Tracking behavioral persistence and innovations during the Middle Pleistocene in Western Europe. Shift in occupations between 700 and 450 ka at la Noira site (Centre, France).

Some areas in Western Europe indicate hiatuses in human occupations, which cannot be systematically attributed to taphonomic factors and poor site preservation. The site of la Noira in the center of France records two occupation phases with a significant time gap. The older one is dated to around 700 ka (stratum a) with an Acheulean assemblage, among the earliest in Western Europe, and the upper phase of the sequence (stratum c) is dated to ca. 450 ka. Humans left the area at around 670 ka, at the beginning of the marine isotope stage (MIS) 16 glacial stage, when cold conditions became too severe. No sites between 650 and 450 ka have yet been discovered in the center region despite systematic surveys over the past three decades. The archaeological evidence indicates that populations returned to the area, at the end of MIS 12 or the beginning of the long interglacial MIS 11. Here, we use technological behaviors common to the two levels of la Noira-strata a and c to evaluate their differences. Compared to other key European sequences, this site can be used to address the evolution of the behavioral strategies in Europe between MIS 17 and 11. We formulate two hypotheses concerning the human settlement of this area: (1) local behavioral evolution over time of populations occasionally occupying the region when the climate was favorable or (2) dispersal and arrival of new populations from other areas. The results focus on (1) changes in land-use patterns with the extension of the territory used by hominins in the upper level, (2) the introduction of new core technologies, including some evidence of early Levallois debitage, and (3) more intensive shaping of bifaces and bifacial tools. Results attest that the la Noira archaeological assemblages record similar regional behavioral evolution as observed at a larger scale in Europe.

The Impact of Parental Death in Childhood on Sons' and Daughters' Status Attainment in Young Adulthood in the Netherlands, 1850-1952.

Previous research on the impact of parental loss on labor market outcomes in adulthood has often suffered from low sample sizes. To generate further insights into the long-term consequences of parental death, I use the Historical Sample of the Netherlands (HSN). The HSN contains occupational information on life courses of a sample of more than 8,000 males and almost 7,000 females born between 1850 and 1922, a period of important labor market transformations. Roughly 20 % of the sample population experienced parental death before age 16. Linear regression models show that maternal loss is significantly associated with lower occupational position in adulthood for both men and women, which points to the crucial importance of maternal care in childhood for socioeconomic outcomes in later life. This interpretation is supported by the finding that a stepmother's entry into the family is positively related with sons' occupational position later in life. In contrast to expectations, the loss of economic resources related to the father's death is generally not associated with lower status attainment in adulthood for men or for women. The results indicate, however, that the negative consequences of paternal death on men's socioeconomic outcomes decreased over time, illustrating the complex interaction between individual life courses and surrounding labor market transformations.

Occupational manual activity is reflected on the patterns among hand entheses.

OBJECTIVES: In anthropological sciences, entheses are widely utilized as occupational stress markers. However, the reaction of entheseal surfaces to mechanical loading is not well understood. Furthermore, previous studies on entheses relied on the individuals' occupation-at-death. Past research by one of us has identified two patterns among hand entheses, proposing that they reflect two synergistic muscle groups. Here, we investigate the association between these patterns and habitual manual activity using an extensively documented skeletal sample and a three-dimensional system of quantification. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The hand bones utilized belong to 45 individuals from mid-19th century Basel. These were male adults (18 to 48 years old) who were not directly related, showed no manual pathological conditions, and whose occupational activities during their lifetime were clearly documented and could be evaluated according to historical sources. The patterns of entheses were explored using principal component analysis on both raw and size-adjusted variables. The influence of age-at-death, body mass, and bone length was assessed through correlation tests. RESULTS: The analysis showed that the previously proposed patterns of entheses are present in our sample. Individuals with the same or comparable occupations presented similar entheseal patterns. These results were not considerably affected by entheseal overall size, age-at-death, body mass, or bone length. DISCUSSION: Individuals involved in intense manual labor during their lifetime presented a distinctive pattern of hand entheses, consistent with the application of high grip force. By contrast, individuals with less strenuous and/or highly mechanized occupations showed an entheseal pattern related to the thumb intrinsic muscles.

Time and space in the middle paleolithic: Spatial structure and occupation dynamics of seven open-air sites.

