Relationship of Body Mass Index and Footprint Morphology to the Actual Height of the Medial Longitudinal Arch of the Foot

[Abstract] The medial longitudinal arch height of the foot is linked to individual characteristics such as sex and body mass index, and these characteristics have been shown to be associated with conditions such as flat feet. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, we examined the medial longitudinal arch morphology in an adult population to determine if there are differences related to sex and body mass index, and values were obtained for the foot posture index. Normalized anthropometric measurements and arch indices were calculated from footprints. Groups, defined by sex and body mass index, were compared, and the correlations between body mass index and the variables were determined. In the population studied (266 women and 177 men), significant differences between men and women for the foot posture index and normalized arch measurements were found. Analysis of the variables related to body mass index indicated there were significant differences in arch indices. Significant differences and positive correlations were also found between the arch index and body mass index for the left and right feet among the men and women studied. The results obtained allow us to reflect on and analyze whether the medial longitudinal arch morphology classification methods used in the clinical and research setting are adequate or whether the influence of factors such as body mass index can generate confusion

The Koskobilo (Olazti, Navarre, Northern Iberian Peninsula) paleontological collection: New insights for the Middle and Late Pleistocene in Western Pyrenees

The destroyed site(s) of Koskobilo (Olazti, Navarre, Northern Iberian Peninsula) have yielded unique archaeo-paleontological evidence in the Western Pyrenees region. The quarry uncovered a karstic site with faunal remains in 1940, and fossils were recovered both in situ and from the quarry dump. Ten years later, while the quarry was still working, a new visit to the dump yielded a large lithic assemblage and additional fossil remains with a different taphonomic pattern, which has been interpreted as the remains coming from a different site or zone within the same karst system. Here we re-study the paleontological evidence and provide new dating on a speleothem covering a Stephanorhinus hemitoechus tooth, which has yielded a minimum date of c. 220 ka for part of the assemblage. In total, the fossil assemblage comprises 38 mammal and six avian taxa and three fish remains. The faunal evidence indicates that in 1940 a mix of taxa from both the Middle and Upper Pleistocene were recovered, and it is difficult to assign most of them to a concrete period. However, based on biochronological criteria some of the identified taxa (e.g., Ursus thibetanus, Ursus cf. deningeri, Cuon cf. priscus, Macaca sylvanus, cf. Megaceroides) could be roughly contemporaneous with the dated rhino tooth, which would provide a new window to the Middle Pleistocene of the region, with deposits from MIS 7d and/or older. Despite the difficulties in studying this collection, recovered without stratigraphic context and in a salvage operation, Koskobilo has yielded an important paleontological assemblage which helps to understand the paleoecology of the Middle Pleistocene human occupations in the Western Pyrenees

New data on the Quaternary of Navarre: the paleontological collection from Koskobilo (Olazti/Olazagutía)

Libro de resúmenes disponible para su descarga gratuita en el enlace: http://www.aranzadi.eus/catalogo/xv-reunion-nacional-cuaternario-libro-de-resumenesThe archaeopaleontological collection from Koskobilo is composed of hundreds of fossil and thousands of lithic remains, mostly recovered during the middle part of the 20th century. Here we present the complete paleontological study of the collection, which includes 36 mammal taxa, 6 avian taxa and a small fish vertebral collection. Additionally we have performed direct dating of a speleothem crust covering one of the rhinoceros teeth, which provides a minimum of 219 ka for part of the collection, the rest being from the Upper Pleistocene, mixed with some Holocene/recent elements. The paleontological collection from Koskobilo is one of the most important in the Western Pyrenees due to the scarcity of the local Middle Pleistocene fossil record and the rarity of some of the taxa represented, such as Ursus thibetanus, Macaca sylvanus and cf. Megaceroides.La presente investigación ha contado con el apoyo del grupo de investigación IT1044-16 de Eusko Jaurlaritza-Gobierno Vasco, del Grupo PPG17/05 de la Universidad del País Vasco-Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea y del Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (proyecto PGC2018-093925-B-C33)

