Archaeology of Identity and Dissonance

Author(s):  
Bernice Kurchin

In situations of displacement, disruption, and difference, humans adapt by actively creating, re-creating, and adjusting their identities using the material world. This book employs the discipline of historical archaeology to study this process as it occurs in new and challenging environments. The case studies furnish varied instances of people wresting control from others who wish to define them and of adaptive transformation by people who find themselves in new and strange worlds. The authors consider multiple aspects of identity, such as race, class, gender, and ethnicity, and look for ways to understand its fluid and intersecting nature. The book seeks to make the study of the past relevant to our globalized, postcolonized, and capitalized world. Questions of identity formation are critical in understanding the world today, in which boundaries are simultaneously breaking down and being built up, and humans are constantly adapting to the ever-changing milieu. This book tackles these questions not only in multiple dimensions of earthly space but also in a panorama of historical time. Moving from the ancient past to the unknowable future and through numerous temporal stops in between, the reader travels from New York to the Great Lakes, Britain to North Africa, and the North Atlantic to the West Indies.

1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uffe Østergård

From a cultural and historical-sociological perspective, the Danish nationstate of today represents a rare situation of virtual identity between state, nation, and society, which is a more recent phenomenon than normally assumed in Denmark and abroad. Though one of the oldest European monarchies, whose flag came ‘tumbling down from heaven in 1219’—ironically enough an event that happened in present-day Estonia—Denmark's present national identity is of recent vintage. Until 1814 the word, Denmark, denominated a typical European, plurinational or multinational, absolutist state, second only to such powers as France, Great Britain, Austria, Russia, and perhaps Prussia. The state had succeeded in reforming itself in a revolution from above in the late eighteenth century and ended as one of the few really “enlightened absolutisms” of the day (Horstbøll and østergård 1990; østergård 1990). It consisted of four main parts and several subsidiaries in the North Atlantic Ocean, plus some colonies in Western Africa, India, and the West Indies. The main parts were the kingdoms of Denmark proper and Norway, plus the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. How this particular state came about need not bother us here.


1969 ◽  
Vol 22 (04) ◽  
pp. 479-511
Author(s):  
R. H. Waldman

The economic requirement for reductions in horizontal separation standards on high density oceanic routes such as the North Atlantic has motivated the search for a navigation and guidance system combining compatibility with foreseeable separation criteria while at the same time remaining cost effective. In this paper, by the Executive Vice-Chairman of the International Air Navigators' Council, an attempt is made from that point of view, to suggest various systems which are envisaged as meeting the most stringent requirements foreseen. Consideration is given to accuracy requirements, avionic hardware, and optimization of crew responsibilities based on airline experience derived over the past decade. Mr. Waldman is a navigator with Air Canada, but the views expressed are not necessarily those of the Air Canada Management.1. Introduction. In the spring of 1965, an I.C.A.O. Special North Atlantic Regional Air Navigation Meeting (NAT/ RAN) approved by a margin often to two a reduction in nominal lateral separation from 120 n.m. to 90 n.m. in the ‘principal area’. (The ‘principal area’ of the NAT Region is the area delineated by Gander Oceanic, Lisboa Oceanic, New York Oceanic, Reykjavik, Shanwick Oceanic, and Sondrestrom, South of 700 North.)


Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4254 (3) ◽  
pp. 377
Author(s):  
WOLFGANG ZEIDLER

