Typological Characterization Research Articles

Knives of the Petrovka Culture in the Southern Trans-Urals: morphological and typological characteristics

The paper reports morphological and typological characteristics of knives of the Petrovka Culture in the Southern Trans-Urals and Middle Tobol River region (the Early Alakul period, as defined by N.V. Vinogradov). According to the 14С dates (36 dates in total, half them are AMS dates), the chronological period of the Petrovka sites in the Southern Trans-Urals spans the 19th through 18th centuries BC. The inventory metal complexes of the Late Bronze Age cultures between the Don and Ishim Rivers, despite the large territory, have many common types of tools. This is particularly noticeable when comparing the largest category of the tools — the knives (49 specimens). Differentiation of the tools by type was based on the methodology of typological attribution of the inventory taking into account the presence or absence of particular qualitative characteristics and their combina-tion — analysis of the handle decoration, presence of a bolster, knife tang, shape of the transition from the blade to the tang, and shape and cross-section of the blade. Alongside the morphological and typological characteriza-tion of the knives, mapping the tools finds and was also carried out with the search for analogues in neighboring cultures. The most effective results have been obtained by mapping of tools with rhombic tangs, crosshair and interception, which are most numerous (147 specimens). We have identified three types of the knives with promi-nent massive handle, knives with forged sleeve and seven types of the tools with tangs. The identified types of the Petrovka Culture of the Southern Trans-Urals are more or less characteristic of the family of related cultures of the Eurasian forest-steppe and steppe belt — Abashevo, Sintashta, Petrovka, Early Srubnaya, and sites of the Potapovka and Pokrovka types. On the basis of the statistical data, there have been identified the types of the knives with a massive handle, as well as those with a forged sleeve, which are predominantly associated with the metalwork centers of the Petrovka Culture. We have unraveled the particular significance of the knives with rhombic tangs, crosshair and interception in the ritual practices of the entire circle of the cultures from the forest-steppe and steppe belt, apparently related to the special social status of the buried individuals. Prototypes of most forms of knives with tangs have been found in the stereotypes of the objects from the production centers of the Circumpontian Metallurgical Province. The common momentum for the genesis of the forest-steppe and steppe cultures, originating from the Middle Bronze Age cultures of the Eastern Europe and Ural, explains the common morphology of the knives for the family of the related cultures of the first phase of the Eurasian Metallurgical Pro-vince with a variety of forms and in contrast to the uniform shape of the knives of the Srubnaya and Alakul types of the second phase of the Eurasian Province.

What typological appelation is suitable for Tito's Yugoslavia: Response to Mihaljević and Miljan

The main aim of the paper is to expose the counterfactual, scientifically unfounded and unscholarly statements by Mihaljević and Miljan in the paper “Was Tito’s Yugoslavia not Totalitarian?” We needed to treat the issues of (1) totalitarianism as a scholarly concept and a social construct, (2) the typological characterization of Tito’s Yugoslavia, where there is substantial agreement among scholars that consociation fits it; (3) the organization of security services in Yugoslavia of the period, (4) the role of the republics in conducting foreign policy, which increased steadily; (5) monetary policy and seigniorage which came about, of which our critics were completely unaware, (6) the issue of the political system’s dynamics (there were very substantial changes in the period 1945-1991) and (7) the issue of the political system’s legitimacy. We also noted a number of minor mistakes, errors, and omissions by the authors at issue. A general failure by the authors to achieve scientific objectivity and to master the notions necessary for analysis is found.

What Makes a Partner Ideal, and for Whom? Compatibility Tests, Filter Tests, and the Mating Stability Matrix.

We introduce a typological characterization of possible human heterosexual couples in terms of the concordance-opposition of the orientations of their active and receptive areas as defined by the tie-up theory. We show that human mating incentives, as characterized by widely adopted approaches, such as Becker’s marriage market approach, only capture very specific instances of actual couples thus characterized. Our approach allows us to instead explore how super-cooperation among partners vs. convenience vs. constriction may be regarded as alternatives modes of couple formation and cohesion, leading to very different types of couples with different implications in terms of stability and resilience. Our results may have interesting implications for future experimental research and for individual and family counseling.

