Human settlements in the Ordos Plateau since the Neolithic Age

Settlements are excellent spatiotemporal indicators for studying historical human activities and environmental change. This paper discusses the spatial and temporal changes of sites on the Ordos Plateau in China since the Neolithic Age, based on an analysis of spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of the human settlements. The frequency of human settlements on the Ordos Plateau presented a phased fluctuation process, and the sizes were mainly small and medium. The spatial distribution of h...     

Human sedentism and use of animal resources on the prehistoric Tibetan Plateau

The transition of human societies from high mobility to sedentary lifestyles had a profound impact on subsistence, technology, and the origin of civilization. Sedentism was influenced by various factors such as climate change, population growth, resource pressure,and technological innovation. The Tibetan Plateau, due to its alpine and hypoxic conditions, is an ideal region to study human adaptation to extreme environments. However, the prehistoric process of sedentism on the Tibetan Plateau is u...     

Human–Wildlife Interactions and Environmental Dynamics in the Okavango Delta,Botswana

The Okavango Delta in Botswana hosts abundant wildlife and a human population with diverse livelihoods. Representing a heterogeneous landscape nuanced by spatial and temporal variability, the region has recently seen an expansion of floodwaters with social impacts ranging from livelihood disruption to human displacement. This article reports on in-depth interviews conducted in 2012 regarding these transitions in Mababe, a community in the eastern Okavango Delta, to evaluate how dynamic environmental processes alter perceptions and livelihood responses. We focus on community members’ variable interactions with wildlife in spaces of human–wildlife overlap also experiencing change. While human–wildlife interactions can have negative effects, we find that perpetuating the common narrative of human–wildlife conflict overlooks how disruptions can usher in new relationships between people and animals. In order to move beyond the conflict narrative, we conclude that spatial and temporal context is essential to evaluate effects of dynamic, uneven, and sometimes unpredictable human–wildlife encounters.     

Beyond Bias? The Promise and Limits of Q Method in Human Geography

Q method is a quantitative technique for eliciting, evaluating, and comparing human subjectivity. We introduce the method here and evaluate its strengths and weaknesses, especially with regards to its incorporation into human geographic research. We conclude that Q method is particularly appropriate for human geographies informed by anti‐essentialist notions of the subject and constructivist accounts of social and natural reality. Claims by the founders of Q method that hold that the procedure distances and removes the bias of the researcher are shown to be unfounded and epistemologically naïve. Nevertheless, Q method is a rigorous, hermeneutic, and iterative technique that allows the researcher to surrender the monopoly of control in their relationship with the researched and so contribute to more democratic research design and implementation.     

Human–environment dynamics during the Iron Age in the Lofoten Islands,Norway

Integrated archaeological and paleoenvironmental investigations provide long-term perspectives on human–environment interactions. In the North Atlantic region, early human settlements were established in marginal agricultural environments and were susceptible to various environmental stressors. The Lofoten Islands have had an important role in the history of this region, particularly during the Iron Age, when Lofoten developed from pioneering agricultural settlements to a prominent node of power and trade under Viking chieftains. Iron Age developments in Lofoten were concurrent with significant natural environmental changes, including variations in climate and sea level. However, there has not been a comprehensive investigation of their influence on early settlements. The purpose of the study is to review Iron Age cultural developments in Lofoten using published archaeological data and paleoenvironmental records of past climate and sea-level change, and to present specific examples of the intersection of early human development and natural environmental changes. The findings show that climate changes probably influenced agricultural phases and that relative sea-level variations had important impacts on maritime developments. In conclusion, the findings demonstrate that human–environment interactions were significant factors in Lofoten’s history and the authors suggest specific areas for future research.     

Mapping Human Terrain in the Joint Army–Navy Intelligence Study of Korea (1945)

The concept of human terrain has become a prominent element of U.S. military strategy. It is a means to capture the cultural–geographical qualities of an enemy or target population. An early effort to map human terrain is found in the Joint Army–Navy Intelligence Study (JANIS) of Korea (1945). We argue that the JANIS report on Korea was paradigmatic for the U.S. military's contemporary geographical work and offers insights into the cultural politics of human terrain mapping. This explains why the JANIS text is cited by the National Geospatial-Intelligence College (NGC) today as an historical model. This article not only offers a window into the history of geography counterinsurgent but also shows that geography has been entwined with empire.     

Human–Wildlife Conflicts and their Associated Livelihood Impacts in and Around Chebera-Churchura National Park,Ethiopia

Human–wildlife conflict is one of the major challenges in conservation biology. Here, we investigated the human–wildlife conflicts and their impacts in and around Chebera-Churchura National Park, Ethiopia. We conducted semistructured interview for 300 people and five focus group discussions from November 2010 to January 2011. In addition, scats of 60 spotted hyenas were collected and analyzed. Totally, 12 carnivores, 6 herbivores, and 2 primate species posing a significant problem were identified. Intensive human–wildlife conflict was observed in Churchura, Sere, and Chebera villages which were very close to the park. The carnivore’s attacks during 2007–2011 had caused about 30.49% of livestock losses. The overall economic loss by wildlife attacks was estimated to be US$ 75,234 (US$ 83/household/year). Scat analysis confirmed a substantial contribution (59%) of livestock to spotted hyena’s diet. Thus, combined strategies like improving livestock husbandries and strengthen the capacity of managers are imperative to mitigate the problems.     

