Human cranial diversity and evidence for an ancient lineage of modern humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Schillaci, Michael A

2008-06-01

This study examines the genetic affinities of various modern human groupings using a multivariate analysis of morphometric data. Phylogenetic relationships among these groupings are also explored using neighbor-joining analysis of the metric data. Results indicate that the terminal Pleistocene/early Holocene fossils from Australasia exhibit a close genetic affinity with early modern humans from the Levant. Furthermore, recent human populations and Upper Paleolithic Europeans share a most recent common ancestor not shared with either the early Australasians or the early Levantine humans. This pattern of genetic and phylogenetic relationships suggests that the early modern humans from the Levant either contributed directly to the ancestry of an early lineage of Australasians, or that they share a recent common ancestor with them. The principal findings of the study, therefore, lend support to the notion of an early dispersal from Africa by a more ancient lineage of modern human prior to 50 ka, perhaps as early as OIS 5 times (76-100 ka).

The Origins of Human Modernity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert G. Bednarik

2011-09-01

Full Text Available This paper addresses the development of the human species during a relatively short period in its evolutionary history, the last forty millennia of the Pleistocene. The hitherto dominant hypotheses of “modern” human origins, the replacement and various other “out of Africa” models, have recently been refuted by the findings of several disciplines, and by a more comprehensive review of the archaeological evidence. The complexity of the subject is reconsidered in the light of several relevant frames of reference, such as those provided by niche construction and gene-culture co-evolutionary theories, and particularly by the domestication hypothesis. The current cultural, genetic and paleoanthropological evidence is reviewed, as well as other germane factors, such as the role of neurodegenerative pathologies, the neotenization of humans in their most recent evolutionary history, and the question of cultural selection-based self-domestication. This comprehensive reassessment leads to a paradigmatic shift in the way recent human evolution needs to be viewed. This article explains fully how humans became what they are today.

Early modern mathematical instruments.

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Jim

2011-12-01

In considering the appropriate use of the terms "science" and "scientific instrument," tracing the history of "mathematical instruments" in the early modern period is offered as an illuminating alternative to the historian's natural instinct to follow the guiding lights of originality and innovation, even if the trail transgresses contemporary boundaries. The mathematical instrument was a well-defined category, shared across the academic, artisanal, and commercial aspects of instrumentation, and its narrative from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century was largely independent from other classes of device, in a period when a "scientific" instrument was unheard of.

Zilsel's Thesis, Maritime Culture, and Iberian Science in Early Modern Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Leitão, Henrique; Sánchez, Antonio

2017-01-01

Zilsel's thesis on the artisanal origins of modern science remains one of the most original proposals about the emergence of scientific modernity. We propose to inspect the scientific developments in Iberia in the early modern period using Zilsel's ideas as a guideline. Our purpose is to show that his ideas illuminate the situation in Iberia but also that the Iberian case is a remarkable illustration of Zilsel's thesis. Furthermore, we argue that Zilsel's thesis is essentially a sociological explanation that cannot be applied to isolated cases; its use implies global events that involve extended societies over large periods of time.

Early Modern Philosophical Systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. van Bunge (Wiep)

2014-01-01

textabstractThe occurrence of an entry on early modern philosophical systems in an encyclopaedia of Neo-Latin studies is fraught with complications, if only on account of the gradual disappearance during the early modern period of Latin as the main vehicle of philosophical communication. What

Insights into Modern Human Prehistory Using Ancient Genomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Melinda A; Fu, Qiaomei

2018-03-01

The genetic relationship of past modern humans to today's populations and each other was largely unknown until recently, when advances in ancient DNA sequencing allowed for unprecedented analysis of the genomes of these early people. These ancient genomes reveal new insights into human prehistory not always observed studying present-day populations, including greater details on the genetic diversity, population structure, and gene flow that characterized past human populations, particularly in early Eurasia, as well as increased insight on the relationship between archaic and modern humans. Here, we review genetic studies on ∼45000- to 7500-year-old individuals associated with mainly preagricultural cultures found in Eurasia, the Americas, and Africa. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Pb isotopic record of historical to modern human lead exposure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamenov, George D.; Gulson, Brian L.

2014-01-01

Human teeth and bones incorporate trace amounts of lead (Pb) from the local environment during growth and remodeling. Anthropogenic activities have caused changes in the natural Pb isotopic background since historical times and this is reflected in the Pb isotopes of historical European teeth. Lead mining and use increased exponentially during the last century and the isotopic compositions of modern human teeth reflect the modern anthropogenic Pb. USA teeth show the most radiogenic Pb and Australian teeth show the least radiogenic Pb, a result of different Pb ores used in the two regions. During the last century the Australian Pb was exported to Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa, resulting in swamping of the local environmental Pb signal by the imported Pb. As a result, the modern human teeth in Europe show a significant drop to lower isotopic values compared with historical times. Similarly, modern human teeth in other regions of the world show similar Pb isotopic ratios to modern European teeth reflecting the Pb imports. The specific pattern of human Pb exposure allows us to use the Pb isotopic signal recorded in the skeleton as a geo-referencing tool. As historical European teeth show a distinct Pb signal, we can identify early European skeletal remains in the New World and likely elsewhere. In modern forensic investigations we can discriminate to some extent Eastern Europeans from Western and Northern Europeans. Australians can be identified to some extent in any region in the world, although there is some overlap with Western European individuals. Lead isotopes can be used to easily identify foreigners in the USA, as modern USA teeth are distinct from any other region of the world. By analogy, USA individuals can be identified virtually in any other region of the world. - Highlights: • We present high-precision Pb isotope data for historical and modern human teeth. • Human teeth reflect human Pb exposure since historical times. • Modern teeth show

The Pb isotopic record of historical to modern human lead exposure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kamenov, George D., E-mail: kamenov@ufl.edu [Department of Geological Sciences, University of Florida, 241 Williamson Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Gulson, Brian L. [Graduate School of the Environment, Faculty of Science, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109 (Australia)

2014-08-15

Human teeth and bones incorporate trace amounts of lead (Pb) from the local environment during growth and remodeling. Anthropogenic activities have caused changes in the natural Pb isotopic background since historical times and this is reflected in the Pb isotopes of historical European teeth. Lead mining and use increased exponentially during the last century and the isotopic compositions of modern human teeth reflect the modern anthropogenic Pb. USA teeth show the most radiogenic Pb and Australian teeth show the least radiogenic Pb, a result of different Pb ores used in the two regions. During the last century the Australian Pb was exported to Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa, resulting in swamping of the local environmental Pb signal by the imported Pb. As a result, the modern human teeth in Europe show a significant drop to lower isotopic values compared with historical times. Similarly, modern human teeth in other regions of the world show similar Pb isotopic ratios to modern European teeth reflecting the Pb imports. The specific pattern of human Pb exposure allows us to use the Pb isotopic signal recorded in the skeleton as a geo-referencing tool. As historical European teeth show a distinct Pb signal, we can identify early European skeletal remains in the New World and likely elsewhere. In modern forensic investigations we can discriminate to some extent Eastern Europeans from Western and Northern Europeans. Australians can be identified to some extent in any region in the world, although there is some overlap with Western European individuals. Lead isotopes can be used to easily identify foreigners in the USA, as modern USA teeth are distinct from any other region of the world. By analogy, USA individuals can be identified virtually in any other region of the world. - Highlights: • We present high-precision Pb isotope data for historical and modern human teeth. • Human teeth reflect human Pb exposure since historical times. • Modern teeth show

The role of environmental change in the expansion of early modern humans in the Levant - what can we learn from mollusc shells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Prendergast, Amy; Bosch, Marjolein D.; Mannino, Marcello

and Manot Cave in Israel. These highly resolved environmental records, coupled with well dated archaeological sequences provide a framework for assessing the complex interplay between early modern humans and their local environments. We found evidence for fluctuating temperature, rainfall and seasonality...... regimes, indicating that modern human populations were somewhat resilient to the resource uncertainty that would have accompanied these changing temperature and seasonality regimes. These paired cultural-environmental records have enabled an examination of hominin-environment interactions during critical...

The oldest anatomically modern humans from far southeast Europe: direct dating, culture and behavior.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandrine Prat

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Anatomically Modern Humans (AMHs are known to have spread across Europe during the period coinciding with the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition. Whereas their dispersal into Western Europe is relatively well established, evidence of an early settlement of Eastern Europe by modern humans are comparatively scarce. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDING: Based on a multidisciplinary approach for the study of human and faunal remains, we describe here the oldest AMH remains from the extreme southeast Europe, in conjunction with their associated cultural and paleoecological background. We applied taxonomy, paleoecology, and taphonomy combined with geomorphology, stratigraphy, archeology and radiocarbon dating. More than 160 human bone remains have been discovered. They originate from a well documented Upper Paleolithic archeological layer (Gravettian cultural tradition from the site of Buran-Kaya III located in Crimea (Ukraine. The combination of non-metric dental traits and the morphology of the occipital bones allow us to attribute the human remains to Anatomically Modern Humans. A set of human and faunal remains from this layer has been radiocarbon dated by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry. The direct-dating results of human bone establish a secure presence of AMHs at 31,900+240/-220 BP in this region. They are the oldest direct evidence of the presence of AMHs in a well documented archeological context. Based on taphonomical observations (cut marks and distribution of skeletal elements, they represent the oldest Upper Paleolithic modern humans from Eastern Europe, showing post-mortem treatment of the dead as well. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: These findings are essential for the debate on the spread of modern humans in Europe during the Upper Paleolithic, as well as their cultural behaviors.

The oldest anatomically modern humans from far southeast Europe: direct dating, culture and behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Prat, Sandrine; Péan, Stéphane C; Crépin, Laurent; Drucker, Dorothée G; Puaud, Simon J; Valladas, Hélène; Lázničková-Galetová, Martina; van der Plicht, Johannes; Yanevich, Alexander

2011-01-01

Anatomically Modern Humans (AMHs) are known to have spread across Europe during the period coinciding with the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition. Whereas their dispersal into Western Europe is relatively well established, evidence of an early settlement of Eastern Europe by modern humans are comparatively scarce. Based on a multidisciplinary approach for the study of human and faunal remains, we describe here the oldest AMH remains from the extreme southeast Europe, in conjunction with their associated cultural and paleoecological background. We applied taxonomy, paleoecology, and taphonomy combined with geomorphology, stratigraphy, archeology and radiocarbon dating. More than 160 human bone remains have been discovered. They originate from a well documented Upper Paleolithic archeological layer (Gravettian cultural tradition) from the site of Buran-Kaya III located in Crimea (Ukraine). The combination of non-metric dental traits and the morphology of the occipital bones allow us to attribute the human remains to Anatomically Modern Humans. A set of human and faunal remains from this layer has been radiocarbon dated by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry. The direct-dating results of human bone establish a secure presence of AMHs at 31,900+240/-220 BP in this region. They are the oldest direct evidence of the presence of AMHs in a well documented archeological context. Based on taphonomical observations (cut marks and distribution of skeletal elements), they represent the oldest Upper Paleolithic modern humans from Eastern Europe, showing post-mortem treatment of the dead as well. These findings are essential for the debate on the spread of modern humans in Europe during the Upper Paleolithic, as well as their cultural behaviors.

The Corporeality of Learning: Confucian Education in Early Modern Japan

Science.gov (United States)

Tsujimoto, Masashi

2016-01-01

The intellectual foundation of early modern Japan was provided by Confucianism--a system of knowledge set forth in Chinese classical writings. In order to gain access to this knowledge, the Japanese applied reading markers to modify the original Chinese to fit the peculiarities of Japanese grammar and pronunciation. Confucian education started by…

The Origins of Modernity: Was Autonomous Speech the Critical Factor?

Science.gov (United States)

Corballis, Michael C.

2004-01-01

Although Homo sapiens emerged in Africa some 170,000 years ago, the origins of "modern" behavior, as expressed in technology and art, are attributed to people who migrated out of Africa around 50,000 years ago, creating what has been called a human revolution in Europe and Asia. There is recent evidence that a mutation of the FOXP2 gene (forkhead…

Genomic and cranial phenotype data support multiple modern human dispersals from Africa and a southern route into Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes-Centeno, Hugo; Ghirotto, Silvia; Détroit, Florent; Grimaud-Hervé, Dominique; Barbujani, Guido; Harvati, Katerina

2014-05-20

Despite broad consensus on Africa as the main place of origin for anatomically modern humans, their dispersal pattern out of the continent continues to be intensely debated. In extant human populations, the observation of decreasing genetic and phenotypic diversity at increasing distances from sub-Saharan Africa has been interpreted as evidence for a single dispersal, accompanied by a series of founder effects. In such a scenario, modern human genetic and phenotypic variation was primarily generated through successive population bottlenecks and drift during a rapid worldwide expansion out of Africa in the Late Pleistocene. However, recent genetic studies, as well as accumulating archaeological and paleoanthropological evidence, challenge this parsimonious model. They suggest instead a "southern route" dispersal into Asia as early as the late Middle Pleistocene, followed by a separate dispersal into northern Eurasia. Here we test these competing out-of-Africa scenarios by modeling hypothetical geographical migration routes and assessing their correlation with neutral population differentiation, as measured by genetic polymorphisms and cranial shape variables of modern human populations from Africa and Asia. We show that both lines of evidence support a multiple-dispersals model in which Australo-Melanesian populations are relatively isolated descendants of an early dispersal, whereas other Asian populations are descended from, or highly admixed with, members of a subsequent migration event.

Local extinction and recolonization, species effective population size, and modern human origins.

Science.gov (United States)

Eller, Elise; Hawks, John; Relethford, John H

2004-10-01

A primary objection from a population genetics perspective to a multiregional model of modern human origins is that the model posits a large census size, whereas genetic data suggest a small effective population size. The relationship between census size and effective size is complex, but arguments based on an island model of migration show that if the effective population size reflects the number of breeding individuals and the effects of population subdivision, then an effective population size of 10,000 is inconsistent with the census size of 500,000 to 1,000,000 that has been suggested by archeological evidence. However, these models have ignored the effects of population extinction and recolonization, which increase the expected variance among demes and reduce the inbreeding effective population size. Using models developed for population extinction and recolonization, we show that a large census size consistent with the multiregional model can be reconciled with an effective population size of 10,000, but genetic variation among demes must be high, reflecting low interdeme migration rates and a colonization process that involves a small number of colonists or kin-structured colonization. Ethnographic and archeological evidence is insufficient to determine whether such demographic conditions existed among Pleistocene human populations, and further work needs to be done. More realistic models that incorporate isolation by distance and heterogeneity in extinction rates and effective deme sizes also need to be developed. However, if true, a process of population extinction and recolonization has interesting implications for human demographic history.

The UK’s Modern Slavery Legislation: An Early Assessment of Progress

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gary Craig

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In 2015, the Westminster UK government introduced a Modern Slavery Act described by its proponents as ‘world-leading’. This description was challenged at the time both inside and outside the UK. Two years on, it is possible to make a preliminary assessment of  progress with the Act and its two counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland. This article reviews the origins of discussions about modern slavery in the UK, describes the process leading to the passage of the Modern Slavery Act(s and attempts an early evaluation of its effectiveness. It concludes that much remains to be done to ensure that they achieve their goal of abolishing slavery in the UK.

The origin of modern metabolic networks inferred from phylogenomic analysis of protein architecture.

Science.gov (United States)

Caetano-Anollés, Gustavo; Kim, Hee Shin; Mittenthal, Jay E

2007-05-29

Metabolism represents a complex collection of enzymatic reactions and transport processes that convert metabolites into molecules capable of supporting cellular life. Here we explore the origins and evolution of modern metabolism. Using phylogenomic information linked to the structure of metabolic enzymes, we sort out recruitment processes and discover that most enzymatic activities were associated with the nine most ancient and widely distributed protein fold architectures. An analysis of newly discovered functions showed enzymatic diversification occurred early, during the onset of the modern protein world. Most importantly, phylogenetic reconstruction exercises and other evidence suggest strongly that metabolism originated in enzymes with the P-loop hydrolase fold in nucleotide metabolism, probably in pathways linked to the purine metabolic subnetwork. Consequently, the first enzymatic takeover of an ancient biochemistry or prebiotic chemistry was related to the synthesis of nucleotides for the RNA world.

The Origin of the Soul from Antiquity to the early Modern Period

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spruit, L.

2014-01-01

The origin of the soul became a systematic subject of speculation in Greek philosophy and medicine. In early Christian thought, three theories evolved: the soul was held to be either generated from the parents (traducianism) or it was believed to be formed by a special act of creation on God’s part

Ecocultural range-expansion scenarios for the replacement or assimilation of Neanderthals by modern humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Wakano, Joe Yuichiro; Gilpin, William; Kadowaki, Seiji; Feldman, Marcus W; Aoki, Kenichi

2018-02-01

Recent archaeological records no longer support a simple dichotomous characterization of the cultures/behaviors of Neanderthals and modern humans, but indicate much cultural/behavioral variability over time and space. Thus, in modeling the replacement or assimilation of Neanderthals by modern humans, it is of interest to consider cultural dynamics and their relation to demographic change. The ecocultural framework for the competition between hominid species allows their carrying capacities to depend on some measure of the levels of culture they possess. In the present study both population densities and the densities of skilled individuals in Neanderthals and modern humans are spatially distributed and subject to change by spatial diffusion, ecological competition, and cultural transmission within each species. We analyze the resulting range expansions in terms of the demographic, ecological and cultural parameters that determine how the carrying capacities relate to the local densities of skilled individuals in each species. Of special interest is the case of cognitive and intrinsic-demographic equivalence of the two species. The range expansion dynamics may consist of multiple wave fronts of different speeds, each of which originates from a traveling wave solution. Properties of these traveling wave solutions are mathematically derived. Depending on the parameters, these traveling waves can result in replacement of Neanderthals by modern humans, or assimilation of the former by the latter. In both the replacement and assimilation scenarios, the first wave of intrusive modern humans is characterized by a low population density and a low density of skilled individuals, with implications for archaeological visibility. The first invasion is due to weak interspecific competition. A second wave of invasion may be induced by cultural differences between moderns and Neanderthals. Spatially and temporally extended coexistence of the two species, which would have

Fathers and Sovereigns: The Uses of Paternal Authority in Early Modern Thought

OpenAIRE

Koganzon, Rita

2016-01-01

Contemporary liberal and democratic theorists argue that hierarchical institutions like the family and the school should be democratized to reflect the egalitarianism of the state and to allow children to rehearse their civic duties from as early as possible, but I show that this impulse towards “congruence” between the structures of authority in the family and the state is not historically liberal in origin, but rather arises out of the absolutist arguments of early modern sovereignty theori...

International Orders in the Early Modern World

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This book challenges the Eurocentric foundations of modern International Relations scholarship. Its primary empirical focus is the early modern era, when European primacy had yet to develop in many parts of the globe. It presents a series of regional case studies from experts on East Asia, the Mi...... and scholars of international relations, international relations theory, international history, early modern history and sociology.......This book challenges the Eurocentric foundations of modern International Relations scholarship. Its primary empirical focus is the early modern era, when European primacy had yet to develop in many parts of the globe. It presents a series of regional case studies from experts on East Asia......, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, and Russia to explore patterns of cross-cultural exchange and civilizational encounters. The authors analyze a series of regional international orders which were primarily defined by local interests, agendas and institutions, with European interlopers often playing...

The earliest evidence for anatomically modern humans in northwestern Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Higham, Tom; Compton, Tim; Stringer, Chris; Jacobi, Roger; Shapiro, Beth; Trinkaus, Erik; Chandler, Barry; Gröning, Flora; Collins, Chris; Hillson, Simon; O'Higgins, Paul; FitzGerald, Charles; Fagan, Michael

2011-11-02

The earliest anatomically modern humans in Europe are thought to have appeared around 43,000-42,000 calendar years before present (43-42 kyr cal BP), by association with Aurignacian sites and lithic assemblages assumed to have been made by modern humans rather than by Neanderthals. However, the actual physical evidence for modern humans is extremely rare, and direct dates reach no farther back than about 41-39 kyr cal BP, leaving a gap. Here we show, using stratigraphic, chronological and archaeological data, that a fragment of human maxilla from the Kent's Cavern site, UK, dates to the earlier period. The maxilla (KC4), which was excavated in 1927, was initially diagnosed as Upper Palaeolithic modern human. In 1989, it was directly radiocarbon dated by accelerator mass spectrometry to 36.4-34.7 kyr cal BP. Using a Bayesian analysis of new ultrafiltered bone collagen dates in an ordered stratigraphic sequence at the site, we show that this date is a considerable underestimate. Instead, KC4 dates to 44.2-41.5 kyr cal BP. This makes it older than any other equivalently dated modern human specimen and directly contemporary with the latest European Neanderthals, thus making its taxonomic attribution crucial. We also show that in 13 dental traits KC4 possesses modern human rather than Neanderthal characteristics; three other traits show Neanderthal affinities and a further seven are ambiguous. KC4 therefore represents the oldest known anatomically modern human fossil in northwestern Europe, fills a key gap between the earliest dated Aurignacian remains and the earliest human skeletal remains, and demonstrates the wide and rapid dispersal of early modern humans across Europe more than 40 kyr ago. ©2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved

The earliest modern humans outside Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Hershkovitz, Israel; Weber, Gerhard W; Quam, Rolf; Duval, Mathieu; Grün, Rainer; Kinsley, Leslie; Ayalon, Avner; Bar-Matthews, Miryam; Valladas, Helene; Mercier, Norbert; Arsuaga, Juan Luis; Martinón-Torres, María; Bermúdez de Castro, José María; Fornai, Cinzia; Martín-Francés, Laura; Sarig, Rachel; May, Hila; Krenn, Viktoria A; Slon, Viviane; Rodríguez, Laura; García, Rebeca; Lorenzo, Carlos; Carretero, Jose Miguel; Frumkin, Amos; Shahack-Gross, Ruth; Bar-Yosef Mayer, Daniella E; Cui, Yaming; Wu, Xinzhi; Peled, Natan; Groman-Yaroslavski, Iris; Weissbrod, Lior; Yeshurun, Reuven; Tsatskin, Alexander; Zaidner, Yossi; Weinstein-Evron, Mina

2018-01-26

To date, the earliest modern human fossils found outside of Africa are dated to around 90,000 to 120,000 years ago at the Levantine sites of Skhul and Qafzeh. A maxilla and associated dentition recently discovered at Misliya Cave, Israel, was dated to 177,000 to 194,000 years ago, suggesting that members of the Homo sapiens clade left Africa earlier than previously thought. This finding changes our view on modern human dispersal and is consistent with recent genetic studies, which have posited the possibility of an earlier dispersal of Homo sapiens around 220,000 years ago. The Misliya maxilla is associated with full-fledged Levallois technology in the Levant, suggesting that the emergence of this technology is linked to the appearance of Homo sapiens in the region, as has been documented in Africa. Copyright © 2018, The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

Bolatu's pharmacy theriac in early modern China.

Science.gov (United States)

Nappi, Carla

2009-01-01

In early modem China, natural history and medicine were shifting along with the boundaries of the empire. Naturalists struggled to cope with a pharmacy's worth of new and unfamiliar substances, texts, and terms, as plants, animals, and the drugs made from them travelled into China across land and sea. One crucial aspect of this phenomenon was the early modern exchange between Islamic and Chinese medicine. The history of theriac illustrates the importance of the recipe for the naturalization of foreign objects in early modem Chinese medicine. Theriac was a widely sought-after and hotly debated product in early modern European pharmacology and arrived into the Chinese medical canon via Arabic and Persian texts. The dialogue between language and material objects was critical to the Silk Road drug trade, and transliteration was ultimately a crucial technology used to translate drugs and texts about them in the early modern world.

A revised root for the human Y chromosomal phylogenetic tree: the origin of patrilineal diversity in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Cruciani, Fulvio; Trombetta, Beniamino; Massaia, Andrea; Destro-Bisol, Giovanni; Sellitto, Daniele; Scozzari, Rosaria

2011-06-10

To shed light on the structure of the basal backbone of the human Y chromosome phylogeny, we sequenced about 200 kb of the male-specific region of the human Y chromosome (MSY) from each of seven Y chromosomes belonging to clades A1, A2, A3, and BT. We detected 146 biallelic variant sites through this analysis. We used these variants to construct a patrilineal tree, without taking into account any previously reported information regarding the phylogenetic relationships among the seven Y chromosomes here analyzed. There are several key changes at the basal nodes as compared with the most recent reference Y chromosome tree. A different position of the root was determined, with important implications for the origin of human Y chromosome diversity. An estimate of 142 KY was obtained for the coalescence time of the revised MSY tree, which is earlier than that obtained in previous studies and easier to reconcile with plausible scenarios of modern human origin. The number of deep branchings leading to African-specific clades has doubled, further strengthening the MSY-based evidence for a modern human origin in the African continent. An analysis of 2204 African DNA samples showed that the deepest clades of the revised MSY phylogeny are currently found in central and northwest Africa, opening new perspectives on early human presence in the continent. Copyright © 2011 The American Society of Human Genetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Haplotypes in the dystrophin DNA segment point to a mosaic origin of modern human diversity.

Science.gov (United States)

Zietkiewicz, Ewa; Yotova, Vania; Gehl, Dominik; Wambach, Tina; Arrieta, Isabel; Batzer, Mark; Cole, David E C; Hechtman, Peter; Kaplan, Feige; Modiano, David; Moisan, Jean-Paul; Michalski, Roman; Labuda, Damian

2003-11-01

Although Africa has played a central role in human evolutionary history, certain studies have suggested that not all contemporary human genetic diversity is of recent African origin. We investigated 35 simple polymorphic sites and one T(n) microsatellite in an 8-kb segment of the dystrophin gene. We found 86 haplotypes in 1,343 chromosomes from around the world. Although a classical out-of-Africa topology was observed in trees based on the variant frequencies, the tree of haplotype sequences reveals three lineages accounting for present-day diversity. The proportion of new recombinants and the diversity of the T(n) microsatellite were used to estimate the age of haplotype lineages and the time of colonization events. The lineage that underwent the great expansion originated in Africa prior to the Upper Paleolithic (27,000-56,000 years ago). A second group, of structurally distinct haplotypes that occupy a central position on the tree, has never left Africa. The third lineage is represented by the haplotype that lies closest to the root, is virtually absent in Africa, and appears older than the recent out-of-Africa expansion. We propose that this lineage could have left Africa before the expansion (as early as 160,000 years ago) and admixed, outside of Africa, with the expanding lineage. Contemporary human diversity, although dominated by the recently expanded African lineage, thus represents a mosaic of different contributions.

Ancient genomes link early farmers from Atapuerca in Spain to modern-day Basques

Science.gov (United States)

Günther, Torsten; Valdiosera, Cristina; Malmström, Helena; Ureña, Irene; Rodriguez-Varela, Ricardo; Sverrisdóttir, Óddny Osk; Daskalaki, Evangelia A.; Skoglund, Pontus; Naidoo, Thijessen; Svensson, Emma M.; Bermúdez de Castro, José María; Carbonell, Eudald; Dunn, Michael; Storå, Jan; Iriarte, Eneko; Arsuaga, Juan Luis; Carretero, José-Miguel; Götherström, Anders; Jakobsson, Mattias

2015-01-01

The consequences of the Neolithic transition in Europe—one of the most important cultural changes in human prehistory—is a subject of great interest. However, its effect on prehistoric and modern-day people in Iberia, the westernmost frontier of the European continent, remains unresolved. We present, to our knowledge, the first genome-wide sequence data from eight human remains, dated to between 5,500 and 3,500 years before present, excavated in the El Portalón cave at Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain. We show that these individuals emerged from the same ancestral gene pool as early farmers in other parts of Europe, suggesting that migration was the dominant mode of transferring farming practices throughout western Eurasia. In contrast to central and northern early European farmers, the Chalcolithic El Portalón individuals additionally mixed with local southwestern hunter–gatherers. The proportion of hunter–gatherer-related admixture into early farmers also increased over the course of two millennia. The Chalcolithic El Portalón individuals showed greatest genetic affinity to modern-day Basques, who have long been considered linguistic and genetic isolates linked to the Mesolithic whereas all other European early farmers show greater genetic similarity to modern-day Sardinians. These genetic links suggest that Basques and their language may be linked with the spread of agriculture during the Neolithic. Furthermore, all modern-day Iberian groups except the Basques display distinct admixture with Caucasus/Central Asian and North African groups, possibly related to historical migration events. The El Portalón genomes uncover important pieces of the demographic history of Iberia and Europe and reveal how prehistoric groups relate to modern-day people. PMID:26351665

The Critique of Scholastic Language in Renaissance Humanism and Early Modern Philosophy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nauta, Lodi; Muratori, Cecilia; Paganini, Gianni

2016-01-01

This article studies some key moments in the long tradition of the critique of scholastic language, voiced by humanists and early-modern philosophers alike. It aims at showing how the humanist idiom of “linguistic usage,” “convention,” “custom,” “common” and “natural” language, and “everyday speech”

On the Origin of Hobbes’s Conception of Language: The Literary Culture of English Renaissance Humanism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergio H. Orozco-Echeverri

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Hobbes' education in the literary culture of English Renaissance humanism has been overlooked as an important tradition in understanding his position in Early Modern Philosophy. Against the traditional readings of Hobbes' conception of language as a sequel to Medieval nominalism, I will argue that Hobbes' education in the literary culture of Renaissance humanism and his subsequent developments in this tradition would have allowed him to consider philosophical problems raised by new science in an original way and, thus, to introduce his innovative conception of language as the core of his solution to the problem of social and natural orders.

Evolutionary origins and early development of number processing

CERN Document Server

Geary, David C; Mann Koepke, Kathleen

2014-01-01

The first volume in this ground-breaking series focuses on the origins and early development of numerical cognition in non-human primates, lower vertebrates, human infants, and preschool children. The text will help readers understand the nature and complexity of these foundational quantitative concepts and skills along with evolutionary precursors and early developmental trajectories. Brings together and focuses the efforts and research of multiple disciplines working in math cognition.The contributors bring vast knowledge and experience to bear on resolving extant

Origins and early development of human body knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Slaughter, Virginia; Heron, Michelle

2004-01-01

As a knowable object, the human body is highly complex. Evidence from several converging lines of research, including psychological studies, neuroimaging and clinical neuropsychology, indicates that human body knowledge is widely distributed in the adult brain, and is instantiated in at least three partially independent levels of representation. Sensorimotor body knowledge is responsible for on-line control and movement of one's own body and may also contribute to the perception of others' moving bodies; visuo-spatial body knowledge specifies detailed structural descriptions of the spatial attributes of the human body; and lexical-semantic body knowledge contains language-based knowledge about the human body. In the first chapter of this Monograph, we outline the evidence for these three hypothesized levels of human body knowledge, then review relevant literature on infants' and young children's human body knowledge in terms of the three-level framework. In Chapters II and III, we report two complimentary series of studies that specifically investigate the emergence of visuo-spatial body knowledge in infancy. Our technique is to compare infants'responses to typical and scrambled human bodies, in order to evaluate when and how infants acquire knowledge about the canonical spatial layout of the human body. Data from a series of visual habituation studies indicate that infants first discriminate scrambled from typical human body picture sat 15 to 18 months of age. Data from object examination studies similarly indicate that infants are sensitive to violations of three-dimensional human body stimuli starting at 15-18 months of age. The overall pattern of data supports several conclusions about the early development of human body knowledge: (a) detailed visuo-spatial knowledge about the human body is first evident in the second year of life, (b) visuo-spatial knowledge of human faces and human bodies are at least partially independent in infancy and (c) infants' initial

(Early Modern Literature: Crossing the Color-Line

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David Sterling Brown

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This article examines the pedagogical implications of teaching about the past in a way that establishes continuity in relation to present and future moments. I describe and analyze how my Trinity College students navigated my course, “Crossing the Color-Line,” which aimed to eradicate boundaries and entangle the professional and personal, social and political, past and present, and black and white in an engaged manner. I argue that a radical course such as “Crossing the Color-Line” can showcase, through literature and other media, how fusing difference of all kinds—cultural, religious, literary, historical, gender—promotes rigorous student directed learning experiences that are inclusive. Because Shakespeare was not the sole authorial voice in the room, or the only early modern author in our syllabus, “Crossing the Color-Line” actively resisted the literary, racial, social, and cultural homogeneity that one can often find in an early modern classroom. By not being Shakespeare-centric, the course placed value on the female perspective and refrained from being androcentric in its authorial focus. Moreover, by positioning “the problem of the color-line” as relevant in the early modern period, the combined study of African-American and early modern English texts challenged critical race studies to include pre-nineteenth-century literature.

Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: additional evidence on the use of personal ornaments in the Middle Paleolithic of North Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

d'Errico, Francesco; Vanhaeren, Marian; Barton, Nick; Bouzouggar, Abdeljalil; Mienis, Henk; Richter, Daniel; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; McPherron, Shannon P; Lozouet, Pierre

2009-09-22

Recent investigations into the origins of symbolism indicate that personal ornaments in the form of perforated marine shell beads were used in the Near East, North Africa, and SubSaharan Africa at least 35 ka earlier than any personal ornaments in Europe. Together with instances of pigment use, engravings, and formal bone tools, personal ornaments are used to support an early emergence of behavioral modernity in Africa, associated with the origin of our species and significantly predating the timing for its dispersal out of Africa. Criticisms have been leveled at the low numbers of recovered shells, the lack of secure dating evidence, and the fact that documented examples were not deliberately shaped. In this paper, we report on 25 additional shell beads from four Moroccan Middle Paleolithic sites. We review their stratigraphic and chronological contexts and address the issue of these shells having been deliberately modified and used. We detail the results of comparative analyses of modern, fossil, and archaeological assemblages and microscopic examinations of the Moroccan material. We conclude that Nassarius shells were consistently used for personal ornamentation in this region at the end of the last interglacial. Absence of ornaments at Middle Paleolithic sites postdating Marine Isotope Stage 5 raises the question of the possible role of climatic changes in the disappearance of this hallmark of symbolic behavior before its reinvention 40 ka ago. Our results suggest that further inquiry is necessary into the mechanisms of cultural transmission within early Homo sapiens populations.

The Oldest Anatomically Modern Humans from Far Southeast Europe : Direct Dating, Culture and Behavior

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Prat, Sandrine; Pean, Stephane C.; Crepin, Laurent; Drucker, Dorothee G.; Puaud, Simon J.; Valladas, Helene; Laznickova-Galetova, Martina; van der Plicht, Johannes; Yanevich, Alexander

2011-01-01

Background: Anatomically Modern Humans (AMHs) are known to have spread across Europe during the period coinciding with the Middle to Upper Paleolithic transition. Whereas their dispersal into Western Europe is relatively well established, evidence of an early settlement of Eastern Europe by modern

Diversification rates indicate an early role of adaptive radiations at the origin of modern echinoid fauna.

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Simon Boivin

Full Text Available Evolutionary radiations are fascinating phenomena corresponding to a dramatic diversification of taxa and a burst of cladogenesis over short periods of time. Most evolutionary radiations have long been regarded as adaptive but this has seldom been demonstrated with large-scale comparative datasets including fossil data. Originating in the Early Jurassic, irregular echinoids are emblematic of the spectacular diversification of mobile marine faunas during the Mesozoic Marine Revolution. They diversified as they colonized various habitats, and now constitute the main component of echinoid fauna in modern seas. The evolutionary radiation of irregular echinoids has long been considered as adaptive but this hypothesis has never been tested. In the present work we analyze the evolution of echinoid species richness and morphological disparity over 37 million years based on an extensive fossil dataset. Our results demonstrate that morphological and functional diversifications in certain clades of irregular echinoids were exceptionally high compared to other clades and that they were associated with the evolution of new modes of life and so can be defined as adaptive radiations. The role played by ecological opportunities in the diversification of these clades was critical, with the evolution of the infaunal mode of life promoting the adaptive radiation of irregular echinoids.

Early dispersal of modern humans in Europe and implications for Neanderthal behaviour

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Benazzi, S.; Douka, K.; Fornai, C.; Bauer, C. C.; Kullmer, O.; Svoboda, Jiří; Pap, I.; Mallegni, F.; Bayle, P.; Coquerelle, M.; Condemi, S.; Ronchitelli, A.; Harvati, K.; Weber, G. W.

2011-01-01

Roč. 479, č. 7374 (2011), s. 525-528 ISSN 0028-0836 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80010507 Keywords : modern humans * Neanderthals * behavior * Europe * Grotta del Cavallo * paleoanthropology Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology Impact factor: 36.280, year: 2011

Kant's disputation of 1770: the dissertation and the communication of knowledge in early modern Europe.

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Chang, Kevin

2007-06-01

Kant's disputation of 1770 at his inauguration as the metaphysics professor at Königsberg is a good example of the nature of the early modern dissertation and its use as a means of communicating knowledge. The public disputation played an important part in the teaching, examination, publication and ceremonial life of the medieval university. Originally prepared as a text for the public disputation, the dissertation communicated the teachings of individual scholars and institutions and was used by eminent early modern scholars to introduce their ideas and findings. Kant's use of his 1770 disputation also reveals the different channels of communication, both private and public, that paid close attention to knowledge published in dissertations.

The origin, current diversity and future conservation of the modern lion (Panthera leo)

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Barnett, Ross; Yamaguchi, Nobuyuki; Barnes, Ian; Cooper, Alan

2006-01-01

Understanding the phylogeographic processes affecting endangered species is crucial both to interpreting their evolutionary history and to the establishment of conservation strategies. Lions provide a key opportunity to explore such processes; however, a lack of genetic diversity and shortage of suitable samples has until now hindered such investigation. We used mitochondrial control region DNA (mtDNA) sequences to investigate the phylogeographic history of modern lions, using samples from across their entire range. We find the sub-Saharan African lions are basal among modern lions, supporting a single African origin model of modern lion evolution, equivalent to the ‘recent African origin’ model of modern human evolution. We also find the greatest variety of mtDNA haplotypes in the centre of Africa, which may be due to the distribution of physical barriers and continental-scale habitat changes caused by Pleistocene glacial oscillations. Our results suggest that the modern lion may currently consist of three geographic populations on the basis of their recent evolutionary history: North African–Asian, southern African and middle African. Future conservation strategies should take these evolutionary subdivisions into consideration. PMID:16901830

The multiregional and single origin hypotheses of the evolution of modern man: a reconciliation.

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Treisman, M

1995-03-07

A current debate opposes two theories of the origin of modern man. One view is that modern Homo sapiens emerged from Africa relatively recently, most probably within the last two or three hundred thousand years (Wilson & Cann, 1992, Sci. Am. 266(4), 22-27). The opposing view is that modern man has resulted from parallel evolution in different regions, producing convergent modernization of local populations over the last million years or so--the multiregional model (Frayer et al., 1993, Am. Anthrop. 95, 14-50). Proponents of both views believe that their interpretations are irreconcilable. The object of the present paper is to describe a genetic mechanism--mitochondrial exclusion--which offers a basis for a model of human evolution that is compatible with the evidence adduced for both contemporary views. The model proposes a mechanism by which complete replacement of archaic mitochondrial DNA may have occurred in a population produced by recent admixture of archaic and modern types of man.

The Home Network: Identity and Materiality in Early Modern and Modern Ulster

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Whalen, Kathryn M.

This dissertation looks at three categories of ceramics and the creation of a hybrid culture during the Early Modern and Modern period in Ireland. During these time periods Ireland was a part of the English global colonial enterprises, and was the site of many legal and cultural changes due to its subordinate position in the hierarchy of socio-political and economic phenomenon that characterize the pinnacle of British global power. This study looks to understand how these powers articulated with England's one European colony, Ireland, and if that articulation has similarities to other colonial cultures across time and space. To study the possibility of hybridity between the Irish and English inhabitants of Ireland during the Post-Medieval Period, three categories of ceramics have been analyzed. Fine earthenwares in the form of tablewares and tea sets were macroscopically analyzed for patterns, age, and place of origin. Coarse earthenwares were subjected to X-ray florescence to look for patterns in the spectral data to see if a point of origin could be ascribed to them. And lastly, white ball clay pipe fragments were both macroscopically analyzed for makers' marks and subjected to X-ray florescence to verify their point of origin. The relationship between where these artifacts come from- if they are local productions or imports- and where they were disposed of- either across the landscaper or only associated with households of particular ethnicities- says something about how people negotiate their ethnic identities in colonial settings. As people in Ireland adopt the English style of tea drinking and start to use English mass-produced fine earthenwares, it disrupts the local cottage industry of coarse earthenware manufacturing. What this study seeks to know is if there is a difference in the adoption of English tea drinking, and if the purchasing of certain types of ceramic vessels contributes to the performance of ethnic identity in a colonial setting.

Change and continuity in early modern cosmology

CERN Document Server

Bonner, Patrick

2011-01-01

Seen as a flash point of the Scientific Revolution, early modern astronomy witnessed an explosion of views about the function and structure of the world. This study explores these theories in a wide variety of settings, and challenges our view of modern science as the straightforward successor of Aristotelian natural philosophy.

THE DEMAND FOR A NEW CONCEPT OF ANTHROPOLOGY IN THE EARLY MODERN AGE: THE DOCTRINE OF HUME

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A. M. Malivskyi

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose. The purpose of the investigation is to outline the main points of Hume’s interpretation of the basic anthropological project of the era based on radical cultural transformations of the early modern age; to represent a modern vision of Hume's anthropology as a response to the demand of the era and necessity to complete its basic project. Methodology. The research was based on phenomenological and hermeneutic approaches. Originality. Contemporary understanding of the position of anthropological project in Hume's philosophy is regarded as unsatisfactory by the author. Development of the basic project as anthropological is rooted in scientific revolution and needs to be continued and completed. Contemporary prevalence of deanthropogical versions of Hume's philosophy is the result of underestimated significance of the concept of nature in the broad sense. According to the philosopher's texts, heuristic potential of Hume's position is emphasized by the author. The modern version of the basic project in the early modern age is criticized and demands significant changes to become anthropological. Findings. Modern perception of Hume’s philosophy as an anthropological project is unsatisfactory in terms of historical and philosophical science and needs detailed analysis. In order to understand the conditions of anthropological project significance, it is advisable to focus on: a scientific revolution and the necessity to complete it; b determine the role of the concept of nature in its broad sense. Nowadays the way of Hume's rethinking of the basic project of modern philosophy as insufficiently anthropological is quite heuristic. Empiricism, dogmatism, superstition and skepticism are the manifestations of the latter. For Hume, the era was as an incomplete anthropological project and its legacy as the most complete form of explication. Today the interest in the phenomenon of a human provides a reasonable basis to define that modern period is

Early modern architecture : how to prolong a lifespan

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Jonge, de W.

1993-01-01

In Modern Movement architecture, the structural elements of a building - mostly concrete or steel frames - form an indissoluble part of the original design approach. Therefore, such elements are part of the historic value of these buildings. At the same time, modern architects strove after minimal

Re-constructing the origins of modern labor management

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van der Linden, M.

2010-01-01

Mainstream history generally assumes that modern labor-management techniques originated in factories in Europe and North America employing 'free' wage laborers. The present explorative article argues, however, that important innovations were born outside the North Atlantic region (especially in the

Archives and the Boundaries of Early Modern Science.

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Popper, Nicholas

2016-03-01

This contribution argues that the study of early modern archives suggests a new agenda for historians of early modern science. While in recent years historians of science have begun to direct increased attention toward the collections amassed by figures and institutions traditionally portrayed as proto-scientific, archives proliferated across early modern Europe, emerging as powerful tools for creating knowledge in politics, history, and law as well as natural philosophy, botany, and more. The essay investigates the methods of production, collection, organization, and manipulation used by English statesmen and Crown officers such as Keeper of the State Papers Thomas Wilson and Secretary of State Joseph Williamson to govern their disorderly collections. Their methods, it is shown, were shared with contemporaries seeking to generate and manage other troves of evidence and in fact reflect a complex ecosystem of imitation and exchange across fields of inquiry. These commonalities suggest that historians of science should look beyond the ancestors of modern scientific disciplines to examine how practices of producing knowledge emerged and migrated throughout cultures of learning in Europe and beyond. Creating such a map of knowledge production and exchange, the essay concludes, would provide a renewed and expansive ambition for the field.

Early human occupation of the Red Sea coast of Eritrea during the last interglacial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Walter, R.C.; Buffler, R.T.; Bruggemann, J.H.; Guillaume, M.M.M.; Berhe, S.M.; Negassi, B.; Libsekal, Y.; Cheng, H.; Edwards, R.L.; Cosel, von R.; Néraudeau, D.; Gagnon, M.

2000-01-01

The geographical origin of modern humans is the subject of ongoing scientific debate. The 'multiregional evolution' hypothesis argues that modern humans evolved semi-independently in Europe, Asia and Africa between 100,000 and 40,000 years ago, whereas the 'out of Africa' hypothesis contends that

Study of human genetic diversity : inferences on population origin and history

OpenAIRE

Haber, Marc, 1980-

2013-01-01

Patterns of human genetic diversity suggest that all modern humans originated from a small population in Africa that expanded rapidly 50,000 years ago to occupy the whole world. While moving into new environments, genetic drift and natural selection affected populations differently, creating genetic structure. By understanding the genetic structure of human populations, we can reconstruct human history and understand the genetic basis of diseases. The work presented here contributes to the on...

Direct dating of Early Upper Palaeolithic human remains from Mladec.

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Wild, Eva M; Teschler-Nicola, Maria; Kutschera, Walter; Steier, Peter; Trinkaus, Erik; Wanek, Wolfgang

2005-05-19

The human fossil assemblage from the Mladec Caves in Moravia (Czech Republic) has been considered to derive from a middle or later phase of the Central European Aurignacian period on the basis of archaeological remains (a few stone artefacts and organic items such as bone points, awls, perforated teeth), despite questions of association between the human fossils and the archaeological materials and concerning the chronological implications of the limited archaeological remains. The morphological variability in the human assemblage, the presence of apparently archaic features in some specimens, and the assumed early date of the remains have made this fossil assemblage pivotal in assessments of modern human emergence within Europe. We present here the first successful direct accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dating of five representative human fossils from the site. We selected sample materials from teeth and from one bone for 14C dating. The four tooth samples yielded uncalibrated ages of approximately 31,000 14C years before present, and the bone sample (an ulna) provided an uncertain more-recent age. These data are sufficient to confirm that the Mladec human assemblage is the oldest cranial, dental and postcranial assemblage of early modern humans in Europe and is therefore central to discussions of modern human emergence in the northwestern Old World and the fate of the Neanderthals.

Voluntarist theology and early-modern science: The matter of the divine power, absolute and ordained.

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Oakley, Francis

2018-03-01

This paper is an intervention in the debate inaugurated by Peter Harrison in 2002 when he called into question the validity of what has come to be called 'the voluntarism and early-modern science thesis'. Though it subsequently drew support from such historians of science as J. E. McGuire, Margaret Osler, and Betty-Joe Teeter Dobbs, the origins of the thesis are usually traced back to articles published in 1934 and 1961 respectively by the philosopher Michael Foster and the historian of ideas Francis Oakley. Central to Harrison's critique of the thesis are claims he made about the meaning of the scholastic distinction between the potentia dei absoluta et ordinata and the role it played in the thinking of early-modern theologians and natural philosophers. This paper calls directly into question the accuracy of Harrison's claims on that very matter.

Early human symbolic behavior in the Late Pleistocene of Wallacea

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Brumm, Adam; Hakim, Budianto; Ramli, Muhammad; Sumantri, Iwan; Burhan, Basran; Saiful, Andi Muhammad; Siagian, Linda; Suryatman; Sardi, Ratno; Jusdi, Andi; Abdullah; Mubarak, Andi Pampang; Hasliana; Hasrianti; Oktaviana, Adhi Agus; Adhityatama, Shinatria; van den Bergh, Gerrit D.; Aubert, Maxime; Zhao, Jian-xin; Huntley, Jillian; Li, Bo; Roberts, Richard G.; Saptomo, E. Wahyu; Perston, Yinika; Grün, Rainer

2017-01-01

Wallacea, the zone of oceanic islands separating the continental regions of Southeast Asia and Australia, has yielded sparse evidence for the symbolic culture of early modern humans. Here we report evidence for symbolic activity 30,000–22,000 y ago at Leang Bulu Bettue, a cave and rock-shelter site on the Wallacean island of Sulawesi. We describe hitherto undocumented practices of personal ornamentation and portable art, alongside evidence for pigment processing and use in deposits that are the same age as dated rock art in the surrounding karst region. Previously, assemblages of multiple and diverse types of Pleistocene “symbolic” artifacts were entirely unknown from this region. The Leang Bulu Bettue assemblage provides insight into the complexity and diversification of modern human culture during a key period in the global dispersal of our species. It also shows that early inhabitants of Sulawesi fashioned ornaments from body parts of endemic animals, suggesting modern humans integrated exotic faunas and other novel resources into their symbolic world as they colonized the biogeographically unique regions southeast of continental Eurasia. PMID:28373568

Hugh Grady (ed.), Shakespeare and Modernity : Early Modern to Millenium

OpenAIRE

Ribeyrol, Wendy

2014-01-01

Shakespeare and Modernity : Early Modern to Millenium, publié au tournant du troisième millénaire est un recueil de neuf essais d’universitaires américains et britanniques, précédé d’une introduction de Hugh Grady, auteur par ailleurs de The Modernist Shakespeare (1991), Shakespeare’s Universal Wolf (1996) et plus récemment de Shakespeare and Impure Aesthetics (2009). Ce livre offre à l’étudiant, à l’enseignant et au chercheur un état des lieux stimulant de l’évolution des études shakespearie...