Induced Seismic-Site Effects on the Vulnerability Assessment of a Historical Centre in the Molise Region of Italy: Analysis Method and Real Behaviour Calibration Based on 2002 Earthquake

The present research aims to estimate the influence of site amplification on the seismic vulnerability of the historical centre of the municipality of Baranello in the Molise Region of Italy. Firstly, a structural and typological characterization of the investigated area has been done according to the EMS-98 scale. Subsequently, the vulnerability assessment of the historical buildings located there has been carried out through an appropriate survey form in order to identify the buildings which are most susceptible to seismic damage. To this purpose, the seismic event occurring in October of 2002 has been selected as a reference earthquake. Moreover, according to the AeDES form implemented by the Italian Civil Protection Department to evaluate the usability of constructions after seismic events, the calibration of the typological vulnerability curves of the built-up area has been done, and a quantitative assessment of the local seismic response has been achieved, based on the seismic motions recorded after the 2002 Molise earthquake. Finally, the local amplification factor, which negatively influences the severity of the seismic damage on the structures, has been taken into account in order to more correctly foresee the expected damage of the inspected urban sector, so as to use more appropriately the achieved results for reliable seismic risk mitigation plans.

Causes of Hass Avocado Fruit Rejection in Preharvest, Harvest, and Packinghouse: Economic Losses and Associated Variables

The areas planted with avocado in Colombia have increased to position this fruit in international markets. To achieve this goal, the offered fruits need to meet optimal production standards. The aim of this study was to identify the main physiopathologies and damages that may cause the rejection of avocado cv. Hass fruits for export purposes during pre-harvest, harvest, and processing in packinghouses, and quantify the economic impact of said exclusion criteria. Typological characterization and quantification of damages that may cause fruit rejection were performed at the laboratory, field, and packinghouses. Data were obtained from 136 Colombian productive plots with monitoring and data collection records for a minimum of five years. At the packinghouse level, data associated with factors that affect quality (both, those identified at packing plants and those detected in simulated shipments) were considered. The main causes of fruit rejection during pre-harvest and harvest were: low calibers, damage to the epidermis by insect pests from the subfamily Melolonthidae, thrips, mites, the bug Monalonion, overripe fruits, and sunburn damage. In addition, pathologies such as anthracnose and stem end rot, and problems associated with browning of vascular bundles, irregular ripening, chilling injury, and lenticel damage were highly limiting at packinghouses. The economic analysis identified losses of 5.78 and 5.68% in farms and packinghouses, respectively, which are equivalent to US dollar (USD) 80.29 per produced ton. This work generated information that allows prioritizing strategies to improve fruit quality and reduce economic impact.

A typological characterization of dairy farming system towards economic sustainable farm in West Java (Indonesia)

Small scale farms play an important role in Indonesia. However, shortage of capital become the main challenge for small farms. To foster the economically sustainable farms, the diversity and the characteristic of dairy farms should be understood. This study identified farmers’ types by using typology approach based on the capital as active variables. The data were obtained from interview with experts, direct observation, formal survey to 353 farmers, and recording from the public authorities and the milk cooperatives. We performed MFA, HCA, desciptive as well as comparative analysis. The indicator of economic sustainability was chosen through in-depth interview with experts and the scoring was created. Results showed that there were five farmers’ types and farmers type 5 was the most economically sustainable type. In other words, specialized farms with higher level of capital and more productive worker were able to generate more family income and might be more sustainable economically. The study underlined the importance of typology approach to understand the diversity and the characteristic of farming system. It was also useful to identify in what condition dairy farm is economically sustainable. To have more economically sustainable farm, strategy in increasing farm capital and productive worker should be done.

