WorldWideScience

Sample records for palaeolithic modern human

  1. Upper Palaeolithic genomes reveal deep roots of modern Eurasians

    KAUST Repository

    Jones, Eppie R.

    2015-11-16

    We extend the scope of European palaeogenomics by sequencing the genomes of Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,300 years old, 1.4-fold coverage) and Mesolithic (9,700 years old, 15.4-fold) males from western Georgia in the Caucasus and a Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,700 years old, 9.5-fold) male from Switzerland. While we detect Late Palaeolithic–Mesolithic genomic continuity in both regions, we find that Caucasus hunter-gatherers (CHG) belong to a distinct ancient clade that split from western hunter-gatherers ~45 kya, shortly after the expansion of anatomically modern humans into Europe and from the ancestors of Neolithic farmers ~25 kya, around the Last Glacial Maximum. CHG genomes significantly contributed to the Yamnaya steppe herders who migrated into Europe ~3,000 BC, supporting a formative Caucasus influence on this important Early Bronze age culture. CHG left their imprint on modern populations from the Caucasus and also central and south Asia possibly marking the arrival of Indo-Aryan languages.

  2. Upper Palaeolithic genomes reveal deep roots of modern Eurasians

    KAUST Repository

    Jones, Eppie R.; Gonzalez-Fortes, Gloria; Connell, Sarah; Siska, Veronika; Eriksson, Anders; Martiniano, Rui; McLaughlin, Russell L.; Gallego Llorente, Marcos; Cassidy, Lara M.; Gamba, Cristina; Meshveliani, Tengiz; Bar-Yosef, Ofer; Mü ller, Werner; Belfer-Cohen, Anna; Matskevich, Zinovi; Jakeli, Nino; Higham, Thomas F. G.; Currat, Mathias; Lordkipanidze, David; Hofreiter, Michael; Manica, Andrea; Pinhasi, Ron; Bradley, Daniel G.

    2015-01-01

    We extend the scope of European palaeogenomics by sequencing the genomes of Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,300 years old, 1.4-fold coverage) and Mesolithic (9,700 years old, 15.4-fold) males from western Georgia in the Caucasus and a Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,700 years old, 9.5-fold) male from Switzerland. While we detect Late Palaeolithic–Mesolithic genomic continuity in both regions, we find that Caucasus hunter-gatherers (CHG) belong to a distinct ancient clade that split from western hunter-gatherers ~45 kya, shortly after the expansion of anatomically modern humans into Europe and from the ancestors of Neolithic farmers ~25 kya, around the Last Glacial Maximum. CHG genomes significantly contributed to the Yamnaya steppe herders who migrated into Europe ~3,000 BC, supporting a formative Caucasus influence on this important Early Bronze age culture. CHG left their imprint on modern populations from the Caucasus and also central and south Asia possibly marking the arrival of Indo-Aryan languages.

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  4. 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

  5. Evaluating the dietary micro-remain record in dental calculus and its application in deciphering hominin diets in Palaeolithic Eurasia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Power, R.C.F.

    2016-01-01

    Palaeoanthropologists have proposed that Neanderthals, the Middle Palaeolithic hominin occupant of Eurasia, differed from modern human relatives by having specialised diets focused on big game. A narrow dietary niche at the top of the terrestrial food chain is inherently prone to instability,

  6. 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

  7. 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

    facilitated the transfer of genes from Neanderthal into modern humans and vice versa, is observed in the traveling waves, except when niche overlap between the two species is extremely high. Archaeological findings on the spatial and temporal distributions of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic and the Early Upper Palaeolithic and of the coexistence of Neanderthals and modern humans are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. [Diversity and meaning of masculine phallic palaeolithic images in Western Europe].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Angulo Cuesta, J; García Diez, M

    2006-03-01

    The archaeological record necessary to understand the sexual behaviour of our ancestors from Upper Palaeolithic (38.000-8.500 B.C.) is limited. Traditionally the ethnographic information about sexuality and the relations between sexes derived from comparitions with current primitive human groups have been considered very important, although they have been evaluated more from a social and anthropological rather than biological perspective. Ice age art art, both rock and portable, is a reflection of the behaviour of palaeolithic human groups. The purpose of this text focuses on understanding the types of representations and sexual attitudes during the Upper Palaeolithic, as reflected from masculine images of phallic character. Practices of foreskin retraction, some phalli possibly circumcised, copulative acts, expressions of masturbation, instruments that have been likely been used for masturbation and other sexual scenes, some of which are difficult to interpretate, show that the sexual behaviour of the human groups of the Upper Palaeolithic were similar to ours, both from a biological and physiological viewpoint.

  9. Upper Palaeolithic Siberian genome reveals dual ancestry of Native Americans

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Raghavan, Maanasa; Skoglund, Pontus; Graf, Kelly E.

    2014-01-01

    ,000-year-old individual (MA-1), from Mal'ta in south-central Siberia, to an average depth of 1×. To our knowledge this is the oldest anatomically modern human genome reported to date. The MA-1 mitochondrial genome belongs to haplogroup U, which has also been found at high frequency among Upper Palaeolithic......The origins of the First Americans remain contentious. Although Native Americans seem to be genetically most closely related to east Asians, there is no consensus with regard to which specific Old World populations they are closest to. Here we sequence the draft genome of an approximately 24...... that the region was continuously occupied by humans throughout the Last Glacial Maximum. Our findings reveal that western Eurasian genetic signatures in modern-day Native Americans derive not only from post-Columbian admixture, as commonly thought, but also from a mixed ancestry of the First Americans....

  10. 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

  11. Middle palaeolithic and neolithic occupations around Mundafan Palaeolake, Saudi Arabia: implications for climate change and human dispersals.

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    Rémy Crassard

    Full Text Available The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding climate change and human occupation history in a marginal environment. The Mundafan palaeolake is situated in southern Saudi Arabia, in the Rub' al-Khali (the 'Empty Quarter', the world's largest sand desert. Here we report the first discoveries of Middle Palaeolithic and Neolithic archaeological sites in association with the palaeolake. We associate the human occupations with new geochronological data, and suggest the archaeological sites date to the wet periods of Marine Isotope Stage 5 and the Early Holocene. The archaeological sites indicate that humans repeatedly penetrated the ameliorated environments of the Rub' al-Khali. The sites probably represent short-term occupations, with the Neolithic sites focused on hunting, as indicated by points and weaponry. Middle Palaeolithic assemblages at Mundafan support a lacustrine adaptive focus in Arabia. Provenancing of obsidian artifacts indicates that Neolithic groups at Mundafan had a wide wandering range, with transport of artifacts from distant sources.

  12. The Uluzzian technology of Grotta di Fumane and its implication for reconstructing cultural dynamics in the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic transition of Western Eurasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peresani, Marco; Cristiani, Emanuela; Romandini, Matteo

    2016-02-01

    From the intricate ensemble of evidence related to the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic transition and the presumed first spread of anatomically modern humans in Europe, the Uluzzian has attracted major attention in the past few years. Although the Uluzzian has been viewed as a supposed product of modern humans settling in Mediterranean Europe, the techno-cultural complex has been the subject of few investigations aiming to clarify its chronology, bone industry, and settlement dynamics. Further, little is known of its technological structure. This article presents the results of an extensive study of the lithic and bone technologies from assemblages recovered at Fumane Cave in the north of Italy. Results confirm that the Uluzzian is a flake-dominated industry that brings together a set of technological innovations. The Levallois is the most used method in the initial phase, which is replaced by more varied flaking procedures and an increase in bladelets and flake-blades. Sidescrapers and points also represent a Mousterian feature in the initial phase, while splintered pieces, backed knives and other Upper Palaeolithic tools increase in the later phase. Our results suggest that the Uluzzian is rooted in the Mousterian lithic technological context and cannot be viewed as a proxy for anatomically modern humans, the carriers of the abrupt cultural changes related to the Aurignacian. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Middle Palaeolithic flint procurement in Central Mediterranean Iberia: Implications for human mobility

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    Aleix Eixea

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Different flint types from the Middle Palaeolithic site of Abrigo de la Quebrada (Chelva, Valencia are characterized,  both macro- and microscopically, and compared with types found at other localities in the region. Although procurement predominantly concerned the immediate vicinity of sites, our results show the presence of the same types in assemblages separated by distances of up to 120 km. The long distances involved are suggestive of a pattern of North-South mobility of human groups along the coastline of central Mediterranean Iberia.

  14. Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic human fossils from Moravia and Bohemia (Czech Republic) : Some new C-14 dates

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Svoboda, JA; Van der Plicht, J; Kuzelka, [No Value; Svoboda, Jiři A.; Kuželka, Vítězslav

    2002-01-01

    New radiocarbon dates from four Moravian and bohemian sites are presented and linked to previous work on the depositional contexts of human fossils at similar sites in the region. Whilst dates from Mladec confirm its early Upper Palaeolithic age, the chronologies of the other three sites require

  15. The Campanian Ignimbrite Eruption, Heinrich Event 4, and palaeolithic change in Europe: A high-resolution investigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fedele, Francesco G.; Giaccio, Biagio; Isaia, Roberto; Orsi, Giovanni

    The Campanian Ignimbrite (CI) eruption from the Phlegraean Fields Caldera, southern Italy, represents one of the largest late Quaternary volcanic event. Its recent dating at 39,280±110 yr BP draws attention to the occurrence of this volcanic catastrophe during a time interval characterized by biocultural modifications in western Eurasia. These included the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition and the supposed change from Neandertal to "modern" Homo sapiens anatomy, a subject of continuing investigation and controversy. The paper aims to clarify the position and relevance of the CI event in this context. At several archaeological sites of southeastern Europe, the CI ash separates the cultural layers containing Middle Palaeolithic and/or "Earliest Upper Palaeolithic" assemblages from the layers in which Upper Palaeolithic industries occur. At the same sites the CI tephra coincides with a long interruption of occupation. The palaeclimatic records containing the CI products show that the eruption occurred just at the beginning of Heinrich Event 4 (HE4), which was characterized by extreme climatic conditions, compared to the other HEs. From the observation of this concurrence of factors, we advance the hypothesis of a positive climate-volcanism feedback triggered by the co-occurrence of the CI eruption and HE4 onset. Both the environmental and cultural data available for a c.5000-year interval on either side of the event, suggest that a reappraisal of the identity and destiny of the archaeological industries representing the so-called Middle to Upper Palaeolithictransition is in order. This might force a reassessment of the Upper Palaeolithic notion as traditionally employed.

  16. Cave acoustics in prehistory: Exploring the association of Palaeolithic visual motifs and acoustic response.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fazenda, Bruno; Scarre, Chris; Till, Rupert; Pasalodos, Raquel Jiménez; Guerra, Manuel Rojo; Tejedor, Cristina; Peredo, Roberto Ontañón; Watson, Aaron; Wyatt, Simon; Benito, Carlos García; Drinkall, Helen; Foulds, Frederick

    2017-09-01

    During the 1980 s, acoustic studies of Upper Palaeolithic imagery in French caves-using the technology then available-suggested a relationship between acoustic response and the location of visual motifs. This paper presents an investigation, using modern acoustic measurement techniques, into such relationships within the caves of La Garma, Las Chimeneas, La Pasiega, El Castillo, and Tito Bustillo in Northern Spain. It addresses methodological issues concerning acoustic measurement at enclosed archaeological sites and outlines a general framework for extraction of acoustic features that may be used to support archaeological hypotheses. The analysis explores possible associations between the position of visual motifs (which may be up to 40 000 yrs old) and localized acoustic responses. Results suggest that motifs, in general, and lines and dots, in particular, are statistically more likely to be found in places where reverberation is moderate and where the low frequency acoustic response has evidence of resonant behavior. The work presented suggests that an association of the location of Palaeolithic motifs with acoustic features is a statistically weak but tenable hypothesis, and that an appreciation of sound could have influenced behavior among Palaeolithic societies of this region.

  17. Cutting through the Paleo hype: The evidence for the Palaeolithic diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pitt, Christopher E

    2016-01-01

    General practitioners (GPs) are commonly asked about popular diets. The Palaeolithic diet is both highly popular and controversial. This article reviews the published literature to establish the evidence for and against the Palaeolithic diet. The Palaeolithic diet remains controversial because of exaggerated claims for it by wellness bloggers and celebrity chefs, and the contentious evolutionary discordance hypothesis on which it is based. However, a number of underpowered trials have suggested there may be some benefit to the Palaeolithic diet, especially in weight loss and the correction of metabolic dysfunction. Further research is warranted to test these early findings. GPs should caution patients who are on the Palaeolithic diet about adequate calcium intake, especially those at higher risk of osteoporosis.

  18. The fragmented character of Middle Palaeolithic stone tool technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turq, Alain; Roebroeks, Wil; Bourguignon, Laurence; Faivre, Jean-Philippe

    2013-11-01

    The importance of the transport of stone artefacts in structuring Neandertal lithic assemblages has often been addressed, but the degree to which this led to fragmentation of lithic reduction over Middle Palaeolithic landscapes has not been explicitly studied thus far. Large-scale excavations of Middle Palaeolithic open-air sites and refitting studies of the retrieved assemblages have yielded new, high-resolution data on the mobile aspects of Neandertal stone tool technology. In this paper, we integrate lithic technology and raw material data from recent studies of Middle Palaeolithic open-air and rock shelter sites in Western Europe. We demonstrate that the results of a variety of typological, technological (especially refitting), and lithological studies have important consequences for our knowledge of the acquisition of raw materials and subsequent production, usage and discard of stone artefacts in the Middle Palaeolithic. Neandertal production and use of stone tools was fragmented in three domains: the spatial, the temporal and the social domain. We show that this versatile segmentation of stone artefact handling strategies is a main determinant of the character of the Neandertal archaeological record. Our data testify to ubiquitous and continuous transport of stone artefacts of a wide variety of forms, picked by Neandertals using selection criteria that were sometimes far removed from what archaeologists have traditionally considered, and to some degree still consider, to be desired end products of knapping activities. The data presented here testify to the variability and versatility of Middle Palaeolithic stone tool technology, whose fragmented character created very heterogeneous archaeological assemblages, usually the product of a wide variety of independent import, use, discard and/or subsequent transport events. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Experimental methods for the Palaeolithic dry distillation of birch bark: implications for the origin and development of Neandertal adhesive technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kozowyk, P R B; Soressi, M; Pomstra, D; Langejans, G H J

    2017-08-31

    The destructive distillation of birch bark to produce tar has recently featured in debates about the technological and cognitive abilities of Neandertals and modern humans. The abilities to precisely control fire temperatures and to manipulate adhesive properties are believed to require advanced mental traits. However, the significance given to adhesive technology in these debates has quickly outgrown our understanding of birch bark tar and its manufacture using aceramic techniques. In this paper, we detail three experimental methods of Palaeolithic tar production ranging from simple to complex. We recorded the fuel, time, materials, temperatures, and tar yield for each method and compared them with the tar known from the Palaeolithic. Our results indicate that it is possible to obtain useful amounts of tar by combining materials and technology already in use by Neandertals. A ceramic container is not required, and temperature control need not be as precise as previously thought. However, Neandertals must have been able to recognize certain material properties, such as adhesive tack and viscosity. In this way, they could develop the technology from producing small traces of tar on partially burned bark to techniques capable of manufacturing quantities of tar equal to those found in the Middle Palaeolithic archaeological record.

  20. Current issues in late Middle Palaeolithic chronology : New assessments from Northern Iberia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Maroto, Julia; Vaquero, Manuel; Arrizabalaga, Alvaro; Baena, Javier; Baquedano, Enrique; Jorda, Jesus; Julia, Ramon; Montes, Ramon; Van Der Plicht, Johannes; Rasines, Pedro; Wood, Rachel

    2012-01-01

    The Iberian Peninsula plays a central role in the current debates on the Middle-Upper Palaeolithic transition and the Neanderthal extinction. This is largely due to the chronological data which some authors have suggested show a clear divide between Northern Iberia, where the Upper Palaeolithic

  1. Direct dating of Early Upper Palaeolithic human remains from Mladec.

    Science.gov (United States)

    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.

  2. Refutation of stylistic constructs in palaeolithic rock art

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bednarik, R.G.

    1995-01-01

    This paper describes the first experiment of applying a series of dating methods at a single rock art site in a ''blind test''. The rock art in question, in northeastern Portugal, had been unanimously attributed to the Upper Palaeolithic by stylistic comparison. Four independent assessments have produced the identical result that the rock art is in fact of the second half of the Holocene, and mostly under 3,000 years old. This finding is compared with other recent dating results which together show that stylistic dating is not an admissible method of determining the age of Palaeolithic art. (author). 17 refs., 1 fig., 1 photo

  3. New radiocarbon dates for the transition from middle to upper palaeolithic at El Castillo (Cantabria)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Valladas, H.; Cabrera-Valdes, V.; De Quiros, F.B.

    1996-01-01

    The stratigraphic sequence at the El Castillo cave in Cantabria, Spain, extends from Lower to Upper Palaeolithic. The transition from Middle to Upper Palaeolithic is represented by levels assigned to Quina Mousterian and Early Aurignacian. Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Radiocarbon dates put the archaic Aurignacian industries at ca. 40,000 years ago and indicate that in northern Spain the Upper Palaeolithic began several millennia earlier than in other parts of western Europe. (authors). 16 refs., 1 tab

  4. Hominin dispersal into the Nefud Desert and Middle palaeolithic settlement along the Jubbah Palaeolake, Northern Arabia.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael D Petraglia

    Full Text Available The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding hominin dispersals and the effect of climate change on prehistoric demography, although little information on these topics is presently available owing to the poor preservation of archaeological sites in this desert environment. Here, we describe the discovery of three stratified and buried archaeological sites in the Nefud Desert, which includes the oldest dated occupation for the region. The stone tool assemblages are identified as a Middle Palaeolithic industry that includes Levallois manufacturing methods and the production of tools on flakes. Hominin occupations correspond with humid periods, particularly Marine Isotope Stages 7 and 5 of the Late Pleistocene. The Middle Palaeolithic occupations were situated along the Jubbah palaeolake-shores, in a grassland setting with some trees. Populations procured different raw materials across the lake region to manufacture stone tools, using the implements to process plants and animals. To reach the Jubbah palaeolake, Middle Palaeolithic populations travelled into the ameliorated Nefud Desert interior, possibly gaining access from multiple directions, either using routes from the north and west (the Levant and the Sinai, the north (the Mesopotamian plains and the Euphrates basin, or the east (the Persian Gulf. The Jubbah stone tool assemblages have their own suite of technological characters, but have types reminiscent of both African Middle Stone Age and Levantine Middle Palaeolithic industries. Comparative inter-regional analysis of core technology indicates morphological similarities with the Levantine Tabun C assemblage, associated with human fossils controversially identified as either Neanderthals or Homo sapiens.

  5. The Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition in Cova Gran (Catalunya, Spain) and the extinction of Neanderthals in the Iberian Peninsula.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martínez-Moreno, Jorge; Mora, Rafael; de la Torre, Ignacio

    2010-03-01

    The excavations carried out in Cova Gran de Santa Linya (Southeastern PrePyrenees, Catalunya, Spain) have unearthed a new archaeological sequence attributable to the Middle Palaeoloithic/Upper Palaeolithic (MP/UP) transition. This article presents data on the stratigraphy, archaeology, and (14)C AMS dates of three Early Upper Palaeolithic and four Late Middle Palaeolithic levels excavated in Cova Gran. All these archaeological levels fall within the 34-32 ka time span, the temporal frame in which major events of Neanderthal extinction took place. The earliest Early Upper Palaeolithic (497D) and the latest Middle Palaeolithic (S1B) levels in Cova Gran are separated by a sterile gap and permit pinpointing the time period in which the Mousterian disappeared from Northeastern Spain. Technological differences between the Early Upper Palaeolithic and Late Middle Palaeolithic industries in Cova Gran support a cultural rupture between the two periods. A series of 12 (14)C AMS dates prompts reflections on the validity of reconstructions based on radiocarbon data. Thus, results from excavations in Cova Gran lead us to discuss the scenarios relating the MP/UP transition in the Iberian Peninsula, a region considered a refuge of late Neanderthal populations. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Dating of the middle Palaeolithic site of Payre (Ardeche): new radiometric data (U-series and ESR methods)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Masaoudi, H.; Falgueres, Ch.; Bahain, J.J.; Moncel, M.H.

    1997-01-01

    The site of Payre is located in Ardeche. Several archaeological layers containing lithic artefacts of Middle Palaeolithic were found. These artefacts lie associated with carbonate formations which are good chronostratigraphic markers. The U-series and ESR methods on bones and stalagmitic floors placed the human occupation between isotopic marine stages 7 and 4. (authors)

  7. Ancient humans and the origin of modern humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelso, Janet; Prüfer, Kay

    2014-12-01

    Recent advances in sequencing technologies and molecular methods have facilitated the sequencing of DNA from ancient human remains which has, in turn, provided unprecedented insight into human history. Within the past 4 years the genomes of Neandertals and Denisovans, as well as the genomes of at least two early modern humans, have been sequenced. These sequences showed that there have been several episodes of admixture between modern and archaic groups; including admixture from Neandertals into modern human populations outside of Africa, and admixture from Denisovans into modern human populations in Oceania. Recent results indicate that some of these introgressed regions may have been advantageous for modern humans as they expanded into new regions outside of Africa. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  8. Dolní Věstonice: autopodium analysis of the Palaeolithic population

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Nývltová Fišáková, Miriam; Zocová, J.

    2000-01-01

    Roč. 24, - (2000), s. 81-109 ISSN 0581-9172 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z8001916 Keywords : Palaeoanthropology * Upper Palaeolithic * Moravia Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology

  9. A chronological framework connecting the early Upper Palaeolithic across the Central Asian piedmont.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitzsimmons, Kathryn E; Iovita, Radu; Sprafke, Tobias; Glantz, Michelle; Talamo, Sahra; Horton, Katharine; Beeton, Tyler; Alipova, Saya; Bekseitov, Galymzhan; Ospanov, Yerbolat; Deom, Jean-Marc; Sala, Renato; Taimagambetov, Zhaken

    2017-12-01

    Central Asia has delivered significant paleoanthropological discoveries in the past few years. New genetic data indicate that at least two archaic human species met and interbred with anatomically modern humans as they arrived into northern Central Asia. However, data are limited: known archaeological sites with lithic assemblages generally lack human fossils, and consequently identifying the archaeological signatures of different human groups, and the timing of their occupation, remains elusive. Reliable chronologic data from sites in the region, crucial to our understanding of the timing and duration of interactions between different human species, are rare. Here we present chronologies for two open air Middle to Upper Palaeolithic (UP) sequences from the Tien Shan piedmont in southeast Kazakhstan, Maibulak and Valikhanova, which bridge southern and northern Central Asia. The chronologies, based on both quartz optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and polymineral post-infrared infrared luminescence (pIR-IRSL) protocols, demonstrate that technological developments at the two sites differ substantially over the ∼47-19 ka time span. Some of the innovations typically associated with the earliest UP in the Altai or other parts of northeast Asia are also present in the Tien Shan piedmont. We caution against making assumptions about the directionality of spread of these technologies until a larger, better defined database of transitional sites in the region is available. Connections between the timing of occupation of regions, living area setting and paleoenvironmental conditions, while providing hypotheses worth exploring, remain inconclusive. We cautiously suggest a trend towards increasing occupation of open air sites across the Central Asian piedmont after ∼40 ka, corresponding to more humid climatic conditions which nevertheless included pulses of dust deposition. Human occupation persisted into the Last Glacial Maximum, despite cooler, and possibly drier

  10. The influence of environmental changes on local and regional vegetation patterns at Rieme (NW Belgium): implications for Final Palaeolithic habitation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, J.A.A.; Verbruggen, F.; Engels, S.; Crombé, P.

    2012-01-01

    Late-glacial vegetation changes were studied at Rieme, NW Belgium. Human occupation of this cover sand area occurred from the Final Palaeolithic onwards. The research area is situated on the northern side of a large cover sand ridge in an undulating landscape with small ridges and depressions. The

  11. Chemical weathering of palaeosols from the Lower Palaeolithic site of Valle Giumentina, central Italy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Degeai, Jean-Philippe; Villa, Valentina; Chaussé, Christine; Pereira, Alison; Nomade, Sébastien; Aureli, Daniele; Pagli, Marina; Nicoud, Elisa

    2018-03-01

    The major archaeological site of Valle Giumentina (Abruzzo) contains a well-dated Lower Palaeolithic pedosedimentary sequence that provides an excellent opportunity to study the relationships among soil weathering, volcanism and climate change at the glacial/interglacial and submillennial timescales in central Italy and the Mediterranean area during the Middle Pleistocene, as well as the human-environment interactions of some of the earliest settlements in central southern Europe. High-resolution analyses of geochemistry and magnetic susceptibility revealed the presence of eleven palaeosols, ten of which (S2-S11) were formed between 560 and 450 ka based on 40Ar/39Ar dating of sanidine in tephras, i.e. spanning marine isotope stages (MIS) 14-12. The evolution of the major and trace element composition suggests that the palaeosols were mainly formed by in situ weathering of the parent material. The major phases of soil weathering occurred during the MIS 13 interglacial period (S8 and S6) as well as during episodes of rapid environmental change associated with millennial climatic oscillations during the MIS 14 and 12 glaciations (S11 and S2, respectively). Although global forcing such as orbital variations, solar radiation, and greenhouse gas concentrations may have influenced the pedogenic processes, the volcanism in central Italy, climate change in the central Mediterranean, and tectono-sedimentary evolution of the Valle Giumentina basin also impacted and triggered the formation of most palaeosols, which provided subsistence resources for the Lower Palaeolithic human communities. This study highlights the importance of having high-resolution palaeoenvironmental records with accurate chronology as close as possible to archaeological sites to study human-environment interactions.

  12. New hydroxyproline radiocarbon dates from Sungir, Russia, confirm early Mid Upper Palaeolithic burials in Eurasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nalawade-Chavan, Shweta; McCullagh, James; Hedges, Robert

    2014-01-01

    Sungir (Russia) is a key Mid-Upper Palaeolithic site in Eurasia, containing several spectacular burials that disclose early evidence for complex burial rites in the form of a range of grave goods deposited along with the dead. Dating has been particularly challenging, with multiple radiocarbon dates ranging from 19,160±270 to 28,800±240 BP for burials that are believed to be closely similar in age. There are disparities in the radiocarbon dates of human bones, faunal remains and charcoal found on the floor of burials. Our approach has been to develop compound-specific methods using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) to separate single amino acids, such as hydroxyproline, and thereby avoid the known human contamination on the bones themselves. Previously, we applied this technique to obtain radiocarbon dates of ∼30,000 BP for Sungir 2, Sungir 3 and a mammoth bone from the occupation levels of the site. The single amino acid radiocarbon dates were in good agreement with each other compared to all the dates previously reported, supporting their reliability. Here we report new hydroxyproline dates for two more human burials from the same site, Sungir 1 and Sungir 4. All five hydroxyproline dates reported are statistically indistinguishable and support an identical age for the group. The results suggest that compound-specific radiocarbon analysis should be considered seriously as the method of choice when precious archaeological remains are to be dated because they give a demonstrably contaminant-free radiocarbon age. The new ages are, together with the previously dated 'Red Lady of Paviland' human in the British Isles, the earliest for Mid Upper Palaeolithic burial behaviour in Eurasia, and point to the precocious appearance of this form of rite in Europe Russia.

  13. New hydroxyproline radiocarbon dates from Sungir, Russia, confirm early Mid Upper Palaeolithic burials in Eurasia.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shweta Nalawade-Chavan

    Full Text Available Sungir (Russia is a key Mid-Upper Palaeolithic site in Eurasia, containing several spectacular burials that disclose early evidence for complex burial rites in the form of a range of grave goods deposited along with the dead. Dating has been particularly challenging, with multiple radiocarbon dates ranging from 19,160±270 to 28,800±240 BP for burials that are believed to be closely similar in age. There are disparities in the radiocarbon dates of human bones, faunal remains and charcoal found on the floor of burials. Our approach has been to develop compound-specific methods using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC to separate single amino acids, such as hydroxyproline, and thereby avoid the known human contamination on the bones themselves. Previously, we applied this technique to obtain radiocarbon dates of ∼30,000 BP for Sungir 2, Sungir 3 and a mammoth bone from the occupation levels of the site. The single amino acid radiocarbon dates were in good agreement with each other compared to all the dates previously reported, supporting their reliability. Here we report new hydroxyproline dates for two more human burials from the same site, Sungir 1 and Sungir 4. All five hydroxyproline dates reported are statistically indistinguishable and support an identical age for the group. The results suggest that compound-specific radiocarbon analysis should be considered seriously as the method of choice when precious archaeological remains are to be dated because they give a demonstrably contaminant-free radiocarbon age. The new ages are, together with the previously dated 'Red Lady of Paviland' human in the British Isles, the earliest for Mid Upper Palaeolithic burial behaviour in Eurasia, and point to the precocious appearance of this form of rite in Europe Russia.

  14. A new luminescence dating chronology for the Rhafas cave site (NE Morocco): Insights into Palaeolithic human cultural change under varying palaeoenvironmental conditions in the Maghreb

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dörschner, Nina; Fitzsimmons, Kathryn E.; Ditchfield, Peter; McLaren, Sue J.; Steele, Teresa E.; Zielhofer, Christoph; McPherron, Shannon P.; Bouzouggar, Abdeljalil; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    2016-04-01

    Archaeological sites in northern Africa provide a rich record that is of increasing importance for current debates relating to the origins of modern human behaviour and to Out of Africa human dispersal events. Particular interest is placed on the cultural transition between the North African Middle Stone Age (MSA) and Late Stone Age (LSA), and the need for accurately defined chronologies, however the timing and nature of Palaeolithic human behaviour and dispersal across north-western Africa (the Maghreb) and potential correlation with environmental conditions remain poorly understood. The inland cave site of Rhafas (Morocco) preserves a long stratified sequence providing valuable chronological information about cultural changes in the Maghreb spanning the North African MSA through to the Neolithic. In this study, we apply optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating on sand-sized quartz grains to the cave deposits of Rhafas as well as to a section on the terrace in front of the cave entrance. Single grain OSL dating reliably constrains the timing of technocomplexes beyond the limits of radiocarbon by directly dating sediment associated with archaeological traces. We combine OSL dating with multi-proxy geological investigations (XRF, grain size analyses, stable isotopes, thin sections) to investigate site formation processes and reconstruct palaeoenvironmental conditions during human occupation phases at Rhafas. Our results indicate that the occupation of the site started at least in MIS 6 during a phase of relatively arid environmental conditions. Climatic amelioration after c.140 ka is associated with a change in sediment geochemistry at the site, most likely linked to a change in sediment source due to shifting wind directions. Tanged pieces - typical for the classical Aterian technocomplex - start to occur in the archaeological sequence in MIS 5, consistent with previously published chronological data from the Maghreb. From 55 ka, climatic conditions were

  15. A critical reassessment of cultural taxonomies in the Central European Late Palaeolithic

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sauer, Florian Rudolf; Riede, Felix

    2018-01-01

    and economic criteria in the definition of selected groups. We subject three different archaeological taxonomic units, the Bromme culture from Denmark, the Fürstein group from Switzerland and the Atzenhof group from Germany, to particularly detailed scrutiny and highlight that the classificatory criteria used...... European Late Palaeolithic (ca. 12,000–9700 cal BC) has a long research history and many regionally and temporally specific units—groups and cultures—are recognised. In this paper, we examine the complex taxonomic landscape of this period and critically analyse the use of typological, functional...... in their definition are inconsistent across units and most likely unsuitable for circumscribing past sociocultural units. We suggest a comprehensive re-examination of the overarching taxonomic system for the Late Palaeolithic, as well as a re-evaluation of the methodologies used to delineate sociocultural units...

  16. Modern human origins: progress and prospects.

    OpenAIRE

    Stringer, Chris

    2002-01-01

    The question of the mode of origin of modern humans (Homo sapiens) has dominated palaeoanthropological debate over the last decade. This review discusses the main models proposed to explain modern human origins, and examines relevant fossil evidence from Eurasia, Africa and Australasia. Archaeological and genetic data are also discussed, as well as problems with the concept of 'modernity' itself. It is concluded that a recent African origin can be supported for H. sapiens, morphologically, be...

  17. A micro-invasive approach using INAA for new insights into Palaeolithic flint archaeological artefacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prudencio, M.I.; Dias, M.I.; Marques, R.; Roldan, C.; Aleix Eixea; Villaverde, V.

    2016-01-01

    Instrumental neutron activation analysis of small flakes from the same flint fragment of archaeological artefacts from Palaeolithic sites ('Abrigo de la Quebrada', 'Cova de les Cendres' and 'Cova Negra'), and eological sour ces (Chelva, Valencia, and Alcoi, Alicante) from the eastern Spain, was performed. The chemical contents of 27 elements were obtained. Ga, Ce, Nd, Yb, Zr and Hf were discarded due to high variations within the same fragment. The identification of chemical fingerprints within heterogeneous flint fragments was able to differentiate flint types and variants ('Domeno' and 'Serreta'), contributing to provenance and human mobility in ancient times. (author)

  18. Palaeolithic diet decreases fasting plasma leptin concentrations more than a diabetes diet in patients with type 2 diabetes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fontes-Villalba, Maelán; Lindeberg, Staffan; Granfeldt, Yvonne

    2016-01-01

    Background: We have previously shown that a Palaeolithic diet consisting of the typical food groups that our ancestors ate during the Palaeolithic era, improves cardiovascular disease risk factors and glucose control compared to the currently recommended diabetes diet in patients with type 2...... diabetes. To elucidate the mechanisms behind these effects, we evaluated fasting plasma concentrations of glucagon, insulin, incretins, ghrelin, C-peptide and adipokines from the same study. Methods: In a randomised, open-label, cross-over study, 13 patients with type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned...

  19. Neanderthal and Anatomically Modern Human interaction with Abrupt Late Pleistocene Environments - the data is finally good enough to talk about climate change!

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blockley, Simon; Schreve, Danielle

    2015-04-01

    The timing and nature of the appearance of Anatomically Modern Humans (AMH) in Europe, their interaction with, and eventual morphological replacement of Neanderthals (despite some shared genetic heritage) has been a matter of intense debate within archaeology for a generation. This period, often termed the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition occurs in the latter part of Marine Isotope Stage Three and in recent decades archaeological interest has been complemented by the input of palaeoclimate scientists, over the role of abrupt climate change in this process. This was due to the recognition from ice core and marine proxy archives, in particular, of periods if intense cooling, correlated to the marine record of Heinrich ice rafted debris layers from the Atlantic. As a result of these collaborations between the archaeological and palaeoenvironmental communities various drivers have been proposed for the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic Transition that include: (1) resource competition between two species occupying similar niches; (2) the impact of repeated cycles of Heinrich event cooling, leading to the decline and eventual disappearance of the Neanderthal populations, leaving a new region open for AMH exploitation; and (3) catastrophic impacts of large volcanic eruptions on Neanderthal populations. Attempts to address the above hypotheses have been dogged by the chronological precision available for a number of key archives. The accuracy of many of the radiocarbon ages that underpin the chronology for both Neanderthal and AMH archaeological sites has been questioned1. This has been exacerbated by uncertainties over the influence of variability in the radiocarbon marine reservoir effect on marine palaeoclimate records and a marine dominated radiocarbon calibration curve. Additionally, the counting uncertainties of the master Greenland palaeoclimate archives are also large by this time, meaning palaeoclimate interpretation can be equivocal. However, several research

  20. Experimental Heating of Moravian Cherts and its Implication for Palaeolithic Chipped Stone Assemblages

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Moník, M.; Nerudová, Z.; Schnabl, Petr

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 59, č. 6 (2017), s. 1190-1206 ISSN 0003-813X Institutional support: RVO:67985831 Keywords : lithics * heat treatment * Palaeolithic * magnetic susceptibility * colour measurement * isothermal remanent magnetization Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology OBOR OECD: Archaeology Impact factor: 1.470, year: 2016

  1. 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.

  2. Chronology of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition at Abric Romaní, Catalunya.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Camps, Marta; Higham, Thomas

    2012-01-01

    This paper presents new data from Abric Romaní, a key site in the region of Catalunya, northeastern Iberia, which is central to discussions of the transition between the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic in Europe. Until now, the Mid-Upper Paleolithic transition had been dated at the site through samples from the remaining baulk sections of levels A and B (typologically classified as 'earliest Aurignacian' and Mousterian, respectively) at the rear of the rockshelter, which were left from excavations in the late 1900s and early 1910s. We dated samples of bone and charcoal from these remnant sections with accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) methods. We also analysed several humanly-modified artefacts (bone points and perforated shells) excavated from other areas of the same layers. From the initial series, we obtained ages of c. 20 ka BP (thousands of years before present); much younger than expected if they indeed dated to the early Upper Palaeolithic. We sampled additional material to test the robustness of these initial ages, and older determinations that were more comparable with the chronology outlined by Bischoff et al. (1988, 1994) resulted. All of the old and new results have been compared in a Bayesian model using the new INTCAL09 (14)C calibration dataset. The results appear to confirm the suggestion of some researchers (e.g., Zilhão and d'Errico, 1999) that there was no Aurignacian in the north of Iberia until c. 36,500 BP. The chronometric model shows a good level of agreement between the radiocarbon and U-series chronologies previously obtained, and the new results published in this paper. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Plant foods in the Upper Palaeolithic at Dolní Věstonice? Parenchyma redux

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Pryor, A.; Steele, M.; Jones, M. K.; Svoboda, Jiří; Beresford-Jones, D. G.

    2013-01-01

    Roč. 87, č. 338 (2013), s. 971-984 ISSN 0003-598X Institutional support: RVO:68081758 Keywords : Czech Republic * Dolní Věstonice * upper palaeolithic * gravettian * archaeobotany * plant foods * parenchyma Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology OBOR OECD: Archaeology Impact factor: 1.594, year: 2013

  4. Middle Palaeolithic toolstone procurement behaviors at Lusakert Cave 1, Hrazdan valley, Armenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frahm, Ellery; Feinberg, Joshua M; Schmidt-Magee, Beverly A; Wilkinson, Keith N; Gasparyan, Boris; Yeritsyan, Benik; Adler, Daniel S

    2016-02-01

    Strategies employed by Middle Palaeolithic hominins to acquire lithic raw materials often play key roles in assessing their movements through the landscape, relationships with neighboring groups, and cognitive abilities. It has been argued that a dependence on local resources is a widespread characteristic of the Middle Palaeolithic, but how such behaviors were manifested on the landscape remains unclear. Does an abundance of local toolstone reflect frequent encounters with different outcrops while foraging, or was a particular outcrop favored and preferentially quarried? This study examines such behaviors at a finer geospatial scale than is usually possible, allowing us to investigate hominin movements through the landscape surrounding Lusakert Cave 1 in Armenia. Using our newly developed approach to obsidian magnetic characterization, we test a series of hypotheses regarding the locations where hominins procured toolstone from a volcanic complex adjacent to the site. Our goal is to establish whether the cave's occupants procured local obsidian from preferred outcrops or quarries, secondary deposits of obsidian nodules along a river, or a variety of exposures as encountered while moving through the river valley or across the wider volcanic landscape during the course of foraging activities. As we demonstrate here, it is not the case that one particular outcrop or deposit attracted the cave occupants during the studied time intervals. Nor did they acquire obsidian at random across the landscape. Instead, our analyses support the hypothesis that these hominins collected obsidian from outcrops and exposures throughout the adjacent river valley, reflecting the spatial scale of their day-to-day foraging activities. The coincidence of such behaviors within the resource-rich river valley suggests efficient exploitation of a diverse biome during a time interval immediately preceding the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic "transition," the nature and timing of which has yet to

  5. 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...

  6. A multi-method luminescence dating of the Palaeolithic sequence of La Ferrassie based on new excavations adjacent to the La Ferrassie 1 and 2 skeletons

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Guerin, Guillaume; Frouin, Marine; Talamo, Sahra

    2015-01-01

    A new interdisciplinary project was initiated to excavate a portion of the Palaeolithic site of La Ferrassie left intact by earlier excavations. One of the aims of this project was to provide chronological information on the succession of Middle and Upper Palaeolithic layers, as well as on the sk...

  7. 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).

  8. Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic site formation processes at the Bordes-Fitte rockshelter (Central France)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aubry, Thierry; Dimuccio, Luca Antonio; Buylaert, Jan-Pieter

    2014-01-01

    . In this article we use the Middle and Early Upper Palaeolithic archaeo-stratigraphic record from the Bordes-Fitte rockshelter (les Roches d'Abilly site, Central France), a Bayesian analysis of the ages obtained by accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon on ultrafiltered collagen and by luminescence on quartz...

  9. Signatures of Climatic Change In Human Mitochondrial Dna From Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richards, M. B.; Macaulay, V. A.; Torroni, A.; Bandelt, H.-J.

    Founder analysis is an approach to analysing non-recombining DNA sequence data, such as variation in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), which aims at identifying and dating migrations into new territory. We applied the approach to about 4,000 human mtDNA sequences from Europe and the Near East, in order to estimate the proportion of modern lineages whose ancestors arrived at various times during the continent's past. We found that the major signal dates to about 15,000 years ago, at the time of rewarming following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). There is little or no archaeological evidence for immigration into Europe at this time, and the record indicates that at least parts of southern Europe remained populated during the LGM. Therefore, we interpret this signal as the trace of a bottleneck at the time of the LGM, as a result of the retreat from northern Europe during the peak of the glaciation, followed by a re-expansion from one or more refugial zones. Immigration episodes then figure at the beginning of the Early Upper Palaeolithic, during the Middle Upper Palaeolithic, and with the Neolithic. The impact of the latter on the composition of the European mtDNA pool was evidently rather minor. This result implies that climate is likely to have been a major force shaping human demographic history in Europe.

  10. Mechanical characterization of raw material quality and its implication for Early Upper Palaeolithic Moravia

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Monik, M.; Hadraba, Hynek

    2016-01-01

    Roč. 425, DEC (2016), s. 425-436 ISSN 1040-6182 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) ED1.1.00/02.0068 Institutional support: RVO:68081723 Keywords : Charpy impact test * Microhardness * Early Upper Palaeolithic * Moravia * Lithics Subject RIV: JH - Ceramics, Fire-Resistant Materials and Glass Impact factor: 2.199, year: 2016

  11. The evolution of modern human brain shape

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neubauer, Simon; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Gunz, Philipp

    2018-01-01

    Modern humans have large and globular brains that distinguish them from their extinct Homo relatives. The characteristic globularity develops during a prenatal and early postnatal period of rapid brain growth critical for neural wiring and cognitive development. However, it remains unknown when and how brain globularity evolved and how it relates to evolutionary brain size increase. On the basis of computed tomographic scans and geometric morphometric analyses, we analyzed endocranial casts of Homo sapiens fossils (N = 20) from different time periods. Our data show that, 300,000 years ago, brain size in early H. sapiens already fell within the range of present-day humans. Brain shape, however, evolved gradually within the H. sapiens lineage, reaching present-day human variation between about 100,000 and 35,000 years ago. This process started only after other key features of craniofacial morphology appeared modern and paralleled the emergence of behavioral modernity as seen from the archeological record. Our findings are consistent with important genetic changes affecting early brain development within the H. sapiens lineage since the origin of the species and before the transition to the Later Stone Age and the Upper Paleolithic that mark full behavioral modernity. PMID:29376123

  12. The evolution of modern human brain shape.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neubauer, Simon; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Gunz, Philipp

    2018-01-01

    Modern humans have large and globular brains that distinguish them from their extinct Homo relatives. The characteristic globularity develops during a prenatal and early postnatal period of rapid brain growth critical for neural wiring and cognitive development. However, it remains unknown when and how brain globularity evolved and how it relates to evolutionary brain size increase. On the basis of computed tomographic scans and geometric morphometric analyses, we analyzed endocranial casts of Homo sapiens fossils ( N = 20) from different time periods. Our data show that, 300,000 years ago, brain size in early H. sapiens already fell within the range of present-day humans. Brain shape, however, evolved gradually within the H. sapiens lineage, reaching present-day human variation between about 100,000 and 35,000 years ago. This process started only after other key features of craniofacial morphology appeared modern and paralleled the emergence of behavioral modernity as seen from the archeological record. Our findings are consistent with important genetic changes affecting early brain development within the H. sapiens lineage since the origin of the species and before the transition to the Later Stone Age and the Upper Paleolithic that mark full behavioral modernity.

  13. No evidence of Neandertal mtDNA contribution to early modern humans.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Serre

    2004-03-01

    Full Text Available The retrieval of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA sequences from four Neandertal fossils from Germany, Russia, and Croatia has demonstrated that these individuals carried closely related mtDNAs that are not found among current humans. However, these results do not definitively resolve the question of a possible Neandertal contribution to the gene pool of modern humans since such a contribution might have been erased by genetic drift or by the continuous influx of modern human DNA into the Neandertal gene pool. A further concern is that if some Neandertals carried mtDNA sequences similar to contemporaneous humans, such sequences may be erroneously regarded as modern contaminations when retrieved from fossils. Here we address these issues by the analysis of 24 Neandertal and 40 early modern human remains. The biomolecular preservation of four Neandertals and of five early modern humans was good enough to suggest the preservation of DNA. All four Neandertals yielded mtDNA sequences similar to those previously determined from Neandertal individuals, whereas none of the five early modern humans contained such mtDNA sequences. In combination with current mtDNA data, this excludes any large genetic contribution by Neandertals to early modern humans, but does not rule out the possibility of a smaller contribution.

  14. [The prehistory of mathematics and the modern mind: mathematical thought and resourcefulness in the Palaeolithic Franco-Cantabrian region].

    Science.gov (United States)

    González Redondo, Francisco A; Martín-Loeches, Manuel; Silván Pobes, Enrique

    2010-01-01

    In the present article, we begin by reviewing the different types of symbolic records produced by prehistoric groups from the oldest probable origins of the modern human mind. Next, we review some of the most outstanding prehistoric pieces related to counting, enhancing the relevance (both quantitatively and qualitatively) of this type of piece in the Franco-Cantabrian region. These reviews lead us finally to note the tremendous relevance, within this context, of four horse-bone plaques from the Altamira Cave, dated in the Solutrean period (18,500 years). These small plaques, apparently constituting a coherent group of interrelated elements, are proposed here as the representation of a recursive process, recursion being a feature proposed as proper and exclusive of human language.

  15. The challenge of the abstract mind: symbols, signs and notational systems in European prehistory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harald Haarmann

    2005-12-01

    Full Text Available Since the earliest manifestations of symbolic activity in modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens in the Upper Palaeolithic, there is evidence for two independent cognitive procedures, for the production of representational images (naturalistic pictures or sculptures and of abstract signs. The use of signs and symbols is attested for archaic humans (Homo neanderthalensis and for Homo erectus while art in naturalistic style is an innovation among modern humans. The symbiotic interaction of the two symbolic capacities is illustrated for the visual heritage of Palaeolithic cave paintings in Southwestern Europe, for rock engravings in the Italian Alps (Val Camonica and for the vivid use of signs and symbols in Southeastern Europe during the Neolithic. Around 5500 BC, sign use in Southeastern Europe reached a sophisticated stage of organization as to produce the earliest writing system of mankind. Since abstractness is the main theme in the visual heritage of the region, this script, not surprisingly, is composed of predominantly abstract signs.