Human’s digital footprints on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau: Variations during festivals and impacts on nature reserves

Mobile internet and wireless communication technologies have produced unprecedented location-aware data. Such big geospatial data can be used as a proxy measure of the ‘digital footprints' left by us on the planet and provide a valuable opportunity to understand the dynamic and short-term human disturbance on the nature at fine scales. This study investigated the spatiotemporal variations of human's digital footprints on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau using smartphone-users-generated Tencent's location request data. The results showed that human's digital footprints cover less than 5% of Qinghai and Tibet, exhibiting either a U-shaped or an N-shaped temporal change pattern during the major festivals. Spatial changes of the digital footprints manifested a transition process from dispersion to concentration in Xining and Lhasa. Human disturbance assessment of seven large nature reserves on the plateau showed that the Qinghai Lake is the most disturbed one as shown by 14.6% of its area is stained with human digital footprints and the areal average of footprint intensity is 1.59, and the disturbance was significantly escalated during the National Day holiday. By contrast, the Qangtang and Hoh Xil are the least affected nature reserves with the two indices less than 1% and 0.1, respectively.     

Human actions were responsible for both initiation and termination of varve preservation in Lake Vesijärvi,southern Finland

Journal of Paleolimnology - The influence of lake restoration efforts on lake bottom-water conditions and varve preservation is not well known. We studied varved sediments deposited during the last...     

Comment on Rust et al.: Human–Carnivore Conflict in Namibia Is Not Simply About Black and White

Carnivore conservationists agree that addressing the socioeconomic needs of people is critical to human-carnivore conflict mitigation. We therefore welcome studies that encompass complex social and cultural factors that affect the severity of human-carnivore conflict on Namibian farmlands. However, we contend that the recent study by Rust et al. (2016 Rust, N. A., J. Tzanopoulos, T. Humle, and D. C. MacMillan. 2016. Why has human–carnivore conflict not been resolved in Namibia? Society &; Natural Resources 29 (9):1079–94. doi:10.1080/08941920.2016.1150544[Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) was poorly designed, used inappropriate sampling methods, lacked quantitative information on their qualitative results, and ultimately produced unsupported conclusions about the role of historic apartheid and current racism in exacerbating human-carnivore conflict in Namibia. We outline our concerns regarding the methods used, and demonstrate that the conclusions drawn by Rust et al. were not supported by their data.     

How Does Castells's The Rise of the Network Society Contribute to Research in Human Geography? A Citation Content and Context Analysis

Manuel Castells seminal work The Rise of the Network Society (RNS) is one of the top ten most frequently cited publications in human geography. RNS comprehensively investigates the theory of network society, which is of great significance to human geography. Citation count, however, cannot reflect the specific contribution of RNS to human geography. By jointly using citation content and context analysis on 898 journal articles on human geography, this study examines the citations of RNS to clarify the contribution. Results show that (1) “space of flows” is most frequently cited and (2) citations of RNS serve nine citation functions in human geography studies. Eight of them reveal three types of knowledge development contribution, namely, knowledge dissemination, knowledge inheritance, and knowledge innovation. Among the nine citation functions, the critique function is most thought-provoking, revealing the deficiencies of RNS: (1) spatial dualism is abstract and impersonal, (2) “space of places” is as important as “space of flows” in the network society, and (3) the lack of abundant data limits the development of empirical research on the space of flows and network of city. These critical citations provide implications for the development of network society theory in human geography. Key Words: bibliometric analysis, citation context analysis, content analysis, knowledge development, network society.     

Mobility Patterns of Overseas Human Capital in Australia: the role of a ‘new’ graduate visa scheme and rural development policy

In 2007, the Australian federal government introduced a ‘new’ graduate visa scheme, the 485 visa sub-class. This visa facilitates the transition from student to worker for overseas graduates from Australian higher education institutions, with the potential to significantly increase their numbers in the country. At the same time, local governments have introduced various policies designed to attract and retain human capital in rural areas to address the shortfall of highly skilled individuals. This paper redresses the current lack of research into the spatial dynamics of overseas human capital in Australia and their relation to the new visa scheme in combination with shifts in rural development policies. Drawing on survey data of graduates describing the ‘before’ (2005) and ‘after’ (2008) periods of the introduction of the 485 visa scheme, this paper shows that the propensity of overseas graduates to move between Australia's regions has increased substantially. In particular, there have been an increasing proportion of overseas graduates moving to major cities despite rural development policy efforts to attract human capital to rural areas. However, these policy efforts appear to have attracted overseas graduates with particular qualifications (education and health) to work in such locales.