A Typological Characterization of Organic Livestock Farms in the Natural Park Sierra de Grazalema Based on Technical and Economic Variables

This paper describes the typological characterization of the Natural Park Sierra de Grazalema (NPSG) livestock farms using its communal pastures (N = 23, 100% of population) in order to study their sustainability from 160 technical, economic and social variables (from direct on-farm data collection). A principal components analysis (PCA) produced four principal components related to size, livestock species, main productions and intensification level, explaining 73.6% of the variance. The subsequent cluster analysis classified the farms into four groups: C1 (medium size farms without sheep), C2 (large size and very extensive farms), C3 (farms with multipurpose sheep) and C4 (farms with dairy goat and without cattle). Forty-eight-point-seven percent of the surface was registered as organic but none of the farms’ commercialized products were organic. C2 and C3 (both having three ruminant species) are those farms that have more economic differences, the former generating the lowest profit, and the latter generating the highest; however, there is a risk to grasslands conservation from the current tendency that leads dairy farms to rapid intensification. Nevertheless, the very extensive farms are the most interesting for NPSG conservation and the administration should help to maintain the profitability of this sustainable traditional activity, which is necessary to conserve communal pastures.

Clasificación y preservación de la arquitectura colonial habitacional en el centro histórico: caso de Camaguey, Cuba

El conocimiento de los centros históricos sólo es posible tras un estudio sistemático e interdisciplinario capaz de explicar, en el devenir histórico, los cambios y transformaciones del espacio físico en relación con las coordenadas económicas, políticas, sociales y culturales en las que vivieron, y viven, sus moradores. El método presentado constituye el desarrollo de una investigación que culminó con la caracterización tipológica del repertorio habitacional colonial camagüeyano. Se estructura mediante fases sustentadas sobre el método general del conocimiento científico. Dichas fases permiten combinar los procedimientos tradicionales de investigación con el dinamismo y la confiabilidad de la automatización. La primera fase (manual) constituye la base metodológica en la que se determina la periodización general, la muestra inicial y los indicadores de trabajo derivados de esta. La segunda fase (automatizada) posibilita ampliar, procesar estadísticamente y extender el experimento en todas las zonas del centro histórico. El resultado garantiza una alta precisión sobre el comportamiento de la tipología habitacional camagüeyana durante todo el periodo colonial.

Intervened URM buildings with RC elements: typological characterisation and associated challenges

The past reconstruction processes that took place after important earthquakes, and the development and progressive use of reinforced concrete (RC) since the beginning of the twentieth century, led to the creation of a mixed unreinforced masonry–reinforced concrete typology, hereinafter designated as URM–RC. The implementation of such practices, mainly in retrofitting interventions of existing unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings, has been spread all over the world, especially due to numerous vague recommendations given in certain building codes. However, over the years, these derived mixed URM–RC buildings revealed to be extremely vulnerable to seismic loads, and their inherent complex structural behaviour is still understudied. Only in recent years researchers have started to turn their attention to the seismic vulnerability of these structures, by studying and observing their particular damage patterns, mechanisms and interaction effects from coupling RC structural elements to URM loadbearing walls. Moreover, the beneficial nature of structural interventions with RC on URM buildings located in seismically prone regions is still a contentious issue for most of the research community. In this context, the present paper represents a stepping stone for the thorough understanding of the existing derived mixed URM–RC building typologies. A comprehensive cataloguing and categorization of the different intervention typologies is presented in order to support a more reliable assessment of their seismic vulnerability in future studies, as well as to design proper strengthening interventions so as to avoid future disasters. Furthermore, a comprehensive array of open issues is given in a section dedicated to the associated challenges.

Typological Characterisation of Mineral and Combustion Airborne Particles Indoors in Primary Schools

This study was carried out using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis of airborne fine particles and indoor samples, obtained in the interiors of seven primary schools located along the Mediterranean coast in an area with an important industrial nucleus. The objectives of this study are to create a catalogue that gathers the principle particles found in the three environments examined and to assess the influence of outside sources of particulate matter on particles found indoors. The particles identified in the fine particle samples have been grouped into two main groups: mineral compounds and particles originating from combustion processes. The mineral particles emanating from natural emissions and anthropogenics were classified according to their morphology into: isometric alotriomorphs or subidiomorphs, with tabular, acicular, and pure crystalline forms. The compounds originating from combustion processes present two types of morphology: spheric-like particles and dendritic soot ones. On the other hand, in lesser proportion, spherical particles were also identified as being associated with industrial processes at high temperatures. To conclude a summary table is presented, that gathers the characteristics (morphology, type and size) along with the origins of the principle particles identified in the interior airborne fine particle samples obtained from primary schools located in three different environments.

