Bone surface modifications in zooarchaeology

Cutmarks made by stone tools, conchoidal flake scars from hammerstone percussion, carnivore tooth marks, striations from sedimentary abrasion, and other surface modifications on bones from archaeological sites constitute a crucial body of evidence for investigating the role of human behaviors and of nonhuman taphonomic processes in site formation. This paper describes the various kinds of bone surface modifications produced by humans and by nonhuman processes and assesses the current status of bone surface modification studies with regard to such issues as the need for greater analytical standardization, the selection of instruments for examining bone specimens, tactics for identifying the origins of marks on bones, and strategies for inferring human behaviors.     

A Challenge to Presidential Wars: Smith v. Obama

From World War II to the present time, presidents have exceeded constitutional and statutory authority in exercising the war power. In doing so, they violate the rule of law, the principle of self-government, and the system of checks and balances. The U.S. Constitution expressly rejected the British model that placed with the Executive exclusive authority over external affairs, including taking the country from a state of peace to one of war. The Framers assigned that power solely to Congress. A lawsuit filed in 2016, Smith v. Obama, asked a federal district court to decide whether President Obama may engage in war without receiving express authority from Congress.     

Occupying the Margins: Labour Integration and Social Exclusion in Artisanal Mining in Tanzania

This article examines the marginal position of artisanal miners in sub‐Saharan Africa, and considers how they are incorporated into mineral sector change in the context of institutional and legal integration. Taking the case of diamond and gold mining in Tanzania, the concept of social exclusion is used to explore the consequences of marginalization on people's access to mineral resources and ability to make a living from artisanal mining. Because existing inequalities and forms of discrimination are ignored by the Tanzanian state, the institutionalization of mineral titles conceals social and power relations that perpetuate highly unequal access to resources. The article highlights the complexity of these processes, and shows that while legal integration can benefit certain wealthier categories of people, who fit into the model of an ‘entrepreneurial small‐scale miner’, for others adverse incorporation contributes to socio‐economic dependence, exploitation and insecurity. For the issue of marginality to be addressed within integration processes, the existence of local forms of organization, institutions and relationships, which underpin inequalities and discrimination, need to be recognized.     

Resource depression, climate change, and mountain sheep in the eastern Great Basin of western North America

Strontium, oxygen, and carbon stable isotope analysis may be used in conjunction with archaeofaunal data to identify resource depression by demonstrating that prey were obtained from more distant locations. We use fauna from Five Finger Ridge, a Fremont site in central Utah, to demonstrate that relative abundances of mountain sheep (Ovis canadensis) declined during a period of increased summer precipitation. Strontium ratio values from this period indicate that sheep were acquired from different locations than the preceding period. Specimens from this period also show a moderate increase in carbon ratio values, suggesting that mountain sheep were acquired from higher altitudes. Oxygen isotopes do not vary between temporal periods, possibly the result of the countering effects of higher oxygen isotope values associated with increased summer temperatures and lower oxygen isotope values present at higher elevations. Collectively, these data support that there were localized population declines of mountain sheep that may be related to either climatic changes or hunting pressure.     

Methodological Foundations for Public Policy Analysis: A Review Essay

Books reviewed in this articles:
Garry D. Brewer and Peter deLeon, The Foundations of Policy Analysis
Stuart S. Nagel, Policy Evaluation: Making Optimum Decisions
David C. Paris and James F. Reynolds, The Logic of Policy Inquiry
William N. Dunn, Public Policy Analysis: An Introduction
Melvin J. Dubnick and Barbara A. Bardes, Thinking About Public Policy: A Problem-Solving Approach