The role of zooarchaeology in the interpretation of socioeconomic status: a discussion with reference to Medieval Europe

Social inequality is ubiquitous in human society, and the concept of social standing has been of fundamental importance throughout time (Price and Feinman 1995). The inference of social status has encountered problems in many areas of archaeology (see Orser 1990; Grenville 1997), and the use of zooarchaeology as part of an integrated approach may contribute to our understanding of important issues (Crabtree 1990). This paper reviews the various criteria used to infer socioeconomic status from faunal assemblages, taking examples from a variety of contexts, but concentrating primarily on medieval Europe, and England in particular. The problems associated with the application of zooarchaeological methods to this sphere of research are discussed, and some possible solutions proposed. It is suggested that zooarchaeology can play an important role in answering questions relating to socioeconomic standing, provided that it forms part of a wider archaeological strategy

Combs, Contact and Chronology : Reconsidering Hair Combs in Early-Historic and Viking-Age Atlantic Scotland

Analysis of an important collection of bone/antler hair combs from Atlantic Scotland has illuminated the chronology of early-medieval Scandinavian settlement in the region. Application of a new typology, identification of variations in manufacturing practice and analysis of spatial patterning throw light on the development of combs traditionally seen as characteristic of early-historic Atlantic Scotland. The application of new techniques of raw material analysis demonstrates the probable use of reindeer antler in combs of ‘native’ style. However, none of these combs is from contexts that can confidently be dated to the 8th century or earlier, and the pattern is indicative of Norse-native coexistence (peaceful or otherwise)in the 9th century, but not before. The comb evidence demonstrates a Scandinavian presence throughout Atlantic Scotland from early in the Viking Age, but also highlights the importance of contact with Ireland and Anglo-Saxon England

Bone and antler combs: towards a methodology for the understanding of trade and identity in Viking Age England and Scotland

This paper outlines the methodology of a doctoral research project at the University of York. The medium of study is the bone and antler hair comb, and the approach is one of integration. The project’s aims are twofold: to elucidate the means of distribution of these artefacts, and to develop our understanding of identity in Viking Age England and Scotland. The first phase of the project involves the review of methods of raw material analysis, whereby new and established identification criteria will be tested on a large sample of modern material. Should the results prove promising, the techniques will be employed in a study of combs from Viking Age contexts in northern England and Scotland. These zoologically-based methods will then be integrated with techniques taken from other areas of artefact analysis. Style and manufacture will be investigated through a variety of statistical and map-based techniques. These fine-grained analyses will develop our understanding of the way in which these objects were produced and exchanged. Building from these bases, a study of context and associations, together with a review of ethnohistoric evidence from the period, should help to elucidate the comb’s role in the construction of identity

Understanding human movement and interaction through the movement of animals and animal products

In recent years, the concept of human migration has re-emerged in archaeological discussion. However, to date there has been no explicit review of the role that zooarchaeology may be able to play in this field of debate. A variety of zooarchaeological techniques may be exploited; species biogeography, metric and non-metric variation are all important areas of research. Furthermore, several other techniques may help to elucidate the problem of related human and animal movement, including the recognition and sourcing of animal products, and genetic analysis of modern animal populations and ancient faunal remains. The integration of these fields of study with other methods (including some often considered to be outside of the archaeological canon) is fundamental to the understanding of human movement and interaction, and the current lack of a theoretical framework for the study of such phenomena is a major problem

Interferometric imaging of the high-redshift radio galaxy, 4C60.07: An SMA, Spitzer and VLA study reveals a binary AGN/starburst

‘The definitive version is available at www3.interscience.wiley.com '. Copyright Blackwell / RAS. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13811.xPeer reviewe

High-precision Photometric Redshifts from Spitzer/IRAC: Extreme [3.6] - [4.5] Colors Identify Galaxies in the Redshift Range z ~ 6.6 - 6.9

