Origin and migration of the Alpine Iceman

The Alpine Iceman provides a unique window into the Neolithic-Copper Age of Europe. We compared the radiogenic (strontium and lead) and stable (oxygen and carbon) isotope composition of the Iceman's teeth and bones, as well as 40Ar/39Ar mica ages from his intestine, to local geology and hydrology, and we inferred his habitat and range from childhood to adult life. The Iceman's origin can be restricted to a few valleys within approximately 60 kilometers south(east) of the discovery site. His migration during adulthood is indicated by contrasting isotopic compositions of enamel, bones, and intestinal content. This demonstrates that the Alpine valleys of central Europe were permanently inhabited during the terminal Neolithic.     

'Ain ghazal: a major neolithic settlement in central jordan

'Ain Ghazal, an archeological site located on the outskirts of Amman, Jordan, is one of the largest early villages known in the Near East. The site dates to the Neolithic period, during which mankind made one of its most significant advances, the adoption of domestic plants and animals as primary subsistence sources. Recent excavations at 'Ain Ghazal have augmented considerably current knowledge of several aspects of the Neolithic. Of particular interest has been the documentation of a continuous, or near continuous, occupation from early through late Neolithic components, and a concomitant dramatic economic shift. This shift was from a broad subsistence base relying on a variety of both wild and domestic plants and animals, to an economic strategy reflecting an apparent emphasis on pastoralism.     

Evidence of early pyrometallurgy in the kerman range in iran

Physical and chemical anal ysis of pottery fragments, including a crucible shard and ore samples from Tal-i-Iblis, Iran, suggests that copper smelting may have been well advantced late in the fifth millennium B.C.     

Eighth millennium pottery from a prehistoric shell midden in the brazilian Amazon

The earliest pottery yet found in the Western Hemisphere has been excavated from a prehistoric shell midden near Santarém in the lower Amazon, Brazil. Calibrated accelerator radiocarbon dates on charcoal, shell, and pottery and a thermoluminescence date on pottery from the site fall from about 8000 to 7000 years before the present. The early fishing village is part of a long prehistoric trajectory that contradicts theories that resource poverty limited cultural evolution in the tropics.     

Subsurface valleys and geoarcheology of the eastern sahara revealed by shuttle radar

The shuttle imaging radar (SIR-A) carried on the space shuttle Columbia in November 1981 penetrated the extremely dry Selima Sand Sheet, dunes, and drift sand of the eastern Sahara, revealing previously unknown buried valleys, geologic structures, and possible Stone Age occupation sites. Radar responses from bedrock and gravel surfaces beneath windblown sand several centimeters to possibly meters thick delineate sand- and alluvium-filled valleys, some nearly as wide as the Nile Valley and perhaps as old as middle Tertiary. The now-vanished major river systems that carved these large valleys probably accomplished most of the erosional stripping of this extraordinarily flat, hyperarid region. Underfit and incised dry wadis, many superimposed on the large valleys, represent erosion by intermittent running water, probably during Quaternary pluvials. Stone Age artifacts associated with soils in the alluvium suggest that areas near the wadis may have been sites of early human occupation. The presence of old drainage networks beneath the sand sheet provides a geologic explanation for the locations of many playas and present-day oases which have been centers of episodic human habitation. Radar penetration of dry sand and soils varies with the wavelength of the incident signals (24 centimeters for the SIR-A system), incidence angle, and the electrical properties of the materials, which are largely determined by moisture content. The calculated depth of radar penetration of dry sand and granules, based on laboratory measurements of the electrical properties of samples from the Selima Sand Sheet, is at least 5 meters. Recent (September 1982) field studies in Egypt verified SIR-A signal penetration depths of at least 1 meter in the Selima Sand Sheet and in drift sand and 2 or more meters in sand dunes.     

Early Neolithic Horsebean from Yiftah'el, Israel

Charred seeds of horsebean (Vicia faba L.) from the seventh millennium B.C. that were found at Yiftah'el, Israel, push back the known use of this vetch by about 2000 years. Horsebean should be included in the ensemble of legumes grown by some early Neolithic people. The site, situated near the southwest outlet of Biq'at Bet Netofa, lies in a valley with heavy soil suitable for growing contemporary cultivars of horsebean. The still unknown wild ancestor of the horsebean may have originated in similar habitats in the Levant.     

Historical dates for neolithic sites of southeast europe

Direct comparison of the radiocarbon contents of charcoal samples with those of bristlecone pine wood samples dated by tree rings shows that a full-fledged Neolithic with pottery and all the domesticated animals, except the horse, was present in southeast Europe as early as the 65th century B.C. The chronologies for the stratigraphic sequences of the settlements of Achilleion and Anza, based on a total of 37 La Jolla radiocarbon measurements, cover almost 1000 years.     

American historical archeology: methods and results

For historical archeology to be effective, research methods must be employed that ensure that both archeological and historical data be synthesized in a constructive manner. An example from Flowerdew Hundred, a Virginia plantation, illustrates such an approach. Collections from eighteen sites(1619 to 1720) were studied and dated by the inside bore diameters of pipestem fragments from clay smoking pipes. The sites grouped into three distinct categories, each with a different date. The latest group of sites (1680 to 1720) contained Colono ware, a slave produced pottery; none of the earlier sites did, although there were blacks at Flowerdew Hundred as early as 1619. On the basis of studies of probate data and other primary historical sources, it is suggested that this pattern of Colono ware occurrence is due to a change in the social and residential status of blacks during the century and that only when they lived separately from the masters did they make this type of pottery.     

