Révolution industrielle logique et signification de l'opératoire

In England, during the first half of the xix^th century, a network organised around Charles Babbage (1791–1871), John F. W. Herschel (1792–1871), George Peacock (1791–1858), Duncan F. Gregory (1813–1844), Augustus de Morgan (1806–1871), George Boole (1815–1864), and other less known authors renewed the status of algebra in a peculiar way. As a result, their works are often considered to mark the birth of abstract algebra. But these algebraists were also involved, as reformers, in the new organisation of science. Taking this into account, I propose a more contextual reading of their works, which can then be understood as side-effects of the Industrial Revolution (1760–1830). These works are analysed as cultural mediators between the roots of University teaching, founded on fidelity to the Ancients on the one hand, and new forms of construction of knowledge on the other. Such a mediation brought together algebra and logic for the first time.     

Macronutrient-based model for dietary carbon routing in bone collagen and bioapatite

Carbon stable isotope ratios (??¹³C), measured in human bone collagen (??¹³C_collagen) and bioapatite (??¹³C_bioapatite), are commonly used indicators in ancient human diet reconstruction. The underlying assumption is that human tissues broadly reflect the ??¹³C signal of dietary food sources (??¹³C_diet) plus an isotopic offset. However, interpretation of results may be confounded by the differentiated routing of macronutrients (energy, that is carbohydrates and lipids, and protein) having associated different isotopic signals (??¹³C_energy, ??¹³C_protein). Multiple regression analyses were conducted on data from controlled animal feeding experiments compiled by Froehle et al. (J Archaeol Sci 37:2662?C2670, 2010). We derived a simple algebraic macronutrient-based model with ??¹³C_bioapatite?=?10.1?+???¹³C_diet (??) and ??¹³C_collagen?=?4.8?+?0.74 ??¹³C_protein?+?0.26 ??¹³C_energy (??). While the established relationship for ??¹³C_bioapatite is similar to previously known results, the model also suggests that ??¹³C_collagen signal contributions originate from surprisingly consistent proportions of protein and energy macronutrients. Given that feeding experiments explore extreme variations in the proportion of diet macronutrients, the applicability of the proposed model and its predictions were tested in a variety of well-known, wild animal and human, natural contexts. Possible biochemical mechanisms explaining these empirical results are discussed.     

Tracking Hunter-Gatherer Impact on Vegetation in Last Interglacial and Holocene Europe: Proxies and Challenges

Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory - We review palaeoenvironmental proxies and combinations of these relevant for understanding hunter-gatherer niche construction activities in...