Osos Pardos holocenos en trampas naturales: los yacimientos excepcionales de Mont Ventoux (Vaucluse, Francia)

[Abstract] On the northern face of the mountain Mont Ventoux (Vaucluse, Southeastern France), a dozen cavities and traps (called MV1, 2, 3, 4 ( = Aven du René-Jean), 5, 6 ...) have been recently discovered by speleologists, yielding rich Holocene faunal remains. Two sites (MV2 and MV4, figure 1) have been excavated for 3 years (1997-1999) and appear to be exceptional places for their archaeological records, containing both numerous remains of brown bears and charcoal. These remains seem to have been accumulated during a short time (Bronze Age ? to late Antiquity). Here are presented some results of our first field investigations. Although these do not strictly concern cave bears, they may be useful to paleontologists, archaeologists, taphonomists and biologists working on (Pleistocene) bears

Apport des Caprinae et Antilopinae (Mammalia, Bovidae) à la biostratigraphie du Pliocène terminal et du Pléistocène d’Europe

Le présent travail traite des Caprinae et Antilopinae européens de 254 sites datant du Pliocène terminal, du Pléistocène et de l’Holocène. Il fournit de nouvelles informations sur leur répartition chronologique et géographique et dégage la succession des apparitions et disparitions des 18 genres et des 42 espèces connues. Leur répartition par biozone est variable : MNQ 16 : Gazella borbonica, Pliotragus ardeus, Gazellospira torticornis, Parastrepsiceros sokolovi. MNQ 17 : G. borbonica, G. bouvrainae, G. aegeae, Gazella sp. 1, Gazella sp. 2, P. ardeus, Gazellospira sp., G. torticornis, Procamptoceras brivatense, Gallogoral meneghinii, Euthyceros thessalicus, Megalovis latifrons, Soergelia sp., Hemitragus orientalis. MNQ 18 : G. bouvrainae, P. ardeus, G. torticornis, Antilope koufosae, P. brivatense, Gallogoral meneghinii, Ovis ammon ssp., O. ammon antiqua, H. orientalis. Pléistocène inférieur (MNQ 19 et première partie de la MNQ 20) : G. bouvrainae, G. torticornis, G. meneghinii, P. brivatense, Pontoceros ambiguus, Caprovis savini, M. balcanicus, S. brigittae, S. minor, S. intermedia, Soergelia sp. 1, Soergelia sp. 2, Praeovibos mediterraneus, Ovis sp., O. ammon antiqua, H. cf. orientalis, H. albus, Capra dalii, Rupicapra sp. Pléistocène moyen (de la deuxième partie de la MNQ 20 à la MNQ 24) : P. macedonicus, P. priscus, S. aff. intermedia, S. elisabethae, Ovibos pallantis, Ovis sp. , O. ammon antiqua, H. cf. orientalis, H. bonali, H. cedrensis, Capra sp., C. ibex, C. caucasica, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Pléistocène supérieur (MNQ 25 et MNQ 26) : O. pallantis, H. cedrensis, C. ibex, C. caucasica, C. pyrenaica, O. argaloides, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Holocène : C. ibex, C. caucasica, C. pyrenaica, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Les phénomènes d’apparition et de disparition des taxons ne sont pas synchrones : quelques uns apparaissent beaucoup plus tôt à l’Est (Caucase, Balkans : Megalovis, Capra, Rupicapra), d’autres subsistent plus longtemps dans les culs-de-sac de l’Europe méridionale (Péninsule ibérique, Italie, Grèce : Gazella, Gazellospira, Pliotragus, Gallogoral, Ovis) et dans le Caucase (Gallogoral). La durée de vie de plusieurs genres pliocènes s’étend au-delà de cette période : trois persistent jusqu’au début du Pléistocène inférieur (Gazellospira, Gallogoral, Procamptoceras), un s’observe jusqu’à la fin du Pléistocène inférieur(Megalovis) ; deux jusqu’au Pléistocène moyen(Pliotragus et Soergelia). Enfin cinq vont perdurer jusqu’à aujourd’hui (Gazella, Antilope, Hemitragus, Ovis et Capra). Au moins deux genres plongent leurs racines dans le Miocène : Gazella et Pliotragus. La rupture entre Pliocène terminal et Pléistocène telle qu’elle est définie jusqu’à présent n’est pas marquée chez les Caprinae et les Antilopinae par un renouvellement faunique majeur mais par un enrichissement et des transformations en relation avec les modifications de l’environnement. Ce résultat est compatible avec la proposition de considérer : - Le Quaternaire comme une période débutant à –2.6 Ma (base du Gélasien),- Le Pléistocène comme une époque débutant elle aussi à –2.6 Ma,- Le Gélasien comme équivalent à l’actuel Pliocène terminal.This paper provides