The essay is a manifesto-like personal take on painting, and a redefinition of painting in the digital age. Careless usage of the term ”painting” has led to a diluted descriptive function and a waning categorizing capacity; almost anything can be called painting, which in turn puts actual painting in an awkward position – where it, apart from being itself, could be almost anything. The term “painthing” is introduced to distinguish painting from works that beside its two-dimensional visual information also makes a point of its specific materiality. It brings up cave paintings and links to video-games, suggesting that video-games have gone through the reversed evolution of the history of painting – from abstraction to representation. It speaks of the problems of documentation – the translation of visual information (or re-flattening of a flat surface) – and the cultural equalization of information and images on the internet through the common denominator the pixel. It also describes “information painting”, which in short is digital painting where there is no physical object to be translated to a documentation of itself, but rather a painting that is original in its documentation form (its digital form), painting that strives to be nothing but the utopia of an image – the untouchable/unreachable visual information.

This study presents results from stable isotope analyses of a modern stalagmite and three soda straw stalactites from Kapsia Cave, the Peloponnese, Greece. The resulting values from the stalagmite are put into context of local meteorological data, as well as previous research from Kapsia Cave. The potential for using soda straw stalactites as complementary climate archives on shorter time scales on the Peloponnese is also explored. The isotopic values in the stalagmite confirm a strong link to the amount effect on an annual scale. On a seasonal scale, variations in the isotopic signal can be detectedas a result of i.e. increased cave air temperature in summer. The stable isotope values in the soda straw stalactites largely correspond to previous isotopic measurements in Kapsia Cave. The trend of the isotopic carbon signal in two of the straws also strengthens earlier theories suggesting a link to CO2 concentrations in the external atmosphere. Soda straws are, thus, encouraged for use in future climate studies, although the sampling method should be further explored. The results of this study contribute to an increased understanding of Peloponnesian speleothems in relation to environmental processes and new insights are suggested into the use of soda straw stalactites as climate archives.

Comprendre l'organisation de la biodiversité, notamment la distribution et l'abondance des espèces, est une question centrale en écologie. De par son caractère dynamique et parce qu'elle est distribuée à tous les niveaux du vivant, la compréhension des mécanismes sous-jacents permettant sa création et son maintien inclue nécessairement une composante temporelle et spatiale et implique des processus écologiques et évolutifs. Les grottes sous-marines constituent un habitat tout indiqué pour les étudier, car leurs conditions environnementales particulières suggèrent des mécanismes de maintien de la biodiversité particulièrement actifs. De plus, leur caractère naturellement fragmenté permet une différenciation plus aisée des processus agissant à différentes échelles spatiales. Par leur abondance, tant en terme d'espèces que d'individus, les mysidacés cavernicoles en Méditerranée, représentent de ce fait un bon modèle d'étude de ces mécanismes. À l'échelle locale de la parcelle d'habitat, l'étude de l'écologie trophique des cinq espèces de mysidacés cavernicoles (Hemimysis margalefi, H. speluncola, H. lamornae mediterranea, Siriella gracilipes, Harmelinella mariannae) a permis de mettre en évidence l'importance des stratégies alimentaires dans leur maintien. En effet, ces espèces persistent et coexistent non seulement grâce à un partage classique et spatial des ressources et des sites de nourrissage, mais aussi parce que certains sites de nourrissage importants se trouvent à l'extérieur des grottes sous-marines. / Understanding processes of biodiversity creation and maintenance is a central question in ecology. Because biodiversity is dynamic and distributed across all levels of life, identifying underlying mechanisms necessarily takes into account temporal and spatial scales and involves ecological as well as evolutionary processes. Underwater caves are particularly appropriate to address such a question. Indeed, the harsh environmental conditions of this habitat suggest active mechanisms of biodiversity maintenance. In addition, the highly fragmented nature of this habitat facilitates the distinction between the spatial scales at which processes may operate. In the Mediterranean, the high diversity and abundance of cave-dwelling mysids may help identifying the underlying processes that govern biodiversity distribution. At the scale of a habitat patch, the trophic ecology of the main five cave-dwelling mysids (Hemimysis margalefi, H. speluncola, H. lamornae mediterranea, Siriella gracilipes, Harmelinella mariannae) reveals that persistence and coexistence are allowed by trophic strategies such as classical and spatial resource partitioning. In addition, some of the important feeding sites are located outside caves in the productive euphotic zone. This is of particular importance since mysids can bring organic matter from the outside into the caves by way of circadian migrations. This transfer of organic matter can be important in contributing to the persistence of other cave-dwellers.

