Reply to S Riehl and K Pustovoytov (Journal of Archaeological Science 33 (2006) 143-144)

We appreciate the interest of Simone Riehl and Konstantin Pustovoytov (hereafter R&P) in our publication and here we answer their critical remarks and questions. R&P criticise two aspects: (1) our interpretation of the pollen record from Kutuzhekovo Lake and (2) the information we derived from the St. Petersburg radiocarbon database. We discuss the questions and we show that these do not really affect our earlier conclusions.

Structure and function of mammalian cilia

In the past half century, beginning with electron microscopic studies of 9 + 2 motile and 9 + 0 primary cilia, novel insights have been obtained regarding the structure and function of mammalian cilia. All cilia can now be viewed as sensory cellular antennae that coordinate a large number of cellular signaling pathways, sometimes coupling the signaling to ciliary motility or alternatively to cell division and differentiation. This view has had unanticipated consequences for our understanding of developmental processes and human disease

Chronology of holocene climate and vegetation changes and their connection to cultural dynamics in Southern Siberia

Two sediment sequences from Big Kyzykul Lake and the Shushenskoe paleolake in the Minusinsk depression, Southern Siberia, were studied by pollen, microfossil, and geochemical analyses, as well as radiocarbon dating. The records indicate the persistence of an arid period between ~11.7–7.6 cal kyr BP, increased effective moisture since ~7.6 cal kyr BP, 2 humid impulses at ~5.1 and 2.8 cal kyr BP separated by a dry interval, and the return to generally drier conditions after ~1.5 cal kyr BP. This is contrary to the findings noted for the Eurasian temperate zone, but agrees with proxy data reported for arid and semi-arid zones of Central Asia. Reconstructed changes in climate and environment are in good agreement with archaeological data. Almost no evidence of the Mesolithic-Neolithic cultures has been reported for the depression, which is consistent with a dry early and mid-Holocene. Effective moisture started to rise from ~7.6 cal kyr BP, followed by the beginning of human occupation at ~6 cal kyr BP. Two maxima of humidity are recorded in the late Holocene, corresponding to the arrival of trees in the depression. No gap was to be found from the Early Bronze to the Iron ages cultures at this time, with the exception of a dry interval at ~3.6–3.3 cal kyr BP, when the Minusinsk depression was sparsely occupied. The data obtained suggest a close relationship between climate change and cultural dynamics in the steppe zone of Southern Siberia.

Chronology and possible links between climatic and cultural change during the first millennium BC in southern Siberia and Central Asia

We reconstructed climate change during the second half of the Holocene for the Minusinsk (southern Siberia) and the Uyuk (Central Asia) valleys in the Eurasian steppe zone. Sediment cores from 2 lakes and a soil profile from the Arzhan-2 burial mount were investigated. We combined pollen and geochemical analyses and radiocarbon dating with the archaeological record. A sharp increase of human population density occurred at the transition from the Bronze Age to Iron Age (about 2700 cal BP). The most representative Scythian culture started in the Uyuk and the Minusinsk valleys after increased humidity and occupation capacity of the steppe zone during the 9th century BC

Chronological study of archaeological sites and environmental change around 2600 BP in the Eurasian steppe belt (Uyuk valley, Tuva Republic)

The main attention of the article presented focuses on the connection between the development of archaeological cultures and environmental changes during the 9th-4th centuries BC (2700-2400 BP). Environmental changes around 2600 BP can be observed by the character of the radiocarbon calibration curve. The region under study is the Uyuk depression in the Tuva Republic which is the part of the Eurasian steppe belt. To reconstruct environmental changes pollen and geochemical analyses of the lake deposits from the Uyuk depression were used. The main feature that made this territory more attractive for settling, is the humidity that promoted nomadic economy. The chronology of the archaeological sites corresponds to a period with a complicated shape of the calibration curve, and a special approach (wiggle-matching dating) is required. The famous Scythian time monuments Arzhan-1 and Arzhan-2 are located in this region and the wiggle matching method was used to establish the time of their construction. The Arzhan-1 is the oldest among the Scythian time monuments of all Eurasia. The chronology of other Scythian time monuments located in the western and eastern neighbouring territories of Tuva is considered and compared.

Opening Ceremony: Welcome | Introduction to the Conference Theme: Health Promotion: Transformative action in a changing Europe

Opening ceremony consisting of the welcoming ceremony and an introduction to the theme of the congress dedicated to health promotion as a transformative action in a changing EuropeCerimònia d'obertura consistent en l'acte de benvinguda i en una introducció a la temàtica del congrès dedicada a la promoció de la salut com acció transformadora en una Europa canvian