Obsidian from the Bronze Age Village of San Vincenzo, Stromboli, Aeolian Islands: A Preliminary Investigation

Abstract We present the preliminary results of the ongoing investigation of the obsidian from the Bronze Age village of San Vincenzo, Stromboli, Aeolian Islands, for the purpose of providing technological and typological characterization, and also provenance of the raw material, the latter with non-destructive p-XRF. Regarding provenance, the source of the raw material is likely to be neighbouring Lipari. It was transported to Stromboli and used mostly in a highly opportunistic manner and for the production of blade(let), non-bladelike tools (mainly scrapers) and micro bladelets. The obsidian distribution around the site shows concentration in both domestic and production areas.

Typological characterisation and territorial distribution of traditional rural buildings in the Apulian territory (Italy)

Abstract This paper is aimed at analysing the rural building heritage present in the region of Apulia in Southern Italy, focusing on the constructions that can be defined minor in terms of size and functions unlike the best known masserie, large multi – functional vernacular farmhouses. A list was preliminarily drawn-up that contains typological macro categories of both residential and operating type buildings, which is able to represent the varied Apulian rural building heritage. Each of the groups defined in this manner was examined by outlining the building and functional characteristics of each category. The numeric and distributional assessment of the rural constructions present in the Apulian territory was subsequently carried out, based on the Military Geographic Institute (IGM) cartography – scale ratio 1:25,000 – that is the most effective historical information source in the national and regional context. The comparison between construction typologies and territorial areas has shown a clear correlation between forms, functions and characteristics of the territorial context. Research aim The work aims to deepen the knowledge of rural historical buildings of Apulia region in Italy since most of the studies and official sources have been mainly focusing on large building structures called masserie and substantially ignore the minor rural buildings. The work develops a methodology suitable to acknowledge the different types of the historical rural constructions widespread in the Apulian landscape for a better and effective census. The results showed a close relationship between typological variability and the territory.

Mechanical and Typological Characterization of Traditional Stone Masonry Walls in Old Urban Centres: A Case Study in Viseu, Portugal

Essential for any intervention in existing buildings, a thorough knowledge of both structural and material characteristics is even more important in the case of traditional stone masonry buildings, due both to the variability of this technology’s properties and the degradation buildings might have sustained. In Portugal, a number of in situ and laboratory experimental campaigns has allowed us in recent years to expand the knowledge on the mechanical properties of stone masonry walls. Nevertheless, the existence of different wall typologies built with the same material necessitates that this characterization takes into account the various regional constructive cultures. This paper presents the results obtained through an in-situ characterization campaign carried out in the old urban center of Viseu, for which there is no information available in the literature. Granite stone masonry walls of two different buildings were analyzed and characterized considering their geometrical and material features, contributing to the identification of stone masonry typologies present in the city’s old urban center. Flat-jack testing yielded resistance and deformability parameters to be used both in safety evaluation and intervention design. The properties obtained can be said to be consistent with those deriving from other experimental campaigns, conducted in granite walls of different typologies, throughout the country. Simultaneously, relevant conclusions about the use of flat-jacks to characterize this type of stone masonry were drawn.

Heroic narratives of intentional non-compliance with PRME

PurposeThe governing bodies responsible for drafting and promoting the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) apparently envisioned a completely voluntary initiative without concern for accountability. Public concern and commentary led to the addition of a reporting requirement in 2010. Two years later, program administrators began to update statuses. As of January 2016, PRME listed 636 signatories on their website. Because the reporting requirement took effect, approximately 86 schools have broken their commitment to comply with the PRME standards. Some schools were de-listed for inaction, whereas others actively left the program. This study aims to understand those who intentionally chose not to comply with PRME.Design/methodology/approachThis study utilized a heroic quest typology to analyze and understand the behavior of institutions that intentionally chose not to comply with PRME. Narrative analysis of these concluded quests included strategic plans, research summaries, course syllabi and descriptions, press releases, PRME Sharing Information on Progress reports, UNGC letters of commitment, Communication on Progress reports, and internal informants.FindingsOut of the 15 entities, 4 exhibited dual or quasi-heroic quests. Their experiences offered two viable and practical alternatives for institutions seeking to transcend the business ethics industry limitations of the PRME initiative.Research limitations/implicationsThe narrative analysis of this study encompassed a sufficiently large amount of data for confidence in the typological characterization of each institution’s heroic quest. Additional insights from informants would no doubt strengthen the analysis.Practical implicationsThe existence of the business ethics industry casts doubt on the ability of business schools and their accreditors to offer substantive change to create a genuine form of responsible management education. This study concludes with two alternative paths taken by schools attempting to escape the narrative of irresponsible management.Originality/valueThe PRME publicly lists signatories in non-compliance. While most of these result from passive inaction, a small number of institutions intentionally choose to leave the PRME. No research has been done to understand these intriguing cases and the heroic quest typology is a unique application in narrative analysis.

