Biała Góra: the forgotten colony in the Medieval Pomeranian-Prussian borderlands

Biała Góra 3 is a small settlement founded in the late twelfth or early thirteenth century AD in the disputed Christian borderlands of Northern Europe. The incorporation of Pomerania into the Polish state in the tenth century was followed by a process of colonisation across the lower Vistula valley, which then stalled before resuming in the thirteenth century under the Teutonic Order. Biała Góra 3 is unusual in falling between the two expansionist phases and provides detailed insight into the ethnicity and economy of this borderland community. Pottery and metalwork show strong links with both Pomeranian and German colonists, and caches of bricks and roof tiles indicate durable buildings of the kind associated with the monastic and military orders. Evidence for the presence of merchants suggests Biała Góra 3 was one of many outposts in the commercial network that shadowed the Crusades.

Examining the relationships between Holocene climate change, hydrology, and human society in Ireland

This thesis explores human-environment interactions during the Mid-Late Holocene in raised bogs in central Ireland. The raised bogs of central Ireland are widely-recognised for their considerable palaeoenvironmental and archaeological resources: research over the past few decades has established the potential for such sites to preserve sensitive records of Holocene climatic variability expressed as changes in bog surface wetness (BSW); meanwhile archaeological investigations over the past century have uncovered hundreds of peatland archaeological features dating from the Neolithic through to the Post-Medieval period including wooden trackways, platforms, and deposits of high-status metalwork. Previous studies have attempted to explore the relationship between records of past environmental change and the occurrence of peatland archaeological sites reaching varying conclusions. More recently, environmentally-deterministic models of human-environment interaction in Irish raised bogs at the regional scale have been explicitly tested leading to the conclusion that there is no relationship between BSW and past human activity. These relationships are examined in more detail on a site-by-site basis in this thesis. To that end, testate amoebae-derived BSW records from nine milled former raised bogs in central Ireland were produced from sites with known and dated archaeological records. Relationships between BSW records and environmental conditions within the study area were explored through both the development of a new central Ireland testate amoebae transfer function and through comparisons between recent BSW records and instrumental weather data. Compilation of BSW records from the nine fossil study sites show evidence both for climate forcing, particularly during 3200-2400 cal BP, as well as considerable inter-site variability. Considerable inter-site variability was also evident in the archaeological records of the same sites. Whilst comparisons between BSW and archaeological records do not show a consistent linear relationship, examination of records on a site-by-site basis were shown to reveal interpretatively important contingent relationships. It is concluded therefore, that future research on human-environment interactions should focus on individual sites and should utilise theoretical approaches from the humanities in order to avoid the twin pitfalls of masking important local patterns of change, and of environmental determinism.

Acumulação de competências tecnológicas e os processos subjacentes de apredizagem: o caso da Invensis Appliances Controls Unidade Vacaria - RS

Esta dissertação enfoca o relacionamento entre acumulação de competências tecnológicas e os processos subjacentes de aprendizagem. Este relacionamento é examinado na empresa Invensys Appliance Controls Ltda. - Unidade de Vacaria/RS, durante o período de 1981 a 2000. Trata-se de uma empresa metal-mecânica, fornecedora da indústria de linha branca. Em outras palavras, a dissertação examina as implicações dos processos subjacentes de aprendizagem tecnológica para a acumulação de competências para três funções tecnológicas: processo e organização da produção, produtos e equipamentos. Os processos de aprendizagem são examinados à luz de quatro características: variedade, intensidade, funcionamento e interação, a partir do uso de estruturas de análise existente na literatura. Baseado em estudo de caso individual, este estudo encontrou que a maneira e a velocidade de acumulação de competências tecnológicas na empresa estudada estão associadas aos diversos processos usados para adquirir conhecimento tecnológico e convertê-lo em organizacional. Ademais, a simples incidência desses processos na empresa não garantiu na empresa uma implicação positiva para a acumulação de competências tecnológicas. Através do uso de estrutura existente na literatura, porém aplicada a uma indústria diferente de estudos anteriores, esta dissertação sugere que deve existir um esforço organizado, contínuo e integrado para geração e disseminação de conhecimento em toda a empresa a fim de que a acumulação de capacitação tecnológica seja acelerada na empresa.

Comminuted fractures of the radial head and neck: is fixation to the shaft necessary?

Mason type III fractures of the radial head are treated by open reduction and internal fixation, resection or prosthetic joint replacement. When internal fixation is performed, fixation of the radial head to the shaft is difficult and implant-related complications are common. Furthermore, problems of devascularisation of the radial head can result from fixation of the plate to the radial neck. In a small retrospective study, the treatment of Mason type III fractures with fixation of the radial neck in 13 cases (group 2) was compared with 12 cases where no fixation was performed (group 1). The mean clinical and radiological follow-up was four years (1 to 9). The Broberg-Morrey index showed excellent results in both groups. Degenerative radiological changes were seen more frequently in group 2, and removal of the implant was necessary in seven of 13 cases. Post-operative evaluation of these two different techniques revealed similar ranges of movement and functional scores. We propose that anatomical reconstruction of the radial head without metalwork fixation to the neck is preferable, and the outcome is the same as that achieved with the conventional technique. In addition degenerative changes of the elbow joint may develop less frequently, and implant removal is not necessary.

Terrakotten

Übersicht über die Entwicklung von anthropomorphen Terrakottafiguren in Mesopotamien, Syrien und Palästina vom Neolithikum bis in die Achämenidenzeit.

Das Abenteuer Bildung. Über Pflicht, Lust und Ideen im Lauf der Zeit

Kindergarten, Schule, Aus- und Weiterbildung, individuelle Interessen, Neugier und Forscherdrang – Bildung begleitet uns ein Leben lang. Sie ist das wertvollste Gut einer Gesellschaft, denn in ihr geben wir Wissen und Werte, Kompetenzen und Kreativität weiter: die Basis gesellschaftlicher Innovation. Die Ausstellung lädt ein zu einer Entdeckungsreise durch die unterschiedlichen Dimensionen von Bildung in Geschichte und Gegenwart, stellt sie auf die Probe und fragt danach, welche Bildung wir uns für die Zukunft wünschen.