Exploring the history of cultural exchange in prehistoric Eurasia from the perspectives of crop diffusion and consumption

The history of cultural exchange in prehistoric Eurasia(CEPE) has been widely investigated. Based on archaeological evidence, this process is thought to date back to at least the early Bronze Age, although details about timings and routes remain unclear. It is likely that CEPE promoted the spread and exchange of crops that originated in different parts of Eurasia; since these remains can be definitely identified and directly dated, they provide ideal research materials to explore the history of CEPE. In this paper, we review the available archaeobotanical evidence and direct radiocarbon dates for crop remains, alongside carbon isotopic data from human bones unearthed from prehistoric sites in Eurasia, in order to investigate the history of the spread of millet crops, and wheat and barley, that were first domesticated in the eastern and western parts of Eurasia during prehistoric times.In combination with other archaeological evidences, we discuss the history of CEPE. Our results suggest that wheat and barley were domesticated in western Asia around 10500 a BP, spread into Europe and western Central Asia before 8000 a BP, and reaching eastern Central Asia and northwestern China between 4500 and 4000 a BP. Data show that both broomcorn and foxtail millet were domesticated in eastern Asia before 7700 a BP, spread into eastern Central Asia between 4500 and 4000 a BP, and into western Asia and Europe prior to 3500 a BP. Wheat, barley, and millet crops were first utilized together in eastern Kazakhstan within Central Asia around 4400 a BP, the region where earliest CEPE is likely to have taken place. These crops were mixedly used mainly in eastern central Asia and northwest China between 4500 and 3500 a BP, and then across the Eurasia before 2200 a BP. The results of this study suggest that transcontinental CEPE might have been initiated during the fifth millennium, before intensifying during the Bronze Age to lay the foundations for the creation of the ancient Silk Road during the Han Dynasty(between 202 BC and 220AD).     

Prehistoric agriculture development in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau,southwest China: Archaeobotanical evidence

The origin, development and expansion of prehistoric agriculture in East Asia have been widely investigated over the past two decades using archaeobotanical analysis from excavated Neolithic and Bronze Age sites. Research on prehistoric agriculture has predominantly focused in the valleys of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Agricultural development during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau of southwest China, an important passageway for human migration into Southeast Asia, still remains unclear. In this paper, based on macrofossil and microfossil analysis and radiocarbon dating at the Shilinggang site, we investigate plant subsistence strategies in the Nujiang River valley during the Bronze Age period. Combined with previous archaeobotanical studies in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, we explore agricultural development processes in this area during the Neolithic and Bronze Age. Our results indicate that rice and foxtail millet were cultivated in Shilinggang around 2500 cal a BP. Three phases of prehistoric agricultural development in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau can be identified: rice cultivation from 4800–3900 cal a BP, mixed rice and millet crop(foxtail millet and broomcorn millet) cultivation from 3900–3400 cal a BP, and mixed rice, millet crop and wheat cultivation from 3400–2300 cal a BP. The development of agriculture in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods was primarily promoted by prehistoric agriculture expansion across Eurasia, agricultural expansion which was also affected by the topographic and hydrological characteristics of the area.     

New methods and progress in research on the origins and evolution of prehistoric agriculture in China

China is one of the main global centers of origin of agriculture. Foxtail millet (Setaria italica), common millet (Panicum miliaceum), and rice (Oryza sativa) were the first crops to be domesticated in China. There remain many uncertainties and controversies in our current understanding of the chronology, locations, and plant types at the origins and the process of evolution of prehistoric millet and rice farming, and their relationships with climate change and human adaptation. This review summarizes the research progress made by Chinese scientists over the last decade on the origins and evolution of prehistoric agriculture. It highlights novel techniques and methods for identifying early crop remains, including plant macrofossils (carbonized seeds, spikelets), microfossils (phytoliths, calciphytoliths, starch, pollen), and biomarkers; new evidence on the origins, development, and spread of early agriculture; and research related to climate and environmental changes. Further, we pinpoint and discuss existing challenges and potential opportunities for further in-depth investigation of the origins and evolution of agriculture and the adaption of human activities to climate change.     