The spatial structure of archeological sites can help reconstruct the settlement dynamics of hunter-gatherers by providing information on the number and length of occupations. This study seeks to access this information through a comparison of seven sites. These sites are open-air and were all excavated over large spatial areas, up to 2,000 m(2) , and are therefore ideal for spatial analysis, which was done using two complementary methods, lithic refitting and density zones. Both methods were assessed statistically using confidence intervals. The statistically significant results from each site were then compiled to evaluate trends that occur across the seven sites. These results were used to assess the "spatial consistency" of each assemblage and, through that, the number and duration of occupations. This study demonstrates that spatial analysis can be a powerful tool in research on occupation dynamics and can help disentangle the many occupations that often make up an archeological assemblage.

The archaeology, chronology and stratigraphy of Madjedbebe (Malakunanja II): A site in northern Australia with early occupation.

Published ages of >50 ka for occupation at Madjedbebe (Malakunanja II) in Australia's north have kept the site prominent in discussions about the colonisation of Sahul. The site also contains one of the largest stone artefact assemblages in Sahul for this early period. However, the stone artefacts and other important archaeological components of the site have never been described in detail, leading to persistent doubts about its stratigraphic integrity. We report on our analysis of the stone artefacts and faunal and other materials recovered during the 1989 excavations, as well as the stratigraphy and depositional history recorded by the original excavators. We demonstrate that the technology and raw materials of the early assemblage are distinctive from those in the overlying layers. Silcrete and quartzite artefacts are common in the early assemblage, which also includes edge-ground axe fragments and ground haematite. The lower flaked stone assemblage is distinctive, comprising a mix of long convergent flakes, some radial flakes with faceted platforms, and many small thin silcrete flakes that we interpret as thinning flakes. Residue and use-wear analysis indicate occasional grinding of haematite and woodworking, as well as frequent abrading of platform edges on thinning flakes. We conclude that previous claims of extensive displacement of artefacts and post-depositional disturbance may have been overstated. The stone artefacts and stratigraphic details support previous claims for human occupation 50-60 ka and show that human occupation during this time differed from later periods. We discuss the implications of these new data for understanding the first human colonisation of Sahul.

The lithic industry of Sima del Elefante (Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain) in the context of Early and Middle Pleistocene technology in Europe.

This paper presents the lithic assemblages documented at Sima del Elefante (TE) and their importance in the context of the Early and Middle Pleistocene human occupation of Europe. We also study changes in human behaviour within the context of the palaeoenvironmental evolution of the Sierra de Atapuerca. This site has characteristics that are of great value for the study of human evolution. The lower levels of TE (Units TE7-TE14) are an essential reference for understanding the early stages of the colonization of Europe. The TE9c level has provided stone tools (Mode 1), faunal remains, and human fossils dated to 1.22 Ma (millions of years ago). Moreover, this is one of the few European sites with a stratigraphic sequence that includes remains of human occupations predating the Jaramillo subchron (Early Pleistocene) and from the Late Middle Pleistocene (Units TE18-TE19). Despite this, the presence of archaeologically sterile units (TE15-17) prevents us from establishing a continuous relationship between the Early and Middle Pleistocene human settlements and, consequently, between their technological and behavioural differences. We can, however compare the technological and palaeoeconomic strategies adopted by different species of hominins during two key phases of the occupation of Europe.

Bioarchaeology of the middle Neolithic: evidence for archery among early European farmers.

This article focuses on Neolithic skeletons associated with the first monumental cemeteries of Western Europe and specifically those of the Cerny culture (Paris Basin, France). While this cultural context is an agrarian one, numerous arrowheads derived from complete hunting equipment are present in numerous graves. The goal of this work is to evaluate the morphological and pathological differences among the individuals according to the presence of arrowheads in their graves. It is postulated that those buried with such artifacts practiced archery, unlike their counterparts. Only adult males were selected for study to limit the effect of non-mechanical factors such as age- and sex-related modifications. The corpus consists of 36 males reliably identified among the 101 Cerny adults currently available. Thirteen men are associated with arrowheads. Variations in morphology and robusticity are evaluated on the basis of the external geometric properties of the appendicular skeleton. Entheseal changes to fibrocartilaginous attachment sites of upper and lower limbs are also examined. Both nonpathological skeletal adaptations and pathological indicators are consistent and reveal significant differences between the two groups compared. Functional adaptation is observed in the forearm bones and the clavicle in response to mechanical loads, and enthesopathies suggest repeated forceful use of upper limb muscles. These osteological changes specifically reflect the higher intensity upper limb activity of the men buried with arrowheads and correspond with the medical data on known archers, suggesting that this specific forceful task is linked to the practice of archery.

Turning men into machines? Scientific management, industrial psychology, and the "human factor".

