In situ evidence for Paleoindian hematite quarrying at the Powars II site (48PL330), Wyoming

SignificanceRed ocher (also known as hematite) is relatively common in Paleoindian sites exceeding ca. 11,000 calibrated years B.P. in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains of North America. Red ocher fulfilled a wide range of functions within Paleoindian societies, as indicated by its association with graves, caches, campsites, hide-working implements, and kill sites. To date, the Powars II site is the only red ocher quarry identified in the North American archaeological record north of Mesoamerica. Prior studies of Powars II were based on analyses of artifacts recovered from a redeposited context. This study presents in situ evidence for red ocher quarrying at Powars II.

Did a 3800-year-old Mw ~9.5 earthquake trigger major social disruption in the Atacama Desert?

Early inhabitants along the hyperarid coastal Atacama Desert in northern Chile developed resilience strategies over 12,000 years, allowing these communities to effectively adapt to this extreme environment, including the impact of giant earthquakes and tsunamis. Here, we provide geoarchaeological evidence revealing a major tsunamigenic earthquake that severely affected prehistoric hunter-gatherer-fisher communities ~3800 years ago, causing an exceptional social disruption reflected in contemporary changes in archaeological sites and triggering resilient strategies along these coasts. Together with tsunami modeling results, we suggest that this event resulted from a ~1000-km-long megathrust rupture along the subduction contact of the Nazca and South American plates, highlighting the possibility of M_w ~9.5 tsunamigenic earthquakes in northern Chile, one of the major seismic gaps of the planet. This emphasizes the necessity to account for long temporal scales to better understand the variability, social effects, and human responses favoring resilience to socionatural disasters.

Hypsometric changes in urban areas resulting from multiple years of mining activity

The impact of multiple years of underground mining of minerals on changes in the elevation of an urban area has been evaluated using the case study of Bytom in southern Poland. Between 1883 and 2011, that city experienced changes in absolute minimum (from 250.0 to 243.0 m a.s.l.) and maximum (from 340.0 to 348.4 m a.s.l.) elevations. During that period, the difference between minimum and maximum elevations increased from 90.0 to 105.4 m. The consequence of underground mining has been the formation of extensive subsidence basins with a maximum depth of 35 m. Where the terrain became raised, its elevation rose most commonly by 1.1 m to 5.0 m, with maximum increase in elevation caused by human activity amounting to 35 m. The rate of anthropogenic subsidence in the city between 1883 and 2011 averaged 43 mm/year (5.5 m over the study period).

Unraveling the polychromy and antiquity of the Pachacamac Idol, Pacific coast, Peru

Pachacamac is the name of the 15th-16th century Inca sanctuary on the Peruvian coast as well as the name of one of the principal oracles of Inca divinities. This effigy would have been destroyed by Pizarro in 1533 during his visit to the great monumental complex, and as such the originality and antiquity of the wooden statue—the so-called Pachacamac Idol—have been the subject of much controversy and debate. We present here previously unpublished dates that confirm its manufacture during the Middle Horizon (AD 500–1000), as well as evidence of its original polychromy. Traces of colors were observed on its different sections with portable microscopy and analyses with two different X-Ray Fluorescence spectrometry techniques, leading to identification of yellow, white, and red mineral pigments, including the presence of cinnabar. Dated between the 8th and 9th centuries, the statue would have been worshipped for almost 700 years, from the time of its creation to the time of the Spanish conquest, when Pachacamac was a major place of pilgrimage. These data not only offer a new perspective on Pachacamac’s emblematic sacred icon, but also on the colorful practices of the Pre-Hispanic Andes.

ADA Title I allegations and the Mining, Quarrying, and Oil/Gas Extraction industry

BACKGROUND

The majority of research about employment discrimination in the U.S. Mining, Quarrying, and Oil/Gas (MQOGE) industries has concentrated on gender and race, while little attention has focused on disability.

OBJECTIVE

To explore allegations of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title I discrimination made to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) by individuals with disabilities against MQOGE employers.

METHODS

Key data available to this study included demographic characteristics of charging parties, size of employers, types of allegations, and case outcomes. Using descriptive analysis, allegation profiles were developed for MQOGE's three main sectors (i.e., Oil/Gas Extraction, Mining except Oil/Gas, and Support Activities). These three profiles where then comparatively analyzed. Lastly, regression analysis explored whether some of the available data could partially predict MQOGE case outcomes.

RESULTS

The predominant characteristics of MQOGE allegations were found to be quite similar to the allegation profile of U.S. private-sector industry as a whole, and fairly representative of MQOGE's workforce demographics. Significant differences between MQOGE's three main sector profiles were noted on some important characteristics. Lastly, it was found that MQOGE case outcomes could be partially predicted via some of the available variables.

CONCLUSIONS

The study's limitations were presented and recommendations were offered for further research.

Simple technologies and diverse food strategies of the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene at Huaca Prieta, Coastal Peru

Simple pebble tools, ephemeral cultural features, and the remains of maritime and terrestrial foods are present in undisturbed Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene deposits underneath a large human-made mound at Huaca Prieta and nearby sites on the Pacific coast of northern Peru. Radiocarbon ages indicate an intermittent human presence dated between ~15,000 and 8000 calendar years ago before the mound was built. The absence of fishhooks, harpoons, and bifacial stone tools suggests that technologies of gathering, trapping, clubbing, and exchange were used primarily to procure food resources along the shoreline and in estuarine wetlands and distant mountains. The stone artifacts are minimally worked unifacial stone tools characteristic of several areas of South America. Remains of avocado, bean, and possibly cultivated squash and chile pepper are also present, suggesting human transport and consumption. Our new findings emphasize an early coastal lifeway of diverse food procurement strategies that suggest detailed observation of resource availability in multiple environments and a knowledgeable economic organization, although technologies were simple and campsites were seemingly ephemeral and discontinuous. These findings raise questions about the pace of early human movement along some areas of the Pacific coast and the level of knowledge and technology required to exploit maritime and inland resources.