The emergence,development and regional differences of mixed farming of rice and millet in the upper and middle Huai River Valley,China

Mixed farming of rice and millet is one of the basic agricultural modes in the upper and middle Huai River Valley(HRV). According to the latest data, this agricultural mode appeared during the middle and late Peiligang Culture(7.8–7.0 ka BP) in the upper HRV, and then became a common subsistence economy in the end of the Neolithic(5.0–4.0 ka BP) in both the upper and middle HRV. However, it is still not clear how this mixed farming developed in the upper HRV after its occurrence, nor are the regional differences in the development of mixed farming between the upper and middle HRV during the Neolithic completely understood. In this paper, flotation and starch analyses were conducted on samples from eight archaeological sites in the upper and middle HRV. The results indicate that the mixed farming of rice and millet first appeared in the later phase of the middle Neolithic in the regions of the Peiligang Culture, then developed quite rapidly in the late Neolithic(6.8–5.0 ka BP), finally becoming the main subsistence economy at the end of the Neolithic in the upper HRV. However, there are obvious differences in the emergence and development of agriculture between the middle and upper HRV. Rice farming was the only agricultural system during the middle Neolithic, lasting until the end of the Neolithic, when mixed farming appeared in the middle HRV. Furthermore, although mixed farming appeared in both the upper and middle HRV during the end of the Neolithic, the roles of rice, foxtail millet and broomcorn millet in the subsistence economy were not the same. In general, millet was more widely cultivated than rice in the upper HRV, but rice occupied the same or a slightly more prominent position in the middle HRV at the end of the Neolithic. These results are significant for understanding the process of agricultural development and transformation, as well as human adaptation to climatic and cultural variability duringthe Neolithic.     

The earliest archaeobiological evidence of the broad-ening agriculture in China recorded at Xishanping site in Gansu Province

The crop types and agricultural characteristic are reconstructed using the archaeobiological proxies of pollen, seed and phytolith at Xishanping site in Gansu Province between 5250 and 4300 cal a BP. The agricultural activity strengthened in Xishanping from 5100 cal a BP. It appeared the earliest cultivation of prehistoric rice in the most northwest China at 5070 cal a BP. The sudden disappearance of conifers and expansion of chestnut trees is likely to be the result of selective hewing of conifers and cultivation of chestnuts at about 4600 cal a BP. There existed 8 crop types of foxtail millet, broomcorn millet, rice, wheat, barley, oats, soybean and buckwheat at Xishanping between 4650 and 4300 cal a BP, which cover the main crop types of the two origin centers of East and West Asia. Not only has the wheat and barley been approved to spread to northwestern China, but the earliest complexity agriculture in Neo-lithic China appeared in Tianshui, Gansu Province.     

The influence of agriculture in the process of population integration and cultural interaction during the Eastern Zhou Period in central-south,Inner Mongolia: Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of human bones from the Dabaoshan cemetery,Helingeer County

Central-south Inner Mongolia, China, is highly sensitive to the cultural interactions between sedentary agriculturalists and nomadic pastoralists during the Eastern Zhou Period (770–256 BC). The previous pattern of multiple cultures and diverse ethnic groups has been transformed to the increasingly dominated cultural system of Central Plain since the middle and late Warring States Period, when the states of Zhao and Qin have conquered the most parts of central-south Inner Mongolia. However, the variation of subsistence strategies during this historical process has never been evaluated. Particularly, as the typical representative of Central Plain cultures, the effect of intensive millet agriculture is still unknown in the process of population integration and culture interaction. Thus, to explore the shift of subsistence pattern, carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of bone collagen from Dabaoshan site (410–180 BC) have been performed. The isotopic result indicates a large amount of C4-based animal protein consumed by Dabaoshan humans. According to the archaeological backgrounds, we propose the Dabaoshan persons intensively relied on the millet agriculture and developed the agro-pastoral economy, which hinted the comprehensive influences from Central plain civilizations in late Warring States Period. Further compared with other published isotopic data in the same region during different periods, we suggest the millet agriculture has played the positive role in the process of population integration and culture fusion in central-south Inner Mongolia during the Eastern Zhou Period.     

