Multiple osteochondromas in the archaeological record: a global review

Multiple osteochondromas is an inherited autosomal dominant condition of enchondral bone growth. The paper undertakes the first synthesis study of the 16 known cases of the condition that have been identified in the international palaeopathological record. It also includes information derived from two newly discovered cases of the disease in two adult male individuals recovered from the Medieval cemetery at Ballyhanna, Co. Donegal, Ireland. The formation of multiple osteochondromas is the best known characteristic of the disease but it also involves the development of a suite of orthopaedic deformities. These deformities, which include disproportionate short stature, inequality of bone length, forearm deformities, tibiofibular diastasis, coxa valga of the hip and valgus deformity of the knee and ankle, are discussed in relation to the archaeological cases. Numerous synonyms for the disease have been used within the various publications produced by palaeopathologists, and this can generate confusion among readers. As such, the paper recommends that in future palaeopathologists should follow the guidance of the World Health Organization and use the term multiple osteochondromas when discussing the disease.

From a ‘borderless world’ to a ‘world of borders’: ‘bringing history back in’

The first part of the paper explores some of the reasons why contemporary border studies understate the full significance of state borders and their global primacy. It is argued that this failing is rooted in a much wider lack of historical reflexivity-a reluctance to acknowledge the historical positioning (the 'where and when') of contemporary border studies themselves. This reluctance encourages a form of pseudohistory, or 'epochal thinking', which disfigures perspective on the present. Among the consequences are (a) exaggerated claims of the novelty of contemporary border change, propped up by poorly substantiated benchmarks in the past; (b) an incapacity to recognise the 'past in the present' as in the various historical deposits of state formation processes; and (c) a failure to recognise the distinctiveness of contemporary state borders and how they differ from other borders in their complexity and globality. The second part of the paper argues for a recalibration of border studies aimed at balancing their spatial emphases with a much greater, and more critical, historical sensitivity. It insists that 'boundedness', and state boundedness in particular, is a variable that must be understood historically. This is illustrated by arguing that a better analysis of contemporary border change means rethinking the crude periodisation which distinguishes the age of empire from the age of nation-states and, in turn, from some putative contemporary era 'beyond nation-states' and their borders.

The vegetation and climate history of the last glacial cycle in a new pollen record from Lake Fimon (southern Alpine foreland, N-Italy)

The sediments of Like Fimon N Italy contain the first continuous archive of the Late Pleistocene environmental and climate history of the southern Alpine foreland We present here the detailed palynological record of the interval between Termination II and the List Glacial Maximum The age-depth model is obtained by radiocarbon dating in the uppermost part of the record Downward we con elated major forest expansion and contraction events to isotopic events in the Greenland Ice core records via a stepping-stone approach involving intermediate correlation to isotopic events dated by TIMS U/Th in Alpine and Apennine stalagmites and to pollen records from mime cores of the Iberian margin Modelled ages obtained by Bayesian analysis of deposition are thoroughly consistent with actual ages with maximum offset of +/- 1700 years Sharp expansion of broad-leaved temperate forest and of sudden water table rise mark the onset of the Last Interglacial after a treeless steppe phase at the end of penultimate glaciation This event is actually a two-step process which matches the two step rise observed in the isotopic record of the nearby Antro del Corchia stalagmite respectively dated to 132 5 +/- 2 5 and 129 +/- 1 5 ka At the interglacial decline mixed oak forests were replaced by oceanic mixed forests the latter persisting further for 7 ka till the end of the Eemian succession Warm-temperate woody species are still abundant at the Eemian end corroborating a steep gradient between central Europe and the Alpine divide at the inception of the last glacial After a stadial phase marked by moderate forest decline a new expansion of warm broad leaved forests interrupted by minor events and followed by mixed oceanic forests can be identified with the north-alpine Saint Germain I The spread of beech during the oceanic phase is a valuable circumalpine marker The subsequent stadial-interstadial succession lacking the telocratic oceanic phase is also consistent with the evidence at the north alpine foreland The Middle Wurmian (full glacial) is marked by persistence of mixed forests dominated by conifers but with significant lime and other broad leaved species A major Arboreal Pollen decrease is observed at modelled age of 38 7 +/- 0 5 ka (larch expansion and last occurrence of lime) which his been related to Heinrich Event 4 The evidence of afforestation persisting south of the Alps throughout most of MIS 3 contrasts with a boreal and continental landscape known for the northern alpine foreland pointing to a sharp rainfall boundary at the Alpine divide and to southern air circulation This is in agreement with the Alpine paleoglaciological record and is supported by the pressure and rainfall patterns designed by mesoscale paleoclimate simulations Strenghtening the continental high pressure during the full glacial triggered cyclogenesis in the middle latitude eastern Europe and orographic rainfall in the eastern Alps and the Balkanic mountains thus allowing forests development at current sea level altitudes (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved

“ Humanitarian Competition: An Intellectual History in Perspective”.

