The Use of Desert Kites as Hunting Mega-Traps: Functional Evidence and Potential Impacts on Socioeconomic and Ecological Spheres

Journal of World Prehistory - For almost a century there has been debate on the functional interpretation of desert kites. These archaeological structures have been interpreted as constructions for...     

Le Concept de « Démocratie Raciale » dans L’Histoire Intellectuelle Brésilienne

This article aims to reconstruct the history of the term “racial democracy” in Brazilian sociological literature. This term, usually associated with the idea of “myth”, is used in many studies of race relations without little definition or clarity. This article retraces its origins, in particular by showing that the concept is not the invention of Gilberto Freyre. It then examines the evolution of its use with particular emphasis on Unesco’s research in the 1950s and the texts of Florestan Fernandes in the 1960s.     

The use and abuse of culling profiles in recent zooarchaeological studies: some methodological comments on “frequency correction” and its consequences

Culling profiles are important and widely used statistical objects in archaeozoological studies. Topics such as site specific use (like seasonal cave penning), sites complementarity, site status (“producer” versus “consumer” sites), specialized production strategies (milk, meat and/or wool strategies) and, more generally, long term evolution of pastoral practices rely strongly upon this kind of data. Here we show that a long lasting and widespread error in the construction and interpretation of culling profiles sheds doubts on the validity of the economic, territorial and breeding practice models proposed in old world recent prehistory.