Kushan Period rice in the Amu Darya Basin: Evidence for prehistoric exchange along the southern Himalaya

The origins and prehistoric spread of rice agriculture between East and West Asia are hot topics in the current archaeological community. In this study, we present the results from a preliminary archaeobotanical study at the Khalchayan site in Uzbekistan, where we recovered the oldest securely dated rice thus far identified in Central Asia. We directly dated the rice grains to 1714–1756 cal yr BP(Kushan period), and morphologically compared them with other contemporaneous cultivated rice remains from China and India. The morphological results showed that the rice remains found at Khalchayan are more similar to cultivated japonica rice from southern China and northwestern India. Integrated archeological and chronological results from the surrounding area show that the rice remains found at Khalchayan likely spread along a southern Himalayan route from southwest China to northern India and finally reached the Amu Darya. The rice remains from Khalchayan are the first directly dated and well-reported rice remains found in Central Asia. By the Islamic period, rice was an important culinary aspect of the culture in Central Asia, but the cultural affinity towards rice only developed over the past two millennia. This study provides new information on the spread of rice agriculture globally, especially in arid-semiarid inland regions.     

东南亚和中国大陆7级地震活动的关系

根据图形对比、频度比及相关分析法，对1900年以来东南亚和中国大陆地震活动的关系进行了研究，结果表明，东南亚地区和中国大陆7级地震活动是相关的。东南亚地区7级地震活动对中国大陆地震活动的影响可迟后1，2年；根据2000年全球7级大震在东南亚地区出现相对集中的情况，可以预测中国大陆在2001或2002年发生7级以上地震的可能性很大。     

A preliminary study of early agriculture practices at the Haojiatai site in Luohe city,Henan Province

As the most fundamental economic sector of human societies,farming has played a significant role in interactions between humans and the environment.The study of crop patterns in various regions could not only clarify the economic foundations of early societies,but also greatly improve our understanding of interactions among human beings,the environment,and other creatures.In this regard,this study focuses on early agriculture practices at the Haojiatai site,situated in the cultural and natural transitional region between North and South China.Macro plant remains from this site reveal that foxtail millet was the most important staple crop here during the Longshan and Xinzhai periods(4300–3800 cal.yr BP),along with common millet and a small amount of rice and soybean.This crop pattern is in contrast to the ancient environmental conditions of this region,and cultural factors such as agriculture traditions and food preferences may have been more important in the formation process of this crop pattern.     

老挝国家地震监测台网布局与组网

老挝国家地震监测台网(LEMN)是“一带一路”倡议下中国推进援外地震台网建设的又一重要工程,为了及时总结台网建设经验,从该台网的布局、组网、设备配备、台网链接方式等方面进行详细阐述,为我国未来省域地震监测台网和新时代援外台网的建设积累详实的参考资料。     

老挝国家地震监测台网布局与组网

老挝国家地震监测台网（LEMN）是“一带一路”倡议下中国推进援外地震台网建设的又一重要工程,为了及时总结台网建设经验,从该台网的布局、组网、设备配备、台网链接方式等方面进行详细阐述,为我国未来省域地震监测台网和新时代援外台网的建设积累详实的参考资料。     

Farming and forestry land use changes in China and their driving forces from 1900 to 1980