Characterization of URM buildings and evaluation of damages in a historical center for the seismic risk mitigation and emergency management

Recent Italian earthquakes have been highlighted the role of the historical centers and their high vulnerability. To define effective mitigation strategies, the historical environments must be accurately investigated. The first and fundamental step is an assessment based on the knowledge of dimensional characteristics, construction techniques and materials. The seismic vulnerability evaluation depends on the quality and completeness of information available for the buildings under examination. In this paper, the characterization of an historical center and its buildings has been treated considering a new approach and existing common techniques for assessment of buildings' dimensional characteristics. Using GIS, data collected on the investigated historical center has been analyzed to obtain the typological characterization of the surveyed buildings in order to evaluate the seismic vulnerability, urban resilience, and recovery strategies for historical center. Based on comparison with an existing classical procedure, the approach seems also very promising in order to carry out a first evaluation of post seismic damage.

Development of a spatial sampling protocol using GIS to measure health disparities in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, a medium-sized African city

BackgroundMany cities in developing countries experience an unplanned and rapid growth. Several studies have shown that the irregular urbanization and equipment of cities produce different health risks and uneven exposure to specific diseases. Consequently, health surveys within cities should be carried out at the micro-local scale and sampling methods should try to capture this urban diversity.MethodsThis article describes the methodology used to develop a multi-stage sampling protocol to select a population for a demographic survey that investigates health disparities in the medium-sized city of Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. It is based on the characterization of Bobo-Dioulasso city typology by taking into account the city heterogeneity, as determined by analysis of the built environment and of the distribution of urban infrastructures, such as healthcare structures or even water fountains, by photo-interpretation of aerial photographs and satellite images. Principal component analysis and hierarchical ascendant classification were then used to generate the city typology.ResultsFive groups of spaces with specific profiles were identified according to a set of variables which could be considered as proxy indicators of health status. Within these five groups, four sub-spaces were randomly selected for the study. We were then able to survey 1045 households in all the selected sub-spaces. The pertinence of this approach is discussed regarding to classical sampling as random walk method for example.ConclusionThis urban space typology allowed to select a population living in areas representative of the uneven urbanization process, and to characterize its health status in regards to several indicators (nutritional status, communicable and non-communicable diseases, and anaemia). Although this method should be validated and compared with more established methods, it appears as an alternative in developing countries where geographic and population data are scarce.

New insights on Late Bronze Age Cu-metallurgy from Coles de Samuel hoard (Central Portugal): A combined multi-analytical approach

The hoard from Coles de Samuel is one of the largest Cu-based metal collections from the Late Bronze Age (LBA) (13th–8th centuries BC) ever found in Central Portugal, consisting of 18 artefacts which typologically display a strong regional identity. In the present study, an integrated multi-analytical approach combining Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) analysis, Optical Microscopy (OM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) has been used to characterise the artefacts both from a chemical and microstructural point of view with the aim to unravel their elemental composition and technological features.Results show that all artefacts are made of binary bronze (Cu-Sn) alloys, with a Sn content in the range of 8.7±0.9 and 13.0±1.0wt%, with minor elements (Pb, As and Fe) never exceeding 1.1wt% in total. The microstructure of the vast majority of the metal objects (13 out of 18) shows the presence of equiaxial α-copper grains with annealing twins and slip bands suggesting that, in the manufacturing process, they were subjected to forging plus annealing cycles. The remains of the objects present an as-cast microstructure constituted by dendritic structures, suggesting that metals did not suffer any thermo-mechanical operation after being removed from the mould. Pb, Ag and Au-rich globules together with Cu–S and unalloyed Cu-inclusions have been observed as well, resulting from impurities from ores.The typological characterisation of these metals and their archaeometallurgical data are consistent with an indigenous LBA Iberian metallurgical production supporting the hypothesis of a regional/local production and use of the artefacts from Coles de Samuel.

