Deconstructing the Aztec human sacrifice

This paper argues that the term ‘human sacrifice’ in the case of Ancient Mexican cultures is a tendentious colonial misnomer, which has become an automatic description for any act of killing in ancient Mesoamerica and still haunts the studies of Indigenous religions. Tracing its origin in the early colonial accounts one finds that this denomination (as ‘sacrifice-to-the-devil’ in combination with cannibalism) was used by the Spaniards in a systematic propagandistic fasion as part of the demonisation of the Aztec and other Mesoamerican cultures with the aim of justifying the colonial invasion.Many descriptions are evidently no eye-witness testimonies but based on hearsay and imagination. In a number of cases it is even doubtful that people were killed. In other cases, the killings, though maybe caried out in a ritualised context, seem not to have been actually first and foremost ‘sacrifices’, but rather forms of death penalty, execution, political murder or other instances of (in principle secular) homicide.In order to construct this hostile image, the colonial accounts misrepresented socially sanctioned killings, confusing them with religious acts such as ancestor worship and specific funerary customs, as well as with the frequent self sacrifice (bloodletting).There is an important though often overlooked parallel with the contemporaneous accusations of “witchcraft” against innocent women in European societies. But where modern scholarly consensus holds that the allegations of the witch craze were unwaranted, in the case of the “human sacrifice’ contemporary studies (also our own) have often still reproduced the terminology of the colonial demonisation. After 500 years it is time for a decolonial historical critique.Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)295434Heritage of Indigenous People

Historia, literatura e ideología de Ñuu Dzaui. El Códice Añute y su contexto histórico-cultural.

Heritage of Indigenous People

Renaming the Mexican Codices

Mixtec city-states. Nature and development of indigenous socio-political organisatio

El picudo del algodonero y su aparición en el interior del país.

En Mayo de 1980 se confirmó la presencia en la zona algodonera de La Dorada y Puerto Boyacá, del picudo del algodonero (Anthonomus grandis). Se realizó un informe y se dieron las recomendaciones pertinentes para el manejo de la plaga, las cuales no fueron acatadas en su totalidad por los cultivadores. En base a estas recomendaciones se expidió la resolución No. 861 de Junio de 1980, declarando la zona de la margen izquierda del río Magdalena entre el río Guarinó y su desembocadura en el río Ermitaño en cuarentena. Se hizo reconocimiento de hospederos, experimentación sobre islas, socas y trampas feromonas, seminarios, conferencias y toda una campaña para instruír a los agricultores y asistentes técnicos sobre el reconocimiento de la plaga. Esta campaña se desarrolló en el Magdalena Medio, Tolima y Huila, y comprendió actividades divulgativas, inspección y vigilancia, destrucción de algodones silvestres e investigación. Se recomienda programar con tiempo una nueva campaña para la próxima cosecha con énfasis en el aspecto divulgativo. Conformar brigadas de 10 funcionarios para cada 10000 ha. Realizar estudio técnico sobre necesidades, utilidad y facilidad de destrucción de algodones silvestres. Se recomiendan estudios prácticos sobre uo y manejo de trampas de feromonas. Se sugiere reglamentar el uso del Fondo de Emergencia Agropecuari

Searching for the Sanctuary of Lady 9 Reed: Huajuapan, Ring of Stones

Heritage of Indigenous People

Theory of Stellar Oscillations

In recent years, astronomers have witnessed major progresses in the field of stellar physics. This was made possible thanks to the combination of a solid theoretical understanding of the phenomena of stellar pulsations and the availability of a tremendous amount of exquisite space-based asteroseismic data. In this context, this chapter reviews the basic theory of stellar pulsations, considering small, adiabatic perturbations to a static, spherically symmetric equilibrium. It starts with a brief discussion of the solar oscillation spectrum, followed by the setting of the theoretical problem, including the presentation of the equations of hydrodynamics, their perturbation, and a discussion of the functional form of the solutions. Emphasis is put on the physical properties of the different types of modes, in particular acoustic (p-) and gravity (g-) modes and their propagation cavities. The surface (f-) mode solutions are also discussed. While not attempting to be comprehensive, it is hoped that the summary presented in this chapter addresses the most important theoretical aspects that are required for a solid start in stellar pulsations research.Comment: Lecture presented at the IVth Azores International Advanced School in Space Sciences on "Asteroseismology and Exoplanets: Listening to the Stars and Searching for New Worlds" (arXiv:1709.00645), which took place in Horta, Azores Islands, Portugal in July 201

Microscopic calculation of proton capture reactions in mass 60-80 region and its astrophysical implications

Microscopic optical potentials obtained by folding the DDM3Y interaction with the densities from Relativistic Mean Field approach have been utilized to evaluate S-factors of low-energy $(p,\gamma)$ reactions in mass 60-80 region and to compare with experiments. The Lagrangian density FSU Gold has been employed. Astrophysical rates for important proton capture reactions have been calculated to study the behaviour of rapid proton nucleosynthesis for waiting point nuclei with mass less than A=80

Synthetic zwitterionic streptococcus pneumoniae Type 1 oligosaccharides carrying labile O-acetyl esters

We herein report the first total synthesis of the Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 1 (Sp1) oligosaccharide, a unique zwitterionic capsular polysaccharide carrying labile O-acetyl esters. The target oligosaccharides, featuring rare α-2,4-diamino-2,4,6-trideoxy galactose (AAT) and α-galacturonic acids, were assembled up to the 9-mer level, in a highly stereoselective manner using trisaccharide building blocks. The lability of the O-acetyl esters imposed a careful deprotection scheme to prevent migration and hydrolysis. The migration was investigated in detail at various pD values using NMR spectroscopy, to show that migration and hydrolysis of the C-3-O-acetyl esters readily takes place under neutral conditions. Structural investigation showed the oligomers to adopt a right-handed helical structure with the acetyl esters exposed on the periphery of the helix in close proximity of the neighboring AAT residues, thereby imposing conformational restrictions on the AATα1-4GalA(3OAc) glycosidic linkages, supporting the helical shape of the polysaccharide, that has been proposed to be critical for its unique biological activity.Bio-organic Synthesi

Extending Qualitative Spatial Theories with Emergent Spatial Concepts: An Automated Reasoning Approach

Qualitative Spatial Reasoning is an exciting research field of the Knowledge Representation and Reasoning paradigm whose application often requires the extension, refinement or combination of existent theories (as well as the associated calculus). This paper addresses the issue of the sound spatial interpretation of formal extensions of such theories; particularly the interpretation of the extension and the desired representational features. The paper shows how to interpret certain kinds of extensions of Region Connection Calculus (RCC) theory. We also show how to rebuild the qualitative calculus of these extensions.Junta de Andalucía TIC-606