Frontier Regions Research Articles

중국 근세 Ⅱ] 확장·심화·연계, 명청시대사 연구의 연속성과 변화

The trends of Ming-Qing historical studies in 2020 and 2021 can be summarized as follows: First, the perspectives and topics have diversified and contributed to suggest new historical points of view. Second, A prominently growing phenomenon is the reexamination of the existing historical materials and the and utilization of of hitherto untapped materials. Translation and annotation of Chinese historical sources that have been overlooked in the history of Korea-China relations, particularly contributed to provide a balance to existing studies. Third, not only the scope of historical studies has been enlarged geographically and spatially, but also the research fields have been expanded and interconnected, which can be termed as the consilience of research disciplines.BR However, there seems to be something missing in these trends of researches. First of all, scholarship on Ming period is noticeably small compared to the studies on Qing. Also, while the historical perspectives from the periphery have been emphasized, research interest has been still concentrated on the Chinese dynasties in the Central Plains. It is hoped that further studies with a broader perspective pay attention to the diverse regions, peoples, and frontier regions, as well as the connection of East Asia and the world.

Evaluation of the Implementation of the Ideal Online Learning System in Frontier, Outermost, and Disadvantaged Regions (3T)

This study aims to evaluate the implementation of an ideal online learning system that has been designed using the ADDIE model in the 3T (Front, Outermost, & Disadvantaged) area in East Sumba Regency. This research method uses descriptive qualitative. This research was conducted at SDI Waingapu 2 and SMP Negeri 1 Waingapu. The subjects of this study were teachers, students, parents, and principals of SDI Waingapu 2 and SMP Negeri 1 Waingapu, as well as the East Sumba Regency Office. Data collection techniques in this study used interviews, questionnaires, observation, and document studies. The data analysis technique is qualitative data analysis which includes data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions. The results show that the Ideal Online Learning System for East Sumba Regency has been implemented by SDI Waingapu 2 and SMP Negeri 1 Waingapu following the Guidelines for the Ideal Distance Learning System in East Sumba Regency by the Education Office, both by students, teachers, parents, school principals, as well as the East Sumba District Education Office. However, obstacles still hinder the implementation of online learning, such as unstable internet connections and teacher skills in utilizing learning technology. The ideal online learning system that has been developed is then used as consideration for policymakers to improve the quality of education in East Sumba Regency as one of the Disadvantaged, Frontier, and Outermost regions.

Native Chieftains and Chinese Judges. The Struggles for Power and Property in the Eighteenth-century South China Frontier

In the article the social, political and economic situation of the XVIII-century Southern Chinese frontier is viewed through the lenses of court felony trials. Two cases from different parts of this vast, culturally and ethnically diverse frontier zone are analyzed in detail. The article is a study of mutual relations of the local peoples and the Chinese administrations, it singles out some strategies of communication and self-presentation employed by locals in their dealings with the Qing officials. I also analyze problems of property and power within the native communities. These problems gave rise to typical conflicts in the frontier region, while the Chinese empire played its role both in provoking and in settling the conflicts.

Neural architecture search via reference point based multi‐objective evolutionary algorithm

For neural architecture search, NSGA-Net has searched a representative neural architecture set of Pareto-optimal solutions to consider both accuracy and computation complexity simultaneously. However, some decision-makers only concentrate on such neural architectures in the subpart regions of Pareto-optimal Frontier that they have interests in. Under the above circumstances, certain uninterested neural architectures may cost many computing resources. In order to consider the preference of decision-makers, we propose the reference point based NSGA-Net (RNSGA-Net) for neural architecture search. The core of RNSGA-Net adopts the reference point approach to guarantee the Pareto-optimal region close to the reference points and also combines the advantage of NSGAII with the fast nondominated sorting approach to split the Pareto front. Moreover, we augment an extra bit value of the original encoding to represent two types of residual block and one type of dense block for residual connection and dense connection in the RNSGA-Net. In order to satisfy the decision-maker preference, the multi-objective is measured to search competitive neural architecture by minimizing an error metric and FLOPs of computational complexity. Experiment results on the CIFAR-10 dataset demonstrate that RNSGA-Net can improve NSGA-Net in terms of the more structured representation space and the preference of decision-makers.

