Le tribulum ou planche à dépiquer. Approche pluridisciplinaire des outils du premier âge des Métaux

International audienceActuellement, nul ne remet en question l'approche pluridisciplinaire des outils de silex pour une meilleure compréhension de l'histoire des périodes anciennes. Et ce, d'autant plus que, pour les périodes préhistoriques, ces artefacts, recueillis dans un contexte archéologique, représentent, dans la plupart des cas, la principale, voire l'unique source d'étude. Mais pour ce qui concerne l'analyse du mobilier lithique des phases plus tardives, force est de constater qu'on lui accorde moins d'importance : on le considère, en effet, comm eun aspect culturel « archaïque » comparé à d'autres types d'assemblages jugés plus représentatifs. Cependant, l'étude approfondie d'importantes collections a prouvé que les analyses techno­ morphologiques et fonctionnelles pouvaient livrer des informations nouvelles concernant les processus de production. Elle a également permis d'obtenir des interprétations novatrices des problèmes économiques et sociaux. À titre d'exem ple, on peut citer les recherches que nous avons entreprises, à la fin des années 1960, sur des collections issues des établissements énéolithiques de Bulgarie (Skakun 1978). Leurs résultats ont démenti l'hypothèse d'un faible niveau de développement de ces cultures et même relancé les études sur les industries lithiques de cette phase. L'approche techno-typologique a permis de conclure que la pratique d'une technique de taille, perfectionnée par l'usage d'une béquille en cuivre, a atteint son apogée. Elle a, de plus, favorisé une production optimale quant à la qualité technique de différents artefacts (notamment les grandes lames droites appelées « Dobrujanski »)

Manufacturing technology of stone miniature columns from the Bronze Age site Gonur Depe (southern Turkmenistan)

Archaeological cultures of the Bronze Age, despite the widespread use of metal, also used stone raw materials for the manufacture of tools, household, and sacred items. A lot of stone products had a complicated shape and meticulous finishing, but the technology of their manufacture is still not always clear. This fully applies to the materials of the Bronze Age of southern Turkmenistan where long-term settlements of the proto-urban type are being studied. These include Gonur Depe (2500-1500 BCE) - the administrative and religious centre of ancient Margiana (Sarianidi 2005). Among its materials are stone miniature columns of “unknown” purpose in the shape of a chess rook, which are usually found in sacral complexes. This paper deals with the technology of producing these objects (half of the collection of intact items was investigated) and is part of a collective work on a comprehensive study of large stone cult objects from Gonur Depe. The raw materials for studied miniature columns were gypsum, limestone, marbled limestone, marbled onyx, onyx, talcochlorite, and polymictic breccia. For the first time the authors made an attempt to consider the issues of miniature columns manufacturing technology. Thanks to the use-wear study of their surfaces, it became possible to reveal numerous technological traces invisible to the naked eye. The data obtained made it possible to characterize all stages of the miniature columns manufacturing technology, which indicates a high level of development of the stone-processing industry in the settlements of the Bronze Age of Turkmenistan

Producción y uso de las grandes hojas de sílex durante el Calcolítico del Noreste de Bulgaria

The Chalcolithic sites of Bulgaria are characterized by a large number of tools from Dobrudjian flint. Results of studying of flint items the main blank for which was the long blade, existence of workshops, a wide circulation of the same products in different regions of the country testify to high technological level of processing of flint raw materials, professionalism of craftsmen and specialization of flint production in economy of this time. Archaeological materials were studied by means of technical- morphological and experimental-traceological methods and ethnographic data were also used.Los yacimientos calcolíticos de Bulgaria se caracterizan por presentar una gran cantidad de piezas de sílex de Dobrudjian. Los resultados del estudio de los artefactos de sílex, materia sobre la que se elaboraron las grandes hojas, la existencia de talleres, y de una amplia circulación de los mismos productos en diferentes regiones del país dan testimonio del alto nivel tecnológico del procesado de las materias primas silíceas, de la capacidad de los artesanos y de la especialización de la producción de artefactos sílex en la economía de esa época. Los materiales arqueológicos se han estudiado mediante métodos tecno-morfológicos y experimental-traceológicos, y también se tuvieron en cuenta datos etnográficos

Les grandes lames de silex du mobilier funéraire des proto-éleveurs du sud de l’Europe orientale

Since the discovery of the burial complexes left by the early stock-breeders in the steppe areas on the left bank of the Dnieper river in Ukraine, the problem of their synchronization with various cultural Eneolithic stages distinguished in the Balkan-Danube region has been hotly debated, as well as the question of the role the stock-breeding populations played in the sudden disappearance of these cultures. One of the most interesting finds were the burials discovered at Lugansk in Ukraine. Flint artifacts constitute an important category of the burial inventory, and of particular interest among them are macroblades. The experiments carried out by different researchers show that the production of such blades was associated with some specific methods of splitting, such as the use of a lever mechanism. Ocher was found on the surface of all these blades. Most of the tools have identical use-wear traces similar to those characteristic of the knives that were used to cut meat. The shortage of data about the Eneolithic flint-working centers in the steppe zone of Ukraine makes it difficult to decide whether the blades from local burial complexes were produced in place or imported from outside. Some chance finds of hoards with blades (without cultural context), as well as single interments with blades and cores may be indicative of the existence of vagrant flintknappers.Depuis la découverte des sites funéraires attribués aux éleveurs de la steppe de l’Ukraine sur la berge gauche du Dniepr, le problème de leur synchronisation avec les différentes communautés énéolithiques distinguées dans la région balkano-danubienne est vivement débattu, de même que la question de leur rôle dans la disparition soudaine de ces cultures. Les sépultures mises au jour dans la région de Lugansk en Ukraine sont parmi les découvertes les plus intéressantes. L’outillage de silex y constitue une part importante du mobilier funéraire, au sein duquel se distinguent de très grandes lames. Les expérimentations conduites par différents chercheurs montrent que la production de telles lames requérait des techniques de débitage particulières, telles que la pression au levier. Toutes ces lames sont ocrées et leur analyse tracéologique révèle des usures semblables à celles observées expérimentalement sur les couteaux à viande. Le manque de données sur des ateliers énéolithiques de taille du silex dans la steppe de l’Ukraine ne nous permet pas de dire si les lames qui composent le mobilier des sites funéraires par lesquels sont identifiés les éleveurs de la région ont été produites localement ou importées

