Virtual anthropology and forensic arts: the facial reconstruction of Ferrante Gonzaga

In the last few years virtual anthropology has been used to solve different problems that could not be properly addressed using a traditional anthropological approach. Mainly when dealing with mummies or embalmed bodies, the virtual approach is the only solution to carry out a detailed analysis of the skeleton without jeopardizing the integrity of the physical remains.     

新密古城寨龙山文化大型建筑基址研究

古城寨龙山文化大型建筑基址,具备了四合院式建筑之雏形;其建筑形制和规模,具备了早期宫殿的基本特征,标志当时社会跨入了文明时代。     

麦积山石窟陶质化彩塑及其相关问题——麦积山石窟塑像壁画制作工艺研究之二

麦积山石窟保存了大量的从后秦到明清时期的雕塑艺术品,通过近期的系统调查,发现除了普通的泥塑工艺以外,还普遍地存在着一种泥塑烘烤工艺,使泥质塑像的表面不同程度地存在着陶质化的现象,这对于古代塑像的工艺研究、文物保护等方面都有重要的意义。     

New evidence of adhesive as hafting material on Middle and Upper Palaeolithic artefacts from Gura Cheii-Râşnov Cave (Romania)

Making use of analytical, chemical and mineralogical methods, this paper focuses on the analysis of inclusions in order to address the question of the provenance of prehistoric artefacts excavated in Gura Cheii-Râ?nov Cave (Romania). The study represents the first discovery of bitumen on lithic tools belonging to the Upper and Middle Palaeolithic in Europe. The material was identified through several analytical procedures, such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), and X-ray diffraction (XRD).     

Revamping community‐based conservation through participatory research

Community‐based conservation is experiencing a crisis of identity and purpose as a result of a disappointing track record and unresolved deficiencies. The latter include over‐simplified assumptions and misconceptions of “community,” the imposition of externally designed and driven projects at the community level, a focus on conservation outcomes at the expense of community empowerment and social justice, and limited attention to participatory processes. New approaches are urgently needed to address these weaknesses and to counter a rising trend towards environmental protectionism and a preference for conservation approaches at an eco‐regional scale that threaten the interests of local and Indigenous communities. We propose that three core principles of community‐based participatory research (CBPR)—(1) community‐defined research agenda; (2) collaborative research process; and (3) meaningful research outcomes—hold much promise. Drawing on the experience of a research partnership involving the James Bay Cree community of Wemindji, northern Quebec, and academic researchers from four Canadian universities, we document the process of applying these principles to a community‐based conservation project that uses protected areas as a political strategy to redefine relations with governments in terms of a shared responsibility to care for land and sea. We suggest that basic assumptions of CBPR, including collaborative, equitable partnerships in all phases of the research, promotion of co‐learning and capacity building among all partners, emphasis on local relevance, and commitment to long‐term engagement, can provide the basis for a revamped phase of community‐based conservation that supports environmental protection while strengthening local institutions, building capacity, and contributing to cultural survival.     

Civic or ethnic nation? Two competing concepts in interwar Latvia

This article examines the historical development of the two different concepts of the Latvian nation: the one that included the equal participation of all ethnic groups residing in Latvia, and the one that put them at the margins of the new state. In 1919, citizenship was granted to all Latvian residents irrespective of their ethnicity, while the Law on Minorities' Schools established a framework for cultural autonomy. National unity was perceived as being crucial to state independence, and remained central to political debates in the first republic. However, similarly to elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe, the creation of the political nation faced a number of serious domestic and international challenges. The worldwide economic depression and the parliamentary crisis of the 1930s finally tipped the scale in favour of the ethnic version of the Latvian nation. Nevertheless, even seventy years later, the brave multicultural experiment in this small Baltic country resonates with modern debates on nation‐building and minority rights.     

Diverse unity: creole contributions to interethnic integration in Guinea‐Bissau

The paper explores how creole categories of people who have constituted a small but influential minority in Guinea‐Bissau for centuries contributed to a countrywide, integrated national culture since the eve of independence in 1974. Since independence, several cultural representations previously exclusive to creole communities have been – driven by the nationalist independence movement and the early postcolonial state – transformed into representations of a new national culture, crossing ethnic and religious boundaries. The fact that creole identity and culture had been transethnic – i.e. creole identity brings together individuals of heterogeneous cultural, ethnic and geographic descent – during the colonial period, has fostered in postcolonial times the countrywide spread of previously exclusively creole cultural features. I argue that this ‘transethnicisation’ of creole cultural representations has unified Bissau‐Guineans across ethnic lines, causing a strong commitment with their nation ‘from below’.     

陕西出土明代漆棺制作工艺及材质研究

为了更好地了解亚浸水漆器的制作工艺及材质,为该类文物修复保护提供科学依据,本工作采用扫描电镜能谱分析、X射线衍射分析、红外光谱分析等技术对出土于陕西长安县明代墓葬一漆棺的制作工艺及主要制作材料进行了分析研究。结果表明,漆棺是按照木胎-纤维-灰层-漆膜-颜料的工序制作的,主要使用材料有麻、粘土类物质、生漆、金及朱砂颜料。漆棺制作工艺及材质与文献记载基本一致,是中国古代漆棺传统工艺制作的典型代表。     

基于概率法的木构古建筑地震破坏综合评价方法

为了研究木构古建筑地震破坏状态评估的准确性,应用概率的方法,以结构损伤指数、最大层间位移角作为评价因子,建立了地震破坏综合评价模型,提出了基于概率法的木构古建筑地震破坏综合评价方法。该方法在综合现状分析与实验数据,在一定烈度下计算各种破坏状态等级中每一种破坏状态出现的概率,古建筑地震破坏状态应为概率最大的地震破坏状态,从而比较准确地判别木构古建筑地震破坏程度。并对经受过汶川地震的两种结构形式的古建筑进行了验证,从而验证了该方法的合理性和有效性。这一方法将提高木构古建筑震害预测的准确性,为古建筑抗震加固提供有效的理论支持。     

科学发展观指导下的中国特色军事变革

中共十六大以来,中国军事变革在科学发展观的指导下,注重实际,突出重点,逐步展开。中国军事变革在走复合式发展道路、调整体制编制,整合资源、投入数字化战场建设,实施人才战略工程、加强人才队伍建设,开展战法研究、加强联合作战训练等方面所取得的成就是巨大的,经验十分丰富。