The early exploitation of Southeast Asian mangroves:Bone technology from caves and open sites

This paper focuses on the contribution that the study of bone technology is making to the understanding of early tropical subsistence in Southeast Asia. Newly completed research suggests that during the period from the terminal Pleistocene to mid Holocene, bone tools may have featured prominently in coastal subsistence. There are indications that this technology may have had a particular association with hunting and gathering in the mangrove forests that proliferated along many coasts during this period. The study of these tools thus represents a rare chance to examine prehistoric extractive technologies, which are generally agreed to have been predominantly made on organic, nonpreserving media. The evidence presented also suggests that prehistoric foragers from this region possessed a good working understanding of the mechanical properties of bone and used bone implements where conditions and needs suited the parameters of this material. © 2005 by the University of Hawai'i Press.

Prehistoric foragers and farmers in south-east Asia:Renewed investigations at Niah Cave, Sarawak

The paper describes the initial results from renewed investigations at Niah Cave in Sarawak on the island of Borneo, famous for the discovery in 1958 of the c. 40,000-year old 'Deep Skull'. The archaeological sequences from the West Mouth and the other entrances of the cave complex investigated by Tom and Barbara Harrisson and other researchers have potential implications for three major debates regarding the prehistory of south-east Asia: the timing of initial settlement by anatomically modern humans; the means by which they subsisted in the late Pleistocene and early Holocene; and the timing, nature, and causation of the transition from foraging to farming. The new project is informing on all three debates. The critical importance of the Niah stratigraphies was commonly identified - including by Tom Harrisson himself - as because the site provided a continuous sequence of occupation over the past 40,000 years. The present project indicates that Niah was first used at least 45,000 years ago, and probably earlier; that the subsequent Pleistocene and Holocene occupations were highly variable in intensity and character; and that in some periods, perhaps of significant duration, the caves may have been more or less abandoned. The cultural sequence that is emerging from the new investigations may be more typical of cave use in tropical rainforests in south-east Asia than the Harrisson model.

Genetic structure at range edge: Low diversity and high inbreeding in Southeast Asian mangrove (Avicennia marina) populations

Understanding the genetic composition and mating systems of edge populations provides important insights into the environmental and demographic factors shaping species’ distribution ranges. We analysed samples of the mangrove Avicennia marina from Vietnam, northern Philippines and Australia, with microsatellite markers. We compared genetic diversity and structure in edge (Southeast Asia, and Southern Australia) and core (North and Eastern Australia) populations, and also compared our results with previously published data from core and southern edge populations. Comparisons highlighted significantly reduced gene diversity and higher genetic structure in both margins compared to core populations, which can be attributed to very low effective population size, pollinator scarcity and high environmental pressure at distribution margins. The estimated level of inbreeding was significantly higher in northeastern populations compared to core and southern populations. This suggests that despite the high genetic load usually associated with inbreeding, inbreeding or even selfing may be advantageous in margin habitats due to the possible advantages of reproductive assurance, or local adaptation. The very high level of genetic structure and inbreeding show that populations of A. marina are functioning as independent evolutionary units more than as components of a metapopulation system connected by gene flow. The combinations of those characteristics make these peripheral populations likely to develop local adaptations and therefore to be of particular interest for conservation strategies as well as for adaptation to possible future environmental changes.

Analisis de la politica exterior china para Africa Subsahariana en materia politica y energetica. Una aproximacion a la relacion sino sudanesa. Periodo 1996 - 2005

Este trabajo explica las razones por las cuales China se estrecha sus vinculos con Afirca. El tema principal es el inicio de la relacion sino-sudanesa y la evolucion de esta hasta el fin de la guerra civil en Sudan.