  16. 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)

  17. 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.

  18. 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.

  19. Age of the middle Palaeolithic site of La Butte d'Arvigny (Moissy-Cramayel, Seine-et-Marne)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Laurent, M.; Laurent, M.; Bahain, J.J.; Voinchet, P.; Ricard, J.L.; Rousseau, L.

    2000-01-01

    The middle Palaeolithic site of La Butte d'Arvigny, close to Melun, was dated using electron spin resonance (ESR) method on burn flint. Five analysed burnt flints give a mean age of 90 000 years, which ascribes Arvigny to the Mousterian laminar complex of northern France. (authors)

  20. Upper Palaeolithic lithic raw material sourcing in Central and Northern Portugal as an aid to reconstructing hunter-gatherer societies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thierry Aubry

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available We present the results of the study of lithic raw materials used in Upper Palaeolithic occupations preserved in caves, rockshelters and open-air sites from two different geological environments in Portugal. For the sites located in the Lusitanian Basin, flint or silcrete sources are easily available in close vicinity. The Côa Valley sites, located in the Iberian Massif, are within a geological environment where restricted fine-grained vein quartz and siliceous metamorphic rocks are available, but no flint or silcrete, even though both are present in the archaeological assemblages. Data from the two clusters of sites are compared with a third newly located site in the Lower Vouga valley, at the limit of the Iberian Massif with the Lusitanian Basin, where quartz vein raw material types are locally available and flint is about 40 kilometres distant. This study reveals prehistoric adaptations to these different geological contexts, with shorter networks for the Lusitanian basin sites contrasting with the long distance ones for the Côa Valley, and the Vouga site at an intermediary position. Finally, we propose that lithic raw material supply networks, defined by a GIS least-cost algorithm, could be used as a proxy not only for territoriality in the case of local and regional lithic raw material sources, but also to infer long-distance social networks between different Palaeolithic human groups, created and maintained to promote the access to asymmetrically distributed resources.

  1. 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

  2. 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

  3. A multidisciplinary reconstruction of Palaeolithic nutrition that holds promise for the prevention and treatment of diseases of civilisation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kuipers, Remko S.; Joordens, Josephine C. A.; Muskiet, Frits A. J.

    Evolutionary medicine acknowledges that many chronic degenerative diseases result from conflicts between our rapidly changing environment, our dietary habits included, and our genome, which has remained virtually unchanged since the Palaeolithic era. Reconstruction of the diet before the

  4. 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.

  5. Molluscs and Echinoderms from Palaeolithic deposits in the Rock Shelter of Ksâr'akil, Lebanon

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Regteren, van C.O.

    1962-01-01

    INTRODUCTION The palaeolithic deposits of the rock shelter of Ksâr'Akil in the Antelias valley have been excavated by a group of American Jesuits in the years 1937-1938 and 1947-1948. Recently the fossil bones from these deposits were reported upon by my colleague Hooijer (1961). When he received

  6. Gravel size matters: Early Middle Palaeolithic artefacts made from local Rhine and Meuse deposits in the central Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van den Biggelaar, D.F.A.M.; van Balen, R.T.; Kluiving, S.J.; Verpoorte, A.; Alink, A

    2016-01-01

    The artefact size of the Early Middle Palaeolithic (EMP) assemblages in ice-pushed Rhine–Meuse deposits in the central Netherlands decreases northwestward. This trend correlates to the downstream fining direction of the Rhine–Meuse fluvial system, the source of the rock material, showing that

  7. The first Neanderthal remains from an open-air Middle Palaeolithic site in the Levant.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Been, Ella; Hovers, Erella; Ekshtain, Ravid; Malinski-Buller, Ariel; Agha, Nuha; Barash, Alon; Mayer, Daniella E Bar-Yosef; Benazzi, Stefano; Hublin, Jean-Jacques; Levin, Lihi; Greenbaum, Noam; Mitki, Netta; Oxilia, Gregorio; Porat, Naomi; Roskin, Joel; Soudack, Michalle; Yeshurun, Reuven; Shahack-Gross, Ruth; Nir, Nadav; Stahlschmidt, Mareike C; Rak, Yoel; Barzilai, Omry

    2017-06-07

    The late Middle Palaeolithic (MP) settlement patterns in the Levant included the repeated use of caves and open landscape sites. The fossil record shows that two types of hominins occupied the region during this period-Neandertals and Homo sapiens. Until recently, diagnostic fossil remains were found only at cave sites. Because the two populations in this region left similar material cultural remains, it was impossible to attribute any open-air site to either species. In this study, we present newly discovered fossil remains from intact archaeological layers of the open-air site 'Ein Qashish, in northern Israel. The hominin remains represent three individuals: EQH1, a nondiagnostic skull fragment; EQH2, an upper right third molar (RM 3 ); and EQH3, lower limb bones of a young Neandertal male. EQH2 and EQH3 constitute the first diagnostic anatomical remains of Neandertals at an open-air site in the Levant. The optically stimulated luminescence ages suggest that Neandertals repeatedly visited 'Ein Qashish between 70 and 60 ka. The discovery of Neandertals at open-air sites during the late MP reinforces the view that Neandertals were a resilient population in the Levant shortly before Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens populated the region.

  8. 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

  9. Earliest evidence of modern human life history in North African early Homo sapiens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Tanya M; Tafforeau, Paul; Reid, Donald J; Grün, Rainer; Eggins, Stephen; Boutakiout, Mohamed; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    2007-04-10

    Recent developmental studies demonstrate that early fossil hominins possessed shorter growth periods than living humans, implying disparate life histories. Analyses of incremental features in teeth provide an accurate means of assessing the age at death of developing dentitions, facilitating direct comparisons with fossil and modern humans. It is currently unknown when and where the prolonged modern human developmental condition originated. Here, an application of x-ray synchrotron microtomography reveals that an early Homo sapiens juvenile from Morocco dated at 160,000 years before present displays an equivalent degree of tooth development to modern European children at the same age. Crown formation times in the juvenile's macrodont dentition are higher than modern human mean values, whereas root development is accelerated relative to modern humans but is less than living apes and some fossil hominins. The juvenile from Jebel Irhoud is currently the oldest-known member of Homo with a developmental pattern (degree of eruption, developmental stage, and crown formation time) that is more similar to modern H. sapiens than to earlier members of Homo. This study also underscores the continuing importance of North Africa for understanding the origins of human anatomical and behavioral modernity. Corresponding biological and cultural changes may have appeared relatively late in the course of human evolution.

  10. The Homo sapiens 'hemibun': its developmental pattern and the problem of homology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nowaczewska, W; Kuźmiński, L

    2009-01-01

    The occipital bun is widely considered a Neanderthal feature. Its homology to the 'hemibun' observed in some European Upper Palaeolithic anatomically modern humans is a current problem. This study quantitatively evaluates the degree of occipital plane convexity in African and Australian modern human crania to analyse a relationship between this feature and some neurocranial variables. Neanderthal and European Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens crania were included in the analysis as well. The results of this study indicated that there is a significant relationship between the degree of occipital plane convexity and the following two features in the examined crania of modern humans: the ratio of the maximum neurocranial height to the maximum width of the vault and the ratio of bregma-lambda chord to bregma-lambda arc. The results also revealed that some H. sapiens crania (modern and fossil) show the Neanderthal shape of the occipital plane and that the neurocranial height and shape of parietal midsagittal profile has an influence on occipital plane convexity in the hominins included in this study. This study suggests that the occurrence of the great convexity of the occipital plane in the Neanderthals and H. sapiens is a "by-product" of the relationship between the same neurocranial features and there is no convincing evidence that the Neanderthal occipital bun and the similar structure in H. sapiens develop during ontogeny in the same way.

  11. 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.

  12. Core-Shell Processing of Natural Pigment: Upper Palaeolithic Red Ochre from Lovas, Hungary.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    István E Sajó

    Full Text Available Ochre is the common archaeological term for prehistoric pigments. It is applied to a range of uses, from ritual burials to cave art to medications. While a substantial number of Palaeolithic paint mining pits have been identified across Europe, the link between ochre use and provenance, and their antiquity, has never yet been identified. Here we characterise the mineralogical signature of core-shell processed ochre from the Palaeolithic paint mining pits near Lovas in Hungary, using a novel integration of petrographic and mineralogical techniques. We present the first evidence for core-shell processed, natural pigment that was prepared by prehistoric people from hematitic red ochre. This involved combining the darker red outer shell with the less intensely coloured core to efficiently produce an economical, yet still strongly coloured, paint. We demonstrate the antiquity of the site as having operated between 14-13 kcal BP, during the Epigravettian period. This is based on new radiocarbon dating of bone artefacts associated with the quarry site. The dating results indicate the site to be the oldest known evidence for core-shell pigment processing. We show that the ochre mined at Lovas was exported from the site based on its characteristic signature at other archaeological sites in the region. Our discovery not only provides a methodological framework for future characterisation of ochre pigments, but also provides the earliest known evidence for "value-adding" of products for trade.

  13. Core-Shell Processing of Natural Pigment: Upper Palaeolithic Red Ochre from Lovas, Hungary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sajó, István E; Kovács, János; Fitzsimmons, Kathryn E; Jáger, Viktor; Lengyel, György; Viola, Bence; Talamo, Sahra; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    2015-01-01

    Ochre is the common archaeological term for prehistoric pigments. It is applied to a range of uses, from ritual burials to cave art to medications. While a substantial number of Palaeolithic paint mining pits have been identified across Europe, the link between ochre use and provenance, and their antiquity, has never yet been identified. Here we characterise the mineralogical signature of core-shell processed ochre from the Palaeolithic paint mining pits near Lovas in Hungary, using a novel integration of petrographic and mineralogical techniques. We present the first evidence for core-shell processed, natural pigment that was prepared by prehistoric people from hematitic red ochre. This involved combining the darker red outer shell with the less intensely coloured core to efficiently produce an economical, yet still strongly coloured, paint. We demonstrate the antiquity of the site as having operated between 14-13 kcal BP, during the Epigravettian period. This is based on new radiocarbon dating of bone artefacts associated with the quarry site. The dating results indicate the site to be the oldest known evidence for core-shell pigment processing. We show that the ochre mined at Lovas was exported from the site based on its characteristic signature at other archaeological sites in the region. Our discovery not only provides a methodological framework for future characterisation of ochre pigments, but also provides the earliest known evidence for "value-adding" of products for trade.

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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

  15. Radiocarbon evidence of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition in Southwestern Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jöris, Olaf

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available In the present paper we systematically evaluate the radiometric database underlying the Middle to Upper Palaeolithc transition in southwestern Europe.The different models which attempt to explain the demographical processes underlying this transition rely to a large degree on radiocarbon chronology. We observe that: 1 with increasing age, dates on bone samples show large offsets against those on charcoal, often underestimating these for several thousand years BP and; 2 there is no proof for a persistence of Middle Palaeolithic industries into the time of the earliest Aurignacian in SW Europe. These data contradict the “Ebro- Frontier” model that distinguishes Late Middle Palaeolithic industries in the SW of the Iberian Peninsula from early Aurignacian ones in the NE. On the contrary, our data 3 imply a model of interregional shifts of populations contracting during severe cold and arid phases and expanding under warmer, interstadial conditions, raising ideas on a regional in situ development of the SW European Aurignacian out of Latest Middle Palaeolithic industries made by Neanderthals some 40.0 kyr cal BC.

    Se presenta un estudio sistemático sobre la información radiometrica disponible para la transición Paleolítico Medio-Paleolítico Superior en el Suroeste de Europa. Los diferentes modelos para explicar el proceso demográfico que subyace en esta transición dependen en gran medida de la cronología radiocarbónica. Se observa que: 1 a mayor antiguedad las fechas sobre hueso muestran una mayor desvisación frente a las muestras sobre carbón, a menudo infravalorando estas varios miles de años BP y 2 que no hay pruebas de perduración de industrias de Paleolítico Medio durante las fases tempranas del Auriñaciense en el SW de Europa. Estos datos contradicen el modelo de “frontera del Ebro” que distingue industrias de Paleolítico Medio Tardío en el SW de la Península Ibérica de las industrias del Auriñaciense temprano

  16. On the origin of modern humans: Asian perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bae, Christopher J; Douka, Katerina; Petraglia, Michael D

    2017-12-08

    The traditional "out of Africa" model, which posits a dispersal of modern Homo sapiens across Eurasia as a single wave at ~60,000 years ago and the subsequent replacement of all indigenous populations, is in need of revision. Recent discoveries from archaeology, hominin paleontology, geochronology, genetics, and paleoenvironmental studies have contributed to a better understanding of the Late Pleistocene record in Asia. Important findings highlighted here include growing evidence for multiple dispersals predating 60,000 years ago in regions such as southern and eastern Asia. Modern humans moving into Asia met Neandertals, Denisovans, mid-Pleistocene Homo , and possibly H. floresiensis , with some degree of interbreeding occurring. These early human dispersals, which left at least some genetic traces in modern populations, indicate that later replacements were not wholesale. Copyright © 2017 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

  17. Early modern human diversity suggests subdivided population structure and a complex out-of-Africa scenario

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gunz, Philipp; Bookstein, Fred L.; Mitteroecker, Philipp; Stadlmayr, Andrea; Seidler, Horst; Weber, Gerhard W.

    2009-01-01

    The interpretation of genetic evidence regarding modern human origins depends, among other things, on assessments of the structure and the variation of ancient populations. Because we lack genetic data from the time when the first anatomically modern humans appeared, between 200,000 and 60,000 years ago, instead we exploit the phenotype of neurocranial geometry to compare the variation in early modern human fossils with that in other groups of fossil Homo and recent modern humans. Variation is assessed as the mean-squared Procrustes distance from the group average shape in a representation based on several hundred neurocranial landmarks and semilandmarks. We find that the early modern group has more shape variation than any other group in our sample, which covers 1.8 million years, and that they are morphologically similar to recent modern humans of diverse geographically dispersed populations but not to archaic groups. Of the currently competing models of modern human origins, some are inconsistent with these findings. Rather than a single out-of-Africa dispersal scenario, we suggest that early modern humans were already divided into different populations in Pleistocene Africa, after which there followed a complex migration pattern. Our conclusions bear implications for the inference of ancient human demography from genetic models and emphasize the importance of focusing research on those early modern humans, in particular, in Africa. PMID:19307568

  18. 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.

  19. A functional test of Neandertal and modern human mitochondrial targeting sequences

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    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.

  20. Divorcing the Late Upper Palaeolithic demographic histories of mtDNA haplogroups M1 and U6 in Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pennarun Erwan

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A Southwest Asian origin and dispersal to North Africa in the Early Upper Palaeolithic era has been inferred in previous studies for mtDNA haplogroups M1 and U6. Both haplogroups have been proposed to show similar geographic patterns and shared demographic histories. Results We report here 24 M1 and 33 U6 new complete mtDNA sequences that allow us to refine the existing phylogeny of these haplogroups. The resulting phylogenetic information was used to genotype a further 131 M1 and 91 U6 samples to determine the geographic spread of their sub-clades. No southwest Asian specific clades for M1 or U6 were discovered. U6 and M1 frequencies in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe do not follow similar patterns, and their sub-clade divisions do not appear to be compatible with their shared history reaching back to the Early Upper Palaeolithic. The Bayesian Skyline Plots testify to non-overlapping phases of expansion, and the haplogroups’ phylogenies suggest that there are U6 sub-clades that expanded earlier than those in M1. Some M1 and U6 sub-clades could be linked with certain events. For example, U6a1 and M1b, with their coalescent ages of ~20,000–22,000 years ago and earliest inferred expansion in northwest Africa, could coincide with the flourishing of the Iberomaurusian industry, whilst U6b and M1b1 appeared at the time of the Capsian culture. Conclusions Our high-resolution phylogenetic dissection of both haplogroups and coalescent time assessments suggest that the extant main branching pattern of both haplogroups arose and diversified in the mid-later Upper Palaeolithic, with some sub-clades concomitantly with the expansion of the Iberomaurusian industry. Carriers of these maternal lineages have been later absorbed into and diversified further during the spread of Afro-Asiatic languages in North and East Africa.

  1. Palaeolithic Timekeepers Looking At The Golden Gate Of The Ecliptic; The Lunar Cycle And The Pleiades In The Cave Of La-TETe-Du-Lion (Ardéche, France) - 21,000 BP

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rappenglück, Michael A.

    Decades of research work done by several scientists all over the world since the beginning of the 20th century confirmed the idea, that Palaeolithic man looked up to the starry sky and recognized prominent patterns of stars as well as the course of the celestial bodies. Though sometimes highly speculative, the investigations made clear, that time-factored notations played an important role in the archaic cultures of Palaeolithic epochs (from 33,000 to 10,000 BP). There are some distinct and detailed examples of lunar-, solar- and lunisolar-calendars sometimes combined with pictures of seasonality, mostly discovered on transportable bones and stones, but also on the fixed walls of certain caves. The investigations showed that in Palaeolithic epochs time-reckoning, in particular the lunar cycle, had been related to the pregnancy of women too (Figure 2a-d). Recently I showed, that in the Magdalenian time (16,000-12,000 BP) man also recognized single and very complex star patterns, including the Milky Way: the Northern Crown in the cave of El Castillo (Spain), the Pleiades in the cave of Lascaux (France) and the main constellations of the sky at the same location. They were used by the Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers for orientation in space and for time-reckoning. These star patterns also played an important role in the cosmovisions of archaic cultures. Together with the depictions of the course of the moon and the sun, they helped to organize the spatiotemporal structure of daily and spiritual life of Palaeolithic man. Now I present a rock panel in the cave of La-T^ete-du-Lion (France) that shows the combination of a star pattern - Aldebaran in the Bull and the Pleiades - with a drawing of the moons cycle above. This picture comes from the Solutrean epoch ca 21,000-22,000 BP. It shows not only a remarkable similarity with the representation in the Lascaux cave, but clearly connects the star pattern with a part of the lunar cycle.

  2. Single-grain OSL dating of Early Middle Palaeolithic deposits at Cuesta de la Bajada, Ebro Basin, Spain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arnold, Lee; Demuro, Martina; Santonja, Manuel; Perez-Gonzalez, Alfredo; Pares, Josep

    2013-04-01

    The open-air site of Cuesta de la Bajada comprises a 2-2.5 m-thick sequence of fluvial-lacustrine sediments inset into the +50-60 m terrace deposits preserved along the south-eastern margins of the Alfambra river valley, Teruel, Spain. The main archaeological horizons lie ~20 m above the present-day river level and consists of an upward-fining sequence of massive fluvial silts and fine sands with dispersed gravels, detritic marls and shales that collectively overlie a series of planar bedded fluvial gravels. These units have yielded ~3000 lithic artefacts displaying reduction techniques characteristic of an early Middle Palaeolithic techno-complex, as well as a multitude of faunal remains indicative of a late Middle Pleistocene origin. The paucity of open-air Palaeolithic sites in the interior eastern sector of the Iberian Peninsula, and the relatively low number of documented early Middle Palaeolithic archives in this region, means that Cuesta de la Bajada is of key importance for understanding the coexistence/transition of Iberian Acheulean and Mousterian techno-complexes during the Middle Pleistocene period. Establishing reliable absolute chronologies at Cuesta de la Bajada remains essential for understanding the regional significance of this site. In an attempt to redress the existing chronological uncertainty we are undertaking an interdisciplinary dating study of the Middle Palaeolithic deposits using OSL dating, ESR/U-series dating of teeth and ESR dating of sedimentary quartz. Here we present results obtained using quartz single-grain OSL dating of 4 samples collected from a 7 m vertical profile bracketing the archaeological horizons. 2 samples were collected from the archaeology-bearing silt and fine sand horizons, while the remaining samples were obtained from well-bedded fine-sands and silts 3.5 m above and 3 m below the main excavation. The measured quartz grains are characterised by relatively bright OSL signals and typically display dose

  3. 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.

  4. Magnetic property analysis as palaeoenvironmental proxy: a case study of the Last Interglacial Middle Palaeolithic site at Neumark-Nord 2 (Germany)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sier, M.J.; Dekkers, M.J.

    2013-01-01

    The so-called Blake Event, an event of the geomagnetic fi eld, was identifi ed in the Middle Palaeolithic Neumark-Nord 2 (NN2) site in Germany by Sier et al. (2o11). These authors discussed the implications for the positioning of the Eemian in the Marine isotope stage (MIS) scale in

  5. Stratigraphic and technological evidence from the middle palaeolithic-Châtelperronian-Aurignacian record at the Bordes-Fitte rockshelter (Roches d’Abilly site, Central France)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aubry, Thierry; Dimuccio, Luca Antonio; Almeida, Miguel

    2012-01-01

    This paper presents a geoarchaeological study of Middle and Upper Palaeolithic (Châtelperronian, Aurignacian and Solutrean) occupations preserved at the Bordes-Fitte rockshelter in Central France. The lithostratigraphic sequence is composed of near-surface sedimentary facies with vertical and lat...

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. An archaeological predictive model for locating rock shelter sites in Hesse Germany) that contain both Final Palaeolithic archaeology and Laacher See tephra

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sauer, Florian Rudolf; Hoggard, Christian Steven; Zernack, Anke Verena

    of foragers and the Late Glacial environment there. In contrast, in the medial zone in Hesse only a small number of surface scatters of lithic artefacts are known. No Late Glacial sites, particularly not rock shelter and cave locations, have been excavated in this region. Yet, it is precisely such locations...... of human impacts following the eruption, a dataset of c. 800 rock shelter locations throughout the state of Hesse was used to generate an archaeological predictive model (APM). The database was compiled in the early 1990 for the purpose of discovering new and well-stratified sites (Hofbauer, 1995......). In the project presented here, a landscape-archaeological approach in GIS was employed to estimate the correspondence of the local topography of rock shelter features with the topographic and cultural framework of known Late Palaeolithic sites. Typical parameters like rock shelter orientation and distance...

  10. How different are the Kebara 2 ribs to modern humans?

    Science.gov (United States)

    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.

  11. Post-Palaeolithic - Palaeolithic pictorial sequences in the Sierra de San Pedro. International Tagus. Cáceres

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bueno Ramírez, Primitiva

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available The UAH team is developing successive projects of heritage evaluation in the International Tagus, focused on the megalithic culture. Our surveys, based on the theoretical statement of a predictive model that considers the presence of outdoor paintings, make the Sierra de San Pedro one of the most important schematic painting groups of the Iberian Peninsula. Its parallel development to the sites with outdoor engravings in the International Tagus draws a complex set of symbols with a major role in the definition of megalithic territories. The identification of Palaeolithic figures coincides with similar recurrences documented in outdoor sites of the western peninsula, pointing to the resort to the past as one of the arguments of vindication and use of traditional territories.

    El equipo de la UAH viene desarrollando sucesivos proyectos de valoración patrimonial en el Tajo Internacional centrados en la cultura megalítica. Nuestras prospecciones a partir de la exposición teórica de un modelo predictivo que considera la presencia de pinturas al aire libre, hacen de la Sierra de San Pedro uno de los más importantes conjuntos de la pintura esquemática de la Península Ibérica. Su desarrollo paralelo a los yacimientos con grabados al aire libre del Tajo Internacional dibuja un complejo entramado de símbolos con un importante papel en la definición de los territorios megalíticos. La identificación de figuras paleolíticas coincide con recurrencias similares documentadas en los yacimientos al aire libre del occidente peninsular, apuntando al recurso al pasado como uno de los argumentos de reivindicación y uso de territorios tradicionales.

  12. 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 ...

  13. Birds of a feather: Neanderthal exploitation of raptors and corvids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Finlayson, Clive; Brown, Kimberly; Blasco, Ruth; Rosell, Jordi; Negro, Juan José; Bortolotti, Gary R; Finlayson, Geraldine; Sánchez Marco, Antonio; Giles Pacheco, Francisco; Rodríguez Vidal, Joaquín; Carrión, José S; Fa, Darren A; Rodríguez Llanes, José M

    2012-01-01

    The hypothesis that Neanderthals exploited birds for the use of their feathers or claws as personal ornaments in symbolic behaviour is revolutionary as it assigns unprecedented cognitive abilities to these hominins. This inference, however, is based on modest faunal samples and thus may not represent a regular or systematic behaviour. Here we address this issue by looking for evidence of such behaviour across a large temporal and geographical framework. Our analyses try to answer four main questions: 1) does a Neanderthal to raptor-corvid connection exist at a large scale, thus avoiding associations that might be regarded as local in space or time?; 2) did Middle (associated with Neanderthals) and Upper Palaeolithic (associated with modern humans) sites contain a greater range of these species than Late Pleistocene paleontological sites?; 3) is there a taphonomic association between Neanderthals and corvids-raptors at Middle Palaeolithic sites on Gibraltar, specifically Gorham's, Vanguard and Ibex Caves? and; 4) was the extraction of wing feathers a local phenomenon exclusive to the Neanderthals at these sites or was it a geographically wider phenomenon?. We compiled a database of 1699 Pleistocene Palearctic sites based on fossil bird sites. We also compiled a taphonomical database from the Middle Palaeolithic assemblages of Gibraltar. We establish a clear, previously unknown and widespread, association between Neanderthals, raptors and corvids. We show that the association involved the direct intervention of Neanderthals on the bones of these birds, which we interpret as evidence of extraction of large flight feathers. The large number of bones, the variety of species processed and the different temporal periods when the behaviour is observed, indicate that this was a systematic, geographically and temporally broad, activity that the Neanderthals undertook. Our results, providing clear evidence that Neanderthal cognitive capacities were comparable to those of

  14. Rapid climate change in the Upper Palaeolithic: The record of charcoal conifer rings from the Gravettian site of Dolní Věstonice, Czech Republic

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Beresford-Jones, D.; Taylor, S.; Paine, C.; Pryor, A.; Svoboda, Jiří; Jones, M.

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 30, 15/16 (2011), s. 1948-1964 ISSN 0277-3791 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80010507 Keywords : Upper-Palaeolithic * Gravettian * charcoal * tree rings * climate change * micromorphology * archaeobotany Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology OBOR OECD: Archaeology Impact factor: 3.973, year: 2011

  15. Early modern human lithic technology from Jerimalai, East Timor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marwick, Ben; Clarkson, Chris; O'Connor, Sue; Collins, Sophie

    2016-12-01

    Jerimalai is a rock shelter in East Timor with cultural remains dated to 42,000 years ago, making it one of the oldest known sites of modern human activity in island Southeast Asia. It has special global significance for its record of early pelagic fishing and ancient shell fish hooks. It is also of regional significance for its early occupation and comparatively large assemblage of Pleistocene stone artefacts. Three major findings arise from our study of the stone artefacts. First, there is little change in lithic technology over the 42,000 year sequence, with the most noticeable change being the addition of new artefact types and raw materials in the mid-Holocene. Second, the assemblage is dominated by small chert cores and implements rather than pebble tools and choppers, a pattern we argue pattern, we argue, that is common in island SE Asian sites as opposed to mainland SE Asian sites. Third, the Jerimalai assemblage bears a striking resemblance to the assemblage from Liang Bua, argued by the Liang Bua excavation team to be associated with Homo floresiensis. We argue that the near proximity of these two islands along the Indonesian island chain (c.100 km apart), the long antiquity of modern human occupation in the region (as documented at Jerimalai), and the strong resemblance of distinctive flake stone technologies seen at both sites, raises the intriguing possibility that both the Liang Bua and Jerimalai assemblages were created by modern humans. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Earliest directly-dated human skull-cups.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Silvia M Bello

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The use of human braincases as drinking cups and containers has extensive historic and ethnographic documentation, but archaeological examples are extremely rare. In the Upper Palaeolithic of western Europe, cut-marked and broken human bones are widespread in the Magdalenian (∼15 to 12,000 years BP and skull-cup preparation is an element of this tradition. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we describe the post-mortem processing of human heads at the Upper Palaeolithic site of Gough's Cave (Somerset, England and identify a range of modifications associated with the production of skull-cups. New analyses of human remains from Gough's Cave demonstrate the skilled post-mortem manipulation of human bodies. Results of the research suggest the processing of cadavers for the consumption of body tissues (bone marrow, accompanied by meticulous shaping of cranial vaults. The distribution of cut-marks and percussion features indicates that the skulls were scrupulously 'cleaned' of any soft tissues, and subsequently modified by controlled removal of the facial region and breakage of the cranial base along a sub-horizontal plane. The vaults were also 'retouched', possibly to make the broken edges more regular. This manipulation suggests the shaping of skulls to produce skull-cups. CONCLUSIONS: Three skull-cups have been identified amongst the human bones from Gough's Cave. New ultrafiltered radiocarbon determinations provide direct dates of about 14,700 cal BP, making these the oldest directly dated skull-cups and the only examples known from the British Isles.

  17. 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

  18. Origin of clothing lice indicates early clothing use by anatomically modern humans in Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toups, Melissa A; Kitchen, Andrew; Light, Jessica E; Reed, David L

    2011-01-01

    Clothing use is an important modern behavior that contributed to the successful expansion of humans into higher latitudes and cold climates. Previous research suggests that clothing use originated anywhere between 40,000 and 3 Ma, though there is little direct archaeological, fossil, or genetic evidence to support more specific estimates. Since clothing lice evolved from head louse ancestors once humans adopted clothing, dating the emergence of clothing lice may provide more specific estimates of the origin of clothing use. Here, we use a Bayesian coalescent modeling approach to estimate that clothing lice diverged from head louse ancestors at least by 83,000 and possibly as early as 170,000 years ago. Our analysis suggests that the use of clothing likely originated with anatomically modern humans in Africa and reinforces a broad trend of modern human developments in Africa during the Middle to Late Pleistocene.

  19. 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.

  20. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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

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

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    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

  4. 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.

  5. 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

  6. 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.

  7. Evidences of Paleoearthquakes in Palaeolithic settlements within fluvial sequences of the Tagus Basin (Madrid, Central Spain).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silva, Pablo G.; Rodríguez Pascua, M. A.; Pérez López, R.; Giner Robles, J. L.; Roquero, E.; Tapias, F.; López Recio, M.; Rus, I.; Morin, J.

    2010-05-01

    Multiple evidences of soft-sediment to brittle deformation within the Pleistocene fluvial terraces of the Tagus, Jarama, Tajuña and Manzanares river valleys have been described since the middle 20th Century. Cryoturbation, hydroplastic deformations due to underlying karstic collapses or halokinesis on the substratum of neogene gypsums, and seismic shaking have been proposed to interpret these structures. These deformations are typically concentrated in the +18-20 m terrace levels, and closely linked to well-known Palaeolithic sites, in some cases overlaying and/or affecting true prehistoric settlements (i.e. Arganda, Arriaga and Tafesa sites) within the Jarama and Manzanares valleys. The affected settlements typically display acheulian lithic industry linked to the scavenging of large Pleistocene mammals (i.e. Elephas antiquus). Commonly, deformational structures are concentrated in relatively thin horizons (10-50 cm thick) bracketed by undeformed fluvial sands and gravels. The soft-sediment deformations usually consist on medium to fine sized sands injected and protruded in overlaying flood-plain clayey silts, showing a wide variety of convolutes, injections, sand-dikes, dish and pillar structures, mud volcanoes, faults and folds, some times it is possible to undertake their 3D geometrical analysis due to the exceptional conservation of the structures (Tafesa). Recent geo-archaeological prospecting on the for the Palaeolithic Site of Arriaga (South Madrid City) conducted during the year 2009, let to find out an exceptional horizon of deformation of about 1.20 m thick. It consisted on highly disturbed and pervasively liquefacted sands, which hardly can be attributed to no-seismic processes. The acheulian lithic industry of the Madrid Region have been classically attributed the Late Middle Pleistocene (Comunidad de Madrid, AUDEMA S.A. (Proyecto Arriaga-2009). This is a contribution of GQM-AEQUA.

  8. 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

  9. The ESR dating of fossil enamel samples from palaeo-anthropological and Palaeolithic sites of Early Pleistocene

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen Qi; Chen Tiemei; Li Jiuqiang

    1999-01-01

    The following problems regarding the ESR dating of fossil enamel samples from palaeo-anthropological and Palaeolithic sites of Early Pleistocene are discussed: 1) the applicability of exponential fitting in the additive method for reliable AD determination; 2) the thermo-stability of the g = 2.0018 line of hydroxyapatite and its influence on apparent ESR ages; 3) the right selection of U-uptake models; and 4) the effect of high U-content in enamel on the ESR ages. It is concluded that the ESR-EU ages of Early Pleistocene enamel samples can only be regarded as the lower limit of the true ages if no appropriate corrections for the factors discussed above are made

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

    Science.gov (United States)

    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.

  11. Climatological and environmental change as derived from physical and geochemical loess sediment properties: Examples of last glacial loess sites from the Pannonian Basin

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frank LEHMKHUL

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available The Project B1 within the CRC 806 “Our way to Europe” is focused on the "Eastern Trajectory" of modern human migration from Africa into Europe. The Middle East, Anatolia, Balkans and Southeastern Europe constitute the principal areas to be investigated.Within these larger regions key areas were selected for combined archaeological and geoarchaeological research, fieldwork having delivered case studies for initial Modern Human adaptational systems, yet to be fully analysed. During the first stage of the B1 research programme (2009-2013, key areas were in Jordan (Wadi Sabra/Petra, in Romania (Upper Timiş valley/Southern Banat and in Ukraine (Doroshivtsy / Northern Bukovina, Chernivtsi region, all within the Marine Isotope stage (MIS 3/2 time range. Thus, the first phase of the CRC focused on locations of Early Upper Palaeolithic sites in selected morphological positions, and specifically the upland-lowland comparative concept. It is anticipated to (1 intensify regional studies in the Serbian Banat and western Romania, now with a north-western extension in Hungary. Chronologically we continue research into later MIS 3 archaeological and geological archives (40,000 to 20,000 B.P., now also extending the time range to late Middle Palaeolithic (e.g. Garandhal and Bükk, and reaching back to the earlier MIS 3 and MIS 4 time range.

  12. 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.

  13. 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.

  14. 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.

  15. Direct radiocarbon dating and genetic analyses on the purported Neanderthal mandible from the Monti Lessini (Italy).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talamo, Sahra; Hajdinjak, Mateja; Mannino, Marcello A; Fasani, Leone; Welker, Frido; Martini, Fabio; Romagnoli, Francesca; Zorzin, Roberto; Meyer, Matthias; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    2016-07-08

    Anatomically modern humans replaced Neanderthals in Europe around 40,000 years ago. The demise of the Neanderthals and the nature of the possible relationship with anatomically modern humans has captured our imagination and stimulated research for more than a century now. Recent chronological studies suggest a possible overlap between Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans of more than 5,000 years. Analyses of ancient genome sequences from both groups have shown that they interbred multiple times, including in Europe. A potential place of interbreeding is the notable Palaeolithic site of Riparo Mezzena in Northern Italy. In order to improve our understanding of prehistoric occupation at Mezzena, we analysed the human mandible and several cranial fragments from the site using radiocarbon dating, ancient DNA, ZooMS and isotope analyses. We also performed a more detailed investigation of the lithic assemblage of layer I. Surprisingly we found that the Riparo Mezzena mandible is not from a Neanderthal but belonged to an anatomically modern human. Furthermore, we found no evidence for the presence of Neanderthal remains among 11 of the 13 cranial and post-cranial fragments re-investigated in this study.

  16. Early hominins in north-west Europe: A punctuated long chronology?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosfield, Rob; Cole, James

    2018-06-01

    In light of changing views regarding the identity and evolutionary positions of Europe's Lower Palaeolithic hominins, a re-consideration of the hominin occupation of north-west Europe from c. 1 million years ago (mya) to c. 400 thousand years ago (kya) is timely. A change in the scale and character of the overall European Palaeolithic record around c. 800-600 kya has been well documented and argued over since the mid-1990s. Hominin expansion into the European north-west, potentially from southern Europe, Africa or south-western Asia, has been linked to the introduction of a new lithic technology in the form of the biface. We evaluate three potential drivers for this northern range expansion: changing palaeo-climatic conditions, the emergence of an essentially modern human life history, and greater hominin behavioural plasticity. Our evaluation suggests no major changes in these three factors during the c. 800-600 kya period other than enhanced behavioural plasticity suggested by the appearance of the biface. We offer here a model of hominin occupation for north-west Europe termed the 'punctuated long chronology' and suggest that the major changes in the European Lower Palaeolithic record that occur at a species-wide level may post-date, rather than precede, the Anglian Glaciation (marine isotope stage (MIS) 12).

  17. Želeč I (okr. Prostějov/CZ) - the Early Upper Palaeolithic Stratified Site: the Question of the Integrity of the Ondratice I/Želeč Surface Collection

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Mlejnek, O.; Škrdla, Petr; Tostevin, G. B.; Lisá, Lenka; Novák, J.

    2016-01-01

    Roč. 46, č. 1 (2016), s. 1-14 ISSN 0342-734X R&D Projects: GA ČR GA15-19170S Institutional support: RVO:67985831 Keywords : Czech Republic * Moravia * Palaeolithic * Bohunician * Szeletian * Aurignacian * stratigraphy Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology; AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology (GLU-S)

  18. Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: human origins: out of Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tattersall, Ian

    2009-09-22

    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.

  19. 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

  20. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. Searching for ancient balanced polymorphisms shared between Neanderthals and Modern Humans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  3. 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

  4. 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.

  5. OH 83: A new early modern human fossil cranium from the Ndutu beds of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reiner, Whitney B; Masao, Fidelis; Sholts, Sabrina B; Songita, Agustino Venance; Stanistreet, Ian; Stollhofen, Harald; Taylor, R E; Hlusko, Leslea J

    2017-11-01

    Herein we introduce a newly recovered partial calvaria, OH 83, from the upper Ndutu Beds of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. We present the geological context of its discovery and a comparative analysis of its morphology, placing OH 83 within the context of our current understanding of the origins and evolution of Homo sapiens. We comparatively assessed the morphology of OH 83 using quantitative and qualitative data from penecontemporaneous fossils and the W.W. Howells modern human craniometric dataset. OH 83 is geologically dated to ca. 60-32 ka. Its morphology is indicative of an early modern human, falling at the low end of the range of variation for post-orbital cranial breadth, the high end of the range for bifrontal breadth, and near average in frontal length. There have been numerous attempts to use cranial anatomy to define the species Homo sapiens and identify it in the fossil record. These efforts have not met wide agreement by the scientific community due, in part, to the mosaic patterns of cranial variation represented by the fossils. The variable, mosaic pattern of trait expression in the crania of Middle and Late Pleistocene fossils implies that morphological modernity did not occur at once. However, OH 83 demonstrates that by ca. 60-32 ka modern humans in Africa included individuals that are at the fairly small and gracile range of modern human cranial variation. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  6. The mitogenome of a 35,000-year-old Homo sapiens from Europe supports a Palaeolithic back-migration to Africa

    OpenAIRE

    Hervella, M.; Svensson, E. M.; Alberdi, A.; G?nther, T.; Izagirre, N.; Munters, A. R.; Alonso, S.; Ioana, M.; Ridiche, F.; Soficaru, A.; Jakobsson, M.; Netea, M. G.; de-la-Rua, C.

    2016-01-01

    After the dispersal of modern humans (Homo sapiens) Out of Africa, hominins with a similar morphology to that of present-day humans initiated the gradual demographic expansion into Eurasia. The mitogenome (33-fold coverage) of the Pestera Muierii 1 individual (PM1) from Romania (35 ky cal BP) we present in this article corresponds fully to Homo sapiens, whilst exhibiting a mosaic of morphological features related to both modern humans and Neandertals. We have identified the PM1 mitogenome as ...

  7. 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.

  8. Direct radiocarbon dating and DNA analysis of the Darra-i-Kur (Afghanistan) human temporal bone.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Douka, Katerina; Slon, Viviane; Stringer, Chris; Potts, Richard; Hübner, Alexander; Meyer, Matthias; Spoor, Fred; Pääbo, Svante; Higham, Tom

    2017-06-01

    The temporal bone discovered in the 1960s from the Darra-i-Kur cave in Afghanistan is often cited as one of the very few Pleistocene human fossils from Central Asia. Here we report the first direct radiocarbon date for the specimen and the genetic analyses of DNA extracted and sequenced from two areas of the bone. The new radiocarbon determination places the find to ∼4500 cal BP (∼2500 BCE) contradicting an assumed Palaeolithic age of ∼30,000 years, as originally suggested. The DNA retrieved from the specimen originates from a male individual who carried mitochondrial DNA of the modern human type. The petrous part yielded more endogenous ancient DNA molecules than the squamous part of the same bone. Molecular dating of the Darra-i-Kur mitochondrial DNA sequence corroborates the radiocarbon date and suggests that the specimen is younger than previously thought. Taken together, the results consolidate the fact that the human bone is not associated with the Pleistocene-age deposits of Darra-i-Kur; instead it is intrusive, possibly re-deposited from upper levels dating to much later periods (Neolithic). Despite its Holocene age, the Darra-i-Kur specimen is, so far, the first and only ancient human from Afghanistan whose DNA has been sequenced. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. 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)

  10. 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.

  11. Early modern human dispersal from Africa: genomic evidence for multiple waves of migration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tassi, Francesca; Ghirotto, Silvia; Mezzavilla, Massimo; Vilaça, Sibelle Torres; De Santi, Lisa; Barbujani, Guido

    2015-01-01

    Anthropological and genetic data agree in indicating the African continent as the main place of origin for anatomically modern humans. However, it is unclear whether early modern humans left Africa through a single, major process, dispersing simultaneously over Asia and Europe, or in two main waves, first through the Arab Peninsula into southern Asia and Oceania, and later through a northern route crossing the Levant. Here, we show that accurate genomic estimates of the divergence times between European and African populations are more recent than those between Australo-Melanesia and Africa and incompatible with the effects of a single dispersal. This difference cannot possibly be accounted for by the effects of either hybridization with archaic human forms in Australo-Melanesia or back migration from Europe into Africa. Furthermore, in several populations of Asia we found evidence for relatively recent genetic admixture events, which could have obscured the signatures of the earliest processes. We conclude that the hypothesis of a single major human dispersal from Africa appears hardly compatible with the observed historical and geographical patterns of genome diversity and that Australo-Melanesian populations seem still to retain a genomic signature of a more ancient divergence from Africa.

  12. 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. 

  13. 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...

  14. Hunter-gatherer genomic diversity suggests a southern African origin for modern humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henn, Brenna M; Gignoux, Christopher R; Jobin, Matthew; Granka, Julie M; Macpherson, J M; Kidd, Jeffrey M; Rodríguez-Botigué, Laura; Ramachandran, Sohini; Hon, Lawrence; Brisbin, Abra; Lin, Alice A; Underhill, Peter A; Comas, David; Kidd, Kenneth K; Norman, Paul J; Parham, Peter; Bustamante, Carlos D; Mountain, Joanna L; Feldman, Marcus W

    2011-03-29

    Africa is inferred to be the continent of origin for all modern human populations, but the details of human prehistory and evolution in Africa remain largely obscure owing to the complex histories of hundreds of distinct populations. We present data for more than 580,000 SNPs for several hunter-gatherer populations: the Hadza and Sandawe of Tanzania, and the ≠Khomani Bushmen of South Africa, including speakers of the nearly extinct N|u language. We find that African hunter-gatherer populations today remain highly differentiated, encompassing major components of variation that are not found in other African populations. Hunter-gatherer populations also tend to have the lowest levels of genome-wide linkage disequilibrium among 27 African populations. We analyzed geographic patterns of linkage disequilibrium and population differentiation, as measured by F(ST), in Africa. The observed patterns are consistent with an origin of modern humans in southern Africa rather than eastern Africa, as is generally assumed. Additionally, genetic variation in African hunter-gatherer populations has been significantly affected by interaction with farmers and herders over the past 5,000 y, through both severe population bottlenecks and sex-biased migration. However, African hunter-gatherer populations continue to maintain the highest levels of genetic diversity in the world.

  15. Age of the middle Palaeolithic site of La Butte d'Arvigny (Moissy-Cramayel, Seine-et-Marne); Datation du site paleolithique moyen de la Butte d'Arvigny (Moissy-Cramayel, Seine-et-Marne)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Laurent, M. [Ecole Nationale Superieure de Chimie, Lab. de Travaux Pratiques de Genie Chimique, 75 - Paris (France); Laurent, M.; Bahain, J.J.; Voinchet, P.; Ricard, J.L. [Lab. de Prehistoire du Museum National d' Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Paleontologie Humaine, UMR 6569 du CNRS, 75 - Paris (France); Rousseau, L. [Amiens Univ., Lab. de Sedimentologie et de Geochimie, 80 (France)

    2000-04-01

    The middle Palaeolithic site of La Butte d'Arvigny, close to Melun, was dated using electron spin resonance (ESR) method on burn flint. Five analysed burnt flints give a mean age of 90 000 years, which ascribes Arvigny to the Mousterian laminar complex of northern France. (authors)

  16. 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...

  17. Recovering the geographic origin of early modern humans by realistic and spatially explicit simulations

    OpenAIRE

    Ray, Nicolas; Currat, Mathias; Berthier, Pierre; Excoffier, Laurent

    2005-01-01

    Most genetic and archeological evidence argue in favor of a recent and unique origin of modern humans in sub-Saharan Africa, but no attempt has ever been made at quantifying the likelihood of this model, relative to alternative hypotheses of human evolution. In this paper, we investigate the possibility of using multilocus genetic data to correctly infer the geographic origin of humans, and to distinguish between a unique origin (UO) and a multiregional evolution (ME) model. We introduce here...

  18. 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.

  19. 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,

  20. New Insights into the Evolution of the Human Diet from Faecal Biomarker Analysis in Wild Chimpanzee and Gorilla Faeces

    OpenAIRE

    Sistiaga, Ainara; Wrangham, Richard; Rothman, Jessica M.; Summons, Roger E.

    2015-01-01

    Our understanding of early human diets is based on reconstructed biomechanics of hominin jaws, bone and teeth isotopic data, tooth wear patterns, lithic, taphonomic and zooarchaeological data, which do not provide information about the relative amounts of different types of foods that contributed most to early human diets. Faecal biomarkers are proving to be a valuable tool in identifying relative proportions of plant and animal tissues in Palaeolithic diets. A limiting factor in the applicat...

