I analyzed precision and accuracy of lactation data to reflect actual fawn recruitment for various levels of fecundity, neonatal mortality, harvest intensity, and hunter selectivity. I evaluated and developed a correction equation to adjust for harvest date effects on lactation detectability. I compared metrics of site-specific fawn recruitment (e.g., lactation rates, hunter observation fawn-to-doe ratios, and post-season fawn-to-doe ratios) among themselves, and to site-specific indices of carnivore abundance, for 18 properties across Mississippi and Alabama. Accuracy of lactation rates are compromised due to variation at minimal harvest intensity and insensitivity to change in fetal rate or neonatal mortality. Lactation data can be corrected for harvest date effects on lactation detectability. Hunter observation data are variable and poorly represent fawn recruitment. Lactation data are related to fawn recruitment and can be used to roughly estimate fawn recruitment. Carnivore abundance had neither a significant nor consistent effect on fawn recruitment.

<p>In many interpretations of hunter-gatherer settlement systems, archaeologists have assumed implicitly or explicitly that a pattern of mobilitybased on seasonally-scheduled movements between different site locations waspracticed. This pattern of mobility is often characterized as a seasonal round, where different locations are used during specific times of the year for different purposes. An implication of this pattern of mobility is that short-term occupation sites are visited annually, approximately at the same time each year and longer-term residential sites can span multiple seasons. To interpret seasonality, indirect indicators are often used but the high-resolution methods presented in this study provide direct evidence of seasonal site occupation. The Pacific Northwest Coast provides an ideal landscape to examine seasonality since many of the staple resources, particularly salmon, were available on a seasonal basis. Contrary to longstanding assumptions of regular seasonal movement between sites, the analysis of shell samples from multiple archaeological sites from distinct regions in British Columbia show complex patterns of multi-seasonal occupation at smaller campsites and specific seasonal or multi-seasonal emphasis in occupation and/or shellfish harvest at longer-term residential sites.</p> <p>To identify patterns of shellfish harvest, stable oxygen isotope analysis and high-resolution sclerochronology were applied to the bivalve <em>Saxidomus gigantea</em> (butter clam). Combined with shell growth increment analysis to examine relative levels of harvest pressure, local rates of shellfish collecting are also interpreted. To examine regional variability in seasonality and resource use in British Columbia, three environmentally and historically distinct areas were selected spanning approximately 6000 years of history. These regions include the central coast in the tradition territory of the Heiltsuk, and two areas on the northern coast, specifically the Dundas Islands Group and Prince Rupert Harbour in the traditional territory of the Tsimshian. The results of the analysis show site-specific trends in shellfish harvesting on the central coast; a pattern which is not as clear on the northern coast. Sites on the Dundas Islands show multi-seasonal collection and a stronger emphasis on winter shellfish harvesting. The results also show that shellfish were harvested more intensively in the Dundas Islands area relative to the central coast. The pattern of seasonal shellfish harvesting on the mainland coast at village sites in Prince Rupert Harbour is similar to the pattern found at long-term residential sites on the central coast. With respect to the dietary importance of clams, another longstanding issue in Northwest Coast archaeology, the results show a mix of patterns including casual resource use at most campsites, intensive multi-season harvest in some regions and strategic multi-season harvest and spring consumption at some residential sites.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The history of death is entangled with the history of changing social values, meaning that a shift in attitudes to death will be consistent with changes in a society’s world view. Late Mesolithic shell middens in the Tagus and Sado valleys, Portugal, constitute some of the largest and earliest burial grounds known, arranged and maintained by people with a hunting, fishing, and foraging lifestyle, c 6000–5000 cal BCE. These sites have been interpreted in the light of economic and environmental processes as territorial claims to establish control over limited resources. This approach does not explain the significance of the frequent disposal of the dead in neighbouring burial grounds, and how these places were meaningful and socially recognized. The aim of this dissertation is to answer these questions through the detailed analysis of museum collections of human burials from these sites, excavated between the late nineteenth century and the 1960s. I examine the burial activity of the last hunter-gatherers of the south-western Iberian Peninsula from an archaeological perspective, and explain the burial phenomenon through the lens of historical and humanist approaches to death and hunter-gatherers, on the basis of theoretical concepts of social memory, place, mortuary ritual practice, and historical processes. Human burials are investigated in terms of time and practice based on the application of three methods: radiocarbon dating and Bayesian analysis to define the chronological framework of the burial activity at each site and valley; stable isotope analysis of carbon and nitrogen aimed at defining the burial populations by the identification of dietary choices; and archaeothanatology to reconstruct and define central practices in the treatment of the dead. This dissertation provides new perspectives on the role and relevance of the shell middens in the Tagus and Sado valleys. Hunter-gatherers frequenting these sites were bound by shared social practices, which included the formation and maintenance of burial grounds, as a primary means of history making. Death rituals played a central role in the life of these hunter-gatherers in developing a sense of community, as well as maintaining social ties in both life and death.

