Location, Location, Location: The Equivocal Interpretation of Spatial Patterns of the Corded Ware Culture in Northern Germany

Autonomous agents that operate as components of dynamic spatial systems are becoming increasingly popular and mainstream. Applications can be found in consumer robotics, in road, rail, and air transportation, manufacturing, and military operations. Unfortunately, the approaches to modeling and analyzing the behavior of dynamic spatial systems are just as diverse as these application domains. In this article, we discuss reasoning approaches for the medium-term control of autonomous agents in dynamic spatial systems, which requires a sufficiently detailed description of the agent’s behavior and environment but may still be conducted in a qualitative manner. We survey logic-based qualitative and hybrid modeling and commonsense reasoning approaches with respect to their features for describing and analyzing dynamic spatial systems in general, and the actions of autonomous agents operating therein in particular. We introduce a conceptual reference model, which summarizes the current understanding of the characteristics of dynamic spatial systems based on a catalog of evaluation criteria derived from the model. We assess the modeling features provided by logic-based qualitative commonsense and hybrid approaches for projection, planning, simulation, and verification of dynamic spatial systems. We provide a comparative summary of the modeling features, discuss lessons learned, and introduce a research roadmap for integrating different approaches of dynamic spatial system analysis to achieve coverage of all required features.

This study explored the temporal and spatial variation in PM2.5 concentration and its relationship with the vegetation landscape pattern in three typical economic zones in China, which is of great significance for regional PM2.5pollution control and atmospheric environmental protection. In this study, the pixel binary model, Getis-Ord Gi* analysis, Theil-Sen Median analysis, Mann-Kendall significance test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple correlation analysis were used to explore the spatial cluster and spatio-temporal variation in PM2.5 and its correlation with the vegetation landscape index in the three economic zones of China on the basis of PM2.5 concentration data and MODIS NDVI data set. The results showed that PM2.5 in the Bohai Economic Rim was mainly dominated by the expansion of hot spots and the reduction in cold spots from 2000 to 2020. The proportion of cold spots and hot spots in the Yangtze River Delta showed insignificant changes. Both cold and hot spots in the Pearl River Delta had expanded. PM2.5 showed a downward trend in the three major economic zones from 2000 to 2020, and the magnitudes of increasing rates were higher in the Pearl River Delta, followed by those in the Yangtze River Delta and Bohai Economic Rim. From 2000 to 2020, PM2.5 exhibited a downward trend in the context of all vegetation coverage grades, and PM2.5 had most significantly improved within extremely low vegetation coverage in the three economic zones. On the landscape scale, PM2.5 values were mostly correlated with aggregation index in the Bohai Economic Rim, with the largest patch index in the Yangtze River Delta and Shannon's diversity in the Pearl River Delta, respectively. Under the context of different vegetation coverage levels, PM2.5showed the highest correlation with aggregation index in the Bohai Economic Rim, landscape shape index in the Yangtze River Delta, and percent of landscape in the Pearl River Delta, respectively. PM2.5 showed significant differences with vegetation landscape indices in the three economic zones. The combined effect of multiple vegetation landscape pattern indices on PM2.5 was stronger than that of the single vegetation landscape pattern index. The above results indicated that the spatial cluster of PM2.5 in the three major economic zones had changed, and PM2.5 showed a decreasing trend in the three economic zones during the study period. The relationship between PM2.5 and vegetation landscape indices exhibited obvious spatial heterogeneity in the three economic zones.

Plant use of the Corded Ware Culture (2800–2000 cal BC) communities in Estonia and more broadly in the eastern Baltic area has not been systematically studied using archaeobotanical methods. This article presents the first archaeobotanical study from a Stone Age context in Estonia, and discusses plant use at the Corded Ware Culture settlement and burial site of Narva-Jõesuu IIB in the north-eastern part of the country. Analysis revealed the first occurrence of water chestnut (Trapa natans) from a Stone Age context in Estonia and numerous common hazel (Corylus avellana) nutshells. Otherwise, the plant material preserved in the sandy soils of Narva-Jõesuu IIB consisted of charred remains of conifers and heathland species, as well as plants from scrubs or forest edges. The plant species that were found reflect the mosaic nature of the environment surrounding the site. Only wild plants were gathered and used at Narva-Jõesuu IIB; no domesticated plants or signs of plant cultivation were identified.

