scholarly journals The Mesolithic-Neolithic transition in western Scotland and its European context

2002 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Bonsall ◽  
D. E. Anderson ◽  
M. G. Macklin
Keyword(s):  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
North West ◽  
Neolithic Transition ◽  
European Context ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Cereal Cultivation

The transition is considered in terms of four related questions: (i) HOW did the shift from foraging to farming happen? (ii) WHY did it happen? (iii) WHEN did it happen? (iv) WHY did it happen WHEN it did? The adoption of farming coincided with a shift to a more continental-type climate with lower winter precipitation, which improved the prospects for cereal cultivation. It is sug- gested that this was a key factor in the transition from Mesolithic to Neolithic across north-west Eu- rope as a whole.

Going over: people and their times

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alasdair Whittle
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
North West ◽  
Neolithic Transition ◽  
Personal Reflections ◽  
Quality Of Research

This concluding chapter does not aim to be a magisterial overview or a comprehensive summary. The preceding chapters speak for themselves of the range and quality of research currently being carried out across north-west Europe relevant to the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition. Instead, the chapter offers some brief, personal reflections on what we are doing well and what we could still do better, and thus tries to define some of the continuing challenges for future research.

scholarly journals Leisure centre entrance charges and physical activity participation in England

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 379-388
Author(s):  
F Ward ◽  
E C Halliday ◽  
B Barr ◽  
J Higgerson ◽  
V Holt
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
North West ◽  
The Public ◽  
The North ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Leisure Facilities

Summary Reducing or eliminating the cost to the public of using leisure facilities is one tool that local authorities have available to reduce inequalities in physical activity (PA). There is limited evidence about the effect of leisure entrance charges and their impact on participation. This study aimed to ascertain how facility pricing influenced the decisions people made about how to pay and what to pay for and how, in turn, these decisions impacted on participation for different groups. A total of 83 members of the public living in 4 local authorities in the North West of England were involved in focus groups or individual interviews. The results show that cost was a key factor which influenced PA participation in low income neighbourhoods. In practise, however, the majority of service users navigated the range of prices or payment options to find one that was suitable rather than simply reporting whether leisure was affordable or not. Whilst pre-paid options (e.g. direct debit memberships) encouraged participation, entrance charges incurred each time an individual participated had a negative impact on frequency but were a convenient way of paying for occasional use or for people who were unable to afford a pre-paid option. Free access also helped people who could not afford pre-paid membership to exercise regularly as well as incentivizing non-users to try activities. The research concluded that policies that include components of free access and offer more flexible payment options are most likely to contribute to reducing inequalities in PA.

scholarly journals Early seventh-millennium AMS dates from domestic seeds in the Initial Neolithic at Franchthi Cave (Argolid, Greece)

Antiquity ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 87 (338) ◽  
pp. 1001-1015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Perlès ◽  
Anita Quiles ◽  
Hélène Valladas
Keyword(s):  
Aegean Sea ◽  
Northern Greece ◽  
Crop Species ◽  
Neolithic Transition ◽  
Cast Doubt ◽  
South Eastern Europe ◽  
European Neolithic ◽  
Key Sites ◽  
Southern Greece ◽  
Cereal Cultivation

When, and by what route, did farming first reach Europe? A terrestrial model might envisage a gradual advance around the northern fringes of the Aegean, reaching Thrace and Macedonia before continuing southwards to Thessaly and the Peloponnese. New dates from Franchthi Cave in southern Greece, reported here, cast doubt on such a model, indicating that cereal cultivation, involving newly introduced crop species, began during the first half of the seventh millennium BC. This is earlier than in northern Greece and several centuries earlier than in Bulgaria, and suggests that farming spread to south-eastern Europe by a number of different routes, including potentially a maritime, island-hopping connection across the Aegean Sea. The results also illustrate the continuing importance of key sites such as Franchthi to our understanding of the European Neolithic transition, and the additional insights that can emerge from the application of new dating projects to these sites.

Review of Passive Downdraught Evaporative Cooling Technique and its Application

2013 ◽  
Vol 390 ◽  
pp. 691-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Qiu ◽  
Bao Feng Li ◽  
Yu Qiu
Keyword(s):  
Global Climate ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Evaporative Cooling ◽  
Weather Condition ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Weather Data ◽  
North West ◽  
Direct Evaporative Cooling ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Cooling Technique

Direct evaporative cooling has long been demonstrated as an energy efficient ,cost effective and no CFCs emission means for space cooling in hot dry regions .With the aggravating of the global climate warming and energy crisis, using passive cooling technique will be a good solution . In this paper, the theory of passive downdraught evaporative cooling techniques is analyzed. It is an environmental friendly technique in that it can provide more fresh air than the conventional air-conditionings, and also low cost on operation and no CFCs emission compared with conventional air-conditionings. In this paper, some cases will be introduced .The successful PDEC cases in hot dry areas show weather condition is the key factor for the feasibility using PDEC technique. From the analysis on the weather data in Turpan, which presents a typical climatic character in North-west China , predicts a great feasibility of using PDEC technique in public architectures.

scholarly journals Synoptic processes of winter precipitation in the Upper Indus Basin