In the controversy that broke out in 1911 over Frederick W. Taylor's scientific management, many critics contended that it ignored "the human factor" and reduced workers to machines. Psychologists succeeded in positioning themselves as experts of the human factor, and their instruments and expertise as the necessary complement of Taylor's psychologically deficient system. However, the conventional view that the increasing influence of psychologists and other social scientists "humanized" management theory and practice needs to be amended. Taylor's scientific management was not less human than later approaches such as Human Relations, but it articulated the human factor differently, and aligned it to its own instruments and practices in such a way that it was at once external to them and essential to their functioning. Industrial psychologists, on the other hand, at first presented themselves as engineers of the human factor and made the human mind an integral part of management.

Earliest evidence of human occupations and technological complexity above the 45th North parallel in Western Europe. The site of Lunery-Rosieres la-Terre-des-Sablons (France, 1.1 Ma).

The site of LuneryRosieres la-Terre-des-Sablons (Lunery, Cher, France) comprises early evidence of human occupation in mid-latitudes in Western Europe. It demonstrates hominin presence in the Loire River Basin during the Early Pleistocene at the transition between an interglacial stage and the beginning of the following glacial stage. Three archaeological levels sandwiched and associated with two diamicton levels deposited on the downcutting river floor indicate repeated temporary occupations. Lithic material yields evidence of simple and more complex core technologies on local Jurassic siliceous rocks and Oligocene millstone. Hominins availed of natural stone morphologies to produce flakes with limited preparation. Some cores show centripetal management and a partially prepared striking platform. The mean ESR age of 1175 ka ± 98 ka obtained on fluvial sediments overlying the archaeological levels could correspond to the transition between marine isotopic stages (MIS) 37 and 36, during the normal Cobb Mountain subchron, and in particular at the beginning of MIS 36. The Lunery site shows that hominins were capable of adapting to early glacial environmental conditions and adopting appropriate strategies for settling in mid-latitude zones. These areas cannot be considered as inhospitable at that time as Lunery lies at some distance from the forming ice cap.

Schmorl's nodes in a historic adult skeletal sample (19th to 20th centuries): An analysis of age, sex and occupation.

OBJECTIVE: This study explores the interplay between age-at-death, sex and occupation and the presence, location and severity of Schmorl's nodes. MATERIALS: Vertebral columns of 327 individuals, 180 (55.1%) males and 147 (44.9%) females, with age-at-death between 20 and 65 years old, with known occupation. METHODS: Schmorl's nodes were recorded as present/absent and by location and severity. RESULTS: In this sample, 58.7% (192/327) of individuals were affected by Schmorl's nodes, 75.6% (136/180) were males and 38.1% (56/147) were females, with statistically significant differences (p=0.000). Schmorl's nodes were most commonly found on the T7-L2 (77.1% of all Schmorl's nodes) vertebrae and at the center (73.4%) of the vertebral body surface. Age and occupational categories did not correlate with prevalence, quantity or severity. CONCLUSIONS: Males appear more prone to develop Schmorl's nodes than females. In this study, the prevalence of Schmorl's nodes does not increase with age, nor with the type of occupation held by males. SIGNIFICANCE: This study rejects the purported associations between prevalence of Schmorl's nodes and age and physical stress. LIMITATIONS: It is unknown whether individuals had the same occupation throughout their lives or for how long they performed it. Additionally, it is impossible to access when the individual developed the Schmorl's node. SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH: Evaluate the onset of Schmorl's nodes in individuals under 20 and explore possible links between vertebral morphology and the occurrence of Schmorl's nodes.

A job-exposure matrix for occupational noise: development and validation.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a job-exposure matrix (JEM) for occupational noise in Sweden and to estimate its validity. METHODS: The JEM, developed by a group of experienced occupational hygienists, contains 321 job families with information regarding occupational noise from 1970 to 2004. The occupational noise information derives from measurements collected from different sources. The time period label has a 5-year scale starting in 1970. The estimated average 8h (TWA) noise level in decibel [dB(A)] for every 5-year period was coded either as <75 dB(A), 75-84 dB(A), or ≥85 dB(A) and the risk of peak level exposure assessed. The validity of the JEM is tested, using Svensson's non-parametric methods based on classification consensus, reached by a second group of occupational hygienists. RESULTS/DISCUSSION: Validation results show ~ 80% agreement and no systematic differences, in classification, between the two different groups of occupational hygienists, classifying the occupational noise exposure. However, classification of peak level exposure did show a systematic difference in relative position. The results will give more power to the JEM that it gives a good general estimate for the occupational noise levels in Sweden for different job families during 1970-2004. We, thus, intend to use it in further studies and also make it available to collaborators.