Cenozoic deposits of western Kotel’nyi Island (New Siberian Islands): key insights into the tectonic evolution of the Laptev Sea

ABSTRACT The Arctic sedimentary basins are still poorly studied in comparison with other regions. The lack of deep wells across the eastern Russian Arctic has resulted in numerous contrasting geodynamic models for the geological evolution and age of sedimentary successions within this frontier region, where a modern mid-ocean ridge breaks through the continental crust in the Laptev Sea. The only onshore evidence of rifting processes is a number of small graben-like depressions exposed on the New Siberian Islands and along the Laptev Sea coast. We present U-Pb detrital zircon provenance and palynology study results of the Cenozoic sedimentary rocks filling graben-like depressions across western Kotel’nyi Island. Palynological data indicate that these sedimentary rocks are Early Eocene to Pleistocene in age. Based on U-Pb detrital zircon dating, Early Eocene and Late Oligocene clastic sediments were sourced from underlying deformed Palaeozoic rocks as well as by reworking of Upper Mesozoic rocks outcropping elsewhere on Kotel’nyi Island, which bear Siberian signature. Plio-Pleistocene clastic sediments were not derived from the erosion of deformed Palaeozoic rocks, suggesting the cessation of active uplift by this time and the development of a regional peneplain. Therefore, by extrapolating our onshore observations to the neighbouring offshore, we propose that graben structures imaged by seismic profiles along the eastern flank of the Laptev Rift System are likely to host Eocene and Oligocene sediments. Thus, it implies the Cenozoic extension led to formation of grabens on- and offshore in the eastern portion of Laptev Sea as early as Eocene. Further studies are necessary to evaluate the age of graben-related basins in the central and western part of the Laptev Sea.

17세기 후반 淸의 정세 변화와 숙종의 武人 양성— 閱武와 觀武才를 중심으로 —

In the late 17th century, having obtained information on the battles between Russia, the Mongols, and the Qing, the court of Joseon predicted the defeat of the Qing and the resulting security crisis in the northern frontier region of Joseon. In response, King Sukjong tried to reinforce Namhan and Bukhan Mountain fortresses and Ganghwa Island, and promote the training of military officers through Royal Military Inspection (Yeolmu) and Royal Military Examination (Guanmujae). During the reign of King Sukjong, these special military inspections and military examinations attended by the king were concentrated during the wars between Russia, the Mongols and the Qing. King Sukjong attempted to increase the military readiness and enhance the bond and loyalty of the army through direct contact with military officers. Yeolmu and Guanmujae were effective ways to increase King Sukjong’s dignity by reaffirming his command while building trust between the king and his military officers.

Umbilical Cord Collection and Drug Testing to Estimate Prenatal Substance Exposure in Utah.

Our primary objective was to estimate statewide prenatal substance exposure based on umbilical cord sampling. Our secondary objectives were to compare prevalence of prenatal substance exposure across urban, rural, and frontier regions, and to compare contemporary findings to those previously reported. We performed a cross-sectional prevalence study of prenatal substance exposure, as determined by umbilical cord positivity for 49 drugs and drug metabolites, through the use of qualitative liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. All labor and delivery units in Utah (N=45) were invited to participate. Based on a 2010 study using similar methodology, we calculated that a sample size of at least 1,600 cords would have 90% power to detect 33% higher rate of umbilical cords testing positive for any substance. Deidentified umbilical cords were collected from consecutive deliveries at participating hospitals. Prevalence of prenatal substance exposure was estimated statewide and by rurality using weighted analysis. From November 2020 to November 2021, 1,748 cords (urban n=988, rural n=384, frontier n=376) were collected from 37 hospitals, representing 92% of hospitals that conduct 91% of births in the state. More than 99% of cords (n=1,739) yielded results. Statewide, 9.9% (95% CI 8.1-11.7%) were positive for at least one substance, most commonly opioids (7.0%, 95% CI 5.5-8.5%), followed by cannabinoid (11-nor-9-carboxy-delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol [THC-COOH]) (2.5%, 95% CI 1.6-3.4%), amphetamines (0.9%, 95% CI 0.4-1.5), benzodiazepines (0.5%, 95% CI 0.1-0.9%), alcohol (0.4%, 95% CI 0.1-0.7%), and cocaine (0.1%, 95% CI 0-0.3%). Cord positivity was similar by rurality (urban=10.3%, 95% CI 8.3-12.3%, rural=7.1%, 95% CI 3.5-10.7%, frontier=9.2%, 95% CI 6.2-12.2%, P=.31) and did not differ by substance type. Compared with a previous study, prenatal exposure to any substance (6.8 vs 9.9%, P=.01), opioids (4.7 vs 7.0% vs 4.7%, P=.03), amphetamines (0.1 vs 0.9%, P=.01) and THC-COOH (0.5 vs 2.5%, P<.001) increased. Prenatal substance exposure was detected in nearly 1 in 10 births statewide.