Les grottes sont un environnement particulier aux propriétés géophysiques singulières. C’est un milieu qui offre une conservation exceptionnelle et dans lequel s’inscrit, dans la matrice minérale, la marque du moindre geste qui y est réalisé. Assidument fréquentées au Paléolithique supérieur, de nombreuses cavités renferment des témoignages variés du passage des hommes. L’art pariétal est un des témoins, parfois spectaculaire, de cette fréquentation. D’autres vestiges (marques, objets, aménagements…) y sont aussi observables. Souvent moins visibles, moins spectaculaires car faisant entrer en jeu des éléments plus communs, l’intérêt de ces vestiges, dans la compréhension des comportements préhistoriques, a été reconnu tardivement dans l’histoire de la discipline. Parmi ces diverses traces d’activités humaines, et faisant suite aux travaux initiateurs sur le sujet (Bégouën et Clottes, 1981 ; Clottes 2007 et 2009), nous nous intéressons ici aux dépôts d’objets en paroi. Aucune étude approfondie et croisée à grande échelle de ce phénomène n’avait été conduite jusqu’ici. Les différentes matérialisations de ces gestes de dépôts, leurs constituants fondamentaux, les cultures et les territoires concernés ainsi que l’approfondissement de la connaissance des comportements humains en grottes ornées au travers de l’étude de ces gestes ont été les principaux axes de notre recherche.Nous avons ainsi identifié la présence de ces gestes de dépôts dans une quarantaine de sites ornés répartis sur l’espace franco-cantabrique durant tout le Paléolithique supérieur. Nous avons essentiellement basé la construction de notre méthode d’étude et notre analyse sur l’étude exhaustive et contextualisée de ces dépôts dans six sites français : Blanchard, Foissac, Gargas inférieure, Gargas supérieure, Le Mammouth et Le Pigeonnier. La priorité était pour nous de proposer une lecture interprétative des comportements à l’origine de ces dépôts. La matière dure animale (à l’état de fragments), et dans une moindre mesure le silex et l’ocre, sont les éléments essentiellement constitutifs de ces dépôts. Les résultats montrent que ces derniers sont omniprésents dans les grottes ornées. Ils ne sont cependant pas tous en tout point comparable. Nous avons pu mettre en évidence différentes catégories de gestes de dépôts. La plupart sont intentionnels mais sous-tendus par des motivations distinctes (symbolique, pragmatique, personnelle…). Nous avons identifié quatre pratiques symboliques où le dépôt est un medium permettant une connexion (« reliance ») avec l’Invisible par l’intermédiaire de la paroi-réceptacle.Ces pratiques (très fréquemment observées au Magdalénien et au Gravettien) sont des comportements symboliques fondamentaux qui motivent la fréquentation des cavités par ces populations préhistoriques durant tout le Paléolithique supérieur. Elles sont intimement reliées aux modes de vie, aux traditions culturelles et à la cosmogonie des sociétés préhistoriques. Ces pratiques préhistoriques peuvent être envisagées selon l’idée d’une possible affiliation à certains des grands universaux qui participent du fonds commun symbolique, et même spirituel, de l’humanité. / Caves are a particular environment with singular geophysics properties. It is an environment which offers an exceptional preservation and in which registers, in the mineral matrix, the mark of the slightest gesture which is realized there. Assidument frequented in the upper Palaeolithic, numerous cavities contain varied vestiges of the human passage.The parietal Art is one of the marks, sometimes spectacular, of this frequentation.Other vestiges (marks, objects, arrangements…) are there also observable. Often less visible, less spectacular because using more common elements, the interest of these vestiges, in the understanding of the prehistoric behavior, was late recognized in the history of the discipline. Among these diverse tracks of human activities, and following upon the works initiators on the subject (Bégouën et Clottes, 1981 ; Clottes 2007 et 2009), we are interested here in the deposits of objects in rock face. No in-depth and crossed study on a large scale of this phenomenon had been led up to here.The various realizations of these gestures of deposits, their fundamental constituents, the cultures and the concerned territories as well as the deepening of the knowledge of the human behavior in decorated caves through the study of these gestures were the main axes of our research.We so identified the presence of these gestures of deposits in about forty decorated sites distributed on the French-Catabric space during all the upper Palaeolithic. We essentially based the construction of our method of study and our analysis on the exhaustive and contextualised study of these deposits in six French sites : Blanchard, Foissac, Gargas inférieure, Gargas supérieure, Le Mammouth et Le Pigeonnier. The priority was for us to propose an interpretative reading of the behavior at the origin of these deposits. The animal hard material (in the state of fragments), and to a lesser extent the flint and the ochre, are the essentially constituent elements of these deposits. The results show that these last ones are omnipresent in the decorated caves. They are not however all completely comparable. We were able to bring to light various categories of gestures of deposits. Most are deliberate but underlain by different motivations (symbolic, pragmatic, personal…). We identified four symbolic practices where the deposit is a medium allowing a connection (« reliance ») with the Invisible through the rock face - receptacle.These practices (very frequently observed in the Magdalenian and in the Gravettian) are fundamental symbolic behavior which motivate the frequentation of cavities by these prehistoric populations during all the upper Palaeolithic. They are intimately bound with the lifestyles, with the cultural traditions and with the cosmogony of the prehistoric societies. These prehistoric practices can be envisaged according to the idea of a possible affiliation in some of the big universals which participate in the symbolic common fund, and even spiritual, in the humanity.