  1. Malocclusion in early anatomically modern human: a reflection on the etiology of modern dental misalignment.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rachel Sarig

    Full Text Available Malocclusions are common in modern populations. Yet, as the study of occlusion requires an almost intact dentition in both the maxilla and mandible, searching for the ultimate cause of malocclusion is a challenge: relatively little ancient material is available for research on occlusal states. The Qafzeh 9 skull is unique, as its preserved dentition allowed us to investigate the presence and manifestations of malocclusion. The aim of this study was thus to examine the occlusal condition in the Qafzeh 9 specimen in light of modern knowledge regarding the etiology of malocclusion. We revealed a pathologic occlusion in the Qafzeh 9 skull that probably originated in the early developmental stage of the dentition, and was aggravated by forces applied by mastication. When arch continuity is interrupted due to misalignment of teeth as in this case, force transmission is not equal on both sides, causing intra-arch outcomes such as mesialization of the teeth, midline deviation, rotations and the aggravation of crowding. All are evident in the Qafzeh 9 skull: the midline deviates to the left; the incisors rotate mesio-buccally; the left segment is constricted; the left first molar is buccally positioned and the left premolars palatally tilted. The inter-arch evaluation revealed anterior cross bite with functional shift that might affect force transmission and bite force. In conclusion, the findings of the current study suggest that malocclusion of developmental origin was already present in early anatomically modern humans (AMH (the present case being the oldest known case, dated to ca. 100,000 years; that there is no basis to the notion that early AMH had a better adjustment between teeth and jaw size; and that jaw-teeth size discrepancy could be found in prehistoric populations and is not a recent phenomenon.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. Adaptation and niche construction in human prehistory: a case study from the southern Scandinavian Late Glacial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riede, Felix

    2011-03-27

    The niche construction model postulates that human bio-social evolution is composed of three inheritance domains, genetic, cultural and ecological, linked by feedback selection. This paper argues that many kinds of archaeological data can serve as proxies for human niche construction processes, and presents a method for investigating specific niche construction hypotheses. To illustrate this method, the repeated emergence of specialized reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) hunting/herding economies during the Late Palaeolithic (ca 14.7-11.5 kyr BP) in southern Scandinavia is analysed from a niche construction/triple-inheritance perspective. This economic relationship resulted in the eventual domestication of Rangifer. The hypothesis of whether domestication was achieved as early as the Late Palaeolithic, and whether this required the use of domesticated dogs (Canis familiaris) as hunting, herding or transport aids, is tested via a comparative analysis using material culture-based phylogenies and ecological datasets in relation to demographic/genetic proxies. Only weak evidence for sustained niche construction behaviours by prehistoric hunter-gatherer in southern Scandinavia is found, but this study nonetheless provides interesting insights into the likely processes of dog and reindeer domestication, and into processes of adaptation in Late Glacial foragers.

  6. Landscape as World Picture

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wamberg, Jacob

    from Palaeolithic cave paintings through to 19th-century modernity. A structuralist comparison between this pattern and three additional fields of analysis - self-consciousness, socially-determined perception of nature, and world picture - reveals a fascinating insight into culture's macrohistorical...

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. About time from sun dials to quantum clocks, how the cosmos shapes our lives and we shape the cosmos

    CERN Document Server

    Frank, Adam

    2011-01-01

    From a Palaeolithic farmer living by the sun and stone plinths to the factory worker logging into an industrial punch clock to the modern manager enslaved to Outlook's 15-minute increments, our relationship with time has constantly evolved alongside our scientific understanding of the universe. And the latest advances in physics string-theory branes, multiverses, "clockless" physics are positioned to completely rewrite time in the coming years. Weaving cosmology with day-to-day chronicles and a lively wit, astrophysicist Adam Frank tells the dazzling story of humanity's invention of time and how we will experience it in the future.

  13. 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.

  14. Preservation of rodent bones from El Harhoura 2 cave (Morocco, Neolithic - Middle Palaeolithic): Microstructure, mineralogy, crystallinity and composition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farre, Bastien; Massard, Pierre; Nouet, Julius; Dauphin, Yannicke

    2014-04-01

    Thin sections, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), diffraction X (DRX) and infrared spectrometry (FTIR) have been used to study the structure, mineralogy, crystallinity and bulk composition of fossil rodent long bones extracted from a succession of sedimentary layers in a cave from Morocco (Neolithic - Middle Palaeolithic, El Harhoura 2). The microstructure of fossil bones is well-preserved at this scale of observation, and encrusted deposits are rare. All bones are preserved in apatite, but the crystallinity is modified, as well as the crystallite shape, the organic content and the organic-mineral ratio. No fluor enrichment has been observed. Alone or together, the studied parameters do not show a regular trend from the upper to the lower layers of the cave. The preservation of the fossil bones does not confirm the sequence of arid and humid periods inferred from taphonomic analyses.

  15. The problematic construction of 'Palaeolithic Man': The Old Stone Age and the difficulties of the comparative method, 1859-1914.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manias, Chris

    2015-06-01

    The growth of a prehistoric timescale was one of the most dramatic developments in nineteenth-century ideas of humanity, massively extending the assumed course of human development and placing it within the deep chronologies of geological time. A dominant motif linking prehistory with wider studies of humanity and notions of historical change was the 'comparative method'-the idea that modern 'savages' were analogous to prehistoric Europeans, and that the two sets of peoples could explain one another. The importance of this mode of reasoning has been well-studied, and shown to have had great significance for concepts of progress and social evolution. What has been less investigated are cases when the comparative method broke down, and where 'modern savages' and 'prehistoric man' seemed to be dissimilar and analogies hard to make. This paper examines how a series of authors engaged with problems in the comparative method when they attempted to place human development within this deep prehistoric past. In doing so, it highlights the changing interactions between the Victorian deep time sciences and the 'sciences of man,' and how notions of European prehistory and modern 'primitives' often rested on a notion of variability in the 'savage' condition. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  17. Gellnerovo pojetí modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  18. 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)

  19. 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)

  20. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. Bacteria, fungi and arthropod pests collected on modern human mummies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  3. 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...

  4. 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

  5. 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.)

  6. 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

  7. 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.

  8. The mitogenome of a 35,000-year-old Homo sapiens from Europe supports a Palaeolithic back-migration to Africa

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hervella, M.; Svensson, E.M.; Alberdi, A.; Gunther, T.; Izagirre, N.; Munters, A.R.; Alonso, S.; Ioana, M.; Ridiche, F.; Soficaru, A.; Jakobsson, M.; Netea, M.G.; Rua, C. de la

    2016-01-01

    After the dispersal of modern humans (Homo sapiens) Out of Africa, hominins with a similar morphology to that of present-day humans initiated the gradual demographic expansion into Eurasia. The mitogenome (33-fold coverage) of the Pestera Muierii 1 individual (PM1) from Romania (35 ky cal BP) we

  9. 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…

  10. 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

  11. 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.

  12. 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...

  13. 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.

  14. 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.

  15. Science, humanism, judgement, ethics: person-centered medicine as an emergent model of modern clinical practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miles, Andrew

    2013-01-01

    The Medical University of Plovdiv (MUP) has as its motto 'Committed to humanity". But what does humanity in modern medicine mean? Is it possible to practise a form of medicine that is without humanity? In the current article, it is argued that modern medicine is increasingly being practised in a de-personalised fashion, where the patient is understood not as a unique human individual, a person, but rather as a subject or an object and more in the manner of a complex biological machine. Medicine has, it is contended, become distracted from its duty to care, comfort and console as well as to ameliorate, attenuate and cure and that the rapid development of medicine's scientific knowledge is, paradoxically, principally causative. Signal occurrences in the 'patient as a person' movement are reviewed, together with the emergence of the evidence-based medicine (EBM) and patient-centered care (PCC) movements. The characteristics of a model of medicine evolving in response to medicine's current deficiencies--person-centered healthcare (PCH)--are noted and described. In seeking to apply science with humanism, via clinical judgement, within an ethical framework, it is contended that PCH will prove to be far more responsive to the needs of the individual patient and his/her personal circumstances than current models of practice, so that neither a reductive anatomico-pathological, disease-centric model of illness (EBM), nor an aggressive patient-directed, consumerist form of care (PCC) is allowed continued dominance within modern healthcare systems. In conclusion, it is argued that PCH will enable affordable advances in biomedicine and technology to be delivered to patients within a humanistic framework of clinical practice that recognises the patient as a person and which takes full account of his/her stories, values, preferences, goals, aspirations, fears, worries, hopes, cultural context and which responds to his/her psychological, emotional, spiritual and social necessities

  16. 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.

  17. Fluvial deposits as an archive of early human activity: Progress during the 20 years of the Fluvial Archives Group

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chauhan, Parth R.; Bridgland, David R.; Moncel, Marie-Hélène; Antoine, Pierre; Bahain, Jean-Jacques; Briant, Rebecca; Cunha, Pedro P.; Despriée, Jackie; Limondin-Lozouet, Nicole; Locht, Jean-Luc; Martins, Antonio A.; Schreve, Danielle C.; Shaw, Andrew D.; Voinchet, Pierre; Westaway, Rob; White, Mark J.; White, Tom S.

    2017-06-01

    Fluvial sedimentary archives are important repositories for Lower and Middle Palaeolithic artefacts throughout the 'Old World', especially in Europe, where the beginning of their study coincided with the realisation that early humans were of great antiquity. Now that many river terrace sequences can be reliably dated and correlated with the globally valid marine isotope record, potentially useful patterns can be recognized in the distribution of the find-spots of the artefacts that constitute the large collections that were assembled during the years of manual gravel extraction. This paper reviews the advances during the past two decades in knowledge of hominin occupation based on artefact occurrences in fluvial contexts, in Europe, Asia and Africa. As such it is an update of a comparable review in 2007, at the end of IGCP Project no. 449, which had instigated the compilation of fluvial records from around the world during 2000-2004, under the auspices of the Fluvial Archives Group. An overarching finding is the confirmation of the well-established view that in Europe there is a demarcation between handaxe making in the west and flake-core industries in the east, although on a wider scale that pattern is undermined by the increased numbers of Lower Palaeolithic bifaces now recognized in East Asia. It is also apparent that, although it seems to have appeared at different places and at different times in the later Lower Palaeolithic, the arrival of Levallois technology as a global phenomenon was similarly timed across the area occupied by Middle Pleistocene hominins, at around 0.3 Ma.

  18. 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...

  19. Buddhist Activism and Chinese Modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hung-yok Ip

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The history of modern Chinese Buddhism has begun to attract attention in recent years. Some scholars have done inspiring research as they unravel the integration of Buddhism into the highly secularized process of Chinese modernity by drawing on the repository of knowledge on modern China. While this special issue joins this exciting endeavor, it also uses Buddhism as a window to reflect on scholarship on Chinese modernity. Conceptually, this special issue presses scholars in the field of modern China to rethink the place of tradition in the course of modernity. Thematically we show the expansionist impulse of Chinese Buddhism: In addition to envisioning the geographical expansion of their religion, Chinese Buddhists have endeavored to enhance the significance of Buddhism in various dimensions of Chinese society in particular and human life in general.

  20. A model for the induction of autism in the ecosystem of the human body: the anatomy of a modern pandemic?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Staci D. Bilbo

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: The field of autism research is currently divided based on a fundamental question regarding the nature of autism: Some are convinced that autism is a pandemic of modern culture, with environmental factors at the roots. Others are convinced that the disease is not pandemic in nature, but rather that it has been with humanity for millennia, with its biological and neurological underpinnings just now being understood. Objective: In this review, two lines of reasoning are examined which suggest that autism is indeed a pandemic of modern culture. First, given the widely appreciated derailment of immune function by modern culture, evidence that autism is strongly associated with aberrant immune function is examined. Second, evidence is reviewed indicating that autism is associated with ‘triggers’ that are, for the most part, a construct of modern culture. In light of this reasoning, current epidemiological evidence regarding the incidence of autism, including the role of changing awareness and diagnostic criteria, is examined. Finally, the potential role of the microbial flora (the microbiome in the pathogenesis of autism is discussed, with the view that the microbial flora is a subset of the life associated with the human body, and that the entire human biome, including both the microbial flora and the fauna, has been radically destabilized by modern culture. Conclusions: It is suggested that the unequivocal way to resolve the debate regarding the pandemic nature of autism is to perform an experiment: monitor the prevalence of autism after normalizing immune function in a Western population using readily available approaches that address the well-known factors underlying the immune dysfunction in that population.

  1. 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

  2. [The development of molecular human genetics and its significance for perspectives of modern medicine].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coutelle, C; Speer, A; Grade, K; Rosenthal, A; Hunger, H D

    1989-01-01

    The introduction of molecular human genetics has become a paradigma for the application of genetic engineering in medicine. The main principles of this technology are the isolation of molecular probes, their application in hybridization reactions, specific gene-amplification by the polymerase chain reaction, and DNA sequencing reactions. These methods are used for the analysis of monogenic diseases by linkage studies and the elucidation of the molecular defect causing these conditions, respectively. They are also the basis for genomic diagnosis of monogenic diseases, introduced into the health care system of the GDR by a national project on Duchenne/Becker muscular dystrophy, Cystic Fibrosis and Phenylketonuria. The rapid development of basic research on the molecular analysis of the human genome and genomic diagnosis indicates, that human molecular genetics is becoming a decisive basic discipline of modern medicine.

  3. Modern biogeochemistry environmental risk assessment

    CERN Document Server

    Bashkin, Vladimir N

    2006-01-01

    Most books deal mainly with various technical aspects of ERA description and calculationsAims at generalizing the modern ideas of both biogeochemical and environmental risk assessment during recent yearsAims at supplementing the existing books by providing a modern understanding of mechanisms that are responsible for the ecological risk for human beings and ecosystem

  4. Studying Innovation Technologies in Modern Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stukalenko, Nina M.; Zhakhina, Bariya B.; Kukubaeva, Asiya K.; Smagulova, Nurgul K.; Kazhibaeva, Gulden K.

    2016-01-01

    In modern society, innovation technologies expand to almost every field of human activity, including such wide field as education. Due to integrating innovation technologies into the educational process practice, this phenomenon gained special significance within improvement and modernization of the established educational system. Currently, the…

  5. Chew Bahir, southern Ethiopia: an archive of environmental history during the evolution and dispersal of anatomically modern humans

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schaebitz, F.; Asrat, A.; Lamb, H. F.; Trauth, M. H.; Junginger, A.; Foerster, V. E.; Guenter, C.; Viehberg, F. A.; Just, J.; Roberts, H. M.; Chapot, M. S.; Leng, M. J.; Dean, J.; Cohen, A. S.

    2016-12-01

    Chew Bahir is a tectonic basin in the southern Ethiopian Rift, close to the Lower Omo valley, site of earliest known fossil of anatomically modern humans. It was drilled in Nov-Dec 2014 as part of the Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) and the Collaborative Research Center (CRC806) "Our Way to Europe". Two overlapping cores of mostly clayey silts, reaching a composite depths of 280m, were collected and may cover the last 500,000 years, thus providing a potential record of environmental history during the evolution and spread of anatomically modern humans. Here we present the lithology and stratigraphy of the composite core as well as results of high resolution MSCL and XRF scanning data. Initial sedimentological and geochemical results show that the Chew Bahir deposits are a sensitive record of changes in moisture, sediment influx, provenance, transport and diagenetic processes, evident from mineralogy, elemental concentration and physical properties. The potassium record is highly sensitive to changes in moisture balance (Foerster et al. 2015). XRF and XRD data suggest that the process linking climate with potassium concentrations is the diagenetic illitization of smectites during dry episodes with high alkalinity and salinity in the closed-basin lake. The core records will allow tests of the various hypotheses about the influence of environmental change on the evolution and dispersal of anatomically modern humans. Foerster, V., Vogelsang, R., Junginger, A., Asrat, A., Lamb, H.F., Schaebitz, F., Trauth, M.H. (2015): Environmental Change and Human Occupation of Southern Ethiopia and Northern Kenya during the last 20,000 years. Quaternary Science Reviews, 129: 333-340. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2015.10.026.

  6. The mitogenome of a 35,000-year-old Homo sapiens from Europe supports a Palaeolithic back-migration to Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hervella, M; Svensson, E M; Alberdi, A; Günther, T; Izagirre, N; Munters, A R; Alonso, S; Ioana, M; Ridiche, F; Soficaru, A; Jakobsson, M; Netea, M G; de-la-Rua, C

    2016-05-19

    After the dispersal of modern humans (Homo sapiens) Out of Africa, hominins with a similar morphology to that of present-day humans initiated the gradual demographic expansion into Eurasia. The mitogenome (33-fold coverage) of the Peştera Muierii 1 individual (PM1) from Romania (35 ky cal BP) we present in this article corresponds fully to Homo sapiens, whilst exhibiting a mosaic of morphological features related to both modern humans and Neandertals. We have identified the PM1 mitogenome as a basal haplogroup U6*, not previously found in any ancient or present-day humans. The derived U6 haplotypes are predominantly found in present-day North-Western African populations. Concomitantly, those found in Europe have been attributed to recent gene-flow from North Africa. The presence of the basal haplogroup U6* in South East Europe (Romania) at 35 ky BP confirms a Eurasian origin of the U6 mitochondrial lineage. Consequently, we propose that the PM1 lineage is an offshoot to South East Europe that can be traced to the Early Upper Paleolithic back migration from Western Asia to North Africa, during which the U6 lineage diversified, until the emergence of the present-day U6 African lineages.

  7. Retrospective and modern views on modernization and alternative modernization components of shinto and zen buddhism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Y. Medviedieva

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the ratio of modernization and counter modernizing key components of Japan and religions (partly introduced Christianity. The author concludes that the various components of the religious consciousness of the Japanese were kontratetycal on two main elements that form the basis of modern Western culture Japanese resistance and cause upgrade. First, science and technology, working on the basis of the laws of nature, which are opposed to the supernatural and the metaphysical world. Secondly, expressed individualism and atomism as hypertrophic respect for the human person, liberal nadzoseredzhenist to a person who undermines the consolidation of corporate social society. Japanese culture in the past was oriented toward modernization, but progress has been very slow. Moreover, in this process, Japan was much more conservative because in Japanese society regulatory institutions of the army, religion and industrial corporations can be considered a kind of constants which not only can be adapted to the modernization of Euro-American style, as suggested selection of authentic script compatible, especially with life values corporatism and solidarity. It is in this dimension of modernization projects related to Christian proselytism, as were «frustrated.» The reason for this breakdown can be considered inherence religion with social cohesion, its actual merging of social institutions, as well as hidden mahizm skepticism and religious outlook that combines Shinto, Confucian and Zen Buddhist elements. Since modernization in Christianity included the distinction darkened minds clerical era and «enlightened enlightenment» of consciousness era of modern times, it is this dichotomy allowed to oppose religious «ignorance» and scientific «enlightenment», the clergy and secular intellectuals, universities and intellectual clubs as a medium spreading the ideology of the bourgeoisie and monasteries as centers of religious clericalism

  8. Cavemen were better at depicting quadruped walking than modern artists: erroneous walking illustrations in the fine arts from prehistory to today.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horvath, Gabor; Farkas, Etelka; Boncz, Ildiko; Blaho, Miklos; Kriska, Gyorgy

    2012-01-01

    The experts of animal locomotion well know the characteristics of quadruped walking since the pioneering work of Eadweard Muybridge in the 1880s. Most of the quadrupeds advance their legs in the same lateral sequence when walking, and only the timing of their supporting feet differ more or less. How did this scientific knowledge influence the correctness of quadruped walking depictions in the fine arts? Did the proportion of erroneous quadruped walking illustrations relative to their total number (i.e. error rate) decrease after Muybridge? How correctly have cavemen (upper palaeolithic Homo sapiens) illustrated the walking of their quadruped prey in prehistoric times? The aim of this work is to answer these questions. We have analyzed 1000 prehistoric and modern artistic quadruped walking depictions and determined whether they are correct or not in respect of the limb attitudes presented, assuming that the other aspects of depictions used to determine the animals gait are illustrated correctly. The error rate of modern pre-Muybridgean quadruped walking illustrations was 83.5%, much more than the error rate of 73.3% of mere chance. It decreased to 57.9% after 1887, that is in the post-Muybridgean period. Most surprisingly, the prehistoric quadruped walking depictions had the lowest error rate of 46.2%. All these differences were statistically significant. Thus, cavemen were more keenly aware of the slower motion of their prey animals and illustrated quadruped walking more precisely than later artists.

  9. Cavemen were better at depicting quadruped walking than modern artists: erroneous walking illustrations in the fine arts from prehistory to today.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabor Horvath

    Full Text Available The experts of animal locomotion well know the characteristics of quadruped walking since the pioneering work of Eadweard Muybridge in the 1880s. Most of the quadrupeds advance their legs in the same lateral sequence when walking, and only the timing of their supporting feet differ more or less. How did this scientific knowledge influence the correctness of quadruped walking depictions in the fine arts? Did the proportion of erroneous quadruped walking illustrations relative to their total number (i.e. error rate decrease after Muybridge? How correctly have cavemen (upper palaeolithic Homo sapiens illustrated the walking of their quadruped prey in prehistoric times? The aim of this work is to answer these questions. We have analyzed 1000 prehistoric and modern artistic quadruped walking depictions and determined whether they are correct or not in respect of the limb attitudes presented, assuming that the other aspects of depictions used to determine the animals gait are illustrated correctly. The error rate of modern pre-Muybridgean quadruped walking illustrations was 83.5%, much more than the error rate of 73.3% of mere chance. It decreased to 57.9% after 1887, that is in the post-Muybridgean period. Most surprisingly, the prehistoric quadruped walking depictions had the lowest error rate of 46.2%. All these differences were statistically significant. Thus, cavemen were more keenly aware of the slower motion of their prey animals and illustrated quadruped walking more precisely than later artists.

  10. Christian Responses to Modern Slavery

    OpenAIRE

    Reaves, Jayme

    2007-01-01

    Exhibited at the second Glucksman Memorial Symposium on June 13th 2007 This research project explores the theological and ethical issues around modern slavery and movements to abolish it. Topics include: human trafficking; human rights; racism; theological language and doctrines; Christian ethics, values and social practice.

  11. Experimental study on flint hammerstone use in Discoid-Levallois technologies: A comparison with the workshop assemblages of the central Iberian Peninsula

    OpenAIRE

    Víctor Lamas Navarro; Sara Díaz Pérez; Guillermo Bustos-Pérez; Felipe Cuartero Monteagudo; Concepción Torres Navas; Javier Baena Preysler

    2016-01-01

    The basins of the Manzanares and Jarama rivers have been connected to human activity since the early Palaeolithic. At the boundary between these rivers the abundance of flint has given place to exploitation and mining activities even in historical times. In recent years, projects related to urban expansion in the southeast of Madrid have brought to light various Palaeolithic deposits associated with workshops and tool production. These sites do not have evidence of river pebbles of quartzite,...

  12. Laterality and grip strength influence hand bone micro-architecture in modern humans, an HRpQCT study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reina, Nicolas; Cavaignac, Etienne; Trousdale, William H; Laffosse, Jean-Michel; Braga, José

    2017-06-01

    It is widely hypothesized that mechanical loading, specifically repetitive low-intensity tasks, influences the inner structure of cancellous bone. As such, there is likely a relationship between handedness and bone morphology. The aim of this study is to determine patterns in trabecular bone between dominant and non-dominant hands in modern humans. Seventeen healthy patients between 22 and 32 years old were included in the study. Radial carpal bones (lunate, capitate, scaphoid, trapezium, trapezoid, 1st, 2nd and 3rd metacarpals) were analyzed with high-resolution micro-computed tomography. Additionally, crush and pinch grip were recorded. Factorial analysis indicated that bone volume ratio, trabeculae number (Tb.N), bone surface to volume ratio (BS.BV), body weight, stature and crush grip were all positively correlated with principal components 1 and 2 explaining 78.7% of the variance. Volumetric and trabecular endostructural parameters (BV/TV, BS/BV or Tb.Th, Tb.N) explain the observed inter-individual variability better than anthropometric or clinical parameters. Factors analysis regressions showed correlations between these parameters and the dominant side for crush strength for the lunate (r 2 = 0.640, P modern human wrist. © 2017 Anatomical Society.

  13. The impact of MIS-3 climate events at the transition from Neanderthals to modern humans in Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staubwasser, M.; Dragusin, V.; Assonov, S.; Ersek, V.; Hoffmann, D.; Veres, D.; Onac, B. P.

    2017-12-01

    We report on last glacial stable C and O isotope records from two U-Th dated speleothems from Romania. The southerly record (Ascunsa Cave, South Carpathians) from the Danube region matches the pacing and relative change in amplitude of the Greenland ice temperature record at 30-50 ka BP as well as the abundance of coastal winter sea ice in the Black Sea. The northerly record (Tausoare Cave, East Carpathians) in parts shares the pacing of events with the Greenland or the southern Romanian record, but best matches northern Black Sea summer season temperature change. Heinrich events do not stand out in either record, but the temperature amplitudes of Greenland stadials and Black Sea records are generally reproduced. Based on similarity with the Black Sea we interpret the combined two speleothem records in terms of seasonal temperature change in central Eastern Europe. A climatic influence on the transition from Neanderthals to modern humans has long been suspected. However, the diachronous and spatially complex archaeologic succession across the Middle-Upper Paleolithic (MUPL) in Europe ( 38 - 48 ka) is difficult to reconcile with the millennial-scale pacing of northern hemisphere paleoclimate. Two extreme cold events at 44.0-43.3 recorded and 40.7-39.8 ka in the speleothems bracket the dates of the first known appearance of modern humans - the Aurignacian complex - and the disappearance of Neanderthals from most of Europe. These cold events are coeval with Greenland Stadials GS-12 and GS-10. The speleothem records generally match the paleosol/loess succession from central Europe across the MUPL. The combined record suggests that permafrost advance may have made central Europe uninhabitable at least during winter. The combined paleoclimate and archaeologic records suggest that depopulation-repopulation cycles may have occurred during and after each cold event. Repopulation of central Europe geographically favored the modern human Aurignacians from SE Europe.

  14. [Evolutionary medicine: the future looking at the past].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carvalho, Serafim; Rosado, Margarida

    2008-01-01

    Evolutionary medicine is an emergent basic science that offers new and varied perspectives to the comprehension of the human health and disease, considering them as a result of a gap between our modern lives and the environment where human beings evolve. This work's goals are to understand the importance of the evolutionary theories on concepts of health and disease, providing a new insight on medicine investigation. This bibliography review is based on Medline and PsycINFO articles research between 1996 and 2007 about review and experimental studies published in English, using the key words evolutionary and medicine, psychiatry, psychology, behaviour, health, disease, gene. There were selected forty-five articles based on and with special interest on the authors' practice. There were also consulted some allusive books. The present human genome and phenotypes are essentially Palaeolithic ones: they are not adapted to the modern life style, thus favouring the so called diseases of civilization. Fitting evolutionary strategies, apparently protective ones, when excessive, are the core syndromes of many emotional disruptive behaviours and diseases. Having the stone age's genes, we are obliged to live in the space age. With the evolutionary approach, postmodern medicine is detecting better the vulnerabilities, restrictions, biases, adaptations and maladaptations of human body, its actual diseases and its preventions and treatment.

  15. BIMBINGAN KONSELING AGAMA UNTUK MASYARAKAT MODERN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Darwis Darwis

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Tulisan ini  bertujuan untuk  memberikan informasi tentang kondisi masyarakat yang masuk pada era modern. Ciri modern yaitu cepatnya akses informasi karena kecanggihan  teknologi serta wawasan yang luas karena ada kebebasan berpikir (padahal manusia memiliki  keterbatasan kondisi fisik. Meskipun pemahaman tentang tentang perubahan senantiasa terjadi dalam kehidupan masyarakat, karena individu wajib mengikuti perubahan (yang membuat individu “dipaksa” untuk mengikuti dengan mengoptimalkan seluruh  potensi  yang  ada  pada manusia, yang tidak boleh berubah adalah keyakinan. Namun bagi individu yang “kurang tegas” dalam mengambil sikap di era modern ini akan menimbulkan penyimpangan dalam berbagai aspek kehidupan, sebagai akibat negatif  dari laju modernism yang memiliki kecenderungan meninggalkan nilai-nilai spiritual berdampak pada “kehampaan”  dan keterasingan dengan diri sendiri. Sehingga untuk mengembalikan manusia pada fitrahnya maka butuh konseling  agama yaitu membantu manusia agar mencapai derajat “kecerdasan qalbiah”, artinya: menggambarkan sejumlah kemampuan diri secara cepat dan sempurna untuk mengenali kalbu  dan  aktivitas-aktivitasnya,   mengelola   dan mengekspresikan jenis-jenis kalbu secara benar,  memotivasi kalbu untuk membina hubungan moralitas dengan orang lain dan hubungan ubudiyah dengan Tuhan agar kebutuhan manusia yaitu bio-psiko-sosio-religius terpenuhi secara seimbang untuk mendapatkan kebahagiaan dunia-akherat. RELIGIOUS  COUNSELING   GUIDANCE   TO MODERN SOCIETY. This paper aims to provide information about the condition of the people who entered the modern era. Modern characteristic is the speed of access to information because of technological sophistication and broad insight as freedom of thought (even though humans have limited physical condition.   Although understanding of the changes always occur in people’s lives, because the individual  is obliged to follow the

  16. Modern teaching for modern education

    OpenAIRE

    Mirascieva, Snezana

    2016-01-01

    Carrying the epithet of being contemporary education today means modern teaching. If modern education is a state in the field of education of all its elements, then teaching will also be a state with its own special features defining it as modern. The main issues of concern in this paper relate to what constitutes modern teaching, which features determine it as being modern, and how much is teaching today following the trend of modernization.

  17. Towards Modern Inclusive Factories: A Methodology for the Development of Smart Adaptive Human-Machine Interfaces

    OpenAIRE

    Villani, Valeria; Sabattini, Lorenzo; Czerniak, Julia N.; Mertens, Alexander; Vogel-Heuser, Birgit; Fantuzzi, Cesare

    2017-01-01

    Modern manufacturing systems typically require high degrees of flexibility, in terms of ability to customize the production lines to the constantly changing market requests. For this purpose, manufacturing systems are required to be able to cope with changes in the types of products, and in the size of the production batches. As a consequence, the human-machine interfaces (HMIs) are typically very complex, and include a wide range of possible operational modes and commands. This generally imp...

  18. A highly variable segment of human subterminal 16p reveals a history of population growth for modern humans outside Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alonso, Santos; Armour, John A. L.

    2001-01-01

    We have sequenced a highly polymorphic subterminal noncoding region from human chromosome 16p13.3, flanking the 5′ end of the hypervariable minisatellite MS205, in 100 chromosomes sampled from different African and Euroasiatic populations. Coalescence analysis indicates that the time to the most recent common ancestor (approximately 1 million years) predates the appearance of anatomically modern human forms. The root of the network describing this variability lies in Africa. African populations show a greater level of diversity and deeper branches. Most Euroasiatic variability seems to have been generated after a recent out-of-Africa range expansion. A history of population growth is the most likely scenario for the Euroasiatic populations. This pattern of nuclear variability can be reconciled with inferences based on mitochondrial DNA. PMID:11158547

  19. The genome of a Mongolian individual reveals the genetic imprints of Mongolians on modern human populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bai, Haihua; Guo, Xiaosen; Zhang, Dong; Narisu, Narisu; Bu, Junjie; Jirimutu, Jirimutu; Liang, Fan; Zhao, Xiang; Xing, Yanping; Wang, Dingzhu; Li, Tongda; Zhang, Yanru; Guan, Baozhu; Yang, Xukui; Yang, Zili; Shuangshan, Shuangshan; Su, Zhe; Wu, Huiguang; Li, Wenjing; Chen, Ming; Zhu, Shilin; Bayinnamula, Bayinnamula; Chang, Yuqi; Gao, Ying; Lan, Tianming; Suyalatu, Suyalatu; Huang, Hui; Su, Yan; Chen, Yujie; Li, Wenqi; Yang, Xu; Feng, Qiang; Wang, Jian; Yang, Huanming; Wang, Jun; Wu, Qizhu; Yin, Ye; Zhou, Huanmin

    2014-11-05

    Mongolians have played a significant role in modern human evolution, especially after the rise of Genghis Khan (1162[?]-1227). Although the social cultural impacts of Genghis Khan and the Mongolian population have been well documented, explorations of their genome structure and genetic imprints on other human populations have been lacking. We here present the genome of a Mongolian male individual. The genome was de novo assembled using a total of 130.8-fold genomic data produced from massively parallel whole-genome sequencing. We identified high-confidence variation sets, including 3.7 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 756,234 short insertions and deletions. Functional SNP analysis predicted that the individual has a pathogenic risk for carnitine deficiency. We located the patrilineal inheritance of the Mongolian genome to the lineage D3a through Y haplogroup analysis and inferred that the individual has a common patrilineal ancestor with Tibeto-Burman populations and is likely to be the progeny of the earliest settlers in East Asia. We finally investigated the genetic imprints of Mongolians on other human populations using different approaches. We found varying degrees of gene flows between Mongolians and populations living in Europe, South/Central Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. The analyses demonstrate that the genetic impacts of Mongolians likely resulted from the expansion of the Mongolian Empire in the 13th century. The genome will be of great help in further explorations of modern human evolution and genetic causes of diseases/traits specific to Mongolians. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

  20. Human fertility, molecular genetics, and natural selection in modern societies.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Felix C Tropf

    Full Text Available Research on genetic influences on human fertility outcomes such as number of children ever born (NEB or the age at first childbirth (AFB has been solely based on twin and family-designs that suffer from problematic assumptions and practical limitations. The current study exploits recent advances in the field of molecular genetics by applying the genomic-relationship-matrix based restricted maximum likelihood (GREML methods to quantify for the first time the extent to which common genetic variants influence the NEB and the AFB of women. Using data from the UK and the Netherlands (N = 6,758, results show significant additive genetic effects on both traits explaining 10% (SE = 5 of the variance in the NEB and 15% (SE = 4 in the AFB. We further find a significant negative genetic correlation between AFB and NEB in the pooled sample of -0.62 (SE = 0.27, p-value = 0.02. This finding implies that individuals with genetic predispositions for an earlier AFB had a reproductive advantage and that natural selection operated not only in historical, but also in contemporary populations. The observed postponement in the AFB across the past century in Europe contrasts with these findings, suggesting an evolutionary override by environmental effects and underscoring that evolutionary predictions in modern human societies are not straight forward. It emphasizes the necessity for an integrative research design from the fields of genetics and social sciences in order to understand and predict fertility outcomes. Finally, our results suggest that we may be able to find genetic variants associated with human fertility when conducting GWAS-meta analyses with sufficient sample size.

  1. The genome of a Late Pleistocene human from a Clovis burial site in western Montana

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Morten; Anzick, Sarah L.; Waters, Michael R

    2014-01-01

    Montana. The human bones date to 10,705 ± 35 (14)C years bp (approximately 12,707-12,556 calendar years bp) and were directly associated with Clovis tools. We sequenced the genome to an average depth of 14.4× and show that the gene flow from the Siberian Upper Palaeolithic Mal'ta population into Native...... directly related to contemporary Native Americans. An alternative, Solutrean, hypothesis posits that the Clovis predecessors emigrated from southwestern Europe during the Last Glacial Maximum. Here we report the genome sequence of a male infant (Anzick-1) recovered from the Anzick burial site in western...

  2. Plant Modernization Programs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Hara, John

    2004-01-01

    Most nuclear plants were designed and built from the 1960's through the 1990's. These plants employ predominantly analog instrumentation and control (I and C) technology, and their control rooms are made up of primarily hardwired controls (e.g., switches, knobs and handles) and displays (e.g., gauges, linear scales and indicator lights). Over the past several years, these plants have been modernized with digital I and C and computer-based human-system interfaces (HSIs) such as software-based process controls, touch-screen interfaces and large-screen, overview displays. As these computer based HIS technologies are integrated into control rooms based on conventional technology, hybrid control rooms are created. The paper summarizes lessons learned from the study of plant modernization programs over the past ten years so that they can be used to help improve the modification process. While the research focused on the impact of technology change on human performance, a number of organizational and programmatic issues were observed as well. Eleven lessons learned are presented

  3. Ontogenetic study of the supraorbital region in modern humans: a longitudinal test of the spatial model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiscella, Gabriela N; Smith, Fred H

    2006-06-01

    The structural significance of the hominid supraorbital torus and its morphological variation have always been a controversial topic in physical anthropology. Understanding the function of browridge variation in living and fossil human populations is relevant to questions of human evolution. This study utilizes radiograph images to evaluate the spatial model in modern humans during ontogeny. This structural model attributes variation in the supraorbital region to the positional relationship between the neurocranium and the orbits. The relationship between measurements of the antero-posterior supraorbital length and the factors specified in the spatial model were assessed by correlation and partial correlation analyses. Growth rates were also examined to study ontogenetic trajectories and infer aspects of developmental relationships between critical variables. Results agree with previous research supporting the existence of spatial influences between the neural and orbital-upper facial regions on browridge length during ontogeny.

  4. Paleolitická lokalita Skalka u Prostějova I – Na skalkách

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Mlejnek, O.; Škrdla, Petr

    2014-01-01

    Roč. 99, č. 2 (2014), s. 159-167 ISSN 0323-0570 Institutional support: RVO:68081758 Keywords : Central Moravia * Palaeolithic * multiple-event site * surface survey * Late Middle Palaeolithic * Early Upper Palaeolithic * Aurignacian * Late Palaeolithic Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology

  5. Euripides in Modern Europe

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    den Boer, P.

    2010-01-01

    Euripides is considered the most human, modern and existentialist of the famous Greek tragedians. Extremely popular after his death, he continued to be staged, read and much recited in Hellenistic and Roman times. As the Greek-speaking elite of the Roman Empire disappeared, the popularity of the

  6. 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.

  7. Traditional and Modern Uses of Natural Honey in Human Diseases: A Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tahereh Eteraf-Oskouei

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available   Honey is a by-product of flower nectar and the upper aero-digestive tract of the honey bee, which is concentrated through a dehydration process inside the bee hive. Honey has a very complex chemical composition that varies depending on the botanical source. It has been used both as food and medicine since ancient times. Human use of honey is traced to some 8000 years ago as depicted by Stone Age paintings. In addition to important role of natural honey in the traditional medicine, during the past few decades, it was subjected to laboratory and clinical investigations by several research groups and it has found a place in modern medicine. Honey has been reported to have an inhibitory effect on around 60 species of bacteria, some species of fungi and viruses. Antioxidant capacity of honey is important in many disease conditions and is due to a wide range of compounds including phenolics, peptides, organic acids, enzymes, and Maillard reaction products. Honey has also been used in some gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, inflammatory and neoplastic states. This review covers the composition, physico-chemical properties and the most important uses of natural honey in human diseases.

  8. Miguel Baraona Cockerell: The Plot and the Threads. Capitalist Modernization and the Four Spirals of Modernity. EUNA 2016

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucía Rincón Soto

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper develops the line of thought of Miguel Baraona Cockerell, present in his book The Plot and the Threads. Capitalist Modernization and the Four Spirals of Modernity. In this book, he broadly argues that globalization, modernization, conflict and resistance are an intrinsic part of modernity. This chain of events has led to a spiral of problems which threaten the existence of mankind; problems explained in such a convincing way by the author. His criticism of the capitalist system puts in evidence the urgency for a change in mentality, a new humanism which will be implemented, as far as possible, from the confluence of social movements with a conscience leaning toward the creation of a possible world.

  9. ‘Bound Coolies’ and Other Indentured Workers in the Caribbean: Implications for debates about human trafficking and modern slavery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kamala Kempadoo

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Under systems of indenture in the Caribbean, Europeans such as Irish, Scots and Portuguese, as well as Asians, primarily Indians, Chinese and Indonesians, were recruited, often under false pretences, and transported to the ‘New World’, where they were bound to an employer and the plantation in a state of ‘interlocking incarceration’. Indentureship not only preceded, co-existed with, and survived slavery in the Caribbean, but was distinct in law and in practice from slavery. This article argues that the conditions of Caribbean indenture can be seen to be much more analogous to those represented in contemporary discussions about human trafficking and ‘modern slavery’ than those of slavery. Caribbean histories of indenture, it is proposed, can provide more appropriate conceptual tools for thinking about unfree labour today—whether state or privately sponsored—than the concept of slavery, given the parallels between this past migrant labour system in the Caribbean and those we witness and identify today as ‘modern slavery’ or human trafficking. This article thus urges a move away from the conflation of slavery and human trafficking with all forced, bonded and migrant labour, as is commonly the case, and for greater attention for historical evidence.

  10. God and religion in post-modern philosophers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José J. Queiroz

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper is an essay on the positions of some post-modern philosophers on religion, with the debate about post-modernity as a background. Its preliminary objective is to situate post-modernity taking a position between plain acceptance and categorical refusal in contemporary society. In this polemical field, the paper focuses on three important post-modern philosophers by pointing their contributions for a new thinking about religion today. The procedure consists in the reading of the authors´ texts looking for an interpretation of their discourses on God, religion and the sacred. The conclusion is that post-modernity is not as new era overcoming modernity, but that it is comprised of new themes  that are on the fringes  or even  in opposite directions of modernity´s parameters . One can find these themes in many fields of human knowledge including theology and science of religion. On Derrida´s position, who is the most focused philosopher, the text is still embryonic as it comes from ongoing research.  

  11. Home | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2016-10-17

    Oct 17, 2016 ... Only about 10% of cells associated with a human body are human cells; the ... the achievements of Palaeolithic research and our understanding of cultural ... Special lectures this time are on academic ethics in India and on ...

  12. 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.

  13. Geoarchaeological response to landscape changes of the Greek continental shelf since the Last Glacial Maximum

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kapsimalis, Vasilios; Pavlopoulos, Kosmas; Panagiotopoulos, Ioannis

    2010-05-01

    An overview of geological, sedimentological, palaeoclimatic, archaeological and mythological data is presented in order to detect the geomorphological changes of the Aegean and Ionian shelves during the last sea-level transgression, and comprehend the consequent prehistoric human adaptations. The irregular rise of sea level since the Last Glacial Maximum forced the Palaeolithic human to abandon its settlements located near the old (lower) coastlines and to move landward in new positions. Commonly, the coastline movement was very slow causing no significant impact on human activities; however in some cases, the transgression was very prompt causing human migration towards highlands. In some very gentle-dipped and wide regions, e.g. the North Aegean plateau, the sea-level rise caused a rapid coastline retreat (in some extreme case as fast as 10 m/yr) and inundation of an extended surface area. However, at the same time, in the steep parts of the Greek shelf, e.g. the Kyparissiakos Gulf and Crete, the coastline advanced landwards with a slow motion (commonly, a few cm/yr) covering small areas. In addition, coastal regions with particular geomorphologic characteristics, e.g. coastal paleo-lakes protected by a sill (gulfs of Corinth, Amvrakikos, Pagasitikos Evvoikos, Saronikos), were deluged by the sea during different periods and under different intensity, depending on the elevation of the sill and the manner of its overflow. Although the presence of Palaeolithic human in the Greek mainland has been confirmed by several archaeological excavations, there is no certain evidence for human settlement in the deep parts of Greek shelf. However, many archaeologists have suggested that some of Palaeolithic people lived on the shelf, when the sea level was lower than its present position. Nevertheless, some potential Palaeolithic migration routes can be indicated taking into account (a) the palaeogeographic reconstruction of Greek shelf over the Last Quaternary; (b

  14. The Flynn Effect: A Quantitative Commentary on Modernity and Human Intelligence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Cameron M.; Lawlor-Savage, Linette; Goghari, Vina M.

    2016-01-01

    Average intelligence quotient (IQ) scores have been rising throughout the 20th century and likely before--a pattern now known as the Flynn effect. The central thesis of this paper is that the Flynn effect does not represent genuine increases in general intelligence but rather an increasing aptitude for the types of modern thinking that modern life…

  15. MODERNIZATION OF THE ECONOMY AND THE CREATIVE CLASS

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    Mostovaya E. B.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with the concept of modernization and its stages, proposed by the Center for the Modernization of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under the guidance of Professor He Chuanqi and subsequently adapted to the Russian realities by the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences under the leadership of Nicolay Lapin, as well as the level and heterogeneity of the modernization of the Russian regions. The authors explain the connection between the level of development of secondary modernization and such a characteristic of human capital of the population as creativity, suggest the definition of the secondary modernization subject, representing creative class, and the rationale for the applicability of the creativity index to refine the parameters of the secondary modernization. The importance of the regional context for studying the modernization process in Russia is noted taking into account the historically established asymmetry of the placement of natural, socio-economic and cultural factors.

  16. Modern therapy of anogenital warts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. A. Khryanin

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Modern views on human papilloma virus are presented. Actual approaches to diagnostics and treatment of patients with anogenital warts are discussed. Clinical cases of high efficiency of Imiquimodum (Keravort in treating anogenital warts of men and women are illustrated.

  17. 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

  18. Quality in modern Nordic working life

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jacobsen, Stine; Bramming, Pia; Holt, Helle

    2013-01-01

    quality issues of modern working life. Welfare research, working environment research, and human resource management (HRM) research attack the multiple challenges of working life in different ways and share the overall objective of solving issues in modern working life. Research from the three...... of the perspectives are applied at the same time in the same study. Our results show that while the perspectives share a common interest in solving the problems of the overlapping working life (OWL), they do so with different methods and criteria for success, and offer different solutions. We propose the concept “OWL...... theme reflects an approach to solving the issues of modern working life through improvements of the working life balance. The quality theme reflects an approach to solving issues in modern working life by addressing quality of work, preventing stress, burnout, etc. The review only finds three studies...

  19. Literature in the Modern Languages Curriculum of British Universities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bayley, Susan N.

    1994-01-01

    Examines the changes in the literature department of modern language curriculum and assesses their significance in terms of the past and future of literature as a component of the modern languages degree. The teaching of literature is trying to serve two masters: liberal humanism and utilitarianism. (32 references) (CK)

  20. The Phenomenon of Russian Modernization: Research Approaches, Problems of Lawful Government, Administration, and Human Capital

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irina V. Potkina

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available This article is a response to a number of important issues of the political and socio-economic development of the Russian Empire in the 18–20th centuries, which have been addressed in the fundamental and comprehensive monograph by Boris Mironov, “The Russian Empire: From Tradition to Modernity.” Potkina considers such topics as the situation in contemporary national historiography; the theoretical and methodological basis of research; national policy; religious and class discrimination of the country’s population; and the characteristics of public administration and its effectiveness. She drew attention to the need to expand the concept of human capital through incorporating issues of the formation of secondary and higher vocational education, which played an important role in providing commercial and industrial firms with certified specialists at the turn of the 20th century. The contribution of Russian entrepreneurs and their hired managers in strengthening links between industry and science is particularly emphasized, and the role of representative organizations of the commercial and industrial class in the development of professional education is revealed. The author also shows the complex interaction between traditional and modern Western culture in Imperial Russia during the period of modernization, their mutual influence and finally, their natural convergence. These processes are demonstrated through examples of the business culture of the Morozov merchant dynasty, the art of lacquered miniatures by Mstiora, Palekh, Kholui, and Fedoskino as well as Russian spiritual and classical music in the 15th to 20th centuries.

  1. 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.

