From the Humour of Science to (pedagogical uses for) the Science of Humour

Science is generally seen as a serious subject, yet scientific discoveries may sometimes have humorous aspects. Joking about science is often used as a coping strategy by the general public, as a means of dealing with feelings of inadequacy about the relentlessness of scientific progress. Several recent newspaper articles bear witness to this tendency. Humour may also be used by scientists, with the aim of making science seem less threatening, or to make science more accessible to the layperson, particularly in the form of popular science, from books to keynote speeches. The etymology of the words “humour and “science”, and any changes in their frequency of use over time, will be examined through dictionaries, and corpus data. This paper will then explore in greater depth the many parallels between science and humour, with examples drawn from several fields, including Geology, the science of the Earth, and Linguistics, the science of language. Although no firm answers can yet be provided, the following questions will be discussed: i) Can moments of paradigm shift be identified in scientific articles by analysing their use of humour?  and ii) Can humour be used pedagogically, to teach science more effectively?Science is generally seen as a serious subject, yet scientific discoveries may sometimes have humorous aspects. Joking about science is often used as a coping strategy by the general public, as a means of dealing with feelings of inadequacy about the relentlessness of scientific progress. Several recent newspaper articles bear witness to this tendency. Humour may also be used by scientists, with the aim of making science seem less threatening, or to make science more accessible to the layperson, particularly in the form of popular science, from books to keynote speeches. The etymology of the words “humour and “science”, and any changes in their frequency of use over time, will be examined through dictionaries, and corpus data. This paper will then explore in greater depth the many parallels between science and humour, with examples drawn from several fields, including Geology, the science of the Earth, and Linguistics, the science of language. Although no firm answers can yet be provided, the following questions will be discussed: i) Can moments of paradigm shift be identified in scientific articles by analysing their use of humour?  and ii) Can humour be used pedagogically, to teach science more effectively

Environmental impact of early Basque mining and smelting recorded in a high ash minerogenic peat deposit

International audienceMore than four metres of core, covering almost 5000 years of deposition, were collected in a high ash minerogenic peat deposit located in the High Aldudes valley (Basque country), an area well known for its mineral abundance, exploited from Roman Times at least.Although minerogenic peatlands are not generally considered as the best archives to reconstruct past atmospheric metal deposition history, lead isotopic geochemistry demonstrates the integrity of the Pb record at least within the three upper meters; that is to say over the last four millennia.Zn, Cd and Cumay have been widely redistributed either by biological cycling, advective groundwater movements, or diffusional processes.Anthr opogenic lead input phases are clearly pinpointed by positive shifts in PbySc ratios with concomitant sharp drops in 206Pby207Pb ratios.They are often accompanied by significant declines in tree taxa, interpreted as increasing demand for wood to supply energy for local mining andyor metallurgical operations.Periods of mining andyor smelting activity are identified during Antiquity and Modern Times, and are also confirmed by textual and field evidence.Inputs from the Rio Tinto (Southern Spain), often invoked as a major lead contributor to the European atmosphere during Roman Times, were not detected here.This remote source was probably masked by local inputs. Other mining andyor smelting phases, only suspected by archaeologists, are here identified as early as the Bronze Age.Although the durations of these phases are possibly overestimated because of detrital inputs consequent to the release of lead from polluted soils over a long period of time after major pollutant inputs, the periods at which pollution peaks occur are in good agreement with archaeological knowledge and palaeo-botanical data.Thecombination of geochemical and palaeo-botanical techniques with field archaeology, therefore provides a powerful tool in studying the interaction of early human societies with their environment, as regards early mining and smelting

Language, Thought, and the History of Science

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A Boat Mill Discovered in the Doubs River, at Sermesse, France

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Brooches in Motion - tracing shape evolution in La Tène brooches by geometric morphometrics

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Plantes terrestres et algues marines des calcaires lithographiques du Jurassique supérieur du Causse Méjean (Lozère, Sud de la France)

International audienceA new Late Jurassic flora was discovered in the fossiliferous lithographic limestone of the Causse Méjean, Lozère (southern France). It consists of the first Kimmeridgian/Tithonian plants from this area. Fossil plants are represented by megaremains preserved as impressions. This flora shows a co-occurrence of terrestrial plants and marine algae. The land plants include vegetative remains ascribed to bennettitaleans (Zamites Brongniart, 1828), conifers (Brachyphyllum Brongniart, 1828), and pteridosperms (Cycadopteris Zigno, 1853). Marine algae were ascribed to dasyclads (Goniolina D’Orbigny, 1850). Lithological and palaeontological features suggest preservation in a flat, homogeneous, protected environment, perhaps a brackish or marine lagoon, influenced by both continental and marine inputs. This discovery complements the few existing reports of European Late Jurassic floras, and indicates that coastal habitats were dominated by sub-arborescent vegetation, consisting of bennettitaleans and pteridosperms, and arborescent plants, such as conifers. Both the palaeoenvironmental context and certain xerophytic features suggest that these terrestrial plants from the Causse Méjean were well adapted to the hot, dry conditions of coastal areas.Une nouvelle flore du Jurassique terminal a été découverte dans les calcaires lithographiques du Causse Méjean,Lozère (Sud de la France). Il s’agit des tout premiers végétaux d’âge kimméridgien/tithonien provenant de ce secteur.Ces plantes fossiles sont caractérisées par des mégarestes préservés sous forme d’impressions. Cette flore montreune association de végétaux terrestres et d’algues marines : les premiers correspondent à des structures végétatives quisont attribuées à des bennettitales (Zamites BRONGNIART, 1828), des conifères (Brachyphyllum BRONGNIART, 1828), etdes ptéridospermes (Cycadopteris ZIGNO, 1853) ; alors que les secondes sont rattachées à des dasycladales (GoniolinaD’ORBIGNY, 1850). Les caractéristiques lithologiques et paléontologiques suggèrent que ces plantes ont été préservéesdans un environnement plat, homogène et protégé, telle qu’une lagune saumâtre ou marine influencée à la fois par desapports continentaux et des apports marins. Cette découverte vient compléter les quelques flores précédemment décritesdans le Jurassique terminal d’Europe. Elle suggère que les environnements côtiers étaient dominés par une végétationsub-arborescente composée de bennettitales et de ptéridospermes, puis par des plantes arborescentes comme des conifères.Le contexte paléoenvironnemental ainsi que les caractères xérophytiques présents chez les végétaux terrestres duCausse Méjean montrent que cette flore était adaptée pour tolérer les conditions chaudes et sèches des milieux côtiers

