Arable farming in north east England during the later prehistoric and Roman period : an archaeobotanical perspective.

It has been the aim of the present study to analyse and interpret recently collected archaeobotanical data from north-east England, a lowland area within the Highland Zone of Britain, in order to improve our understanding of the role of arable farming in this region, and to assess the extent to which the increase in scale of arable farming, as witnessed in parts of the Lowland Zone of Britain, took place in this region. The data used are carbonized seed assemblages collected by the writer from seven prehistoric and two Roman period sites located in this region. This data base consists of 325 samples and ca. 89,000 seeds. The archaeobotanical analysis of the data set has indicated that within the prehistoric assemblages two separate groups could be identified, Group A and Group B, with both the crops and the associated weed species pointing to differences in the crop husbandry practices of the two groups. The assemblages of Group A are interpreted as reflecting intensive, small-scale agriculture, those of Group B larger-scale cultivation and arable expansion. These differences could not be 'explained' by chronological differences. The marked geographical difference between the two groups of sites (Group A sites located north of the Tyne, Group B sites south of the Tyne) could not be explained by intraregional variation in environmental factors, but does appear to relate to differences in settlement type and location, and these two factors appear to be connected to cultural and socio-economic differences in the two parts of the region. The evidence from the Roman assemblages indicated that the Roman army was, at least partly, supplied with grain by the local farmers, probably by those living in the Tyne-Tees region. The results of the present study have indicated that arable farming played an important role in the economy of the late Iron Age people of this part of the Highland Zone, that an expansion of arable farming did take place in part of the study area, and that differences in the scale of arable farming within the region were probably more a function of socioeconomic than of environmental factors

Sex differences in cardiovascular complications and mortality in hospital patients with covid-19: registry based observational study

Objective To assess whether the risk of cardiovascular complications of covid-19 differ between the sexes and to determine whether any sex differences in risk are reduced in individuals with pre-existing cardiovascular disease. Design Registry based observational study. Setting 74 hospitals across 13 countries (eight European) participating in CAPACITY-COVID (Cardiac complicAtions in Patients With SARS Corona vIrus 2 regisTrY), from March 2020 to May 2021 Participants All adults (aged ≥18 years), predominantly European, admitted to hospital with highly suspected covid-19 disease or covid-19 disease confirmed by positive laboratory test results (n=11 167 patients). Main outcome measures Any cardiovascular complication during admission to hospital. Secondary outcomes were in-hospital mortality and individual cardiovascular complications with ≥20 events for each sex. Logistic regression was used to examine sex differences in the risk of cardiovascular outcomes, overall and grouped by pre-existing cardiovascular disease. Results Of 11 167 adults (median age 68 years, 40% female participants) included, 3423 (36% of whom were female participants) had pre-existing cardiovascular disease. In both sexes, the most common cardiovascular complications were supraventricular tachycardias (4% of female participants, 6% of male participants), pulmonary embolism (3% and 5%), and heart failure (decompensated or de novo) (2% in both sexes). After adjusting for age, ethnic group, pre-existing cardiovascular disease, and risk factors for cardiovascular disease, female individuals were less likely than male individuals to have a cardiovascular complication (odds ratio 0.72, 95% confidence interval 0.64 to 0.80) or die (0.65, 0.59 to 0.72). Differences between the sexes were not modified by pre-existing cardiovascular disease; for the primary outcome, the female-to-male ratio of the odds ratio in those without, compared with those with, pre-existing cardiovascular disease was 0.84 (0.67 to 1.07). Conclusions In patients admitted to hospital for covid-19, female participants were less likely than male participants to have a cardiovascular complication. The differences between the sexes could not be attributed to the lower prevalence of pre-existing cardiovascular disease in female individuals. The reasons for this advantage in female individuals requires further research

Ancient agriculture in Libya: a review of the evidence.

A synthesis is provided of the recent archaeobotanical evidence for the beginnings and development of agriculture in Libya. Seed assemblages from three large archaeological projects are discussed: from Ti-n-Torha and Uan Muhuggiag in the Acacus Mountains in south-west Libya, from Zinchecra in the Wadi el-Agial in Fezzan, southern Libya, and from 12 settlements in the pre-desert of Tripolitania, north-western Libya. Evidence for the exploitation of wild plant resources has been recovered from early to mid-Holocene sites in the Acacus; the earliest evidence for agriculture in Libya recorded so far comes from a Garamantian settlement in Fezzan dated to the first millennium BC; while the evidence from the Tripolitanian pre-desert indicates that during the Roman period a flourishing agricultural economy was maintained through a complex system of water management. The majority of the crop plants attested at these sites are of Near Eastern or Mediterranean origin, only the date palm and the water melon are of African origin. The need for further study of the formation processes of dessicated plant remains was identified

Charred Grain Assemblages from Roman-Period Corn Driers in Britain.

This paper presents a review of the botanical evidence for the function of so-called 'corn-driers' from Roman-period Britain. The charred grain assemblages associated with corn-driers from twenty-one sites have been analysed. The results indicate that these kilns should be regarded as multi-functional structures; both the roasting of germinated grains for the production of malt and the parching/drying/ of grain in preparation for consumption and storage are functions implied by the botanical evidence. The need for further experimental research is identified

Food as embodied material culture: diversity and change in plant food consumption in Roman Britain.

Food as embodied material culture: diversity and change in plant food consumption in Roman Britain

Food as an Instrument of Social Change: Feasting in Iron Age and Early Roman Southern Britain

The changing nature and meaning of luxury foods is reviewed. It is proposed that the storage pits of Iron Age southern Britain were used to store grain surpluses, rather than seed corn, that the grain stored in such pits was used in large, communal feasts, and that the hillforts, where many such pits are found, functioned as locations for feasting. By the Late Iron Age this particular evidence for feasting disappears, to be replaced in some areas by the deposition of imported luxuries in individual graves, implying the use of such items for the display of the individual's prestige. During the early Roman period a further shift is observed, with the importation and consumption of exotic foods at military and urban sites, possibly representing class membership. The evidence implies that food, initially through communal feasting and later through the individual consumption of exotics, was used as an instrument of social change