586 research outputs found
Stone pedestalled vessels from Tel Tsaf, a Middle Chalcolithic site in the Central Jordan Valley, Israel
The pedestalled bowls described here are part of the ground stone tool assemblage discovered during the Hebrew University of Jerusalem excavations at Tel Tsaf (2004-2007). This site, located in the Central Jordan Valley, is the first well-documented and large-scale excavation of the Middle Chalcolithic period in the southern Levant. The inhabitants used two types of raw materials for their stone items: basalt and limestone. While the first is commonly used in the stone-vessel industry of the Chalcolithic period, the second is rarer. We present here the preliminary results of our analysis of the typology and function of the pedestalled bowls, a small but important component of the local ground stone tool assemblage
Dental Microwear From Natufian Hunter-Gatherers and Early Neolithic Farmers: Comparisons Within and Between Samples
Microwear patterns from Natufian hunter-gatherers (12,500–10,250 bp) and early Neolithic (10,250–7,500 bp) farmers from northern Israel are correlated with location on facet nine and related to an archaeologically suggested change in food preparation. Casts of permanent second mandibular molars are examined with a scanning electron microscope at a magnification of 500×. Digitized micrographs are taken from the upper and lower part of facet nine. Microwear patterns are recorded with an image-analysis computer program and compared within and between samples, using univariate and multivariate analyses. Comparisons within samples reveal a greater frequency of pits on the lower part of the facet among the farmers, compared to the upper part. Microwear does not vary over the facet among the hunter-gatherers. Comparisons between samples reveal larger dental pits (length and width) and wider scratches among the farmers at the bottom of the facet, compared to the hunter-gatherers. Microwear does not vary between samples at the top of the facet. The microwear patterns suggest that the Natufian to early Neolithic development led to a harder diet, and this is related to an archaeologically suggested change in food processing. The harder diet of the early farmers may have required higher bite forces that were exerted at the bottom of facet nine, in the basin of the tooth
Human Dental Microwear From Ohalo II (22,500–23,500 cal BP), Southern Levant
Dietary hardness and abrasiveness are inferred from human dental microwear at Ohalo II, a late Upper Palaeolithic site (22,500–23,500 cal BP) in the southern Levant. Casts of molar grinding facets from two human skeletons were examined with a scanning electron microscope. The size and frequency of microwear was measured, counted, and compared to four prehistoric human groups from successive chronological periods in the same region: pre-pottery Neolithic A, Chalcolithic (this study); Natufian, pre-pottery Neolithic B (Mahoney: Am J Phys Anthropol 130 (2006) 308–319). The Ohalo molars had a high frequency of long narrow scratches, and a few small pits, suggesting a tough abrasive diet that required more shearing rather than compressive force while chewing. These results imply that the diet of the two late Upper Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers did not focus on very hard foods. Aquatic foods with adherent contaminants, as well as grit from plant grinding tools seemed likely causal agents. The size of the pits and scratches on the Ohalo molars were most similar to microwear from the pre-pot- tery Neolithic A period, though they also compared well to the Chalcolithic period. These results contrasted with the larger pits and scratches from the Natufian hunter-gath- erers and pre-pottery Neolithic B farmers, implying that there is no simple increase or decrease in dietary hard- ness and abrasiveness across the late Upper Palaeolithic to Chalcolithic development in the Southern Levant
Reconstructing biblical military campaigns using geomagnetic field data.