Traditionally, Sceletium tortuosum has been used as a medicine and for social and spiritual purposes. The genus is distributed in the south-western parts of South Africa. This project phytochemically analysed and characterised Sceletium plant extracts and determined if any extract showed anti-malarial properties. Extracts were prepared in ethanol and methanol and various compounds were purified using column chromatography with hexane and ethyl acetate as mobile phase. The structure of isolated compounds, including mesembrine, pinitol, sucrose, mesembrenone and obtusalin, was confirmed using NMR. The Plasmodium Lactate dehydrogenase assay was used to screen all extracts and mesembrine to show that four extracts showed antimalarial activity with activity values ranging between 1.47 μg/ml and 7.32 μg/ml, well below the 10 μg/ml cut off value. The study recommends extracting compounds from fresh plant material and further research as to anti-malarial activity of compounds isolated from Sceletium tortuosum / Life and Consumer Sciences / M. Sc. (Life Sciences)

A região de Lagoa Santa é mundialmente famosa pela quantidade, qualidade e antiguidade dos remanescentes esqueletais humanos nela encontrados. Entretanto, muito pouco é conhecido sobre as práticas mortuárias dos grupos que ocuparam a região. A versão vigente na literatura é que essas eram extremamente simples, expeditas e homogêneas. Na presente dissertação esse quadro é questionado. A partir da descrição dos 26 sepultamentos encontrados na Lapa do Santo, foi possível determinar que diferentes padrões funerários se sucederam ao longo do Holoceno. Portanto, as práticas mortuárias da região não apresentam a alegada homogeneidade cronológica. Dentre os padrões de sepultamento identificados no sítio, o de número 1 se destaca não só pela sua antiguidade (8800-8200 AP), mas por apresentar uma forte ênfase na manipulação do corpo, incluindo o caso de decapitação mais antigo do Novo Mundo. Portanto, o registro da Lapa do Santo indica um quadro muito mais complexo e sofisticado para a paisagem mortuária da região de Lagoa Santa do que aquele proposto pela literatura. Mais do que isso, mostra que, ao contrário do que se imaginava, a ênfase na manipulação do corpo no início do Holoceno não era uma característica limitada à região andina. / The Lagoa Santa region is famous for the quantity, quality and antiquity of its human skeletal remains. However, little is known about the mortuary practices of those who inhabited the region. According to literature this practices were very simple, expedient and homogeneous. In this dissertation, this scenario is challenged. Based on the descriptions of 26 human burials found in Lapa do Santo it was established that several distinct burial patterns occurred in the site during Holocene. Thereafter, the idea that in Lagoa Santa the mortuary practices were chronologically homogeneous can no longer be supported. Among the different burial patterns indentified in this site Pattern 1 highlights not only for its antiquity (8800-8200 BP) but also because it presents a strong emphasis in the manipulation of the body, including the oldest case of decapitation ever recorded in the New World. Thereafter, the burials from Lapa do Santo points to a more complex scenario for the mortuary practices in the region of Lagoa Santa than was previously though. Besides, it shows that contrary to was once believed, the emphasis on body manipulation during Early Holocene was not restricted to the Andean region, as was once thought. The mortuary practices of pre-historic hunter-gatherers from Lagoa Santa region: a case study of the Santo Rockshelter archaeological site.