Human origins: Out of Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Tattersall, Ian

2009-01-01

Our species, Homo sapiens, is highly autapomorphic (uniquely derived) among hominids in the structure of its skull and postcranial skeleton. It is also sharply distinguished from other organisms by its unique symbolic mode of cognition. The fossil and archaeological records combine to show fairly clearly that our physical and cognitive attributes both first appeared in Africa, but at different times. Essentially modern bony conformation was established in that continent by the 200–150 Ka range (a dating in good agreement with dates for the origin of H. sapiens derived from modern molecular diversity). The event concerned was apparently short-term because it is essentially unanticipated in the fossil record. In contrast, the first convincing stirrings of symbolic behavior are not currently detectable until (possibly well) after 100 Ka. The radical reorganization of gene expression that underwrote the distinctive physical appearance of H. sapiens was probably also responsible for the neural substrate that permits symbolic cognition. This exaptively acquired potential lay unexploited until it was “discovered” via a cultural stimulus, plausibly the invention of language. Modern humans appear to have definitively exited Africa to populate the rest of the globe only after both their physical and cognitive peculiarities had been acquired within that continent. PMID:19805256

Establishing a value chain for human factors in nuclear power plantcontrol room modernization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Joe, Jeffrey Clark [Idaho National Laboratory; Thomas, Kenneth David [Idaho National Laboratory; Boring, Ronald Laurids [Idaho National Laboratory

2015-07-01

Commercial nuclear power plants in the United States (U.S.) have operated reliably and efficiently for decades. With the life extensions of plants now being planned for operation beyond their original operating licenses, there are opportunities to achieve even greater efficiencies, while maintaining high operational reliabilities, with strategic, risk- and economically-informed, upgrades to plant systems and infrastructure. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program supports the commercial nuclear industry’s modernization efforts through research and development (R&D) activities across many areas to help establish the technical and economic bases for modernization activities. The Advanced Instrumentation, Information, and Control Systems Technologies pathway is one R&D focus area for the LWRS program, and has researchers at Idaho National Laboratory working with select utility partners to use human factors and instrumentation and controls R&D to help modernize the plant’s main control room. However, some in the nuclear industry have not been as enthusiastic about using human factors R&D to inform life extension decision making. Part of the reason for this may stem from uncertainty decision-makers have regarding how human factors fits into the value chain for nuclear power plant control room modernization. This paper reviews past work that has attempted to demonstrate the value of human factors, and then describes the value chain concept, how it applies to control room modernization, and then makes a case for how and why human factors is an essential link in the modernization value chain.

Calcaneus length determines running economy: implications for endurance running performance in modern humans and Neandertals.

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Raichlen, David A; Armstrong, Hunter; Lieberman, Daniel E

2011-03-01

The endurance running (ER) hypothesis suggests that distance running played an important role in the evolution of the genus Homo. Most researchers have focused on ER performance in modern humans, or on reconstructing ER performance in Homo erectus, however, few studies have examined ER capabilities in other members of the genus Homo. Here, we examine skeletal correlates of ER performance in modern humans in order to evaluate the energetics of running in Neandertals and early Homo sapiens. Recent research suggests that running economy (the energy cost of running at a given speed) is strongly related to the length of the Achilles tendon moment arm. Shorter moment arms allow for greater storage and release of elastic strain energy, reducing energy costs. Here, we show that a skeletal correlate of Achilles tendon moment arm length, the length of the calcaneal tuber, does not correlate with walking economy, but correlates significantly with running economy and explains a high proportion of the variance (80%) in cost between individuals. Neandertals had relatively longer calcaneal tubers than modern humans, which would have increased their energy costs of running. Calcaneal tuber lengths in early H. sapiens do not significantly differ from those of extant modern humans, suggesting Neandertal ER economy was reduced relative to contemporaneous anatomically modern humans. Endurance running is generally thought to be beneficial for gaining access to meat in hot environments, where hominins could have used pursuit hunting to run prey taxa into hyperthermia. We hypothesize that ER performance may have been reduced in Neandertals because they lived in cold climates. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Being a Modern Human: essentialist and hierarchical approaches to the emergence of 'modern human behaviour'

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Terry Hopkinson

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The emergence of the modern human mind and modern human behaviour is a prominent issue in palaeolithic archaeology. The consensus has been that modernity, understood in terms of increased rates of innovation and the emergence of symbolism, is enabled by a heritable neurophysiology unique to Homo sapiens. This consensus is characterised as biological essentialist in that it understands modernity as genotypically specified and unique to Homo sapiens. 'Archaic' hominins such as the Neanderthals are understood to have lacked the modern neuroanatomical genotype and therefore to have been innately incapable of modern cognition and behaviour. The biological-essentialist programme, however, is facing a serious challenge as evidence for innovation and symbolism is found in the archaeological records of the Eurasian Middle Palaeolithic and the African Middle Stone Age. An alternative programme is emerging that understands modern human behaviour as an emergent property of social, demographic and ecological dynamics. It is argued that this programme is currently inadequate since it cannot explain the emergence of symbolically charged material culture and relies on inexorable long-term population growth. It is suggested here that the problem is better understood in terms of hierarchy theory, a body of ideas concerned with systems organised on multiple scales. Palaeolithic behaviour is reconceptualised as social practice emerging from a multi-scale knowledge system. It is shown that enhancements in the rate at which knowledgeable practices disseminate through social fields – the social transmission of knowledge - will have the effect of increasing the likelihood that novel practices will be incorporated into long-term structuring principles and thus become persistent practices. They will also effect a scalar convergence of domains of knowledgeability such that technical practices become incorporated into the construction of personhood as meaningful or

The origins of human parasites: Exploring the evidence for endoparasitism throughout human evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Piers D

2013-09-01

It is important to determine the origins of human parasites if we are to understand the health of past populations and the effects of parasitism upon human evolution. It also helps us to understand emerging infectious diseases and the modern clinical epidemiology of parasites. This study aims to distinguish those heirloom parasites that have infected humans and their ancestors throughout their evolution in Africa from those recent souvenir species to which humans have only become exposed following contact with animals during their migration across the globe. Ten such heirloom parasites are proposed, which appear to have been spread across the globe. Six further heirlooms are noted to have limited spread due to the constraints of their life cycle. Twelve souvenir parasites of humans are described, along with their animal reservoirs. While the origins of 28 species of endoparasite have been determined, many more species require further assessment once a more systematic analysis of ancient parasites in other regions of Africa has been undertaken. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Brief communication: human cranial variation fits iterative founder effect model with African origin.

Science.gov (United States)

von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen; Lycett, Stephen J

2008-05-01

Recent studies comparing craniometric and neutral genetic affinity matrices have concluded that, on average, human cranial variation fits a model of neutral expectation. While human craniometric and genetic data fit a model of isolation by geographic distance, it is not yet clear whether this is due to geographically mediated gene flow or human dispersal events. Recently, human genetic data have been shown to fit an iterative founder effect model of dispersal with an African origin, in line with the out-of-Africa replacement model for modern human origins, and Manica et al. (Nature 448 (2007) 346-349) have demonstrated that human craniometric data also fit this model. However, in contrast with the neutral model of cranial evolution suggested by previous studies, Manica et al. (2007) made the a priori assumption that cranial form has been subject to climatically driven natural selection and therefore correct for climate prior to conducting their analyses. Here we employ a modified theoretical and methodological approach to test whether human cranial variability fits the iterative founder effect model. In contrast with Manica et al. (2007) we employ size-adjusted craniometric variables, since climatic factors such as temperature have been shown to correlate with aspects of cranial size. Despite these differences, we obtain similar results to those of Manica et al. (2007), with up to 26% of global within-population craniometric variation being explained by geographic distance from sub-Saharan Africa. Comparative analyses using non-African origins do not yield significant results. The implications of these results are discussed in the light of the modern human origins debate. (c) 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

A nearly modern amphibious bird from the Early Cretaceous of northwestern China.

Science.gov (United States)

You, Hai-Lu; Lamanna, Matthew C; Harris, Jerald D; Chiappe, Luis M; O'connor, Jingmai; Ji, Shu-An; Lü, Jun-Chang; Yuan, Chong-Xi; Li, Da-Qing; Zhang, Xing; Lacovara, Kenneth J; Dodson, Peter; Ji, Qiang

2006-06-16

Three-dimensional specimens of the volant fossil bird Gansus yumenensis from the Early Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of northwestern China demonstrate that this taxon possesses advanced anatomical features previously known only in Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic ornithuran birds. Phylogenetic analysis recovers Gansus within the Ornithurae, making it the oldest known member of the clade. The Xiagou Formation preserves the oldest known ornithuromorph-dominated avian assemblage. The anatomy of Gansus, like that of other non-neornithean (nonmodern) ornithuran birds, indicates specialization for an amphibious life-style, supporting the hypothesis that modern birds originated in aquatic or littoral niches.

The Driving Forces of Cultural Complexity : Neanderthals, Modern Humans, and the Question of Population Size.

Science.gov (United States)

Fogarty, Laurel; Wakano, Joe Yuichiro; Feldman, Marcus W; Aoki, Kenichi

2017-03-01

The forces driving cultural accumulation in human populations, both modern and ancient, are hotly debated. Did genetic, demographic, or cognitive features of behaviorally modern humans (as opposed to, say, early modern humans or Neanderthals) allow culture to accumulate to its current, unprecedented levels of complexity? Theoretical explanations for patterns of accumulation often invoke demographic factors such as population size or density, whereas statistical analyses of variation in cultural complexity often point to the importance of environmental factors such as food stability, in determining cultural complexity. Here we use both an analytical model and an agent-based simulation model to show that a full understanding of the emergence of behavioral modernity, and the cultural evolution that has followed, depends on understanding and untangling the complex relationships among culture, genetically determined cognitive ability, and demographic history. For example, we show that a small but growing population could have a different number of cultural traits from a shrinking population with the same absolute number of individuals in some circumstances.

The Use of the Vernacular in Early Modern Philosophy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. van Bunge (Wiep)

2015-01-01

textabstractFew modern philosophers have determined our understanding of early modern philosophy in the way Hegel has. More in particular, Hegel held highly influential views on the real significance of the language in which Philosophy came into its own after the Middle Ages. In his Lectures on the

Genetic evidence of paleolithic colonization and neolithic expansion of modern humans on the tibetan plateau.

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Xuebin; Cui, Chaoying; Peng, Yi; Zhang, Xiaoming; Yang, Zhaohui; Zhong, Hua; Zhang, Hui; Xiang, Kun; Cao, Xiangyu; Wang, Yi; Ouzhuluobu; Basang; Ciwangsangbu; Bianba; Gonggalanzi; Wu, Tianyi; Chen, Hua; Shi, Hong; Su, Bing

2013-08-01

Tibetans live on the highest plateau in the world, their current population size is approximately 5 million, and most of them live at an altitude exceeding 3,500 m. Therefore, the Tibetan Plateau is a remarkable area for cultural and biological studies of human population history. However, the chronological profile of the Tibetan Plateau's colonization remains an unsolved question of human prehistory. To reconstruct the prehistoric colonization and demographic history of modern humans on the Tibetan Plateau, we systematically sampled 6,109 Tibetan individuals from 41 geographic populations across the entire region of the Tibetan Plateau and analyzed the phylogeographic patterns of both paternal (n = 2,354) and maternal (n = 6,109) lineages as well as genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism markers (n = 50) in Tibetan populations. We found that there have been two distinct, major prehistoric migrations of modern humans into the Tibetan Plateau. The first migration was marked by ancient Tibetan genetic signatures dated to approximately 30,000 years ago, indicating that the initial peopling of the Tibetan Plateau by modern humans occurred during the Upper Paleolithic rather than Neolithic. We also found evidences for relatively young (only 7-10 thousand years old) shared Y chromosome and mitochondrial DNA haplotypes between Tibetans and Han Chinese, suggesting a second wave of migration during the early Neolithic. Collectively, the genetic data indicate that Tibetans have been adapted to a high altitude environment since initial colonization of the Tibetan Plateau in the early Upper Paleolithic, before the last glacial maximum, followed by a rapid population expansion that coincided with the establishment of farming and yak pastoralism on the Plateau in the early Neolithic.

Gardens, knowledge and the sciences in the early modern period

CERN Document Server

Remmert, Volker; Wolschke-Bulmahn, Joachim

2016-01-01

This volume focuses on the outstanding contributions made by botany and the mathematical sciences to the genesis and development of early modern garden art and garden culture. The many facets of the mathematical sciences and botany point to the increasingly “scientific” approach that was being adopted in and applied to garden art and garden culture in the early modern period. This development was deeply embedded in the philosophical, religious, political, cultural and social contexts, running parallel to the beginning of processes of scientization so characteristic for modern European history. This volume strikingly shows how these various developments are intertwined in gardens for various purposes.

Politics, Society and Communication in the Constitution of Modern Society: Early Modern England

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Devrim ÖZKAN

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The inception of Modern England comprises a hundred and fifty years between sixteenth and mid eighteenth centuries. The structural qualities of modern societies of this day occur in this era. The political and economic changes and transformations that England experienced in this period of time are in enormous scale. In this period all social structure and institutions experienced structural change in terms of cultural, economic and political processes. In addition to this in this period the framework of the international system regarding economy and politics is established too. Important qualities of current modern societies are the speed of communication and interaction between its elements, its transformational capacity and the extent of its scope. In this, it is possible to apprehend the basic cornerstones of today’s information and communication age by analyzing the early modern period of England

The hypoglossal canal and the origin of human vocal behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Kay, Richard F.; Cartmill, Matt; Balow, Michelle

1998-01-01

The mammalian hypoglossal canal transmits the nerve that supplies the muscles of the tongue. This canal is absolutely and relatively larger in modern humans than it is in the African apes (Pan and Gorilla). We hypothesize that the human tongue is supplied more richly with motor nerves than are those of living apes and propose that canal size in fossil hominids may provide an indication about the motor coordination of the tongue and reflect the evolution of speech and language. Canals of gracile Australopithecus, and possibly Homo habilis, fall within the range of extant Pan and are significantly smaller than those of modern Homo. The canals of Neanderthals and an early “modern” Homo sapiens (Skhul 5), as well as of African and European middle Pleistocene Homo (Kabwe and Swanscombe), fall within the range of extant Homo and are significantly larger than those of Pan troglodytes. These anatomical findings suggest that the vocal capabilities of Neanderthals were the same as those of humans today. Furthermore, the vocal abilities of Australopithecus were not advanced significantly over those of chimpanzees whereas those of Homo may have been essentially modern by at least 400,000 years ago. Thus, human vocal abilities may have appeared much earlier in time than the first archaeological evidence for symbolic behavior. PMID:9560291

Southern African ancient genomes estimate modern human divergence to 350,000 to 260,000 years ago.

Science.gov (United States)

Schlebusch, Carina M; Malmström, Helena; Günther, Torsten; Sjödin, Per; Coutinho, Alexandra; Edlund, Hanna; Munters, Arielle R; Vicente, Mário; Steyn, Maryna; Soodyall, Himla; Lombard, Marlize; Jakobsson, Mattias

2017-11-03

Southern Africa is consistently placed as a potential region for the evolution of Homo sapiens We present genome sequences, up to 13x coverage, from seven ancient individuals from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The remains of three Stone Age hunter-gatherers (about 2000 years old) were genetically similar to current-day southern San groups, and those of four Iron Age farmers (300 to 500 years old) were genetically similar to present-day Bantu-language speakers. We estimate that all modern-day Khoe-San groups have been influenced by 9 to 30% genetic admixture from East Africans/Eurasians. Using traditional and new approaches, we estimate the first modern human population divergence time to between 350,000 and 260,000 years ago. This estimate increases the deepest divergence among modern humans, coinciding with anatomical developments of archaic humans into modern humans, as represented in the local fossil record. Copyright © 2017 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

The shaping of modern human immune systems by multiregional admixture with archaic humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Abi-Rached, Laurent; Jobin, Matthew J; Kulkarni, Subhash; McWhinnie, Alasdair; Dalva, Klara; Gragert, Loren; Babrzadeh, Farbod; Gharizadeh, Baback; Luo, Ma; Plummer, Francis A; Kimani, Joshua; Carrington, Mary; Middleton, Derek; Rajalingam, Raja; Beksac, Meral; Marsh, Steven G E; Maiers, Martin; Guethlein, Lisbeth A; Tavoularis, Sofia; Little, Ann-Margaret; Green, Richard E; Norman, Paul J; Parham, Peter

2011-10-07

Whole genome comparisons identified introgression from archaic to modern humans. Our analysis of highly polymorphic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I, vital immune system components subject to strong balancing selection, shows how modern humans acquired the HLA-B*73 allele in west Asia through admixture with archaic humans called Denisovans, a likely sister group to the Neandertals. Virtual genotyping of Denisovan and Neandertal genomes identified archaic HLA haplotypes carrying functionally distinctive alleles that have introgressed into modern Eurasian and Oceanian populations. These alleles, of which several encode unique or strong ligands for natural killer cell receptors, now represent more than half the HLA alleles of modern Eurasians and also appear to have been later introduced into Africans. Thus, adaptive introgression of archaic alleles has significantly shaped modern human immune systems.

Modern Human Capital Management

OpenAIRE

Feldberger, Madita

2008-01-01

Title: Modern Human Capital Management Seminar date: 30th of May 2008 Course: Master thesis in Business Administration, 15 ECTS Authors: Madita Feldberger Supervisor: Lars Svensson Keywords: Human capital, SWOT Analysis, Strategic Map, Balanced Scorecard Research Problem: Despite of the success of Human Capital Management (HCM) in research it did not arrive yet in the HR departments of many companies. Numerous firms even have problems to set their strategic goals with focus on HR. The HR Bala...

Gristhorpe Man: an Early Bronze Age log-coffin burial scientifically defined

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Melton, Nigel; Montgomery, Janet; Knüsel, Christopher J.

2010-01-01

A log-coffin excavated in the early nineteenth century proved to be well enough preserved in the early twenty-first century for the full armoury of modern scientific investigation to give its occupants and contents new identity, new origins and a new date. In many ways the interpretation is much ...... the same as before: a local big man buried looking out to sea. Modern analytical techniques can create a person more real, more human and more securely anchored in history. This research team shows how....

Gristhorpe Man : an early Bronze Age log-coffin burial scientifically defined.

OpenAIRE

Melton, N.; Montgomery, J.; Knusel, C.J.; Batt, C.; Needham, S.; Pearson, M.P.; Sheridan, A.; Heron, C.; Horsley, T.; Schmidt, A.; Evans, A.; Carter, E.; Edwards, H.; Hargreaves, M.; Janaway, R.

2010-01-01

A log-coffin excavated in the early nineteenth century proved to be well enough preserved in the early twenty-first century for the full armoury of modern scientific investigation to give its occupants and contents new identity, new origins and a new date. In many ways the interpretation is much the same as before: a local big man buried looking out to sea. Modern analytical techniques can create a person more real, more human and more securely anchored in history. This research team shows how.

Out-of-Africa migration and Neolithic coexpansion of Mycobacterium tuberculosis with modern humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Comas, Iñaki; Coscolla, Mireia; Luo, Tao; Borrell, Sonia; Holt, Kathryn E; Kato-Maeda, Midori; Parkhill, Julian; Malla, Bijaya; Berg, Stefan; Thwaites, Guy; Yeboah-Manu, Dorothy; Bothamley, Graham; Mei, Jian; Wei, Lanhai; Bentley, Stephen; Harris, Simon R; Niemann, Stefan; Diel, Roland; Aseffa, Abraham; Gao, Qian; Young, Douglas; Gagneux, Sebastien

2013-10-01

Tuberculosis caused 20% of all human deaths in the Western world between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries and remains a cause of high mortality in developing countries. In analogy to other crowd diseases, the origin of human tuberculosis has been associated with the Neolithic Demographic Transition, but recent studies point to a much earlier origin. We analyzed the whole genomes of 259 M. tuberculosis complex (MTBC) strains and used this data set to characterize global diversity and to reconstruct the evolutionary history of this pathogen. Coalescent analyses indicate that MTBC emerged about 70,000 years ago, accompanied migrations of anatomically modern humans out of Africa and expanded as a consequence of increases in human population density during the Neolithic period. This long coevolutionary history is consistent with MTBC displaying characteristics indicative of adaptation to both low and high host densities.

Multiple maternal origins of native modern and ancient horse populations in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, C Z; Su, R; Bower, M A; Edwards, C J; Wang, X B; Weining, S; Liu, L; Xie, W M; Li, F; Liu, R Y; Zhang, Y S; Zhang, C M; Chen, H

2009-12-01

To obtain more knowledge of the origin and genetic diversity of domestic horses in China, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D-loop sequence diversity from nine horse breeds in China in conjunction with ancient DNA data and evidence from archaeological and historical records. A 247-bp mitochondrial D-loop sequence from 182 modern samples revealed a total of 70 haplotypes with a high level of genetic diversity. Seven major mtDNA haplogroups (A-G) and 16 clusters were identified for the 182 Chinese modern horses. In the present study, nine 247-bp mitochondrial D-loop sequences of ancient remains of Bronze Age horse from the Chifeng region of Inner Mongolia in China (c. 4000-2000a bp) were used to explore the origin and diversity of Chinese modern horses and the phylogenetic relationship between ancient and modern horses. The nine ancient horses carried seven haplotypes with rich genetic diversity, which were clustered together with modern individuals among haplogroups A, E and F. Modern domestic horse and ancient horse data support the multiple origins of domestic horses in China. This study supports the argument that multiple successful events of horse domestication, including separate introductions of wild mares into the domestic herds, may have occurred in antiquity, and that China cannot be excluded from these events. Indeed, the association of Far Eastern mtDNA types to haplogroup F was highly significant using Fisher's exact test of independence (P = 0.00002), lending support for Chinese domestication of this haplogroup. High diversity and all seven mtDNA haplogroups (A-G) with 16 clusters also suggest that further work is necessary to shed more light on horse domestication in China.

Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: middle and later Pleistocene hominins in Africa and Southwest Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Rightmire, G Philip

2009-09-22

Approximately 700,000 years ago, Homo erectus in Africa was giving way to populations with larger brains accompanied by structural adjustments to the vault, cranial base, and face. Such early Middle Pleistocene hominins were not anatomically modern. Their skulls display strong supraorbital tori above projecting faces, flattened frontals, and less parietal expansion than is the case for Homo sapiens. Postcranial remains seem also to have archaic features. Subsequently, some groups evolved advanced skeletal morphology, and by ca. 200,000 years ago, individuals more similar to recent humans are present in the African record. These fossils are associated with Middle Stone Age lithic assemblages and, in some cases, Acheulean tools. Crania from Herto in Ethiopia carry defleshing cutmarks and superficial scoring that may be indicative of mortuary practices. Despite these signs of behavioral innovation, neither the Herto hominins, nor others from Late Pleistocene sites such as Klasies River in southern Africa and Skhūl/Qafzeh in Israel, can be matched in living populations. Skulls are quite robust, and it is only after approximately 35,000 years ago that people with more gracile, fully modern morphology make their appearance. Not surprisingly, many questions concerning this evolutionary history have been raised. Attention has centered on systematics of the mid-Pleistocene hominins, their paleobiology, and the timing of dispersals that spread H. sapiens out of Africa and across the Old World. In this report, I discuss structural changes characterizing the skulls from different time periods, possible regional differences in morphology, and the bearing of this evidence on recognizing distinct species.

Early Period of Modern Architecture in Turkey - A Case Study of Eskisehir

Science.gov (United States)

Karasozen, Rana

2017-10-01

Modern architecture in the Western World bore fruit at the beginning of the 20th Century in consequence of the process of modernity and seeking of the proper architecture for it. It was formed firstly towards the end of the 1920s. The main reason of this nonsynchronous development was the inadequacy of enlightenment and industrial revolution during the Ottoman Empire and the lack of formation of an intellectual infrastructure which provides the basis of modernity. However, the Ottoman Westernization occurring in the 19th century constituted the foundations of the Republic modernity founded in 1923. The earliest modern architectural designs in Turkey were first practised by European architects after the foundation of the Republic and internalised and practised extensively by the native architects afterwards. The early modern architecture of Turkey, named as “1930s Modernism”, continued until the beginning of the World War II. This period was formed in between the periods of first and second nationalist architecture movements. The early modern architecture period of Turkey was a period which high-quality designs were made. It was practised and internalised not only in big cities such as Ankara and in Istanbul, but also in the medium and small cities of the country. This situation was not just about a formal exception but about the internalisation of modernity by the society. Eskisehir is one of the most important pioneering cities of the Republic period in terms of industrial and educational developments. The earliest modern buildings were built as the public buildings by the state and non-citizen architects in the inadequate conditions of the country in terms of economy and professional people. The earliest modern houses of the city designed by these architects were the prototypes for the later practices which offered the citizens a new lifestyle. The modern houses were the symbols of prestige and status for the owners and the dwellers. The features of early

Dating the origin and dispersal of Human Papillomavirus type 16 on the basis of ancestral human migrations.

Science.gov (United States)

Zehender, Gianguglielmo; Frati, Elena Rosanna; Martinelli, Marianna; Bianchi, Silvia; Amendola, Antonella; Ebranati, Erika; Ciccozzi, Massimo; Galli, Massimo; Lai, Alessia; Tanzi, Elisabetta

2016-04-01

A major limitation when reconstructing the origin and evolution of HPV-16 is the lack of reliable substitution rate estimates for the viral genes. On the basis of the hypothesis of human HPV-16 co-divergence, we estimated a mean evolutionary rate of 1.47×10(-7) (95% HPD=0.64-2.47×10(-7)) subs/site/year for the viral LCR region. The results of a Bayesian phylogeographical analysis suggest that the currently circulating HPV-16 most probably originated in Africa about 110 thousand years ago (Kya), before giving rise to four known geographical lineages: the Asian/European lineage, which most probably originated in Asia a mean 38 Kya, and the Asian/American and two African lineages, which probably respectively originated about 33 and 27 Kya. These data closely reflect current hypotheses concerning modern human expansion based on studies of mitochondrial DNA phylogeny. The correlation between ancient human migration and the present HPV phylogeny may be explained by the co-existence of modes of transmission other than sexual transmission. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

The origin and evolution of Homo sapiens.

Science.gov (United States)

Stringer, Chris

2016-07-05

If we restrict the use of Homo sapiens in the fossil record to specimens which share a significant number of derived features in the skeleton with extant H. sapiens, the origin of our species would be placed in the African late middle Pleistocene, based on fossils such as Omo Kibish 1, Herto 1 and 2, and the Levantine material from Skhul and Qafzeh. However, genetic data suggest that we and our sister species Homo neanderthalensis shared a last common ancestor in the middle Pleistocene approximately 400-700 ka, which is at least 200 000 years earlier than the species origin indicated from the fossils already mentioned. Thus, it is likely that the African fossil record will document early members of the sapiens lineage showing only some of the derived features of late members of the lineage. On that basis, I argue that human fossils such as those from Jebel Irhoud, Florisbad, Eliye Springs and Omo Kibish 2 do represent early members of the species, but variation across the African later middle Pleistocene/early Middle Stone Age fossils shows that there was not a simple linear progression towards later sapiens morphology, and there was chronological overlap between different 'archaic' and 'modern' morphs. Even in the late Pleistocene within and outside Africa, we find H. sapiens specimens which are clearly outside the range of Holocene members of the species, showing the complexity of recent human evolution. The impact on species recognition of late Pleistocene gene flow between the lineages of modern humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans is also discussed, and finally, I reconsider the nature of the middle Pleistocene ancestor of these lineages, based on recent morphological and genetic data.This article is part of the themed issue 'Major transitions in human evolution'. © 2016 The Author(s).

Testing the hypothesis of fire use for ecosystem management by neanderthal and upper palaeolithic modern human populations.

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Anne-Laure Daniau

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: It has been proposed that a greater control and more extensive use of fire was one of the behavioral innovations that emerged in Africa among early Modern Humans, favouring their spread throughout the world and determining their eventual evolutionary success. We would expect, if extensive fire use for ecosystem management were a component of the modern human technical and cognitive package, as suggested for Australia, to find major disturbances in the natural biomass burning variability associated with the colonisation of Europe by Modern Humans. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Analyses of microcharcoal preserved in two deep-sea cores located off Iberia and France were used to reconstruct changes in biomass burning between 70 and 10 kyr cal BP. Results indicate that fire regime follows the Dansgaard-Oeschger climatic variability and its impacts on fuel load. No major disturbance in natural fire regime variability is observed at the time of the arrival of Modern Humans in Europe or during the remainder of the Upper Palaeolithic (40-10 kyr cal BP. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Results indicate that either Neanderthals and Modern humans did not influence fire regime or that, if they did, their respective influence was comparable at a regional scale, and not as pronounced as that observed in the biomass burning history of Southeast Asia.

Wild justice: The dynamics of gender and revenge in early modern English drama

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steenbergh, K.

2007-01-01

This dissertation examines the role of the stage in cultural debate about revenge in early modern England. The theme of retribution was hugely popular in early modern drama, at a time when the emerging nation state sought to strengthen its sovereignty by monopolizing the right to punish. The stage's

“The city of Hepar”: Rituals, gastronomy, and politics at the origins of the modern names for the liver

Science.gov (United States)

Riva, Michele Augusto; Riva, Enrica; Spicci, Mauro; Strazzabosco, Mario; Giovannini, Marcello; Cesana, Giancarlo

2013-01-01

Summary Medical etymology sometimes provides unexpected information about health concepts and medical practice in different times and cultures. We conducted an etymological analysis of the terms used to indicate “liver” in Germanic and Romance languages. The Greek word “hèpar” was originally connected to the concept of “pleasure”, showing that in antiquity the liver was considered to be the seat of soul and human feelings. In Romance languages, the Latin term “ficatum” was linked to the ancient practice of fattening geese with figs (ficus in Latin) to make their livers more delicious. This relationship between the liver, fat, and carbohydrates seems to indicate that ancient gourmets had clear knowledge of the nutritional mechanisms underlying “fatty liver” in animals. On the other hand, the Germanic term “lifere” was initially connected to “life”, underscoring the relation of the liver to health and existence. In the Early Modern Age, the liver became a recurring image in political reflection, especially within the Elizabethan tradition of the body politic, where the king was frequently described as the “liver” of his country. Finally, the liver was used to indicate courage, or the lack of it: some modern French and English idiomatic expressions derive from the ancient belief that people who had no blood in their liver (“lily-livered”) would thus be cowards or betrayers. PMID:21718666

Cabala Chymica or Chemia Cabalistica - Early Modern Alchemists and Cabala

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Forshaw, P.J.

2013-01-01

This essay investigates the relationships between early modern alchemy and the Jewish mystical tradition of Kabbalah, following its introduction to the Christian West by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola at the end of the fifteenth century, and its promulgation by Johannes Reuchlin in the early

Erotic Love and the Development of Proto-Capitalist Ideology in Early Modern Comedy

Science.gov (United States)

Damsen, Silver

2009-01-01

My dissertation, "Erotic Love and the Development of Proto-Capitalist Ideology in Early Modern Comedy" demonstrates how increased crown authority, and an expanded market combine with the mixed agency of the romantic comedy daughter to further encourage early modern economic growth. The triumph of rebelling daughter over blocking father has…

THE PHYSICS OF MELTING IN EARLY MODERN LOVE POETRY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Brady

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Melting is a familiar trope in early modern erotic poetry, where it can signify the desire to transform the beloved from icy chastity through the warmth of the lover’s passion. However, this Petrarchan convention can be defamiliarised by thinking about the experiences of freezing and melting in this period. Examining melting in the discourses of early modern meteorology, medicine, proverb, scientific experiments, and preservative technologies, as well as weather of the Little Ice Age and the exploration of frozen hinterlands, this essay shows that our understanding of seeming constants – whether they be the physical properties of water or the passions of love – can be modulated through attention to the specific histories of cognition and of embodiment.

Four Ways of Viewing Modernity: A Critical Reading of Ellen Meiksins Wood’s Origin of Capitalism

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Alexandru RACU

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This article represents a critical reading of Ellen Meiksins Wood’s book The Origin of Capitalism. In the first part of the article, I present Wood’s thesis concerning the historical origin of capitalism and its political implications. In the second part of the article, I discuss Wood’s distinction between two types of modernity, a French democratic modernity and an English capitalist modernity, analyzing the limits of Wood’s critique of postmodernism and extending the debate concerning modernity in such a way as to include the Conservative critique of modernity articulated in the wake of the French Revolution. Finally, I discuss the relevance of Wood’s book for the key issues facing contemporary civilization, and the limits of her political project.

Food Policing in Early Modern Danish Towns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jørgen Mührmann-Lund

2016-08-01

Full Text Available This article explores the efforts of early modern authorities to provide food security in three different Danish towns in order to understand the goals and methods of early modern food policing. As in other European countries, urban authorities were expected as part of the regulation called ‘the police’ to control the guilds and fix the prices on bread, meat, beer and other life necessities in order to avoid scarcity among the urban poor. In 1682–83 the Danish king established a police force in Copenhagen and the other market towns. The goal of the metropolitan police was to increase the population of the capital and thus increase the military-fiscal power of the absolutist state, by providing food security and even a comfortable life. In practice, the vigilant policing of bakers, butchers and brewers proved difficult. The positive economic effect of food policing was doubted early on and was reduced as a means to avoid food riots at the end the 18th century. In a major provincial market town like Aalborg, the food trade was policed in a similar manner by the town council and the police, but especially the intermediate trade proved difficult to stop. In a tiny, agrarian market town like Sæby, food policing was more a question of feeding the poor with the town’s own products.

Water, plants, and early human habitats in eastern Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Magill, Clayton R; Ashley, Gail M; Freeman, Katherine H

2013-01-22

Water and its influence on plants likely exerted strong adaptive pressures in human evolution. Understanding relationships among water, plants, and early humans is limited both by incomplete terrestrial records of environmental change and by indirect proxy data for water availability. Here we present a continuous record of stable hydrogen-isotope compositions (expressed as δD values) for lipid biomarkers preserved in lake sediments from an early Pleistocene archaeological site in eastern Africa--Olduvai Gorge. We convert sedimentary leaf- and algal-lipid δD values into estimates for ancient source-water δD values by accounting for biochemical, physiological, and environmental influences on isotopic fractionation via published water-lipid enrichment factors for living plants, algae, and recent sediments. Reconstructed precipitation and lake-water δD values, respectively, are consistent with modern isotopic hydrology and reveal that dramatic fluctuations in water availability accompanied ecosystem changes. Drier conditions, indicated by less negative δD values, occur in association with stable carbon-isotopic evidence for open, C(4)-dominated grassland ecosystems. Wetter conditions, indicated by lower δD values, are associated with expanded woody cover across the ancient landscape. Estimates for ancient precipitation amounts, based on reconstructed precipitation δD values, range between approximately 250 and 700 mm · y(-1) and are consistent with modern precipitation data for eastern Africa. We conclude that freshwater availability exerted a substantial influence on eastern African ecosystems and, by extension, was central to early human proliferation during periods of rapid climate change.

Early modern natural history: Contributions from the Americas

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Early modern natural history: Contributions from the Americas and India. Rajesh Kochhar. Perspectives Volume 37 Issue ... Keywords. India; medical botany; natural history; scientific botany; the Americas. Author Affiliations. Rajesh Kochhar1. Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali 140 306 Punjab, India ...

Frontier and Border Regions in Early Modern Europe

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Esser, R.M.; Ellis, Steven G.

2013-01-01

That regional identities are constructed is now something of a truism in academic research. More recently regions have been conceptualized in the framework of Frontier and Border Studies, thus emphasizing their relationship to their neighbours in another state across a boundary line. In early modern

Coevolution between human's anticancer activities and functional foods from crop origin center in the world.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeng, Ya-Wen; Du, Juan; Pu, Xiao-Ying; Yang, Jia-Zhen; Yang, Tao; Yang, Shu-Ming; Yang, Xiao-Meng

2015-01-01

Cancer is the leading cause of death around the world. Anticancer activities from many functional food sources have been reported in years, but correlation between cancer prevalence and types of food with anticancer activities from crop origin center in the world as well as food source with human migration are unclear. Hunger from food shortage is the cause of early human evolution from Africa to Asia and later into Eurasia. The richest functional foods are found in crop origin centers, housing about 70% in the world populations. Crop origin centers have lower cancer incidence and mortality in the world, especially Central Asia, Middle East, Southwest China, India and Ethiopia. Asia and Africa with the richest anticancer crops is not only the most important evolution base of humans and origin center of anticancer functional crop, but also is the lowest mortality and incidence of cancers in the world. Cancer prevention of early human migrations was associated with functional foods from crop origin centers, especially Asia with four centers and one subcenter of crop origin, accounting for 58% of the world population. These results reveal that coevolution between human's anticancer activities associated with functional foods for crop origin centers, especially in Asia and Africa.

"The city of Hepar": rituals, gastronomy, and politics at the origins of the modern names for the liver.

Science.gov (United States)

Riva, Michele Augusto; Riva, Enrica; Spicci, Mauro; Strazzabosco, Mario; Giovannini, Marcello; Cesana, Giancarlo

2011-11-01

Medical etymology sometimes provides unexpected information about health concepts and medical practice in different times and cultures. We conducted an etymological analysis of the terms used to indicate "liver" in Germanic and Romance languages. The Greek word "hèpar" was originally connected to the concept of "pleasure", showing that in antiquity the liver was considered to be the seat of soul and human feelings. In Romance languages, the Latin term "ficatum" was linked to the ancient practice of fattening geese with figs (ficus in Latin) to make their livers more delicious. This relationship between the liver, fat, and carbohydrates seems to indicate that ancient gourmets had clear knowledge of the nutritional mechanisms underlying "fatty liver" in animals. On the other hand, the Germanic term "lifere" was initially connected to "life", underscoring the relation of the liver to health and existence. In the Early Modern Age, the liver became a recurring image in political reflection, especially within the Elizabethan tradition of the body politic, where the king was frequently described as the "liver" of his country. Finally, the liver was used to indicate courage, or the lack of it: some modern French and English idiomatic expressions derive from the ancient belief that people who had no blood in their liver ("lily-livered") would thus be cowards or betrayers. Copyright © 2011 European Association for the Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intra-individual metameric variation expressed at the enamel-dentine junction of lower post-canine dentition of South African fossil hominins and modern humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Lei; Thackeray, John Francis; Dumoncel, Jean; Zanolli, Clément; Oettlé, Anna; de Beer, Frikkie; Hoffman, Jakobus; Duployer, Benjamin; Tenailleau, Christophe; Braga, José

2017-08-01

The aim of this study is to compare the degree and patterning of inter- and intra-individual metameric variation in South African australopiths, early Homo and modern humans. Metameric variation likely reflects developmental and taxonomical issues, and could also be used to infer ecological and functional adaptations. However, its patterning along the early hominin postcanine dentition, particularly among South African fossil hominins, remains unexplored. Using microfocus X-ray computed tomography (µXCT) and geometric morphometric tools, we studied the enamel-dentine junction (EDJ) morphology and we investigated the intra- and inter-individual EDJ metameric variation among eight australopiths and two early Homo specimens from South Africa, as well as 32 modern humans. Along post-canine dentition, shape changes between metameres represented by relative positions and height of dentine horns, outlines of the EDJ occlusal table are reported in modern and fossil taxa. Comparisons of EDJ mean shapes and multivariate analyses reveal substantial variation in the direction and magnitude of metameric shape changes among taxa, but some common trends can be found. In modern humans, both the direction and magnitude of metameric shape change show increased variability in M 2 -M 3 compared to M 1 -M 2 . Fossil specimens are clustered together showing similar magnitudes of shape change. Along M 2 -M 3 , the lengths of their metameric vectors are not as variable as those of modern humans, but they display considerable variability in the direction of shape change. The distalward increase of metameric variation along the modern human molar row is consistent with the odontogenetic models of molar row structure (inhibitory cascade model). Though much remains to be tested, the variable trends and magnitudes in metamerism in fossil hominins reported here, together with differences in the scale of shape change between modern humans and fossil hominins may provide valuable information

Trading secrets: Jews and the early modern quest for clandestine knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Jütte, Daniel

2012-12-01

This essay explores the significance and function of secrecy and secret sciences in Jewish-Christian relations and in Jewish culture in the early modern period. It shows how the trade in clandestine knowledge and the practice of secret sciences became a complex, sometimes hazardous space for contact between Jews and Christians. By examining this trade, the essay clarifies the role of secrecy in the early modern marketplace of knowledge. The attribution of secretiveness to Jews was a widespread topos in early modern European thought. However, relatively little is known about the implications of such beliefs in science or in daily life. The essay pays special attention to the fact that trade in secret knowledge frequently offered Jews a path to the center of power, especially at court. Furthermore, it becomes clear that the practice of secret sciences, the trade in clandestine knowledge, and a mercantile agenda were often inextricably interwoven. Special attention is paid to the Italian-Jewish alchemist, engineer, and entrepreneur Abramo Colorni (ca. 1544-1599), whose career illustrates the opportunities provided by the marketplace of secrets at that time. Much scholarly (and less scholarly) attention has been devoted to whether and what Jews "contributed" to what is commonly called the "Scientific Revolution." This essay argues that the question is misdirected and that, instead, we should pay more attention to the distinctive opportunities offered by the early modern economy of secrecy.

Origins and Early Evolution of the tRNA Molecule

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koji Tamura

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Modern transfer RNAs (tRNAs are composed of ~76 nucleotides and play an important role as “adaptor” molecules that mediate the translation of information from messenger RNAs (mRNAs. Many studies suggest that the contemporary full-length tRNA was formed by the ligation of half-sized hairpin-like RNAs. A minihelix (a coaxial stack of the acceptor stem on the T-stem of tRNA can function both in aminoacylation by aminoacyl tRNA synthetases and in peptide bond formation on the ribosome, indicating that it may be a vestige of the ancestral tRNA. The universal CCA-3′ terminus of tRNA is also a typical characteristic of the molecule. “Why CCA?” is the fundamental unanswered question, but several findings give a comprehensive picture of its origin. Here, the origins and early evolution of tRNA are discussed in terms of various perspectives, including nucleotide ligation, chiral selectivity of amino acids, genetic code evolution, and the organization of the ribosomal peptidyl transferase center (PTC. The proto-tRNA molecules may have evolved not only as adaptors but also as contributors to the composition of the ribosome.

Haplotypes in the Dystrophin DNA Segment Point to a Mosaic Origin of Modern Human Diversity

OpenAIRE

Ziętkiewicz, Ewa; Yotova, Vania; Gehl, Dominik; Wambach, Tina; Arrieta, Isabel; Batzer, Mark; Cole, David E.C.; Hechtman, Peter; Kaplan, Feige; Modiano, David; Moisan, Jean-Paul; Michalski, Roman; Labuda, Damian

2003-01-01

Although Africa has played a central role in human evolutionary history, certain studies have suggested that not all contemporary human genetic diversity is of recent African origin. We investigated 35 simple polymorphic sites and one Tn microsatellite in an 8-kb segment of the dystrophin gene. We found 86 haplotypes in 1,343 chromosomes from around the world. Although a classical out-of-Africa topology was observed in trees based on the variant frequencies, the tree of haplotype sequences re...

Indonesian consumers’ perception of modernized and original version of traditional food

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fibri, Dwi Larasatie Nur; Frøst, Michael Bom

in a jar, sambal sprinkles, fresh coconut milk, UHT coconut milk, coconut milk powder, gudeg kendil, gudeg besek, boxed gudeg, canned gudeg, ground seasoning, instant seasoning paste, dadih, and yoghurt) were described to gauge consumer perception of the following variables: modern, traditional, original......, authentic, natural and hedonics. Partial Least Square Regression was carried out to get an overview of product and variable variation. Figure 1 showed how the variable modern is inversely correlated to the remaining variables, including hedonics. Products perceived as modern were UHT liquid coconut milk......, powdered coconut milk, instant seasoning paste, canned gudeg, sambal in jar, sprinkle sambal, yoghurt and hygienic tempe. In contrast, products that were perceived as traditional were also more liked, such as homemade sambal, ground seasoning, gudeg kendil, gudeg besek, tempe usar, and fresh coconut milk...

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Illobre, Luis Fernandez; Ortega Pascual, Fernando

2014-01-01

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user. (authors)

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Fernandez Illobre, Luis; Ortega Pascual, Fernando

2015-01-01

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user.

Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to human-system interface modernization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Trueba Alonso, Pedro; Fernandez Illobre, Luis; Ortega Pascual, Fernando [Tecnatom S.A., San Sebastian de los Reyes (Spain). Simulation and Control Rooms Div.

2015-07-15

Almost all the existing Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) include plans to modernize their existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems and associated Human System Interfaces (HSIs), due to obsolescence problems. Tecnatom, S.A. has been participating in modernization programs in NPPs to help them to plan, specify, design and implement the modernization of control rooms and associated I and C and HSIs. The application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in modernization programs is nowadays unavoidable. This is because is becoming a regulatory requirement, and also because it is needed to ensure that any plant modification, involving the modernization of I and C and HSI, is well designed to improve overall plant operations, reliability, and safety. This paper shows some experiences obtained during the application of HFE to the modernization of these HSIs. The experience applying HFE in modernizations and design modifications show a positive effect, improving the associated HSIs, with the acceptability of the final user.

The linguistic roots of Modern English anatomical terminology.

Science.gov (United States)

Turmezei, Tom D

2012-11-01

Previous research focusing on Classical Latin and Greek roots has shown that understanding the etymology of English anatomical terms may be beneficial for students of human anatomy. However, not all anatomical terms are derived from Classical origins. This study aims to explore the linguistic roots of the Modern English terminology used in human gross anatomy. By reference to the Oxford English Dictionary, etymologies were determined for a lexicon of 798 Modern English gross anatomical terms from the 40(th) edition of Gray's Anatomy. Earliest traceable language of origin was determined for all 798 terms; language of acquisition was determined for 747 terms. Earliest traceable languages of origin were: Classical Latin (62%), Classical Greek (24%), Old English (7%), Post-Classical Latin (3%), and other (4%). Languages of acquisition were: Classical Latin (42%), Post-Classical Latin (29%), Old English (8%), Modern French (6%), Classical Greek (5%), Middle English (3%), and other (7%). While the roots of Modern English anatomical terminology mostly lie in Classical languages (accounting for the origin of 86% of terms), the anatomical lexicon of Modern English is actually much more diverse. Interesting and perhaps less familiar examples from these languages and the methods by which such terms have been created and absorbed are discussed. The author suggests that awareness of anatomical etymologies may enhance the enjoyment and understanding of human anatomy for students and teachers alike. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program Operator Performance Metrics for Control Room Modernization: A Practical Guide for Early Design Evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ronald Boring; Roger Lew; Thomas Ulrich; Jeffrey Joe

2014-03-01

As control rooms are modernized with new digital systems at nuclear power plants, it is necessary to evaluate the operator performance using these systems as part of a verification and validation process. There are no standard, predefined metrics available for assessing what is satisfactory operator interaction with new systems, especially during the early design stages of a new system. This report identifies the process and metrics for evaluating human system interfaces as part of control room modernization. The report includes background information on design and evaluation, a thorough discussion of human performance measures, and a practical example of how the process and metrics have been used as part of a turbine control system upgrade during the formative stages of design. The process and metrics are geared toward generalizability to other applications and serve as a template for utilities undertaking their own control room modernization activities.

Environmental oxygen conditions during the origin and early evolution of life

Science.gov (United States)

Towe, Kenneth M.

The well-known sensitivity of proteins and nucleic acids to UV-radiation requires that some internally consistent protection scenario be envisioned for the origin and early evolution of life on Earth. Although a variety of ozone-surrogates has been proposed, the available biochemical, geochemical and geological evidence best supports the conclusion that free oxygen was available at levels capable of providing at least a moderate ozone screen. Levels of oxygen near 1-2% of the present atmospheric level are consistent with such a screen, and with: (1) the biochemical needs of early procaryotes considered phylogenetically more primitive than the oxygen-producing Cyanobacteria; (2) the rare-earth element data from the oxide facies of the 3.8 Byr-old Isua banded-iron formations; (3) the nature and phylogenetic distribution of superoxide dismutases; (4) the need for aerobic recycling of early photosynthetic productivity dictated by the distribution of ancient sedimentary iron and organic carbon; (5) the incompatibility of dissolved reduced sulfur (to support anoxygenic photosynthesis) and ferrous iron (to support banded iron-formations) in the surface waters of the world oceans; and (6) the comparative oxygen and UV-sensitivities of modern procaryotes.

