COMPORTAMIENTOS ALIMENTICIOS PREHISTÓRICOS Y ANTROPOLOGÍA FÍSICA EN EL MEDITERRÁNEO NOROCCIDENTAL

This  paper  aims  to give an overview  (non-exhaustive)  of the application  of biogeochemical methods, particularly  stable  isotopes,  to  understand human  palaeodiet,  its  modif ications along times and according to environment and cultural choices. Food study is a favoured way to understand human  societies and their behaviours, and past populations must be stu- died by a a variety of methods and disciplines. Most commonly, human palaeodietary study is carried out through to anthropological  remains (eg. specif ic pathologies, health status) and archaeological material but for few decades now,  biogeochemical analyses, specif ically stable isotope ones, are routinely included in numerous researches. In the Mediterranean, a lot of studies have focused on Prehistoric periods. Among other  things, the application of biogeochemical methods have highlighted the diversity of environments exploited by Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers, the dietary changes occurring during the Mesolithic-Neolithic in coastal areas, the development of agricultural practices during the Neolithic, as well as the variability of food choices according to regions and the introduction of millet in Bronze Age human and animal diet.Este  artículo  tiene  el  objetivo de  proporcionar una  visión general  (no  exhaustiva) de  la aplicación de métodos biogeoquímicos, concretamente de isótopos estables, a la compren- sión de la  paleodieta humana, sus modif icaciones a lo largo del tiempo y en relación al medio  ambiente  y las  opciones  culturales.  El estudio  de la dieta  es un camino  privilegiado a  la  comprensión   de  las  sociedades  humanas  y  sus  comportamientos,   y  las  poblaciones del  pasado  deben  ser  estudiadas  por  una  combinación  de diferentes  métodos  y disciplinas. Generalmente, el estudio paleodietético humano  se  ha llevado a cabo gracias a los restos antropológicos  (patologías  concretas,  nivel de salud)  y al material  arqueológico  pero, desde hace pocas décadas, los análisis biogeoquímicos, concretamente el de isótopos estables, se han incluido  de forma habitual en numerosas investigaciones. En el Mediterráneo, una gran cantidad de estudios se ha centrado en periodos prehistóricos. Entre otras cosas, la aplicación de métodos biogeoquímicos ha  destacado la diversidad medioambiental explotada por los cazadores-recolectores paleolíticos, los  cambios dietarios a lo largo de las regiones costeras del Mesolítico-Neolítico, el desarrollo de las prácticas agrícolas y las opciones alimenticias según las regiones durante el Neolítico y la introducción del mijo en la dieta humana y animal en la Edad del Bronce

COMPORTAMIENTOS ALIMENTICIOS PREHISTÓRICOS Y ANTROPOLOGÍA FÍSICA EN EL MEDITERRÁNEO NOROCCIDENTAL

This  paper  aims  to give an overview  (non-exhaustive)  of the application  of biogeochemical methods, particularly  stable  isotopes,  to  understand human  palaeodiet,  its  modif ications along times and according to environment and cultural choices. Food study is a favoured way to understand human  societies and their behaviours, and past populations must be stu- died by a a variety of methods and disciplines. Most commonly, human palaeodietary study is carried out through to anthropological  remains (eg. specif ic pathologies, health status) and archaeological material but for few decades now,  biogeochemical analyses, specif ically stable isotope ones, are routinely included in numerous researches. In the Mediterranean, a lot of studies have focused on Prehistoric periods. Among other  things, the application of biogeochemical methods have highlighted the diversity of environments exploited by Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers, the dietary changes occurring during the Mesolithic-Neolithic in coastal areas, the development of agricultural practices during the Neolithic, as well as the variability of food choices according to regions and the introduction of millet in Bronze Age human and animal diet.Este  artículo  tiene  el  objetivo de  proporcionar una  visión general  (no  exhaustiva) de  la aplicación de métodos biogeoquímicos, concretamente de isótopos estables, a la compren- sión de la  paleodieta humana, sus modif icaciones a lo largo del tiempo y en relación al medio  ambiente  y las  opciones  culturales.  El estudio  de la dieta  es un camino  privilegiado a  la  comprensión   de  las  sociedades  humanas  y  sus  comportamientos,   y  las  poblaciones del  pasado  deben  ser  estudiadas  por  una  combinación  de diferentes  métodos  y disciplinas. Generalmente, el estudio paleodietético humano  se  ha llevado a cabo gracias a los restos antropológicos  (patologías  concretas,  nivel de salud)  y al material  arqueológico  pero, desde hace pocas décadas, los análisis biogeoquímicos, concretamente el de isótopos estables, se han incluido  de forma habitual en numerosas investigaciones. En el Mediterráneo, una gran cantidad de estudios se ha centrado en periodos prehistóricos. Entre otras cosas, la aplicación de métodos biogeoquímicos ha  destacado la diversidad medioambiental explotada por los cazadores-recolectores paleolíticos, los  cambios dietarios a lo largo de las regiones costeras del Mesolítico-Neolítico, el desarrollo de las prácticas agrícolas y las opciones alimenticias según las regiones durante el Neolítico y la introducción del mijo en la dieta humana y animal en la Edad del Bronce