First Kimmeridgian/Tithonian flora from thelithographic limestone of the Causse Méjean(Lozère, southern France)

National audienceFossiliferous lithographic limestone yielding Kimmeridgian/Tithonian floras has been reported from few localities, mainlylocated in western Europe (e.g., Plattenkalk of Bavaria in Germany,or Canjuers and Cerin in France). They were studied intensivelyduring the twentieth century, when the fossil plants weremainly ascribed to bennettitaleans, conifers, cycads, ginkgophytesand pteridosperms. Here, we report the first flora from the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian lithographic limestone in the northern partof the Causses Basin. These fossils were discovered in the depositsof a small quarry in the Causse Méjean, which is no longeraccessible, as it has been completely filled in. The section of thequarry was composed of homogeneous, micritic, thinly laminatedlimestone, with fine-grained texture (mudstone), conchoidal fractures,and sharp edges. Fossil plants are represented by megaremainspreserved as impressions (external casts). This flora showsa co-occurrence of terrestrial plants and marine algae. The landplants include vegetative remains ascribed to bennettitaleans (ZamitesBRONGNIART, 1828), conifers (Brachyphyllum BRONGNIART,1828), and pteridosperms (Cycadopteris ZIGNO, 1853).Marine algae were ascribed to dasyclads (Goniolina D’ORBIGNY,1850). Lithological and palaeontological features suggest preservationin a flat, homogeneous, protected environment, perhaps abrackish or marine lagoon, influenced by both continental and marineinputs. This discovery complements the few existing reportsof European Late Jurassic floras, and indicates that coastal habitatswere dominated by sub-arborescent vegetation, consisting ofbennettitaleans and pteridosperms, but also arborescent plants,such as conifers. Both the palaeoenvironmental context and certainxerophytic features suggest that these terrestrial plants fromthe Causse Méjean were well adapted to the hot, dry conditionsof coastal area

High-resolution rainfall variability simulated by the WRF RCM: application to eastern France.

15 pagesInternational audienceThe Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF)model, driven laterally by ERA-Interim reanalyses, is usedhere to downscale rainfall, at relatively high resolution(*8 km) over Burgundy (eastern France), during the period1989–2009. Regional simulations are compared to theMe´te´o-France Station Network (MFSN; 127 daily raingaugerecords), at various temporal scales, includinginterannual variability, the annual cycle, and weather types.Results show that the spatial distribution of WRF-simulatedrainfall climatology is consistent with MFSN observationdata, but WRF tends to overestimate annual rainfallby *?15 %. At the interannual scale, WRF also performsvery well (r * 0.8), despite almost constant, systematicoverestimation. Only the average annual rainfall cycle isnot accurately reproduced by WRF (r * 0.5), with rainfalloverestimation in spring and summer, when convectiverainfall prevails. During the winter season (October–March), when stratiform rainfall is prevalent, WRF performsbetter. Despite the biases for summertime convectiveevents, these results suggest that high-resolution WRFsimulations could successfully be used to document presentand future climate variability at a regional scale. Nevertheless,because of overestimated convective rainfall,WRF-simulated rainfall should probably not be useddirectly to feed impact models, especially during the vegetativesummer period

Lead provenance for medieval decorated tile glazes from Brittany and Anjou (13th-14th c.)

International audienceMedieval pavements composed of lead-glazed tiles decorated with a variety of techniques continue to inspire questions about the organisation of glaze manufacture, and the supply and origin of lead materials. The tiles analysed in this study are from Suscinio I (a 13th-century pavement) and Suscinio II (a 14th-century pavement), at the Château of Suscinio in Brittany, and also from the 14th-century pavement at the fortified manor house in Brain-sur-Allonnes, Anjou. Lead isotope analysis (LIA) was used to examine samples from 44 lead-glazed tiles, 29 of which are transparent, while 15 are tin-opacified (an exogenous technique in these regions during this period). Five out of the six LIA groups thus identified favour site-specific supply networks, while results for the remaining group, LIA5, indicate a multi-site supply network. After combining LIA results with archaeological and historical data, the most likely provenance for the lead materials in LIA5 is Derbyshire, in the British Isles. Both the importation of ready-to-use glazing mixtures and the use of lead from neighbouring mines can now therefore be discounted as plausible hypotheses for the production of the tin-opacified lead-glaze tiles analysed in this study