A presente pesquisa pretende compreender a ocupação dos grupos caçadorescoletores na região central do Estado de São Paulo, na Bacia do Rio Tietê, em seu médio curso. Através da análise de três sítios líticos, dois na região de Araraquara e um na região de Jaú, realizamos estudos intra e inter-sítios, além da comparação dos resultados com trabalhos já realizados nas áreas adjacentes e também com a literatura específica. Destacando uma abordagem regional, buscamos trabalhar questões como intensidade de material arqueológico, estratigrafia, o tamanho dos sítios, a distância entre eles, como se deu sua implantação na paisagem; identificar as áreas de atividades restritas e a tecnologia da indústria lítica. A partir desses resultados, como intuito final, lançamos hipóteses sobre possíveis relações de contato entre os sítios, como os grupos caçadores-coletores se aproveitaram do ambiente nessa região, percebendo assim, sua mobilidade no território, e o tempo de ocupação. / This research aims to understand the occupation of hunter-gatherers groups in the central region of São Paulo State, on Tietê River Basin, in its middle course. Through analysis of three lithic sites, two in the Araraquara Region and one in Jaú Region, we have done intra and inter-sites studies, beyond the comparison of results with work done in areas adjacent and also with the specific literature. Emphasizing a regional approach, we sought work issues such as intensity of archaeological material, stratigraphy, the size of sites, the distance between them, how occurred their settlement in landscape, identify the restricted areas activities and the technology of the lithic industry. From these results, we released hypotheses about possible relationships of contact between the sites, how hunter-gatherers groups took advantage of the environment in this region, realizing thus, their mobility in the territory, and the time of occupation.

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This dissertation analyses the violence of patriarchal culture as it is staged in three twentieth century texts: the Colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Chronicle of a Death Foretold (1981), the South African novelist Mark Behr's The Smell of Apples (1993) and the American film Night of the Hunter (1954) directed by Charles Laughton. Each of these works focuses on the induction of the boy child into culture and the trauma attendant on this process of accession. The thesis is that if culture is violent then it must follow that damage is done to the developing subject in the process of its construction by the cultural forces that shape masculinity. The theoretical grounding of the analysis is derived from two main sources: Jacques Derrida's account of the violence of culture in Of Grammatology (1976) and the analysis of patriarchy and the Oedipal development of the boy child into manhood found in the work of Freud and Lacan. Derrida is used for his thinking on the inherently violent nature of culture and the way in which cultural discourse is structured through binary dualisms. The three chosen works all critique and dismantle binarist thinking as a move towards imagining a less destructive discursive order. The Oedipal narrative, as a myth which describes and explains the forces shaping the male child in the process of acculturation, exemplifies and illustrates cultural violence: As expounded by Freud and Lacan, the Oedipal myth is one which underpins all three of the chosen works. Derrida, Freud and Lacan have been very usefully mediated by several cultural critics and therefore extensive use is made of commentaries by Kaja Silverman, Frank Krutnik and Madan Sarup. Slavoj Zizek's interpretations of Lacan have also yielded much that is interesting about the nature of the Law of the Father and consequently reference is made to his ideas, principally in Chapter Four.This dissertation analyses the violence of patriarchal culture as it is staged in three twentieth century texts: the Colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Chronicle of a Death Foretold (1981), the South African novelist Mark Behr's The Smell of Apples (1993) and the American film Night of the Hunter (1954) directed by Charles Laughton. Each of these works focuses on the induction of the boy child into culture and the trauma attendant on this process of accession. The thesis is that if culture is violent then it must follow that damage is done to the developing subject in the process of its construction by the cultural forces that shape masculinity. The theoretical grounding of the analysis is derived from two main sources: Jacques Derrida's account of the violence of culture in Of Grammatology (1976) and the analysis of patriarchy and the Oedipal development of the boy child into manhood found in the work of Freud and Lacan. Derrida is used for his thinking on the inherently violent nature of culture and the way in which cultural discourse is structured through binary dualisms. The three chosen works all critique and dismantle binarist thinking as a move towards imagining a less destructive discursive order. The Oedipal narrative, as a myth which describes and explains the forces shaping the male child in the process of acculturation, exemplifies and illustrates cultural violence: As expounded by Freud and Lacan, the Oedipal myth is one which underpins all three of the chosen works. Derrida, Freud and Lacan have been very usefully mediated by several cultural critics and therefore extensive use is made of commentaries by Kaja Silverman, Frank Krutnik and Madan Sarup. Slavoj Zizek's interpretations of Lacan have also yielded much that is interesting about the nature of the Law of the Father and consequently reference is made to his ideas, principally in Chapter Four. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Made available in DSpace on 2011-05-04T12:36:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009 / Isótopos de estrôncio têm sido usados com êxito na identificação de padrões de mobilidade humana por diversos autores. Apesar de a técnica ter sido desenvolvida há mais de duas décadas, ela foi pouco utilizada em populações construtoras de sambaquis do sul do Brasil. O presente estudo analisou esmalte dentário de indivíduos sepultados no sítio Forte Marechal Luz, um sítio escavado por Alan Bryan na década de 1960, que apresenta pacotes arqueológicos sem presença de cerâmica e com presença de cerâmica,situado em Santa Catarina, Brasil, na tentativa de identificar indivíduos não locais originados de sítios ceramistas do interior. Os resultados apontam a existência de três indivíduos não locais (9.4 por cento do total), possivelmente originados do Planalto Catarinense, próximo ao município de Lages, ou do Planalto Curitibano. Os não locais foram encontrados tanto no nível pré-ceramista como no ceramista. A razão isotópica dos indivíduos considerados locais é mais próxima da razão isotópica da água do mar do que da razão isotópica da fauna terrestre, indicando forte influência marinha na dieta dessas populações. Por outro lado, ressaltase que remanescentes de fauna terrestre analisados apresentaram valores isotópicos significativamente mais elevados, indicando sua contribuição limitada como fonte alimentar desses indivíduos / For more than two decades many authors have successfully identified patterns of human mobility using Strontium isotopes. However, there are no conclusive studies using this technique with the shellmounds of the south of Brazil. This study analyzed tooth enamel of individuals buried in a pre-ceramic and a ceramic occupation of the archaeological site of Forte Marechal Luz, located in the coast of the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, in order to identify outsiders within the local population, from ceramic sites located in the hinterland of south Brazil. The results indicated three non-local individuals (9.4%), possibly from the Planalto Catarinense, near Lages-SC city, or from the Planalto Curitibano, around Curitiba-PR City. There are non-local individuals in both pre-ceramic and ceramic occupations of the Forte Marechal Luz site. The isotopic ratios found for the locals are very similar to the ratio of seawater, indicating a strong relationship between the locals and marine resources, including food and water. The terrestrial fauna analyzed presented significantly higher ratios than the human strontium rations, indicating that it had less contribution for the local population’s diet than marine resources.

A região de Lagoa Santa é mundialmente famosa pela quantidade, qualidade e antiguidade dos remanescentes esqueletais humanos nela encontrados. Entretanto, muito pouco é conhecido sobre as práticas mortuárias dos grupos que ocuparam a região. A versão vigente na literatura é que essas eram extremamente simples, expeditas e homogêneas. Na presente dissertação esse quadro é questionado. A partir da descrição dos 26 sepultamentos encontrados na Lapa do Santo, foi possível determinar que diferentes padrões funerários se sucederam ao longo do Holoceno. Portanto, as práticas mortuárias da região não apresentam a alegada homogeneidade cronológica. Dentre os padrões de sepultamento identificados no sítio, o de número 1 se destaca não só pela sua antiguidade (8800-8200 AP), mas por apresentar uma forte ênfase na manipulação do corpo, incluindo o caso de decapitação mais antigo do Novo Mundo. Portanto, o registro da Lapa do Santo indica um quadro muito mais complexo e sofisticado para a paisagem mortuária da região de Lagoa Santa do que aquele proposto pela literatura. Mais do que isso, mostra que, ao contrário do que se imaginava, a ênfase na manipulação do corpo no início do Holoceno não era uma característica limitada à região andina. / The Lagoa Santa region is famous for the quantity, quality and antiquity of its human skeletal remains. However, little is known about the mortuary practices of those who inhabited the region. According to literature this practices were very simple, expedient and homogeneous. In this dissertation, this scenario is challenged. Based on the descriptions of 26 human burials found in Lapa do Santo it was established that several distinct burial patterns occurred in the site during Holocene. Thereafter, the idea that in Lagoa Santa the mortuary practices were chronologically homogeneous can no longer be supported. Among the different burial patterns indentified in this site Pattern 1 highlights not only for its antiquity (8800-8200 BP) but also because it presents a strong emphasis in the manipulation of the body, including the oldest case of decapitation ever recorded in the New World. Thereafter, the burials from Lapa do Santo points to a more complex scenario for the mortuary practices in the region of Lagoa Santa than was previously though. Besides, it shows that contrary to was once believed, the emphasis on body manipulation during Early Holocene was not restricted to the Andean region, as was once thought. The mortuary practices of pre-historic hunter-gatherers from Lagoa Santa region: a case study of the Santo Rockshelter archaeological site.