The Old Believers’ Printed Books from Klintsy in the Slavonic Library, Prague: History, Context, and Traditions

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to illustrate with five exemplar printed books the nature of books published by, or for, Old Believers in the small town of Klintsy in the Starodub frontier region. All of these books form part of the Slavonic Library’s collection in Prague. Using theoretical insights from a social mechanism and the concepts of textual community and graphosphere combined with a multimethod methodology this article demonstrates how deliberately anonymized Old Believer books can be systematically studied in the field of Slavic librarianship with the purpose of providing enhanced consultancy services to students and scholars.

Innovation and Intensification: The Use of Cattle in the Roman Rhine Region

ABSTRACT This paper examines the role of cattle in the Roman economy acrossthe region of the river Rhine (the Netherlands, western and south-western Germany, eastern France, and northern and eastern Switzerland). This large region marked the northern frontier of the Roman Empire. Taxonomic data (over 606,000 animal remains – cattle, sheep/goat and pig) are considered, and biometrical data (nearly 15,000 cattle bone measurements) are analysed through the log-ratio – or LSI-technique, in order to look at broad changes in cattle husbandry over time (from the Late Iron Age to the Late Roman period) and across different regions. The results show the central role of cattle in the Roman economy in this frontier region, in the context of increased agricultural production and urban demand for meat and raw products, as well as the efforts put on improving and intensifying cattle husbandry.

Fixes and Flux: Frontier Brokers, Political Settlements and Post-War Politics in Nepal and Sri Lanka

This article examines post-war politics in Nepal and Sri Lanka through the prism of centre-periphery relations, drawing upon and expanding political settlements analysis. We highlight two key features neglected in existing research on political settlements: first, the spatial dimensions of these settlements – particularly the salience of frontier regions in shaping post-war orders. These ‘sensitive spaces’ continue as sites of struggle in the post-war period and frontier battles over the reordering of space and the delineation of rights, authority and citizenship are central to the emergence of post-war political settlements. Second, within these post-war frontiers we highlight the role of ‘frontier brokers’ who mediate between national and local levels of the political system. Post-war frontiers provide an opening and a demand for brokers who act as both gatekeepers and go-betweens, balancing demands from communities at the margins with the need to forge alliances and extract resources from central actors. We argue that questions of space and agency need to be foregrounded in political settlement analysis, and studying the lives of frontier brokers provides a lens for understanding shifts in political settlements and the changing relationship between the national and subnational levels of the political system at war’s end.

A spatially explicit reconstruction of cropland cover in China around 1850 C.E. employing new land suitability based gridded allocation algorithm

