Occasional Visitors Research Articles

Long-term avifaunal survey in an urban ecosystem from southeastern Brazil, with comments on range extensions, new and disappearing species

Urban avifaunal surveys in Brazil have been increasing in recent years, despite none of them consisting of long-term studies indicating events of regional colonization and/or missing species. Here, we present an avifaunal survey of an urbanized ecosystem in southeastern Brazil, carried out along 30 years, on the campus of the Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, municipality of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state. Inside the campus there is a forest reserve adjacent to a small lake. The inventory was mainly based on opportunistic records from the years 1982-2013. We recorded 134 bird species along the past 30 years. However, the present avifauna is composed of 123 species. A total of 97 species was recorded in the reserve, including the forest fragment and the adjacent lake, of which 44 were exclusive to this area. Nevertheless, the majority of the current species found in the study area is forest independent (N = 51) or semi-dependent (N = 46). There is a predominance of insectivorous (N = 43) and omnivorous (N = 29) species. The current avifauna is represented by 15 migratory species, which can be found both in the urbanized area and in the forest remnant. However, the majority of the species (N = 75) is resident in the area, including three invasive species, whereas few others (N = 28) are occasional visitors. The remaining species were probably introduced in the area. There were 11 cases of disappearing species, which include typical forest birds, and also species typical of wetlands and rural environments. We also comment on recent colonization and on the possible effects of isolation on birds. Probably, the majority of forest-dependents are on the brink of extinction in the forest fragment. Thus, the species' list provided here can be useful as a database for monitoring long-term effects of urbanization on this bird community.

RÍO BEC GRAFFITI: A PRIVATE FORM OF ART

AbstractThis article focuses on graffiti recorded in the micro-region of Río Bec (a 10 × 10 km zone around Group B), an art form well-known but little studied to date. Incised in plastered supports (wall, benches, or doorjambs), graffiti is found on residences of all ranks. A meticulous recording method has enabled us to distinguish two classes: graffiti produced during a building's occupation and those executed post-abandonment. The former were probably made by the residence dwellers themselves, children and adults. Their productions, which can be considered authentic artistic creations, reflected their unequal technical capacities, talents, ages, and inspirations. The subject matter was personal; remarkable individuals or animals, or outstanding collective events as memorialized by individuals. These graffiti emerge as the principal form of individual expression (retrieved by the archaeologist) from Río Bec society. Once the buildings were abandoned and full of rubble, new graffitists (occasional visitors or squatters) decorated the still accessible portions of plastered walls and notably illustrated some specific topics, such as female imagery and fabulous entities perhaps drawn during specific ceremonies. In the region as a whole, where glyphic inscriptions are scarce, graffiti provide a privilegedemicsource for the understanding of Río Bec society.

A User-Centric View of Intelligent Environments: User Expectations, User Experience and User Role in Building Intelligent Environments

Our everyday environments are gradually becoming intelligent, facilitated both by technological development and user activities. Although large-scale intelligent environments are still rare in actual everyday use, they have been studied for quite a long time, and several user studies have been carried out. In this paper, we present a user-centric view of intelligent environments based on published research results and our own experiences from user studies with concepts and prototypes. We analyze user acceptance and users’ expectations that affect users’ willingness to start using intelligent environments and to continue using them. We discuss user experience of interacting with intelligent environments where physical and virtual elements are intertwined. Finally, we touch on the role of users in shaping their own intelligent environments instead of just using ready-made environments. People are not merely “using” the intelligent environments but they live in them, and they experience the environments via embedded services and new interaction tools as well as the physical and social environment. Intelligent environments should provide emotional as well as instrumental value to the people who live in them, and the environments should be trustworthy and controllable both by regular users and occasional visitors. Understanding user expectations and user experience in intelligent environments, and providing users with tools to influence the environments can help to shape the vision of intelligent environments into meaningful, acceptable and appealing service entities for all those who live and act in them.