  2. A New Chronology for Rhafas, Northeast Morocco, Spanning the North African Middle Stone Age through to the Neolithic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doerschner, Nina; Fitzsimmons, Kathryn E; Ditchfield, Peter; McLaren, Sue J; Steele, Teresa E; Zielhofer, Christoph; McPherron, Shannon P; Bouzouggar, Abdeljalil; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    Archaeological sites in northern Africa provide a rich record of increasing importance for the origins of modern human behaviour and for understanding human dispersal out of Africa. However, the timing and nature of Palaeolithic human behaviour and dispersal across north-western Africa (the Maghreb), and their relationship to local environmental conditions, remain poorly understood. The cave of Rhafas (northeast Morocco) provides valuable chronological information about cultural changes in the Maghreb during the Palaeolithic due to its long stratified archaeological sequence comprising Middle Stone Age (MSA), Later Stone Age (LSA) and Neolithic occupation layers. In this study, we apply optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating on sand-sized quartz grains to the cave deposits of Rhafas, as well as to a recently excavated section on the terrace in front of the cave entrance. We hereby provide a revised chronostratigraphy for the archaeological sequence at the site. We combine these results with geological and sedimentological multi-proxy investigations to gain insights into site formation processes and the palaeoenvironmental record of the region. The older sedimentological units at Rhafas were deposited between 135 ka and 57 ka (MIS 6 -MIS 3) and are associated with the MSA technocomplex. Tanged pieces start to occur in the archaeological layers around 109 ka, which is consistent with previously published chronological data from the Maghreb. A well indurated duricrust indicates favourable climatic conditions for the pedogenic cementation by carbonates of sediment layers at the site after 57 ka. Overlying deposits attributed to the LSA technocomplex yield ages of ~21 ka and ~15 ka, corresponding to the last glacial period, and fall well within the previously established occupation phase in the Maghreb. The last occupation phase at Rhafas took place during the Neolithic and is dated to ~7.8 ka.

  3. A New Chronology for Rhafas, Northeast Morocco, Spanning the North African Middle Stone Age through to the Neolithic.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nina Doerschner

    Full Text Available Archaeological sites in northern Africa provide a rich record of increasing importance for the origins of modern human behaviour and for understanding human dispersal out of Africa. However, the timing and nature of Palaeolithic human behaviour and dispersal across north-western Africa (the Maghreb, and their relationship to local environmental conditions, remain poorly understood. The cave of Rhafas (northeast Morocco provides valuable chronological information about cultural changes in the Maghreb during the Palaeolithic due to its long stratified archaeological sequence comprising Middle Stone Age (MSA, Later Stone Age (LSA and Neolithic occupation layers. In this study, we apply optically stimulated luminescence (OSL dating on sand-sized quartz grains to the cave deposits of Rhafas, as well as to a recently excavated section on the terrace in front of the cave entrance. We hereby provide a revised chronostratigraphy for the archaeological sequence at the site. We combine these results with geological and sedimentological multi-proxy investigations to gain insights into site formation processes and the palaeoenvironmental record of the region. The older sedimentological units at Rhafas were deposited between 135 ka and 57 ka (MIS 6 -MIS 3 and are associated with the MSA technocomplex. Tanged pieces start to occur in the archaeological layers around 109 ka, which is consistent with previously published chronological data from the Maghreb. A well indurated duricrust indicates favourable climatic conditions for the pedogenic cementation by carbonates of sediment layers at the site after 57 ka. Overlying deposits attributed to the LSA technocomplex yield ages of ~21 ka and ~15 ka, corresponding to the last glacial period, and fall well within the previously established occupation phase in the Maghreb. The last occupation phase at Rhafas took place during the Neolithic and is dated to ~7.8 ka.

  4. Perspective and Spatiality in the Modern Age

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fausto Fraisopi

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available the domain of Art critique and becoming a philosophical argument. How can we think of Perspective as symbolic Form? Is Perspective really a symbolic form? Why is Perspective so important? Because at the beginning of the Modern Age, Perspective as spiritual figure grounds many symbolic or even many scientific constructions. We could we say that perspective open the foundation of modern science as such. The “Geometrization” of Vision, beginning with perspective, will be for us the interpretative key in order to understand the Modern Age as a whole.  This understanding will allow us to understand the anthropologic dimension arising from the Modern Age, called „Perspectivism“. Assuming that perspective was neither only an invention of painting nor of geometry nor of philosophy, taken as singular fields of human inquiry, we will try to sketch the genesis of “perspective” from an interdisciplinary point of view. By doing so, we will also try to fix its deep significance for the anthropology of the Modern Age. Living and feeling in a perspectival world is the real invention of the Modern Age, one that overcame the closed Cosmos of the Middle Ages in order to reveal to mankind its own potential. Our interdisciplinary approach will proceed from many points of view (history of art, science, theology, anthropology and converge on the idea of a new kind of human experience. Such an interdisciplinary approach will open new questions about our present time. Are we justified in thinking of our experience today as perspectival? What does it mean today to think from perspectives in the manifold dimensions of our living and to face to the complexity of our times?

  5. 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.

  6. Technical note: comparing von Luschan skin color tiles and modern spectrophotometry for measuring human skin pigmentation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swiatoniowski, Anna K; Quillen, Ellen E; Shriver, Mark D; Jablonski, Nina G

    2013-06-01

    Prior to the introduction of reflectance spectrophotometry into anthropological field research during the 1950s, human skin color was most commonly classified by visual skin color matching using the von Luschan tiles, a set of 36 standardized, opaque glass tiles arranged in a chromatic scale. Our goal was to establish a conversion formula between the tile-based color matching method and modern reflectance spectrophotometry to make historical and contemporary data comparable. Skin pigmentation measurements were taken on the forehead, inner upper arms, and backs of the hands using both the tiles and a spectrophotometer on 246 participants showing a broad range of skin pigmentation. From these data, a second-order polynomial conversion formula was derived by jackknife analysis to estimate melanin index (M-index) based on tile values. This conversion formula provides a means for comparing modern data to von Luschan tile measurements recorded in historical reports. This is particularly important for populations now extinct, extirpated, or admixed for which tile-based measures of skin pigmentation are the only data available. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. Multiple modernities, modern subjectivities and social order

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jung, Dietrich; Sinclair, Kirstine

    2015-01-01

    to modern subjectivity formation. In combining conceptual tools from these strands of social theory, we argue that the emergence of multiple modernities should be understood as a historical result of idiosyncratic social constructions combining global social imaginaries with religious and other cultural......Taking its point of departure in the conceptual debate about modernities in the plural, this article presents a heuristic framework based on an interpretative approach to modernity. The article draws on theories of multiple modernities, successive modernities and poststructuralist approaches...... traditions. In the second part of the article we illustrate this argument with three short excursions into the history of Islamic reform in the 19th and 20th centuries. In this way we interpret the modern history of Muslim societies as based on cultural conflicts between different forms of social order...

  8. Modernity: Are Modern Times Different?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lynn Hunt

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available “Modernity” has recently been the subject of considerable discussion among historians. This article reviews some of the debates and argues that modernity is a problematic concept because it implies a complete rupture with “traditional” ways of life. Studies of key terms are undertaken with the aid of Google Ngrams. These show that “modernity,” “modern times,” and “traditional” —in English and other languages— have a history of their own. A brief analysis of the shift from a self oriented toward equilibrium to a self oriented toward stimulation demonstrates that modernity is not necessary to historical analysis.

  9. The deep human prehistory of global tropical forests and its relevance for modern conservation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Patrick; Hunt, Chris; Arroyo-Kalin, Manuel; Evans, Damian; Boivin, Nicole

    2017-08-03

    Significant human impacts on tropical forests have been considered the preserve of recent societies, linked to large-scale deforestation, extensive and intensive agriculture, resource mining, livestock grazing and urban settlement. Cumulative archaeological evidence now demonstrates, however, that Homo sapiens has actively manipulated tropical forest ecologies for at least 45,000 years. It is clear that these millennia of impacts need to be taken into account when studying and conserving tropical forest ecosystems today. Nevertheless, archaeology has so far provided only limited practical insight into contemporary human-tropical forest interactions. Here, we review significant archaeological evidence for the impacts of past hunter-gatherers, agriculturalists and urban settlements on global tropical forests. We compare the challenges faced, as well as the solutions adopted, by these groups with those confronting present-day societies, which also rely on tropical forests for a variety of ecosystem services. We emphasize archaeology's importance not only in promoting natural and cultural heritage in tropical forests, but also in taking an active role to inform modern conservation and policy-making.

  10. Demystifying traditional herbal medicine with modern approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Fu-Shuang; Weng, Jing-Ke

    2017-07-31

    Plants have long been recognized for their therapeutic properties. For centuries, indigenous cultures around the world have used traditional herbal medicine to treat a myriad of maladies. By contrast, the rise of the modern pharmaceutical industry in the past century has been based on exploiting individual active compounds with precise modes of action. This surge has yielded highly effective drugs that are widely used in the clinic, including many plant natural products and analogues derived from these products, but has fallen short of delivering effective cures for complex human diseases with complicated causes, such as cancer, diabetes, autoimmune disorders and degenerative diseases. While the plant kingdom continues to serve as an important source for chemical entities supporting drug discovery, the rich traditions of herbal medicine developed by trial and error on human subjects over thousands of years contain invaluable biomedical information just waiting to be uncovered using modern scientific approaches. Here we provide an evolutionary and historical perspective on why plants are of particular significance as medicines for humans. We highlight several plant natural products that are either in the clinic or currently under active research and clinical development, with particular emphasis on their mechanisms of action. Recent efforts in developing modern multi-herb prescriptions through rigorous molecular-level investigations and standardized clinical trials are also discussed. Emerging technologies, such as genomics and synthetic biology, are enabling new ways for discovering and utilizing the medicinal properties of plants. We are entering an exciting era where the ancient wisdom distilled into the world's traditional herbal medicines can be reinterpreted and exploited through the lens of modern science.

  11. A tentative framework for the acquisition of language and modern human cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tattersall, Ian

    2016-06-20

    Modern human beings process information symbolically, rearranging mental symbols to envision multiple potential realities. They also express the ideas they form using structured articulate language. No other living creature does either of these things. Yet it is evident that we are descended from a non-symbolic and non-linguistic ancestor. How did this astonishing transformation occur? Scrutiny of the fossil and archaeological records reveals that the transition to symbolic reasoning happened very late in hominid history - indeed, within the tenure of anatomically recognizable Homo sapiens. It was evidently not simply a passive result of the increase in brain size that typified multiple lineages of the genus Homo over the Pleistocene. Instead, a brain exaptively capable of complex symbolic manipulation and language acquisition was acquired in the major developmental reorganization that gave rise to the anatomically distinctive species Homo sapiens. The new capacity it conferred was later recruited through the action of a cultural stimulus, most plausibly the spontaneous invention of language.

  12. Identification of a new hominin bone from Denisova Cave, Siberia using collagen fingerprinting and mitochondrial DNA analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Samantha; Higham, Thomas; Slon, Viviane; Pääbo, Svante; Meyer, Matthias; Douka, Katerina; Brock, Fiona; Comeskey, Daniel; Procopio, Noemi; Shunkov, Michael; Derevianko, Anatoly; Buckley, Michael

    2016-03-01

    DNA sequencing has revolutionised our understanding of archaic humans during the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. Unfortunately, while many Palaeolithic sites contain large numbers of bones, the majority of these lack the diagnostic features necessary for traditional morphological identification. As a result the recovery of Pleistocene-age human remains is extremely rare. To circumvent this problem we have applied a method of collagen fingerprinting to more than 2000 fragmented bones from the site of Denisova Cave, Russia, in order to facilitate the discovery of human remains. As a result of our analysis a single hominin bone (Denisova 11) was identified, supported through in-depth peptide sequencing analysis, and found to carry mitochondrial DNA of the Neandertal type. Subsequent radiocarbon dating revealed the bone to be >50,000 years old. Here we demonstrate the huge potential collagen fingerprinting has for identifying hominin remains in highly fragmentary archaeological assemblages, improving the resources available for wider studies into human evolution.

  13. The Role of Confucian Thought in Preservation of Humanity and Reasonableness in the Modern World

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrej Ule

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available The article examines the possibility of providing a synthesis of humanness and rationality in the modern world, and considers whether, and how, Chinese philosophical thought in general and Confucian tradition in particular might help us in this endeavour. Chinese philosophical tradition broadly construes rationality as the ability of the human “heart mind” (xin to engage in wise deliberation, clever discussion, and proper conduct carried out in accordance with the highest virtues of the gentleman. This conception is much more in tune with holistic views of reasonableness than with ideas about rationality that have become rooted in the Western philosophical tradition. In the context of Chinese culture, especially Confucianism, reasonableness is firmly associated with distinct forms of argumentation, primarily with those of analogical inference, metaphor use, and paradigmatic behavioural models which cannot be expressed within the framework of logical (deductive or inductive reasoning. By focusing on Mencius’s method of “extending” innate human virtues (humanness, righteousness, dignity, and wisdom from their paradigmatic cases to parallel cases from everyday life, it is possible to get a better insight into the idea of cultivating and practicing reasonableness conceived as a synthesis of humanness and rationality. There seems to be no internal conflict between our self-interests and our morality; on the contrary, actual morality and actual reasonableness emerge against the backdrop of the dynamic interplay between our striving for self-realization and our moral orientation.

  14. Modernity, Rationality and Constitutional Law in Muslim-Majority Countries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Abat Ninet, Antoni

    Are Islamic law, human rights and constitutionalism compatible? In answering this question, this paper first discusses the concept of modernity (understood in terms of rationality and standardization), analysing its abrupt implementation in the MENA countries and the role that the first modern...... constitutions played in institutionalising a new sort of dominion in the newly established states. Against this background, the paper discusses the relationship between constitutionalism and Shari’a law, presenting this as a clash between two competing normative visions that are conceptually difficult...... to reconcile and which each claim exclusivity and hierarchical superiority. The paper advocates for a deconstruction of the ideas of human rights and constitutionalism in order to allow for the incorporation of elements of Muslim traditions, thus challenging the understanding of human rights...

  15. Reassessing the Aurignacian of Slovenia: techno-economic behaviour and direct dating of osseous projectile points.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreau, Luc; Odar, Boštjan; Higham, Tom; Horvat, Aleksander; Pirkmajer, Darja; Turk, Peter

    2015-01-01

    The Palaeolithic of southern Central Europe has a long history of archaeological research. Particularly, the presence of numerous osseous projectile points in many early Upper Palaeolithic (EUP) assemblages in this region has attracted the attention of the international research community. However, the scarcity of properly identified and well-dated Aurignacian contexts represents an obstacle for investigation of the nature and timing of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic transition. In this context, the question of whether Neandertals made Aurignacian osseous projectile points, either on their own or as a consequence of cultural interaction with anatomically modern humans (AMH), still remains an open issue. Here we reassess the EUP record of Slovenia by evaluating the Aurignacian character of the assemblages from Potočka zijalka, Mokriška jama and Divje babe I in the light of their suggested roots in the local Mousterian. We provide a comprehensive description of the lithic industry from Potočka zijalka, which represents one of the rare EUP assemblages of southern Central Europe with a representative number of lithic artefacts to be analysed from the perspective of lithic technology and raw material economy. Our re-analysis of the Slovenian assemblages is backed by a series of 11 new ultrafiltered collagen 14C dates obtained directly on associated osseous projectile points from the studied assemblages. The Aurignacian of Potočka zijalka underlines the remarkable consistency of the Early Aurignacian with low typo-technological variability across Europe, resulting from a marked dependence on transported toolkits and raw material conservation. The new radiocarbon determinations for the Aurignacian of Slovenia appear to post-date the 34-32 ka BP (thousands of years before present) threshold for the last Neandertals in the region. Although not falsified, the hypothesis of Aurignacian bone tools in southern Central Europe as a product of late Neandertals is not

  16. Collaborative Thinking: The Challenge of the Modern University

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corrigan, Kevin

    2012-01-01

    More collaborative work in the humanities could be instrumental in helping to break down the traditional rigid boundaries between academic divisions and disciplines in modern universities. The value of the traditional model of the solitary humanities scholar or the collaborative science paradigm should not be discounted. However, increasing the…

  17. Modernization of the Ural Metallurgy during the Great Patriotic War (1941–1945

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir V. Zaparii

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available The article characterizes the Ural industry modernization in war footing, shows the significance of evacuation of enterprises from the Western areas of the country to the region, reveals their role in the formation of a new metallurgical center of modern metallurgy in terms of human resources and manufacture. Innovations in metallurgy, the role of human factor in solving industrial restructuring problem are examined. Forms and methods of science use for the industrial modernization are considered. Solving of human resources problem is shown. The author touches upon the problem of metallurgical sector management in wartime. The role of people’s heroism in this difficult period of Russian history is discussed.

  18. Prehistoric human colonization of India.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Misra, V N

    2001-11-01

    Human colonization in India encompasses a span of at least half-a-million years and is divided into two broad periods, namely the prehistoric (before the emergence of writing) and the historic (after writing). The prehistoric period is divided into stone, bronze and iron ages. The stone age is further divided into palaeolithic, mesolithic and neolithic periods. As the name suggests, the technology in these periods was primarily based on stone. Economically, the palaeolithic and mesolithic periods represented a nomadic, hunting-gathering way of life, while the neolithic period represented a settled, food-producing way of life. Subsequently copper was introduced as a new material and this period was designated as the chalcolithic period. The invention of agriculture, which took place about 8000 years ago, brought about dramatic changes in the economy, technology and demography of human societies. Human habitat in the hunting-gathering stage was essentially on hilly, rocky and forested regions, which had ample wild plant and animal food resources. The introduction of agriculture saw it shifting to the alluvial plains which had fertile soil and perennial availability of water. Hills and forests, which had so far been areas of attraction, now turned into areas of isolation. Agriculture led to the emergence of villages and towns and brought with it the division of society into occupational groups. The first urbanization took place during the bronze age in the arid and semi-arid region of northwest India in the valleys of the Indus and the Saraswati rivers, the latter represented by the now dry Ghaggar-Hakra bed. This urbanization is known as the Indus or Harappan civilization which flourished during 3500-1500 B.C. The rest of India during this period was inhabited by neolithic and chalcolithic farmers and mesolithic hunter-gatherers. With the introduction of iron technology about 3000 years ago, the focus of development shifted eastward into the Indo-Gangetic divide and

  19. Genetic traces of east-to-west human expansion waves in Eurasia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaix, Raphaëlle; Austerlitz, Frédéric; Hegay, Tatyana; Quintana-Murci, Lluís; Heyer, Evelyne

    2008-07-01

    In this study, we describe the landscape of human demographic expansions in Eurasia using a large continental Y chromosome and mitochondrial DNA dataset. Variation at these two uniparentally-inherited genetic systems retraces expansions that occurred in the past 60 ky, and shows a clear decrease of expansion ages from east to west Eurasia. To investigate the demographic events at the origin of this westward decrease of expansion ages, the estimated divergence ages between Eurasian populations are compared with the estimated expansion ages within each population. Both markers suggest that the demographic expansion diffused from east to west in Eurasia in a demic way, i.e., through migrations of individuals (and not just through diffusion of new technologies), highlighting the prominent role of eastern regions within Eurasia during Palaeolithic times. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  20. THE INTENTIONAL ASPECT OF MODERN STYLISTICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalia Klushina

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available There are cognitive, communicative, and pragmatic scientific methods in the modern anthropocentric linguistic paradigm. We have created the intentional method as a new integrative linguistic method for studying modern Russian discourse. The main scientific categories of the intentional method include: intention, intentionality, intentional categories, author, and addressee. The intention of the addressee consists of cognitive, communicative, and pragmatic constituents. We can divide intention into cognitive intention, which helps to understand the world, and communicative intention, which organizes communication between addressee and addresser. The intentional method can help to search out creative and subjective factors of human communication. This method can help to understand the nonlinearity and creativity of the communicative processes. The different types of effects of modern communication are analysed in this article. The effect holds not only a perlocutive quality in integral communication; therefore we announce that there are both positive and negative intentional effects in modern communication. Communicative failures are situations when an addressee refuses to carry on a dialogue or experiences indifference to the interlocutor.

  1. The health care professional as a modern abolitionist.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Callaghan, Michael G

    2012-01-01

    Health care professionals are in a unique position to identify and to assist victims of human trafficking. Human trafficking today occurs both domestically and globally. It manifests in many forms, including adult and child forced labor, involuntary domestic servitude, adult and child sexual slavery, involuntary servitude, debt bondage, and child soldiers. This article offers insight into modern human trafficking and ways health care professionals can be activists.

  2. The Health Care Professional as a Modern Abolitionist

    OpenAIRE

    O'Callaghan, Michael G

    2012-01-01

    Health care professionals are in a unique position to identify and to assist victims of human trafficking. Human trafficking today occurs both domestically and globally. It manifests in many forms, including adult and child forced labor, involuntary domestic servitude, adult and child sexual slavery, involuntary servitude, debt bondage, and child soldiers. This article offers insight into modern human trafficking and ways health care professionals can be activists.

  3. Uniqueness of human running coordination: The integration of modern and ancient evolutionary innovations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John eKiely

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Running is a pervasive activity across human cultures and a cornerstone of contemporary health, fitness and sporting activities. Yet for the overwhelming predominance of human existence running was an essential prerequisite for survival. A means to hunt, and a means to escape when hunted. In a very real sense humans have evolved to run. Yet curiously, perhaps due to running’s cultural ubiquity and the natural ease with which we learn to run, we rarely consider the uniqueness of human bipedal running within the animal kingdom. Our unique upright, single stance, bouncing running gait imposes a unique set of coordinative difficulties. Challenges demanding we precariously balance our fragile brains in the very position where they are most vulnerable to falling injury while simultaneously retaining stability, steering direction of travel, and powering the upcoming stride: all within the abbreviated time-frames afforded by short, violent ground contacts separated by long flight times. These running coordination challenges are solved through the tightly-integrated blending of primitive evolutionary legacies, conserved from reptilian and vertebrate lineages, and comparatively modern, more exclusively human, innovations. The integrated unification of these top-down and bottom-up control processes bestows humans with an agile control system, enabling us to readily modulate speeds, change direction, negotiate varied terrains and to instantaneously adapt to changing surface conditions. The seamless integration of these evolutionary processes is facilitated by pervasive, neural and biological, activity-dependent adaptive plasticity. Over time, and with progressive exposure, this adaptive plasticity shapes neural and biological structures to best cope with regularly imposed movement challenges. This pervasive plasticity enables the gradual construction of a robust system of distributed coordinated control, comprised of processes that are so deeply

  4. APPLICATION OF MODERN HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Frederick Iraki

    strategic perspective and constantly monitor and encourage the development of new skills and ... Human. Resource Management practices affect organizations productivity, corporate and financial ..... Exploring Human Resource. Management ...

  5. DEFINING ASPECTS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY WITHIN THE GENERAL STRATEGY OF THE MODERN ORGANIZATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emanoil MUSCALU

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The field of human resources requires the presence and action of several categories of persons and managerial structures interested in the quality of human resources and the activities developed by them. Besides managers and employees there are also the shareholders, the unions, the customers, the different national or local agencies, the local community, etc., with major interests regarding decisions in the human resources area. In order to harmonize their activities and achieve an optimal perspective within the evolution of Human Resource Management, special attention is paid to the strategy of human resources management. According to many specialists, strategies in the field of Human Resource Management show, in the first place, that personnel function adopts a broader perspective and a more dynamic view of human resources, which enables its full integration within the other functions of the organization. In the second place, strategies in the field of Human Resource Management designate the assembly of long term objectives concerning human resources, the main modalities of achieving them and the necessary resources which guarantee that the organization’s structure, value and culture as well as the utilization of its personnel contribute to fulfilling the general objectives of the organization. Therefore, we approached in this paper the problems of grounding and elaborating the Human Resource Management strategy, and we outlined their specific traits, as these are necessary aspects in order to emphasise at the end of our paper the correlation between the strategy in the field of Human Resource Management and the general strategy of the organization. Taking into account specialists and practitioners’ increased interest in knowing, substantiating and implementing strategies in the area of Human Resource Management, we consider that the aspects presented in this paper are modern issues and a starting pointing in solving the great problems of

  6. Narrating Palaeolithic Human Settlement History : the case of the Imjin-Hantan River Area, Korea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yongwook Yoo

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available This article intends to furnish a narrative story-telling with the broad perspective on the human past rather than simply depending on the analytical examination of archaeological data. For the purpose of this task, Ferdinand Braudel’s concept of “la longue durée” is applied to parallel the environmental background and hominid’s life/land-use patterns based on the geological data and archaeological remains. The Imjin-Hantan River Area (IHRA, known for the discovery of Acheulian-like handaxe, was occupied from ca 0.23 mya to the final Pleistocene; the hominids continuously changed their residing patterns in the landscape with actively modifying the lithic technological organization as a response to the environmental change. Integrating the geological features, absolute dates and characteristics of lithic assemblages from individual sites, we can recognize six phases of environmental changes based on the development of river channel system. These six phases witness different patterns of hominid’s adaptation in this area and correspondingly yield different mode of raw material utilization and lithic procurement. While more accurate geological dates are yet to be published and the description of lithic assemblages may be changed by new data, it is prospecting that Braudel’s la longue durée is a useful concept for meaningfully narrating a long-term human occupation history in the discipline of prehistoric archaeology.

  7. Tasawuf Transformatif sebagai Solusi Problematika Manusia Modern dalam Perspektif Pemikiran Tasawuf Muhammad Zuhri

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rahmad Yulianto

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the relevance between Sufism and modernity in the perspective Muhammad Zuhri. This study concludes that transformative Sufism which has been initiated by Zuhri is a sort of Sufism which is grounded to the spirit and values of the fundamental teachings of Sufism, shown in accordance with the context of its time, and discussed with the problems of human beings in dealing with the dynamics of life. Modern life has led to the problem of alienation. Of course, the alienation does not merely occur within individual dimensions (self-consciousness of human (alienation of consciousness, but it also occurs in their relationship to the nature (ecological alienation, and the relationship among human beings (social alienation. The point of relevance is how the human are subsequently able to build their self-consciousness toward the universe and their human brothers. Such awareness is then contextualized into the dimensions of the problems of modern man. The contextualization of this Sufi teaching makes the transformative Sufism not only actual, but also relevant in order to “liberate” the modern man from entanglement of various problems they deal with. The spirit of Sufism brought by Zuhri seems to be laden with social actions and communal aspects.

  8. Sexism in modern American society

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ibraeva B. M.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available the authors of the article consider that modern life is still full of various stereotypes. One of the most controversial questions in this article is the issue of discrimination against women in contemporary American society, and it is hard to believe, because this country claims to be a main guarantor of the human rights and freedoms.

  9. Testing the equivalence of modern human cranial covariance structure: Implications for bioarchaeological applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen; Schroeder, Lauren

    2016-10-01

    Estimation of the variance-covariance (V/CV) structure of fragmentary bioarchaeological populations requires the use of proxy extant V/CV parameters. However, it is currently unclear whether extant human populations exhibit equivalent V/CV structures. Random skewers (RS) and hierarchical analyses of common principal components (CPC) were applied to a modern human cranial dataset. Cranial V/CV similarity was assessed globally for samples of individual populations (jackknifed method) and for pairwise population sample contrasts. The results were examined in light of potential explanatory factors for covariance difference, such as geographic region, among-group distance, and sample size. RS analyses showed that population samples exhibited highly correlated multivariate responses to selection, and that differences in RS results were primarily a consequence of differences in sample size. The CPC method yielded mixed results, depending upon the statistical criterion used to evaluate the hierarchy. The hypothesis-testing (step-up) approach was deemed problematic due to sensitivity to low statistical power and elevated Type I errors. In contrast, the model-fitting (lowest AIC) approach suggested that V/CV matrices were proportional and/or shared a large number of CPCs. Pairwise population sample CPC results were correlated with cranial distance, suggesting that population history explains some of the variability in V/CV structure among groups. The results indicate that patterns of covariance in human craniometric samples are broadly similar but not identical. These findings have important implications for choosing extant covariance matrices to use as proxy V/CV parameters in evolutionary analyses of past populations. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  10. Slide 4

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    This spread of human settlements is clearly visible in in the large scale occurrence of burial monuments in the entire Tamil Nadu and Kerala. ... The Andhra and Karnataka regions in contrast to Tamilnadu and Kerala revealed continuous human habitational evidences without any break right from the lower Palaeolithic to ...

  11. The Health Care Professional as a Modern Abolitionist

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Callaghan, Michael G

    2012-01-01

    Health care professionals are in a unique position to identify and to assist victims of human trafficking. Human trafficking today occurs both domestically and globally. It manifests in many forms, including adult and child forced labor, involuntary domestic servitude, adult and child sexual slavery, involuntary servitude, debt bondage, and child soldiers. This article offers insight into modern human trafficking and ways health care professionals can be activists. PMID:22745622

  12. Public Mass Modern Education and Inter-Religious Human Capital Differentials in Twentieth-Century Egypt

    OpenAIRE

    Saleh, Mohamed

    2012-01-01

    Public mass modern education was a major pillar of state-led development in the post-Colonial developing world. I examine the impact of Egypt’s transformation in 1953 of traditional elementary schools (kuttabs), which served the masses, into public modern primary schools on the Christian-Muslim educational and occupational differentials, which were in favor of Christians. The reform allowed kuttabs’ graduates access to higher stages of education, which were confined to modern primary schools’...

  13. New Insights into the Evolution of the Human Diet from Faecal Biomarker Analysis in Wild Chimpanzee and Gorilla Faeces.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ainara Sistiaga

    Full Text Available Our understanding of early human diets is based on reconstructed biomechanics of hominin jaws, bone and teeth isotopic data, tooth wear patterns, lithic, taphonomic and zooarchaeological data, which do not provide information about the relative amounts of different types of foods that contributed most to early human diets. Faecal biomarkers are proving to be a valuable tool in identifying relative proportions of plant and animal tissues in Palaeolithic diets. A limiting factor in the application of the faecal biomarker approach is the striking absence of data related to the occurrence of faecal biomarkers in non-human primate faeces. In this study we explored the nature and proportions of sterols and stanols excreted by our closest living relatives. This investigation reports the first faecal biomarker data for wild chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes and mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei. Our results suggest that the chemometric analysis of faecal biomarkers is a useful tool for distinguishing between NHP and human faecal matter, and hence, it could provide information for palaeodietary research and early human diets.

  14. New Insights into the Evolution of the Human Diet from Faecal Biomarker Analysis in Wild Chimpanzee and Gorilla Faeces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sistiaga, Ainara; Wrangham, Richard; Rothman, Jessica M; Summons, Roger E

    2015-01-01

    Our understanding of early human diets is based on reconstructed biomechanics of hominin jaws, bone and teeth isotopic data, tooth wear patterns, lithic, taphonomic and zooarchaeological data, which do not provide information about the relative amounts of different types of foods that contributed most to early human diets. Faecal biomarkers are proving to be a valuable tool in identifying relative proportions of plant and animal tissues in Palaeolithic diets. A limiting factor in the application of the faecal biomarker approach is the striking absence of data related to the occurrence of faecal biomarkers in non-human primate faeces. In this study we explored the nature and proportions of sterols and stanols excreted by our closest living relatives. This investigation reports the first faecal biomarker data for wild chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei). Our results suggest that the chemometric analysis of faecal biomarkers is a useful tool for distinguishing between NHP and human faecal matter, and hence, it could provide information for palaeodietary research and early human diets.

  15. Can Ethics answer to the modern environmental problems?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ramirez Restrepo, Rubiel

    2012-01-01

    The human being has an indisputable biological and cultural specificity; however, he is constantly in touch with many things of the environment, he uses them, and often depletes beyond the capacity of recovery of that environment. Then, the modern and serious environmental problems arise, and end up compromising the survival of our species as well as every possible shape of life. These situation demands of the human being, attitudes and behaviors that show a responsibility for his environment as for himself, taking into account the gravity of his actions. That the human being gives an account of their own actions, correspond to what historically is known as moral which philosophical study is ethics. But a look to the historically constituted ethics shows that because of their prevailing anthropocentrism, they can not answer to the modern environmental problems. That why is necessary and urgent to think of an alternative ethic, in relation to its principles and its topics, as an answer to the gravity of the environmental issues.

  16. Dasar-dasar Pendidikan Islam Modern Dalam Filsafat Iqbal

    OpenAIRE

    Mukti, Muhammad

    2009-01-01

    Iqbal's Islamic education basic principle properly entitled “modern” because he has trying to synthesize education. This kind of education is not traditional education (orthodox and Sufi) and not modern education ala West an sich, but education that have direction to form human being, creating human character that not only “knowing” but also creative and dynamic, that enhance human values and specifically Islamic spiritual culture. Therefore, Iqbal principle of thought has correlation with re...

  17. Riparian landscapes and human habitat preferences during the Hoxnian (MIS 11) Interglacial

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ashton, Nick; Lewis, Simon G.; Parfitt, Simon; White, Mark

    2006-07-01

    The archaeological, environmental and geological data from Hoxnian Interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11) sites from Britain are examined to elucidate the type of habitats that humans preferred during this temperate episode. The conclusion is that humans avoided lacustrine situations, but did make use of the full range of resources that fluvial environments provide. This model is strengthened by the examination of other non-archaeological Hoxnian sites. The problem of archaeological visibility in lacustrine sediment sequences is also discussed and methods of identifying other evidence of human presence are suggested that may offset the deficiencies in the lithic record. These include presence of cut-marked bone, micro-debitage and possibly charcoal in fine-grained sediments deposited in distal settings. The reasons for human selection of fluvial situations are discussed. It is concluded that these environments provide a greater diversity of animal, plant and lithic resources, but also are major route-ways through the landscape. Patterns of human site use are identified, which seem to be triggered by local changes in hydrology and drainage, themselves possibly caused by regional changes in climate. Finally, Lower Palaeolithic sites on the interfluves are discussed. Although they lack environmental or dating evidence, it is tentatively suggested that they were used during cooler episodes, when more open conditions prevailed. Copyright

  18. Modernity after Modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marin Dinu

    2007-08-01

    Full Text Available A strategy for the second modernization raises, beyond objectives, a series of epistemicresponsibilities. It is known that modernization stemming from the Enlightment had, among other things,the pretense that it is a project which is self-legitimating. Its profound rationales are the only justification.Referential self-centering proved to be the one that made possible a practice of the new. Modernizationhaving the function of renouncing myth – meaning an eliminatory formula for the past – and thefixation in the opportunity and potentiality of the present, seemed to close an insoluble but extremelyengrossing problem: that of a propensity towards utopia, of the risky escape towards the future. Thetraditionalization of the new constitutes a support for the daring to break out of the captivity of themoment.Modernization becomes the experience of combining the new which, thus, creates a succession ofpresent times. The future is no longer the result of fantasy, but a system’s direct expression to combine thenew. Therefore the future is an option for one or another model of the present, often tested previouslysomewhere else. In a non-metaphysical way, the future can be seen, touched, tried, lived by simplegeographical movement. The sense of evolution has de-temporalized taking the form of the concomitant,parallel, enclosed, neighboring space. We just have to be in the trend, to evolve in the context.Globalization defines the context and its conception – as a project of the second modernity – showsus the trends. The problem is how to understand the context in order to find the sense of the trend. Are wethe load the sense with the values of the first modernity or will we have to turn to the values of anothermodernity? Why do we have to move away from the significance of the processes which made up the firstmodernity? How do we relate to the content of the new context in which the structural trends of today’sworld are taking place? What is the

  19. Size variation in Middle Pleistocene humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arsuaga, J L; Carretero, J M; Lorenzo, C; Gracia, A; Martínez, I; Bermúdez de Castro, J M; Carbonell, E

    1997-08-22

    It has been suggested that European Middle Pleistocene humans, Neandertals, and prehistoric modern humans had a greater sexual dimorphism than modern humans. Analysis of body size variation and cranial capacity variation in the large sample from the Sima de los Huesos site in Spain showed instead that the sexual dimorphism is comparable in Middle Pleistocene and modern populations.

  20. Dasar-dasar Pendidikan Islam Modern dalam Filsafat Iqbal

    OpenAIRE

    Mukti, Muhammad

    2015-01-01

    Iqbal’s Islamic education basic principle properly entitled “modern” because he has trying to synthesize education. This kind of education is not traditional education (orthodox and Sufi) and not modern education ala West an sich, but education that have direction to form human being, creating human character that not only “knowing” but also creative and dynamic, that enhance human values and specifically Islamic spiritual culture. Therefore, Iqbal principle of thought has correlation with re...

  1. 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.

  2. The taphonomy of a Middle Devensian (MIS 3) vertebrate assemblage from Lynford, Norfolk, UK, and its implications for Middle Palaeolithic subsistence strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schreve, Danielle C.

    2006-07-01

    The association of a rich lithic assemblage with a Middle Devensian mammalian assemblage at Lynford was initially thought indicative of a mammoth butchery locality, a rare occurrence for a European Middle Palaeolithic open site. However, taphonomic analyses suggest that the specimens have very different depositional histories and were incorporated into a palaeochannel in several stages. Most specimens are extremely fragmentary, probably the result of extensive trampling, and signs of weathering and root-damage provide further indications of exposure before burial. Carnivore damage is minimal but establishing the degree of interaction between the mammal fauna and alternative predators, such as Neanderthals, is problematic. Direct evidence of butchery is not present and the best indication of any form of mammoth exploitation lies in more circumstantial evidence such as the virtual absence of long bones from the main channel deposit and the mammoth age profiles. Instances of pathologies are also unusually common in the mammoths, implying that their greater vulnerability may have led to an accelerated demise either naturally or at the hands of a predator. The best evidence for direct faunal exploitation at the site is from green bone fractures and broken teeth that suggest marrow extraction in horse, reindeer and woolly rhinoceros. Copyright

  3. Sediment sequence and site formation processes at the Arbreda Cave, NE Iberian Peninsula, and implications on human occupation and climate change during the Last Glacial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Kehl

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The Arbreda Cave provides a detailed archaeological record of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic and is a key site for studying human occupation and cultural transitions in NE Iberia. Recently, studies of lake archives and archaeological sites presented new evidence on climate changes in NE Iberia correlating with Heinrich events. It, therefore, needs to be determined whether climate signals can be identified in the cave sequence of Arbreda, and if so, whether these signals can be correlated with stratigraphic indicators suggesting the continuity or discontinuity of human occupation. We conducted a high-resolution sedimentological and geochemical study, including micromorphological investigations, to shed light on stratigraphy, processes of sediment accumulation and post-depositional alteration in the cave. Seven major sediment units were distinguished which partly correlate with archaeological levels. The lower part of the sequence including Mousterian levels J and K consists of fluvial deposits truncated by a sharp erosional disconformity between Mousterian levels J and I. Strong enrichment with phosphorus and strontium reflect zoogenic inputs. The transition from Mousterian to Archaic Aurignacian in levels I and H, respectively, is reflected by more gradual changes in colour, grain size and geochemical composition. However, a peak in potentially wind-blown particles (40–125 μm in diameter reflects higher aeolian input, and banded microstructure suggests reworking of sediments at the interface. Both properties correlate with low density of finds suggesting low intensity of human occupation related to a dry spell. More arid conditions than during the Holocene are indicated for the Gravettian to Solutrean levels. These findings are in agreement with previous palaeoclimatic interpretations as based on palaeontological proxies. The detailed multi-proxy analyses of the sequence adds to our understanding on sediment accumulation and alteration in

  4. Demographic model of the Neolithic transition in Central Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrik Galeta

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available Several recent lines of evidence indicate more intensive contact between LBK farmers and indigenous foragers in Central Europe (5600–5400 calBC. Strong continuity has been identified between Mesolithic and Neolithic material cultures; faunal assemblages, and isotopic analyses of diet have revealed a greater role of hunting in LBK communities; genetic analyses have suggested that the modern Central European gene pool is mainly of Palaeolithic origin. Surprisingly little attention has been paid to demographic aspects of the Neolithic transition. In our study, demographic simulations were performed to assess the demographic conditions that would allow LBK farmers to spread across central Europe without any admixture with Mesolithic foragers. We constructed a stochastic demographic model of changes in farming population size. Model parameters were constrained by data from human demography, archaeology, and human ecology. Our results indicate that the establishment of farming communities in Central Europe without an admixture with foragers was highly improbable. The demographic conditions necessary for colonization were beyond the potential of the Neolithic population. Our study supports the integrationists’ view of the Neolithic transition in Central Europe.

  5. APPLICATION OF EYE TRACKING FOR MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN HUMAN FACTORS STUDIES IN CONTROL ROOM MODERNIZATION

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kovesdi, C.; Spielman, Z.; LeBlanc, K.; Rice, B.

    2017-05-01

    An important element of human factors engineering (HFE) pertains to measurement and evaluation (M&E). The role of HFE-M&E should be integrated throughout the entire control room modernization (CRM) process and be used for human-system performance evaluation and diagnostic purposes with resolving potential human engineering deficiencies (HEDs) and other human machine interface (HMI) design issues. NUREG-0711 describes how HFE in CRM should employ a hierarchical set of measures, particularly during integrated system validation (ISV), including plant performance, personnel task performance, situation awareness, cognitive workload, and anthropometric/ physiological factors. Historically, subjective measures have been primarily used since they are easier to collect and do not require specialized equipment. However, there are pitfalls with relying solely on subjective measures in M&E such that negatively impact reliability, sensitivity, and objectivity. As part of comprehensively capturing a diverse set of measures that strengthen findings and inferences made of the benefits from emerging technologies like advanced displays, this paper discusses the value of using eye tracking as an objective method that can be used in M&E. A brief description of eye tracking technology and relevant eye tracking measures is provided. Additionally, technical considerations and the unique challenges with using eye tracking in full-scaled simulations are addressed. Finally, this paper shares preliminary findings regarding the use of a wearable eye tracking system in a full-scale simulator study. These findings should help guide future full-scale simulator studies using eye tracking as a methodology to evaluate human-system performance.

  6. Nejstarší, starý a střední paleolit v Čechách. Nástin vývoje

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Fridrich, Jan; Fridrichová-Sýkorová, Ivana

    2009-01-01

    Roč. 13, č. 1 (2009), s. 7-84 ISSN 1214-3553 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA404/03/0157; GA MK DB06P01OPP006 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80020508 Keywords : Early Palaeolithic * Lower Palaeolithic * Middle Palaeolithic * Central Europe Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology

  7. Brief Communication: Intertooth and Intrafacet Dental Microwear Variation in an Archaeological Sample of Modern Humans From the Jordan Valley

    OpenAIRE

    Mahoney, Patrick

    2006-01-01

    Dental microwear was recorded in a Bronze-Iron Age (3570–3000 BP) sample of modern humans recovered from Tell es-Sa'idiyeh in the Jordan Valley. Microwear patterns were compared between mandibular molars, and between the upper and lower part of facet 9. The comparison revealed a greater frequency of pits and shorter scratches on the second and third molars, compared to the first. Pit frequency also increased on the lower part of the facet on the first molar, compared to the upper part. These ...

  8. TIME MANAGEMENT AS A SHOW OF WORLD VIEW OF MODERN HUMAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. Yevtushevska

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Planning of time always was an inalienable part of social and economic life. However, nowadays time management became so current be-cause of essential changes in society development. Massive production, strict competition, secularization, modern cult of success caused sufficient changes in time perception. Workers, producers, agents, especially in developed countries involved into dynamic economic relations, which demand planning of time and strict daily routine. In our opinion, two main reasons of time management popularity are world-view changes, which make modern secular society radically transforms surroundings of existing and high competition between producers and workers. Time management has its positive advantages, namely it discipline peoples, rise their productivity, reduce wasting of time. However, time management can turn into end in itself.

  9. Detecting human presence at the border of the Northeastern Italian Pre-Alps. 14C dating at Rio Secco cave as expression of the first Gravettian and the late mousterian in the Northern Adriatic Region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talamo, Sahra; Peresani, Marco; Romandini, Matteo; Duches, Rossella; Jéquier, Camille; Nannini, Nicola; Pastoors, Andreas; Picin, Andrea; Vaquero, Manuel; Weniger, Gerd-Christian; Hublin, Jean-Jacques

    2014-01-01

    In the northern Adriatic regions, which include the Venetian region and the Dalmatian coast, late Neanderthal settlements are recorded in few sites and even more ephemeral are remains of the Mid-Upper Palaeolithic occupations. A contribution to reconstruct the human presence during this time range has been produced from a recently investigated cave, Rio Secco, located in the northern Adriatic region at the foot of the Carnic Pre-Alps. Chronometric data make Rio Secco a key site in the context of recording occupation by late Neanderthals and regarding the diffusion of the Mid-Upper Palaeolithic culture in a particular district at the border of the alpine region. As for the Gravettian, its diffusion in Italy is a subject of on-going research and the aim of this paper is to provide new information on the timing of this process in Italy. In the southern end of the Peninsula the first occupation dates to around 28,000 14C BP, whereas our results on Gravettian layer range from 29,390 to 28,995 14C years BP. At the present state of knowledge, the emergence of the Gravettian in eastern Italy is contemporaneous with several sites in Central Europe and the chronological dates support the hypothesis that the Swabian Gravettian probably dispersed from eastern Austria.

  10. Jung's view on myth and post-modern psychology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Raya A

    2003-11-01

    Post-modern psychology embodies two core themes, the social mind and the narrative self. Whereas the social-mind thesis seems diametrically opposed to Jung's position regarding human nature, the narrative-self thesis is associated with research and theorizing about personal myth and mythmaking in ways that could make contact with Jung's concerns. Jung's view is examined here with particular attention to McAdams' theory of narrative identity. It is suggested that the ostensible differences between Jung and post-modern psychology might reflect divergent interests, rather than necessarily irreconcilable worldviews.

  11. UNIVERSITY TEACHERS’ READINESS TO APPLY THE MODERN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irina O. Kotlyarova

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the research is to investigate the readiness of the university teachers to apply the modern educational technologies. Methods. The methods include theoretical: analysis of existing modern educational technologies, the concept «readiness» and its components, abstraction of signs and kinds of modern educational technologies based on the scientific literature and in the Federal State Educational Standards (FSES; empirical: questionnaires and testing methods for detecting levels of university teachers’ skills and readiness to use modern educational technology. Results. The main features of modern educational technologies are identified and justified that are to comply with modern methodology of the theory and practice of education study and the latest FSES requirements; the level of science, manufacturing, and modern rules of human relations. The components of readiness of university teachers to use modern educational technology are structured. The linguistic component is included along with the cognitive, psychological, operational, connotative components; its necessity is proved. The average level of readiness for the use of modern educational technology by university teachers is identified. Scientific novelty. The author specifies the features of the modern educational technology. The most significant components of higher-education teaching personnel readiness to use technological innovations are identified. As a whole, these results form the indicative framework for the development and measurement of readiness of the university teachers to use the modern educational technology. The development of the readiness of the university teachers to apply the modern educational technologies is proved to be an issue of current interest. Practical significance. The research findings can be used as the basis of techniques and methods designing for its further development and measurement of the training, retraining and advanced training of

  12. An evolutionary cosmology for scientists--and the modern world in general.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charlton, Bruce G

    2007-01-01

    I believe that people will not feel comfortable and positive about the contemporary world until we can endorse and believe an evolutionary cosmology which is appropriate to modern conditions. A cosmology is a mythical account of the universe as it presents itself to the human mind; it needs to be poetic, symbolic, inspiring of a sense of awe and mystery. Furthermore, a complete cosmology should include the three levels of macro-, meso- and micro-cosm, in order to understand the nature of the universe, human society, and the individual's relation to them. Traditional cosmologies described an eternal underlying structure to ultimate reality--a static ideal state towards which the world ought to gravitate. However, modern life is characterized by rapid growth, novelty, destruction and fluidity of all kinds of structures, a feature which traditional static cosmologies interpret negatively and pessimistically. A modern cosmology therefore needs to be focused on underlying dynamic process instead of structure and stasis. Biologists are better placed than many to appreciate a cosmology based on evolutionary change; because this is the mainstream understanding of adaptation and diversity in the natural world. The same dynamic, neophiliac and open-ended process of 'creative destruction' can be seen at work in science, economics, and modern spirituality. But a modern cosmology will only be experienced as both deep and spontaneous when it takes the form of a mythic account that is first encountered and assimilated during childhood. Since myths arise as a consequence of human creativity; there is a vital future mythogenic role for artists in the realm of ideas, images and stories: people such as mystics, poets and philosophers--including, I hope and expect, creatively inspired scientists.

