Assembling dams in Ghana: A genealogical inquiry into the fluidity of hydropolitics

The paper offers a geographical interpretation of the evolving technical, political, and economic intricacy of large dams. It incorporates existing hydropolitical scholarship and the notion of the Chinese Water Machine to reframe dams as assemblages built by specific political, financial and technical processes in particular socioenvironmental regions. The paper examines the continuity of hydropolitical relationships through a genealogical inquiry into the formulation and materialisation of Ghana's three dams: the Akosombo and Kpong dams built during the Cold War, backed by Western lenders and engineering companies; and the Bui dam commissioned in the 2010s, with support from China. Based on fieldwork in Ghana and China, as well as documentary evidence, the paper argues that the thinking, planning and building of dams interconnect the host regime and external techno-financial actors with their floating political-economic interests, but in a durable way. Sometimes, even if little concrete is actually poured, the symbolic power of dams endures, transforms, and at certain times and places expands, through events and discourses of national and international interest groups pursuing their own purposes, albeit with the replacement of influential individuals and powerful institutions, and regardless of the involvement of Western, Chinese and/or other actors. Ruptures exist but do not necessarily break the continuity of dam assemblages. The emergence of an opposition assemblage that battles against dams is a more recent complexity.     

关于中国古代海军史几个问题的再思考

哀公十年(前485年)，吴徐承帅舟师沿海北上攻齐进行海战事，似难确认。襄公二十四年(前549)，楚以舟师伐吴，是为史籍明确记载的第一次动用舟师的征战，但恐难排除此前已发生过动用舟师征战的事实，是故中国古代海军的产生(形成)时间，尚需进一步科学、准确论证。“海军”是个历史范畴，在不同的历史时期具有不同的形态，称谓也有所变化。中国古代海军的主要称谓有舟师、楼船军、水军、水师等。     

Preservation of DNA in ancient Egyptian mummies

The presence of DNA has been demonstrated in the cell nuclei of an ancient Egyptian mummy fragment. When extracted, this DNA proved to be degraded to a considerable extent and chemically modified. However, the preservation of nucleic acids in this specimen suggests that applying recombinant DNA techniques to the study of ancient mummified tissues might prove to be a fruitful future area of research.     

Forming an anti-imperialist national identity in Republican China: The Finnish interpretation

This article focuses on Finnish national identities because they expressed the shared experiences of newly established Finnish communities, and they were crucial in constructing a new nation. It also explores created images of the Finnish and Finland, as well as community construction in Republican China, especially after Finland gained independence in 1917. Another aim is to examine those Finnish political, cultural and economic activities that supported their identity construction in China. The specific emphasis will be on analysing the largest and sometimes cross-functioning Finnish groups in China: the governmental officials and the commercial community. By using qualitative methods, namely, discourse analysis and historical analysis, this study shows how the Finnish community created alternative, sometimes imaginative and frequently anti-imperialist national identities in the new Republican China. Indeed, by signing the Treaty Principles of Reciprocity and Equal Treatment, it was agreed that Finland and China ‘shall enjoy same rights, privileges, favours, immunities and exemptions which [might] be accorded to similar foreign agents in accordance with the principles of international law’. This article argues that Finnish aspirations were positively regarded by many Chinese, and they respected this quite unique national connection with Finland.     

耀州窑遗址粘土及其古瓷的初步研究

本文通过 X 射线衍射(XRD)、差热分析(DTA)、发射光谱分析(ESA)、扫描电镜(SEM)和能量色散 X 射线分析(EDAX)的方法,对古耀州青瓷所用原料及其矿物组成,古瓷器的烧成温度和显微结构进行了分析研究。得出耀瓷乃是使用当地高岭石和伊利石粘土矿物为原料烧制而成,烧成温度在1200℃以上的结论.     