Galaxie

Commissioning and performance of the CMS pixel tracker with cosmic ray muons

This is the Pre-print version of the Article. The official published verion of the Paper can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 IOPThe pixel detector of the Compact Muon Solenoid experiment consists of three barrel layers and two disks for each endcap. The detector was installed in summer 2008, commissioned with charge injections, and operated in the 3.8 T magnetic field during cosmic ray data taking. This paper reports on the first running experience and presents results on the pixel tracker performance, which are found to be in line with the design specifications of this detector. The transverse impact parameter resolution measured in a sample of high momentum muons is 18 microns.This work is supported by FMSR (Austria); FNRS and FWO (Belgium); CNPq, CAPES, FAPERJ, and FAPESP (Brazil); MES (Bulgaria); CERN; CAS, MoST, and NSFC (China); COLCIENCIAS (Colombia); MSES (Croatia); RPF (Cyprus); Academy of Sciences and NICPB (Estonia); Academy of Finland, ME, and HIP (Finland); CEA and CNRS/IN2P3 (France); BMBF, DFG, and HGF (Germany); GSRT (Greece); OTKA and NKTH (Hungary); DAE and DST (India); IPM (Iran); SFI (Ireland); INFN (Italy); NRF (Korea); LAS (Lithuania); CINVESTAV, CONACYT, SEP, and UASLP-FAI (Mexico); PAEC (Pakistan); SCSR (Poland); FCT (Portugal); JINR (Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan); MST and MAE (Russia); MSTDS (Serbia); MICINN and CPAN (Spain); Swiss Funding Agencies (Switzerland); NSC (Taipei); TUBITAK and TAEK (Turkey); STFC (United Kingdom); DOE and NSF (USA)

Alignment of the CMS silicon tracker during commissioning with cosmic rays

This is the Pre-print version of the Article. The official published version of the Paper can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 IOPThe CMS silicon tracker, consisting of 1440 silicon pixel and 15 148 silicon strip detector modules, has been aligned using more than three million cosmic ray charged particles, with additional information from optical surveys. The positions of the modules were determined with respect to cosmic ray trajectories to an average precision of 3–4 microns RMS in the barrel and 3–14 microns RMS in the endcap in the most sensitive coordinate. The results have been validated by several studies, including laser beam cross-checks, track fit self-consistency, track residuals in overlapping module regions, and track parameter resolution, and are compared with predictions obtained from simulation. Correlated systematic effects have been investigated. The track parameter resolutions obtained with this alignment are close to the design performance.This work is supported by FMSR (Austria); FNRS and FWO (Belgium); CNPq, CAPES, FAPERJ, and FAPESP (Brazil); MES (Bulgaria); CERN; CAS, MoST, and NSFC (China); COLCIENCIAS (Colombia); MSES (Croatia); RPF (Cyprus); Academy of Sciences and NICPB (Estonia); Academy of Finland, ME, and HIP (Finland); CEA and CNRS/IN2P3 (France); BMBF, DFG, and HGF (Germany); GSRT (Greece); OTKA and NKTH (Hungary); DAE and DST (India); IPM (Iran); SFI (Ireland); INFN (Italy); NRF (Korea); LAS (Lithuania); CINVESTAV, CONACYT, SEP, and UASLP-FAI (Mexico); PAEC (Pakistan); SCSR (Poland); FCT (Portugal); JINR (Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan); MST and MAE (Russia); MSTDS (Serbia); MICINN and CPAN (Spain); Swiss Funding Agencies (Switzerland); NSC (Taipei); TUBITAK and TAEK (Turkey); STFC (United Kingdom); DOE and NSF (USA)

Performance of the CMS drift-tube chamber local trigger with cosmic rays

The performance of the Local Trigger based on the drift-tube system of the CMS experiment has been studied using muons from cosmic ray events collected during the commissioning of the detector in 2008. The properties of the system are extensively tested and compared with the simulation. The effect of the random arrival time of the cosmic rays on the trigger performance is reported, and the results are compared with the design expectations for proton-proton collisions and with previous measurements obtained with muon beams