RESUMEN
Rice and millet arrived in Western Japan from Korea around 3,000 years ago and spread eastwards across the archipelago in the next 700 years. However, the extent to which agriculture transformed traditional Jomon hunter-gatherer-fisher communities is debated. Central Japan is a key area of study as remodelling of radiocarbon dates shows a slowdown in the dispersal rate of rice agriculture in this area. Here, we examine and compare the use of pottery by Final Jomon and Early to Middle Yayoi communities in the Tokai and the Central Highland regions of central Japan, using lipid residue analysis. Although the identification of specific biomarkers for rice remains elusive, an increase in the ratio of E/H C18 APAAs with the arrival of rice and millet indicates a potential change in plant processing and consumption. We were also able to identify biomarkers for broomcorn millet (miliacin) in both Final Jomon and Yayoi pottery. However, evidence for millet consumption is sparse and in all cases was likely mixed with wild hunted and foraged foods. We conclude therefore that, despite the introduction of rice and millet agriculture in central Japan, pre-existing diets and culinary habits of Jomon hunter-gatherers remain important. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12520-024-01992-9.
RESUMEN
Sake (Japanese rice wine) was fermented in pottery for more than a millennium before wooden barrels were adopted to obtain a greater brewing capacity. Although a recently conducted analysis of sake brewed in pottery indicated that sake brewed in unglazed pottery contains more ethanol than that brewed in glazed pottery, little is known about the characteristics of sake brewed in pottery. In this study, we used two types of ceramic containers of identical size, one glazed and one unglazed, for small-scale sake brewing to evaluate the effects of glazing on fermentation properties. The following parameters were measured continuously in the sake samples over 3 weeks of fermentation: temperature, weight, ethanol concentration, and glucose concentration in sake mash. Taste-sensory values, minerals, and volatile components were also quantified in the final fermented sake mash. The results show that, in the unglazed containers, the temperature of the sake mash was lower and the weight loss was higher compared to the sake mash in the glazed containers. The quantity of ethanol and the levels of Na+, Fe3+, and Al3+ tended to be higher in the sake brewed in the unglazed pottery. A taste-sensory analysis revealed that umami and saltiness were also higher in the samples brewed in the unglazed pottery. These results suggest that glazing affects multiple fermentation parameters and the flavor of sake brewed in pottery. They may also suggest that the materials of the containers used in sake brewing generally affect the fermentation properties.
RESUMEN
The influence of the substitution pattern in ferrocenyl α-thienyl thioketone used as a proligand in complexation reactions with Fe3(CO)12 was investigated. As a result, two new sulfur-iron complexes, considered [FeFe]-hydrogenase mimics, were obtained and characterized by spectroscopic techniques (1H, 13C{1H} NMR, IR, MS), as well as by elemental analysis and X-ray single crystal diffraction methods. The electrochemical properties of both complexes were studied and compared using cyclic voltammetry in the absence and in presence of acetic acid as a proton source. The performed measurements demonstrated that both complexes can catalyze the reduction of protons to molecular hydrogen H2. Moreover, the obtained results showed that the presence of the ferrocene moiety at the backbone of the linker of both complexes improved the stability of the reduced species.