A credible spatially explicit historical cropland dataset is the basis for accurately evaluating the impacts of anthropogenic land cover change on global changes. The credibility of the historical cropland datasets relies on both the reconstructed regional cropland area and the allocation algorithm. In the case of adopting the more reliable reconstructed historical cropland area in a given region, the credibility of the gridded cropland cover data mainly depends on the allocation algorithm, which makes a major contribution to the uncertainties of the spatial distribution of the cropland cover. In this study, a new land suitability-based gridded allocation algorithm for historical cropland cover was used to allocate the provincial cropland area into 5' × 5′ grids in China around 1850 C.E. The algorithm was constructed using the dominant physiogeographic factors that vary from region to region, and these factors were assessed by the modern cropland cover. The main conclusions are described as follows: (1) the cultivation intensity under a 5' × 5′ cell can be effectively indicated by the physiogeographic factors in a 0.5° × 0.5° unit, although the degrees of correlation showed a diverse variety with positive, negative correlation or irrelevance relationships in different regions. (2) The land suitability calculated from dominant regional physiogeographic factors could appropriately represent the cultivation intensity. The proportion of positive correlations above 0.7 between the modern cropland fraction and land suitability in China is more than 93%. (3) Employing the newly developed allocation algorithm, the 5' × 5′ cropland fraction data in China around 1850 C.E. was generated from the reconstructed provincial cropland area. The traditional farming regions were maturely cultivated in 1850 C.E., while the distribution of cropland was relatively small and had a lower cultivation intensity in the frontier region (Xinjiang Province and Northeast China, etc.). (4) The new allocation algorithm is expected to be applicable in regions with only very coarse spatial resolution cropland reconstruction results, and the reasonability of gridded allocation results will be improved, especially in regions at the early cultivation stages with very low intensity in China.

Tracking the urban expansion and its driving mechanisms behind Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC): Evidence from morphology and landscapes

Cities are diverse, with their formation and expansion having various driving forces. Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) cities represent an emerging category in China's urban system. They have evolved into a special organisation integrating ‘party, government, military, and enterprises’ and are located in Xinjiang, the frontier region of north-western China. Investigation of such urban characteristics is helpful to enrich our diverse cognitions on cities. The purpose of this paper is to trace the growth history of XPCC cities and explore their evolution-related characteristics, modes, and driving mechanisms in terms of spatial morphology and landscapes in the process of urban expansion by utilising remote sensing interpretation data. This study led to four main conclusions. (1) The role of the XPCC in maintaining the long-term stability and prosperity of the frontier is increasingly valued across the nation, thus leading to a major increase in the quantity and quality of XPCC cities. (2) These cities have a unique spatial layout around two deserts and the border characterised by ‘two rings and one line’; however, their distribution is relatively scattered. (3) The expansion of XPCC cities has become prominent along with the restructuring of land use, with wasteland reclaiming being a salient attribute of their built-up land expansion, while also protecting cultivated land. Most cities reveal a more complex and less compact morphology. (4) The external government's promotion and regulation, the basic shaping of the natural geographical environment, the internal boosting of economic increase and industrial restructuring, and the special reshaping of the XPCC-local relationship are key driving factors behind the urban temporal-spatial evolution. Overall, this study supplements current knowledge on frontier cities within the Chinese context and thus helps to improve understanding of the urban theoretical research of government behaviours and the multi-dynamics of urban development.

Semi-Online Learning as a Solution to the Digital Divide in Education in Frontier, Outermost, and Disadvantaged Regions

This research aims to explore semi-online learning practices as a solution to the digital divide in education in the Frontier, Outermost, and Disadvantaged (3T) regions. This research method uses qualitative research conducted at SMK N A Waingapu, East Sumba and SMP B Merauke, Papua. The data collection technique was through interviews and literature studies which were then analyzed using the interactive analysis technique of Miles and Huberman. This research's results indicate that both schools apply a semi-online learning model to support learning amid limited digital access. SMK N A Waingapu chose to implement a finite face-to-face learning system for students with a weak economy, while SMP B Merauke provided problem modules for students to work on at home. The main obstacle to online learning at the two schools is the digital divide. In addition, SMK N A Waingapu East Sumba and SMP B Merauke also implemented internal policies and took steps to maintain the effectiveness of learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. These steps are the implementation of Circular Letter Number 4 of 2020 concerning the Implementation of Education Policies in the Emergency Period for the Spread of Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19).