Competition has become the mantra for survival in a globalised world where meaningful existence is fraught with demands, which go beyond the material to the immaterial ‘byte-size’. This has been exemplified by our obsession with illusions of immediate fame and fortune. This paper contextualises and extends the debate about the role of competition in general. Here the four major myths of competition are explored and deconstructed, from a Darwinian perspective to a more demonstrably engaged perspective on ‘capabilities’ (Sen, 1999). The second section deals particularly with the key debates, theories that influenced Tsunesaburo Makiguchi’s seminal ideas of ‘humanitarian competition’ in 1903. The final part of the paper seeks to decipher the relevance of the key ideas of ‘humanitarian competition’ as proposed by Dr Daisaku Ikeda in his 2009 peace proposal. Here the transition from competition to cooperation is explored by tying together the key principles of global coexistence enunciated by both Makiguchi and Ikeda in the context of expanding spiritual influence by the forces of culture, morality and virtue. To engage with humanitarian competition calls for a major shift from hard power to soft power, from subordination to one of engagement. In other words this concept advances the Buddhist principle of peaceful co-existence, or Panchsheel, as a norm for human behaviour of love, kindness, sacrifice and peace through cooperation, where equality and mutual benefit are critical. Humanitarian competition provides the essential framework to establish a new world order as highlighted by both Makiguchi and Ikeda.

Holocene climate change, vegetation history and human impact in the Central Mediterranean: evidence from the Maltese Islands

Holocene climates and human impact in the Mediterranean basin have received much attention, but the Maltese Islands in the Central Mediterranean, although a pivotal area, have been little researched. Here, sedimentary and palynological data are presented for three cores from the Holocene coastal and shallowmarine
deposits of the Maltese Islands. These show deforestation from Pinus-Cupressaceae woodland in the early Neolithic, and then a long, but relatively stable history of agriculturally degraded environments to the present day. The major climate events which have affected the Italian and Balkan peninsulas to the
north, and Tunisia to the south, are not reflected in the pollen diagrams from the Maltese Islands because of the strong anthropogenic imprint on the Maltese vegetation from early in the Neolithic. Previous suggestions of environmentally-driven agricultural collapse at the end of the Neolithic appear, however,
to be substantiated and may be linked to regional aridification around 4300 cal. BP. Depopulation in early Medieval times is not supported by the current palynological evidence.

Late Quaternary glaciations in Far NE Russia; combining moraines, topography and chronology to assess regional and global glaciation synchrony

During various periods of Late Quaternary glaciation, small ice-sheets, -caps, -fields and valley glaciers, occupied the mountains and uplands of Far NE Russia (including the Verkhoyansk, Suntar-Khayata, and Chersky Mountains; the KolymaeAnyuy and Koryak Highlands; and much of the Kamchatka and Chukchi
Peninsulas). Here, the margins of former glaciers across this region are constrained through the comprehensive mapping of moraines from remote sensing data (Landsat 7 ETM+ satellite images; ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model (GDEM2); and Viewfinder Panorama DEM data). A total of 8414 moraines
are mapped, and this record is integrated with a series of published age-estimates (n = 25), considered to chronologically-constrain former ice-margin positions. Geomorphological and chronological data are compiled in a Geographic Information System (GIS) to produce ‘best estimate’ reconstructions of ice extent during the global Last Glacial Maximum (gLGM) and, to a lesser degree, during earlier phases of glaciation. The data reveal that much of Far NE Russia (~1,092,427 km2) preserves a glaciated landscape (i.e. is bounded by moraines), but there is no evidence of former ice masses having extended more than 270 km beyond mountain centres (suggesting that, during the Late Quaternary, the region has not been occupied by extensive ice sheets). During the gLGM, specifically, glaciers occupied ~253,000 km2, and rarely extended more than 50 km in length. During earlier (pre-gLGM) periods, glaciers were more extensive, though the timing of former glaciation, and the maximum Quaternary extent, appears to have been asynchronous across the region, and out-of-phase with ice-extent maxima elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere. This glacial history is partly explained through consideration of climatic-forcing
(particularly moisture-availability, solar insolation and albedo), though topographic-controls upon the former extent and dynamics of glaciers are also considered, as are topographic-controls upon moraine deposition and preservation. Ultimately, our ability to understand the glacial and climatic history of this region is restricted when the geomorphological-record alone is considered, particularly as directly-dated glacial deposits are few, and topographic and climatic controls upon the moraine record are difficult to
distinguish.

