Proměny pohřebních zvyklostí starší a mladší doby železné ve střední Evropě / Changes in the burial customs in the Early and Late Iron Age in Central Europe

The Fauna of Central Europe: Its Origin and Evolution

Early Miocene Amphibians (Caudata, Salientia) from the Mokrá-Western Quarry (Czech Republic) with comments on the evolution of Early Miocene amphibian assemblages in Central Europe

ObjectiveTo perform a single-centre, detailed analysis of the preparations for the introduction of the first pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) programme in the eastern part of Central Europe.MethodsThe study analysed the 14-month preparation period prior to the performance of the first PIPAC procedure with respect to: (i) general preparations; (ii) patient referral and qualification; (iii) the first PIPAC procedure; (iv) the 2 weeks following PIPAC programme establishment; and (v) general problematic issues that arose.ResultsThe length of time needed to prepare our institution for the first PIPAC procedure was extremely long compared with other European Union PIPAC centres: 14 months versus a standard 3–6 months of preparation. The longest amount of time (12 months) was required to prepare the required paperwork.ConclusionsA new PIPAC programme was successfully established in the eastern part of Central Europe. The length of time to implement this method was significantly longer because of lengthy bureaucratic processes. These current findings should help new centres, especially in this part of Europe, to establish a PIPAC programme more quickly.

In 1989 the political map of Europe changed radically. The first great change consisted in the fact that eastern Central Europe, with its complicated and dramatic history, became visible again. After liberating themselves from Russian domination, a belt of smaller countries reappeared between Russia and Germany. In spite of immense economic and political difficulties, it cannot be denied that the political changes in 1989 offered the eastern Central European states a unique historical opportunity. Having regained independence, they had the chance, a ‘second chance’, to become more stable and prosperous than they were between the two World Wars. If they are successful, eastern Central Europe will become a bit less eastern and a bit more central; the division between the western (that is Germany and Austria) and eastern part of Central Europe could, to a large extent, be removed.KeywordsFederal RepublicGerman Democratic RepublicEastern CentralPolish QuestionPeace NegotiationThese 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.

Introduction Health disparities between Eastern and Western part of Europe have been the subject of many studies. Eastern Europe experienced delay in health improvement compared to Western Europe. Life expectancy differences between East and West average 7 years in men and 5 years in women, in favor of the West. Cancer contributes to 12% and 9% of this difference in men and women, respectively. For those 20-64 years, contribution of cancer to this difference is higher at 16% and 24%, respectively. Methods Cancer mortality data and population data (1959-2010) for each country separately were derived from the WHO Mortality Database. Standardized mortality rates were calculated using the world standard population. Results In young men (20-44 years) cancer mortality was equal in Eastern and Western Europe in late 1960s. Since then, a decline in cancer mortality occurred in Western countries while Eastern countries experienced a cancer mortality increase trend. This increase began to decline in Eastern Europe in the early 1990s, decreasing the cancer mortality gap between the two European regions for this sex and age group. Similar trend disparities were observed in middle-aged men (45-64 years). However, the decline since 1990 was much slower in Eastern Europe than Western Europe, resulting in a residual gap between the two regions. The oldest men (65+ years) in Western Europe had a higher cancer mortality rate than Eastern Europe for many decades. In early 1990s cancer mortality in Western Europe declined whilst rising in the East. The trends intersected a decade later and despite the plateau observed in recent years in Eastern Europe, the gap remains persistent. In young women (20-44 years), cancer mortality diverted in the early 1970s as cancer mortality declined steadily in Western Europe while rising in the east, similarly in trend to cancer mortality among young men. By the 1990s, rates declined and the gap between the two regions trended towards closure. In middle-aged women (45-64 years) cancer mortality rates in Eastern Europe plateaued for the whole observation period, while western rates fell steadily since the 1970s, resulting in a residual gap between the two regions. For several decades, cancer mortality rates in the oldest women (65+ years) in Western Europe were higher than in the east and both regions experienced plateaus. By the 1990s western cancer mortality rates declined with little change in eastern trends. A small gap persists between the two regions. Conclusions Despite health improvement, a cancer mortality rate gap between Eastern and Western Europe persists across all sex and age strata. In particular, men at age of 45 years and more, and women at age of 45-64 years, experience the greatest disparities between the two regions. Deficiency of primary prevention and poor health awareness remain biggest challenge in Eastern part of Europe. Citation Format: Marta Manczuk, Urszula Sulkowska, Dana Hashim, Paolo Boffetta. The gap in cancer mortality between Western and Eastern Europe. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 3710. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-3710

We collected and evaluated, by the ‘logarithmic size index’ (LSI) method, all available postcranial equid bones found in the Czech Republic from the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age. Material from the Upper Paleolithic (Magdalenien) and Bohemian Late Bronze Age (Knoviz culture) was also included. Two different species of equids were documented: Equus hydruntinus Regalia, 1907 and Equus ferus Boddaert, 1785. The variation in the size of true horses was compared with data published for neighbouring countries. In most periods, the horses are found to be larger in the eastern part of Central Europe than in the western part. The Czech lands appear to span the border of two worlds: the Pannonian plains and the western, geomorphologically diverse regions. The status of horses in the Neolithic Lengyel period from Moravia remains disputable. However, a high size variability in Eneolithic Funnel Beaker culture (TRB, 3800-3350 BC) together with a non-homogeneous distribution in Řivnac culture (3100-2800 BC...