Artificial intelligence : A powerful paradigm for scientific research

Y Artificial intelligence (AI) coupled with promising machine learning (ML) techniques well known from computer science is broadly affecting many aspects of various fields including science and technology, industry, and even our day-to-day life. The ML techniques have been developed to analyze high-throughput data with a view to obtaining useful insights, categorizing, predicting, and making evidence-based decisions in novel ways, which will promote the growth of novel applications and fuel the sustainable booming of AI. This paper undertakes a comprehensive survey on the development and application of AI in different aspects of fundamental sciences, including information science, mathematics, medical science, materials science, geoscience, life science, physics, and chemistry. The challenges that each discipline of science meets, and the potentials of AI techniques to handle these challenges, are discussed in detail. Moreover, we shed light on new research trends entailing the integration of AI into each scientific discipline. The aim of this paper is to provide a broad research guideline on fundamental sciences with potential infusion of AI, to help motivate researchers to deeply understand the state-of-the-art applications of AI-based fundamental sciences, and thereby to help promote the continuous development of these fundamental sciences.Peer reviewe

Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute Annual Technical Report FY 2005

The 2005 Annual Technical Report for Kentucky consolidates reporting requirements of the Section 104(b) base grant award in a single technical report that includes: 1) a synopsis of each research project supported during the period, 2) related reports and publications, 3) a description of information transfer activities, 4) a summary of student support during the reporting period, and 5) notable achievements and awards during the year

Refining Dietary Estimates at Machu Picchu Using Combined Dental Macro/Microwear and Isotopic Analyses

Reconstructing diet in Andean populations is complicated by ecological complexity and by large-scale population movements and trade networks during the period of imperial rule. It is therefore more difficult to reconstruct dietary patterns within these contexts. Previous multi-isotopic analysis of the skeletal population from the Inca site of Machu Picchu indicates marked variation in dietary composition both early and late in life. However, these data are limited in their specificity due to overlap in isotopic signals from different resource types. I compare existing isotopic data to enamel macro- and microwear data to more accurately profile diet composition in a Machu Picchu skeletal population subset. Results suggest there is little to no dietary variation between sexes and age groups. Results also reveal the role that maize played in the diet of this non-elite population, which may prove useful in more accurately estimating consumed food resources in this and other Andean populations

Genome-wide analysis of alternative splicing events in Hordeum vulgare: highlighting retention of intron-based splicing and its possible function through network analysis

In this study, using homology mapping of assembled expressed sequence tags against the genomic data, we identified alternative splicing events in barley. Results demonstrated that intron retention is frequently associated with specific abiotic stresses. Network analysis resulted in discovery of some specific sub-networks between miRNAs and transcription factors in genes with high number of alternative splicing, such as cross talk between SPL2, SPL10 and SPL11 regulated by miR156 and miR157 families. To confirm the alternative splicing events, elongation factor protein (MLOC_3412) was selected followed by experimental verification of the predicted splice variants by Semi quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR (qRT-PCR). Our novel integrative approach opens a new avenue for functional annotation of alternative splicing through regulatory-based network discovery.Bahman Panahi, Seyed Abolghasem Mohammadi, Reyhaneh Ebrahimi Khaksefidi, Jalil Fallah Mehrabadi, Esmaeil Ebrahimi