Data Assimilation Technique For Flood Monitoring and Prediction

This paper focuses on the development of methods and cascade of models for flood monitoring and forecasting and its implementation in Grid environment. The processing of satellite data for flood extent mapping is done using neural networks. For flood forecasting we use cascade of models: regional numerical weather prediction (NWP) model, hydrological model and hydraulic model. Implementation of developed methods and models in the Grid infrastructure and related projects are discussed

Análisis de huellas de uso y de residuos de los instrumentos de piedra usados por los primeros agricultores en el yacimiento Klerk-5 de Primorye (Rusia). Resultados preliminares

The research of the tools for processing plants is of great importance for finding out when gathering and farming begins in many regions of Eurasia. In the territory of East Asia the migration of farmers’ communities of Zaisanovski cultural tradition is traced from North-East China at first to Central Primorye of the Russia’s Far East, and after that to the coastal parts of this region, where the traditional occupation of the population was primarily fishing and hunting marine mammals (about 5300-4600 BP). The traceological analysis involving the experimental data allowed to figure out that some stone tiles, their fragments and pebbles from the Klerk 5 settlement, based on the coast of the Sea of Japan, had been used as grinding stones for processing plants. The results of the traceological analysis were confirmed by the detection of starch residues on the working surfaces of these tools. These facts indicate that the migration of farmers from the continental regions to the coastal part of Russian Far East contributed to the development of farming, previously unknown in this territory.La investigación de los instrumentos para el procesado de plantas es de gran importancia para descubrir cuándo comenzó la recolección y la agricultura en muchas regiones de Eurasia. En el territorio de Asia Oriental, la migración de las comunidades campesinas de la tradición cultural Zaisanovski procede del noreste de China hacia Primorye Central del Lejano Oriente de Rusia primeramente, y después alcanza las partes costeras de esta región, donde la ocupación tradicional de la población era principalmente la pesca y la caza de mamíferos marinos (en torno a 5300-4600 BP). El análisis traceológico, que incorporó datos experimentales, permitió descubrir que algunas losas de piedra, sus fragmentos y guijarros del asentamiento Klerk 5, ubicado en la costa del Mar de Japón, se habían utilizado como molinos para el procesado de plantas. Los resultados del análisis traceológico se confirmaron mediante la detección de residuos de almidón en las superficies de trabajo de estos útiles. Estos hechos indican que la migración de los agricultores de las regiones continentales a la parte costera del Lejano Oriente ruso contribuyó al desarrollo de la agricultura, anteriormente desconocida en este territorio

Multi-Agent Security System based on Neural Network Model of User's Behavior

It is proposed an agent approach for creation of intelligent intrusion detection system. The system allows detecting known type of attacks and anomalies in user activity and computer system behavior. The system includes different types of intelligent agents. The most important one is user agent based on neural network model of user behavior. Proposed approach is verified by experiments in real Intranet of Institute of Physics and Technologies of National Technical University of Ukraine "Kiev Polytechnic Institute”

Functional use of large stone tool from the Upper Paleolithic site of Kamennaya Balka II (the Northern Azov Sea region, Russia)

The assemblages of many Paleolithic sites on the Russian Plain contain large pebbles of various types of stone, which, due to the natural and unmodified forms, rarely become objects of special study. Some of them retain their natural shape, others are slightly artificially modified. In the course of our research, artifacts from several Paleolithic sites in Russia and the Republic of Moldova were subjected to a comprehensive study. Technical-morphological and experimental-traceological studies made it possible to characterize the methods of their manufacture and use. Among the items studied, there is a trapezoidal slab retrieved in the lower layer of the Late Paleolithic stratified site Kamennaya Balka II (the Northern Azov Sea region, Russia). On its surface, use-wear traces were found, which are characteristic of wear traces on tools used to grind plant materials. To verify the results of the traceological analysis, a series of experiments was performed. The wear traces on the working part of the experimental tool turned out to be similar to those found on the original one. The functional identification of the slab from Kamennaya Balka II as a tool for processing plants was also confirmed by the discovery on the working surface of mineralized starch grains. This comprehensive study of an unmodified stone artifact from the Kamennaya Balka II site and its identification as the lower grinding stone indicates the presence of complex foraging strategies among the economic activities of the inhabitants of the site and their successful adaptation to the natural environment in this region

Presowing XeCl excilamp irradiation of crops: field research and prospects

Here we present research data demonstrating how crop seeds response to ultraviolet produced by a barrier-discharge XeCl* excilamp with a wavelength of 290–320 nm (82–88 %). The data show that presowing ultraviolet treatment is stimulatory to seed germination and plant growth. Ultraviolet treatment increases the seed germinability by 20–30 % and the plant fresh weight by 54 %, compared to untreated control samples, and provides a developed root system with long twisted segments. The research results are encouraging for upgrading the UV technology to larger-scale seed irradiation