Residency and behavioural rhythmicity of ballan wrasse (Labrus bergylta) and rays (Raja spp.) captured in Portelet Bay, Jersey: implications for Marine Protected Area design

We monitored the long-term residency of reef-associated ballan wrasse and sand-dwelling rays captured at the site of a potential future Marine Protected Area (MPA: Portelet Bay, Jersey) by implanting them with small transmitters and deploying underwater receivers inside the bay. Individual fish were detected at Portelet Bay for up to 618 days, but there were species-specific differences in residency and detection patterns. Ballan wrasse were year-round residents at the study site where they exhibited distinct, rhythmic, diel, tidal and seasonal patterns of behaviour, whereas rays were occasional visitors to Portelet Bay with no discernible pattern to their visits. Results indicate relatively small MPAs (<0.5 km2) that with suitable habitat could provide effective, long-term protection for ballan wrasse, but would likely be of little conservation benefit for rays. Our findings emphasize the importance of quantifying fish movements when planning MPAs which intend to protect multi-species assemblages of coastal fishes.

Biodiversidad íctica de praderas de pasto marino de la costa noroeste del Golfo de Cariaco, Venezuela

Seagrasses are highly productive coastal ecosystems with a high diversity and abundance of fishes, very important to support artisanal fisheries. We analyzed the fish community structure of Thalassia testudinum in the communities of Manzanillo (M) and La Brea (LB), Northwest coast of Cariaco Gulf, Venezuela. Samples were taken monthly (Nov. 2006-Oct. 2007) from each place, using a beach net. A total of 34 810 fishes were captured, grouped into 13 orders, 36 families and 83 species. In both areas (M and LB), the number of species was similar, but a variation in their abundance was found: a total of 55 species and 13 210 organisms for M, and 58 species and 21 600 organisms for LB. The most abundant species and those with the highest biomasses in both areas were: Nicholsina usta, Haemulon boschmae, H. steindachneri, Harengula jaguana, Halichoeres bivittatus and Hemiramphus brasiliensis. The occasional visitors were the most frequent community components with a 59%, the cyclical and permanent residents were represented by the 22% and 19%, respectively. The H'n average for M was of 1.71+/-0.64bits/ind., while for LB was of 1.95+/-0.51bits/ind. The diversity values were directly related to the evenness and inversely related to the dominance. The low values of similarity indexes among localities allow us to assert that these fish communities are dissimilar, because of the structure of each Thalassia meadow and their connectivity with other systems.

Cattle pond importance in the local conservation of wild birds in the colombian caribbean

Was carried out an inventory of the resident or visitor avifauna associated to an artificial pond or “jaguey” of the Colombian Caribbean coast that is used as cattle water reservation for the dry season and that it is also used as water source of water for its near human communities. The registration of individuals of each species was made during the dry season and at the beginning of the rainy season, using two fixes observation points. In this bird community, 28 species belonging to 15 families were determined, of which as continuous residents (RC) 11 species (39,3%), as regular visitors (VR) 7 species (25%), and as occasional visitors (VO) 10 species (35.7%) were identified; this allows to accept the strategic importance of this type of artificial lagoons in the conservation of the local biodiversity, showing that the agroecosystems can conserve an important part of the biodiversity of its previous natural ecosystem.

Species of Thrips (Thysanoptera) in Avocado Orchards in Nayarit, México

This study was conducted in 3 different counties (Tepic, Xalisco and San Blas) of the avocado growing area of Nayarit. For identification of species, thrips collections were conducted during 2008 using knockdown and net sweeping techniques. A total of 72 species were captured, 10 of which were phytophagous of which the most prevalent was Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis (Bouché) (13.42%); 16 were predaceous of which the most prevalent was Franklinothrips vespiformis (D. L. Crawford) (8.26%) and 46 species (26.83%) were considered occasional visitors. Species registered for the first time in Mexico were as follows: Heterothrips xolismae Hood 1936; H. pubescens Hood 1934; Frankliniella ramirezi Mound & Marullo 1996; F. sandovalensis Retana 1998 and Macrophthalmothrips heinzei Mound 1972.