Geoscience Poster G8: Geomechanical rock properties of the Officer Basin

Poster G8 The Officer Basin spanning South Australia and Western Australia is the focus of a regional stratigraphic study being undertaken as part of the Exploring for the Future (EFTF) program, an Australian Government initiative dedicated to increasing investment in resource exploration in Australia. Despite numerous demonstrated oil and gas shows, the Officer Basin remains a frontier basin for energy exploration with significant uncertainties due to data availability. Under the EFTF Officer–Musgrave Project, Geoscience Australia acquired new geomechanical rock property data from forty core samples in five legacy stratigraphic and petroleum exploration wells that intersected Paleozoic and Neoproterozoic aged intervals. These samples were subjected to unconfined compressive rock strength tests, Brazilian tensile strength tests and laboratory ultrasonic measurements. Petrophysical properties were also characterised via X-ray computerised tomography scanning, grain density and porosity-permeability analysis. Accurate characterisation of static geomechanical rock properties through laboratory testing is essential. In the modern exploration environment, these datasets are a precompetitive resource that can simplify investment decisions in prospective frontier regions such as the Officer Basin. To access the poster click the link on the right. To read the full paper click here

Christie’s House: The Benefits of Mining for Failures in the Nineteenth Century

Using the example of an unbuilt house in San Juan del Norte on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua in 1849, this essay argues for mining for instances of failures in the colonial archives to demonstrate the limits of imperial control in the nineteenth-century frontier and borderland regions of empire. Such studies can be a useful counterpoint to the narrative of imperial success and climax in the global nineteenth century.

Effects of Industrial Structure Adjustment on Pollutants Discharged to the Aquatic Environment in Northwest China.

Northwest China is located along China’s Belt and Road Initiative routes and represents the frontier and core region for China’s construction and development of the Silk Road Economic Belt. In recent years, the conflict between economic development and environmental pollution has become increasingly intense in this region, with the latter mainly caused by disorderly industrialization brought about by rapid urbanization processes. Inappropriate industrial structure is the primary reason for environmental degradation in Northwest China, which has limited precipitation and available water. Due to its fragile aquatic environment and unsustainable use of water resources, the pollution and degradation of the aquatic environment has become a bottleneck that severely restricts the sustainable development of China’s northwest region. In the present study, five provinces or autonomous regions in Northwest China were selected as the study objects. Based on the vector autoregressive (VAR) model, quantitative research methods, such as impulse response function and variance decomposition analysis, were applied to quantify the dynamics between industrial structure adjustment and changes in industrial pollutant discharges to the aquatic environment, so that the impact of industrial structure adjustment on pollutants discharged to the aquatic environment could be quantified and characterized. Therefore, the present study has both theoretical and practical significance. The conclusions are as follows: (1) In general, industrial structure in most provinces in Northwest China imposes a positive effect over the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment. Adjusting industrial structure and reducing the proportion of secondary industry present can to some extent promote reductions in the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment. However, such beneficial effects may vary among different provinces. (2) Specifically, for Gansu, province industrial structure adjustment could help reduce the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment effectively during the early stages, but this positive effect gradually weakens and disappears during the later stages. In Qinghai province, industrial structure adjustment could not help reduce the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment effectively during the early stages, but a positive effect gradually increases and continues to function later. The performance in Shaanxi and Xinjiang provinces was quite similar, with industrial structure adjustment helping to effectively reduce the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment over a long period of time. This positive effect can play a more sustained and stable role. For Ningxia province, industrial structure adjustment can not only help significantly reduce the discharge of pollutants to the aquatic environment but also displays a significant positive effect. (3) Given the specific conditions and characteristics of the region under study, relevant policies for industrial structure adjustment should be formulated and implemented.

Mobilides, Context Costs and Heritage in Tourism and Leisure Realtions on the Border of Central Portugal with Spain

The persistence of borders has been based on the fact that they are crucial for the reproduction of territoriality and of national identity narratives. In this context, and considering the border as a line that separates, divides and controls the existence of areas/territories, it implies that the effects (context costs) disappear with distance, in addition to the emergence of new meanings and dynamics depending on their accessibility, resources held, forms of settlement and economic activities. The Luso-Spanish border is the most stable and, at the same time, the one with the most critical development indexes, due to its penalising demographic evolution, productive disarticulation and differentiated administrative policies. Tourism development is seen as an instrument for the diversification of economies in peripheral and often underdeveloped frontier regions. These areas have, through their history and natural heritage, resources of great value, of which the international rivers, the classified natural areas, the castles and fortresses, the historical villages, the traditions and festivities, the gastronomy and the presence of different cultures stand out in the central Iberian border. Facing this panorama and considering formal and informal relations, cooperating or competing, we try to identify dynamics and forms of cooperation in the construction of a resilience space, in the face of existing constraints and heritage values held, capable of generating new attractions and functions in the oldest European border. Under favourable conditions, these territories contribute to tourism development in the framework of neighbourly relations and interests. In the case of Portugal central border with Spain, it is possible to speak of a porosity that is historical, with the territory(ies) coming together, either through public policies (EU, national, regional and local), or through private investments. The study aims to analyse and systematise the factors of tourism promotion, the political developments and the permeability of the border, in the construction of a tourism and leisure destination.