Glacial to paraglacial history and forest recovery in the Oglio glacier system (Italian Alps) between 26 and 15 ka cal BP

The integrated stratigraphic, radiocarbon and palynological record from an end-moraine system of the Oglio valley glacier (Italian Alps), propagating a lobe upstream in a lateral reach, provided evidence for a complete cycle of glacial advance, culmination and withdrawal during the Last Glacial Maximum and early Lateglacial. The glacier culminated in the end moraine shortly after 25.8 +/- 0.8 ka cal BP, and cleared the valley floor 18.3-17.2 +/- 0.3 ka cal BP. A primary paraglacial phase is then recorded by fast progradation of the valley floor.

As early as 16.7 +/- 0.3 ka cal BP, early stabilization of alluvial fans and lake filling promoted expansion of cembran pine. This is an unprecedented evidence of direct tree response to depletion of paraglacial activity during the early Lateglacial, and also documents the cembran pine survival in the mountain belt of the Italian Alps during the last glaciation. Between 16.1 and 14.6 +/- 0.5 ka cal BP, debris cones emplacement points to a moisture increase favouring tree Betula and Pinus sylvestris-mugo. A climate perturbation renewed paraglacial activity. According to cosmogenic ages on glacial deposits and AMS radiocarbon ages from lake records in South-Eastern Alps such phase compares favourably with the Gschnitz stadial and with the oscillations recorded at lakes Ragogna. Langsee and Jeserzersee, most probably forced by the latest freshening phases of the Heinrich Event 1.

A further sharp pine rise marks the subsequent onset of Bolling interstadial. The chronology of the Oglio glacier compares closely with major piedmont glaciers on the Central and Eastern Alpine forelands. On the other hand, the results of the present study imply a chronostratigraphic re-assessment of the recent geological mapping of the Central Italian Alps. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Why are you tall while others are short? Agricultural production and other proximate determinants of global heights

We analyze the proximate determinants of the biological standard of living from a global perspective, namely high-quality nutrition and the disease environment during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Until the mid-twentieth century, the local availability of cattle, meat, and milk per capita and the local disease environment mainly determined the stature of the population – and, by implication, how long they lived and how healthy they were. During the late twentieth century, the trade of agricultural products and health-promoting technologies increased in relative importance; hence, the local availabilities became less decisive in explaining height differences.

From Beijing with love: The global dimension of Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor

Famous for being the first foreign feature film that obtained permission to shoot in the Forbidden City, The Last Emperor (1987) is also one of the most ambitious and expensive independent productions of its time, awarded four Golden Globes and nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture. In addition, The Last Emperor can be considered as one of the first attempts of cinematic collaboration between West and East, in a period of cultural and economic transformations witnessed by China. This article aims to offer an overview of the production history of The Last Emperor, focusing on the co-production collaborations and the outcomes of a western auteur’s gaze on Chinese history. Questions of Orientalism, travel narrative and critical reception are taken into account in order to engage with the transnational implications of Bertolucci’s film and the western fascination with China.

The History of Expansion of the Genus Bursaphelenchus (Nematoda: Aphelenchida: Parasitaphelenchidae)

Because of globalization and removal of geographical barriers, frequent biological invasions of introduced species become an urgent environmental problem. According to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), precise identification of dangerous aggressive species at the early stages of their invasion to new regions is the most important component of the environmental control and monitoring. To resist the potential environmental hazard, the precise data are required on the current distribution and history of expansion of pests that are of global economic importance.

Relapsing Fever Borreliae: A Global Review

Relapsing fever borreliae were notorious and feared infectious agents that earned their place in history through their devastating impact as causes of both epidemic and endemic infection. More recently they are considered more as an oddity and their burden of infection is largely overshadowed by other infections such as malaria, which presents in a similar clinical way. Despite this, they remain the most common bacterial infection in some developing countries. Transmitted by soft ticks or lice, these fascinating spirochaetes have evolved a myriad of mechanisms to survive within their diverse environments.