As the joint project of IGBP (International Geo-sphere-Biosphere Programme) and IHDP (Interna-tional Human Dimensions Programme on Global En-vironmental Change), LUCC (Land Use/Land Cover Change) has been the focus of geographic studies, not only because it is one of the main contents of global environmental change studies, the linkage between physical and human sciences[1], but also because it has a close relationship with some elements’ cycles inside terrestrial ecosystem, such as…     

Regional spatiotemporal variations of a nondipole magnetic field over the Chinese mainland and neighboring regions in millennial scale

Spatiotemporal variations of the nondipole (ND) magnetic field over the Chinese mainland and neighboring regions from 10000 BC to 1990 AD were analyzed using the latest global geomagnetic models CALS10K.1b, CALS3K.4, and IGRF11. Moreover, for field sources, we investigated 2 ⁿ (n = 2–10) pole ND fields and their energies. The results suggest that the study period can be divided into three. The intensity of the ND field has been mainly positive since 10000 BC and lasted almost 7500 years, then gradually decreased to negative in 2500 BC to 1500 AD, and finally sharply increased to positive. The anomaly areas of the ND field in East Asia took shape for n = 3, when the anomaly areas in East Asia were shaped into closed circles in the mainland. This suggests that the first three harmonic degrees account for most of the ND field. The energy of the ND field rapidly attenuates at the core–mantle boundary and is stable at the surface.     

Vegetation and soil carbon storage in China

This study estimated the current vegetation and soil carbon storage in China using a biogeochemical model driven with climate, soil and vegetation data at 0.5° latitude-longitude grid spatial resolution. The results indicate that the total carbon storage in China's vegetation and soils was 13.33 Gt C and 82.65 Gt C respectively, about 3% and 4% of the global total. The nationally mean vegetation and soil carbon densities were 1.47 kg C/m2 and 9.17 kg C/m2, respectively, differing greatly in various regions affected by climate, vegetation, and soil types. They were generally higher in the warm and wet Southeast China and Southwest China than in the arid Northwest China; whereas vegetation carbon density was the highest in the warm Southeast China and Southwest China, soil carbon density was the highest in the cold Northeast China and southeastern fringe of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. These spatial patterns are clearly correlated with variations in the climate that regulates plant growth and soil organi     

大震前地震活动迁移速率bc值的变化

本文给出了地震活动纤移速率ｂｃ值预测方法,利用该方法对１９７２年以来发生在中国大陆及邻区４７次Ｍ≥６级地震前区域地震活动进行了计算,其结果为：地城活动迁移率ｂｃ值在４７次大震前出现明显的低值异常。为了检验该方法是否具有实用性,文中对中国西部５个不同区域进行试算,得出在５个不同区域内发生的约３９次地震前,ｂｃ值表现不同程度的异常特点．     

History and possible mechanisms of prehistoric human migration to the Tibetan Plateau

Prehistoric human history on the Tibetan Plateau is a hotly debated topic. Archaeological research on the plateau during the past few decades has enormously improved our understanding of the topic and makes it possible for us to consider the processes and mechanisms of prehistoric human migration to the region. By reviewing the published archaeological research on the Tibetan Plateau, we propose that the first people on the plateau initially spread into the He-Huang region from the Chinese Loess Plateau, and then moved to the low elevation Northeastern Tibetan Plateau and perhaps subsequently to the entire plateau. This process consisted of four stages.(1) During the climatic amelioration of the Last Deglacial period(15–11.6 ka BP), Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers with a developed microlithic technology first spread into the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau.(2) In the early-mid Holocene(11.6–6 ka BP), Epipaleolithic microlithic hunter-gatherers were widely distributed on the northeastern plateau and spread southwards to the interior plateau, possibly with millet agriculture developed in the neighboring low elevation regions.(3) In the mid-late Holocene(6–4 ka BP), Neolithic millet farmers spread into low elevation river valleys in the northeastern and southeastern plateau areas.(4) In the late Holocene(4–2.3 ka BP), Bronze Age barley and wheat farmers further settled on the high elevation regions of the Tibetan Plateau, especially after 3.6 ka BP. Finally, we suggest that all of the reported Paleolithic sites earlier than the LGM on the Tibetan Plateau need further examination.     

