Using finite element methods to analyze ancient architecture: an example from the North American Arctic

Developing theories of vernacular architecture in archaeology has been hindered by the lack of a defined methodology for studying ancient buildings, and the absence of information on the mechanical properties of construction materials uncommon in today's building practices. In this paper we use Finite Element Methods and recent research on the structural properties of whalebone to analyze the architecture of Thule semi-subterranean houses. These unique dwellings were constructed and used by the ancestors of Inuit/Eskimo peoples in the Canadian Arctic and Greenland. Little is known about how they were designed and constructed because few have ever been discovered intact. The substantial weight of whalebone roof frames suggests that some designs would have performed better than others. Poorly planned houses, or the use of whalebone in a symbolic rather than strictly utilitarian capacity, may have resulted in higher maintenance costs, thereby shortening their anticipated use life. In extreme cases, errors in design, or the failure of materials may have caused dwellings to collapse, resulting in injuries or possibly even death. We demonstrate through this case study that Finite Element Methods constitutes an effective methodology for studying ancient buildings, with the proviso that more research is needed on the mechanical properties of building materials used in the past.     

Evidence of interpersonal violence at the Chalcolithic village of Shiqmim (Israel)

Three circumscribed depressed fractures were found on the skull of an adolescent boy recovered from a primary intramural burial at the Chalcolithic site of Shiqmim, northern Negev, Israel dated to (∼4500–3200 BCE). The fractures were located on the left side and back of the skull. They are circular in outline and have sharp margins containing numerous small bone fragments. These indicate that the skull was fractured when the bone was still fresh and were the probable cause of death. The location of the fractured areas is typical of blows inflicted by a right‐handed individual in face‐to‐face conflict. The size and shape of the fractures, suggests that they were inflicted by a blunt instrument, possibly a mace head. The absence of any signs of healing or infection indicates that all fractures occurred within a short space of time and resulted in death. Neither biological characteristics nor burial pattern show any unique features that distinguish this individual from others recovered at this site. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Ancient Origins of Medieval Fields: A Reassessment

This article questions the suggestions that have been made by a number of archaeologists and landscape historians concerning the Roman and prehistoric origins of large tracts of the medieval rural landscape in lowland England. It suggests that arguments for large-scale continuity of field systems, mainly based on the evidence of excavations and topographic analysis, are flawed because they fail to take fully into account the topographic contexts, and the practical functions, of field boundaries. When these matters are given due weight, much of the evidence cited in support of ‘continuity’ instead appears to suggest a significant degree of discontinuity, at least in terms of systems of land division, between Roman Britain and medieval England.     

Do EU funds crowd out other public expenditures? Evidence on the additionality principle from the detailed Czech municipalities’ data

European Union (EU) funds flowing into budgets of public sector organizations of its member states should be additional to their nationally funded expenditures. To investigate this additionality principle systematically, we develop a new empirical method. Our main hypothesis is that some of the EU-funded projects are crowding out national public expenditures. Not being able to reject the hypothesis would be consistent with violating the additionality principle. To test the hypothesis, we examine how EU funding translates into actual spending of relatively comparable municipalities of the Czech Republic. We innovatively match the municipal authorities’ budgetary data on EU-funded expenditure projects with their other, nationally funded, expenditures. We find no systemic crowding out of national public expenditures by EU funds at the level of operational programmes in the Czech municipalities’ data, which is consistent with no evidence of violating the additionality principle. Nonetheless, going down to the municipal level enables us to show how the results can pinpoint individual cases of EU fund’s potential mismanagement in Czech municipalities. Overall, we provide the first evaluation of the additionality principle at the level of individual recipients of EU funds and in doing so we develop a methodological approach potentially applicable to other fund recipients.     

Agricultural Investment in Ethiopia: Undermining National Sovereignty or Tool for State Building?

The media discourse on recent agricultural investments — frequently referred to as the ‘global land grab’ — has been quick to label these deals as ‘neo‐colonial’, implying that these kinds of investments undermine national sovereignty. For the most part, the emerging academic literature on the ‘land grab’ has not critically examined this assumption. This article draws on the literature on state building and agrarian relations in Africa to construct a framework that can be used to analyse the impact of agricultural investment on state–society relations and state sovereignty. The article then uses this framework to examine the case of Ethiopia, illustrating how the Ethiopian state has directed investors to peripheral lowlands and, in doing so, has enhanced, rather than diminished, state sovereignty. As such, while the erosion of sovereignty is certainly one possible outcome of agricultural investment, it is by no means the only one, and is an assumption that should be subjected to critical analysis.