new insights on the geographical and the chronological distribution of the European Caprinae and Antilopinae from the Late Pliocene, the Pleistocene and the Holocene. From 254 localities, 18 genera and 42 species were identified. Their occurrence in the biozonation of the Pliocene and the Pleistocene is considered : MNQ 16: Gazella borbonica, Pliotragus ardeus, Gazellospira torticornis, Parastrepsiceros sokolovi. MNQ 17: G. borbonica, G. bouvrainae, G. aegeae, Gazella sp. 1, Gazella sp. 2, P. ardeus, Gazellospira sp., G. torticornis, Procamptoceras brivatense, Gallogoral meneghinii, Euthyceros thessalicus, Megalovis latifrons, Soergelia sp., Hemitragus orientalis. MNQ 18: G. bouvrainae, P. ardeus, G. torticornis, Antilope koufosae, P. brivatense, Gallogoral meneghinii, Ovis ammon ssp., O. ammon antiqua, H. orientalis. Early Pleistocene (MNQ 19 and first part of MNQ 20): G. bouvrainae, G. torticornis, G. meneghinii, P. brivatense, Pontoceros ambiguus, Caprovis savini, M. balcanicus, Soergelia sp. 1, Soergelia sp. 2, S. brigittae, S. minor, S. intermedia, Praeovibos mediterraneus, Ovis sp., Ovis ammon antiqua, H. cf. orientalis, H. albus, Capra dalii, Rupicapra sp. Middle Pleistocene (from the second part of MNQ 20 to MNQ 24): P. macedonicus, P. priscus, S. aff. intermedia, S. elisabethae, Ovibos pallantis, Ovis sp. , O. ammon antiqua, H. cf. orientalis, H. bonali, H. cedrensis, Capra sp., C. ibex, C. caucasica, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Late Pleistocene (MNQ 25 and MNQ 26): O. pallantis, H. cedrensis, C. ibex, C. caucasica, C. pyrenaica, O. argaloides, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Holocene: C. ibex, C. caucasica, C. pyrenaica, R. rupicapra, R. pyrenaica. Asynchrony exists comparing appearance and disappearance of some taxa: certain species penetrate earlier in East (Caucasus, Balkans: Megalovis, Capra, Rupicapra) ; some stay longer after their disappearance in the “cul-de-sac” of the Mediterranean area (Iberic peninsula, Italy, Greece : Gazella, Gazellospira, Pliotragus, Gallogoral, Ovis) and the Caucasus (Gallogoral). Some genera do not disappear at the end of the Pliocene: three are present to the beginning of the Lower Pleistocene(Gazellospira, Gallogoral, Procamptoceras), one (Megalovis) exists until the end of the Lower Pleistocene, and two (Pliotragus and Soergelia) until the Middle Pleistocene ; five (Gazella, Antilope, Hemitragus, Ovis and Capra) are present until now. At least two genera are present during the Miocene: Gazella and Pliotragus. The boundary between the Late Pliocene and the Pleistocene as defined today, does not correspond to a major structural change in the Caprinae and Antilopinae but to transformations connected to environmental modifications. This result is in accordance with the proposition to consider: - The Quaternary as a Period with the base at –2.6 Ma (base of the Gelasian),- The Pleistocene as an Epoch with the base at –2.6 Ma,- The Gelasian as a stage corresponding to the Late Pliocene

La faune de grands mammifères en Provence de la fin du Pléistocène supérieur à l'Holocène.

Un important changement dans les communautés animales survient à la fin du Pléistocène supérieur sur l'ensemble de l'Eurasie. Il est graduel et reflète les variations climatiques annonçant la phase tempérée de l'Holocène. La fin des temps glaciaires en Provence se caractérise par un appauvrissement de la grande faune pléistocène

Optical gain observation on silicon nanocrystals embedded in silicon nitride under femtosecond pumping

We report the observation of positive optical gain in silicon nanocrystals (Si-nc) embedded in silicon nitride measured by the variable stripe length technique. We evidence the onset of stimulated emission and report gain coefficients up to 52 cm(-1) at the highest excitation power (6.5 W/cm(2)). Photoluminescence dynamics presents two distinct recombination lifetimes in the nanosecond and the microsecond ranges. This was interpreted in terms of fast carrier trapping in nitrogen-induced localized states in the Si-nc surface and subsequent slow radiative recombination, suggesting that carrier trapping in radiative surface states plays a crucial role in the optical gain mechanism of Si-nc. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3607276