DYNAMICS OF DUST PARTICLES RELEASED FROM OORT CLOUD COMETS AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO RADAR METEORS

The Oort Cloud Comets (OCCs), exemplified by the Great Comet of 1997 (Hale-Bopp), are occasional visitors from the heatless periphery of the solar system. Previous works hypothesized that a great majority of OCCs must physically disrupt after one or two passages through the inner solar system, where strong thermal gradients can cause phase transitions or volatile pressure buildup. Here we study the fate of small debris particles produced by OCC disruptions to determine whether the imprints of a hypothetical population of OCC meteoroids can be found in the existing meteor radar data. We find that OCC particles with diameters D<10 um are blown out from the solar system by radiation pressure, while those with D>1 um have a very low Earth-impact probability. The intermediate particle sizes, D=100 um, represent a sweet spot. About 1% of these particles orbitally evolve by Poynting-Robertson drag to reach orbits with semimajor axis a=1 AU. They are expected to produce meteors with radiants near the apex of the Earth's orbital motion. We find that the model distributions of their impact speeds and orbits provide a good match to radar observations of apex meteors, except for the eccentricity distribution, which is more skewed toward e=1 in our model. Finally, we propose an explanation for the long-standing problem in meteor science related to the relative strength of apex and helion/antihelion sources. As we show in detail, the observed trend, with the apex meteors being more prominent in observations of highly sensitive radars, can be related to orbital dynamics of particles released on the long-period orbits.

The role of arts festivals in developing and promoting street theatre in South Africa

Street theatre as a performance genre is a relatively new phenomenon in South Africa. The main platform has been arts festivals, although there have been occasional performances at other venues. By their very nature the arts festivals initially drew mostly art lovers who spent a number of days at the festival, attending several productions. The main motivation was intellectual and cultural enrichment, with leisure activities an added part of the experience. Increasingly, arts festivals have been drawing occasional visitors who come primarily to experience the festival spirit and for leisure activities: spending time visiting merchandise stalls, enjoying the food and drink, and attending one or two shows, usually popular music performances, These visitors would fall into the category that McNamara (1987, p. 2) described as a ‘broad, relatively “unsophisticated” audience’ and would be a target audience for street theatre entertainment. Street theatre has by no means yet reached its full potential in this country, but the contribution of arts festivals has gone a long way towards creating an awareness of the genre.

Evaluation of sexual networks as a cause for disparate HIV prevalence between blacks and whites

We read with great interest findings from the second round of the National Behavioral Surveillance System's NHBS among Men Who Have Sex With Men (NHBS-MSM2), which was conducted to better understand disparities in HIV infection between black and white MSM in the United States [1]. Specifically, the aim of this study was to assess several hypotheses about the cause of marked racial disparities among MSM [2], and of particular interest to our group, those related to sexual networks. We raise two major aspects of the described study that require additional consideration: sampling limitations that distort network characterization; and intranetwork mixing patterns as an explanation for the disparities between white and black MSM. A major limitation of analysis presented was the failure to assign weights to participants. In venue-based, time-space sampling, the ‘visit’ is the unit of analysis and not the participant and, thus, weighting of participants is required. MSM who participate in venues more frequently are overrepresented in the sample. This observation is not a new one for NHBS-MSM [3], and the resulting skew could be important to network characterization because there is likely to be wide variation in the number of visits by regular and occasional visitors. When network comparisons are then made between races, we do not know whether we are measuring actual network differences or differences in frequency and type of venue affiliation generated by the sampling methodology used. Another distortion of the sexual network occurs because attribute data are collected only on the last male partner. Such data are limited to specific dyadic subnetworks and, thus, cannot be configured to provide meaningful data to answer hypotheses about black MSM sexual networks. For example, sampling an individual's last male sex partner privileges both recency and men, and it is then inferred that the subnetwork generated is typical of the unobserved MSM network. This is still an empirical question. Further distortions in sex networks would exist if differential casual partnering patterns existed in this specific sample with both male and female partners, and could compound existing differences observed in the sample such as age (blacks were younger) and venue recruitment type (most whites were recruited from bars). To illuminate the networks further, several follow-up questions emerge: are the venue distributions of the analytic subsample similar to that depicted in the sample presented in Table 1 of [1]? Are the index cases evenly distributed across metropolitan areas? Does this subsample of newly infected MSM map to specific venues/regions? Fundamentally, the boundaries of networks analyzed are unclear; and subanalysis of an unobserved larger ‘network’ violates core principles of network analysis [4]. The authors cite our work [5] several times to support the fact that MSM partner according to homophily on race (e.g., blacks with blacks; whites with whites). Indeed, homophilous race partnering was one of the findings; the most significant finding from this work, however, was the measured intranetwork mixing pattern. Disassortative mixing (high-risk with low-risk) was found to be much more common among black compared to white sex networks [5]. Disassortative mixing can be conceptualized as mixing within a core-periphery structure, with, for example, a higher risk core more likely to mix with a lower risk periphery. In the study by Oster et al.[1], the limitations in sampling combined with a unilateral focus on one type of dyadic subnetwork limit any analyses of disassortativity on age, drug-use, incarceration history, sex exchange, concurrency, and HIV status. Interestingly, this last variable, ‘unknown HIV status of last partner’ was found to be significantly associated with black race in bivariate analysis. This variable, however, is a partner attribute, and thus has been misclassified into a category separate from ‘network hypotheses’ in this and previous work [2]. Furthermore, the index client's own HIV status is not included in any of the current analyses and we are unable to observe potentially important network differences in serosorting (mixing by serostatus). Differences in serosorting within networks of black MSM could be an explanation for the disparity in HIV infection observed. In a recent sex network mixing analysis of 352 black MSM [6], using standard assortativity measures [7], we found that mixing by HIV serostatus was highly assortative; yet this finding is contingent upon perceptions of partners’ HIV status and one's own HIV status. The increased likelihood of disassortative mixing in black communities could magnify any ‘error’ in serosorting resulting in lower serosorting efficacy. Serosorting efficacy would be contingent upon each individual in the network knowing the HIV status of a partnered other and acting on that information, an important area of future network research. Acknowledgements Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.