Studying the early modern landscape in the Czech republic

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Chodějovská, Eva

2012-01-01

Roč. 38, č. 1 (2012), s. 63-98 ISSN 0323-0988 R&D Projects : GA ČR(CZ) GBP410/12/G113 Institutional support: RVO:67985963 Keywords : historical landscape * early modern period * czech research Subject RIV: AB - History

The discovery of circulation and the origin of modern medicine during the italian renaissance.

Science.gov (United States)

Thiene, G

1997-03-01

This historical article discusses the dawn of anatomy during the Italian Renaissance, the role of the University of Padua in the origin of modern medicine, milestones in the development of modern medicine, the discovery of circulation, Padua leadership and Galileo's persecution for his scientific theories. Copyright © 1997 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

Chronology of Ksar Akil (Lebanon) and Implications for the Colonization of Europe by Anatomically Modern Humans

Science.gov (United States)

Douka, Katerina; Bergman, Christopher A.; Hedges, Robert E. M.; Wesselingh, Frank P.; Higham, Thomas F. G.

2013-01-01

The Out-of-Africa model holds that anatomically modern humans (AMH) evolved and dispersed from Africa into Asia, and later Europe. Palaeoanthropological evidence from the Near East assumes great importance, but AMH remains from the region are extremely scarce. ‘Egbert’, a now-lost AMH fossil from the key site of Ksar Akil (Lebanon) and ‘Ethelruda’, a recently re-discovered fragmentary maxilla from the same site, are two rare examples where human fossils are directly linked with early Upper Palaeolithic archaeological assemblages. Here we radiocarbon date the contexts from which Egbert and Ethelruda were recovered, as well as the levels above and below the findspots. In the absence of well-preserved organic materials, we primarily used marine shell beads, often regarded as indicative of behavioural modernity. Bayesian modelling allows for the construction of a chronostratigraphic framework for Ksar Akil, which supports several conclusions. The model-generated age estimates place Egbert between 40.8–39.2 ka cal BP (68.2% prob.) and Ethelruda between 42.4–41.7 ka cal BP (68.2% prob.). This indicates that Egbert is of an age comparable to that of the oldest directly-dated European AMH (Peştera cu Oase). Ethelruda is older, but on current estimates not older than the modern human teeth from Cavallo in Italy. The dating of the so-called “transitional” or Initial Upper Palaeolithic layers of the site may indicate that the passage from the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic at Ksar Akil, and possibly in the wider northern Levant, occurred later than previously estimated, casting some doubts on the assumed singular role of the region as a locus for human dispersals into Europe. Finally, tentative interpretations of the fossil's taxonomy, combined with the chronometric dating of Ethelruda's context, provides evidence that the transitional/IUP industries of Europe and the Levant, or at least some of them, may be the result of early modern human migration(s). PMID

'ah famous citie' : women, writing, and early modern London

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wilcox - Boulton, Helen

2010-01-01

This article explores aspects of the textual relationship between women and early modern London by examining three verbal 'snapshots' of the city in works either written by women or focusing on women in their urban environment. The first text, Isabella Whitney's 'Wyll and Testament' (1573),

Recording customs in early modern Antwerp, a commercial metropolis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Hofstraeten, Bram

2016-01-01

This article questions whether early modern compilations of customary law retained their customary nature after being recorded in the Low Countries by learned jurists and within the framework of a procedure designed and controlled by a central authority. By means of a quantitative analysis of the

Dama roberti, a new species of deer from the early Middle Pleistocene of Europe, and the origins of modern fallow deer

Science.gov (United States)

Breda, Marzia; Lister, Adrian M.

2013-06-01

The ancestry of the modern fallow deer, Dama dama, has been tentatively traced back to Pliocene/Early Pleistocene forms referred to 'Pseudodama', characterized by unpalmated three- or four-point antlers. By the late Middle Pleistocene, Dama with palmated antlers appears, as Dama dama clactoniana. However, fallow deer from the interim period, the early Middle Pleistocene, are poorly-known. A new specimen from Pakefield (Suffolk, UK), represented by a portion of cranium with a substantial part of both antlers plus a mandible and scapula, is the most complete medium-sized deer specimen from the British early Middle Pleistocene (ca 700 ka). The position and orientation of the basal tine, together with dental characters and mandibular morphology, are typical of fallow deer. The narrow palmation is reminiscent of D. dama clactoniana, but the lack of palmation tines is unique. Moreover, the lack of second (and third) tines in an adult specimen differs from both D. dama dama and D. d. clactoniana, being a primitive character shared with the last representatives of 'Pseudodama' which, on the other hand, has a circular beam lacking any palmation. This combination of features justifies the erection of a new species provisionally placed within the genus Dama, Dama roberti n. sp. Another specimen, from Soleilhac (Auvergne, France), represented by portions of the two antlers, a mandible and a tibia, shares antler morphology with the Pakefield specimen and can be ascribed to the same new species. Isolated antler and dental remains from coeval British sites are tentatively ascribed to D. roberti n. sp. The new species has implications for the ancestry of modern fallow deer.

Aux origines de la science moderne

CERN Document Server

Rossi, Paolo

1999-01-01

Aux origines de la science moderne. " Lorsque l'on aborde l'étude d'une pensée qui n'est plus la nôtre, il est important de chercher à oublier ce que nous savons ou croyons savoir. " Pour appréhender cette période fondatrice que fut la Révolution scientifique du XVIIe siècle en Europe, Paolo Rossi nous replonge dans des atmosphères intellectuelles et des modes de pensée depuis longtemps disparus. Des secrets hermétiques aux calculs mathématiques, de la magie au magnétisme et des cabinets de curiosité aux premières académies des sciences défilent ainsi des notions et des individus qui, remis en toute simplicité dans le contexte de leur époque, retrouvent une épaisseur et un sens nouveaux. Ainsi racontée sous la forme d'une histoire des idées, l'histoire des sciences devient accessible à tous.

Visions of the Empire: religion, ontology and the 'international' in early modernity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucas G. Freire

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the relation between basic religious motifs of theoretical thought, general ontology and their specific use in 'international' political theory at the onset on the Modern Era. The analysis is based on Herman Dooyeweerd's reformational philosophy in identifying the basic assumptions on the origin of life, coherence and diversity of reality in several trends of thought. The Greek and Roman classical legacy, in combination with ancient Christian concepts, is emphasized, namely in terms of motifs such as Nature and Grace, guidelines of scholastic worldview, thus influencing its perspective of Christianity, of the Holy Roman Empire and of the Papacy. Reformed Protestantism adopted a more radically Biblical set of assumptions which culminated in a ontologically plural perspective of social authority and political community, as well as of the empire. Christian humanism, and some Protestant thinkers, was also heavily influenced by the motifs of Nature and Grace, but now with a strict separation between both 'logics'. The theorization of an 'internal logic' for each of these spheres gave origin to a reinterpretation of Nature in classical Humanism, according to a 'mechanistic' perspective of reality with its ideal of control. Another religious motif of this secularized form of humanism was the concept of Liberty and of personality. This geometrical theoretical mode influenced ideas on the social contract and its international analogy, leading theoricians to fiery debates on the classification of the Empire.

Space, Geometry and the Imagination from Antiquity to the Early Modern Age

CERN Document Server

Mathematizing Space : The Objects of Geometry from Antiquity to the Early Modern Age

2015-01-01

This book brings together papers of the conference on 'Space, Geometry and the Imagination from Antiquity to the Modern Age' held in Berlin, Germany, 27-29 August 2012. Focusing on the interconnections between the history of geometry and the philosophy of space in the pre-Modern and Early Modern Age, the essays in this volume are particularly directed toward elucidating the complex epistemological revolution that transformed the classical geometry of figures into the modern geometry of space. Contributors: Graciela De Pierris Franco Farinelli Michael Friedman Daniel Garber Jeremy Gray Gary Hatfield Andrew Janiak Douglas Jesseph Alexander Jones Henry Mendell David Rabouin

Weber's Historical Urban Sociology: City as a Base of Modern Society

OpenAIRE

Sunar, Lütfi

2011-01-01

Since the beginning of modernity, discussions concerning the development and characteristics of occidental city in the West have played a central role in defining modern society and exploring its origins. In that, both the synchronous emergence of modern society with urbanization and the manifestation of modernity-triggering capitalism as an urban phenomenon have been instrumental. In that regard, early sociologists have focused their attention on urban development and characteristics of occi...

New fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco and the pan-African origin of Homo sapiens.

Science.gov (United States)

Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Ben-Ncer, Abdelouahed; Bailey, Shara E; Freidline, Sarah E; Neubauer, Simon; Skinner, Matthew M; Bergmann, Inga; Le Cabec, Adeline; Benazzi, Stefano; Harvati, Katerina; Gunz, Philipp

2017-06-07

Fossil evidence points to an African origin of Homo sapiens from a group called either H. heidelbergensis or H. rhodesiensis. However, the exact place and time of emergence of H. sapiens remain obscure because the fossil record is scarce and the chronological age of many key specimens remains uncertain. In particular, it is unclear whether the present day 'modern' morphology rapidly emerged approximately 200 thousand years ago (ka) among earlier representatives of H. sapiens or evolved gradually over the last 400 thousand years. Here we report newly discovered human fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, and interpret the affinities of the hominins from this site with other archaic and recent human groups. We identified a mosaic of features including facial, mandibular and dental morphology that aligns the Jebel Irhoud material with early or recent anatomically modern humans and more primitive neurocranial and endocranial morphology. In combination with an age of 315 ± 34 thousand years (as determined by thermoluminescence dating), this evidence makes Jebel Irhoud the oldest and richest African Middle Stone Age hominin site that documents early stages of the H. sapiens clade in which key features of modern morphology were established. Furthermore, it shows that the evolutionary processes behind the emergence of H. sapiens involved the whole African continent.

An introduction to modern cosmology

CERN Document Server

Liddle, Andrew

2015-01-01

An Introduction to Modern Cosmology Third Edition is an accessible account of modern cosmological ideas. The Big Bang Cosmology is explored, looking at its observational successes in explaining the expansion of the Universe, the existence and properties of the cosmic microwave background, and the origin of light elements in the universe. Properties of the very early Universe are also covered, including the motivation for a rapid period of expansion known as cosmological inflation. The third edition brings this established undergraduate textbook up-to-date with the rapidly evolving observation

A glimpse into the early origins of medieval anatomy through the oldest conserved human dissection (Western Europe, 13(th) c. A.D.).

Science.gov (United States)

Charlier, Philippe; Huynh-Charlier, Isabelle; Poupon, Joël; Lancelot, Eloïse; Campos, Paula F; Favier, Dominique; Jeannel, Gaël-François; Bonati, Maurizio Rippa; de la Grandmaison, Geoffroy Lorin; Hervé, Christian

2014-05-12

Medieval autopsy practice is very poorly known in Western Europe, due to a lack of both descriptive medico-surgical texts and conserved dissected human remains. This period is currently considered the dark ages according to a common belief of systematic opposition of Christian religious authorities to the opening of human cadavers. The identification in a private collection of an autopsied human individual dated from the 13(th) century A.D. is an opportunity for better knowledge of such practice in this chrono-cultural context, i.e. the early origins of occidental dissections. A complete forensic anthropological procedure was carried out, completed by radiological and elemental analyses. The complete procedure of this body opening and internal organs exploration is explained, and compared with historical data about forensic and anatomical autopsies from this period. During the analysis, a red substance filling all arterial cavities, made of mercury sulfide (cinnabar) mixed with vegetal oil (oleic and palmitic acids) was identified; it was presumably used to highlight vascularization by coloring in red such vessels, and help in the preservation of the body. Of particular interest for the description of early medical and anatomical knowledge, this "human preparation" is the oldest known yet, and is particularly important for the fields of history of medicine, surgery and anatomical practice.

From Neandertals to modern humans: New data on the Uluzzian.

Science.gov (United States)

Villa, Paola; Pollarolo, Luca; Conforti, Jacopo; Marra, Fabrizio; Biagioni, Cristian; Degano, Ilaria; Lucejko, Jeannette J; Tozzi, Carlo; Pennacchioni, Massimo; Zanchetta, Giovanni; Nicosia, Cristiano; Martini, Marco; Sibilia, Emanuela; Panzeri, Laura

2018-01-01

Having thrived in Eurasia for 350,000 years Neandertals disappeared from the record around 40,000-37,000 years ago, after modern humans entered Europe. It was a complex process of population interactions that included cultural exchanges and admixture between Neandertals and dispersing groups of modern humans. In Europe Neandertals are always associated with the Mousterian while the Aurignacian is associated with modern humans only. The onset of the Aurignacian is preceded by "transitional" industries which show some similarities with the Mousterian but also contain modern tool forms. Information on these industries is often incomplete or disputed and this is true of the Uluzzian. We present the results of taphonomic, typological and technological analyses of two Uluzzian sites, Grotta La Fabbrica (Tuscany) and the newly discovered site of Colle Rotondo (Latium). Comparisons with Castelcivita and Grotta del Cavallo show that the Uluzzian is a coherent cultural unit lasting about five millennia, replaced by the Protoaurignacian before the eruption of the Campanian Ignimbrite. The lack of skeletal remains at our two sites and the controversy surrounding the stratigraphic position of modern human teeth at Cavallo makes it difficult to reach agreement about authorship of the Uluzzian, for which alternative hypotheses have been proposed. Pending the discovery of DNA or further human remains, these hypotheses can only be evaluated by archaeological arguments, i.e. evidence of continuities and discontinuities between the Uluzzian and the preceding and succeeding culture units in Italy. However, in the context of "transitional" industries with disputed dates for the arrival of modern humans in Europe, and considering the case of the Châtelperronian, an Upper Paleolithic industry made by Neandertals, typo-technology used as an indicator of hominin authorship has limited predictive value. We corroborate previous suggestions that the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition

Environment and Climate of Early Human Evolution

Science.gov (United States)

Levin, Naomi E.

2015-05-01

Evaluating the relationships between climate, the environment, and human traits is a key part of human origins research because changes in Earth's atmosphere, oceans, landscapes, and ecosystems over the past 10 Myr shaped the selection pressures experienced by early humans. In Africa, these relationships have been influenced by a combination of high-latitude ice distributions, sea surface temperatures, and low-latitude orbital forcing that resulted in large oscillations in vegetation and moisture availability that were modulated by local basin dynamics. The importance of both climate and tectonics in shaping African landscapes means that integrated views of the ecological, environmental, and tectonic histories of a region are necessary in order to understand the relationships between climate and human evolution.

Assembling the dodo in early modern natural history.

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence, Natalie

2015-09-01

This paper explores the assimilation of the flightless dodo into early modern natural history. The dodo was first described by Dutch sailors landing on Mauritius in 1598, and became extinct in the 1680s or 1690s. Despite this brief period of encounter, the bird was a popular subject in natural-history works and a range of other genres. The dodo will be used here as a counterexample to the historical narratives of taxonomic crisis and abrupt shifts in natural history caused by exotic creatures coming to Europe. Though this bird had a bizarre form, early modern naturalists integrated the dodo and other flightless birds through several levels of conceptual categorization, including the geographical, morphological and symbolic. Naturalists such as Charles L'Ecluse produced a set of typical descriptive tropes that helped make up the European dodo. These long-lived images were used for a variety of symbolic purposes, demonstrated by the depiction of the Dutch East India enterprise in Willem Piso's 1658 publication. The case of the dodo shows that, far from there being a dramatic shift away from emblematics in the seventeenth century, the implicit symbolic roles attributed to exotic beasts by naturalists constructing them from scant information and specimens remained integral to natural history.

Virtual assessment of the endocranial morphology of the early modern European fossil calvaria from cioclovina, romania.

Science.gov (United States)

Kranioti, Elena F; Holloway, Ralph; Senck, Sascha; Ciprut, Tudor; Grigorescu, Dan; Harvati, Katerina

2011-07-01

Endocasts provide evidence on size and shape characteristics, blood supply trajectories, and neurological features of the brain, allowing comparative analyses of fossil hominins crucial to our understanding of human brain evolution. Here, we assess the morphological features of the virtual endocast of the Cioclovina Upper Paleolithic calvarium, one of the earliest reliably dated European modern human fossils. Our study was conducted on a computed tomography (CT) scan of the original specimen. The endocranial profile was approximated via a semiautomatic segmentation of the CT data. Virtual reconstructions of the endocast were used for assessing the morphological features of the endocranium and for the estimation of the endocranial volume. Cioclovina exhibits a clockwise torque with a small anterior extension of the left frontal lobe over the right one and a protrusion of the right occipital lobe over the left, most likely due to the superior sagittal sinus coursing over the occipital pole. There is an obvious right predominance of the posterior drainage system. Interestingly, the area of the frontal sinus is occupied by dense bony tissue with small air cells corresponding probably to a natural bony loss in the diploë and to vascular spaces. An estimated endocranial volume of 1498.53 cc was calculated. The convolutional details of the third inferior frontal gyrus (Broca's caps) are indistinguishable from those found in modern Homo sapiens, and the left occipital lobe appears wider than the right, a possible correlate of right-handedness. Our metric analysis of endocranial measurements also aligns Cioclovina with modern humans. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Continuity or discontinuity in the European Early Pleistocene human settlement: the Atapuerca evidence

Science.gov (United States)

Bermúdez de Castro, José María; Martinón-Torres, María; Blasco, Ruth; Rosell, Jordi; Carbonell, Eudald

2013-09-01

The nature, timing, pattern, favourable circumstances and impediments of the human occupation of the European continent during the Early Pleistocene are hot topics in Quaternary studies. In particular, the problem of the (dis) continuity of the settlement of Europe in this period is an important matter of discussion, which has been approached in the last decade from different points of view. The Gran Dolina (TD) and Sima del Elefante (TE) cave sites in the Sierra de Atapuerca, (Spain) include large and quasi-continuous stratigraphic sequences that stretch back from at least 1.2 million years ago (Ma) to the Matuyama/Brunhes boundary. The archaeological and paleontological record from these sites can help to test different hypotheses about the character of the human settlement in this region and period. Furthermore, the TD6 level has yielded a large collection of human fossil remains attributed to Homo antecessor. According to different geochronological methods, as well as to paleomagnetic and biostratigraphical analyses, these hominins belong to an age range of 0.96-0.80 Ma. Unfortunately, the finding in 2007 of some human fossil remains in the TE9 level, dated to about 1.22 Ma, was not enough to conclude whether H. antecessor had deep roots in the European Early Pleistocene. A set of derived features of H. antecessor shared with both the Neanderthal lineage and modern humans suggests that this species is related, and not far, from the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens. If we assume that there was a lineal biological relationship between the TE9 and TD6 hominins, we should reconsider many of the conclusions achieved in previous paleontological and genetic studies. In addition, we would be obliged to build a highly complicated paleogeographical scenario for the origin of the MRCA. Although continuity in the settlement of Europe during the entire late Early Pleistocene is not discarded (e.g. in refuge areas), it seems that

Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: the origin of Neandertals.

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Hublin, J J

2009-09-22

Western Eurasia yielded a rich Middle (MP) and Late Pleistocene (LP) fossil record documenting the evolution of the Neandertals that can be analyzed in light of recently acquired paleogenetical data, an abundance of archeological evidence, and a well-known environmental context. Their origin likely relates to an episode of recolonization of Western Eurasia by hominins of African origin carrying the Acheulean technology into Europe around 600 ka. An enhancement of both glacial and interglacial phases may have played a crucial role in this event, as well as in the subsequent evolutionary history of the Western Eurasian populations. In addition to climatic adaptations and an increase in encephalization, genetic drift seems to have played a major role in their evolution. To date, a clear speciation event is not documented, and the most likely scenario for the fixation of Neandertal characteristics seems to be an accretion of features along the second half of the MP. Although a separation time for the African and Eurasian populations is difficult to determine, it certainly predates OIS 11 as phenotypic Neandertal features are documented as far back as and possibly before this time. It is proposed to use the term "Homo rhodesiensis" to designate the large-brained hominins ancestral to H. sapiens in Africa and at the root of the Neandertals in Europe, and to use the term "Homo neanderthalensis" to designate all of the specimens carrying derived metrical or non-metrical features used in the definition of the LP Neandertals.

Contradictory Interests: Work, parents, and offspring in early modern Holland

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Heijden, M.P.C.

2004-01-01

The consistory notes of the Dutch Reformed Church (1573-1700) reveal conflicts over work between parents and children during the early modern period. Two issues that caused particular tension were the labor experience of future sons-in-law and the division of household tasks. Parents' concerns about

“A most detestable crime”. Representations of Rape in the Popular Press of Early Modern England

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Donatella Pallotti

2013-03-01

Full Text Available In early modern England the legal definition of rape underwent an important revision and gradually, from crime against property, rape became a crime against the person. While reflecting the classical, medieval and biblical assumptions, the period brought about new concerns. The purpose of this article is to explore representations of rape in a variety of popular texts of the English early modern period, by focussing attention on broadside ballads, cheap pamphlets as well as accounts of trials that took place at the Old Bailey. These texts constitute valuable sources of information about people’s attitudes and beliefs and help us construct the views of rape circulating in early modern English culture.

Genre and text-type conventions in Early Modern Women´s recipe books

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Isabel de la Cruz Cabanillas

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Early Modern recipe books map onto women’s roles in the period. Women were responsible for the health and care of all their household members. This explains the women´s interest in gathering information on the topic, usually put together in manuscripts which circulated in the women´s intellectual and domestic circles to serve this purpose. The manuscript is viewed as an artefact likely to be changed to meet the needs of its users. The article seeks to explore genre and text-type conventions in a corpus of medical and culinary recipes written or compiled by women in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of Early Modern Britain. The recipes in this period show patterns of continuity from medieval times but also patterns of variation to foreshadow the shape of modern recipes.

From Neandertals to modern humans: New data on the Uluzzian.

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Paola Villa

Full Text Available Having thrived in Eurasia for 350,000 years Neandertals disappeared from the record around 40,000-37,000 years ago, after modern humans entered Europe. It was a complex process of population interactions that included cultural exchanges and admixture between Neandertals and dispersing groups of modern humans. In Europe Neandertals are always associated with the Mousterian while the Aurignacian is associated with modern humans only. The onset of the Aurignacian is preceded by "transitional" industries which show some similarities with the Mousterian but also contain modern tool forms. Information on these industries is often incomplete or disputed and this is true of the Uluzzian. We present the results of taphonomic, typological and technological analyses of two Uluzzian sites, Grotta La Fabbrica (Tuscany and the newly discovered site of Colle Rotondo (Latium. Comparisons with Castelcivita and Grotta del Cavallo show that the Uluzzian is a coherent cultural unit lasting about five millennia, replaced by the Protoaurignacian before the eruption of the Campanian Ignimbrite. The lack of skeletal remains at our two sites and the controversy surrounding the stratigraphic position of modern human teeth at Cavallo makes it difficult to reach agreement about authorship of the Uluzzian, for which alternative hypotheses have been proposed. Pending the discovery of DNA or further human remains, these hypotheses can only be evaluated by archaeological arguments, i.e. evidence of continuities and discontinuities between the Uluzzian and the preceding and succeeding culture units in Italy. However, in the context of "transitional" industries with disputed dates for the arrival of modern humans in Europe, and considering the case of the Châtelperronian, an Upper Paleolithic industry made by Neandertals, typo-technology used as an indicator of hominin authorship has limited predictive value. We corroborate previous suggestions that the Middle

The politics of universalism. Strategic uses of human rights discourses in early modernity

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Karen-Margrethe Simonsen

2013-11-01

Full Text Available This article investigates the political function of human rights in 16th-century Spain just after the conquest of America. It claims that the study of this period of early globalization is relevant for an understanding of the function of human rights discourses today, at the “end” of globalization. Historically speaking, human rights are closely connected with globalization, but at the same time, they raise the question about the foundation of globalization: is there a universal community or only economic and political power-relations? This article argues that the political use of human rights discourses is split down the middle: it serves both as a critique of power and as an extension of power, and the disclosure of this split helps us understand the inner politics of human rights. The article discusses the trial in Valladolid in 1550 when the rights of the barbarian Indians of America were put on trial. It focuses mainly on the arguments made by Bartolomé de las Casas and on the reasons why the King allowed las Casas’ fierce critique of the conquest to be published in a period of otherwise severe censorship. This article is inspired by Etienne Balibar's idea of “politics of universalism,” “political autonomy,” and “equaliberty.”.

Why was there no capitalism in early modern China?

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TIAGO NASSER APPEL

Full Text Available ABSTRACT In this paper, we ask the following question: why couldn’t Early Modern China make the leap to capitalism, as we have come to know it in the West? We suggest that, even if China compared well with the West in key economic features - commercialization and commodification of goods, land, labor - up to the 18th century, it did not traverse the path to Capitalism because of the “fact of empire”. Lacking the scale of fiscal difficulties encountered in Early Modern Europe, Late Imperial China did not have to heavily tax merchants and notables; therefore, it did not have to negotiate rights and duties with the mercantile class. More innovatively, we also propose that the relative lack of fiscal difficulties meant that China failed to develop a “virtuous symbiosis” between taxing, monetization of the economy and public debt. This is because, essentially, it was the mobilization of society’s resources - primarily by way of public debt or taxes - towards the support of a military force that created the first real opportunities for merchants and bankers to amass immense and unprecedented wealth.

International Orders in the Early Modern World

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a secondary role. These perspectives emphasise the central role of non-European agency in shaping global history, and stand in stark contrast to conventional narratives revolving around the ‘Rise of the West’, which tend to be based upon a stylized contrast between a dynamic West and a passive and static East....... Focusing on a crucial period of global history that has been neglected in the field of International Relations, the book reveals profound differences between the early modern era and the more familiar colonial conquests of the second half of the nineteenth century. It will be interest to students...

"Old Poems Have Heart": Teenage Students Reading Early Modern Poetry

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Naylor, Amanda

2013-01-01

The proposals for the revised National Curriculum in English suggest limiting the pre-twentieth century poetry that GCSE pupils read to "representative Romantic poetry" (Department for Education [DFE], 2013, p. 4). This paper argues that poetry of the early modern period is challenging and enriching study for adolescent pupils and that…

Early Modern “Citation Index”? Medical Authorities in Academic Treatises on Plague (1480–1725

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Karel Černý

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper deals with the problem of early modern scientific citations. It attempts to establish a measure of scientific popularity in a specific area of the academic medicine in a way which resembles a modern evaluation of scientific activity (citation index. For this purpose an analysis of a series of plague treatises written between 1480 and 1725 in Europe was conducted. Citations for various historical medical authorities (Hippocrates, Galen, etc. are given in Tables which reflect a long time development of popularity. The authorities from various groups (Ancient, Medieval, Arabic, Early Modern are linked together, and “generic authorities” are explained and discussed.

A functional test of Neandertal and modern human mitochondrial targeting sequences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gralle, Matthias; Schaefer, Ingo; Seibel, Peter; Paeaebo, Svante

2010-01-01

Research highlights: → Two mutations in mitochondrial targeting peptides occurred during human evolution, possibly after Neandertals split off from modern human lineage. → The ancestral and modern human versions of these two targeting peptides were tested functionally for their effects on localization and cleavage rate. → In spite of recent evolution, and to the contrary of other mutations in targeting peptides, these mutations had no visible effects. -- Abstract: Targeting of nuclear-encoded proteins to different organelles, such as mitochondria, is a process that can result in the redeployment of proteins to new intracellular destinations during evolution. With the sequencing of the Neandertal genome, it has become possible to identify amino acid substitutions that occurred on the modern human lineage since its separation from the Neandertal lineage. Here we analyze the function of two substitutions in mitochondrial targeting sequences that occurred and rose to high frequency recently during recent human evolution. The ancestral and modern versions of the two targeting sequences do not differ in the efficiency with which they direct a protein to the mitochondria, an observation compatible with the neutral theory of molecular evolution.

A functional test of Neandertal and modern human mitochondrial targeting sequences

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Gralle, Matthias, E-mail: gralle@bioqmed.ufrj.br [Instituto de Bioquimica Medica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, CCS, Ilha do Fundao, 21941-590 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig (Germany); Schaefer, Ingo; Seibel, Peter [Department of Molecular Cell Therapy, Leipzig University, Deutscher Platz 5, 04103 Leipzig (Germany); Paeaebo, Svante [Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig (Germany)

2010-11-26

Research highlights: {yields} Two mutations in mitochondrial targeting peptides occurred during human evolution, possibly after Neandertals split off from modern human lineage. {yields} The ancestral and modern human versions of these two targeting peptides were tested functionally for their effects on localization and cleavage rate. {yields} In spite of recent evolution, and to the contrary of other mutations in targeting peptides, these mutations had no visible effects. -- Abstract: Targeting of nuclear-encoded proteins to different organelles, such as mitochondria, is a process that can result in the redeployment of proteins to new intracellular destinations during evolution. With the sequencing of the Neandertal genome, it has become possible to identify amino acid substitutions that occurred on the modern human lineage since its separation from the Neandertal lineage. Here we analyze the function of two substitutions in mitochondrial targeting sequences that occurred and rose to high frequency recently during recent human evolution. The ancestral and modern versions of the two targeting sequences do not differ in the efficiency with which they direct a protein to the mitochondria, an observation compatible with the neutral theory of molecular evolution.

Maps of Woe Narratives of Rape in Early Modern England

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Donatella Pallotti

2013-03-01

Full Text Available By considering a selection of texts, both fictional and non-fictional, this study ad- dresses different representations of rape in early modern English culture. Its aim is to highlight the interconnections between aspects of culture and the creative exchange, the confrontation and mutual assimilation between ‘high’ and ‘low’ cultural forms.

Letters and Letter Writing in Early Modern Culture: An Introduction

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Gabriella Del Lungo Camiciotti

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The recently renewed scholarly interest in historical letters and letter writing has given rise to several studies which explore the culture of epistolarity from different perspectives. The article offers an introduction to recent scholarship on epistolary discourse and practices in early modern culture. Given the importance of letters as data for several types of diachronic investigation, the article focuses on three points that are crucial for an understanding of the relevance of epistolary discourse itself in early modern European culture. Firstly, letters are invaluable data for historical linguistics, to which they provide information for the history of languages, and sociohistorical and sociolinguistic research. A second recent field of investigation considers letters as documents and material items; the results of research in this area have contributed to the reconstruction of official relationships and information exchanges in past cultures and shed light on social interaction. A third, more traditional area of study, deals with the letter as a form that has given rise to many different genres across the centuries, both practical and literary.

Merchants and marvels commerce, science, and art in early modern Europe

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Smith, Pamela

2013-01-01

The beginning of global commerce in the early modern period had an enormous impact on European culture, changing the very way people perceived the world around them. Merchants and Marvels assembles essays by leading scholars of cultural history, art history, and the history of science and technology to show how ideas about the representation of nature, in both art and science, underwent a profound transformation between the age of the Renaissance and the early 1700s.

An early history of human breast cancer: West meets East.

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Yan, Shou-He

2013-09-01

Cancer has been increasingly recognized as a global issue. This is especially true in countries like China, where cancer incidence has increased likely because of changes in environment and lifestyle. However, cancer is not a modern disease; early cases have been recorded in ancient medical books in the West and in China. Here, we provide a brief history of cancer, focusing on cancer of the breast, and review the etymology of ai, the Chinese character for cancer. Notable findings from both Western and Chinese traditional medicine are presented to give an overview of the most important, early contributors to our evolving understanding of human breast cancer. We also discuss the earliest historical documents to record patients with breast cancer.

Early Menarche as an Alternative Reproductive Tactic in Human Females: An Evolutionary Approach to Reproductive Health Issues

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Meghan T. Gillette

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The age at which a female reaches sexual maturity is critical in determining her future reproductive health and success. Thus, a worldwide decline in menarcheal age (timing of first menstrual period may have serious long-term consequences. Early menarcheal timing (first menstrual period before age 12 can have a negative effect on fecundity, as well as the quality and quantity of offspring, and may consequently influence population growth or decline. In this paper, we apply an evolutionary framework to modern human health, and assess both proximate and ultimate consequences of declining menarcheal age. Examination of human reproductive health within an evolutionary framework is innovative and essential, because it illuminates the ultimate consequences of a declining age of menarche and facilitates new ways of thinking about the long-term and intergenerational transmission of health and disease; thus, an evolutionary framework lends itself to innovative public health and policy programs. In this paper, we examine whether or not early menarche is an alternative reproductive tactic that modern human females employ in response to a stressful environment, and whether or not early menarche is ultimately beneficial.

Mitochondrial lineage M1 traces an early human backflow to Africa.

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González, Ana M; Larruga, José M; Abu-Amero, Khaled K; Shi, Yufei; Pestano, José; Cabrera, Vicente M

2007-07-09

The out of Africa hypothesis has gained generalized consensus. However, many specific questions remain unsettled. To know whether the two M and N macrohaplogroups that colonized Eurasia were already present in Africa before the exit is puzzling. It has been proposed that the east African clade M1 supports a single origin of haplogroup M in Africa. To test the validity of that hypothesis, the phylogeographic analysis of 13 complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences and 261 partial sequences belonging to haplogroup M1 was carried out. The coalescence age of the African haplogroup M1 is younger than those for other M Asiatic clades. In contradiction to the hypothesis of an eastern Africa origin for modern human expansions out of Africa, the most ancestral M1 lineages have been found in Northwest Africa and in the Near East, instead of in East Africa. The M1 geographic distribution and the relative ages of its different subclades clearly correlate with those of haplogroup U6, for which an Eurasian ancestor has been demonstrated. This study provides evidence that M1, or its ancestor, had an Asiatic origin. The earliest M1 expansion into Africa occurred in northwestern instead of eastern areas; this early spread reached the Iberian Peninsula even affecting the Basques. The majority of the M1a lineages found outside and inside Africa had a more recent eastern Africa origin. Both western and eastern M1 lineages participated in the Neolithic colonization of the Sahara. The striking parallelism between subclade ages and geographic distribution of M1 and its North African U6 counterpart strongly reinforces this scenario. Finally, a relevant fraction of M1a lineages present today in the European Continent and nearby islands possibly had a Jewish instead of the commonly proposed Arab/Berber maternal ascendance.

Mitochondrial lineage M1 traces an early human backflow to Africa

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Pestano José

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The out of Africa hypothesis has gained generalized consensus. However, many specific questions remain unsettled. To know whether the two M and N macrohaplogroups that colonized Eurasia were already present in Africa before the exit is puzzling. It has been proposed that the east African clade M1 supports a single origin of haplogroup M in Africa. To test the validity of that hypothesis, the phylogeographic analysis of 13 complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA sequences and 261 partial sequences belonging to haplogroup M1 was carried out. Results The coalescence age of the African haplogroup M1 is younger than those for other M Asiatic clades. In contradiction to the hypothesis of an eastern Africa origin for modern human expansions out of Africa, the most ancestral M1 lineages have been found in Northwest Africa and in the Near East, instead of in East Africa. The M1 geographic distribution and the relative ages of its different subclades clearly correlate with those of haplogroup U6, for which an Eurasian ancestor has been demonstrated. Conclusion This study provides evidence that M1, or its ancestor, had an Asiatic origin. The earliest M1 expansion into Africa occurred in northwestern instead of eastern areas; this early spread reached the Iberian Peninsula even affecting the Basques. The majority of the M1a lineages found outside and inside Africa had a more recent eastern Africa origin. Both western and eastern M1 lineages participated in the Neolithic colonization of the Sahara. The striking parallelism between subclade ages and geographic distribution of M1 and its North African U6 counterpart strongly reinforces this scenario. Finally, a relevant fraction of M1a lineages present today in the European Continent and nearby islands possibly had a Jewish instead of the commonly proposed Arab/Berber maternal ascendance.

A Fruitful Exchange/Conflict: Engineers and Mathematicians in Early Modern Italy

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Maffioli, Cesare S.

2013-01-01

Exchanges of learning and controversies between engineers and mathematicians were important factors in the development of early modern science. This theme is discussed by focusing, first, on architectural and mathematical dynamism in mid 16th-century Milan. While some engineers-architects referred to Euclid and Vitruvius for improving their…

Demons, nature, or God? Witchcraft accusations and the French disease in early modern Venice.

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McGough, Laura J

2006-01-01

In early modern Venice, establishing the cause of a disease was critical to determining the appropriate cure: natural remedies for natural illnesses, spiritual solutions for supernatural or demonic ones. One common ailment was the French disease (syphilis), widely distributed throughout Venice's neighborhoods and social hierarchy, and evenly distributed between men and women. The disease was widely regarded as curable by the mid-sixteenth century, and cases that did not respond to natural remedies presented problems of interpretation to physicians and laypeople. Witchcraft was one possible explanation; using expert testimony from physicians, however, the Holy Office ruled out witchcraft as a cause of incurable cases and reinforced perceptions that the disease was of natural origin. Incurable cases were explained as the result of immoral behavior, thereby reinforcing the associated stigma. This article uses archival material from Venice's Inquisition records from 1580 to 1650, as well as mortality data.

Trading Zones in Early Modern Europe.

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Long, Pamela O

2015-12-01

This essay adopts the concept of trading zones first developed for the history of science by Peter Galison and redefines it for the early modern period. The term "trading zones" is used to mean arenas in which substantive and reciprocal communication occurred between individuals who were artisanally trained and learned (university-trained) individuals. Such trading zones proliferated in the sixteenth century. They tended to arise in certain kinds of places and not in others, but their existence must be determined empirically. The author's work on trading zones differs from the ideas of Edgar Zilsel, who emphasized the influence of artisans on the scientific revolution. In contrast, in this essay, the mutual influence of artisans and the learned on each other is stressed, and translation is used as a modality that was important to communication within trading zones.

“De interpretatione recta...”: Early Modern Theories of Translation

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Zaharia Oana-Alis

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Translation has been essential to the development of languages and cultures throughout the centuries, particularly in the early modern period when it became a cornerstone of the process of transition from Latin to vernacular productions, in such countries as France, Italy, England and Spain. This process was accompanied by a growing interest in defining the rules and features of the practice of translation. The present article aims to examine the principles that underlay the highly intertextual early modern translation theory by considering its classical sources and development. It focuses on subjects that were constantly reiterated in any discussion about translation: the debate concerning the best methods of translation, the sense-for-sense/ word-for-word dichotomy - a topos that can be traced to the discourse on translation initiated by Cicero and Horace and was further developed by the Church fathers, notably St. Jerome, and eventually inherited by both medieval and Renaissance translators. Furthermore, it looks at the differences and continuities that characterise the medieval and Renaissance discourses on translation with a focus on the transition from the medieval, free manner of translation to the humanist, philological one.

The Vernacular Revolution: Reclaiming Early Modern Grammatical Traditions in the Ottoman Empire

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Leezenberg, M.

2016-01-01

This article explores the remarkable shift toward new literate uses of vernacular languages in the early modern Ottoman empire. It argues that this vernacularization occurred independently of Western European (and, more specifically, German romantic) influences. It explores, first, how vernacular

Casebooks in Early Modern England:

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Kassell, Lauren

2014-01-01

summary Casebooks are the richest sources that we have for encounters between early modern medical practitioners and their patients. This article compares astrological and medical records across two centuries, focused on England, and charts developments in the ways in which practitioners kept records and reflected on their practices. Astrologers had a long history of working from particular moments, stellar configurations, and events to general rules. These practices required systematic notation. Physicians increasingly modeled themselves on Hippocrates, recording details of cases as the basis for reasoned expositions of the histories of disease. Medical records, as other scholars have demonstrated, shaped the production of medical knowledge. Instead, this article focuses on the nature of casebooks as artifacts of the medical encounter. It establishes that casebooks were serial records of practice, akin to diaries, testimonials, and registers; identifies extant English casebooks and the practices that led to their production and preservation; and concludes that the processes of writing, ordering, and preserving medical records are as important for understanding the medical encounter as the records themselves. PMID:25557513

Genome-wide identification and characterisation of human DNA replication origins by initiation site sequencing (ini-seq).

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Langley, Alexander R; Gräf, Stefan; Smith, James C; Krude, Torsten

2016-12-01

Next-generation sequencing has enabled the genome-wide identification of human DNA replication origins. However, different approaches to mapping replication origins, namely (i) sequencing isolated small nascent DNA strands (SNS-seq); (ii) sequencing replication bubbles (bubble-seq) and (iii) sequencing Okazaki fragments (OK-seq), show only limited concordance. To address this controversy, we describe here an independent high-resolution origin mapping technique that we call initiation site sequencing (ini-seq). In this approach, newly replicated DNA is directly labelled with digoxigenin-dUTP near the sites of its initiation in a cell-free system. The labelled DNA is then immunoprecipitated and genomic locations are determined by DNA sequencing. Using this technique we identify >25,000 discrete origin sites at sub-kilobase resolution on the human genome, with high concordance between biological replicates. Most activated origins identified by ini-seq are found at transcriptional start sites and contain G-quadruplex (G4) motifs. They tend to cluster in early-replicating domains, providing a correlation between early replication timing and local density of activated origins. Origins identified by ini-seq show highest concordance with sites identified by SNS-seq, followed by OK-seq and bubble-seq. Furthermore, germline origins identified by positive nucleotide distribution skew jumps overlap with origins identified by ini-seq and OK-seq more frequently and more specifically than do sites identified by either SNS-seq or bubble-seq. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Theories about evolutionary origins of human hepatitis B virus in primates and humans.

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Souza, Breno Frederico de Carvalho Dominguez; Drexler, Jan Felix; Lima, Renato Santos de; Rosário, Mila de Oliveira Hughes Veiga do; Netto, Eduardo Martins

2014-01-01

The human hepatitis B virus causes acute and chronic hepatitis and is considered one of the most serious human health issues by the World Health Organization, causing thousands of deaths per year. There are similar viruses belonging to the Hepadnaviridae family that infect non-human primates and other mammals as well as some birds. The majority of non-human primate virus isolates were phylogenetically close to the human hepatitis B virus, but like the human genotypes, the origins of these viruses remain controversial. However, there is a possibility that human hepatitis B virus originated in primates. Knowing whether these viruses might be common to humans and primates is crucial in order to reduce the risk to humans. To review the existing knowledge about the evolutionary origins of viruses of the Hepadnaviridae family in primates. This review was done by reading several articles that provide information about the Hepadnaviridae virus family in non-human primates and humans and the possible origins and evolution of these viruses. The evolutionary origin of viruses of the Hepadnaviridae family in primates has been dated back to several thousand years; however, recent analyses of genomic fossils of avihepadnaviruses integrated into the genomes of several avian species have suggested a much older origin of this genus. Some hypotheses about the evolutionary origins of human hepatitis B virus have been debated since the '90s. One theory suggested a New World origin because of the phylogenetic co-segregation between some New World human hepatitis B virus genotypes F and H and woolly monkey human hepatitis B virus in basal sister-relationship to the Old World non-human primates and human hepatitis B virus variants. Another theory suggests an Old World origin of human hepatitis B virus, and that it would have been spread following prehistoric human migrations over 100,000 years ago. A third theory suggests a co-speciation of human hepatitis B virus in non-human primate

BUZZWORDS IN MODERN RUSSIAN AND CHINESE NEWSPAPERS: ORIGIN, SEMANTICS, FUNCTIONS

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- Чэнь Хуань

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Fashion exists in all aspects of human life, including language. In this context, we refer to the phenomenon of language fashion, which became an object of linguistic study in Russia at the turn of the 20th/21st centuries. This article is concerned with the phenomenon of buzzwords in modern Russian and Chinese newspaper texts, from the perspective of comparative analysis. In the article, we clarify the meanings of language fashion and buzzwords, discuss the essential features of this linguistic phenomenon, present a classification of buzzwords, characterise the main ways of enlarging this group of lexical units, and analyse the semantic and functional features of these units. The material for analysis is drawn from newspaper texts in online versions of Russian and Chinese mass media resources, for the period 2016-2017. The results of the research show that there are common features between the buzzwords of the two languages. Firstly, from the point of view of origin, the form or meaning of the buzzwords is associated with novelty and a break with tradition. Secondly, in a semantic sense, there are lexical coincidences in the buzzwords of the two languages. Thirdly, in a functional sense, a buzzword in one or another language can act as a pro-ductive model for creating new words, and a stimulus for the realization of new ideas. The conclusion dis-cusses the prospects of studying buzzwords and language fashion in general.

Approaches to the History of Patients: From the Ancient World to Early Modern Europe.

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Stolberg, Michael

2016-01-01

This chapter looks from an early modernist's perspective at some of the major questions and methodological issues that writing the history of patients in the ancient world shares with similar work on Patientengeschichte in medieval and early modern Europe. It addresses, in particular, the problem of finding adequate sources that give access to the patients' experience of illness and medicine and highlights the potential as well as the limitations of using physicians' case histories for that purpose. It discusses the doctor-patient relationship as it emerges from these sources, and the impact of the patient's point of view on learned medical theory and practice. In conclusion, it pleads for a cautious and nuanced approach to the controversial issue of retrospective diagnosis, recommending that historians consistently ask in which contexts and in what way the application of modern diagnostic labels to pre-modern accounts of illness can truly contribute to a better historical understanding rather than distort it.

Upper Pleistocene Human Dispersals out of Africa: A Review of the Current State of the Debate

Science.gov (United States)

Beyin, Amanuel

2011-01-01

Although there is a general consensus on African origin of early modern humans, there is disagreement about how and when they dispersed to Eurasia. This paper reviews genetic and Middle Stone Age/Middle Paleolithic archaeological literature from northeast Africa, Arabia, and the Levant to assess the timing and geographic backgrounds of Upper Pleistocene human colonization of Eurasia. At the center of the discussion lies the question of whether eastern Africa alone was the source of Upper Pleistocene human dispersals into Eurasia or were there other loci of human expansions outside of Africa? The reviewed literature hints at two modes of early modern human colonization of Eurasia in the Upper Pleistocene: (i) from multiple Homo sapiens source populations that had entered Arabia, South Asia, and the Levant prior to and soon after the onset of the Last Interglacial (MIS-5), (ii) from a rapid dispersal out of East Africa via the Southern Route (across the Red Sea basin), dating to ~74–60 kya. PMID:21716744

Formalization and Interaction: Toward a Comprehensive History of Technology-Related Knowledge in Early Modern Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Popplow, Marcus

2015-12-01

Recent critical approaches to what has conventionally been described as "scientific" and "technical" knowledge in early modern Europe have provided a wealth of new insights. So far, the various analytical concepts suggested by these studies have not yet been comprehensively discussed. The present essay argues that such comprehensive approaches might prove of special value for long-term and cross-cultural reflections on technology-related knowledge. As heuristic tools, the notions of "formalization" and "interaction" are proposed as part of alternative narratives to those highlighting the emergence of "science" as the most relevant development for technology-related knowledge in early modern Europe.

Ribosomal history reveals origins of modern protein synthesis.

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Ajith Harish

Full Text Available The origin and evolution of the ribosome is central to our understanding of the cellular world. Most hypotheses posit that the ribosome originated in the peptidyl transferase center of the large ribosomal subunit. However, these proposals do not link protein synthesis to RNA recognition and do not use a phylogenetic comparative framework to study ribosomal evolution. Here we infer evolution of the structural components of the ribosome. Phylogenetic methods widely used in morphometrics are applied directly to RNA structures of thousands of molecules and to a census of protein structures in hundreds of genomes. We find that components of the small subunit involved in ribosomal processivity evolved earlier than the catalytic peptidyl transferase center responsible for protein synthesis. Remarkably, subunit RNA and proteins coevolved, starting with interactions between the oldest proteins (S12 and S17 and the oldest substructure (the ribosomal ratchet in the small subunit and ending with the rise of a modern multi-subunit ribosome. Ancestral ribonucleoprotein components show similarities to in vitro evolved RNA replicase ribozymes and protein structures in extant replication machinery. Our study therefore provides important clues about the chicken-or-egg dilemma associated with the central dogma of molecular biology by showing that ribosomal history is driven by the gradual structural accretion of protein and RNA structures. Most importantly, results suggest that functionally important and conserved regions of the ribosome were recruited and could be relics of an ancient ribonucleoprotein world.

Origins of the Tactical Nuclear Weapons Modernization Program: 1969-1979

Science.gov (United States)

Yaffe, Michael David

roles lobbied the US President to deploy the long-range weapons being developed by the Defense Department. In the course of deliberations, political preferences suppressed military considerations of deterrence and only a small portion of the original modernization program was implemented.

The Republic of the Refugees : Early Modern Migrations and the Dutch Experience

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssen, G.H.

This essay surveys the wave of new literature on early modern migration and assesses its impact on the Dutch golden age. From the late sixteenth century, the Netherlands developed into an international hub of religious refugees, displaced minorities, and labour migrants. While migration to the Dutch

The problem of early learning of foreign languages in Germanspeaking countries in modern pedagogical science

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Nataliia Kohut

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the main aspects of early foreign language teaching in Germanspeakingcountries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland in modern Pedagogics. The meaningof the term “early teaching” is defined and the teaching of foreign languages for pre-schooland primary school children is analyzed.Key words: early teaching, foreign language education, primary school, system ofeducation, multicultural surrounding.

