The abnormal anatomy of cleft lip and its correction

Summary The importance of the premaxillary position, size and shape in the development of the face and nose is discussed. The anthropological development of the premaxilla is studied. These factors are to be considered when cleft lip repairs are being planned and developed. Several cases are presented and discussed.     

A concordance of nucleotide substitutions in the first and second hypervariable segments of the human mtDNA control region

A new and easily accessible concordance of nucleotide substitutions in the hypervariable segments of the human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region has been constructed. The concordance indexes all population-specific mtDNA sequences in a standardized format. The first edition of the concordance includes 1,440 sequences representing 762 mtDNA types from over 65 populations for hypervariable region 1, and 520 sequences representing 260 mtDNA types from over 26 populations for hypervariable region 2. Investigators are invited to submit new sequences to the database, and details for doing so are given in the text.     

川南苗族体质特征的调查研究

对合江县川南苗族 2 0 7例 (男 113,女 94 )青壮年进行 73项活体测量 ,结果显示 :川南苗族身材矮小 ,男女性身高平均为 15 4 5 6cm和 14 3 89cm ,83%受检者身高分类属矮或很矮 ;体部垂直高度均偏小。川南苗族偏瘦弱 ,其体部宽度、深度测量及围度测量均偏小 ,体质稍差。川南苗族头长偏小 ,头宽与头高相对较大 ,故 6 8%以上受检者为圆或超圆头型、阔头型也较狭头型为多、 75 %以上为高头型 ;面高与面宽均小 ,面高尤甚 ,75 %以上的受检者属阔或超阔面型 ;鼻部测量值均小 ,6 0 %的个体属中鼻型 ,属狭或超狭鼻型较阔鼻型的略多。两性间各项测量差异显著 ,但具共同体质特征。三年龄组比较青年组头面部与胸部测量值较成年组与壮年组小 ,表明其发育尚未终止 ,但因长度与宽度或长度与高度、宽度与高度均平行增长 ,故头型、面型、鼻型等均无显著差异而三组保持共同特征     

The Etruscan skulls of the Rostock anatomical collection — How do they compare with the skeletal findings of the first thousand years B.C.?

Seven Etruscan skulls were found in Corneto Tarquinia in the years 1881 and 1882 and were given as present to Rostock's anatomical collection in 1882. The origin of the Etruscans who were contemporary with the Celts is not yet clear; according to Herodotus they had emigrated from Lydia in Asia Minor to Italy. To fit the Etruscan skulls into an ethnological grid they were compared with skeletal remains of the first thousand years B.C. E. All skulls were found to be male; their age ranged from 20 to 60 years, with an average age of about thirty. A comparison of the median sagittal outlines of the Etruscan skulls and the contemporary Hallstatt-Celtic skulls from North Bavaria showed that the former were shorter and lower. Maximum skull length, minimum frontal breadth, ear bregma height, bizygomatical breadth and orbital breadth of the Etruscan skulls were statistically significantly less developed compared to Hallstatt-Celtics from North Bavaria. In comparison to other contemporary skeletal remains the Etruscan skulls had no similarities in common with Hallstatt-Celtic skulls from North Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg but rather with Hallstatt-Celtic skulls from Hallstatt in Austria. Compared to chronologically adjacent skeletal remains the Etruscan skulls did not show similarities with Early Bronze Age skulls from Moravia but with Latène-Celtic skulls from Manching in South Bavaria. Due to the similarities of the Etruscan skulls with some Celtic skulls from South Bavaria and Austria, it seems more likely that the Etruscans were original inhabitants of Etruria than immigrants.     

Réflexions sur les sources de la théorie freudienne : la psychanalyse et le mode de pensée talmudique

This article aims to situate psychoanalysis in relation to its possible sources related to Judaism by Sigmund Freud. For this one, which defined himself as a Jew, withdrew the religious practice of his fathers, has nevertheless always claimed his identity that placed him, as he liked to say, in the minority of the opposition which he drew energy for creativity. The Talmud, which represents the oral tradition of biblical exegesis, has its own rules of interpretation that we have attempted to compare some aspects of psychoanalytic technique. The free association of speech characterized by a certain diffluence represents a first attachment point. Like psychoanalysis, it closely links theory and practice, one enriching the other of its mutual contributions. Freud, when he speaks of tradition passed, or survival of memory traces in the archaic heredity makes the link between individual and collective psychology, and with anthropology. The therapeutic relationship based on the transference, as the relationship of students to their master, or Hasidim to their Rabbi, is based on an expectant faith that represents the basis of any self-reflection for the purpose of improvement. The talmudic spirit refers to a religious faith, while psychoanalysis is based on the discovery of unconscious thought patterns. However, it is noteworthy that Freud himself could not prevent the formation of his creation in the many chapels finally approaching in many respects concerns constituting the basis of religious belief, namely the welfare of human being and knowing one's most intimate psychic functioning.     