Reproductive biology of Bowdichia virgilioides Kunth (Fabaceae)

The aim of this study was to investigate the reproductive biology of Bowdichia virgilioides in an area of Cerrado (Brazilian Savanna). The study was carried out in Chapadinha, State of Maranhao in northeastern Brazil. Bowdichia virgilioides has cornucopia flowering and annual pattern. Flowering occurred at the beginning of the dry season, between June and August; and fruiting in the middle of this season, between July and October. The anthesis of B. virgilioides is diurnal, and the main flower resource is the nectar. During the flower opening, the anthers becomes dehiscent and thus pollen grains are deposited at the stigma, promoting automatic self-pollination. The species is self-compatible and apomitic. In the study area, they were visited by nine species of bees, four butterflies, two wasps, and two hummingbirds. The visits began in early morning and persisted throughout the day, with a peak of activity between 8:00 and 9:00 hours. Species of Centris were the main visitors of B. virgilioides . The butterfly and wasp species were considered resource robbers, and other floral visitors were considered occasional visitors. Although the flowers of B. virgilioides are widely visited, the species shows a high rate of inbreeding because of automatic self-pollination.

The American College of Tehran, 1929–32: A Memorial Album

This essay introduces a previously unpublished memorial album of the American College of Tehran compiled by a former student during the early Pahlavi period. The album contains a wide range of contributions by College faculty, associates, occasional visitors as well as fellow students and encompasses material on national history, ethics, sports, military service, mathematics and poetry, as well as numerous pencil drawings and art work. In addition there is a wide range of photographs of the College, its faculty and staff, its diverse student body, classrooms, athletics, special occasions and outdoor activities (a list of the album's contents and samples of contributions and photographs are appended to the essay). As discussed in the essay, and in manifold ways, the documentary evidence illustrates how both physically and cognitively the College provided a necessary space for participation in educational reform during the early decades of the twentieth century. Seen from this perspective, it was part of a wider context of modernization with which a broad range of individuals from different social and community backgrounds and generations identified themselves. On the whole, the album offers valuable glimpses into the social and educational aspects of the early Pahlavi Iran.

Frequent Visits to a French Psychiatric Emergency Service: Diagnostic Variability in Psychotic Disorders

Objective: This study examined characteristics of frequent visitors to a psychiatric emergency service in a French public teaching hospital over six years. Diagnostic variability of psychotic disorders was documented. Methods: A retrospective review of the service's administrative and medical databases identified 1,285 patients with more than one visit during the period who were given at least one diagnosis of a psychotic disorder. A total of 317 patients with six or more visits (frequent visitors) were compared with 968 patients with between two and five visits (occasional visitors). Results: Frequent visitors were significantly more likely to be single and homeless and to have diagnostic variability, substance use disorders, and personality disorders. A total of 177 patients experienced diagnostic variability, which was found mainly in three diagnostic categories: schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder with psychotic features. Conclusions: Future studies should further examine the link between increased use of emergency services and diagnostic variability. (Psychiatric Services 62:966–970, 2011)

