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.     

Learning to be suburban: the production of community in Westwood Hills, Pennsylvania, 1952–1958

In 1952, working-class women in the newly built suburb of Westwood Hills, Pennsylvania began publishing a mimeographed newsletter entitled The Hilltrotter. They used the newsletter to shape their community and by doing so learned and taught how to be suburban. This process occurred both discursively and materially, as the staff of The Hilltrotter simultaneously sought to create a shared conception of community and to shape the everyday lives of Westwood Hills' residents. This paper investigates the work of women on The Hilltrotter and by doing so shows how they produced a constellation of identities – of community, class, age, gender, and citizenship. They constructed these identities through their efforts to make Westwood Hills into a safe, stable, and well-ordered suburban community. In doing so they contributed to the formation of a postwar hegemonic order that enlisted the working class in the reproduction of capitalism.     

读《商代都邑》浅识

春花飘香,得挚友王震中先生相赠新著《商代都邑》,不胜欣喜!细细掂量,篇幅宏大,分量不轻;匆匆翻过,满目珠玑,心旷神怡。遂每日抽暇读上几页,写下几笔,整理后聊充读书心得,愿与同好分享。一《商代都邑》的研究方法,值得赞赏。该书把历史学与考古学有机结合起来,是迄今所见把考古资料加以充分运用的史学著作之一。作者具有考古学专业背景,了解考古学的研究方法,熟悉考古学的学术动态,甚至     

稻盛和夫的新著《干法》解读

《干法》是稻盛和夫的最新著作,是《活法》的姊妹篇。在这部新著中,稻盛和夫面向普通读者,和大家分享工作经验。本文从加强个人修养、追求高目标、创造性地工作、人生方程式等四个方面来解读此书的主要内容。本文还指出：实践方法的有效性是稻盛和夫经营哲学的一个重要特点。     

大遗址概念起源发展及共属性探究

大遗址一词出现于建国之初的经济恢复时期。在配合大规模基本建设进行大遗址清理的实践中,提出了“既对基本建设有利,又对文物保护有利”的“两利原则”。大遗址概念形成于改革开放后新的经济建设高峰期,受国外文化遗产概念启发,逐步发展成考古领域的遗址与相关环境结合的综合体概念。大遗址从起源来看属于工作概念,在文物知识概念体系内难于恰当定位,以现阶段研究的各种概念定义皆难于对具体遗址进行大遗址判定。大遗址也不太符合术语的透明性要求,“大”的义项不明确、界限不清。事买上,大遗址只有经国家公布才能得到认可,因此,大遗址尚处于工作概念阶段。     

《鄂城六朝墓》读后

时间与空间是解读考古材料的基本概念,在魏晋南北朝考古研究中更有其特殊的内涵,如在墓葬的断代与分期、区域文化因素的分析、遗存属性探讨等方面,时空背景是对材料进行深入研究的基础,也是历史考古学研究方法论的基本内容。新近出版的《鄂城六朝墓》报告不仅充实了魏晋南北朝考古材料,而且对于魏晋南北朝考古研究中的时间与空间两个基本概念,也带来了新认识。     

From trusteeship to development: how class and gender complicated Kenya's housing policy, 1939–1963

Colonial rule required the control of territory, nowhere more than in cities. In the early twentieth century, colonial policy in Kenya and the rest of East and Southern Africa had only grudgingly accommodated Africans in urban areas. After 1939 policy changed, not only in response to poor local conditions and social unrest but also because London's new colonial development policy made a place for African workers in towns. From 1940, new housing and colonial policies acknowledged the importance of the discourses of class and gender. Administrators stabilised an African working class by building better municipal housing, and then sought to fashion a middle class by promoting home ownership. They began to promote housing for families, having recognised that African women could help to make their men at home in the city, and to educate children to become good citizens. The evolution of Kenya's housing policy illuminates the characteristic pressures, calculations, and responses of colonial rule that were being played out internationally in the late colonial period.     

Excavating Communities: Lewis R. Binford and the Interpretation of the Archaeological Record in Illinois

Lewis Binford’s contributions to field archaeology have been largely ignored in favor of his many contributions to theoretical issues dominating the discipline of archaeology at the end of the twentieth century. We examine Binford’s excavation methods in southern Illinois in the early 1960s and demonstrate how his considered approach served to systematize large-scale site excavation procedures. He adopted the time-honored tool of the salvage archaeologist—heavy equipment—and unapologetically employed it in a fundamentally new way, proving it to be a tool that served the greater goals of archaeological research. We trace the development of field methods and theoretical approaches in two case studies of Illinois archaeology and demonstrate how Binford’s contributions have been incorporated or rejected by subsequent CRM researchers.     

The Impact of recovery methods on taxonomic richness in Roman faunal assemblages

Recovery methods can affect species richness in faunal assemblages, which can in turn impact interpretations of diet. A comparison of sample size to species richness across faunal collections from screened and from unscreened deposits associated with Roman occupations clearly shows these influences. Not surprisingly, the rate of species input was higher for collections recovered using screening methods than for collections not recovered from screens. Syntheses of published data and comparative analyses of faunal assemblages must be cognizant of whether or not included assemblages were recovered using screens.     

顾实学术方法及其在文献学上的成就

本文认为顾实在学术研究的方法上注意宏观与微观相结合,传统性与时代性相结合,并将其运用到读书治学中,取得了令人敬佩的学术成就。在具体的学术方法上运用上又强调文献学的基础功底。本文试就这些问题进行初步探讨。