Taking a broader view of things: towards a transdisciplinary approach to cancer

Cancer is widely considered an abnormality that emerges from within the body and which must be destroyed and defeated. But we still do not know precisely how and why cancer starts, and while a ‘magic bullet’ cure has failed to materialise, those adopting a more pragmatic stance are increasingly arguing that if we cannot eradicate all cancer cells, we should look instead towards a ‘stalemate’ and find ways of managing cancer as a chronic disease. This article seeks to extend the reach of research in this field by taking a broader view and working towards a transdisciplinary approach in order to better understand cancer. First, we draw attention to obstacles that hinder progress in formulating new perspectives on cancer. Second, we ask why the genocentric approach to cancer remains dominant. One explanation is the legacy of Cartesian thinking. Third, we consider new ways of conceptualizing cancer so that it is not only a scientific object but also an object of life that has a framed existence within the body as part of a wider process of biological evolution. We draw on two key examples which highlight the importance of adopting a transdisciplinary approach: multi-drug resistance and cancer genomics

Testing the capability of Rare Earth Elements to identify archaeological strata in an African site: The case of the terraced landscape at Konso, Ethiopia

Over the last twenty years Rare Earth Elements (REE) have started to be part of archaeometric studies. Due to their particular characteristics there have been several attempts to apply REE analysis to different archaeological scenarios including stratigraphically-controlled agricultural soils, demonstrating that this is an effective tool to understand how human activity is reflected in soil development. Our study proposes a new methodological approach for the identification of anthropogenic deposits through REE soil analysis, pushing current limitations of traditional chemical and sedimentology techniques. Our study represents the first application of REE concentrations in soils from tropical Africa within an archaeological context. The agricultural soils were captured in an artificial sediment trap that forms part of the terraced landscape in Konso, Ethiopia; a system thought to have developed over the last 500 years, and which was awarded World Heritage status in 2011. Forty samples were taken from successive alluvial layers down a c. 2m thick soil sequence that had accumulated behind a series of drystone walls. The samples were analyzed for trace elements and REE via ICP-MS. To understand the causes of enrichment or depletion of REE, the data were compared with soil organic matter, organic carbon and fire markers. To aid interpretation we crossreferenced our results with archaeobotanical and soil micromorphology data. Data were analysed using multivariate statistics. Taken together these results present a very different picture of landscape development to previous presented accounts; the REE analyses provide significant details regarding the source and transportation of sediments

Algorithms to Explore the Structure and Evolution of Biological Networks

High-throughput experimental protocols have revealed thousands of relationships amongst genes and proteins under various conditions. These putative associations are being aggressively mined to decipher the structural and functional architecture of the cell. One useful tool for exploring this data has been computational network analysis. In this thesis, we propose a collection of novel algorithms to explore the structure and evolution of large, noisy, and sparsely annotated biological networks. We first introduce two information-theoretic algorithms to extract interesting patterns and modules embedded in large graphs. The first, graph summarization, uses the minimum description length principle to find compressible parts of the graph. The second, VI-Cut, uses the variation of information to non-parametrically find groups of topologically cohesive and similarly annotated nodes in the network. We show that both algorithms find structure in biological data that is consistent with known biological processes, protein complexes, genetic diseases, and operational taxonomic units. We also propose several algorithms to systematically generate an ensemble of near-optimal network clusterings and show how these multiple views can be used together to identify clustering dynamics that any single solution approach would miss. To facilitate the study of ancient networks, we introduce a framework called ``network archaeology'') for reconstructing the node-by-node and edge-by-edge arrival history of a network. Starting with a present-day network, we apply a probabilistic growth model backwards in time to find high-likelihood previous states of the graph. This allows us to explore how interactions and modules may have evolved over time. In experiments with real-world social and biological networks, we find that our algorithms can recover significant features of ancestral networks that have long since disappeared. Our work is motivated by the need to understand large and complex biological systems that are being revealed to us by imperfect data. As data continues to pour in, we believe that computational network analysis will continue to be an essential tool towards this end