Rational and consistent policy analysis presupposes a reliable assessment and balanced evaluation of all foreseeable consequences and choice possibilities in relation to policy initiatives. The aim of generating and judging alternative frameworks of policy measures is a far from easy task for mainly two reasons. The process of generating meaningful choice options in the context of policy analysis is extremely complicated in an open, multi-actor social system with diverging interests, while also the assessment of expected impacts of policy measures — especially in a dynamic spatial system — is fraught with many difficulties inherent in the uncertainty context of decision-making.KeywordsImpact AssessmentTransportation CostPolicy InstrumentPolicy MeasureImpact AnalysisThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

The purpose of this article is to study the features of the content of the section «Modern political map of the world» in the modern school curriculum in geography in the PMR, as well as a comparative assessment of the content of school General education programs under the section «Political map of the world», operating in the PMR at the turn of XX-XXI centuries. The main material. Political map – a dynamic spatial system, actively changing under the infl uence of events taking place in the world, which is refl ected in school curricula and textbooks on geography. The content of school curricula of the Soviet period directly depended on the policy and ideology of the time. They provided for the study of documents of the party and the Government on major issues and trends of world development. The content of the section «Political map of the world» in the school programs of Transnistria since the 1990s required updating due to socio - economic and political events of that time. The article presents a comparative analysis of the content of school General education programs under the section «Political map of the world», operating on the territory of PMR at the border of XX-XXI centuries. For comparison, some school programs in geography are taken 1981, 1993, 1998, 2000, 2006, 2016 years. The most significant changes in the content of the theme «Political map of the world» happened at the turn of XX–XXI centuries. The geography pilot program for the 1993 secondary school was developed on the basis of the political and socio–economic events that took place at that time in connection with the collapse of the USSR. Each state that was part of the Union, faced with the problem of further development of education, and had to adapt to new realities. The team of authors of the program initially created an experimental program on geography, taking into account the socio-economic and political situation characteristic of our state in the 90s. For the fi rst time, the authors of the program abandoned the division of countries and regions by political and socio-economic system. The study of the political map and administrative - territorial structure of the countries of the modern world is based on the offi cial classifi cation developed by the UN. The following important questions are suggested for study: – subject and objectives of the study of political geography; – introduced a new concept of «political-territorial organization of society», with its main elements - sovereign States and dependent territories; – the main stages of the formation of the political map of the world and individual regions; – administrative and territorial structure; – typology of countries by administrative-territorial structure, geographical location. It should be emphasized that the program introduces the most important concepts of socio – economic and political geography – «political and geographical position» and «economic and geographical position». Valuable in the program of 1993 is the section «Applications» containing plans-characteristics of economic and geographical objects that are convenient to use in their study. Further, in all subsequent school programs in 1998, 2000, 2006, 2016, the section «Modern political map of the world» in its content has changed little. Conclusions. The analysis confi rms that the most signifi cant changes in the content of the theme «Political map of the world» happened at the turn of XX–XXI centuries. It can be concluded that the content and structure of school programs in geography, and in particular sections related to the study of political geography, is a refl ection of the situation in the world community, national policy and ideology, processes covering the educational space of Russia and CIS countries.