The generic name Euscelus was originally proposed by Schoenherr (1833: 205) for a genus of Leaf Rolling weevils (Insecta: Coleoptera: Attelabidae). It is a valid name, in current use, for a relatively large genus of weevils, widespread in northern South America and central America, including the West Indies and the Caribbean (e.g. Hamilton 2007; Legalov 2007). Euscelus Claus, 1879 was established as a monotypic genus of pelagic amphipod (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea: Parascelidae). It is a very rare genus, still monotypic, with the only species, E. robustus Claus, 1879, having been recorded only twice in the literature prior to my review of the families and genera of the superfamily Platysceloidea (Zeidler 2016); initially by Claus (1879), from the Indian Ocean (off Zanzibar), and secondly by Spandl (1927), from the North Atlantic Ocean (off the Azores). Both authors only recorded males. While examining the collections of the Zoological Museum, University of Copenhagen (Zeidler 2016) more specimens of this rare species were located amongst the collections of the Dana expeditions of 1928–1930 (Jespersen & Tåning 1934), thus enabling a more complete description of the species including that of females. It was recently brought to my attention that, according to the data base Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera (Rees 2016), Euscelus Claus, 1879 is a junior homonym of Euscelus Schoenherr, 1833. While researching this problem I discovered that Stebbing (1888) had also become aware of this homonymy and had suggested the replacement name Eusceliotes. Unfortunately, Stebbing (1888) only refers to the name in his index (pp. 1672, 1699) and hence subsequent authors were unaware of the above homonymy and Stebbing’s replacement name, although it is listed by Neave (1939: 370). The purpose of this communication is to resolve the above homonymy by validating Stebbing’s (1888) replacement name. This action is preferred to proposing yet another new name for Euscelus Claus, 1879, in order to avoid further confusion, because Stebbing’s name, Eusceliotes, already exists in the literature (Stebbing 1888, Neave 1939). 


1988 ◽  
Vol 120 (S144) ◽  
pp. 13-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
William L. Peters

AbstractThe complex origins of the North American Ephemeroptera fauna extended from the Lower Permian to the Recent. This paper discusses origins of North American genera of the cosmopolitan family Leptophlebiidae with a few examples from other mayfly families. The two extant subfamilies, Leptophlebiinae and Atalophlebiinae, probably evolved at least by the mid-Cretaceous, or about 100 million years before present. The primitive Leptophlebiinae are distributed throughout most of the Northern Hemisphere and the ancestors of the Leptophlebia–Paraleptophlebia complex within this subfamily dispersed widely by the North Atlantic route as early as the mid-Cretaceous and later probably by northern trans-Pacific dispersals through Beringia. The ancestors of Habrophlebia dispersed through the North Atlantic route at an early time, but the vicariant distribution of Habrophlebiodes in several areas of the Oriental Region and eastern North America correlates with the Arcto-Tertiary forest that covered most of the Northern Hemisphere including Beringia from the Early Tertiary into the Pleistocene. Within the nearly cosmopolitan Atalophlebiinae, Traverella is austral in origin and probably dispersed north through the Mexican Transition Zone during the mid-Tertiary as an ancient dispersal and then dispersed to its northern and eastern limits following the last Pleistocene deglaciation by way of the Missouri River tributaries. Thraulodes and Farrodes are both austral in origin and probably dispersed north through the Mexican Transition Zone during the Early Pleistocene as a relatively recent dispersal. The origins of Choroterpes sensu stricto and Neochoroterpes in North America are unknown. The mayfly fauna of the West Indies is Neotropical in origins, and no affinities between the West Indies and North America through Florida have ever been confirmed.


1982 ◽  
Vol 60 (9) ◽  
pp. 2203-2211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hal Whitehead ◽  
Michael J. Moore

The humpback whales which winter in the West Indies are principally found over banks which are at latitudes between 10° and 22° N, have substantial areas of flat bottom between 15 and 60 m deep, and lie less than 30 km from the North Atlantic 2000 m contour. The surface sea temperatures in these areas are between 24 and 28 °C. The major concentrations of the humpbacks, which feed little in winter, are on Silver and Navidad banks. On Silver Bank the humpback and humpback song densities peak in the centre of the Bank. Mothers with calves are generally found in areas of calm water, and singers are found over areas with a flat bottom, where they meander slowly. Larger groups move considerably faster and in straighter lines. There is no evidence of whales possessing particular movement patterns, preferred ranges, or territories within the Bank. The concentration of humpbacks may be a significant feature for other humpbacks.


