Pottery traditions, consumers' choices and exchange networks at Late Bronze Age Cobatillas la Vieja (southeast Iberia)

Cobatillas la Vieja is one of the main settlements for understanding the beginning of the Late Bronze Age (14th-13th centuries cal. BC) in the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula. After the macroscopic study of their ceramic assemblage, 30 representative samples were analysed by thin-section petrography, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and binocular microscopy to address issues of provenance and technology. The characterization of four different fabric groups and several individuals reveals a more complex picture of production traditions, pottery exchange and consumption than often assumed for this period of supposed recession and socio-cultural transition. Potters' choices in different production locations are discussed, with an examination on the nature of consumption in two households that suggest both regional and inter-regional exchange of ceramics in the Late Bronze Age.Peer reviewe

Technological change and cultural resistance among southeast Iberian potters: analytical characterisation of Early Iron Age pottery from Castellar de Librilla

The beginning of relationships between autochthonous communities and Phoenicians from the earliest contacts in the 8th century BC made possible the exchange of ideas, technologies and people. This work analyses the development of the Early Iron Age potteries of the Iberian Southeast, the impact of the Phoenician presence and the agency that these local groups exercised on their ceramic assemblages until the 5th century BC. The incorporation of new archaeometric data from Castellar de Librilla, one of the region's main autochthonous settlements, has been essential to improve our approach to these cultural encounters. A total of 63 representative individuals have been analysed through X‐ray fluorescence (XRF), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), thin-section petrography and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results point to the local production of ceramics previously considered as Western Phoenician pottery, and to the degree of specialisation of the potters established in the autochthonous settlements, combining traditional and new techniques from early in the period of contact

Kinetic Resolution in Asymmetric Epoxidation using Iminium Salt Catalysis

The first reported examples of kinetic resolution in epoxidation reactions using iminium salt catalysis are described, providing up to 99% ee in the epoxidation of racemic cis-chromenes

Integrating Traffic Signal Performance Measures into Agency Business Processes

This report discusses uses of and requirements for performance measures in traffic signal systems facilitated by high-resolution controller event data. Uses of external travel time measurements are also discussed. The discussion is led by a high-level synthesis of the systems engineering concepts for traffic signal control, considering technical and non-technical aspects of the problem. This is followed by a presentation of the requirements for implementing data collection and processing of the data into signal performance measures. The remaining portion of the report uses an example-oriented approach to showing a variety of uses of performance measures for communication and detector system health, quality of local control (including capacity allocation, safety, pedestrian performance, preemption, and advanced control analysis), and quality of progression (including evaluation and optimization)

Single-molecule magnet properties of a monometallic dysprosium pentalene complex

The pentalene-ligated dysprosium complex [(8-Pn†)Dy(Cp*)] (1Dy) (Pn† = [1,4-(iPr3Si)2C8H4]2–) and its magnetically dilute analogue are single-molecule magnets, with energy barriers of 245 cm–1. Whilst the [Cp*]– ligand in 1Dy provides a strong axial crystal field, the overall axiality of this system is attenuated by the unusual folded structure of the [Pn†]2– ligand

Sequential Electrostatic Assembly of a Polymer Surfactant Corona Increases Activity of the Phosphotriesterase arPTE

We present a new methodology for the generation of discrete molecularly dispersed enzyme–polymer–surfactant bioconjugates. Significantly, we demonstrate that >3-fold increase in the catalytic efficiency of the diffusion-limited phosphotriesterase arPTE can be achieved through sequential electrostatic addition of cationic and anionic polymer surfactants, respectively. Here, the polymer surfactants assemble on the surface of the enzyme via ion exchange to yield a compact corona. The observed rate enhancement is consistent with a mechanism whereby the polymer–surfactant corona gives rise to a decrease in the dielectric constant in the vicinity of the active site of the enzyme, accelerating the rate-determining product diffusion step. The facile methodology has significant potential for increasing the efficiency of enzymes and could therefore have a substantially positive impact for industrial enzymology

Magnetic hysteresis up to 80 kelvin in a dysprosium metallocene single-molecule magnet

Single-molecule magnets (SMMs) containing only one metal center may represent the lower size limit for molecule-based magnetic information storage materials. Their current drawback is that all SMMs require liquid-helium cooling to show magnetic memory effects. We now report a chemical strategy to access the dysprosium metallocene cation [(CpiPr5)Dy(Cp*)]+ (CpiPr5 = penta-iso-propylcyclopentadienyl, Cp* = pentamethylcyclopentadienyl), which displays magnetic hysteresis above liquid-nitrogen temperatures. An effective energy barrier to reversal of the magnetization of Ueff = 1,541 cm–1 is also measured. The magnetic blocking temperature of TB = 80 K for this cation overcomes an essential barrier towards the development of nanomagnet devices that function at practical temperatures

Field Cycle Length Sweep to Evaluate Resonant Cycle Sensitivity

Cycle length selection in corridor timing is often dictated by critical intersections with the highest level of saturation. Along corridors with balanced volumes and favorable link distances, a resonant cycle length is often sought to provide good progression in both directions of travel. This paper discusses the search for a resonant cycle length at a 5-intersection corridor in Fishers, Indiana over a three month period. The software traffic model suggests a reasonable range of cycle lengths from 104 seconds to 124 seconds for the corridor. This cycle length range is consistent with analytical highway capacity manual delay minimization approaches. A set of eleven cycle lengths from the 104 to 124-second range are tested over 12 weeks, with each iteration using optimized offset values generated by the Link Pivot progression optimization algorithm to maximize the percentage of vehicles arriving on green, and holding all phase splits constant. There was no obvious resonant cycle identified in the cycle length sweep, however the experiment findings indicate vehicles arriving on green decrease and travel times increase as cycle length increases.As a tradeoff, the number of force off phase terminations on the side-street phases decrease as a result of longer cycles indicating a better accommodation of sidestreet demand. Finally, a Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SURE) model was used to analyze the correlation between cycle lengths, percent of vehicles arriving on green, and travel time indicating a negative correlation between higher cycle length and progression performance