Theories about evolutionary origins of human hepatitis B virus in primates and humans

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Breno Frederico de Carvalho Dominguez Souza

2014-09-01

Conclusion: Some hypotheses about the evolutionary origins of human hepatitis B virus have been debated since the ‘90s. One theory suggested a New World origin because of the phylogenetic co-segregation between some New World human hepatitis B virus genotypes F and H and woolly monkey human hepatitis B virus in basal sister-relationship to the Old World non-human primates and human hepatitis B virus variants. Another theory suggests an Old World origin of human hepatitis B virus, and that it would have been spread following prehistoric human migrations over 100,000 years ago. A third theory suggests a co-speciation of human hepatitis B virus in non-human primate hosts because of the proximity between the phylogeny of Old and New World non-human primate and their human hepatitis B virus variants. The importance of further research, related to the subject in South American wild fauna, is paramount and highly relevant for understanding the origin of human hepatitis B virus.

Public services in early modern European towns: An agenda for further research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Davids, C.A.

2010-01-01

Starting with a set of key questions formulated by Walter Prevenier in 1984, this article proposes an agenda for future research on urban public services in early modern European towns. The author suggests, first of all, a shift in research strategy toward a greater emphasis on actor-oriented

Evolutionary history of Otophysi (Teleostei, a major clade of the modern freshwater fishes: Pangaean origin and Mesozoic radiation

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Saitoh Kenji

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Freshwater harbors approximately 12,000 fish species accounting for 43% of the diversity of all modern fish. A single ancestral lineage evolved into about two-thirds of this enormous biodiversity (≈ 7900 spp. and is currently distributed throughout the world's continents except Antarctica. Despite such remarkable species diversity and ubiquity, the evolutionary history of this major freshwater fish clade, Otophysi, remains largely unexplored. To gain insight into the history of otophysan diversification, we constructed a timetree based on whole mitogenome sequences across 110 species representing 55 of the 64 families. Results Partitioned maximum likelihood analysis based on unambiguously aligned sequences (9923 bp confidently recovered the monophyly of Otophysi and the two constituent subgroups (Cypriniformes and Characiphysi. The latter clade comprised three orders (Gymnotiformes, Characiformes, Siluriformes, and Gymnotiformes was sister to the latter two groups. One of the two suborders in Characiformes (Characoidei was more closely related to Siluriformes than to its own suborder (Citharinoidei, rendering the characiforms paraphyletic. Although this novel relationship did not receive strong statistical support, it was supported by analyzing independent nuclear markers. A relaxed molecular clock Bayesian analysis of the divergence times and reconstruction of ancestral habitats on the timetree suggest a Pangaean origin and Mesozoic radiation of otophysans. Conclusions The present timetree demonstrates that survival of the ancestral lineages through the two consecutive mass extinctions on Pangaea, and subsequent radiations during the Jurassic through early Cretaceous shaped the modern familial diversity of otophysans. This evolutionary scenario is consistent with recent arguments based on biogeographic inferences and molecular divergence time estimates. No fossil otophysan, however, has been recorded before the Albian, the

Evolutionary history of Otophysi (Teleostei), a major clade of the modern freshwater fishes: Pangaean origin and Mesozoic radiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakatani, Masanori; Miya, Masaki; Mabuchi, Kohji; Saitoh, Kenji; Nishida, Mutsumi

2011-06-22

Freshwater harbors approximately 12,000 fish species accounting for 43% of the diversity of all modern fish. A single ancestral lineage evolved into about two-thirds of this enormous biodiversity (≈ 7900 spp.) and is currently distributed throughout the world's continents except Antarctica. Despite such remarkable species diversity and ubiquity, the evolutionary history of this major freshwater fish clade, Otophysi, remains largely unexplored. To gain insight into the history of otophysan diversification, we constructed a timetree based on whole mitogenome sequences across 110 species representing 55 of the 64 families. Partitioned maximum likelihood analysis based on unambiguously aligned sequences (9923 bp) confidently recovered the monophyly of Otophysi and the two constituent subgroups (Cypriniformes and Characiphysi). The latter clade comprised three orders (Gymnotiformes, Characiformes, Siluriformes), and Gymnotiformes was sister to the latter two groups. One of the two suborders in Characiformes (Characoidei) was more closely related to Siluriformes than to its own suborder (Citharinoidei), rendering the characiforms paraphyletic. Although this novel relationship did not receive strong statistical support, it was supported by analyzing independent nuclear markers. A relaxed molecular clock Bayesian analysis of the divergence times and reconstruction of ancestral habitats on the timetree suggest a Pangaean origin and Mesozoic radiation of otophysans. The present timetree demonstrates that survival of the ancestral lineages through the two consecutive mass extinctions on Pangaea, and subsequent radiations during the Jurassic through early Cretaceous shaped the modern familial diversity of otophysans. This evolutionary scenario is consistent with recent arguments based on biogeographic inferences and molecular divergence time estimates. No fossil otophysan, however, has been recorded before the Albian, the early Cretaceous 100-112 Ma, creating an over 100

To Converse with the Devil? Speech, Sexuality, and Witchcraft in Early Modern Scotland

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Sierra Rose Dye

2012-10-01

Full Text Available In early modern Scotland, thousands of people were accused and tried for the crime of witchcraft, many of whom were women. This paper examines the particular qualities associated with witches in Scottish belief – specifically speech and sexuality – in order to better understand how and why the witch hunts occurred. This research suggests that the growing emphasis on the words of witches during this period was a reflection of a mounting concern over the power and control of speech in early modern society. In looking at witchcraft as a speech crime, it is possible to explain not only why accused witches were more frequently women, but also how the persecution of individuals – both male and female – functioned to ensure that local and state authorities maintained a monopoly on powerful speech.

Being Mad in Early Modern England

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Aleksandar eDimitrijevic

2015-11-01

Full Text Available It has become almost a rule that the birth of scientific psychiatry and what we today term clinical psychology took place in the short period between the last decade of the XVIII century and the 1820s. Everything that happened before that period – every description, diagnosis, and therapy – has been considered ‘pre-scientific,’ outdated, in a way worthless.In this paper, however, I am providing the argument that, first, the roots of contemporary psychiatry reach at least to England of the early modern period, and that, second, it may still turn out that in the field of mental health care historical continuities are more numerous and persistent than discontinuities. Thus, I briefly review the most important surviving documents about the treatment of mental disorders in England of Elizabethan and Jacobian period, organizing the argument around the well-known markers: diagnostics and aetiology, therapy, organization of the asylum, the public image of the mentally ill…

Between Charity and Education: Orphans and Orphanages in Early Modern Times

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobi, Juliane

2009-01-01

In early modern times orphans have been children who could not expect sufficient support from their family because of lack of at least one parent, in most cases the father. This article will clarify of whom we are talking if we talk about orphans and what have been the conditions of living in a society which was organised by a high variety of…

Guidelines for normalising Early Modern English corpora: Decisions and justifications

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Archer Dawn

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Corpora of Early Modern English have been collected and released for research for a number of years. With large scale digitisation activities gathering pace in the last decade, much more historical textual data is now available for research on numerous topics including historical linguistics and conceptual history. We summarise previous research which has shown that it is necessary to map historical spelling variants to modern equivalents in order to successfully apply natural language processing and corpus linguistics methods. Manual and semiautomatic methods have been devised to support this normalisation and standardisation process. We argue that it is important to develop a linguistically meaningful rationale to achieve good results from this process. In order to do so, we propose a number of guidelines for normalising corpora and show how these guidelines have been applied in the Corpus of English Dialogues.

Cranial vault trauma and selective mortality in medieval to early modern Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boldsen, Jesper L; Milner, George R; Weise, Svenja

2015-01-01

to interpersonal violence in past populations. Three medieval to early modern Danish skeletal samples are used to estimate the effect of selective mortality on males with cranial vault injuries who survived long enough for bones to heal. The risk of dying for these men was 6.2 times higher than...

Different nucleosomal architectures at early and late replicating origins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Science.gov (United States)

Soriano, Ignacio; Morafraile, Esther C; Vázquez, Enrique; Antequera, Francisco; Segurado, Mónica

2014-09-13

Eukaryotic genomes are replicated during S phase according to a temporal program. Several determinants control the timing of origin firing, including the chromatin environment and epigenetic modifications. However, how chromatin structure influences the timing of the activation of specific origins is still poorly understood. By performing high-resolution analysis of genome-wide nucleosome positioning we have identified different chromatin architectures at early and late replication origins. These different patterns are already established in G1 and are tightly correlated with the organization of adjacent transcription units. Moreover, specific early and late nucleosomal patterns are fixed robustly, even in rpd3 mutants in which histone acetylation and origin timing have been significantly altered. Nevertheless, higher histone acetylation levels correlate with the local modulation of chromatin structure, leading to increased origin accessibility. In addition, we conducted parallel analyses of replication and nucleosome dynamics that revealed that chromatin structure at origins is modulated during origin activation. Our results show that early and late replication origins present distinctive nucleosomal configurations, which are preferentially associated to different genomic regions. Our data also reveal that origin structure is dynamic and can be locally modulated by histone deacetylation, as well as by origin activation. These data offer novel insight into the contribution of chromatin structure to origin selection and firing in budding yeast.

Human Factors Engineering Aspects of Modifications in Control Room Modernization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hugo, Jacques [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Clefton, Gordon [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Joe, Jeffrey [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

2017-06-01

This report describes the basic aspects of control room modernization projects in the U.S. nuclear industry and the need for supplementary guidance on the integration of human factors considerations into the licensing and regulatory aspects of digital upgrades. The report pays specific attention to the integration of principles described in NUREG-0711 (Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model) and how supplementary guidance can help to raise general awareness in the industry regarding the complexities of control room modernization projects created by many interdependent regulations, standards and guidelines. The report also describes how human factors engineering principles and methods provided by various resources and international standards can help in navigating through the process of licensing digital upgrades. In particular, the integration of human factors engineering guidance and requirements into the process of licensing digital upgrades can help reduce uncertainty related to development of technical bases for digital upgrades that will avoid the introduction of new failure modes.

The Simpsons, Gender Roles, and Witchcraft: The Witch in Modern Popular Culture

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Antinora, Sarah

2010-07-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes "The Simpsons"' use of the witch to uncover how her constructionin this animated series reflects not only the current theoretical work on the witch but also the ambivalence about the role of women in modern American society. This paper posits that the original construction of the witch, as seen in current interpretation of Early Modern pamphletsand cultural artifacts,steemed from the time period's expetations of gender. Further, "The Simpsons"' incorporation of the witch into its episodes revels that many of these same gender constraints exist in modern culture.

Protestant Origins of Human Rights Challenged

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Mogens Chrom Jacobsen

2017-08-01

Full Text Available This paper will challenge common views about Protestantism as the originator or foremost promoter of human rights. The idea of a Protestant origin is launched by Georg Jellinek and disputed by Emile Boutmy. The idea is still current and John Witte can thus claim that Protestantism was in part a human rights movement. The point of departure for this strain of thinking is religious toleration, which is seen as a particularly Protestant achievement. We will argue that a more precise notion of what 18th-century human rights were and a closer look at mainstream Protestant political philosophy will tell another story.

Marginalia, commonplaces, and correspondence: scribal exchange in early modern science.

Science.gov (United States)

Yale, Elizabeth

2011-06-01

In recent years, historians of science have increasingly turned their attention to the "print culture" of early modern science. These studies have revealed that printing, as both a technology and a social and economic system, structured the forms and meanings of natural knowledge. Yet in early modern Europe, naturalists, including John Aubrey, John Evelyn, and John Ray, whose work is discussed in this paper, often shared and read scientific texts in manuscript either before or in lieu of printing. Scribal exchange, exemplified in the circulation of writings like commonplace books, marginalia, manuscript treatises, and correspondence, was the primary means by which communities of naturalists constructed scientific knowledge. Print and manuscript were necessary partners. Manuscript fostered close collaboration, and could be circulated relatively cheaply; but, unlike print, it could not reliably secure priority or survival for posterity. Naturalists approached scribal and print communication strategically, choosing the medium that best suited their goals at any given moment. As a result, print and scribal modes of disseminating information, constructing natural knowledge, and organizing communities developed in tandem. Practices typically associated with print culture manifested themselves in scribal texts and exchanges, and vice versa. "Print culture" cannot be hived off from "scribal culture." Rather, in their daily jottings and exchanges, naturalists inhabited, and produced, one common culture of communication. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Household Scribes and the Production of Literary Manuscripts in Early Modern England

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Marcy L. North

2015-03-01

Full Text Available In early modern English households, literate servants such as tutors, chaplains, stewards, secretaries, and ladies in waiting were well positioned to assist their employers in the assembly and copying of verse miscellanies, anthologies, and other literary manuscripts. Looking at several literary manuscripts, some with known servant contributions and others that suggest the participation of household retainers, the essay explores the likelihood that literate servants often performed scribal tasks above and beyond their formal job descriptions, even serving as scribe for their employers’ hobbies and leisure activities. Although copying was an arduous task, servants appear to have viewed these duties not simply as part of their job but also as gift exchanges, as appeals for promotion or patronage, and as a means by which they might gain access to manuscript literature and literary circles. Studies of early modern letter writing have called attention to many of the copy tasks of literate household servants, but the integral role of literate servants in the collection, copying, and preservation of literary manuscripts deserves much more attention.

How different are the Kebara 2 ribs to modern humans?

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Chapman, Tara; Beyer, Benoît; Sholukha, Victor; Semal, Patrick; Feipel, Veronique; Louryan, Stéphane; Van Sint Jan, Serge

2017-12-30

This study analyses rib geometric parameters of individual ribs of 14 modern human subjects (7 males and 7 females) in comparison to the reconstructed ribs of the Kebara 2 skeleton which was taken from the reconstruction of a Neandertal thorax by Sawyer & Maley (2005). Three-dimensional (3D) models were segmented from CT scans and each rib vertex cloud was placed into a local coordinate system defined from the rib principal axes. Rib clouds were then analysed using best fitting ellipses of the external contours of the cross-section areas. The centroid of each ellipse was then used to measure the centroidal pathway between each slice (rib midline). Curvature of the ribs was measured from the mid-line of the ribs as the sum of angles between successive centroids in adjacent cross sections. Distinct common patterns were noted in all rib geometric parameters for modern humans. The Kebara 2 reconstructed ribs also followed the same patterns. This study demonstrated that there are differences between the sexes in rib geometrical parameters, with females showing smaller rib width, chord length and arc length, but greater curvature (rib torsion, rib axial curvature, rib anterior-posterior bending) than males. The Kebara 2 reconstructed ribs were within the modern human range for the majority of geometrical parameters.

Genomic Analyses Reveal the Influence of Geographic Origin, Migration, and Hybridization on Modern Dog Breed Development

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Heidi G. Parker

2017-04-01

Full Text Available There are nearly 400 modern domestic dog breeds with a unique histories and genetic profiles. To track the genetic signatures of breed development, we have assembled the most diverse dataset of dog breeds, reflecting their extensive phenotypic variation and heritage. Combining genetic distance, migration, and genome-wide haplotype sharing analyses, we uncover geographic patterns of development and independent origins of common traits. Our analyses reveal the hybrid history of breeds and elucidate the effects of immigration, revealing for the first time a suggestion of New World dog within some modern breeds. Finally, we used cladistics and haplotype sharing to show that some common traits have arisen more than once in the history of the dog. These analyses characterize the complexities of breed development, resolving longstanding questions regarding individual breed origination, the effect of migration on geographically distinct breeds, and, by inference, transfer of trait and disease alleles among dog breeds.

The Origin of Dust in the Early Universe

Science.gov (United States)

Dwek, Eli

2011-01-01

In this talk I will describe the origin of dust in the early universe. I will be presenting observations of the spectral energy distribution of the galaxy J1148+5251, and present estimates of the dust mass in this high redshift (z=6.4) object. I will then discuss the origin of this dust, and the role of SN and AGB stars as dust sources, and the effect of SNRs on the destruction of dust in the interstellar medium of this galaxy.

Early Sociology of the Business Enterprise: Max Weber's Theory of the Modern Business Enterprise in Economy and Society

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jagd, Søren

be explained as the unfolding of a sociological theory of the modern business enterprise. Some of the most important features of Weber’s theory of the modern business enterprise are presented. Weber points to the multidimensional institutional embeddedness of the modern business enterprise and to the crucial...... importance of ongoing tensions between formal and substantive rationality. Weber’s theory of the modern business enterprise in chapter 2 of Economy and Society may then be seen as an important but still unexplored early contribution to a sociological theory of the modern business enterprise....

Human trafficking - modern day slavery: Menneskehandel i nutidens samfund

OpenAIRE

Holberg, Christina; Wilson, Philippa Rose Lucy; Larsen, Maiken Hollænder; Sennahøj, Cecilie; Søderberg, Ene Alicia

2014-01-01

This paper aims to approach the concept of human trafficking from a historical, cultural and philosophical point of view in order to cover the two dimensions: History and Culture and Philosophy and Science. It will be focusing on human trafficking, in the form of the sexual exploitation of women, and it’s existence within Europe. With a focus on human trafficking in the form of sexual exploitation of women, the main intention of this paper is to investigate the modern form of slavery through ...

3D enamel thickness in Neandertal and modern human permanent canines.

Science.gov (United States)

Buti, Laura; Le Cabec, Adeline; Panetta, Daniele; Tripodi, Maria; Salvadori, Piero A; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Feeney, Robin N M; Benazzi, Stefano

2017-12-01

Enamel thickness figures prominently in studies of human evolution, particularly for taxonomy, phylogeny, and paleodietary reconstruction. Attention has focused on molar teeth, through the use of advanced imaging technologies and novel protocols. Despite the important results achieved thus far, further work is needed to investigate all tooth classes. We apply a recent approach developed for anterior teeth to investigate the 3D enamel thickness of Neandertal and modern human (MH) canines. In terms of crown size, the values obtained for both upper and lower unworn/slightly worn canines are significantly greater in Neandertals than in Upper Paleolithic and recent MH. The 3D relative enamel thickness (RET) is significantly lower in Neandertals than in MH. Moreover, differences in 3D RET values between the two groups appear to decrease in worn canines beginning from wear stage 3, suggesting that both the pattern and the stage of wear may have important effects on the 3D RET value. Nevertheless, the 3D average enamel thickness (AET) does not differ between the two groups. In both groups, 3D AET and 3D RET indices are greater in upper canines than in lower canines, and overall the enamel is thicker on the occlusal half of the labial aspect of the crown, particularly in MH. By contrast, the few early modern humans investigated show the highest volumes of enamel while for all other components of 3D enamel, thickness this group holds an intermediate position between Neandertals and recent MH. Overall, our study supports the general findings that Neandertals have relatively thinner enamel than MH (as also observed in molars), indicating that unworn/slightly worn canines can be successfully used to discriminate between the two groups. Further studies, however, are needed to understand whether these differences are functionally related or are the result of pleiotropic or genetic drift effects. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

A Chemical Engineering Perspective on the Origins of Life

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Martha A. Grover

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Atoms and molecules assemble into materials, with the material structure determining the properties and ultimate function. Human-made materials and systems have achieved great complexity, such as the integrated circuit and the modern airplane. However, they still do not rival the adaptivity and robustness of biological systems. Understanding the reaction and assembly of molecules on the early Earth is a scientific grand challenge, and also can elucidate the design principles underlying biological materials and systems. This research requires understanding of chemical reactions, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, heat and mass transfer, optimization, and control. Thus, the discipline of chemical engineering can play a central role in advancing the field. In this paper, an overview of research in the origins field is given, with particular emphasis on the origin of biopolymers and the role of chemical engineering phenomena. A case study is presented to highlight the importance of the environment and its coupling to the chemistry.

Ancient genomics in India: Clarifying the maternal origins of 160-year-old human remains

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Esha Bandyopadhyay

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Sequencing DNA from archaeological remains has opened up new possibilities for furthering our understanding of the origins and evolutionary history of modern humans [1]. However, most ancient DNA (aDNA studies, thus far, have focused on ancient samples obtained from permafrozen and temperate regions, where preservation conditions are better suited for long-term DNA survival. Consequently, this has left a void in aDNA research in tropical regions such as South Asia. The primary aims of the present study were to (a test the feasibility of extracting DNA from historical samples (~160 years old from northern India, and (b correlate obtained mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA signatures with geographical origins of the individuals, as reported in historical records. A total of 30 molars were subjected to DNA extractions and Illumina indexed library preparation. All laboratory work was performed following strict aDNA standards in the clean laboratory at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad. Complete mtDNA genomes were targeted from all 30 samples following the DNA hybridization method outlined in Maricic et al., 2010 [2]. Captured libraries were sequenced on the Illumina HiSeq 2500 platform (100 bp paired-end mode at MedGenome Inc., Bangalore. Obtained sequences were trimmed for residual adapters using AdapterRemoval and mapped to the revised Cambridge Reference Sequence (rCRS using BWA. HaploGrep2 [3] was used to assign mtDNA haplogroups to each sample. We successfully obtained endogenous mtDNA sequences from all 30 samples, as confirmed by typical aDNA damage (cytosine deamination on the ends of DNA molecules. Coverage and depth of sequencing were in the range of 91-99.5% and 6X-371X, respectively. To ascertain the maternal origins of the individuals, mtDNA haplogroups of our samples were compared to a database compiled from published mtDNA sequences from modern South Asian individuals. Based on this, we were able to confirm northern

Home Birth Midwifery in the United States : Evolutionary Origins and Modern Challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Dunham, Bria

2016-12-01

Human childbirth is distinct in requiring-or at least strongly profiting from-the assistance of a knowledgeable attendant to support the mother during birth. With economic modernization, the role of that attendant is transformed, and increased access to obstetric interventions may bring biomedicine into conflict with anatomical, physiological, and behavioral adaptations for childbirth. This article provides an overview of the role of midwifery in human evolution and ways in which this evolutionary heritage is reflected in home birth in the contemporary United States. Opportunities remain for evolutionary scholars to apply their knowledge and skills to strengthen culturally consonant, evolutionarily grounded maternity care within a complex, multilevel, pluralistic medical system.

Late-Modern Symbolism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Bjørn Schiermer

2015-01-01

Through analysis of key texts, I seek to demonstrate the explanative potential of Durkheim’s sociology of religion in the present context. I critically readdress the idea, found in his early work, that modernity is characterized by a rupture with pre-modern forms of solidarity. First, I investigate...... the ways in which Durkheim sets up a stark distinction between the pre-modern and the modern in his early work, and how this distinction is further cemented by his orthodox critique of the modern economy and its negative effects on social life. Second, I show how another timeless and positive understanding...... of “mechanical” solidarity is to be found behind the “symbolist” template crystalizing in Durkheim’s late work. Third, I develop this template for a modern context by critically addressing and removing other obstacles and prejudices on Durkheim’s part....

'Contextual areas' of early Homo sapiens and their significance for human dispersal from Africa into Eurasia between 200 ka and 70 ka

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Richter, J.; Hauck, T.; Vogelsang, R.; Widlok, T.; Le Tensorer, J.M.; Schmid, P.

2012-01-01

The African origin of our species has essentially been accepted as a scientific fact, but evolutionary advantages connected with the reasons and circumstances of modern human dispersal remain widely unexplained or controversial. Consequently, this paper provides an overview of the natural and

Late Pleistocene climate change and the global expansion of anatomically modern humans

Science.gov (United States)

Eriksson, Anders; Betti, Lia; Friend, Andrew D.; Lycett, Stephen J.; Singarayer, Joy S.; von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen; Valdes, Paul J.; Balloux, Francois; Manica, Andrea

2012-01-01

The extent to which past climate change has dictated the pattern and timing of the out-of-Africa expansion by anatomically modern humans is currently unclear [Stewart JR, Stringer CB (2012) Science 335:1317–1321]. In particular, the incompleteness of the fossil record makes it difficult to quantify the effect of climate. Here, we take a different approach to this problem; rather than relying on the appearance of fossils or archaeological evidence to determine arrival times in different parts of the world, we use patterns of genetic variation in modern human populations to determine the plausibility of past demographic parameters. We develop a spatially explicit model of the expansion of anatomically modern humans and use climate reconstructions over the past 120 ky based on the Hadley Centre global climate model HadCM3 to quantify the possible effects of climate on human demography. The combinations of demographic parameters compatible with the current genetic makeup of worldwide populations indicate a clear effect of climate on past population densities. Our estimates of this effect, based on population genetics, capture the observed relationship between current climate and population density in modern hunter–gatherers worldwide, providing supporting evidence for the realism of our approach. Furthermore, although we did not use any archaeological and anthropological data to inform the model, the arrival times in different continents predicted by our model are also broadly consistent with the fossil and archaeological records. Our framework provides the most accurate spatiotemporal reconstruction of human demographic history available at present and will allow for a greater integration of genetic and archaeological evidence. PMID:22988099

Review of Amanda E. Herbert, Female Alliances: Gender, Identity, and Friendship in Early Modern Britain

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Angela Rehbein

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Review of Amanda E. Herbert, Female Alliances: Gender, Identity, and Friendship in Early Modern Britain. New Haven: Yale UP, 2014. xi, 256 pages: illustrations; 24 cm. ISBN 978-0-300-17740-4.

Explosive Radiation of Malpighiales Supports a Mid-Cretaceous Origin of Modern Tropical Rain Forests

OpenAIRE

Wurdack, Kenneth J.; Jaramillo, Carlos A.; Davis, Charles; Webb, Campbell O.; Donoghue, Michael J.

2005-01-01

Fossil data have been interpreted as indicating that Late Cretaceous tropical forests were open and dry adapted and that modern closed-canopy rain forest did not originate until after the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) boundary. However, some mid-Cretaceous leaf floras have been interpreted as rain forest. Molecular divergence-time estimates within the clade Malpighiales, which constitute a large percentage of species in the shaded, shrub, and small tree layer in tropical rain forests worldwide, p...

The human dark side: evolutionary psychology and original sin.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Joseph; Theol, M

2014-04-01

Human nature has a dark side, something important to religions. Evolutionary psychology has been used to illuminate the human shadow side, although as a discipline it has attracted criticism. This article seeks to examine the evolutionary psychology's understanding of human nature and to propose an unexpected dialog with an enduring account of human evil known as original sin. Two cases are briefly considered: murder and rape. To further the exchange, numerous theoretical and methodological criticisms and replies of evolutionary psychology are explored jointly with original sin. Evolutionary psychology can partner with original sin since they share some theoretical likenesses and together they offer insights into the nature of what it means to be human.

The amniote temporal roof and the diapsid origin of the turtle skull.

Science.gov (United States)

Bever, G S; Lyson, Tyler R; Field, Daniel J; Bhullar, Bhart-Anjan S

2016-12-01

Fossils provide a glimpse into the architecturally complex origins of modern vertebrate body plans. One such origin that has been long debated is that of turtles. Although much attention has been directed toward the origin of the shell, the enigmatic evolution of the turtle skull and its anapsid temporal region has long clouded our understanding of reptile phylogeny. Two taxa, Eunotosaurus africanus and Pappochelys rosinae, were recently and independently described as long-anticipated stem turtles whose diapsid skulls would cement the evolutionary link between turtles and other modern reptile lineages. Detailed μCT analysis of the stratigraphically older and phylogenetically stemward of the two, Eunotosaurus, provides empirical insight into changing developmental trajectories that may have produced the anapsid cranial form of modern turtles and sets the stage for more comprehensive studies of early amniote cranial evolution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

[Communication in the early modern Baltic Sea region = Kommunikatsioon varauusaegses Läänemereruumis] / Ulrike Plath

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Plath, Ulrike, 1972-

2011-01-01

Arvustus: Communication in the early modern Baltic Sea region = Kommunikatsioon varauusaegses Läänemereruumis. Hrsg. von Enn Küng, Mati Laur, Kersti Lust. Ajalooline Ajakiri. The Estonian Historical Journal 2009. Nr. 3/4 (129/130). (Tartu 2010)

Hippocrates' complaint and the scientific ethos in early modern England.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeo, Richard

2018-04-01

Among the elements of the modern scientific ethos, as identified by R.K. Merton and others, is the commitment of individual effort to a long-term inquiry that may not bring substantial results in a lifetime. The challenge this presents was encapsulated in the aphorism of the ancient Greek physician, Hippocrates of Kos: vita brevis, ars longa (life is short, art is long). This article explores how this complaint was answered in the early modern period by Francis Bacon's call for the inauguration of the sciences over several generations, thereby imagining a succession of lives added together over time. However, Bacon also explored another response to Hippocrates: the devotion of a 'whole life', whether brief or long, to science. The endorsement of long-term inquiry in combination with intensive lifetime involvement was embraced by some leading Fellows of the Royal Society, such as Robert Boyle and Robert Hooke. The problem for individuals, however, was to find satisfaction in science despite concerns, in some fields, that current observations and experiments would not yield material able to be extended by future investigations.

Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA: An Ancient Nutrient for the Modern Human Brain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanne Bradbury

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Modern humans have evolved with a staple source of preformed docosahexaenoic acid (DHA in the diet. An important turning point in human evolution was the discovery of high-quality, easily digested nutrients from coastal seafood and inland freshwater sources. Multi-generational exploitation of seafood by shore-based dwellers coincided with the rapid expansion of grey matter in the cerebral cortex, which characterizes the modern human brain. The DHA molecule has unique structural properties that appear to provide optimal conditions for a wide range of cell membrane functions. This has particular implications for grey matter, which is membrane-rich tissue. An important metabolic role for DHA has recently been identified as the precursor for resolvins and protectins. The rudimentary source of DHA is marine algae; therefore it is found concentrated in fish and marine oils. Unlike the photosynthetic cells in algae and higher plants, mammalian cells lack the specific enzymes required for the de novo synthesis of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, the precursor for all omega-3 fatty acid syntheses. Endogenous synthesis of DHA from ALA in humans is much lower and more limited than previously assumed. The excessive consumption of omega-6 fatty acids in the modern Western diet further displaces DHA from membrane phospholipids. An emerging body of research is exploring a unique role for DHA in neurodevelopment and the prevention of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. DHA is increasingly being added back into the food supply as fish oil or algal oil supplementation.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA): an ancient nutrient for the modern human brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Bradbury, Joanne

2011-05-01

Modern humans have evolved with a staple source of preformed docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in the diet. An important turning point in human evolution was the discovery of high-quality, easily digested nutrients from coastal seafood and inland freshwater sources. Multi-generational exploitation of seafood by shore-based dwellers coincided with the rapid expansion of grey matter in the cerebral cortex, which characterizes the modern human brain. The DHA molecule has unique structural properties that appear to provide optimal conditions for a wide range of cell membrane functions. This has particular implications for grey matter, which is membrane-rich tissue. An important metabolic role for DHA has recently been identified as the precursor for resolvins and protectins. The rudimentary source of DHA is marine algae; therefore it is found concentrated in fish and marine oils. Unlike the photosynthetic cells in algae and higher plants, mammalian cells lack the specific enzymes required for the de novo synthesis of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the precursor for all omega-3 fatty acid syntheses. Endogenous synthesis of DHA from ALA in humans is much lower and more limited than previously assumed. The excessive consumption of omega-6 fatty acids in the modern Western diet further displaces DHA from membrane phospholipids. An emerging body of research is exploring a unique role for DHA in neurodevelopment and the prevention of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. DHA is increasingly being added back into the food supply as fish oil or algal oil supplementation.

In Search of the English Sabbat: Popular Conceptions of Witches’ Meetings in Early Modern England

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

James Sharpe

2013-03-01

Full Text Available This article explores the evidence for belief in the witches’ sabbat in early modern England. England is generally thought of as a country where the concept of the sabbat did not exist, and it was certainly largely absent from elite thinking on witchcraft, as displayed in the witchcraft statutes of 1563 and 1604 and Elizabethan and Jacobean demonological writings. But evidence entering the historical record mainly via deposi- tions taken by justices of the peace suggests that there was a widespread popular belief in the sabbat or in parallel forms of witches’ meetings, evidence that the concept of the sabbat existed in popular culture. In this, the English evidence seems to support Carlo Ginzburg’s model of the sabbat being essentially a popular construction in its origins. The article also examines a play based on one of the historical incidents analysed, Richard Brome and Thomas Heywood’s The Late Lancashire Witches (1634, and uses it as a starting point for a brief discussion of witchcraft motifs in contemporary drama, notably Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

Major genomic mitochondrial lineages delineate early human expansions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Flores Carlos

2001-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The phylogeographic distribution of human mitochondrial DNA variations allows a genetic approach to the study of modern Homo sapiens dispersals throughout the world from a female perspective. As a new contribution to this study we have phylogenetically analysed complete mitochondrial DNA(mtDNA sequences from 42 human lineages, representing major clades with known geographic assignation. Results We show the relative relationships among the 42 lineages and present more accurate temporal calibrations than have been previously possible to give new perspectives as how modern humans spread in the Old World. Conclusions The first detectable expansion occurred around 59,000–69,000 years ago from Africa, independently colonizing western Asia and India and, following this southern route, swiftly reaching east Asia. Within Africa, this expansion did not replace but mixed with older lineages detectable today only in Africa. Around 39,000–52,000 years ago, the western Asian branch spread radially, bringing Caucasians to North Africa and Europe, also reaching India, and expanding to north and east Asia. More recent migrations have entangled but not completely erased these primitive footprints of modern human expansions.

Rules of use language and instruction in early modern England

CERN Document Server

Lamb, Julian

2014-01-01

We take it for granted that we can use words properly ? appropriately, meaningfully, even decorously. And yet it is very difficult to justify or explain what makes a particular use ""proper."" Given that properness is determined by the unpredictable vagaries of unrepeatable contexts, it is impossible to formulate an absolute rule which tells what is proper in every situation. In its four case studies of texts by Ascham, Puttenham, Mulcaster, and the first English dictionary writers, Rules of Use shows the way in which early modern pedagogues attempted to articulate such a rule whilst being min

Translation, Hybridization, and Modernization: John Dewey and Children's Literature in Early Twentieth Century China

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Xu

2013-01-01

This essay examines how John Dewey's child-centered educational philosophy was adopted and adapted in the early twentieth century in China to create a Chinese children's literature. Chinese intellectuals applied Dewey's educational philosophy, which values children's interests and needs, to formulate a new concept of modern childhood that…

'A WONDERFULL MONSTER BORNE IN GERMANY': HAIRY GIRLS IN MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN GERMAN BOOK, COURT AND PERFORMANCE CULTURE.

Science.gov (United States)

Katritzky, M A

2014-09-24

Human hirsuteness, or pathological hair growth, can be symptomatic of various conditions, including genetic mutation or inheritance, and some cancers and hormonal disturbances. Modern investigations into hirsuteness were initiated by nineteenth-century German physicians. Most early modern European cases of hypertrichosis (genetically determined all-over body and facial hair) involve German-speaking parentage or patronage, and are documented in German print culture. Through the Wild Man tradition, modern historians routinely link early modern reception of historical hypertrichosis cases to issues of ethnicity without, however, recognising early modern awareness of links between temporary hirsuteness and the pathological nexus of starvation and anorexia. Here, four cases of hirsute females are reconsidered with reference to this medical perspective, and to texts and images uncovered by my current research at the Herzog August Library and German archives. One concerns an Italian girl taken to Prague in 1355 by the Holy Roman Empress, Anna von Schweidnitz. Another focuses on Madeleine and Antonietta Gonzalez, daughters of the 'Wild Man' of Tenerife, documented at German courts in the 1580s. The third and fourth cases consider the medieval bearded Sankt Kümmernis (also known as St Wilgefortis or St Uncumber), and the seventeenth-century Bavarian fairground performer Barbara Urslerin. Krankhafter menschlicher Hirsutismus kann aufgrund unterschiedlicher Ursachen auftreten, zu denen u.a. genetische Veländerungen und Vererbung, verschiedene Krebserkrankungen und hormonelle Störungen gehören. Die moderne Hirsutismus-Forschung ist im 19. Jh. von deutschen Forschern initiiert worden. Die meisten europäischen frühneuzeitlichen Erscheinungen von Hypertrichose (dem genetisch bedingten Haarwuchs am gesamten Körper und im Gesicht) gehen auf deutschsprachige Eltern oder Förderer zurück und sind in Deutschland in den Druck gelangt. Bei Untersuchungen des Motivs des Wilden

The Early Development of Human Mirror Mechanisms: Evidence from Electromyographic Recordings at 3 and 6 Months

Science.gov (United States)

Turati, Chiara; Natale, Elena; Bolognini, Nadia; Senna, Irene; Picozzi, Marta; Longhi, Elena; Cassia, Viola Macchi

2013-01-01

In primates and adult humans direct understanding of others' action is provided by mirror mechanisms matching action observation and action execution (e.g. Casile, Caggiano & Ferrari, 2011). Despite the growing body of evidence detailing the existence of these mechanisms in the adult human brain, their origins and early development are…

The Centre for Early Human Behaviour (EHB) at the University of Bergen: A transdisciplinary exploration into the evolution of homo sapiens behaviour

Science.gov (United States)

Sobolowski, Stefan; Henshilwood, Christopher; Jansen, Eystein

2017-04-01

Homo sapiens was anatomically modern by 200 000 years ago in Africa, but there is no archaeological evidence to demonstrate that behaviour was modern at the time. Attributes of modern behaviour, perhaps inspired by changes in the human brain, are only recognizable after 100 000 years ago. Before we can study the process, we must critically define the criteria for the term 'modern behaviour' and then find a means to recognize such behavior in the record. This seemingly simple research statement involves complex exploration by a team of specialists. In this highly competitive research field our centre will, for the first time, be able to rise to the challenge by combining the skills of cutting-edge scientists in archaeology, climate reconstruction and modelling, and the cognitive and social sciences. Over the next decade we will integrate knowledge and methods from different disciplines to synthesize approaches and contribute to a sophisticated understanding of early human behaviour. Our highly ambitious research program will focus explicitly on rare, well preserved archaeological sites occupied in the period between 100-50 000 years ago because these contain the 'keys' for unlocking the past. A major competitive edge is the EHB Director's 25 years of archaeological experience and his long-term exclusive access, with permits, to a number of the best-preserved sites in the southern Cape, South Africa - a region regarded as a major locus for vital evidence that could inform on the behaviour of early humans. Our planned excavations at existing and new sites and our ground-breaking and innovative interdisciplinary approaches, including climate (The Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research) and cognitive research, to understanding the processes that shaped human cultures. Primarily, EHB will directly address unanswered, first order questions about Homo sapiens: a) what defines the switch to 'modern behaviour', exactly how should this term be defined and then, when, why and

Medieval and early modern approaches to fractures of the proximal humerus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brorson, S.

2010-01-01

The diagnosis and management of complex fractures of the proximal humerus have challenged surgical practitioners and medical writers since the earliest recorded surgical texts. Current knowledge of fractures of the proximal humerus has been obtained through pathoanatomical and biomechanical studies...... within the last two centuries. However, the historical preconditions for this development have not been studied. This paper reviews written sources from the fall of the Roman Empire to the late eighteenth century. Medieval and early modern writers mainly rely on the Hippocratic writings De Fracturis...

The Modern Value of Early Writings in Medicine and Dentistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Peck, Sheldon

2016-01-01

This article illustrates three examples supporting the modern value of early writings in dentistry and medicine. First, by studying cases described in works published long before the era of genetic science, we are able to develop new hypotheses about familial conditions and their genetic roots. Tooth transposition is presented as an example. Second, old writings may lead us to valuable historical insights and perspectives in medicine that can be revealed only in retrospective analysis. An example of this kind of historical analysis uncovers why dentistry became unnaturally separated from mainstream medicine in the 19th century. Third, early writings become keys to unlocking forgotten knowledge that enriches our understanding of historically significant people and events. The discovery of Norman Kingsley's long forgotten pyrographic paintings after Rembrandt portraits is used as an example. Libraries, the traditional custodians of these valued old texts, must continue to be supported, and not undermined by the paperless digital revolution. Copyright American Academy of the History of Dentistry.

Prayer and Performance in Early Modern English Literature: Gesture, Word and Devotion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sterrett, Joseph William

2018-01-01

did the performance of prayer reflect shifts in social perspectives and customs? These questions are addressed in two ways, first by discussing prayer as a social act and second by exploring the representation of prayer on stage and in literature. Organised in this way, the book makes an explicit......”: invocation as prayer in Milton’s Poetic Imagination’ Chapter 16:Helen Wilcox, ‘ ‘Your suit is granted”: Performing Prayer in Early Modern English Poetry’...

Origin of the use of the word magma in Earth Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Gohau, , G.

1998-05-01

The word magma was originally used in pharmacy (1694), and then in chemistry (1773).It took its modern geological significance only during the XIXth century.Although it is generally considered to have been first used in geology in 1879 (Roches eruptives, by Fouque and Michel-Levy), the word was already used by Fournet as early as 1838, and soon by Durocher (1845).Both supported an igneous origin of the granite, and were opposed to the metamorphic origin interpretation which, at that time, was dominant in France.Le mot magma, issu de la pharmacie (1694), et utilise par les chimistes des 1773, ne prend son sens moderne, en geologie, qu'au XIX^e siecle.Quoiqu'on retienne habituellement la date de 1879 (Roches eruptives, par Fouque et Michel-Levy), le terme apparait en fait des 1838, chez Fournet, puis chez Durocher a partir de 1845.Partisans de l'origine ignee du granite, ces deux auteurs s'opposent a la these dominante, en France, de l'origine metamorphique.

Galaxy clustering and small-scale CBR anisotropy constraints on galaxy origin scenarios

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lucchin, F.

1986-01-01

The problem of the origin of cosmic structures (galaxies, galaxy clusters,......) represents the crossroads of the modern cosmology: it is correlated both with the theoretical model of the very early universe and with most of the present observational data. In this context, galaxy origin scenarios are reviewed. The cosmological relevance of the observed clustering properties of the universe is outlined. The observational constraints, due to small-scale cosmic background radiation (CBR) anisotropies, on galaxy origin scenarios are discussed. (author)

Sociology, Protestant Theology, and the Concept of Modern Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jung, Dietrich

2015-01-01

'scientification' of religion by the emerging disciplines of the humanities and social sciences. In taking the life and work of William Robertson Smith (1846-94) as an example, the article analyzes the transformation of some specific elements of liberal Protestant theology into a set of universal features......This article looks at the intersection between Protestant theology and sociology in the construction of the modern concept of religion. Set against the theoretical background of the functional differentiation of modern society, it identifies the origin of this concept in the discursive...

Oxygen and animal evolution: Did a rise of atmospheric oxygen trigger the origin of animals?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mills, Daniel Brady; Canfield, Donald Eugene

2014-01-01

Recent studies challenge the classical view that the origin of animal life was primarily controlled by atmospheric oxygen levels. For example, some modern sponges, representing early-branching animals, can live under 200 times less oxygen than currently present in the atmosphere - levels commonly...... thought to have been maintained prior to their origination. Furthermore, it is increasingly argued that the earliest animals, which likely lived in low oxygen environments, played an active role in constructing the well-oxygenated conditions typical of the modern oceans. Therefore, while oxygen is still...

Gunpowder, the Prince of Wales's feathers and the origins of modern military surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Pearn, John

2012-04-01

The history of military surgery claims many forebears. The first surgeon-soldiers were Homer's Machaon and Podalirius, followed a thousand years later by the Roman surgeons-general, Antonius Musa and Euphorbus; and later, e.g. Ambrose Paré, John Hunter and Sir John Pringle; and the 19th century innovators, Dominique-Jean Larrey (France), Friedrich von Esmarch (Prussia) and the Russian, Nikolai Pirogoff. The singular feature that distinguished modern military surgery from its earlier practice was the use of gunpowder. It was one of two inventions (the other was printing) that by the empowerment of individuals, lifted Western humankind from the medieval to the modern era. Research of primary and secondary archives. Gunpowder was first used in European warfare at Algeceras (1344-1368). Hitherto, the destruction of tissue had been the result of (relative) low-energy wounding with tissue damage caused by incisional or crushing wounds. The founder of modern surgery, Master John of Arderne (1307-1380), wrote of his experience gained as a military surgeon on the battlefield at Crecy (1346). Following Crecy, Arderne was the only chronicler who described the origins of the Prince of Wales's feathers as a royal and later commercial symbol, and the motto 'Ich Dien', 'I serve', as that of hospitals in the Western World. Later advances in military surgery incorporated both clinical experimentation and the innovation of new systems of pre-hospital battlefield care. © 2012 The Author. ANZ Journal of Surgery © 2012 Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

From fish to modern humans--comparative anatomy, homologies and evolution of the head and neck musculature.

Science.gov (United States)

Diogo, R; Abdala, V; Lonergan, N; Wood, B A

2008-10-01

In a recent paper Diogo (2008) reported the results of the first part of an investigation of the comparative anatomy, homologies and evolution of the head and neck muscles of osteichthyans (bony fish + tetrapods). That report mainly focused on actinopterygian fish, but also compared these fish with certain non-mammalian sarcopterygians. The present paper focuses mainly on sarcopterygians, and particularly on how the head and neck muscles have evolved during the transitions from sarcopterygian fish and non-mammalian tetrapods to monotreme and therian mammals, including modern humans. The data obtained from our dissections of the head and neck muscles of representative members of sarcopterygian fish, amphibians, reptiles, monotremes and therian mammals, such as rodents, tree-shrews, colugos and primates, including modern humans, are compared with the information available in the literature. Our observations and comparisons indicate that the number of mandibular and true branchial muscles (sensu this work) present in modern humans is smaller than that found in mammals such as tree-shrews, rats and monotremes, as well as in reptiles such as lizards. Regarding the pharyngeal musculature, there is an increase in the number of muscles at the time of the evolutionary transition leading to therian mammals, but there was no significant increase during the transition leading to the emergence of higher primates and modern humans. The number of hypobranchial muscles is relatively constant within the therian mammals we examined, although in this case modern humans have more muscles than other mammals. The number of laryngeal and facial muscles in modern humans is greater than that found in most other therian taxa. Interestingly, modern humans possess peculiar laryngeal and facial muscles that are not present in the majority of the other mammalian taxa; this seems to corroborate the crucial role played by vocal communication and by facial expressions in primate and especially in

A HUMAN FACTORS META MODEL FOR U.S. NUCLEAR POWER PLANT CONTROL ROOM MODERNIZATION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Joe, Jeffrey C.

2017-03-01

Over the last several years, the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) has sponsored human factors research and development (R&D) and human factors engineering (HFE) activities through its Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program to modernize the main control rooms (MCR) of commercial nuclear power plants (NPP). Idaho National Laboratory (INL), in partnership with numerous commercial nuclear utilities, has conducted some of this R&D to enable the life extension of NPPs (i.e., provide the technical basis for the long-term reliability, productivity, safety, and security of U.S. NPPs). From these activities performed to date, a human factors meta model for U.S. NPP control room modernization can now be formulated. This paper discusses this emergent HFE meta model for NPP control room modernization, with the goal of providing an integrated high level roadmap and guidance on how to perform human factors R&D and HFE for those in the U.S. nuclear industry that are engaging in the process of upgrading their MCRs.

Juan Ruiz De Alarcón: Impairment as Empowerment in Early Modern Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Gloria Bodtorf

2016-01-01

Juan Ruiz de Alarcón, a seventeenth-century writer and native of New Spain, so excelled at the craft of writing "comedias" that he is recognized as one of the great writers of early modern Spain. In his personal life Ruiz de Alarcón struggled with a significant bodily impairment, a large hump on both his back and front, which made him…

Formal and Informal Early Education of Turkish-Origin Children in Germany

Science.gov (United States)

Becker, Birgit; Boldin, Elena; Klein, Oliver

2016-01-01

A lack of adequate German language skills is often discussed as a major reason for the disadvantage of children of immigrants in the German educational system. This article analyses the access to formal and informal early education of Turkish-origin children in Germany and the influence of these early education contexts on the children's German…

Single amino acid radiocarbon dating of Upper Paleolithic modern humans

Science.gov (United States)

Marom, Anat; McCullagh, James S. O.; Higham, Thomas F. G.; Sinitsyn, Andrey A.; Hedges, Robert E. M.

2012-01-01

Archaeological bones are usually dated by radiocarbon measurement of extracted collagen. However, low collagen content, contamination from the burial environment, or museum conservation work, such as addition of glues, preservatives, and fumigants to “protect” archaeological materials, have previously led to inaccurate dates. These inaccuracies in turn frustrate the development of archaeological chronologies and, in the Paleolithic, blur the dating of such key events as the dispersal of anatomically modern humans. Here we describe a method to date hydroxyproline found in collagen (∼10% of collagen carbon) as a bone-specific biomarker that removes impurities, thereby improving dating accuracy and confidence. This method is applied to two important sites in Russia and allows us to report the earliest direct ages for the presence of anatomically modern humans on the Russian Plain. These dates contribute considerably to our understanding of the emergence of the Mid-Upper Paleolithic and the complex suite of burial behaviors that begin to appear during this period. PMID:22517758

Origins of the historiography of modern Greek science.