The majestic mountains of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg, formed many millennia ago were home to the Bushmen[footnote 1] or San people. They lived at these mountains for thousands of years before they were colonised by the Bantu speakers and the Europeans. Academic writings for many years have perpetuated the thinking that Bushman people were largely extinct. The dominance of this view in the academic writings was encouraged by historical evidence that Europeans and Bantu speakers hunted and killed Bushmen over the last several centuries. Researchers argue that the extermination of the Bushmen was because they were less human in the eyes of the foreigners, due to cattle raiding. There is still some element of this thinking amongst today’s academics, although research in the last decade is questioning this thinking. The question of whether descendants do exist is relevant to issues of rights of access to ancestral sacred sites, in particular rock art sites. At present, access to rock art sites is granted on qualification as an authentic fee-paying tourist (or affordability) rather than on group rights to a cultural heritage resource (cultural rights). Based on this, I argue that access to rock art sites is based on qualification rather than by right. This is largely driven by an approach that emphasises the physical conservation and financial sustainability of a site, rather than its spiritual maintenance. It has become clear that the interests in rock art by tourists and Bushman descendants are distinct from each other. Tourists have an aesthetic significance for rock art while Bushmen descendants have a spiritual significance for the paintings. Beyond any doubt, the physically based and financially driven approach has brought new challenges to today’s Bushmen descendants, whom in reaffirming their identities now have a new challenge to overcome. Not only are the rock art sites physically threatened but also they have lost much of their spiritual powers. Their fate lies in the hands of heritage officers who must determine access rights to the painted shelters. Both the National Heritage Resources Act and the KwaZulu-Natal Heritage Act acknowledge living heritage. However, the existence of this heritage is judged against the physical approach to rock art management. If the practises of descendants are perceived to be a threat to the rock art, they will not be approved. The case of the Duma is a classic example. Prior to the ritual ceremony at Game Pass Shelter, Kamberg, they were informed of the minimum standards for opening a rock art site to public and rules of how people should behave while visiting painted shelters. While it was evident that there are problems with the two approaches, the spiritual and physical approach, discussed in the thesis, it is important that solutions are identified. I do not believe that one approach on its own will be good enough, for reasons discussed in the thesis. Instead, the two approaches should be implemented together to compliment each other by identifying common grounds. I provide strategies as to how I believe that such a common ground can be reached. In addition, I provide my own analytical thinking as to how these strategies can be achieved. There is no general consensus over which term is appropriate. Both terms are considered by some academics to be derogatory or pejorative (Chennels 2003). San means vagabond and was given to the Bushmen by Khoi-Khoi people, because they considered themselves of a better social class, as they had domesticated animals and were more sedentary than Bushmen. However, according to WIMSA (Thoma 2003) the word San is derived from the Hai||om language meaning “people who gather”. It is normally written Saan but it has been accepted to write San. In 1993 the San requested to be called San when referred to as an entire group. If one refers to individual people/groups they like to be called by their language and cultural name i.e. Khwe, !Kung, !Xun, Ju|’hoansi, ‡Khomani, N|u, |’Auni, Hai||om, etc In this thesis, Bushmen is a preferred term, because it is a better-known term among the people who are central to this study. It is used without any insulting connotations attached to the term.