Frequent Visits to a French Psychiatric Emergency Service: Diagnostic Variability in Psychotic Disorders

This study examined characteristics of frequent visitors to a psychiatric emergency service in a French public teaching hospital over six years. Diagnostic variability of psychotic disorders was documented. A retrospective review of the service's administrative and medical databases identified 1,285 patients with more than one visit during the period who were given at least one diagnosis of a psychotic disorder. A total of 317 patients with six or more visits (frequent visitors) were compared with 968 patients with between two and five visits (occasional visitors). Frequent visitors were significantly more likely to be single and homeless and to have diagnostic variability, substance use disorders, and personality disorders. A total of 177 patients experienced diagnostic variability, which was found mainly in three diagnostic categories: schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder with psychotic features. Future studies should further examine the link between increased use of emergency services and diagnostic variability.

Pollination biology of Oreocereus celsianus (Cactaceae), a columnar cactus inhabiting the high subtropical Andes

The geographical dichotomy hypothesis suggests that columnar cacti in the tropics depend primarily on bats for pollination. This dependence may to be less in the outer tropics where many columnar cactus species (or their populations) show a relatively generalized pollination system with both nocturnal (moths and bats) and diurnal pollinators (bees and hummingbirds) (geographical dichotomy hypothesis). This hypothesis has been mostly tested in the northern tropics; nonetheless, our knowledge of columnar cactus species inhabiting the southern tropics is still scarce. The aim of this project was to evaluate the pollination biology of Oreocereus celsianus, a columnar cactus with restricted distribution in the subtropical Andes, to determine if the pollination system of this cactus tends to be more generalized than specialized because of the geographical position where it occurs. Observations of frequency of visit showed that Patagona gigas (Giant Hummingbird) is the main pollinator of the flowers, visiting them when they are opening (afternoon of the first day). Bees, wasps and moths were occasional visitors of the flowers. None of them seem to act as pollinator. Autogamy, geitonogamy and xenogamy treatments produced high fruit set, showing that O. celsianus has an unusual mixed mating system. The results suggest that this Andean columnar cactus is partially specialized on hummingbirds, with most pollination service performed by a single species, and it has the capacity of selfing (‘fail-safe’ pollination system). This mixed mating system (both outcrossing and selfing) may be a response to the unpredictable environment of the Prepuna in the subtropical Andes.

Tiling in My Music

Rhythmic canons and other one-dimensional tiling techniques dominated my composing for two or three years, and a number of instrumental pieces, both solo and ensemble, evolved during this time. With numerous examples, I have put together a little survey of different ways in which I have done this, often leaving holes and using other procedures not normally considered correct. It must have been 1999 when Moreno Andreatta gave me a copy of Dan Tudor Vuza’s landmark essay Supplementary Sets and Regular Complementary Unending Canons (Perspectives of New Music, 1991-92), because already in 2000 its influence on me became clear with a Canon in 3, 6 or 9 voices, written for an installation of Martin Riches in Berlin. When the MaMuX meetings at IRCAM began in 2001, I was able to hear regularly the mathematical music theories of Guerino Mazzola, Thomas Noll, Emmanuel Amiot, Franck Jedrzejewski and Harald Fripertinger, as well as Andreatta himself and many occasional visitors, and this information stimulated me more and more. My composing time during the year 2002 was devoted almost exclusively to fitting together little rhythmic tiles, and early in 2003 I brought out the edition Tiilework : 14 Pieces for 14 Solo Instruments. Later that year I wrote Tilework for String Quartet, and Tilework for Piano, though by the end of that year my concentration was already turning more toward combinatorial designs, which is quite a different topic. I recently reread the Vuza essay, and it seems all the more clear to me that this text has been important for all the mathematicians and music theorists cited above, not to mention for Jon Wild and other North American music theorists, and for quite a few composers. I now consider this work the most important music theory treatise of the last 20 years, particularly since it is one of those rare cases where music theory has preceded musical practice. Harmony and counterpoint books, essays on serial techniques, manuals for figured bass, and music analysis texts have generally dealt exclusively with musical procedures already practiced by composers. Only in rare cases like Vuza, Leonhard Euler, and Hugo Riemann have theorists preceded composers, though Henry Cowell’s 1930 book New Musical Resources should also be mentioned. This highly original text never circulated much in Europe, but it was widely read in the U.S. The author never followed up on these theories much in his own music, but John Cage and Conlon Nancarrow both sited this as a seminal influence on their music, and younger American composers such as Kyle Gann, Larry Polanskyn, David First, and John Luther Adams also acknowledge the

