The First Catalog of Archaeomagnetic Directions From Israel With 4,000 Years of Geomagnetic Secular Variations

The large and well-studied archaeological record of Israel offers a unique opportunity for collecting high resolution archaeomagnetic data from the past several millennia. Here, we initiate the first catalog of archaeomagnetic directions from Israel, with data covering the past four millennia. The catalog consists of 76 directions, of which 47 fulfill quality selection criteria with Fisher precision parameter (k) ≥ 60, 95% cone of confidence (α95) < 6° and number of specimens per site (n) ≥ 8. The new catalog complements our published paleointensity data from the Levant and enables testing the hypothesis of a regional geomagnetic anomaly in the Levant during the Iron Age proposed by Shaar et al. (2016, 2017). Most of the archaeomagnetic directions show < 15° angular deviations from an axial dipole field. However, we observe in the tenth and ninth century BCE short intervals with field directions that are 19°-22° different from an axial dipole field and inclinations that are 20°-22° steeper than an axial dipole field. The beginning of the first millennium BCE is also characterized with fast secular variation rates. The new catalog provides additional support to the Levantine Iron Age Anomaly hypothesis

PID-MAD 2014: Second International Workshop on Prototyping to Support the Interaction Designing in Mobile Application Development

The current mobile paradigm is in many ways fundamentally different from the conventional desktop paradigm due to many factors such as multi-touch gesture interaction, usage of sensors, single-task focused model, etc. These factors mean several new challenges for the interaction designers with regard to communicating their ideas and thoughts during early design activities, which they might be unable to tackle properly using traditional prototyping techniques. Therefore, we envision that research must address the need for a change in existing prototyping techniques as well as focus on novel prototyping approaches and frameworks that would support not only the interaction design process but also the whole development process of mobile app development. In the footsteps of the first workshop, PID-MAD 2014 provides a platform to the interested communities for discussing issues and will bring together researchers and practitioners for sharing their knowledge and experience in order to tackle the upcoming challenges

Synchronizing Geomagnetic Field Intensity Records in the Levant Between the 23rd and 15th Centuries BCE: Chronological and Methodological Implications

Abstract Archeomagnetic records are an important source of information on the past behavior of the geomagnetic field. Frequently, however, coeval archeomagnetic intensity (archeointensity) datasets from nearby locations display significant discrepancies, hampering precise reconstruction of high‐resolution secular variation curve. This is the case for the time interval between the later phase of the Early Bronze and the early phase of the Late Bronze Ages (23rd–15th centuries BCE) in the Levant and Mesopotamia. We address the problem by cross‐correlating archeointensity datasets from four major multilayered archeological sites in the southern Levant (Hazor and Megiddo), northern Levant (Ebla), and western Upper Mesopotamia (Mari). We report new archeointensity data, obtained using the Thellier‐IZZI‐MagIC and the Triaxe methods, from six strata at Hazor and four radiocarbon‐dated strata at Megiddo. From 39 pottery fragments, 199 specimens passed our selection criteria, from which we calculated the mean archeointensity for each stratum. To strengthen the comparison of these data with previously published data from Mari and Ebla, obtained using the Triaxe method, we conducted a blind test of the methods that resulted in indistinguishable results or a difference of less than 1 μT. The synchronized compilation, constrained by radiocarbon data from Megiddo, displays a V‐shaped pattern with a prominent minimum of at least 200 years centered around the 18th century BCE. The study highlights the importance of stacking archeomagnetic data obtained by different archeointensity methods only after cross‐testing the methods and ensuring that archeological samples were dated in a consistent manner

Geochronology, paleogeography, and archaeology of the Acheulian locality of ‘Evron Landfill in the western Galilee, Israel

International audienc

Late Acheulian Jaljulia - Early human occupations in the paleo-landscape of the central coastal plain of Israel.

The Lower Paleolithic Late Acheulian in the Levant marks a fascinating chapter in human cultural and biological evolution. Nevertheless, many aspects of the Late Acheulian are still undeciphered, hindered by the complex nature of each site on the one hand, a scarcity of wide, multidisciplinary studies on the other, and by difficulties in obtaining absolute chronology for this timeframe. Therefore, subjects such as human subsistence strategies and modes of adaptation, regional diversity, and the possible existence and nature of interactions between hominin groups are largely understudied. The discovery and study of Jaljulia, a large-scale Late Acheulian site at the central Coastal Plain, Israel, add valuable insights to the research of this chapter in human history. Considered to represent recurrent occupations at a favored, water and flint-rich setting, the site has provided extensive lithic assemblages obtained from several localities. Absolute chronology places the human activity on-site at roughly 500-300 ky (and possibly even later), which is suggested to be divided into several main occupation phases. Geomorphological and sedimentological analyses show a change in environmental conditions, from aeolian sand deposition and overlying Hamra soil during the Middle Pleistocene to high energy fluvial regime which transported large gravels in a north-south paleo-channel. Wetland environments, correlating to the human activity on site, developed later due to higher sea levels and a coastline shifts to the eastward, which caused a blockage of the Yarkon stream corridor to the sea by marine sand. In this paper we present results of the study of the site, including geomorphological formation and post-depositional processes, absolute chronology, lithic and faunal analyses. The site's extensive lithic assemblages are currently under study and future investigations are expected to shed more light on the technological nature of Late Acheulian Jaljulia