The analysis of quaternary cave sediments and its bearing upon palaeolithic archaeology, with special reference to selected sites from western Britain

The present thesis constitutes a reassessment of quaternary cave sediment analysis and its relationships to palaeolithic archaeology. Traditionally, archaeological cave sediments have been interpreted in climatic terms, the arguments usually being based upon compositional and textural parameters measured in the laboratory using a fixed batch of analytical techniques. The author demonstrates that this approach is unsound, both because of the simplistic interpretative framework employed and because, even when highly sophisticated techniques are used, it is often difficult to isolate climatic controls, factors which are only a small part of the lithogenetic process. The author has concentrated upon contextual matters, giving priority to the deduction of sedimentary environments through actualistic principles. Great importance is attached to structure, geometry and facies, features which are best observed on site. Thus, the author addresses the primary problem of how a sediment formed. This problem is fundamental to archaeology and all other object-oriented disciplines since, without a solution, one cannot assess the significance of assemblages with any degree of confidence. Furthermore, any climatic information which is indeed available can only be extracted once a firm contextual framework has been established. The thesis has been split into two Parts. The first Part contains a review of sedimentological theory as applicable to cave deposits. This involve discussion of basic principles (the cave environment, properties of sediments, fieldwork, boundary features, stratigraphy, quantification, analytical techniques), process groupings (mechanisms and effects of ice formation, mass movement, water movement, wind, alteration, chemical precipitation) and more synthetic topics (biological material, provenance, palaeogeography, diagenesis, correlation, dating methods, synthesis of results, archaeological concepts). The second Part comprises a discussion of various British cave sites (South Devon, Mendip, Gower, North Wales), each section being presented, not as a site report, but as an illustration of some of the theoretical points raised in the first Part

A multi-disciplinary commentary on preclinical research to investigate vascular contributions to dementia

Although dementia research has been dominated by Alzheimer's disease (AD), most dementia in older people is now recognised to be due to mixed pathologies, usually combining vascular and AD brain pathology. Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), which encompasses vascular dementia (VaD) is the second most common type of dementia. Models of VCI have been delayed by limited understanding of the underlying aetiology and pathogenesis. This review by a multidisciplinary, diverse (in terms of sex, geography and career stage), cross-institute team provides a perspective on limitations to current VCI models and recommendations for improving translation and reproducibility. We discuss reproducibility, clinical features of VCI and corresponding assessments in models, human pathology, bioinformatics approaches, and data sharing. We offer recommendations for future research, particularly focusing on small vessel disease as a main underpinning disorder

A Multi-disciplinary Commentary on Preclinical Research to investigate Vascular Contributions to Dementia

Although dementia research has been dominated by Alzheimer's disease (AD), most dementia in older people is now recognised to be due to mixed pathologies, usually combining vascular and AD brain pathology. Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), which encompasses vascular dementia (VaD) is the second most common type of dementia. Models of VCI have been delayed by limited understanding of the underlying aetiology and pathogenesis. This review by a multidisciplinary, diverse (in terms of sex, geography and career stage), cross-institute team provides a perspective on limitations to current VCI models and recommendations for improving translation and reproducibility. We discuss reproducibility, clinical features of VCI and corresponding assessments in models, human pathology, bioinformatics approaches, and data sharing. We offer recommendations for future research, particularly focusing on small vessel disease as a main underpinning disorder.</p

Chapter 2: the Palaeolithic

This paper forms an assessment of the current state of the archaeological resource for the Palaeolithic archaeological period. It also sets out a regional research agenda and framework for future Palaeolithic research in the region

Earliest evidence for caries and exploitation of starchy plant foods in Pleistocene hunter-gatherers from Morocco

Dental caries is an infectious disease that causes tooth decay. The high prevalence of dental caries in recent humans is attributed to more frequent consumption of plant foods rich in fermentable carbohydrates in food-producing societies. The transition from hunting and gathering to food production is associated with a change in the composition of the oral microbiota and broadly coincides with the estimated timing of a demographic expansion in Streptococcus mutans, a causative agent of human dental caries. Here we present evidence linking a high prevalence of caries to reliance on highly cariogenic wild plant foods in Pleistocene hunter-gatherers from North Africa, predating other high caries populations and the first signs of food production by several thousand years. Archaeological deposits at Grotte des Pigeons in Morocco document extensive evidence for human occupation during the Middle Stone Age and Later Stone Age (Iberomaurusian), and incorporate numerous human burials representing the earliest known cemetery in the Maghreb. Macrobotanical remains from occupational deposits dated between 15,000 and 13,700 cal B. P. provide evidence for systematic harvesting and processing of edible wild plants, including acorns and pine nuts. Analysis of oral pathology reveals an exceptionally high prevalence of caries (51.2% of teeth in adult dentitions), comparable to modern industrialized populations with a diet high in refined sugars and processed cereals. We infer that increased reliance on wild plants rich in fermentable carbohydrates and changes in food processing caused an early shift toward a disease-associated oral microbiota in this population

A multi-disciplinary commentary on preclinical research to investigate vascular contributions to dementia.

Although dementia research has been dominated by Alzheimer's disease (AD), most dementia in older people is now recognised to be due to mixed pathologies, usually combining vascular and AD brain pathology. Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), which encompasses vascular dementia (VaD) is the second most common type of dementia. Models of VCI have been delayed by limited understanding of the underlying aetiology and pathogenesis. This review by a multidisciplinary, diverse (in terms of sex, geography and career stage), cross-institute team provides a perspective on limitations to current VCI models and recommendations for improving translation and reproducibility. We discuss reproducibility, clinical features of VCI and corresponding assessments in models, human pathology, bioinformatics approaches, and data sharing. We offer recommendations for future research, particularly focusing on small vessel disease as a main underpinning disorder

A multi-disciplinary commentary on preclinical research to investigate vascular contributions to dementia

No abstract available