Diversity, structure and function of fish assemblages associated with Posidonia oceanica beds in an area of the eastern Mediterranean Sea and the role of non‐indigenous species

Temporal and spatial variation in density, biomass and body size of littoral fish species associated with nearshore Posidonia oceanica meadows was studied over an annual cycle in an area of the eastern Mediterranean Sea. A total of 109,350 littoral fishes were collected, belonging to 34 families and 88 species. Density of fishes peaked during the summer due to high numbers of juveniles. Season was a significant factor determining density, although number of species and biomass did not show any obvious seasonal pattern. Throughout the study, schooling planktivorous fish species such as the picarel Spicara smaris, the bogue Boops boops and the damselfish Chromis chromis were dominant, both in terms of density (80%) and biomass (70%). Temporal variation in density and body size of fishes was used to assess the seasonal and ontogenetic habitat use of each species, with their affinity to seagrass assessed by comparing their respective distribution on sand. Four functional guilds were created (juvenile migrants, seagrass residents, seasonal migrants and occasional visitors) to describe the habitat use of P. oceanica meadows by each species. Several species associated with P. oceanica meadows used this habitat mainly as juveniles during summer, although many others were present concurrently as adults and as juveniles. Among the species encountered, 11 were non-indigenous of Indo-Pacific origin, of which three used seagrasses mainly as juveniles and four as residents. The non-indigenous silverstripe blaasop Lagocephalus sceleratus ranked among the 10 most dominant species in terms of biomass (2%) and was classified as a seagrass resident.

Canadian Churches: An Architectural History (review)

Reviewed by: Canadian Churches: An Architectural History Jane Irwin (bio) Peter Richardson and Douglas Richardson, editors. Canadian Churches: An Architectural History. Photographs by John de Visser. Firefly. 2007. 440. $85.00 Canadian Churches is a substantial visual feast, with more than four hundred full-colour illustrations, printed on high-quality stock, in a generous page size. Most of the photographs are by John de Visser, whose atmospheric images of historical architecture and landscapes have illustrated dozens of books since Harold Kalman's Pioneer Churches, published in 1976. The superb production values achieved thirty years later are best shown by comparing several images that appear in both books (one inexplicably reversed). Evident throughout is the artistry of the designer, Bob Wilcox, whose creative alterations enhance the context: for example, when the title-page image of the Old Order Meetinghouse in St Jacobs, Ontario, originally appeared in print, the patient horses and black-upholstered buggies were cropped out. Church interiors offer splendid surprises: capacious vistas, especially in the Quebec section, compete for our admiration. The photographer's eye sees beautiful proportions in every interior, even those as contrary as the Children of Peace Temple, Sharon, and the Jarvis Street Baptist Church, Toronto. De Visser's afterword expresses his gratitude 'to everyone along the way who graciously opened doors and turned on the lights.' Visiting churches to which one does not belong is, unfortunately, too often restricted to weddings, funerals, or annual Doors Open days. (Such occasional visitors should generously contribute to the building maintenance fund.) Churches are designed to be welcoming spaces; even non-members are meant to sense the Psalmist's feeling: 'I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.' The initial attraction to the photographs is enriched by a comprehensive text by Peter and Douglas Richardson. Some forty sections are grouped geographically: Atlantic, Quebec, Ontario, and West and North. The authors, who refer to themselves as 'two academics,' are professors emeriti of the University of Toronto, in the departments of Religion and Fine Art, respectively. Their text is packed with documentation and expertise acquired over decades of study and shared with many generations of students. Canadian Churches is a grand lecture course, absent only the lecturer's laser pointer, for off-campus readers. At times, broader cultural and spiritual insights are wanting. Sainte-Marie among the Hurons, Midland - surely a place of martyrdom defined by its spiritual essence - is introduced with shocking words: 'The [End Page 466] routine torture of enemies.' It should be noted that the Richardsons' churches are Christian denominations only. Unlike Marian MacRae's history of the ecclesiastical architecture of early Ontario, Hallowed Walls (1975), which included pre-European-contact Amerindian structures, First Nations faiths are represented here by mission churches. Jews are excluded, except where their buildings are shared with or adapted by Christian congregations. An odd reference to 'visible minority groups' reflects the omission of places of worship built in recent decades by non-Christians who, like all immigrants, have brought with them their religious traditions. Not so long ago, Protestants seldom entered Catholic churches, and vice versa. How valuable it would be for people of all faiths to see the interiors of synagogues, temples, and mosques of great world religions, here in Canada. Modernism is well represented, although the proposed link between Quebec modernist churches and the anti-Catholic manifesto 'Refus globale' of Paul-Emile Borduas is tenuous. It must also be doubted that parishioners of Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste in Nicolet, Quebec, share the opinion of an unnamed guidebook that their church is 'frightening in its modernity.' This history concludes with a brief prospect of future changes in 'Canadian Christianity.' Canada's churches of all ages are endangered structures. Many have been demolished as their congregations grew too large to fit them comfortably, or too small to maintain them. Five of the 250 churches featured in this book are said to have been lost since its publication. Within its chosen limits, this is a magnificent compendium, which achieves its grand ambition to introduce a wide variety of churches across the country 'to people with little knowledge of theology as well as to committed...