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Philippe Baudouin ◽  
Michael Herzog ◽  
Cameron A. Petrie
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Indus Basin ◽  
Lower Altitude ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
North West ◽  
Upper Indus Basin ◽  
Western Disturbance ◽  
The North ◽  
Western Disturbances

Abstract. Precipitation in the Upper Indus Basin is triggered by cross-barrier moisture transport. Winter precipitation events are particularly active in this region and are driven by an approaching upper troposphere Western Disturbance. Here statistical tools are used to decompose the winter precipitation timeseries into a wind and a moisture contribution. The relationship between each contribution and the Western Disturbances are investigated. We find that the wind contribution is not only related to the intensity of the upper troposphere disturbances but also to their thermal structure through baroclinic processes. Particularly, a short-lived baroclinic interaction between the Western Disturbance and the lower altitude cross-barrier flow occurs due to the shape of the relief. This interaction explains both the high activity of Western Disturbances in the area, as well as their quick decay as they move further east. We also revealed the existence of a moisture pathway from the Red Sea, to the Persian Gulf and the north of the Arabian Sea. A Western Disturbance strengthens this flow and steers it towards the Upper Indus Plain, particularly if it originates from a more southern latitude. In cases where the disturbance originates from the north-west, its impact on the moisture flow is limited, since the advected continental dry air drastically limits the precipitation output. The study offers a conceptual framework to study the synoptic activity of Western Disturbances as well as key parameters that explain their precipitation output. This can be used to investigate meso-scale processes or intra-seasonal to inter-annual synoptic activity.

The link between precipitation and recent outbreak of anthrax in North-West Siberia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ekaterina Ezhova ◽  
Dmitry Orlov ◽  
Elli Suhonen ◽  
Dmitry Kaverin ◽  
Alexander Mahura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Active Layer ◽  
Air Temperature ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Yamal Peninsula ◽  
Stable Region ◽  
Active Layer Thickness ◽  
Bacterial Disease ◽  
Monitoring Site ◽  
North West

<p>Anthrax is a bacterial disease affecting mainly livestock but also posing a risk for humans. During the outbreak of anthrax on Yamal peninsula in 2016, 36 humans were infected and more than 2.5 thousand reindeer died or were killed to prevent further contamination [1]. Anthrax is a natural focal disease, which means that its agents depend on climatic conditions. The revival of bacteria in previously epidemiologically stable region was attributed to thawing permafrost, intensified during the heat wave of 2016. We studied recent dynamics of air temperature as well as summer and winter precipitation in the region. In addition, we analysed the effect of winter precipitation and air temperature on the dynamics of active layer thickness using data from Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring sites [2]. Our analysis suggests that permafrost was thawing intensively during several years before the outbreak, when snowy cold winters followed warmer winters. Thick snow prevented soil from freezing and enhanced permafrost thawing. In addition, we showed that summer precipitation drastically decreased in the region of outbreak during recent years, likely contributing to the spread of disease.  </p><p>[1] Popova, A.Yu. et al. Outbreak of Anthrax in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District in 2016, Epidemiological Peculiarities. Problemy Osobo Opasnykh Infektsii [Problems of Particularly Dangerous Infections]. <strong>4</strong>, 42–46 (2016).</p><p>[2] Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring site: https://www2.gwu.edu/~calm/ [2/08/2019].</p>

scholarly journals Participatory Improved Potato Technology Promotion: The Case of Smallholder Farmers in North, West and Southwestern Highlands of Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-276
Author(s):  
Abebe C. Degebasa
Keyword(s):  
Positive Selection ◽  
Seed Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Potato Production ◽  
Potato Seed ◽  
North West ◽  
Yield Increase ◽  
Seed Tubers ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Different Parts

Utilization of healthy planting material is a key factor to improve potato yields to reduce the dissemination of diseases and pests. Quality seed is one of the major bottlenecks hindering the production and productivity of potato in major potato growing regions of the country. Therefore, participatory on-farm seed production and improved potato technologies promotion have been carried out during the year 2014-2016 at five districts, Jeldu, Dendi, Wolmera Degem and Kersana Malima of central Ethiopia. To produce quality potato seed various rapid multiplication techniques were used. Thus, improved potato technologies were demonstrated using different methodologies such as the farmers’ field schools, the farmers' research group and field days. To supply clean tubers about 138,886 high-quality mini-tubers of improved varieties of Belete, Gudanie, Jalenie and Awash were produced. Moreover, a total of 257.08 tons of seed tubers of 15 released potato varieties were produced and disseminated in different parts of the country for research and developments. The participant farmers produce 442.9 tons of relatively clean seed tubers and sold to different parts of the country. During, this activity positive selection technique was demonstrated and participant farmers applied the techniques that helped them to improve the yield and quality of seed potato. Farmers obtained a 40% yield increase and a 33% vigour improvement when positive selection techniques were applied. Training on improved potato production and postharvest handling technologies have also been given for farmers, development agents, agricultural experts and home agents. Therefore, decentralized quality seed production reduces the movement of dangerous diseases like bacterial wilt and viruses from invading areas with high potential for seed production due to purchase of seed only from within one’s same region.

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