Incidencia de la política "desarrollo pacífico" en las relaciones de china y la ASEAN. Una aproximación desde la soberanía de las islas Spratly, 2004 – 2012

El interés de este trabajo es el de analizar la Política Exterior de la Republica Popular China, más específicamente la conocida como Desarrollo Pacífico, y su incidencia en las disputas territoriales del Sudeste Asiático. El trabajo se dividirá en 3 partes, donde cada una tratara distintos aspectos del Desarrollo Pacífico, y través del mismo se explicará como por medio de distintos conceptos se pueden entender las múltiples posiciones chinas, así como las preocupaciones de los países que conforman el bloque ASEAN. El propósito de este documento será demostrar que a pesar de que dicha política ha ayudado de forma sustancial a mejorar las relaciones entre ambos bandos y ha traído bastantes beneficios políticos, no ha sido suficiente para eliminar la tensión en la zona y dar una solución a las disputas que se viven.

El crecimiento económico de corea del sur y sus posibilidades de alterar el equilibrio en Asia-Pacífico

El interés de esta monografía es analizar el crecimiento económico de Corea del Sur y sus posibilidades de alterar el equilibrio en la región de Asia-Pacífico. A partir de los conceptos de poder duro y equilibrio de poder propuestos por Joseph Nye y Ernst Haas, se examinan los principales hitos del proceso de desarrollo nacional y se determina en qué sentido el incremento del poder duro nacional le permite a este país posicionarse como una potencia regional en ascenso. Así mismo, se evalúan los procesos de liderazgo regional de China y Japón que impiden a Corea del Sur alterar sustancialmente el equilibrio de poder en esta región del mundo.

Dime cómo me percibes y te diré quién soy: Estados Unidos y su idea de la política exterior China en la década de 1950

La década de 1950 fue determinante en el establecimiento y póstumo desarrollo del sistema de política exterior de la República Popular China. Al respecto, es de vital importancia realizar un análisis exhaustivo sobre esta primera etapa en donde actores externos a la nación tuvieron un papel determinante. Se busca, entonces, analizar la incidencia que tuvo el discurso de Estados Unidos en la política exterior China a través de un profundo análisis cualitativo que tendrá como base elementos propios de la historiografía. Mediante aproximaciones constructivistas, se pretende demostrar que las creencias pre-existentes de ambos actores (así como la intersubjetividad entre los mismos), determinó la identidad construida a través de la percepción mutua. Lo anterior, impulsó las relaciones predominantemente agresivas entre Estados Unidos y la China Maoísta de principios de la Guerra Fría.

The ship as symbol in the prehistory of Scandinavia and south-east Asia

The ship is the dominant element in the visual culture of the South Scandinavian Bronze Age, appearing in several different media, including rock carvings, decorated metalwork and above-ground monuments. Discussion has divided between those scholars who interpret this imagery in terms of long-distance exchange networks and those who emphasize its more local significance, including its deployment in mortuary ritual. A strikingly similar system is identified in Southeast Asia and part of Melanesia and can be interpreted through archaeological and ethnographic sources, but in this case there is no need to distinguish between 'practical' and 'symbolic' interpretations of the depictions of ships. This paper summarizes the evidence from this region and suggests that it can offer a fruitful source of comparison for archaeologists working in northern Europe.

Where were the monsoon regions and arid zones in Asia prior to the Tibetan Plateau uplift?