Quantum gravity phenomenology at the dawn of the multi-messenger era—A review

The exploration of the universe has recently entered a new era thanks to the multi-messenger paradigm, characterized by a continuous increase in the quantity and quality of experimental data that is obtained by the detection of the various cosmic messengers (photons, neutrinos, cosmic rays and gravitational waves) from numerous origins. They give us information about their sources in the universe and the properties of the intergalactic medium. Moreover, multi-messenger astronomy opens up the possibility to search for phenomenological signatures of quantum gravity. On the one hand, the most energetic events allow us to test our physical theories at energy regimes which are not directly accessible in accelerators; on the other hand, tiny effects in the propagation of very high energy particles could be amplified by cosmological distances. After decades of merely theoretical investigations, the possibility of obtaining phenomenological indications of Planck-scale effects is a revolutionary step in the quest for a quantum theory of gravity, but it requires cooperation between different communities of physicists (both theoretical and experimental). This review, prepared within the COST Action CA18108 “Quantum gravity phenomenology in the multi-messenger approach”, is aimed at promoting this cooperation by giving a state-of-the art account of the interdisciplinary expertise that is needed in the effective search of quantum gravity footprints in the production, propagation and detection of cosmic messengers.publishedVersio

Quantum gravity phenomenology at the dawn of the multi-messenger era -- A review

The exploration of the universe has recently entered a new era thanks to the multi-messenger paradigm, characterized by a continuous increase in the quantity and quality of experimental data that is obtained by the detection of the various cosmic messengers (photons, neutrinos, cosmic rays and gravitational waves) from numerous origins. They give us information about their sources in the universe and the properties of the intergalactic medium. Moreover, multi-messenger astronomy opens up the possibility to search for phenomenological signatures of quantum gravity. On the one hand, the most energetic events allow us to test our physical theories at energy regimes which are not directly accessible in accelerators; on the other hand, tiny effects in the propagation of very high energy particles could be amplified by cosmological distances. After decades of merely theoretical investigations, the possibility of obtaining phenomenological indications of Planck-scale effects is a revolutionary step in the quest for a quantum theory of gravity, but it requires cooperation between different communities of physicists (both theoretical and experimental). This review is aimed at promoting this cooperation by giving a state-of-the art account of the interdisciplinary expertise that is needed in the effective search of quantum gravity footprints in the production, propagation and detection of cosmic messengers

Clima y ocupaciones en la Galería de Estatuas (Atapuerca, Burgos) en los últimos 14.000 años: Relatos de una estalagmita

Los espeleotemas constituyen uno de los principales registros para establecer secuencias evolutivas paleoclimáticas del Cuaternario. Además, en cavidades que presentan evidencias de ocupación humana registran los cambios ambientales producidos en el interior de las mismas como resultado de las actividades llevadas a cabo. La estalagmita llargi, procedente de la Galería de Estatuas (Atapuerca, Burgos) representa un archivo de los principales acontecimientos de los últimos 14 Ka de la historia de la cavidad, reflejados en la microestratigrafía, mineralogía y fábrica de crecimiento. La importante humana en el desarrollo de la estalagmita queda registrada en las láminas oscuras de calcita por la presencia de fragmentos de huesos y carbón, y ceniza

The red coloration of Goikoetxe Cave’s speleothems (Busturia, Spain): An indicator of paleoclimatic changes

The most commonly used paleoclimatic proxies in speleothem studies are the carbon and oxygen stable isotopes and the trace elements of calcite. However, assessing the incorporation of other components, such as organic matter, may also be of interest in interpreting and reconstructing the climate during speleothem growth. In this work, the incorporation of humic and fulvic acids derived from overlying soils is proposed as the cause of the red coloration of speleothems from the Goikoetxe Cave (Busturia, Bizkaia). Through the application of petrological studies combined with X-ray fluorescence, UV luminescence, Raman spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis, it has been possible to correlate a variation of organic content in the overlying soils and the red coloration, being this stain a main proxy to study and reconstruct the seasonal paleoclimatic parameters during the speleothem formation