This chapter discusses issues related to biological and physical analyses of human remains associated with the Złota culture from the collections of the Castle Museum in Sandomierz. The chapter is divided into four main parts. The first addresses anthropological analyses. In total, remains of 23 individuals from seven archaeological sites were analysed, with determinations of age and, where possible, sex. Significant research limitations resulting from the poor preservation, incompleteness, and disturbance of the skeletal material are highlighted, as are difficulties in distinguishing pathological changes formed during life from post-depositional alterations. The second subsection presents the results of carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses relating to the diet of the studied community. The data indicate a significant contribution of animal protein and a secondary role of plant products. The following section is devoted to strontium isotope analyses, which allow for the determination of individual origins. The results revealed non-local origins of women, including juveniles, alongside the local origin of men. The final part of the chapter concerns aDNA analyses, focusing on biological kinship among individuals buried in Złota culture graves. These studies enabled verification of anthropological sex determinations and, in the case of children, their refinement. They also confirmed genetic links between the Złota culture community and populations of the Globular Amphora culture, alongside the presence of individual persons associated with the Corded Ware culture.

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The genesis of basic colors provides hints to better understand the genesis of spatial terms. The two modes of internal lexical formation (by division and by union) inside the language system can be opposed to external lexical formation that attaches words directly to extra-linguistic notions of utmost importance in the linguistic community. After discussing the analysis of Levinson and Meira on genesis of spatial terms, I present my own views on this issue. According to this proposition, the dichotomy between CONTROL (a general dynamic notion) and LOC (a general topological notion of localization) constitutes the first step in the genesis of spatial adpositions. As illustrated by the preposition of Old English œt, this part of the system (LOC) evolves essentially by internal lexical formation by division. As far as the dynamic spatial system is concerned (CONTROL), different levels of specification may be observed in different languages and this suggests a mechanism of external lexical formation. Three modes of development of words are highlighted in the following section, two of which —beginning in the middle or in the bottom level of the hierarchy of words and concepts— are clearly related to external lexical formation. In the last section of the paper, I investigate how the acquisition of language might help to provide clues about the development of spatial terms.

The valuation of ecosystem services (ESs) is crucial for preserving ecosystems, assessing natural resources, and making decisions regarding compensation. In this study, we employed the InVEST model’s habitat quality (HQ) module to calculate the HQ and degradation levels in the study area using land use/land cover (LULC) data from 2000 to 2020. Our analysis utilized quantitative methods, including spatial correlation, hotspot analysis, and geo-probing, to determine the value of ESs and identify trends. Furthermore, we examined the spatial and temporal variation in the significance of ESs and their driving factors. The results show the following. (1) The primary LULC types in the Zhundong coalfield from 2000 to 2020 are grassland and barren areas. (2) The average value of the HQ index in the study area exhibited a generally decreasing trend. Between 2000 and 2010, HQ significantly declined, particularly in the region’s large barren industrial and mining zones. However, over time, the proportion of sites with minimal degradation improved steadily, resulting in better overall HQ in the study area by 2020. This pertains to the measures put in place by the local government to safeguard and rehabilitate the ecosystem. (3) The spatial distribution of the ecosystem service value (ESV) aligns with changes in HQ and LULC, with significant hotspots primarily observed in forest and grassland areas, nature reserves, and areas around water sources. (4) LULC, temperature, annual precipitation, and elevation are the main drivers of spatial variation in the ESV in the Zhundong area; the spatial variation in the ESV in the Zhundong coalfield is primarily influenced by the interaction between human factors and natural factors, in which LULC plays a dominant role. This study’s findings can guide the development of rational ecological planning, integrating resource conservation mining with effective zoning management.

This chapter presents the results of a study of cranial trauma in the Corded Ware Culture (2700–2000 cal BC) of central Germany. The study shows that individuals exhibiting cranial injuries were predominantly males, often older adults. These individuals were often buried with stone objects, especially battle axes, which points to a rather concrete connection between the weapon and the biography of the deceased.

