Surveying the Boundaries of Historical Linguistics and Archaeology: Early Settlement in South Central Africa

Drawing on evidence from South Central Africa, this paper explores two methods for linking the linguistic and archaeological records. Since the 1960s, scholars have correlated the hypothesized spatial and temporal overlaps of linguistic speech communities and pottery traditions, with varying success in the face of revisions to linguistic classifications and debates over pottery typologies. This paper assesses similar correlations between speech communities within the Bantu-Botatwe family and ceramic traditions of South Central Africa. Then, it proposes direct associations for specific activities and tools attested in both the linguistic and archaeological records in order to test correlations between pottery traditions and speech communities as well as the reliability of glottochronology. The development of a dense cluster of direct associations between the two records converging on the “when and where” of historical processes allows for the incorporation of theoretical and historical interpretations founded on one body of evidence into narratives developed from another type of data and, therefore, facilitates a “peer” engagement between the disciplines.     

Interpreting the expansion of sea fishing in medieval Europe using stable isotope analysis of archaeological cod bones

Archaeological fish bones reveal increases in marine fish utilisation in Northern and Western Europe beginning in the 10th and 11th centuries AD. We use stable isotope signatures from 300 archaeological cod (Gadus morhua) bones to determine whether this sea fishing revolution resulted from increased local fishing or the introduction of preserved fish transported from distant waters such as Arctic Norway, Iceland and/or the Northern Isles of Scotland (Orkney and Shetland). Results from 12 settlements in England and Flanders (Belgium) indicate that catches were initially local. Between the 9th and 12th centuries most bones represented fish from the southern North Sea. Conversely, by the 13th to 14th centuries demand was increasingly met through long distance transport – signalling the onset of the globalisation of commercial fisheries and suggesting that cities such as London quickly outgrew the capacity of local fish supplies.     

Deletion/Substitution/Addition (DSA) model selection algorithm applied to the study of archaeological settlement patterning

This paper introduces GIS-based statistical methods for the study of settlement patterning in an archaeological context. The main aspect is an improvement over suboptimal stepwise statistical model selection procedures, with the introduction of a Deletion/Substitution/Addition (DSA) algorithm, a systematic model selection algorithm that provides an optimal model choice. The paper also introduces the combined use of Receiving Operator Characteristic (ROC) curves, and variable ranking as key tools aimed at an understanding of settlement patterning causation. An illustrative case study is provided whereby both a purely environmental and a mixed environmental/historical model (based on settlement hierarchy considerations) are investigated.     

The nature of third-millennium settlement: The example of al-Tikha (Rustaq) an Umm an-Nar site on the Batinah coast of Oman

al-Tikha is a mid to large Umm an-Nar (c. 2700–2000 BC) settlement situated near Rustaq at the back of the Southern Batinah coastal plain in the Sultanate of Oman that was discovered (or rediscovered) in 2014. The site is unique because its layout and spatial organisation are very largely (possibly completely) visible on the surface. This includes two separate areas of stone-built housing, a large pottery scatter of varying density, three or four typical Umm an-Nar round towers and a small cemetery consisting of at least four tombs, along with a few other features. The layout of the site is described and discussed in detail, in particular, in relation to what it might tell us about the nature of Umm an-Nar settlement and social organisation more generally. The location of the site within a pattern of repeating Umm an-Nar settlement along Wadi Far (Wādī al-Farʿī) is also described and discussed.     

Of Some Paradoxes in the Historiography of Molecular Biology**

Just when molecular biology is arguably delivering on some of its long-promised medical applications—think mRNA vaccines, monoclonal antibody drugs, PCR testing, and gene therapies—the history of molecular biology has lost much of its shine. What not too long ago seemed like a burgeoning field of research with endless possibilities, is now often reduced to the “central dogma” that saw its apotheosis in the effort to sequence the human genome but has since unraveled. The essay will discuss several possible answers to this apparent paradox.     

Universities in inclusive regional innovation systems: Academic engagement and uneven knowledge use in Brazil

The purpose of this paper is to spatially and regionally examine academic engagement within Brazil, identifying patterns. Moreover, our investigation can contribute to a better understanding of how knowledge can be turned into a tool to fight regional inequality. We depart from two hypotheses: first, universities situated in peripheral regions interact more with companies from relatively more dynamic regions, and second, in the absence of industrial knowledge demand, universities tend to collaborate more closely with a diverse range of stakeholders in the region. To evaluate these hypotheses and find empirical evidence, we consider 4497 research groups and 4603 nonacademic organizations as “nodes” connected by 8830 collaborations throughout all Brazilian regions. Social network tools are used to illustrate the spatial and regional dimensions of academic engagement more accurately. The results show that academic engagement is not regionally homogeneous, demonstrating essential differences regarding local nonacademic partnerships. Innovation policies, which encourage only university–firm interactions, perpetuate regional inequality.     

A quota for the outsourcing of television programmes: an economic analysis of its effectiveness

A European Directive stipulates that at least 10% of programmes broadcast by each European broadcaster must be produced by an independent producer. By stimulating independent productions the European Union and the Dutch government aim to improve the quality of television programmes. In 1997, the Netherlands increased this requirement to 25%. This paper evaluates the policy, using a unique Dutch dataset that includes all independent productions appearing on public television from 1996 until 2000. We show that: (i) the producers are highly specialised; (ii) programming is volatile; (iii) entry of new firms is substantially reducing average rates of turnover; (iv) the producers who lobbied for the higher quota were losing market share and were relatively well‐organised. Therefore, the outsourcing requirement does not lead to the desired levels of stable production by individual producers and it is unlikely to be an effective instrument.