  13. New data on the chronology of the Vale do Forno sedimentary sequence (Lower Tejo River terrace staircase) and its relevance as a fluvial archive of the Middle Pleistocene in western Iberia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cunha, Pedro; Martins, Antonio; Buylaert, Jan-Pieter

    2017-01-01

    The Vale do Forno archaeological sites (Alpiarça, central Portugal) document the earliest human occupation in the Lower Tejo River, well established in geomorphological and environmental terms, within the Middle Pleistocene. In a staircase of six fluvial terraces, the Palaeolithic sites were found...

  14. Image and Morphology in Modern Theory of Architecture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yankovskaya, Y. S.; Merenkov, A. V.

    2017-11-01

    This paper is devoted to some important and fundamental problems of the modern Russian architectural theory. These problems are: methodological and technological retardation; substitution of the modern professional architectural theoretical knowledge by the humanitarian concepts; preference of the traditional historical or historical-theoretical research. One of the most probable ways is the formation of useful modern subject (and multi-subject)-oriented concepts in architecture. To get over the criticism and distrust of the architectural theory is possible through the recognition of an important role of the subject (architect, consumer, contractor, ruler, etc.) and direction of the practical tasks of the forming human environment in the today’s rapidly changing world and post-industrial society. In this article we consider the evolution of two basic concepts for the theory of architecture such as the image and morphology.

  15. Modernism and tradition and the traditions of modernism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kros Džonatan

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available Conventionally, the story of musical modernism has been told in terms of a catastrophic break with the (tonal past and the search for entirely new techniques and modes of expression suitable to a new age. The resulting notion of a single, linear, modernist mainstream (predicated on the basis of a Schoenbergian model of musical progress has served to conceal a more subtle relationship between past and present. Increasingly, it is being recognized that there exist many modernisms and their various identities are forged from a continual renegotiation between past and present, between tradition(s and the avant-garde. This is especially relevant when attempting to discuss the reception of modernism outside central Europe, where the adoption of (Germanic avant-garde attitudes was often interpreted as being "unpatriotic". The case of Great Britain is examined in detail: Harrison Birtwistle’s opera The Mask of Orpheus (1973–83 forms the focus for a wider discussion of modernism within the context of late/post-modern thought.

  16. Moderne diskoerse in die teologie vandag

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.H. van Wyk

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available In hierdie artikel word aandag gevra vir enkele moderne diskoerse in die teologie vandag. Volgens die outeur staan die vrae oor God, Jesus, die mens en die aarde in die sentrum van belangstelling en oorheers dit in ’n groot mate die teologiese debat. Die opkoms van die moderne aggressiewe ateïsme, die wetenskaplike navorsing oor die historiese Jesus, die groeiende vrae oor die mens en die menslike samelewing, asook die dreigende ekologiese krisis op aarde, sorg vir nuwe debatte van ongekende omvang. Die outeur bespreek hierdie debatte oorsigtelik, met kritiek waar nodig, en sluit af met enkele rigtingwysers van wat hy as ‘goeie teologie’ verstaan. In this article attention is paid to some modern discourses in theology today. According to the author the questions about God, Jesus, man and the earth are in the centre of interest and to a large extent dominate the theological debate. The rise of modern aggressive atheism, the scientific research on the historic Jesus, the growing questions about man and human society as well as the threatening ecological crisis on earth, provide new discourses of unparalleled magnitude. The author provides a broad summary of these discourses, with criticism where necessary, and concludes with some indicators of his view what can be called ‘good theology’.

  17. The Potential Impact of Collaborative and Three-Dimensional Imaging Technology on SHIPMAIN Fleet Modernization Plan

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Seaman, Nathan L; Housel, Thomas; Mun, Jonathan

    2008-01-01

    Maintenance and modernization of the US Navy fleet is big business. The Navy has invested substantial fiscal and human resources to standardize the processes used to accomplish maintenance modernization and repair for its fleet of ships...

  18. History as Modernity. Introduction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pierangelo Schiera

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The introduction starts from the exhaustion of modernity, drawing the fundamental lines of its development inside Western historical experience. The end of the political nexus between theology and politics, the evanescence of nation-state sovereignty, the check of great historical interpretations reveal the necessity of new categories and new organizational models, able to make us answer to the violence that the ongoing processes are liberating. Schiera underlines in particular the relevance of the administrative apparatus because of its capacity to link the global government with global organization, human rights and the commons.

  19. Er Rousseau moderne?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dupont, Søren

    1985-01-01

    Artiklen analyserer på hvilken måde Rousseau kan siges at være moderne, og den diskuterer på hvilken måde Rouseau har været medvirkende til at opbygge den moderne civilisation, og på hvilken måde han var kritisk i forhold til den gryende og moderne kapitalisme.......Artiklen analyserer på hvilken måde Rousseau kan siges at være moderne, og den diskuterer på hvilken måde Rouseau har været medvirkende til at opbygge den moderne civilisation, og på hvilken måde han var kritisk i forhold til den gryende og moderne kapitalisme....

  20. The Pleistocene reindeer of the North Sea - initial palaeontological data and archaeological remarks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Glimmerveen, J; Mol, D; van der Plicht, H

    The interdisciplinary North Sea Project aims at investigating the biotic history of the Pleistocene in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Humans were part of these biotopes too as Palaeolithic flint artefacts prove. Based on a large fossil record and radiocarbon dating, it becomes clear that

  1. 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...

  2. Morphology of muscle attachment sites in the modern human hand does not reflect muscle architecture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams-Hatala, E M; Hatala, K G; Hiles, S; Rabey, K N

    2016-06-23

    Muscle attachment sites (entheses) on dry bones are regularly used by paleontologists to infer soft tissue anatomy and to reconstruct behaviors of extinct organisms. This method is commonly applied to fossil hominin hand bones to assess their abilities to participate in Paleolithic stone tool behaviors. Little is known, however, about how or even whether muscle anatomy and activity regimes influence the morphologies of their entheses, especially in the hand. Using the opponens muscles from a sample of modern humans, we tested the hypothesis that aspects of hand muscle architecture that are known to be influenced by behavior correlate with the size and shape of their associated entheses. Results show no consistent relationships between these behaviorally-influenced aspects of muscle architecture and entheseal morphology. Consequently, it is likely premature to infer patterns of behavior, such as stone tool making in fossil hominins, from these same entheses.

  3. Control room modernization at Finnish nuclear power plants - Two projects compared

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Laarni, J.; Norros, L.

    2006-01-01

    The modernization of automation systems and human-machine interfaces is a current issue at both of the two nuclear power plants (i.e., Fortum's Loviisa plant and TVO's Olkiluoto plant) in Finland. Since the plants have been launched in the 1970's or 1980's, technology is in part old-fashioned and needs to be renewed. At Olkiluoto upgrades of the turbine operator systems have already been conducted; at Loviisa the first phase of the modernization project has just started. Basically, there is a question of the complete digitalization of the information streams at the two plants, and transition from a conventional hard-wired or hybrid control room to a screen-based one. The new human-machine interfaces will comprise new technology, such as PC workstations, soft control, touch screens and large-screen overall displays. The modernization of human-system interfaces is carried out in a stepwise manner at both plants. At both plants the main driver has not been the need to renew the user interfaces of the control room, but the need to upgrade the automation systems. In part because of this, there is a lack of a systematic top-down approach in which different aspects of human factors (HF) engineering are considered in relationship to higher level goals. Our aim here is to give an overview description of the control room modernization projects at the two plants and provide a preliminary evaluation of their progress to date. The projects are also compared, for example, in terms of duration, scope and phasing, and who is responsible for the realization of the project. In addition, we also compare experiences from the Finnish projects to experiences from similar projects abroad. The main part of the data used in this study is based on designers' and project members' interviews. (authors)

  4. Methodological validation of the isotopic analysis of fossil bones and contributions to the paleo-ecological reconstitutions of the Upper Paleolithic of south-west France

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Drucker, D.

    2001-04-01

    A methodology for investigating fossil bone collagen carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures has been established in order to obtain palaeo-ecological informations. The archaeological, biochemical and geochemical reliability has been estimated. Almost 500 animal and human specimens from southwestern France upper Palaeolithic sites ranging in age from 36,000 to 9,000 years BP have been treated. It has been demonstrated that different dietary resources were isotopically distinct, with a resolution better than the expectations. Small mammals have been distinguished from ungulates, and Reindeer, Horse and Bovines presented specific isotopic signatures. Moreover, isotopic differences have been evidenced between gregarious and solitary species. Time changes of ecological patterns have been described using the isotopic signatures of some mammal species. Biomass fluctuation and exploitation have been demonstrated during upper Palaeolithic. The methodology allowed to use the isotopic signatures of animal predators as a proxy for meat resources availability in the environment. This approach allows to investigate environmental global factors as well as human behaviour with a common tool. (author)

  5. Methodological validation of the isotopic analysis of fossil bones and contributions to the paleo-ecological reconstitutions of the Upper Paleolithic of south-west France; Validation methodologique de l'analyse isotopique d'ossements fossiles et apports aux reconstitutions paleoecologiques du paleolithique superieur du sud-ouest de la France

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Drucker, D

    2001-04-01

    A methodology for investigating fossil bone collagen carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures has been established in order to obtain palaeo-ecological informations. The archaeological, biochemical and geochemical reliability has been estimated. Almost 500 animal and human specimens from southwestern France upper Palaeolithic sites ranging in age from 36,000 to 9,000 years BP have been treated. It has been demonstrated that different dietary resources were isotopically distinct, with a resolution better than the expectations. Small mammals have been distinguished from ungulates, and Reindeer, Horse and Bovines presented specific isotopic signatures. Moreover, isotopic differences have been evidenced between gregarious and solitary species. Time changes of ecological patterns have been described using the isotopic signatures of some mammal species. Biomass fluctuation and exploitation have been demonstrated during upper Palaeolithic. The methodology allowed to use the isotopic signatures of animal predators as a proxy for meat resources availability in the environment. This approach allows to investigate environmental global factors as well as human behaviour with a common tool. (author)

  6. Archaic admixture in human history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wall, Jeffrey D; Yoshihara Caldeira Brandt, Debora

    2016-12-01

    Modern humans evolved in Southern or Eastern Africa, and spread from there across the rest of the world. As they expanded across Africa and Eurasia, they encountered other hominin groups. The extent to which modern and 'archaic' human groups interbred is an area of active research, and while we know that modern humans interbred with Neanderthals and Denisovans, there is not yet agreement on how many admixture events there were or on how much Neanderthal or Denisovan DNA can be found in contemporary genomes. Here we review what is known about archaic admixture in human history, with a focus on what has been discovered in the past 2 years. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Podhradem Interstadial; A critical review of the middle and late MIS 3 (Denekamp, Hengelo) in Moravia, Czech Republic

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Lisá, Lenka; Neruda, P.; Nerudová, Z.; Nejman, L.

    2018-01-01

    Roč. 182, 15 February (2018), s. 191-201 ISSN 0277-3791 Institutional support: RVO:67985831 Keywords : Quaternary geochronology * climate change * cave climatic record * Palaeolithic * human environment Subject RIV: DB - Geology ; Mineralogy OBOR OECD: Environmental sciences (social aspects to be 5.7) Impact factor: 4.797, year: 2016

  8. Detecting human presence at the border of the Northeastern Italian Pre-Alps. 14C dating at Rio Secco cave as expression of the first Gravettian and the late mousterian in the Northern Adriatic Region.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sahra Talamo

    Full Text Available In the northern Adriatic regions, which include the Venetian region and the Dalmatian coast, late Neanderthal settlements are recorded in few sites and even more ephemeral are remains of the Mid-Upper Palaeolithic occupations. A contribution to reconstruct the human presence during this time range has been produced from a recently investigated cave, Rio Secco, located in the northern Adriatic region at the foot of the Carnic Pre-Alps. Chronometric data make Rio Secco a key site in the context of recording occupation by late Neanderthals and regarding the diffusion of the Mid-Upper Palaeolithic culture in a particular district at the border of the alpine region. As for the Gravettian, its diffusion in Italy is a subject of on-going research and the aim of this paper is to provide new information on the timing of this process in Italy. In the southern end of the Peninsula the first occupation dates to around 28,000 14C BP, whereas our results on Gravettian layer range from 29,390 to 28,995 14C years BP. At the present state of knowledge, the emergence of the Gravettian in eastern Italy is contemporaneous with several sites in Central Europe and the chronological dates support the hypothesis that the Swabian Gravettian probably dispersed from eastern Austria.

  9. STORY OF BIG FLOOD IN THE MODERN INDONESIAN LITERARY: AN ECOCRITICISM STUDY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saifur Rohman

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available The nature of paper shows that Ecocriticism is not popular issue in the modern Indonesian criticism. Hence, it is very crucial to develop the Indonesian criticism based on the ecological perspective because nowday that the term development is synonym with exploiting the nature. The paper is to find out the ecological issue in the modern indonesian literary, especially in fiction prose and poems publised for late ten years. To analyze the work, researcher is used semiotic method and hermeneutic design of research as an approach. Semiotic will investigate the symbol behind the words and hermeneutic will translated the symbol to actual message. Based on the analysis, the ecological theme in the modern Indonesian literary is crucial interpretation. The meaning appeared in the work  has given the imporant values of increasing care of nature, human kind, and harmonization. For recomentation, in the future researcher should have interpretate the work based on the ecocriticism to increase meaning of human and nature.

  10. 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....

  11. Human-Machine Communication

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Farbrot, J.E.; Nihlwing, Ch.; Svengren, H.

    2005-01-01

    New requirements for enhanced safety and design changes in process systems often leads to a step-wise installation of new information and control equipment in the control room of older nuclear power plants, where nowadays modern digital I and C solutions with screen-based human-machine interfaces (HMI) most often are introduced. Human factors (HF) expertise is then required to assist in specifying a unified, integrated HMI, where the entire integration of information is addressed to ensure an optimal and effective interplay between human (operators) and machine (process). Following a controlled design process is the best insurance for ending up with good solutions. This paper addresses the approach taken when introducing modern human-machine communication in the Oskarshamn 1 NPP, the results, and the lessons learned from this work with high operator involvement seen from an HF point of view. Examples of possibilities modern technology might offer for the operators are also addressed. (orig.)

  12. Evolutionary and Modern Image Content Differentially Influence the Processing of Emotional Pictures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matthias Dhum

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available From an evolutionary perspective, environmental threats relevant for survival constantly challenged human beings. Current research suggests the evolution of a fear processing module in the brain to cope with these threats. Recently, humans increasingly encountered modern threats (e.g., guns or car accidents in addition to evolutionary threats (e.g., snakes or predators which presumably required an adaptation of perception and behavior. However, the neural processes underlying the perception of these different threats remain to be elucidated. We investigated the effect of image content (i.e., evolutionary vs. modern threats on the activation of neural networks of emotion processing. During functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI 41 participants watched affective pictures displaying evolutionary-threatening, modern-threatening, evolutionary-neutral and modern-neutral content. Evolutionary-threatening stimuli evoked stronger activations than modern-threatening stimuli in left inferior frontal gyrus and thalamus, right middle frontal gyrus and parietal regions as well as bilaterally in parietal regions, fusiform gyrus and bilateral amygdala. We observed the opposite effect, i.e., higher activity for modern-threatening than for evolutionary-threatening stimuli, bilaterally in the posterior cingulate and the parahippocampal gyrus. We found no differences in subjective arousal ratings between the two threatening conditions. On the valence scale though, subjects rated modern-threatening pictures significantly more negative than evolutionary-threatening pictures, indicating a higher level of perceived threat. The majority of previous studies show a positive relationship between arousal rating and amygdala activity. However, comparing fMRI results with behavioral findings we provide evidence that neural activity in fear processing areas is not only driven by arousal or valence, but presumably also by the evolutionary content of the stimulus. This has

  13. Modern Western Concepts of Philosophy of Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    K. A. Ivanova

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The philosophy of education is represented by a wide range of concepts and approaches. The basic concepts of the philosophy of education can be divided into 4 groups according to the «pure» philosophical systems: realism, idealism, pragmatism, existentialism. Among the goals of the philosophy of education as an independent science are: stimulation, analysis, ordering, research. The delineation of the concept of education and the notion of school education are an important aspect in formulating the goals of the philosophy of education. A significant place in the process of finding and setting the goals of the philosophy of education is occupied by an alternative: discipline of mind or discipline of knowledge? It is worth paying attention to the goals of the modern Western philosophy of education: training for the formation of character, training for personal growth and success, training for the development and refinement of aesthetic predispositions, etc. Within the frameworks of the American philosophy of education, three main directions were formed: empiricism, rationalism, naturalism. According to the approach of the empiricists, education is the main factor, influencing human existence, which stimulates human activity, forms the person’s abilities and character. Rationalists introduced the idea of «self-alienation» as the most important for the philosophy of education. «Self-alienation» is a transition of a student from one stage of training to another one under the supervision of a teacher, when human mind becomes an object of his own attention. At the last stage of the student’s intellectual development, discovery of universals, laws and principles takes place. According to naturalists’ concept, the conclusions of scientific study of nature should be understood not as a testimony of truth, but as working hypotheses for further investigation. Scientific discoveries should be discoveries for education. Modern educational systems

  14. Barriers to utilization of modern methods of family planning amongst ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Barriers to utilization of modern methods of family planning amongst women in a ... is recognized by the world health organization (WHO) as a universal human right. ... Conclusion: The study finds numerous barriers to utilization of family ...

  15. 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).

  16. Educational Contribution of RPG Video Games: Modern Media in Modern Education

    OpenAIRE

    Kratochvíl, Martin

    2014-01-01

    TITLE OF WORK: The Educational Contribution of RPG Video Games: Modern Media in Modern Education AUTHOR: Martin Kratochvíl KEY WORDS: video games, RPG genre, modern education, critical thinking, language learning, student's motivation DEPARTMENT: Department of English Language and Literature Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Education SUPERVISOR: Mark Robert Farrell ABSTRACT: The subject of this topic is to research the potential contribution of RPG video games in the field of modern e...

  17. The modern water-saving agricultural technology: Progress and focus

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    GREGORY

    2010-09-13

    Sep 13, 2010 ... fastest 100-year in human history, in which the world population has .... achieving modern water-saving high-yield and quality type from .... Information technology, intelligent technology and 3S technology ... perfor-mance and longer service life. .... using artificial neural network technology and data commu-.

  18. Role of modernization in maintenance of a sustainable development of economy of region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natal'ya Zinov'evna Solodilova

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper deals with the need to modernize the economy and society. The authors reveal meaningful context of the term "modernization" in relation to the Russian economy. Five priority areas of economic modernization, as initiated by the President, are considered. Species, types and sources of funding for modernization of the economy (optimization of budget expenditures, state monopolies, taxation, domestic and foreign investment and business research areas are investigated. Based on the investigation of the essence and importance of the modernization process, a mechanism of modernization, which components are described in the paper (the process, purpose, types, objects, sources of financing, the results & process control and system upgrade was developed. Based on the results of the conducted study, the potential for sustainable economic development of the region in the XXI century is presented. A fundamentally new set of its components (educational, human, scientific, innovation, natural resource, industrial, construction, agriculture and infrastructure & tourism potentials is presented.

  19. Počátky lidské kultury v Čechách

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Fridrichová-Sýkorová, Ivana

    2010-01-01

    Roč. 11, - (2010), s. 9-12 ISSN 1213-1628 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80020508 Keywords : Early Palaeolithic * Lower Palaeolithic * culture Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology

  20. Postmodernism in Belgrade architecture: Between cultural modernity and societal modernization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Blagojević Ljiljana

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper explores the introduction and articulation of ideas and aesthetic practice of postmodernism in architecture of late socialism in Yugoslavia, with the focus on Belgrade architecture scene. Theoretical and methodological point of departure of this analysis is Jürgen Habermas's thesis of modernity as an incomplete, i.e., unfinished project, from his influential essay “Die Moderne: Ein unvollendetes Projekt” (1980. The thematic framework of the paper is shifted towards issues raised by Habermas which concern relations of cultural modernity and societal modernization, or rather towards consideration of architectural postmodernity in relation to the split between culture and society. The paper investigates architectural discourse which was profiled in Belgrade in 1980s, in a historical context of cultural modernity simultaneous with Habermas's text, but in different conditions of societal modernization of Yugoslav late socialism. In that, the principle methodological question concerns the interpretation of postmodern architecture as part of the new cultural production within the social restructuration of late and/or end of socialism as a system, that being analogous to Fredric Jameson's thesis of “Postmodernism, Or, The Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism” (1984.

  1. Methodology for the LABIHS PWR simulator modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jaime, Guilherme D.G.; Oliveira, Mauro V., E-mail: gdjaime@ien.gov.b, E-mail: mvitor@ien.gov.b [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2011-07-01

    The Human-System Interface Laboratory (LABIHS) simulator is composed by a set of advanced hardware and software components whose goal is to simulate the main characteristics of a Pressured Water Reactor (PWR). This simulator serves for a set of purposes, such as: control room modernization projects; designing of operator aiding systems; providing technological expertise for graphical user interfaces (GUIs) designing; control rooms and interfaces evaluations considering both ergonomics and human factors aspects; interaction analysis between operators and the various systems operated by them; and human reliability analysis in scenarios considering simulated accidents and normal operation. The simulator runs in a PA-RISC architecture server (HPC3700), developed nearby 2000's, using the HP-UX operating system. All mathematical modeling components were written using the HP Fortran-77 programming language with a shared memory to exchange data from/to all simulator modules. Although this hardware/software framework has been discontinued in 2008, with costumer support ceasing in 2013, it is still used to run and operate the simulator. Due to the fact that the simulator is based on an obsolete and proprietary appliance, the laboratory is subject to efficiency and availability issues, such as: downtime caused by hardware failures; inability to run experiments on modern and well known architectures; and lack of choice of running multiple simulation instances simultaneously. This way, there is a need for a proposal and implementation of solutions so that: the simulator can be ported to the Linux operating system, running on the x86 instruction set architecture (i.e. personal computers); we can simultaneously run multiple instances of the simulator; and the operator terminals run remotely. This paper deals with the design stage of the simulator modernization, in which it is performed a thorough inspection of the hardware and software currently in operation. Our goal is to

  2. Methodology for the LABIHS PWR simulator modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jaime, Guilherme D.G.; Oliveira, Mauro V., E-mail: gdjaime@ien.gov.b, E-mail: mvitor@ien.gov.b [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2011-07-01

    The Human-System Interface Laboratory (LABIHS) simulator is composed by a set of advanced hardware and software components whose goal is to simulate the main characteristics of a Pressured Water Reactor (PWR). This simulator serves for a set of purposes, such as: control room modernization projects; designing of operator aiding systems; providing technological expertise for graphical user interfaces (GUIs) designing; control rooms and interfaces evaluations considering both ergonomics and human factors aspects; interaction analysis between operators and the various systems operated by them; and human reliability analysis in scenarios considering simulated accidents and normal operation. The simulator runs in a PA-RISC architecture server (HPC3700), developed nearby 2000's, using the HP-UX operating system. All mathematical modeling components were written using the HP Fortran-77 programming language with a shared memory to exchange data from/to all simulator modules. Although this hardware/software framework has been discontinued in 2008, with costumer support ceasing in 2013, it is still used to run and operate the simulator. Due to the fact that the simulator is based on an obsolete and proprietary appliance, the laboratory is subject to efficiency and availability issues, such as: downtime caused by hardware failures; inability to run experiments on modern and well known architectures; and lack of choice of running multiple simulation instances simultaneously. This way, there is a need for a proposal and implementation of solutions so that: the simulator can be ported to the Linux operating system, running on the x86 instruction set architecture (i.e. personal computers); we can simultaneously run multiple instances of the simulator; and the operator terminals run remotely. This paper deals with the design stage of the simulator modernization, in which it is performed a thorough inspection of the hardware and software currently in operation. Our goal is to

  3. Methodology for the LABIHS PWR simulator modernization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jaime, Guilherme D.G.; Oliveira, Mauro V.

    2011-01-01

    The Human-System Interface Laboratory (LABIHS) simulator is composed by a set of advanced hardware and software components whose goal is to simulate the main characteristics of a Pressured Water Reactor (PWR). This simulator serves for a set of purposes, such as: control room modernization projects; designing of operator aiding systems; providing technological expertise for graphical user interfaces (GUIs) designing; control rooms and interfaces evaluations considering both ergonomics and human factors aspects; interaction analysis between operators and the various systems operated by them; and human reliability analysis in scenarios considering simulated accidents and normal operation. The simulator runs in a PA-RISC architecture server (HPC3700), developed nearby 2000's, using the HP-UX operating system. All mathematical modeling components were written using the HP Fortran-77 programming language with a shared memory to exchange data from/to all simulator modules. Although this hardware/software framework has been discontinued in 2008, with costumer support ceasing in 2013, it is still used to run and operate the simulator. Due to the fact that the simulator is based on an obsolete and proprietary appliance, the laboratory is subject to efficiency and availability issues, such as: downtime caused by hardware failures; inability to run experiments on modern and well known architectures; and lack of choice of running multiple simulation instances simultaneously. This way, there is a need for a proposal and implementation of solutions so that: the simulator can be ported to the Linux operating system, running on the x86 instruction set architecture (i.e. personal computers); we can simultaneously run multiple instances of the simulator; and the operator terminals run remotely. This paper deals with the design stage of the simulator modernization, in which it is performed a thorough inspection of the hardware and software currently in operation. Our goal is to

  4. 77 FR 1005 - National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2012

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-06

    ... abroad suffer in silence under the intolerable yoke of modern slavery. During National Slavery and Human... awareness and addressing the root causes of modern slavery. The steadfast defense of human rights is an... educate themselves about all forms of modern slavery and the signs and consequences of human trafficking...

  5. ISLÂM DAN PEREKONOMIAN ISLÂM DALAM PEMERINTAHAN MODERN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nashar -

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available the basic 0f Islamic ekonomy, it is actuallydifferent with the basic of Modern Economic System.Because of the view of islam for ekonomy have thecharacteristic what may be in Modern Economic System.Islam has the guidence based the Al-Qur’ an and Hadistand the guidence has the interpretation. The systemdifference between Islam versus Modern System bears aconclusion : Islamic Ekonomy continuesly and by the allaspects compleyely concerning humanism. Islam has aeconomic system having the principle of responsibilitytowards a social community, social living have ability andpopulation economic stimulation. So for the last wise isdone by government will always relate with all element ofsociety. There are some economic system is not ruled yet inthe sources of Islamic law, as the poroblems of ekonomicsystem; BUDGET, so it needs to be new Ijtihad, therefore,that system always bases on the social service and in linewith the guidence of islamic law.

  6. Human dignity and biomedical ethics from a Christian theological ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The argument of human dignity plays an important role in current debates on human rights and their relevance in modern biomedicine. When discussing the contribution of Christian theology to current debates on human dignity and human rights the thesis is not that the modern idea of human dignity depends on a ...

  7. Bios Politikos’tan Homo Economicus’a: Karşılaştırmalı Bir Perspektifle Antik ve Modern Dönemde İnsan, Ekonomi ve Siyaset İlişkisi / From Bios Politikos to Homo Economicus: The Relationship Between Human, Economy and Politics in the Ancient and Modern Periods with a Comparative Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adem ÇELİK

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Bu çalışmanın amacı, Antik ve modern düşünürlerin siyaseti nasıl tanımladıklarını ortaya koyarak, tanımlar arasındaki farkların nedenini tartışmaktır. Antik dönemde, insanın doğası gereği politik bir varlık olarak tanımlanması, siyasetin bütün insani etkinlikler içerisinde en yücesi olarak görülmesine neden olmuştur. Antik düşünürler için siyaset, müşterek meselelerin eşitlerin gözü önünde tartışıldığı ve eşitsizliği dışlayan bir çoğulluk alanı olarak kavramıştır. Antik düşünür Aristoteles siyasetin amacının “iyi yaşam” olduğunu ifade etmektedir. Buna karşın Machiavelli ile başlayan modern siyasal düşünce, siyaseti, güç, iktidar ve şiddet kavramlarıyla tanımlamıştır. Machiavelli ve ardılları için siyaset, fiziksel şiddetin meşru örgütlenmesi, güç, değer ve kaynakların otorite eliyle dağıtılması şeklinde tanımlanmıştır. Antik Yunanda kamusal-siyasal alandan dışlanan şiddet, modern dünyada politik toplumu tanımlayan merkezi kavramlardan birisi haline gelmiştir. Antik dönemde siyasal varlık (zoon politikon olarak tanımlanan insan, modern dönemde ekonomik varlık (homo economicus olarak tanımlanmıştır. Antikler için yaşanmaya değer yaşam siyasete adanmış yaşam iken (bios politikos, modernler için ekonomik etkinlikle ilişkili hale gelmiştir. Çalışma, Antik ve modernlerin siyasal tanımları arasındaki farkın insan ve insan yaşamının amacı konusundaki farklılıklardan kaynaklandığını savunmaktadır. / The purpose of this study is to present how ancient and modern thinkers describe politics and to discuss reasons for differences seen in these definitions. In the ancient period, the identification of human being as a political entity by nature caused politics to be seen as the most supreme of all human activities. For the ancient thinkers, politics is conceptualized as a pluralist area in which the common

  8. Experiences in the application of human factors engineering to the modernization of the interface man-machine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Valdivia Martin, C.; Fernandez Illobre, L.; Trueba Alonso, P.; Cerezal Diez, J. E.

    2014-01-01

    This paper shows some of the experience gained during the application of the IFH to the modernization of the IHM. The experience of the application of IFH in modernization and modifications of design shows a positive effect, improving the IHM associated, with the acceptance of the end user. (Author)

  9. Overcurrent protection co-ordination. A modern approach for modern devices

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hindle, P. [GEC Alsthom Engineering Systems Ltd., Whetstone (United Kingdom); Sanderson, J.V.H. [Power Engineering Consultants Ltd., Cheshire (United Kingdom)

    1995-12-31

    A modern approach to relay co-ordination that takes advantage of the improved performance of modern protective relays and circuits was proposed. The proposed method dealt with a mixture of new and old equipment and was most useful when implemented using common spreadsheet software. The suggested approach justified reduced time margins for relay co-ordination in many difficult applications. Other established approaches were reviewed. A discussion of fixed and variable time margin allowances was presented. The formulation of an equation to determine the required upstream relay operating time was explained, with sample calculations. Relay performance standards and modern protective equipment were discussed. It was concluded that modern relays and circuit breakers are much more advanced than designs of the recent past. The method described allowed significant reductions in margins which enabled modern relays to operate faster. While calculations for the procedures were said to be tedious to perform by hand, they can be easily done with spreadsheet software. 10 refs., 4 figs.

  10. The place of human psychophysics in modern neuroscience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Read, J C A

    2015-06-18

    Human psychophysics is the quantitative measurement of our own perceptions. In essence, it is simply a more sophisticated version of what humans have done since time immemorial: noticed and reflected upon what we can see, hear, and feel. In the 21st century, when hugely powerful techniques are available that enable us to probe the innermost structure and function of nervous systems, is human psychophysics still relevant? I argue that it is, and that in combination with other techniques, it will continue to be a key part of neuroscience for the foreseeable future. I discuss these points in detail using the example of binocular stereopsis, where human psychophysics in combination with physiology and computational vision, has made a substantial contribution. Copyright © 2014 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  11. Contradictions porteñas: modernity, modernism and modernization in Jorge Luis Borges during the 1920’s

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Demenech

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the article is discuss the concepts of modernity, modernism and modernization from the propositions raised by Marshal Berman and Néstor García Canclini. The fierce transformation of Buenos Aires during the 1920’s will be the focus of the analysis. To this end, we use the work of argentine poet Jorge Luis Borges to comprehend the development of these processes in the urban space of Buenos Aires.

  12. Hominisation and humanisation: a perspective from the sociology of technics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ernst Wolff

    2006-04-01

    Full Text Available This essay will present a few challenges to a new Humanism from the perspective of the sociology of technics. For this purpose Humanism will be described as an effort to intervene in the process of human formation or hominisation. In order to intervene an understanding of this process is needed. Hominisation starts in the Palaeolithic era: technics, religion, language and the human being mutually give birth to one another. Reference will be made especially to the work of Leroi-Gourhan and Girard to analyse this point. Hominisation, however, is a continuous process and has not come to an end. The most recent phase of our hominisation is the industrial revolution: Western modernisation seems to be the future of global humanity. But industrialisation spreads unevenly, leading to a varied network of the human conditions, of advantages and disadvantages. A critical assessment of Africa’s position in the global politics of technics will lead to a description of inhuman conditions as part of the network of industrialisation. The scale and extent of misery tolerated and produced by this era of hominisation could be considered as a possible springboard from where to reflect on a contemporary global Humanism even after the ‘death of God’ in modernity. But to what extent does modernisation allow intervention in the process of industrial hominisation in order to give it the quality of humanization? Aspects of theories on multiple or alternative modernities are considered. A suggestion to the kind of humanist orientation solicited by the inhuman condition of misery is presented with reference to Nussbaum’s capabilities theory. Finding the content of a new Humanism is, however, only a beginning of a new humanization. The technical conditions for the possibility of a new Humanism and of its transmission are reflected on. In conclusion, on the basis of the preceding analyses, five technics-orientated tasks for a new Humanism will be identified.

  13. Role of the Information Professional in the Development and Promotion of Digital Humanities Content for Research, Teaching, and Learning in the Modern Academic Library: An Irish Case Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burns, Jane A.

    2016-01-01

    The Internet has been the catalyst for the convergence of many subject areas and online platforms. Information professionals such as Archivists, IT developers and especially Librarians have been impacted in the development and promotion of digital humanities content for research, teaching, and learning in the modern academic library. In this case…

  14. Modern Soft Tissue Pathology | Center for Cancer Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    This book comprehensively covers modern soft tissue pathology and includes both tumors and non-neoplastic entities. Soft tissues make up a large bulk of the human body, and they are susceptible to a wide range of diseases. Many soft-tissue tumors are biologically very aggressive, and the chance of them metastasizing to vital organs is quite high. In recent years, the outlook

  15. Nuclear weapons modernizations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kristensen, Hans M. [Federation of American Scientists, Washington, DC (United States)

    2014-05-09

    This article reviews the nuclear weapons modernization programs underway in the world's nine nuclear weapons states. It concludes that despite significant reductions in overall weapons inventories since the end of the Cold War, the pace of reductions is slowing - four of the nuclear weapons states are even increasing their arsenals, and all the nuclear weapons states are busy modernizing their remaining arsenals in what appears to be a dynamic and counterproductive nuclear competition. The author questions whether perpetual modernization combined with no specific plan for the elimination of nuclear weapons is consistent with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and concludes that new limits on nuclear modernizations are needed.

  16. Records of human occupation from Pleistocene river terrace and aeolian sediments in the Arneiro depression (Lower Tejo River, central eastern Portugal)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cunha, Pedro P.; Almeida, Nelson A.C.; Aubry, Thierry

    2012-01-01

    In the uppermost reach of the Lower Tejo River (eastern central Portugal), where the river crosses two quartzite ridges that separate the Ródão (upstream) and Arneiro (downstream) depressions, Palaeolithic artefacts have been recovered from three lower river terrace levels and a cover unit of aeo...

  17. Physical Education between the social project of solid modernity and the of liquid modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sidinei Pithan da Silva

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available Grounded on Bauman’s thought, the present paper focuses on the constitution of social legitimacy and identity of Physical Education in the context of transition from solid to liquid modernity. This thought favors the understanding of the nature of the crisis that has crossed the identity discourse of Physical Education. The text signals the limits and possibilities of both the modern and the post-modern educational discourses. In this context, it describes a modern scenario that is marked by two distinct moments, the one of modernity at its solid stage, and that of modernity at its liquid stage. The first one, of solid modernity, social condition of surveillance, rationalization and control, performs the functional / adaptive role of putting everyone under the same rigid order (managed society. The second one, of liquid modernity, of the social condition of insignificance and irrationalism, plays the functional role of putting and keeping everyone under the same flexible Market disorder. From the scientific, mechanic focus of both the body and the physical education in solid modernity we have moved to the relativist and esthetic focus of body and physical education in liquid modernity.

  18. Oceanic dispersal, vicariance and human introduction shaped the modern distribution of the termites Reticulitermes, Heterotermes and Coptotermes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bourguignon, Thomas; Lo, Nathan; Šobotník, Jan; Sillam-Dussès, David; Roisin, Yves; Evans, Theodore A

    2016-03-30

    Reticulitermes, Heterotermes and Coptotermes form a small termite clade with partly overlapping distributions. Although native species occur across all continents, the factors influencing their distribution are poorly known. Here, we reconstructed the historical biogeography of these termites using mitochondrial genomes of species collected on six continents. Our analyses showed that Reticulitermes split from Heterotermes + Coptotermesat 59.5 Ma (49.9-69.5 Ma 95% CI), yet the oldest split within Reticulitermes(Eurasia and North America) is 16.1 Ma (13.4-19.5 Ma) and the oldest split within Heterotermes + Coptotermesis 36.0 Ma (33.9-40.5 Ma). We detected 14 disjunctions between biogeographical realms, all of which occurred within the last 34 Ma, not only after the break-up of Pangaea, but also with the continents in similar to current positions. Land dispersal over land bridges explained four disjunctions, oceanic dispersal by wood rafting explained eight disjunctions, and human introduction was the source of two recent disjunctions. These wood-eating termites, therefore, appear to have acquired their modern worldwide distribution through multiple dispersal processes, with oceanic dispersal and human introduction favoured by the ecological traits of nesting in wood and producing replacement reproductives. © 2016 The Author(s).

  19. Study of the paleolithic parietal art from the archaeological perspective: old ghosts / new approaches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clara Hernando Álvarez

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims to analyse the parietal palaeolithic graphic designs from an archaeological perspective, leaving aside the aesthetic ties of traditional historiography. Traditional European analysis techniques of palaeolithic rock art will be contrasted with new interdisciplinary applications, looking for an archaeological knowledge about the artistic graphic expression of prehistoric societies. Finally, a methodological trial will be suggestedapplying the Harris Matrix in the reading and arrangement (ordination of the palaeolithic graphic designs of the central panel of Llonin's cave (Peñamellera Alta, Asturias.

  20. 'Modern Slavery' : Does International Law Distinguish between Slavery, Enslavement and Trafficking?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Siller, Nicole

    2016-01-01

    Although distinct legal definitions exist, rhetoric concerning slavery and enslavement is consistently intertwined with human trafficking. These concepts, along with many other exploitative practices are often collectively labelled: ‘modern slavery’ or some variation thereof. This term enjoys no

  1. EGO SINTONIK TOKOH-TOKOH HOMOSEKSUAL DALAM NOVEL INDONESIA MODERN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iswadi Bahardur

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Various human  behavior in  life is the  result  of conflict and reconciliation of aspects of personality called the id, ego, and superego. Unbalance function of these aspects will result in the emergence of deviant behavior. The uncontrolled aspect of ego causes people do not able to consider the feasibility of actions in terms of moral values, tends behalf of self pleasure without measure the value of good and bad. Homosexual behavior is one of theexamples of deviant behavior in human is caused by uncontrolled ego aspect by another aspect of personalities.One  of  the  phenomenon  in  modern  Indonesian  novels  is  rampant  homosexual themes which also being warmly discussed in various countries in the world now. In reality, few  countries  in  the  world  even  has  legalized  homosexual  marriage.  The  emergence  of homosexual themes in reality imaginative novels of modern Indonesian literature indicates that it reflects the problems that raged in the community in which the work was created.This study aimed to describe the human syntonic ego problem with homosexual behavior, especially the characters contained in the novels of modern Indonesia. The results showed  that  homosexual  characters,  gay  (homosexual  designation  for  men  and  lesbian (homosexual designation for women in the novels that became the source of the data has syntonic ego. The sexual orientation of these characters are deviate, like the same sex. The characters are comfortable with their sexual orientation, not in conflict with himself, and not trying to change their sexual orientation to be normal.

  2. 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”

  3. On Heidegger, medicine, and the modernity of modern medical technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brassington, Iain

    2007-06-01

    This paper examines medicine's use of technology in a manner from a standpoint inspired by Heidegger's thinking on technology. In the first part of the paper, I shall suggest an interpretation of Heidegger's thinking on the topic, and attempt to show why he associates modern technology with danger. However, I shall also claim that there is little evidence that medicine's appropriation of modern technology is dangerous in Heidegger's sense, although there is no prima facie reason why it mightn't be. The explanation for this, I claim, is ethical. There is an initial attraction to the thought that Heidegger's thought echoes Kantian moral thinking, but I shall dismiss this. Instead, I shall suggest that the considerations that make modern technology dangerous for Heidegger are simply not in the character - the ethos - of medicine properly understood. This is because there is a distinction to be drawn between chronological and historical modernity, and that even up-to-date medicine, empowered by technology, retains in its ethos crucial aspects of a historically pre-modern understanding of technology. A large part of the latter half of the paper will be concerned with explaining the difference.

  4. The Society Problems in the Modern Islamic Poetry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anas H. Saeed

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available This research addresses the problems faced by the modern communities in terms of its social milieu. It also tries to shed some light on the most prominent of these problems that are monitored by the modern Muslims poets in their poetries and poems. These societal challenges involve homelessness, poverty and hunger, delusion and confusion, freedom restriction and injustice; cruelty of the society, sadness and worry, depression, drug addiction as well as moral corruption and the exploitation of women. These poets put their hands on those risks and social ills as a prelude to offer solutions to them to provide a decent life for human being and to build new societies towards being more stable and secure; full of happiness; respect; freedom; justice and to live a prosperous carefree life.

  5. Identification of Microorganisms by Modern Analytical Techniques.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buszewski, Bogusław; Rogowska, Agnieszka; Pomastowski, Paweł; Złoch, Michał; Railean-Plugaru, Viorica

    2017-11-01

    Rapid detection and identification of microorganisms is a challenging and important aspect in a wide range of fields, from medical to industrial, affecting human lives. Unfortunately, classical methods of microorganism identification are based on time-consuming and labor-intensive approaches. Screening techniques require the rapid and cheap grouping of bacterial isolates; however, modern bioanalytics demand comprehensive bacterial studies at a molecular level. Modern approaches for the rapid identification of bacteria use molecular techniques, such as 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing based on polymerase chain reaction or electromigration, especially capillary zone electrophoresis and capillary isoelectric focusing. However, there are still several challenges with the analysis of microbial complexes using electromigration technology, such as uncontrolled aggregation and/or adhesion to the capillary surface. Thus, an approach using capillary electrophoresis of microbial aggregates with UV and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight MS detection is presented.

  6. Cytogenetics And Its Relevance to the Practice of Modern Medicine ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This review outlines the importance of cytogenetics in modern medicine, the need to develop the application to the level of a full discipline in Nigeria to prevent and control these disorders and reawaken the interest of scientists and postgraduate students in this all-important discipline. Keywords: Human cytogenetics ...

  7. A philosophical theory on human communication and modern physics: e(,2)c(,2)H('2)T energy-exchange and consciousness-change toward humanism, healing, and transformation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jenkins-Tate, Marnishia Laverne

    This dissertation addresses the need for a body of human communication theory that can be useful toward advancing personal and social transformation. Of the humanistic genre, it suggests that there is a need to promote humanism, healing, and personal transformation in the non-clinical settings of everyday living. Three questions guide the effort. First, it asks: what kind of human communication theory might describe some of the underlying dynamics of human interaction, while also suggesting ways to improve the quality of interactions of any related philosophical theory be grounded by some scientific discipline? Then finally, it asks: how might these proposed concepts be captured in a manner that can be useful to human beings in everyday human interaction? Extending the work of modern physics to the realm of human communication, the theory integrates conceptual aspects of quantum theory, relativity theory, communication accommodation theory, and various nonverbal communication theory. Then, it proposes the philosophical framework for a new body of theory which it calls the energy-exchange theory of human communication. Treating human beings as living forms of matter, it suggests that ``energy'' is the life-force that sustains all human beings, and that ``consciousness'' is that qualitative level of development at which energy manifests itself in the human experience. It proposes that human beings have the capacity to exchange energy and influence consciousness during the human communication process, and that these interactions can advance humanism, healing, and transformation-which it proposes are the higher states and levels of human consciousness. Thus, this research effort sought to know and to describe a phenomenon that is the interactive human being; and to suggest useful ways that this volitional being can know and transform itself through human interaction. With verisimilitude as a driving factor in describing human beings as communicators, the research is

  8. A decorated raven bone from the Zaskalnaya VI (Kolosovskaya) Neanderthal site, Crimea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, Sarah; Stepanchuk, Vadim; Tsvelykh, Alexander; d’Errico, Francesco

    2017-01-01

    We analyze a radius bone fragment of a raven (Corvus corax) from Zaskalnaya VI rock shelter, Crimea. The object bears seven notches and comes from an archaeological level attributed to a Micoquian industry dated to between 38 and 43 cal kyr BP. Our study aims to examine the degree of regularity and intentionality of this set of notches through their technological and morphometric analysis, complemented by comparative experimental work. Microscopic analysis of the notches indicate that they were produced by the to-and-fro movement of a lithic cutting edge and that two notches were added to fill in the gap left between previously cut notches, probably to increase the visual consistency of the pattern. Multivariate analysis of morphometric data recorded on the archaeological notches and sets of notches cut by nine modern experimenters on radii of domestic turkeys shows that the variations recorded on the Zaskalnaya set are comparable to experimental sets made with the aim of producing similar, parallel, equidistant notches. Identification of the Weber Fraction, the constant that accounts for error in human perception, for equidistant notches cut on bone rods and its application to the Zaskalnaya set of notches and thirty-six sets of notches incised on seventeen Upper Palaeolithic bone objects from seven sites indicate that the Zaskalnaya set falls within the range of variation of regularly spaced experimental and Upper Palaeolithic sets of notches. This suggests that even if the production of the notches may have had a utilitarian reason the notches were made with the goal of producing a visually consistent pattern. This object represents the first instance of a bird bone from a Neanderthal site bearing modifications that cannot be explained as the result of butchery activities and for which a symbolic argument can be built on direct rather than circumstantial evidence. PMID:28355292

  9. The 'sialo-microbial-dental complex' in oral health and disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaidonis, John; Townsend, Grant

    2016-01-01

    Biofilms are naturally found in all wet environments including the oral structures of nearly all species. Human oral biofilms have existed since our earliest ancestors and have evolved symbiotically with the dentition over many millennia within a Palaeolithic, hunter-gatherer setting. Irrespective of the plant-animal ratio, it can be argued that the Palaeolithic diet was essentially acidic, and acted as a selective force for much of the evolution of the stomatognathic system. The relationship between saliva, biofilm and teeth, the 'sialo-microbial-dental complex', provides oral health benefits and offers a different perspective to the old dental paradigm that only associated oral biofilms (plaque) with disease (caries). This new paradigm emphasises that oral biofilms are essential for the 'mineral maintenance' of teeth. Oral biofilms provide physical protection from dietary acid and together with bacterial metabolic acids cause the resting pH of the biofilm to fall below neutral. This is then followed by the re-establishment of a neutral environment by chemical interactions mediated by the saliva within the biofilm. Such pH fluctuations are often responsible for the cyclic demineralisation, then remineralisation of teeth, a process necessary for tooth maturation. However, since the advent of farming and especially since the industrial revolution, the increase in consumption of carbohydrates, refined sugars and acidic drinks has changed the ecology of biofilms. Biofilm biodiversity is significantly reduced together with a proliferation of acidogenic and aciduric organisms, tipping the balance of the 'demin-remin' cycle towards net mineral loss and hence caries. In addition, the consumption of acidic drinks in today's societies has removed the protective nature of the biofilm, leading to erosion. Erosion and caries are 'modern-day' diseases and reflect an imbalance within the oral biofilm resulting in the demineralisation of teeth. Copyright © 2015 The Authors

  10. A decorated raven bone from the Zaskalnaya VI (Kolosovskaya) Neanderthal site, Crimea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Majkić, Ana; Evans, Sarah; Stepanchuk, Vadim; Tsvelykh, Alexander; d'Errico, Francesco

    2017-01-01

    We analyze a radius bone fragment of a raven (Corvus corax) from Zaskalnaya VI rock shelter, Crimea. The object bears seven notches and comes from an archaeological level attributed to a Micoquian industry dated to between 38 and 43 cal kyr BP. Our study aims to examine the degree of regularity and intentionality of this set of notches through their technological and morphometric analysis, complemented by comparative experimental work. Microscopic analysis of the notches indicate that they were produced by the to-and-fro movement of a lithic cutting edge and that two notches were added to fill in the gap left between previously cut notches, probably to increase the visual consistency of the pattern. Multivariate analysis of morphometric data recorded on the archaeological notches and sets of notches cut by nine modern experimenters on radii of domestic turkeys shows that the variations recorded on the Zaskalnaya set are comparable to experimental sets made with the aim of producing similar, parallel, equidistant notches. Identification of the Weber Fraction, the constant that accounts for error in human perception, for equidistant notches cut on bone rods and its application to the Zaskalnaya set of notches and thirty-six sets of notches incised on seventeen Upper Palaeolithic bone objects from seven sites indicate that the Zaskalnaya set falls within the range of variation of regularly spaced experimental and Upper Palaeolithic sets of notches. This suggests that even if the production of the notches may have had a utilitarian reason the notches were made with the goal of producing a visually consistent pattern. This object represents the first instance of a bird bone from a Neanderthal site bearing modifications that cannot be explained as the result of butchery activities and for which a symbolic argument can be built on direct rather than circumstantial evidence.