Reflections on crisis burials related to past plague epidemics

Drawing its etymology from the Latin pestis (curse), plague, over the centuries, has been more dreaded by humankind than any other epidemic. The Apocalypse had recognized plague as the archetypal divine curse, ‘the power to kill over a fourth of the earth'. Plague is thus a particular topic of study, insofar that it is one of the rare epidemics that has had recurrent major consequences on demography and human societies. Its highly transmissible nature, the brutality of its action, its high pathogenicity, marked by strong lethality and great swiftness, and the complete absence of treatment options before the 20th century conferred on it a sinister aspect. Generating a series of severe demographic crises, well known in the Western world, it has necessarily influenced the evolution of societies at both the biological and cultural levels.     

Could a “body fragmentation index” be useful in reconstructing events prior to burial: Case studies of selected primary and secondary mass graves from eastern Bosnia

This study analyses variable levels of body fragmentation among secondary mass grave sites with similar formation process history. The study is based on data from 10 commingled secondary mass grave sites and two primary sites related to the war in Bosnia in 1995. The aim was to investigate differences in level of body fragmentation between mass graves of similar origin and taphonomy. In order to quantify the degree of fragmentation (and level of commingling) within a grave, we introduced a fragmentation index (FI). FI represents the ratio between the number of complete bodies and number of body parts from the same context. Results show high discrepancies in body fragmentations between different sites. FI for secondary sites of similar formation history varied from 0.01 to 0.59 (max = 1), while two primary sites have values 0.92 and 0.90 respectively. Variable levels of fragmentation among similar secondary sites suggest a possibility of different peri mortem circumstances of buried, so we tested whether the “body fragmentation index” could assist in elucidating the manner of death. Unusually high levels of body fragmentation (FI value below 0.1) in some secondary sites may indicate that body disarticulation was most likely caused peri-mortem by explosives, land mines, mortars or tank fire, all suggesting a combat situation.     

Immigration experience of Latin American working women in Alicante, Spain: an ethnographic study

OBJECTIVE:

to describe the experience of Latin American working women regarding immigration, taking into account the expectations and conditions in which this process takes place.

METHOD:

ethnographic qualitative study. Data collection was performed by means of semi-structured interviews with 24 Latin American immigrant women in Spain. The information collected was triangulated through two focal groups.

RESULTS:

the expectations of migrant women focus on improving family living conditions. Social support is essential for their settling and to perform daily life activities. They declare they have adapted to the settlement country, although they live with stress. They perceive they have greater sexual freedom and power with their partners but keep greater responsibility in childcare, combining that with the role of working woman.

CONCLUSIONS:

migrant women play a key role in the survival of households, they build and create new meanings about being a woman, their understanding of life, their social and couple relationships. Such importance is shaped by their expectations and the conditions in which the migration process takes place, as well as their work integration.     

当代辟谷中话语体系与身体认知的人类学研究

随着科学技术迅速发展,科学话语体系和传统话语体系之间的冲突成为传统医学与替代医学在今日备受争议的根源。辟谷是中国古代传统的道教养生方法,具有悠久的历史,近年来逐渐成为大众流行的养生方式之一。作为道教医学的传承,辟谷在改变着人们的身体观和疾病观的同时,也面临着不同话语体系下各种解释模式的挑战。文章运用人类学理论与方法,通过对辟谷过程进行参与观察与深度访谈,总结神圣与世俗、现代医学与传统医学等不同话语体系下对于辟谷中各种概念的地方性解释,分析这些解释背后的文化渊源,并对现代辟谷的不同话语体系进行归纳与分析,探讨其对于辟谷者身体观、饮食观、疾病观的影响。