For many years it has been well known that tar was an available commodity in the Norwegian Iron Age, but until recently no production site or installation for such production was known. In this paper two recently discovered tar production sites, in south-eastern and mid-Norway respectively, are presented and discussed. Both are clay-lined funnel-shaped pits that are dug into the ground with an upper part where the wood was stacked and lit, and a lower part where the tar was collected in a container. The Norwegian tar production pits are similar to contemporary Swedish ones found in large numbers in mid-Sweden. The type is also known from the eastern part of Central Europe where they came into use a few centuries later than in Scandinavia.

Rubus ambrosius Travnicek etOklejewicz, a widely distributed species from the eastern part of Central Europe (Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland), is described.R. ambrosius differs from similar speciesR. sulcatus Vest by more deeply furrowed stems, longer prickles on first-year tems, longer petioles, more prickly petioles, densely hairy leaves beneath and by blunter leaf margin serration with incisions only (2-)1.5–2.5 mm deep. The newly described species is illustrated both by photographs (including the holotype) and a line drawing. A list of localities and a distribution map are presented.

The deposition of huge amounts of copper and bronze items is one of the major changes in ritual which distinguishes the European Bronze Age from previous and later periods. A macroeconomic approach has been chosen for characterizing two transitional phases in Central Europe: The beginning of Early Bronze Age and the formation of Late Bronze Age civilization. Both are characterized by new features on two levels: ritual practices and the organisation of exchange. The general acceptance of copper and bronze for a variety of new functions (medium of exchange, symbols of rank, votive offerings) promoted increased demand. Regional response led to technological progress in sulphide copper smelting which expanded continuously. A crash of the Early Bronze Age cultural system in the eastern part of Central Europe is suspected to have completely altered the situation. The following second phase brought a new cultural network and changed the attitude towards bronze. It promoted an incipient economy of demand...

Analytical potential of 3D data in the ballistic analyses of lithic projectiles

Non-native tree plantations are weak substitutes for near-natural forests regarding plant diversity and ecological value

Here we describe a new eusuchian crocodyliform, collected 130 years ago from a shallow marine limestone of the late Eocene (Priabonian) fossil locality of Cluj-Mănăștur, Transylvania, Romania. Diplocynodon kochi n. sp. is represented by a three-dimensionally preserved incomplete skull that may have belonged to a mature individual. The new taxon possesses a relatively narrow and elongated snout and a mediolaterally shallow but anteroposteriorly wide premaxillary-maxillary notch, strengthened by a prominent bony ridge. The nasals are excluded from the naris and the anterior tip of the frontal forms a broad, complex sutural contact with the nasals. Diplocynodon kochi n. sp. possesses, similarly to other members of the genus, 16-17 maxillary alveoli of which the fourth and fifth alveoli are enlarged and confluent; the lacrimal is longer than the prefrontal; the ectopterygoid is situated close to the posteriormost maxillary tooth alveoli, the dorsal margin of the infratemporal fenestra is bordered by the quadratojugal, preventing the quadrate from reaching the fenestra, and the foramen aëreum is situated on the dorsal surface of the quadrate. The occurrence of D. kochi n. sp. in the Priabonian of the eastern part of Central Europe suggests that the genus was still present and probably widespread across the continent that contributed probably to its survival (at least locally) across the Eocene/Oligocene boundary.

Use-wear and ballistic analysis of arrowheads from the burial ground of Nitra culture in Holešov–Zdražilovska, Moravia

An example of the potential importance of air masses as carriers of aero-allergens from distant source areas is provided. Considerable amount ofBetula pollen is relatively often transported to Fennoscandia before the local birch flowering period, mainly by southeastern air masses from eastern part of central Europe. Although the distance and the transport time in some cases can be extensive, the pollen grains seem to cause allergic reactions among sensitive persons. A comparison between the clinical results andBetula pollen counts from the time before the local flowering season in Stockholm in 1989 is presented.

An international consortium of radiocarbon laboratories has established the origin of the Church of St. Margaret of Antioch in Kopčany (Slovakia), because its age was not well known from previous investigations. In total, 13 samples of charcoal, wood, mortar, and plaster were analyzed. The 14C results obtained from the different laboratories, as well as between the different sample types, were in good agreement. Resulting the final 14C calibrated age of the Church, based on dating a single piece of a wooden levelling rod is 774–884 AD (95.4% confidence level), which is in very good agreement with Bayesian modeling result based on dating of wood, charcoal and mortar samples (788–884 AD, 95.4% confidence level). The probability distribution from OxCal calibration shows that 79% of the probability distribution lies in the period before 863 AD, implying that the Church could have been constructed before the arrival of Constantine (St. Cyril) and St. Methodius to Great Moravia. If we take as the terminus post quem the documented date of consecration of the church in Nitrava (828 AD), the Bayesian modeling suggests the age of the Church in the range of 837–884 AD (95.4% confidence level). Although the 14C results have very good precision, the specific plateau shape of the calibration curve in this period caused a wide range of the calibrated age. The Church represents, together with the St. George’s Rotunda in Nitrianska Blatnica, probably the oldest standing purpose-built Christian church in the eastern part of Central Europe.