  11. Place and Role Modern Man in Planetary Existence: Biopolitical Interpretation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sergiy Kostyuchkov

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The article presents the views of some human studies, given its complex, biosocial nature; states that the process of human being in the world is characterized by ambiguity, stochasticity and eventuality; being determines the nature of man, his nature as universal and at the same time — the particular substance. The role of biology which takes continuous features not only the natural sciences but also socio-humanitarian knowledge. Emphasized that bivalent of human nature, caused by contradictions between the biological and the social, physical and mental, universal and particular, rational and emotional, sacred and profane — in a new type of civilization is certainly relevant. We give an overview of modern approaches to the treatment of biopolitics, which establishes the necessary common, essential interactive communications between people, including its biosocial nature, and structural elements are constructed of a political design. The tendencies of the modern world, given that the post-industrial society individual who professes utilitarian, consumer values, no longer able to adequately respond to the challenges dictated by the realities of the twenty-first century; concluded that humanity must appeal to the eternal spiritual values, understand themselves an integral part of nature and part of Space, formulate environmental and cosmic consciousness in order to get out of the trap of global conflicts, prevent moral degradation and avoid self-destruction.

  12. Modernization of I and C: A stepwise learning process with a final vision

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gemst, P. van

    1998-01-01

    In spite of some political signals it is expected that the life time of nuclear power plants in the Nordic countries will be as designed for. As the economical life time of the I and C equipment is less than the corresponding life time of the plant a strategy for modernization of it must be developed. To modernize equipment during ongoing operation of the plant is not only a technical challenge but also a challenge to human relations. I will give a unique chance for the old generation, who built the plants, and the young generation, who have to modernize the plants, to discuss common problems and new ideas. The purpose of this paper is to summarize some important aspects which can be included in the content of the planned IAEA book. Furthermore some examples of modernization project in Sweden are given. (author)

  13. The modernization of the process computer of the Trillo Nuclear Power Plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martin Aparicio, J.; Atanasio, J.

    2011-01-01

    The paper describes the modernization of the Process computer of the Trillo Nuclear Power Plant. The process computer functions, have been incorporated in the non Safety I and C platform selected in Trillo NPP: the Siemens SPPA-T2000 OM690 (formerly known as Teleperm XP). The upgrade of the Human Machine Interface of the control room has been included in the project. The modernization project has followed the same development process used in the upgrade of the process computer of PWR German nuclear power plants. (Author)

  14. Long Day's Journey into Night: Modernism, Post-Modernism and Maternal Loss

    OpenAIRE

    Meaney, Gerardine

    2009-01-01

    Long Day's journey into Night may seem a strange starting place for a feminist analysis of modernism and post-modernism. Yet even the most conservative criticism reads this play as an enactment and embodiment of loss, specifically loss of the mother. That loss is rarely seen in the context of a more general "loss", a cultural loss of legitimacy and authenticity, endemic in and enabling modernism, articulated as "disinheritance" by an Other "coded as feminine."

  15. 76 FR 64354 - Burden of Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act Fee Amounts on Small...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-10-18

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Food and Drug Administration [Docket No. FDA-2011-N-0529] Burden of Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act Fee Amounts on Small Business... amounts on small business, as set forth in the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). In particular...

  16. 76 FR 45818 - Burden of Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act Fee Amounts on Small...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-08-01

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Food and Drug Administration [Docket No. FDA-2011-N-0529] Burden of Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act Fee Amounts on Small Business... burden of fee amounts on small business, as set forth in the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA...

  17. Why did occidental modernity fail in the Arab Middle East: the failed modern state?

    OpenAIRE

    Sardar, Aziz

    2011-01-01

    This thesis asks a straightforward but nevertheless a complex question, that is: Why did modernity fail in the Arab Middle East? The notion of modernity in this thesis signifies the occidental modernity which reached the region in many different forms and through various channels. This occidental modernity had an impact on many areas and changed the societies and politics of the region. But these changes stopped short of reaching modernity, in other words it failed to change the society from ...

  18. Receptor-binding properties of modern human influenza viruses primarily isolated in Vero and MDCK cells and chicken embryonated eggs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mochalova, Larisa; Gambaryan, Alexandra; Romanova, Julia; Tuzikov, Alexander; Chinarev, Alexander; Katinger, Dietmar; Katinger, Herman; Egorov, Andrej; Bovin, Nicolai

    2003-01-01

    To study the receptor specificity of modern human influenza H1N1 and H3N2 viruses, the analogs of natural receptors, namely sialyloligosaccharides conjugated with high molecular weight (about 1500 kDa) polyacrylamide as biotinylated and label-free probes, have been used. Viruses isolated from clinical specimens were grown in African green monkey kidney (Vero) or Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells and chicken embryonated eggs. All Vero-derived viruses had hemagglutinin (HA) sequences indistinguishable from original viruses present in clinical samples, but HAs of three of seven tested MDCK-derived isolates had one or two amino acid substitutions. Despite these host-dependent mutations and differences in the structure of HA molecules of individual strains, all studied Vero- and MDCK-isolated viruses bound to Neu5Ac α2-6Galβ1-4GlcNAc (6'SLN) essentially stronger than to Neu5Acα2-6Galβ1-4Glc (6'SL). Such receptor-binding specificity has been typical for earlier isolated H1N1 human influenza viruses, but there is a new property of H3N2 viruses that has been circulating in the human population during recent years. Propagation of human viruses in chicken embryonated eggs resulted in a selection of variants with amino acid substitutions near the HA receptor-binding site, namely Gln226Arg or Asp225Gly for H1N1 viruses and Leu194Ile and Arg220Ser for H3N2 viruses. These HA mutations disturb the observed strict 6'SLN specificity of recent human influenza viruses

  19. Revolutions in energy input and material cycling in Earth history and human history

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenton, Timothy M.; Pichler, Peter-Paul; Weisz, Helga

    2016-04-01

    Major revolutions in energy capture have occurred in both Earth and human history, with each transition resulting in higher energy input, altered material cycles and major consequences for the internal organization of the respective systems. In Earth history, we identify the origin of anoxygenic photosynthesis, the origin of oxygenic photosynthesis, and land colonization by eukaryotic photosynthesizers as step changes in free energy input to the biosphere. In human history we focus on the Palaeolithic use of fire, the Neolithic revolution to farming, and the Industrial revolution as step changes in free energy input to human societies. In each case we try to quantify the resulting increase in energy input, and discuss the consequences for material cycling and for biological and social organization. For most of human history, energy use by humans was but a tiny fraction of the overall energy input to the biosphere, as would be expected for any heterotrophic species. However, the industrial revolution gave humans the capacity to push energy inputs towards planetary scales and by the end of the 20th century human energy use had reached a magnitude comparable to the biosphere. By distinguishing world regions and income brackets we show the unequal distribution in energy and material use among contemporary humans. Looking ahead, a prospective sustainability revolution will require scaling up new renewable and decarbonized energy technologies and the development of much more efficient material recycling systems - thus creating a more autotrophic social metabolism. Such a transition must also anticipate a level of social organization that can implement the changes in energy input and material cycling without losing the large achievements in standard of living and individual liberation associated with industrial societies.

  20. [Modern-day slavery as a public health issue].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leão, Luís Henrique da Costa

    2016-12-01

    Modern-day slave labor is one of the most pernicious and persistent social problems in Brazil. In the light of the need to implement a national occupational health policy, this paper discusses slave labor as a public health concern, highlighting possibilities for broadening strategies for vigilance and comprehensive care for this specific working population. Exploratory qualitative research was carried out based on the "social construction of reality" proposed by Lenoir, Berger and Luckmann. The investigation consisted of a theoretical review of modern-day slave labor on the national and international scene within the scope of the human, social and public health sciences and an analysis of social and political practices to tackle modern-day slave labor was conducted in the State of Rio de Janeiro. Semi-structured individual and group interviews with workers and representatives of social movements and public institutions were organized. The results reveal the theoretical and practical dimensions of slave labor and its relations with the health field and highlight the role and potential of public health in the enhancing of vigilance practices and health care of workers subjected to these chronic social conditions.

  1. A Business Case for Nuclear Plant Control Room Modernization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thomas, Ken; Lawrie, Sean; Niedermuller, Josef M.

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents a generic business case for implementation of technology that supports Control Room Modernization (CRM). The analysis presented in two forms; 1) a standalone technology upgrade, and 2) a technology upgrade that is built upon and incremental to a prior business case created for Mobile Work Packages (MWP). The business case contends that advanced communication and networking and analytical technologies will allow NPP to conduct control room operations with improved focus by reducing human factors and redundant manpower, and therefore operate with fewer errors. While some labor savings can be harvested in terms of overtime, the majority of savings are demonstrated as reduced time to take the plant off line and bring back on line in support of outages. The benefits are quantified to a rough order of magnitude that provides directional guidance to NPPs that are interested in developing a similar business case. This business case focuses on modernization of the operator control room and does not consider a complete overhaul and modernization of a plants instrument and control systems. While operators may be considering such an investment at their plants, the sizable capital investment required is not likely supported by a cost/benefit analysis alone. More likely, it is driven by obsolescence and reliability issues, and requires consideration of mechanical condition of plant systems, capital depreciation, financing, relicensing and overall viability of the plant asset over a 20-year horizon in a competitive market. Prior studies [REF] have indicated that such a modernization of plant I&C systems, alone or as part of a larger modernization effort, can yield very significant reductions in O&M costs. However, the depth of research and analysis required to develop a meaningful business case for a plant modernization effort is well beyond the scope of this study. While CRM as considered in this study can be easily integrated as part of grander plant

  2. A Business Case for Nuclear Plant Control Room Modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thomas, Ken [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Lawrie, Sean [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Niedermuller, Josef M. [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

    2016-06-01

    This paper presents a generic business case for implementation of technology that supports Control Room Modernization (CRM). The analysis presented in two forms; 1) a standalone technology upgrade, and 2) a technology upgrade that is built upon and incremental to a prior business case created for Mobile Work Packages (MWP). The business case contends that advanced communication and networking and analytical technologies will allow NPP to conduct control room operations with improved focus by reducing human factors and redundant manpower, and therefore operate with fewer errors. While some labor savings can be harvested in terms of overtime, the majority of savings are demonstrated as reduced time to take the plant off line and bring back on line in support of outages. The benefits are quantified to a rough order of magnitude that provides directional guidance to NPPs that are interested in developing a similar business case. This business case focuses on modernization of the operator control room and does not consider a complete overhaul and modernization of a plants instrument and control systems. While operators may be considering such an investment at their plants, the sizable capital investment required is not likely supported by a cost/benefit analysis alone. More likely, it is driven by obsolescence and reliability issues, and requires consideration of mechanical condition of plant systems, capital depreciation, financing, relicensing and overall viability of the plant asset over a 20-year horizon in a competitive market. Prior studies [REF] have indicated that such a modernization of plant I&C systems, alone or as part of a larger modernization effort, can yield very significant reductions in O&M costs. However, the depth of research and analysis required to develop a meaningful business case for a plant modernization effort is well beyond the scope of this study. While CRM as considered in this study can be easily integrated as part of grander plant

  3. The dental calculus metabolome in modern and historic samples

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Velsko, Irina M.; Overmyer, Katherine A.; Speller, Camilla

    2017-01-01

    Introduction: Dental calculus is a mineralized microbial dental plaque biofilm that forms throughout life by precipitation of salivary calcium salts. Successive cycles of dental plaque growth and calcification make it an unusually well-preserved, long-term record of host-microbial interaction...... in the archaeological record. Recent studies have confirmed the survival of authentic ancient DNA and proteins within historic and prehistoric dental calculus, making it a promising substrate for investigating oral microbiome evolution via direct measurement and comparison of modern and ancient specimens. Objective: We...... present the first comprehensive characterization of the human dental calculus metabolome using a multi-platform approach. Methods: Ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS) quantified 285 metabolites in modern and historic (200 years old) dental calculus, including...

  4. Modern Management, Individualization and Maintenance of Collective Interests: A Complex Cocktail

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Vibeke

    2003-01-01

    One of the objectives of modern management is to mobilize and develop human ressources while simultaneously sharing responsibility with employees, thus, giving them a chance to actively contribute to the development of their work in a way that promotes flexibility, effiency and quality. This idea...

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

    Science.gov (United States)

    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.

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

    Science.gov (United States)

    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

  7. What Is Well-Being In The Modern Society: Objective View

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alatartseva Elena

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The topic of the well-being of human and society has always interested the great thinkers of the humankind. However, conceptually, as a problem of the state and public, this topic fully emerged only in the aftermath of the Second World War in the past century, and it became especially topical in the mid-60s, when a special organization was founded on the basis of the United Nations Organization, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP, 1965. Well-being became a popular topic for various sociopolitical, socio-economic, cultural, and historical theoretical research and applied programmes. However, there is no unanimously agreed definition of this category or an unanimously agreed approach to its research and evaluation of its value and importance to the human and the society. The present article continues a cycle of the author’s articles devoted to the research of human well-being in nowadays conditions. It looks into the basic concepts, conceptual grounds, and contradictions shaping the key aspects of this broad topic, as well as the fundamental causes and possible methodological misconceptions influencing both their development and the attitude to them of a human, society, state. The article provides extensive statistical data which illustrate the enormous, egregious ill-being of a large part of human society in the modern world. Also, in the article we have undertaken an attempt to define well-being as a multiple-aspect concept and to present a detailed analysis of fundamental causes of the modern ill-being on a massive scale.

  8. 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.

  9. Understanding modern transparency

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Meijer, A.J.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/172436729

    2009-01-01

    Proponents and opponents fiercely debate whether computer-mediated transparency has a positive effect on trust in the public sector. This article enhances our understanding of transparency by presenting three perspectives: a premodern, modern and post-modern perspective, and analyzing the basic

  10. The Multiple Modernities of Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thomassen, Bjørn

    What Europe? Eric Voegelin on the Mediterranean and the Atlantic modernities. The concept ‘multiple modernities’ has during the last decade established itself in social and political theory, not least due to contributions made by Shmul Eisenstadt. The debate on multiple moderntities has served...... to question certain eurocentric assumptions about modernity and has also reignited the question of European particularity in a world historical perspective. This paper will discuss how ‘Europe’ itself can be considered a result of (at least) two different modernities, as proposed by the political theorist......, Eric Voegelin. Eric Voegelin talked of two spatio-temporal specific modernities, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic modernities. In short, for Voegelin the Atlantic modernity with its breakthroughs in the 17th and 18th centuries was a specific figuration that should not be mistaken for ‘modernity...

  11. The Imaginary Significations of Modernity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Carleheden, Mikael

    2010-01-01

    This article deals with the concept of modernity upon which one of the most interesting contemporary theories about modern social change is based - Peter Wagner's theory of successive modernities. Wagner understands modernity as a double imaginary signification which entails a basic tension between...... liberty and discipline. This conception is almost directly taken from Cornelius Castoriadis. I argue that this tension exists in two versions in Castoriadis' philosophy and that the two versions are incompatible. It is further claimed that the two versions reappear in Wagner's theory, which makes his...... theory of successive modernities partly inconsistent. A stance is taken for one of these versions and it is argued that the theory of successive modernities should appropriate that version as its point of departure in order to grasp the history of modernity in a consistent way. Keywords: Cornelius...

  12. Modern Day Slavery: What Drives Human Trafficking in Europe?

    OpenAIRE

    Hernandez, Diego; Rudolph, Alexandra

    2011-01-01

    At a time of increased attention on the international agenda for human trafficking, this paper examines the determinants of human trafficking inflows to 13 European countries based on official records. By employing a fixed effects zero-inflated, negative binomial gravity-type model, we address data characteristics appropriately. The econometric analysis suggests that human trafficking occurs in well established routes for migrants and refugees. Victims are more likely to be transported to, an...

  13. The LGBT-Heroes in Modern Foreign Fairy Tales (How to Read With Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga Derkachova

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the LGBT-protagonists as a new type of heroes in modern foreign fairy tales. Such tales are becoming popular in the modern world. So, there is a problem to read or not to read them and if to read how to do it. The best thing is to analyze them not through the LGBT-base, but through the human being. The writers use traditional tale’s plots and heroes and just change sexual nature. LGBT-relationships are typically avoided in children’s books. Such tales put children towards understanding these relationships. They also show that protagonists’ features and acts are more important for readers than their homosexuality. A human with his feelings and acts is the main thing in LGBT-tales.

  14. Detecting human mobility in the Pyrenees through the analysis of chert tools during the Upper Palaeolithic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marta Sánchez de la Torre

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to present the preliminary results of PhD research focused on hunter-gatherer groups that occupied the Central and Eastern Pyrenees during the Magdalenian period. This research aims to improve the knowledge we have about those Magdalenian groups, specifically concerning their lithic procurement strategies. The core of the study is based on the lithic tools collected from two archaeological sites - Alonsé Cave and Forcas I Shelter, both in Huesca, Spain-, and in particular those made from chert, because they are both a spatial and a cultural marker at the same time. These cherts have been studied using petroarchaeological methods, and as a result, it has been possible to detect the type of procurement strategies carried out and to guess the relation existing between those human groups and their environment, especially in what refers to mobility strategies.

  15. Comparative usability of modern anaesthesia ventilators: a human factors study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spaeth, J; Schweizer, T; Schmutz, A; Buerkle, H; Schumann, S

    2017-11-01

    The anaesthesia ventilator represents the key equipment for intraoperative respiratory care. Improper operation of this device may threaten a patient's health. A self-explanatory interface facilitates handling and decreases the risk of operating errors. This study systematically evaluates the usability of user interfaces in four modern anaesthesia ventilators. Twenty naïve operators were asked to execute 20 tasks on each of four different anaesthesia ventilators (Avance CS2™, GE Healthcare; Flow-i™, Maquet; and Perseus™ and Primus™, Dräger) in a randomized order. The success of task execution, frequency of requests for assistance, and processing times were recorded. During the tasks, the operators' visual focus was measured via eye-tracking. Additionally, subjective assessments of usability were evaluated by a standardized questionnaire. For comparison, six experienced operators undertook the same protocol. The overall rate of falsely executed tasks was low. Naïve operators requested assistance least when using the Perseus (26). Pooled processing times were shortest for the Perseus (222 s), followed by the Primus (223 s), the Avance (238 s), and the Flow-i (353 s). Task-specific processing times differed considerably between the devices. Eye-tracking analyses revealed associated interface issues that impeded the operators' performance. Operators rated usability best for the Perseus [mean (sd): 67 (17) arbitrary units] and worst for the Flow-i [50 (16) arbitrary units]. Results from experienced operators support these findings by trend. The usability of modern anaesthesia ventilators differs considerably. Interface issues of specific tasks impair the operator's efficiency. Eliminating the specific usability issues might improve the operator's performance and, as a consequence, the patient's safety. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Journal of Anaesthesia. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please

  16. Interpreted Modernity. Weber and Taylor on Values and Modernity

    OpenAIRE

    Reckling, Falk

    2001-01-01

    The writings of Weber and Taylor have some strong affinities. Both start from the anthropological idea that man evaluates his position in the world and constitutes the social world by values. Their analyses of values aim at an understanding of those intersubjective meanings that have constituted western modernity. But, at the same time, their anthropological starting point leads to different interpretations of modernity. Historically, both argue that rationalization (as instrumental rationali...

  17. Human dignity and biomedical ethics from a Christian theological perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ulrich H.J. Körtner

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available The argument of human dignity plays an important role in current debates on human rights and their relevance in modern biomedicine. When discussing the contribution of Christian theology to current debates on human dignity and human rights the thesis is not that the modern idea of human dignity depends on a theological grounding. Also, it is not the task of theology to legitimate rights as Christian a posteriori. We do not need to deduce modern human rights from theological doctrines. The theological challenge is to find an access for Christians from their belief to the modern idea of human rights and human dignity and to discuss the contribution which theology and the churches can make to further development of human rights. The Christian image of man, which serves as the foundation for the church position on bioethical topics in the German-speaking context, is a mix of biblical motives, a Kantian interpretation of the concept of human dignity and an interpretation of the German constitutional law inspired by the Catholic tradition of natural law. The following presented theological understanding of human dignity, in contrast, was inspired by the insights of the Pauline doctrine of justification and its Protestant reinterpretation.

  18. 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

  19. The plateau of trials: modern ethnicity in Angola

    OpenAIRE

    Martins, Vasco

    2015-01-01

    Tese de Doutoramento em Estudos Africanos This thesis is a study about the modern ethnicity of the Ovimbundu of the central highlands of Angola. It shows how Ovimbundu conceptions of ethnicity became altered and enhanced by processes of modernisation, usually introduced by foreign agents, and how this modernisation came to play a critical role after independence. Following a contrast in existing literature between either the attribution of vital importance to ethnicity in human agency o...

  20. Productions, modern (Scandinavia)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lech, Marcel Lysgaard

    2017-01-01

    Greek comedy has never been as popular on the modern Scandinavian scene as Greek tragedy, but one play stands out among them all as a modern classic, Aristophanes’ Lysistrata, which has inspired many adaptations not only on the stage, but also in radio and cinema....

  1. From underclass to Homo sovieticus. Human constraints towards modernization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wojciech Woźniak

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This article aims to present the discursive processes that were used to justify the path chosen to implement the social and economic transformation to capitalism in Poland. Special attention is paid to the role of elites in shaping a public discourse which legitimized the significant pauperization in society and growth of income inequalities as being conditioned on individual defects and the “civilizational incompetence” of those at the bottom of the social structure. These citizens of Poland were presented as a constraint and obstacle to achieving a faster pace of modernization processes. This has influenced the thinking of politicians involved in policy-making at the national level, as well as the attitudes of those involved in the implementation of welfare measures at the local level. Furthermore, it has contributed to the unspoken consensus of all mainstream political parties over the neoliberal reforms in the economy and social policy.

  2. The relationships among jaw-muscle fiber architecture, jaw morphology, and feeding behavior in extant apes and modern humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Andrea B; Vinyard, Christopher J

    2013-05-01

    The jaw-closing muscles are responsible for generating many of the forces and movements associated with feeding. Muscle physiologic cross-sectional area (PCSA) and fiber length are two architectural parameters that heavily influence muscle function. While there have been numerous comparative studies of hominoid and hominin craniodental and mandibular morphology, little is known about hominoid jaw-muscle fiber architecture. We present novel data on masseter and temporalis internal muscle architecture for small- and large-bodied hominoids. Hominoid scaling patterns are evaluated and compared with representative New- (Cebus) and Old-World (Macaca) monkeys. Variation in hominoid jaw-muscle fiber architecture is related to both absolute size and allometry. PCSAs scale close to isometry relative to jaw length in anthropoids, but likely with positive allometry in hominoids. Thus, large-bodied apes may be capable of generating both absolutely and relatively greater muscle forces compared with smaller-bodied apes and monkeys. Compared with extant apes, modern humans exhibit a reduction in masseter PCSA relative to condyle-M1 length but retain relatively long fibers, suggesting humans may have sacrificed relative masseter muscle force during chewing without appreciably altering muscle excursion/contraction velocity. Lastly, craniometric estimates of PCSAs underestimate hominoid masseter and temporalis PCSAs by more than 50% in gorillas, and overestimate masseter PCSA by as much as 30% in humans. These findings underscore the difficulty of accurately estimating jaw-muscle fiber architecture from craniometric measures and suggest models of fossil hominin and hominoid bite forces will be improved by incorporating architectural data in estimating jaw-muscle forces. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Phenomenology of modern education quality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalya G. Kulikova

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The national priority question of education quality is considered in the article at the level of an in-depth – existential – function of the educational system, where the former arises. In that case, education appears not only as a social organism, but a fundamental form of understanding existence and self-realization of a person as a self-organized space and biosocial system in terms of an integral educational result. The mechanisms and effects of formal development logic become clear from such research perspective namely, that changes into philosophy of education in the shape of a single-dimensional methodological imperative and provides for an inconsistency of educational practice, achievement of some pedagogical aims at the expense and to the disadvantage of others. The limited nature of pedagogical thinking is not simply fixed in the paradoxes of human development as an individual and organism, but is considered as the main obstacle in the way of evolution of the Human-Nature-Society global system. The phenomenological comprehension of education problems supposes coming into the space of a spiritual idea, funding the process of searching for quality at different levels of human life and activities from within, which characterizes the topicality of the given article. The aim of the scientific research is to analyze factors limiting the process of modern human development, and to ground the necessity of the fundamental updating of the education model in the noospheric scientific paradigm. Theoretical methods of research are used in the paper: analysis of scientific literature, system analysis, analogy, systematization, and generalization. The research results are represented in the categories of education philosophy and focus the reader’s attention mainly on its critical-reflexive function. Elimination of the subject of education is considered as a logical result of phenomenological reduction of thinking that loses a higher level of

  4. COGNITIVE ASPECTS OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Spartak Sh. Aytov

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. The aim of this work is the intelligent reconstruction and the analysis of the various methodological approaches to cognitive areas of modern philosophy of history and determines their cognitive and academic relationships with conceptual terms of such branches of historical knowledge as historical anthropology. Methodology. Methodological tools of this work are such scientific approaches as methods of philosophy of science, interdisciplinary approach, methods of source and system analysis. Scientific novelty. Reproduced and analyzed was a number of methodological approaches inherent in the natural sciences and the social - the humanities. The latter, in accordance with the principles of interdisciplinary paradigm, is very widely applied by the modern philosophy of historical knowledge, in particular in the analysis of the historical process and its main elements: the mentality, attitudes and norms of socially significant and personal behavior of individuals and societies of the past. The influence of research on various historical and historical anthropological problems such concepts implanted in the methodology of modern philosophy of history scientific disciplines as chaos theory, synergetics, mathematical biology, ethnology, social psychology, etc. Focuses on intellectual connections are used in the philosophy of history, historical knowledge interdisciplinary methodology, theory and concepts of natural science and social - humanities. They are used to analyze and understand the complex and multifaceted historical events and processes. Conclusions. The result of the analysis of the cognitive dynamics applications in the philosophy of history of conceptual approaches of a very wide range of scientific disciplines has been the allocation of a number of phases of the mining process. Each of them has special logic - methodological and socio cultural characteristics ("Data". Internal, cognitive science dynamics of this unity was not the

  5. Cognitive Aspects of Modern Philosophy of Historical Knowledge

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Spartak Sh. Aytov

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. The aim of this work is the intelligent reconstruction and the analysis of the various methodological approaches to cognitive areas of modern philosophy of history and determines their cognitive and academic relationships with conceptual terms of such branches of historical knowledge as historical anthropology. Methodology. Methodological tools of this work are such scientific approaches as methods of philosophy of science, interdisciplinary approach, methods of source and system analysis. Scientific novelty. Reproduced and analyzed was a number of methodological approaches inherent in the natural sciences and the social - the humanities. The latter, in accordance with the principles of interdisciplinary paradigm, is very widely applied by the modern philosophy of historical knowledge, in particular in the analysis of the historical process and its main elements: the mentality, attitudes and norms of socially significant and personal behavior of individuals and societies of the past. The influence of research on various historical and historical anthropological problems such concepts implanted in the methodology of modern philosophy of history scientific disciplines as chaos theory, synergetics, mathematical biology, ethnology, social psychology, etc. Focuses on intellectual connections are used in the philosophy of history, historical knowledge interdisciplinary methodology, theory and concepts of natural science and social - humanities. They are used to analyze and understand the complex and multifaceted historical events and processes. Conclusions. The result of the analysis of the cognitive dynamics applications in the philosophy of history of conceptual approaches of a very wide range of scientific disciplines has been the allocation of a number of phases of the mining process. Each of them has special logic - methodological and socio cultural characteristics ("Data". Internal, cognitive science dynamics of this unity was not the

  6. Modern control technology for improved nuclear reactor performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oakes, L.C.

    1986-01-01

    One of the main complaints leveled at reactor control systems by utility spokesmen is complexity. One only has to look inside a power reactor control room to appreciate this viewpoint. The high reliability and versatility of modern microprocessors makes possible distributed control systems with only performance data and abnormal conditions being relayed to the control room. In a sense, this emulates the human-body control system where routine repetitive actions are handled in an involuntary manner. The significance of expert systems to the nuclear reactor control and safety systems is their ability to capture human and other expertise and make it available, upon demand, and under almost all circumstances. Thus, human problem-solving skills acquired by the learning process over a long period of time can be captured and employed with the reliability inherent in computers. This is especially important in nuclear plants when human operators are burdened by stress and emotional factors that have a dramatic effect on performance level

  7. METHODS OF TRAINING OF MODERN AIRCRAFT FLIGHT CREWS FOR INFLIGHT ABNORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yurii Hryshchenko

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: The purpose of this article is the theoretical justification of the existing methods and development of new methods of training the crews of modern aircraft for inflight abnormal circumstances. Methods: The article describes the research methods of engineering psychology, mathematical statistics and analysis of the correlation functions. Results: The example of the two accidents of aircraft with modern avionics is shown in the problem statement. The pilot made a sharp movement of the steering wheel while go-around, which has led to a sharp diving and impossibility of coming out of it. It was shown that the developed anti-stress training methods allow crews to train a human operator to prevent such events. The theoretical solution of the problem of optimization of the flight on the final approach, considering the human factor, is suggested to solve using the method of analysis of the autocorrelation function. Conclusions: It is necessary to additionally implement methods of teaching the counteracting of factorial overlaps into the training course using the complex modern aircraft simulators. It is enough to analyze a single pitch angle curve of the autocorrelation function to determine the phenomena of amplification of integral-differential motor dynamic stereotype of the pilot.

  8. Ravi Korisettar | Speakers | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Ravi Korisettar has conducted a series of investigations into the Palaeolithic and Neolithic cultures of southern India and excavated lower Palaeolithic landscapes in the Kaladgi Basin of Karnataka, a group of Later Pleistocene ... Importance of the Vindhya Basin in the prehistory of the Indian subcontinent View Presentation.

  9. Not only Chauvet: dating Aurignacian rock art in Altxerri B Cave (northern Spain).

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-Sainz, C; Ruiz-Redondo, A; Garate-Maidagan, D; Iriarte-Avilés, E

    2013-10-01

    The discovery and first dates of the paintings in Grotte Chauvet provoked a new debate on the origin and characteristics of the first figurative Palaeolithic art. Since then, other art ensembles in France and Italy (Aldène, Fumane, Arcy-sur-Cure and Castanet) have enlarged our knowledge of graphic activity in the early Upper Palaeolithic. This paper presents a chronological assessment of the Palaeolithic parietal ensemble in Altxerri B (northern Spain). When the study began in 2011, one of our main objectives was to determine the age of this pictorial phase in the cave. Archaeological, geological and stylistic evidence, together with radiometric dates, suggest an Aurignacian chronology for this art. The ensemble in Altxerri B can therefore be added to the small but growing number of sites dated in this period, corroborating the hypothesis of more complex and varied figurative art than had been supposed in the early Upper Palaeolithic. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Contrasting Modern and 10Be- derived erosion rates for the Southern Betic Cordillera, Spain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bellin, N.; Vanacker, V.; Kubik, P.

    2012-04-01

    In Europe, Southeast Spain was identified as one of the regions with major treat of desertification in the context of future land use and climate change. During the last years, significant progress has been made to understand spatial patterns of modern erosion rates in these semi-arid degraded environments. Numerous European projects have contributed to the collection of modern erosion data at different spatial scales for Southeast Spain. However, these data are rarely analysed in the context of long-term changes in vegetation, climate and human occupation. In this paper, we present Modern and Holocene denudation rates for small river basins (1 to 10 km2) located in the Spanish Betic Cordillera. Long-term erosion data were derived from cosmogenic nuclide analyses of river-borne sediment. Modern erosion data were quantified through analysis of sediment deposition volumes behind check dams, and represent average erosion rates over the last 10 to 40 years. Modern erosion rates are surprisingly low (mean erosion rate = 0.048 mm y-1; n=36). They indicate that the steep, sparsely vegetated hillslopes in the Betic Cordillera cannot directly be associated with high erosion rates. 10Be -derived erosion rates integrate over the last 37500 to 3500 years, and are roughly of the same magnitude. They range from 0.013 to 0.243 mm y-1 (mean denudation rate = 0.062 mm y-1 ± 0.054; n=20). Our data suggest that the modern erosion rates are similar to the long-term erosion rates in this area. This result is in contrast with the numerous reports on human-accelerated modern erosion rates for Southeast Spain. Interestingly, our new data on long-term erosion rates show a clear spatial pattern, with higher erosion rates in the Sierra Cabrera and lower erosion rates in Sierra de las Estancias, and Sierra Torrecilla. Preliminary geomorphometric analyses suggest that the spatial variation that we observe in long-term erosion rates is related to the gradient in uplift rates of the Betic

  11. The Influence of François Delsarte’s Ideas on the Modernity of Dance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Albertina Silva Grebler

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available This study discusses the influence François Delsarte’s ideas had on the pioneers of modern dance. Having rejected books on gestural rhetoric of his own time to conduct a rigorous study on human behavior in strong emotional situations, Delsarte established principles and systematized exercises that provided the pioneers of modern dance an alternative method of interpretation and creation, more centered on the subject and on their relationship with the environment, than on the imitation of traditional gestures. Delsarte’s system allowed modern creators to consider the took as a raw material for a research that was no longer defined by traditional techniques, but by the pursuit of a subjective form of corporeality.

  12. Handbook of Optimization From Classical to Modern Approach

    CERN Document Server

    Snášel, Václav; Abraham, Ajith

    2013-01-01

    Optimization problems were and still are the focus of mathematics from antiquity to the present. Since the beginning of our civilization, the human race has had to confront numerous technological challenges, such as finding the optimal solution of various problems including control technologies, power sources construction, applications in economy, mechanical engineering and energy distribution amongst others. These examples encompass both ancient as well as modern technologies like the first electrical energy distribution network in USA etc. Some of the key principles formulated in the middle ages were done by Johannes Kepler (Problem of the wine barrels), Johan Bernoulli (brachystochrone problem), Leonhard Euler (Calculus of Variations), Lagrange (Principle multipliers), that were formulated primarily in the ancient world and are of a geometric nature. In the beginning of the modern era, works of L.V. Kantorovich and G.B. Dantzig (so-called linear programming) can be considered amongst others. This book disc...

  13. Spotting modern Copenhagen

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ovesen, Hans; Bøgelund, Helle; Darger, Birgitte

    2002-01-01

    Med udgangspunkt i Københavns Rådhus og området omkring Banegårdspladsen analyseres Københavns indtræden i det moderne......Med udgangspunkt i Københavns Rådhus og området omkring Banegårdspladsen analyseres Københavns indtræden i det moderne...

  14. The Neanderthal meal: a new perspective using faecal biomarkers.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ainara Sistiaga

    Full Text Available Neanderthal dietary reconstructions have, to date, been based on indirect evidence and may underestimate the significance of plants as a food source. While zooarchaeological and stable isotope data have conveyed an image of Neanderthals as largely carnivorous, studies on dental calculus and scattered palaeobotanical evidence suggest some degree of contribution of plants to their diet. However, both views remain plausible and there is no categorical indication of an omnivorous diet. Here we present direct evidence of Neanderthal diet using faecal biomarkers, a valuable analytical tool for identifying dietary provenance. Our gas chromatography-mass spectrometry results from El Salt (Spain, a Middle Palaeolithic site dating to ca. 50,000 yr. BP, represents the oldest positive identification of human faecal matter. We show that Neanderthals, like anatomically modern humans, have a high rate of conversion of cholesterol to coprostanol related to the presence of required bacteria in their guts. Analysis of five sediment samples from different occupation floors suggests that Neanderthals predominantly consumed meat, as indicated by high coprostanol proportions, but also had significant plant intake, as shown by the presence of 5β-stigmastanol. This study highlights the applicability of the biomarker approach in Pleistocene contexts as a provider of direct palaeodietary information and supports the opportunity for further research into cholesterol metabolism throughout human evolution.

  15. The Fateful Rift: The San Andreas Fault in the Modern Mind.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Percy, Walker

    1990-01-01

    Claims that modern science is radically incoherent and that this incoherence lies within the practice of science. Details the work of the scientist and philosopher Charles Sanders Pierce, expounding on the difference between Rene Descartes' dualistic philosophy and Pierce's triadic view. Concludes with a brief description of the human existence.…

  16. Eastern Spiritual Traditions Through the Lens of Modern Scientific Worldview

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tetiana V. Danylova

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. This paper aims to analyze Eastern spiritual traditions in the context of modern scientific worldview. Methodology. The author has used hermeneutical methodology, along with integrative approach. Theoretical basis and results. Modern perception of the world is undergoing drastic changes: it shifts towards plurality, temporality, and complexity. Increasingly, people feel that their familiar world of order and stability gives way to chaotic, unpredictable world, which exists under its own rules. Old scientific theories, ideologies, and values are destroyed. This leads to awareness of imbalance, ambiguity of human existence and, thus, to the new explanation and understanding of reality. Today the universe is perceived through the lens of syncretism: it is impossible to separate human from nature, consciousness from matter, subject from object. Humanity faces such a chaotic, uncertain worldview not for the first time. Duality and attempts to overcome it permeate the entire history: from traditional archaic cultures to modern civilized societies. M. Foucault, J. Derrida, R. Barthes, U. Eco, G. Deleuze, J.-F.Lyotard urged to abandon dogmatism, monologue perception and explanation, interpretation based on binary oppositions. The world, which is necessary to reach, occurs to be Nothing, Nothingness. In this world, people are seeking for reality regardless of any rules, regulations, notions, and concepts. Here artificial constructs of the human mind, such as Material – Ideal, Determinism - Indeterminism, Finiteness - Infinity, Necessity – Randomness, are united. Trying to reconcile continuity of being with discreteness of consciousness, they appeal to Eastern mystical teachings, in particular, to Zen Buddhism. The core concept of this school is also based on the unity of all things and the idea of the singularity of the world. The main goal of Eastern mystical traditions is to achieve the state of absolute unity through meditative techniques

  17. EASTERN SPIRITUAL TRADITIONS THROUGH THE LENS OF MODERN SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tetiana V. Danylova

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. This paper aims to analyze Eastern spiritual traditions in the context of modern scientific worldview. Methodology. The author has used hermeneutical methodology, along with integrative approach. Theoretical basis and results. Modern perception of the world is undergoing drastic changes: it shifts towards plurality, temporality, and complexity. Increasingly, people feel that their familiar world of order and stability gives way to chaotic, unpredictable world, which exists under its own rules. Old scientific theories, ideologies, and values are destroyed. This leads to awareness of imbalance, ambiguity of human existence and, thus, to the new explanation and understanding of reality. Today the universe is perceived through the lens of syncretism: it is impossible to separate human from nature, consciousness from matter, subject from object. Humanity faces such a chaotic, uncertain worldview not for the first time. Duality and attempts to overcome it permeate the entire history: from traditional archaic cultures to modern civilized societies. M. Foucault, J. Derrida, R. Barthes, U. Eco, G. Deleuze, J.-F.Lyotard urged to abandon dogmatism, monologue perception and explanation, interpretation based on binary oppositions. The world, which is necessary to reach, occurs to be Nothing, Nothingness. In this world, people are seeking for reality regardless of any rules, regulations, notions, and concepts. Here artificial constructs of the human mind, such as Material – Ideal, Determinism - Indeterminism, Finiteness - Infinity, Necessity – Randomness, are united. Trying to reconcile continuity of being with discreteness of consciousness, they appeal to Eastern mystical teachings, in particular, to Zen Buddhism. The core concept of this school is also based on the unity of all things and the idea of the singularity of the world. The main goal of Eastern mystical traditions is to achieve the state of absolute unity through meditative techniques

  18. "out of The Cold": On Late Neanderthal Population Dynamics In Central Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jöris, O.

    During the last several years, analyses of fossil Neanderthal DNA have shown not only the degree to which the genetic fingerprints of Neanderthals differ from those of anatomically modern humans, but have also lent credibility to the hotly debated "Out- of-Africa" hypothesis. Perhaps more important than the observed genetic differences is the fact that Neanderthals - according to their reconstructed DNA sequences - were genetically highly homogeneous, indicating rapid population growth that may have followed a demographic 'bottleneck' during the first cold maximum (CM-1 = second part of OIS 4) of the last glacial, some 60 to 70 ka ago. Central European Middle Palaeolithic sites characterised by broad spectra of bifacially-worked tools, namely different forms of backed knives ("Keilmesser") com- monly attributed to Neanderthals, fall within the age-range 85 and 45 ka calBP and thus both pre- and post-date the proposed 'bottleneck' that occurred during CM-1. Di- rectly comparable sites dating within this critical period are lacking. Based on strati- graphic, palaeoenvironmental, and radiometric evidence, a series of sites can tenta- tively be age-calibrated with the high-resolution GISP2 Greenland ice core record of last glacial climate change. With the aid of improved chronological frameworks and additional palaeoenvironmen- tal information (e.g. glacier mass balance models), we have developed a three-step model with which to investigate this period. We begin with (1) pre-CM-1 populations in Central and northern Central Europe which (2) were forced into southern Euro- pean refugia (i.e. SW France and the Pannonian Basins) by the rapid expansion of the northern hemispheric ice-cover at the beginning of CM-1 (a process that could be named 'preglacial dislocation'). Finally, some 10 ka later, their descendants may have re-occupied the southern part of Central Europe during the climatic amelioration (OIS 3) following CM-1. Changes in lithic technology, as expressed in

  19. Politics of modern muslim subjectivities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jung, Dietrich; Petersen, Marie Juul; Sparre, Sara Lei

    Examining modern Muslim identity constructions, the authors introduce a novel analytical framework to Islamic Studies, drawing on theories of successive modernities, sociology of religion, and poststructuralist approaches to modern subjectivity, as well as the results of extensive fieldwork...

  20. 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...

  1. GOSPEL TEXT IN RUSSIAN CULTURE AND MODERN SCIENCE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Esaulov I. A.

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available The article demonstrates the difference between the process of investigation and understanding in the modern humanities. The analysis of a literary text in terms of Christian tradition is an important goal of historical poetics of Russian literature. New categories of literature studies, aimed at focusing on Christian legendry in literary works, are presented in the article. Christian traditions experienced transformations, metamorphoses and pseudomorphoses that cannot be ignored while building up a new history of Russian literature.

  2. Modernization of credit relations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.V. Volosovich

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays it is essential to modernize credit relations in the conditions of global economy transformations. This is due to the influence of integration processes on credit relations and transformation of the risks inherent in the credit field. The purpose of this article is to develop measures that help to improve the efficiency of interaction of credit relations’ participants. Modernization of credit relations is based on the interaction of its main and indirect subjects who belong to the subsystems of loans granting, deposits attraction and provision of related services. Its goal is to pass from extensive to intensive model of interaction between the subjects of credit relations. Components of the credit relations modernization are the following: institutional modernization, which is based on the interaction of credit relations’ subjects, and ensures the development of competition in all credit market’s segments, the creation of its corresponding infrastructure, qualitative change in the approaches of regulation and supervision; technological modernization, which involves the formation of joint products on the credit market and the formation of an integrated informational and analytical system. In the result of the credit relations’ modernization it is expected to achieve synergies between the subjects of credit relations, that will lead to changes in the business architecture of the financial market.

  3. War, Trauma and Children's Development: Observations from a Modern Evolutionary Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belsky, Jay

    2008-01-01

    Lethal intergroup conflict has been part of the human experience ever since our species emerged on the African savannah. Modern evolutionary thinking suggests that children's development could have evolved a variety of responses to it, some of which are highlighted upon considering, from the field of behavioural ecology, life-history theory and,…

  4. Die Verfassung des Experiments Moderne

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manfred Aschke

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available The question whether freedom of religion requires permitting the slaughter of animals in accordance with Islamic rites – a question which was the subject of a decision by the German Federal Constitutional Court in 2002 –is an example of the general problem how the law and the constitution of a modern, secular society can deal with the Sharia, a theonomous law which claims authority by divine revelation. The genetic links between western christianity and the development of the foundations of modern society in Europe do not provide evidence of the incompatibility of Islam and modernity. But they do emphasize that the tensions resulting from the immigration of 3 million muslims in Germany are a great challenge for the constitutional order. A modern constitution of the Western European and North-Atlantic type, such as the german constitution (Grundgesetz, does not allow the dissolution of the tensions between secular law and individual religious autonomy unilaterally in favour of the secular law. This kind of tension is by no means unknown in modern society. Functional differentiation and individualization are core characteristics of modern society. But in view of the challenge by Islam and other challenges, such as ecological problems, we can ask if the »experiment in modernity«, the project of the Enlightenment, is destined to fail because of the dissonance and the lack of understanding between the partial systems of the society. This question is the starting point to outline evolutionary processes of integration in modern society. In this context the constitution proves to be an important tool of integration. Controversies about the scope of validity claimed by the partial systems are matters of constitutional law. The modern constitution is a specific form in which modern society describes itself as a unity insuring »practical concordance« between colliding freedoms and claims of validity. In the conflict of modern ethical principles of

  5. “Knowledge Workers” and Modernization in the Region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Galina Valentinovna Leonidova

    2016-07-01

    modernization index stem from an insufficient number of scientists and engineers, people who file patent applications, and from the small amount of allocations to research and development in GRP. The paper reveals that one of the ways to improve human capital is to increase innovative activity of the youth; the authors substantiate the thesis about the direct positive impact of the development of competencies on participation in research and scientific developments. The results of the study can be used to work out strategic plans for the development of innovation industries and social entrepreneurship in Russia’s regions

  6. 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…

  7. Life after Trafficking: A gap in the UK’s modern slavery efforts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kate Roberts

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available The Modern Slavery Act (2015 was a symbol of the UK’s commitment to combatting exploitation and human trafficking. Yet the Act offers little help to people who have been trafficked to, or in, the UK to recover and build a new life.