Early pottery at 20,000 years ago in Xianrendong Cave, China

The invention of pottery introduced fundamental shifts in human subsistence practices and sociosymbolic behaviors. Here, we describe the dating of the early pottery from Xianrendong Cave, Jiangxi Province, China, and the micromorphology of the stratigraphic contexts of the pottery sherds and radiocarbon samples. The radiocarbon ages of the archaeological contexts of the earliest sherds are 20,000 to 19,000 calendar years before the present, 2000 to 3000 years older than other pottery found in East Asia and elsewhere. The occupations in the cave demonstrate that pottery was produced by mobile foragers who hunted and gathered during the Late Glacial Maximum. These vessels may have served as cooking devices. The early date shows that pottery was first made and used 10 millennia or more before the emergence of agriculture.     

六畜考源

中国的六畜可以分为两组：猪、狗、鸡和马、牛、羊。猪、狗、鸡常见于新石器时代文化遗址,与定居农业生产方式相关;马、牛、羊多见于青铜时代文化遗址,与游牧生活方式有关。夏、商、周三代六畜逐渐齐备,表明东方定居农业文化与西来游牧文化的混合。猪是东亚新石器时代最重要的家畜,是定居农业文化的象征;马是游牧文化的标志,从青铜时代开始成为显贵的家畜。六畜概念始见于春秋战国时代文献,猪和马的相对重要性意味着定居农业文化和游牧文化的消长。本文系统考察了六畜渊源,并试图窥视中国民族文化的形成轨迹。     

The 1987 whittier narrows earthquake in the los angeles metropolitan area, california

The Whittier Narrows earthquake sequence (local magnitude, M(L) = 5.9), which caused over $358-million damage, indicates that assessments of earthquake hazards in the Los Angeles metropolitan area may be underestimated. The sequence ruptured a previously unidentified thrust fault that may be part of a large system of thrust faults that extends across the entire east-west length of the northern margin of the Los Angeles basin. Peak horizontal accelerations from the main shock, which were measured at ground level and in structures, were as high as 0.6g (where g is the acceleration of gravity at sea level) within 50 kilometers of the epicenter. The distribution of the modified Mercalli intensity VII reflects a broad north-south elongated zone of damage that is approximately centered on the main shock epicenter.     

从南庄桥遗址的稻硅酸体看早期水稻的系统演变

植物硅酸体分析是研究作物起源进化的一种有效方法.为了了解新石器时代栽培作物的种类以及栽培稻系统的历史变迁,我们从浙江省南庄桥遗址5～12层中采集了16份土样和8份陶片及红烧土进行了植物硅酸体分析.结果从14份土样和6份陶片中发现了稻的硅酸体,分别属于马家浜文化(B.C. 4500～B.C. 3800)和良渚文化(B.C. 3500～B.C. 2000),说明这个遗址及其周围从距今6000年左右起就已经栽培水稻了.对发现的稻硅酸体进行形状解析结果显示,伴随历史的发展稻硅酸体的长、宽、厚增大,形状系数b/a 减小;在4个形状特性的分布上看到同样的趋势,表明从马家浜文化到良渚文化稻的硅酸体有一个向大尺寸、尖长型方向变化的过程.根据稻硅酸体形状解析结果,我们认为遗址早期的栽培稻可能是一些正在分化的多样性的群体,随着历史的向前发展,走上大量栽培粳稻的道路.     

东乡野生稻重复序列的克隆分析及染色体定位

从东乡野生稻(O ry za ruf ipogon G riff)中克隆到7个重复序列,序列分析表明:这些序列是与转座因子有关的序列。以序列H 2为探针,对不同基因组水稻进行Southern杂交,表明该序列为稻属内AA基因组特异的重复序列。其分布在水稻的多条染色体上,荧光原位杂交(F ISH)结果显示该重复序列主要位于染色体的着丝粒以及端粒附近,重复单位序列长度为615 bp左右。并就特异重复序列在水稻研究中的应用进行了讨论。     

Land clearance in the irish neolithic: new evidence and interpretation

Time scales are derived, from radiocarbon dating of pollen diagrams, for Neolithic land clearance at three Irish sites. Three stages are distinguished beginning in the 4th millennium B.C.: stage A, clearance and farming (possibly arable), 100 to 400 years; stage B, farming (possibly pastoral), 150 to 200 years; and stage C, forest regeneration, 50 to 100 years.     

自然景观空间意义之探索——南太行山典型峡谷景观韵律美评价

景观的韵律美价值与景观对原始人类的战略意义相一致,这是景观韵律美评价的基本原理。本文对南太行山典型峡谷景观(王相岩峡谷景观)的空间结构及其意义、韵律美价值进行了分析和探讨:围谷及其绝壁上的悬岩和洞穴,预示着一种潜在的、原始人的理想领地和直接生境;峡谷走廊与围谷的结合而形成的串珠式空间序列和每一围谷中的倒塔式竖向空间序列,能最大限度地满足人的空间探索欲和求知欲,产生多种景观感受和有利于形成清晰的整体环境认知图。这些结构正是自热景观美的韵律。     

Starch fossils and the domestication and dispersal of chili peppers (Capsicum spp. L.) in the Americas

Chili peppers (Capsicum spp.) are widely cultivated food plants that arose in the Americas and are now incorporated into cuisines worldwide. Here, we report a genus-specific starch morphotype that provides a means to identify chili peppers from archaeological contexts and trace both their domestication and dispersal. These starch microfossils have been found at seven sites dating from 6000 years before present to European contact and ranging from the Bahamas to southern Peru. The starch grain assemblages demonstrate that maize and chilies occurred together as an ancient and widespread Neotropical plant food complex that predates pottery in some regions.     

河姆渡五叶纹陶块研究

通过对五叶纹陶块及河姆渡出土有类似植物纹样的文物进行归纳研究认为，河姆渡五叶纹陶块植物为烟草。相关文物反映出烟草在河姆渡宗教中的特殊地位。