Geomechanical rock properties of the Officer Basin

The Officer Basin spanning South Australia and Western Australia is the focus of a regional stratigraphic study being undertaken as part of the Exploring for the Future (EFTF) program, an Australian Government initiative dedicated to increasing investment in resource exploration in Australia. Despite numerous demonstrated oil and gas shows, the Officer Basin remains a frontier basin for energy exploration with significant uncertainties due to data availability. Under the EFTF Officer–Musgrave Project, Geoscience Australia acquired new geomechanical rock property data from forty core samples in five legacy stratigraphic and petroleum exploration wells that intersected Paleozoic and Neoproterozoic aged intervals. These samples were subjected to unconfined compressive rock strength tests, Brazilian tensile strength tests and laboratory ultrasonic measurements. Petrophysical properties were also characterised via X-ray computerised tomography scanning, grain density and porosity-permeability analysis. Accurate characterisation of static geomechanical rock properties through laboratory testing is essential. In the modern exploration environment, these datasets are a precompetitive resource that can simplify investment decisions in prospective frontier regions such as the Officer Basin.

Spatiotemporal analysis of deforestation patterns and drivers reveals emergent threats to tropical forest landscapes

As deforestation breaches into new tropical frontiers, proactive conservation strategies require a trifecta of information on where deforestation is accelerating (emergent), how drivers of deforestation vary spatiotemporally, and where to focus limited conservation resources in protecting the most integral yet threatened forested landscapes. Here we introduce Emergent Threat Analysis, a process integrating Emerging Hot Spot Analysis of deforestation, visual classification of deforestation outcomes over time, and spatial quantification of contemporary forest condition. We applied Emergent Threat Analysis to tropical Southeast Asia, a global epicentre of biodiversity threatened by deforestation. We found that emergent hot spots (EHS)—a subset of hot spots characterized by strong, recent, and clustered patterns of deforestation—accounted for 26.1% of total forest loss from 1992 to 2018, with deforestation within EHS proceeding at 2.5 times the regional rate of gross loss. Oil palm and rubber plantation expansion were the principal drivers of deforestation within EHS of insular and mainland SE Asia, respectively. Over the study period, oil palm shifted in importance from Sumatra and Sarawak to Papua and Kalimantan, whereas rubber became prominent in Cambodia and Tanintharyi from 2006 to 2015. As of 2019, more than 170 000 km2 of SE Asia’s remaining forest occurred within EHS, of which 21.7% was protected. High and medium-integrity forest constituted 19.2% and 49.1% of remaining EHS forest, respectively, but of these, 35.0% of high-integrity and 23.9% of medium-integrity EHS forest were protected. Because we anticipate that tree plantation expansion will continue to drive deforestation in SE Asia, significantly heightened protection is needed to secure the long-term preservation of high and medium-integrity forest, especially in highly contested forest frontier regions. Finally, as a flexible, integrated process, Emergent Threat Analysis is applicable to deforestation fronts across the global tropics.

Deep-sea discoveries

Abstract The deep sea holds a fascination for many of us but remains a frontier for discovery, with new species identified during almost every deep-sea expedition. This editorial provides an overview of deep-sea biological exploration, using technological advancement as a framework for summarizing deep-sea discoveries to show their development over time. We also describe some of the many challenges still associated with undertaking research in this remote environment. More qualified people, continued technological advancement and coordinated collaboration are crucial in these frontier regions, where species inventories and ecological understanding are limited. This editorial is the prelude to a selection of 15 recent papers on deep-sea biological discoveries published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.