  8. Humanism: Philosophy, Science or Religion? | Ekanem | Lwati: A ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This is more compounding, as we now have such concepts or ideas as literary Humanism, Renaissance Humanism, cultural Humanism, philosophical Humanism, Religious Humanism, Christian Humanism, modern Humanism or scientific Humanism, secular Humanism among others. So, is humanism, a philosophy, ...

  9. Morphometric Assessment of Convergent Tool Technology and Function during the Early Middle Palaeolithic: The Case of Payre, France.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chacón, M Gema; Détroit, Florent; Coudenneau, Aude; Moncel, Marie-Hélène

    2016-01-01

    There appears to be little doubt as to the existence of an intentional technological resolve to produce convergent tools during the Middle Palaeolithic. However, the use of these pieces as pointed tools is still subject to debate: i.e., handheld tool vs. hafted tool. Present-day technological analysis has begun to apply new methodologies in order to quantify shape variability and to decipher the role of the morphology of these pieces in relation to function; for instance, geometric morphometric analyses have recently been applied with successful results. This paper presents a study of this type of analysis on 37 convergent tools from level Ga of Payre site (France), dated to MIS 8-7. These pieces are non-standardized knapping products produced by discoidal and orthogonal core technologies. Moreover, macro-wear studies attest to various activities on diverse materials with no evidence of hafting or projectile use. The aim of this paper is to test the geometric morphometric approach on non-standardized artefacts applying the Elliptical Fourier analysis (EFA) to 3D contours and to assess the potential relationship between size and shape, technology and function. This study is innovative in that it is the first time that this method, considered to be a valuable complement for describing technological and functional attributes, is applied to 3D contours of lithic products. Our results show that this methodology ensures a very good degree of accuracy in describing shape variations of the sharp edges of technologically non-standardized convergent tools. EFA on 3D contours indicates variations in deviations of the outline along the third dimension (i.e., dorso-ventrally) and yields quantitative and insightful information on the actual shape variations of tools. Several statistically significant relationships are found between shape variation and use-wear attributes, though the results emphasize the large variability of the shape of the convergent tools, which, in general

  10. Morphometric Assessment of Convergent Tool Technology and Function during the Early Middle Palaeolithic: The Case of Payre, France.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M Gema Chacón

    Full Text Available There appears to be little doubt as to the existence of an intentional technological resolve to produce convergent tools during the Middle Palaeolithic. However, the use of these pieces as pointed tools is still subject to debate: i.e., handheld tool vs. hafted tool. Present-day technological analysis has begun to apply new methodologies in order to quantify shape variability and to decipher the role of the morphology of these pieces in relation to function; for instance, geometric morphometric analyses have recently been applied with successful results. This paper presents a study of this type of analysis on 37 convergent tools from level Ga of Payre site (France, dated to MIS 8-7. These pieces are non-standardized knapping products produced by discoidal and orthogonal core technologies. Moreover, macro-wear studies attest to various activities on diverse materials with no evidence of hafting or projectile use. The aim of this paper is to test the geometric morphometric approach on non-standardized artefacts applying the Elliptical Fourier analysis (EFA to 3D contours and to assess the potential relationship between size and shape, technology and function. This study is innovative in that it is the first time that this method, considered to be a valuable complement for describing technological and functional attributes, is applied to 3D contours of lithic products. Our results show that this methodology ensures a very good degree of accuracy in describing shape variations of the sharp edges of technologically non-standardized convergent tools. EFA on 3D contours indicates variations in deviations of the outline along the third dimension (i.e., dorso-ventrally and yields quantitative and insightful information on the actual shape variations of tools. Several statistically significant relationships are found between shape variation and use-wear attributes, though the results emphasize the large variability of the shape of the convergent tools

  11. Environmental Approach to the Study of the Modern Stage of Information Society Development: Research Prospects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ivlev, Vitali Yu.; Barkova, Eleonora V.; Ivleva, Marina I.; Buzskaya, Olga M.

    2016-01-01

    The paper analyses modern information society in terms of an information ecology approach. Its aim is to determine the place of the human being in the human-society-ecosystem relations system and to study the prospects of a humanistic approach to the understanding of the essence of subject-object relationships in the communication space of…

  12. The world goes modern 

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Handberg, Kristian

    2016-01-01

    The article analyzes the contemporary art historical focus on multiple modernities through two significant exhibitions: After Year Zero at Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin 2013/Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw 2015 and The World Goes Pop, Tate Modern, London (2015). These different exhibitions...

  13. Ecological modernization in selected Malaysian industrial sectors: political modernization and sector variations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Er Ah Choy,; Mol, A.P.J.; Koppen, van C.S.A.

    2012-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to understand the differences in environmental performance of palm oil versus textile and apparel production chains in Malaysia by applying ecological modernization theory via substantive quantitative testing. Ecological modernization is tested via four hypotheses, namely

  14. Using modern human cortical bone distribution to test the systemic robusticity hypothesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baab, Karen L; Copes, Lynn E; Ward, Devin L; Wells, Nora; Grine, Frederick E

    2018-06-01

    The systemic robusticity hypothesis links the thickness of cortical bone in both the cranium and limb bones. This hypothesis posits that thick cortical bone is in part a systemic response to circulating hormones, such as growth hormone and thyroid hormone, possibly related to physical activity or cold climates. Although this hypothesis has gained popular traction, only rarely has robusticity of the cranium and postcranial skeleton been considered jointly. We acquired computed tomographic scans from associated crania, femora and humeri from single individuals representing 11 populations in Africa and North America (n = 228). Cortical thickness in the parietal, frontal and occipital bones and cortical bone area in limb bone diaphyses were analyzed using correlation, multiple regression and general linear models to test the hypothesis. Absolute thickness values from the crania were not correlated with cortical bone area of the femur or humerus, which is at odds with the systemic robusticity hypothesis. However, measures of cortical bone scaled by total vault thickness and limb cross-sectional area were positively correlated between the cranium and postcranium. When accounting for a range of potential confounding variables, including sex, age and body mass, variation in relative postcranial cortical bone area explained ∼20% of variation in the proportion of cortical cranial bone thickness. While these findings provide limited support for the systemic robusticity hypothesis, cranial cortical thickness did not track climate or physical activity across populations. Thus, some of the variation in cranial cortical bone thickness in modern humans is attributable to systemic effects, but the driving force behind this effect remains obscure. Moreover, neither absolute nor proportional measures of cranial cortical bone thickness are positively correlated with total cranial bone thickness, complicating the extrapolation of these findings to extinct species where only cranial

  15. Modeling the pre-industrial roots of modern super-exponential population growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stutz, Aaron Jonas

    2014-01-01

    To Malthus, rapid human population growth-so evident in 18th Century Europe-was obviously unsustainable. In his Essay on the Principle of Population, Malthus cogently argued that environmental and socioeconomic constraints on population rise were inevitable. Yet, he penned his essay on the eve of the global census size reaching one billion, as nearly two centuries of super-exponential increase were taking off. Introducing a novel extension of J. E. Cohen's hallmark coupled difference equation model of human population dynamics and carrying capacity, this article examines just how elastic population growth limits may be in response to demographic change. The revised model involves a simple formalization of how consumption costs influence carrying capacity elasticity over time. Recognizing that complex social resource-extraction networks support ongoing consumption-based investment in family formation and intergenerational resource transfers, it is important to consider how consumption has impacted the human environment and demography--especially as global population has become very large. Sensitivity analysis of the consumption-cost model's fit to historical population estimates, modern census data, and 21st Century demographic projections supports a critical conclusion. The recent population explosion was systemically determined by long-term, distinctly pre-industrial cultural evolution. It is suggested that modern globalizing transitions in technology, susceptibility to infectious disease, information flows and accumulation, and economic complexity were endogenous products of much earlier biocultural evolution of family formation's embeddedness in larger, hierarchically self-organizing cultural systems, which could potentially support high population elasticity of carrying capacity. Modern super-exponential population growth cannot be considered separately from long-term change in the multi-scalar political economy that connects family formation and

  16. Semantic Meaning of Money in the Perception of Modern Russian Youth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knyazeva, Tatiana N.; Semenova, Lidiya E.; Chevachina, Anna V.; Batuta, Marina B.; Sidorina, Elena V.

    2016-01-01

    In connection with socio-economic transformations taking place in our country, which caused changes in the system of values and, as a consequence, in moral-economic relationships and human behavior, the subject of money becomes one of the most significant topics in modern Russian researches in various fields of science. The main method to study…

  17. The neglected context: The growing impact of modernity on the South African population and its spiritual, economic and ecological consequences

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Klaus N�rnberger

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Humanity seems to be drifting like a rudderless raft towards a cataract. The main factors are the growth of the human population, the escalation of material expectations, the exploding discrepancies between affluent and marginalised population groups and the impact of these growth processes on the natural environment. The modern claim to mastery, ownership and entitlement and its spectacular successes has led to unprecedented power without a concomitant growth in responsibility. In spiritual and cultural terms, modernity undermines all traditional certainties, values and constraints. The South African population is engulfed in a messy transition from African traditionalist, to modern and postmodern assumptions. The most reticent citizens are the least competitive and the most marginalised. The Christian faith, rooted as it is in tradition and geared to spiritual concerns, is no match for the power of the modern mindset. To regain its redemptive relevance, it needs fundamental reconceptualisations. The article closes with a few starting points for such a project.

  18. TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS FOR FRONT OFFICE EMPLOYEES IN MODERN HOTEL INDUSTRY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivica Batinić

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Specific requirements of modern consumer-tourists, competition, new sciences and technology have led to the emergence of new products and services in a modern hotel business as well as prescription of training and development standards for employees and managers in the hotel groups and independent hotels of higher rank. Every serious hotel, in order to survive on the tourist market, must have a separate program (standard of training and development for employees and managers. General hotel management, particularly human resource management, is fully responsible for the development and implementation of the program (standard of training and development of employees and managers. In this paper, I will write about the basic features of modern hospitality and fundamental stages of training and development of hotel employees and managers. In a particular part, I will write about front office department and training and development standards of front office employees and managers.

  19. Post-communism: postmodernity or modernity revisited?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ray, L

    1997-12-01

    Coinciding with the popularity of postmodern theory, the fall of communism appeared to offer further evidence of the exhaustion of modernity. Such analysis is grounded in a view that the Soviet system was the epitome of modernity. An alternative approach regards post-communism as opening new terrains of struggle for modernity. Thus Habermas and others suggest that post-communist societies are rejoining the trajectory of western modernity whose problems they now recapitulate. This alternative view implies that Soviet systems were something other than 'modern', although their nature is not always clearly defined. However, even if post-communist societies do encounter problems of modernity, they do so in new circumstances where modernist notions of social development have become problematic. This article argues that, contrary to those who regard modernization or postmodernization as irresistible trends, core post-communist societies are likely to develop along an alternative path to that of western modernity. This is tentatively described as 'neo-mercantilist'.

  20. Modern optimization with R

    CERN Document Server

    Cortez, Paulo

    2014-01-01

    The goal of this book is to gather in a single document the most relevant concepts related to modern optimization methods, showing how such concepts and methods can be addressed using the open source, multi-platform R tool. Modern optimization methods, also known as metaheuristics, are particularly useful for solving complex problems for which no specialized optimization algorithm has been developed. These methods often yield high quality solutions with a more reasonable use of computational resources (e.g. memory and processing effort). Examples of popular modern methods discussed in this book are: simulated annealing; tabu search; genetic algorithms; differential evolution; and particle swarm optimization. This book is suitable for undergraduate and graduate students in Computer Science, Information Technology, and related areas, as well as data analysts interested in exploring modern optimization methods using R.

  1. Baseline Evaluations to Support Control Room Modernization at Nuclear Power Plants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boring, Ronald L.; Joe, Jeffrey C.

    2015-02-01

    For any major control room modernization activity at a commercial nuclear power plant (NPP) in the U.S., a utility should carefully follow the four phases prescribed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in NUREG-0711, Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model. These four phases include Planning and Analysis, Design, Verification and Validation, and Implementation and Operation. While NUREG-0711 is a useful guideline, it is written primarily from the perspective of regulatory review, and it therefore does not provide a nuanced account of many of the steps the utility might undertake as part of control room modernization. The guideline is largely summative—intended to catalog final products—rather than formative—intended to guide the overall modernization process. In this paper, we highlight two crucial formative sub-elements of the Planning and Analysis phase specific to control room modernization that are not covered in NUREG-0711. These two sub-elements are the usability and ergonomics baseline evaluations. A baseline evaluation entails evaluating the system as-built and currently in use. The usability baseline evaluation provides key insights into operator performance using the control system currently in place. The ergonomics baseline evaluation identifies possible deficiencies in the physical configuration of the control system. Both baseline evaluations feed into the design of the replacement system and subsequent summative benchmarking activities that help ensure that control room modernization represents a successful evolution of the control system.

  2. Baseline Evaluations to Support Control Room Modernization at Nuclear Power Plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boring, Ronald L.; Joe, Jeffrey C.

    2015-01-01

    For any major control room modernization activity at a commercial nuclear power plant (NPP) in the U.S., a utility should carefully follow the four phases prescribed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in NUREG-0711, Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model. These four phases include Planning and Analysis, Design, Verification and Validation, and Implementation and Operation. While NUREG-0711 is a useful guideline, it is written primarily from the perspective of regulatory review, and it therefore does not provide a nuanced account of many of the steps the utility might undertake as part of control room modernization. The guideline is largely summative–intended to catalog final products–rather than formative–intended to guide the overall modernization process. In this paper, we highlight two crucial formative sub-elements of the Planning and Analysis phase specific to control room modernization that are not covered in NUREG-0711. These two sub-elements are the usability and ergonomics baseline evaluations. A baseline evaluation entails evaluating the system as-built and currently in use. The usability baseline evaluation provides key insights into operator performance using the control system currently in place. The ergonomics baseline evaluation identifies possible deficiencies in the physical configuration of the control system. Both baseline evaluations feed into the design of the replacement system and subsequent summative benchmarking activities that help ensure that control room modernization represents a successful evolution of the control system.

  3. Has modernization gone too far? Happiness and modernity in 141 contemporary nations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    R. Veenhoven (Ruut); M.C. Berg (Maarten)

    2013-01-01

    textabstractModern society comes in for a great deal of criticism, such as about increasing individualisation, globalisation and technologisation, which is seen to reduce the quality of life. This claim was investigated in a comparative study of 141 present-day countries. Eight aspects of modernity

  4. Modern astronomical knowledge as component of general education for sustainable development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nurgaliev, I.

    {It is shown that 1) astronomical knowledge was a foundation of emerging modern physics and natural sciences based on mathematics, 2) mathematical basis of the natural sciences serves as an orientation of progress in the true objective of social sciences. The last example for this chain of impacts is the discovery of the fundamental demographic equation (N=aN^2-bN) full of the astronomical analogy [9]. Modern age endorses new imperatives on education. Reckless exploitation of the natural resources will cause irreversible exhaustion of the agro- and bio-potential of the planet during lifetime of a few generations. The adequate respond to the challenge lies in modern technologies and educating responsible (socially oriented) professionals. That is why the importance of teaching modern technologies along with providing the students with the understanding of global long term consequences of the human industrial activities is growing. The course ``Theoretical Foundations of Modern Technologies" at the Moscow State Agricultural University (Timiryazev Academy) taught by the author is discussed. New experimental project ``Space Technologies, Ecology and Safe Energetics in School of the Future" is presented as a project of a new age in the process of implementing at the Moscow city secondary schools by the colleagues and by the author. The new cosmological models in the frame of the Newtonian and general relativistic treatments developed by the author are considered in this report as an example of immediate implementation of new astro-knowledge into the education for modern agrarian students. The centrifugal forces acting between particles rotating randomly around each other are shown to be able to reverse gravitational collapse.

  5. NANOTECHNOLOGY: THE COMING REVOLUTION IN MODERN BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE

    OpenAIRE

    Sharma Rupali; Mukhopadhyay Sayantan; Lakshmayya; Goswami Laxmi

    2012-01-01

    Nanotechnology is a wide field that covers a variety of devices derived from engineering, physics, chemistry, and biology. The promising new field of nanotechnology, created up by rapid advances in life science and technology, gained countless new opportunities for modern medical science and disease treatment in human health care. Among the various researches in delivery of therapeutic and diagnostic agents for the diagnosis and treatment of a number of diseases. The development of nanopharma...

  6. Captivity humanizes the primate microbiome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clayton, Jonathan B; Vangay, Pajau; Huang, Hu; Ward, Tonya; Hillmann, Benjamin M; Al-Ghalith, Gabriel A; Travis, Dominic A; Long, Ha Thang; Tuan, Bui Van; Minh, Vo Van; Cabana, Francis; Nadler, Tilo; Toddes, Barbara; Murphy, Tami; Glander, Kenneth E; Johnson, Timothy J; Knights, Dan

    2016-09-13

    The primate gastrointestinal tract is home to trillions of bacteria, whose composition is associated with numerous metabolic, autoimmune, and infectious human diseases. Although there is increasing evidence that modern and Westernized societies are associated with dramatic loss of natural human gut microbiome diversity, the causes and consequences of such loss are challenging to study. Here we use nonhuman primates (NHPs) as a model system for studying the effects of emigration and lifestyle disruption on the human gut microbiome. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing in two model NHP species, we show that although different primate species have distinctive signature microbiota in the wild, in captivity they lose their native microbes and become colonized with Prevotella and Bacteroides, the dominant genera in the modern human gut microbiome. We confirm that captive individuals from eight other NHP species in a different zoo show the same pattern of convergence, and that semicaptive primates housed in a sanctuary represent an intermediate microbiome state between wild and captive. Using deep shotgun sequencing, chemical dietary analysis, and chloroplast relative abundance, we show that decreasing dietary fiber and plant content are associated with the captive primate microbiome. Finally, in a meta-analysis including published human data, we show that captivity has a parallel effect on the NHP gut microbiome to that of Westernization in humans. These results demonstrate that captivity and lifestyle disruption cause primates to lose native microbiota and converge along an axis toward the modern human microbiome.

  7. Spatial determinants of the mandibular curve of Spee in modern and archaic Homo.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laird, Myra F; Holton, Nathan E; Scott, Jill E; Franciscus, Robert G; Marshall, Steven D; Southard, Thomas E

    2016-10-01

    The curve of Spee (COS) is a mesio-distally curved alignment of the canine through distal molar cusp tips in certain mammals including modern humans and some fossil hominins. In humans, the alignment varies from concave to flat, and previous studies have suggested that this difference reflects craniofacial morphology, including the degree of alveolar prognathism. However, the relationship between prognathism and concavity of the COS has not been tested in craniofacially variant populations. We tested the hypothesis that greater alveolar prognathism covaries with a flatter COS in African-American and European-American populations. We further examined this relationship in fossil Homo including Homo neanderthalensis and early anatomically modern Homo sapiens, which are expected to extend the amount of variation in the COS from the extant sample. These hypotheses were tested using three-dimensional geometric morphometrics. Landmarks were recorded from the skulls of 166 African-Americans, 123 European-Americans, and 10 fossil hominin mandible casts. Landmarks were subjected to generalized Procrustes analysis, principal components analysis, and two-block partial least squares analysis. We documented covariation between the COS and alveolar prognathism such that relatively prognathic individuals have a flatter COS. Mandibular data from the fossil hominin taxa generally confirm and extend this correlation across a greater range of facial size and morphology in Homo. Our results suggest that the magnitude of the COS is related to a suite of features associated with alveolar prognathism in modern humans and across anthropoids. We also discuss the implications for spatial interactions between the dental arches. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  8. Imagination and Modern Audio Visual Form

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Đurković

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Through three episodes Archetype of modern fairy tales, the mysterious world of fantasy and reality,tell as a serious story about archetypes, symbols, knowledge of good and evil. Rts editor: Natasa Neskovic Written and directed by: Suncica Jergovic Editing: Ana Djurkovic How to illuminate concept of phantasy and affective factors in our imagination a priori something so imaginary, by their genetic provenance, such as a movie scene, or digital picture and sound. You can not always avoid the association to a valid phrase of arnhajm’s truth: mass age -massage: the medium is the message. In elementary and tersely definition of „the shot“ from Plaževsky film language there is term for „le cadre“, however these are selected bits of reality, immanent frame that contains the individual act of images divided of the continent’s view of reality, handling the specific code of semantic value, when its’s imaginative, of course, by aesthetic categories and evaluations. In this type of positive simulacrum, it can not be better segment for the current thinking about the limits of imagination and truth in contemporary media, and contemporary global environment, than the original audio-visual forms through whose prism we search throught a fairy tale in a same time myth and imagination as well as exploring its overall impact on the personality. Everything can be a fairy tale, even false, amoral platitudes politicized by political lobbies in a contemporary existing power sistems, but this is no fairy tale authenticity in it, or creative act, nor humanity and artificial and historical entity of a man that is always present in the ethical effort of a true artist. So, we are investigating the conditions of creative images, modalities of audiovisual media in film language,and it is the archetype of the fairy tale, which, with its psychodynamics still exists and which is removed when the modern man is tired of lies and simulations during his global

  9. Unraveling the genetic history of the European wild goats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ureña, I.; Ersmark, E.; Samaniego, J. A.; Galindo-Pellicena, M. A.; Crégut-Bonnoure, E.; Bolívar, H.; Gómez-Olivencia, A.; Rios-Garaizar, J.; Garate, D.; Dalén, L.; Arsuaga, J. L.; Valdiosera, C. E.

    2018-04-01

    The population history of the Iberian wild goat and the Alpine ibex has been closely related to that of humans since the Palaeolithic. Current molecular and paleontological studies differ substantially on the phylogenetic origin of the European wild goats, possibly due the loss of genetic variation through time. We investigated the phylogenetic relationship between the Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) and the Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica) including different Iberian wild goat subspecies by applying ancient DNA techniques combined with Next Generation Sequencing technologies. We analysed the cytochrome b gene of the mitochondrial genome in 33 ancient and modern European wild goats from Spain and France together with publicly available genetic information of modern wild goats. This work uncovers for the first time ancient genetic information of the Iberian wild goat and the Alpine ibex, spanning a time range of approximately 40,000 years to the present. Our results suggest genetic continuity between ancient and modern populations and indicate a monophyletic origin of the Alpine ibex and the Iberian wild goat when compared to other Capra species. The monophyly of both species is in agreement with other molecular studies based only on modern populations, therefore supporting one-wave migration of wild goats into Western Europe followed by possible allopatric speciation. We observe three major clades of wild goats in Western Europe: Capra ibex, Capra pyrenaica pyrenaica and the group containing the subspecies Capra pyrenaica hispanica and Capra pyrenaica victoriae. This genetic structure recognizes the distinctiveness of the bucardo (C. p. pyrenaica) from the rest of Iberian wild goats and thus supports the idea that this group is an Evolutionary Significant Unit. The divergence time estimated here indicates an almost contemporaneous split between the three clades around 50,000-90,000 years BP.

  10. Gracility of the modern Homo sapiens skeleton is the result of decreased biomechanical loading.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryan, Timothy M; Shaw, Colin N

    2015-01-13

    The postcranial skeleton of modern Homo sapiens is relatively gracile compared with other hominoids and earlier hominins. This gracility predisposes contemporary humans to osteoporosis and increased fracture risk. Explanations for this gracility include reduced levels of physical activity, the dissipation of load through enlarged joint surfaces, and selection for systemic physiological characteristics that differentiate modern humans from other primates. This study considered the skeletal remains of four behaviorally diverse recent human populations and a large sample of extant primates to assess variation in trabecular bone structure in the human hip joint. Proximal femur trabecular bone structure was quantified from microCT data for 229 individuals from 31 extant primate taxa and 59 individuals from four distinct archaeological human populations representing sedentary agriculturalists and mobile foragers. Analyses of mass-corrected trabecular bone variables reveal that the forager populations had significantly higher bone volume fraction, thicker trabeculae, and consequently lower relative bone surface area compared with the two agriculturalist groups. There were no significant differences between the agriculturalist and forager populations for trabecular spacing, number, or degree of anisotropy. These results reveal a correspondence between human behavior and bone structure in the proximal femur, indicating that more highly mobile human populations have trabecular bone structure similar to what would be expected for wild nonhuman primates of the same body mass. These results strongly emphasize the importance of physical activity and exercise for bone health and the attenuation of age-related bone loss.

  11. At Forstå et Moderne Digt/To Understand a Modern Poem

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schatz-Jakobsen, Claus

    1998-01-01

    Artiklen plæderer for at det at 'forstå et moderne digt' betyder noget radikalt andet nu end det gjorde for halvtreds år siden, da William Empson under overskriften 'To Understand a Modern Poem' udlagde et digt af Dylan Thomas - noget radikalt andet, både hvad angår 'det at forstå' og hvad angår...

  12. MODERN CLINICAL SCIENCE BEGAN WITH SANTORIO SANTORIO (1561-1636

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natale G. De Santo

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Santorio Santorio (1561-1636, born in Capodistria, a Venice Republic territory, (now Koper in Slovenia, student, medical doctor, and professor of theoretical medicine at the university of Padua, marked the beginning of modern medicine. Santorio introduced measurements and mathematics into human experimentation. By means of a weighing machine, over a 30-year period, he investigated on more than ten thousand persons, including Galileo Galilei. He used to measure daily body weight, along with the quantity of ingested food and drink, and the quantity of body discharges (urine and feces so that he could calculate the insensible perspiration which he used as a dual token to characterize health and disease, to cure patients after knowing their physical parameters including the pulse and the temperature. His main work was De statica medicina, a well received book which had more than 40 editions during the 17th and 18th century and was translated into English, Italian, French and German. A book small but praised by Boerhaave, von Haller and Lavoisier which granted to Santorio the definition of Galilean, by many historians of medicine including Salvatore De Renzi, Castiglioni, Pucinotti and Pazzini. Santorio embodied the modern physician-scientist, continually experimenting on humans and immediately transforming into medical devices using the data originating in basic science. So the findings repported in the books were immediately used to help patients. He also introduced self-experimentation in medicine, an important problem even nowadays. Although he was aware that the university took credit for his work, he respected the institution from which he obtained a salary for life even when he stopped the teaching at the University. So he even showed his modernity: pioneer in granting to the University of Padua, through his last will, money for yearly scholarships.

  13. The oldest Stone Age occupation of coastal West Africa and its implications for modern human dispersals: New insight from Tiémassas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niang, Khady; Blinkhorn, James; Ndiaye, Matar

    2018-05-01

    Examinations of modern human dispersals are typically focused on expansions from South, East or North Africa into Eurasia, with more limited attention paid to dispersals within Africa. The paucity of the West African fossil record means it has typically been overlooked in appraisals of human expansions in the Late Pleistocene, yet regions such as Senegal occur in key biogeographic transitional zones that may offer significant corridors for human occupation and expansion. Here, we report the first evidence for Middle Stone Age occupation of the West African littoral from Tiémassas, dating to ∼44 thousand years ago, coinciding with a period of enhanced humidity across the region. Prehistoric populations mainly procured raw material from exposed Ypresian limestone horizons with Levallois, discoidal and informal reduction sequences producing flake blanks for retouched tools. We discuss this mid-Marine Isotope Stage 3 occupation in the context of the site's unique, ecotonal position amongst Middle Stone Age sites across West Africa, and its significance for Later Stone Age colonization of near coastal forests in the region. The results also support previous suggestions for connections between Middle Stone Age populations in West Africa and the Maghreb, for which the coastline may also have played a significant role.

  14. Is life getting better? : how long and happy people live in modern society

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    R. Veenhoven (Ruut)

    2005-01-01

    textabstractHuman society has changed much over the last centuries and this process of 'modernization' has profoundly affected the lives of individuals; currently we live quite different lives from those forefathers lived only five generations ago. There is difference of opinion as to whether we

  15. Anthropology and Multiple Modernities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thomassen, Bjørn

    “modernities” over the last 10 years, this paper wishes to address the analytical usefulness of this conceptual development. What is it about these concepts that make them useful as we try to capture the World today? Rather than providing any substantial definitions as to what those modernities are about (or...... what they are not about), anthropologists have used ethnographies to demonstrate how modernities are lived and constructed differently in different cultural contexts. To a very large extent, anthropologists intend these multiple modernities to refer to the interplay between local and global...... configurations. However, if the current pluralizing of modernity ultimately serves to describe the variety of cultural forms that co-exist in the World today, the analytical value of the concept risks being watered down, and little is gained in perspective. Arguably, other concepts would have served the purpose...

  16. Montreal Modern: Retro Culture and the Modern Past in Montreal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristian Handberg

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Through analyses of the retro scenes in Montreal, Canada, the article discusses retro culture's role as cultural memory. It is shown how Montreal's cultural identity is formed by memories of modern culture such as the Red-light and Sin City reputation of the illicit nightlife of the 1940s and 1950s, and the space age modernism of the 1960s following the Expo 67 and Quebec's Quiet Revolution. This is reflected in the city's thriving retro culture through the study of two groups of retro shops. In circulating specific memories and objects in a specific context, retro is an important negotiation of the past in the present. Especially, it is stated that the retro culture displays "local accents" and a new focus on the specificities of modern culture giving a revaluation to a previously overlooked identity such as the Quebecit.

  17. Post-modern changes in marital and family life

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agata Kozak

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Contemporarily, the traditional model of marriage is no longer the only accepted form of family life; there are many alternatives to that type of relationship. In post-modernity we face a rapid change in the perception of informal relationships as well as their dynamic development and increase in number. However, will cohabitation - which in the times of moral relativism, praise of freedom and individuality and democratisation of all aspects of human life becomes increasingly popular – eventually dominate and replace traditional marriage?

  18. Human dignity, humiliation, and torture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luban, David

    2009-09-01

    Modern human rights instruments ground human rights in the concept of human dignity, without providing an underlying theory of human dignity. This paper examines the central importance of human dignity, understood as not humiliating people, in traditional Jewish ethics. It employs this conception of human dignity to examine and criticize U.S. use of humiliation tactics and torture in the interrogation of terrorism suspects.

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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

  20. Modernization of motivation as a major direction of management efficiency increase

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pakulina Alevtyna

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Modernization of motivation system as the priority direction of increasing management efficiency is necessary for the sustainable growth of the national economy of Ukraine. The article substantiates the recommendations for the modernization of human resources policy and universal scale of motivation levels in organizations. The authors define the relation of motivational patterns of employees to the productivity of their labor as a factor of increasing the safety of the specific work of locomotive crews. Classification of emergency preconditions with considering identified causes of errors in the locomotive crew work has been developed and grounded. The article scientifically substantiates the mechanism of motivation and stimulation of workers of locomotive crews, which aims at improving personnel policies and ensuring a high level of safety of trains.

  1. Potential of Sugarcane in Modern Energy Development in Southern Africa

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Souza, Simone P., E-mail: sp.souza@yahoo.com.br; Horta Nogueira, Luiz A. [Interdisciplinary Center for Energy Planning, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, SP (Brazil); Watson, Helen K. [School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, KZN (South Africa); Lynd, Lee Rybeck [Dartmouth College, Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth, NH (United States); Elmissiry, Mosad [New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), Johannesburg, GT (South Africa); Cortez, Luís A. B. [Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, SP (Brazil)

    2016-12-26

    For more than half of the Southern African population, human development is limited by a lack of access to electricity and modern energy for cooking. Modern bioenergy merits consideration as one means to address this situation in areas where sufficient arable land is available. While numerous studies have concluded that Africa has significant biomass potential, they do not indicate by how much it can effectively reduce the use of traditional biomass and provide more accessible energy, especially at a country level. Here, we evaluate the potential of sugarcane to replace traditional biomass and fossil fuel and enlarge the access to electricity in Southern Africa. By using its current molasses for ethanol production, Swaziland could increase electricity generation by 40% using bagasse and replace 60% of cooking fuel or 30% of liquid fossil fuel. Sugarcane expansion over 1% of the pasture land in Angola, Mozambique, and Zambia could replace greater than 70% of cooking fuel. Bioelectricity generation from modest sugarcane expansion could be increased by 10% in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia and by 20% in Angola. Our results support the potential of sugarcane as a modern energy alternative for Southern Africa.

  2. Potential of Sugarcane in Modern Energy Development in Southern Africa

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Souza, Simone P.; Horta Nogueira, Luiz A.; Watson, Helen K.; Lynd, Lee Rybeck; Elmissiry, Mosad; Cortez, Luís A. B.

    2016-01-01

    For more than half of the Southern African population, human development is limited by a lack of access to electricity and modern energy for cooking. Modern bioenergy merits consideration as one means to address this situation in areas where sufficient arable land is available. While numerous studies have concluded that Africa has significant biomass potential, they do not indicate by how much it can effectively reduce the use of traditional biomass and provide more accessible energy, especially at a country level. Here, we evaluate the potential of sugarcane to replace traditional biomass and fossil fuel and enlarge the access to electricity in Southern Africa. By using its current molasses for ethanol production, Swaziland could increase electricity generation by 40% using bagasse and replace 60% of cooking fuel or 30% of liquid fossil fuel. Sugarcane expansion over 1% of the pasture land in Angola, Mozambique, and Zambia could replace greater than 70% of cooking fuel. Bioelectricity generation from modest sugarcane expansion could be increased by 10% in Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia and by 20% in Angola. Our results support the potential of sugarcane as a modern energy alternative for Southern Africa.

  3. Drought Tolerance in Modern and Wild Wheat

    Science.gov (United States)

    Budak, Hikmet; Kantar, Melda; Yucebilgili Kurtoglu, Kuaybe

    2013-01-01

    The genus Triticum includes bread (Triticum aestivum) and durum wheat (Triticum durum) and constitutes a major source for human food consumption. Drought is currently the leading threat on world's food supply, limiting crop yield, and is complicated since drought tolerance is a quantitative trait with a complex phenotype affected by the plant's developmental stage. Drought tolerance is crucial to stabilize and increase food production since domestication has limited the genetic diversity of crops including wild wheat, leading to cultivated species, adapted to artificial environments, and lost tolerance to drought stress. Improvement for drought tolerance can be achieved by the introduction of drought-grelated genes and QTLs to modern wheat cultivars. Therefore, identification of candidate molecules or loci involved in drought tolerance is necessary, which is undertaken by “omics” studies and QTL mapping. In this sense, wild counterparts of modern varieties, specifically wild emmer wheat (T. dicoccoides), which are highly tolerant to drought, hold a great potential. Prior to their introgression to modern wheat cultivars, drought related candidate genes are first characterized at the molecular level, and their function is confirmed via transgenic studies. After integration of the tolerance loci, specific environment targeted field trials are performed coupled with extensive analysis of morphological and physiological characteristics of developed cultivars, to assess their performance under drought conditions and their possible contributions to yield in certain regions. This paper focuses on recent advances on drought related gene/QTL identification, studies on drought related molecular pathways, and current efforts on improvement of wheat cultivars for drought tolerance. PMID:23766697

  4. Drought Tolerance in Modern and Wild Wheat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hikmet Budak

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The genus Triticum includes bread (Triticum aestivum and durum wheat (Triticum durum and constitutes a major source for human food consumption. Drought is currently the leading threat on world's food supply, limiting crop yield, and is complicated since drought tolerance is a quantitative trait with a complex phenotype affected by the plant's developmental stage. Drought tolerance is crucial to stabilize and increase food production since domestication has limited the genetic diversity of crops including wild wheat, leading to cultivated species, adapted to artificial environments, and lost tolerance to drought stress. Improvement for drought tolerance can be achieved by the introduction of drought-grelated genes and QTLs to modern wheat cultivars. Therefore, identification of candidate molecules or loci involved in drought tolerance is necessary, which is undertaken by “omics” studies and QTL mapping. In this sense, wild counterparts of modern varieties, specifically wild emmer wheat (T. dicoccoides, which are highly tolerant to drought, hold a great potential. Prior to their introgression to modern wheat cultivars, drought related candidate genes are first characterized at the molecular level, and their function is confirmed via transgenic studies. After integration of the tolerance loci, specific environment targeted field trials are performed coupled with extensive analysis of morphological and physiological characteristics of developed cultivars, to assess their performance under drought conditions and their possible contributions to yield in certain regions. This paper focuses on recent advances on drought related gene/QTL identification, studies on drought related molecular pathways, and current efforts on improvement of wheat cultivars for drought tolerance.

  5. 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

  6. Moderne elementær logik

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hendricks, Vincent Fella; Pedersen, Stig Andur

    Alle mennesker er i stand til at udføre korrekte logiske slutninger, men vi gør os det sjældent klart, hvordan vi bærer os ad. Det kan logikken fortælle, og derfor spiller den en så vigtig rolle i mange moderne videnskaber. Moderne elementær logik tager læseren gennem den moderne logik og dens...

  7. A Modern Education

    OpenAIRE

    Macfarlane, Alan

    2015-01-01

    What is western modernity and how did education help to shape that modernity? Through an examination of schooling in elite British institutions, Alan Macfarlane tries to answer these question, particularly to explain the choices facing China and other emerging superpowers. One section looks at his English education; society and power, play and performance, head and heart, spirit and character. Another looks at education more widely: how it shaped the English world, English and Continental Eur...

  8. Modern Restlessness, from Hobbes to Augustine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Busch

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Only with difficulty do modern readers grasp the full import of Augustine’s confession, “Restless is our heart, until it rests in you”, or seriously consider that it might be true. An unexpected remedy is to be found in reading Thomas Hobbes, who introduces and defends the view of happiness that is now commonly accepted without argument. According to Hobbes, human beings find their happiness not in a single, supreme good but in many objects, the securing of which requires a lifelong quest for power. But this teaching, influential and revealing though it is, fails to satisfy. Meditating on that dissatisfaction is a first step towards more serious engagement with Augustine.

  9. Adult learning in modernity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Palle

    2007-01-01

    The paper discusses the conditions for the growth of adult education in modern societies. It is argued that in modern adult life individual biographical reflection plays an increasing role, not only for educational and occupational choice but also in the process of identity formation and emotional...

  10. Crisis of Modern Man and Perspective of Eternity in Light of T. G. Masaryk's Thinking

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Svoboda, Jan

    2014-01-01

    Roč. 11, č. 2 (2014), s. 130-135 ISSN 1214-4967 Institutional support: RVO:67985955 Keywords : T.G. Masaryk's thinking * crisis of modern man * perspective of eternity * new religion * human rights Subject RIV: AA - Philosophy ; Religion

  11. THE PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS OF MODERN BIOENGINEERING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ibrahim A. Shogar

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper investigates the philosophical foundations of modern bioengineering to articulate its ethical framework. Engineering as an ultimate mechanism to transform knowledge into practice is essential for both physical and biological sciences. It reduces data, concepts, and designs to pictorial forms. The integration of engineering with the newly emerging biosciences, has presented a unique opportunity to overcome the major challenges that face the environmental and human health. To harness potentials of bioengineering and establish a sustainable foundation for green technology, modern scientists and engineers need to be acquainted with the normative questions of science. In addition to acquiring the general principles of scientific research and identifying the intrinsic goals of the endeavour, philosophy of bioengineering exposes bioengineers to both the descriptive ‘how’ questions of the physical world as well as the normative ‘why’ questions of values. Such an interdisciplinary approach is significant, not only for inspiring to acquire the genuine knowledge of the existing world, but also to expose the bioengineers to their ethical and social responsibilities. Besides introducing the conceptual framework of bioengineering, this paper has investigated the three major philosophies that have been dominating the theoretical presuppositions of scientific research method in history. Namely, (i Systems biology approach; (ii Evolutionary biology approach; and (iii Mechanical view approach. To establish the ethical foundation of modern bioengineering, the paper, also has conducted an analytical study on various branches of the emerging discipline of bioscience. The paper has concluded that adopting the interdisciplinary approach in research and education is essential to harness potentials of bioengineering and to establish foundations of green technology. To achieve the final objectives of bioengineering, both the practical and theoretical

  12. Potential of human health in the modern conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. V. Dobryden

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This article proves that man’s relationship to their health  in each case have varying traits under the influence of sociocultural, psychological and physiological factors  which the world outlook is created from childhood, which implies the appropriate type of behavior that is fixed through the media and social authorities. It is established that scientific knowledge should not be against a man, and should enhance the power of man over nature, but can be transformed into a powerful weapon against humanity. It is noted that science is neutral in terms of values. Will it carry a positive or negative charge to human health depends on the social and cultural markers specific historical era and behavior of the individual. It was found that in addition to the economic crisis, which requires long-term joint economic and political transformations, the most important factor and more accessible to maintaining high adaptive potential health functions at all levels is valeological literacy social subjects and, therefore, imperative the systematic distribution of hygiene recommendations is a significant component of preventive medicine. With the growth of social and technological factors with their aggressive effect on psychophysiological state of man is seen timely more  talk even not about health in general, but should talk about  potential health, which underlines  the  difficulties adaptive and protective processes and susceptibility factors and resistance to pathological changes in the human body. All the more so when we following the formal standards of medicine is unlikely, unfortunately, we be found absolutely healthy people. Under the proposed potential health understood as a set of quantitative and qualitative structural and functional characteristics of the organism, which determine the level of adaptation and protection of human capabilities in adverse conditions, internal and external environment. It is proposed to examine potential

  13. 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.

  14. 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...

  15. First-of-A-Kind Control Room Modernization Project Plan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thomas, Kenneth David [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

    2016-02-01

    This project plan describes a comprehensive approach to the design of an end-state concept for a modernized control room for Palo Verde. It describes the collaboration arrangement between the DOE LWRS Program Control Room Modernization Project and the APS Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station. It further describes the role of other collaborators, including the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). It combines advanced tools, methodologies, and facilities to enable a science-based approach to the validation of applicable engineering and human factors principles for nuclear plant control rooms. It addresses the required project results and documentation to demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements. It describes the project tasks that will be conducted in the project, and the deliverable reports that will be developed through these tasks. This project plan will be updated as new tasks are added and as project milestones are completed. It will serve as an ongoing description on the project both for project participants and for industry stakeholders.

  16. Stone tools, language and the brain in human evolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stout, Dietrich; Chaminade, Thierry

    2012-01-01

    Long-standing speculations and more recent hypotheses propose a variety of possible evolutionary connections between language, gesture and tool use. These arguments have received important new support from neuroscientific research on praxis, observational action understanding and vocal language demonstrating substantial functional/anatomical overlap between these behaviours. However, valid reasons for scepticism remain as well as substantial differences in detail between alternative evolutionary hypotheses. Here, we review the current status of alternative ‘gestural’ and ‘technological’ hypotheses of language origins, drawing on current evidence of the neural bases of speech and tool use generally, and on recent studies of the neural correlates of Palaeolithic technology specifically. PMID:22106428

  17. The role of cryptotephra in refining the chronology of Late Pleistocene human evolution and cultural change in North Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barton, R. N. E.; Lane, C. S.; Albert, P. G.; White, D.; Collcutt, S. N.; Bouzouggar, A.; Ditchfield, P.; Farr, L.; Oh, A.; Ottolini, L.; Smith, V. C.; Van Peer, P.; Kindermann, K.

    2015-06-01

    Sites in North Africa hold key information for dating the presence of Homo sapiens and the distribution of Middle Stone Age (MSA), Middle Palaeolithic (MP) and Later Stone Age (LSA) cultural activity in the Late Pleistocene. Here we present new and review recently published tephrochronological evidence for five cave sites in North Africa with long MSA/MP and LSA cultural sequences. Four tephra horizons have been identified at the Haua Fteah (Cyrenaica, Libya). They include cryptotephra evidence for the Campanian Ignimbrite (CI) eruption dating to ˜39 ka that allows correlation with other Palaeolithic sequences in the eastern Mediterranean and as far north as Russia. Cryptotephra have also been recorded from the Moroccan sites of Taforalt, Rhafas and Dar es-Soltane 1. At Taforalt the geochemical composition suggests a provenance in the Azores, while examples from Sodmein (Egypt) appear to derive from central Anatolia and another unknown source. In these latter examples chemical compositional data from relevant proximal volcanic centres is currently lacking so the identification of tephra in layers of known age and cultural association provides the first reliable age determinations for distal volcanic events and their geographical extent. The future potential for tephrochronological research in North Africa is also discussed.

  18. 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.

  19. The Modern Programme and the Linear City

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hauberg, Jørgen

    2011-01-01

    The Modern Programme and the linear City If a single argument were to be provided for a current review of architecture, modernism and Le Corbusier, it would have to be the concept of sustainable development. Today, there is broad consensus that sustainable development will set the agenda for the 21......st century, and architecture will play a decisive role in this development. The question of sustainability adds modernism to the agenda anew, especially heroic modernism, the circle of CIAM and Le Corbusier, whom from the beginning placed the dwelling and the city in a sustainable framework – a pact...... an unfinished and dynamic project. Modernism is history – and present. We have not yet seen modernism's successor, but note that the question of sustainability contains the potential for the next paradigm shift, the next architectural revolution – with modernism and the modern programme as a good foundation...

  20. Art of Crisis: Modern or Postmodern?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valentina Hribar Sorčan

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available According to the last book of Peter V. Zima Modern/Postmodern (2010 modernism/modernity, postmodernism/postmodernity is once again a subject of reflection in contemporary aesthetics. It attempts to examine those concept not only in artistic, stylistic way, but also from the other points of view: historical, political, social, ideological. I would like to reveal a thesis that a distance of last decade or two we recognise that we are more and more from the spirit of postmodernism/postmodernity and that we open some problem once again that modernity had in the centre of its reflection: identity of subject, sense of existence, the feeling of crisis: the art of crisis. Does it mean a return of some points of modernism/modernity? I will try to answer to this questions by inviting to a discussion also other contemporary thinkers (Jean-Luc Nancy, Alain Badiou, and Jacques Rancière.