This master’s thesis was prepared as an architectural study on the topic of Childern's sanatorium Ostrov u Macochy. It proposes design of a new children’s treatment centre that uses the nearby Císařská Cave for speleotherapeutic treatment. The municipality of Ostrov u Macochyis in the district of Blansko. The new building is located on the outskirts of the village surrounded by the nature of the protected area CHKO Moravský kras, the terrain is sloping and oriented to the south. These are the main attributes that the object uses and adapts to.The treatment centre operates in a single building with two main floors. The ground floor has space for commercial use, entrance hall, medical, rehabilitation and administrative part, kitchen and facilities for speleotherapy and operation of the treatment centre. The first floor is dedicated to children. One half of the first floor consists of playing areas and rooms for accommodated children and separate rooms for children accommodated with their parents. In the second half of the first floor there is an elementary school with three classrooms, a dining room and a caretaker's apartment. Thanks to the terrain, it is possible to enter the atrium and the garden with sports grounds from the entire first floor. This creates a connection between the interior and surrounding nature. The construction system of the building is mostly brick, supplemented by reinforced concrete columns, sprayed forms of prestressed ceiling slabs, the roof is flat green. The main idea of the urban solution is to create serious looking building connected with nature, which will respect the sloping terrain and the surrounding buildings. The architectural solution is based on a simple cubic U-shaped form, partially embedded in the terrain. The mass forms the atrium. The dominant feature of the facade are coloured shielding slats, which prevent the building from overheating. These slats also appear elsewhere on the facade and children can play

Předkládaná práce se zabývá návrhem a konstrukcí dálkově řízené sondy pro průzkum zatopených krasových oblastí. Cílem práce je zhotovení cenově přijatelné sondy pro speleologický výzkum. Soustava senzorů a dálkově řízený kamerový systém umožňuje pořízení záběrů z velkých hloubek, které lze později analyzovat.

The aim of this thesis is to create map of cave Výpustek surrounding enviroment. It is going to be complementary map documentation to existing map documentation made by the other students of VUT Brno. These documentations will be joined together and create one relief covering terain above the cave. The work began with building our own traverse and measuring detailed points. The result is topographical and hypsographical determination of the locality expressed numerically and topographically too. Another task was to measure and represent some profiles of main halls and passages of the cave. Intention is to connect underground space with the surface. Surveying network of points built previously inside the cave was used for measurements.

This diploma thesis is dealing with design of explorative robot named Gloin, which is designed especially for the exploration and mapping of the underwater part of Hranická propast, which is the second deepest fresh-water abbys in the world. This thesis is concentrating on design of algorithms needed for control and navigation of robot in the abyss. The designed algorithms are verified by simulation.

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