Science.gov (United States)

Patiniotis, Manolis

2008-01-01

The purpose of the paper is to examine how Greek historians account for the presence of modern scientific ideas in the intellectual environment of eighteenth-century Greek-speaking society. It will also discuss the function of the history of modern Greek science in the context of Greek national historiography. As will be shown, the history of modem Greek science spent most of its life under the shadow of the history of ideas. Despite its seemingly secondary role, however, it occupied a distinctive place within national historiography because it formed the ground upon which different perceptions of the country's European identity converged. In this respect, one of the main goals of this paper is to outline the particular ideological presumptions, which shaped the historiography of modern Greek science under different historical circumstances. At the end an attempt will be made to articulate a viewpoint more in tandem with the recent methodological developments in the history of science.

An Ethnolinguistic and Genetic Perspective on the Origins of the Dravidian-Speaking Brahui in Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Pagani, Luca; Colonna, Vincenza; Tyler-Smith, Chris; Ayub, Qasim

2017-01-01

Pakistan is a part of South Asia that modern humans encountered soon after they left Africa ~50 - 70,000 years ago. Approximately 9,000 years ago they began establishing cities that eventually expanded to represent the Harappan culture, rivalling the early city states of Mesopotamia. The modern state constitutes the north western land mass of the Indian sub-continent and is now the abode of almost 200 million humans representing many ethnicities and linguistic groups. Studies utilising autosomal, Y chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA markers in selected Pakistani populations revealed a mixture of Western Eurasian-, South- and East Asian-specific lineages, some of which were unequivocally associated with past migrations. Overall in Pakistan, genetic relationships are generally predicted more accurately by geographic proximity than linguistic origin. The Dravidian-speaking Brahui population are a prime example of this. They currently reside in south-western Pakistan, surrounded by Indo-Europeans speakers with whom they share a common genetic origin. In contrast, the Hazara share the highest affinity with East Asians, despite their Indo-European linguistic affiliation. In this report we reexamine the genetic origins of the Brahuis, and compare them with diverse populations from India, including several Dravidian-speaking groups, and present a genetic perspective on ethnolinguistic groups in present-day Pakistan. Given the high affinity of Brahui to the other Indo-European Pakistani populations and the absence of population admixture with any of the examined Indian Dravidian groups, we conclude that Brahui are an example of cultural (linguistic) retention following a major population replacement.

‘A Wonderfull Monster Borne in Germany’: Hairy Girls in Medieval and Early Modern German Book, Court and Performance Culture*

Science.gov (United States)

Katritzky, MA

2014-01-01

Human hirsuteness, or pathological hair growth, can be symptomatic of various conditions, including genetic mutation or inheritance, and some cancers and hormonal disturbances. Modern investigations into hirsuteness were initiated by nineteenth-century German physicians. Most early modern European cases of hypertrichosis (genetically determined all-over body and facial hair) involve German-speaking parentage or patronage, and are documented in German print culture. Through the Wild Man tradition, modern historians routinely link early modern reception of historical hypertrichosis cases to issues of ethnicity without, however, recognising early modern awareness of links between temporary hirsuteness and the pathological nexus of starvation and anorexia. Here, four cases of hirsute females are reconsidered with reference to this medical perspective, and to texts and images uncovered by my current research at the Herzog August Library and German archives. One concerns an Italian girl taken to Prague in 1355 by the Holy Roman Empress, Anna von Schweidnitz. Another focuses on Madeleine and Antonietta Gonzalez, daughters of the ‘Wild Man’ of Tenerife, documented at German courts in the 1580s. The third and fourth cases consider the medieval bearded Sankt Kümmernis (also known as St Wilgefortis or St Uncumber), and the seventeenth-century Bavarian fairground performer Barbara Urslerin. Krankhafter menschlicher Hirsutismus kann aufgrund unterschiedlicher Ursachen auftreten, zu denen u.a. genetische Veränderungen und Vererbung, verschiedene Krebserkrankungen und hormonelle Störungen gehören. Die moderne Hirsutismus-Forschung ist im 19. Jh. von deutschen Forschern initiiert worden. Die meisten europäischen frühneuzeitlichen Erscheinungen von Hypertrichose (dem genetisch bedingten Haarwuchs am gesamten Körper und im Gesicht) gehen auf deutschsprachige Eltern oder Förderer zurück und sind in Deutschland in den Druck gelangt. Bei Untersuchungen des Motivs des

De novo origin of human protein-coding genes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dong-Dong Wu

2011-11-01

Full Text Available The de novo origin of a new protein-coding gene from non-coding DNA is considered to be a very rare occurrence in genomes. Here we identify 60 new protein-coding genes that originated de novo on the human lineage since divergence from the chimpanzee. The functionality of these genes is supported by both transcriptional and proteomic evidence. RNA-seq data indicate that these genes have their highest expression levels in the cerebral cortex and testes, which might suggest that these genes contribute to phenotypic traits that are unique to humans, such as improved cognitive ability. Our results are inconsistent with the traditional view that the de novo origin of new genes is very rare, thus there should be greater appreciation of the importance of the de novo origination of genes.

De Novo Origin of Human Protein-Coding Genes

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Dong-Dong; Irwin, David M.; Zhang, Ya-Ping

2011-01-01

The de novo origin of a new protein-coding gene from non-coding DNA is considered to be a very rare occurrence in genomes. Here we identify 60 new protein-coding genes that originated de novo on the human lineage since divergence from the chimpanzee. The functionality of these genes is supported by both transcriptional and proteomic evidence. RNA–seq data indicate that these genes have their highest expression levels in the cerebral cortex and testes, which might suggest that these genes contribute to phenotypic traits that are unique to humans, such as improved cognitive ability. Our results are inconsistent with the traditional view that the de novo origin of new genes is very rare, thus there should be greater appreciation of the importance of the de novo origination of genes. PMID:22102831

The origins of the universe for dummies

CERN Document Server

Pincock, Stephen

2007-01-01

Do you want to learn about the physical origin of the Universe, but don't have the rest of eternity to read up on it? Do you want to know what scientists know about where you and your planet came from, but without the science blinding you? 'Course you do - and who better than For Dummies to tackle the biggest, strangest and most wonderful question there is! The Origins of the Universe For Dummies covers: Early ideas about our universeModern cosmologyBig Bang theoryDark matter and gravityGalaxies and solar systemsLife on earthFi

GUIDANCE FOR NUCLEAR POWER PLANT CONTROL ROOM AND HUMAN-SYSTEM INTERFACE MODERNIZATION

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naser, J.; Morris, G.

2004-01-01

Several nuclear power plants in the United States are starting instrumentation and control (I and C) modernization programs using digital equipment to address obsolescence issues and the need to improve plant performance while maintaining high levels of safety. As an integral part of the I and C modernization program at a nuclear power plant, the control room and other human-system interfaces (HSIs) are also being modernized. To support safe and effective operation, it is critical to plan, design, implement, train for, operate, and maintain the control room and HSI changes to take advantage of human cognitive processing abilities. A project, jointly funded by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the United States Department of Energy (DOE) under the Nuclear Energy Plant Optimization (NEPO) Program, is developing guidance for specifying and designing control rooms, remote shut-down panels, HSIs etc. The guidance is intended for application by utilities and suppliers of control room and HSI modernization. The guidance will facilitate specification, design, implementation, operations, maintenance, training, and licensing activities. This guidance will be used to reduce the likelihood of human errors and licensing risk, to gain maximum benefit of implemented technology, and to increase performance. The guidance is of five types. The first is planning guidance to help a utility develop its plant-specific control room operating concepts, its plant-specific endpoint vision for the control room, its migration path to achieve that endpoint vision, and its regulatory, licensing, and human factors program plans. The second is process guidance for general HSI design and integration, human factors engineering analyses, verification and validation, in-service monitoring processes, etc. The third is detailed human factors engineering guidance for control room and HSI technical areas. The fourth is guidance for licensing. The fifth is guidance for special topics

Origins of modern economic system: England or Holland

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Rozinskaya Natalia, A.

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This paper, following the approach of the Dutch scholars de Vries and vab der Woude, claims that the Netherlands, rather than England (as it is generally assumed, were the first country, which performed the transition from the traditional society to modern one. Identification of criteria distinguishing traditional and modern societies follows the works of W. Rostow, S. Kuznets and other authors who studied the issue. In order to prove the thesis, author compares urbanization level in Holland and in England, as well as degree of commercialization of those economies, and considers the process of commercial and productive specialization in the United Provinces. Besides that, the formation of modern-type institutional system in Holland is analyzed: the genesis of the markets of factors of production, development of monetary and credit systems and of institutional and technological basis of the industry, strengthening of competitive forces in the economy. Land ownership structure in Holland is considered and its role in genesis of the markets of factors of production. Attention is paid to technological basis of the industry, examined is the impact of immigration. It concludes that the Netherlands were the first country where modern economic growth, as defined by S. Kuznets, started. It was Holland where for the first time the markets of factors of production were formed and, what is particularly important, the industry began to operate on a competitive basis.

The Italian Job: Giambattista Vico at the Origin of Edward Said’s Humanism

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Mauro Scalercio

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is twofold. First, it will try to clarify the importance of the Italian philosopher Giambattista Vico (1668-1744 in shaping Edward Said’s categories. Second, it will shed light on the theoretical importance of such genealogy. From the philological point of view, it is important to show how profound Said’s knowledge of Vico’s work is. Therefore, this paper will follow references to Vico within the whole of Said’s work, from late the sixties ones to the posthumous Humanism and Democratic Criticism. As far as theory is concerned, understanding Said’s use of Vico’s concepts explains why Said refers to his own work with the controversial term “humanism.” Vico, critiquing modernity from the onset, is the basis on which Said built a new critical humanism. In particular, Said uses the very essential elements of the philosophy of Vico: the importance of body as the source of humanity, the critique of modern abstractions, the idea that man knows what he makes, and the idea of the historicity of every human invention and construction.   Keywords: Edward Said; Vico; Humanism; Modernity; Historicity; Facticity.

Addressing the Addressee: Shakespeare and Early Modern Epistolary Theory

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Kerry Gilbert-Cooke

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Considering the emergence of epistolary theory in mid-sixteenth-century England, its value and function, the article attempts to show how these theories helped to construct, in contemporary correspondence, the addressee’s identity. One of the most important precepts was, as Angel Day states in his manual The English Secretorie, that, when composing a letter, writers tailored their text to the addressee. Even invented letters in Shakespeare’s plays reveal that, while correctly addressing the addressee does not necessarily guarantee success, address was considered the most important tool at the writer’s disposal when attempting to secure the addressee’s good will. Importantly, the observance of this precept even in drama indicates that epistolary theory had a more pervasive influence in early modern England than previously thought.

Genomic signatures of diet-related shifts during human origins.

Science.gov (United States)

Babbitt, Courtney C; Warner, Lisa R; Fedrigo, Olivier; Wall, Christine E; Wray, Gregory A

2011-04-07

There are numerous anthropological analyses concerning the importance of diet during human evolution. Diet is thought to have had a profound influence on the human phenotype, and dietary differences have been hypothesized to contribute to the dramatic morphological changes seen in modern humans as compared with non-human primates. Here, we attempt to integrate the results of new genomic studies within this well-developed anthropological context. We then review the current evidence for adaptation related to diet, both at the level of sequence changes and gene expression. Finally, we propose some ways in which new technologies can help identify specific genomic adaptations that have resulted in metabolic and morphological differences between humans and non-human primates.

Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of Semitic languages identifies an Early Bronze Age origin of Semitic in the Near East.

Science.gov (United States)

Kitchen, Andrew; Ehret, Christopher; Assefa, Shiferaw; Mulligan, Connie J

2009-08-07

The evolution of languages provides a unique opportunity to study human population history. The origin of Semitic and the nature of dispersals by Semitic-speaking populations are of great importance to our understanding of the ancient history of the Middle East and Horn of Africa. Semitic populations are associated with the oldest written languages and urban civilizations in the region, which gave rise to some of the world's first major religious and literary traditions. In this study, we employ Bayesian computational phylogenetic techniques recently developed in evolutionary biology to analyse Semitic lexical data by modelling language evolution and explicitly testing alternative hypotheses of Semitic history. We implement a relaxed linguistic clock to date language divergences and use epigraphic evidence for the sampling dates of extinct Semitic languages to calibrate the rate of language evolution. Our statistical tests of alternative Semitic histories support an initial divergence of Akkadian from ancestral Semitic over competing hypotheses (e.g. an African origin of Semitic). We estimate an Early Bronze Age origin for Semitic approximately 5750 years ago in the Levant, and further propose that contemporary Ethiosemitic languages of Africa reflect a single introduction of early Ethiosemitic from southern Arabia approximately 2800 years ago.

Gristhorpe Man: an Early Bronze Age log-coffin burial scientifically defined

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Melton, Nigel; Montgomery, Janet; Knüsel, Christopher J.

2010-01-01

A log-coffin excavated in the early nineteenth century proved to be well enough preserved in the early twenty-first century for the full armoury of modern scientific investigation to give its occupants and contents new identity, new origins and a new date. In many ways the interpretation is much ...

The Rhetoric of Bonds, Alliances, and Identities: Interrogating Social Networks in Early Modern English Drama

Science.gov (United States)

Cady, Christina J.

2010-01-01

The household and family have received considerable interest in studies of early modern English drama, but less attention has been paid to how writers represent intimate affective bonds on the stage. Emotion is intangible; yet many writers convincingly convey the intensity of emotional bonds through rhetoric. Rhetoric is a mainstay in…

Hidden library : Visualizing fragments of medieval manuscripts in early-modern bookbindings with mobile macro-XRF scanner

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Duivenvoorden, Jorien R.; Käyhkö, Anna; Kwakkel, Erik; Dik, J.

2017-01-01

This experiment demonstrates the large potential of macro-XRF imaging for the visualization of fragments of medieval manuscripts hidden in early-modern bookbindings. The invention of the printing press in the fifteenth century made manuscripts obsolete and bookbinders started recycling their

The Prince and the Hobby-Horse: Shakespeare and the Ambivalence of Early Modern Popular Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natália Pikli

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The Shakespearean hobby-horse, mentioned emphatically in Hamlet, brings into focus a number of problems related to early modern popular culture. In the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries the word was characterised by semantic ambivalence, with simultaneously valid meanings of a breed of horse, a morris character, a foolish person, and a wanton woman. The overlapping of these meanings in different cultural discourses of the age (playtexts, emblem books, popular verse, pictures exemplifies the interaction of different productions of early modern popular culture, from social humiliating practices to festivals and public playhouses. This attests to a complex circulation of cultural memory regarding symbols of popular culture, paradoxically both ‘forgotten’ and ‘remembered’ as a basically oral-ritual culture was transformed into written forms. In this context, the Hamletian passage gains new overtones, while the different versions of the playtext (Q1 & 2: 1603, 1604, F: 1623 also offer insights into the changing attitudes regarding popular culture, as it became gradually commercialised and politicised in the following decades. Finally, Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale and Jonson’s Bartholomew Fair solidify a critical and sceptical attitude, which seems to have signalled the end of ‘Merry Old England’ on-stage and off-stage as well.

Children's Physic: Medical Perceptions and Treatment of Sick Children in Early Modern England, c. 1580-1720.

Science.gov (United States)

Newton, Hannah

2010-12-01

Historians of medicine, childhood and paediatrics have often assumed that early modern doctors neither treated children, nor adapted their medicines to suit the peculiar temperaments of the young. Through an examination of medical textbooks and doctors' casebooks, this article refutes these assumptions. It argues that medical authors and practising doctors regularly treated children, and were careful to tailor their remedies to complement the distinctive constitutions of children. Thus, this article proposes that a concept of 'children's physic' existed in early modern England. This term refers to the notion that children were physiologically distinct, requiring special medical care. Children's physic was rooted in the ancient traditions of Hippocratic and Galenic medicine: it was the child's humoral make-up that underpinned all medical ideas about children's bodies, minds, diseases and treatments. Children abounded in the humour blood, which made them humid and weak, and in need of medicines of a particularly gentle nature.

The human dimensions of climate change: A micro-level assessment of views from the ecological modernization, political economy and human ecology perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Adua, Lazarus; York, Richard; Schuelke-Leech, Beth-Anne

2016-03-01

Understanding the manifold human and physical dimensions of climate change has become an area of great interest to researchers in recent decades. Using a U.S. nationally-representative data set and drawing on the ecological modernization, political economy, and human ecology perspectives, this study examines the impacts of energy efficiency technologies, affluence, household demographics, and biophysical characteristics on residential CO2 emissions. Overall, the study provides mixed support for the ecological modernization perspective. While several findings are consistent with the theory's expectation that modern societies can harness technology to mitigate human impacts on the environment, others directly contradict it. Also, the theory's prediction of an inverted U-shaped relationship between affluence and environmental impacts is contradicted. The evidence is somewhat more supportive of the political economy and human ecology perspectives, with affluence, some indicators of technology, household demographics, and biophysical characteristics emerging as important drivers of residential CO2 emissions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adaptations to local environments in modern human populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeong, Choongwon; Di Rienzo, Anna

2014-12-01

After leaving sub-Saharan Africa around 50000-100000 years ago, anatomically modern humans have quickly occupied extremely diverse environments. Human populations were exposed to further environmental changes resulting from cultural innovations, such as the spread of farming, which gave rise to new selective pressures related to pathogen exposures and dietary shifts. In addition to changing the frequency of individual adaptive alleles, natural selection may also shape the overall genetic architecture of adaptive traits. Here, we review recent advances in understanding the genetic architecture of adaptive human phenotypes based on insights from the studies of lactase persistence, skin pigmentation and high-altitude adaptation. These adaptations evolved in parallel in multiple human populations, providing a chance to investigate independent realizations of the evolutionary process. We suggest that the outcome of adaptive evolution is often highly variable even under similar selective pressures. Finally, we highlight a growing need for detecting adaptations that did not follow the classical sweep model and for incorporating new sources of genetic evidence such as information from ancient DNA. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pleistocene North African genomes link Near Eastern and sub-Saharan African human populations.

Science.gov (United States)

van de Loosdrecht, Marieke; Bouzouggar, Abdeljalil; Humphrey, Louise; Posth, Cosimo; Barton, Nick; Aximu-Petri, Ayinuer; Nickel, Birgit; Nagel, Sarah; Talbi, El Hassan; El Hajraoui, Mohammed Abdeljalil; Amzazi, Saaïd; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Pääbo, Svante; Schiffels, Stephan; Meyer, Matthias; Haak, Wolfgang; Jeong, Choongwon; Krause, Johannes

2018-05-04

North Africa is a key region for understanding human history, but the genetic history of its people is largely unknown. We present genomic data from seven 15,000-year-old modern humans, attributed to the Iberomaurusian culture, from Morocco. We find a genetic affinity with early Holocene Near Easterners, best represented by Levantine Natufians, suggesting a pre-agricultural connection between Africa and the Near East. We do not find evidence for gene flow from Paleolithic Europeans to Late Pleistocene North Africans. The Taforalt individuals derive one-third of their ancestry from sub-Saharan Africans, best approximated by a mixture of genetic components preserved in present-day West and East Africans. Thus, we provide direct evidence for genetic interactions between modern humans across Africa and Eurasia in the Pleistocene. Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

Early Pleistocene archaeological occurrences at the Feiliang site, and the archaeology of human origins in the Nihewan Basin, North China.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuwen Pei

Full Text Available The Early Pleistocene archaeological evidence from the fluvio-lacustrine sequence of the Nihewan Basin (North China offers an excellent opportunity to explore early human evolution and behavior in a temperate setting in East Asia, following the earliest 'Out of Africa'. Here we present the first comprehensive study of the Feiliang (FL site, with emphasis on the archaeological sequence, site integrity, and stone artifact assemblages. Magnetostratigraphic dating results show that early humans occupied the site ca. 1.2 Ma. Archaeological deposits were buried rapidly in primary context within shallow lake margin deposits, with only minor post-depositional disturbance from relatively low energy hydraulic forces. The FL lithic assemblage is characterized by a core and flake, Oldowan-like or Mode 1 technology, with a low degree of standardization, expedient knapping techniques, and casually retouched flakes. The bone assemblage suggests that hominin occupation of the FL site was in an open habitat of temperate grassland with areas of steppe and water. The main features of the FL assemblage are discussed in the context of the early Pleistocene archaeology of Nihewan, for which an assessment of current and future research is also presented.

Acute mesenteric ischemia of arterial origin: importance of early revascularization.

Science.gov (United States)

Plumereau, F; Mucci, S; Le Naoures, P; Finel, J B; Hamy, A

2015-02-01

The goal of our study was to show that survival was better when early revascularization was performed rather than gastrointestinal resection in the management of acute mesenteric ischemia of arterial origin. The reports of patients managed in our center between January 2005 and May 2012 for acute mesenteric ischemia of arterial origin were analyzed retrospectively. Data on clinical, laboratory and radiologic findings, the interval before treatment, the operative findings and the surgical procedures were collected. Follow-up information included the postoperative course, and mortality at 48 h, 30 days and 1 year, the latter being compared between patients undergoing revascularization versus gastrointestinal resection. Of 43 patients treated during this period, 20 had gastrointestinal lesions deemed to be beyond all therapeutic resources, 13 were treated with gastrointestinal resection without revascularization, while 10 underwent early revascularization. There were no statistically significant differences found in the extent of involvement between the two groups (P=0.22). Mortality at 48 h, 30 days and 1 year was 8% (n=1), 30% (n=4) and 68% (n=8) in patients who underwent enterectomy vs. 0% (n=0), 0% (n=0) and 10% (n=1) in patients who underwent revascularization procedures. The difference at 1 year was statistically significant (P=0.02). At 1 year, two patients in the revascularized group had a short bowel syndrome vs. one in the non-revascularized group. Acute mesenteric ischemia of arterial origin is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Optimal management should include early revascularization. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

[Origin and evolution of human immunodeficiency viruses].

Science.gov (United States)

Marian, Constantin V

2009-01-01

After the diagnosis of the AIDS symptoms, in 1981, and after the discovery of the virus that causes AIDS, in 1983, the virologists have formulated different theories about its origin. Some of them involved natural causes, e.g., HIV origin from SIV strains. Other theories go further to the possibility of a deadly man-made virus escaped from laboratories or voluntary spread by some conspirative organisations. At this moment, the scientists limits themselves to search proofs to sustain the zoonotic origin of HIV from SIV and its accomodation to human body conditions.

Diagnosis of the cancer of unknown primary origin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jurisova, S.; Poersoek, S.

2013-01-01

Cancer of unknown primary origin (CUP) is one of the ten most frequent cancers worldwide. It constitutes of 3-5% of all human malignancies. At time of diagnosis patients with CUP present with disseminated metastases without established primary origin. CUP manifests as heterogenous group of mainly epithelial cancers recognised by distinct clinico pathological entities. The diagnostic work-up includes extensive histopathology investigations and modern imaging technology. Nevertheless, the primary tumour remains undetected most of the time. (author)

Perspectives on Human Trafficking and Modern Forms of Slavery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Siddharth Kara

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Migration, technology, law, and measurement are each among the most topical areas of enquiry in the global human trafficking field, with much work remaining to be done in these and other areas. Beneath these particular intersections lies a crucial truth—slavery is a global business that thrives on the callous exploitation of the labor activity of a vast and highly vulnerable subclass of people whose brutalization is tacitly accepted by every participant in the global economy, from corporations to consumers. I am deeply gratified to edit Social Inclusion’s second issue on human trafficking and modern slavery. The level of scholarly interest in these topics continues to grow, and in this issue the authors explore some of the most pressing manifestations of human trafficking around the world.

A Theory for the Origin of Human Menopause.

Science.gov (United States)

Takahashi, Mike; Singh, Rama S; Stone, John

2016-01-01

A complete and compelling evolutionary explanation for the origin of human menopause is wanting. Menopause onset is defined clinically as the final menses, confirmed after 1 year without menstruation. The theory proposed herein explains at multiple levels - ultimately genetic but involving (1) behavioral, (2) life history, and (3) social changes - the origin and evolution of menopause in women. Individuals in Lower Paleolithic human populations were characterized by short lifespans with diminished late-age survival and fertility, similar to contemporary chimpanzees, and thence were subject to three changes. (1) A mating behavior change was established in which only young women reproduced, thereby rendering as effectively neutral female-specific late-onset fertility-diminishing mutations, which accumulated subsequently. (2) A lifespan increase was manifested adaptively, revealing the reproductive senescence phenotype encoded in late-onset fertility-diminishing mutation genotypes, which, heretofore, had been unexpressed in the shorter lifespan. (3) A social interaction change emerged exaptively, when older non-reproductive women exclusively started assisting in rearing grandchildren rather than giving birth to and caring for their own children, ultimately leading to menstrual cycle cessation. The changes associate in a one-to-one manner with existing, non-mutually exclusive hypotheses for the origin of human menopause. Evidence for each hypothesis and its associated change having occurred are reviewed, and the hypotheses are combined in a synthetic theory for the origin of human menopause. The new theory simultaneously addresses the main theoretical problem with each hypothesis and yields predictions for future testing.

Natural environments, ancestral diets, and microbial ecology: is there a modern "paleo-deficit disorder"? Part I.

Science.gov (United States)

Logan, Alan C; Katzman, Martin A; Balanzá-Martínez, Vicent

2015-01-31

Famed microbiologist René J. Dubos (1901-1982) was an early pioneer in the developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD) construct. In the 1960s, he conducted groundbreaking experimental research concerning the ways in which early-life experience with nutrition, microbiota, stress, and other environmental variables could influence later-life health outcomes. He also wrote extensively on potential health consequences of a progressive loss of contact with natural environments (now referred to as green or blue space), arguing that Paleolithic experiences have created needs, particularly in the mental realm, that might not be met in the context of rapid global urbanization. He posited that humans would certainly adapt to modern urban landscapes and high technology, but there might be a toll to be paid in the form of higher psychological distress (symptoms of anxiety and depression) and diminished quality of life. In particular, there might be an erosion of humanness, exemplified by declines in altruism/empathy. Here in the first of a two-part review, we examine contemporary research related to natural environments and question to what extent Dubos might have been correct in some of his 50-year-old assertions.

Modern theory of dynamical systems a tribute to Dmitry Victorovich Anosov

CERN Document Server

Katok, Anatole; Hertz, Federico Rodriguez

2017-01-01

This volume is a tribute to one of the founders of modern theory of dynamical systems, the late Dmitry Victorovich Anosov. It contains both original papers and surveys, written by some distinguished experts in dynamics, which are related to important themes of Anosov's work, as well as broadly interpreted further crucial developments in the theory of dynamical systems that followed Anosov's original work. Also included is an article by A. Katok that presents Anosov's scientific biography and a picture of the early development of hyperbolicity theory in its various incarnations, complete and partial, uniform and nonuniform.

Early industrial stage of modernization pre-revolutionary Russia: sources, tendencies and results

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Татьяна Михайловна Братченко

2010-03-01

Full Text Available In the article the sources, occurrence and development of industrialization of pre-revolutionary Russia at its early stage are analyzed. The authors have shown the basic tendencies and directions of these processes. In the article the set of the reasons of industrialization of Russia is opened, among which not internal conditions, and external factors were basic. Is shown also, that the earli-industrial modernization in the liberal - conservative form has put a society in the extremely unstable, «transitive» condition, that was fraught with social shocks.

Neutron activation analysis of medieval and early modern times ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kies, A.; Reitsamer, G.; Bauer, W.

1985-01-01

Provenience studies of medieval and early modern times ceramics from the Eastern Danube area of Austria have been performed by instrumental neutron activation analysis. All sherds examined were selected from pottery which was specially charactrized by pottery marks ('Cross Potent', 'Crossmark within a circle', 'Latin Cross', 'Cross Paty'). With respect to the chemical composition five different pottery groups could be evaluated by cluster analysis. Archaeological results: The'Cross Patent' was used by different potter's workshops whereas the 'Crossmark within a circle' was more likely restricted to one manufacture entre. The distribution of the 'Latin Cross' and The 'Cross Paty' over all five clusters indicated the usage of clay from different deposits. The assignment of the 'Cross Paty' exclusively to the area of Passau could be disproved. (Author)

From Darwin's Origin of Species toward a theory of natural history.

Science.gov (United States)

Boero, Ferdinando

2015-01-01

Darwin is the father of evolutionary theory because he identified evolutionary patterns and, with Natural Selection, he ascertained the exquisitely ecological ultimate processes that lead to evolution. The proximate processes of evolution he proposed, however, predated the discovery of genetics, the backbone of modern evolutionary theory. The later discovery of the laws of inheritance by Mendel and the rediscovery of Mendel in the early 20th century led to two reforms of Darwinism: Neo-Darwinism and the Modern Synthesis (and subsequent refinements). If Darwin's evolutionary thought required much refinement, his ecological insight is still very modern. In the first edition of The Origin of Species, Darwin did not use either the word "evolution" or the word "ecology". "Ecology" was not coined until after the publication of the Origin. Evolution, for him, was the origin of varieties, then species, which he referred to as well-marked varieties, whereas, instead of using ecology, he used "the economy of nature". The Origin contains a high proportion of currently accepted ecological principles. Darwin labelled himself a naturalist. His discipline (natural history) was a blend of ecology and evolution in which he investigated both the patterns and the processes that determine the organization of life. Reductionist approaches, however, often keep the two disciplines separated from each other, undermining a full understanding of natural phenomena that might be favored by blending ecology and evolution through the development of a modern Theory of Natural History based on Darwin's vision of the study of life.

Ancient cellular structures and modern humans: change of survival strategies before prolonged low solar activity period

Science.gov (United States)

Ragulskaya, Mariya; Rudenchik, Evgeniy; Gromozova, Elena; Voychuk, Sergei; Kachur, Tatiana

The study of biotropic effects of modern space weather carries the information about the rhythms and features of adaptation of early biological systems to the outer space influence. The influence of cosmic rays, ultraviolet waves and geomagnetic field on early life has its signs in modern biosphere processes. These phenomena could be experimentally studied on present-day biological objects. Particularly inorganic polyphosphates, so-called "fossil molecules", attracts special attention as the most ancient molecules which arose in inanimate nature and have been accompanying biological objects at all stages of evolution. Polyphosphates-containing graves of yeast's cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain Y-517, , from the Ukrainian Collection of Microorganisms was studied by daily measurements during 2000-2013 years. The IZMIRAN daily data base of physiological parameters dynamics during 2000-2013 years were analyzed simultaneously (25 people). The analysis showed significant simultaneous changes of the statistical parameters of the studied biological systems in 2004 -2006. The similarity of simultaneous changes of adaptation strategies of human organism and the cell structures of Saccharomyces cerevisiae during the 23-24 cycles of solar activity are discussed. This phenomenon could be due to a replacement of bio-effective parameters of space weather during the change from 23rd to 24th solar activity cycle and nonstandard geophysical peculiarities of the 24th solar activity cycle. It could be suggested that the observed similarity arose as the optimization of evolution selection of the living systems in expectation of probable prolonged period of low solar activity (4-6 cycles of solar activity).

Human factors engineering plan for reviewing nuclear plant modernization programs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, John; Higgins, James

2004-12-01

The Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate reviews the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of nuclear power plants (NPPs) involved in the modernization of the plant systems and control rooms. The purpose of a HFE review is to help ensure personnel and public safety by verifying that accepted HFE practices and guidelines are incorporated into the program and nuclear power plant design. Such a review helps to ensure the HFE aspects of an NPP are developed, designed, and evaluated on the basis of a structured top-down system analysis using accepted HFE principles. The review addresses eleven HFE elements: HFE Program Management, Operating Experience Review, Functional Requirements Analysis and Allocation, Task Analysis, Staffing, Human Reliability Analysis, Human-System Interface Design, Procedure Development, Training Program Development, Human Factors Verification and Validation, and Design Implementation

Human factors engineering plan for reviewing nuclear plant modernization programs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O' Hara, John; Higgins, James [Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY (United States)

2004-12-01

The Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate reviews the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of nuclear power plants (NPPs) involved in the modernization of the plant systems and control rooms. The purpose of a HFE review is to help ensure personnel and public safety by verifying that accepted HFE practices and guidelines are incorporated into the program and nuclear power plant design. Such a review helps to ensure the HFE aspects of an NPP are developed, designed, and evaluated on the basis of a structured top-down system analysis using accepted HFE principles. The review addresses eleven HFE elements: HFE Program Management, Operating Experience Review, Functional Requirements Analysis and Allocation, Task Analysis, Staffing, Human Reliability Analysis, Human-System Interface Design, Procedure Development, Training Program Development, Human Factors Verification and Validation, and Design Implementation.

Explosive radiation of Malpighiales supports a mid-cretaceous origin of modern tropical rain forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Charles C; Webb, Campbell O; Wurdack, Kenneth J; Jaramillo, Carlos A; Donoghue, Michael J

2005-03-01

Fossil data have been interpreted as indicating that Late Cretaceous tropical forests were open and dry adapted and that modern closed-canopy rain forest did not originate until after the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) boundary. However, some mid-Cretaceous leaf floras have been interpreted as rain forest. Molecular divergence-time estimates within the clade Malpighiales, which constitute a large percentage of species in the shaded, shrub, and small tree layer in tropical rain forests worldwide, provide new tests of these hypotheses. We estimate that all 28 major lineages (i.e., traditionally recognized families) within this clade originated in tropical rain forest well before the Tertiary, mostly during the Albian and Cenomanian (112-94 Ma). Their rapid rise in the mid-Cretaceous may have resulted from the origin of adaptations to survive and reproduce under a closed forest canopy. This pattern may also be paralleled by other similarly diverse lineages and supports fossil indications that closed-canopy tropical rain forests existed well before the K/T boundary. This case illustrates that dated phylogenies can provide an important new source of evidence bearing on the timing of major environmental changes, which may be especially useful when fossil evidence is limited or controversial.

The evolution of human artistic creativity

Science.gov (United States)

Morriss-Kay, Gillian M

2010-01-01

Creating visual art is one of the defining characteristics of the human species, but the paucity of archaeological evidence means that we have limited information on the origin and evolution of this aspect of human culture. The components of art include colour, pattern and the reproduction of visual likeness. The 2D and 3D art forms that were created by Upper Palaeolithic Europeans at least 30 000 years ago are conceptually equivalent to those created in recent centuries, indicating that human cognition and symbolling activity, as well as anatomy, were fully modern by that time. The origins of art are therefore much more ancient and lie within Africa, before worldwide human dispersal. The earliest known evidence of ‘artistic behaviour’ is of human body decoration, including skin colouring with ochre and the use of beads, although both may have had functional origins. Zig-zag and criss-cross patterns, nested curves and parallel lines are the earliest known patterns to have been created separately from the body; their similarity to entopic phenomena (involuntary products of the visual system) suggests a physiological origin. 3D art may have begun with human likeness recognition in natural objects, which were modified to enhance that likeness; some 2D art has also clearly been influenced by suggestive features of an uneven surface. The creation of images from the imagination, or ‘the mind’s eye’, required a seminal evolutionary change in the neural structures underpinning perception; this change would have had a survival advantage in both tool-making and hunting. Analysis of early tool-making techniques suggests that creating 3D objects (sculptures and reliefs) involves their cognitive deconstruction into a series of surfaces, a principle that could have been applied to early sculpture. The cognitive ability to create art separate from the body must have originated in Africa but the practice may have begun at different times in genetically and culturally

LB1 and LB6 Homo floresiensis are not modern human (Homo sapiens) cretins.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Peter

2012-02-01

Excavations in the late Pleistocene deposits at Liang Bua cave, Flores, have uncovered the skeletal remains of several small-bodied and small-brained hominins in association with stone artefacts and the bones of Stegodon. Due to their combination of plesiomorphic, unique and derived traits, they were ascribed to a new species, Homo floresiensis, which, along with Stegodon, appears to have become extinct ∼17 ka (thousand years ago). However, recently it has been argued that several characteristics of H. floresiensis were consistent with dwarfism and evidence of delayed development in modern human (Homo sapiens) myxoedematous endemic (ME) cretins. This research compares the skeletal and dental morphology in H. floresiensis with the clinical and osteological indicators of cretinism, and the traits that have been argued to be associated with ME cretinism in LB1 and LB6. Contrary to published claims, morphological and statistical comparisons did not identify the distinctive skeletal and dental indicators of cretinism in LB1 or LB6 H. floresiensis. Brain mass, skeletal proportions, epiphyseal union, orofacial morphology, dental development, size of the pituitary fossa and development of the paranasal sinuses, vault bone thickness and dimensions of the hands and feet all distinguish H. floresiensis from modern humans with ME cretinism. The research team responsible for the diagnosis of ME cretinism had not examined the original H. floresiensis skeletal materials, and perhaps, as a result, their research confused taphonomic damage with evidence of disease, and thus contained critical errors of fact and interpretation. Behavioural scenarios attempting to explain the presence of cretinous H. sapiens in the Liang Bua Pleistocene deposits, but not unaffected H. sapiens, are both unnecessary and not supported by the available archaeological and geochronological evidence from Flores. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The influence of life history and sexual dimorphism on entheseal changes in modern humans and African great apes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Milella

Full Text Available Entheseal changes have been widely studied with regard to their correlation to biomechanical stress and their usefulness for biocultural reconstructions. However, anthropological and medical studies have demonstrated the marked influence of both age and sex on the development of these features. Studies of entheseal changes are mostly aimed in testing functional hypotheses and are mostly focused on modern humans, with few data available for non-human primates. The lack of comparative studies on the effect of age and sex on entheseal changes represent a gap in our understanding of the evolutionary basis of both development and degeneration of the human musculoskeletal system. The aim of the present work is to compare age trajectories and patterns of sexual dimorphism in entheseal changes between modern humans and African great apes. To this end we analyzed 23 postcranial entheses in a human contemporary identified skeletal collection (N = 484 and compared the results with those obtained from the analysis of Pan (N = 50 and Gorilla (N = 47 skeletal specimens. Results highlight taxon-specific age trajectories possibly linked to differences in life history schedules and phyletic relationships. Robusticity trajectories separate Pan and modern humans from Gorilla, whereas enthesopathic patterns are unique in modern humans and possibly linked to their extended potential lifespan. Comparisons between sexes evidence a decreasing dimorphism in robusticity from Gorilla, to modern humans to Pan, which is likely linked to the role played by size, lifespan and physical activity on robusticity development. The present study confirms previous hypotheses on the possible relevance of EC in the study of life history, pointing moreover to their usefulness in evolutionary studies.

Modernizing the symbol of Sydney

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kerchlango, Jørg

2004-01-01

Sydney's 25-year old trademark and art house is being modernized. Jørn Utzon is back in the arena with his beloved opera house. The same opera house that he was originally denied further access......Sydney's 25-year old trademark and art house is being modernized. Jørn Utzon is back in the arena with his beloved opera house. The same opera house that he was originally denied further access...

Origin and concept of medicine food homology and its application in modern functional foods.

Science.gov (United States)

Hou, Yan; Jiang, Jian-Guo

2013-12-01

The viewpoints of "medicine food homology" (MFH) conform to today's food requirements of returning to a natural and green healthy life. This paper aims to introduce the concept of MFH and its origin and evolution, and analyze the relationship between food and Chinese medicine. In this review, more than 80 MFH materials approved by China's Ministry of Health are listed and their effective ingredients are summarized in detail. Their treatment mechanism in TCM and western medicine are summarized too. Moreover, some new MFH resources that have been gradually developed are also introduced. MFH materials are a treasure house of functional factors for current functional foods. Innovative ideas for the development of MFH resources in current functional foods are prospected and discussed, such as taking advantage of Chinese diet theory, building a database for MFH varieties and developing new methods and technologies. At present, modern research for the development of MFH functional foods is still in its primary stage, there is still much work required in the popularization of the MFH concept and the development of new products. Knowledge and technological innovations in this area should be accelerated in the future to promote the modernization of MFH.

[Comparative analysis between origin of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder and modern formula granules].

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Rui; Zhai, Hua-Qiang; Tian, Wei-Lan; Hou, Ji-Ru; Jin, Shi-Yuan; Wang, Yong-Yan

2016-03-01

In this study, the origin and causes of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder were reviewed, and a comprehensive analysis was made for the time background of modern traditional Chinese medicine formula granules and the future development trend, in order to provide reference for application and promotion of traditional Chinese medicine formula granules. By reference to ancient medical books of previous dynasties, a system review was conducted for infancy, formation, maturity and transition of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder, and a comprehensive analysis was made for the six factors of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder's maturity in the Song Dynasty. Efforts were made to collect domestic and foreign research literatures of modern formula granules, understand the detailed development, and conduct an objective analysis of the current clinical application of modern formula granules. According to the comparative analysis for the application characteristics of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder and modern formula granules, ①the popularity of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder in the Song Dynasty has six factors: soaring numbers of medical students and medical practitioners, high medical expenses due to huge army, rapid population growth, frequent epidemics and increasing diseases, and insufficient finances of central and local governments. ②On the basis of clinical application characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine formula granules, traditional Chinese medicine formula granules contain extracted and concentrated effective components, which guarantee the curative effect, meet modern people's demands for "quick, simple and convenience" traditional Chinese medicine decoctions, show a relatively high cost performance; however, formula granules are restricted by their varieties and lack unified quality control standards, and single-extract formula granules have not synergy and attenuation effects of combined traditional

Modern indoor climate research in Denmark from 1962 to the early 1990s

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, I; Gyntelberg, F

2011-01-01

Modern, holistic indoor climate research started with the formation of an interdisciplinary 'Indoor Climate Research Group' in 1962 at the Institute of Hygiene, University of Aarhus, Denmark. After some years, other groups started similar research in Denmark and Sweden, and later - after the Firs....... PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The review may be of interest to indoor climate researchers who want to know more about the early development of research on this multidisciplinary subject, as it emerged in a small country that undertook pioneering studies....

Promoting free flow in the networks: Reimagining the body in early modern Suzhou.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheid, Volker

2017-06-01

The history of Chinese medicine is still widely imagined in terms dictated by the discourse of modernity, that is as 'traditional' and 'Chinese.' And yet, so as to be intelligible to us moderns, it must simultaneously be framed through categories that make it comparable somehow to the 'West' and the 'modern' from which it is said to be essentially different. This is accomplished, for instance, by viewing Chinese medicine as fundamentally shaped by cosmological thinking, as focusing on process rather than matter, and as forever hampered by attachments to the past even when it tries to innovate. At the same time, it is described as pursuing its objectives in ways that make sense in 'our' terms, too, such as the goal of creating physiological homeostasis through methods of supplementation and drainage. In this paper, I seek to move beyond this kind of analysis through a two-pronged approach. First, by focusing on the concept of tong - a character that calls forth images of free flow, connectivity, relatedness and understanding - I foreground an important aspect of Chinese medical thinking and practice that has virtually been ignored by Western historians of medicine and science. Second, by exploring how the influential physician Ye Tianshi (1664-1746) employed tong to advance medical thinking and practice at a crucial moment of change in the history of Chinese medicine, I demonstrate that physicians in early modern China moved towards new understandings of the body readily intelligible by modern biomedical anatomy. I argue that this mode of analysis allows us to transcend the limitations inherent in the current historiography of Chinese medicine: because it allows for comparison to emerge from our subject matter rather than imposing our imaginaries onto it in advance.

Modernity vs. modernism in Istanbul : The culture of rupture and the state of exception

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brosens, P.; Bedir, M.

2014-01-01

The modernity concept originated in western theoretical/philosophical thought. Characterised by secular, scientific, social and economic developments, it significantly affected arts and architecture. Modernism, its 20th century cultural outcome, was heterogeneous in nature and commonly related to

At loggerheads or in dovetails? The individual and the State from early modern jurisprudence to contemporary international jurisprudence.

OpenAIRE

De Lucca, Jean-Paul; Works in Progress Seminars Series

2012-01-01

A Works in Progress Seminars Series lecture entitled: At Loggerheads or in dovetails? The individual and the State from early modern jurisprudence to contemporary international jurisprudence. This talk is delivered by Dr Jean Paul De Lucca.

Distributional patterns and possible origin of leafhoppers (Homoptera, Cicadellidae

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Mervin W. Nielson

2000-03-01

Full Text Available The zoogeographical distribution of 42 cicadellid subfamilies and their assigned tribes and genera is compiled with distributional maps and proposed dispersal pathways of genera that are shared interzoogeographically. Possible origin of the subfamilies and tribes is proposed in an ancestral context from which the more modern extant groups evolved whereas origin of genera is in a more modern context. Notwithstanding their complex biogeography, the distributional data of the higher groups indicate that all of the cosmopolitan and near cosmopolitan subfamilies arose during early Cretaceous or possibly the late Jurassic period (140-116 m.y.a. when continental drift was in its early stages. Nearly all of the New World and some Old World subfamilies are considered of more recent origin (late Cretaceous-Tertiary. Ninety percent of the known genera (2,126 are endemic to their respective zoogeographical region and subregion, thus indicating relatively high host specificity and low rate of dispersal. The majority (76% of known extant genera are pantropical in origin, suggesting early or possible Gondwanaland origin of their ancestors. Dispersal pathways of genera shared by more than one zoogeographical region were generally south to north (Neotropical/Nearctic, Oriental/Palaearctic or west to east (Palaearctic/Nearctic, Oriental/Australian, from regions of high diversity to regions of low diversity and from warmer climates to cooler climates. The most diverse and richest leafhopper fauna are present in the Neotropical and Ethiopian regions although taxal affinities between them are poorest. The most depauperate fauna are in the Nearctic region and in Australia, reflecting the impact of isolating and ecological factors on distribution and radiation. Ecological barriers were more evident between the Ethiopian and Oriental fauna than between any other zoogeographical combination. Taxal affinities appeared to be correlated with close continental proximities

The decline of uroscopy in early modern learned medicine (1500-1650).

Science.gov (United States)

Stolberg, Michael

2007-01-01

From the early sixteenth century, uroscopy lost much of the great appeal it had possessed among medieval physicians. Once valued as an outstanding diagnostic tool which ensured authority and fame, it became an object of massive criticism if not derision. As this paper shows, growing awareness of theoretical inconsistencies, the new medical empiricism and humanistic opposition against Arabic and medieval predecessors can explain this drastic revaluation only in part. Uroscopy, it is argued here, came to be perceived above all as a threat to the physicians' professional authority. Faced with persistent demands that they diagnose diseases primarily if not exclusively from urine, they were left with an awkward choice. They risked making fools of themselves by blatant misdiagnosis, but if they rejected the patients' demands people would deem them incapable of a task which many of their less educated competitors were perfectly happy to perform. In the end, in spite of the physicians' massive campaign against it, uroscopy remained very much alive. On the highly competitive early modern medical market patient power had once more prevailed.

The Dichotomy of Insularity: Islands between Isolation and Connectivity in Medieval and Early Modern Europe, and Beyond

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sicking, L.H.J.

2014-01-01

The importance of islands in maritime and global history is not yet understood in a comparative and long term perspective. This article aims to contribute to understanding the role of islands for the establishment, preservation and extension of maritime connections in medieval and early modern

The Rise of Auxiliary Sciences in Early Modern National Historiography: an ‘Interdisciplinary’ Answer to Historical Scepticism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssen, Lydia

2017-01-01

In response to the rising popularity of empirical models of scholarship and an increasingly sharp sceptic criticism against historiography, early modern historiographers strived to place their reconstruction of the past on a more ‘scientific’ basis through a new approach to historical writing. Their

"The Taming of the Shrew": authority and love at the origin of the modern nuclear family

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonella Piazza

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The lesson on William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew was written on occasion of the day against the astonishing number of women murdered by men especially men who pretended to love them. This phenomenon is not to be associated to a sort of archaic culture, but, on the contrary, it is related to modernity. In fact, violence and conflicts in a heterosexual couple come explicitly to the fore with and after the institution of the patriarchal nuclear family which at the origins of modernity posits love as the motivation of marriage and the formation of a family. Shakespeare and the Elizabethan theatre face the question both in tragedies and in comedies as in the case of The Taming of the Shrew where the shrew’s final monologue problematically sounds as the manifesto of the acknowledgment of the inferiority of women and so of the husband’s right to the woman’s subjection to her husband.

Early Pliocene onset of modern Nordic Seas circulation related to ocean gateway changes.

Science.gov (United States)

De Schepper, Stijn; Schreck, Michael; Beck, Kristina Marie; Matthiessen, Jens; Fahl, Kirsten; Mangerud, Gunn

2015-10-28

The globally warm climate of the early Pliocene gradually cooled from 4 million years ago, synchronous with decreasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations. In contrast, palaeoceanographic records indicate that the Nordic Seas cooled during the earliest Pliocene, before global cooling. However, a lack of knowledge regarding the precise timing of Nordic Seas cooling has limited our understanding of the governing mechanisms. Here, using marine palynology, we show that cooling in the Nordic Seas was coincident with the first trans-Arctic migration of cool-water Pacific mollusks around 4.5 million years ago, and followed by the development of a modern-like Nordic Seas surface circulation. Nordic Seas cooling precedes global cooling by 500,000 years; as such, we propose that reconfiguration of the Bering Strait and Central American Seaway triggered the development of a modern circulation in the Nordic Seas, which is essential for North Atlantic Deep Water formation and a precursor for more widespread Greenland glaciation in the late Pliocene.