  1. Network technology for depot modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hostick, C.J.

    1990-12-01

    This report was prepared by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory to summarize existing and emerging information system technology and standards applicable to Depot System Command (DESCOM) modernization efforts. The intent of this summarization is to provide the Revitalization of Army Depots for the Year 2000 (READY 2000) team a clear understanding of the enabling information system technologies required to support effective modernization activities. Much of the information contained in this report was acquired during the last year in support of the US Army Armament, Munitions, and Chemical Command (AMCCOM) Facility Integrated Manufacturing Management System (FIMMS) project at PNL, which is targeting the modernization of plant-wide information systems at Army Ammunition Plants. The objective of information system modernization is to improve the effectiveness of an organization in performing its mission. Information system modernization strives to meet this objective by creating an environment where data is electronically captured near the source and readily available to all areas of the organization. Advanced networks, together with related information system technology, are the enabling mechanisms that make modern information system infrastructures possible. The intent of this paper is to present an overview of advanced information system network technology to support depot modernization planners in making technology management decisions. Existing and emerging Open System Interconnection (OSI) and Government Open System Interconnection Profile (GOSIP) standards are explained, as well as a brief assessment of existing products compliant with these standards. Finally, recommendations for achieving plant-wide integration using existing products are presented, and migration strategies for full OSI compliance are introduced. 5 refs., 16 figs. (JF)

  2. Bifacial technology at the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic in Moravia

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Škrdla, Petr

    2016-01-01

    Roč. 4, December (2016), s. 5-8 ISSN 2064-3640. [SKAM Lithic Workshop /11./. Miscolc, 20.10.2014-22.10.2014] R&D Projects: GA ČR GA15-19170S Keywords : Late Middle Palaeolithic * Upper Palaeolithic * Aurignacian * Bohunician * Szeletian * leaf points Subject RIV: AC - Archeology, Anthropology, Ethnology http://www.litikum.hu/litikum_2016_V4/Litikum_2016_A0014_Skrdla.pdf

  3. History of teaching anatomy in India: from ancient to modern times.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacob, Tony George

    2013-01-01

    Safe clinical practice is based on a sound knowledge of the structure and function of the human body. Thus, knowledge of anatomy has been an essential tool in the practice of healthcare throughout the ages. The history of anatomy in India traces from the Paleolithic Age to the Indus Valley Civilization, the Vedic Times, the Islamic Dynasties, the modern Colonial Period, and finally to Independent India. The course of the study of anatomy, despite accompanying controversies and periods of latencies, has been fascinating. This review takes the reader through various periods of Indian medicine and the role of anatomy in the field of medical practice. It also provides a peek into the modern system of pedagogy in anatomical sciences in India. Copyright © 2013 American Association of Anatomists.

  4. Mod den moderne skole

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vindum, Kjeld; Birk Morgen, Pernille

    2003-01-01

    Gennemgang af fem skoler som eksemplificerer væsentlige udviklingstrin i overgangen fra det sene 1800 tals etageskolebygninger til det moderne skolebyggeris gennemsalg i 1930erne.......Gennemgang af fem skoler som eksemplificerer væsentlige udviklingstrin i overgangen fra det sene 1800 tals etageskolebygninger til det moderne skolebyggeris gennemsalg i 1930erne....

  5. Science for Survival: The Modern Synthesis of Evolution and The Biological Sciences Curriculum Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Lisa Anne

    In this historical dissertation, I examined the process of curriculum development in the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) in the United States during the period 1959-1963. The presentation of evolution in the high school texts was based on a more robust form of Darwinian evolution which developed during the 1930s and 1940s called "the modern synthesis of evolution." Building primarily on the work of historians Vassiliki Smocovitis and John L. Rudolph, I used the archival papers and published writings of the four architects of the modern synthesis and the four most influential leaders of the BSCS in regards to evolution to investigate how the modern synthetic theory of evolution shaped the BSCS curriculum. The central question was "Why was evolution so important to the BSCS to make it the central theme of the texts?" Important answers to this question had already been offered in the historiography, but it was still not clear why every citizen in the world needed to understand evolution. I found that the emphasis on natural selection in the modern synthesis shifted the focus away from humans as passive participants to the recognition that humans are active agents in their own cultural and biological evolution. This required re-education of the world citizenry, which was accomplished in part by the BSCS textbooks. I also found that BSCS leaders Grobman, Glass, and Muller had serious concerns regarding the effects of nuclear radiation on the human gene pool, and were actively involved in informing th public. Lastly, I found that concerns of 1950s reform eugenicists were addressed in the BSCS textbooks, without mentioning eugenics by name. I suggest that the leaders of the BSCS, especially Bentley Glass and Hermann J. Muller, thought that students needed to understand genetics and evolution to be able to make some of the tough choices they might be called on to make as the dominant species on earth and the next reproductive generation in the nuclear age. This

  6. Personnel Motivation: Essence and Modern Problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ovsiuk Nina V.

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available The goal of the article lies in the study of the essence of labour motivation and establishment of differences between stimulation and motivation. While analysing the “motivation” notion the article shows that internal wishes and goals of a human being stimulate this human being to act in a specific direction in order to achieve the set goal. Moreover, the article states that there are two theories of motivation in the modern economic literature – meaningful and procedural. As analysis of indicators of payment for labour in Ukraine shows, there is a rather significant differentiation of sizes of wages by branches of economic activity and there are arrears of wages. These indicators to a certain extent facilitate reduction of motivation of workers for labour activity. In order to increase employment of the population under conditions of the market economy, it is necessary to develop a system of measures for elimination of these problems at the state level and also to reduce to the minimum manifestations of “shadowing” wages.

  7. 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

  8. Culture, Urbanism and Changing Human Biology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schell, L M

    2014-04-03

    Anthropologists have long known that human activity driven by culture changes the environment. This is apparent in the archaeological record and through the study of the modern environment. Perhaps the largest change since the paleolithic era is the organization of human populations in cities. New environments can reshape human biology through evolution as shown by the evolution of the hominid lineage. Evolution is not the only process capable of reshaping our biology. Some changes in our human biology are adaptive and evolutionary while others are pathological. What changes in human biology may be wrought by the modern urban environment? One significant new change in the environment is the introduction of pollutants largely through urbanization. Pollutants can affect human biology in myriad ways. Evidence shows that human growth, reproduction, and cognitive functioning can be altered by some pollutants, and altered in different ways depending on the pollutant. Thus, pollutants have significance for human biologists and anthropologists generally. Further, they illustrate the bio-cultural interaction characterizing human change. Humans adapt by changing the environment, a cultural process, and then change biologically to adjust to that new environment. This ongoing, interactive process is a fundamental characteristic of human change over the millennia.

  9. Modern History of Tibet

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2005-01-01

    Authored by Xu Guangzhi, this book is a subsidiary project of Research Into Traditional Culture and History (of the PRC Ministry of Education) conducted by China Tibetology Research Institute of Tibet University. The book combines modern history of Tibet with modern history of China as a whole. It tells the close ties between various members of the Chinese nation.

  10. Infinitesimal how a dangerous mathematical theory shaped the modern world

    CERN Document Server

    Alexander, Amir

    2014-01-01

    On August 10, 1632, five leading Jesuits convened in a sombre Roman palazzo to pass judgment on a simple idea: that a continuous line is composed of distinct and limitlessly tiny parts. The doctrine would become the foundation of calculus, but on that fateful day the judges ruled that it was forbidden. With the stroke of a pen they set off a war for the soul of the modern world. Amir Alexander takes us from the bloody religious strife of the sixteenth century to the battlefields of the English civil war and the fierce confrontations between leading thinkers like Galileo and Hobbes. The legitimacy of popes and kings, as well as our modern beliefs in human liberty and progressive science, hung in the balance; the answer hinged on the infinitesimal. Pulsing with drama and excitement, Infinitesimal will forever change the way you look at a simple line.

  11. "Modern Portuguese" and The Narration of Brazil

    Science.gov (United States)

    Milleret, Margo

    2016-01-01

    "Modern Portuguese: A Project of the Modern Language Association" was a package of film strips, prerecorded tapes, an instructor's manual, and a textbook first published by Knopf in 1971. It followed the model established by "Modern Spanish" that was also a project of the Modern Language Association (MLA) published in 1960.The…

  12. REKONSTRUKSI PENDIDIKAN PESANTREN SEBAGAI CHARACTER BUILDING MENGHADAPI TANTANGAN KEHIDUPAN MODERN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Muchlis Solichin

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstrak: Sebagai lembaga pendidikan tertua dan asli (indegenous Indonesia, pesantren menampilkan suatu sistem pendidikan tradisional dengan mempertahankan tradisi dan tetap berlandaskan pada nilai-nilai dan ajaran Islam. Dalam perkembangannya, banyak pesantren yang menyelenggarakan pendidikan madrasah dan sekolah sebagai respon pesantren terhadap perkembagan dan perubahan yang terjadi di masyarakat. Dengan dikenalnya pendidikan sekolah dan madrasah, maka pesantren sebagai lembaga character building menghadapi berbagai tantangan kehidupan modern yang cenderung materialis, oportunis, dan hedonis. Untuk itu, pesantren harus mampu merumuskan pendidikan yang berorientasi pada penamanaman nilai-nilai keislaman yang berdasarkan pada fithrah (potensi dasar peserta didik.   Abstract: As the oldest and indegenous educational institution of Indonesian, pesantren featuring a traditional education system, maintains the tradition while still being based on the values ​​and teachings of Islam. In its development, many pesantrens adopt madrasah and school as education systems to respond the development and changes in society. Through the adoption of school and madrasah, pesantren as character building institution has to face modernity which tends to be materialistic, oppurtunistic, hedonic. For this reason, pesantren should be able to formulate its education by implementing Islamic values ​​ based on the human nature (basic potential.   Kata Kunci: Pendidikan, pesantren, character building, modern

  13. Modernization of African Armed Forces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mandrup, Thomas

    2015-01-01

    Concept paper framing the debate at the Dakar Forum Workshop on Modernization of Armed forces in Africa.......Concept paper framing the debate at the Dakar Forum Workshop on Modernization of Armed forces in Africa....

  14. RELIGIOUS ANOMIE AS THE DEVIATION CATALYST IN THE MODERN SOCIETY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexander Vladislavovich Pletnev

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available In the article features of influence of religion on the individual in the modern society are considered. In the XXI century the religion shows weak ability to execute functions of social control. At the same time the religion remains the major psychological factor which in many respects defines the maintenance of the vital world of individuals. Strengthening of influence of religion as psychological factor allows to study social consequences of this influence. If the classical sociological theory considers religion as a factor certainly constraining an anomy, in modern conditions the religion has rather opposite effect. The Christian religion shows the highest, unrealizable requirements to the individual.As a result of it the individuals strongly subject to influence of Christian values feel ina-bility to correspond to Christian model of ideal human behavior. The variety of religions in the modern society of the western type and conducting interreligious dialogue is other reason of development of religious anomy. The mutual erosion of the valuable and standard bases of each religion turns out to be consequence of this dialogue. In addition, modern society is characterized by essential distinction in understanding individuals of norms and principles of that religion which supporters they are.As for change of functioning of religion as social institute, in this aspect the increasing reorientation of religious institutes of the western society to the market purposes and values is observed. The specified processes in general will lead to increase of deviant behavior due to development of religious anomy.

  15. Osteocalcin protein sequences of Neanderthals and modern primates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nielsen-Marsh, Christina M; Richards, Michael P; Hauschka, Peter V; Thomas-Oates, Jane E; Trinkaus, Erik; Pettitt, Paul B; Karavanic, Ivor; Poinar, Hendrik; Collins, Matthew J

    2005-03-22

    We report here protein sequences of fossil hominids, from two Neanderthals dating to approximately 75,000 years old from Shanidar Cave in Iraq. These sequences, the oldest reported fossil primate protein sequences, are of bone osteocalcin, which was extracted and sequenced by using MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry. Through a combination of direct sequencing and peptide mass mapping, we determined that Neanderthals have an osteocalcin amino acid sequence that is identical to that of modern humans. We also report complete osteocalcin sequences for chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) and a partial sequence for orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), all of which are previously unreported. We found that the osteocalcin sequences of Neanderthals, modern human, chimpanzee, and orangutan are unusual among mammals in that the ninth amino acid is proline (Pro-9), whereas most species have hydroxyproline (Hyp-9). Posttranslational hydroxylation of Pro-9 in osteocalcin by prolyl-4-hydroxylase requires adequate concentrations of vitamin C (l-ascorbic acid), molecular O(2), Fe(2+), and 2-oxoglutarate, and also depends on enzyme recognition of the target proline substrate consensus sequence Leu-Gly-Ala-Pro-9-Ala-Pro-Tyr occurring in most mammals. In five species with Pro-9-Val-10, hydroxylation is blocked, whereas in gorilla there is a mixture of Pro-9 and Hyp-9. We suggest that the absence of hydroxylation of Pro-9 in Pan, Pongo, and Homo may reflect response to a selective pressure related to a decline in vitamin C in the diet during omnivorous dietary adaptation, either independently or through the common ancestor of these species.

  16. 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...

  17. Modern Italian libraries – between tradition and modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kinga Adamiak

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available For centuries, lands currently belonging to the Republic of Italy boasted the greatest and the most illustrious libraries in Europe. From the Middle Ages to Renaissance, they developed extensively and were dominant in the Old World. The present article, however, concentrates on modern Italian libraries and provides an extensive review of their functioning today. The following issues are covered in the discussion: types of libraries and their cooperation, legal circumstances, the activity of national libraries, library associations and their initiatives and projects aimed at utilization of state-of-the-art IT infrastructures in librarianship. The article also emphasizes strong and weak points of Italian librarianship and ponders on the following: What is the role of Italian libraries today when they are evidently past their prime times? Can the libraries in question meet the requirements of modern times?

  18. The emergence of cooking in Southwest Asia

    OpenAIRE

    Wright, Katherine

    2004-01-01

    There has been surprisingly little systematic study by prehistorians of how in the distant past people cooked and consumed food. There are many unanswered questions. For example, how did cooking emerge and affect human evolution, how did it change with the advent of farming, when did kitchens first appear and who built the earliest known ovens? Research on Palaeolithic and Neolithic food preparation and consumption is now beginning to suggest answers to such questions.

  19. Modern embalming, circulation of fluids, and the voyage through the human arterial system: Carl L. Barnes and the culture of immortality in America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Podgorny, Irina

    2011-01-01

    By considering the work of American embalmer, lawyer, and physician Carl Lewis Barnes (1872-1927), this paper analyzes the emergence of modern embalming in America. Barnes experimented with and exhibited the techniques by which embalming fluids travelled into the most remote cavities of the human body. In this sense, modem embalmers based their skills and methods on experimental medicine, turning the anatomy of blood vessels, physiology of circulation, and composition of blood into a circuit that allowed embalming fluids to move throughout the corpse. Embalmers in the late 19th century took ownership of the laws of hydrodynamics and the physiology of blood circulation to market their fluids and equipment, thus playing the role of physiologists of death, performing and demonstrating physiological experiments with dead bodies.

  20. Characteristics of human resources in Serbian rural tourism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Premović Jelena

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Modern consumer society affects the changes in behavior and wishes of modern tourists who require high-quality tourist service which can be provided only by highly qualified and well-trained tourism personnel. However, the education system, in almost all tourist countries doesn't follow the trends of modern tourism. This paper analyzes demographic conditions and the basic characteristics of human resources in rural areas of Serbia. In this analysis were applied the method of induction and deduction, analysis and synthesis method, deductive and comparative methods as well as techniques of structured questionnaire. The obtained data were processed in SPSS program. Based on the results of the original research, it was concluded that there is a positive correlation between level of education and the number of days spent on professional training of human resources and the competitive position of tourism enterprises in which human resources are working.

  1. Paleoenvironmental change as derived from loess sediment properties: Examples of last glacial loess sites from the Carpathian Basin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lehmkuhl, Frank; Zeeden, Christian; Bösken, Janina; Eckmeier, Eileen; Hambach, Ulrich; Hauck, Thomas; Klasen, Nicole; Markovic, Slobodan; Obreht, Igor; Schulte, Philipp; Sümegi, Pal; Chu, Wei; Timar-Gabor, Alida; Veres, Daniel

    2015-04-01

    The project B1 within the CRC 806 "Our way to Europe" focuses on the "Eastern Trajectory" of modern human migration from Africa into Europe. The Middle East, and SE Europe constitute the principal areas to be investigated. SE Europe has become a special research focus since two early Homo sapiens individuals have been found at Oase Cave in the southern Banat. The fossils lack any stratigraphic context; cultural and environmental circumstances of these findings have remained unclear. In the neighbourhood of Oase Cave, however, several early Upper Palaeolithic sites, embedded in loess sequences were known since the 1950's. Some sites were re-investigated by our research team. Conceptionally we are following the idea of upland-lowland interaction, which combines parameters as sedimentary transport, sediment distribution, and paleosol development in different altitudes, all influenced by paleoclimate in space and time. Furthermore, some detailed studies concerning site-formation processes and the quality of open-air sites (sedimentary development, paleoecology, multilayering, reworking, human impact on soils and sediments) are being conducted at selected localities. Recent investigations of the loess-paleosol sequences (LPS) in SE Europe provided important environmental information which differ from "classical" ecological approaches derived from other European loess provinces. New luminescence dating results provide a sensitive chronology of environmental changes recorded in the LPS from both upland and lowland positions, giving the potential to link these.

  2. Modelling a sustainability yardstick in modern energisation of rural sub-Saharan Africa

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sebitosi, A.B.; Pillay, P.

    2007-01-01

    The bulk of rural Africa (as well as much of the third world) remains un-electrified and is underserved or poorly served by any other form of modern energy infrastructure. In case of a deep sub-Sahara African country like Kenya it is often dismissively argued that lack of finance and appropriate technology are the obvious causes. This argument would however not hold when applied to the more technologically advanced South Africa where a whopping 50% of rural households still suffer a similar fate. The common perception is that in the presence of modern technology the desired social change process will automatically commence. Unfortunately (and possibly due to pressure from donors) typical post project reports from the third world often contain deliberate commissions or omissions that essentially belie the grim reality on the ground. What seems to lack is a well-defined yardstick or standard check-off list as to the essential attributes of a sustainable energy dissemination project. Problems in modern society are now largely tackled using a wide range of software applications. However even with all the well-tested skills in computer coding endless consumer complaints abound. 'Usability Engineering' is an example a state-of-the-art scientific tool that has been extensively used in recent times by the software design industry to tackle such problems as enhancement of the human/computer interface. This paper proposes that these modern scientific tools could be adopted to create a yardstick and break the intangible technological barrier to African rural modernization to better the lot of our communities

  3. Current Approaches for Control Room I and C Modernization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lopez, Alberto; Jimenez, Alfonso

    2002-01-01

    In general, instrumentation and control (I and C) systems for nuclear power plants were made using analogic systems and relays, since this was the only technology available by the time these systems were designed. This fact impacts on the operational and maintenance capabilities required to these systems. For this reason, nuclear power plants are facing nowadays two challenges: on one hand, the obsolescence of these systems contributes to the increase in the operation and maintenance costs - due to the difficulties for getting spare parts and support from the system vendors -. On the other hand, there has been an increase in the utilities competitiveness due to the electric power market liberalization. All this, of course, along with the commitment to maintain the current safety levels and meet the new requirements and standards that may arise in the near future. The application of current technologies, especially digital technology, solves the obsolescence problems and allows for a more functional and updated human-machine interface. Nevertheless, the cost associated to these modifications makes it necessary to develop strategies to determine which systems need to be modified and how to implement modifications effectively, so that these systems can work jointly with others using different technologies. Other issues inherent to digital technology must be considered, such as verification and validation of the software and of the human-machine interface, which are required for its licensing. This presentation describes the current approaches for I and C modernization, the main reasons, technologies and implementation plans, focusing on the control room and on the impact on operations. The main issues to be considered for developing a specific modernization plan are analysed. The goals and status of the 'Feasibility Study of the Control Room I and C Modernization' are described. This study is currently being developed by Endesa, Iberdrola and Tecnatom, and is included

  4. Neanderthal and Denisova tooth protein variants in present-day humans.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clément Zanolli

    Full Text Available Environment parameters, diet and genetic factors interact to shape tooth morphostructure. In the human lineage, archaic and modern hominins show differences in dental traits, including enamel thickness, but variability also exists among living populations. Several polymorphisms, in particular in the non-collagenous extracellular matrix proteins of the tooth hard tissues, like enamelin, are involved in dental structure variation and defects and may be associated with dental disorders or susceptibility to caries. To gain insights into the relationships between tooth protein polymorphisms and dental structural morphology and defects, we searched for non-synonymous polymorphisms in tooth proteins from Neanderthal and Denisova hominins. The objective was to identify archaic-specific missense variants that may explain the dental morphostructural variability between extinct and modern humans, and to explore their putative impact on present-day dental phenotypes. Thirteen non-collagenous extracellular matrix proteins specific to hard dental tissues have been selected, searched in the publicly available sequence databases of Neanderthal and Denisova individuals and compared with modern human genome data. A total of 16 non-synonymous polymorphisms were identified in 6 proteins (ameloblastin, amelotin, cementum protein 1, dentin matrix acidic phosphoprotein 1, enamelin and matrix Gla protein. Most of them are encoded by dentin and enamel genes located on chromosome 4, previously reported to show signs of archaic introgression within Africa. Among the variants shared with modern humans, two are ancestral (common with apes and one is the derived enamelin major variant, T648I (rs7671281, associated with a thinner enamel and specific to the Homo lineage. All the others are specific to Neanderthals and Denisova, and are found at a very low frequency in modern Africans or East and South Asians, suggesting that they may be related to particular dental traits or

  5. Modern terrorism: concept and approach analysis

    OpenAIRE

    CHAIKA ALEXANDER VIKTOROVICH

    2015-01-01

    The problem of modern terrorism as an image of counterculture environment is considered. The analysis of concepts and approaches of foreign and native authors, specialists of terrorism problem research was conducted. Separate features of the modern terrorism are considered and emphasized. The author drew conceptual conclusions on the basis of dialectical approach to modern terrorism counterculture phenomenon research.

  6. Human reasoning and cognitive science

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Stenning, K.; van Lambalgen, M.

    2008-01-01

    In Human Reasoning and Cognitive Science, Keith Stenning and Michiel van Lambalgen—a cognitive scientist and a logician—argue for the indispensability of modern mathematical logic to the study of human reasoning. Logic and cognition were once closely connected, they write, but were "divorced" in the

  7. Social smerte i det moderne arbejdsliv ud fra et arbejdspsykologisk perspektiv

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Baldursson, Einar Baldvin

    2012-01-01

    It is often argued, that modern work and living in globalized knowledge society involve new demands and social stressors. This paper argues that it is meaningful to assume the existence of a psychological immune system that has emerged through the evolution of social mammals and humans. Accord...... to the theory, this system is activated in the case of social threats, loss or damage. When activated it causes psychological pain and depressive reaction. Similar to the innate immune system, the psychological immune system involves (social) behavior with the goal to limit damage and improve the odds...... for recovery. In the paper it is argued that modern work involves increased focus on social relations and cooperation. The experience of permanent changes at work, increased pressure and emotional demands lead to increasing risk for social loss and defeat at work. According to this theory such experiences...

  8. Basics of modern mathematical statistics

    CERN Document Server

    Spokoiny, Vladimir

    2015-01-01

    This textbook provides a unified and self-contained presentation of the main approaches to and ideas of mathematical statistics. It collects the basic mathematical ideas and tools needed as a basis for more serious studies or even independent research in statistics. The majority of existing textbooks in mathematical statistics follow the classical asymptotic framework. Yet, as modern statistics has changed rapidly in recent years, new methods and approaches have appeared. The emphasis is on finite sample behavior, large parameter dimensions, and model misspecifications. The present book provides a fully self-contained introduction to the world of modern mathematical statistics, collecting the basic knowledge, concepts and findings needed for doing further research in the modern theoretical and applied statistics. This textbook is primarily intended for graduate and postdoc students and young researchers who are interested in modern statistical methods.

  9. Measuring Older Adults’ Individual Modernity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xue Bai

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Research shows that maintaining high individual modernity level can enable the shaping of positive self-image and boost life satisfaction for older people along with better adaptation to the process of societal modernization. This study examined the factorial structure and evaluated the psychometric properties of the adapted Multidimensional Scale of Chinese Individual Modernity (MS-CIM in a sample of 445 elders (the finalized version is named “MS-CIME” and added a self-constructed nine-item behavioral modernity domain. Principal component analysis suggested a conceptually meaningful seven-factor model, which was further supported by the results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA. The final 25-item MS-CIME indicated an acceptable level of reliability. The convergent validity was demonstrated by its associations with socio-economic status, participation in daily activities, self-image, and life satisfaction in expected directions.

  10. 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

  11. 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...

  12. The search for a metaphysical entity in modern drama

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Deborha Roos

    1981-03-01

    Full Text Available This is a thirst which all the fountains of the earth cannot quench. Each of these mysterious needs is one side of aperimeter whose complete figure, when we finally perceive it, has one name: GOD" (Bogardt, 1965. In the twentieth cen­ tury man finally murdered God and found himself ‘ left to live in a world hopeless, forlorn, desperate, frustrated, full of agony .... without an answer to the basic human questions”. When did this modern malaise start? In how far is this devastating new truth of nothingness reflected in the arts?

  13. Shift of large-scale atmospheric systems over Europe during late MIS 3 and implications for Modern Human dispersal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Obreht, Igor; Hambach, Ulrich; Veres, Daniel; Zeeden, Christian; Bösken, Janina; Stevens, Thomas; Marković, Slobodan B; Klasen, Nicole; Brill, Dominik; Burow, Christoph; Lehmkuhl, Frank

    2017-07-19

    Understanding the past dynamics of large-scale atmospheric systems is crucial for our knowledge of the palaeoclimate conditions in Europe. Southeastern Europe currently lies at the border between Atlantic, Mediterranean, and continental climate zones. Past changes in the relative influence of associated atmospheric systems must have been recorded in the region's palaeoarchives. By comparing high-resolution grain-size, environmental magnetic and geochemical data from two loess-palaeosol sequences in the Lower Danube Basin with other Eurasian palaeorecords, we reconstructed past climatic patterns over Southeastern Europe and the related interaction of the prevailing large-scale circulation modes over Europe, especially during late Marine Isotope Stage 3 (40,000-27,000 years ago). We demonstrate that during this time interval, the intensification of the Siberian High had a crucial influence on European climate causing the more continental conditions over major parts of Europe, and a southwards shift of the Westerlies. Such a climatic and environmental change, combined with the Campanian Ignimbrite/Y-5 volcanic eruption, may have driven the Anatomically Modern Human dispersal towards Central and Western Europe, pointing to a corridor over the Eastern European Plain as an important pathway in their dispersal.

  14. Routledge handbook of human trafficking

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rijken, Conny; Piotrowicz, Ryszard; Uhl, Baerbe Heide

    2017-01-01

    Trafficking in human beings (THB) has been described as modern slavery. It is a serious criminal activity that has significant ramifications for the human rights of the victims. It poses major challenges to the state, society and individual victims. THB is not a static given but a constantly

  15. Modern cosmology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeldovich, Y.B.

    1983-01-01

    This paper fives a general review of modern cosmology. The following subjects are discussed: hot big bang and periodization of the evolution; Hubble expansion; the structure of the universe (pancake theory); baryon asymmetry; inflatory universe. (Auth.)

  16. Honey in modern wound care: a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vandamme, L; Heyneman, A; Hoeksema, H; Verbelen, J; Monstrey, S

    2013-12-01

    Honey, known for centuries as a topical treatment for a wide range of wounds, has recently known a revival in modern wound care. The objective of this systematic review is to evaluate the available evidence and the role of honey in contemporary wound care. The search strategy was developed in the databases PubMed and ISI Web of Science. Fifty-five studies of any design, evaluating the use of honey in human burns, ulcers and other wounds, written in English, French, German or Dutch were eligible for inclusion. In all three wound categories honey seems to be a dressing with wound healing stimulating properties. In burns there is also evidence for its antibacterial capacity. In general, honey is also been mentioned to have deodorizing, debridement, anti-inflammatory and wound pain reducing properties, although the evidence for these properties is rather limited. Many of the included studies have methodological problems, and the quality of certain studies is low, making it difficult to formulate conclusive guidelines. This review reveals several gaps in the research of honey in modern wound care, and recommendations are suggested for future research. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

  17. Modern beachrock formation in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hayley Cawthra

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available We explored the recent cementation of modern beachrock on the seaward margin of the Durban Bluff, central KwaZulu-Natal. The low latitude and subtropical climatic setting is a unique context compared to the more commonly documented contemporary beachrock formation in the tropics. Geological field mapping was carried out and here we present results based on sedimentary facies of a clastic shoreline and carbonate diagenesis of interstitial cements using transmitted light microscopy. The beachrock was cemented by micrite and aragonite, and iron oxide infilled voids. The presence of human artefacts within the deposit showed evidence for cementation within the last century. The elevation (at Mean Low Water and correlation to rates of sea level change for the east coast of South Africa showed that the beachrock is less than 72 years in age. In contrast to older local Pleistocene deposits, beachrocks have cemented along this stretch of coast during successive sea level highstands with similar climatic regimes – the last Interglacial, the Holocene High and the present. Here we report the most southerly documentation of modern beachrock in KwaZulu-Natal, which, to our knowledge, represents the youngest deposit reported in southern Africa.

  18. About the modern house - and the classical

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hauberg, Jørgen

    2010-01-01

    In text and illustrations describes the classical house and the classical city, represented by Andrea Palladio (1508-80), and the modern house, the modern city and building task, represented by Le Corbusier (1857-1965).......In text and illustrations describes the classical house and the classical city, represented by Andrea Palladio (1508-80), and the modern house, the modern city and building task, represented by Le Corbusier (1857-1965)....

  19. Modern recording techniques

    CERN Document Server

    Huber, David Miles

    2013-01-01

    As the most popular and authoritative guide to recording Modern Recording Techniques provides everything you need to master the tools and day to day practice of music recording and production. From room acoustics and running a session to mic placement and designing a studio Modern Recording Techniques will give you a really good grounding in the theory and industry practice. Expanded to include the latest digital audio technology the 7th edition now includes sections on podcasting, new surround sound formats and HD and audio.If you are just starting out or looking for a step up

  20. Det sentimentalt moderne

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thule Kristensen, Peter

    2005-01-01

    Romantikken er blevet afskrevet som en mørk epoke, hvor en hang til mystik og tvetydighed ikke passer til det moderne oplysningsprojekts mål om klarhed og orden. Afhendlingen viser imidlertid, hvordan dele af arkitekturen i det 20. århundrede er fyldt med romantisk tankegods, og hvordan romantisk...... nøglemotiver som f.eks. fragment, arabesk, krystal, symbol eller poesi kan bruges i en analyse - også af moderne arkitektur. det ses i bogens nyfortolkninger af værker og teorier hos arkitekterne Erik Gunnar Asplund, Josef Frank, Rudolf Schwarz, Aldo Rossi og Daniel Libeskind...

  1. 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

  2. Turbine maintenance and modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Unga, E [Teollisuuden Voima Oy, Olkiluoto (Finland)

    1999-12-31

    The disturbance-free operation of the turbine plant plays an important role in reaching good production results. In the turbine maintenance of the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant the lifetime and efficiency of turbine components and the lifetime costs are taken into account in determining the turbine maintenance and modernization/improvement program. The turbine maintenance program and improvement/modernization measures taken in the plant units are described in this presentation. (orig.)

  3. Turbine maintenance and modernization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Unga, E. [Teollisuuden Voima Oy, Olkiluoto (Finland)

    1998-12-31

    The disturbance-free operation of the turbine plant plays an important role in reaching good production results. In the turbine maintenance of the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant the lifetime and efficiency of turbine components and the lifetime costs are taken into account in determining the turbine maintenance and modernization/improvement program. The turbine maintenance program and improvement/modernization measures taken in the plant units are described in this presentation. (orig.)

  4. Review: Zygmunt Bauman (2005. Verworfenes Leben. Die Ausgegrenzten der Moderne [Wasted Lives: Modernity and Its Outcasts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martin Spetsmann-Kunkel

    2007-09-01

    Full Text Available Zygmunt BAUMAN delivers in his book Wasted Lives: Modernity and Its Outcasts a graphic and pessimistic description of ostracism in contemporary society. In the first part the outcasts of modern society are described, following market logic, as superfluous. Part two traces the actions of the state in punishing and segregating those who are ostracised. Finally, the involvement of those who are not (yet ostracised is depicted as somewhat fragile, with instability and lack of commitment as central characteristics of our liquid modernity. The fear of losing social status and thus becoming useless is inherent in life in modern society. This review ends with a few brief reflections on possible connections between BAUMAN's analysis and social research projects. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0703295

  5. Ultimate concerns in late modernity: Archer, Bourdieu and reflexivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrugia, David; Woodman, Dan

    2015-12-01

    Through a critique of Margaret Archer's theory of reflexivity, this paper explores the theoretical contribution of a Bourdieusian sociology of the subject for understanding social change. Archer's theory of reflexivity holds that conscious 'internal conversations' are the motor of society, central both to human subjectivity and to the 'reflexive imperative' of late modernity. This is established through critiques of Bourdieu, who is held to erase creativity and meaningful personal investments from subjectivity, and late modernity is depicted as a time when a 'situational logic of opportunity' renders embodied dispositions and the reproduction of symbolic advantages obsolete. Maintaining Archer's focus on 'ultimate concerns' in a context of social change, this paper argues that her theory of reflexivity is established through a narrow misreading and rejection of Bourdieu's work, which ultimately creates problems for her own approach. Archer's rejection of any pre-reflexive dimensions to subjectivity and social action leaves her unable to sociologically explain the genesis of 'ultimate concerns', and creates an empirically dubious narrative of the consequences of social change. Through a focus on Archer's concept of 'fractured reflexivity', the paper explores the theoretical necessity of habitus and illusio for understanding the social changes that Archer is grappling with. In late modernity, reflexivity is valorized just as the conditions for its successful operation are increasingly foreclosed, creating 'fractured reflexivity' emblematic of the complex contemporary interaction between habitus, illusio, and accelerating social change. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2015.

  6. The Humanities Are Dead! Long Live the Humanities!

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andrews, Larry

    2015-01-01

    The academic disciplines and values of the humanities in western cultures run from the Greek trivium--grammar, logic, rhetoric--to modern-day studies in history, philosophy, religious studies, literature, languages, art history, and some interdisciplinary studies. What is their future, and what is their relationship to honors education? Are the…

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

    Science.gov (United States)

    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

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    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.

  9. Low-grade chronic inflammation perpetuated by modern diet as a promoter of obesity and osteoporosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilich, Jasminka Z; Kelly, Owen J; Kim, Youjin; Spicer, Maria T

    2014-06-01

    Some of the universal characteristics of pre-agricultural hominin diets are strikingly different from the modern human diet. Hominin dietary choices were limited to wild plant and wild animal foods, while the modern diet includes more than 70 % of energy consumed from refined sugars, refined vegetable oils, and highly processed cereals and dairy products. The modern diet, with higher intake of fat has also resulted in a higher ratio of omega-6 (n-6) to omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), contributing to low-grade chronic inflammation (LGCI) and thus promoting the development of many chronic diseases, including obesity and osteoporosis. In this review, we describe the changes in modern diet, focusing on the kind and amount of consumed fat; explain the shortcomings of the modern diet with regard to inflammatory processes; and delineate the reciprocity between adiposity and inflammatory processes, with inflammation being a common link between obesity and osteoporosis. We present the evidence that overconsumption of n-6 PUFA coupled with under-consumption of n-3 PUFA results in LGCI and, along with the increased presence of reactive oxygen species, leads to a shift in mesenchymal stem cells (precursors for both osteoblasts and adipocytes) lineage commitment toward increased adipogenesis and suppressed osteoblastogenesis. In turn, high n-6 to n-3 PUFA ratios in the modern diet, coupled with increased synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines due to adiposity, propagate obesity and osteoporosis by increasing or maintaining LGCI.

  10. A complete human pelvis from the Middle Pleistocene of Spain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arsuaga, J L; Lorenzo, C; Carretero, J M; Gracia, A; Martínez, I; García, N; Bermúdez de Castro, J M; Carbonell, E

    1999-05-20

    The Middle Pleistocene site of Sima de los Huesos in Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain, has yielded around 2,500 fossils from at least 33 different hominid individuals. These have been dated at more than 200,000 years ago and have been classified as ancestors of Neanderthals. An almost complete human male pelvis (labelled Pelvis 1) has been found, which we associate with two fragmentary femora. Pelvis 1 is robust and very broad with a very long superior pubic ramus, marked iliac flare, and a long femoral neck. This pattern is probably the primitive condition from which modern humans departed. A modern human newborn would pass through the birth canal of Pelvis 1 and this would be even larger in a female individual. We estimate the body mass of this individual at 95 kg or more. Using the cranial capacities of three specimens from Sima de los Huesos, the encephalization quotients are substantially smaller than in Neanderthals and modern humans.

  11. Most of the extant mtDNA boundaries in South and Southwest Asia were likely shaped during the initial settlement of Eurasia by anatomically modern humans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mastana Sarabjit

    2004-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent advances in the understanding of the maternal and paternal heritage of south and southwest Asian populations have highlighted their role in the colonization of Eurasia by anatomically modern humans. Further understanding requires a deeper insight into the topology of the branches of the Indian mtDNA phylogenetic tree, which should be contextualized within the phylogeography of the neighboring regional mtDNA variation. Accordingly, we have analyzed mtDNA control and coding region variation in 796 Indian (including both tribal and caste populations from different parts of India and 436 Iranian mtDNAs. The results were integrated and analyzed together with published data from South, Southeast Asia and West Eurasia. Results Four new Indian-specific haplogroup M sub-clades were defined. These, in combination with two previously described haplogroups, encompass approximately one third of the haplogroup M mtDNAs in India. Their phylogeography and spread among different linguistic phyla and social strata was investigated in detail. Furthermore, the analysis of the Iranian mtDNA pool revealed patterns of limited reciprocal gene flow between Iran and the Indian sub-continent and allowed the identification of different assemblies of shared mtDNA sub-clades. Conclusions Since the initial peopling of South and West Asia by anatomically modern humans, when this region may well have provided the initial settlers who colonized much of the rest of Eurasia, the gene flow in and out of India of the maternally transmitted mtDNA has been surprisingly limited. Specifically, our analysis of the mtDNA haplogroups, which are shared between Indian and Iranian populations and exhibit coalescence ages corresponding to around the early Upper Paleolithic, indicates that they are present in India largely as Indian-specific sub-lineages. In contrast, other ancient Indian-specific variants of M and R are very rare outside the sub-continent.

  12. Morphological adaptation to climate in modern Homo sapiens crania: the importance of basicranial breadth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nowaczewska, Wioletta; Dabrowski, Paweł; Kuźmiński, Łukasz

    2011-09-01

    The aim of this study is to investigate whether the variation in breadth of the cranial base among modern human populations that inhabit different regions of the world is linked with climatic adaptation. This work provides an examination of two hypotheses. The first hypothesis is that the correlation between basicranial breadth and ambient temperature is stronger than the correlation between temperature and other neurocranial variables, such as maximum cranial breadth, maximum neurocranial length, and the endocranial volume. The second hypothesis is that the correlation between the breadth of the cranial base and the ambient temperature is significant even when other neurocranial features used in this study (including the size of the neurocranium) are constant. For the sake of this research, the necessary neurocranial variables for fourteen human populations living in diverse environments were obtained from Howells' data (except for endocranial volume which was obtained by means of estimation). The ambient temperature (more precisely, the mean yearly temperature) of the environments inhabited by these populations was used as a major climatic factor. Data were analysed using Pearson correlation coefficients, linear regression and partial correlation analyses. The results supported the two hypotheses, thus suggesting that ambient temperature may contribute to the observed differences in the breadth of the cranial base in the studied modern humans.

  13. Ethical perception of modern biotechnology

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Jane

    2011-09-30

    Sep 30, 2011 ... 1Social Impact of Biotechnology Development in Malaysia Research ... purpose of this paper is to examine the ethical perception of modern ... and social benefits of modern biotechnology, consumer .... Company or organisation directly involved in the production of ...... Food safety battle: organic vs. biotech.

  14. The Paradox of Modern Suffering

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dræby, Anders

    The Paradox of Suffering in modern western Culture In non-western cultures and pre-modern western cultures suffering is considered the normal state of life. Corrispondingly the suffering of oneself and that of other people form a central focus to most religions, their practices and philosophies...

  15. Socializing the public: invoking Hannah Arendt's critique of modernity to evaluate reproductive technologies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sperling, Daniel

    2012-02-01

    The article examines the writings of one of the most influential political philosophers, Hannah Arendt, and specifically focuses on her views regarding the distinction between the private and the public and the transformation of the public to the social by modernity. Arendt's theory of human activity and critique of modernity are explored to critically evaluate the social contributions and implications of reproductive technologies especially where the use of such technologies is most dominant within Western societies. Focusing on empirical studies on new reproductive technologies in Israel, it is argued, powerfully demonstrates Arendt's theory, and broadens the perspectives through which society should evaluate these new technologies towards a more reflective understanding of its current laws and policies and their affect on women more generally.

  16. ANALYSIS OF THE SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE OF THE POST-PALAEOLITHIC PAINTING IN SPAIN. LEVANTINE ART AND SCHEMATIC PAINTING (1907-2010

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miguel Ángel Mateo Saura

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Cave art constitutes one of the areas of study of prehistory more attractive, perhaps because of the secrecy that still conveys. After a century of research on post-Paleolithic cave painting in Spain, and when the scientific production exceeds two thousand records, is addressed from bibliometric parameters, the analysis of this production over the period 1907-2010. Based on an own database in Microsoft Access, prepared for over twenty years and that the March 31, 2011 counted on 2186 bibliographic records, bibliometric techniques are used to determine the temporal distribution, the language used, the styles of cave art, the document types, the themes addressed in the works and the publication place. Document production is below 21,02 publications/year until 1970, although in the 104 years of research analyzed, highlights the years 1999 (with 4,5% and 2006 (with 5,1% for the large number of publications. Regarding the language of the documents are distributed as follows, Spanish (88,1%, Catalan (4,6%, French (3,9%, English (2%, German (1% and other languages (Italian, Portuguese or Galician with 0,32%. 35,4% of production is dedicated to Levantine art, while schematic painting captures 34,8%. Regarding the document type, the scientific article stands out with 55,2%, followed by conference papers (19,2%, book chapters (11,3%, case studies (9,8%, notes (2,3%, doctoral thesis (1% and undergraduate dissertations (0,7%. The predominant topics are sites (34,5%, chronology (8,8%, iconography (7,7%, or scientific divulgation (5,1%. 90,6% of scientific production has been published in Spain, highlighting Zaragoza (13,4%, Madrid (13,3%, Valencia (9,2% and Murcia (9%. We consider that the total production is low because hardly exceeds 21 papers / year, although in the last fifty years growth rates were reached above 5%. Because Spanish is one of the most spoken languages in the world, greater internationalization of research of the Spanish post-Palaeolithic

  17. Systematic approach to modernizing the production company

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irina Valeryevna Makarova

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper discusses development of modernization processes in the Russian industrial enterprises. The object of the current study is the JSC "Perm Company of petroleum machinery-producing industry". It has been manufacturing oilfield service products of various kinds. It is shown that the impact of modernization on the enterprise depends not only on the local effectiveness of selected solutions, but also on the overall strategy of sustainable development. Modernization is a strategic planning tool. Taking into account the need for a comprehensive approach to strategic development and modernization, the top five stages of the development strategy of the company were mentioned: 1 analysis of internal and external environment; 2 definition of the mission and goals; 3 choice of strategy and baseline scenarios; 4 development of basic strategy; 5 implementation of the strategy. At each stage, methods and tools for strategic planning, as well as the tools of modernization are defined. The relationship between modernization and development strategy of the company is shown. It was revealed that an integrated approach to the modernization and incremental implementation are the basics for the use of a hierarchical system of optimization models to describe the process of manufacturing company modernization. As the target model of the upper level, financial performance of the company is defined. This approach has the following advantages over the point upgrading - reducing the probability of omission of important limitations and ineffective use of resources during the transition to modernization of the company. Basing on the main strategic goals, main directions and tasks of modernization, which are integrated into the tree ends were formed. A thesis was substantiated that he essence of modernization lies in the continuity of mutually complex processes of improving all its directions. For the JSC "Perm Company of petroleum machinery-producing industry

  18. Astronomical References in Chaucer: What Can Modern Students Learn from Studying Ancient Texts?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victor Kennedy

    2005-06-01

    Full Text Available One of the problems in the field of English literature studies is that, with compartmentalization and specialization, it becomes introspective to the point where it devolves into the study of metafiction and metacriticism. At its heart, however, literature has to be about something: Thackeray claimed its subject is human nature, but human nature is based in the interface between human and nature. This paper explores some of the problems in the interface between human knowledge, institutions, and nature, and will offer an example of cross-disciplinary, historical study to illustrate a well-known but, to most modern readers, impenetrable medieval text, Chaucer’s Treatise on the Astrolabe. It ends with three recommendations: look to history, cross boundaries between academic fields, and use practical, as well as theoretical, teaching methods.

  19. FAMILY EDUCATION IN MODERN LIFE-DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES

    OpenAIRE

    I.I. Dorozhko

    2018-01-01

    The crisis of a family education in modern societies, which, according to its definition are the risk societies, is caused not only by lagging of its practice from the accelerated pace of modern societies modernization and changes in the organization of family life, but also by the decline of the culture of life development and pedagogical culture of wider population stratum. The changes taking place in modern families, hasty conclusions about the replacement of traditional family with its ne...

  20. Human feeding biomechanics: performance, variation, and functional constraints

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dechow, Paul C.; Wang, Qian; Gharpure, Poorva H.; Baab, Karen L.; Smith, Amanda L.; Weber, Gerhard W.; Grosse, Ian R.; Ross, Callum F.; Richmond, Brian G.; Wright, Barth W.; Byron, Craig; Wroe, Stephen; Strait, David S.

    2016-01-01

    The evolution of the modern human (Homo sapiens) cranium is characterized by a reduction in the size of the feeding system, including reductions in the size of the facial skeleton, postcanine teeth, and the muscles involved in biting and chewing. The conventional view hypothesizes that gracilization of the human feeding system is related to a shift toward eating foods that were less mechanically challenging to consume and/or foods that were processed using tools before being ingested. This hypothesis predicts that human feeding systems should not be well-configured to produce forceful bites and that the cranium should be structurally weak. An alternate hypothesis, based on the observation that humans have mechanically efficient jaw adductors, states that the modern human face is adapted to generate and withstand high biting forces. We used finite element analysis (FEA) to test two opposing mechanical hypotheses: that compared to our closest living relative, chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), the modern human craniofacial skeleton is (1) less well configured, or (2) better configured to generate and withstand high magnitude bite forces. We considered intraspecific variation in our examination of human feeding biomechanics by examining a sample of geographically diverse crania that differed notably in shape. We found that our biomechanical models of human crania had broadly similar mechanical behavior despite their shape variation and were, on average, less structurally stiff than the crania of chimpanzees during unilateral biting when loaded with physiologically-scaled muscle loads. Our results also show that modern humans are efficient producers of bite force, consistent with previous analyses. However, highly tensile reaction forces were generated at the working (biting) side jaw joint during unilateral molar bites in which the chewing muscles were recruited with bilateral symmetry. In life, such a configuration would have increased the risk of joint dislocation and