山普拉墓地出土眼珠的结构工艺研究

新疆和田地区的山普拉墓地位于古丝绸之路南线的洛浦县城西南14公里处.20世纪80年代,考古人员对山普拉墓地进行多次发掘,其中玻璃珠类共计发现1369颗.本文主要以X射线CT技术为基础,对其中具有典型性代表的4颗蜻蜓眼玻璃珠从玻璃眼珠的基体、眼部装饰、气孔和珠孔等方面进行了深入分析,从而推测了最晚公元4世纪的历史背景下,...     

Millennium recurrence interval of morphogenic earthquakes on the Qingchuan fault,northeastern segment of the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt,China

The 2008 M _w 7.9 Wenchuan produced a ～285–300-km-long coseismic surface rupture zone, including a 60-km-long segment along the Qingchuan fault, the northeastern segment of the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt (LSTB), Sichuan Basin, central China. Field investigations, trench excavations, and radiocarbon dating results reveal that (i) the Qingchuan fault is currently active as a seismogenic fault, along which four morphogenic earthquakes including the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake occurred in the past ca. 3500 years, suggesting an average millennium recurrence interval of morphogenic earthquakes in the late Holocene; (ii) the most recent event prior to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake took place in the period between AD 1400 and AD 1100; (iii) the penultimate paleoseismic event occurred in the period around 2000 years BP in the Han Dynasty (206 BC–AD 220); (iv) the third paleoseismic event occurred in the period between 900 and 1800 BC; and (v) at least three seismic faulting events occurred in the early Holocene. The present results are comparable with those inferred in the central and southwestern segments of the LSTB within which the Wenchuan magnitude earthquakes occurred in a millennium recurrence interval, that are in contrast with previous estimates of 2000–10,000 years for the recurrence interval of morphogenic earthquakes within the LSTB and thereby necessitating substantial modifications to existing seismic hazard models for the densely populated region at the Sichuan region.     

An overview of black carbon deposition in High Asia glaciers and its impacts on radiation balance

Since 2000, 18 High Asia glaciers have been surveyed for black carbon (BC) deposition 22 times, and numerous snow samples and ice cores have been collected by researchers. However, most of the results were interpreted individually in papers. Here, we assemble the data and discuss the distribution of BC deposition and its impacts on the melting of the glaciers through radiative forcing. We find that BC distribution on the surfaces of High Asia glaciers primarily depends upon their elevations (i.e., higher sites have lower concentrations) and then upon regional BC emissions and surface melting conditions. BC concentrations in High Asia glaciers are similar to the Arctic and western American mountains but are significantly less than heavy industrialized areas such as northern China. Although Himalayan glaciers, which are important due to their water resources, are directly facing the strong emissions from South Asia, their mean BC is the lowest due to high elevations. A new finding indicated by ice core records suggested that great valleys in the eastern Himalayan section are effective pathways for BC entering the Tibetan Plateau and make increasing BC trends in the local glaciers. On average, BC deposition causes a mean forcing of ∼6 W m⁻² (roughly estimated 5% of the total forcing) in High Asia glaciers and therefore may not be a major factor impacting the melting of most glaciers.     

中国大陆23个震例流体异常时空分布特征研究

将1966~1999年中国大陆发生的188例M_S≥5.0地震震例中, 单次震例流体异常项数≥10项的23次地震的446项流体异常取出, 并将其按时序和分区进行时、 空分布统计分析。 结果表明, 除西北地区与震例相关的流体异常数量明显偏少外, 在西南、 华北、 东南3个地区, 不论是按时序还是按分区的时、 空统计, 都有较为清晰的各自阶段性; 与中国震例中流体异常的总体分布特征和各自分区异常分布特征之间有较好的一致性。