The Hebrew Bible and other ancient Near Eastern texts describe Egyptian, Aramean, Assyrian, and Babylonian military campaigns to the Southern Levant during the 10th to sixth centuries BCE. Indeed, many destruction layers dated to this period have been unearthed in archaeological excavations. Several of these layers are securely linked to specific campaigns and are widely accepted as chronological anchors. However, the dating of many other destruction layers is often debated, challenging the ability to accurately reconstruct the different military campaigns and raising questions regarding the historicity of the biblical narrative. Here, we present a synchronization of the historically dated chronological anchors and other destruction layers and artifacts using the direction and/or intensity of the ancient geomagnetic field recorded in mud bricks from 20 burnt destruction layers and in two ceramic assemblages. During the period in question, the geomagnetic field in this region was extremely anomalous with rapid changes and high-intensity values, including spikes of more than twice the intensity of today's field. The data are useful in the effort to pinpoint these short-term variations on the timescale, and they resolve chronological debates regarding the campaigns against the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the relationship between the two kingdoms, and their administrations
A Study of B0 -> J/psi K(*)0 pi+ pi- Decays with the Collider Detector at Fermilab
We report a study of the decays B0 -> J/psi K(*)0 pi+ pi-, which involve the
creation of a u u-bar or d d-bar quark pair in addition to a b-bar -> c-bar(c
s-bar) decay. The data sample consists of 110 1/pb of p p-bar collisions at
sqrt{s} = 1.8 TeV collected by the CDF detector at the Fermilab Tevatron
collider during 1992-1995. We measure the branching ratios to be BR(B0 -> J/psi
K*0 pi+ pi-) = (8.0 +- 2.2 +- 1.5) * 10^{-4} and BR(B0 -> J/psi K0 pi+ pi-) =
(1.1 +- 0.4 +- 0.2) * 10^{-3}. Contributions to these decays are seen from
psi(2S) K(*)0, J/psi K0 rho0, J/psi K*+ pi-, and J/psi K1(1270)
Search for a Technicolor omega_T Particle in Events with a Photon and a b-quark Jet at CDF
If the Technicolor omega_T particle exists, a likely decay mode is omega_T ->
gamma pi_T, followed by pi_T -> bb-bar, yielding the signature gamma bb-bar. We
have searched 85 pb^-1 of data collected by the CDF experiment at the Fermilab
Tevatron for events with a photon and two jets, where one of the jets must
contain a secondary vertex implying the presence of a b quark. We find no
excess of events above standard model expectations. We express the result of an
exclusion region in the M_omega_T - M_pi_T mass plane.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figures. Available from the CDF server (PS with figs):
http://www-cdf.fnal.gov/physics/pub98/cdf4674_omega_t_prl_4.ps
FERMILAB-PUB-98/321-
Measurement of the B0 anti-B0 oscillation frequency using l- D*+ pairs and lepton flavor tags
The oscillation frequency Delta-md of B0 anti-B0 mixing is measured using the
partially reconstructed semileptonic decay anti-B0 -> l- nubar D*+ X. The data
sample was collected with the CDF detector at the Fermilab Tevatron collider
during 1992 - 1995 by triggering on the existence of two lepton candidates in
an event, and corresponds to about 110 pb-1 of pbar p collisions at sqrt(s) =
1.8 TeV. We estimate the proper decay time of the anti-B0 meson from the
measured decay length and reconstructed momentum of the l- D*+ system. The
charge of the lepton in the final state identifies the flavor of the anti-B0
meson at its decay. The second lepton in the event is used to infer the flavor
of the anti-B0 meson at production. We measure the oscillation frequency to be
Delta-md = 0.516 +/- 0.099 +0.029 -0.035 ps-1, where the first uncertainty is
statistical and the second is systematic.Comment: 30 pages, 7 figures. Submitted to Physical Review
Observation of Hadronic W Decays in t-tbar Events with the Collider Detector at Fermilab
We observe hadronic W decays in t-tbar -> W (-> l nu) + >= 4 jet events using
a 109 pb-1 data sample of p-pbar collisions at sqrt{s} = 1.8 TeV collected with
the Collider Detector at Fermilab (CDF). A peak in the dijet invariant mass
distribution is obtained that is consistent with W decay and inconsistent with
the background prediction by 3.3 standard deviations. From this peak we measure
the W mass to be 77.2 +- 4.6 (stat+syst) GeV/c^2. This result demonstrates the
presence of two W bosons in t-tbar candidates in the W (-> l nu) + >= 4 jet
channel.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, submitted to PR
Measurement of the lepton charge asymmetry in W-boson decays produced in p-pbar collisions
We describe a measurement of the charge asymmetry of leptons from W boson
decays in the rapidity range 0 enu, munu events from
110+/-7 pb^{-1}of data collected by the CDF detector during 1992-95. The
asymmetry data constrain the ratio of d and u quark momentum distributions in
the proton over the x range of 0.006 to 0.34 at Q2 \approx M_W^2. The asymmetry
predictions that use parton distribution functions obtained from previously
published CDF data in the central rapidity region (0.0<|y_l|<1.1) do not agree
with the new data in the large rapidity region (|y_l|>1.1).Comment: 13 pages, 3 tables, 1 figur
Search for Chargino-Neutralino Associated Production at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider
We have searched in collisions at = 1.8 TeV for events
with three charged leptons and missing transverse energy. In the Minimal
Supersymmetric Standard Model, we expect trilepton events from
chargino-neutralino (\chione \chitwo) pair production, with subsequent decay
into leptons. We observe no candidate , ,
or events in 106 pb integrated
luminosity. We present limits on the sum of the branching ratios times cross
section for the four channels: \sigma_{\chione\chitwo}\cdot
BR(\chione\chitwo\to 3\ell+X) 81.5 \mgev\sp and
M_\chitwo > 82.2 \mgev\sp for , ~\mgev\sp and
M_\squark= M_\gluino.Comment: 9 pages and 3 figure
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