The paleolithic site of Longwangchan in the middle Yellow River,China: chronology,paleoenvironment and implications

The Longwangchan Paleolithic site, situated on the Yellow River terraces in the Hukou area, Shaanxi province, China, was found in 2003–2004, and two areas (Localities 1 and 2) of the site were excavated in 2005–2008. Abundant stone artifacts including microliths, a grinding stone fragment and a shovel, with some animal bones and shells, were recovered from Locality 1. In this study, the cultural deposits from Locality 1 were dated using radiocarbon and optical dating techniques, and the sediment properties of the deposits were analyzed. The results show that the age of the deposits ranges from 29 to 21 ka and most of them were deposited between 25 ka and 29 ka. This indicates that corresponds to late Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 and early MIS 2. During the human occupation period, the climate in this area became colder and drier. Sediments from beds where the grinding slab and the shovel were found were dated to ∼25 ka, which is the oldest among the grinding stones found in China. The microliths and the grinding stone are important evidence for an incipient socio-economic process that eventually led to the regional transition from hunting-foraging to farming.     

Diet and Oral Health of Populations that Inhabited Central Argentina (Córdoba Province) during Late Holocene

The aim of this work is to study, from a bioarchaeological perspective, the diet and oral health of the populations that inhabited Central Argentina in two periods which would reflect changes in subsistence strategies: earlier late Holocene (ca. 2500–1500 years BP) and later late Holocene (ca.1500–400 years BP). The sample is composed by 83 adult individuals from 47 archaeological sites. We considered five non‐specific indicators of stress, infectious and degenerative diseases: hypoplasia of dental enamel, dental caries, abscesses, antemortem teeth loss, and calculus. We also considered hypercementosis, dens in dens, and agenesis. We test intraobserver error by means of intraclass correlation coefficient and analysis of variance of repeated measures. We calculated prevalence by sex, age, geographic subregion, and chronological period. We applied Chi‐square (X²) to test statistical significance of observed differences. Considering the sample as a whole, low prevalence of dental caries (10.27%), abscesses (16.52%), and hypoplasia (10.84%) are coincident with values observed for populations with mixed or hunter‐gathering subsistence strategy. In later late Holocene, high incidence of caries should be considered as indicator of consumption of C4 vegetables or other carbohydrate‐rich vegetables, such as legumes of Prosopis sp. Also, moderate values of dental enamel hypoplasia should be related with metabolic‐systemic stress episodes. Summarizing, these results are coincident with isotopic, archaeological, and ethnohistorical evidences which suggest climatic, social, and demographic pressures that might have affected the lifestyle of these populations before the Spanish conquest. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Broccoli and Desire

Abstract: Tracing the commodity chain of broccoli from Nashville, Tennessee supermarkets to Maya farmers in highland Guatemala, this paper examines relations of desire and political economic power. We argue that the global broccoli trade is shot through with desires—desires of Western consumers to eat healthy foods as well as desires for Maya farmers to get ahead economically. Such desires simultaneously subvert and sustain the hegemonic constellations that anchor crucial nodes in the international broccoli trade.     

Issue competition between Green and social democratic parties in majoritarian settings: the case of Australia

The emergence of green parties has injected new lines of competition into national party systems, with discernible issue competition effects for established, ideologically-proximate social democratic parties. Despite a burgeoning literature on green and social democratic issue competition tactics in settings where coalition government is common, we have less understanding of these same effects in settings where majority government is the norm. Using the case of the Australian Greens and the Australian Labor Party, we explore issue competition dynamics in a polity where the majoritarian electoral system reduces opportunities for coalition formation. We find that the absence of strong electoral imperatives for either party to enter coalitions has encouraged them to compete adjacent to one another, rather than in direct competition.     

The smallest ideological and political battlefield: depicting borders on postage stamps – the case of Israel

There are few dozen areas in dispute around the world, where the borders have not been agreed by the involved parties or by the international community. The dispute over the Israeli border is particularly complex as it not only presents disagreement between the opposing sides in play but also in the international arena and within the Israeli political system and society. This paper examines one way in which the State of Israel is trying to define its borders through postage stamps. The argument raised is that Israel issues stamps that deal with disputed territorial areas in accordance with the ideology of the ruling party of a certain period, as well as the respective social consensus surrounding a particular area. Our findings support this argument and find three meta‐messages incorporated into the stamps, including the historical connection between the State of Israel and the land of Israel, unified Jerusalem, and the Christian connection to Jerusalem.     