When the planet rages: natural disasters, global warming, and the future of the Earth

PART ONE - NATURE'S EFFECT ON MANKIND 1. The Earth is Still Hot and Mobile 2. ...And from Time to Time Its Surface Moves Around 3. There Have Been Frequent Flooding and Sea-Level Change Events on Earth 4. ...And Occasional Visitors from Outer Space PART TWO - CHANGES IN CLIMATE AND LIFE ON EARTH 5. The Earth's Climate Changes on a Variety of Time Scales 6. ...And on Rare Occasions There Are Changes in Its Community of Living Things PART THREE - MAN'S EFFECT ON NATURE 7. Then Along Came Man and Man Has Effected Vast Environmental Changes on a Local and Regional Scale 8. ...With the Potential for Equally Great Changes on a Global Scale 9. The Most Fundamental Question Facing Mankind Today is Whether Man Can Evolve to Live in Harmony with Nature

Le deversorium dans les villae occidentales tardives: éléments pour une identification archéologique

Since the early XXth century it is globally admitted that the aristocratic Roman house offered lodgings for guests and occasional visitors. But practical questions remain when we attempt to precise the archaeological identification of those quarters. This article is aimed to provide criteria fit for pinpointing guests’ lodgings, through the combination of ancient texts and archaeological sources. The analysis of the texts, from Vitruvius to Isidore of Seville, allows understanding that the guests’ quarters are a very old housing concept, already known as domunculae or hospitalia during the Ist century BC. It also shows that in late Antiquity those structures, now called deversoria and strictly reserved for aristocratic guests, unlike the hospitalia, seemed to be a central part of the autorepresentative architectural apparatus. The ancient texts also provide helpful indications, once combined together, for delineating the shapes of the guests’ apartment and its position within the house. Beside elements of definition inferred from the texts, this paper proposes a method for the archaeological identification of the guests’ quarters among the spaces of the aristocratic residence. This method, based on 4 techniques, gave the opportunity to isolate 31 deversoria in 28 residences mainly throughout the dioceses of Spain, Britain and Gaul, from the Ist to the VIIth centuries p.C. Thanks to these structures it has been eventually possible to propose a threefold typology for the deversorium. A first level refers to its shape, which could be “simple”, “multiple” or “occasional”. A second level of that typology, also drawn from field observations, proposes to specify the position of the deversorium within the entire building. Here, the three starting types are declined in six new types, which can be “isolated” or “inserted” in the house. The third and last level, inspired by Vitruvius’ explanations, concerns only the “inserted deversorium” and makes a difference between a lodging related to the œcus and another equipped with a proper access. Far from any dogmatism, this work does not intend to be definitive, but pretends only to trigger reactions and to foster the interest of archaeologists for the deversorium, as the study of this structure seems crucial to the understanding of the practical and social functioning of the late roman aristocratic house.