Taphonomy of Burnt Burials: Spatial Analysis of Bone Fragments in Their Secondary Deposition

Examining recently excavated burnt burials, we explore the potential of spatial analysis to contribute to the understanding of changes that human body goes through during burning and relocation to the place of secondary deposition. Artificial heat decomposition of a body is a complex process that consists of several stages of intentional manipulation with the body. Each stage can be biased by several accidental factors which then significantly change the final archaeological record. We focussed on the post‐burning stage, especially the pathways of bone fragments to secondary deposition. We investigated spatial distribution and weight of bones in urns and pits and asked whether it is possible to observe their intentional arrangement. The trend of bone arrangement could be distinguished in most cases. Bones of peripheral parts of body were typically situated at the bottom; skull bones were usually concentrated in the upper part. However, the weight underrepresentation of all investigated burials was apparent. Deposition of selected burnt bones suggests their careful collection from the pyre and complex post‐mortem manipulation. Our detailed analysis aims to reconstruct particular steps executed during funeral rites of past populations. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An Automatic Modal Identification Procedure for the Permanent Dynamic Monitoring of the Sanctuary of Vicoforte

ABSTRACT

The interest in automatic modal parameter extraction techniques has increased significantly in recent years because of the rising demand for Continuous Structural Health Monitoring (CSHM) of civil structures and infrastructures. The wider use of CSHM is related to its capability for early damage detection and therefore to its usefulness for planning maintenance and strengthening interventions. This article presents the main steps followed in creating a robust routine to run on an online basis the first-ever Continuous Vibration-Based Structural Health Monitoring (CVB-SHM) of a large masonry oval dome, i.e., the dome of the Regina Montis Regalis Basilica, also known as Sanctuary of Vicoforte. The procedure uses an output-only stochastic subspace identification method complemented by an automatic analysis applied to identification results, which are typically provided in terms of stabilization diagrams. In this study, the fully automatic procedure also includes a hierarchical clustering algorithm to separate authentic from spurious modes.     

试论数据挖掘技术在旅游营销中的应用

本试从关联规则用于交叉营销、分类器和聚类用于市场细分两个方面探讨数据挖掘技术在旅游营销中的应用。     

Evaluating the geographic concentration of industries using distance-based methods

We propose new methods for evaluating the spatial distributionof firms. To assess whether firms are concentrated or dispersed,economists have tradi-tionally used indices that analyse theheterogeneity of a spatial structure at a single geographiclevel. We introduce distance-based methods, Besag's L function(derived from Ripley's K function) and Diggle and Chetwynd'sD function to describe simultaneously spatial distribution atdifferent geographical scales. Our empirical applications considerthe distribution of French manufacturing firms in the Parisarea and in France generally. For some geographic levels, resultsshow significant concentration or dispersion of firms accordingto their sector of activity.     

西部十二省、自治区、直辖市旅游竞争力的组合评价

对一个地区的旅游竞争力进行评价有助于客观地了解该地区旅游业的发展状况,而科学合理的评价依赖于评价指标和评价方法的选择。本文提出了合理选择指标的原则,并在所构建的旅游竞争力评价指标体系中引入了＂软＂指标。由于单一评价模型的评价结果各不相同,本文引入组合评价模型对西部十二省、自治区、直辖市的旅游竞争力进行评价,然后采用斯皮尔曼等级相关系数对组合评价结果进行检验,结果显示本文采用的组合评价方法与其它评价方法的一致性最高,说明该方法能比较客观综合地反映旅游竞争力状况。最后,通过聚类分析,进一步验证了本文方法的有效性。     

Industrial clusters,organized crime,and productivity growth in Italian SMEs

We examine whether organized crime affects firms’ performance (defined using Total Factor Productivity growth) both directly and indirectly, by downsizing the positive externalities arising from the geographic concentration of (intra‐ and inter‐industry) market‐related firms. The analysis uses a large sample of Italian small‐ and medium‐sized manufacturing firms over the period 2010–2013. The results highlight the negative direct effects of organized crime on firms’ productivity growth. Any positive effect derived from industrial clustering is thoroughly debilitated by a strong presence of organized crime, and the negative moderation effect of organized crime on productivity growth is greater for smaller than for larger firms.     

Identifying Functional Regions in Australia Using Hierarchical Aggregation Techniques

This paper continues our work focused on developing a new socio-economic geography for Australia such that the chosen spatial aggregation of data is based on an analysis of economic behaviour. The underlying hypothesis is that the development of a geographical classification based on underlying economic behaviour will provide new insights into critical issues of regional performance, including unemployment differentials, the impact of industry, infrastructure and changes in local public expenditure on local labour markets. As a precursor to detailed work on the 2006 Census of Population and Housing data, we establish the proof of concept in this paper of the Intramax methodology using 2001 Journey-to-Work data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) for the state of New South Wales. The functional regionalisation generated by the Intramax method is then tested using ABS labour force data. We compare 2001 ABS Census of Population and Housing data aggregated by the ABS labour force regions to the same data aggregated using our functional regions. The results demonstrate the potential value of this technique for the development of a new geography.     

In search of a better method to distinguish artefacts from geofacts

Archaeologists use a method of evaluating the characteristics of flakes, called scoring, to distinguish geofacts (pseudo-artefacts or eoliths) from artefacts. Lower total scores are considered indicative of a natural source of the finds, while higher ones support the opposite. However, this method has some limitations. The most important are the small quantity of assemblages subject to such an analysis and the unclear boundary drawn by a ranking within a point-based score evaluation between collections with finds of cultural and anthropic origin. Here, we present a method that minimizes these limitations. It consists of a statistical approach using scoring percentages, a new method of visualizing them and the application of clustering. This way, we obtained clear differences between pseudo-artefacts and artefacts by considering flakes from six flint assemblages from Central Europe as well as an experimental assemblage.     

基于分层聚类的旅游目的地营销系统研究

旅游目的地营销系统是一个重要的研究领域。利用1068份长沙市居民的有效问卷,针对湖南省内的景区景点、信息渠道和出游方式进行分层聚类,发现在长沙居民心目中,湖南省各景点存在7大类型。就各类型目的地现实客源市场的行为特征进行了探讨,针对各类型总结了不同的信息渠道、销售渠道,给出了不同的营销建议,并归纳出各旅游目的地在空间距离上形成的市民观光减压活动圈、城市商务/会议活动圈、猎奇探秘活动圈。