Sleep disorders in Cornelia de Lange syndrome.

Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by growth retardation, intellectual disability, limb defects, typical facial dysmorphism, and other systemic involvement. Sleep disturbances have been frequently reported in CdLS, but these have not been completely characterized, and prevalence data are conflicting. The aim of this paper is to characterize and determine the prevalence of sleep disorders in CdLS patients by means of a validated questionnaire. From November 2012 to November 2013, we asked 46 consecutive parents/caregivers of CdLS patients aged more than 3 years old to fill out the sleep disturbances scale for children (SDSC). The subjects were also characterized by the presence of epilepsy, intellectual disability (ID), behavioral problems, CdLS severity score, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and genetic test results. An abnormal total sleep score was found in 7 patients (15.2%), 26 (56.5%) showed a borderline total score, and 18 (39.1%) had an abnormal score for at least one SDSC factor. In our study sleep disorders were found to be positively associated to presence of epilepsy, GERD, ID, and behavioral disturbances. No correlation was evident with specific mutations of the different genes, BMI, and severity score. Our results confirm that sleep disorders represent a common problem in CdLS, with higher incidence than in the normal population. In these patients sleep disorders seem to be more prevalent in comorbid settings, representing a clinical indicator for different medical and neuropsychiatric disorders. Better knowledge and characterization of typology of sleep disorders in CdLS patients could permit a more specific therapeutic approach. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A typological characterization of Canadian beef cattle farms based on a producer survey

The diverse nature of beef production was captured by establishing a farm typology based on an extensive survey of 1005 Canadian farms in 2011. The survey provided information on the type of operation, cattle numbers, feed storage and management, manure management, land use, producer demographics and attitudes to risk, and technology adoption. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis were used to understand the relationships among variables and to statistically identify farm types. A total of 41 diagnostic variables from 133 survey questions were used to define 16 principal components explaining 68% of the variation. Cluster analysis yielded eight major clusters as distinct farm types. The largest number of farms (37%) was grouped as small-scale, part-time cow–calf operations. Mixed operations (crop–beef) were next most frequent (22%), followed by large cow–calf backgrounding (18%) and diversified cow–calf operations that included crop–beef mixed operations as well as off-farm activities (11%). Cow–calf operations that finished calves comprised 8% of the total farms surveyed. Extensive cow–calf backgrounding operations, large backgrounding/finishing operations, and large finishing operations represented the remaining 3% of the farms. The typology not only provides a strategy by which the Canadian beef cattle industry can be characterized, but also improves understanding of the diversity of farm management practices to help develop policies and beneficial management practices.

Approach to the blade technology analysis of the Upper Palaeolithic site of “Tajos de Marchales” (Granada, Spain)

The study of the Upper Palaeolithic in the South of the Iberian Peninsula is usually addressed from a few stratigraphic sequences recognized in the region. We can say that the upper Palaeolithic in Andalusia is one of the worse known stages of regional prehistory. On the other hand, its development has just surpassed the description of the typological formal characterization. In some cases, recent contributions in the central region of the Baetic Mountain range, confined to the province of Granada, appeared during the last century.In this sense, the present study has two objectives. On one hand, to present the site of the rockshelter 3 of the “tajos de Marchales” (Colomera, Granada, Spain), as a new Magdalenian site in the mountainous area of Sub-Baetic Andalusia.On the other hand, through the application of diacritic analysis on cores, unretouched material and tools recognisable, we present the technological characterization of different chaîne opératoire from the production supported by the main idea of different typological objectives (domain of burins, scrapers and to a lesser extent with backed edge blades). We distinguish the different operational sequences aimed at the generation of the artefactual set. All of this will allow us to obtain a global comprehension of the lithic assemblages from the site, and to define the beginning of its chaîne opératoire. The work presents and discusses the distinctive traits of the different technical elements, focused on laminar production (blades and bladelets) and knapping methods.