For many years, scholars consistently dated cup marks – shallow depressions found on both portable and immovable stones – of northern Germany and southern Scandinavia to the Bronze Age. Novel findings trace them back to at least as far as the Late Neolithic period (LN, c. 2350 bc). Recently, portable cup marked stones belonging to a late Funnel Beaker context (c. 2800 bc) have been found. There are even indications of cup marks dating back to the 4th millennium bc. At present, a gap exists in the knowledge of cup marks and non-figurative art in general during the Younger Neolithic (YN) Corded Ware Culture (CWC) (c. 2800–2250 bc). This paper establishes the significance of three related types of secondary treatments of battle axe fragments, namely the addition of (hourglass shaped) unfinished shaft holes, deep pecking holes, and shallow cup marks. The argument put forward is that they were present in small numbers in the 4th millennium bc, becoming increasingly common during the proposed ‘gap phase’ in the context of CWC societies. The late 3rd millennium is a period of enormous social change. During this period, of the three types of secondary treatment only cup marks persist, while the potential media on which such cup marks are applied diversifies, with them appearing on objects and items other than battle axe fragments. It is proposed that this development is related to the social changes that characterise the onset of the LN. Finally, it is suggested that the LN and Bronze Age cup mark tradition is based on an earlier tradition initially associated with battle axes.

Assessing the spatial and temporal variations of water quality in lowland areas, Northern Germany

The identification of influential factors of carbon emissions is crucial for carbon reduction， and the carbon emission characteristics and influencing factors of regions with different economic levels may be inconsistent， leading to differences in emission reduction strategies. Therefore， this study investigated the influencing factors of China's carbon emissions within the context of regional economic differentiation at a national scale. First， cluster analysis was conducted， resulting in four clusters labeled as follows： high economy with high carbon emission， high economy with low carbon emission， low economy with high carbon emission， and low economy with low carbon emission. Then， the STIRPAT model was used to identify key influencing factors in different regions with different levels of economic development and characteristics of carbon dioxide emissions. Finally， differentiated carbon emission reduction strategies were developed and proposed. The findings revealed spatial variations in both the influencing factors and their degrees. Population growth， energy consumption， and the development of primary and secondary industries are no longer the predominant factors influencing the growth of China's carbon emissions. The migration of population from low economic zones to high economic zones has led to an increase in the resident population in high economic zones， thereby promoting carbon emissions in these areas while suppressing emissions in low economic zones. However， the increase in per capita household size in high economic zones mitigates carbon emissions to some extent. Population density and urbanization rate exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship with CO2 emissions. GDP per capita， carbon emission per unit of energy consumption， and GDP per unit of energy consumption have significant positive effects across all regions， although their impact is lower in high economic zones than in low economic zones. The proportion of tertiary industry significantly impacts carbon emission within only high economic zones， with both positive effects on low-carbon emission areas and negative effects on high-carbon emission areas. In the context of energy conservation and emission reduction performance， local governments should formulate policies tailored to their respective characteristics.

VIRVELINĖS KERAMIKOS KULTŪRA LIETUVOJE 2800–2400 cal BC

Xiamen is one of China's five major special economic zones and is the core city of Haixi Economic Zone, with a high level of urbanization. Monitoring and driving force analysis of impervious surfaces can increase our understanding of urbanization process and have important significance for urban landscape pattern research and urban ecological environment construction. We used the Landsat remote sensing image data from 1978 to 2018 to reveal the temporal and spatial variation characteristics of the impervious surface landscape in Xiamen in the past 40 years, using the full-restricted least squares method, landscape pattern analysis, slope gradient analysis and correlation analysis. We further analyzed its relationship with social and economic factors. The results showed that, during 1978-2018, the impervious surface of Xiamen increased by 348.96 km2, with a mean annual increase of 8.72 km2. The impervious surface dynamics reached a maximum of 9.0% in 2005-2010. More than 86.6% of the impervious surface of Xiamen was distributed within 6° of slope, with a tendency to expand to a greater slope in 2010-2018. With the increases of slope, the proportion of impervious surface decreased, the density of plaque decreased with the shape tending to be regular and continuous, the degree of fragmentation of the impervious surface increased. The increases of impervious surface in Xiamen was significantly related to the regional economic aggregate and population. In the study period, the spatial pattern of impervious surface in Xiamen significantly altered. In the future urban planning process, the extent and speed of impervious surface expansion should be coordinated to avoid ecological problems caused by excessive impervious surface to meet the need for sustainable development of Xiamen.