Palaeoclimate inferred from δ18O and palaeobotanical indicators in freshwater tufa of Lake Äntu Sinijärv, Estonia

We investigated a 3.75-m-long lacustrine sediment record from Lake Äntu Sinijärv, northern Estonia, which has a modeled basal age >12,800 cal yr BP. Our multi-proxy approach focused on the stable oxygen isotope composition (δ18O) of freshwater tufa. Our new palaeoclimate information for the Eastern Baltic region, based on high-resolution δ18O data (219 samples), is supported by pollen and plant macrofossil data. Radiocarbon dates were used to develop a core chronology and estimate sedimentation rates. Freshwater tufa precipitation started ca. 10,700 cal yr BP, ca. 2,000 years later than suggested by previous studies on the same lake. Younger Dryas cooling is documented clearly in Lake Äntu Sinijärv sediments by abrupt appearance of diagnostic pollen (Betula nana, Dryas octopetala), highest mineral matter content in sediments (up to 90 %) and low values of δ18O (less than −12 ‰). Globally recognized 9.3- and 8.2-ka cold events are weakly defined by negative shifts in δ18O values, to −11.3 and −11.7 ‰, respectively, and low concentrations of herb pollen and charcoal particles. The Holocene thermal maximum (HTM) is palaeobotanically well documented by the first appearance and establishment of nemoral thermophilous taxa and presence of water lilies requiring warm conditions. Isotope values show an increasing trend during the HTM, from −11.5 to −10.5 ‰. Relatively stable environmental conditions, represented by only a small-scale increase in δ18O (up to 1 ‰) and high pollen concentrations between 5,000 and 3,000 cal yr BP, were followed by a decrease in δ18O, reaching the most negative value (−12.7 ‰) recorded in the freshwater tufa ca. 900 cal yr BP

Introduction

Visible features of packaged foods are mainly influenced by packaging: the necessity of separating the exterior ‘wrap’ from the contained object should be highlighted. In fact, packaging is often perceived such as the carrier of subliminal messages with peculiar and designable meanings and suggestions. As a result, packaged foods may be differently perceived by normal users depending on the physical appearance of packaging. Most common food pack have always been designed and produced with several specific aims: the easy classification of foods from the marketing viewpoint; the reliable subdivision of apparently similar food products in sub-classes; the constant reference to implicit properties and safety features. Moreover, the problem of storage conditions and the possibility of using FP as ‘cooking’ or ‘serving’ devices can undoubtedly make more difficult the packaging design. Therefore, food packaging should be well examined by chemical and design viewpoints. Chemistry influences designers, and design models also the chemical nature of FP. This loop mechanism can modify the final packaged food with notable implications

Destini del sacro. Discorso religioso e semiotica della cultura

Il tema del sacro e del discorso religioso viene affrontanto attraverso diverse teorie, metodologie ed epistemologie. Il volume confronta e raccoglie studi biblici, sul discorso religioso, sulla semiotica del sacro, la sociologia dei consumi, la pittura sacra e contemporanea, la semiotica della fotografia, la semiotica del cinema e della televisione, l'etnosemiotica

Packaging, A Communicative Medium

Functional features and graphic design are essential aspects of food packaging. Communicative requirements often define main features of modern packaging but, at the same time, communication strategies have to take into account technological potentialities of new packaging and the availability of raw materials. Every explicit or hidden feature of food packaging, which is part of the ‘integrated food product’, has to be communicated: ergonomic properties, mechanical strength, chemical properties, environmental sustainability, reusability, dietary advices, possibility of ‘intelligent’ applications with reference to the definition of remaining durability and the assessment of storage conditions, etc. All the above-mentioned factors are undoubtedly useful information to make the user aware, in spite of widespread disinformation

Valorization of walnut shell ash as a catalyst for biodiesel production

The catalytic activity of the walnut shell ash was investigated in the biodiesel production by the sunflower oil methanolysis. The catalyst was characterized by the TG-DTA, XRD, Hg porosimetry, Ny physisorption, SEM, and Hammett method. In addition, the effects of the catalyst loading and the methanolto-oil molar ratio on the methyl esters synthesis were tested at the reaction temperature of 60 degrees C. The walnut shell ash provided a very fast reaction and a high FAME content (over 98%). As the reaction occurred in the absence of triacylglycerols mass transfer limitation, the pseudo-first-order model was employed for describing the kinetics of the reaction. The catalyst was successfully reused four times after the regeneration of the catalytic activity by recalcination at 800 degrees C

Biostratigraphic evidence relating to the age-old question of Hannibal's invasion of Italy, I: history and geological reconstruction

Open access article. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) appliesControversy over the alpine route that Hannibal of Carthage followed from the Rhône Basin into Italia has raged amongst classicists and ancient historians for over two millennia. The motivation for identifying the route taken by the Punic Army through the Alps lies in its potential for identifying sites of historical archaeological significance and for the resolution of one of history's most enduring quandaries. Here, we present stratigraphic, geochemical and microbiological evidence recovered from an alluvial floodplain mire located below the Col de la Traversette (~3000 m asl—above sea level) on the French/Italian border that potentially identifies the invasion route as the one originally proposed by Sir Gavin de Beer (de Beer 1974). The dated layer is termed the MAD bed (mass animal deposition) based on disrupted bedding, greatly increased organic carbon and key/specialized biological components/compounds, the latter reported in Part II of this paper. We propose that the highly abnormal churned up (bioturbated) bed was contaminated by the passage of Hannibal's animals, possibly thousands, feeding and watering at the site, during the early stage of Hannibal's invasion of Italia (218 bc).Ye