Geochemical evidence for the manufacture,logistics and supply‐chain management of Emperor Qin Shihuang's Terracotta Army,China

Non‐invasive materials characterisation of reconstructed statues of Emperor Qin Shihuang's Terracotta Army has revealed distinct micro‐geochemical patterning within the clay paste used in their manufacture. The significance of this is explored in terms of the production sequence, logistics and supply‐chain management involved in the construction of this enormous funerary assemblage. Of particular interest is a compositional distinction between figures marked with the names ‘Gong’ (宫) and ‘Xianyang’ (咸阳). These seem to represent the products of two workshops involved in the supply of ceramic objects for this ambitious, large‐scale building project undertaken by the Qin Empire during the third century bce .     

Practicing decolonial political geography: Island perspectives on neocolonialism and the China threat discourse

Island peoples around the world remain entangled in colonial processes. Western and metropolitan powers are increasingly deploying discourse of a ‘China threat’ to justify neocolonial entrenchment in the form of greater Western militarisation and economic dominance. In this paper, we investigate how Western and metropolitan powers use the China threat and warnings of economic, environmental, demographic, and military disaster to maintain and deepen colonial influence in former colonies, with special focus on four island states and territories: Guåhan/Guam in Oceania, Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland in the Arctic, Okinawa in East Asia, and Jamaica in the Caribbean. We undertake this investigation as a means of practicing decolonial political geography, collaborating as a group of scholars from around the world and drawing upon diverse epistemologies and experiences to inform collaborative research and writing. Due to the complexities we have confronted in our efforts to think outside coloniality, this paper foregrounds our decolonial methodology and process, even as we respect our empirical findings.     

Cattle Slaughter Industry in Qing China: State Ban,Muslim Dominance,and the Western Diet

Cattle slaughter and beef consumption are barely mentioned in the literature on Chinese economic, food, or animal history. This is possibly due to the widely held popular and scholarly assumption that beef was avoided and even considered taboo in the daily diet of Chinese people in premodern times. This article investigates the tangible regulation and practice of cattle slaughter in Qing China—the period when the beef taboo was argued to be formally subsumed into Chinese morality. I ask the following questions: To what extent did the Qing state ban cattle slaughter? How was the ban enforced in the localities? Did Chinese people slaughter cattle for consumption? Were there lawful beef markets in Qing China proper? How did increasing beef-eating Western sojourners since the mid-19th century impact this sector? Accordingly, I demonstrate that with the leeway provided by the state, the cattle slaughter industry developed in many regions of China proper, especially large cities. In this sector, Chinese Muslim merchants played a dominant role, even though the Han merchants could outnumber them. Their efforts have prepared the state and Chinese merchants to better cope with new circumstances since the mid-19th century. Broadly, this paper sheds light on how different religious, ethnic, and national groups affected the economy and the practice of law in the Qing dynasty.     

慈利白公城遗址出土木材种属的鉴定研究

慈利白公城遗址历史悠久,具有重要的考古价值。该遗址出土了大量木质井壁及少量其他木质文物,为了解这些木材的特点,以及为木材保护提供相关的参考,通过徒手切片,并利用光学显微镜对该遗址出土的10件木质样品进行鉴定。结果表明其中1件为无患子(Sapindus. mukorossi Gaertn.),1件为冷杉(Abies fabri(Mast.)Craib),2件为湖南杨桐(Adinandra. acutifolia Hand.-Mazz.),2件为香椿(Toona sinensis A. Juss.),4件为润楠(Machilus pingii Cheng ex Yang)。通过实验结果,初步推测井壁的制作在当时是比较重要的工作,此时已经在选择性地使用木质井壁原料。从树种适宜生长的环境上看,同时期该遗址附近可能是以阔叶材为主的针阔叶混交林,气候温暖湿润。     

古铜矿遗址围岩表层有害生物的防治

铜绿山古铜矿遗址地处长江中游地区、空气湿度大、围岩表层有害生物成片生长蔓延,对遗址的长期保护造成极大威胁。对此采取了改变遗址的环境条件、喷涂消杀药品的方法,消除了围岩表层有害生物的危害。经过一年半的观察表明该方法是可行的。