Creation Stories: Myths about the Origin of Money

OpenAIRE

Desan, Christine

2013-01-01

A myth about the origins of money has long organized modern approaches to the medium. According to that creation story, money is the natural product of human exchange. It can be analogized to a commodity like silver that comes to hand out of the decentralized activity of trading or a convention like language that arises out of a consensus about the value of an item. But if we consider clues about money’s origins and extrapolate from its continuing practice, another story comes into focus. It ...

Searching for ancient balanced polymorphisms shared between Neanderthals and Modern Humans

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Lucas Henriques Viscardi

Full Text Available Abstract Hominin evolution is characterized by adaptive solutions often rooted in behavioral and cognitive changes. If balancing selection had an important and long-lasting impact on the evolution of these traits, it can be hypothesized that genes associated with them should carry an excess of shared polymorphisms (trans- SNPs across recent Homo species. In this study, we investigate the role of balancing selection in human evolution using available exomes from modern (Homo sapiens and archaic humans (H. neanderthalensis and Denisovan for an excess of trans-SNP in two gene sets: one associated with the immune system (IMMS and another one with behavioral system (BEHS. We identified a significant excess of trans-SNPs in IMMS (N=547, of which six of these located within genes previously associated with schizophrenia. No excess of trans-SNPs was found in BEHS, but five genes in this system harbor potential signals for balancing selection and are associated with psychiatric or neurodevelopmental disorders. Our approach evidenced recent Homo trans-SNPs that have been previously implicated in psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia, suggesting that a genetic repertoire common to the immune and behavioral systems could have been maintained by balancing selection starting before the split between archaic and modern humans.

Origin of marine planktonic cyanobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez-Baracaldo, Patricia

2015-12-01

Marine planktonic cyanobacteria contributed to the widespread oxygenation of the oceans towards the end of the Pre-Cambrian and their evolutionary origin represents a key transition in the geochemical evolution of the Earth surface. Little is known, however, about the evolutionary events that led to the appearance of marine planktonic cyanobacteria. I present here phylogenomic (135 proteins and two ribosomal RNAs), Bayesian relaxed molecular clock (18 proteins, SSU and LSU) and Bayesian stochastic character mapping analyses from 131 cyanobacteria genomes with the aim to unravel key evolutionary steps involved in the origin of marine planktonic cyanobacteria. While filamentous cell types evolved early on at around 2,600-2,300 Mya and likely dominated microbial mats in benthic environments for most of the Proterozoic (2,500-542 Mya), marine planktonic cyanobacteria evolved towards the end of the Proterozoic and early Phanerozoic. Crown groups of modern terrestrial and/or benthic coastal cyanobacteria appeared during the late Paleoproterozoic to early Mesoproterozoic. Decrease in cell diameter and loss of filamentous forms contributed to the evolution of unicellular planktonic lineages during the middle of the Mesoproterozoic (1,600-1,000 Mya) in freshwater environments. This study shows that marine planktonic cyanobacteria evolved from benthic marine and some diverged from freshwater ancestors during the Neoproterozoic (1,000-542 Mya).

A HUMAN FACTORS ENGINEERING PROCESS TO SUPPORT HUMAN-SYSTEM INTERFACE DESIGN IN CONTROL ROOM MODERNIZATION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kovesdi, C.; Joe, J.; Boring, R.

2017-05-01

The primary objective of the United States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) program is to sustain operation of the existing commercial nuclear power plants (NPPs) through a multi-pathway approach in conducting research and development (R&D). The Advanced Instrumentation, Information, and Control (II&C) System Technologies pathway conducts targeted R&D to address aging and reliability concerns with legacy instrumentation and control (I&C) and other information systems in existing U.S. NPPs. Control room modernization is an important part following this pathway, and human factors experts at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have been involved in conducting R&D to support migration of new digital main control room (MCR) technologies from legacy analog and legacy digital I&C. This paper describes a human factors engineering (HFE) process that supports human-system interface (HSI) design in MCR modernization activities, particularly with migration of old digital to new digital I&C. The process described in this work is an expansion from the LWRS Report INL/EXT-16-38576, and is a requirements-driven approach that aligns with NUREG-0711 requirements. The work described builds upon the existing literature by adding more detail around key tasks and decisions to make when transitioning from HSI Design into Verification and Validation (V&V). The overall objective of this process is to inform HSI design and elicit specific, measurable, and achievable human factors criteria for new digital technologies. Upon following this process, utilities should have greater confidence with transitioning from HSI design into V&V.

Early Pleistocene human hand phalanx from the Sima del Elefante (TE) cave site in Sierra de Atapuerca (Spain).

Science.gov (United States)

Lorenzo, Carlos; Pablos, Adrián; Carretero, José Miguel; Huguet, Rosa; Valverdú, Josep; Martinón-Torres, María; Arsuaga, Juan Luis; Carbonell, Eudald; Bermúdez de Castro, José María

2015-01-01

In this study, a new Early Pleistocene proximal hand phalanx (ATE9-2) from the Sima del Elefante cave site (TE - Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain), ascribed to Homo sp., is presented and comparatively described in the context of the evolution of the genus Homo. The ATE9-2 specimen is especially important because of the paucity of hand bones in the human fossil record during the Early Pleistocene. The morphological and metrical analyses of the phalanx ATE9-2 indicate that there are no essential differences between it and comparator fossil specimens for the genus Homo after 1.3 Ma (millions of years ago). Similar to Sima de los Huesos and Neandertal specimens, ATE9-2 is a robust proximal hand phalanx, probably reflecting greater overall body robusticity in these populations or a higher gracility in modern humans. The age of level TE9 from Sima del Elefante and morphological and metrical studies of ATE9-2 suggest that the morphology of the proximal hand phalanges and, thus, the morphology of the hand could have remained stable over the last 1.2-1.3 Ma. Taking into account the evidence recently provided by a metacarpal from Kaitio (Kenya) from around 1.42 Ma, we argue that modern hand morphology is present in the genus Homo subsequent to Homo habilis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Ethnolinguistic and Genetic Perspective on the Origins of the Dravidian-Speaking Brahui in Pakistan

OpenAIRE

Pagani, Luca; Colonna, Vincenza; Tyler-Smith, Chris; Ayub, Qasim

2017-01-01

Pakistan is a part of South Asia that modern humans encountered soon after they left Africa ~50 ? 70,000 years ago. Approximately 9,000 years ago they began establishing cities that eventually expanded to represent the Harappan culture, rivalling the early city states of Mesopotamia. The modern state constitutes the north western land mass of the Indian sub-continent and is now the abode of almost 200 million humans representing many ethnicities and linguistic groups. Studies utilising autoso...

The modernizing bias of human rights: stories of mass killings and genocide in Central America.

Science.gov (United States)

Ekern, Stener

2010-01-01

This article analyses selected cases of mass killings and genocide during the civil wars in El Salvador and Guatemala in the 1980s and the way in which the truth commissions in both countries reframed locally grounded narratives to fit the state-centred language of human rights. Redefining wrongdoings as human rights violations produces stories that communicate poorly with local worldviews because the 'truths' that human rights language proposes disregard local realities and transform local conflicts into a type of 'modern', nationwide struggles. Thus, while the concept of genocide might capture well the horrendous nature of a mass killing, it will also ethnify the conflict. Comparisons between local readings and human rights-based reinterpretations reveal a 'modernizing' or 'Westernizing' bias of international law; the article argues for more awareness about such effects in analysis as well as in policy-making.

Macropredatory ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic and the origin of modern trophic networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Fröbisch, Nadia B; Fröbisch, Jörg; Sander, P Martin; Schmitz, Lars; Rieppel, Olivier

2013-01-22

The biotic recovery from Earth's most severe extinction event at the Permian-Triassic boundary largely reestablished the preextinction structure of marine trophic networks, with marine reptiles assuming the predator roles. However, the highest trophic level of today's marine ecosystems, i.e., macropredatory tetrapods that forage on prey of similar size to their own, was thus far lacking in the Paleozoic and early Mesozoic. Here we report a top-tier tetrapod predator, a very large (>8.6 m) ichthyosaur from the early Middle Triassic (244 Ma), of Nevada. This ichthyosaur had a massive skull and large labiolingually flattened teeth with two cutting edges indicative of a macropredatory feeding style. Its presence documents the rapid evolution of modern marine ecosystems in the Triassic where the same level of complexity as observed in today's marine ecosystems is reached within 8 My after the Permian-Triassic mass extinction and within 4 My of the time reptiles first invaded the sea. This find also indicates that the biotic recovery in the marine realm may have occurred faster compared with terrestrial ecosystems, where the first apex predators may not have evolved before the Carnian.

Mobility and the Modern Intellectual: Translated Images from Early 20th-Century Literary Works in Spanish by Carmen Lyra and Luisa Luisi

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Kanost

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This essay juxtaposes original translations of contrasting images from the novel En una silla de ruedas [In a Wheelchair] by Costa Rican writer Carmen Lyra and Poemas de la inmovilidad [Poems of Immobility] by Uruguayan writer Luisa Luisi to reveal how representations of intellectuals who are paralyzed might complicate discourses of the artist, social hygiene, and eugenics in early 20th-century Spanish America. Lyra portrays her protagonist's paralysis as a tragedy, but his disability is also the source of social mobility that allows the novel to depict marginalized members of Costa Rican society. Luisi contests modernista aesthetics of perfect forms, countering with a multifaceted exploration of inner space enabled by physical stillness. Through their depictions of hospitals, asylums, and sanitariums, both writers bear witness to bodies the modernizing project would prefer to hide, and imagine alternative forms of progress.

Reconstruction of human exposure to heavy metals using synchrotron radiation microbeams in prehistoric and modern humans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koizumi, Akio; Azechi, Miki; Shirasawa, Koyo

2009-01-01

Teeth can serve as records of environmental exposure to heavy metals during their formation. We applied a new technology - synchrotron radiation microbeams (SRXRF) - for analysis of heavy metals in human permanent teeth in modern and historical samples. Each tooth was cut in half. A longitudinal section 200 μm in thickness was subjected to the determination of the heavy metal content by SRXRF or conventional analytical methods (ICP-MS analysis or reduction-aeration atomic absorption spectrometry). The relative concentrations of Pb, Hg, Cu and Zn measured by SRXRF were translated in concentrations (in g of heavy metal/g of enamel) using calibration curves by the two analytical methods. Concentrations in teeth in the modern females (n=5) were 1.2±0.5 μg/g (n=5) for Pb; 1.7±0.2 ng/g for Hg; 0.9±1.1 μg/g for Cu; 150±24.6 μg/g for Zn. The levels of Pb were highest in the teeth samples obtained from the humans of the Edo era (1603-1868 AD) (0.5-4.0 μg/g, n=4). No trend was observed in this study in the Hg content in teeth during 3,000 years. The concentrations of Cu were highest in teeth of two medieval craftsmen (57.0 and 220 μg/g). The levels of Zn were higher in modern subjects (P<0.05) than those in the Jomon (∼1000 BC) to Edo periods [113.2±27.4 (μg/g, n=11)]. Reconstruction of developmental exposure history to lead in a famous court painter of the Edo period (18th century) revealed high levels of Pb (7.1-22.0 μg/g) in his childhood. SRXRF is useful a method for reconstructing human exposures in very long trends. (author)

More on the Liang Bua finds and modern human cretins.

Science.gov (United States)

Oxnard, Charles; Obendorf, Peter J; Kefford, Ben J; Dennison, John

2012-12-01

Brown (2012: LB1 and LB6 Homo floresiensis are not modern human (Homo sapiens) cretins, Journal of Human Evolution) makes errors of fact, omission and interpretation. Brown's comments refer, among others, to (1) delayed growth and development indicated by unfused epiphyses, (2) postcranial limb proportions: limbs to trunk, between limbs, and within limbs, (3) postcranial bone torsions and angles, (4) postcranial robusticity, real and apparent, (5) skull features, and (6) cretinism on Flores. In each of these areas, much information about cretins is incorrect and much information (Oxnard et al., 2010) comparing the Liang Bua remains with cretins is ignored. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

The Dilemma of Obedience: Persecution, Dissimulation, and Memory in Early Modern England, 1553-1603

OpenAIRE

Harkins, Robert Lee

2013-01-01

This study examines the problem of religious and political obedience in early modern England. Drawing upon extensive manuscript research, it focuses on the reign of Mary I (1553-1558), when the official return to Roman Catholicism was accompanied by the prosecution of Protestants for heresy, and the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603), when the state religion again shifted to Protestantism. I argue that the cognitive dissonance created by these seesaw changes of official doctrine necessitated a ...

John Considine. Dictionaries in Early Modern Europe: Lexicography and the Making of Heritage.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Loránd-Levente Pálfi

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Dictionary history or history of lexicography does not belong to one of the most studied metalexicographic disciplines, although the International Society for Historical Lexicography and Lexicology regularly convenes conferences and publishes proceedings, and much literature (mainly in the Western world and mainly dealing with Western lexicography has been published during the last five decades. Furthermore most of the work done deals with the subject quite specifically. General or versatile monographs are rather rare. Because of this, John Considine's Dictionaries in Early Modern Europe is a long-awaited and long-overdue work.

IL BISOGNO DELL’ORIGINE E L’ORRORE DEL MUTISMO. ALCUNE NOTE SULLA QUESTIONE DELL’ORIGINE DEL LINGUAGGIO VERBALE UMANO MORE PHILOSOPHICO

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salottolo Delio

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In this essay we analyze more philosophico the impact of the research on the origin of human verbal language. Starting from suggestions deriving from the work of Agamben and Lévi-Strauss, two discontinuists, we face a double contradiction. The first relates to the inability to define the birth date of human language and of human world. This consideration makes us suspect that behind the passion for this issue there is a hidden need. The second concerns the mix of fascinans and tremendum linked to human mutism, which suggests, from the dominator point of view, an attitude to human animalization, and, from the dominated point of view, a form of resistance or survival instinct. Under these lenses we will read the enfant sauvage by Itard and the Foe by Coetzee. Finally we will discuss the issue of the need for origin as modern mankind melancholia and as unresolved tension towards the future.

An early modern factory between state and market: labor and management at the Amsterdam naval shipyard (1660-1795)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brandon, P.; de Jong, A.; Wubs, B.

2012-01-01

Naval shipyards were among the largest production facilities of the pre-industrial world. The Venetian Arsenal and the British Royal Dockyards therefore play a prominent role in the historiography of early modern labor relations. However, labor relations at the Dutch naval shipyards remain

Critics to Metaphysics by Modern Philosophers: A Discourse on Human Beings in Reality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frederikus Fios

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We have entered the 21st century that is popularly known as the era of the development of modern science and technology. Philosophy provides naming for contemporary era as postmodern era. But do we suddenly come to this day and age? No! Because humans are homo viator, persona that does pilgrimage in history, space and time. Philosophy has expanded periodically in the long course of history. Since the days of classical antiquity, philosophy comes with a patterned metaphysical paradigm. This paradigm survives very long in the stage history of philosophy as maintained by many philosophers who hold fast to the philosophical-epistemic claim that philosophy should be (das sollen metaphysical. Classical Greek philosopher, Aristotle was a philosopher who claims metaphysics as the initial philosophy. Then, Immanuel Kant, Hegel, Heidegger, Marx even Habermas offer appropriate shades of metaphysical philosophy versus spirit of the age. Modern philosophers offer a new paradigm in the way of doing philosophy. The new spirit of modern philosophers declared as if giving criticism on traditional western metaphysics (since Aristotle that are considered irrelevant. This paper intends to show the argument between traditional metaphysical and modern philosophers who criticize metaphysics. The author will make a philosophical synthesis to obtain enlightenment to the position of human beings in the space of time. Using the method of Hegelian dialectic (thesis-antiteses-synthesis, this topic will be developed and assessed in accordance with the interests of this paper. 

Book review: Mapping gendered routes and spaces in the early modern world

Science.gov (United States)

Varanka, Dalia E.

2016-01-01

This book encapsulates and extends many seminal ideas presented at the eighth “Attending to Early Modern Women” conference held at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee in June 2012. Merry Wiesner-Hanks has done a masterful job editing these papers within a central theme of the interaction of spatial domains with gender-based phenomena. The fifteen chapters of this book are organized into four sections: “Framework,” discussing theoretical concepts; “Embodied Environments,” focusing on physicality; “Communities and Networks” of social patterns; and “Exchanges” across geographic space. Together, a global society shaped by gender and sexuality and intersected by race and class emerges.

The organization of mercantile capitalism in the Low Countries: private partnerships in early modern Antwerp (1480-1620)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Hofstraeten, Bram

2016-01-01

By means of an in-depth analysis of 132 partnership agreements, which had been notarized in the city of Antwerp between 1480 and 1620, the present article aspires to provide a substantiated narrative on the use as well as legal features of private partnerships in the early modern Low Countries. In

An exceptionally preserved transitional lungfish from the lower permian of Nebraska, USA, and the origin of modern lungfishes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jason D Pardo

Full Text Available Complete, exceptionally-preserved skulls of the Permian lungfish Persephonichthys chthonica gen. et sp. nov. are described. Persephonichthys chthonica is unique among post-Devonian lungfishes in preserving portions of the neurocranium, permitting description of the braincase of a stem-ceratodontiform for the first time. The completeness of P. chthonica permits robust phylogenetic analysis of the relationships of the extant lungfish lineage within the Devonian lungfish diversification for the first time. New analyses of the relationships of this new species within two published matrices using both maximum parsimony and Bayesian inference robustly place P. chthonica and modern lungfishes within dipterid-grade dipnoans rather than within a clade containing Late Devonian 'phaneropleurids' and common Late Paleozoic lungfishes such as Sagenodus. Monophyly of post-Devonian lungfishes is not supported and the Carboniferous-Permian taxon Sagenodus is found to be incidental to the origins of modern lungfishes, suggesting widespread convergence in Late Paleozoic lungfishes. Morphology of the skull, hyoid arch, and pectoral girdle suggests a deviation in feeding mechanics from that of Devonian lungfishes towards the more dynamic gape cycle and more effective buccal pumping seen in modern lungfishes. Similar anatomy observed previously in 'Rhinodipterus' kimberyensis likely represents an intermediate state between the strict durophagy observed in most Devonian lungfishes and the more dynamic buccal pump seen in Persephonichthys and modern lungfishes, rather than adaptation to air-breathing exclusively.

An Exceptionally Preserved Transitional Lungfish from the Lower Permian of Nebraska, USA, and the Origin of Modern Lungfishes

Science.gov (United States)

Pardo, Jason D.; Huttenlocker, Adam K.; Small, Bryan J.

2014-01-01

Complete, exceptionally-preserved skulls of the Permian lungfish Persephonichthys chthonica gen. et sp. nov. are described. Persephonichthys chthonica is unique among post-Devonian lungfishes in preserving portions of the neurocranium, permitting description of the braincase of a stem-ceratodontiform for the first time. The completeness of P. chthonica permits robust phylogenetic analysis of the relationships of the extant lungfish lineage within the Devonian lungfish diversification for the first time. New analyses of the relationships of this new species within two published matrices using both maximum parsimony and Bayesian inference robustly place P. chthonica and modern lungfishes within dipterid-grade dipnoans rather than within a clade containing Late Devonian ‘phaneropleurids’ and common Late Paleozoic lungfishes such as Sagenodus. Monophyly of post-Devonian lungfishes is not supported and the Carboniferous-Permian taxon Sagenodus is found to be incidental to the origins of modern lungfishes, suggesting widespread convergence in Late Paleozoic lungfishes. Morphology of the skull, hyoid arch, and pectoral girdle suggests a deviation in feeding mechanics from that of Devonian lungfishes towards the more dynamic gape cycle and more effective buccal pumping seen in modern lungfishes. Similar anatomy observed previously in ‘Rhinodipterus’ kimberyensis likely represents an intermediate state between the strict durophagy observed in most Devonian lungfishes and the more dynamic buccal pump seen in Persephonichthys and modern lungfishes, rather than adaptation to air-breathing exclusively. PMID:25265394

Liquid Modernity & Late Capitalism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Claus D.

In Liquid Modernity, Bauman portrays Adorno and the rest of the early Frankfurt School as sociologists and thinkers belonging to the ‘heavy’ phase of modernity. In other words, they are deemed irrelevant to the discussion of current sociological time diagnoses and the purpose of critique under co...

Short faces, big tongues: developmental origin of the human chin.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Coquerelle

Full Text Available During the course of human evolution, the retraction of the face underneath the braincase, and closer to the cervical column, has reduced the horizontal dimension of the vocal tract. By contrast, the relative size of the tongue has not been reduced, implying a rearrangement of the space at the back of the vocal tract to allow breathing and swallowing. This may have left a morphological signature such as a chin (mental prominence that can potentially be interpreted in Homo. Long considered an autopomorphic trait of Homo sapiens, various extinct hominins show different forms of mental prominence. These features may be the evolutionary by-product of equivalent developmental constraints correlated with an enlarged tongue. In order to investigate developmental mechanisms related to this hypothesis, we compare modern 34 human infants against 8 chimpanzee fetuses, whom development of the mandibular symphysis passes through similar stages. The study sets out to test that the shared ontogenetic shape changes of the symphysis observed in both species are driven by the same factor--space restriction at the back of the vocal tract and the associated arrangement of the tongue and hyoid bone. We apply geometric morphometric methods to extensive three-dimensional anatomical landmarks and semilandmarks configuration, capturing the geometry of the cervico-craniofacial complex including the hyoid bone, tongue muscle and the mandible. We demonstrate that in both species, the forward displacement of the mental region derives from the arrangement of the tongue and hyoid bone, in order to cope with the relative horizontal narrowing of the oral cavity. Because humans and chimpanzees share this pattern of developmental integration, the different forms of mental prominence seen in some extinct hominids likely originate from equivalent ontogenetic constraints. Variations in this process could account for similar morphologies.

Teaching the Past in the Early Modern Era: Two Different Ways to Make Use of History

Science.gov (United States)

Bruter, Annie

2012-01-01

Were teachers, of the early modern era not longing for the present? Most colleges of that time did not offer a history course. Still, they did teach a lot about the past since the teaching consisted in the reading of the works of ancient writers. This is because ancient science and literature were considered much more advanced than the science and…

The Modern Origin of Matrices and Their Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Debnath, L.

2014-01-01

This paper deals with the modern development of matrices, linear transformations, quadratic forms and their applications to geometry and mechanics, eigenvalues, eigenvectors and characteristic equations with applications. Included are the representations of real and complex numbers, and quaternions by matrices, and isomorphism in order to show…

NPP I and C system modernizations in the Czech Republic. The NPP Dukovany example

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krs, P.

1998-01-01

There are four units of WWER 440/213 type reactors under operation at Nuclear Power Plant Dukovany site in the Czech Republic. The EEZ utility has decided to include upgrade of existing Instrumentation and Control (I and C) systems as one of the most significant parts of a larger scale modernization project. The original I and C systems designed in the late 70's and early 80's with analogue equipment and relays will be subjected to an integrated modernization programme developed to replace obsolete equipment, to balance operational and maintenance costs, to improve performance and to enhance plant safety. To achieve this objective within next decade, the utility has already started preparatory phase of the overall modernization project, including analytical and planning activities related to the I and C part. (author)

And yet, we were modern. The paradoxes of Iberian science after the Grand Narratives.

Science.gov (United States)

Pimentel, Juan; Pardo-Tomás, José

2017-06-01

In this article, we try to explain the origin of a disagreement; the sort that often arises when the subject is the history of early modern Spanish science. In the decades between 1970 and 1990, while some historians were trying to include Spain in the grand narrative of the rise of modern science, the very historical category of the Scientific Revolution was beginning to be dismantled. It could be said that Spaniards were boarding the flagship of modern science right before it sank. To understand this décalage it would be helpful to recall the role of the history of science during the years after the Franco dictatorship and Spain's transition to democracy. It was a discipline useful for putting behind us the Black Legend and Spanish exceptionalism.

Making expert knowledge through the image: connections between antiquarian and early modern scientific illustration.

Science.gov (United States)

Moser, Stephanie

2014-03-01

This essay examines drawings of antiquities in the context of the history of early modern scientific illustration. The role of illustrations in the establishment of archaeology as a discipline is assessed, and the emergence of a graphic style for representing artifacts is shown to be closely connected to the development of scientific illustration in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. The essay argues that the production of conventionalized drawings of antiquities during this period represents a fundamental shift in the approach to ancient material culture, signifying the recognition of objects as evidence. As has been demonstrated in other scientific fields, the creation of a visual system for recording objects was central to the acceptance of artifacts as "data" that could be organized into groups, classified as types, and analyzed to gain knowledge of the past.

Gene expression analyses of the spatio-temporal relationships of human medulloblastoma subgroups during early human neurogenesis.

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Cornelia M Hooper

Full Text Available Medulloblastoma is the most common form of malignant paediatric brain tumour and is the leading cause of childhood cancer related mortality. The four molecular subgroups of medulloblastoma that have been identified - WNT, SHH, Group 3 and Group 4 - have molecular and topographical characteristics suggestive of different cells of origin. Definitive identification of the cell(s of origin of the medulloblastoma subgroups, particularly the poorer prognosis Group 3 and Group 4 medulloblastoma, is critical to understand the pathogenesis of the disease, and ultimately for the development of more effective treatment options. To address this issue, the gene expression profiles of normal human neural tissues and cell types representing a broad neuro-developmental continuum, were compared to those of two independent cohorts of primary human medulloblastoma specimens. Clustering, co-expression network, and gene expression analyses revealed that WNT and SHH medulloblastoma may be derived from distinct neural stem cell populations during early embryonic development, while the transcriptional profiles of Group 3 and Group 4 medulloblastoma resemble cerebellar granule neuron precursors at weeks 10-15 and 20-30 of embryogenesis, respectively. Our data indicate that Group 3 medulloblastoma may arise through abnormal neuronal differentiation, whereas deregulation of synaptic pruning-associated apoptosis may be driving Group 4 tumorigenesis. Overall, these data provide significant new insight into the spatio-temporal relationships and molecular pathogenesis of the human medulloblastoma subgroups, and provide an important framework for the development of more refined model systems, and ultimately improved therapeutic strategies.

Barking up the wrong tree: modern northern European dogs fail to explain their origin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmström, Helena; Vilà, Carles; Gilbert, M Thomas P

2008-01-01

the domestication. Human activities are assumed not to have altered the haplogroup frequencies to any great extent. We studied this hypothesis by analyzing 24 mtDNA sequences in ancient Scandinavian dogs. Breeds originating in northern Europe are characterized by having a high frequency of mtDNA sequences belonging...... frequencies should be carried out with caution if based only on contemporary data. They do not only tell their own story, but also that of humans....

Origin of the Early Sial Crust and U-Pb Isotope-Geochemical Heterogeneity of the Earth's Mantle

Science.gov (United States)

Mishkin, M. A.; Nozhkin, A. D.; Vovna, G. M.; Sakhno, V. G.; Veldemar, A. A.

2018-02-01

It is shown that presence of the Early Precambrian sial crust in the Indo-Atlantic segment of the Earth and its absence in the Pacific has been caused by geochemical differences in the mantle underlying these segments. These differences were examined on the basis of Nd-Hf and U-Pb isotopes in modern basalts. The U-Pb isotope system is of particular interest, since uranium is a member of a group of heat-generating radioactive elements providing heat for plumes. It is shown that in the Indo-Atlantic segment, a distribution of areas of the modern HIMU type mantle is typical, while it is almost completely absent in the Pacific segment. In the Archean, in the upper HIMU type paleo-mantle areas, plume generation and formation of the primordial basic crust occurred; this was followed by its remelting resulting in the appearance of an early sial crust forming cratons of the Indo-Atlantic segment.

Contextualizing Female Infanticide: Ming China in Early Modern European Travelogues

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Rachana Sachdev

2010-10-01

Full Text Available One of the essential components of the early modern European response to China was an emphasis on the fabulous wealth and social organization of Chinese society. Despite their knowledge of the wide-scale abandonment and killing of newborns within the society, and despite the categorization of infanticide as a great moral sin by the early Christian church, the European travelers to China commented on infanticide dispassionately, without any moral revulsion, and continued to project an image of China as a virtual utopia for its residents. One reason for the detached descriptions of abandonment of children and infanticide in China might be the fact that conditions with regard to children in Europe were no superior to those in China and were probably far worse; the vast numbers of abandoned and dead children in Europe blunted the edge of criticism with regard to Chinese customs. Another might be that infanticide was practiced within Europe contemporaneously, even though the killing of newborn children there was practiced much more surreptitiously, and public opinion had firmed up connections among single women, illegitimacy, concealment, and murder. However, the dire social circumstances within their own countries had not prevented the Europeans from soundly criticizing and morally reproving cannibalism or infanticide in other cultures. In order to understand their acceptance of this “sinful” practice in China, we must look elsewhere.

Gendering Modernity: Korean Women Seen through the Early Missionary Gaze (1880s–1910s

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Heejeong Sohn

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The early Protestant mission archives on Korea, especially those archives concerning the lives of native Korean women during a time of great social upheaval, are among the most eclectic sources in the modern world collected by a single entity. The allure of a new Western religion attracted many Korean women to Christian programs in churches, schools, and hospitals. The church built the first modern schools for girls and trained them to become Bible women, nurses, and teachers. Due to their widely acknowledged religious and Orientalist biases, however, the missionary documents have been used mostly to research topics including mission history and Western perceptions of non-European societies. Nevertheless, the mission archives offer intimate and unique accounts of native Koreans and local history, especially during the period between the 1880s and 1910s. This essay introduces a set of photographic images of Korean women collected and produced over three decades by the Protestant missions, mostly the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Historical DNA reveals the demographic history of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in medieval and early modern Iceland.

Science.gov (United States)

Ólafsdóttir, Guðbjörg Ásta; Westfall, Kristen M; Edvardsson, Ragnar; Pálsson, Snæbjörn

2014-02-22

Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) vertebrae from archaeological sites were used to study the history of the Icelandic Atlantic cod population in the time period of 1500-1990. Specifically, we used coalescence modelling to estimate population size and fluctuations from the sequence diversity at the cytochrome b (cytb) and Pantophysin I (PanI) loci. The models are consistent with an expanding population during the warm medieval period, large historical effective population size (NE), a marked bottleneck event at 1400-1500 and a decrease in NE in early modern times. The model results are corroborated by the reduction of haplotype and nucleotide variation over time and pairwise population distance as a significant portion of nucleotide variation partitioned across the 1550 time mark. The mean age of the historical fished stock is high in medieval times with a truncation in age in early modern times. The population size crash coincides with a period of known cooling in the North Atlantic, and we conclude that the collapse may be related to climate or climate-induced ecosystem change.

Modern Virtual Reality. And the effects of affecting human senses to increase immersion

OpenAIRE

Ekros, Matthias

2015-01-01

Modern virtual reality is an ever growing subject in today’s society. I delved deeper into some key moments in the development of modern virtual reality. Oculus Rift has shown incredible potential. Some developments even seek to envelope the human senses in virtual reality as well.   With several different approaches to the same solution there are many ways that the experience can affect the overall immersion of a consumer into the product.  The tests I performed were primarily focused around...

Medieval and early modern approaches to fractures of the proximal humerus: an historical review

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brorson, S.

2010-01-01

The diagnosis and management of complex fractures of the proximal humerus have challenged surgical practitioners and medical writers since the earliest recorded surgical texts. Current knowledge of fractures of the proximal humerus has been obtained through pathoanatomical and biomechanical studies...... within the last two centuries. However, the historical preconditions for this development have not been studied. This paper reviews written sources from the fall of the Roman Empire to the late eighteenth century. Medieval and early modern writers mainly rely on the Hippocratic writings De Fracturis...

The Paradox of Isochrony in the Evolution of Human Rhythm

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Andrea Ravignani

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Isochrony is crucial to the rhythm of human music. Some neural, behavioral and anatomical traits underlying rhythm perception and production are shared with a broad range of species. These may either have a common evolutionary origin, or have evolved into similar traits under different evolutionary pressures. Other traits underlying rhythm are rare across species, only found in humans and few other animals. Isochrony, or stable periodicity, is common to most human music, but isochronous behaviors are also found in many species. It appears paradoxical that humans are particularly good at producing and perceiving isochronous patterns, although this ability does not conceivably confer any evolutionary advantage to modern humans. This article will attempt to solve this conundrum. To this end, we define the concept of isochrony from the present functional perspective of physiology, cognitive neuroscience, signal processing, and interactive behavior, and review available evidence on isochrony in the signals of humans and other animals. We then attempt to resolve the paradox of isochrony by expanding an evolutionary hypothesis about the function that isochronous behavior may have had in early hominids. Finally, we propose avenues for empirical research to examine this hypothesis and to understand the evolutionary origin of isochrony in general.

The Origin and Diversification of Birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Brusatte, Stephen L; O'Connor, Jingmai K; Jarvis, Erich D

2015-10-05

Birds are one of the most recognizable and diverse groups of modern vertebrates. Over the past two decades, a wealth of new fossil discoveries and phylogenetic and macroevolutionary studies has transformed our understanding of how birds originated and became so successful. Birds evolved from theropod dinosaurs during the Jurassic (around 165-150 million years ago) and their classic small, lightweight, feathered, and winged body plan was pieced together gradually over tens of millions of years of evolution rather than in one burst of innovation. Early birds diversified throughout the Jurassic and Cretaceous, becoming capable fliers with supercharged growth rates, but were decimated at the end-Cretaceous extinction alongside their close dinosaurian relatives. After the mass extinction, modern birds (members of the avian crown group) explosively diversified, culminating in more than 10,000 species distributed worldwide today. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Charged particle counters in the pre-modern period

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beringer, R.

1979-01-01

The history of nuclear particle and radiation counting techniques divides itself naturally into three epochs that may be labeled: Early, Pre-Modern, and Modern. The Pre-Modern era is designated as the period starting in the 1930's during which the several types of gas-ionization counters of the Early period were perfected and coupled to vacuum tube circuits and recording apparatus. These developments are briefly discussed. (Auth.)

Tracing the route of modern humans out of Africa by using 225 human genome sequences from Ethiopians and Egyptians.

Science.gov (United States)

Pagani, Luca; Schiffels, Stephan; Gurdasani, Deepti; Danecek, Petr; Scally, Aylwyn; Chen, Yuan; Xue, Yali; Haber, Marc; Ekong, Rosemary; Oljira, Tamiru; Mekonnen, Ephrem; Luiselli, Donata; Bradman, Neil; Bekele, Endashaw; Zalloua, Pierre; Durbin, Richard; Kivisild, Toomas; Tyler-Smith, Chris

2015-06-04

The predominantly African origin of all modern human populations is well established, but the route taken out of Africa is still unclear. Two alternative routes, via Egypt and Sinai or across the Bab el Mandeb strait into Arabia, have traditionally been proposed as feasible gateways in light of geographic, paleoclimatic, archaeological, and genetic evidence. Distinguishing among these alternatives has been difficult. We generated 225 whole-genome sequences (225 at 8× depth, of which 8 were increased to 30×; Illumina HiSeq 2000) from six modern Northeast African populations (100 Egyptians and five Ethiopian populations each represented by 25 individuals). West Eurasian components were masked out, and the remaining African haplotypes were compared with a panel of sub-Saharan African and non-African genomes. We showed that masked Northeast African haplotypes overall were more similar to non-African haplotypes and more frequently present outside Africa than were any sets of haplotypes derived from a West African population. Furthermore, the masked Egyptian haplotypes showed these properties more markedly than the masked Ethiopian haplotypes, pointing to Egypt as the more likely gateway in the exodus to the rest of the world. Using five Ethiopian and three Egyptian high-coverage masked genomes and the multiple sequentially Markovian coalescent (MSMC) approach, we estimated the genetic split times of Egyptians and Ethiopians from non-African populations at 55,000 and 65,000 years ago, respectively, whereas that of West Africans was estimated to be 75,000 years ago. Both the haplotype and MSMC analyses thus suggest a predominant northern route out of Africa via Egypt. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Safety Requirements and Modern Technical Requirements in Human Information Systems in Amman Hotels

OpenAIRE

Farouq Ahmad Alazzam; Sattam Rakan Allahawiah; Mohammad Nayef Alsarayreh; Kafa Hmoud Abdallah al Nawaiseh

2015-01-01

This study aimed to demonstrate the availability of Safety requirements and modern technical requirements in human information systems in Amman hotels. an the most important results of this study is the availability of security and safety requirements in human information systems In Amman hotels and The adequacy of the information that it provided .and show that all departments are not connected by appropriate and effective communication networks in adequate form . Also sophisticated operatin...

Original Research Human papillomavirus in head and neck ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017 The College of Medicine and the Medical Association of Malawi. This work is ... Original Research. Human ... simultaneous evaluation of other risk factors including HIV ..... increased HNSCC compared to HIV-negative people.18,19.

The Control Room Upgrade in Oskarshamn 2 Modernization Project Lesson Learned from Ongoing Human Factor design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, Gunnarsson; Magnus, Eliasson

2011-01-01

Due to recent changes in Swedish commercial nuclear safety system requirements, OKG decided to make the changes required by the new safety requirements, apply for a 30-year license extension, and to concurrently make changes for a major power uprate; this project is called the Plant Life Extension project (PLEX). It was decided, in addition to several plant modifications, to re build the old control room to a new modern screen-based control room located in the same space as the old one, and with the same number of operators. This paper explains the approach taken when modernizing the control room as a part of the Oskarshamn 2 Modernization project PLEX, the results, and the lessons learned from this ongoing work. The combination of changes results in a modernization project that is expected to increase output power by approximately 50 MWe through increased efficiency and to result in an increase in thermal power from 1800 MWt to 2300 MWt (28%) and electrical power from 620 MWe to 840 MWe due to the power uprate. The license to operate OKG2 expires in 2012 The PLEX project is one of the most ambitious nuclear power plant modernization projects ever implemented, world-wide. The application of human factors engineering (HFE) and control room and HSI design is a complex challenge. The original main control room from 1975 in Oskarshamn 2, was quite compact and provided a fairly good overview of the process. New requirements for enhanced safety and other design changes in the process systems and instrumentation led to a step-wise installation of new information and control equipment in the control room. Since the control room was quite limited in space, the control room grew larger, and the new equipment was installed farther away from the operator workplaces into an adjacent control room. This was even the case for the new safety systems. These systems were functioning well separately as such, but in some cases their interfaces were inconsistent, leading to increased

Medical Connections and Exchanges in the Early Modern World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Naylor Pearson

2011-12-01

Full Text Available For most of human history there have been extensive exchanges of medical information all over Eurasia. Some diseases were considered to be geographically determined, and hence had to be cured using local knowledge. Other ailments were found in many places, but cures could differ according to location. Most healers, whether book based or experiential, took a non-judgemental approach to different healing methods, as seen especially in India in the early colonial period.

Early embryonic failure: Expression and imprinted status of candidate genes on human chromosome 21

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sherman, L.S.; Bennett, P.R.; Moore, G.E. [Queen Charlotte`s and Chelsea Hospital, London (United Kingdom)

1994-09-01

Two cases of maternal uniparental (hetero)disomy for human chromosome 21 (mUPD21) have been identified in a systematic search for UPD in 23 cases of early embryonic failure (EEF). Bi-parental origin of the other chromosome pairs was confirmed using specific VNTR probes or dinucleotide repeat analysis. Both maternally and paternally derived isochromosomes 21q have previously been identified in two individuals with normal phenotypes. Full UPD21 has a different mechanism of origin than uniparental isochromosome 21q and its effect on imprinted genes and phenotypic outcome will therefore not necessarily be the same. EEF associated with mUPD21 suggests that developmentally important genes on HSA 21 may be imprinted such that they are only expressed from either the maternally or paternally derived alleles. We have searched for monoallelic expression of candidate genes on HSA 21 in human pregnancy (CBS, IFNAR, COL6A1) using intragenic DNA polymorphisms. These genes were chosen either because their murine homologues lie in imprinted regions or because they are potentially important in embryogenesis. Once imprinted candidate genes have been identified, their methylation status and expression in normal, early embryonic failure and uniparental disomy 21 pregnancies will be studied. At the same time, a larger number of cases of EEF are being examined to further investigate the incidence of UPD21 in this group.

Learning about human population history from ancient and modern genomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Stoneking, Mark; Krause, Johannes

2011-08-18

Genome-wide data, both from SNP arrays and from complete genome sequencing, are becoming increasingly abundant and are now even available from extinct hominins. These data are providing new insights into population history; in particular, when combined with model-based analytical approaches, genome-wide data allow direct testing of hypotheses about population history. For example, genome-wide data from both contemporary populations and extinct hominins strongly support a single dispersal of modern humans from Africa, followed by two archaic admixture events: one with Neanderthals somewhere outside Africa and a second with Denisovans that (so far) has only been detected in New Guinea. These new developments promise to reveal new stories about human population history, without having to resort to storytelling.

Symbiotic Origin of Aging.

Science.gov (United States)

Greenberg, Edward F; Vatolin, Sergei

2018-06-01

Normally aging cells are characterized by an unbalanced mitochondrial dynamic skewed toward punctate mitochondria. Genetic and pharmacological manipulation of mitochondrial fission/fusion cycles can contribute to both accelerated and decelerated cellular or organismal aging. In this work, we connect these experimental data with the symbiotic theory of mitochondrial origin to generate new insight into the evolutionary origin of aging. Mitochondria originated from autotrophic α-proteobacteria during an ancient endosymbiotic event early in eukaryote evolution. To expand beyond individual host cells, dividing α-proteobacteria initiated host cell lysis; apoptosis is a product of this original symbiont cell lytic exit program. Over the course of evolution, the host eukaryotic cell attenuated the harmful effect of symbiotic proto-mitochondria, and modern mitochondria are now functionally interdependent with eukaryotic cells; they retain their own circular genomes and independent replication timing. In nondividing differentiated or multipotent eukaryotic cells, intracellular mitochondria undergo repeated fission/fusion cycles, favoring fission as organisms age. The discordance between cellular quiescence and mitochondrial proliferation generates intracellular stress, eventually leading to a gradual decline in host cell performance and age-related pathology. Hence, aging evolved from a conflict between maintenance of a quiescent, nonproliferative state and the evolutionarily conserved propagation program driving the life cycle of former symbiotic organisms: mitochondria.

Trafficking in human beings: a modern form of slavery or a transnational crime?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Wilt, H.

2014-01-01

Trafficking in human beings is often qualified as a modern form of slavery, with the obvious intention to stress the seriousness of the crime and to bring it within the jurisdictional scope of the International Criminal Court. This article critically assesses this position. The author argues that,

Light Has Been Thrown (on Human Origins: a Brief History of Palaeoanthropology, with Notes on the "Punctuated" Origin of Homo Sapiens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giorgio Manzi

2013-12-01

Full Text Available “Light will be thrown on the origin of man and his history”: this was the single line that Charles Darwin devoted to human evolution in the Origin of Species (1859. At present, there is a number of extinct species, which we understand  to be related to human evolution, demonstrating that the Darwin’s prediction was correct: light has been thrown, indeed. Moreover, the science of human origin (or palaeoanthropology appears to be able to shed much light not only on the natural history of humankind, but also on mechanisms and patterns of "evolution" as a general phenomenon. This is of special interest when we focus on data and hypotheses concerning the origin of our own species, Homo sapiens.

Paleoparasitology: the origin of human parasites

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Adauto Araujo

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Parasitism is composed by three subsystems: the parasite, the host, and the environment. There are no organisms that cannot be parasitized. The relationship between a parasite and its host species most of the time do not result in damage or disease to the host. However, in a parasitic disease the presence of a given parasite is always necessary, at least in a given moment of the infection. Some parasite species that infect humans were inherited from pre-hominids, and were shared with other phylogenetically close host species, but other parasite species were acquired from the environment as humans evolved. Human migration spread inherited parasites throughout the globe. To recover and trace the origin and evolution of infectious diseases, paleoparasitology was created. Paleoparasitology is the study of parasites in ancient material, which provided new information on the evolution, paleoepidemiology, ecology and phylogenetics of infectious diseases.

Brain, calvarium, cladistics: A new approach to an old question, who are modern humans and Neandertals?

Science.gov (United States)

Mounier, Aurélien; Balzeau, Antoine; Caparros, Miguel; Grimaud-Hervé, Dominique

2016-03-01

The evolutionary history of the genus Homo is the focus of major research efforts in palaeoanthropology. However, the use of palaeoneurology to infer phylogenies of our genus is rare. Here we use cladistics to test the importance of the brain in differentiating and defining Neandertals and modern humans. The analysis is based on morphological data from the calvarium and endocast of Pleistocene fossils and results in a single most parsimonious cladogram. We demonstrate that the joint use of endocranial and calvarial features with cladistics provides a unique means to understand the evolution of the genus Homo. The main results of this study indicate that: (i) the endocranial features are more phylogenetically informative than the characters from the calvarium; (ii) the specific differentiation of Neandertals and modern humans is mostly supported by well-known calvarial autapomorphies; (iii) the endocranial anatomy of modern humans and Neandertals show strong similarities, which appeared in the fossil record with the last common ancestor of both species; and (iv) apart from encephalisation, human endocranial anatomy changed tremendously during the end of the Middle Pleistocene. This may be linked to major cultural and technological novelties that had happened by the end of the Middle Pleistocene (e.g., expansion of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) in Africa and Mousterian in Europe). The combined study of endocranial and exocranial anatomy offers opportunities to further understand human evolution and the implication for the phylogeny of our genus. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Testing the hypothesis on cognitive evolution of modern humans' learning ability: current status of past-climatic approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoneda, Minoru; Abe-Ouchi, Ayako; Kawahata, Hodaka; Yokoyama, Yusuke; Oguchi, Takashi

2014-05-01

The impact of climate change on human evolution is important and debating topic for many years. Since 2010, we have involved in a general joint project entitled "Replacement of Neanderthal by Modern Humans: Testing Evolutional Models of Learning", which based on a theoretical prediction that the cognitive ability related to individual and social learning divide fates of ancient humans in very unstable Late Pleistocene climate. This model predicts that the human populations which experienced a series of environmental changes would have higher rate of individual learners, while detailed reconstructions of global climate change have reported fluent and drastic change based on ice cores and stalagmites. However, we want to understand the difference between anatomically modern human which survived and the other archaic extinct humans including European Neanderthals and Asian Denisovans. For this purpose the global synchronized change is not useful for understanding but the regional difference in the amplitude and impact of climate change is the information required. Hence, we invited a geophysicist busing Global Circulation Model to reconstruct the climatic distribution and temporal change in a continental scale. At the same time, some geochemists and geographers construct a database of local climate changes recorded in different proxies. At last, archaeologists and anthropologists tried to interpret the emergence and disappearance of human species in Europe and Asia on the reconstructed past climate maps using some tools, such as Eco-cultural niche model. Our project will show the regional difference in climate change and related archaeological events and its impact on the evolution of learning ability of modern humans.

New Plants at Prague Castle and Hradčany in the Early Modern Period. A History of Selected Species

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Beneš, J.; Čulíková, Věra; Kosňovská, J.; Frolík, Jan; Matiášek, Josef

2012-01-01

Roč. 3, č. 1 (2012), s. 103-114 ISSN 1804-848X Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80020508 Keywords : Prague Castle * Early Modern Period * archaeobotany Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology http://www.iansa.eu/papers/IANSA-2012-01-benes.pdf

Early brain development toward shaping of human mind: an integrative psychoneurodevelopmental model in prenatal and perinatal medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Hruby, Radovan; Maas, Lili M; Fedor-Freybergh, P G

2013-01-01

The article introduces an integrative psychoneurodevelopmental model of complex human brain and mind development based on the latest findings in prenatal and perinatal medicine in terms of integrative neuroscience. The human brain development is extraordinarily complex set of events and could be influenced by a lot of factors. It is supported by new insights into the early neuro-ontogenic processes with the help of structural 3D magnetic resonance imaging or diffusion tensor imaging of fetal human brain. Various factors and targets for neural development including birth weight variability, fetal and early-life programming, fetal neurobehavioral states and fetal behavioral responses to various stimuli and others are discussed. Molecular biology reveals increasing sets of genes families as well as transcription and neurotropic factors together with critical epigenetic mechanisms to be deeply employed in the crucial neurodevelopmental events. Another field of critical importance is psychoimmuno-neuroendocrinology. Various effects of glucocorticoids as well as other hormones, prenatal stress and fetal HPA axis modulation are thought to be of special importance for brain development. The early postnatal period is characterized by the next intense shaping of complex competences, induced mainly by the very unique mother - newborn´s interactions and bonding. All these mechanisms serve to shape individual human mind with complex abilities and neurobehavioral strategies. Continuous research elucidating these special competences of human fetus and newborn/child supports integrative neuroscientific approach to involve various scientific disciplines for the next progress in human brain and mind research, and opens new scientific challenges and philosophic attitudes. New findings and approaches in this field could establish new methods in science, in primary prevention and treatment strategies, and markedly contribute to the development of modern integrative and personalized

Genealogies of Modern Technology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Riis, Søren

2008-01-01

Does modern technology differ from ancient technology and does it have a unique essence? This twofold question opens one of Martin Heidegger's most influential philosophical inquiries, The Question Concerning Technology. The answer Heidegger offers has inspired various critiques and appraisals from...... a vast number of contemporary scholars of technology.1 Heidegger's answer is traditionally thought to suggest a great difference between ancient and modern technology. However, by re-examining Heidegger's text, it is possible to discover previously ignored or misunderstood lines of thoughts that affirm...... a multi-stable interpretation of the origin of modern technology. In what follows, we shall see how The Question Concerning Technology in fact supports three different genealogies of modern technology...