The impact of the Tibetan Plateau uplift on the Asian monsoons and inland arid climates is an important but also controversial question in studies of paleoenvironmental change during the Cenozoic. In order to achieve a good understanding of the background for the formation of the Asian monsoons and arid environments, it is necessary to know the characteristics of the distribution of monsoon regions and arid zones in Asia before the plateau uplift. In this study, we discuss in detail the patterns of distribution of the Asian monsoon and arid regions before the plateau uplift on the basis of modeling results without topography from a global coupled atmosphere–ocean general circulation model, compare our results with previous simulation studies and available biogeological data, and review the uncertainties in the current knowledge. Based on what we know at the moment, tropical monsoon climates existed south of 20°N in South and Southeast Asia before the plateau uplift, while the East Asian monsoon was entirely absent in the extratropics. These tropical monsoons mainly resulted from the seasonal shifts of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone. There may have been a quasi-monsoon region in central-southern Siberia. Most of the arid regions in the Asian continent were limited to the latitudes of 20–40°N, corresponding to the range of the subtropical high pressure year-around. In the meantime, the present-day arid regions located in the relatively high latitudes in Central Asia were most likely absent before the plateau uplift. The main results from the above modeling analyses are qualitatively consistent with the available biogeological data. These results highlight the importance of the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau in the Cenozoic evolution of the Asian climate pattern of dry–wet conditions. Future studies should be focused on effects of the changes in land–sea distribution and atmospheric CO2 concentrations before and after the plateau uplift, and also on cross-comparisons between numerical simulations and geological evidence, so that a comprehensive understanding of the evolution of the Cenozoic paleoenvironments in Asia can be achieved.

Delimitation of the Segregate Genera of Maytenus s. l. (Celastraceae) Based on Morphological and Molecular Characters

Maytenus s. l. (including Gymnosporia) is a morphologically diverse genus of about 300 species that is widely distributed in the tropics and subtropics of both the Old and New Worlds. Its delimitation has been extensively debated and despite the segregation of Gymnosporia, Maytenus s. s. remains a heterogeneous, polyphyletic group. To delimit natural segregate genera we increased taxon sampling and generated sequences from two nuclear gene regions (ITS and 26S rDNA) and two plastid loci (matK and trnL-F) to analyze together with morphological characters. Both Moya and Tricerma were found to be nested within the New World Maytenus and are recognized as synonyms of Maytenus s. s.. In contrast, the three New World species of Gymnosporia are recognized as a new genus that is closely related to Gyminda. Haydenia is erected for these three species: H. gentryi, H. haberiana, and H. urbaniana. One or more previously proposed or novel genera are required to accommodate the systematically difficult African Maytenus. Putterlickia, and most likely Gloveria, are nested within Gymnosporia and should be synonymized with that genus. New binomials are required for four Chinese and one Rapan species of Gymnosporia that have been previously treated only as Maytenus: Gymnosporia austroyunnanensis, G. confertiflora, G. dongfangensis, G. guangxiensis, and G. pertinax. Austral-Pacific Maytenus are transferred to Denhamia, requiring eight new binomials: Denhamia bilocularis, D. cunninghamii, D. cupularis, D. disperma, D. fasciculiflora, D. ferdinandii, D. fournieri, and D. silvestris. Existing intrageneric classifications of Gymnosporia and Maytenus s. s. were not supported in their entirety. Gymnosporia is inferred to have had an African origin followed by dispersals to Madagascar, southeast Asia and the Austral-Pacific.

Systematics and biogeography of Southeast Asian Senecioneae (Asteraceae): Revision of Cissampelopsis and Gynura and hybridisation in the introduced Crassocephalum