Cousin marriage in south-western England in the nineteenth century.

Knowledge of inbreeding levels in historical times is necessary to estimate the health consequences of past inbreeding, and to contextualize the current public debate about cousin marriage in Britain. This research aims to calculate the level of cousin marriage using the intensive technique of multi-source parish reconstitution and to determine whether village organization, religion and occupational class influenced the level of consanguineous marriage. A wide variety of documentary sources were used to create extensive pedigrees of spouses in over 800 marriages in the 19th century in the rural villages of Stourton and Kilmington. The closed village of Stourton had higher levels of inbreeding than the open village of Kilmington. Catholics had lower rates of 1st cousin marriage but higher rates of 2nd cousin marriage than Protestants. Farmers had higher levels of 1st cousin marriage than labourers. The levels of consanguinity in south-western Wiltshire in the 19th century were related to the economic structure of the villages and the religion and social class of the spouses.

[The becoming of public medicine in the second half of XVIII-first half of XIX centuries. Report IV. The state-run activities supporting healthy conditions of life, nutrition and occupational activities].

The present report considers the activities of governmental authorities of European countries in the area of implementation of the concept of medical police. The target was to apply concrete activities concerning support of healthy conditions of life, nutrition and occupational activities of population of particular countries. The article considers the issues of application of sanitary education, sanitation and improvement of cities, liquidation of dumps, cemeteries and cesspits within the city limits, provision of population with sufficient amount of food and establishment of control of food quality, development and application of factory legislation, limitation of quarantine measures, implementation of specific measures of preventing diseases of smallpox and syphilis.

Geographical mobility in Wiltshire, 1754-1914.

The aim of this paper is to determine the birthplaces, rather than residences, of spouses married in two parishes in England and to consider the effect of local topography, religion and occupation on pre-marital geographic mobility. A wide array of primary documentary sources was used to construct a database of over 22,000 individuals who lived in south-west Wiltshire in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Individuals were arranged in family groups and pedigrees traced for several generations. Data were included on birthplace, religious affiliation, occupation and many other variables. Geographical mobility calculated from birthplace was higher than estimates derived from residence prior to marriage. Brides had shorter marital distances than grooms. There were noticeable changes in the frequency of marital distance at 4 miles and 11 miles. Spouses born outside the parish of marriage were more likely to come from certain villages in ways which cannot be explained merely by distance and size. The Somerset-Wiltshire border formed a barrier, although a porous one, to the flow of marriage partners. Occupation influenced geographical mobility: grooms from higher-status occupational groups were more likely to be born further away than grooms from lower-status occupational groups. Catholic grooms were more likely to be born in the parish of marriage than Protestant grooms, but were also more likely to be born more than 11 miles away.

High-end food, low-wage labor.

Some people work in restaurants as a lifestyle choice: they love the fast pace, the quick jokes, the often easy-flowing booze. At the height of a busy shift, if everything's going right, a team of skilled cooks and waiters can enter a kind of adrenaline-fueled flow state that's hypnotic and addictive. Some people choose it because they got burned out as grad students or software engineers or attorneys. Some people work in restaurants to make money until they graduate or get their big break in show business. It can be lucrative, especially for young, good-looking, and agile waiters, working for a great employer in a big city, where customers practically fight for the chance to buy expensive wines and $50 entrées and truffle supplements from the latest hotspot.

Limited access: gender, occupational composition, and flexible work scheduling.

The current study draws on national data to explore differences in access to flexible work scheduling by the gender composition of women's and men's occupations. Results show that those who work in integrated occupations are more likely to have access to flexible scheduling. Women and men do not take jobs with lower pay in return for greater access to flexibility. Instead, jobs with higher pay offer greater flexibility. Integrated occupations tend to offer the greatest access to flexible scheduling because of their structural locations. Part-time work is negatively associated with men's access to flexible scheduling but positively associated with women's access. Women have greater flexibility when they work for large establishments, whereas men have greater flexibility when they work for small establishments.

Interpreting seventeenth-century probate documents: John Carter, master carpenter in St Albans.

This is a study of a successful seventeenth-century carpenter in St Albans, John Carter, using probate and other documents, assisted by a large-scale computer database of St Albans residents of the period. Sections of the article cover his family, his work and his house and its contents, which have been reconstructed from his probate inventory and from knowledge of the structure of other local houses of the period. Carter's social standing is discussed, both in its local context and in relation to previous probate inventory analyses. This micro-study sheds unusual light upon aspects of the life of a 'middling sort' of person, living in a thriving market town in close proximity to London, at the beginning of the consumer age.