Multiple Ethnic Origins of Mitochondrial DNA Lineages for the Population of Mauritius

Science.gov (United States)

Betancor, Eva; Suárez, Nicolás M.; Calaon, Diego; Čaval, Saša; Janoo, Anwar; Pestano, Jose

2014-01-01

This article reports on the first genetic assessment of the contemporary Mauritian population. Small island nodes such as Mauritius played a critical role in historic globalization processes and revealing high-resolution details of labour sourcing is crucial in order to better understand early-modern diaspora events. Mauritius is a particularly interesting case given detailed historic accounts attesting to European (Dutch, French and British), African and Asian points of origin. Ninety-seven samples were analysed for mitochondrial DNA to begin unravelling the complex dynamics of the island's modern population. In corroboration with general demographic information, the majority of maternal lineages were derived from South Asia (58.76%), with Malagasy (16.60%), East/Southeast Asian (11.34%) and Sub-Saharan African (10.21%) also making significant contributions. This study pinpoints specific regional origins for the South Asian genetic contribution, showing a greater influence on the contemporary population from northern and southeast India. Moreover, the analysis of lineages related to the slave trade demonstrated that Madagascar and East Asia were the main centres of origin, with less influence from West Africa. PMID:24676463

Investigating early modern Ottoman consumer culture in the light of Bursa probate inventories.

Science.gov (United States)

Karababa, Eminegül

2012-01-01

This study investigates the development of early modern Ottoman consumer culture. In particular, the democratization of consumption, which is a significant indicator of the development of western consumer cultures, is examined in relation to Ottoman society. Sixteenth- and seventeenth-century probate inventories of the town of Bursa combined with literary and official sources are used in order to identify democratization of consumption and the macro conditions shaping this development. Findings demonstrate that commercialization, international trade, urbanization which created a fluid social structure, and the ability of the state to negotiate with guilds were possible contextual specificities which encouraged the democratization of consumption in the Bursa context.

Early development of the human pelvic diaphragm

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koch, Wijnandus Franciscus Robertus Maria

2006-01-01

The last decade an increasing interest in the pelvic floor can be observed in medical sciences. The lack of data on the development of the human pelvic floor is striking. The early development of the human pelvic diaphragm was studied. Materials and methodsUse was made of 38 human embryos and

The Titanic Origin of Humans: The Melian Nymphs and Zagreus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Velvet Yates

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Hesiod's creation myth implies that the human race derived from the "ash tree nymphs" (meliai; the Neoplatonists, with their etymological arguments, seem to have this in mind in tracing human origins to the Titans' "limbs" (melea.

The origins, early development and status of Bourdieu's concept of 'cultural capital'.

Science.gov (United States)

Robbins, Derek

2005-03-01

The paper examines the context of the first introduction of the concept of 'cultural capital' in the sociology of education analyses undertaken in the early 1960s and published by Bourdieu in collaboration with Jean-Claude Passeron in 'Les etudiants et leurs etudes' (1964a) and Les Heritiers (1964b). It first considers the cultural contexts within which Bourdieu's thinking about culture originated--both in relation to his social origins and in relation to his intellectual training. It then examines the extent to which Bourdieu's early anthropological research in Algeria was influenced by his knowledge of American acculturation theory. It concludes that Bourdieu sought to use acculturation theory in a distinctive way--one which he articulated more confidently as he explored the relationship between agency and structural explanation in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The specific educational researches which stimulated the articulation of the concept of 'linguistic' or 'cultural' capital belonged to the period in which Bourdieu was only just beginning to refine his post-structuralist philosophy of social scientific explanation. To use these concepts now involves deploying them reflexively in accordance with Bourdieu's later thinking rather than at face value as they were first developed during the period in which he and Passeron were 'apprentice' researchers.

Origins of human cooperation and morality.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomasello, Michael; Vaish, Amrisha

2013-01-01

From an evolutionary perspective, morality is a form of cooperation. Cooperation requires individuals either to suppress their own self-interest or to equate it with that of others. We review recent research on the origins of human morality, both phylogenetic (research with apes) and ontogenetic (research with children). For both time frames we propose a two-step sequence: first a second-personal morality in which individuals are sympathetic or fair to particular others, and second an agent-neutral morality in which individuals follow and enforce group-wide social norms. Human morality arose evolutionarily as a set of skills and motives for cooperating with others, and the ontogeny of these skills and motives unfolds in part naturally and in part as a result of sociocultural contexts and interactions.

Early-life stress origins of gastrointestinal disease: animal models, intestinal pathophysiology, and translational implications

Science.gov (United States)

Pohl, Calvin S.; Medland, Julia E.

2015-01-01

Early-life stress and adversity are major risk factors in the onset and severity of gastrointestinal (GI) disease in humans later in life. The mechanisms by which early-life stress leads to increased GI disease susceptibility in adult life remain poorly understood. Animal models of early-life stress have provided a foundation from which to gain a more fundamental understanding of this important GI disease paradigm. This review focuses on animal models of early-life stress-induced GI disease, with a specific emphasis on translational aspects of each model to specific human GI disease states. Early postnatal development of major GI systems and the consequences of stress on their development are discussed in detail. Relevant translational differences between species and models are highlighted. PMID:26451004

The human obesity epidemic, the mismatch paradigm, and our modern "captive" environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Power, Michael L

2012-01-01

In the distant past obesity in humans was rare and likely caused by metabolic dysregulation due to genetic or disease-related pathology. External factors precluded the ability of most people to overeat or under exert. Socio-cultural obesity came about due to the rareness of obesity and its difficulty to achieve. What is rare becomes valuable and what is difficult to achieve becomes a badge of prestige. The modern human obesity epidemic would appear to represent a third class of obesity: environmental obesity. Much like the captive environments which humans construct for the captive/companion animals in our care, the modern human environment has greatly decreased the challenges of life that would restrict food intake and enforce exertion. And like us, our captive/companion animal populations are also experiencing obesity epidemics. A further concern is that maternal obesity alters maternal signaling to offspring, in utero through the placenta and after birth through breast milk, in ways that perpetuate an enhanced vulnerability to obesity. Molecules such as leptin, produced by adipose tissue and placenta, have significant developmental effects on brain areas associated with feeding behavior. Leptin and other cytokines and growth factors are found in breast milk. These molecules have positive effects on gut maturation; their effects on metabolism and brain development are unclear. Placenta and brain also are hotspots for epigenetic regulation, and epigenetic changes may play significant roles in the later vulnerability to obesity and to the development of a diverse array of diseases, including heart disease, hypertension, and noninsulin-dependent diabetes. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Modern Human Engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Byeong Yong; Lee Dong Kyeong

2005-08-01

These are the titles of each chapter. They are as in the following; design of human-centerdness, human machine system, information processing process, sense of human, user interface, elements of human body, vital dynamics, measurement of reaction of human body, estimation and management of working environment, mental characteristic of human, human error, group, organization and leadership, safety supervision, process analysis, time studying, work sampling, work factor and methods time measurement, introduction of muscular skeletal disease and program of preventive management.

Modern Human Engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeong, Byeong Yong; Lee Dong Kyeong

2005-08-15

These are the titles of each chapter. They are as in the following; design of human-centerdness, human machine system, information processing process, sense of human, user interface, elements of human body, vital dynamics, measurement of reaction of human body, estimation and management of working environment, mental characteristic of human, human error, group, organization and leadership, safety supervision, process analysis, time studying, work sampling, work factor and methods time measurement, introduction of muscular skeletal disease and program of preventive management.

The red queen model of recombination hotspots evolution in the light of archaic and modern human genomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Lesecque, Yann; Glémin, Sylvain; Lartillot, Nicolas; Mouchiroud, Dominique; Duret, Laurent

2014-11-01

Recombination is an essential process in eukaryotes, which increases diversity by disrupting genetic linkage between loci and ensures the proper segregation of chromosomes during meiosis. In the human genome, recombination events are clustered in hotspots, whose location is determined by the PRDM9 protein. There is evidence that the location of hotspots evolves rapidly, as a consequence of changes in PRDM9 DNA-binding domain. However, the reasons for these changes and the rate at which they occur are not known. In this study, we investigated the evolution of human hotspot loci and of PRDM9 target motifs, both in modern and archaic human lineages (Denisovan) to quantify the dynamic of hotspot turnover during the recent period of human evolution. We show that present-day human hotspots are young: they have been active only during the last 10% of the time since the divergence from chimpanzee, starting to be operating shortly before the split between Denisovans and modern humans. Surprisingly, however, our analyses indicate that Denisovan recombination hotspots did not overlap with modern human ones, despite sharing similar PRDM9 target motifs. We further show that high-affinity PRDM9 target motifs are subject to a strong self-destructive drive, known as biased gene conversion (BGC), which should lead to the loss of the majority of them in the next 3 MYR. This depletion of PRDM9 genomic targets is expected to decrease fitness, and thereby to favor new PRDM9 alleles binding different motifs. Our refined estimates of the age and life expectancy of human hotspots provide empirical evidence in support of the Red Queen hypothesis of recombination hotspots evolution.

The red queen model of recombination hotspots evolution in the light of archaic and modern human genomes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yann Lesecque

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Recombination is an essential process in eukaryotes, which increases diversity by disrupting genetic linkage between loci and ensures the proper segregation of chromosomes during meiosis. In the human genome, recombination events are clustered in hotspots, whose location is determined by the PRDM9 protein. There is evidence that the location of hotspots evolves rapidly, as a consequence of changes in PRDM9 DNA-binding domain. However, the reasons for these changes and the rate at which they occur are not known. In this study, we investigated the evolution of human hotspot loci and of PRDM9 target motifs, both in modern and archaic human lineages (Denisovan to quantify the dynamic of hotspot turnover during the recent period of human evolution. We show that present-day human hotspots are young: they have been active only during the last 10% of the time since the divergence from chimpanzee, starting to be operating shortly before the split between Denisovans and modern humans. Surprisingly, however, our analyses indicate that Denisovan recombination hotspots did not overlap with modern human ones, despite sharing similar PRDM9 target motifs. We further show that high-affinity PRDM9 target motifs are subject to a strong self-destructive drive, known as biased gene conversion (BGC, which should lead to the loss of the majority of them in the next 3 MYR. This depletion of PRDM9 genomic targets is expected to decrease fitness, and thereby to favor new PRDM9 alleles binding different motifs. Our refined estimates of the age and life expectancy of human hotspots provide empirical evidence in support of the Red Queen hypothesis of recombination hotspots evolution.

Modern Cosmology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang Yuanzhong

2002-06-21

This book is one of a series in the areas of high-energy physics, cosmology and gravitation published by the Institute of Physics. It includes courses given at a doctoral school on 'Relativistic Cosmology: Theory and Observation' held in Spring 2000 at the Centre for Scientific Culture 'Alessandro Volta', Italy, sponsored by SIGRAV-Societa Italiana di Relativita e Gravitazione (Italian Society of Relativity and Gravitation) and the University of Insubria. This book collects 15 review reports given by a number of outstanding scientists. They touch upon the main aspects of modern cosmology from observational matters to theoretical models, such as cosmological models, the early universe, dark matter and dark energy, modern observational cosmology, cosmic microwave background, gravitational lensing, and numerical simulations in cosmology. In particular, the introduction to the basics of cosmology includes the basic equations, covariant and tetrad descriptions, Friedmann models, observation and horizons, etc. The chapters on the early universe involve inflationary theories, particle physics in the early universe, and the creation of matter in the universe. The chapters on dark matter (DM) deal with experimental evidence of DM, neutrino oscillations, DM candidates in supersymmetry models and supergravity, structure formation in the universe, dark-matter search with innovative techniques, and dark energy (cosmological constant), etc. The chapters about structure in the universe consist of the basis for structure formation, quantifying large-scale structure, cosmic background fluctuation, galaxy space distribution, and the clustering of galaxies. In the field of modern observational cosmology, galaxy surveys and cluster surveys are given. The chapter on gravitational lensing describes the lens basics and models, galactic microlensing and galaxy clusters as lenses. The last chapter, 'Numerical simulations in cosmology', deals with spatial and

The Origin and Early Evolution of Membrane Proteins

Science.gov (United States)

Pohorille, Andrew; Schweighofter, Karl; Wilson, Michael A.

2006-01-01

The origin and early evolution of membrane proteins, and in particular ion channels, are considered from the point of view that the transmembrane segments of membrane proteins are structurally quite simple and do not require specific sequences to fold. We argue that the transport of solute species, especially ions, required an early evolution of efficient transport mechanisms, and that the emergence of simple ion channels was protobiologically plausible. We also argue that, despite their simple structure, such channels could possess properties that, at the first sight, appear to require markedly larger complexity. These properties can be subtly modulated by local modifications to the sequence rather than global changes in molecular architecture. In order to address the evolution and development of ion channels, we focus on identifying those protein domains that are commonly associated with ion channel proteins and are conserved throughout the three main domains of life (Eukarya, Prokarya, and Archaea). We discuss the potassium-sodium-calcium superfamily of voltage-gated ion channels, mechanosensitive channels, porins, and ABC-transporters and argue that these families of membrane channels have sufficiently universal architectures that they can readily adapt to the diverse functional demands arising during evolution.

Mathematical thought from ancient to modern times, v.1-3

CERN Document Server

Kline, Morris

1990-01-01

This comprehensive history traces the development of mathematical ideas and the careers of the men responsible for them. Volume 1 looks at the discipline's origins in Babylon and Egypt, the creation of geometry and trigonometry by the Greeks, and the role of mathematics in the medieval and early modern periods. Volume 2 focuses on calculus, the rise of analysis in the 19th century, and the number theories of Dedekind and Dirichlet. The concluding volume covers the revival of projective geometry, the emergence of abstract algebra, the beginnings of topology, and the influence of Godel on recent

Foundations of Modern Legal Thought: the Primacy of Right and the Form of Validity as the Mode of Existence of Law

OpenAIRE

Afredo Bergés

2013-01-01

The aim of the present article is to show the specificity of the modern legal thought that elevates the activity of free will to the principle of law. Since the ultimate source of all normativity, according to the pre-modern legal thought, lies beyond human activity, man is considered to be under a givenobligation towards the source from which all rights and duties originate: «nature» imposes its law uponman. Such a pre-modern grounding of norms immediately opens up the possibility of denying...

A Middle Triassic thoracopterid from China highlights the evolutionary origin of overwater gliding in early ray-finned fishes.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Guang-Hui; Zhao, Li-Jun; Shen, Chen-Chen

2015-01-01

Gliding adaptations in thoracopterid flying fishes represent a remarkable case of convergent evolution of overwater gliding strategy with modern exocoetid flying fishes, but the evolutionary origin of this strategy was poorly known in the thoracopterids because of lack of transitional forms. Until recently, all thoracopterids, from the Late Triassic of Austria and Italy and the Middle Triassic of South China, were highly specialized 'four-winged' gliders in having wing-like paired fins and an asymmetrical caudal fin with the lower caudal lobe notably larger than the upper lobe. Here, we show that the new genus Wushaichthys and the previously alleged 'peltopleurid' Peripeltopleurus, from the Middle Triassic (Ladinian, 235-242 Ma) of South China and near the Ladinian/Anisian boundary of southern Switzerland and northern Italy, respectively, represent the most primitive and oldest known thoracopterids. Wushaichthys, the most basal thoracopterid, shows certain derived features of this group in the skull. Peripeltopleurus shows a condition intermediate between Wushaichthys and Thoracopterus in having a slightly asymmetrical caudal fin but still lacking wing-like paired fins. Phylogenetic studies suggest that the evolution of overwater gliding of thoracopterids was gradual in nature; a four-stage adaption following the 'cranial specialization-asymmetrical caudal fin-enlarged paired fins-scale reduction' sequence has been recognized in thoracopterid evolution. Moreover, Wushaichthys and Peripeltopleurus bear hooklets on the anal fin of supposed males, resembling those of modern viviparious teleosts. Early thoracopterids probably had evolved a live-bearing reproductive strategy. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Early-life stress origins of gastrointestinal disease: animal models, intestinal pathophysiology, and translational implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Pohl, Calvin S; Medland, Julia E; Moeser, Adam J

2015-12-15

Early-life stress and adversity are major risk factors in the onset and severity of gastrointestinal (GI) disease in humans later in life. The mechanisms by which early-life stress leads to increased GI disease susceptibility in adult life remain poorly understood. Animal models of early-life stress have provided a foundation from which to gain a more fundamental understanding of this important GI disease paradigm. This review focuses on animal models of early-life stress-induced GI disease, with a specific emphasis on translational aspects of each model to specific human GI disease states. Early postnatal development of major GI systems and the consequences of stress on their development are discussed in detail. Relevant translational differences between species and models are highlighted. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Evolutionary trees and the rise of modern primatology: the forgotten contribution of St. George Mivart.

Science.gov (United States)

Bigoni, Francesca; Barsanti, Giulio

2011-01-01

The modern concept of the tree of life originated as a popular, iconic synthesis of the Darwinian evolutionary theory of descent by modification even if Darwin's own trees were hypothetical and abstract. It is generally thought that Ernst Haeckel in 1866 was the first to publish a true evolutionary tree which showed actual taxa. It is apparently forgotten that St. George Mivart beginning in 1865 made significant contributions to the development of evolutionary based trees of life which dealt with primate evolution, including human phylogeny. His trees were built on the most extensive sets of original data published up to that time, and were clearly articulated as working hypotheses. Mivart's trees were surprisingly modern for appearance and for content. Not only are most taxonomic names still in use today, but also many of the issues he raised are still under discussion in current scientific literature. The history of biology and especially that of primatology in the 19th century can benefit from a more thorough knowledge of how the image of the tree was used in scientific writings, especially after Darwin in the context of the theory of evolution by descent from common ancestors. A reappraisal of Mivart's scientific achievements is necessary to better establish the origins and the development not only of evolutionary trees but of modern primatology. The history of primatology, a discipline that is fundamental for investigating the place of humans in nature, would also benefit from a reappraisal of Mivart's role in Victorian biology.

Socio-cultural factors in dental diseases in the Medieval and early Modern Age of northern Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez, Belen; Pardiñas, Antonio F; Garcia-Vazquez, Eva; Dopico, Eduardo

2012-02-01

The aim of this study is to present, discuss and compare the results of pathological conditions in teeth from skeletal remains found in the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain) in four Medieval cemeteries (late 15th century) and three cemeteries from the Modern Age (late 18th century). The final objective was to evaluate the impact of socioeconomic and cultural changes that took place during the early Modern Age in Spain, on oral health. Dental caries and antemortem tooth loss were considered as indicators of dental disease. A significant increase of both dental caries and antemortem tooth loss occurred in Modern Age individuals when compared to Medieval values, as reported for other regions. Increased trade with other continents may explain this deterioration of dental health, as food exchanges (mainly with America) contributed to diet changes for the overall population, including higher carbohydrate consumption (introduction of potatoes) at the expense of other vegetables. A sex-specific increase of dental disease with age, and a significantly higher prevalence of carious lesions in Modern Age females than in males, were also found. These changes can be explained by women having had limited access to dental care after the Middle-Modern Age transition, as a consequence of socio-cultural and political changes. In these changes, an increasing influence of the Catholic Church in Spanish society has to be noted, as it can contribute to the explanation of the unequal dental health of men and women. Women were socially excluded from dental care by regulations inspired by religious precepts. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Footprints pull origin and diversification of dinosaur stem lineage deep into Early Triassic.

Science.gov (United States)

Brusatte, Stephen L; Niedźwiedzki, Grzegorz; Butler, Richard J

2011-04-07

The ascent of dinosaurs in the Triassic is an exemplary evolutionary radiation, but the earliest phase of dinosaur history remains poorly understood. Body fossils of close dinosaur relatives are rare, but indicate that the dinosaur stem lineage (Dinosauromorpha) originated by the latest Anisian (ca 242-244 Ma). Here, we report footprints from the Early-Middle Triassic of Poland, stratigraphically well constrained and identified using a conservative synapomorphy-based approach, which shifts the origin of the dinosaur stem lineage back to the Early Olenekian (ca 249-251 Ma), approximately 5-9 Myr earlier than indicated by body fossils, earlier than demonstrated by previous footprint records, and just a few million years after the Permian/Triassic mass extinction (252.3 Ma). Dinosauromorph tracks are rare in all Polish assemblages, suggesting that these animals were minor faunal components. The oldest tracks are quadrupedal, a morphology uncommon among the earliest dinosauromorph body fossils, but bipedality and moderately large body size had arisen by the Early Anisian (ca 246 Ma). Integrating trace fossils and body fossils demonstrates that the rise of dinosaurs was a drawn-out affair, perhaps initiated during recovery from the Permo-Triassic extinction.

Implications of the behavioural immune system for social behaviour and human health in the modern world.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaller, Mark; Murray, Damian R; Bangerter, Adrian

2015-05-26

The 'behavioural immune system' is composed of mechanisms that evolved as a means of facilitating behaviours that minimized infection risk and enhanced fitness. Recent empirical research on human populations suggests that these mechanisms have unique consequences for many aspects of human sociality--including sexual attitudes, gregariousness, xenophobia, conformity to majority opinion and conservative sociopolitical attitudes. Throughout much of human evolutionary history, these consequences may have had beneficial health implications; but health implications in modern human societies remain unclear. This article summarizes pertinent ways in which modern human societies are similar to and different from the ecologies within which the behavioural immune system evolved. By attending to these similarities and differences, we identify a set of plausible implications-both positive and negative-that the behavioural immune system may have on health outcomes in contemporary human contexts. We discuss both individual-level infection risk and population-level epidemiological outcomes. We also discuss a variety of additional implications, including compliance with public health policies, the adoption of novel therapeutic interventions and actual immunological functioning. Research on the behavioural immune system, and its implications in contemporary human societies, can provide unique insights into relationships between fitness, sociality and health. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Human genomic disease variants: a neutral evolutionary explanation.

Science.gov (United States)

Dudley, Joel T; Kim, Yuseob; Liu, Li; Markov, Glenn J; Gerold, Kristyn; Chen, Rong; Butte, Atul J; Kumar, Sudhir

2012-08-01

Many perspectives on the role of evolution in human health include nonempirical assumptions concerning the adaptive evolutionary origins of human diseases. Evolutionary analyses of the increasing wealth of clinical and population genomic data have begun to challenge these presumptions. In order to systematically evaluate such claims, the time has come to build a common framework for an empirical and intellectual unification of evolution and modern medicine. We review the emerging evidence and provide a supporting conceptual framework that establishes the classical neutral theory of molecular evolution (NTME) as the basis for evaluating disease- associated genomic variations in health and medicine. For over a decade, the NTME has already explained the origins and distribution of variants implicated in diseases and has illuminated the power of evolutionary thinking in genomic medicine. We suggest that a majority of disease variants in modern populations will have neutral evolutionary origins (previously neutral), with a relatively smaller fraction exhibiting adaptive evolutionary origins (previously adaptive). This pattern is expected to hold true for common as well as rare disease variants. Ultimately, a neutral evolutionary perspective will provide medicine with an informative and actionable framework that enables objective clinical assessment beyond convenient tendencies to invoke past adaptive events in human history as a root cause of human disease.

Genealogical relationships between early medieval and modern inhabitants of Piedmont.

Science.gov (United States)

Vai, Stefania; Ghirotto, Silvia; Pilli, Elena; Tassi, Francesca; Lari, Martina; Rizzi, Ermanno; Matas-Lalueza, Laura; Ramirez, Oscar; Lalueza-Fox, Carles; Achilli, Alessandro; Olivieri, Anna; Torroni, Antonio; Lancioni, Hovirag; Giostra, Caterina; Bedini, Elena; Pejrani Baricco, Luisella; Matullo, Giuseppe; Di Gaetano, Cornelia; Piazza, Alberto; Veeramah, Krishna; Geary, Patrick; Caramelli, David; Barbujani, Guido

2015-01-01

In the period between 400 to 800 AD, also known as the period of the Barbarian invasions, intense migration is documented in the historical record of Europe. However, little is known about the demographic impact of these historical movements, potentially ranging from negligible to substantial. As a pilot study in a broader project on Medieval Europe, we sampled 102 specimens from 5 burial sites in Northwestern Italy, archaeologically classified as belonging to Lombards or Longobards, a Germanic people ruling over a vast section of the Italian peninsula from 568 to 774. We successfully amplified and typed the mitochondrial hypervariable region I (HVR-I) of 28 individuals. Comparisons of genetic diversity with other ancient populations and haplotype networks did not suggest that these samples are heterogeneous, and hence allowed us to jointly compare them with three isolated contemporary populations, and with a modern sample of a large city, representing a control for the effects of recent immigration. We then generated by serial coalescent simulations 16 millions of genealogies, contrasting a model of genealogical continuity with one in which the contemporary samples are genealogically independent from the medieval sample. Analyses by Approximate Bayesian Computation showed that the latter model fits the data in most cases, with one exception, Trino Vercellese, in which the evidence was compatible with persistence up to the present time of genetic features observed among this early medieval population. We conclude that it is possible, in general, to detect evidence of genealogical ties between medieval and specific modern populations. However, only seldom did mitochondrial DNA data allow us to reject with confidence either model tested, which indicates that broader analyses, based on larger assemblages of samples and genetic markers, are needed to understand in detail the effects of medieval migration.

Genealogical relationships between early medieval and modern inhabitants of Piedmont.

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Stefania Vai

Full Text Available In the period between 400 to 800 AD, also known as the period of the Barbarian invasions, intense migration is documented in the historical record of Europe. However, little is known about the demographic impact of these historical movements, potentially ranging from negligible to substantial. As a pilot study in a broader project on Medieval Europe, we sampled 102 specimens from 5 burial sites in Northwestern Italy, archaeologically classified as belonging to Lombards or Longobards, a Germanic people ruling over a vast section of the Italian peninsula from 568 to 774. We successfully amplified and typed the mitochondrial hypervariable region I (HVR-I of 28 individuals. Comparisons of genetic diversity with other ancient populations and haplotype networks did not suggest that these samples are heterogeneous, and hence allowed us to jointly compare them with three isolated contemporary populations, and with a modern sample of a large city, representing a control for the effects of recent immigration. We then generated by serial coalescent simulations 16 millions of genealogies, contrasting a model of genealogical continuity with one in which the contemporary samples are genealogically independent from the medieval sample. Analyses by Approximate Bayesian Computation showed that the latter model fits the data in most cases, with one exception, Trino Vercellese, in which the evidence was compatible with persistence up to the present time of genetic features observed among this early medieval population. We conclude that it is possible, in general, to detect evidence of genealogical ties between medieval and specific modern populations. However, only seldom did mitochondrial DNA data allow us to reject with confidence either model tested, which indicates that broader analyses, based on larger assemblages of samples and genetic markers, are needed to understand in detail the effects of medieval migration.

Casebooks in early modern England: medicine, astrology, and written records.

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Kassell, Lauren

2014-01-01

Casebooks are the richest sources that we have for encounters between early modern medical practitioners and their patients. This article compares astrological and medical records across two centuries, focused on England, and charts developments in the ways in which practitioners kept records and reflected on their practices. Astrologers had a long history of working from particular moments, stellar configurations, and events to general rules. These practices required systematic notation. Physicians increasingly modeled themselves on Hippocrates, recording details of cases as the basis for reasoned expositions of the histories of disease. Medical records, as other scholars have demonstrated, shaped the production of medical knowledge. Instead, this article focuses on the nature of casebooks as artifacts of the medical encounter. It establishes that casebooks were serial records of practice, akin to diaries, testimonials, and registers; identifies extant English casebooks and the practices that led to their production and preservation; and concludes that the processes of writing, ordering, and preserving medical records are as important for understanding the medical encounter as the records themselves.

Origin of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum in gorillas.

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Liu, Weimin; Li, Yingying; Learn, Gerald H; Rudicell, Rebecca S; Robertson, Joel D; Keele, Brandon F; Ndjango, Jean-Bosco N; Sanz, Crickette M; Morgan, David B; Locatelli, Sabrina; Gonder, Mary K; Kranzusch, Philip J; Walsh, Peter D; Delaporte, Eric; Mpoudi-Ngole, Eitel; Georgiev, Alexander V; Muller, Martin N; Shaw, George M; Peeters, Martine; Sharp, Paul M; Rayner, Julian C; Hahn, Beatrice H

2010-09-23

Plasmodium falciparum is the most prevalent and lethal of the malaria parasites infecting humans, yet the origin and evolutionary history of this important pathogen remain controversial. Here we develop a single-genome amplification strategy to identify and characterize Plasmodium spp. DNA sequences in faecal samples from wild-living apes. Among nearly 3,000 specimens collected from field sites throughout central Africa, we found Plasmodium infection in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla), but not in eastern gorillas (Gorilla beringei) or bonobos (Pan paniscus). Ape plasmodial infections were highly prevalent, widely distributed and almost always made up of mixed parasite species. Analysis of more than 1,100 mitochondrial, apicoplast and nuclear gene sequences from chimpanzees and gorillas revealed that 99% grouped within one of six host-specific lineages representing distinct Plasmodium species within the subgenus Laverania. One of these from western gorillas comprised parasites that were nearly identical to P. falciparum. In phylogenetic analyses of full-length mitochondrial sequences, human P. falciparum formed a monophyletic lineage within the gorilla parasite radiation. These findings indicate that P. falciparum is of gorilla origin and not of chimpanzee, bonobo or ancient human origin.

The role of human capital in the modern economy and indicators of its evaluation

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N. A. Serebryakova

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The development of a modern economy, increasing its competitiveness is impossible without the accumulation and development of human capital, since the foundation of the transformation of the economic system into an innovation economy is human capital. In this regard, the level of development and effectiveness of the use of human capital is of paramount importance. In this study, an attempt is made to assess the effectiveness of the use of human capital for its contribution to the economy of the country. The authors emphasize that the modern economy makes new demands on workers, therefore it is necessary to constantly accumulate human capital, its development through continuous training, which will allow the domestic economy to exit on the trajectory of sustainable economic growth. The need to create conditions for a comprehensive increase in the level of development of human capital was stressed. The authors propose an author's approach to assess the level of development and efficiency of the use of human capital on the basis of indicators: the index of labor productivity, the share of high-technology and knowledge-intensive industries in GDP, the increase in the number of high-productivity jobs, the innovative activity of organizations, the share of domestic expenditure on research and development in GDP, the coefficient of inventive activity. The article presents the results of the study of human capital in the Russian Federation. The role of human capital in the economic development of the country has been studied and justified. Key indicators of the effectiveness of the use of human capital are analyzed. Trends in the development of human capital in the Russian Federation for 2011–2016 are shown. The analysis of the results of the assessment will reveal problems in the formation and use of human capital and determine the main directions and necessary conditions for increasing the contribution of human capital to the economy.

A 28,000 Years Old Cro-Magnon mtDNA Sequence Differs from All Potentially Contaminating Modern Sequences

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Caramelli, David; Milani, Lucio; Vai, Stefania; Modi, Alessandra; Pecchioli, Elena; Girardi, Matteo; Pilli, Elena; Lari, Martina; Lippi, Barbara; Ronchitelli, Annamaria; Mallegni, Francesco; Casoli, Antonella; Bertorelle, Giorgio; Barbujani, Guido

2008-01-01

Background DNA sequences from ancient speciments may in fact result from undetected contamination of the ancient specimens by modern DNA, and the problem is particularly challenging in studies of human fossils. Doubts on the authenticity of the available sequences have so far hampered genetic comparisons between anatomically archaic (Neandertal) and early modern (Cro-Magnoid) Europeans. Methodology/Principal Findings We typed the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) hypervariable region I in a 28,000 years old Cro-Magnoid individual from the Paglicci cave, in Italy (Paglicci 23) and in all the people who had contact with the sample since its discovery in 2003. The Paglicci 23 sequence, determined through the analysis of 152 clones, is the Cambridge reference sequence, and cannot possibly reflect contamination because it differs from all potentially contaminating modern sequences. Conclusions/Significance: The Paglicci 23 individual carried a mtDNA sequence that is still common in Europe, and which radically differs from those of the almost contemporary Neandertals, demonstrating a genealogical continuity across 28,000 years, from Cro-Magnoid to modern Europeans. Because all potential sources of modern DNA contamination are known, the Paglicci 23 sample will offer a unique opportunity to get insight for the first time into the nuclear genes of early modern Europeans. PMID:18628960

A 28,000 years old Cro-Magnon mtDNA sequence differs from all potentially contaminating modern sequences.

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David Caramelli

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: DNA sequences from ancient specimens may in fact result from undetected contamination of the ancient specimens by modern DNA, and the problem is particularly challenging in studies of human fossils. Doubts on the authenticity of the available sequences have so far hampered genetic comparisons between anatomically archaic (Neandertal and early modern (Cro-Magnoid Europeans. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We typed the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA hypervariable region I in a 28,000 years old Cro-Magnoid individual from the Paglicci cave, in Italy (Paglicci 23 and in all the people who had contact with the sample since its discovery in 2003. The Paglicci 23 sequence, determined through the analysis of 152 clones, is the Cambridge reference sequence, and cannot possibly reflect contamination because it differs from all potentially contaminating modern sequences. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The Paglicci 23 individual carried a mtDNA sequence that is still common in Europe, and which radically differs from those of the almost contemporary Neandertals, demonstrating a genealogical continuity across 28,000 years, from Cro-Magnoid to modern Europeans. Because all potential sources of modern DNA contamination are known, the Paglicci 23 sample will offer a unique opportunity to get insight for the first time into the nuclear genes of early modern Europeans.

[Constructing climate. From classical climatology to modern climate research].

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Heymann, Matthias

2009-01-01

Both climate researchers and historians of climate science have conceived climate as a stable and well defined category. This article argues that such a conception is flawed. In the course of the 19th and 20th century the very concept of climate changed considerably. Scientists came up with different definitions and concepts of climate, which implied different understandings, interests, and research approaches. Understanding climate shifted from a timeless, spatial concept at the end of the 19th century to a spaceless, temporal concept at the end of the 20th. Climatologists in the 19th and early 20th centuries considered climate as a set of atmospheric characteristics associated with specific places or regions. In this context, while the weather was subject to change, climate remained largely stable. Of particular interest was the impact of climate on human beings and the environment. In modern climate research at the close of the 20th century, the concept of climate lost its temporal stability. Instead, climate change has become a core feature of the understanding of climate and a focus of research interests. Climate has also lost its immediate association with specific geographical places and become global. The interest is now focused on the impact of human beings on climate. The paper attempts to investigate these conceptual shifts and their origins and impacts in order to provide a more comprehensive perspective on the history of climate research.

Sustainable renewal of the everyday Modern

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jonge, W.

2017-01-01

Listed or not, many Modern-era buildings deserve our appreciation for their architectural merit, whether it be for the social developments that these buildings represent or for the innovative technologies applied and used in their making. Early preservation projects of Modern ‘icons’ carried out

Population Dynamics of Early Human Migration in Britain.

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Mayank N Vahia

Full Text Available Early human migration is largely determined by geography and human needs. These are both deterministic parameters when small populations move into unoccupied areas where conflicts and large group dynamics are not important. The early period of human migration into the British Isles provides such a laboratory which, because of its relative geographical isolation, may allow some insights into the complex dynamics of early human migration and interaction.We developed a simulation code based on human affinity to habitable land, as defined by availability of water sources, altitude, and flatness of land, in choosing the path of migration. Movement of people on the British island over the prehistoric period from their initial entry points was simulated on the basis of data from the megalithic period. Topographical and hydro-shed data from satellite databases was used to define habitability, based on distance from water bodies, flatness of the terrain, and altitude above sea level. We simulated population movement based on assumptions of affinity for more habitable places, with the rate of movement tempered by existing populations. We compared results of our computer simulations with genetic data and show that our simulation can predict fairly accurately the points of contacts between different migratory paths. Such comparison also provides more detailed information about the path of peoples' movement over ~2000 years before the present era.We demonstrate an accurate method to simulate prehistoric movements of people based upon current topographical satellite data. Our findings are validated by recently-available genetic data. Our method may prove useful in determining early human population dynamics even when no genetic information is available.

Gellnerovo pojetí modernity

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Jiří Musil

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Gellner’s theory of modernity is a complex structure, it matured several decades and during this process he modified some of its elements. The following interpretation of his theory is based on the analysis of three pillars of his thought, first on his epistemological axioms, second on his concept of philosophy of human history and third on his conception of social theory. Gellner’s theory of knowledge is a cluster composed of classical empiricism, kantian rationalism, enriched by weberian understanding of historical modifications of rationalism in modern times. Gellner adds to these two pillars his concept of cultural perspectivism and his interpretation of evolutionism, so called truncated evolutionism that concentrates on the emergence of modernity. Gellner’s philosophy of history is based on his analysis of interaction between three basic functional entities of all human societies: economy, power, knowledge. Gellner rather carefully analyzed as well the relationship between the role of material and ideational factors in human history, and between sociological analyses based on causal. In his view sociology has to use both approaches. Gellner is stressing the fact that to the most important elements of modernity belongs science, but at the same time he is fully aware of the fact that science can not tell us “what to do”. Here he follows Max Weber’s thesis on the disenchantment as an element of modernity.

Dating the origin of the genus Flavivirus in the light of Beringian biogeography.

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Pettersson, John H-O; Fiz-Palacios, Omar

2014-09-01

The genus Flavivirus includes some of the most important human viral pathogens, and its members are found in all parts of the populated world. The temporal origin of diversification of the genus has long been debated due to the inherent problems with dating deep RNA virus evolution. A generally accepted hypothesis suggests that Flavivirus emerged within the last 10 000 years. However, it has been argued that the tick-borne Powassan flavivirus was introduced into North America some time between the opening and closing of the Beringian land bridge that connected Asia and North America 15 000-11 000 years ago, indicating an even older origin for Flavivirus. To determine the temporal origin of Flavivirus, we performed Bayesian relaxed molecular clock dating on a dataset with high coverage of the presently available Flavivirus diversity by combining tip date calibrations and internal node calibration, based on the Powassan virus and Beringian land bridge biogeographical event. Our analysis suggested that Flavivirus originated ~85 000 (64 000-110 000) or 120 000 (87 000-159 000) years ago, depending on the circumscription of the genus. This is significantly older than estimated previously. In light of our results, we propose that it is likely that modern humans came in contact with several members of the genus Flavivirus much earlier than suggested previously, and that it is possible that the spread of several flaviviruses coincided with, and was facilitated by, the migration and population expansion of modern humans out of Africa. © 2014 The Authors.

The emergence of egalitarianism in a model of early human societies

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Guillaume Calmettes

2017-11-01

Full Text Available How did egalitarianism emerge in early human societies? In contrast to dominance hierarchies in non-human primates, human simple forager bands are typically egalitarian, with male hunters often serving as the collective alpha. Here we present a thermodynamics-inspired simple population model, based on stochastic optimization of dominance relationships, in which a dominance hierarchy of individuals with exclusively self-centered characteristics (the desire to dominate, resentment at being dominated transitions spontaneously to egalitarianism as their capacity for language develops. Language, specifically gossip, allows resentment against being dominated to promote the formation of antidominance coalitions which destabilize the alpha position for individuals, leading to a phase transition in which a coalition of the full population suddenly becomes dominant. Thus, egalitarianism emerges suddenly as the optimal power-sharing arrangement in a population of selfish individuals without any inherently altruistic qualities. We speculate that egalitarianism driven by punishment for exhibiting alpha-like behavior may then set the stage for genuinely altruistic traits to propagate as predicted by game theory models. Based on model simulations, we also predict that egalitarianism is a pre-condition for adaptation of tools as weapons. Potential implications for origins of human moral belief systems are discussed. Keywords: Sociology, Evolution, Anthropology

Training the intelligent eye: understanding illustrations in early modern astronomy texts.

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Crowther, Kathleen M; Barker, Peter

2013-09-01

Throughout the early modern period, the most widely read astronomical textbooks were Johannes de Sacrobosco's De sphaera and the Theorica planetarum, ultimately in the new form introduced by Georg Peurbach. This essay argues that the images in these texts were intended to develop an "intelligent eye." Students were trained to transform representations of specific heavenly phenomena into moving mental images of the structure of the cosmos. Only by learning the techniques of mental visualization and manipulation could the student "see" in the mind's eye the structure and motions of the cosmos. While anyone could look up at the heavens, only those who had acquired the intelligent eye could comprehend the divinely created order of the universe. Further, the essay demonstrates that the visual program of the Sphaera and Theorica texts played a significant and hitherto unrecognized role in later scientific work. Copernicus, Galileo, and Kepler all utilized the same types of images in their own texts to explicate their ideas about the cosmos.

Between Authorship and Oral Transmission: Negotiating the Attribution of Authorial, Oral and Collective Style Markers in Early Modern Playtexts

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Lene Buhl Petersen

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The production of playtexts in early modern England falls between two categories of artistic provenance: textual production in quill and print and oral transmission of the text committed to paper. Both categories are rightly speaking processes, and may be repeated several times over within the lifespan of a play. The former is the domain of authors, scribes and printers, the latter the responsibility of actors using their memories to verbally transmit the play in performance. An early modern playtext may thus be (cowritten, probably performed and potentially printed, and possibly rewritten, reperformed and reprinted in almost any given combination. It is only to be expected that a number of stylistic ‘complications’ will ensue. The question remains how to determine which stylistic markers characterise which creative domain. This paper returns to the cross-roads between authorship attribution and the quantification of other (oral, collective style markers in an attempt to offer discussion and a better overview of appropriate methodologies for determining which features may feasibly be attributed to which source(s.

Applying human factors engineering program to the modernization project of NPP Control Room in accordance with U.S.NRC and KTA regulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Avellar, Renato Koga de; Schirru, Roberto

2017-01-01

Application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in the design and implementation of such a project is essential to ensure that the new man-machine interface outcoming from the modernization does not have any negative impacts on human performance and plant safety. This paper analyzes the applicability of the Human Factors Engineering Program in the licensing and certification of Konvoi Nucleoelectric Power Plant Control Room Modernization Project using digital instrumentation and control in accordance with U.S.NRC and KTA regulations. The results of the analyses show that although regulatory bodies adopt different methodology in the process of licensing the modernization of control rooms, the engineering aspects are being developed based on the principles of engineering. (author)

Applying human factors engineering program to the modernization project of NPP Control Room in accordance with U.S.NRC and KTA regulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Avellar, Renato Koga de, E-mail: rkoga@eletronuclear.gov.br [Eletrobrás Termonuclear S.A. (ELETRONUCLEAR), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Assessoria de Licenciamento Nuclear e Ambiental; Schirru, Roberto, E-mail: schirru@lmp.ufrj.br [Coordenacao de Pos-Graduacao e Pesquisa de Engenharia (COPPE/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Programa de Engenharia Nuclear

2017-07-01

Application of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) in the design and implementation of such a project is essential to ensure that the new man-machine interface outcoming from the modernization does not have any negative impacts on human performance and plant safety. This paper analyzes the applicability of the Human Factors Engineering Program in the licensing and certification of Konvoi Nucleoelectric Power Plant Control Room Modernization Project using digital instrumentation and control in accordance with U.S.NRC and KTA regulations. The results of the analyses show that although regulatory bodies adopt different methodology in the process of licensing the modernization of control rooms, the engineering aspects are being developed based on the principles of engineering. (author)

Genomic validation of the differential preservation of population history in modern human cranial anatomy.

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes-Centeno, Hugo; Ghirotto, Silvia; Harvati, Katerina

2017-01-01

In modern humans, the significant correlation between neutral genetic loci and cranial anatomy suggests that the cranium preserves a population history signature. However, there is disagreement on whether certain parts of the cranium preserve this signature to a greater degree than other parts. It is also unclear how different quantitative measures of phenotype affect the association of genetic variation and anatomy. Here, we revisit these matters by testing the correlation of genetic distances and various phenotypic distances for ten modern human populations. Geometric morphometric shape data from the crania of adult individuals (n = 224) are used to calculate phenotypic P ST , Procrustes, and Mahalanobis distances. We calculate their correlation to neutral genetic distances, F ST , derived from single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We subset the cranial data into landmark configurations that include the neurocranium, the face, and the temporal bone in order to evaluate whether these cranial regions are differentially correlated to neutral genetic variation. Our results show that P ST , Mahalanobis, and Procrustes distances are correlated with F ST distances to varying degrees. They indicate that overall cranial shape is significantly correlated with neutral genetic variation. Of the component parts examined, P ST distances for both the temporal bone and the face have a stronger association with F ST distances than the neurocranium. When controlling for population divergence time, only the whole cranium and the temporal bone have a statistically significant association with F ST distances. Our results confirm that the cranium, as a whole, and the temporal bone can be used to reconstruct modern human population history. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Philosophy of experiment in early modern England: the case of Bacon, Boyle and Hooke.

Science.gov (United States)

Anstey, Peter R

2014-01-01

Serious philosophical reflection on the nature of experiment began in earnest in the seventeenth century. This paper expounds the most influential philosophy of experiment in seventeenth-century England, the Bacon-Boyle-Hooke view of experiment. It is argued that this can only be understood in the context of the new experimental philosophy practised according to the Baconian theory of natural history. The distinctive typology of experiments of this view is discussed, as well as its account of the relation between experiment and theory. This leads into an assessment of other recent discussions of early modern experiment, namely, those of David Gooding, Thomas Kuhn, J.E. Tiles and Peter Dear.

“For the Salvation of This Girl’s Soul”: Nuns as Converters of Jews in Early Modern Italy

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Tamar Herzig

2017-11-01

Full Text Available This article argues that converting Jewish girls and women constituted an important expression of Italian nuns’ religiosity throughout the age of Catholic Reform. Unlike their male counterparts, however, converting nuns rarely left behind accounts of their conversionary efforts. Moreover, since these endeavors were directed exclusively at female Jews they are often obscured in the historical record and in modern historiography. The article tackles the difficulties of recovering the voices of converting nuns and presents examples that suggest how they could be circumvented. Exploring the potential of drawing on previously understudied texts, such as nuns’ supplications, the article calls for the integration of this specific manifestation of female devotion into the scholarship and teaching on women’s religious life in the early modern era.

Human evolution out of Africa: the role of refugia and climate change.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, J R; Stringer, C B

2012-03-16

Although an African origin of the modern human species is generally accepted, the evolutionary processes involved in the speciation, geographical spread, and eventual extinction of archaic humans outside of Africa are much debated. An additional complexity has been the recent evidence of limited interbreeding between modern humans and the Neandertals and Denisovans. Modern human migrations and interactions began during the buildup to the Last Glacial Maximum, starting about 100,000 years ago. By examining the history of other organisms through glacial cycles, valuable models for evolutionary biogeography can be formulated. According to one such model, the adoption of a new refugium by a subgroup of a species may lead to important evolutionary changes.

Bacteria, fungi and arthropod pests collected on modern human mummies

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F. Palla

2011-08-01

Full Text Available A survey of opportunistic biocenosis (macro and micro organisms associated with a rest of human mummy samples was carried out to characterise the biocenosis and to detect the potential of biodeteriogens. The rests of the human modern mummies come from a hypogeic site. Since mummies are relevant from a historic-artistic-scientific point of view, an aspect of this study was the identification and characterization of the biological systems related with biodeterioration of organic matter. In a first step, different sampling methods, according to the taxa, were applied. Technological procedures were combined in order to have an interdisciplinary approach to the conservation actions for testing future restoration protocols. Specimens were collected, identified and characterized by Microscopy (light, SEM, CLSM and molecular analyses (DNA extraction, in vitro target sequence amplification, sequencing, sequence analysis. The results highlight a rather complex biocenonsis consisting of fungi, cyanobacteria, several insects and other arthropods.

Physical Origins of Space Weather Impacts: Open Physics Questions

Science.gov (United States)

Lanzerotti, L. J.