ZUSAMMENFASSUNG Die vorgelegte Dissertation enthält zwei Teile. Der erste beinhaltet eine Einführung in die Flora Südostasiens und die Untersuchungsgruppe Asteraceae-Senecioneae Cass. mit den Gattungen Cissampelopsis (DC.) Miq., Gynura Cass. und Crassocephalum Moench (Kapitel 1). Der zweite Teil besteht aus drei Manuskripten, die auf originalen Forschungsergebnissen basieren (Kapitel 2-4). In Kapitel 2 wird eine Revision der asiatischen Gattung Cissampelopsis vorgelegt. Die folgenden zwei Sektionen mit zehn Arten und zwei Varietäten werden anerkannt: sect. Buimalia C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen mit C. buimalia (Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen, C. erythrochaeta C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen und C. calcadensis (Ramasw.) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen sowie sect. Cissampelopsis mit C. glandulosa C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen, C. walkeri (Arn.) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen mit var. walkeri und var. floccosa Vanijajiva & Kadereit (var. nov.), C. corifolia C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen, C. volubilis (Bl.) Miq, C. ansteadii (Tadul. & Jacob) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen, C. spelaeicola (Van.) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen und C. corymbosa (Wall. ex DC.) C. Jeffrey & Y. L. Chen. Schlüssel, Artbeschreibungen, Fotographien von Blütenmerkmalen und Verbreitungskarten werden präsentiert. Kapitel 3 beinhaltet die Revision der paläotropischen Gattung Gynura. Vierundvierzig Arten werden anerkannt, darunter die folgenden drei Neubeschreibungen: G. davisii Vanijajiva & Kadereit, G. siamensis Vanijajiva & Kadereit und G. villosus Vanijajiva & Kadereit. Gynura dissecta (F. G. Davies) Vanijajiva & Kadereit, G. annua (F. G. Davies) Vanijajiva & Kadereit und G. aurantiaca (Bl) DC. subsp. parviflora (F. G. Davies) Vanijajiva & Kadereit sind Neukombinationen. Ein Schlüssel, Artbeschreibungen und Verbreitungskarten werden vorgelegt. In Kapitel 4 wird eine Analyse von Crassocephalum in Asien, einer aus Afrika eingeschleppten Gattung, präsentiert. Diese Untersuchung basiert auf umfangreicher Feldarbeit, Herbarstudien, Analysen der Pollen- und Samenfertilität, Chromosomenzählungen sowie ITS- und trnL-F-Sequenzen. Die Studie ergab, dass Crassocephalum in Asien mit zwei Arten und deren Hybrid vertreten ist. Die zwei Arten sind C. crepidioides (Benth.) S. Moore und C. rubens (Juss. ex Jacq.) S. Moore, wobei letztere einen Neufund für Asien darstellt. Der Hybrid aus diesen beiden Arten resultiert aus einer Kreuzung von C. crepidioides (2n=40) als weiblichem und C. rubens (2n=40) als männlichem Elter.

An Asian Triangle of Growth and Cluster-to-Cluster Linkages

It is expected that an Asian triangle of growth will be formed in the coming few decades. China, India and ASEAN surround the Asian triangle, which is home to many industrial clusters. Multinational corporations will link these clusters together. Regional integration will help them in this task by lowering the barriers of national borders. This paper explains the necessity of regional integration for cluster-to-cluster linkages in the Asian triangle of growth.

Financial Cooperation in East Asia

This paper addresses the rationale for financial cooperation in East Asia. It begins by giving a brief review of developments after the Asian currency crisis, and argues that enhancing regional financial cooperation both quantitatively and qualitatively will require: (1) upgrading surveillance capabilities in the region, and (2) creating a clear division of labor between regional institutions and the IMF. It also mentions the issue of membership and the background forces that have led to the duplication of similar forums in East Asia. Although the concern over crisis management is the central issue in East Asian financial cooperation, other issues such as exchange rate policy coordination and fostering regional capital markets are discussed as well.

Winner-Take-All Contention of Innovation under Globalization: A Simulation Analysis and East Asia's Empirics

This paper sets out to examine how innovation enhances export competitiveness: The proposition that export volume becomes enhanced as more productivity-enhancing innovation is captured by the exporting economy is the focus of this study. From a Schumpeterian perspective, innovation can be characterized by continuous creation and subsequent diffusion of newer technologies on the basis of the exporters' existing capital stock. Then we highlight the theoretical possibility that concentration of innovative activities in a small group of "winner" economies would lead to larger shares of "winner" economies' exports of innovation-active commodities than those commodities for which technology involved is already mature. The world's export data corroborates this theoretical prediction overall, and a focus upon East Asia has revealed the region's increasing resort to technology-intensive commodity sectors, which has presumably been enabled through attracting technology-bearing inward foreign direct investment. Considering the overall gains from innovation, acceleration of full "cycle" of innovation and imitation might be a desirable option.