的指数可以通过数据可获取的不同大小和形状的地理单元控制,并通过不同变量（如就业与人口密度或者旅次产生率）测算得到。该指数的属性可以通过人工数据集的模拟示例说明,或者通过对比已有文献对相似指数的阐述加以说明。然后,通过将该指数应用于全球四个大都市区（美国匹兹堡和洛杉矶、巴西圣保罗和法国巴黎）的城市结构中进行检验。最后,将该指数与其他测度传统空间集聚指数如全局和局部Moran指数及密度梯度估计进行对比.     

Roman agriculture in the conventus Bracaraugustanus (NW Iberia)

A review of archaeobotanical data, together with new, still unpublished data, from Roman sites in conventus Bracaraugustanus suggests the Romanization of the northwest Iberia brought little changes to the agricultural strategies of local communities in indigenous-type settlements. The main crops remain the same as in the Iron Age: Triticum aestivum/durum, Panicum miliaceum, Hordeum vulgare subsp. vulgare, Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccum and T. aestivum subsp. spelta, Avena and Vicia faba. The first secure reference for the cultivation of Secale cereale in the region comes from a Roman context, suggesting that it was introduced in this period, although it probably remained a minor crop.     

Human soft tissue preservation in the Cova des Pas site (Minorca Bronze Age)

The preservation process of soft tissues in an archeological context is mainly unknown because they occur only in truly exceptional situations. The Cova des Pas is a Bronze Age site in Minorca where the special conditions enabled the preservation of some soft tissues associated with 66 individuals. This finding allows the study of the preservation process that took place by means of the analysis of the histological and chemical characteristics of the tissues. Our results show that the preservation mechanism was the adipocere, because the fatty acids profile shows higher concentration of saturated than unsaturated fatty acids. The evidence indicates that the kind of funerary ritual and the environmental conditions favored this preservation.