2011-12-01

Beginning with the era of development of electrical telegraph systems in the early 19th century, physical processes in the space environment on the Sun, in the interplanetary medium, and around Earth have influenced the design and operations of ever-increasing and sophisticated technical systems, both in space and on the ground. Understanding of Earth's space environment has increased enormously in the last century and one-half. Nevertheless, many of the physical processes that produced effects on early cable and wireless technologies continue to plague modern-day systems. And as new technologies are developed for improved communications, surveillance, navigation, and conditions for human space flight, the solar-terrestrial environment often offers surprises to their safe, secure and uninterrupted operations. This talk will address some of the challenges that I see to the successful operations of some modern-day technical systems that are posed by significant deficiencies of understanding of physical processes operating from the Sun to the Earth.

Modern examples of extinctions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lövei, Gabor L

2013-01-01

No species lives forever, and extinction is the ultimate fate of all living species. The fossil record indicates that a recent extinction wave affecting terrestrial vertebrates was parallel with the arrival of modern humans to areas formerly uninhabited by them. These modern instances of extinction...

The genetic origins of the Andaman Islanders

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Endicott, Phillip; Gilbert, M Thomas P; Stringer, Chris

2002-01-01

Mitochondrial sequences were retrieved from museum specimens of the enigmatic Andaman Islanders to analyze their evolutionary history. D-loop and protein-coding data reveal that phenotypic similarities with African pygmoid groups are convergent. Genetic and epigenetic data are interpreted as favo...... of humans through Asia. The results demonstrate that Victorian anthropological collections can be used to study extinct, or seriously admixed populations, to provide new data about early human origins....

Individualizing Japan: searching for its origin in first modernity.

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, Munenori; Ito, Midori; Ishida, Mitsunori; Nihei, Norihiro; Maruyama, Masao

2010-09-01

Since the mid-1990s Japanese society has entered a period of major change. The previous patterns of social order and social integration have collapsed, and it has become increasingly difficult to envision a stable life course for oneself. The 'secure' foundation has been weakening and anxiety has spread at an accelerated pace. Japan could enter the age of second modernity, or reflexive modernization. In Japan's first modernity, the mechanism responsible for risk management, an integrated society, and stabilized social order, was, first, private corporations that guaranteed long-term stability for employees and their families (company-centrism) and, second, land development rapidly implemented under the guidance of bureaucrats (developmentalism). From the 1990s, these systems were fundamentally destroyed by globalization and neoliberal policies. Private corporations limited the groups that could benefit from the seniority wage system, undermining in-house welfare benefits. The government abandoned its role of improving the industrial and economic conditions of surrounding areas through offering public works projects. After these risk-stabilizing mechanisms were gone, two problems became conspicuous - poverty among young workers in urban areas and the collapse of the local community in marginal areas. As the seniority wage system and lifetime employment were substitutes for the public social security system, public measures to deal with poverty remain inadequate. Now, the individualization of the family has advanced somewhat under compulsion as the rate of unmarried people and the divorce rate have climbed. The Japanese have a tendency to seek 'self-realization'; at the same time, they also want 'secure employment'. Thus, they are torn between individualization and the desire for security. What is now necessary is a more stable system that will ensure them adequate material and spiritual 'elbowroom' to allow them to make their own choices. © London School of

[The role of imagination in modern medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Schott, Heinz

2004-06-01

In Renaissance and early modern times, the concept of imagination (Latin imaginatio) was essential for the (natural) philosophical explanation of magic processes, especially in the anthropology of Paracelsus. He assumed that imagination was a natural vital power including cosmic, mental, phychical, and physical dimensions. The Paracelsians criticized traditional humor pathology ignoring their theory of' 'natural magic'. On the other hand, they were criticized by their adversaries as charlatans practicing 'black magic'. About 1800, in between enlightenment and romanticism, the healing concept of, animal magnetism' (Mesmerism) evoked an analogous debate, whether, magnetic' phenomena originated from a real (physical) power (so-called, fluidum') or were just due to fantasy or imagination (German Einbildungskraft). At the end of the 19th century, the French internist Hippolyte Bernheim created-against the background of medical hypnosis (hypnotism') as a consequence of Mesmerism - his theory of suggestion and autosuggestion: a new paradigm of psychological respectively psychosomatic medicine, which became the basis for the concept of, placebo' in modern biomedicine. From now on, all the effects of, alternative medicine' could easily be explained by the, placebo-effect', more or less founded - at least unconsciously - on fraud.

Shape analysis of spatial relationships between orbito-ocular and endocranial structures in modern humans and fossil hominids.

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira-Pedro, Ana Sofia; Masters, Michael; Bruner, Emiliano

2017-12-01

The orbits and eyes of modern humans are situated directly below the frontal lobes and anterior to the temporal lobes. Contiguity between these orbital and cerebral elements could generate spatial constraints, and potentially lead to deformation of the eye and reduced visual acuity during development. In this shape analysis we evaluate whether and to what extent covariation exists between ocular morphology and the size and spatial position of the frontal and temporal areas in adult modern humans. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to investigate patterns of variation among the brain and eyes, while computed tomography (CT) was used to compare cranial morphology in this anatomical region among modern humans, extinct hominids and chimpanzees. Seventeen landmarks and semi-landmarks that capture the outline of the eye, frontal lobe, anterior fossa/orbital roof and the position of the temporal tips were sampled using lateral scout views in two dimensions, after projection of the average grayscale values of each hemisphere, with midsagittal and parasagittal elements overlapped onto the same plane. MRI results demonstrated that eye position in adult humans varies most with regard to its horizontal distance from the temporal lobes and, secondly, in its vertical distance from the frontal lobes. Size was mainly found to covary with the distance between the eye and temporal lobes. Proximity to these cerebral lobes may generate spatial constraints, as some ocular deformation was observed. Considering the CT analysis, modern humans vary most with regard to the orientation of the orbits, while interspecific variation is mainly associated with separation between the orbits and endocranial elements. These findings suggest that size and position of the frontal and temporal lobes can affect eye and orbit morphology, though potential effects on eye shape require further study. In particular, possible effects of these spatial and allometric relationships on the eye and vision

The Social Origins of Sustained Attention in One-Year-Old Human Infants.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Chen; Smith, Linda B

2016-05-09

The ability to sustain attention is a major achievement in human development and is generally believed to be the developmental product of increasing self-regulatory and endogenous (i.e., internal, top-down, voluntary) control over one's attention and cognitive systems [1-5]. Because sustained attention in late infancy is predictive of future development, and because early deficits in sustained attention are markers for later diagnoses of attentional disorders [6], sustained attention is often viewed as a constitutional and individual property of the infant [6-9]. However, humans are social animals; developmental pathways for seemingly non-social competencies evolved within the social group and therefore may be dependent on social experience [10-13]. Here, we show that social context matters for the duration of sustained attention episodes in one-year-old infants during toy play. Using head-mounted eye tracking to record moment-by-moment gaze data from both parents and infants, we found that when the social partner (parent) visually attended to the object to which infant attention was directed, infants, after the parent's look, extended their duration of visual attention to the object. Looks to the same object by two social partners is a well-studied phenomenon known as joint attention, which has been shown to be critical to early learning and to the development of social skills [14, 15]. The present findings implicate joint attention in the development of the child's own sustained attention and thus challenge the current understanding of the origins of individual differences in sustained attention, providing a new and potentially malleable developmental pathway to the self-regulation of attention. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Origin of Bacteriochlorophyll a and the Early Diversification of Photosynthesis.

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Tanai Cardona

Full Text Available Photosynthesis originated in the domain Bacteria billions of years ago; however, the identity of the last common ancestor to all phototrophic bacteria remains undetermined and speculative. Here I present the evolution of BchF or 3-vinyl-bacteriochlorophyll hydratase, an enzyme exclusively found in bacteria capable of synthetizing bacteriochlorophyll a. I show that BchF exists in two forms originating from an early divergence, one found in the phylum Chlorobi, including its paralogue BchV, and a second form that was ancestral to the enzyme found in the remaining anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria. The phylogeny of BchF is consistent with bacteriochlorophyll a evolving in an ancestral phototrophic bacterium that lived before the radiation event that gave rise to the phylum Chloroflexi, Chlorobi, Acidobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Gemmatimonadetes, but only after the divergence of Type I and Type II reaction centers. Consequently, it is suggested that the lack of phototrophy in many groups of extant bacteria is a derived trait.

Direct radiocarbon dates for Vindija G1 and Velika Pećina Late Pleistocene hominid remains

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Fred H.; Trinkaus, Erik; Pettitt, Paul B.; Karavanić, Ivor; Paunović, Maja

1999-01-01

New accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dates taken directly on human remains from the Late Pleistocene sites of Vindija and Velika Pećina in the Hrvatsko Zagorje of Croatia are presented. Hominid specimens from both sites have played critical roles in the development of current perspectives on modern human evolutionary emergence in Europe. Dates of ≈28 thousand years (ka) before the present (B.P.) and ≈29 ka B.P. for two specimens from Vindija G1 establish them as the most recent dated Neandertals in the Eurasian range of these archaic humans. The human frontal bone from Velika Pećina, generally considered one of the earliest representatives of modern humans in Europe, dated to ≈5 ka B.P., rendering it no longer pertinent to discussions of modern human origins. Apart from invalidating the only radiometrically based example of temporal overlap between late Neandertal and early modern human fossil remains from within any region of Europe, these dates raise the question of when early modern humans first dispersed into Europe and have implications for the nature and geographic patterning of biological and cultural interactions between these populations and the Neandertals. PMID:10535913

Eco-modernism, a third way for tomorrow's energy?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2017-01-01

Considering climate warming as an immediate threat for humanity, ecologists from the Eco-modernism movement not only approve but call for the presence of nuclear power in the energy mix. For them nuclear energy is a mature low-carbon energy that can be used to combine all renewable energies more efficiently. NGO like 'Environmental Progress', 'Energy for Humanity' or 'Save the Nukes' back the Eco-modernism movement. The Eco-modernism movement gathers unconventional ecologists who consider that modern technologies by using the eco-system more efficiently than previous technologies did, are a powerful tool to reduce the global impact of humane activities on the biosphere. The Eco-modernism movement is for agricultural intensification, the use of GMO, waste recycling and for increasing urbanization. (A.C.)

Dynamic expression of calretinin in embryonic and early fetal human cortex

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Miriam eGonzalez-Gomez

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Calretinin (CR is one of the earliest neurochemical markers in human corticogenesis. In embryos from Carnegie stages (CS 17 to 23, calbindin (CB and CR stain opposite poles of the incipient cortex suggesting early regionalization: CB marks the neuroepithelium of the medial boundary of the cortex with the choroid plexus (cortical hem. By contrast, CR is confined to the subventricular zone (SVZ of the lateral and caudal ganglionic eminences at the pallial-subpallial boundary (PSB, or antihem, from where CR+/Tbr1- neurons migrate toward piriform cortex and amygdala as a component of the lateral cortical stream. At CS 19, columns of CR+ cells arise in the rostral cortex, and contribute at CS 20 to the monolayer of horizontal Tbr1+/CR+ and GAD+ cells in the preplate. At CS 21, the pioneer cortical plate appears as a radial aggregation of CR+/Tbr1+ neurons, which cover the entire future neocortex and extend the first corticofugal axons. CR expression in early human corticogenesis is thus not restricted to interneurons, but is also present in the first excitatory projection neurons of the cortex. At CS 21/22, the cortical plate is established following a lateral to medial gradient, when Tbr1+/CR- neurons settle within the pioneer cortical plate, and thus separate superficial and deep pioneer neurons. CR+ pioneer neurons disappear shortly after the formation of the cortical plate. Reelin+ Cajal-Retzius cells begin to express CR around CS21 (7/8 PCW. At CS 21-23, the CR+ SVZ at the PSB is the source of CR+ interneurons migrating into the cortical SVZ. In turn, CB+ interneurons migrate from the subpallium into the intermediate zone following the fibers of the internal capsule. Early CR+ and CB+ interneurons thus have different origins and migratory routes. CR+ cell populations in the embryonic telencephalon take part in a complex sequence of events not analyzed so far in other mammalian species, which may represent a distinctive trait of the initial steps

Music and the Meeting of Human Minds

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Alan R. Harvey

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Over tens of thousands of years of human genetic and cultural evolution, many types and varieties of music and language have emerged; however, the fundamental components of each of these modes of communication seem to be common to all human cultures and social groups. In this brief review, rather than focusing on the development of different musical techniques and practices over time, the main issues addressed here concern: (i when, and speculations as to why, modern Homo sapiens evolved musical behaviors, (ii the evolutionary relationship between music and language, and (iii why humans, perhaps unique among all living species, universally continue to possess two complementary but distinct communication streams. Did music exist before language, or vice versa, or was there a common precursor that in some way separated into two distinct yet still overlapping systems when cognitively modern H. sapiens evolved? A number of theories put forward to explain the origin and persistent universality of music are considered, but emphasis is given, supported by recent neuroimaging, physiological, and psychological findings, to the role that music can play in promoting trust, altruistic behavior, social bonding, and cooperation within groups of culturally compatible but not necessarily genetically related humans. It is argued that, early in our history, the unique socializing and harmonizing power of music acted as an essential counterweight to the new and evolving sense of self, to an emerging sense of individuality and mortality that was linked to the development of an advanced cognitive capacity and articulate language capability.

Music and the Meeting of Human Minds.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Alan R

2018-01-01

Over tens of thousands of years of human genetic and cultural evolution, many types and varieties of music and language have emerged; however, the fundamental components of each of these modes of communication seem to be common to all human cultures and social groups. In this brief review, rather than focusing on the development of different musical techniques and practices over time, the main issues addressed here concern: (i) when, and speculations as to why, modern Homo sapiens evolved musical behaviors, (ii) the evolutionary relationship between music and language, and (iii) why humans, perhaps unique among all living species, universally continue to possess two complementary but distinct communication streams. Did music exist before language, or vice versa, or was there a common precursor that in some way separated into two distinct yet still overlapping systems when cognitively modern H. sapiens evolved? A number of theories put forward to explain the origin and persistent universality of music are considered, but emphasis is given, supported by recent neuroimaging, physiological, and psychological findings, to the role that music can play in promoting trust, altruistic behavior, social bonding, and cooperation within groups of culturally compatible but not necessarily genetically related humans. It is argued that, early in our history, the unique socializing and harmonizing power of music acted as an essential counterweight to the new and evolving sense of self, to an emerging sense of individuality and mortality that was linked to the development of an advanced cognitive capacity and articulate language capability.

Modernization of the french early warning network in IRSN, experience feedback and perspectives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Debayle, C.; Bardet, A.; Beguin-Leprieur, M.; Chevreuil, M.; Malfait, V.; Mechenet, V. [PRP-ENV/SESURE/LS2A (France)

2014-07-01

Developed few years after the Chernobyl accident in 1991, the French early warning network, Teleray, composed by 160 ambient dose equivalent rate probes, had operated for 15 years. It was decided in 2007 to modernize this facility in order to keep the infrastructure up-to-date. The sensors, the data transmission network and the supervising system were considered separately, but each development took care about the modularity of the final IT system. After a benchmarking period and technical choices, a five years project started with the aim to increase the number of probes to 420, especially around the French nuclear facilities, to change the technology and the IT system including a new data transmission network. The project kick-off was planned in june 2011, but due to the Fukushima accident, the French government asked IRSN to implement a probe on the roof of the French embassy in Tokyo on March 18, 2011. Results and feedback will be discussed, focusing on new approach about data analysis purpose. In 2014, the modernization of this network will be finished one year before it was expected and with significant cost savings. All the relevant phase of the project will be described, including time schedule and economical aspects, with the aim to describe how it is now considered fundamental to have complementary mobile systems in case of nuclear crisis. Document available in abstract form only. (authors)

The historical origins of the vegetative state: Received wisdom and the utility of the text.

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Zoe M; Fins, Joseph J

2017-01-01

The persistent vegetative state (PVS) is one of the most iconic and misunderstood phrases in clinical neuroscience. Coined as a diagnostic category by Scottish neurosurgeon Bryan Jennett and American neurologist Fred Plum in 1972, the phrase "vegetative" first appeared in Aristotle's treatise On the Soul (circa mid-fourth century BCE). Aristotle influenced neuroscientists of the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, Xavier Bichat and Walter Timme, and informed their conceptions of the vegetative nervous system. Plum credits Bichat and Timme in his use of the phrase, thus putting the ancient and modern in dialogue. In addition to exploring Aristotle's definition of the "vegetative" in the original Greek, we put Aristotle in conversation with his contemporaries-Plato and the Hippocratics-to better apprehend theories of mind and consciousness in antiquity. Utilizing the discipline of reception studies in classics scholarship, we demonstrate the importance of etymology and historical origin when considering modern medical nosology.

Origin and evolution of the atmospheres of early Venus, Earth and Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Lammer, Helmut; Zerkle, Aubrey L.; Gebauer, Stefanie; Tosi, Nicola; Noack, Lena; Scherf, Manuel; Pilat-Lohinger, Elke; Güdel, Manuel; Grenfell, John Lee; Godolt, Mareike; Nikolaou, Athanasia

2018-05-01

We review the origin and evolution of the atmospheres of Earth, Venus and Mars from the time when their accreting bodies were released from the protoplanetary disk a few million years after the origin of the Sun. If the accreting planetary cores reached masses ≥ 0.5 M_Earth before the gas in the disk disappeared, primordial atmospheres consisting mainly of H_2 form around the young planetary body, contrary to late-stage planet formation, where terrestrial planets accrete material after the nebula phase of the disk. The differences between these two scenarios are explored by investigating non-radiogenic atmospheric noble gas isotope anomalies observed on the three terrestrial planets. The role of the young Sun's more efficient EUV radiation and of the plasma environment into the escape of early atmospheres is also addressed. We discuss the catastrophic outgassing of volatiles and the formation and cooling of steam atmospheres after the solidification of magma oceans and we describe the geochemical evidence for additional delivery of volatile-rich chondritic materials during the main stages of terrestrial planet formation. The evolution scenario of early Earth is then compared with the atmospheric evolution of planets where no active plate tectonics emerged like on Venus and Mars. We look at the diversity between early Earth, Venus and Mars, which is found to be related to their differing geochemical, geodynamical and geophysical conditions, including plate tectonics, crust and mantle oxidation processes and their involvement in degassing processes of secondary N_2 atmospheres. The buildup of atmospheric N_2, O_2, and the role of greenhouse gases such as CO_2 and CH_4 to counter the Faint Young Sun Paradox (FYSP), when the earliest life forms on Earth originated until the Great Oxidation Event ≈ 2.3 Gyr ago, are addressed. This review concludes with a discussion on the implications of understanding Earth's geophysical and related atmospheric evolution in relation

Telling Modernization: Three Voices. Life History, Gender and the Discourse of Modernization. Roskilde University Life History Project Paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Linda

The relationship between life history, gender, and the discourse of modernization was examined from the perspective of a researcher with extensive experience performing evaluations about modernization within human services in Denmark. Three stories about site-based management in two human service institutionsa youth center and a boarding school…

Nuclear power and modern society

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Komarek, A.

1999-01-01

A treatise consisting of the following sections: Development of modern society (Origin of modern society; Industrial society; The year 1968; Post-industrial society; Worldwide civic society); Historic breaks in the development of the stationary power sector (Stationary thermal power; Historic breaks in the development of nuclear power); Czech nuclear power engineering in the globalization era (Major causes of success of Czech nuclear power engineering; Future of Czech nuclear power engineering). (P.A.)

(See symbol in text) in early modern discussions of the passions: Stoicism, Christianity and natural history.

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Kraye, Jill

2012-01-01

This paper examines the reception of the Stoic theory of the passions in the early modern period, highlighting various differences between the way notions such as (see symbol in text) (complete freedom from passions) and(see symbol in text) (pre-passions) were handled and interpreted by Continental and English authors. Both groups were concerned about the compatibility of Stoicism with Christianity, but came to opposing conclusions; and while the Continental scholars drew primarily on ancient philosophical texts, the English ones relied, in addition, on experience and observation, developing a natural history of the passions.

Acceptable losses: the debatable origins of loss aversion.

Science.gov (United States)

Yechiam, Eldad

2018-04-16

It is often claimed that negative events carry a larger weight than positive events. Loss aversion is the manifestation of this argument in monetary outcomes. In this review, we examine early studies of the utility function of gains and losses, and in particular the original evidence for loss aversion reported by Kahneman and Tversky (Econometrica  47:263-291, 1979). We suggest that loss aversion proponents have over-interpreted these findings. Specifically, the early studies of utility functions have shown that while very large losses are overweighted, smaller losses are often not. In addition, the findings of some of these studies have been systematically misrepresented to reflect loss aversion, though they did not find it. These findings shed light both on the inability of modern studies to reproduce loss aversion as well as a second literature arguing strongly for it.

Early-Modern Irreligion and Theological Analogy: A Response to Gavin Hyman’s A Short History of Atheism

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Daniel J Linford

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Historically, many Christians have understood God’s transcendence to imply God’s properties categorically differ from any created properties. For multiple historical figures, a problem arose for religious language: how can one talk of God at all if none of our predicates apply to God? What are we to make of creeds and Biblical passages that seem to predicate creaturely properties, such as goodness and wisdom, of God? Thomas Aquinas offered a solution: God is to be spoken of only through analogy (the doctrine of analogy. Gavin Hyman argues Aquinas’s doctrine of analogy was neglected prior to the early-modern period and the neglect of analogy produced the conception of a god vulnerable to atheistic arguments. Contra Hyman, in this paper, I show early-modern atheism arose in a theological context in which there was an active debate concerning analogy. Peter Browne (1665–1735 and William King (1650–1729 offered two competing conceptions of analogical predication that were debated through the 19th century, with interlocutors such as the freethinker Anthony Collins (1676–1729, theologian/philosopher George Berkeley (1685–1753, and skeptic David Hume (1711–1776. Lastly, I discuss the 18th century debate over theological analogy as part of the background relevant to understanding Hume’s 'Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion'.

Early embryonic chromosome instability results in stable mosaic pattern in human tissues.

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Hasmik Mkrtchyan

Full Text Available The discovery of copy number variations (CNV in the human genome opened new perspectives on the study of the genetic causes of inherited disorders and the aetiology of common diseases. Here, a single-cell-level investigation of CNV in different human tissues led us to uncover the phenomenon of mitotically derived genomic mosaicism, which is stable in different cell types of one individual. The CNV mosaic ratios were different between the 10 individuals studied. However, they were stable in the T lymphocytes, immortalized B lymphoblastoid cells, and skin fibroblasts analyzed in each individual. Because these cell types have a common origin in the connective tissues, we suggest that mitotic changes in CNV regions may happen early during embryonic development and occur only once, after which the stable mosaic ratio is maintained throughout the differentiated tissues. This concept is further supported by a unique study of immortalized B lymphoblastoid cell lines obtained with 20 year difference from two subjects. We provide the first evidence of somatic mosaicism for CNV, with stable variation ratios in different cell types of one individual leading to the hypothesis of early embryonic chromosome instability resulting in stable mosaic pattern in human tissues. This concept has the potential to open new perspectives in personalized genetic diagnostics and can explain genetic phenomena like diminished penetrance in autosomal dominant diseases. We propose that further genomic studies should focus on the single-cell level, to better understand the aetiology of aging and diseases mediated by somatic mutations.

Dual odontogenic origins develop at the early stage of rat maxillary incisor development.

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Kriangkrai, Rungarun; Iseki, Sachiko; Eto, Kazuhiro; Chareonvit, Suconta

2006-03-01

Developmental process of rat maxillary incisor has been studied through histological analysis and investigation of tooth-related gene expression patterns at initial tooth development. The tooth-related genes studied here are fibroblast growth factor-8 (Fgf-8), pituitary homeobox gene-2 (Pitx-2), sonic hedgehog (Shh), muscle segment homeobox-1 (Msx-1), paired box-9 (Pax-9) and bone morphogenetic protein-4 (Bmp-4). The genes are expressed in oral epithelium and/or ectomesenchyme at the stage of epithelial thickening to the early bud stage of tooth development. Both the histological observation and tooth-related gene expression patterns during early stage of maxillary incisor development demonstrate that dual odontogenic origins aligned medio-laterally in the medial nasal process develop, subsequently only single functional maxillary incisor dental placode forms. The cascade of tooth-related gene expression patterns in rat maxillary incisor studied here is quite similar to those of the previous studies in mouse mandibular molar, even though the origins of oral epithelium and ectomesenchyme involved in development of maxillary incisor and mandibular molar are different. Thus, we conclude that maxillary incisor and mandibular molar share a similar signaling control of Fgf-8, Pitx-2, Shh, Msx-1, Pax-9 and Bmp-4 genes at the stage of oral epithelial thickening to the early bud stage of tooth development.

Time and Place of Human Origins, the African Eve Hypothesis Examined through Modelling: Can High Schools Contribute?

Science.gov (United States)

Oxnard, Charles

1994-01-01

Studies of mitochondrial DNA imply that modern humans arose in Africa 150,000 years ago and spread throughout the world, replacing all prior human groups. But many paleontologists see continuity in human fossils on each continent and over a much longer time. Modeling may help test these alternatives. (Author/MKR)

La Société des Nations suppose la Société des Esprits: The Debate on Modern Humanism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Heerikhuizen, A.

2015-01-01

This article focuses on the themes of the two conferences organized by the League of Nations—"Modern Man" and "The Foundations of Modern Humanism"—which were held in Nice and Budapest in 1935 and 1936, respectively. It was a time of deepening crisis, when the pervasive belief was that European

Fractal dimension of the middle meningeal vessels: variation and evolution in Homo erectus, Neanderthals, and modern humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Bruner, Emiliano; Mantini, Simone; Perna, Agostino; Maffei, Carlotta; Manzi, Giorgio

2005-01-01

The middle meningeal vascular network leaves its traces on the endocranial surface because of the tight relationship between neurocranial development and brain growth. Analysing the endocast of fossil specimens, it is therefore possible to describe the morphology of these structures, leading inferences on the cerebral physiology and metabolism in extinct human groups. In this paper, general features of the meningeal vascular traces are described for specimens included in the Homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis, and Homo sapiens hypodigms. The complexity of the arterial network is quantified by its fractal dimension, calculated through the box-counting method. Modern humans show significant differences from the other two taxa because of the anterior vascular dominance and the larger fractal dimension. Neither the fractal dimension nor the anterior development are merely associated with cranial size increase. Considering the differences between Neanderthals and modern humans, these results may be interpreted in terms of phylogeny, cerebral functions, or cranial structural network.

Origin of frontal lobe spikes in the early onset benign occipital lobe epilepsy (Panayiotopoulos syndrome).

Science.gov (United States)

Leal, Alberto J R; Ferreira, José C; Dias, Ana I; Calado, Eulália

2008-09-01

Early onset benign occipital lobe epilepsy (Panayiotopoulos syndrome [PS]) is a common and easily recognizable epilepsy. Interictal EEG spike activity is often multifocal but most frequently localized in the occipital lobes. The origin and clinical significance of the extra-occipital spikes remain poorly understood. Three patients with the PS and interictal EEG spikes with frontal lobe topography were studied using high-resolution EEG. Independent component analysis (ICA) was used to decompose the spikes in components with distinct temporal dynamics. The components were mapped in the scalp with a spline-laplacian algorithm. The change in scalp potential topography from spike onset to peak, suggests the contribution of several intracranial generators, with different kinetics of activation and significant overlap. ICA was able to separate the major contributors to frontal spikes and consistently revealed an early activating group of components over the occipital areas in all the patients. The local origin of these early potentials was established by the spline-laplacian montage. Frontal spikes in PS are consistently associated with early and unilateral occipital lobe activation, suggesting a postero-anterior spike propagation. Frontal spikes in the PS represent a secondary activation triggered by occipital interictal discharges and do not represent an independent focus.

Origin of I in soil and the 129I problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohen, B.L.

1985-01-01

It is widely believed that the I in soil is derived from the I in oceans by evaporating-atmospheric transport-washout by rain over land, rather than from the I in rock when the latter is weathered into soil. Since human I burdens are derived largely from soil by plant root uptake into food, this implies that the specific activity of 129 I in the I of human thyroids will be the same as that in the oceans, whereas it would be similar to that in rock (much lower) if the I in soil were derived from weathering of rock as is the case for other heavy trace elements. The bases for the oceanic origin theory are analyzed and found not to be in accord with modern data. Recent data shows no correlation between concentration of I in soil and proximity to oceans, which argues strongly against the oceanic origin theory. Some problems with long-distance atmospheric transport are pointed out. It is concluded that only a small fraction of the I in soils is of oceanic origin. Most estimates of very long-term effects of 129 I on human health are therefore several times too high

Crititics to Metaphysics by Modern Philosophers (Discourse on Human Beings in Reality)

OpenAIRE

Frederikus Fios

2016-01-01

We have entered the 21st century that is popularly known as the era of the development of modern science and technology. Philosophy provides naming for contemporary era as postmodern era. But do we suddenly come to this day and age? No! Because humans are homo viator, persona that does pilgrimage in history, space and time. Philosophy has expanded periodically in the long course of history. Since the days of classical antiquity, philosophy comes with a patterned metaphysical paradigm. T...

Reviewing the current evidence supporting early B-cells as the cellular origin of Merkel cell carcinoma.

Science.gov (United States)

Sauer, C M; Haugg, A M; Chteinberg, E; Rennspiess, D; Winnepenninckx, V; Speel, E-J; Becker, J C; Kurz, A K; Zur Hausen, A

2017-08-01

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a highly malignant skin cancer characterized by early metastases and poor survival. Although MCC is a rare malignancy, its incidence is rapidly increasing in the U.S. and Europe. The discovery of the Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV) has enormously impacted our understanding of its etiopathogenesis and biology. MCCs are characterized by trilinear differentiation, comprising the expression of neuroendocrine, epithelial and B-lymphoid lineage markers. To date, it is generally accepted that the initial assumption of MCC originating from Merkel cells (MCs) is unlikely. This is owed to their post-mitotic character, absence of MCPyV in MCs and discrepant protein expression pattern in comparison to MCC. Evidence from mouse models suggests that epidermal/dermal stem cells might be of cellular origin in MCC. The recently formulated hypothesis of MCC originating from early B-cells is based on morphology, the consistent expression of early B-cell lineage markers and the finding of clonal immunoglobulin chain rearrangement in MCC cells. In this review we elaborate on the cellular ancestry of MCC, the identification of which could pave the way for novel and more effective therapeutic regimens. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Preliminary Study of Late Pleistocene to Early Holocene Plant Food Strategies in China

Science.gov (United States)

Hayashi Tang, M.; Liu, X.; Fritz, G.; Zhao, Z.

2017-12-01

In recent decades, studies on the domestication and early cultivation of seed crops have contributed significantly to how we understand human-plant interactions, and their impact on human social organisation and the environment. It is becoming clear, however, that plants have been critical to the human diet for much longer and in more diverse ways than previously assumed. This paper is a preliminary attempt at identifying and addressing early prehistoric plant food strategies in China. In particular, very little is known about the use of vegetatively propagated plants, despite their significant representation in modern crops. Many ingredients of Chinese medicine are also roots and tubers (or vegetative storage organs, VSOs). Unlike seed crops, however, we lack a systematic criterion for examining diagnostic characters of different VSO taxa in the archaeological record. To address this issue, we characterized commonly consumed and historically significant VSOs in China, by studying experimentally charred modern samples under the optical microscope and scanning electron microscope. We then compared the characteristics of these modern VSO samples against plant remains from Late Pleistocene to early Holocene archaeological sites in China, such as Zengpiyan (Guangxi), Zhaoguodong (Guizhou), and Jiahu (Henan) sites. We found that different taxa of VSOs can be differentiated by using multiple lines of evidence, including: shape and size of various cells, texture and arrangement of cell walls, as well as anatomical arrangements of organs, especially the vascular bundles. Though identification can be difficult when fragile cell structures have collapsed or deteriorated, more robust features are often preserved for diagnosis. Our results suggest that the potential for studying the role of vegetatively propagated plants in early human-environmental interactions is overlooked, and can be expanded significantly with further investment in their systematic identification.

An earlier origin for the Acheulian.

Science.gov (United States)

Lepre, Christopher J; Roche, Hélène; Kent, Dennis V; Harmand, Sonia; Quinn, Rhonda L; Brugal, Jean-Philippe; Texier, Pierre-Jean; Lenoble, Arnaud; Feibel, Craig S

2011-08-31

The Acheulian is one of the first defined prehistoric techno-complexes and is characterized by shaped bifacial stone tools. It probably originated in Africa, spreading to Europe and Asia perhaps as early as ∼1 million years (Myr) ago. The origin of the Acheulian is thought to have closely coincided with major changes in human brain evolution, allowing for further technological developments. Nonetheless, the emergence of the Acheulian remains unclear because well-dated sites older than 1.4 Myr ago are scarce. Here we report on the lithic assemblage and geological context for the Kokiselei 4 archaeological site from the Nachukui formation (West Turkana, Kenya) that bears characteristic early Acheulian tools and pushes the first appearance datum for this stone-age technology back to 1.76 Myr ago. Moreover, co-occurrence of Oldowan and Acheulian artefacts at the Kokiselei site complex indicates that the two technologies are not mutually exclusive time-successive components of an evolving cultural lineage, and suggests that the Acheulian was either imported from another location yet to be identified or originated from Oldowan hominins at this vicinity. In either case, the Acheulian did not accompany the first human dispersal from Africa despite being available at the time. This may indicate that multiple groups of hominins distinguished by separate stone-tool-making behaviours and dispersal strategies coexisted in Africa at 1.76 Myr ago.

The origin of ambling horses.

Science.gov (United States)

Wutke, Saskia; Andersson, Leif; Benecke, Norbert; Sandoval-Castellanos, Edson; Gonzalez, Javier; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Lõugas, Lembi; Magnell, Ola; Morales-Muniz, Arturo; Orlando, Ludovic; Pálsdóttir, Albína Hulda; Reissmann, Monika; Muñoz-Rodríguez, Mariana B; Ruttkay, Matej; Trinks, Alexandra; Hofreiter, Michael; Ludwig, Arne

2016-08-08

Horseback riding is the most fundamental use of domestic horses and has had a huge influence on the development of human societies for millennia. Over time, riding techniques and the style of riding improved. Therefore, horses with the ability to perform comfortable gaits (e.g. ambling or pacing), so-called 'gaited' horses, have been highly valued by humans, especially for long distance travel. Recently, the causative mutation for gaitedness in horses has been linked to a substitution causing a premature stop codon in the DMRT3 gene (DMRT3_Ser301STOP) [1]. In mice, Dmrt3 is expressed in spinal cord interneurons and plays an important role in the development of limb movement coordination [1]. Genotyping the position in 4396 modern horses from 141 breeds revealed that nowadays the mutated allele is distributed worldwide with an especially high frequency in gaited horses and breeds used for harness racing [2]. Here, we examine historic horse remains for the DMRT3 SNP, tracking the origin of gaitedness to Medieval England between 850 and 900 AD. The presence of the corresponding allele in Icelandic horses (9(th)-11(th) century) strongly suggests that ambling horses were brought from the British Isles to Iceland by Norse people. Considering the high frequency of the ambling allele in early Icelandic horses, we believe that Norse settlers selected for this comfortable mode of horse riding soon after arrival. The absence of the allele in samples from continental Europe (including Scandinavia) at this time implies that ambling horses may have spread from Iceland and maybe also the British Isles across the continent at a later date. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Out of Africa hypothesis and the ancestry of recent humans: Cherchez la femme (et l'homme).

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Árnason, Úlfur

2016-07-01

The Out of Africa hypothesis (OOAH) has been a mainstay in the discussion of human evolution since its presentation in the 1980's. However, recent advances in palaeontology and molecular genetics have made it possible to examine the hypothesis in a manner that was inconceivable at the time of its proposal. The palaeontological progress relates to early Homo finds in the Caucasus, Denisova finds in the Altai Mountains and Neanderthal finds in a wide range of localities from the Altai Mountains, the Caucasus, the Levant, Asia Minor, southern and Central Europe and the Iberian Peninsula. The Eurasian location of these finds and recognition of the principle of Last common ancestor (LCA) lend no support to OOAH. The same conclusion is drawn from genomic findings, which (a) have revealed the presence of Denisovan and Neanderthal nuclear DNA, primarily in the genomes of recent Eurasians and (b) have shown genomic introgression from early modern humans into Neanderthals in the Altai Mountains. Similarly, archaeological finds in Sulawesi and the discovery of ≈100,000years old human teeth in southern China constitute strong independent challenges to OOAH. The genomic and palaeogenomic results and the new palaeontological and archaeological discoveries suggest (a) that the ancestors of modern humans had their origin in a Eurasian (largely Asian) biogeographic region which may also have extended into NE Africa, and (b) that the founders of basal African lineages became separated, geographically and genetically, in the westernmost part of this region and spread from there to different parts of the African continent. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Two-Person Control: A Brief History and Modern Industry Practices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pedersen, Robert Douglas [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)

2017-07-01

Physical asset protection is the principal objective of many security and safeguard measures. One well-known means of asset protection is two-person control. This paper reviews literature regarding two-person control to gain insight into its origin, first demonstrated uses, and its presence in several modern industries. This literature review of two-person control is intended to benefit people and organizations with a desire to understand its origins and how the practice has evolved over time, as well as give some insight into the flexibility of this safeguarding technique. The literature review is focused in four main sections: (1) defining two-person control, (2) early history, (3) two-person control in modern industry, and (4) a theory on how two- person control entered modern industry. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author would like to thank Jarret Lafleur and Scott Paap of Sandia National Laboratories, California's Systems Analysis & Engineering organization for the opportunity to work on this project. Jarret Lafleur provided very constructive and helpful feedback through all stages of the work. Amanda Thompson of the Sandia California Technical Library maintained a great spirit and always had a quick document turnaround that very much helped out this project's completion. Additionally, yet perhaps most importantly, the author would like to thank his wife and daughter, along with the rest of his family, for continued support over the years. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC., a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International, Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

The Religion of the Muslims of Medieval and Early Modern Castile : Interdisciplinary Research and Recent Studies on Mudejar Islam (2000-2014)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Colominas Aparicio, M.; Wiegers, G.A.

2016-01-01

The present article examines recent contributions to the study of Islam and Muslim communities in Medieval and Early Modern Castile (2000-2014). Our aim is to identify the main areas of focus, the topics and the key issues addressed by scholars in the field; and to consider the significance of the

Genome-wide comparison of medieval and modern Mycobacterium leprae.

Science.gov (United States)

Schuenemann, Verena J; Singh, Pushpendra; Mendum, Thomas A; Krause-Kyora, Ben; Jäger, Günter; Bos, Kirsten I; Herbig, Alexander; Economou, Christos; Benjak, Andrej; Busso, Philippe; Nebel, Almut; Boldsen, Jesper L; Kjellström, Anna; Wu, Huihai; Stewart, Graham R; Taylor, G Michael; Bauer, Peter; Lee, Oona Y-C; Wu, Houdini H T; Minnikin, David E; Besra, Gurdyal S; Tucker, Katie; Roffey, Simon; Sow, Samba O; Cole, Stewart T; Nieselt, Kay; Krause, Johannes

2013-07-12

Leprosy was endemic in Europe until the Middle Ages. Using DNA array capture, we have obtained genome sequences of Mycobacterium leprae from skeletons of five medieval leprosy cases from the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark. In one case, the DNA was so well preserved that full de novo assembly of the ancient bacterial genome could be achieved through shotgun sequencing alone. The ancient M. leprae sequences were compared with those of 11 modern strains, representing diverse genotypes and geographic origins. The comparisons revealed remarkable genomic conservation during the past 1000 years, a European origin for leprosy in the Americas, and the presence of an M. leprae genotype in medieval Europe now commonly associated with the Middle East. The exceptional preservation of M. leprae biomarkers, both DNA and mycolic acids, in ancient skeletons has major implications for palaeomicrobiology and human pathogen evolution.

Human Health Hazards from Antimicrobial-Resistant Escherichia coli of Animal Origin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hammerum, A. M.; Heuer, Ole Eske

2009-01-01

of antimicrobial agents in food animals may add to the burden of antimicrobial resistance in humans. Bacteria from the animal reservoir that carry resistance to antimicrobial agents that are regarded as highly or critically important in human therapy (e.g., aminoglycosides, fluoroquinolones, and third- and fourth......Because of the intensive use of antimicrobial agents in food animal production, meat is frequently contaminated with antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli. Humans can be colonized with E. coli of animal origin, and because of resistance to commonly used antimicrobial agents, these bacteria may...... cause infections for which limited therapeutic options are available. This may lead to treatment failure and can have serious consequences for the patient. Furthermore, E. coli of animal origin may act as a donor of antimicrobial resistance genes for other pathogenic E. coli. Thus, the intensive use...

MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO LIFESPAN EXTENSION OF ANIMALS AND HUMANS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. L. Levitsky

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the research was to analyze current data concerning the problem of extending the life of multicellular animals and humans. The modern views about the processes of aging and prolongation of life are presented. The analysis focused on the genetic mechanisms of aging and mainly biotechnological approaches (genetic engineering, gene therapy, the use of stem cells, and the reprogramming of the genome to prolong the life of multicellular organisms. For comparison, some traditional methods of prolonging life are described (drug therapy, exercise training, calorically restricted nutrition. This analysis allows to postulate the perspectives and advantages of using biotechnological methods for prolonging life in comparison with traditional ones.

Using molecular tools to identify the geographical origin of a case of human brucellosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Muchowski, J K; Koylass, M S; Dainty, A C; Stack, J A; Perrett, L; Whatmore, A M; Perrier, C; Chircop, S; Demicoli, N; Gatt, A B; Caruana, P A; Gopaul, K K

2015-10-01

Although Malta is historically linked with the zoonosis brucellosis, there had not been a case of the disease in either the human or livestock population for several years. However, in July 2013 a case of human brucellosis was identified on the island. To determine whether this recent case originated in Malta, four isolates from this case were subjected to molecular analysis. Molecular profiles generated using multilocus sequence analysis and multilocus variable number tandem repeat for the recent human case isolates and 11 Brucella melitensis strains of known Maltese origin were compared with others held on in-house and global databases. While the 11 isolates of Maltese origin formed a distinct cluster, the recent human isolation was not associated with these strains but instead clustered with isolates originating from the Horn of Africa. These data was congruent with epidemiological trace-back showed that the individual had travelled to Malta from Eritrea. This work highlights the potential of using molecular typing data to aid in epidemiological trace-back of Brucella isolations and assist in monitoring of the effectiveness of brucellosis control schemes.

Further morphological evidence on South African earliest Homo lower postcanine dentition: Enamel thickness and enamel dentine junction.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Lei; Dumoncel, Jean; de Beer, Frikkie; Hoffman, Jakobus; Thackeray, John Francis; Duployer, Benjamin; Tenailleau, Christophe; Braga, José

2016-07-01

The appearance of the earliest members of the genus Homo in South Africa represents a key event in human evolution. Although enamel thickness and enamel dentine junction (EDJ) morphology preserve important information about hominin systematics and dietary adaptation, these features have not been sufficiently studied with regard to early Homo. We used micro-CT to compare enamel thickness and EDJ morphology among the mandibular postcanine dentitions of South African early hominins (N = 30) and extant Homo sapiens (N = 26), with special reference to early members of the genus Homo. We found that South African early Homo shows a similar enamel thickness distribution pattern to modern humans, although three-dimensional average and relative enamel thicknesses do not distinguish australopiths, early Homo, and modern humans particularly well. Based on enamel thickness distributions, our study suggests that a dietary shift occurred between australopiths and the origin of the Homo lineage. We also observed that South African early Homo postcanine EDJ combined primitive traits seen in australopith molars with derived features observed in modern human premolars. Our results confirm that some dental morphological patterns in later Homo actually occurred early in the Homo lineage, and highlight the taxonomic value of premolar EDJ morphology in hominin species. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The conditional returns to origin-country human capital among Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in Belgium.

Science.gov (United States)

Kanas, Agnieszka; van Tubergen, Frank

2014-07-01

This study extends the analysis of the economic returns to pre-migration human capital by examining the role of the receiving context, co-ethnic residential concentration, and post-migration investments in human capital. It uses large-scale survey data on Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in Belgium. The analysis demonstrates that regarding employment, Moroccan immigrants, that is, those originating from former French colonies receive larger returns to their origin-country education and work experience in French- vs. Dutch-speaking regions. Other than the positive interaction effect between co-ethnic residential concentration and work experience on employment, there is little evidence that co-ethnic concentration increases the returns to origin-country human capital. Speaking the host-country language facilitates economic returns to origin-country work experience. Conversely, immigrants who acquire host-country credentials and work experience receive lower returns to origin-country education and experience, suggesting that, at least among low-skilled immigrants, pre- and post-migration human capital substitute rather than complement each other. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

On the Representation of an Early Modern Dutch Storm in Two Poems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katrin Pfeifer

2015-10-01

Full Text Available On 19th December 1660, a severe storm raged over the Dutch isle of Texel, causing severe damage. It proceeded to destroy parts of the city of Amsterdam. Both the sailor and merchant Gerrit Jansz Kooch and the priest Joannes Vollenhove wrote a poem about this natural disaster, presumably independently of each other. The poets perceived the storm differently: Kooch, an eyewitness of the storm, matter-of-factly portrays the calamity and details a feud between his son-in-law and a colleague to commemorate the day of the disaster. In contrast, Vollenhove personifies the winter storm and struggles to understand it. Their poems are valuable sources for a cultural historical analysis. After a brief review of historical severe storm research, I will analyse these poems from a cultural historical point of view. I will shed light on how this severe storm was represented poetically in the Early Modern Period.

Incorporation of Trace Elements in Ancient and Modern Human Bone: An X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy Study

Science.gov (United States)

Pingitore, N. E.; Cruz-Jimenez, G.; Price, T. D.

2001-12-01

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) affords the opportunity to probe the atomic environment of trace elements in human bone. We are using XAS to investigate the mode(s) of incorporation of Sr, Zn, Pb, and Ba in both modern and ancient (and thus possibly altered) human and animal bone. Because burial and diagenesis may add trace elements to bone, we performed XAS analysis on samples of pristine contemporary and ancient, buried human and animal bone. We assume that deposition of these elements during burial occurs by processes distinct from those in vivo, and this will be reflected in their atomic environments. Archaeologists measure strontium in human and animal bone as a guide to diet. Carnivores show lower Sr/Ca ratios than their herbivore prey due to discrimination against Sr relative to Ca up the food chain. In an initial sample suite no difference was observed between modern and buried bone. Analysis of additional buried samples, using a more sensitive detector, revealed significant differences in the distance to the second and third neighbors of the Sr in some of the buried samples. Distances to the first neighbor, oxygen, were similar in all samples. Zinc is also used in paleo-diet studies. Initial x-ray absorption spectroscopy of a limited suite of bones did not reveal any differences between modern and buried samples. This may reflect the limited number of samples examined or the low levels of Zn in typical aqueous solutions in soils. Signals from barium and lead were too low to record useful XAS spectra. Additional samples will be studied for Zn, Ba, and Pb. We conducted our XAS experiments on beam lines 4-1 and 4-3 at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory. Data were collected in the fluorescence mode, using a Lytle detector and appropriate filter, and a solid state, 13-element Ge-detector.

Nonstructural Protein L* Species Specificity Supports a Mouse Origin for Vilyuisk Human Encephalitis Virus.

Science.gov (United States)

Drappier, Melissa; Opperdoes, Fred R; Michiels, Thomas

2017-07-15

Vilyuisk human encephalitis virus (VHEV) is a picornavirus related to Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV). VHEV was isolated from human material passaged in mice. Whether this VHEV is of human or mouse origin is therefore unclear. We took advantage of the species-specific activity of the nonstructural L* protein of theiloviruses to track the origin of TMEV isolates. TMEV L* inhibits RNase L, the effector enzyme of the interferon pathway. By using coimmunoprecipitation and functional RNase L assays, the species specificity of RNase L antagonism was tested for L* from mouse (DA) and rat (RTV-1) TMEV strains as well as for VHEV. Coimmunoprecipitation and functional assay data confirmed the species specificity of L* activity and showed that L* from rat strain RTV-1 inhibited rat but not mouse or human RNase L. Next, we showed that the VHEV L* protein was phylogenetically related to L* of mouse viruses and that it failed to inhibit human RNase L but readily antagonized mouse RNase L, unambiguously showing the mouse origin of VHEV. IMPORTANCE Defining the natural host of a virus can be a thorny issue, especially when the virus was isolated only once or when the isolation story is complex. The species Theilovirus includes Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV), infecting mice and rats, and Saffold virus (SAFV), infecting humans. One TMEV strain, Vilyuisk human encephalitis virus (VHEV), however, was isolated from mice that were inoculated with cerebrospinal fluid of a patient presenting with chronic encephalitis. It is therefore unclear whether VHEV was derived from the human sample or from the inoculated mouse. The L* protein encoded by TMEV inhibits RNase L, a cellular enzyme involved in innate immunity, in a species-specific manner. Using binding and functional assays, we show that this species specificity even allows discrimination between TMEV strains of mouse and of rat origins. The VHEV L* protein clearly inhibited mouse but not human RNase L

Sex-related risks of trauma in medieval to early modern Denmark, and its relationship to change in interpersonal violence over time.