New Challenges in Land Use in Nepal: Reflections on the Booming Real-estate Sector in Chitwan and Kathmandu Valley

Domestic commercial land acquisition is a recent phenomenon in Nepal; it is rapidly expanding and increasingly occupying productive agricultural land for real estate and other non-agricultural commercial purposes. This paper analyses the present situation and the implications of domestic land acquisition, and identifies actors and forms of land deals and associated conflicts. The study was conducted in Kathmandu Valley (27° 32′ 13″ N to 27° 49′ 10″ N and 85° 11′ 31″ E to 85° 31′ 38″ E) and Chitwan District (83°54′ 45″ to 84°48′15″ E and 27°21′45″ to 27°52′ 30″ N), the areas of Nepal most affected by domestic land acquisition. In the absence of statistical material, purposive sampling was used to identify households for a survey of 208 respondents; this was complemented by qualitative research and a review of media and other documents. Respondents confirmed that land acquisition is increasing at a very rapid rate and is driven by a nexus of politicians, land brokers and real-estate actors, and that it has caused not only food insecurity but also numerous conflicts between local people and the land deal actors. Existing policies and legislations were found to be inadequate to address the challenges brought about by the domestic land acquisition process in Nepal.     

Fannie Lou Hamer's Freedom Farms and Black Agrarian Geographies

This paper examines Fannie Lou Hamer's Freedom Farms, a 1969 farming cooperative in Sunflower County, Mississippi. Specifically, this paper interrogates how Hamer's identity as a Black southern woman influences her formulation and daily activities at Freedom Farms. Theoretically, this paper situates Hamer as an expert agrarian labourer and knowledge producer who exists within a history of Black women who have always been utilised for their agrarian knowledge, but given little credit. Hamer's knowledge is a part of her body. This paper argues that Freedom Farms is a Black radical geography operating at three scales: the body, the farm and the southern agrarian landscape. This paper utilises Hamer's speeches, interviews and other archival documents to understand Hamer's efforts. Hamer's agrarian landscape is wrought with pain, but also the insistence in the economic opportunity that exists for Black people in agrarian spaces.     

Archaeobotanical investigation of two Scythian-Sarmatian period pits in eastern Ukraine: Implications for floodplain cereal cultivation

Abstract

Two Scythian-Sarmatian period pits dated to the 5th–1st centuries b.c. were discovered while excavating the Chalcolithic site of Zanovskoe, located on a floodplain of the Donets River in the steppe region of eastern Ukraine, Lugansk oblast. No contemporaneous settlement sites are known in the region. Archaeobotanical analysis was conducted on charred plant macrofossils recovered from pits at the site. The crop assemblage consisted of hulled barley and broomcorn millet, from which AMS radiocarbon dates were obtained. Other identified plant species mostly constituted arable weeds and wetland plants. The archaeobotanical assemblage implies floodplain cereal cultivation strategies among the steppe inhabitants during this period.     

Reconstructing Prehistoric Population Movements: Seeking Congruence in Genetics,Linguistics, and Archaeology

Books discussed here focus upon the initial peopling of the Americas and the worldwide development of food production. They examine postulated historical instances in which genes, languages, and cultural elements appear to correlate, indicating major population movements in prehistory. Recognized experts in historical linguistics, archaeology, and molecular genetics review current methodology, available data, and models of global and regional population history. A more holistic approach and a greater understanding of human population dynamics are called for to improve our reconstruction of these past events.     

Diplomacy and revolution: The London conference of 1830 and the Belgian revolt

This paper examines Thomas Hill Green's changing attitude to the Reform Question between 1865 and 1876. Section 1 sketches the Radical landscape against which Green advocated reform between 1866 and 1867, paying particular attention to the respective positions of Gladstone, J.S. Mill and Bright on the relationship between responsible citizenship and class membership. Section 2 examines Green's theories of social balance and responsible citizenship at the time of his lectures on the English Civil War. Section 3 argues that, contrary to the established scholarship, Green's Radicalism was closer to Bright than to Gladstone and Mill during this period. Section 4 counters Richter's claim that Green abandoned democracy following the 1874 General Election, while arguing that even sympathetic commentators misunderstand Green's attitude to the Reform Question immediately after this date.