1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (11) ◽  
pp. 1898-1907 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Mattila ◽  
Phillip J. Clapham ◽  
Oswaldo Vásquez ◽  
Robert S. Bowman

A study of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) was conducted between 1988 and 1991 in Samana Bay, Dominican Republic. Humpbacks were observed as early as the earliest survey (3 January) and as late as the latest (16 March). Local abundance varied from 0 whales per hour to a maximum of 3.2 whales per hour (mean = 1.70, SD = 0.79), and densities calculated from track surveys ranged from 0.09 to 0.82 whales per square nautical mile (mean = 0.31). Abundance generally peaked in February, but variation was observed both within a season and between years. Almost all whales were observed in the eastern part of the bay, towards or at its mouth. In all, 397 individuals were photographically identified during the study period. Of these, 18 were observed in more than 1 year (17 in 2 years, 1 in 3 years). A total of 15.8% of identified individuals were observed on more than 1 day in a year (maximum 5 days), with mothers representing 33.3% of all resightings. Observed occupancies of resighted animals ranged from 1 to 33 days (mean = 6.3 days, SD = 7.14). The mean group size was 1.95 (range = 1–15, SD = 1.30, n = 652 groups). Ninety-nine groups contained a calf, and all groups larger than three (n = 45) were competitive in nature. Comparisons of fluke photographs with the North Atlantic Humpback Whale Catalogue revealed 141 matches of 118 individuals to other areas. Of these, 76 were to high-latitude feeding grounds (including the Gulf of Maine, Newfoundland, Labrador, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and west Greenland), while the remaining 65 were to other areas of the West Indies (Silver Bank, Navidad Bank, Puerto Rico, Virgin Bank, or Anguilla Bank) or to Bermuda. We suggest that Samana Bay is one of the most important winter habitats in the West Indies for humpback whales from all over the western North Atlantic, although whaling records suggest that the abundance of whales in this area may be a relatively recent phenomenon. Sightings of other marine mammal species in Samana Bay are summarized.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W. Wiley

Gerald Handerson Thayer (1883–1939) was an artist, writer and naturalist who worked in North and South America, Europe and the West Indies. In the Lesser Antilles, Thayer made substantial contributions to the knowledge and conservation of birds in St Vincent and the Grenadines. Thayer observed and collected birds throughout much of St Vincent and on many of the Grenadines from January 1924 through to December 1925. Although he produced a preliminary manuscript containing interesting distributional notes and which is an early record of the region's ornithology, Thayer never published the results of his work in the islands. Some 413 bird and bird egg specimens have survived from his work in St Vincent and the Grenadines and are now housed in the American Museum of Natural History (New York City) and the Museum of Comparative Zoology (Cambridge, Massachusetts). Four hundred and fifty eight specimens of birds and eggs collected by Gerald and his father, Abbott, from other countries are held in museums in the United States.


Author(s):  
Federico Varese

Organized crime is spreading like a global virus as mobs take advantage of open borders to establish local franchises at will. That at least is the fear, inspired by stories of Russian mobsters in New York, Chinese triads in London, and Italian mafias throughout the West. As this book explains, the truth is more complicated. The author has spent years researching mafia groups in Italy, Russia, the United States, and China, and argues that mafiosi often find themselves abroad against their will, rather than through a strategic plan to colonize new territories. Once there, they do not always succeed in establishing themselves. The book spells out the conditions that lead to their long-term success, namely sudden market expansion that is neither exploited by local rivals nor blocked by authorities. Ultimately the inability of the state to govern economic transformations gives mafias their opportunity. In a series of matched comparisons, the book charts the attempts of the Calabrese 'Ndrangheta to move to the north of Italy, and shows how the Sicilian mafia expanded to early twentieth-century New York, but failed around the same time to find a niche in Argentina. The book explains why the Russian mafia failed to penetrate Rome but succeeded in Hungary. A pioneering chapter on China examines the challenges that triads from Taiwan and Hong Kong find in branching out to the mainland. This book is both a compelling read and a sober assessment of the risks posed by globalization and immigration for the spread of mafias.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document