Madurese Seafarers. Prahus, Timber and Illegality on the Margins of the Indonesian State, Kurt Stenross

Dans l’archipel indonésien, l’une des singularités de Madura est d’être une île aride et déshéritée dans un arc d’îles prospères. Les Madourais, quant à eux, constituent le troisième groupe ethnique du pays, estimé en l’absence de statistiques par ethnie à environ 13 millions d’individus dont seulement 2,5 millions sur l’île. Cette île, si proche et pourtant si différente de Java, hormis quelques études linguistiques (Kiliaan, Hendricks conduites vers 1830) a longtemps été ignorée par la comm..

Orbital effects of a monochromatic plane gravitational wave with ultra-low frequency incident on a gravitationally bound two-body system

We analytically compute the long-term orbital variations of a test particle orbiting a central body acted upon by an incident monochromatic plane gravitational wave. We assume that the characteristic size of the perturbed two-body system is much smaller than the wavelength of the wave. Moreover, we also suppose that the wave's frequency is much smaller than the particle's orbital one. We make neither a priori assumptions about the direction of the wavevector nor on the orbital geometry of the planet. We find that, while the semi-major axis is left unaffected, the eccentricity, the inclination, the longitude of the ascending node, the longitude of pericenter and the mean anomaly undergo non-vanishing long-term changes. They are not secular trends because of the slow modulation introduced by the tidal matrix coefficients and by the orbital elements themselves. They could be useful to indepenedently constrain the ultra-low frequency waves which may have been indirectly detected in the BICEP2 experiment. Our calculation holds, in general, for any gravitationally bound two-body system whose characteristic frequency is much larger than the frequency of the external wave. It is also valid for a generic perturbation of tidal type with constant coefficients over timescales of the order of the orbital period of the perturbed particle.Comment: LaTex2e, 24 pages, no figures, no tables. Changes suggested by the referees include

The role of bacteria and mycorrhiza in plant sulfur supply

peer-reviewedPlant growth is highly dependent on bacteria, saprophytic, and mycorrhizal fungi which facilitate the cycling and mobilization of nutrients. Over 95% of the sulfur (S) in soil is present in an organic form. Sulfate-esters and sulfonates, the major forms of organo-S in soils, arise through deposition of biological material and are transformed through subsequent humification. Fungi and bacteria release S from sulfate-esters using sulfatases, however, release of S from sulfonates is catalyzed by a bacterial multi-component mono-oxygenase system. The asfA gene is used as a key marker in this desulfonation process to study sulfonatase activity in soil bacteria identified as Variovorax, Polaromonas, Acidovorax, and Rhodococcus. The rhizosphere is regarded as a hot spot for microbial activity and recent studies indicate that this is also the case for the mycorrhizosphere where bacteria may attach to the fungal hyphae capable of mobilizing organo-S. While current evidence is not showing sulfatase and sulfonatase activity in arbuscular mycorrhiza, their effect on the expression of plant host sulfate transporters is documented. A revision of the role of bacteria, fungi and the interactions between soil bacteria and mycorrhiza in plant S supply was conducted

Gravitational Wave Detection by Interferometry (Ground and Space)

Significant progress has been made in recent years on the development of gravitational wave detectors. Sources such as coalescing compact binary systems, neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries, stellar collapses and pulsars are all possible candidates for detection. The most promising design of gravitational wave detector uses test masses a long distance apart and freely suspended as pendulums on Earth or in drag-free craft in space. The main theme of this review is a discussion of the mechanical and optical principles used in the various long baseline systems in operation around the world - LIGO (USA), Virgo (Italy/France), TAMA300 and LCGT (Japan), and GEO600 (Germany/U.K.) - and in LISA, a proposed space-borne interferometer. A review of recent science runs from the current generation of ground-based detectors will be discussed, in addition to highlighting the astrophysical results gained thus far. Looking to the future, the major upgrades to LIGO (Advanced LIGO), Virgo (Advanced Virgo), LCGT and GEO600 (GEO-HF) will be completed over the coming years, which will create a network of detectors with significantly improved sensitivity required to detect gravitational waves. Beyond this, the concept and design of possible future "third generation" gravitational wave detectors, such as the Einstein Telescope (ET), will be discussed.Comment: Published in Living Reviews in Relativit